by Amanda Ashby
“I’ve got to go and get changed for the assignment, but then I’ll meet you in the office so we can get our pass-outs, okay?” he said in a businesslike voice. Then, without another word, he swung his way out into the corridor, leaving Emma seething with indignation.
CHAPTER SIX
You know, as much as I like to listen to you complain about Curtis, I’ve got to get ready,” Loni said fifteen minutes later as Emma watched her friend race around her tiny dorm room, excitedly packing her slaying kit. “And if you’re going to just sit there, you could at least make yourself useful and pass me that subsonic blaster.”
“Yes, but it’s so unfair,” Emma insisted as she obediently reached over and handed her friend the small handheld weapon that was sitting on the dresser next to the bed. Then she returned to her brooding. “I mean, why is Curtis getting such special treatment anyway? Maybe he has some compromising photos of Kessler. Probably bought them on eBay and decided to use them as blackmail to get my spot.”
“Yeah, that’s definitely it,” Loni said sarcastically as she continued to methodically pack her weapons, her brow knitted in concentration.
“Or, maybe his parents are mega rich and promised to donate a new wing to Burtonwood?” Emma continued. “Oh . . . or the retinal-scanning machine that turned up last month? That could’ve been from them.”
“Yes, or it could’ve been from the Department, like we were told when it first arrived,” Loni said as she unsheathed one of her knives and held the blade up to the light. Once she was satisfied, she added it to her bag and turned her attention to a pile of wards that was sitting on her comforter, looking like metallic buttons. “I know you don’t want to hear this, but you can’t blame Curtis. Besides, we all know what an amazing fighter he is.”
“Of course I can blame him. My life has turned to chopped liver ever since he was chosen to become a dragon slayer. Coincidence? I don’t think so. And what’s with all that hair? He should get it cut.”
Loni put down the screwdriver she had been using to reconfigure the voltage on the tiny wards and blinked. “What’s his hair got to do with anything?”
“It’s just annoying.”
Loni stopped and smirked. “Do you like him?”
“Like him?” Emma looked at her friend like she was crazy. “Of course I don’t like him. Curtis Green is my archenemy—with emphasis on the ‘arch.’ Oh, and get a load of this. He told me that he doesn’t want to do the assignment with me either.”
“Really?” Loni marveled. “It’s almost like he knows something.”
“Humph. Whose side are you on?” Emma demanded as she gently scratched her sore eye and then got up and started to march around Loni’s tiny dorm room, careful not to step on the tangle of wires and circuit boards that had migrated from the desk and were now scattered across the floor like a spaghetti explosion.
No one had been more surprised than Loni herself when she’d shown an aptitude for electronics several years ago, though after careful consideration she decided that it was because she was a Taurus and was therefore good with her hands. Plus, as a die-hard shopper, she loved the chance to pore over gadget catalogs. Personally, Emma couldn’t see the attraction.
“I’m on the good side.” Loni zipped up her kit bag and swung it over her shoulder. “And the good side is about to go and find some demons, so if you don’t mind, I’ll be off. And by the way, I don’t think you should keep scratching your eye like that. Maybe you should put the patch back on?”
“My eye’s fine. That nurse was totally overreacting,” Emma said before letting out a long groan. “And I’m an idiot. I’m sorry. We shouldn’t even be talking about me when you’re about to go out on your first code blue. Are you scared?”
Loni turned and shot her a rueful grin. “A little bit. But apparently today is perfect for me to take risks and let the world see how much I can shine. Oh, and for some reason I need to stay away from the color orange, so no carrots for me.”
“Well, don’t take too many risks,” Emma lectured. “With the demons or with the carrots.” Then she gave her friend a big hug. “And don’t let Tyler talk you into making any stupid bets like seeing who can be the first one to kill a demon and cut off their horns.”
“Don’t worry, I talked to Tyler just before you came in, and he sounded too scared to even think of betting on anything.”
“Well, that’s good. Make sure you both take care, and don’t forget to text me as soon as it’s all over.”
“I will.” Loni lost her stern expression. “And Emma, I know how upset you are about everything that’s happened, but blaming Curtis isn’t going to help. So please, try and be nice to him when you’re working on this assignment? You might even find he’s not so bad.”
“You cannot be serious.” Emma gave a stubborn tilt of her chin.
“I’m saying it for your own good,” Loni pressed on. “Because the longer you obsess over the fact that Curtis has ruined your life, the tougher things are going to get. Besides,” she wheedled, “when you think about it, this isn’t about Curtis Green. The bigger issue is about you trying to convince Kessler to change his mind and make you a dragon slayer like your mom. Remember?”
Emma closed her eyes for a moment. She knew Loni was trying to understand, but she couldn’t really. After all, her parents were alive and well and living in Idaho, and while they both liked their jobs with the Department, Emma never really got the feeling it was their calling. Ditto with Loni. She said she wanted to be a goblin slayer, but Emma secretly knew her friend would’ve been just as pleased with whatever she was given, and as long as she grew up and married a nice sight-gifted Pisces guy (preferably on the cusp) her life would be happy. But it wasn’t like that for Emma, and finding out she might lose dragons was just like losing her mom all over again. Even thinking about it left her feeling empty and desolate.
