Divided Souls (6 page)

T
he long weekend that Patrick had spent in Istanbul seemed to fly by – before Cassie knew it, she’d been seeing him off at the airport. Great as it was to see him, Cassie was oddly pleased to fully re-immerse herself back into Academy life. As she walked through the courtyard, just the trickling splash of water in the fountain made her feel cooler in the summer heat. She paused, books in her arms, smiling up at the statue of Leda and her swan against the open sky. She got fonder and fonder of the poor girl, seduced by that savage beautiful bird. Cassie knew exactly how she felt …

Nah, she told herself firmly. Leda should have dumped that swan. Or better still, wrung its scrawny neck.

She’d like to wring Ranjit’s, that was for sure. Funny how, for all his grandiose declarations, she’d seen barely hide nor hair of him in the past few days. His new devotion to her obviously wasn’t interfering with his old habit of skipping half his classes. Maybe he was off like Indiana Jones, finding the solution to all their problems. Yeah, right.

‘Cassie!’

She turned and was surprised by the genuine feeling of happiness she felt when she saw who was coming towards her. Richard’s insolent grin was infectious, and she couldn’t help but return it as he sauntered across the courtyard. When he reached her, he aimed a kiss at Cassie’s cheek and seemed a little surprised when she let it connect.

‘You looked like you were struggling a bit in there,’ she joked, gesturing back towards Herr Stolz’s classroom.

‘Bloody hell, you’re telling me,’ he said, making a show of trying to get air down his collar. ‘Maths was purgatory today, Bell, I don’t know how you do it.’

She raised an eyebrow. ‘Wouldn’t have been such a struggle if you’d done the prep, mate.’

‘Agreed. Might have stopped Stolz getting his lederhosen in a twist. Anyway, that’s enough about the daily grind,’ he said, looking up at the gleaming marble figures. ‘How about these statues, eh? Don’t you think Io would be more appropriate here instead of Leda? I don’t know if you know the story, but that naughty Zeus has a lot to answer for here in Istanbul—’

‘I
do
know, as it happens,’ Cassie interjected, smiling smugly. ‘The old bugger Zeus seduced Io, but his missus got wind of it, so he turned the poor girl into a cow to hide her. But Mrs Z wasn’t fooled, she sent a bee to sting the heifer in her rear. And Io bolted and paddled as fast as her hooves could carry her across the strait – hence, the Bosphorus, meaning “passage of the cow”. Hah!’

Richard pushed his hair out of his eye sheepishly. ‘Right, you obviously
do
do your homework! Beautiful, and intelligent too.’

Cassie flushed unexpectedly at the compliment. ‘Well, uh, I swatted up cos I wanted to be the one making sinister remarks about pagan deities this year,’ she joked, recovering. He chuckled, and Cassie noticed he had dimples. Had she noticed those before? Keep talking, Cassie, she thought. ‘Anyway, don’t you think there’s a bit of a god-obsession round here? I’m sure it’s what makes the Few so …’

‘Up ourselves?’ finished Richard.

Cassie grinned; couldn’t help it. ‘Yeah.’

Thinking about Isabella’s shameless matchmaking, she studied him again as he fiddled absent-mindedly with the trailing tendrils of a black orchid on the stone of the pool. There was no point denying it. Richard
was
bloody good-looking, and a charmer, and he had those green eyes and that sexy mouth …

But no. It would be crazy to fall for someone so flaky. And sometimes Cassie wasn’t sure if his ‘anything goes’ attitude might not work in her favour. Who knows, she thought, he might be more into guys? What if girls were just a change of scene for him? An occasional holiday? Not that she was thinking of being his weekend break. Not seriously anyway … Flaky! she reminded herself. Unreliable, changeable, flippant … But then again, there were those cheekbones, as defined as his arm muscles … Oh, stop it, Cassie!

Richard glanced up at her through his dark lashes. ‘Hey, Cassie?’ He hesitated. ‘I appreciate it, you know.’

‘What?’

‘You forgiving me.’

‘Well, now I didn’t say I’d forgiven you.’ She cocked an eyebrow. ‘It’s just with Isabella still a little down in the dumps, if I don’t talk to you then I might end up missing out on some of the school gossip.’

He grinned rakishly. ‘Well by all means, let me share some. What are you doing with your free afternoon? Want to come to Beyoglu? I know this—’

‘Perfect little café?’ she mimicked dryly, recalling his fateful words from her first term at the Academy. ‘Uh-huh. No thanks. Besides, I was thinking something cultural. The Blue Mosque, maybe.’

