Page 79 of A Lesson in Deceit
The entire thing sounded as if they knew things were off but tried to act as if they had it all under control. It was downright infuriating. I leaned against an adjacent building to the one my dad’s office was housed in. It was humid out even though the sun wasn’t around, the air a little muggy. I heard footsteps, making my breaths a little softer not knowing who it was. My roommate patted my shoulder, standing in front of me. Ike was right behind her, looking around as paranoid as ever.
“Calm down. You didn’t have to help us, you know,” Corrin scolded.
Ike shook his head, heading towards the building. “If anything happened to you, mom and dad would never let me live it down. And I know you would come back and haunt me.”
The meeting had started five or ten minutes ago, so unless a teacher or faculty member was running really late, they would allbe there by now. The school security was really meant for certain buildings that housed more priceless things that the university cared about or the potions building, since Corrin had told me that something in there was likely explosive.
The door had two basic bolt locks and a chain lock on the top. Ike held his hand out, tiny wisps of gold and silver whipped around. The wisps connected themselves to each piece of the various locks and I heard them being bent and molded, the chain lock at the top melted into a golden pin that slipped right through. The bolt locks pulled back and Ike yanked the door open.
We didn’t want to spend time waiting on the elevator, so we took the stairs, to Corrin’s dismay. I took them two at a time, my determination overpowering the fact that my legs were burning. I opened the door to my dad’s floor, realizing how eerie it all felt this time of night. None of the overhead lights were on and I had the odd feeling that someone was watching.
I stopped in front of my dad’s office, the nerves I’d placed in the back of my mind shoving their way to the front. Ike stepped up to the door, lifting his hand, then slightly lowered it. “Are you sure you want to do this? We can turn back and just, like, go to Leif’s for food.”
“Open the fucking door, Ike,” Corrin said, exasperated.
He let out a sigh, using his powers on the door. It swung open slowly and I pressed my hand against it to keep it ajar. Ike looked at his sister. “Please check your phone just in case. I’ll be back downstairs and text you if I see someone.” He gave us one long look and then went back down the hall.
I stepped into the room, the feeling of dread washing over me. I wanted to turn on the light, but that would cause suspicion, so I worked with the tiny piece of moonlight we had. It looked like an office my dad would have. There was a tiny basketball hoop on the back of the door for when he got bored, there wereso many open books on his desk, and when my eyes roamed over the ground, I found a picture of me, him and my mom when I was just a kid. We looked so happy, and it would never be like that again.
It was like besides the window being fixed, nothing in this office had been touched.
“Riley, are you ready?” Corrin reached into her bag, pulling out a small bottle with liquid that looked like apple juice.
“Is this safe?” I asked, trying to sound smart even though I didn’t actually care at this point.
“If I did everything right, yes. If not, it will still work, but you might end up with a shit stomachache tomorrow.” She removed the cork from the bottle and handed it to me.
I nodded, inhaling deeply, then exhaling. The bottle shook a little in my hands when I brought it to my lips. I tipped it back, drinking the contents. It had a tangy aftertaste, but it wasn’t horrible. I walked over to my dad’s window, trying to find some way to turn this power on. I looked out the window, placing my hand on the glass.
“Do you feel anything?” Corrin asked and I was about to answer her when things got fuzzy. I fell against the window, grabbing onto the sill to keep me elevated. Corrin started to come over, but I held my hand out to stop her.
The room started ripping apart and moving. Different colors filtered my vision and I felt a wave of vertigo. The sky outside changed over and over as if it was trying to find the right timeline to put me in. Corrin disappeared from my sight and I saw someone moving around the desk, but they weren’t fully put together. I blinked hoping that the more I tried to focus the clearer the past would be. I stepped away from the window, trying to find my balance. I landed against the desk, my hand shaking when I picked up the picture of my family—the one thathad just been on the ground—but now it was on the desk like it was always meant to be.
My head was throbbing, but there was a lamp on in the room, creating a dim light around me. I saw my dad’s handsome face, working hard at his desk. A knock came at the door and a person came in. Suddenly the vision changed and my dad was being jolted out the window. I turned my head too quickly, the swift movement causing me to press my palms to my temples.
My dad was back on his feet when I blinked, but he was right in front of the window and I backed up giving the past some room, so I could pay attention.
I don’t understand, my dad said.That can’t be true.
The lamp got thrown in one direction, cutting off any solid light supply I had. The room was surrounded in darkness, no moonlight to guide me.
You don’t get to take things that don’t belong to you,the other person said. It sounded like a man. The lack of light made it hard to make out his face, but he was tall. His voice sounded angry and like he was at his wits end.
I will tell them. You won’t come near my family,my dad said, prepared to charge at this man. The jolt of magic that shot past me hit my dad and he collided with the window. I hadn’t thought about the consequences of doing this, seeing this. I held my quivering lips together because I needed to know who did this. I wanted to reach my hand out and save him from falling. I wanted to tell him to just back down and say whatever he needed to, so he could get out of this situation.
If I knew anything about my dad, he was thinking about me and my mom the entire time, and I didn’t know what hurt more. The fact that it seemed like we were the reason for his death or that we were the last things on his mind.
I tried to get closer, needing to see who I was going to expose. I needed to see who was snatching girls from Corrin’s coven. Itook one step and then another, but then a loud scream came from near the door. It sounded like my name.
It sounded like Corrin was screaming my name.
39
Riley
Ifelt my body shake as if someone was pulling me back and forth. The world I’d seen felt distorted now and everything was out of order. Time moved forward and I tried to find purchase on anything I could get my hands on to stop it. Then my mind stalled like it had found its place to stop and I was back in my father’s office, in the present.
I slammed my hand against my head, feeling like my entire brain had been heaved right off my spinal cord. Corrin was at my side, taking my face in her hands and forcing me to look at her. We weren’t alone though. I ripped her hands from my face and saw one security officer and Oliver St. James in the doorway.
