17. Isla
Chapter 17
Isla
TUESDAY
T he suite reeked of sex.
Zhara and Aizel were freshly showered, but other than that, neither of them were being subtle since we were all well aware of what they had been doing. As long as they kept it out of my bedroom, I didn’t really care where they ended up fucking. We were all adults, after all.
Echo stiffened the moment he entered the suite, but his expression smoothed out before he went to his room. Concerned, Aizel immediately followed after his twin, excusing himself with a quiet word. Zhara watched him leave before she turned to the rest of us.
“I have no idea what that was about,” Wells commented, rocking back on his feet as he shook his head. “We didn’t have as eventful a time as you did in here.”
I snorted when our friend blushed and played with the hem of her dress. I’d happily take Wells’ lead and not bring up what happened at the greenhouse.
“Shut up. It was just sex,” she mumbled.
“Multiple times,” I replied, arching an eyebrow.
“We aren’t together,” Zhara insisted firmly, narrowing her eyes at me.
“Fine. As long as your situationship doesn’t hurt either of you or this living arrangement, I don’t care.” I shrugged. “I need to pee, then I’ll come out and try to work on my paper.”
“I thought you didn’t want to work on it?” Zhara burst out laughing when I flipped her off for the “innocent” question.
“I swear the academy had less busy work than this place,” I complained before hurrying to my room to use the bathroom.
‘Beastie, we need to talk.’ Cassius appeared in the mirror without his usual smoky fanfare.
Jolting on the toilet, I cursed and glared at him. ‘A bit of warning next time? Some privacy would be nice.’
‘I lived through you going through puberty,’ he deadpanned, amber eyes glowing with amusement.
‘To be fair, I would have liked to go without an audience for that as well.’
‘What happened at the greenhouse…’ he started as I flushed and started to wash my hands.
‘The plants or the ? —’
‘Obviously, the magick and prophecy, Isla,’ he chastised me.
‘I don’t know what was said when the magick went through me,’ I told him, watching his brow furrow. He looked to be cussing under his breath. ‘Do you?’
‘No. You should ask one of those boys.’
‘You mean Wells and Echo?’
‘We need to write it down. It could be tied to the greenhouse itself.’
I paused, wanting to ask Cassius more. It felt like he was avoiding telling me things, though it didn’t seem like he was lying. Right now, it was more like omission. He had information, but he just didn’t want to give it to me. If I pushed this, it could go one of two ways. He could be honest, sharing information or at the very least telling me he didn’t want to discuss it right now, or he would lie. I didn’t like the idea of being lied to, especially by someone who shared my brain and body with me, but I had to take the chance.
‘Cas?’
‘Yes?’
‘The greenhouse... It felt alive, and it felt familiar. Do you know why that is?’
Cas studied me, and something about the look in his eyes told me that he was about to pick option two.
‘No idea.’
Fucking liar.
After spending hours working on homework in our suite, we all went to the dining hall to eat dinner. Aizel stayed close to his brother while keeping a possessive hand on Zhara the entire time. Whatever dating/not dating thing they had going on, Aizel and Zhara looked content with simply being near each other. It was such a one-eighty from our first run-in with the twins that I could barely suppress my laughter.
Focusing on Wells, I found him reading a book under the table while trying to eat sushi. He was failing miserably since the food was hanging just halfway to his mouth while he stared at his book.
"Wells." I called his name gently, nodding at the food when he jerked next to me. He blushed, giving me an awkward thank you before finally putting the entire thing in his mouth.
"So, I have questions," Echo said out of the blue, drawing all of our attention to him. "Your note said something about a horse brother?"
I threw back my head with laughter, unable to contain my delight when Zhara and Wells started choking. Aizel grinned. He seemed happy that his brother was talking again.
"I'm adopted," I told them once I managed to get my laughter under control. "Demir, my older brother, is a kelpie."
"Your parents adopted different kinds of supes?" Zhara asked, her eyes wide. "Sorry, I don't mean that in a rude way, just?—"
"I get it." I nodded, not offended by the question. It was one of the first things people asked me when they heard about my family. "My moms can't have kids, and they didn’t care what kind of supernatural we are. Hell, only two of my younger siblings are the same type of supe, but it’s never mattered to any of us."
