“I don’t remember,” he repeats. His pace has quickened, to the point where I’m jogging to keep up.
“That’s it? No details? I’m their daughter. You owe it to me—”
Finally, he stops, whirling on me with a look of rage that twists his face into something ugly. I freeze.
He bends down toward me. “I owe you nothing,” he hisses. “Now leave me alone before I do something regrettable.” And with that, he turns on his heel and walks quickly away, fists clenched at his sides.
So much for talking to Mason Dagher.
I should have known it would come to a dead end, but that doesn’t stop me from grinding my heel into the stone in disappointment. Back to square one.
I meet back up with Erin and Sawyer for lunch to tell them what happened. I thought it would be nice to take a break from our strenuous training class, but spotting my friends muddy and tired makes my muscles ache to be used.
“What an asshole!” Sawyer snaps when I’ve finished relaying the information, or lack thereof, that I was able to get from Mason Dagher. “And he threatened you! How does the school let someone like that on the board?”
“He captured that djinn, I guess,” I reply with a shrug. “And he probably spent a lot of money.” I glance at Erin; she doesn’t comment, just stabs viciously at a potato on her plate, her lips pursed into a thin line. “Tomorrow, I guess I’ll call my aunt, tell her I’m bringing home a friend for Christmas.”
And that I’m coming home for Christmas.
And that I’m alive.
This is going to be a tough one.
Sawyer’s face flickers at the word ‘friend’, but he doesn’t object.
“Do you guys have any plans for the weekend?” I ask.
“Me and Bennett are gonna work on our project,” Sawyer says. He shrugs. “We live together, so it’s pretty convenient.”
I nod.
“I’m doing extra weapons training,” Erin says quietly.
Sawyer and I both look at her in shock, and I have to put down my fork. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, I’ve got it,” she replies. “I just think I need the extra practice, so I’m going to start doing it every week.”
I feel a pang in my stomach, but I don’t know why. Maybe I feel responsible for her in an odd, sisterly sort of way. She’s weak, so I’ve grown protective.
“I didn’t know they offered extra weapons training,” I say, carefully. I should have offered it ages ago, but I’ve been too wrapped up in my own studies.
Erin looks very interested in her food. She keeps her eyes on her plate the whole time.
“It’s a student-led thing.”
I look at Sawyer, who shrugs at me and continues eating.
I’ve never heard of such a thing before, but I don’t see the point of pressing her for more information. She’s studying a little extra, not eloping with an instructor.
The next morning, I hear Erin get up and leave, and I lay in a state of semi-consciousness for a while afterward, unable to fall back asleep. I thought it would be nice to sleep in a little without Erin’s little rustling noises waking me up the way she usually does. It’s usually very annoying, and I still only get up in time to barely make it to PW.
This morning, without her, I’m too anxious to sleep. Maybe it’s the fact that I didn’t push my body to its limits yesterday. Whatever it is, today, I’m itching to get started.
I finally admit to myself that I’m not going to fall back asleep, so I throw on some clothes, and head down to the dining hall without showering. Students are up and about, chattering to each other as I pass by. Through the many windows I see people out in the courtyard and heading into the forest. It’s a chilly morning, especially this early, but they don’t seem to care.
I never realized the school was so alive before dawn.
I always sleep in too late to see it.