Nightgrove Academy Book One

by Bailey Blackwell

  She dropped to her knees beside a crumpled Molly, her heart in her throat.

  "Molly? Molly, can you hear me?" she pleaded as she hovered over her, afraid to touch or move her for fear of making it worse.

  Her petite friend lay, pale and motionless. Swallowing back a rush of bile, Izzy leaned in and pressed her still wet fingertips to Molly's neck, murmuring a prayer she'd thought she'd long forgotten under her breath.

  "Step back, Izzy, I've got her, now," Professor Baxter murmured gently as he approached, with Jake trailing behind. "I can hear her heartbeat. She's alive, but I think she must've bumped her noggin."

  "Do you want me to carry her?" Jake asked, pulling up beside Baxter, his voice full of concern.

  "No, I can take care of it," Baxter said as he swept his hands gingerly over Molly's limbs and head. She groaned and blinked blearily up at him.

  "Nana? Is that you?" she murmured before letting her head loll to the side again with a sigh.

  Professor Baxter's lips twitched as he let out a sigh of relief and then scooped her gently into his arms. "I don't think anything is broken, but she likely has a concussion, so I'm going to take her to get looked at. I'm sure you're all going to be too distracted, so why don't you take ten minutes, get dry, and collect yourselves. Whoever wants to, can meet me up at the infirmary on the second floor and get a status update before we continue, hmmm?"

  Izzy watched helplessly as Baxter stood and carried her friend away. Maybe if she'd been paying attention instead of trying to compete with lunk-head Jake, she could've caught her in time…

  "It's not your fault," a muddy Jake said, his tone matter of fact. "We were instructed to focus on ourselves and our time. This was a freak accident and could've happened to any one of us. In fact, similar things are bound to happen. Just be glad she's going to be alright."

  Izzy wheeled on him as she shot to her feet, swiping the wet hair from her face. "How about you don't tell me what to be glad for, okay? I'm sick of you acting like you own this place."

  He stared at her, his face unreadable, as she continued to glower at him. She knew she was overreacting, but her emotions were near point break and he was the closest target.

  By now, several of the other kids from their group were finishing the course, as well, and came rushing over.

  "Is she going to be okay?"

  Izzy stalked away, leaving Jake to field their questions. Professor Baxter was right. She needed a few minutes to get her head right.

  She went out into the hallway and scrubbed a hand over her eyes. What was it with this place? Couldn't she go even a few hours without something shocking, weird or terrifying happening?

  At the root of it all, though, she couldn't help the nugget of guilt lodged in her chest. Granted, it hadn't been her fault directly. If she'd been just a little faster, though…

  "I'm heading up to see Molly now, in case Professor wants those of us who haven't gone yet to come right back down and do our tests. I won't be able to concentrate if I'm worried about her. You coming?" Rebecca asked as she stepped into the hallway.

  "Yeah, I'm coming."

  The two of them made their way to their room and Izzy quickly changed her clothes before they headed over to the infirmary. They were met by a closed door with a red cross emblazoned across it.

  Izzy lifted a fist and rapped on it lightly.

  "Enter," a low voice called.

  They walked in to find a row of hospital beds that looked super high tech, which made Izzy feel slightly better. At least, this far out in the boondocks it seemed like they still had good equipment in case someone was seriously injured.

  Molly was stretched out on one as a pretty female doctor bent over her, peering into her eyes with a flashlight.

  Professor Baxter strolled over to the door and gestured for them to come forward.

  "As you can see, she's more alert now," he said, the relief evident in his face.

  "I'm fine," Molly said as she pulled away from the doctor's grasp and lifted an arm up to give them a wave. "My pride is wounded and I have a headache, but that's about all."

  Izzy and Rebecca moved to flank either side of the bed as the doctor stepped back.

  "She does have a concussion, but it seems to be relatively mild. I'm going to keep her here for the day so I can make sure she isn't vomiting, and run the concussion protocol, but barring any changes, she will likely be able to go back to her room later tonight and she’ll be ready to start weapons training with you guys next week."

