Chapter 47
Julie
“Hey, you, computer nerd...”
I looked up from my laptop in confusion at Grace, who was waving her car key in front of my face.
“What did you say?” I asked, because I’d been focused on the codes on the screen in front of me until now. I had tried again and again via the university’s database, but somehow the IT security team of Vanderwood University had managed to replace the old firewall with a better one. As a result, I only had limited access to the lecture overviews and none at all to the students’ files.
I had been too slow.
“I’m going to Moenia again. Amara said she needed me for a healing ritual, and I also need a few ingredients for the bracelets.”
If I hadn’t been Julie, I would have rolled my eyes right now. Grace was so scared of the Copelands and the DeLoughreys that she wanted to make silver bracelets with wolfsbane extract for both of us.
“I’ll be back in an hour.”
I looked at her, nodding, as she grabbed her black denim jacket and disappeared through the door of our large shared room.
Grace had disappeared at just the right time because it was 9 pm and Larissa had dragged Bayla to Midnights to meet Mady there. She had been raving to Bayla about Ezra, Mady’s brother, the whole time. And Emely wouldn’t show up until midnight, anyway.
The door to the room opened and a condescending-looking Vivienna peeked through the crack, looking around before her disapproving gaze lingered on me.
“Where’s Grace?”
Despite the urge to avoid her gaze, I studied her eyes.
Grace always said she was jealous that Vivienna was so lucky with her genes, but all I saw when I looked at her was that emptiness in her eyes that all Air Quatura our age shared.
Images flashed through my mind. Images of her sitting in Gloria’s office chair, tipping the cloudy contents of the vial into her mouth, and swallowing them.
“Julie? Are you responsive or back in your little world again?” Vivienna sighed and I winced.
“Grace is in Moenia...”
Vivienna just snorted and finally disappeared from the room.
I looked down at my hands and froze when I noticed the small ice crystals on my fingertips.
Panicked, I wiped them off on the bedspread.
No... That hadn’t just happened...
I looked at my fingertips again. But there was nothing there anymore.
Maybe it was the paranoia I’d had since the incident.
I hurriedly reached for my cell phone to distract myself.
Not only that, but Erik had texted me an hour ago, and I had been eagerly waiting to make good on my promise. It had been weeks since we had last texted through the night, and I was missing the exchange.
I opened the chat expectantly.
I had to smile.
He was online immediately.
Again, I had to smile.
I still felt bad about my absence on the weekend. In retrospect, I realized how that must have looked. Like I didn’t care about him.
I bit my lower lip.
Erik had somehow become very important to me.
I sighed.
