The balding man arched back from the stack of papers in front of him. “Miss McAllen, please take a seat.” He gestured to the only chair in the cramped room not piled with books or folders. “Do you have any idea why I wanted to see you today?”
I scooted the chair over in front of the cluttered desk to face him. “No, not really.”
His belly dented into the desk as his voice went low. “Your dad specifically requested me to be your advisor. He also asked that we make a change to your schedule.”
“Really?” I inched forward until I was perched on the edge of my seat. “Why would he do that?”
“For your protection.” His office chair squeaked as he shifted his weight. “We can’t have the girl next in line to be the Seer expose her powers in a class full of students. The word would certainly get out on you.”
“What are you talking about?” Sliding back in my chair, I crossed my arms over my chest. I needed a little more information before I trusted this guy.
“I think you know exactly what I mean.” He unhooked his glasses from his ears. Then he whipped out a white handkerchief, rubbing the smudgy lenses. “In an effort to earn your trust, I’ll throw you a little bone. Your dad and I are both high-ranking officers in the Guardian organization.”
“I knew it.” I gasped, pumping my fist into the arm of the chair.
“I’m guessing he didn’t tell you that little tidbit?” He folded the handkerchief into a neat triangle, then placed the glasses back on his face.
“No sir, he didn’t. Not outright.” My insides did a little dance at this new revelation. “But why wouldn’t he tell me himself?”
“For one reason. Only members of the Guardian Council know his secret. Every other member of the three societies think he defected to Nexis when your mother was recruited.” His eyes trained on mine as if the whole world were about to end. “ I trust you’ll keep this new revelation to yourself.”
“Absolutely.” I froze under his beady-eyed gaze, still as a deer in his headlights.
“Good. I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Papers swished across the desk as he pulled out a stapled packet and pushed it toward me. “Now that we’ve got that settled, let’s address the matter at hand. Instead of taking Firstborn Bloodline Powers in the biology department with everyone else, I’ve arranged for you to take that class as an independent study course privately tutored by me.”
“Oh, okay.” I took the packet of papers he offered me. Another syllabus, this time for Firstborn Bloodline Powers.
“Don’t let that syllabus out of your sight.” His words poured out slowly, like he didn’t want to spook me into making a break for it. “Inside, you’ll find specific resources tailored to your needs as the next Seer. We don’t want that information falling into the wrong hands.”
“Seriously?” Oxygen seeped from my lungs like a deflating balloon. I gulped in stale office air, flipping through the pages. “What kind of information are we talking about here?”
“There.” He reached across the desk, turning to a specific page. “You’ll find this particular list of resources helpful. But they are meant for your eyes only.” His deep voice hit a grave note. “Understood?”
I scanned the list of reference books he pointed to. Wielding Angel Fire. The Secrets of the Seer’s Powers. Gifts of the Firstborn: A Study of Light and Darkness.
“Wow.” I sputtered. “Are these books all about how the Seer’s powers?”
“Yes.” His elbows clanged on the desk, his voice low. “They are all located in the chapel library, but not found in the catalog. You’ll find information on Seer powers such as how to control humans and supernatural beings, like angels and demons, with your mind. But be careful. Utilizing dark power comes at a price, while wielding angel powers comes with an enlightening truth.”
“How cool is that?” I clutched the paper to my chest like it was my new best friend.
Mr. Harlixton squinted at me through his glasses. “Lucy, don’t let these books fall into the wrong hands. Even though these books are in Seer’s code, someone could find a way to translate the texts. Never underestimate the lengths to which one society will go to uncover another society’s secrets.”
“Seer’s Code?” I glanced across the desk at him. “Does that mean these books are in a secret language only I can read?”
“Very astute.” His expression changed as he studied me. “Each of those texts are encrypted so only the current or future Seer can read them. The Guardian Council on Seer Training enacted that policy after Nexis discovered their first Seer in the 11th Century. St. Lucia.”
That last part hit me in the gut. St. Lucia seemed to be following me around everywhere I went.
“Put that away. Now.” Mr. Harlixton hissed, eyes flitting to my syllabus then to somewhere behind me.
