INTEGRATION (Bonfire Academy Book Two) (Bonfire Chronicles) (6 page)

“So, how are you settling in?” I asked once we finished eating.

“It’s cool being in a school with other demons, but I’m not digging the dogs.”

No surprise there. Most demons had an aversion to werewolves. “How are you getting on with the other paranormals?”

“Okay, I suppose. I haven’t come across any vamps yet; they’re all sequestered—the Initiates, anyway—and I haven’t bumped into any Integrate ones yet. All I’ve really had any contact with are a couple of faeries, an incubus, and bunch of trolls. And boy, are those trolls annoying! Have you met the twins, Noella and Rea, yet? That Rea ran past me the other day and grabbed a rack of lamb right off my plate! Unbelievable. And they’re pretty much impossible to catch. I’m going to teach them a lesson if I ever grab them.”

I chuckled. I had heard about those two. They were going to get fried if they weren’t careful. Most trolls, irritating as they were, knew better than to mess with demons. “What about the hybrids?”

“Yeah. Weird stuff. Don’t know what to make of those, yet. Anyhow, there are enough demons to hang out with—a couple of cute girls, as well,” he added with a grin.

“Just use your head,” I warned.

“Why? I thought all those silly human rules didn’t apply here. They shouldn’t, not in a school for paranormals.”

“Of course they don’t. Just don’t hook up with anyone who’s dangerous, that’s all. Like a troll. They can be vicious.” I snickered.

He winked. “As if. You don’t need to worry about me, Sis.”

“Right. Whatever. Are you going to tell me what you did at your old school? Mom was vague.”

“Oh, nothing special. Just possessed a couple of teachers during lessons and had them smack a few of the annoying kids. That’s all. It wasn’t like I got into trouble for it. Not at school anyway. The teachers got fired, though. Bit of an overreaction by Mom to pull me out of school, don’t you think? I shouldn’t have told her. I thought she’d think it was funny.”

I couldn’t help but laugh, imagining my brother possessing some poor teacher. He really was naughty. I’d love to see him try that at the Academy.

“See? You think it’s funny,” he said triumphantly.

“Funny, but stupid. Especially telling Mom.”

“Yeah. But no biggie. I wanted to come here anyway.”

“Well, that was the plan. I’m glad to have you here. Let’s try to meet up regularly, and you can come over and hang out in my room sometimes.”

“Will do. Who’s the broody guy by the door? He’s staring at us.”

I didn’t have to turn around to know that it was Jagger. I had felt his urgency already.

“That’s my friend Jagger. Looks important; I have to go.” I stood up and tousled Pascal’s hair.

“Later, Sis.”

I felt my skin tingle as I walked toward Jagger. I was almost afraid, which was silly. But the thought of not being totally in control unnerved me, and I was never totally that when close to him. Somehow, he overpowered me, and that was something I needed to work on. What kind of pathetic demon would allow a faery to control her? Not right at that minute, though. I practically floated toward him in a moronic comatose state.

“Cordelia.” His tone was unexpectedly harsh. I looked up at him, trying to read his mood.

“Hey, Jagger. Did you have a nice break? Where did you go?” I smiled, hoping he’d melt just a bit.

He held me in his steely gaze, His only concession being a gentle caress of my cheek. He clenched his jaw. “Cordelia, Faustine just received a death threat.”

T
he walk to The Smelt’s office was made in silence, as Jagger and I hurried through the crowded hallways, jogging most of the way. Still, I was aware of my uncontrollable desire for Jagger the entire time. I fought my thoughts, concentrating on moving as fast as I could.

Frau Smelt’s large office was full of chatter when Jagger and I walked in.

“Good, you found her.” The room went quiet as Frau Smelt raised her voice. “Sit down.”

I found Faustine sitting next to Quinn. I nodded at Martha and Professor Bern, wondering what they were doing there. Faustine was slumped back in her chair, not looking the least bit perturbed. I perched on the stool by the door, and Jagger stood beside me.

