Tompkin's School (For The Extraordinarily Talented Book 1) (18 page)

“That man from the City?” Chuck asked.

“Yes,” the old man nodded, “I have suspected so. But I haven’t been able to find clues as to who they are.”

“How do you know they go to the Academy?” Chuck added.

“I don’t know how,” the Uncle replied, turning back to his nephew, “but they always seem to come here. It is a family mystery I haven’t been lucky enough to find out. But rest assured, they will surface and it is your duty to find out who they are. They could even be the two you held captive for all we know! But finding them and putting them to an endless slumber is what you must do...it is what you were born to do.”

Kain spun around and flew out of the room.

Kain,
I thought,
We can’t leave them here.

Kain didn’t respond and so I desperately followed him, his heartbeat pulling me anyways so it wasn’t like I had much of a choice.

What are you doing?
I hissed.

We have to find that journal,
he finally responded.

I couldn’t see him even in the foyer, but I felt that he had already made his way to the second floor and proceeded to follow.

We don’t even know where it is! How do you suppose we find it?
I thought, trying to figure out what his plan was as he had shut his thoughts from me.

If we are being hunted by the very school we attend,
Kain hissed,
then we must do everything we can to find out why. I take classes with this guy, I’m not about to be killed at his hand when we return form.

I entered a study and saw papers being flung around, drawers opening, books toppling over from their perch. It was eerie that not even the book falling to the ground made a sound.

We can’t ignore the pull anymore,
I whispered.

We must fight it!
Kain growled,
This is what we must do. We must find the journal and learn the truth about this place. It is a matter of survival!

But soon we will return to our form,
I reminded him
, and we won’t be able to complete what we must.

Suddenly, Kain appeared, the look on his face told it all. He was not happy. But too bad! We both knew it was true.

If you must go,
Kain snarled,
then go. But what we
must
do is find out more about the school that wants us dead.

We both knew I couldn’t leave him and he was so determined that I had to swallow the urge to flee. It would be more painful to leave than it would be to stay so I picked the better of two evils.

They aren’t here!
Kain barked, completely frustrated.

We have enough power to force it out of them,
I suggested.

It would cause too much suspicion.
Kain replied.
He is Theodore Tompkin.

How do you know that?
I asked.

It’s the only way this all makes sense.
Kain said, showing me his thoughts.

If this old man was his uncle and the great whatever grandson of the founder, the old man who had so much information on the school had to be the current president of the academy.

Then we must kill him,
I thought, definitively.

No,
Kain hissed,
we should play this out. He only suspects who we are. This gives us the upper hand since we know who
he
is.

We obviously aren’t going to find the journal tonight,
I thought,
and I need to show you something.

What is it?
Kain asked.

Come,
I ordered.

We flew down the corridor and down the staircase, leaving our enemy behind us. We soared over the Arbuckle mountains and glided down towards Turner Falls. I landed in front of Collings Castle and I could hear voices coming from inside the abandoned castle. The ruins stood there, calling to me. I glanced at Kain as his black wings pulled in as he landed smoothly on the ground. We made our way up several stone staircases and even though it was deserted I felt the presence of the past as present as my own heart beated.

Why are we here,
Kain’s thoughts intruded into my mind.

Just wait,
I thought.

I leaped forward and pushed myself up from the ledge surrounding the castle and up onto the roof of the castle. Kain followed me and we walked to a small aisle overgrown with ivy. Suddenly, everything around us changed once again and we were no longer atop an abandoned pile of rubble, but a magnificent forest. The castle completely disappeared which was not what I was expecting. We glided to the ground, wondering how it could be possible that the building had just vanished in thin air.

What happened to the castle?
Kain asked.

I don’t know,
I replied,
this is only the second time I’ve been here. Last time I saw the eldest of the Bartholomew brothers, but he was in the past speaking to the owner of this place.

Doesn’t look like this place is here anymore,
Kain commented.