He looked injured. ‘Hey, I can do culture, Ms Bell. I could show you the— uh-oh.’ At the sound of footsteps clicking on the tiles he’d glanced past her, shooting a nervous look over her shoulder. Returning his attention to her, Richard winked. ‘I think it’s time for my cocoa. See you later though, Cassie.’

Staring at him quizzically, she glanced over her shoulder.

Sir Alric Darke.

He was still the same: tall, imposing, with a devilish smile and a scarily intelligent, all-knowing glint in his grey-granite eyes. But she wasn’t scared, despite the fact that he was heading their way. He nodded, seeming vaguely amused at Richard’s disappearing act.

‘Good afternoon, Cassie.’

Well, what had she expected? She was going to have to face him sooner or later, and it might as well be now. Not that she was frightened of him, not any more.

‘Hello, Sir Alric.’

‘Good to see you back.’

Cassie inwardly scoffed – the comment seemed weighted with extra meaning since the Council of Elders’ vote last term. Sir Alric continued. ‘How are you finding Istanbul?’

Damn, he was obviously intent on stopping to chat. Biting back on a sarcastic retort, she gave him a tight smile. ‘It’s very beautiful. What I’ve seen of it.’

‘I’m glad. I hope you’ll see a great deal more. Make the most of it.’

‘Because I might not have been here at all?’ It was out before she could hold her tongue.

He studied her for a few seconds, just long enough to make her uncomfortable.

‘Exactly.’

She ought to thank him, she thought as she averted her eyes and stared at the statue. Without his intervention, Cassie would have been in seriously hot water, having unleashed the full force of her unusual power on those unsuspecting bitchy Few girls at Carnegie Hall. This was the moment to say:
Thanks for defending me in front of the Council, Sir Alric. Thanks for having faith in me. Thanks for saving me from the Confine
.

She couldn’t; just couldn’t. The memory of the price she’d paid – she and Ranjit – was just too bitter. They were not compatible, Sir Alric had said. They could not be together; their spirits were too dangerous, too volatile. He wouldn’t have saved her if they’d disobeyed him. No, he’d have let her go to the Confine, imprisoned indefinitely. His help had been conditional on their obedience.

Bastard.

Yes
, said Estelle viciously.
Yes, indeed
.

Except that he’s probably right, Estelle. Losing Ranjit was for the best. We both know that now …

An inner smirk from the spirit, and a strategic silence. Estelle said nothing more.

Breaking the awkward silence, Sir Alric said, ‘Cassie, come with me a moment.’

She had no choice but to follow him. He led her beyond the courtyard and along secluded paths through the greenery, but he didn’t pause until he reached another, smaller paved courtyard through an arch hung with vines. Filtered sunlight glanced off the panes of a greenhouse, full of propagated black orchids in pots, but he led her straight through that too and into an opulent room that was clearly his office for this term. It was much darker in here, and lamps flickered, making the shadows leap. Did he always have to make his office so damned intimidating? Not for the first time she decided Sir Alric was downright manipulative.

She recognised his usual desk, the lamp, the bookshelves, the antique globe. On a high shelf stood a stunningly carved jade urn that glowed in the dim sunlight from the window. She remembered that from last term, too. She nodded, looking around, as Sir Alric’s secretary withdrew discreetly to an anteroom.

‘That was not the usual entrance to this office, may I say,’ he said by way of an opener. ‘As a rule I’d like you to use the corridors.’

‘As a rule I will, then.’ Shrugging, she said, ‘Nice. Made yourself at home already, then. Bit different from New York, though, isn’t it?’

‘Indeed. I like a change of scene.’ Sir Alric smiled, ignoring her frosty tone. ‘I like changes altogether. There are many in you, Cassie, if I’m not mistaken. You seem happier. Certainly much better than you did last term.’

‘Yeah …’ she began.

‘You’re adjusting,’ Sir Alric asserted. ‘To your status, that is. And may I say, it suits you.’

‘Thanks,’ she muttered.

‘So I take it you’ll socialise a little more with the others this term?’ His voice was light but there was no mistaking his seriousness. ‘It’s good for the Few to stick together, and it’s never healthy for rivalries to develop. Unfriendly ones, at least. Enmities, shall we say?’

‘Yes. Let’s.’

Again he ignored her sarcasm. ‘Your spirit is a powerful one, Cassie; you know that.’

‘Like she ever lets me forget …’

‘And your particular power entails responsibility.’