  Molly managed a grin and thanked her as she and Professor Baxter moved away to talk privately. Just when Izzy was thinking Molly might have said she was all right, but she didn't look so hot, Molly lunged for a pen perched precariously on the chart in front of her. She scooped it up and hurled it at the Professor's retreating form. An instant before contact, his arm shot out and he snagged it from midair with his fingertips.

  "Nice try, kiddo. Now rest," he said without turning around.

  "Dang it," Molly mumbled as she laid her head back on the pillow.

  Izzy and Rebecca both laughed and Izzy settled on the bed beside Molly. "Well, clearly you're not feeling too bad if your priority is still to bean Baxter with a writing utensil."

  "Oh, my head is pounding, but I want that field trip," Molly said with a wry grin.

  Rebecca patted Molly's hand and let out a sigh. "I'm so glad you weren't seriously hurt. That would've been awful."

  "I don't even know how it happened. I figured out a way to get up the wall, and was just so excited, that I didn't think about how I was getting down until I was already over. I saw the hand holds too late and just couldn't hang on or figure out how to get to them."

  Izzy hadn't even thought about how Molly had gotten up the wall. She, herself, had nearly failed and Molly was even less strong than Izzy…

  "How did you manage that, anyway?" she asked.

  Molly perked up, eyes flashing. "Well, at first--"

  "Rebecca," Baxter called, pausing his hushed conversation with the doctor to look toward them. "Head on back down to the testing area with the others waiting their turn. No spoilers for those who haven't done the obstacles yet," he said with a wink toward Molly. Rebecca nodded, clearly disappointed, and stood.

  "See you guys later," she mumbled as she trudged away, shooting us a longing look the whole way back into the hall.

  "Anyway," Molly continued, undeterred, "I kept trying the traditional way. But then I remembered what Professor said about using our gifts and that all of us would be able to get through the obstacles if we tried hard enough. So I tried my sniffer, and that didn't help. What did help, though, was my vision. I let go of the rope and stood back from the wall, and just studied it. Wouldn't you know, there was an anomaly in the wood. A part that looked different than all the rest. That's when I realized there was a whole path up the wall that hadn't been oiled. It was even a little tacky to the touch. I grabbed the rope again and was able to use my feet to pull me up."

  "Interesting," Izzy murmured. She tucked that information away to chew on later, and scanned her friend’s still-ghostly face. “You should really relax and try to get some rest, now, Molly. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. And I’m really sorry. I tried to run back and catch you, I just--”

  “Are you kidding?” she cut in with a weak chuckle. “You’re not Wonder Woman yet, Izzy. I’ve got to learn how to rescue myself. And, anyways, I get the rest of the day off. Already the doc said Tom is going to make me a hot fudge sundae. I’m pretty sure I’ll have a more pleasant afternoon than you will.”

  She was probably right on that front, but Izzy found herself feeling even more determined than ever to work on exploring her strengths and correcting her weaknesses, just in case something like this ever happened again.

  She stood and wiggled her fingers at Molly, and then made her way out the door. The doctor and Baxter offered her a smile as she passed, heading for the hallway. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it wit
h a sigh.

  No big deal. This could’ve happened at a regular school. People got hurt in field hockey and football, too. It wasn’t the end of the world.

  With that in mind, she started back toward the testing area when a low sound caught her ear. She stopped short and listened harder, but there was only silence. She hadn’t scored top marks on the hearing test, so it was no surprise. But, then, there it went again, like a low moan.

  She turned and saw a second door, just a few yards down from the infirmary. Compelled by the sound, she moved toward it and lifted her hand to the knob.

  “Students aren’t allowed in there,” the doctor snapped, standing in the infirmary doorway. Her lips were smiling but her eyes were icy cold. “That’s for staff members only.”

  “Sorry, I didn’t know. I thought I heard someone moaning in there…”

  “You’re mistaken. Go back downstairs to continue on with your classes. The Professor will join you shortly.”

  Izzy turned and hurried down the hall, cheeks burning.

  Ookay, then.