Suddenly, I felt another heartbeat that somehow I knew was not Kain’s.

Do you feel that?
I thought.

Yes,
Kain confirmed.

I felt yet another and spun around to be welcomed by the Bartholomew brothers. Both were in full transition, their black eyes looking straight at us and claws extended.

“I told you they’d be here,” Lawrence said.

“How is this happening?” Kain asked.

“It’s her,” Lawrence replied, “I sense her power is the opposite of mine. The future communicates with me as the past interacts with her.”

“You are the Bartholomew brothers,” I breathed, “I’ve met you before, Lawrence.”

Lawrence seemed amused as he curved his lips into a crooked smile.

“This is my little brother, Edwin,” Lawrence introduced his younger brother, who was eyeing us suspiciously.

How can we trust them?
We heard Edwin’s thoughts.

We are like you.
I thought back.

“Wait, you can hear my thoughts?” Edwin gasped.

“Yes, they can,” Lawrence said, knowingly.

“Makes things easier,” I shrugged.

“I see you have information,” Lawrence said, changing this subject.

Your future self told me that the school was not what it seemed,
I thought as I pushed my thoughts to the collective group so that they might see what had previously occurred at this very location.

“Yeah, then we found out that the school is out to murder us,” Kain spat.

“Apparently Thomas Tompkin has a journal,” I replied, “but we can’t seem to find it now. Although it is the year 2010 and so it would be about a hundred years old.”

And you’re wanting us to find it,
I heard Lawrence’s thoughts.

Yes,
I thought.

“You say the school is after you,” Edwin said out loud, “why?”

“Because of what we are,” I replied.

“Then they’ll most certainly be after us,” Lawrence commented.

“Then we mustn’t do this!” Edwin snapped.

You must.
Kain’s growl filled all of our minds, causing us all to cringe.

I could tell Edwin did not appreciate that and I saw his eyes flash and suddenly I could no longer move. It was as if I had no control over my own body anymore. Both Kain and I felt the power that was paralyzing us, preventing us from moving.

What are you doing to us?
My thoughts asked.

“Brother, stop," Lawrence ordered.

“We cannot do what they’re asking of us,” Edwin replied, “if what they say is true then we will surely be caught.”

Suddenly, Kain seemed to overcome whatever power Edwin had on him and took a step forward, shaking off whatever spell was put on us. He raised his hand and when he did Edwin flew backwards, landing flat on his back upon a pile of rocks.

“You think you are powerful?” Kain growled, his veins protruding as his muscles tensed, preparing to attack.

I didn’t know how he could overpower what I was going through. I kept telling my arm to move, but it wouldn’t listen. I couldn’t move because of whatever Edwin was doing to make me paralyzed. But somehow Kain had found the strength to push through it and it seemed that it took Edwin by surprise.

“Kain,” I gasped, “please…”

I couldn’t finish the sentence as a wave of pain pierced through me as I felt my arm begin to dislocate. It seemed Edwin was trying at a second attempt to take control of his body, but Kain seemed to not even be fazed this time.

“We cannot turn on each other,” Lawrence said, flying in between the two quarreling beasts, “we have to stay together if we want to make it through this.”

The two never stopped glowering at each other, but seemed to agree with Lawrence.

“Now, please stop tormenting Izara,” Lawrence said to his brother.

Suddenly, the control lifted and I felt completely normal, once again having control over my body.

“We will help you locate this journal,” Lawrence promised.

We could all still hear Edwin’s protesting thoughts and I glared at him.

“We will,” Lawrence repeated, “but I must ask for something in return.”

What do you need,
I asked in my thoughts.

Please find out what becomes of us as a result of finding this journal,
Lawrence thought,
warn us if we are destined to be caught.

“We’ll try,” I agreed.