Immediately, I did as I was told, shoving the syllabus into my bag behind the Watcher invitation. Could this day get any weirder?
“I hope I’ve answered your questions.” Scraping back his chair back Mr. Harlixton rose to his feet. “Have a good weekend, Miss McAllen. I’ll see you in class.”
“But—” When his eyes hardened, I clamped my mouth shut. “Next week then.”
He nodded toward the exit as a honey-blonde girl waited in the doorway. “Miss Fairchild, good to see you. Please come in.”
Following his lead, I rose to my feet and squeezed by the familiar intruder on my way out, her green eyes slicing into me. Miss Fairchild was none other than Colleen, the nametag girl from the Nexis meeting. No wonder Mr. Harlixton ended the conversation so abruptly.
How much did she hear? Those catty eyes glued on my every move, like she saw right through me. Was she the Nexis member watching from the tower, or just a lackey sent to follow me? A chill crept up my neck. With a slight nod in her direction, I booked it down the hall, gunning for the nearest exit.
Even though Mr. Harlixton had given me some answers, I still had way too many questions. First a strange vision, then a Watcher invite, and now a personalized class in Seer powers? After a week full of paranormal revelations, I need a healthy dose of normal. So much information bombarded my brain that I was almost looking forward to a double date with a couple of Nexis guys I barely trusted. Go figure.
Chapter 7
Humid air pressed down on me, clogging my lungs as I pushed open the glass door to Nelson Hall. The gray heaviness outside had somehow seeped into my dorm, my thoughts. Had Mr. Harlixton just told me my dad was a spy? Maybe that was why he trained us growing up to be more open-minded. An ache formed in the back of my neck. Why did everyone have so many secrets, especially my own family? There were just too many questions.
“You got a sec, Lucy?” From behind the giant mahogany desk the forty-something dorm mom waved at me, her frizzy fake-red curls bouncing. “I haven’t talked to you much. I hope you’re settling in all right.”
Great. Another question. “No complaints so far, Miss Sherry.” I edged toward the stairs. Couldn’t she see the dark cloud hovering over my head?
She cinched her hands onto her plump hips. “Now don’t be shy. I’m sure a pretty girl like you has lots of friends and lots of guys chasing her.”
Flames fanned up my neck, but I mussed my hair to cover it. Time to pull out one of those pageant smiles Mom taught me. “Well, that’s very nice of you to say.”
She motioned me toward the front desk. “Since your dad’s on the board, we all figured you’d start as soon as your brother graduated. But after what happened to the Donovan girl, no one blames your brother for running off to Europe. Or your parents for being shy to send you to us. So sad really.”
“You mean Julia? What happened to her?” I looked around the room as if she were hiding behind the couch, plotting this whole thing. But the lobby was strangely empty.
“No, this was before Julia’s time.” The desk dug into Miss Sherry’s belly as she leaned forward, lowering her voice a notch or two. “I meant her sister of course.”
&nb
sp; “Say what?” All I could do was stare blankly like an idiot.
She laughed. “Your face is too funny, like someone kept it a secret from you on purpose.”
“Okay...” What an odd response. Somehow, my head bobbed, but I couldn’t feel it. My whole body felt numb. “Why wouldn’t they tell me?”
“I’m sure your parents just wanted to protect you.” She ran her fingers through her short fluffy hair, her dark eyes surveying my face. “I’m sorry I brought it up, me and my big mouth. I never meant to upset you.”
“So what happened—?” I clamped my mouth shut as a flash of blonde hair appeared at my side.
I turned to see Monica’s white smile. “Hey, Lucy, don’t let me interrupt something. I’m just here for my weekly check-in with Miss Sherry. Then I’ll be up to inspect your room.”
“Super,” I groaned, ready to make a beeline for the stairs.
“Don’t worry, sugar. Everything will be fine.” Miss Sherry’s bracelets jingled as she patted me on the shoulder.
I could only nod at her. She clomped out from behind her desk and ushered Monica into her office.
Okay, maybe I was totally paranoid, but something weird was definitely going on there. Did something bad happened to Julia’s sister? Did it have anything to do with my brother? Maybe I didn’t want to know.
