Page 214 of A University of Betrayal

“The stranger could have taken it,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. It was plausible, after all, we had found the diary on the floor that very day.

“The thought that someone was in there scares me, Julian.”

Shit.That had never been my intention. The idea that someone else was up to mischief here, spying on the Adams for reasons unknown to me, didn’t appeal to me at all.

Before I could reply anything, Bay had already jumped to the next thought.

“You know, it’s weird… That room over there looks like Alice never moved out of there. Like she just...”

“Disappeared,” I finished her sentence, and our eyes met.

“What if my mother knows something about it?”

I didn’t doubt that. Diana seemed to keep a lot of secrets from her daughter. However, I also remembered her request that I should keep an eye on Bay. She would never want to hide anything from her daughter for selfish reasons. What if she had her reasons?

“Your witch friend could also be right, and she just left, maybe even got sent away.”

Bayla remained silent, thoughtful.

“There’s this feeling,” she murmured.

“That you can’t let go because it feels like there’s more to it?”

“Yes, exactly that...” Bayla yawned softly and turned to the side, where she drew her legs up a little and closed her eyes. “She was friends with a dangerous warlock.”

“A dangerous warlock?”

I tried to remember the diary entries, and I was aware that Bay wasn’t talking about Alarik. There was this other guy, a supposed son of Gloria. A rare male Quatura.

“Julie’s father...” she murmured even more quietly.

Then she fell asleep, and it was the sweetest thing I had ever seen in my life. I would have loved to take a picture and tease her with it in the morning, but then I would probably be thrown out of the house in a heap. Instead, I pulled the blanket over her body, and somehow, she grabbed it in her sleep and pulled it up to the tip of her nose.

My tummy tingled a little again, and I smiled one last time before taking off my Vanderwood hoodie and lying down on my back to fall asleep surrounded by Bayla’s little world of blankets and books.

Mechanical Failure

Tony Morales

“I’m so proud of you, my boy.”

Mum smiled at me.

We were on the road toward Blairville, and I was the one driving.

I had made it. Now I could drive wherever I wanted.

“Do you at least like the car?”

Mum and Dad had given me a slightly older VW pick-up truck for my sixteenth birthday. I knew that they didn’t have the money for a better car. Nevertheless, I had expected a better model. There was something wrong with the gearbox and the brakes were making strange noises.

“Well...” I grumbled discontentedly, and Mum suddenly looked worried.

It started to rain.

I concentrated more on the road, especially as I hadn’t driven in the rain that often. My vision suddenly blurred, and I struggled to see anything.

“Are you all right, sweetheart? We can stop if you have any problems...”

---