Suddenly, the Bartholomew brothers faded and the walls of the abandoned Collings castle returned. We were no longer standing on the hillside, but on top of the building. The light had changed since we had been in communication with the past and we felt the power of the full moon drain from us. My wings felt like worms crawling back into my shoulder blades and I doubled over from the pain of it. I heard Kain grunting as he tried to fight the transition to our original form, but it was no use. Our time was up until the next full moon. My eyes flashed red and I felt them fading back to my normal human blue eyes. I reached back as I realized my wings were gone and in their stead were two large bleeding gaps. My claws slowly pushed their way back under my skin and it felt like the skin under my fingernails were being stabbed by giant needles. I couldn’t tell which was worse, transitioning or the process of returning to human form. I fell flat on the ground, my head landing in a pile of leaves. I could feel the damp earth below me, but I couldn’t gather enough strength to lift myself up from it. My vision blurred as the pain overtook my body and I gave in as darkness enveloped me.

I opened my eyes as soon as my phone’s alarm started ringing. I tried to remember how I had gotten back to the dorm. I remembered transitioning, going to the lodge, hearing the conversation between Chuck and his uncle...even the meeting with Lawrence and Edwin! But there was a gap between returning to human form and getting back to my room. I slowly sat up, every muscle in my body screaming as I did so. I looked at my phone and saw that it was already Monday. I had slept through the
whole
weekend! How was that even possible? I glanced over at Kia’s bed and found that she wasn’t even there. Strange. I shrugged and forced myself out of bed, stumbling to the closet to find something to wear. I found a large hoodie, a long sleeved shirt, and leggings and painfully pulled them all on. I stepped into my high tops, grabbed my bag, and headed out the door. I knew I wouldn’t be able to miss classes for the rest of the year, even if I felt like crap. I made my way down the damp path towards the main campus. I heard a bunch of students coming from the cafeteria, but decided to just go straight to class. Seemed that Ms. Morgan was out and we had a substitute teacher which meant movie day. I found a seat in the back and practically collapsed onto the chair. I tried to keep my eyes opened, occasionally nodding off as I tried to pay attention. The classroom filled up as students made their way into class and soon the lights were dimmed and the movie began.

“Pssst,” a voice hissed.

My head snapped up as it was about to land on the desk in front of me and I felt someone tap my shoulder.

“Izzy,” I turned to see Kia sitting next to me, “are you okay?”

“Yeah,” I shrugged.

“I heard what happened,” she whispered, “I don’t get how someone could
do
something like that.”

“You have no idea,” I chuckled.

“Anyways, I thought you would probably need to take more time you know,” she replied, “to rest up.”

“Nah, I can’t afford that,” I said.

“I’m sure the school would grant you an excuse,” she added, “especially considering two students were kidnapped right on campus!”

I tried to restrain myself from rolling my eyes. This school was most certainly not going to make it easier on Kain and I. They were already suspicious enough and we didn’t even take care of the guy who did this to us in the first place! We had kept him alive all to get some journal. I hoped it would be worth it.

“Maybe,” I lied.

“I heard he’s still out there, scary,” Kia shivered just thinking about it, “are your feet okay?”

“They’re all better, luckily,” I replied.

“Lucky is right,” Kia agreed, “ well I just hope they catch the guy.”

Soon first period was over and I headed to my next class. Time seemed to tick by ever slowly, but eventually it was time for the last class of the day, drama club. I hoped I could get back to my peppy self in order to get through practice. I entered the auditorium, noticing that Ms. Morgan was still out, so again we had a substitute and guess who it was? Chuck. Apparently it was okay for a senior in high school to sub for drama club, which didn’t really make sense to me. I felt his rage as our eyes met across the room. He was definitely not happy to see me.

“Okay, everyone,” his dry voice made my insides squirm, “since Ms. Morgan is not here today, again, and the president is currently ill I will be joining you all. You all know your parts so…. get a move on.”

He waved his hand towards the stage and we all filed by. I was reluctant to talk to him so I looked around for Kia to find out what I was supposed to do.

“Hey,” I said, walking up to her as she waited in line to get to the stage, “did Ms. Morgan mention what my part was? I’m sure someone already took over my old part.”

