by Holly Hook
She didn't show up at the farm that day, but Tasha did, rolling up in the Zombie. Tasha asked me if I could take us to lunch, but Dad butted in and pointed out I had sticks and leaves stuck to my clothes from working. "Why don't we all order a pizza?" he asked.
"No pizza," Mom said, climbing down the ladder to a nearby tree. "I've done research on the benefits of a vegan diet. Let's go with some veggie subs instead."
My stomach roared. I was starving. My body was changing, getting ready for maturity, and while I appreciated Mom's attempts to stop it, I hated this. "Sounds good," I said as Dad and I shared a grimace with each other. I would've killed for a regular cheese pizza.
Mom smiled at me.
She had stress lines around her eyes.
Tasha had lunch with us and by the time I crawled up to my room, my limbs trembled with weakness and I was sure that if Jens came back to life and tried to stab me, I wouldn't have been able to defend myself. The light was long and tired, and I'd picked so many ripe olives that day I smelled like Italy. Peering out of my upstairs bedroom window, I realized that I had almost forgotten how green the farm could get when water poured down from the sky. The transformation was worth looking over for a few minutes.
A green, lush world existed, and I might have done this.
Would maturing be a bad thing?
Yes, I decided.
I'd still become a fire-breathing monster, and a green farm wouldn't make any difference in that. I'd still be a monster that people wanted to slay and a monster with a temper that should never get crossed.
As I leaned on the windowsill, I reached into my pocket to draw out Sven's gift. I needed him in any way, shape, or form.
A dark iron sword pendant, hand-carved, hung on a silver chain that dangled from my fingers. Warmth spread from the chain as if it had absorbed and kept some of my body heat for itself. Something about it felt right, and an overbearing urge to put it on swept over me. It was unexplainable.
I did.
For a moment, I felt as if Sven were with me.
And for the first time since leaving his house, I could lie down and pretend that everything would be okay.
* * * * *
"So, how's the job going?" Tasha asked when we met in the parking lot on Monday.
"Good," I said. She wasn't the type who would ask. "Dirk showed me what to do, and I get to do the route alone next Saturday. His parents liked my performance. And I get paid next week. It's forty dollars, but it's money I can hide away and don't have to report for a tax return. If I do this every weekend, I'll have over two grand this time next year."
"But you're tax evading!" Tasha said, bringing her hand up to her mouth.
"Dirk's parents wanted to pay me under the table. I think of it as parent evading. How can I file my taxes without them knowing?"
"But they will find out," Tasha warned.
"Thanks, once again, for your vote of confidence," I said, turning the corner.
"I'm just trying to warn you. And who gave you that necklace?" Tasha reached out and took my sword pendant, turning it over with hungry fingers.
I tensed. If she knew I was still seeing Sven in secret, then soon others might know. I couldn't even take the risk of Tasha knowing, and it sucked. "Dirk," I blurted.
Her jaw dropped. "I knew it!"
I took the pendant back. "He's into a lot of old school video games," I said. It made the sword make sense. "We were talking about Paperboy on Saturday morning. But keep this a secret." This had the potential to blow up in a very awkward way, especially if word of this got back around to Dirk. Now I was digging myself into another hole.
Tasha laughed all the way to Mrs. Cornea's class. Then I entered the classroom.
Sven sat in the middle of the class again. He glanced at me and waved, but looked forward again when Tasha came into the room behind me.
I stood there in shock. But Tasha didn't give me any time to come up with a reaction. "Sven!" she said. "You're back!"
And then Tasha scrambled over to take a seat next to the guy.
I could only stand there in disbelief. Sven was back in the school headed by a literal dragon principal who wanted him dead or at the least, out of the picture.
How? Why?
He wasn't here because of me, was he?
"Oh. Hi, Tasha," he said, not sounding enthused.
"You're back," I said over her shoulder. "I thought you got, you know, expelled?"
