INTEGRATION (Bonfire Academy Book Two) (Bonfire Chronicles) (28 page)

“Price?”

“Yes. Being a Wanderer comes with responsibilities, which means being at Spencer Darley’s beck and call.”

“To do what?”

“Whatever he wants me to do.”

I was starting to feel a bit annoyed. “So, he can basically call you away whenever for whatever? How does this help me…us? Don’t you think you should have discussed it with me first, seeing that we’re synched?”

He gazed at me in silence for a minute. “Yes, you’re right,” he whispered. “I was just so…afraid and feeling completely inadequate when Martha was killed. I couldn’t even get Faustine in the truck without Ryker’s help. I acted on impulse. I should have spoken to you about it.”

“Impulse? That doesn’t sound good. What if you change your mind?”

He took my hand. “No, that’s not what I meant. Impulse, as in diving in and asking Spencer about it. The process itself was thorough and made sure that I understood all the repercussions. I’m very happy with my decision. I just wish I had told you first.”

“How often will you have to go away?”

“I don’t know. I’m guessing not at all, unless there’s an emergency of some kind. I’m not on his regular staff, but I will have to check in with him from time to time. Ryker is mentoring me.”

“Wow,” I said, standing up. “We’ve got to go. Faustine’s case will start soon, and I want to get there in time. Are you coming with?”

“Yes, let’s go.” He grabbed my elbow and held me back. “Just tell me you’re okay with all this.”

“I can’t. I need time to think about it. I guess I’ll have to be, though. It’s not like you gave me any choice.”

“I suppose that’s fair. I didn’t give you a choice, and I never will when it comes to your safety. I did what I had to do.”

“Jagger, I’m a demon. I can pretty much take care of—”

“Don’t, Cordelia. Don’t go there. If it wasn’t for me, you’d have died when Mason attacked you.” His voice was low and tinged with fury.

“Okay, okay! Let’s just go. I don’t want to argue with you. I’m just tense, probably because of the trial.” Not really. I was furious that he’d made such a big life decision without even discussing it with me. I had so many questions, but I pushed them to the back of my mind as we walked toward the Justice Auditorium.

We got there right on time. Everyone was already seated and seemed ready to get started. King Sebastian waved, and we walked over and sat down next to him. I looked forward at Faustine and Octavia. Octavia looked elegant in her red and yellow robe, with a dark-colored Armani pantsuit peeking through and her vampire white skin looking even paler against it. Her stunning face wasn’t made any less breathtaking by the ridiculous-looking curly wig she’d dropped on her blond head. She was still busy briefing Faustine, her ruby red lips whispering in Faustine’s ear.

“How is she doing?” I asked King Sebastian.

“She’s tense. But she’ll be fine with Octavia in her corner.”

I shared King Sebastian’s complete confidence in Octavia’s abilities. That being said, I noticed that Sally, who had represented Mason last year, was sitting at the opposing table. She was on her own, with no client present. I assumed she had been hired by the dead panther’s parents. I didn’t recognize the twelve members of the student council seated at the long oak table on the raised platform. I wondered which one of them was the new student council president.

A four-foot-tall, dark-haired boy stood up behind the table. He looked about twelve.

“Who’s that?” I whispered to Jagger.

“Asmen. The new president. He’s a troll.”

Asmen’s voiced thundered over the speakers. “Welcome. I am Asmen, the president of the Student Council. We’re still waiting for the deceased student’s parents to arrive. In the meantime, let’s go over the rules for this proceeding. Everything that happens in here stays in here. This is a closed trial, and all records will be sealed.”

He looked at the two tables in front of him. “The Student Council has invited Sally to represent the Academy on behalf of Nari Russo, the boy killed in this incident. Faustine Spencer is represented by Octavia. Faustine, your testimony will be under oath. Please note that you must tell the truth in response to questions from the Student Council and its representatives during this trial. Is that clear?”

Faustine nodded, looking very sincere.

‘Sally, are you ready for your opening?”

“Yes,” she answered in her annoying singsong voice. I remembered her well from Mason’s trial, all her cutesy-cutesy hiding a killer-sharp brain.

