Page 51 of Centaur Bolt

Her abrupt departure was a little weird. But then, so was my life. The Dragona, though, had secrets that caused her deep pain. Something much worse than anything that had, so far, happened to me.

We weren’t the only ones heading down for class—the stairwell was crowded. Many of the advanced students joined the foundation classes for special abilities, one of the few where we all blended. Not that it mattered for me—I seemed to be the only Jumper.

Moving ahead of us, the Watcher created a little bubble of empty space around her. Kiko and I were engulfed in the aftermath that closed in behind her. Considering the Satyr’s effect on the average male, we were immediately surrounded by jostling, overheated bodies.

One big dude bumped rather deliberately into Kiko. In the process, he just about flattened me into the railing.

“Seriously, dude,” I hissed at him. I put my hand on his bare arm and shoved back. By his size, shoulders, and general state of hairiness, I was pretty sure he was Dire.

My hand tingled. It was like touching solid rock. Were all the dudes here ripped?

Another even larger behemoth pushed past my assailant with a growl that sent him scampering, before sliding an arm around Kiko.

“Hello, Scott,” Kiko purred.

Ah. I seem to remember something about a Scott…

“If you want to skip lunch, I have an idea of how we can pass the time,” Scott suggested, his voice a seductive growl.

Kiko pouted at him. “I’ve been warned not tofraternize”—she emphasized the last word—"with the students.”

I thought the more accurate rendition would involve the word fornicate, but whatever.

His brows lowered. “By whom?”

She sighed and pointed to where Cara descended in solitary splendor. “The Watcher.”

He growled for real this time. “Maybe we can sneak off campus…”

“If I can figure out a way, I’ll let you know.” She trailed her hand along his arm, and his eyes went incandescent.

Just as I thought he’d start drooling, we reached the foyer. I spotted Jacques waiting by the front entrance. He was already standing with Cara, and they both glanced my way.

I was immediately suspicious that I was the topic of their conversation. Something verified when they stopped speaking to each other as I approached.

“See you after I set a few things on fire,” Kiko said to me. I noticed that Scott brushed against her as they passed through the door. The dude still looked hopeful. There was no sign of the Dire that had almost flattened me. Scott’s growl had sent him packing.

Jacques’s gaze followed Kiko as she walked by. Did her pheromones work on him, too?

“Hello, Jacques,” I said. Sparkle chirped at me from his shoulder.

“I’ll catch up with you later, Riley.” Cara smiled and headed for the administrative wing. What had she been saying to Jacques? Was she now going to report to the headmaster, too? I squinted after her.

Jacques cleared his throat. “I thought working out front might give us some better targets for today’s lesson.”

“Okay,” I said uneasily. Considering the last session was a bit of a nightmare, I was nervous. But if I was to stand any chance at all of using my talent to help Marcus, I needed to know what I could do.

With that in mind, I decided to clear the air. “Did Cara tell you how I thought I could help Marcus?”

She’d only had a moment or two to do so. But when he hesitated, I had my answer. I kept my expression deliberately bland as he replied, “She warned me that you might try something ill-advised,mademoiselle.”

He led us through the milling students and along the path leading to the lake. “Would it work?” I asked.

Jacques took us to a bench near the water, before turning to me. “I am sure Cara told you how dangerous that might be.”

“Yes, she did. But is it possible?”

He regarded me with his dark, unfathomable eyes. “Possible, yes. But also, not. Because you don’t know if it is really within your abilities. If it is just barely, that is the most dangerous. You might not quite make it.”

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