I shuffled up the stairs and down the hall until I reached Julia’s door. Muffled noises seeped under the cracks, crying noises. I raised my hand to knock, but chickened out and tiptoed to my room instead. She probably didn’t need my prying questions right now.
As soon as I closed my door, I tugged open the dusty blinds with a whoosh that echoed off the hardwood floors of room 210, my boarding school dorm for the next nine months. The windowpane stood tall and alone against the far brick wall, like a sentinel on guard. Nothing could go wrong on its watch. A perfect view of the river loomed beyond the glass, juxtaposed against a serene lawn. The green contrasted with the deep gray water, merging into a peaceful palette. If I closed my eyes, I could almost hear the gurgle of rushing water over the pitter patter of Shanda typing away on her laptop.
I curled up in the window seat as rain pattered against the glass, a random lull that soothed all of my questions away.
Just as I got comfy in my window nook, a knock banged on our door. Without a word from me or Shanda, the door popped open and Monica burst into the room. So much for manners.
“Hey girls, sorry to interrupt. I’m Monica Belmont, your dorm’s resident assistant this year. I haven’t met you yet, so I wanted to stop in and say hi.” She flipped her golden hair over the shoulder of her perfectly pressed coral tank top, her tawny cat eyes glinting as she stared me down. “Plus, it’s time for your dorm inspection.”
“I’m Lucy, and this is my roommate, Shanda Jones.” Mom would applaud my manners, especially when the favor wasn’t returned.
“Inspection?” Shanda barely glanced up and made a mad dash to her closet. Mom wouldn’t call that entertaining properly. What would Shanda’s mom say, or did she even have a mom? She never mentioned her.
“I thought it was pronounced Shawnda, like Wanda.” Monica’s southern drawl stretched each syllable like pink taffy as she made a note on her clipboard.
“No, it’s Shan-duh.” My roomie turned to glare at Monica, enunciating both syllables slowly. “People get it wrong all the time.”
“Then I don’t feel so bad.” Monica’s high-pitched laugh grated my ears. “Nice to meet you too, Lucy. Of the famous McAllens. Your brother was a legend around campus. He must be the life of the party wherever he is in Europe.”
“I’m sure.” I cringed and glanced at Shanda, who gave our less than friendly RA the side eye.
Monica brushed her blond hair over her shoulder like she hadn’t just poked an old wound. “I’ll be popping in now and then to check on you, besides your weekly inspections of course.”
“Good to know.” Shanda turned back to rummaging around her closet.
Monica didn’t seem to notice her clipped tone as she walked around the room, perusing the space. Most of the stuff in the room was Shanda’s. She’d set up the room before I got there.
When I’d walked into my dorm room for the first time, everything was all laid out already. Our beds were pushed against the long brick wall, with a desk in between for an extra dose of personal space. She’d even shoved the standard-issue dressers into the closest by the front door to make the room feel bigger. Of course, that meant that her closet was filled to the brim with designer clothes and stacks of shoeboxes.
“Looks like we’ve got quite the decorator here.” Monica nodded approvingly as she circled the white fuzzy rug in front of our beds, flanked by black butterfly chairs.
“That’s all Shanda.” I couldn’t help but smile at my new friend. Maybe I could even get her to blush.
“Thanks.” Shanda finally glanced up from rearranging her closet, the tiniest curl tipping up the corners of her mouth. “But don’t let her fool you. Little Miss Thing over here didn’t love everything I did.”
We both eyed the posters hung all over the white cinder-block walls. Mostly pictures of Paris or New York, mixed with a handful of bare-chested boys.
“I just thought too many boys might distract us from our studies.” I pointed to one of the pop-star posters.
Shanda’s grin widened. “I couldn’t disagree with that logic. So we made a deal. I left the black and white ones up.”
I chucked under my breath. “And she left the pop of color to me.” My only contribution to the room was the bulletin board above my desk with bright fuchsia polka-dot paper and my family photos. A cute, scrapbook-like window into my life back home.