“Okay, we have everyone here. Faustine, your father is on his way, but we can talk to him later. Now, show everyone what you found.”

Faustine looked reluctant as she held up a sheet of paper. “Do you want me to read it?”

“Yes, go ahead.” Frau Smelt took off her glasses and peered at Faustine intently. “Jagger and I have already read it, but let’s share it with Professor Bern, Quinn, Martha, and Cordelia. I asked Quinn to come, as he’s been so involved with Faustine.”

Faustine cleared her throat and began reading:

“Your final deep breath

Comes gifted in blood and pain

Followed by silence.”

I shuddered as a chill surged through me. A death threat delivered in a haiku. Jeez. The room was silent as we all looked at one another—Frau Schmelder, Professor Bern, Faustine, Quinn, Jagger, and me. And I was pretty sure Ryker was invisibly hovering to listen in on the conversation.

“A creepy haiku.” Faustine rolled her eyes. “Really no big deal, but Martha insisted I show it to Frau Schmelder.”

“And I’m glad you did,” The Smelt replied.

“Where did you find it, Faustine?” I asked.

“It was stuck to my door, just folded over, with my name on the other side.”

“It’s obviously Mason,” I spluttered. “He shouldn’t be here.”

“We can’t be sure,” Frau Smelt replied. “We don’t think he’s had the opportunity to leave the note outside Faustine’s door. He’s been with Ryker or Jagger all day. That’s not to say that he isn’t involved and collaborating with someone.”

“Did you check the surveillance camera? Surely it picked up on whoever left the note?” I asked.

“Unfortunately not. The note seems to just appear between two frames.”

“Someone who was able to make himself invisible. Can Mason do that?”

“I am not allowed to share that with you, Cordelia, as you know,” The Smelt replied. “But I have no reason to believe it was him.”

“So, a flaming invisible haiku killer. Peachy,” Martha drawled. “Now what?”

Faustine puffed out her chest. “I really don’t think this is a big deal. Probably just Mason being an ass. He must have gotten one of his pack to deliver it, or someone else. I’m not the least bit scared of him.”

With her fourteenth birthday not far away, she still looked so young and innocent—almost exactly the same as when I had met her for the first time, a year ago, in that very office. Almost. She had grown some, of course, and was blossoming into an absolutely stunning young woman, which wasn’t the least bit surprising considering who her mother was—the very gorgeous Lady Annabel. In addition, she seemed to be surrounded by a don’t-mess-with-me aura. Unearthing her powers had given her a sense of confidence that was perhaps a bit dangerous, especially since she didn’t know how to fully control them, yet.

I could see Quinn and Jagger were both thinking the same as we watched her trying to downplay the message. Hopefully, the act was partly bravado to hide her real fear and not just an unreasonable belief that she was omnipotent. From the sweat lightly beading her brow, I guessed the former.

“Faustine, I need you to take this very seriously,” The Smelt admonished. “It might be Mason working in collaboration with someone. Or like you said, he may have simply asked someone uninvolved to deliver the letter. The point is that we simply don’t know. I’ll be investigating this, and I’ll question Mason, who’s waiting next door. I do need you to remain on alert, and think about moving in with Cordelia for now. That’s okay with you, isn’t it, Cordelia?”

“Yes, of course. But I’m not going to be able to watch her twenty-four-seven due to my other commitments.”

“I don’t expect you to. Quinn has kindly offered to help out, so someone should be with her at all times. Martha, mostly, since their classes coincide.”

Faustine looked unhappy, but didn’t challenge Frau Smelt.

“Faustine, you have class right now,” The Smelt continued. “So head on over. I’m going to get Mason in here once you’ve gone.”

“But I want to stay while you question Mason,” Faustine protested.

“No. Go to class,” Frau Schmelder said firmly and waved her to the door.

Faustine stood up in slow motion and dragged her feet on the way to the door, throwing me a tell-me-everything look before she left. Martha followed her out and shut the door behind them.

“Right, any ideas?” Frau Smelt asked, looking from Jagger and Quinn to me.

