Page 120 of The Holy Academy of Witches

“Absolutely not… nope!”

I raised my eyebrows at her insistence. “Cillian makes the most sense, not only is he my best friend and therefore the only trustworthy option, he is older and therefore has more experience of their Academy and its history.”

“Yes but Theo is also trustworthy, considering he’s my twin AND he runs!” She said smugly.

“What on earth does that have to do with anything…”

“Cillian doesn’t run… I mean from what I’ve seen, heard… So if anyone has a better chance of having seen some mysterious hidden statue, it’s Theo!”

I sighed, “dammit… we need to ask them both.”

Sage looked at me with an expression which I’m sure matched my own.

Sixty-Four

Adeline

“So, we’re meeting them on the edge of the forest near a path that you go running on…” Sage said, more to herself than me, as we trudged through the overgrowth of the woodland which grew proudly over both campuses.

“This is stupid.” I muttered under my breath, the irritation and nerves of seeing Theo again returning me to the mood I had been in following Christmas.

“You’restupid.” Sage replied.

“Very mature.”

“I understand whyI’mannoyed but why are you annoyed? Is this because he was a dick to you at Christmas? Because I swear he’s not normally like that. He’s usually really popular with girls…”

I huffed, she was only darkening my mood. “Shh, we’re nearly there…”

“Too late,” Theo’s voice rang out through the darkness as he stepped out from behind a tree. Sage clutched her chest.

“Theo! Creepy much!”

He laughed quietly, avoiding my gaze. He looked bigger somehow, like he had spent the last month solely in the gym. His hoodie strained across his chest and arms. I wondered if he was spending all his time fighting. If his mood matched my own I’d say it was a fair assumption.

“Come on… Cillian’s waiting on the path up ahead… probably didn’t want to get his boots dirty or something.” I snorted and then swiftly covered it with a cough. His gaze flicked to mine, sending a rush of emotion through me. He tensed and looked away. Could he feel it too? The push and pull, the war inside my own head. Was he battling too?

Sage chewed her nails as she lagged behind, no doubt avoiding her blatant feelings for Cillian.

We broke through the tree line and Cillian was indeed waiting on the path, a black blazer covering his tall form, as he sat with all his usual grace on a nearby bench. His boots, perfectly polished. A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth as I looked away. A faint smirk echoed across Theo’s face as we glanced at each other.

“Right, let’s do this!” Theo said, practically bouncing on the spot. Cillian rolled his eyes before standing, his gaze drawing to Sage’s. A slow smile spread across his face as he maintained eye contact with her.

“Sage.” He said in greeting. I could have sworn he was putting on a deeper voice. Gods he was smitten. Did she even realise? She was currently looking at him with all the intent of murder if he continued to speak. I frowned. Theo stood looking between them both with equal confusion.

“Umm… Do you two know each other? Did Adeline introduce you?” Theo asked.Ohhhe doesn’t know, this will be interesting,I thought to myself as I perched on the edge of the bench. A prime viewing spot.

Sage answered, “Yes!” at the same time that Cillian said “No.” I wish I had popcorn.

Sage laughed in, quite frankly, such a ridiculous way that I’ve never heard a person, let alonehermake. “So guys, show us the way!” She barged past Theo and he gave her a look which was so comical I had to look away or I would laugh. It only took Cillian three of his long strides to catch up to her and he reached out as though to hold her hand. Sage flinched away so dramatically she almost fell over backwards into a bush, which resulted in Cillian wrapping the offending arm around her waist, only making matters worse. She hissed at him, her cheeks growing more scarlet by the second. This was excellent.

“Okay, what the hell is going on?” Theo demanded.

“What?” Cillian asked, his hand still lingering on Sages waist.

“How do you know each other? Is it because he’s friends with her?” Theo jerked his head in my direction. Rude.

“No, we’re dating.” Sage’s eyes widened in alarm at Cillian’s words.

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