Initiation (8 page)

My eyes darted between the split screens, which merged as Faustine and I ran into the shifters. From there, it was mostly a blur. Everything happened so fast, I could barely keep up with the events. I watched myself transform. I couldn’t help but find myself repugnant in my demon state. I had been brought up in the midst of Parisian high society and was used to appearing
elegant
in the human sense. The demon on the screen was far from that. I wondered what Jagger made of it. Was he repulsed?

 
We watched Faustine and me being chased along the corridor at superfast speed. I’d have to ask if we could watch that portion again, in slow motion. I was impressed by my own agility, seamlessly running up the walls, and then to the ceiling. Too bad about that silly bird. Though not large, it was fast. It flew straight past my shoulder, knocking me down with a strong flap from its left wing.

I watched Faustine and me fall, and by the time I hit the ground, she’d disappeared, just as I remembered. Seconds later, the four shifters pounced on me, and I was barely visible under their onslaught with the camera focused on their backs. Then, one of them transformed, and the others followed suit. They gawked at each other, nodded, and took off running down the hallway. The camera was left to focus on the remains. My remains. In my human form. I must have transformed back to my default shape when my body gave up the fight. I had been shredded to bits, my limbs separated from the rest of my body, and half eaten. My stomach twisted into a hard knot at the thought of those shifters having done that to me. Then, a flare of anger shot through me. I was beyond furious.

The timer on the camera fast-forwarded a minute or so to show Jagger running down the hall. He stopped short when he reached me and knelt down to gather all my body parts, tears streaming down his face. A lump rose in my throat. Then, he turned and ran off with me.

The screen went blank. No one said a word. When I felt my hand get wet, I glanced up at Mom, who had tears streaming down her face. Dad’s face was set in a hard expression, and Frau Schmelder stared determinedly at her shoes. Jagger winced when he caught my eye.

I broke the silence. “Can we watch the part where the eagle knocks me down again, but in slow motion?”

Frau Schmelder nodded and brought the surveillance disc to the right place. We watched it in silence until we got to the segment where Faustine disappeared.

“Can you slow that down even more, so we can try to figure out what happened to Faustine?”

No matter how much we slowed it, the result was the same. Faustine just seemed to instantaneously vaporize. Totally weird. “Did she say anything to anyone? Where did she go?”

Frau Schmelder switched off the monitor. “I don’t know. I didn’t expect to see her in your room. We’ve been hunting everywhere for her. Her father is worried sick. I’m going to talk to her about it after we’re done here.”

“How are you proposing to handle this?” Dad asked sternly, clenching his jaw. I could tell that he was trying to keep from exploding.

Frau Schmelder straightened her back and glared at Dad. “Your Highness, as terrible as this is, let me assure you that it will be handled. And as usual, I will handle it in my own way. I’m relieved to see that Cordelia is recovering nicely, in spite of the horrific injuries she sustained. I don’t think I have ever seen someone recover from that state before.”

Jagger shuffled his feet and glanced over at me. He had saved me by practically bringing me back from the dead. I’d explain that to Mom and Dad. They would understand about the synching. However, now wasn’t the time. I was exhausted, feeling the need to close my eyes again, with the happy knowledge that the next time I awoke, I would be back to normal.

“I need to get back to King Sebastian and Faustine to find out what happened. I’ll keep you updated. Your Highnesses, a suite has been prepared for you. I’ll show you to it if you are ready. Cordelia needs to rest, anyway,” Frau Schmelder announced firmly. “Is there anything I can do for you before we go, Cordelia?”

“Can Jagger stay here?”

“Yes. Though, when Quinn returns, he may leave.”

“It’s okay with me if Quinn stays with Faustine. She doesn’t know anyone else here. I’ll be okay with Jagger. Tell Quinn and Faustine that I’ll see them tomorrow.”

“That’s very thoughtful of you, Cordelia.” Frau Schmelder beamed. “That will placate King Sebastian somewhat. If that’s all, sleep well.”

“Bye, Mom, Dad. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Cordelia, I think I’ll stay with you,” Mom protested.

“No. It’s fine. I’m just going to sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

I lay back into my pillow once they left and closed my eyes. Jagger pulled down the blinds. We didn’t talk; we didn’t need to. I just needed to feel him nearby and was happy when he sat on the armchair next to the bed and reached for my hand. I twined my fingers through his, blanked my mind of all thoughts, and fell asleep.

F
eeling a gentle, warm pressure on my lips, I opened my eyes.

Quinn raised his head. “Good morning, gorgeous! How are you feeling?”