"Suspended," Sven said, keeping his tone even. But his gaze flicked to my pendant, and a smile teased the corner of his lips. Now I knew why he wanted me to wear it.
"Yeah. I thought you got expelled, too," Tasha said. "You stabbed Principal Adler with a plastic fork."
"Well, she wouldn't let go of me," Sven said with a shrug. "But I got suspended because she tried to confiscate my phone." He wore a gray tank top today that showed his amazing arms. There was no red glow in his pocket at all.
I thought. Principal Adler wouldn't have gone through the trouble of expelling Sven. She'd have to go through the school board to do that, and how would she explain it? But what was he doing here with her around? It wasn't as if Sven could bring his crossbow to school. Then he'd get expelled for real and imprisoned.
Then I remembered his angry father and the discussion he wanted to have. Sven had already told me his father wanted him to return to the danger zone.
It was better than thinking that he was risking his life for me. I half-expected Sven to get up and leave once he had his answer, but he didn't. Instead, he tried to bury himself in his Lit book, dodging Tasha's small talk. She had no clue that Sven was sending her tons of not interested signals.
Mrs. Cornea started class, and I expected Principal Adler to call me down to the office again, but it didn't happen. She didn't call for Sven, either, so she must not know yet he had come back to school. My mind spun through class. When the bell rang, Tasha tried to hold Sven up, but he dodged her and darted into the hall before I could even catch up.
"See you later," I told Tasha, waving.
At least my lying about Dirk giving me the pendant kept her from trying to race me to Sven. I was no longer a threat. Therefore, I could catch up with Sven. After doing a Principal Adler check, I matched my pace with his, looking forward, making it appear as though we happened to be walking side by side. This was dangerous enough.
"Why are you here?" I asked.
"My father wants me to find and slay a dragon shifter."
That was it, then. Sven sounded so official when he spoke it sent a shudder down my back. This was the persona he used for his family, then.
"I couldn't tell him I've found two," he said, staring straight ahead.
"He's okay with sending you into danger?"
"That's what we do."
I wanted to ask if his father would send him back to school if he knew about Adler, but the hallway split and we were getting close to the office. She stood in the doorway, watching the students as she always did, and Sven hurried down the hall and into the crowd.
Tasha waved at me and followed him. She tapped on his arm and started talking to him again. Adler stared after them for a moment as her expression hardened.
That left me to walk past the office alone, but at least Principal Adler had no intention of murdering me. I walked close to her to take her attention off Sven and Tasha.
"Felicia," she said.
I almost kept walking, but I stopped and kept a few feet between her and me.
"I'm sorry about Friday," she said, sounding it. "I should have explained things better. If you have questions—and I'm sure you do—come after school, and I'll straighten things out."
"Sure," I said, keeping my distance.
Then her eyes narrowed as she looked at my necklace. "Who gave you that?"
"Dirk."
A relieved smile spread across her face. "That's good. I've always liked that boy."
I hurried on my way. "Don't want to be late for class."
"Later
, Felicia?"
"Maybe." Most importantly, I had to get to class before the hallway cleared too much.
Principal Adler would want to talk me into maturing when no one else was around, and probably when I'd have a weekend to recover from it. Well, two extra days to get used to my new form and then learn to take a human one again. I picked up my pace and didn't look back. That was something I refused to think about. Just in case, I checked my hands and fingernails again. They had seemed to elongate when I scratched Jens across the chest...
I'd have claws. Scales. Sharp teeth...
Faster.
Gripping the warm sword pendant, I ducked into my next class and tried to listen to a lecture about equations. That put a wall up for a while, but the more I sat and thought, the worse I felt. My delayed stress was acting up again. The library was available if I wanted to research dragons, but the thought of doing that made my stomach so upset I couldn't eat at lunch. Besides, it was possible Principal Adler could catch me alone in there.
Using my phone was out. I had no privacy in my household. Phones were life for most of my classmates, but not me. My parents didn't allow that.
