Anger rose inside me. Headmaster Rutherford was so calm, so casual when he doled out the punishment.
“This is some bullshit.” I threw myself down on the bed and covered my face with my hands.
The bed sagged as Javi sunk down beside me. “Don’t worry. I’ll get my dad to get rid of it. I have something that will cheer you up.”
I peeked at him through my fingers and groaned. “I don’t want to do fight training right now.”
He grinned. “No. Not that. There’s a party. Tonight. Exclusive. A Halloween party.” His face lit up with excitement.
My lip curled. “It’s not even Halloween.”
“It’s a pre-Halloween party.”
“Yeah. No thanks. Not really in the party mood. Besides, I have studying to do. And I have to meet Professor Cassiano tomorrow at five!”
Javi picked up one of my discarded books and flipped it open. “Physics? You’d pick physics over a Malibu party?” His dark eyebrows wriggled.
I groaned again. Studying was the last thing I wanted to do.
“Where is it?”
His grin widened. “The headmaster’s house.”
“The headmaster is throwing a party?”
He rolled his eyes at me. “Yeah. Please. No. Brady is throwing it. It’s a secret party only the most popular kids like us are invited.”
I gave him a flat look. “I wasn’t invited.”
He scoffed. “You’re invited by association.”
“The headmaster’s house? Will your dad let me go? I’m grounded here, remember?”
Javi swore. “I think I can get someone to help me with that. We’ll project ourselves here and no one will even know we’ve left.”
Not knowing or caring what he was talking about, I didn’t respond, but the idea was growing on me. Payback time. And what if I could sneak away from Javi while we were there?
A grin spread on my face. “Let’s do it. Let’s trash his house.”
Javi smiled. “I’ll come and get you tonight.”
He started to walk out the door but paused and turned back to me. “Oh. Another thing. Can you please convince Shiloh to come too?”
I arched my brow at him. “That’s why you invited me? To convince your crush to come along?”
He flushed. “No. I want both of you there. Promise.”
“Mmhm.”
“Just try to convince her to come too, please?”
I grunted. “Look, I’ll invite her, but I’m not gonna push her into coming if she doesn’t want to.”
He sighed. “Fine. See you later.”
“What about family dinner?” I called out.
“We’re staying in to get some extra studying done.” He winked at me.
“Fine by me.”
Shutting the door behind him, I glanced at the clock. It was almost my time for the bathroom. I could get showered, grab food, and still have time to get a little studying done before the party.
Just as I knocked on the bathroom to tell Ashley to hurry it up, Shiloh came back with a giant basket of neatly folded clothes.
“Do you already have plans for dinner?” she asked as she set her basket on her bed. “I was thinking Gloria’s again?”
I smiled at her. “Actually, I was thinking a quick dinner on campus.”
“Oh. Okay…” Uncertainty echoed in her voice.
“That way we have more time to study and then… there’s a party at the headmaster’s tonight. A secret pre-Halloween party, I guess. Brady is throwing it. Do you want to come?”
Her eyes widened in surprise. She bit her lip, and I could see the indecision written on her face. Just as I was about to give up on her, she surprised me with a yes.
“You’re sure?”
A gleam shone in her eye as she nodded. “Yes. But do you know if it’s a costume party? I don’t have a costume.” She frowned.
I shrugged. “I can check with Javi, but I’m not dressing up.”
The bathroom door opened, and Ashley eyed us. “What are you guys talking about?”
My eyes met Shiloh’s. I tried to nonchalantly shake my head. The party was supposed to be secret.
“Halloween.” Shiloh smiled. “Are you dressing up for Halloween?”
Ashley folded her arms across her chest. “I’m a harpy and Tamara is a siren.”
My lips quirked as I fought back the snarky remark on the tip of my tongue. A harpy was perfect for her.
Shiloh, ever the diplomatic one, nodded. “I’m sure you guys will look great!”
Ashley’s eyes narrowed in suspicion before tossing her hair back. “Seth and Matt are taking us out.”
I glanced at Shiloh. Were we supposed to be jealous about that? I didn’t even know who she was talking about. She continued to stand there, chin up as if giving us the honor of being in her presence.
“Congrats. Do you mind vacating the bathroom now? I want to wash this stink off me.” I stood and walked over to her.
Her brows furrowed. “Gross.”
“Yeah, well you don’t exactly smell like a flower after your training either.”
I tapped my fingers on the written schedule. “My turn.”
She turned away in a huff, grabbing the rest of her things. I wasted no time in shutting the door and the adjoining one to their room before stripping down and hopping in the shower. Excitement bubbled inside me at the thought of the party. I needed this distraction after such a craptastic day. It had been a long time since I’d had any fun. A familiar ache twisted my stomach. With Papi gone it felt a little wrong, but I knew he would have wanted me to make the most of my senior year. Even if this wasn’t the path he wanted for me.
An hour later, we were back in our rooms with our dinner, pouring over homework. The time ticked by and as tired as I’d been earlier, the closer the party came, the more awake and excited I grew.
I stared down at the old textbook, rereading the same passage. It was part of my assigned reading, but also happened to be the information I’d needed about firstborn pledges.
“A witch may be exempt from pledging their firstborn if he or she is cursed or a familial