Kia made an awkward face before answering.

“Uh, yeah I kind of took over for you,” she shrugged, “but no worries, you should go ahead and do it.”

“No way,” I replied, “I’ll take whatever is left, you’ve been practicing for this and I wouldn’t know the part as well.”

“Are you sure?” Kia asked.

“Yes,” I smiled, “positive.”

“Thank you,” she said.

I could tell she was holding back her excitement, she had been wanting the lead part since the beginning. She’d do a good job at it. She handed me the last part available, a character that was basically an extra. I didn’t mind. I had more important things to do than to worry about memorizing lines.

“Izary!” I heard a nagging voice calling my name, “Or whatever the hell her name is,”

I felt someone nudge me and I shook my head, trying to focus on the present and push my distracting thoughts out of head.

“Yeah?” I replied.

I saw Chuck’s smug face as he held his clipboard as if he was
so
important. We shall see how important he’ll feel after Kain and I destroy him.

“You aren’t supposed to be in this scene,” Chuck scolded, “get off my stage,”

I rolled my eyes as I exited the stage. He acted as if he owned the whole place. Maybe he did, but that didn’t give him the right to go around torturing people and ordering them around. I was done with this crap. I grabbed my bag and decided to leave early. I felt someone grab my arm as I was trying to head down the aisle.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Chuck sneered.

“You know what you did,” I scowled, “and you will pay for it.”

“I am going to find out what you’re hiding,” Chuck smiled, “and you can try anything you’d like, darling, but you really have no power here.”

“We’ll see,” I replied, shoving his arm away as I stormed out.

I pulled out my phone and dialed Kain’s number. It rang twice before he picked up.

⎼“Kain,” I said.

⎼
“What’s up?”
Kain answered.

⎼“We have to go after Chuck tonight,” I replied.

⎼
“How do you suppose we do that?" He
asked,
“We don’t have our power anymore.”

⎼“I don’t care!” I cried, “he tortured us for weeks and now he’s prancing his little smug self all around us like he can get away with anything he wants.”

⎼
“What are you suggesting?”
Kain asked.

⎼“I don’t know,” I sighed, heading up the path to the dorms.

⎼
“Look,”
Kain said,
“we’ve got the Bartholomew brothers working on finding the journal, but who knows! They might’ve already found it. I don’t know how this whole time thing works, but finding that journal needs to be
our
priority.”

⎼“Yeah, but Kain,” I replied, “he needs to be stopped.”

⎼
“That would be too suspicious,”
Kain pointed out,
“Chuck just so happens to kidnap the two of us and then he disappears? The uncle would definitely come after us! It would remove all doubt of what we are.”

I couldn’t believe Kain was talking me out of getting rid of Chuck. He usually was the unreasonable one. But in this instance I knew he was right.

⎼“Where are you?” I asked.

⎼
“Staking out good old Theodore,”
he replied.

⎼“What? Are you crazy?” I cried, stopping in my tracks, “he doesn’t know that we know that he’s involved. I
f
he
suspects we know then that will confirm who we are and he’ll kill us!”

⎼
“We want the journal, don’t we?" He said, his voice hushed.

⎼“Yeah, but we don’t want to get caught either,” I said.

⎼
“Don’t worry,”
he said,
“I won’t get caught. Anyways, I just figured if he doesn’t have it in his
castle
then he must be hiding it close by somewhere. Maybe even at the school somewhere.”

⎼“Keep me in the loop,” I replied, “but my focus is going to be on Chuck. Don’t get caught...again.”

⎼
“You don’t get caught,”
Kain joked.

⎼“Whatever,” I rolled my eyes, “you know what I mean. Be careful.”

I heard him chuckle before hanging up the phone. He so was going to get caught and I was going to have to go after him. This time it would be different, though. I was definitely not going to go falling into another trap again.

“Izzy,” I heard a familiar voice calling behind me.

I turned around to see Lee heading up the hill.

