Page 108 of Magical Academy for Delinquents
I hurried out into the hall and around the corner. Once I’d made it that far, I checked to ensure Claude wasn’t there. Then I straightened my shirt and walked quickly to the nearest stairwell.
Most magicals were too lazy to take the stairs, thank fuck.
I hurried down as quickly as my black pumps would allow. I took a deep breath before I opened the door on floor seven. I reached into my purse and grabbed the little, handheld jar of UV paint. I unscrewed the lid and dipped a pen from my bag into the paint. Then I closed the jar, pulled the door open and walked out, calm and wide-eyed as a stupid doe.
Immediately, I spotted two cameras in the corners that would be an issue. My heels clicked in time with my heart as I walked by a meeting room that could serve as our entry point. The room had all glass walls, even those that faced the hall. It had sleek leather chairs. But more importantly, it had a huge glass window we could cut out and the table was big enough for us to lay the cut piece of glass on it. I tapped my pen against the white wall next to me, marking it with an X just like a treasure map.
I walked further down the hall, toward the elevators. Three more cameras. A security guard walked past me and sniffed. Then he turned around and looked at the sheets of plastic taped to keep construction dust from spreading. “They painting already?” he muttered.
I stiffened.Crap.I kept walking, forcing myself to go slow even though my instincts wanted me to run. I took a deep breath, trying to stay cool and collected, pulling out the letter with my interview information from my purse to cover up my paint-dipped pen.
The guard stared a moment longer. “I didn’t even think all the walls were up over there. Hacks.” He shook his head but then turned and walked on.
I let out a giant sigh of relief, leaning against the wall for just a moment.
But then I checked my watch. I only had five minutes before Claude came to get me. I had to hurry. I picked up the pace, striding quickly down the hall, shoving aside the construction plastic. Three rooms had been torn apart. They were stripped down to studs, electrical wires and plumbing pipes exposed like veins and bones in an anatomy class.
Just past the construction, through one of the open walls, I could see the remains of the breakroom. The countertop, employee table, and fridge were still intact, though they were covered in dust. I could count three cameras left in that break room alone.
I smelled the sizzle of melting plastic, but ignored that, because it came from one of the exposed rooms. Not my target. Not my problem.
I took a step forward, leaning to the side to check for a fourth camera in the corner. And that’s when I realized, the floor ended about three feet in front of me. After that, the hallway was nothing but steel beams spaced every four feet.
Shit.
A laser beam hit me, and an alarm sounded. A construction worker appeared, and I backed up in a hurry.
The guy darted over, pushing me back through the plastic and yanking off his yellow hardhat and goggles. “What the hell are you doing?” he demanded.
I blinked rapidly. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m just here for an interview. I got turned around. I thought I was supposed—”
“An interview? You an idiot? We got live power tools and magicals heat sealing shit all over the place in there.”
I let my lower lip tremble. “I’m sorry.” I shuffled back again and ran for the elevator. I pressed the button.
It dinged and I stepped on, pressing the button for Claude’s floor. Forget him picking me up. His secretary was our Darklight target. Possibly, probably a spy, given the lack of a digital trail I could find on her.
I needed to know what I was up against.
The elevator doors opened on the twelfth floor and I got out, striding down the hallway lined with much nicer doors that the ones below. These doors were thick wood painted shiny black, with embellishments along the edges. There were no glass walls here, no windows into the offices of the Pinnacle’s council members. They got privacy.
I read the brass plaque next to Claude’s door and then turned the knob, letting myself into the front room of his office.
There, sitting at the desk, reapplying lipstick, was Ginny. I planted my feet and dropped my jaw in what I hoped was a good expression of shock. “Emelia?” I asked. Shit. I sounded a little over-the-top. A little too much like a soap opera.Pull it back,I scolded myself.
Ginny dropped her lipstick.
She stood, showing off more of a figure than I’d ever seen at Metamorphose. She hurried toward me in her tight, black dress, wringing her hands—a super fake look of contrition on her face.
At least I wasn’t the only one with B-list acting skills.
“Oh, my goodness! Hayley?! You’re here!” She swept me into a tight hug.
That’s when I had everything I needed. But I couldn’t just walk away. Cue teenage theatrics. I pulled out of the hug and shook my head as if I was dazed. “Mom and Claude sent you to … what? Spy on me!”
Ginny held up her hands and waved them in protest. “No! No! They were nervous about you going to that school! Actual criminals go there, you know! They didn’t want you to get hurt.” She blinked at me with the most pathetic look of concern I’d ever seen.
I wanted to burst out laughing. The pair of us were as fake as Terra Lysour’s tits. But that would give me away. And Claude had already made me uneasy. Better to stick with the teenage drama llama act. “I can’t believe them!” I pushed Ginny and she took a step back, her mask falling for just a millisecond to anger. “I can’t believe you! I thought you were my friend!” I turned around and rushed for the door, yanking it open and hurrying down the hall. I took the stairs, instead of waiting for an elevator.
