Graduating (Covenant College Book 5) (4 page)

There’s something about going back to classes at the start of a new semester that is both exciting and mind numbing. Since everything is new, you haven’t had a chance to get disappointed yet. Since it’s the first day, homework is rarely an option. And, since it’s just an introduction, absolutely nothing of substance is even touched upon.

I love the first day of classes.

I didn’t get a chance to enjoy any of those things, because when I walked into my digital media class Monday afternoon, the man standing in front of the room was all-too familiar – and unwelcome.

Sam Blake fixed me with a tight smile when he saw me hovering in the doorway. “Ms. Lake.”

In exaggeratedly slow motion – mostly because I felt like my feet were encased in cement – I leaned back out into the hallway to double-check the room number. Crap. What was he doing here?

I glanced down at the class sheet in my hand. “Where is Professor Halloran?”

Blake raised an eyebrow. “He’s no longer teaching this class.”

“Why is that?”

“Professor Halloran’s personal life is really none of my concern,” Blake said. “I was just contacted about picking up an extra class this semester, and I agreed.”

“I called the registrar’s office to make sure that this class wasn’t … that it was being led by Professor Halloran,” I said. “What are you doing here?”

I was drawing a decent amount of attention from already-seated students, but I didn’t care. This couldn’t be a coincidence.

“I already explained what I’m doing here,” Blake said. “If you have a problem, I suggest you take it up with the registrar’s office.

“Don’t tempt me,” I shot back, considering my options. For his part, Blake was acting as if nothing was wrong. I still had no way of knowing what he remembered from last spring. Rafael had been vague and cryptic – as usual – but Blake’s purported ignorance was bordering on creepy.

If he was acting, he was good. His sister was dead at my hands – literally. His entire plan to enslave captured vampires to wipe out the werewolf population was shredded when he found out I’d destroyed a very rare and valuable resurrection stone.

And here he was, acting as if I was nothing more than a petulant student that irritated him from semester to semester. This just didn’t feel right.

“Ms. Lake,” Blake said. “Are you going to have a seat? I’d like to get started. If you’re leaving, you should do so now.”

I bit my lower lip. The smart thing to do would have been to switch classes. Now, though, my curiosity was getting the better of me. Ultimately, I made my way into the classroom and took a seat, fixing Blake with a pointed look as I settled. He didn’t seem put off by my attitude.

Blake introduced himself to the class a few minutes later, charming the flirty girls in the front row with his easy and quick smile. If you were into the idea of trying to seduce your professor, Sam Blake was a young woman’s dream. He was young, in his early thirties, and his hair was dirty blond. His face was chiseled, his body trim, and he gave off an aura of approachability.

I knew better than to trust anything that he said.

The next hour and a half seemed to take two weeks. My body was so rigid in the chair, my back started to hurt. Blake tried to engage the class, asking them deliberately simple questions and making them laugh with his corny jokes whenever possible. I didn’t once crack a smile.

Blake ignored me for the bulk of the class, but as it was winding down, my luck ran out.

“So, Ms. Lake, why don’t you tell me what you think the appeal of digital technology is when it comes to journalism?”

He was baiting me. I just knew it. “I think it’s easy to get your message out to the masses,” I replied, purposely keeping my tone flat.

“That seems like a simplistic answer.”

“Would a decorative one make you happier? Maybe I could put a ribbon on it or something.”

Blake furrowed his brow. “I just thought you might want to expand on the topic.”

“Not really.”

Blake crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned back against the desk at the front of the room. “Most people believe that information is the most important thing to build a strong civilization. Don’t you believe that?”

“I believe that it depends on who is spreading the information,” I said. “Just because someone puts something out there and says it’s fact, that doesn’t mean it is.”

I knew my answer was pointed. I’d meant for it to be.

“Do you agree to the stipulation that there are two sides to every story?”

I shrugged. “Sometimes. Of course, just because one side has a story, that doesn’t mean it’s right.”

There was a general murmur going through the assembled students. They could pick up on the animosity between Blake and me, but they couldn’t figure out what was fueling it.