The sick feeling only got worse through lunch, and Sven didn't show up in the cafeteria. It wasn't that I could blame him. The guy had to go find some place to eat at lunch that wasn't at school and was nowhere near a cave entrance. He'd taken enough of a risk just showing up at class. Tasha tried to gossip throughout lunch and asked me about Dirk, but she seemed a million miles away.
"Felicia. What's with you?" she asked.
"Nothing," I snapped.
"Geez," she said.
"Look, my parents have me under a lot of stress. I'm sorry," I said. "I'm not in a good mood."
"Dirk should cheer you up," Tasha said.
"Well, it's not as if I can do anything with the guy other than walk to school," I said. "Sure, he's great to talk to, but--"
"Great to talk to? You haven't even kissed him yet?"
"No. Not yet," I said.
"But kissing should have come before giving you this," Tasha said, lifting my sword pendant from my neck. "Wow. It's warm."
"I know," I said. "I don't know where he got it."
Tasha let the pendant fall back to my neck. "Here he comes now."
Uh, oh.
"Don't say anything," I said. "Dirk doesn't like gossip, so stay quiet. Please?"
Tasha nodded. "Deal."
"Thanks," I said right before Dirk sat down next to me. Tasha could hardly conceal her smile.
Becca and Yasmin sat with us, too. I tucked the sword pendant under my shirt, praying that Tasha didn't notice. Thankfully, she got so caught up with talking to Yasmin and Becca that she paid no attention. The three of them made plans for seeing a movie this coming weekend, and Tasha didn't even ask me if I could go. How could she? We both knew I had a prison sentence.
But it still made me feel lousy. For a moment, I almost felt tempted to go down to the caves and do whatever it took to mature faster. At least my parents wouldn't have the excuse of wanting to protect me anymore. They'd believe I could protect myself.
But Sven...
No.
I wouldn't let Principal Adler or anyone else force me to fight him or cause any more pain to his family.
"I'd invite you, Felicia, but I know you're stuck," Tasha said at the end of lunch. "Maybe next time. We'll see if anyone else tries to stab Principal Adler."
"I hope not," I said. "This sucks. I'll let you know if I can sneak out." I was going crazy a little at a time.
"Yes. Let me know," Tasha said. "Fingers crossed." She didn't sound confident.
It turned out that Dirk had to stay after school to help tutor someone for Algebra, so I had to board the bus to go home. I searched for Sven as I gathered my stuff from my locker, and I spotted him climbing into a parked BMW in the parking lot. A family member must have picked him up. Right then, as I sat on the bus looking outside, he felt distant. The pendant is the only thing I had of him.
Was this how things would be?
Keeping secrets sucked.
The bus pulled away. My stomach heaved again with nerves as it dropped off my fellow students to empty houses. These people weren't in prison. They didn't have to hide those they wanted to date.
I gripped the bus seat so hard that my fingernails ripped the fabric. The heat pooled in my hands again, threatening to unleash.
When I got home, I'd confront my parents.
I'd tell them that weird things were happening, and I'd make them admit to the truth to my face. I was tired of living like this. This situation would destroy my friendships and my entire life if it continued much longer. Tasha was already drifting away, Dirk would soon, and Sven would have to move on. Besides, it wasn't as if my parents would take me into the caves to mature faster. They wanted to hold on to me for as long as possible. Heck, maybe they would help me avoid Principal Adler.
Confronting them might not help liberate me, but it might be the first step. I hoped. The more I thought about how they treated me, the angrier I got. They were also willing to let me find out the truth the traumatic way, and all because they didn't want to let go. By the time the bus pulled up to my driveway, the heat filled my body, and I had to take a breath to calm it down. What if I unleashed some kind of fire magic? Lit the olive farm aflame? Started a wildfire?
Mom and Dad weren't in sight when I got off the bus which was unusual since Dad had vowed to pick me up in the truck if he heard the bus coming. Maybe he hadn't heard, or he was working towards the back of the farm.