However, short of throwing herself in front of the bus and making Kessler take her with them on the mission, Emma knew she didn’t have much of a choice. She gave her friend one final hug and reluctantly headed back to her room and got changed.
It was Burtonwood policy never to wear a uniform when you were doing any patrolling, and so Emma quickly slipped into a pair of jeans and the first clean shirt she could find. She was just checking to see that she had all her books when she glanced out the window and caught sight of Loni hurrying over to the bus that was parked in the second parking lot just in front of the woods that wrapped around Burtonwood like a comforter.
Another jab of disappointment went racing through her as she thought of Curtis and—hey, what was that black shadow hovering over the bus?
Emma’s eye started to throb with pain and she snapped it shut, while acknowledging that ripping off the patch and trying to prove her point to Principal Kessler really hadn’t been such a good idea. Especially since now, not only was her eye incredibly itchy, but it also appeared to be seeing big globby things.
She opened it again and peered back out the window, but instead of the dark shape disappearing, it had now taken on a definite form, and Emma felt a cold shudder go through her as she realized the shape had wings. This could not be what she thought it was. But after another look, it was confirmed.
A dragon!
She tried to focus her eyes to identify which breed it was, but everything was still blurry. She quickly grabbed her binoculars and raced back to the window, but even with a better view, she still didn’t recognize the species. It was small for a dragon, a lot darker than they usually were, and it didn’t seem at all affected by the fact that it was daylight. Even more disturbing, despite the fact that it was flying across the sky, no one on the ground below seemed to be paying any attention to it. Then, without warning, the dragon disappeared from sight, leaving Emma to wonder if she had imagined it.
Maybe she had? Nurse Reynes had said there was a small chance that she had mild concussion, so maybe it was all just a dream. After all, she was at Burtonwood, a place filled to the brim with
sight-gifted students. So why couldn’t they see it? And more important, why was the dragon on campus in the first place? There were wards everywhere. Not just for dragons but for all elementals. In fact, Loni, who spent a lot of her spare time helping the tech guys maintain the equipment, used to joke that there were wards on the wards, all of them pulsing out positive electrons designed to keep Burtonwood elemental-free.
Emma rubbed her aching eye, but before she could figure out what it all meant, the creature suddenly reappeared in the sky, like a dark angry blot. Then she watched in horror as it made a dive directly toward the bus, where Brenda Vance was standing. Emma dropped the binoculars onto the ground as she realized that not only was this very real, but that the dragon was hunting.
Without pausing, she raced to the door and out into the hallway. Her legs pounded on the ground, her chest started to burn, and her shoes rubbed as she forced herself to keep going. Finally, she burst through the building doors, past the overhanging bougainvillea, and along the gravel path to where Principal Kessler was checking equipment and ushering everyone onto the bus.
“Thank goodness I caught you in time.” She panted as she came to a halt and tried to catch her breath. “There’s a dragon on campus. And it’s hunting.”
Principal Kessler looked annoyed. “Emma, I thought we’d talked about this. Anything else can wait until after this operation is over.”
“What?” She frowned for a minute before shaking her head in frustration. “No, you don’t understand. There’s a dragon. D-r-a-g-o-n. And it swooped so close to Brenda, it—”
“Oh my God. Emma Jones, you are so pathetic.” Brenda appeared holding a box of sonar gear, her hair looking remarkably un-dragon-ruffled. “Not only are you pretending you can see an invisible dragon that can break through our wards, but you’re trying to involve me in your delusions.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Emma stared at her. “Why would I pretend?”
“Oh, let me think. Hmm, now, why would the girl who is obsessed with following in her dead mom’s footsteps suddenly think she can see a dragon just days before the induction ceremony?”
“That’s not true.” Emma turned to Principal Kessler and shot him a pleading look. “I swear. I saw it. I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”
“Really, so where is it now? And why didn’t anyone else see it?” Brenda retorted, and Emma twisted her head as she valiantly searched the skies. They were completely dragonfree.
“Okay, so I’m not quite sure where it went,” she was forced to admit before she turned to Principal Kessler and shot him another pleading look. “But it was definitely a dragon. It must’ve broken through the wards somehow.”
“Of course it did.” Brenda rolled her eyes. “Because that’s just so—”
“That’s enough,” Principal Kessler cut in as an angry scowl marched across his face and his pale blue eyes narrowed. “Brenda, you can get on the bus, and Emma, I can assure you that no elemental has ever broken through the wards, and if it had, the ops team would let me know.”
“But—”
“But nothing.” Principal Kessler cut her off. “I want you to continue with your assignment. Now.” Then, without another word, he climbed the stairs and signaled for the driver to start the engine.
“Wait—” Emma started to yell as the bus pulled away from the curb, but it was no good and she was forced to stand and watch it disappear out of the parking lot. Suddenly, there was a coughing noise behind her and she turned around to where Curtis was standing, leaning forward on his crutches. He had changed out of his uniform and wore a simple white T-shirt underneath a plain blue hoodie that stretched across his broad shoulders and seemed to make his tanned face look even tanner. He also had a very confused expression on his face.