“Well, by that same argument then, the side that thinks they’re right could very well be wrong,” Blake said.

“Isn’t that true for both sides of an argument?” I countered. “One side thinks they’re right, and the other knows they’re right?”

“Yes,” Blake said. “One side still has to be wrong.”

“I agree,” I said. “The most important thing is one side realizing they’re wrong. I don’t see that happening very often, especially around here.”

“I guess not,” Blake said, glancing around the classroom. “That’s all for today. We’ll get into this in more depth on Wednesday. Ms. Lake, can you please stay after class for a second?”

I made a face. Who didn’t see that coming? I remained in my seat while everyone packed up their belongings. A few of the girls in the front row shot me curious stares as they left. If I had to guess, they were hoping to stay late themselves so they could spend a little extra “quality” time with Blake. Asking me to stay had thrown them for a loop.

When it was just the two of us, Blake fixed me with a hard look. “How was your summer?”

“It was great,” I said. “I made a lot of money, and I hung out with some friends. There might have been some beer, too.”

“That’s good,” Blake said. “I’m assuming that Mr. Winters was up there with you.”

“You’re not assuming anything,” I said. “I’m sure you had someone check up on us. That’s what you do, isn’t it?”

“Why would you say that?”

“I’m not playing this game. In fact, I’m done playing games with you. Period.”

Blake pursed his lips. “I understand you’re probably upset … .”

I arched an eyebrow. “Upset? That’s putting it mildly.”

Blake held up his hands to placate me. “I’m not trying to start a war here.”

“You already started one last spring,” I said. “I think trying to enslave vampires to wipe out hundreds of werewolves constitutes a war.”

Blake wrinkled his nose, glancing to the open door between the classroom and hallway. After a moment, he strode toward it, pulling it shut and cutting me off from the milling brethren only a few feet away. That might have been cause for concern before, but Blake didn’t scare me anymore. Not even a little.

“You’ve always been immature, Zoe,” Blake said, moving so he was standing in front of me. “That was even more childish than normal, though.”

“What? You don’t want the students to know this campus is crawling with monsters, and you’re the chief monster hunter? I’m shocked. Shocked, I tell you.”

“You know how dangerous knowledge in the wrong hands can be,” Blake said. “Do you want to create a panic?”

“I don’t really care,” I said. “I’m not the one who ends up looking like a douche in this scenario. And, I have to say, that’s a nice change of pace for me. I’m usually the douche.”

“Perhaps we should talk about what happened,” Blake suggested. “I think we would both feel better if we cleared the air.”

“What a great idea,” I said, sarcasm practically dripping from my tongue. “Let’s start with the vampires. Where are you keeping them?”

Blake was taken aback. “Excuse me?”

“All of the vampires you captured last year,” I prodded. “You were holding them somewhere. I want to know where.”

“We aren’t keeping vampires captive,” Blake said, lowering his gaze. “We exterminated the nests. We were upfront about that.”

I knew that was a lie. “Then why would you want the resurrection stone?”

Blake shifted uncomfortably, rubbing his hands together. “We just wanted to make sure that no one dangerous used it.”

He was talking in circles. I couldn’t decide if he really didn’t know what happened that night behind the library, or if he was just pretending. “You wanted me to use the stone to force all of the vampires to attack Alpha Chi,” I said. “You were working with Will. How is that up for debate?”

Blake frowned. “I … my memory is a little hazy from that night.”

“I bet.”

“I think you might be remembering things a little differently than I remember them,” he said.

“Okay, I’ll play,” I said. “How do you remember them?”

“I remember you showing up and having one of your freak-outs,” Blake said. “Then everyone went home.”

That was another lie. He may not have remembered everything, but he remembered more than that.

“You know, I just don’t have the patience to deal with your crap today,” I said. “You let your crazy sister torture Aric. You were going to let her keep him as a pet to keep me in line. You tried to get me to use Rafael to kill one of your own allies as proof of my power, and when all of that blew up in your face and everyone ran and deserted you, we modified your memory and left.”

Blake’s mouth dropped open. “You modified my memory?”

