Book 2 Chapter 13
1634 Words
13
Nico and I make our way to the portal. Fern promised to meet us there with the portal key.
After that potion she gave him, Nico looks fine—you’d barely know he was injured. He walks with an agile gait, like he can spring into action at any moment.
She’d also warned that it would send his testosterone into overdrive, and it definitely has. He can’t keep his eyes off my chest. He also keeps shifting back and forth. In wolf form he darts away and then bounds back after a few minutes. Once he shifts human again, he falls into step beside me, breathing hard with exertion.
I can’t help but wonder if he’s running off an erection.
We go the long way around the quad, to avoid any crowds of students.
Like my previous mission, this quickly fails as well.
We manage to smack right into Jordan, hanging with a few of his spy class friends. He glances up at us and I hope he’ll just let us walk by, but no such luck. He excuses himself from the group and jogs over.
“I didn’t know you were out,” he tells us.
Nico plants himself in front of me, almost like he doesn’t even want Jordan to look at me. I’m pretty sure it’s the testosterone amping up his animal protective instincts. It’s annoying, but as long as he doesn’t pee on my leg to mark his territory I can deal with it.
I elbow my way past Nico as he finishes giving Jordan a long slow up and down look. “I feel like there’s a lot you don’t know,” Nico sneers.
“Yeah.” Jordan isn’t even insulted. “That’s why I ask questions.” He turns to me. “I thought you were stuck in the infirmary.”
Hepa appears out of nowhere. “They’re supposed to be.”
“Hey, Hepa!” Jordan grins. “Wow, this is like the tenth time we’ve accidentally bumped into each other today. Small campus, huh?” There isn’t a trace of mockery in his voice. He’s completely sincere.
I cut my eyes at Hepa as she simultaneously blushes and scowls. It might’ve escaped Jordan’s notice, but them bumping into each other is no accident. Hepa is into him. Which is fine with me, but why did her stalking of Jordan have to be right now?
“So then, what’s up?” Jordan asks all of us. “Were you looking for me?”
Nico growls a laugh. “Why would we be looking for you?” He starts to walk in the direction of the portal, but of course, Jordan and Hepa follow.
“You’re going somewhere, aren’t you?” Hepa asks.
“Yes, away from you,” Nico informs them.
Jordan tilts his head. “Where are you really going, Edie?”
“Would you two please shut up,” I whisper yell. “For a spy, you’re very obvious!”
Jordan lowers his voice. “Well, wherever you’re going, I’m coming. You guys are not exactly fighting fit.”
“No,” Nico tells him. “This is a two-person mission and…”
“Hey Greg,” Jordan shouts over my shoulder. “Come join our secret mission.”
I shake my head. Jordan’s spy classes have obviously not yet covered “quiet voices.”
“Secret mission?” Greg asks, from behind me. “What secret mission?”
I hang my head. “Look guys, Nico and I got this. We don’t need you to come.” We probably could use the help, but I just led these guys into danger, and they almost didn’t get back out.
“This is a quick and dirty thing,” Nico agrees.
“I like it quick and dirty,” Jordan says. “I mean, I like it any way I can get it.”
“Yes, he doe—” Hepa clears her throat. For a second she was looking at Jordan all googly-eyed, but now they snap back into focus. “Don’t you need backup?”
“Yeah,” Greg chimes in. “I mean, Nico is literally missing an eye. What if he needs to do something that involves depth perception?”
“I can see better with one eye than you can with both of yours, little bat,” Nico barks.
“Okay, everyone, over here, now!” I say, motioning them to an empty bench. They gather around. “Look, this is off book,” I tell them in a low voice. “The teachers don’t know about it. We could get into some major trouble.”
“Okay, I’m in.” Jordan says.
“Really?” I ask. “Just like that?”
“Yeah, me too,” Greg says.
Hepa also nods and gives me a ‘why not’ shrug.
“I didn’t even tell you yet that the mission is to rescue Cassie…”
“Oh, it’s for Cassie?” Greg says. “Then I’m double in!”
I shake my head. Gods, I love my friends.
I give Nico a look. “They want to help. And we probably will need them.”
“Fine,” he says in a low rumble. “Everyone needs to make their way over to the portal. Discreetly. If you’re not there when we’re ready to leave, you’re not coming with us.”
Everyone agrees and heads off in different directions, but first they break like we’re a football team and it couldn’t be more obvious, even if we did a cheer first.
“Amateurs,” Nico grumbles.
I nudge him. “Are you always this grumpy or is it the potion from Fern?”
His one eye blinks at me in surprise. “Grumpy? Did I take a bite out of anyone?”
“Well, no. Not literally.” I hesitate, not wanting to get in a fight before our mission. But at the same time, I feel like it needs to be said. “But you were super rude to my friends.”
“Rude.” Nico scoffs. “I was honest. That’s the way my mother raised me. Mad Maddox doesn’t take any s**t. Anyway, this isn’t charm school. And I’m not here to make friends. I’m training to be a warrior. If everybody had my focus, maybe we’d actually win this war and finish all those monsters off for good.”
On that dark note we arrive at the portal. Hepa and Jordan show up a few minutes later. We wait quietly—with Nico’s attitude it seems safer to avoid making conversation. Finally, Fern comes running toward us. After taking in that there are now four of us gathered by the portal, Fern takes out two keys. “Okay I’ll have to adjust the spell, I thought it was just us going but it shouldn’t be a problem to change the number…”
“What’s going on?” Hermes asks. What is with my luck?
I try to act natural but honestly, we all look super shady.
“Hermes!” Fern says, shoving the keys into my hands. She takes his arm and steers him away. “I was just looking for you. I wanted to talk to you about sex.”
“Really?” he asks, utterly enthralled. “I thought you worshipped at the altar of Lesbos? Are you perhaps curious about the other side of things?” The rest of us are forgotten, Fern’s masterful redirection taking up all of Hermes’ interest.
“Well, yes. The s*x-ed class. I heard it was cancelled. That’s really a shame…” She leads him off.
I let out a relieved breath. “I guess it’s just us then…”
“Don’t leave without me,” Greg squeaks in bat form, landing on my shoulder. “I shifted because I wanted to be extra sneaky but I got side-tracked by a tasty insect so I thought I’d grab a snack, but now I’m here…”
Hepa shakes her head. “From all of that I understood ‘leave’, ‘extra’, and ‘insect’ so I’m a bit confused…”
“It’s not important,” Nico says. “We should go before we’re caught.”
“Yes,” I agree. “Fern said this was the outgoing key…Hepa, can you spell it to let more people through?”
Hepa nods and takes the key. “Magic isn’t a bottomless well,” she tells us. “Using it tires witches out so I’ll have to stay by the portal and rest while you go. That way I can heal Cassie if she needs it when you return, and I’ll be sure to have enough power left to get us home.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I tell her. “And let’s be sure we all go through the portal together this time. No one gets left behind.”
“That wasn’t our fault…” Greg says, shifting into human form. “Except maybe it was because I swear I was bitten by a mosquito or something, like maybe a mosquito hopped a ride with me through the portal and it would’ve counted as a living thing. One nasty mosquito, too,” he says, reaching up to scratch between his shoulder blades. “You should see the bite. I swear it’s infected because—”
“I’ll take a look when we get back,” Hepa says quickly, and right on time. Beside me, Nico was just starting to bristle.
Hepa throws in the key and the pillars light up. We go once again into the desert, but at least this time we know what we’re facing. A monster stronghold.
At least I’m not facing it alone.
- Writer
