Chapter 15 Koa
koa
. . .
I slipped out of House of Vitality toward Headmaster Bloodwyne’s office to meet Sabine without alerting the house head. It was easier than I expected, honestly.
The campus at this hour felt different, quieter but still humming with the protection wards that somehow didn’t pick up the fact that humans had infiltrated the supernatural population.
This academy’s wards weren’t alone, though.
It was a problem occurring in all of Kalista’s supernatural territories.
Halfway there, my phone buzzed with Mom’s call.
I almost didn’t answer, but the thought of her waiting on the other end, worrying about me, cracked my heart.
I hit the green button and continued across the bridge. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hey, Koa.” Her voice was warm but tight, like she’d been mulling over calling or not. “You haven’t called in a couple of weeks. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I lied, eyes fixed on the door of the academy as I opened it and walked through. “Year two’s just…a lot more work. It’s time-consuming.”
She hesitated. “Any news about clearing your dad’s name? Are you being safe?”
I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. My phoenix flames curled around my fingers as a nervous habit.
“Nothing so far,” I mumbled, walking up the stairs and pausing outside the Headmaster’s door. “But yeah, Mom. I’m being safe.”
I hated lying to her, but she couldn’t know that Sabine put me undercover with the humans. Not yet.
“And what about the woman you started having feelings for?” she asked, softening. “Rune?” There was a brightness in her tone when she mentioned her, but her question gutted me.
I stared at the carved wood of the door until the lines blurred. It’d been almost four months since I had inhaled Rune’s scent in close proximity. I’d missed her, but hearing about her bond with Jesper pressed in on me.
I’d spoken with him a few times since, and her midnight orchid scent was embedded in his winter woods scent in a way that made my chest ache.
“I heard she’s mated someone else,” I admitted with a heavy breath. “But I still have feelings for her. She’s just in a different house than I am now, so I don’t see her much.”
“Oh, Koa.” Mom’s voice cracked. “Follow your heart, but remember your mind.”
“I am,” I promised, though my throat was tight. “I have to go, okay?”
“Koa,” she snapped softly. “I trust you, but don’t get yourself hurt. Your dad and I want you to prosper. He wouldn’t want you to get involved in something you can’t walk away from.”
“I understand.” My voice cracked again. I hung up before I ended up spilling something I shouldn’t—couldn’t.
A new text flashed on my screen before I could knock.
Sora Ashbourne:
I’m with Mom and just heard that phone call. What in Kalista is going on with you?
I locked the phone and pocketed it like it burned me. Then I knocked, knuckles hard against the wood.
“Come in, Koa,” Sabine hissed from inside, and I opened the door and stepped in.
I felt the protection ward like static on my skin. The headmaster’s office smelled of burnt incense.
Sabine sat behind her mate’s desk, hands folded, green eyes sharp.
I closed the door, stood in front of the desk, hands clasped behind my back. Phoenix fire licked my palms.
“Brief me,” she said coolly.
“There’s someone in our year who’s human,” I blurted.
The information I’d been holding had been eating at me ever since I learned it. The humans had been easier to infiltrate than I’d expected. It made me uneasy, but they were desperate for strong supernatural allies.
I loathed pretending to be one.
“We know.” She exhaled a short, tired breath. “Kraig was a gargoyle, or so we thought, until he ate a muffin with peanuts and died of anaphylaxis. He was in Rune’s class.”
“Rune’s?” My chest tightened. The flames at my fingertips spiked. “Is she okay?”
Sabine tilted her head, one brow rising. “She’s fine. Why are you so concerned about my daughter?”
“She’s my…friend,” I whispered.
“And your boss’s daughter,” she reminded me.
“There’s more,” I said, clearing my throat. My hands trembled behind my back, fire dripping from them in a slow, steady trickle. “I didn’t know about the gargoyle imposter. Wait until I tell you who the other human is.”