Discern, Mosaic Chronicles Book One

Chapter Six

Later that evening, Nicole sighed and leaned away from the desk in the library, rubbing her eyes. She'd been studying the scant history of the leather book for an hour and still had no clue why it was so attached to her.

It had been written by Captain Christopher Price. The name was vaguely familiar, but there was no information about him online. Christopher Price. Such a common name. Who was he? Why was his book possessed? More importantly, why had she been the one to wake it?

What little she'd found of the book said it contained a history of magical items, which—aside from the fact that it was a magical item—explained why Professor Coolidge owned it. Various websites said the book had probably been written in the late eighteen hundreds and had passed from person to person quite a lot.

Nicole checked the time on her phone and reluctantly shut her laptop and gathered her things. It was late—past nine—and she had a long walk to her car. She'd been hoping for a relaxing weekend, but with her mom's visit and with all she needed to memorize before next Saturday, she hadn't gotten one.

Storm clouds covered the night sky, making Nicole homesick for the first time. The Williams' family estate was part of a small city called Lucas on the edge of Dallas, and the stars were beautiful at night. Oh, how she missed the smells and sights of home!

She scowled at the bright lights from campus, realizing that even if the sky wasn't cloudy, she still wouldn't be able to see the stars as clearly as she could back in Lucas.

A brisk breeze whipped her attention to the sidewalk, forcing her to tuck into the wind as she continued, arms encircling herself.

Nicole was halfway to her car when the wind suddenly stopped and everything around her went eerily still. She paused, watching the branches of the nearby trees. Nothing moved or made a noise. Not even the sound of bugs reached her ears.

She started walking again, trying not to freak out, controlling her breathing.

Moments later, a warm breeze brushed past her, lifting her hair, caressing her neck. The leaves in the trees remained motionless—the wind only seemed to touch her. Her stomach clenched as she realized what the warmth meant.

Nicole walked faster, afraid to look behind her, but unable to resist doing so anyway.

The sidewalk was empty. Thank goodness.

She continued around a building, and for a moment, the warmth on her face stopped. Nicole took a deep breath, hoping with all her heart that the book and its creepy shadow had given up.

But when the balmy gust returned, Nicole started running, no longer willing to bet that she wasn't being pursued. She was only five minutes away from her car, but knew plenty could happen in that amount of time.

"Please, oh, please just leave me alone," she whispered.

Nicole entered the nearly empty parking lot. She spotted her car and dashed across the asphalt for it, beeping it unlocked as she got closer. Without looking back, she yanked the door open, threw her backpack onto the passenger seat, and slid inside. She slammed the door shut and pushed the lock button with one hand while turning the key with the other. She revved the engine and peeled out of the parking lot.

Nicole watched through the rearview mirror, but nothing seemed to be following her. Had she imagined it? Was she freaking herself out without the help of the book?

Nothing happened the entire drive back to her apartment, and she forced herself to loosen her grip on the steering wheel. She snorted when she realized she was actually looking forward to the comfort of home. That apartment was anything but comforting.