Bloodlines

Chapter 31

"Can you repeat everything you just said?" Luke asked her while at his locker.

Maddie sighed and gazed up at him. "I had some nightmare of Lizzie waking me up in my room to come down to see Santa Claus. I went down and then it was like some creepy episode of Full House—everyone was happy and singing some creepy Christmas song. Then some freak demon in a red coat was there with red beady eyes that I have never seen before."

"Like a rodent?"

"Something like that." Maddie saw Luke close his locker door and face her. "Clemens was there too and she killed my whole family just like what happened with Annabeth's. It also didn't help that Annabeth showed up and started blaming me for everything. Then I woke up and I was a mess."

"Mad, why didn't you wake me or something?" Luke pulled her into a bear hug and Maddie held onto him tightly.

Maddie heart flipped as she felt his arms around her. Sometimes, Maddie felt like a child hugging her boyfriend because of how much shorter she was than him, but his hugs still made her feel netter. She shut her eyes and he kissed her head, calming her down a little bit.

"After yesterday, I didn't want to disturb you like how my paranoia is disturbing everything," Maddie said quietly. Maddie's paranoia had been so bad that she hadn't slept in days, and if she did, then it was for an hour tops. The nightmare last night made her want to cry badly, but she had to keep her sanity together. "There were two words that I saw in the nightmare. Pandemonium Hotel."

Luke let go of her and stared at her. "Isn't that the hotel Cole stayed at?"

"Maybe we should look into that—"

"Wait." Luke walked away from her and borrowed a flyer from a random kid. Maddie stared at him weirdly and walked towards him. Maddie stood next to him and read over his shoulder what it was. It was a new policy Clemens was instilling about drawing blood.

"Oh, my god," Maddie blurted out with disgust.

"Can she do this?" Luke asked her.

"Absolutely not." Maddie snatched the flyer, crumbled it up, and threw it in the trash can by them. "I can't believe nobody is stopping her with her disgusting rule. It violates everyone's right to privacy!"

"Ms. Mason?" Clemens called out from her office. Maddie jumped and whipped around to see Clemens staring at her. Maddie clung close to Luke. "Ms. Mason, I need you in my office about Hunter's Council matters." Clemens held the door open for Maddie.

Maddie stared uneasily at Clemens. Maddie knew she had to go into that office. Maddie stared at her boyfriend, nodded. "I'll see you in class." Maddie kissed his cheek and walked into Clemens's dull as a dishrag office.

Maddie sat down in the chair and Clemens mimicked her. Maddie squirmed in her chair out of nervousness, and it was something she never did before. Interviews—Maddie was never nervous about. She practically grew up around interviews because of her family, but Clemens scared the crap out of her.

Clemens held out her clipboard and grinned. "How are you doing?" Clemens asked.

"I'm exhausted," Maddie bluntly admitted.

"Any reason?"

"The school education system keeps students up all the time, so now I have a lack of sleep thanks to the Board of Education," Maddie remarked.