"Do you mind if I ask what types of supes?" Wells asked, disregarding the book on his lap. Apparently, my life was more interesting.
"Witch, kelpie…" I counted them off with my fingers as I started to list them off. "Wolves, fae, and siren. So far, anyway. They finish raising some of us, but they hate an empty house, so they adopt more kids."
"That's crazy. In a good way," Wells said hastily when I shot him a questioning look. "My family... It wouldn't go over well. Let's just leave it at that."
"What are your moms?" Zhara asked, leaning forward to hear more.
"A fury and a vampire," I told her with a grin. "They're awesome."
"Well, I see why you aren't nervous about self-defense," Aizel said, both he and his brother shifting in their seats both appearing uneasy.
"I was suspended for a while because of bullies at the academy. Apparently, stabbing isn't the answer, so Demir and my ma taught me how to defend myself. I'm definitely interested to see how much more I can learn from Professor Falke though. If I can kick Demir's ass when I see him again, he'll never live it down."
Aizel and Echo laughed, sharing a look that I totally understood. That innate sibling rivalry was ingrained in everyone. It wasn't something toxic, but there was definitely a need to one up each other whenever possible.
"Figures you're from some mixed-breed household," an annoying voice announced from behind me.
Turning around, I saw it was build-a-bitch Barbie and her group of friends staring at me with judgy, disgusted looks. Sadly, the supernatural world was full of as much prejudice as the human world we hid away from. Supes stuck to their own kinds unless absolutely necessary.
"Says the witch at a mixed-supernatural school," I replied blandly, refusing to take the bait.
She pursed her lips. "Doesn't mean I'd fuck one of them."
"I don't know why you keep acting like you’re important in any way at this school," Wells interjected. "You just got here like the rest of us. You don't know shit about this place."
"Oooh, so the Hawthorne is finally speaking up. Figures you can't pick out the right kind of friends. Witches belong with witches. That mixed-breed trash doesn't count. You could do so much better."
"Meaning you?" he drawled, his face flushed with anger. My hands fisted under the table, nails biting into my palm. I was working so hard to fight the urge to just deck the bitch right here. Something about her hitting on Wells, more than insulting me, made me want to punch her.
"You know where to find me when you come back to your senses. After all, our families already?—"
"I am not obligated to obey my family's wishes any longer, something you should consider before you complete that train of thought. I will get you nowhere in that societal standing bullshit you care so much about."
My eyebrows weren't the only ones raised. My suitemates were waiting with bated breath, looking between the two witches, until the blonde huffed and stomped off like a two-year-old.
"Well, that was fun." Zhara's eyes flicked back between the two of us.
"I need to get some work done before class tomorrow," Wells muttered. His shoulders tense and movements choppy, he ate the last sushi roll and grabbed his stuff. "I'll see you all later.”
My hands unclenched, and I started to reach for him, but he moved too fast. I was tempted to follow after the bully, but I knew from my own experience that tracking them down wouldn’t help anything. We called out goodbye, but he was out the door before I could even really process that he was leaving.
Aizel attempted to break the tension. "How much poison would it take to make her shut the fuck up?"
"As in death, or just making her really fucking sick?" I asked before taking a loud sip of my boba tea. Part of me was curious what his answer would be, and the rest of me was seriously debating how I could accomplish it. For Wells, I would consider it. How I’d gotten so attached so quickly, I had no idea. I’d never been one to form relationships this easily, but I was realizing that there were several people at Greywood who’d gotten under my skin in all kinds of ways.
Aizel blinked slowly, startled by my serious tone.
"Really fucking sick would be better. We haven't even been here a full week." Echo licked his lips, his eyes darting back and forth between his shocked twin and me. "Better to pace ourselves with the whole murder thing."
"I guess. But to answer your question, it wouldn't take much. I'd just need to see what plants they have here while one of you causes a good distraction."
"We should have this conversation somewhere else." Zhara glanced around, alerting me to the fact that we probably had eavesdroppers.