“Not me personally,” I said. “I was busy with other stuff.” Flaming blue eyes, to be exact, but he didn’t need to know about that little magical twist. “We left that up to the vampire you tried to use as a slave.”

“I think you’re misunderstanding the situation,” Blake said.

“No, I’m not,” I said. “I’m also not misunderstanding how you magically managed to take over a class I was enrolled in. I’m not stupid, and I’m not naïve. Don’t think, not even for a second, that you have any chance of swaying me to your side.

“And, while we’re at it, don’t think you can take me down either,” I continued. “You might not remember what happened, but things didn’t go well for your side that night. They can go worse. I promise you that.”

I stood up from the desk, leaning over to pick up my bag and then straightening. I could feel Blake’s eyes on me the entire time.

“So, that’s it?”

“That’s it,” I said. “You and I have nothing left to discuss. You and I don’t exist as an entity outside of this classroom. I don’t care what you do. I don’t care what your plans are. Just know, if you try anything evil again, I will be the one stopping you.”

My hand was on the doorknob when I paused. “I won’t be as nice as I was the first time if I have to stop you again,” I said. “You’ve been warned.”

“Are you threatening me?” Blake was incensed.

“I’m making a promise,” I said. “You have no power over me. You have no power over the people I love. If you come near them, if you touch one hair on any of their heads, I’ll go after you. And, when I say I’ll go after you, I mean I’ll wipe every trace of you off of this campus.”

I didn’t look back when I left, but I knew that Blake’s gaze on my back was murderous while I exited. Hey, he’d wanted to “clear” the air. This was all his fault.

“I can’t believe he did that!”

I was sitting in the living room with Kelsey and Paris, everyone catching up on a new episode of
General Hospital
, and waiting for their righteous outrage to mirror mine. It didn’t take long.

“How can you be surprised?” I asked, sipping from a can of diet soda as my eyes flicked over the television screen. “This is just par for the course where he is concerned. I’m now convinced every time I’ve been in one of his classes, it’s because he orchestrated it that way.”

“Even the first one?” Kelsey asked.

“Especially the first one,” I replied. “He knew who I was before I came to this campus.”

“How?” Paris didn’t look convinced.

“I … well … I’m not sure,” I admitted. I’d told Kelsey and Paris about my conversation with my parents, so they were up to speed on my life, but Paris had a point. How could Blake know when I didn’t know? It’s not like my parents had told him, let alone anyone else. It seemed impossible that he could know.

“I think Blake was interested in you at first because of that whole Dog Man legend up there,” Paris said. “That’s when he first noticed you.”

“He still figured out I was a mage before anyone else,” I said.

Paris tilted her head to the side, considering. “Did he? Because, from where I’m standing, I think Will was the first one to figure it out.”

Huh. “What makes you say that?”

“Well, we’ve found out that supernatural beings are drawn to you,” Paris said. “We didn’t know why at first, but now we do. I think Will might have been the first one to suspect something was going on, and he told his fraternity brothers because he thought that would give him some power in their hierarchy.”

“I don’t know,” I hedged. “It seems to me, if he knew what I was, he would have fought harder to hold on to me. That night I walked out, he seemed relieved to let me go.”

“That’s true,” Paris said. “We know Rafael knew there was something different about you from the beginning. Aric was drawn to you right away, too. Maybe they didn’t know why they were drawn to you, and it really did just kind of spill out.”

“That still doesn’t explain how Blake found out,” Kelsey said. “Try and think back. When was the first time you knew he suspected something about you?”

I leaned back on the couch, closing my eyes and searching my memory. “I can’t be sure,” I admitted. “I think it was the first time he took me to the Academy because he wanted me to join. He still acted weird before that, though.”

“Maybe he just thought you were a good recruit,” Paris offered. “You did grow up around werewolves. And, yeah, you didn’t know it, but he might not have believed anyone could spend eighteen years up there and not know it.”

“So, you think he was convinced I was a liar and not an idiot,” I mused.

“Maybe,” Paris said. “Or, maybe he did figure out you were a mage early on for some reason we don’t understand yet. He just might not have figured out that you were
the
mage. You know, the one who could turn people to ash by touching them.”

