Solasta Academy: Vicious Thorns

Chapter Four

Calia had approximately forty minutes before her class with Soari. Her guardian decided last minute that she was going to teach a class for the semester about her experiences in other worlds. But Calia had a sinking feeling it was to watch her closely, which she did not appreciate as she was focused on the secrets of her Kingdom. And there was the whole ordeal of her wound that ceased to heal no matter how much magic she poured into it, but it seemed to grow worse. But she wasn't about to tell anyone that part. Not yet, anyway.

There were three knocks on the other side of her door. Cala had been at Solasta long enough to know the difference between her roommate's knocks and this one was Lottie, her brazen Vampire friend. Last semester, she and the other members of the orphan misfit club were trapped in the secret passageway of the library by Coach Gideon, who murdered a bunch of students because he was obsessed with Calia's mother. Like Lottie and her brother, Torin, they had suffered much trauma before and after being turned into immortal beings, so it took a while for them to return to their usual selves.

"Come in," Calia murmured, and she turned around. She never had to speak loudly when her Vampire friends were near because they had keen hearing.

Lottie opened the door, and as soon as she entered, she smirked as if she was about to cause mayhem. That fact was true, of course, because they had a plan. This had nothing to do with her heritage or the Kingdom she would soon inherit but for her boyfriend, Arzhel's sake. His asshole of a Father showed to Solasta out of nowhere, and Calia had an uneasy feeling it wasn't for Arzhel but for something else. So she and the other members decided to eavesdrop on the budget meeting, which he will attend with Principal Orla and other professors across the academy.

"Is he there?" she asked.

Her roommate nodded. "Torin and I followed him there a few minutes ago, and it's a wonder he didn't sense anything."

Calia scoffed as pain shot up from her wounded arm. "He's a Fae. Of course, he can," Lottie shrugged before closing the door behind her. Their other roommate, Jade, was a Witch and was still preparing for their secret mission. "What's up?"

Lottie didn't say anything and instead quickly walked over to her and pulled up her sleeve where the bandage was still wrapped and bleeding through with silver. Before she could protest, she beat Calia to it. "When did you get this? Why isn't it healing, Calia?"

"How did you know?"

She barked out a chuckle. "Please, you may try to hide it while awake, but I can smell it through the night. Don't worry, I haven't told Jade, but this wound is getting worrisome. How did you get it?
Calia chewed on the inside of her cheek. There were many secrets she still hadn't told the others because she didn't want them to worry about her and be in danger like she was every day of her life. What would they think if they knew she was a sea nymph who was the last heir to her Kingdom? They would probably treat her like royalty and not a teenage girl with the world on her shoulders. With a sigh, she told Lottie everything. About the night, she went into the woods with Arzhel and was attacked by a strange woman with sharp teeth, but she didn't tell her that the woman knew who she was a nymph. When she was done, Lottie's calm demeanor turned into a frown as she examined the wound again.

"Why haven't you seen Jasper yet?"

"As soon as he knows, the entire Breevort clan will run like I'm on my deathbed. Honestly, it's not a big deal. My magic is probably still down, so it will take a minute to heal, that's it." Calia lied.

Lottie inhaled the leaking blood and took a step back quickly as if the bloodlust got to her just now. One of the dangers of living with a Vampire was her nefarious hunger for her blood, but she had since learned to control it. Still, there were moments when it overcame her, like this one. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned her expression from serious to being the confident Lottie everyone knew. "Come on. The meeting is probably starting any time now."