My brain feels as though it’s seized up and all I seem capable of doing is staring blankly in her direction.
“Who are you?” Wade asks, pushing his tray aside.
Her face brightens a bit as she turns to him, almost peering at him through her pink bangs. “You know, that is the existential question, isn’t it? I mean, who are any of us, really?” She opens her arms wide, as if she’s commanding the space around her in some sort of orchestrated event.
It’s Wade’s turn to look dumbfounded as he turns his wide, silver eyes to me.
“Okay, so I can tell the two of you aren’t super-fast on the uptake, so I’ll do you a favor and see if you can play catch-up. My name’s Diana,” she says, as if the word should be completely self-explanatory.
When neither of us make a move in acknowledgement, she exhales in exasperation, extending a hand and stealing one of my green peppers. She pops it into her mouth, then extends the same hand out to me. Without thinking, I reach forward to shake it. However, Diana places her other hand over top of mine, locking it in place. Closing her eyes, she practically pulls me off my seat as she tugs my hand in to her body.
Instantly, my entire arm hums with a strange combination of heat and static electricity, igniting a domino effect of goosebumps across my flesh. “Um, excuse me,” I say, yanking my hand back.
Diana opens her eyes slowly, sitting up straighter in her chair. Evidently finished with me, she turns her piercing gaze to Wade. Her eyes flit from the top of his head downward, but she doesn’t extend her hand to him.
She shakes her head and mutters, “Angel. How quaint.”
Wade’s face pales and my mouth pops open.
How in the hell did she know the pet name I have for him?
Suspicion dissipates and I lean back in my seat. “Ah…you’re the world-renowned psychic we’ve been hearing about. No offense, but aren’t you a little young?”
She’s certainly not what I expected. If anything, she’s got maybe a year on me, and if that’s the case, there’s a good chance Wade’s older than her.
Again, she smirks, her eyes twinkling mischievously. “What’s age got to do with anything?”
Again, it’s not the response I was expecting. She clearly just likes to turn people in circles. Probably so she can make herself seem more powerful. Despite her knowing Wade’s nickname, it doesn’t mean she has psychic gifts that go beyond Dominic’s.
What a joke.
“Well, a lot, actually. Look around you. This school is filled with people our age, all trying to learn how to master their abilities. How am I supposed to believe you can pick things up better than they can?” I say, holding back my indignation as best I can.
Diana leans forward, with an oddly gentle expression taking over her features. “And you believe a school like this is the only way to hone those abilities, do you?”
“Well…” Sorta. But with the way she’s looking at me, I’m inclined to keep that to myself.
“Diana, if you are who you say you are, then you’ll have to give us something more to go on. No offense, but this is a college campus, and everyone here has it in for us at the moment. So, you’ll have to forgive us if we don’t take you at face value,” Wade says, recovering from his initial surprise.
Diana inhales slowly through her nose, letting her gaze fall to the table then rise up to him. “I understand your hesitation, Mr. Hoffman. I do, but I’m not the one under investigation here.” Diana’s eyes flick to me. “She is. So, I guess what I’m trying to say is…I’m disinclined to acquiesce to your request.”
Wade inhales sharply and his gaze snaps over to me. I’m not sure if it’s from the fact that she so bluntly said I’m under investigation or the fact that she used a movie quote reference from one of his favorites.
She’s either fishing, a genius, or actually rooting around in his brain.
“Fair enough. What do you want?” I say, turning to her.
“Don’t be coy, Ms. Blackwood. You know why I’m here. I’ve been sent to assess your level of interaction with the local resurrections,” she says, turning to me without batting an eye. “So, do you have anything you’d like to confess? Anything on your mind and weighing on you?”
“I didn’t do anything—” I blurt out. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is Cat’s resurrection and the weird interaction with her in the woods.
Diana’s blue eyes home in on me. “So, there has been a resurrection, then? Who’s Cat?”
My pulse quickens, and I gape at her.
She chuckles under her breath and shakes her head.
“What are you laughing at?” I say, slamming my hands down on the table in front of me.
She tips her chin condescendingly and pats the top of my left hand. “There, there, little one. No need to get yourself worked up. You’ll give yourself premature wrinkles.”
“Ugh,” I moan. She’s just toying with me, but I’m starting to feel like a mouse who can’t escape.
“See, here’s the thing, kids,” Diana begins, resting her forearms on the table and clasping her hands out in front of her. “There’s only two ways revenants like the ones in this town can be called forth. The first one would take a magician capable of harnessing the higher vibrations of earth energies. We’re talking deep, powerful magic. Not only would that take an incredible skill level of biomancy, but it also requires the use of relics very few have even heard of. Or…the more likely scenario is a newbie necromancer was playing around with forces beyond her capabilities and level of awareness…and who, of course, didn’t know any better. Since