“I’m glad you girls could work it out on your own.” Monica ticked off a few more items on her clipboard. “I hope you’ve had a good first week at the academy. I know it can be hard settling into a new school, but it seems like you’re both getting along well.”
“We are.” I couldn’t help but smile at my new friend. She was already more than a roommate to me.
“Did we pass inspection?” Shanda chewed on her lip.
“Of course you did. You girls definitely have the neatest room on Nelson Second Floor.” Monica turned the clipboard our way to reveal a line of check marks in the “Exceptional” category. “If you have any problems or just want to chat, my suite is down the hall in 201.”
“Great.” Shanda inched toward the door for a water bottle, as if to herd Monica out.
“I’ll scoot on out of here and let you two get your weekend started.” Monica’s accent twanged as she flashed her perfect white teeth and waved goodbye.
As soon as the door closed, Shanda almost spat out her water. “Sheesh. Our RA should get Mean Girl tattooed on her forehead. Why on earth would she bring up your brother like that?”
I blinked at the closed door, my jaw slack. “I guess everyone knows about my brother the Nexis president who ran off to Europe. Yet, I have a feeling there’s plenty more secrets to uncover.” I snapped my mouth shut and glanced at Shanda who turned toward her closet.
“Who says the word scoot? And who scoots, anyway—can you scoot?” She dug through a box until she found a pair of black boots. She pulled them on and freestyled around me. “Look at me. I’m the Queen of Scooting.” She strutted her stuff like Michael Jackson, completely ignoring my almost-meltdown. What a good roomie.
I busted out laughing. “Is that scooting? Looks like a moonwalk to me. All you need is a sequined glove.”
“That’s a Shanda scoot.” Her cackle echoed off the walls. She studied her bare wrist, announcing in a Gone with the Wind accent, “It’s time for us to scoot to dinner. But I haven’t a thing to wear.”
Biting back a laugh, my brain flashed back to drama club and the Georgia accent they made me practice for hours. “Don’t be silly, Scah-let, dahling. I saw all those gah-geous clothes you were unpacking. How about this one?”
“Too bright. Why do I own orange pants?
Your turn.” Her accent faded out as she pranced to my closet, flapping a sequined shrug in my face like a pompom. “How about this?”
I batted it down. “Not on your life.” Back in my flashy days with Jake, he loved the bling like he wanted to show me off. No more trophy girlfriend for me.
She pulled out a suede belt and a genuine smile lit up her whole face. “Try this. I bet it’ll go great with your dark hair and those big brown eyes.” She tugged me in front of the mirror.
“Not bad.” I wrapped it around my waist. “Too much with the glitter on my shirt?”
“No way, the shimmer brings out the gold flecks in your eyes. It’s fabulous. You should wear it tomorrow night.” Shanda’s almond eyes flashed as she slung the belt around my neck.
Nervous energy fizzled up my arms. “How could I forget?”
Her smile greeted me in the mirror. “Hey, it’ll be fun. Don’t worry. I’ve got your back, girl.”
A tiny weight lifted off of my chest. Maybe I wasn’t quite ready for a double date, but at least I’d have her by my side.
~
Wispy shapes moved and danced like clouds around me. A white horse pranced on the fluffy clouds with a tall rider, his face vaguely handsome … and vaguely familiar. The white-clad rider dismounted and floated into the wind.
The dorm room door burst open and Shanda’s heels clicked across the hardwood.
“Oh, c’mon. Just one more minute.” I jerked out of dreamland and clamped the pillow over my eyes. Even my subconscious betrayed me. At least Prince Charming had no specific face … and no specific eye color.
“Wake up, sleepy.” Shanda snatched the pillow from my face and snapped open the blinds. “It’s almost noon.”
Stripes of light burned across my lids and I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. “Why are you punishing me?”
“We’ve got a big night ahead of us. Remember, dah-ling?” She clanked her dishes into our little in-room sink. “How about some breakfast?”
I padded over to the windowsill and flicked the blinds shut. “You mean like eggs and toast?”
Montrose Paranormal Academy, Book 1: The Nexis Secret: A Young Adult Urban Fantasy Academy Novel Page 8