Ritual of Magic (Academy of the Damned Book 2)

by Veronica Shade

  I shrug. “I’ve had a few beers before.”

  “The drinking age in Canada is eighteen,” Krista says. “I’m fine.”

  Ivy lays her head on the table. “I’m never going to drink again.”

  Krista and I laugh.

  “Have either of you seen Zoey this morning?”

  “You mean this afternoon?” Krista corrects. “No. She wasn’t in your room?”

  “Nah, she’s probably been up for hours.” I tear off a piece of bread from my breakfast plate, chew, and swallow it with a gulp of lukewarm coffee. “Just weird that I didn’t hear her get up. I’m sure she’s in the library or something.”

  “That little girl needs to loosen up,” Krista says. “We should have taken her with us last night.”

  “Umm, no,” I say. “The last thing we need to add to our grand larceny charge is contributing to the delinquency of a minor.”

  “What’s this about grand larceny?” Jaxon asks as he approaches our table and slides his tray next to mine. “Where were you last night? I looked everywhere.”

  “We sort of had a girls’ night out,” I say.

  “Aww, and I wasn’t invited?” he whines, sitting with us.

  “It was very last minute,” I say. “We sort of needed to get out of town.”

  “Because of the larceny?” he asks.

  “Yeah,” Krista says at the same time I’m saying, “Yes.”

  Jaxon looks at us, and his eyes go wide. “Wait, what? Did you four actually steal something?”

  “The three of us did,” I say. “I found the North Wind Flute at the Peabody Essex Museum.”

  “And you just took it?” he asks.

  I shrug.

  “That’s crazy! How could you? What’s going to happen when Ms. Brewster finds out?”

  “She already knows,” I say. “Who do you think told us to get out of town for the night to establish an alibi.”

  Jaxon sits back and crosses his arms. “Geez. You three are crazy, you know that?”

  “Don’t worry.” I tear off another piece of bread. “My thieving days are done. It was stupid, and I’m sick with guilt. I wish I hadn’t done it.”

  “It’s over,” Krista says. “We just have to stop thinking about it and move on.”

  “Who’s the fourth?” Ivy says, raising her head and drinking more of her coffee.

  “What?” Jaxon asks.

  “You asked if we four stole something,” she says. “Who else would have gone with us if not you?”

  “Umm, Zoey?” he says. “I couldn’t find her last night, either. I assumed she was with you guys.”

  “What?” I ask, completely alert now. I drop the bread pinched between my fingers back to my plate. “You didn’t see her?”

  He shrugs. “I mean, I didn’t look that hard. None of you were in your rooms, so I thought the four of you were together.”

  My heart thumps hard in my chest. “Did you check the library? Or the racquetball court?”

  “No,” he says. “Like I said, I just assumed you were together so I went and saw a movie in town with some of the guys. Why?”

  I pull out my phone and try to call Zoey. It goes right to voicemail. My stomach turns sour. “We have to find her. Now.”

  Ivy chugs her coffee and sits up straighter. She still looks like death. “Why are you worried?” she asks. “Was she in her bed when you went to your room last night?”

  “I don’t know,” I say. “It was dark. I was drunk. Tired. I just slipped in quietly and fell asleep. I don’t know that I even looked at her bed.”

  “She was probably there, then,” Krista says. “Maybe you didn’t notice her there, but surely you’d have noticed if she wasn’t there.”

  I grit my teeth so hard that my jaw hurts. Would I, though?

  “Let’s just look for her now,” Krista continues. “I’m sure she’s fine.”

  She’s probably right, but I can’t help worrying. It’s kind of how I felt when I went after Ivy in the underwater tunnel. It’s irrational, but I feel like something is wrong.

  I go to the library first, hoping Zoey is there studying. When I don’t see her as soon as I walk in, I want to burst into tears. Ivy must see the look on my face because she squeezes my shoulder as she walks by.

  “Come on,” she says, and we walk the length of the library checking each aisle. But we don’t find her.

  “Can I help you?” Mr. Hamilton asks us.

  “I’m looking for Zoey,” I say. “She was gone when I got up.”