“That actually makes a lot more sense,” I said. “There’s no way he could know the specifics of my situation.”

“I don’t think he knows even now,” Kelsey said. “Rafael modified his memory. You said there was a lot about that night he didn’t seem to remember. I’m guessing Rafael erased that whole glowing-eyes thing, and maybe a few more little tidbits.”

“Well, Blake knows he did it,” I said. “I couldn’t keep my big mouth shut, and I told him.”

“I actually think that puts you in a better position,” Paris said. “Not knowing what really happened is scarier than knowing.”

“That’s a good point,” Kelsey said. “He’s going to be making up horrible scenarios in his head. All he knows is his sister died. He doesn’t know exactly how.”

“He knows she was fried,” I said.

Kelsey shifted next to me, craning her neck so she could peer down the hallway. “Someone’s coming,” she said.

Since I had no intention of letting anyone else in the house know about my secret, I turned my attention back to the television. “I’m a big fan of that Nathan guy,” I said.

“I like it that he can never seem to find a shirt,” Paris agreed.

“He can never seem to find the criminals either,” Kelsey said. “That’s not a good character trait for a cop.”

“Hey, he’s here to look pretty, nothing else.”

Heather and Kate walked into the room, smiling when they saw we were watching television.

“Oh, I love
General Hospital
,” Kate said.

I nodded, keeping my face bland and pleasant. “It’s fun.”

Heather and Kate settled on the second couch.

“So, how was everyone’s first day of classes?” Heather asked.

“Boring,” I lied.

“The first day of classes is always boring,” Kate said. “That’s why I like it.”

“Me, too,” Paris said.

“I already have homework,” Kelsey grumbled.

“You like homework,” I pointed out. “You’re weird like that. You’re happiest when you have your heavy math books, and those chart things you have to fill out.”

Kelsey shrugged. “I like math,” she said. “I like things that can only be interpreted one way.”

I rolled my eyes. “Math is the most boring subject known to man.”

“What about astronomy?” Paris teased.

“I stand corrected.”

“Oh, I was thinking about taking astronomy,” Kate said. “It’s not good?”

“Just don’t take the lab,” Paris said. “There’s nothing fun about being on top of the science building in the middle of winter and trying to draw star charts.”

“Word.”

Paris giggled. “Word?”

“Word to your mother,” I tried again.

Kelsey chuckled. “You’re such a geek.”

“So, what is everyone doing tonight?” Heather asked. “I was thinking we could go to the bar or something?”

“I think I’m just hanging out with Aric,” I said, suddenly realizing how boring I was getting in my old age. “It was his first day at work today. He’s probably not going to want to do anything.”

“Except you,” Paris shot back, her eyes sparkling.

“Probably,” I agreed, not rising to the bait.

“You two seem really close,” Kate said, obviously trying to give the appearance of vague interest. “Do you think you’re in it for the long haul?”

Paris and Kelsey exchanged a look.

“I think we’re pretty set,” I said, keeping my eyes trained on the television. “Things just seem to fit for us right now.”

“But you weren’t together last year?” Kate was focused on the television, too, but there was an edge to her tone.

“We were broken up last year,” I said.

“They were together the year before,” Paris said. “They’re back together now, and they’re closer than ever.”

Paris is loyal to a fault. I think she was more uncomfortable with Kate’s obvious interest in Aric than I was. What? Okay, I’m annoyed, too.

“I didn’t say anything,” Kate protested.

Paris made a face.

Heather decided to change the subject. “So, is everyone going to the big political rally on Friday?”

I had no idea what she was talking about. “What political rally?”

“The governor is going to be here,” she replied. “He’s trying to get people registered to vote. Next year is an election year. We should be politically minded now, so we can be in a position to change things that are important to us.”

That didn’t sound even remotely interesting to me. “I think I’ll pass.”

“You’re not interested in politics?” Kate asked.

“Nope.”

“How come? I love politics.”

Something told me Kate’s interest in politics revolved around marrying a politician. “It’s just not my thing,” I said. “Politics of any kind doesn’t interest me.”

