Page 12 of Mistaken Magic

Mr.Sparkssighed. "Well,Ihave work, andNancydoesn't drive.So, if you want this for her, you'll need to take her."

"Ican do that,"Liampromised. "John, this is a great opportunity for all of us.SilverOaksis an elite private college, and getting one of your foster kids to graduate from there?"

Hedidn't need to add in the last part, that it would impress everyone.Thatit would be something they could brag about and not even need to pay for.No,Liamseemed to know exactly which buttons to push and when to simply plant the seed of an idea.

Iknew he was doing this for me, butIhad no clue why.Itwas also strange to see two brothers who were such complete opposites.Liamseemed to always have a smile on his face.Helooked like the kind of person someone simply knew they could trust.Mostimportantly, he acted like he cared.

John?Hewas bitter about something.No, make that about everything.Iwasn't completely sure what he did for a living, butIknew he wore one of those uniforms where his shirt had his name on a patch.Janitor, mechanic, or something.Notlike it was anything to be ashamed of - sinceIfiguredI'dbe lucky to get a job like that - but it also wasn't exactly bragging material either, andJohnSparksseemed like the kind of man who really needed to brag.

Thenthere wasNancy.Shesupposedly wanted children, but she sure didn't act like it.Maybeshe'd wanted a doll?Servants?Becausethat was how she treated the kids here.Ormaybe these two were just inherently nasty people.Thosedid exist.Afterall,Ihad a few memories of my dad, and he'd definitely been one.

Nothinghad ever been his fault,Momshould've fixed it all, and a beer would solve everything.Mr.Sparksreminded me of him a bit, but without the beer.Hehad the same smug look in his eyes, the same arrogance that clung to him, and the same ability to make everyone around him feel like they would be better off in any other room.Andto think,I'donly been living here for about four days.

Butwould this college be any different from a group home?Well, first off, it was a chance to get started on a degree, and ifIwanted to set myself up for the future,Iwould definitely need one of those.Secondly, it meantI'dbe away from these people, so at leastIcould actually sleep at night.Third?Theidea of breathing without being wrong sounded like heaven.

Thenthere was the thought of going to the same school for more than a few months.IfIwasn't underfoot, there was a chanceImight not have to move again!Whichmeant friends.Itmeant doing normal things, hanging out, and maybe even a boyfriend.Inother words, it meantIcould actually have thefreedom to be a normal seventeen-year-old girl.Oh,Iknew some things were just out of the question.Adriver's license, as an example.Ihad to wait untilIwas eighteen, because there was no wayI'dmanage to pay for driver's ed.Acell phone was another.Still,Icould manage.

"Fine,"Mr.Sparkssaid, pulling me out of my daydreams. "Shecan go to thisInstituteof yours, butIdon't want it to come back on me.We'vealready had to live through the hell those others put us through.Nancycouldn't survive that again.So, either she gets in and does well, or you get her out of this house."

Liamlicked his lips almost carefully. "That'sexactly whyIthought we should sendLorrainetoSilverOaks.Thoseboys were bored in public school,John."

Mr.Sparksnarrowed his eyes. "Yeah, but didn't one end up at your place?"

Liamslowly nodded. "Hedid.Ialso don't think you'd even recognize him anymore."

Nancypatted her husband's hand.Thegesture seemed almost excited - or possibly distressed.Itwas hard to tell with her. "Ifthis school can fixthatboy, then we have to.Besides," she said, dropping her voice, "think how good this will look on our record."

Yeah, theirrecord.Theone that allowed them to keep fostering kids, and who knew ifLiamwould have any more credits to help the next one out - butIdidn't want to think about it.Righthere, right now,Iwas getting the kind of break that didn't come along very often.Ihad to make the most of it, because no matter what people thought,Ireally wasn't a bad kid.

Iwasn't exactly a good one, either.Iwasn't some brainiac to get myself a full ride to college.Iwasn't an artist or good at sports.Iwas simply the girl who knew how to pack her entire life into one suitcase, blend into whatever situation was thrown at her, and make it out alive.I'dsurvived my father, a few dozenfoster homes, and the horrors of the other kids in the system.Sofar,I'dmade it to seventeen in one piece, without a record, and with the very real hope of a futureIcould be proud of.

"So,"Iasked, keeping my voice nice and calm, "when doIstart?"

"Iwill get you an appointment to be tested tomorrow,"Liamassured me.

"Butshe doesn't have a uniform yet,"Nancywarned him.

Liamwaved her down. "It'sfine.Thisis just a test.Puther in slacks and a nice shirt.Ican call you in the morning to let you know what time, thenI'llcome pick her up and bring her back.Willthat work?"

"Soundsgood,"Mr.Sparksdecided, which meantMrs.Sparkswouldn't contradict him. "ButWilliam, since this is your idea, you're in charge of her.NancyandIcan't be running all the way over to that place."

"Thenyou'll have to sign a paper giving me power of guardianship,"Liamtold him.

Johndidn't even think about it, he simply nodded. "Sure, sinceIdonotwant to be woken up in the middle of the night because she got caught having relations with some boy."

Righton cue,Nancygasped in horror.Iwanted to roll my eyes, butIdidn't.Nope,Iwas smart enough to see whatLiam- which evidently was short forWilliam- had just done.He'deffectively become my foster father, at least whileIwas in school.Iwasn't sure ifJohnwas that stupid, lazy, or simply cared so little, but it didn't matter.

Tomorrow,Iwas going to be on my best behavior.I'dalso be looking for this boy who'd managed to survive theSparks.

Chapter Seven

Thenext morning,Liamcalled to say he had an appointment for me to take the entrance exam just after lunch.Itseemed there were still a few spots in theAdvancedPlacementprogram, although they wouldn't have a dorm ready untilSundayafternoon.ThatmeantIwas definitely spending the weekend with theSparks, sadly.Nancy- whoIstill calledMrs.Sparksto her face - said we could all go to church as a family onSundaymorning.Joy.

WhenLiamshowed up,Iwas dressed in the horrendous plaid shirt from the closet, complete with puff sleeves, shoulder pads, and fake pearl buttons.Itwasn't even a cool retro look.No, it was like some knockoff of a good idea, twisted until it was embarrassing.Thisthing was just horrible, and the khaki pants that went with it had the necessary tummy pleats, which made me look at least three months pregnant.Ofcourse, makeup wasnotallowed, soIwas really hopingIwouldn't meet any students today.

Ridingthere withLiamwas pretty nice, though.Hetalked to me and let me pick the radio station, but our conversation was all shallow and polite stuff.Localweather, mostly.Soonenough, we were there.SilverOaksInstitutewas located justoutside the city limits on a rolling stretch of beautiful land.Thedrive curved up from the main road, winding between massive, perfectly cultivated trees.Ihad no idea if they were oaks since the branches were bare, but it didn't really matter.Thewhole thing screamed posh.

Thenthe main building of the school came into view.Mostof it was made from a dark red brick.Thetrim around all the windows and the columns by the entry were white stone.Thestyle was very colonial, and this place was massive.Icounted four stories, plus the wings of the building that swept back.AtleastIhoped they were wings, because if this was one very large, square building, well,I'dseen malls smaller.

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