The bus grumbled away, and I hiked up my backpack. Sven wouldn't be here today. Now was the time to use my anger to my advantage. I had to do this before it wore off.
"Mom. Dad," I yelled.
"Felicia."
I froze right there in the driveway, turning my head. Principal Adler stood there between two of the olive trees, standing among grass that had grown a few inches during the last couple days. She wore a purple blouse that brought out her violet lipstick.
The anger inside me died, only to get replaced by ice.
"Hey," I said, trying to keep my voice neutral. During the bus route, she'd figured out that I wasn't meeting her in the office and then beaten me here.
"Your parents are in the house," she explained. "I've just ruined my friendship with them, but it's necessary."
"Ruined your friendship?" I asked. "What did you do to them?"
"I'll let them go soon enough," she said. "I have them bound, but I won't harm them. They don't understand what your best interests are, Felicia."
"You mean, you tied them up?"
"Yes. But they won't be harmed, and they know that. I have two people guarding them right now."
"Who?"
She wouldn't answer my question. Instead, Principal Adler took a step closer to me. "It's time for you to get out from under their thumbs. I'm sure you agree. They need to stop treating you like a child."
"Yes." I knew she was trying to get on my good side, but she was leaving out the part about me having to fight Sven's family after I matured. She'd already mentioned that.
"I parked over there," she said, pointing through the olive trees.
I glimpsed Principal Adler's silver SUV, mostly hidden in the foliage. Translation: she wanted me to go with her.
She'd take me to the caves in no time.
"I know I haven't handled this well," Principal Adler continued. "But if what I suspect is true, then I have to stop it, regardless of your feelings." A faint red glow burst to life in her eyes. "I'm sorry."
"What you suspect?" I asked.
"Your necklace," she said, "came not from Dirk. I think I know who gave it to you. I will meet him, and if you don't come along, then I must deal with him without your input."
Chapter Seventeen
My legs seemed to turn to stone. My throat dried.
Did she know about Sven?
How was that possible? She'd seen Tasha with him, but not me.
The necklace sat against my skin, just underneath my tank top, but Principal Adler had already seen it.
How did she know?
"In the SUV, please," she said. "I know you're not happy with me, but this is necessary. You're the last person I want to hurt, Felicia."
She wanted to force me to mature into a monster. That was close enough. How long would it take? I had already manifested magic. What if it happened today?
Dizziness made the olive trees spin as I walked towards the SUV. I glanced at the house, but the trees had grown so lush from the freak rain I couldn't see it. I couldn't even see if there were any vehicles parked there. Who was with my parents, and would they hurt them? Principal Adler could lie for all I knew.
The passenger door was unlocked. I opened it and climbed inside, taking a breath. I feared I might throw up all over the seat. Before this, I'd been going to yell at my parents.
The next time I saw them, I would have changed.
What would they think then?
I might have killed on purpose or I might have watched Sven die.
The pendant stayed warm as if a part of him were with me. I had never taken his phone number, so I couldn't even text him a warning. We had no code word. I should have ignored my fear about using my phone. Then he might not have to die.
Principal Adler got into the driver's seat. She smiled at me.
"Don't do that," I said.
I expected her to reprimand me for my anger, but instead, she smiled. "I'm glad to see you standing up for yourself. The time is coming where you will need to do that."
"Why are you so obsessed with my necklace?" I asked. "It was just a gift from Dirk. I helped him deliver papers." Principal Adler had a thing about not saying things directly. That was almost as bad as my parents hiding the awful truth.
She started the SUV and gripped the steering wheel as if she didn't know what to say. "I asked Dirk about it. He said he didn't give you any gifts."
"He what?" I couldn't believe it. My parents being nosy was one thing, but not Adler. "You asked him? Isn't that getting into my business?"
"Yes. I asked him after lunch," she said. "He was confused. I had to know who gave it to you because you're wearing a piece of stolen dragon treasure."