Chapter 15
Brigid
I step into the dining hall, my new clothes feeling soft against my skin.
I chose jeans and a sweater, but the jeans fit me like a second skin and the pale gray sweater is the finest cashmere. My eyes scan the room, immediately locking onto Callen and Lochan seated at their nearby table.
Callen's pale blue eyes meet mine before he skims them up and down my body, his full lips curling into a smile of approval. My heart skips a beat as I realize he must be responsible for my new wardrobe. A mix of gratitude and unease swirls in my chest.
Something tells me Callen would prefer a more personal kind of thank you than the one I’m prepared to give him. And I’m still wary of him, after that stunt in the garden.
I approach their table, forcing a smile. "Thank you for the clothes, Callen. They're... really nice."
Callen's eyebrows shoot up in mock surprise. He raises his hands in surrender. "Wasn't me, darling. Though I do appreciate the view."
Heat rushes to my cheeks.
Lochan is staring at me. It couldn’t have been him, could it? The man despises me. Words falter on my tongue as I meet his death glare. The temperature in the room seems to drop by ten degrees.
"I... um..." I stammer, unable to look away from Lochan.
I shift uncomfortably, acutely aware of the animosity radiating from him. What did I do to piss him off so much?
"Sit down, lovely," Callen says, patting the seat beside him.
As I lower myself into the chair, Lochan abruptly stands. Without a word, he stalks away.
I watch Lochan's retreating back, a knot forming in my stomach.
Why do I care?
It’s not like he’s the first person to leave a table when I sat down at it. In high school, it was their favorite thing to do. Took me way too long time to catch on to their game and start eating lunch by myself in the library.
I shake that depressing thought from my head and force myself to smile back at Callen. “That smells amazing,” I say, scanning the platters of food on offer tonight. Rory and Tiernan arrive and sit down to eat with us.
Rory loads up my plate with more food than ten of me could eat, and Tiernan fills my glass with a deep red wine.
As I take a sip, the wine shimmers and changes color, shifting from deep red to a sparkling midnight blue with gold shimmers. I blink, wondering if I'm seeing things.
"It's mood wine," Tiernan explains with a slight smile. "Reflects your emotions."
I stare at the now-iridescent liquid, fascinated.
The food is delicious—some kind of thinly sliced meat that melts in my mouth, a berry sauce that looks a bit like cranberries but tastes more like apples, all paired with vegetables I've never seen before. As I eat, I can't help but marvel at how different this is from my typical dinners of frozen entrees or microwave popcorn if I’ve had a bad day and can’t muster up the energy to even cook.
"So, Brigid," Callen leans closer. “I hear you’re getting ready for the Harrowing?"
"Ready isn't exactly the word I'd use." I stab a piece of roasted vegetable with my fork, examining it before putting it in my mouth. It’s bright red, and sweet like a carrot, but a bit spicy.
Tiernan's green eyes flick to mine, concern etched on his face.
Damn. I try to think of anything but my growing panic about the upcoming test.
"It's different every year," Rory chimes in, his mouth full of food. "Last year, they made us fight chimeras."
"Chimeras?" I splutter, nearly choking on my wine. "As in, fire-breathing lion-goat-snake monsters?"
Rory grins, swallowing a massive bite. "Yep, those exactly. Nasty buggers."
"Great," I mutter. So not only do I have to worry about my complete lack of control over my shadow magic, but I might also get barbecued by mythological creatures.
Fan-fucking-tastic.
Callen chuckles, his shoulder nudging mine. "Don't worry, darling. I'm sure they'll come up with something even more exciting for your year."
"You're not helping." I shove a forkful of food into my mouth to stop myself from saying something I'll regret.
Tiernan clears his throat, drawing my attention. "The key is to stay centered and calm, Brigid.” He leans forward, his voice low and soothing. "I could show you some things that might help you connect with your magic.”
Tiernan is as much of a mystery to me as everything else here is. But there’s nothing in his tone to make me think he’s being anything but helpful right now. For some reason, I feel like I can trust him.
Ironic for the girl who never trusts anyone.
"Yeah?" I try not to sound too desperate, though every time I think about the Harrowing that’s exactly what I feel— pure panic and desperation. "That would be— really helpful, actually."
Tiernan nods, a small smile playing at his lips. "Meet me in your room after dinner. We'll go somewhere more suitable for practice."
I raise an eyebrow. "My room, huh? Smooth,” I tease.
Tiernan's cheeks flush slightly. "I didn't mean—"
"Relax, nature boy. She’s kidding," Callen says. "You know, I could help you prepare too, Brigid. I've got some unique skills that might come in handy."
The way he says "unique skills" leaves no one thinking that he’s talking about magic.
“I'll keep that in mind.” I’ve already experienced one of Callen’s special skills and I don’t know if finding out more about what he can do would be a good thing or a bad thing.
“Do, darling.” Callen drains his glass of wine and stands up. His lean yet muscular body rises with effortless grace.“I’ll leave you to it.”
“Where’r you running off to?” Rory asks, as he stabs his fork into a giant slab of chocolate cake with mocha frosting.
"Somewhere they don’t allow mutts, sorry old boy,” Callen says, but there’s no malice in his words.
Rory tosses a bread roll at Callen. “Keep your secrets, fairy.”