Awakened (Unbound, Book 3)

Chapter Twelve

Easy might make things simple, but that didn't mean it was fast. By the time I finished with Calin's ring—putting both protection and what Zach had given me in case Duvessa already made her move—my mandatory counseling session had passed. Devland would freak, but I had a plan. A simple, non-time-consuming one. Besides, if I was giving up art class to figure out what I'd been switched to, he needed to grant me some allowances in return—give to get.

I almost changed my mind when I reached the closest tower doors. Every student entering ahead of me put their thumb on the keypad and winced as it beeped. Then, as they stuck their thumbs in their mouths, the door swung open, never leaving enough time for someone else to sneak past.

One-by-one, the students in line in front of me touched the keypad, stuck their thumb in their mouth, and made their way into the super-secret lair. It was an obvious routine, yet the closer my turn came, the more flips my stomach completed until it jumped into my throat.

Needles are not friendlies, even worse than the fire which had terrorized my dreams before I followed Zach's advise and faced it. But... I never had to face this fear. It hadn't weighed on me because it wasn't something that came up. My mother never took me for immunizations and had always said there was an herb for everything—or positive thinking willing a disease away.

Too bad visualization didn't cure death.

"Excuse you, excuse you."

I looked up at the sound of Duvessa's high-pitched voice, my nerves short-circuiting with recognition. She budged in line in front of the boy in front of me, elbowing him back. Stumbling, he tripped. I put my hands in front of me to keep from being jostled, but we both nearly fell to the floor.

"Sorry," the boy mumbled and ducked his head. His curly black hair fell forward, concealing his eyes, but his face was crimson.

"I'm pretty sure that's not your line, but no problem."

Duvessa turned, her hair fanning out as she glared over her shoulder. She smiled, then dropped all expression as she twisted back, rolling her eyes. The person she stood behind stuck her thumb in her mouth, the door opened, and Duvessa stepped up to the keypad.

With only a foot left, she tripped, nearly nose-diving against the wall. At the last second, Duvessa managed to soften the blow by raising her arms and hitting the wall with her palms. Her bag dropped from her shoulder, hitting her in the hip, and air escaped her lungs with a heavy gasp. She took a deep breath and straightened the hem of her shirt, quickly glaring at everyone behind her as she pulled the bag back up and raised her thumb.

"Clutz." A girl stepped around her, coughing into her hand as she went through the process of getting through the door.

Duvessa turned around and, with nobody else behind me, glared at me.

The boy in front of me glanced at me, biting his lip to keep from laughing. I rolled my eyes but didn't try to hide my smile. A laugh escaped as the door closed, before she heard, but died just as fast. Seeing her fumble over her own feet planted an idea in my head but, for now, my objective was to try avoiding the prick.

Staying as close as I could to the boy in front of me, I waited for him to put his thumb on the keypad. A sound, soft like a puff of air, was released and the door opened. Cloaking my use of magic so that it felt like the electricity of the hallway light, I visualized the door stalling once it opened, and then I followed the boy.

Once he was through, I hit a wall and bounced backward. Nobody stood behind me to play catch but at least that saved me the embarrassment of people witnessing my stupidity. I found my balance and straightened, narrowing my eyes at the door. It was still open with nothing but air between the frames.