  Apparently, someone didn’t get enough sugar in their corn flakes this morning. Izzy pushed aside her embarrassment at being scolded like a child and forced herself to focus on the positive.

  She’d done pretty dang good at that brutal obstacle course, Molly was okay and, if her results on the wall were any indication, her other physical powers were increasing. All in all, a great day.

  So then, why did she feel like her life was spinning out of control?

  Chapter 11

  The next two weeks passed in a blur of testing, training, and showers hot enough to soothe the constant muscle aches and soreness. Still, despite all her fears and strife, Izzy wouldn’t have traded it for the world.

  She’d been growing by leaps and bounds—they all had—and she was starting to get really excited about the future here at Nightgrove. Before, she’d harbored hopes of getting a scholarship running track and hopefully being able to afford to buy a house of her own one day in Stockridge. Now, she harbored hopes of being asked to join the FBI or something cool like that.

  Something that could change the world.

  Molly had been given a clean bill of health and was back in class just a few days after her fall. Jake was still a thorn in her side but, like her, his focus had been more on improving his scores each week. Even Jessica had been less crappy to her, although that might have had more to do with the girl’s own exhaustion rather than her newfound apathy for Izzy. Best of all, though?

  Izzy had gotten a letter from both her dad and Sam. They were doing great, and her dad swore he wasn’t mad at her, so long as she was happy. She’d been lying the first time she’d said she was, but now? It was basically the truth. Everything was coming up roses, and even her terrible dreams had stopped. She was in the middle of a lovely one, in which Tom was building a castle out of his famous sausage bread, when a sharp tug on her arm jerked her awake.

  “Get up! The scores should be posted by now,” Rebecca hissed.

  Izzy’s eyes shot wide and she sat up straight.

  “Get out?!”

  They’d been told days before that all of their test scores to date would be totaled and the students would be ranked, first to last. Not everyone was excited, but everyone was definitely interested in the results. Izzy had been improving every day, and butterflies exploded in her belly as she rolled out of bed.

  She glanced around and noticed that Jessica wasn’t in the room. Max, Aiko, and Ashley were sitting in their joint living room chatting, dressed in their personal clothes rather than the typical school day uniforms because morning class was cancelled due to the posting of the testing results. Tom would be holding a large celebratory brunch after everyone had a chance to look at their scores.

  Izzy got dressed and brushed her hair before going to the bathroom to put on a little mascara and lip gloss. Aiko and Rebecca were waiting impatiently when she got out.

  “Ashley and Max said they’d meet us at the table,” Aiko said. “Now let's get going or we’re gonna be the last to know!”

  When they got to the cafeteria where the rankings were being posted, there was already such a large crowd of students around the screen that they had to squint to even see their scores. Aiko pumped her fist, no doubt seeing her overall ninth place finish.

  “Hell ya!” she said. “I thought I did a lot worse.”

  Izzy’s heart sank when she saw Jake’s name in the first place slot followed by her own in second. She knew she should be happy that she did so well, placing second out of nearly a hundred students was still a big deal, but her real target had been Jake.

  Rebecca shot her a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry about her, you did really well.”

  “You did pretty well yourself,” Izzy said, looking at the younger girl’s respectable twelfth place finish, “but who do you mean? I only lost to Jake.”

  “What do you mean?” she said, pointing at the screen. “Jessica got first.”

  Izzy glanced back at the screen. She was surprised to see Jessica’s name in the first place spot where Jake’s had been a second before. She blinked and the image went back to how it had been moments earlier. Jessica’s name was all the way down in seventy-fifth place.

  “Hey, roomies,” Jessica said in an overly sweet voice from their right.

  Izzy turned and greeted her with a fake smile that could rival Jessica’s own. “I hope you’re getting along fine after such a low finish.” Izzy never did have the same skill at disguising her insults that Jessica did.

  Jessica’s face turned white as a sheet. “What do you mean? I got first.”

  Rebecca and Aiko shot quizzical looks at Izzy. “Blink your eyes a few times, don’t you see it?”

  They blinked and looked, but their expressions didn’t change when they looked back at Izzy.