I considered the question. The headache was gone. I felt my limbs, wriggled my toes and fingers, and finally pressed down on my tummy, giving it a thorough prodding. “I seem to be totally fine! I can’t believe that my legs and arms were ever detached. Unbelievable!”

“Yeah, no kidding. I can’t believe it either. I didn’t realize until Frau Schmelder played the video for us. I can’t believe you recovered from that. I’ll be forever grateful to Jagger.”

No, you won’t
, I thought.

“Here, take this. It’s your breakfast.” Quinn handed me a platter of freshly cooked beef tenderloin.

The aroma wafted up my nose, sending my drool glands into overdrive. “Thanks. Nice as the broth was, nothing beats chowing down on one of these. The chewing is half the fun.”

“I know what you mean. Eat up. Your parents will be here in a little while.”

“Did you find out what happened with Faustine?” I took a bite of the steak. Bliss.

“Not really. We watched the video again and again. And listened to her tell the same story. One thing that seems certain is that she’s confused. She’s got the timing all wrong. Whatever she was put through didn’t last for more than a couple of minutes according to her, yet she returned here a whole day later. There’s just no explanation for that.”

“Did she tell you how she made herself vanish? I assume she can make herself invisible.”

“That’s the odd thing. She swears she didn’t. She has no idea what happened. Even weirder is that her dad seemed to believe her. I don’t know what to make of it.” He shrugged. “Maybe she does it without being aware of it.”

 
“Could another paranormal have taken off with Faustine?”

“I guess… but why? Any number of us could have made her temporarily invisible, but the whole thing has us baffled.”

“Where’s Faustine now?”

“Hanging out with her dad. He took her into town to do some shopping to take her mind off things. She called me a little while ago to check on you. She was at Chanel, doing some serious damage by the sound of it. She told me to tell you that she picked up the cutest little purple flap bag for you.”

 
“Honey! You look so much better! How are you feeling?” Mom came in and threw her arms around me. Leaning back, she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and scrutinized my face carefully. Then she broke out in a satisfied smile. “And what’s this about a Chanel flap?”

I breathed in her mommy smell as I nuzzled close to her. “I feel great, Mom. Oh, and Quinn was telling me that Faustine bought a purple flap bag for me. I can’t wait!”

“Good to hear.” Dad peered over Mom’s shoulder. “I’m guessing from the bag talk that you’re feeling better. Are you ready to get out of bed? The healer said your vitals are good, so you can give it a try whenever you’re ready.”

“I’m ready now!” I threw off the covers and swung my legs over the side of the bed, flinching with surprise when the cold metal of the rail brushed against my skin. Then, I pulled myself up, with some help from Mom. I put my feet on the floor and stood. I expected to feel wobbly, but I felt as steady as a rock, so I took a step forward, and then skipped around the room.

Dad laughed. “She seems all right.”

“Indeed, Pierre,” Mom said. “Cordelia, go take a shower and get dressed. We’ll take you out to lunch in town. Sebastian is already there with Faustine, and they are planning to lunch at Chesa Veglia, so we thought it might be nice to join them. Are you up for it? And Quinn, please join us as well. I’ve already asked Jagger, but he has a ski commitment.”

“Sounds perfect, Mom. I’ll get ready and meet you in Frau Schmelder’s office in half an hour. I need a pass from her to be able to leave the school grounds. Quinn, can you come?”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Thanks for including me.”

“Okay, see you two soon.” Mom waved me off.

Quinn accompanied me to my dorm room. “Do you want me to stay?”

“Oh, no. I’m going to dive into the shower and get dressed. See you downstairs in a little while.”

Quinn blinked at me as if I had lost my mind. “You don’t think for a minute that you’re going to be allowed to walk the halls on your own until the shifters who attacked you have been apprehended, do you?”

“Actually, I do. I’ll make sure to be on the highest alert. You can’t babysit me twenty-four-seven.”

“The Smelt has set up a rotation, and you are not allowed–her words–to walk the corridors on your own until we catch those shifters.” Quinn glared at me.

“Oh, okay. I guess if that’s what The Smelt said, then I have to go along with it. So, you’ll pick me up?”

“Yep. Just text me when you’re ready.”

“Yes, sir!”

“You silly. It won’t be for long. They’re enhancing the digital surveillance video today, so we might have the shifters in custody as early as this evening.”

“What will happen to them?”

“They’ll be tried by the school council. You’ll have to appear as a witness, and so will Faustine.”

“Isn’t the surveillance video enough?” The thought of meeting those five vermin again made my blood boil.

“Apparently not. The surveillance video can’t be admitted as evidence–”

“Why the heck not?” I felt my blood boiling again.

“The student council rule book doesn’t have it listed as an evidentiary tool–”

“Probably because it was written by the dinosaurs!”