A small group of elemental-level students are clustered at the other side of the courtyard, speaking in hushed voices. It’s impossible to know what Families they belong to, since the students come from all over the world and speak multiple languages. But they clearly know who I am, because every once in a while they glance in my direction and lean toward one another, as though to further conceal their words.
There is movement near the arched vine doorway leading into the adjacent courtyard, and I hear cloaks being taken off hooks on the other side of the vine wall, signaling that strategic sparring has just ended. Strategic sparring, knife throwing, mind games—a month ago I would have laughed at the idea that such a curriculum even existed.
Aarya and Felix are the first to come through the vine doorway, and I get up from the bench. Aarya’s eyes light up and she brushes back a piece of wavy hair that has fallen out of her loose ponytail.
“Well, if it isn’t my favorite circus act at Phantom High,” she says loudly enough that the elemental students turn in our direction. She switches from a British accent to an American one, both of them impeccable. In fact I don’t think there’s an accent that she hasn’t mastered, making it impossible to know anything about her upbringing, other than that she’s a Jackal and a force to be reckoned with. “After you graduate, well…if you live to graduate, you should take your show on the road. I would pay good money to watch stunts like the one you pulled with Nyx.”
I exhale audibly. In a normal world, the fact that she helped me escape from Conner would mean that we’re now friends, but this is Aarya. “Anything else you want to shout in front of everyone, or did you get enough attention for the day?” I reply.
Just as I’m finishing my sentence, Brendan enters the courtyard and sees me talking to Aarya. We make eye contact and his gaze is openly threatening, like he’s broadcasting the fact that he’s not done trying to kill me. The sickest part is that he’s my cousin, and even though I didn’t know that until a couple of days ago, he knew all along—and it didn’t faze him in the least.
“Cranky, cranky,” Aarya says as she follows my line of sight. “Looks like…what’s the American saying? Ah yes. It looks like ‘someone bit off more than they could chew’ this morning.”
Felix doesn’t leave Aarya’s side, but his shoulders are turned away from me and his arms are crossed, like he’s guarding himself from having to interact with me or maybe he just doesn’t want anything to do with this conversation.
I look away from Aarya as Matteo exits strategic sparring and heads for the door leading inside.
Aarya’s eyes twinkle, like she’s found something interesting. “Unless maaaybe you’re not scared about the consequences of pissing off Nyx and Brendan because, oh, I don’t know”—she inspects her nails—“you’re leaving us soon?”
“What?” I nearly choke on the word and shift my attention back to her, trying to keep the shock out of my voice. “As much as I’d love to stick around and listen to your crap, I’ve got to go.” Given Aarya’s victorious look, it’s too late; she already knows the truth. So instead of continuing this disastrous conversation, I follow Matteo.
Aarya growls and slashes her fingers at me like she’s a big cat.
There were three things I was supposed to do today—act like everything was normal, not let people know I was leaving, and talk to Matteo. I haven’t even finished my classes for the day, and I’ve already managed to screw two of them up.
I follow Matteo through the heavy wooden door leading into the foyer. Ancient shields adorn the walls; Layla once told me they are symbols of Strategia’s roots throughout world history, but to me they’re a reminder that I don’t know my own Family history the way I should.
“I can go? You’re letting me go?” I say more to myself than to Blackwood.
Blackwood hesitates. “Technically, you can go. However, I must advise you that you still have a great deal to learn and your skills are severely lacking in several areas. But more importantly, you know very little about the Strategia world at large.”
“Maybe so, but there’s no way I can stay here while my dad’s out there all alone. Especially knowing what I now know,” I say. “What happened here with Dr. Conner seems to be just a microcosm of what’s happening out there.”
“This school doesn’t involve itself in outside politics,” Blackwood says, even though we both know that the situation between her and Conner was completely political. “I’ll just say again that it would be prudent if you made additional alliances here and learned as much as you can before you leave.”
I speed up and fall in step with Matteo’s long strides. “Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?” I say, careful to keep my voice low. With the high arched ceilings, sound is amplified in this room.
His broad shoulders tense. “I’d rather not,” he says. He doesn’t bother turning to face me.
“Look, I know you blame me for Stefano’s—” I start as we enter the hallway to the boys’ dorm.
Now he does look at me, or rather down at me, with frustrated brown eyes that remind me of my aunt Jo’s. He’s a good six inches taller than me. “You’re damn right I do. And maybe it wasn’t directly your fault that he was murdered. But the fact remains that my best friend from the time I could talk is dead because you came to this school.”
His words stop me in my tracks. I rub my forehead near my eyebrow—a gesture Ash once told me signifies shame, which I suppose is pretty accurate in this moment. “I can’t imagine what it would be like if someone killed my best friend,” I say, and my voice is gentler. Just the thought of anyone hurting my feisty Emily makes me want to cry. “I’d be hateful till the end of time.”
“Yeah, well…,” he says in front of his dorm room door.
I stare at him, unsure where to go from here. I can’t very well say “Sad about your friend, but I need something, so can we talk about that now?”
“Sorry I bothered you,” I say instead. “And I’m sorry about Stefano. Really.” My mind spins, trying to come up with something, anything that will make him listen to me, because in three more seconds he’s going to disappear into his room and my chance will be gone. “I just came to say goodbye.”
Matteo closes his eyes momentarily, like my presence is exhausting. “I’m not in the mood to play games with you.”
“No game,” I say, and I scan the hall to make sure we’re alone. I pause, hoping this gamble doesn’t backfire. “I’m leaving the Academy tomorrow.”
He exhales and breaks eye contact, looking up at the wall. After three seconds and some head-shaking, he bangs the latch on his door with the side of his fist. The door swings open.