“Um, Jones, did you just tell Kessler that you thought you saw a dragon on campus?” He knitted his brow.
“I did see a dragon on campus,” Emma corrected as she continued to scan the skies. Then she turned to him and let out a reluctant sigh. “Unfortunately, it’s gone now, and Kessler didn’t believe me.”
“But how is that even possible?” Curtis’s face went pale. “It’s daytime and we’re in a built-up area that is warded up to the eyeballs. Not exactly ideal party conditions for a dragon.”
“Thank you, but since I have studied dragon behavior for the last seven years and did actually grow up with one of the most famous slayers in the world, I do know that. However, I also know what I saw. It was a dragon. Why won’t anyone believe me?”
“Oh, I believe you. For the last five weeks you’ve done everything in your power to convince Kessler you should be the dragon slayer, so it doesn’t really make sense that you’d suddenly try and make him think you’re crazy.”
“Exact—” she started to say before Curtis’s words hit home. She frowned. “Okay, so it’s not ideal that Kessler now thinks that I’m crazy, but if we can track down this dragon, then he will realize I’m telling the truth,” she said before she noticed that Curtis was staring at her in disbelief. “What? Why are you looking like this is a bad idea? After all, you’re the dragon slayer. I thought you would be jumping at the chance.”
Curtis glanced down to his cast. “First, I’m not too hot in the jumping department right now. Second, I never track anything until I have my kit with me. And third, but most important, we’ve got an assignment to do.”
“Oh, please. I don’t think the world will stop if I don’t show you how to slay a fairy. In fact, I can’t believe you think a dumb assignment is more important than hunting this dragon. What kind of slayer are you?”
For a moment Curtis paused and looked like he wasn’t going to answer her. Finally, he spoke. “The kind who still has three more years of study to go. Besides, Jones, we don’t all have the luxury of being able to do whatever we want around here.”
Emma was taken aback by his sudden change in tone, which almost sounded bitter and frustrated. She was about to protest when she caught the firm set of his jaw, which only served to cause his cheekbones to jut out.
She cleared her throat. “Okay, so since you have an overwhelming desire to do everything Principal Kessler tells you, how about I tell you where to find some fairies while I go and find this dragon?”
“I wouldn’t advise that.”
“Why not?” Emma demanded. “Worried that I’ll get your designation?”
“Actually, I was more concerned with the fact that Professor Vanderbilt’s heading our way, and judging by the look on his face, I’m guessing that Kessler has spoken to him. Which means that your chances of going dragon hunting are slim to none.”
“What—” Emma started to say before she spun around and realized that the old-fashioned armaments professor was bearing down on them with a grim expression on his face. She reluctantly acknowledged that Curtis was right. She could either stay there and get lectured or she could go and do the assignment.
“Fine,” she mumbled as she felt the fight drain out of her. So much for her chance to try to find this dragon and prove to Kessler once and for all how capable she was. She was obviously destined to be a low-grade fairy slayer forever.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Are you sure you really want to trade all this in and become a dragon slayer,” Curtis said as they both ordered a coffee and Emma directed him over to a table at the far end of the popular bookshop café on the second floor of the mall.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” She couldn’t quite hide her irritation. They’d already spent two hours looking for fairies, and if they didn’t find any here at the mall, then Emma was going to call it quits. It was humiliating enough having to try to slay them in the first place, but having to spend all day with Curtis tagging along after her certainly wasn’t helping matters any. Especially when they could be back at Burtonwood hunting for an elemental that was actually dangerous.
“It’s just that all the dragons I’ve ever hunted tend to come out at night. Near cold muddy swamps. This seems a
lot more civilized: books to read, food to eat, all in a nice temperature-controlled environment. In fact, I’m tempted to put in for a transfer myself.”
“You’re not going to change my mind,” Emma informed him as she stirred some sugar in her coffee. “My mom used to tell me about all her hunting trips, and of course before you decided to ruin my life I did manage a few of my own.”
She knew Loni had told her not to blame Curtis, but why couldn’t he understand that his very presence was a reminder that all her dreams and hopes were dead? As in stone-cold and six feet under, never to see the light of day again. It was bound to make a girl bitter.
She was contemplating whether to suggest they go back to Burtonwood, but before she could say anything, a familiar sound of static started to ring in her ear, which meant fairies were nearby. Emma reluctantly glanced around and caught sight of two of them hovering over by the register, just near a large display of the latest book club selection.
She let out a sigh as she got to her feet. Next to her Curtis stiffened and turned toward the fairies, but instead of saying anything, he just stared blankly into the space where they were hovering. Then he rubbed his eyes. For a moment Emma tried to work out why he was acting so weird before she let out a long groan.
“Crap.” She glanced up just as the fairies sprinkled a fine layer of glittery dust around the room. Well, that would explain why Curtis was looking blankly at the small fairies. “I think you just got glamour powder in your eyes. I should’ve warned you.”
“Glamour powder?” He turned back to her, his dark eyes now red-rimmed. Though somehow it actually made him look better than ever. Not that she cared, of course.