“The spell may remove their magic, but they are still built stronger and more athletic than a human, so extra precautions in some places are warranted.” Dad brushed past me and headed toward the main entrance.
My stomach lurched, and I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what I’d gotten myself into, but I was already in too deep. The best thing for me to do was to move forward. I took a steady breath and followed my Dad inside.
Chapter Three
As I walked through the main entrance, I was surprised to find that the place was airy and open. I’d expected it to be grim and dark, but it almost felt as if I had walked into any convention center in New Orleans.
There were two guards stationed behind a desk. One sat in a chair and focused on multiple television screens while the other stood with his arms crossed. His eyes landed on Dad first than slid over in my direction. “Is that the new guy?”
“Yeah, that’s my son, Aaron.” Dad straightened his shoulders and stared the guy down. “Aaron, this is Rufus.” Then he pointed over to the man who was watching the cameras. “And this is Gerald.”
Gerald glanced away from the screens and nodded his head in my direction. “Nice to meet ya.”
“Uh… It’s nice to meet you too.” It was strange. Dad and Mom were social and had a lot of friends, but not me. Sure, people enjoyed being around me due to my parents' social position, but true friends, ones I could count on… there wasn’t one.
“I hope this isn’t going to be a conflict of interest.” Rufus ignored my existence now and focused on Dad. “Do the Elites know?”
“Of course they know, and it won’t be.” Dad turned my direction and slapped me hard on the back. “Here he’s just the same as anyone else. If you have a problem with the decision, please send me an email, and we will address it accordingly.”
Rufus shoulders seemed to sag at those words. “No, no problem. Just was concerned for a moment. If the Elites made this decision, then I trust their judgment, but he won’t be given any slack.”
“Like I said, he’ll be treated the same as anyone else.” Dad lowered his voice and narrowed his eyes in Rufus’ direction. “If I have to say it one more time, you and I will have a problem.”
“Of course, sir.” Rufus turned his small, beady eyes in my direction and frowned.
Great, this guy already had a problem with me.
“Rufus here is the head of the guards.” Dad arched an eyebrow and took a few more steps toward the men.
“That’s right. I’ll be in charge of your training.” Rufus smirked and ran a hand through his carrot colored hair.
This was getting better and better. “For both the guard and hunter?” Can this day get any worse?
“Hunter?” Gerald’s attention strayed from the televisions and focused back on me.
Did I say something wrong? “Uh… yeah.”
“Aaron will be splitting his time fifty-fifty.” It almost appeared as if Dad was puffing his chest. “And no, Rufus will only be training you in the guard position.”
At least that was a small reprieve. I’d take what I could get at this point. “Oh, okay.”
“I’m going to take him back to the badging office and find someone to give him a tour of the place. Tomorrow, he’ll be ready to begin training after he’s read all the SOPs.” Dad turned toward me and tilted his head to the door.
“Of course, sir. I’ll coordinate with Mac on the training schedule.” Rufus buzzed the door open.
“Go ahead, son.” Dad motioned to the opened door. “I have to badge in.” He walked behind the guards’ desk where there was a sliding door with a place to scan a badge in front of it. He scanned his badge, and it dinged while the retractable doors slid open for him to walk through.
I hurried through the opened door before Rufus changed his mind and shut it on me. Hell, maybe that would have been more of a blessing than a curse. As I made my way through, the open airy feel was still there. “This sure doesn’t feel like a prison.”
“Oh, it is.” Dad raised his eyebrows, which caused his forehead to crease. “But this prison is different from any other in the country.”
It was hard for me to buy that. Everyone liked to think what they did was different or unique, but in truth, it wasn’t. “How so?”
“Come on, I’ll show you.” We walked down a long hallway that was lined with windows. It was a beautiful day outside. The sky had a few puffy, white clouds, and the sun was shining high.
At the end of the hallway, there was a door leading outside. It had a different feel than the rest of the place. It was a standard hollow metal door that I’d imagine was in every single prison.
Dad slid opened a hidden compartment to the side and pressed a button. A camera slid out from behind the wall, and an electronic voice filled the air. “Please stand in front for retinal scan.”
Since he was already in position, the camera flickered, and a red laser beamed out, hitting him right in the eye. “Identity identified. Welcome, Warden Andrews.” The camera slid back into the wall, but the voice continued. “Please enter your password.” Another slot opened, and a keyboard slid from the wall.
Not missing a beat, Dad reached out and quickly typed in his password.
“You have passed validation. You are now allowed to continue.” The keyboard slid back, and there was a loud, vibrating click.
“Here we go.” Dad opened the door, and it was nothing like I’d ever seen before.
I’d expected a concrete workout station with bars around it, so what I saw left me breathless. There was grass everywhere with huge trees, and several yards off was a cornfield where numerous people were working; both men and women. “What the….”
“See, I told you.”
