“Why didn’t you tell me you visited when I was still alive? Why didn’t you say something to me?”
“You couldn’t have heard me, and if for some odd reason you had, I worried it would have broken you. It practically drove me crazy to be there, knowing I couldn’t really do anything to help you. Knowing your sadness was because of me.”
Voices outside caused him to flinch. “I should go.”
Alex felt a sharp panic. She stood quickly. “Stay.”
“I can’t do anything to jeopardize my space here anymore. I’m sure they’ll send someone to check on me tonight. I’d better get back to my cell—I mean my room.” He smiled, wrapping himself around her again, cradling her tightly. His voice flitted into her mind. I just needed to see you. He brushed his fingers through her hair, and before she could beg him again to stay, he was gone. But somehow she knew he was happy. She felt like she was holding a piece of his smile.
Alex was never more eager to wake up than she was the following morning. Gray light peeked through the thin crack between her curtains, casting an ashen spotlight on a note next to her pillow.
Just wanted to be the first one to tell you good morning. I’ll see you after sessions today.
Love, Chase
She couldn’t take her eyes off the word love. She carried the note during the entire agonizingly long day, feeling its warmth in her pocket. It felt like an eternity before she reached her final workshop. Madame Paleo favored the lecture style of teaching where she could bark at her newburies. Usually Alex took ten pages of notes within five minutes, but for obvious reasons, she found it difficult to concentrate.
The distraction only multiplied when the live version of her daydream came waltzing in the door, and Madame Paleo came to a halt midsentence. Chase had to skip over backpacks and squeeze past students to make his way down the aisle. He handed a note to Paleo.
What are you doing here? Alex asked. Her entire being itched, wanting him to be closer, wanting to feel the sparks of energy again.
Chase’s eyes pieced through the crowd until he found her and winked. I need to attend extra workshops. I wasn’t exactly the model student last year. With respect to my actions, they don’t think I’ve learned much about the past especially.
Many of the girls in the room seemed to be sitting up a little straighter. Some hurried to fix their hair, and some even projected their clothes to be more flattering. But Chase’s eyes stayed on Alex until Madame Paleo suggested he take a seat “in the front this time.”
Chase agreed solemnly. I need to be on my best behavior, he told Alex, choosing a front row chair. He acted oblivious to his effect on the female population. She could only see his profile from where she was sitting off to the right, but she thought the way he nibbled on his pencil in concentration was adorable. He must have felt her eyes on him, because every few moments, he’d give her a quiet Hey and smile while he took notes.
At the conclusion of the session, Paleo did not dismiss the class, but instead ordered them to report directly to the Grandiuse. Several students asked what was going on, but Paleo held up her arms and ushered them out the back of the room without explanation.
Alex remained in place, allowing her peers to stomp past her. And she wasn’t alone. She noticed a few groups of girls merging into their respective huddles and tracking Chase’s movements. Even from several tiers above them, Alex could smell wafts of perfume, hairspray, and intrigue.
Chase hurdled the railing in front of Alex and grabbed her hands to help her out of her seat. The jolt of his touch was addicting. She didn’t dare look at those other girls now. He swung an arm around her shoulders while following the flow of newburies through the dark hallway leading to the Grandiuse.
Chase’s brothers were already waiting at their usual table in the middle of the Hall, on display per usual.
“What is this about?” Chase asked. He slid onto the bench next to Alex. “I’m guessing it’s not a welcome home party for me.”
“It better be short,” Jonas grumbled. “I want to head to the fields before it gets too late.”
“It must be exhausting to be so cranky all the time,” Kaleb teased, but Jonas ignored him.
Chase was sitting so close to Alex that she could practically hear the purr of electricity between them. It was like a thunderstorm approaching, and Gabe kept lifting his palms upward, waiting for rain even though they were inside.
Many newburies tried to steal a peek at Eidolon’s favorite delinquent. Alex could see the trajectory of the whispers arcing like the paths of missiles over the heads of the newburies. Chase was the target. Everyone loved a bad boy. He’d stolen the title from Jonas.
Alex hoped the meeting would begin soon to divert attention. “Hey! What’s that guy doing at the podium?”
“Who?” Chase asked.
Alex pointed to the bulky man with the long hair who looked very out of place standing next to the prim and proper Van Hanlin. “That Westfall guy. He was the one who got rid of the lure birds, and he was there that night with the banshee. Jonas, look!”
Jonas glanced at the podium passively.
“Commander Westfall?” Kaleb asked in awe.
“Yeah, do you know him?”
“I just know of him.”
“He’s a fighter, right? Is he one of the Patrol? Like Van Hanlin?”
Kaleb shook his head vigorously. “No way. Patrollers are like cops. Westfall was a part of the Ardor Service, which is more like military, but far more exclusive. Think Navy Seals.” He swayed from side to side to get a better look. “I wonder what he’s doing here.”
Gabe raised his eyebrows, openly intrigued. Kaleb rarely spoke with such admiration about anyone. “I think the more appropriate question is why he’s been here without announcing himself. You say he was there the night with the banshee?”
Alex nodded.
“I wonder if you blew his cover.”
“He wasn’t exactly hiding when he took care of the lure birds.”
“No, but newburies wouldn’t recognize him. The Patrol certainly would. He’s the most famous member of the Ardor Service.” Gabe reached for a nearby book and began flipping through the pages.
Jonas was trying to appear unaffected, though he kept glancing up at the podium. “So what’s he doing at Brigitta with us babies, then?”
The question was answered moments later when Madame Paleo took center stage. “You are probably wondering why this meeting was called so abruptly and so early in the evening. Brigitta’s learning center has been given the honor of hosting a spirit from whom we can all learn a thing or two. He’s been generous enough to donate his time.” She beamed at the brute of a man standing next to her. “Ardor Westfall’s objective will be security, his specialty.”
“Look at Van Hanlin!” Kaleb cackled. “He’s pissed!”
It was true. Van Hanlin looked like he was ready to spit nails. The former Patrol officer prided himself on guarding the campus and maintaining order. The professors must have doubted his adequacy, to bring in someone else to ease the rash of misbehavior.
“Furthermore, Ardor Westfall has also volunteered to assist in your studies.”
Westfall stepped down from the platform and began crookedly to circulate the room.