“It had to be Mason,” I repeated. “Let’s get him in here.”

Frau Schmelder buzzed Mrs. Stone on the intercom and asked for Mason to be brought into her office. The door opened, and a striking girl entered. Even though we all knew who she was, I heard sharp intakes of breath from everyone. It was unusual for Mason to manifest in his female persona. What game was he…
she
playing? It was really confusing thinking of Mason as a she when I mostly knew him as a male. Last year, Jagger, Quinn, and I had figured out that Mason was a gynandromorph shifter, able to shift from his eagle manifestation to either a boy or a girl in human form. I wondered if Frau Schmelder and Professor Bern knew about the phenomenon.

“Sit down,” she ordered.

I decided that she must have known already by the lack of emotion on her face. Or perhaps she’d guessed by the foul shifter smell—to my demon nose anyway—that surrounded Mason. I looked over at Professor Bern. From her deadpan expression, she had known also.

Quinn and Jagger, on the other hand, looked surprised, even though they had both met the female version of Mason.

Mason smiled sweetly at me as she sat, daintily tucking her feet under the chair. If the sudden switch in sex was meant to fluster The Smelt, the maneuver failed.

The Smelt stared unflinchingly at Mason. “Tell us about the poem you wrote for Faustine.”

Mason shrugged. “Poem?”

“Yes, the haiku.”

“Hai—what? I don’t even know what that is,” she said, her voice taking on a sullen tone.

“This!” The Smelt waved the note in Mason’s face.

Mason shrugged again. “Nothin’ to do with me.”

“You didn’t write it?”

“Nope. And my dad’s supposed to be here for all
interrogations
, remember?”

The Smelt shifted uncomfortably in her chair, leaning back and adjusting her already perfect hair bun. “Your father is on his way.”

“Good. Can I go in the meantime?” Mason stood up and turned to walk to the door.

“Yes, but you are restricted from any contact with Faustine. Understood?”

Mason did an about face and, in a flash, was nose to nose with The Smelt. Make that beak to nose, as Mason had partially transformed into an eagle. Her mouth was still human as she viciously hissed, “My dad practically owns this dump, so don’t be threatening me.” Then, she instantly turned into a mouse.

I yelped and jumped up on my chair. I was scared to death of mice, not that I came across many. What the heck happened? Why would she turn herself into a mouse?

Professor Bern swooped past me, picked up the Mason mouse, and stuck it in the ornamental glass bowl on The Smelt’s desk. “No point in trying to escape.” She waggled her finger at the rodent. “If you do, I won’t break the spell, and you can be a mouse for the rest of your life. You should know better than to be insolent in front of your head mistress, silly little being.”

“Thanks, Edna.” The Smelt walked over and peered at Mason. “I was about to teach her a lesson of my own, but this is much more
manageable
.”

“I figured.” Professor Bern belly laughed. “Count yourself lucky, Mason.”

I stepped down from the chair I had sought refuge on, noticing Quinn trying to suppress a laugh at my silliness. “You spelled her?” I asked in awe.

Professor Bern nodded. “She gave me no choice.”

I was impressed by her incredible power, casting a spell on a transforming, vicious shifter, turning her into a mouse. Instantly. I hadn’t heard even the murmur of a chant.

“What now?” I asked, still staring at Mason. Her twitching little nose was icking me out. There was no reading what she was thinking inside that little head of hers, not without demonizing her, and I didn’t think I’d ever be ready to try that with a mouse.

“She can stay on my desk until her father arrives. At least she won’t get trampled.”

The mouse squealed.

“She can’t get up to much mischief from there. However, she can still hear and understand us, right, Edna?”

Professor Bern nodded.

“In that case, Quinn, could you take the bowl out to Mrs. Stone, please?” The Smelt asked.

Once Mason was out of earshot, The Smelt waved for us to sit down again. Then she paced the room, her mouth twitching as though she wanted to say something, but she kept striding in silence.

Jagger, Quinn, and I glanced at each other and shrugged, not daring to speak.