Solasta Academy: All Hallows Eve

Chapter Eighteen

Calia's silver hair was dripping all the way to her guardian's office. She didn't seem at least bothered by it because her mind was whirling with the latest news. The two boys followed close behind her, one looking panicked and the other looking like he might run away any second. She knocked once, and Amias's gentle voice told her to come in after a second. Once she did, he quickly stood up and almost hugged her. But he didn't because he saw the pale look on her face and knew something terrible had happened. "Calia?" he asked.

She didn't have time to tell him because seconds later, the phone on top of his desk began ringing. He picked it up instantly and listened to what the other person had to say, probably Principal Orla. Amias was dressed in a suit fit for a professor, but his jacket was hanging from the back of his chair. His white button-up was rolled up to his elbows, and she noticed the purple under his eyes, which wasn't there days ago. She wondered what happened in the time that didn't allow him to sleep. Now, he nodded once as he glanced at her and the two boys with a frown. "Get it handled, Orla. Tell Emmeline to come to my office," he demanded. Where Calia stood, she could hear Orla arguing with him, but he interrupted her rant. "Want me to pull rank? I'll pull fucking rank as the Prince Consort of Ambrosia. You get that fucking stick out of your ass and handle this situation as the Principal. Bring Emmeline and Kerim to my office right now because my daughter and her friends are here and need my help."
Amias hung up the phone and gazed at her again. Before she could utter the words, he asked, "It's Gideon, isn't it?"

"He's a spirit," she confessed. Calia realized now that she was shivering. Not from the cold but the fact that the monster is back and just murdered an innocent girl. Almost instantly, Arzhel wrapped his arms around her to warm her up. "And he's after Malakai." Calia watched as her guardian pinched the space between his brows, but nothing could help him now. "What did Orla have to say?"

He shook his head, trying his best not to roll his eyes. It was almost laughable how everyone hated her, including the kind Amias Guinevere, who gave everyone the benefit of the doubt. "I'm surprised she lasted this long without anyone murdering her ass," he grumbled. Despite the situation, Arzhel hid the smirk forming on his lips, and Malakai widened his eyes, which surprised him. Calia snorted as he continued. "She informed me that a student had been murdered in Professor Yvaine's class. Yvaine's freaking the fuck out. From what she told me, it looks like his signature kill, which is probably why that boy over there looks like he might pee his pants."
Malakai quietly handed Amias the note he found. Her guardian read it twice before setting it down and clenching his jaw hard enough to break. But it was Malakai who spoke as if it might be his last day on Earth. "Look, I didn't know some fucking serial killer ghost would be after me once I came to Solasta. Let alone be a possessive asshole because I'm friends with Calia."
"Or maybe it was because you brought her to a Vampire bar," Arzhel grumbled.

Amias's warm brown eyes widened. "He what?"

Calia cringed at the turn of events, but she glanced between all of them because there was too much testosterone for her to handle. Even Amias, who completely turned into dad mode. Before they could say or do anything, Emmeline and Kerim marched into the office with grim expressions. Meli had her blonde hair pulled back into a tight bun as she wore a navy blue suit and black heels. Kerim wore a simple black button-down and pants, with his sword clearly on display. A soldier through and through as one hand intertwined with Emmeline's didn't seem to let go any time soon. When her bright blue eyes roamed to hers, she asked, "Are you okay, Calia?"

"A lot of testosterone in one room," Calia replied.

Emmeline huffed out a quiet laugh before turning to her guardian. "Amias?"

Her guardian stared at Malakai as if he was seconds away from killing him. Though, Calia couldn't blame him for wanting to do so. Amias was as much a Father to her as anyone else, more so than the one who gave her life. "Kerim, take Malakai out of my office before I fucking kill him," Amias whispered in a lethal calm.