‘Oh great.’ This time she managed to laugh. ‘Now I’m Spider Girl.’

He smiled with half his thin mouth. ‘I’m not the only one who will be monitoring your progress, Cassie. Please try to keep that in mind. You’re here because I persuaded the Council you could integrate. More importantly, that you could control yourself. You won’t let me down, I’m sure.’ He touched the velvety black petal of an orchid on his desk. ‘You’re like my plants here: dangerously unique. Your interrupted initiation saw to that. I’m extremely careful when I deal with these orchids, Miss Bell, and I intend to take the same care with you and your turbulent spirit. It’s what I promised the Elders, as you will recall.’

‘I think I may have some recollection, yes.’

He lifted an eyebrow and met her gaze directly. ‘And whether my students approve of them or not, I do keep my promises.’

She couldn’t miss the warning in his expression. Once again, he had the moral high ground. ‘Yeah. OK.’

‘Good,’ he said, smiling once more as if they’d just had a perfectly normal student–teacher conversation. He nodded and sat down behind his desk, lifting a folder.

It was a dismissal. The secretary reappeared and held open the door to the anteroom. No pretty greenhouse route this time. Nodding to him, Cassie took a deep breath and left. She walked slowly through the richly wood-panelled corridors, gathering her thoughts.

Damn. Darke always knew how to put a damper on a nice day. Finding that her hands were trembling slightly, she clasped them tighter around her books as she made her way back towards the courtyard.

‘Hey.’ She felt a light hand on her shoulder. ‘Did you get in trouble already, Cassie Bell?’

‘Huh?’

Ayeesha smiled and jerked her thumb in the vague direction of Sir Alric’s office. ‘Saw you got summoned.’

Cassie gave her a weak grin. ‘Not really. Just got my card marked, so to speak.’

‘Don’t let him bother you. He can be a sod, we all know that, but it’s only because he worries.’

‘Oh, he’s a regular sweet old grandpa-figure.’ Cassie rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t help laughing. Ayeesha joined in.

‘Listen, we’re having drinks in the Few common room on Thursday. Seven o’clock, to celebrate the start of term. Join us?’ Ayeesha raised a hopeful eyebrow.

‘Oh! I … dunno, I—’

‘Don’t want to associate with us? Cassie! What could we
possibly
have done to offend you?’ She pouted jokily. ‘Actually, don’t answer that! Just come along anyway?’ She grinned. ‘We’ll make it up to you. Cormac makes a hell of a mojito.’

‘Oh, I believe that all right.’ Cassie bit her lip. ‘But I don’t know …’

‘Hey, look,’ Ayeesha said gently. ‘All those problems you had last term? Not feeding properly, losing control of yourself? None of that would have happened if we’d been there for you. All the Few, we’re supposed to look out for each other, and we didn’t.’

Cassie wondered inwardly if Sir Alric had briefed the Bajan girl. ‘That wasn’t your fault—’ she began.

‘Well, not entirely, Cassie. But still. We need to make up for what we didn’t do.’ Ayeesha gave her a beatific grin. ‘And some of us do actually like you, despite all your efforts.’

That made Cassie laugh out loud. ‘OK, you win! But I don’t do committees, right? Nobody’s going to try and make me run the Christmas raffle.’

‘Nah. We expect you to bake cakes, though, and knit stuffed animals.’ Ayeesha winked. ‘Seriously, though, you don’t have to get any more involved than you want to. We want to be your friends, that’s all. It doesn’t mean we’re all joined at the virtual hip, it’s cool. And it’ll keep Sir Alric off your back.’

Cassie exhaled deeply. ‘That can only be good, I guess! OK, I’ll be there.’

‘Great!’

‘And Ayeesha …? Thanks.’

With a last happy smile, Ayeesha slung her bag on to her shoulder and walked off. Cassie watched her go, unwilling to move till she’d gathered her thoughts, soothed by the echoing trickle and splash of the fountain.

Things were back on track for her plans this term, then. Mean girl Katerina was out of the picture – so was Ranjit, for that matter – and Jake wasn’t here, which was rough on Isabella, but certainly made life generally calmer without his revenge-seeking … The whole damn scenario was a lot less stressful.

So she was going to make a concerted effort to fit in. What was the point in fighting it? What was the point in resisting Estelle, rejecting her Few existence? There was no going back; everyone had told her so. She could fight it till she dropped dead of boredom and exhaustion, or she could make an effort.

That’s my girl, Cassandra
. Estelle’s voice was soft, and for once she didn’t resent it.