Page 15

Chapter 15

E very swear word in existence ran through my mind and it was all I could do not to let them spill out of my mouth. Instead, I scrambled to my feet and darted back into the storeroom just as the bathroom door opened.

I stuffed the sleeve of my hoodie into my mouth as I listened to Asher’s excruciatingly slow footsteps make their way back to his room. He unlocked the door again and went inside, prompting another slew of swear words to surface, captured and muffled inside my sleeve. If he noticed his phone was gone, it was over.

The seconds ticked by as if they were hours and my anxiety skyrocketed with each little noise he made. But when he shut and locked his door again and returned to the bathroom, my knees almost gave way under the adrenaline dump.

With shaking fingers, I opened Asher’s phone again, scrambling to think of his passcode. Would he have changed it to his birthday? It used to be mine, but there was no way he had kept it, not after our breakup. I punched in his birth date but the lock-screen shook. Wrong answer.

I chewed at the nail of my pinky finger. If I didn’t get this right in the next five minutes, it was over. I’d never get this opportunity again.

The thought sent another adrenaline spike rocketing through my body and in a panic, I punched in the old code. My lips parted in shock as the screen loaded. He hadn’t changed his code. But why?

I pondered the question for far too long before remembering what it was I should have been doing. Scrolling through his contacts, I loaded up my own phone with my other hand and copied across the number from the “Genie” contact.

The second I had it, I shoved my phone into my pocket and hurried back to Asher’s door. With as much care as I could considering my hands shook harder than a slinky in an earthquake, I pushed Asher’s phone under the door.

The sound of scrabbling on the other side of the door had me praying to every god there was that Hecate would deal with it. If she didn’t put it back exactly as she found it, Asher might just realise someone had messed with it.

I retreated back to the storeroom and sat down, leaning up against the stack of boxes. The anticipation built up in my throat, threatening more noises that might give me away, and a small squeak escaped me as the bathroom door opened again.

I listened to Asher unlock his door and go inside, shutting it behind him. Shoot, how was Hecate going to get out?

A scratchy sound from somewhere in the depths of the room made me jump, and I scrambled to my feet as the sound intensified. Over the top of the boxes, I spied Hecate at the window, scratching at the plastic frame.

I clambered over the boxes, careful not to step on anything that rattled. If memory served, Laura had a bunch of decorative plates from her collection stashed in here somewhere. Reaching over a pile of dusty books, I unlatched the window and Hecate slinked her way in.

“You genius,” I muttered as I shut the window again.

Hecate jumped up on the books, sending a cloud of dust into the air as she pressed a paw to my cheek. “You always sound so surprised.”

Having the number only in my phone didn’t feel nearly secure enough. It felt like holding a glass figurine while trying to manoeuvre through a minefield. One stupid update could erase it for good. So, I retreated to my secret room, grabbed one of my old grimoires and scribbled the number down in it.

After the years it had taken off my life to get it, I wasn’t about to lose it easily.

Once I had put my mind at ease, I had a lukewarm shower and got dressed. Although I had commissions to do, Penny had insisted on going to uni that day and I didn’t want her to go alone.

Hecate had come, too, curling up in Penny’s arms on the car ride to the portal and through to the university. I hadn’t exactly jumped at the chance when Edward offered to take us in his car; my claustrophobia prickled around the edges at the idea of riding in a tiny metal cube. But Penny was more scared of my bike than I was of cars.

“What time shall I pick you up?” Edward asked as we opened the doors to get out.

“I’ll text you,” I said.

“I wasn’t asking you.” Edward scowled at me and I stuck my tongue out at him. He rearranged his face into a pleasant expression just for Penny.

Penny blushed, using Hecate’s extensive fluff to hide her cheeks. “My last lecture is at 4pm. But don’t put yourself out, really.”

“It’s no trouble at all,” Edward said, winking at Penny, causing her to erupt into giggles. “I’ll be here at four.”

I gave the back of Edward’s car the finger as he drove away and he returned the favour out the window, turning it into a wave which I guessed was for Penny’s benefit.

“What are you going to do all day?” Penny asked, as we made our way across the plaza toward the main building. “Surely you’ll get bored waiting around for me.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve got plenty to do,” I said with a shrug.

Like analysing blueprints of a certain dickhead’s home in preparation for stealing his power. Penny’s home drama had distracted me from doing my research on Troy Franklin, so having some time to deep dive into his home life was a real bonus.

The last thing I wanted was for Penny to tumble into a mental health pit if I left alone with her thoughts for too long. I knew that danger all too well after the breakup. If Hecate hadn’t stayed with me, batting at every one of my despairing thoughts, I would have ended up in a way bigger hole than I had.

I wouldn't have wanted to leave it to chance even if Penny wasn't my roommate now. She might have felt okay after a good night's sleep in a safe place and plenty of love from Edward and me, but that didn't mean she wouldn't get upset when she had had time to reflect.

