Biting the side of my cheek, I blink away from him as Mrs. Clement thrusts out my sheet of paper.
“It’s a bit like a sorting hat, isn’t it?” she says happily. Then, she moves on, doling out the next batch of torment to the student in front of me.
Suddenly, the burden of knowing who my chosen partner is becomes heavier than I anticipated. My heartbeat thumps awkwardly in my chest, threatening to bring me down if I don’t give in and turn the paper over.
Mrs. Clement settles herself behind her large wooden desk. All around me, people get up, finding their partners and grouping their seats closer together. I inhale sharply and my eyes flit to Wade. His paper is held out in front of him as if he’s pondering his fate. However, he abruptly stands up and walks to Mrs. Clement’s desk.
All at once, sheer panic flashes through me. What if he’s my partner? Is he asking to be reassigned? Would he do that?
I bounce between anxiety and humiliation.
Surely Mrs. Clement wouldn’t have put us together? I mean, out of twenty-five or more students, what are the chances? It has to be pretty low, right?
The urge to know drives me to flip the paper over. I have to know why he’s talking to Mrs. Clement.
Taking another deep breath, I stare down at the name and assignment in an odd sense of relief and disappointment.
Assignment: Lemures
Partner: Colton Gilbert
On the upside, it’s not Wade. But on the other hand, it looks like I’ll be doing this assignment alone. So much for meeting someone new.
While my wariness is alleviated somewhat, I can’t help but be a little surprised. Doesn’t the school know Colt and Cat are gone? Surely Diana Hawthorne would have made sure things were done properly before taking the two of them down to Georgia?
Gathering up my things, I throw my backpack over my right shoulder and walk to the front of the room. I pass Wade, who has returned to his seat. His hand flies across a small notebook as he scribbles something down, but as soon as I walk by, he stops. His dark lashes flutter as our eyes connect briefly. I shoot him a quick, awkward smile, then turn to face the teacher.
As I step up to the desk, I hand Mrs. Clement my paper. “I think there’s a bit of a mix-up, Mrs. Clement. Colton Gilbert is gone this year. He and his sister are learning at an academy down south for the year. I’m not sure that they’ll be back, to be honest.”
Mrs. Clement takes my paper, adjusting her red rims on her nose. She eyes the document with sudden suspicion. After a moment, she slams it down. “Goddamn administrative staff. They never tell me this stuff. They know it can affect the outcomes of my class. I swear, Ms. Cain does this shit just to screw with me. Damn masochistic wench.”
My eyebrows flutter upward in surprise but I stifle a bit of a laugh. I’ve never heard a teacher be quite so brutally down-to-earth and honest. I have a few choice words about Ms. Cain, too, but I’d never say any of them out loud. Especially not inside the walls of Windhaven Academy. I know how some of the magical elements of this facility work.
Sighing heavily, she tugs over another sheet of paper, eyeing the two of them side-by-side. I bend forward, trying to get a better view.
“Well, Ms. Blackwood, it’s not ideal, but looks we all have to make sacrifices this year” she says, scribbling out Colton’s name and the assignment. She writes new ones down and thrusts the sheet of paper back to me. “Forget Lemures, they’re not as exciting.”
I flip it over to get a better look. Scrawled across the page in big bold letter is: The Three Fates.
Underneath, my eyes flit to the name.
Adrenaline courses through my veins as my heart sinks.
Of course, it is.
I glance over my shoulder just as Mrs. Clement calls out, “Congratulations, Mr. Hoffman. Looks like you’ll have a partner after all.”
Chapter 3
Open Wounds
Space. Just a little bit of freaking space would have been nice. But instead, it’s like the universe just wants to meddle in my life, making things as hard as humanly possible. Life, death… relationships.
I want to do the right thing—but it’s impossible to tell what’s right anymore. Especially when I can’t even get away from the one person I desperately want to be with but know I can’t. Or at least shouldn’t.
My gaze softens as I stare at the walls of the resurrection chamber, wishing the stillness of this space could permeate the rest of my life. Instead, things are about to get very complicated. I’d hoped to communicate with Abigail, but she’s still as difficult as ever to connect with. Between my dad’s trips and Abigail being MIA, this house is the epitome of silence. Yet, inside my head, it’s never been louder. I check my watch and stand up. It’s about that time.
Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, I turn to face the way out. Light from the small window illuminates the edges of the staircase wall, beckoning me upward. Dropping my shoulders, I make my way to the staircase.
Fate.
I roll my eyes at the word as I ascend the stairs from the resurrection chamber. Even my teacher is taunting me with this ridiculous assignment. If only she knew just how difficult this was going to be. A part of me wishes like hell Cat and Colton were still here. While doing this assignment with Colton wouldn’t have been ideal either, it wouldn’t be quite this cruel. At least for me.
Guilt rolls through my midsection. Not thinking about Colton’s feelings is part of the reason they’re not here in the first place.
Shaking my head, I close the door behind me and gather up my laptop and notebook. The last thing I want to do is come back here.
I close my bedroom door behind me, just in time to hear the doorbell ring. The hairs on the back of my neck rise, ushering a shiver straight through me.
“Here goes nothing, Autumn,” I whisper to myself as I walk down the expansive hallway toward the front entry.
As I reach the main staircase, a rush of cold air thrusts past me, making me pull up short. Clutching my laptop to my chest, I spin around. “Abigail?” I call out.
The frigid air remains, making my breath billow out like it’s the middle of January.
Again the doorbell rings, making me jump. Shuddering away the chill, I rush to the door and fling it open.
“Hey,” Wade says. He runs a hand across the back of his neck, then crams his hands into his jeans pockets.
“Hey. Come on in,” I say, stepping aside and opening the door wider for him.
He tips his head and steps inside. “So, this is…”
“Yeah,” I say, nodding.
“Well, did you want to stay here? Or go someplace a little less…”
“Nah,” I say, swiping my hand in the air and hoping I pull off a bit of nonchalance. “It’s all good. Wanna go to the dining room? Or the study?”
“Which place would make you feel more comfortable?” he asks, shifting his gaze to the dining area.
“Let’s go down to the study. The Wi-Fi is better,” I say, tipping my head toward the staircase and nodding for him to follow me.
I walk up the grand staircase and push open the double doors directly in front of the landing. A large table with cushy red leather chairs rest directly opposite us. Beyond, the wall of windows overlooks the courtyard and pond, with a view of the glittering water that’s only rivaled by sitting on the dock. The trees haven’t quite begun their descent into fall, but you can tell by the hint of fog lingering on the water’s surface that it’s just around the corner.