“Well, I think it’s important,” Heather said. “I’m definitely going to be there. I’ve been registered to vote since the day I turned eighteen.”

“The only thing I did the day I turned eighteen was get hammered,” I said, realizing how immature I sounded even as the words left my mouth. When had I started to care about things like that? “I probably shopped for some shoes, too.”

Kelsey snorted. “I’m interested in politics.”

“You would be,” I shot back. “I bet politicians like math.”

Kelsey stuck her tongue out. “I’m interested in the political process. My family is very politically oriented.”

I didn’t get a chance to unleash the pointed jab on the tip of my tongue – which is probably a good thing – because the front door opened at that particular moment to allow Aric to stride in.

I took a second to look him over. He wasn’t wearing a suit, but he was wearing a nice button-down shirt and khakis. He even had a tie on – which made him look like a completely different person to me.

“Hey, stud,” I said, giggling. “You look like you’ve spent a hard day selling computers at one of those warehouse stores. You should get some of those little glasses to complete the look.”

Aric wrinkled his nose, dropping a kiss on my forehead as he slid into the spot on the couch between Paris and me. “You’re funny.”

“I try.”

“How was your first day of classes?”

Since I couldn’t tell him about Blake showing up in my digital media class due to Heather and Kate’s presence, I merely shrugged. “Boring. You know how that goes.”

“I miss boring,” Aric said. “I miss my summer of leisure already. I spent my whole day in meetings. Do you know how boring a lumber meeting is?”

“I thought you liked talking about wood,” Kelsey teased, causing me to convulse in laughter.

Aric shot Kelsey a look, although even he looked amused by the statement. “It depends on the wood.”

“Figures,” Kelsey said. “So, what are you doing with all of your wood?”

Paris bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing out loud. “Are you, like, rubbing it with oil to keep it hydrated? Or, are you just holding it and showing it to other people?”

The three of us dissolved in another laughing fit.

“Very funny,” Aric said, running his hand through his hair. “You know, these wood jokes are going to get old sooner or later.”

“I don’t think talking about your wood could ever get boring, honey,” I said, patting his arm.

“You, too?” Aric raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were on my side? Are you turning traitor on me?”

I shrugged. “What? Wood jokes are funny.”

“I think you guys should stop teasing Aric,” Kate announced. “He’s obviously had a hard day. You guys should take his feelings into consideration. It’s got to be hard for him.”

Kelsey, Paris and I immediately burst out laughing when she said the word “hard.”

Kate frowned. “Do you have to be so immature?”

“Most of the time,” I said, rubbing my fingers lazily over Aric’s hand as it rested on my thigh. “It’s what keeps us young.”

Aric slouched down on the couch, resting his cheek against my shoulder. “Why doesn’t that guy ever wear a shirt?”

I’d introduced Aric to
General Hospital
over the summer. And, despite the fact that he said it was stupid, I’d caught him watching it on his own a time or two. I knew he was hooked.

“He’s like you,” I explained. “He does his job better shirtless.”

“He just doesn’t need wood to work,” Paris teased.

I bit the inside of my mouth to keep from laughing, but the gesture wasn’t lost on Aric. “If you’re not careful, I’m going to show you my wood to shut you up.”

“Is that supposed to be a threat?”

Aric grabbed my hand, standing up and slinging me over his shoulder, and then headed toward my bedroom. “You asked for it.”

“Don’t give her any splinters,” Paris said as the door started to close.

“And don’t be too loud,” Kelsey added. “I have homework to do.”

“I’m not making any promises,” Aric growled. “I’ve had a long day, and I need someone to make me feel better.”

“You just need someone to polish your wood,” Paris countered.

Aric sighed, glancing down at my upside down face. “They’re never going to let this go, are they?”

“Probably not,” I said. “If it’s any consolation, I love hearing about your wood.”

This time, even Aric couldn’t swallow the laugh. “You’re lucky I love you. A lesser man would be showing his wood to someone else.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kate perk up. I knew someone who was more than willing to take that job.