"I'm going to check on Wells," I told them, finishing off my tea and grabbing my trash. "Plus, I need to go to the library to finish off the last bit of this paper. I’m almost done, so it shouldn’t take long."
“I knew you fell asleep earlier!” Aizel called me out.
I playfully glared at Aizel as he smirked. It was like having Demir here with me; he acted just like my older brother.
"See you back at the suite!" Zhara waved me off.
Before I hurried away, I swore I saw jealousy on Echo’s face. A pang hit my chest, but he looked away to his brother, and the moment seemed to pass.
I threw my trash away and headed toward the library, hoping that it wouldn't take long to find Wells.
That girl had really gotten under his skin.
The quad was practically empty and so was the library when I got there. Quietly, I searched the study areas, trying to find my friend, but came up empty handed. Maybe he went back to his dorm to cool down?
Just as I was about to give up, a loud sound drew my attention. I tried to pinpoint where it was coming from and caught a cracked door further down. It was one of the study rooms students had to reserve.
Unable to hold my curiosity in check, I tiptoed up to the door and peeked inside.
Wells sat at the desk, pulling at his hair. His books were scattered all over the floor, and loose paper fluttered to the ground as I stepped inside.
“Wells?” I said his name cautiously, not sure what was going on.
“You shouldn’t be here,” Wells ground out. His usually gentle voice was gravelly and strained.
“I wanted to make sure you were okay.” I ignored his warning and closed the door behind me then placed my laptop bag on the table.
Wells didn’t respond or move an inch, so I bent down and picked up the things he had obviously knocked off the table. The quiet room was full of tension that seemed to build instead of dissipate as I cleaned up the mess.
“Isla… thank you.”
“Forget her, whatever her name is?—”
“Allison.” Wells barked out a laugh.
“Whatever.” I shrugged and sat down across from him. “She’s a fucking bitch. Don’t let her get under your skin.”
“Easier said than done,” he muttered, finally looking up at me with glassy green eyes. “My family… It just brings up a lot of shit.”
“They don’t like that you got invited to come here?” I asked.
Wells grimaced. “No, they did not. I was disowned the moment I accepted the invitation. My sisters and brother didn’t care, but my mom and dads… Let’s just say that appearance is everything in their lives, especially to my mom.”
“I’m so sorry,” I consoled him gently. “Family isn’t supposed to be like that.”
His broken laugh turned into a sob as the tears in his eyes finally fell. I wasn’t good with emotional people, but I couldn’t just let him sit there without trying to comfort him. I reached across the table and placed my hand over one of his. Hugs were not my thing.
Wells jolted at the contact, but he turned the hand over so he could grip mine tightly. I didn’t bother with placating lies. Instead, I silently let him know I was here, squeezing his hand while he let it all out. After a few minutes, the tears stopped but he didn’t let go of my hand.
“Your moms didn’t care?”
“Ma didn’t,” I told him with a long sigh. “Mom did. She knew someone who went here a long time ago. They lost contact, and Mom never heard from her again. She doesn’t know what happened to her friend, so she didn’t react the best when my invitation was delivered.”
“She wouldn’t be the first to disappear from Greywood,” Wells commented cryptically.
“What do you mean?”
“I overheard my dads saying to my mom that they knew of a few people that got in here, then poof. They went radio silent. Families heard nothing after a few months, then that turned into years. They were just gone.” Wells looked down at our hands, making me just now realize that neither one of us had let go.
Cheeks heating, I pulled back. He let me slip away, looking up at me with a piercing gaze. I focused on grabbing my laptop and refusing to look back at him.
“I need to finish the last bit of this paper before tomorrow, or I’ll be in trouble on day two of my damn Familiar Care class.”
“Isla…” Wells reached for my hand again.
Before he could touch me, the door to the room slammed open, making us both jump.
“There you guys are!” Zhara gasped, her chest heaving. Zhara’s eyes were wide, and I could practically see waves of fear coming off of her.
“Z?” I asked, my brow furrowed.
“The conservatory is in lockdown. A student has gone missing.”