“Let me help you with that.” Haru’s calming voice floated over from where the Partizan leaned over to take one of Ellie’s suitcases.
“No, I’m fine, I—”
But Haru paid no attention, taking the case effortlessly.
“Curious”: that was still the only word Jamie could truly come up with to explain Haru. No matter how much he pondered the strangely soft Partizan, he could never quite figure him out. Even after a whole summer together, he was an enigma, so warm, yet so distant, like sunshine.
Jamie reached down for Lottie’s case, an oversize pink case that she’d bought with her Portman funds, in stark contrast to Ellie’s battered sticker-covered black case.
His elbow nudged Haru’s side. The other Partizan flinched, grabbing his stomach like he was in pain.
A hazy, rain-soaked memory flashed like lightning in Jamie’s mind, the smell of a growing storm catching in his nostrils and a boy in a mask struck by one of Ingrid’s blades that Jamie had thrown.
They stared at each other, the sun beating down over them.
Jamie felt his skin prickle, his instincts taking over, fearful and ferocious. But it was Haru. It made no sense. Haru couldn’t be that masked bird boy on the roof; it was impossible, ridiculous. He quickly put the thought out of his head, not allowing it space to grow.
“Will you miss me?”
Jamie was caught off guard. “I . . . What?” The alarm began to fade, the pounding in his head softening, replaced only by confusion and Haru’s gentle smile. “I don’t know. I suppose I’ll have to be away from you for a little while to find out,” he replied, barely concentrating on what he was saying.
Something glinted in Haru’s brown eyes. “Maybe we’ll meet again? Maybe sooner than you think.”
Before Jamie had time to dwell on this, something bumped him in the knee, hard.
A cat. A big black cat with yellow eyes that he recognized instantly from the woods.
With a fierce resolve, the oversize creature continued to bump his legs, rubbing against him just as it had done by the great bamboo tree.
“Vampy!” Lottie’s high-pitched squeal caught the large feline’s attention. She rushed over, shoving a white box in Jamie’s arms and leaning down to scoop up the big brute of a cat. It made a strange noise halfway between a purr and a grumble, its legs sticking out in begrudging acceptance of its cuddly fate.
Oh God, he thought, suddenly realizing why he felt an affinity for this creature. He’s like me. “You know this cat?” he asked.
“Know him? Vampy saved your life!” Lottie nuzzled a cheek against the creature. “He came to find me in the storm and showed me where you were.”
The cat’s glowing yellow eyes locked on Jamie and he could practically hear its sarcastic drone telling him, “You’re welcome.”
As she placed the cat back on the ground, it began to mewl, calling the attention of everyone around them.
“He wants to go with you,” Miko told them. She gave Jamie a hard look, as if he had something to answer for.
“Well, that’s tough luck for him,” Jamie replied, turning back to the car, placing Lottie’s case in the trunk. But he was only met by hissing and more leg bumping.
“You can’t ignore the cats.” Miko was adamant, her eyebrows knitting together.
Sayuri swept forward, picking up the purring cat and shoving it in Jamie’s arms. “It’s decided,” she said. “The spirit of Kou has spoken, and you must take the cat back to Rosewood.”
Jamie stared at everyone, sure they must be joking, but not an inch of humor sparked on their faces, save for everyone from Rosewood, who broke out into laughter. The cat gave a tiny mew of satisfaction, but Jamie was sure he could hear what the creature was really saying.
“I win.”
33
THEY ARRIVED BACK AT ROSEWOOD Hall two days before school was due to start. Evening light sank over the grounds as they pulled up through the golden gates.
There were no reporters to be seen in the empty hours of the day, an eerie stillness surrounding them when they climbed out of the car. Lottie hoped that the journalists had become bored of the story, but part of her knew now that there had been more to the media coverage than they’d wanted to admit.
Few students arrived before induction day, with only a handful of lone students and groundskeepers around. Anastacia, Saskia, and the twins had headed home and would be joining them tomorrow, leaving Lottie, Ellie, and Jamie nearly completely alone at Rosewood.
It was time for the moment of truth.
Walking up the path to the reception hall felt like they were walking to trial.
The hall echoed when they entered, almost empty, the settled dust stirring, catching in their noses. It felt like walking into a tomb.
A solitary secretary sat at her desk, waiting to sign in early arrivers.
Riddled with jet lag and nerves, they each gave their names and were admitted entry, until finally it was Lottie’s turn.
“Name, please.” The summertime secretary was a tired-looking woman with graying red hair and long fingers, yawning while she tapped away at the keyboard on the giant oak desk.
Her friends knew Lottie had got enough extra marks at summer school to make up her overall grade, but they needed to hear it. They needed the school to welcome her back.
“Lottie Pumpkin.” Her voice barely wavered, accepting whatever was about to come their way.
Fast fingers clacked at a keyboard, taking them closer to the answer they’d been waiting for. Looking up at them, the secretary’s face was unreadable, and Lottie squeezed her eyes shut.
“Thank you, Charlotte. Here is your return package. You can come back tomorrow at noon to collect your timetable.” Ellie and Jamie barely moved, all of them hardly believing it was true, that everything they’d done had been worth it. “Oh, and welcome back.”
“Thank you,” Lottie said. She desperately wanted