The door to the auditorium opened, and a young couple entered. The man was tall, dressed in a dark suit. The woman had long, dark, straight hair and was attired in a smart beige skirt suit. Shifters. The odor was strong and clear. The parents of Faustine’s lunch.

“Welcome,” Asmen said, addressing the couple. “Please accept the council’s deepest condolences. Take your seats; we’re ready to start.”

The couple remained expressionless as they sat behind Sally, who threw them a warm smile.

“Sally, the floor is yours,” Asmen said and returned to his chair.

Sally kept her eyes on the couple. “Mr. and Mrs. Russo, I’m so very sorry for your loss.” Then, she addressed the council. “There really is not much to say. Faustine ate…” She paused to look at each of the members of the council. “Yes,
ate
Academy student Nari Russo in a totally vicious, disgusting attack. The incident is not refuted by the defense, although I have numerous witnesses who can attest to the attack, should we need them. I’ve already had the surveillance footage that recorded the whole incident admitted into evidence. You have no choice; you must find the defendant guilty of committing this heinous crime.” She threw her hands up in the air and shrugged. “There’s not much more to say.” She nodded at the Russos and sat down, glaring at Octavia.

“Thank you,” Asmen said, getting back on his feet. “Octavia?”

She nodded and stood, turning to the bereaved couple. “Mr. and Mrs. Russo, my very heartfelt condolences. I cannot even begin to express my sadness at the passing of your son.”

She turned and looked at the Student Council members. “It is the responsibility of this Academy to protect its students while they are in training. In this case, the school failed on many levels. Mr. and Mrs. Russo lost a son, and the demon sovereign of Dallas lost her daughter, a daughter who happened to be Faustine’s roommate and very close friend.”

Sally was up on her feet. “Objection! Martha’s demise is of no relevance here!”

Asmen stood up and waved for Sally to sit down. “Octavia, please tell us where you are going with this.”

She nodded. “Unfortunately, no justice can be sought for Martha’s murder, simply because no culprit has been apprehended. Martha’s murder is, however, of extreme relevance here as it led to this unfortunate event and sheds light on Faustine’s state of mind during the attack.”

“Okay, but keep on point. Continue,” Asmen ruled and sat back down.

Octavia launched into a descriptive, emotional story of what Faustine had witnessed from the slopes. Sally made a move to get up and object several times, but Asmen allowed Octavia a bit of latitude in her opening statement.

Octavia had the Student Council mesmerized by her narrative. “Naturally,” Octavia, said, patting Faustine’s head. “Faustine is
utterly
devastated.” She paused, giving the council members an opportunity to take in Faustine’s tear-stained face. “As you know, Faustine is a human-demon hybrid, the first human we’ve ever had in this school. My understanding is that you’ve already met with Jagger and heard his account of the constant attacks on Faustine and her friends by certain members of the shifter population here. These constant attacks have marred her time here. Despite this, Faustine has remained neutral toward the shifters, in fact, excelling at her Integration sessions. However, her Initiation sessions have not yet been completed, and she has not realized all her powers nor how to control them. Is Faustine, a mere child, responsible for overseeing her own training? No! The school is responsible for all aspects of her training. And so far, it has failed miserably. I urge you to keep first and foremost in your minds that this tragic failure has led to the death of one of its students. I hold Frau Schmelder and Professor Bern responsible for not tailoring her training enough to address all the issues with it. This should have been done during her first year at the school. Yet, here we are, near the end of her second year, with very little progress.”

I winced. That was a slap to my face. It was my responsibility to design training sessions.

Octavia tapped her long, silver-tipped nails against the table. “When Faustine witnessed her best friend’s brutal, violent murder at the hands of a shifter, she reacted unexpectedly. She transformed and stayed transformed for a length of time she never has before. She was completely taken over by her demon form, unable to control her reac—”

Sally jumped to her feet. “Objection! That is utter nonsense! There is no way you can know that.”

Asmen banged his gavel on the table. “Sustained. Please rephrase that, Octavia.”