  “Hmm,” he says. “I haven’t seen her since Thursday evening.”

  “Thursday?” I say. “You mean she wasn’t here on Friday at all?”

  “No, I don’t think so,” he says.

  Jaxon turns to me, the confusion in his expression suggesting he doesn’t see what the big deal is. “So she wasn’t here. What does that mean?”

  “The last time I saw her was lunch yesterday,” I say. “I left her in the dining room and went to study. When I found out about the Peabody Essex, I went to my room, but she wasn’t there. She also wasn’t there when we got back and changed our clothes before going out for the night.”

  “Damn,” Krista says. “I didn’t know.”

  “I…I didn’t think…” I start to feel sick, and my eyes water. “I should have been looking out for her!”

  “What’s going on?” Mr. Hamilton asks. “Should we be worried?”

  “Not yet,” Ivy says. “Madison is just a bit on edge. Lots of pressure at school. You know how it is.”

  “Yeah,” Jaxon says. “It’s a big school. Zoey could be anywhere. We’ll keep looking.”

  As they lead me out of the library and toward the racquetball courts, Mr. Hamilton hurries back to the library desk and picks up a phone, his gaze following us as we leave.

  I stop looking over my shoulder and start looking around, trying to find Zoey. Willing her into existence. We near the basketball courts and tennis courts. She could be there getting some exercise.

  But she’s not.

  I try to call her phone again, but again it goes straight to voicemail.

  “I think we need to tell Ms. Brewster,” I say.

  “There’s still lots of places to check,” Jaxon says. “All four floors. The music room. The art department.”

  “The potions lab,” Ivy says.

  “The crystal vault,” Krista adds.

  “No!” I say. “We are wasting time! Something is wrong.”

  “Why are you so sure?” Jaxon asks as they follow me back into the main house.

  I swallow around the pinch in my throat “It’s just a feeling.”

  “Remember what happened last time you had a feeling?” Ivy asks. I know she’s just kidding, to lighten the mood, but it strikes me the wrong way.

  “What were you doing in those tunnels anyway?” I ask, turning on her.

  She lifts both hands defensively. “Whoa, calm down.”

  “I won’t ‘calm down,’” I say. “Why did the selkies take on your appearance? What were you doing there?”

  “Hey, you were the one who almost died,” she says. “Not me.”

  “Yeah, but only because you were where you weren’t supposed to be,” I say. “You put everyone in danger, and you never explained why.”

  “Okay, that’s enough,” Ivy says. “I’m not on trial here. We’re supposed to be looking for Zoey.”

  “Yeah, calm down,” Jaxon says. “Let’s just talk to Ms. Brewster, okay?”

  I turn away from them and continue my trek toward Ms. Brewster’s office. This time, before bursting in, I pause. I look through the open door and see Ms. Laurent there again. As agitated as I am, I force myself to wait.

  “What’s going on?” Jaxon asks. “I thought we were in a hurry.”

  “Ms. Laurent,” I grumble.

  “What about her?” Jaxon asks.

  I shake my head and cross my arms, running the toe of my shoe across the carpeting so I don’t have to make eye c
ontact with anyone. I shouldn’t have attacked Ivy like that, but the more I think about it, the more irritated I am. Even water witches aren’t supposed to be in the tunnel—and for good reason. Why does no one seem to care that Ivy was the one who put everyone at risk? Those selkies could have come through the tunnel at any time. Ivy left it wide open!

  Finally, Ms. Laurent stands and leaves the room. She raises her eyebrows at the group of us as she passes, but she keeps her comments to herself—thank Goddess. I swear I am about to go off on anyone who crosses me right now.

  “Come in,” Ms. Brewster says, and I go in the room first, everyone else following behind.

  “Where’s Zoey Rhee?” I ask without any preamble.

  “Excuse me?” Ms. Brewster says.

  “Zoey,” I say. “I can’t find her anywhere and haven’t seen her since lunch yesterday.”

  “Yes, well,” Ms. Brewster says, “you have been a little busy over the last twenty-four hours, haven’t you?”

  “But she’s been missing since before that,” I say. “And she is still missing now. I tried to call her, but her phone goes directly to voicemail.”