  “Are you feeling okay, Iz?” Rebecca asked sincerely.

  Before Izzy could open her mouth, the commanding voice of Dean Cassandra rang out across the cafeteria. “Jessica, you’ve had enough time here, get a plate of food and meet me in my office.”

  Jessica cringed and quickly moved to the counter to get a plate of food. “Yes, Dean Cassandra.”

  “Wonder what that was about? I thought morning classes were cancelled,” Aiko said.

  Aiko and Rebecca began to walk over to the cafeteria but Izzy put a hand up to stop them. “Wait a second, when she leaves, you’ll see.”

  Jessica stared at Izzy angrily as she left the cafeteria. A few seconds after Jessica left, Rebecca’s mouth dropped open.

  “She was using her powers to make it look like she did well?” Aiko said with a look of shock. “She’s so strong.”

  True. But apparently, there was one mind she couldn’t screw, and it was Izzy’s. She sent a prayer of thanks to the gods and tried to retain her excitement.

  Molly suddenly walked up. “Good job, Izzy! You’re lucky I got hurt or you would’ve actually been in third.” She let out an infectious laugh that ended in a snort.

  “Let’s go get some food now, I’m starving,” Izzy said as she noticed the smell of pancakes and bacon, suddenly feeling a whole lot better.

  Lunch and evening classes passed uneventfully. When Izzy was about to leave the gym, where she had been practicing her newfound skill at archery, Rebecca wandered in with a defeated look on her face and slumped shoulders. “I guess I should get a few hours of this out of the way now that they’re moving our weekly exercise quotas up.”

  Izzy stayed and worked out with her for half an hour or so, but she was already exhausted. After waving her goodbyes, she headed back to the room, almost eager to see Jessica for once after what she had tried to pull earlier.

  When she got to the room, she was surprised to see Ashley sitting by the fire. “Not hanging out with lover boy Miguel tonight?” Izzy said jokingly.

  “I told him I wanted a night with my girls,” she said, blushing.

  Izzy looked at Jessica, considered calling her ou
t again on her behavior, but thought better of it when she saw the huge bags under her bloodshot eyes. She looked exhausted. Clearly, things weren’t going as well in Jessica’s world as they were in Izzy’s right now, and despite her dislike of the girl, she wasn’t the kind of person to kick someone when they were down.

  “Guys, I have the greatest idea,” Aiko leaned in to whisper, “let’s sneak out and take a look at the cottage that Tom told us about.”

  “Are you crazy?” Izzy hissed.

  “I just feel so cooped up, not being allowed outside at all. My class has been so boring lately, I just want to do something spontaneous and fun for once.”

  “Count me out,” Jessica said, not even bothering to sit up. She was lying in bed and staring vacantly at the upper bunk. It wasn’t like her to be so docile just after she had been humiliated. She must’ve been seriously stressed.

  Max and Ashley shook their heads and continued putting on their pajamas.

  “Hard pass,” Max said shortly.

  “What, are you guys afraid of the dark or something? We have veritable superpowers, what is going to hurt us?” Aiko asked, perching her hands on her hips.

  “We aren’t allowed. I’m doing good here, I don’t want to get into trouble,” Izzy said resolutely.

  “Suit yourselves, but just FYI, I’m going to go with or without you guys. It’s up to you whether you come with, or you leave me to get eaten by the wolves,” Aiko said as she walked towards the door. “Max, I’m a little surprised that you don’t want to. We would be sticking it to the man. Screw authority, right?”

  “It would be pretty punk rock,” Max said pensively as Aiko slowly moonwalked out of the room.

  Izzy stared at the door, sure Aiko would come moonwalking back in when none of them followed, but a few more seconds passed and she sighed.

  “Sooo, we’re going, right?” Ashley said after a prolonged silence.

  “I know I’m not,” Jessica said, pulling her blanket over herself and closing her eyes. “You dumb-dumbs have fun, though.”

  “We can’t just leave her out there alone,” Izzy said with a groan. Ashley nodded and began putting her shoes on to go.