“Following Martha’s murder, Faustine transformed into her demon form and was admitted to the infirmary under Dr. Marks’s care. She was still under his care when she escaped from the infirmary and this incident took place. I place the responsibility in the hands of the school. You will hear testimony that if the school had given Faustine appropriate and adequate medical supervision and care, this incident would not have occurred. But most importantly, no matter what Faustine’s mental state,
she was attacked first
!” Octavia practically screeched. “Faustine was merely walking down a hallway at the Academy when she was attacked by a panther. She acted in self-defense. Any of you would have done the same.” Then, looking directly at the council with her blood-red eyes shining, Octavia implored, “Accordingly, we ask that you find Faustine not guilty of fatal bodily harm.” Octavia sat down.

Asmen stood again. “Thank you, Octavia. Sally, are you ready to begin with your witnesses?”

Sally brought to the stand a few of Nari’s friends, who each testified that they witnessed Faustine’s attack on Nari. The details were gruesome, but Nari’s parents maintained their expressionless masks.

“Any further witnesses, Sally?” Asmen asked after the fourth boy left the stand.

“No, Asmen. I can’t see any reason to put the Russos through further unnecessary pain. The boys testified very clearly as to what happened.”

“Very well. Let’s take a short break and then resume after lunch to hear Octavia’s case.”

After the lunch break, court was reconvened back in the Justice Auditorium.

Asmen brought the court to order, then asked, “Octavia, are you ready with your first witness?”

“Yes, I’d like to call Dr. Marks.”

We waited while Dr. Marks took the stand and was sworn in. He fidgeted with his tie as he readied himself for Octavia to begin her questioning.

Octavia smiled and walked up to the witness stand. “Dr. Marks, was Faustine under your care during the attack?”

He nodded and sent an apologetic glance to Nari’s parents. “She was.”

“Was she confined to the infirmary or free to roam the school?”

“She was confined. Her father hired private guards to watch over her.”

“Hmm. Were they hired to keep her confined or to protect her from attack?”

“Ahem.” Dr. Marks scratched the back of his neck, looking over at Faustine’s dad. “You’d have to ask him.”

Octavia turned to Asmen. “To save time, may I ask King Sebastian to clarify?”

Sally was on her feet again. “Really! This is highly irregular. If King Sebastian is to serve as a witness, I ask that he be sworn in as such, and I reserve my right to cross examine him.”

Asmen nodded. “That’s fair. But we’ll have him answer this one question from here, so we can proceed with Dr. Marks. Sally, you will be given an opportunity to cross him later.”

“But—”

“Please sit, Sally. Your Highness,” Asmen said, looking at King Sebastian, “In what capacity were the guards hired?”

“They were hired for my daughter’s protection. She’d been attacked at the school before, and I was fearful that the attack on Martha was meant for my daughter.”

“So,” Asmen continued, “they were not hired to confine her to the room?”

“No.”

“Octavia, you may continue with questioning Dr. Marks,” Asmen said.

“What measures did you take to keep her confined?”

“She was under sedation.” Dr. Marks sounded weak and defeated.

“How much experience do you have with sedating a demon that size?”

“None.”

“Did you consider her dangerous?”

“No, not really. She seemed distraught, mostly, and deeply depressed.”

“Why sedate her, then?”

“Her vitals were out of control. I was merely trying to steady them.”

“Why did you feel the need to have her confined?”

“It’s standard practice for all students when they show any signs of distress. We are unable to predict how they’ll react in stressful situations, so we keep them confined until they are back to normal.”

“And is it standard practice to do this using sedatives?”

“That depends on the type of being.”

“Is it what you normally do to confine demons?”

Dr. Marks shuffled in his chair, sweeping his hair back with his fingers. “This case was different. Faustine is part human, so I am a bit out of my depth when treating her. I did what I thought was best. She seemed to respond to the sedatives, and she showed no signs of wanting to leave her room at all.” He threw me an accusing look.

Sheesh! Was there any way he could know that I was responsible for getting her out of bed?

Octavia nodded. “That’s all from me.”

“Sally?” Asmen asked.

“I noticed you throwing Cordelia a look when you were asked about Faustine’s state of mind. Why was that?”

Dr. Marks shot me another look, making me cringe. “Well, Faustine’s room was monitored by a camera.”

“Oh? I wasn’t aware that the infirmary rooms have cameras.”

“They don’t normally, but one was installed into Faustine’s room for safety reasons because of what had happened. It was just a basic visual surveillance device, no sound.”