  “Hmm.” Ms. Brewster picks up her own phone and dials a number. After not getting a response, she closes her phone. “Well, there are plenty of areas in this large house that are dead zones. Don’t worry, I’ll send someone to look for her.”

  “That’s it?” I ask. “She’s been missing for over twenty-four hours!”

  “Calm down, Ms. Whittaker,” Ms. Brewster says, standing. “We don’t know that she’s missing. Only that you haven’t seen her. That’s no reason to panic. I’m sure she is fine. We will do everything we can to find her. It’s a big school. She has to be here. Just go study or something. I’ll let you know as soon as I learn something.”

  Jaxon grips my arm and gently leads me to the door of Ms. Brewster’s office. Once we are in the hallway, he puts an arm around my shoulders.

  “See,” he says. “If Ms. Brewster isn’t worried, then you shouldn’t be, either. Let’s find some food. I don’t think two bites of bread counts as breakfast.”

  I don’t even bother correcting him.

  “Yeah,” Krista says. “Low blood sugar will make you crazy.”

  “I don’t have low blood sugar,” I say as I push up the sleeves of my shirt. “I’m just hot.”

  All three of them gasp in horror.

  “What?” I ask.

  “Madison!” Ivy says, pointing. “Your arm!”

  I look down and see black lines seeping out from around my bandage.

  “What the hell?”

  I tug at the bandages to get them off. When I finally do, the wound is red and black and hot. It’s pulsing like it’s going to burst.

  “It’s infected!” Krista says.

  “Holy shit!” Jaxon says. “You need help. Now!”

  Chapter 8

  When I wake up, I’m scared to look at my arm. It was so nasty and hurt so bad, I’m terrified they had to amputate it while I was passed out. At least, I’m assuming I passed out. I don’t remember it happening. One moment I was awake, and now, I’m waking up.

  I hear voices before I open my eyes.

  “How was class this morning?” Ivy asks.

  “Boring,” Krista says. “If I don’t set something on fire soon, I’m going to explode.”

  “I think she moved,” Jaxon says.

  I can feel them all looming over me.

  “Hey, Madison?” His voice is gentle. “Are you back with us?”

  I force my eyes to open even though they still feel heavy. My friends’ worried faces peer down at me.

  “What happened?” I ask.

  “The wound got infected somehow,” Ivy says. “But Jaxon’s mom was able to save you.”

  “And the arm?” I ask.

  “Yes, and the arm,” she says with a chuckle.

  I breathe a sigh of relief and sit up. My head spins, but I force myself to stay sitting. I look at my arm, which is now wrapped in new bandages. When I touch it with my other hand, heat radiates from it. “What’s wrong with it?”

  “Infection, still,” Jaxon says. “Mom will need to clean and put new herbs on the wound daily until it heals.”

  “I don’t understand,” I say. “I thought Ms. Laurent had taken care of it.”

  “She did,” Krista says. “Which is why no one can figure out how it got infected.”

  “I think it must have originated with the selkies,” Ivy says. “Perhaps a previously unknown pathogen in their bite.”

  “Previously unknown?” I say.

  “Well, we don’t know everything about the supernatural world,” Ivy says. “Especially when it comes to creatures that aren’t witches.”

  I swing my legs over the side of the bed, relieved I’m in my own room and not the infirmary. But then I see that Zoey’s bed still looks like it hasn’t been slept in.

  “How long was I out?” I ask.

  “Three days.” Jaxon holds my arm to keep me from falling over. “You need to take it easy. Eat and drink—”

  “Three days?” I shriek. “Where’s Zoey? Did anyone find her?”

  They all look at each other, their mouths drawn in thin lines. No one wants to tell me the truth even though it’s written all over their faces.

  “Are you serious? She’s been missing for three days? No, four. Since Friday, if today is Tuesday. How can she still be missing?”

  “We’re so sorry,” Ivy says. “After you passed out, we were just worried about you. But Ms. Brewster swears she is doing everything she can to find Zoey. With her on the case, we didn’t think there was anything more we could do.”

  I stand and grip Jaxon’s arm tightly. I hate to have to physically lean on him, but I feel like my whole body has atrophied since I passed out.

