The mysteries of Queen's | AngelaAMS ¦ English Version

Chapter eight

HEATHER JOHNSON

I froze after my sister's words, which despite saying something I already knew, her confirming it made it all the more real.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked cautiously.

"Mum asked me to let you find out on your own."

I laughed unamused. Of course she had something to do with it, Louise and I were telling each other everything.

"But how did our parents figure out that we had these... powers?" Chase asked in front of me, as if he was still having a hard time wrapping his head around it.

"I have no way of knowing that" she shrugged.

"What about the machine that tells us our sections? How can they tell us our powers through our fingerprints?"

Louise grimaced. Across from her, Jacob, staring out of the window, frowned, as if he was still processing it.

"Well... The sections were invented to hide the truth from the new students. As soon as parents see signs that their children have powers, there are certain characteristics that tell them what power they have, and that's what they tell Headmistress Presley."

I raise my eyebrows, dumbfounded.

"Does that mean this whole section thing is just a fabrication?"

She nods.

"And how do they get all the students to keep it a secret and not tell the new ones? Why don't they tell the new boarders the truth from the moment they enter the boarding school? It doesn't make any sense!"

"That's all I know, Heather" she cuts me off "I don't know how they keep it a secret, I'm only doing it because Mum asked me to."

"She shouldn't have to control that, it's my decision whether I want to know the truth or not."

"She wants what's best for..."

"Don't finish that sentence" I interrupt, because I don't want this conversation to stray to my parents with more people present.

Jacob cleared his voice, drawing everyone's attention.

"Is there anything else we need to know? About the necklaces, for example."

"The collars control our powers" she shrugs. "As long as you have it on, you can't do anything out of the ordinary."

"That's why when Emily put on the necklace the flames disappeared" he mutters absently.

I bite my lower lip as a question that's been nagging at me for weeks comes to mind.

"My eyes... My eyes only turn red when I get angry, don't they?"

Her prolonged silence made me fear for her answer.

"It depends on the person. In some, they only turn red when there is a point of maximum anger, in others, they change colour when they reach too strong an emotion, be it happiness, displeasure, sadness, and so on."

Great.

The rest of the trip was spent in silence, with only our breaths in the background.

* * *

A week has passed since we've been in this hotel, and we've only gone out for food or clothes that we need.

But something is bothering me.

I've been out all seven days we've been here, and in those seven outings I feel as if someone is watching me, but when I turn around to catch that someone, I find nothing.