Page 87 of Mortal Shift
“He’s going to be cut off from his wolf half. Trapped in human form. Trust me, he’d rather have had the sensory deprivation.”
Well, shit.
“Silence, please,” Nyra called. “Let us begin dispensing Jax’s punishment. Cali, you may be seated.”
A few glares followed me as I sank into my seat, and I wondered whether, if I tried hard enough, I might sink straight through the ground it was on. They’d disliked me before for being different, and I’d thought that had been bad enough, but this was open hostility and it was a hundred times worse.
“Let’s say…three days,” Nyra said, and my mouth popped open. Three days? I thought it would just be until the end of the lesson.
Hell, I was screwing up on all counts today.
Nyra traced the rune onto the inside of Jax’s wrist, and there was no flash or bang or swirl of magic, or any sign that it had even worked, but Jax’s shoulders drooped and he seemed to sink in on himself, his outline becoming smaller. Less. He turned and shuffled back to his seat, no trace of his usual swagger in his movements.
I’m sorry, I mouthed at him, but he cut his gaze away quickly.
“I didn’t think it meant that,” I whispered to Cole.
“You didn’t think,” he rumbled back, his voice laced with disapproval. “You never do.”
The words stung, because this really hadn’t been my fault. How was I supposed to know that an anti-transmutism rune even existed, or that it would affect a shifter like that? I’d made a mistake, an honest mistake.
…And now Jax was paying for it.
I wasn’t his biggest fan at Darkveil—the reverse, in fact—but it was apparent what the rune was costing him, and every stiff movement sent a fresh lance of guilt through me. I tried to make eye contact with him again.
“I’m s—”
“Yeah, you said.”
“Enough talking,” Nyra called, and the dark mutterings around the room came to an abrupt stop. No-one wanted to be the next one to get a rune, and especially notthatrune. “If you don’t have your textbook open, do it now. Finish reading the chapter and make notes on the types of crime that typically earn a punishment rune, and their durations. Thiswillbe on the end-of-year assessments, and if anyone in this room fails, they’ll be receiving a personal demonstration.”
“End-of-year assessments?” I muttered to Cole from the corner of my mouth.
“What, you thought just showing up was enough?”
“Well…yeah.”
Probably not one of my smarter assumptions, granted.
“What do they inv—”
He rounded on me with a glare. “Maybe focus on keeping your head down and not causing any more problems? It’s going to be hard enough for us to get a place on the full moon hunt after this stunt you pulled.”
Well, that was just peachy.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“I don’t know, Cali. It’s been a week, and we’re no closer to finding a safe way for you to speak to the feeders.”
“Ugh, can you please not call them that? Makes me feel dirty.”
Ling sent me an apologetic look, and I sighed as I closed the book I’d been making notes from.
“Sorry, not really sure what else to call them?” She raised a brow, and I shrugged. “Well, regardless, I’m starting to think thereisn’ta way…and that you’re going to flunk history.”
“Yeah, and that’s another thing. How didn’t I know there were exams at the end of the year?”
“Yes, very good question.”