  “We need to do something,” I say. “We have to find her. What if someone has her? Or worse?”

  “Madison, you need to calm down,” Krista says, “and eat something before you pass out again.”

  “And maybe put on some clothes,” Ivy says.

  I look down and see that I’m just wearing a long T-shirt and socks. I cuss as I look at Jaxon and blush. I’m fully covered, but still. I reach for Krista and Ivy, and they help me to the bathroom where I sit on the toilet as they bring me a full outfit to wear. I have no time or interest in doing my hair or makeup. When I emerge from the bathroom, Jaxon is waiting with bagels and orange juice. He must have popped through a mirror to pull that off so fast.

  He hands me the food and drink. “I didn’t think you would make it all the way to the dining room without collapsing.”

  “Thanks.” I nearly fall onto the food as I shove a bagel in my mouth and rip it apart like that selkie did my arm. It’s half gone before I take a second to breathe, then I gulp down the orange juice. When I’m finished with the first bagel, I can already feel a difference. My head is clearer and my legs seem stronger. I take a second bagel, but I’m less ravenous now.

  “Better?” Jaxon asks.

  “Immensely,” I say. I start to pace as I eat and think. “So what has Ms. Brewster done to find Zoey?”

  Ivy shrugs. “She told us just to focus on you and she would let us know if she found her.”

  “So you don’t know,” I say. “I assume she hasn’t called the police?”

  “Of course not,” Krista says.

  I nod, remembering what Ms. Brewster told me when Giselle died, and she refused to call the police then, too. We take care of our own here. But this is a missing child. If she was kidnapped, the police should be looking for her.

  “Well, I’m fine now,” I say. “We should go to Ms. Brewster and help her.”

  They all nod, but don’t say anything. That tells me all I need to know: they don’t want to get involved. They want to obey Ms. Brewster and go on with their lives.

  But if they know me at all, they know I won’t give up. I won’t stop until Zoey is found.

  I march straight to Ms.
Brewster’s office and go in without knocking or being invited.

  “Really, Ms. Whittaker,” Ms. Laurent says as she stands up from the chair at Ms. Brewster’s desk. Ms. Brewster stands as well, her eyebrow raised in question. “Have you not learned a single manner in your seventeen years.”

  “This is important,” I say. She opens her mouth to object, but I continue on without giving her a chance to interrupt me. “How can Zoey still be missing?” I ask Ms. Brewster. “This is unacceptable. She’s just a little girl. We need to find her.”

  “I agree,” Ms. Brewster says. “And I am doing all I can—”

  “Which includes what?” I ask. “Have the grounds been checked? Have you scanned the area for any mortals or mundanes who might have gotten on campus and kidnapped her? Have you used scrying to discern her location?”

  “Yes,” Ms. Brewster says. “All that and more. It seems the girl simply vanished without a trace—”

  “But that’s impossible!” Tears fill my eyes. “We’re witches, and there’s hundreds of us. There has to be more we can do!”

  “Madison!” Ms. Brewster chides. “That is enough. You have been through a great deal and need to calm down before you pass out again.”

  “Don’t worry about me,” I say. “Zoey is all that matters right now.”

  “No, she is not,” Ms. Brewster says coldly. “I have an entire school of young people who need looking after, including you. What would I tell your mother if something had happened to you?”

  “At least I have a mother,” I say. “Zoey has no one. If we don’t find her, no one will.”

  “I understand your concern,” Ms. Brewster says, trying to calm me. “But be assured I am doing everything I can. You should go back to your room and look after your own health. I don’t want your arm getting any worse. Go see Ms. Kane and get it looked at.”

  “This is crazy,” I say. “How can you not be more worried?”

  “I’m sorry, are you reading minds now?” Ms. Brewster snaps, her eyes flashing with a threat.

  Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. Does she know I’ve been, like, sensing things from people? Or had that weird vision from the statue?

  When I don’t respond, she continues. “Don’t presume to know what I am thinking or feeling or doing. I care deeply about every student here. You should take care of yourself and stay out of the way, lest you end up even more severely hurt than you already are.”