Once I dropped Penny off at her class, I leaned on the barrier overlooking the glassy entrance hall, watching specks of people scurry this way and that several storeys below. Hecate had stayed with Penny to keep her company, which meant I could have gone down to the cafe and eaten breakfast uninterrupted. But I wanted somewhere quieter to do my homework, and the fruity granola bar in my satchel would do. Although it had probably turned to dust weeks ago.

I made my way along the corridors and down several sets of stairs, the smell of disinfectant following me down each until I reached the sliding glass doors into the university library. Although the whole institution was pretty new, the smell of books overpowered all else the moment I stepped through the doors.

A circular reception desk stood in the centre of the library atrium, a cylindrical hall that stretched up two storeys, its ceiling a marble creation embedded with gemstones. I held a heavy suspicion that they served some sort of magical purpose, even if I wasn't sure what. Three staircases wound up the inside of the atrium up to higher floors, bookshelves carved into their walls, stuffed with thick tomes that I would only dare to lift on arm day.

I inhaled a full breath through my nose; the air tinged with parchment and paper, and let the peace envelop me. The library was one of the first places I had visited after escaping from the Bishops, and visiting one never failed to ease my worries. Or at the very least, held them at the door for me.

A shrieking alarm went off behind me and I whipped around to see two young men looking bewildered just inside the library doors.

I stepped aside as a young librarian who looked even younger than me marched past, her frilly skirt whipping this way and that.

"Empty your pockets," she said, pointing at them with a long acrylic nail. "You've brought a fire enchantment in here. Don't lie to me!"

"It's just homework!" One boy threw his hands up and scurried out the doors backwards. "It wasn't on purpose!"

I snickered and headed to the stairs. I had never been to school, as my family had homeschooled me in another attempt to keep me isolated from the rest of the world. But from the look of all Penny's homework, assignments, and the egotism some of her teachers displayed, I was glad not to have experienced it.

Although, I would have to make sure I brought nothing flammable in here in the future if I was going to avoid getting tackled by this super serious librarian.

I made my way up one of the spiralling staircases to the emptiest floor I could find and set up my laptop with my back to the wall. Couldn't have anyone looking over my shoulder at an operation as important as this one.

The blueprints I had gotten hold of for the Franklin family home were admittedly a few years out of date, but after a quick look at public records, no significant work had taken place since. The centuries old mansion had been in the family for generations and like most magical families, housed a good chunk of them. If the Franklins were in the business of corruption as the fear of his fellow students at the university suggested, they would have to keep their circles tight-knit.

I scratched my jaw as I looked over the blueprints, looking for easy access points or long-forgotten passageways that could serve as my way in. Hecate could detect any enchantments and maybe even disable some of them, so whatever security systems they had in place didn't worry me as much as getting caught.

Given the family's reputation, I couldn't leave so much as a trace for them to follow up on once I had gotten out of there. Troy Franklin was a dumb egotist who waved his family's name around like a flag and there were no doubt more like him in his family. But no family earned their kind of reputation without having a few smart cookies among them. For the sake of this exercise, I would have to pretend that every single one of the Franklin family were undiscovered geniuses.

"What are we doing up here, Troy?" The feminine voice might have skated over my consciousness but the name 'Troy' shattered my concentration into a million pieces.

I looked over the top of my laptop at the figures moving behind the bookcases across from me. It couldn't be the Troy I was trying to rob. Surely. No way.

"I'll tell you in a minute, baby. Come on." Damn it. It was the Troy I was trying to rob.

My jaw clenched and every muscle down my neck and shoulders followed suit. I had counted on him attending class with Penny. Hadn't I heard his family had all but threatened him with a booting if he didn't attend his classes?

The girl giggled. Did I pack up and hurry out of there? No, that would have looked suspicious. Instead, I hunkered down behind my laptop screen, in the hope they would have a quick make-out session and leave.

"I want to show you something," Troy said. "This is just for you."

Ugh. That had better not be what I thought it was.

A little of scuffling reached me from between the books. Please just let them make out and nothing more, or I was going to have to run out of there screaming. Subtlety be damned.

A scream did ring out, shattering the sombre stillness, and the girl let out a series of choked sobs. Adrenaline pumping to every corner of my body, I scrambled out of my chair and dashed toward the bookcase. That sounded like a cry of agony, not your typical paper cut. I darted around the bookcase just in time to watch a mortified Troy dash out of sight, but all thoughts of his cowardice drained away when I caught sight of the girl.

Hunched over on her knees and rocking back and forth, the girl sobbed with her entire body. I crouched down to get a look at what she held to her chest and almost choked on my spit when I caught sight of it. In the grasp of her youthful cream coloured hand lay a skeletal hand, fixed to her arm with aged flesh from elbow to wrist.