“Hey!” I smiled.

Lee jogged the remaining distance between us and pulled me into his arms.

“I’ve been worried about you,” he whispered.

“It’s okay,” I assured, “I’m okay.”

I stepped back.

“I’m sorry about your truck,” I said.

“It’s okay, I got it back,” he shrugged, “I just don’t understand how it got back. I asked my dad to look for fingerprints but all they could find were mine and yours.”

“Whoever took us must have been wearing gloves,” I shrugged.

“Man,” Lee sounded frustrated, “I can’t believe someone could do that. Did you have any problems with anyone?”

“Me? No,” I replied, “but I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Let the police handle it.”

“How can you be so calm about this?" He asked.

“I’m not,” I said, honestly, “I’m barely keeping it together. But my brother is off doing who knows what and he’s so short fused I don’t know what he’ll do. So, I can’t afford being anything but calm.”

“Hey, I’m sorry,” Lee sighed, “I didn’t mean to criticize.”

I just nodded, not really knowing what to say.

“You know,,” he began, “I’m pretty impressed. You drop everything to go after your brother and then go through torture and are back to school days after being hospitalized!”

“Yeah, running off to an address sent by an unknown caller?” I laughed, “that’s called stupid. Nothing you should be impressed about.”

“Stupid?” Lee raised an eyebrow, “That’s brave.”

“Ha! Yeah, maybe," I shrugged.

“Hey, so I was going ask,” Lee said, “I know you might not be feeling up for it, but in a couple of weeks the school’s honors society I’m in is putting on this social at the President’s home before winter break and wanted to know if you’d like to join me?”

“Oh, wow!” I replied, “I didn’t even know they did that sort of thing here.”

“Yeah,” he said, “I don’t like to brag or anything, but it’s kind of a big deal.”

We both laughed at that.

“Is it like a date?” I asked.

“I hope so,” Lee said, the corners of his lips curling up into a mischievous smile.

“Then sure,” I smiled, “I’m in.”

“It means you’ll have to dress up,” he teased.

“Do you even know what that means?” I laughed.

“Please,” Lee said, “I make a tux look good.”

“Okay, okay,” I said, holding my hands up, “we shall see about that one.”.

“I’ll text you the info,” he promised.

“Perfect,” I smiled, “I’ll see you later.”

“Later,” Lee winked.

I was jumping with excitement inside, but contained my composure as I made it back to the dorms. I ran up to my room and flopped onto my bed, gazing out the huge window. The sun would soon set and another day would come. I had no idea what would welcome me during the next few days, but I knew whatever came I could handle it because for the first time in awhile I had something to look forward to. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye I saw a gold envelope being slipped under my doorway. I stood up and headed to the door, picking up the letter. It was addressed to me. I flipped it over to the back and saw it had been sealed with blue wax. I opened the letter and found a single piece of parchment paper with a single line of text.

See you at the honor’s society social, deary.

Cordially, Chuck

What the heck? Was he spying on me now? How did he know that Lee had just invited me to this social? Just then I heard someone at the door and I rushed back to my bed.

“Hey, Izzy!” I heard Kia call, “are you here?”

“Yeah,” I replied.

She came around the corner, setting her bag on her bed.

“You left in a hurry,” she commented, “what was that all about?”

“Nothing,” I shrugged, “hey, so do you know anything about this honor society social?”

“Oh, yeah!” Kia commented, “Kain’s taking me.”

“
Kain
?” I exclaimed, “Kain’s a part of the honor society?”

“Yeah, we both are,” Kia replied, “you didn’t know? He has been getting straight A’s all year long. Except for those weeks that he was out, of course. Which now that I think about it should disqualify him...oh well.”

I couldn’t stop myself. I quickly picked up my phone and called Kain, but it went straight to voicemail. I hoped that he had a good excuse. Why didn’t he tell me?

“Wait, why are you going with Kain?” I asked, “I thought things were still weird between you two from the party.”