Briar Preparatory Academy

Threats

Jasper POV

I walk out of Celeste's cell wordlessly, Joe lagging a few feet behind me.

"Joe, do you understand my decision now?" I ask him calmly.

"Yes sir. We must be more severe." He repeats, "I'll get right to that."

"Good." I pause, "I need to make a call. You are dismissed."

"Sir." Joe turns and walks down the hallway, disappearing around the corner. I watch him go before heading back to my office. I sit down in my chair and prop my leg up on my knee. I pull my cell out of my pocket and dial a number. It rings four times before someone picks up.

"Hello?" The voice sounds tired and worn out.

"Hello Lockharte." I say smoothly, keeping my voice steady and even.

"Jasper."

"Do you know why I have called you, Headmaster?"

"I'm guessing in regards to my missing student?" He quips in response.

"Precisely. Now tell me Headmaster, how much do your student's lives mean to you?"

"The world."

A silence passes between us. I take a deep breath in, preparing to launch into this conversation I have not opened since the day I got the letter, and stormed into his office in a fit of rage.

"Then tell me, why do you neglect to take care of them?" I ask him slowly, choosing my words carefully.

"I don--"

"You mean by having a student taken directly off campus grounds is not neglect to be vigilant? You mean to tell me that sending students on missions they aren't prepared for is not negligence?" I tell him, my voice rising on every word.

I hear a large sigh on the other end of the line. "Jasper, I'm truly sorry about--"

"Don't you ever say anything about that." I interrupt him.

"If you lay a finger on Celeste..." Lockharte says, his voice trailing off.

"Oh don't worry. She is very appreciative of our hospitality." I reply, a smirk growing on my face.

"Jasper, you know this call was a huge gamble on your part?" Lockharte says, changing the subject.

"No, actually not particularly. You see, I'm more intelligent than you give me credit for. Even if as a child you would not admit me into your "special school." This is a drop phone. Untraceable and one time use only. I will destroy this phone following our call." I lean back in my chair, staring up at the ceiling. My thoughts wander to another individual. One with the same colored eyes as Celeste's.

"She's like her mother." I say quietly.

"Jasper..." Lockharte's voice is hesitant. Pained.

"You know it's true," I say, "She looks like her. And she has the same bite. She doesn't want to be afraid."

"Celeste has no memory of Marcus and Nora Blackwood, nor would I expect her to." Lockharte sounded sad, like a memory was passing by in his mind as he spoke. I didn't think anything of it.

"That doesn't mean that she doesn't have her mother in her," I pause, "Nora was like her father."

Silence. "Yes, I suppose she was." Lockharte finally says, "What do you want from me, Jasper?"

"You know what I want. I want your school shut down." I say it as if it is something that should be generally understood. And it should be.

"Why," Lockharte says his voice old and tired. "Why are you so angry? I understand, what happened fifteen years ago was unforgivable, but no one was expecting it--"

White hot rage shoots through my veins. I close my eyes and clench my fists, straining to keep my anger under control. I can feel the vein popping out on my temple. "Don't ever mention that day to me again, Robert. Ever."

There is hesitation in Lockharte's voice as he speaks. "It won't happen again. I swear that oath to you."

"Really?" I say, "Then what happened with the library? Did you prevent that?"

"That was all you, Jasper. None of it me. You came back out of the blue. We hadn't had any threats on the Academy in years. We were safe, as far as we were concerned." A pause. "I had to lie to them, Jasper. To the students. I had to tell them that they were safe, that they were well protected. Do you know what it's like to lie to someone, and have them look at you with complete hope? Those children trust me, Jasper. Much more than I trust myself."

I am silent. My mind flickers to one person in my mind, one person who looked at me with that hope. That hope that held relationships on a shaky foundation, that would threaten to fall apart with one wrong move was taken. That boy puts his faith in the wrong people.

"Listen to me, Lockharte. And listen well." I say, my voice growing deadly. "I will bring an end to that abomination you call a school. I will make sure that I put an end to the destruction it has caused. I cannot stand by and watch you do this anymore. And I will start by killing her." I and gripping the table edge hard now, my knuckles turning white. I spit every word out as if it were infused with poison. Lockharte's silence makes me even more furious.

"Jasper--"

"Goodbye, Robert." I yank the phone away from my ear and press the hang up button. I sit there, staring at the wall for a few moments. I then stand up, grip the phone in my hand, and hurl it against the wall. It flies through the air and hits the wall with immaculate force, falling to the ground. The glass on its screen has shattered to nothing, and all that is left is the technology inside it. I pull out the memory card and gaze at it, holding it between my index finger my thumb.

"You will never receive forgiveness." I mutter, and snap the card in half.

~~~~~~~~~~

I enter the security room and slam the door closed. Joe is on watch duty, and he sits in a chair leaned back with his arms and ankles crossed. He glances over his shoulder when I walk in. "Take care of whatever you needed to do?" He sounds tired. I ignore his question.

"How long have you been in here?" I ask.

"A few hours. I've been here since we left her cell."

"Take a break. I'll take the night shift."

Joe hesitates. He's probably never heard me say anything like that before. "You sure?"

"Get some rest, Joe."

He raises his eyebrows and stands up, running his fingers through his hair. He glances back at the four screens that make up the wall opposite of the door. He looks at me. "You think she'll talk eventually?"

I don't care to look at him. My eyes are trained on the screens. The streak of blonde contrasting against the gray and black of the cell. She looks so much like her mother. I hesitate before answering. "It will take time." Is all I say. I don't waver as I hear the door shut behind me. I cross my arms and inhale a big sigh.

"Yes," I say under my breath, "It will take time."