.”
I had been dismissed. As if the start of this semester couldn’t get any worse. I walked back to my friends in a daze.
Outside, Sip, Lisabelle, and Keller were sitting on the porch chatting about their summers. I was instantly jealous. But they stopped as soon as they saw me; all three of them knew me well enough to know when something was wrong.
“You look furious,” said Lisabelle. “Who do I need to punch?”
“Your uncle,” I growled.
Lisabelle raised her black eyebrows. “Explain.”
“Can we head to the dining hall? I don’t think I can stay near this house for another second,” I seethed.
I felt my fingernails digging into the palms of my hands and tried to calm down. Keller, his bright blue eyes shadowed by darkness, looked worried. Gently, he ran his hand down my wrist, lacing his fingers with mine as we walked. I knew he was trying to give me comfort, but I wasn’t having it. The situation was devastating.
At first, when I tried to explain, I could barely get the words out. I was just that angry. After several false starts I was able to spit out the deans’ orders as the cool night air flowed into my hot face. My friends listened silently. They knew that if they stopped me I might be unable to continue until I had calmed down again.
“That,” Sip declared when she heard what the deans wanted from me, “is called sending a mixed message. Guys are very good at it.” She glanced apologetically at Keller, who only shrugged and smiled ruefully.
“What are you going to do?” Lisabelle asked.
“What can I do?” I demanded. “Not practice my birthright, apparently.”
“That’s hardly a good plan,” said Sip, her face lighted by the pale moon. “Let’s go back to Airlee after dinner and talk about it. Hopefully Lough will be here by then.”
“Right,” I said. “Let’s talk about how the deans are trying to get me killed. That sounds wonderful.”
“I’m sure that’s not their intention,” said Keller. “My aunt. . . .”
“Your aunt hates the very sight of me,” I cut him off, instantly feeling bad for my outburst, but I couldn’t take the words back. They had to be said.
Keller fell into a dark silence. His hand still held mine, but I felt him pulling away.
“Maybe this has something to do with the Map Silver,” Sip murmured thoughtfully.
“What is that?” I asked, almost too angry to speak.
My three friends stared at me. “You’ve never heard of it?”
“Nope,” I said, forgetting about Keller for a minute.
“It’s a paranormal artifact,” said Lisabelle. “One of the most famous. It’s been missing for centuries, but it was just found in the back of the storage area in some museum in New York City. They think it was intentionally hidden there when the demons were looking for it. Now it’s come into the light.”
“Is that a good thing?” I asked.
“Depends on who has it,” said Lisabelle. “Right now the paranormal government does, so it’s fine, but if it were to fall into the wrong hands. . . .”
“Why is it so important?” I asked, curious now.
“It’s a tracking map,” Lisabelle said. “It can lead its owner to anything, including other artifacts, places, people. Whatever you want. But, say they were looking for a paranormal, if that paranormal could dampen her powers, it would go a long way to confusing the Map as to that paranormal’s location.”
“What does that have to do with me?” I wanted to know, trying hard to see my friends’ faces in the darkness.
“Because you can’t hide from whoever has the Map,” said Sip quietly. “They will always be able to find you. So if it’s the demons who have the Map, the demons will always be able to find you. There is nowhere you can hide.”
Chapter Eight
“We’ll figure this out,” Sip promised, as the four stories of the library came into view. After the Tower’s collapse last semester, Public had been left scrambling to house all the events that
I had been dismissed. As if the start of this semester couldn’t get any worse. I walked back to my friends in a daze.
Outside, Sip, Lisabelle, and Keller were sitting on the porch chatting about their summers. I was instantly jealous. But they stopped as soon as they saw me; all three of them knew me well enough to know when something was wrong.
“You look furious,” said Lisabelle. “Who do I need to punch?”
“Your uncle,” I growled.
Lisabelle raised her black eyebrows. “Explain.”
“Can we head to the dining hall? I don’t think I can stay near this house for another second,” I seethed.
I felt my fingernails digging into the palms of my hands and tried to calm down. Keller, his bright blue eyes shadowed by darkness, looked worried. Gently, he ran his hand down my wrist, lacing his fingers with mine as we walked. I knew he was trying to give me comfort, but I wasn’t having it. The situation was devastating.
At first, when I tried to explain, I could barely get the words out. I was just that angry. After several false starts I was able to spit out the deans’ orders as the cool night air flowed into my hot face. My friends listened silently. They knew that if they stopped me I might be unable to continue until I had calmed down again.
“That,” Sip declared when she heard what the deans wanted from me, “is called sending a mixed message. Guys are very good at it.” She glanced apologetically at Keller, who only shrugged and smiled ruefully.
“What are you going to do?” Lisabelle asked.
“What can I do?” I demanded. “Not practice my birthright, apparently.”
“That’s hardly a good plan,” said Sip, her face lighted by the pale moon. “Let’s go back to Airlee after dinner and talk about it. Hopefully Lough will be here by then.”
“Right,” I said. “Let’s talk about how the deans are trying to get me killed. That sounds wonderful.”
“I’m sure that’s not their intention,” said Keller. “My aunt. . . .”
“Your aunt hates the very sight of me,” I cut him off, instantly feeling bad for my outburst, but I couldn’t take the words back. They had to be said.
Keller fell into a dark silence. His hand still held mine, but I felt him pulling away.
“Maybe this has something to do with the Map Silver,” Sip murmured thoughtfully.
“What is that?” I asked, almost too angry to speak.
My three friends stared at me. “You’ve never heard of it?”
“Nope,” I said, forgetting about Keller for a minute.
“It’s a paranormal artifact,” said Lisabelle. “One of the most famous. It’s been missing for centuries, but it was just found in the back of the storage area in some museum in New York City. They think it was intentionally hidden there when the demons were looking for it. Now it’s come into the light.”
“Is that a good thing?” I asked.
“Depends on who has it,” said Lisabelle. “Right now the paranormal government does, so it’s fine, but if it were to fall into the wrong hands. . . .”
“Why is it so important?” I asked, curious now.
“It’s a tracking map,” Lisabelle said. “It can lead its owner to anything, including other artifacts, places, people. Whatever you want. But, say they were looking for a paranormal, if that paranormal could dampen her powers, it would go a long way to confusing the Map as to that paranormal’s location.”
“What does that have to do with me?” I wanted to know, trying hard to see my friends’ faces in the darkness.
“Because you can’t hide from whoever has the Map,” said Sip quietly. “They will always be able to find you. So if it’s the demons who have the Map, the demons will always be able to find you. There is nowhere you can hide.”
Chapter Eight
“We’ll figure this out,” Sip promised, as the four stories of the library came into view. After the Tower’s collapse last semester, Public had been left scrambling to house all the events that
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