Unbound (Unbound, Book 1) ~Formerly Casting Power~

Chapter 36

If the reception that I'd received at Celestial Java was any indication of what I could expect at school, I didn't want to go. I had eighteen minutes to reach the parking lot and find the office before my appointment. How long it would take Devland to realize I'd skipped it for something better? Like maybe a drive back to Briarville? That'd be awesome if it could be a one-way destination.

Instead of doing what every instinct told me to, I went to Grimas to report for duty against my will like a soldier drafted for war, and it felt like I was trading one prison for another. My mantra, for now, was that it was only for a few months. In a few months, I would be free. I could move home or perhaps even go to college. Anything would be better than being stuck here with a father who claimed to love me without knowing me.

Grimas High School, located in the center of the town, was easy to locate, and I arrived with thirteen minutes to spare.

I parked in the lot in front of the school and was surprised by my first view of the building. Just one level and square, it had four towers, one for each corner. In front, a circular protrusion made of glass deviated from the square design like some sort of sideways dome. I could make out the office that I needed to find from the parking lot, just as Devland had directed. The best part was that the whole building was lowered into the ground so that the roof was level with the surrounding lawn. Only the towers stuck up, though the building rose as it merged with the sporting fields behind it. All of it was surrounded by trees but no fence.

Dread filled my stomach as I realized I'd never begun the first day without Nancy.

Breathing slowly, I waited another minute until I no longer felt like something was crawling under my skin. Finally, with only a few minutes to spare, I got out of the car and began the short trek to the main doors. The air was crisp but warm enough to taste the humidity today would bring, the sun already shining bright in the cloudless blue sky. I could smell the natural barrier of protection from the trees like a fence of walnut, apple, willow, and oak. There weren't enough students to make me feel out of place, but I knew that was just a matter of time. Those who were present sent curious glances my way as though they'd never seen a new student before.

I lowered my head and chose to ignore them, though the faint wind refused to stop whispering their curiosity into my ears. The more I concentrated on not hearing them, the more their voices penetrated my thoughts. I didn't know if it was magic or paranoia, but I felt every stare as I pulled open one of three sets of double-glassed doors leading into the school.

The interior was as clean as a hospital without the unpleasant smell. In front of the main door and to the left was the office. In front of where I stood, though, was yet another glass wall leading into an area resembling a courtyard with no breaks in the enclosure for escape. It was lined with rows of picnic tables along the building's edges that students were already starting to fill. In the center was a stone podium large enough to double as a stage with ten large steps that lead deeper away from ground level than the building already was, into a cemented dug-out. The artist in me was scratching to be set loose in the building and discover all the well-hidden treasures.

I was now two minutes late for my appointment, though, and I hoped that punctuality wasn't a requirement here at Grimas.

Striding into the office, I attempted to emulate the air of confidence that my mother could cast without effort. I smiled at the secretary seated behind an oval desk and told her my name. Instead of chastising me or exchanging simple pleasantries, she handed me my new schedule and nodded to the outer door.

"Am I supposed to guess where I'm going?" I asked. "Where is my locker? There is no map of the corridors here, unless you'd find amusement in my showing up to every class tardy?"

"Excuse me?" The secretary looked up to me and narrowed her gaze. "How dare you speak to me—?"

"It's alright, Tamara."

A plump middle-aged man in an ill-fitting gray suit came out of the office marked 'Principal Corbin' and moved to stand before me with his hands outstretched in a welcoming gesture. I narrowed my eyes at the hand without clasping it.

"This is our newest student," he said. "She's to be escorted to her classes and shown to her locker. We don't want to make her feel unwelcome, now do we?"

He shook his head and smiled, pulling his hand away again.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Corbin, but this girl was being rude," Tamara mouthed in a stage whisper.

She pinched her lips in a scowl of disapproval. Then, as if I was irrelevant, she shook her blonde bob out of her eyes and began to check her false, too-long nails. She would have been much prettier without so much make-up and fewer donuts padding her stomach. A half empty box sat beside her computer, which was logged into some internet gaming site.

"Miss Hayson," he said, narrowing his eyes on Tamara for just a moment before turning back to me with a bright smile.

His face was round with only a few wisps of dark hair atop his balding head. If he unfastened his jacket, it may hide the protruding stomach, though his white dress shirt was bursting at the seams under the coat and his striped tie was dotted with what looked like mustard. Maybe keeping it fastened was for the best.

"Yes, sir," she said. The secretary was young, looking like she was just out of school herself.

"Duvessa Larkin. Perfect timing." Mr. Corbin bellowed as a dark-haired girl rounded the corner behind the secretary's desk with a handful of mail. "Leave that and come here, please. Miss Hayson will see to it that the teachers receive their mail, won't you, Tamara?"

"Yes, sir," Miss Hayson said, giving me a look to kill before standing to take over Duvessa's menial task.

Maybe I was twisted but seeing her stuck with tasks designed for student helpers made me smile.

"What's up, Mr. Corbin?" the girl asked.

She was the type of girl that boys fantasized about and were never hesitant to bring home to meet the parents. She was only an inch or two shy of my own height, but she was athletic and coordinated. She walked with a purpose, like every step she took had a meaning to it while appearing effortless.

"I'd like you to show Noreena where her classes are and how to get to her locker, cafeteria, gym, and library. It's her first day at Grimas and I'd like her to feel welcome. I assume that you can handle that, can't you, Duvessa?" He asked, though it wasn't necessary for her to answer.

She smiled at me with full lips. I bet she flossed after a simple sip of water to keep her teeth so white, unless she had them bleached to look so good against her fake spray-on tan. Our gazes met, and it was clear her smile didn't reach her doe-shaped, dark brown eyes.

"We should go so that we are not late for class," she said in a too-sweet voice and grabbed my arm in a casual but vice-like grip. "See you, Mr. Corbin."