Vala Eminence (3 page)

“Goodnight,” he said quickly and hung up before she even had a chance to finish her thought. If she dropped the "L" word on him, he wasn't sure what he would do. Love was a foreign concept to him.
Because of Lucien.
The demon's words echoed in his mind.

He will live like the demons, with no moral conscience. He will be like my son. And forever he shall be in debt to me, paying for the mistakes you have made. That is the curse I place upon this boy
…

No wonder Denver was so messed up. Lucien made him that way with some stupid spell he placed over Denver when he was a child. He closed his eyes. There was a great deal of information to absorb still. The whole thing was exhausting. He smiled.
My father is alive.

Denver's alarm clock beeped obnoxiously on the other side of the dorm room. He lived alone in a single apartment, not by his own choosing, but not something he necessarily minded either. Most of the other students at Vala annoyed him to no end and the staff thought he was rowdy enough to keep away from a roommate. After all, Denver could corrupt even the best of teenagers into doing the worst with his amazing abilities of persuasion — another skill he learned from the master of manipulation himself. Lucien lied, but Denver did his best not to resort to such a thing. Lying was boring and cliché anyway.

If he had been sleeping in his bedroom, he would have unplugged the alarm clock and gone back to bed. He was exhausted. Any time he took a trip down to the underworld, he felt a bit winded. Not because the journey took energy from him, but because there was such a great contrast in it. In the underworld he had an overabundance of power. Whenever he was there, he had so much juice flowing inside of him he didn't know what to do with it.

When he came back to the bland, real world, he lost a lot of that power. He imagined it had something to do with the fact that he wasn't the official ruler of the underworld yet, and merely the heir. There was going to be much for him to learn if he was going to take back his father's kingdom from the demons. He especially needed a family history lesson so he could understand more fully how the demons were able to take over in the first place.

Denver wanted all of his power, and to lose even just a small amount of it exhausted him. By the time he got out of his bed to walk over to the alarm clock and turn it off, he was wide awake. He looked at the time and saw that he was already late for his first period of classes. If he weren't on academic probation, he would have skipped it — again. The first class of the day was always the hardest one for him to get to. Denver and mornings didn't mix well. The threat of getting kicked out of Vala was good motivation for him to get his butt into gear, because at Vala he was protected. He didn't care about his education. Denver had already been at the school for longer than he could even remember. He only did enough to slide by and guarantee his room and board.

After grabbing a bagel and a can of highly caffeinated soda, he walked out of his dorm. He was still wearing his clothes from the day before, but he didn't care. Nor did he care about what the other students thought. They either accepted him for who he was, or they didn't.

He was able to sneak into his first class before the bell dismissed it for the day. Denver had been sitting in his desk chair for all of three minutes before it was time to move on to second period.

“Mr. Collins, how good of you to join us,” Mrs. Danielles said and picked up a notebook from her desk.

He flashed her a wide grin. “You know I wouldn't ever miss Alchemy for the Twenty-First Century. It's one of my favorite classes.”
To take a nap in.
The students weren't taught any actual alchemy. It was a fancy title for generic magic-related lessons — most of them were history rather than practical. Denver loathed it. The entire class was nothing but a waste of his time.

Mrs. Danielles walked over to his desk. “You're only here for a few minutes, but I guess that's better than nothing. Your homework is on the board, maybe someone will be nice enough to give you notes from the hour because you'll need those if you have any hope of getting it done. Technically, I should mark you as a no-show, but I'm feeling generous today.”

“I like when you feel that way.” He glanced at the white board at the front of the room and jotted down a few notes about the assignment. All he had to do was write a report on one of the various fields of magic. He wouldn't need notes for it.
She always likes to make things so much more dramatic than they need to be.

Mrs. Danielles nodded. “Yup, and you want to know why I feel so giving?”

“No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me anyway.” He forced a smile on his face, making sure she knew just how forced and fake it was.

“The office staff wants you to see them. They told me to pass along the message. Instead of second hour, you're supposed to go there.”

“But that's a class I actually want to take,” he protested. There was no sarcasm in his tone either, but she probably would interpret it as such anyway.

“Oh well, chop-chop. See you Thursday.”

The bell rang, and he left for the main office. It was on the other side of the school building from where he was, of course, and he would take his good, sweet time getting there. The staff at the school might try to control him, but he made sure it was clear to the world that no one could.

Vala's halls were relaxing, even with the buzz of students rushing to class. Denver strolled confidently across campus. The main compound was made up of three buildings. Lord Reyld's Manor was the first building to become a part of the school. It used to be a mansion where the school's late owner lived. Toward the end of his life, Lord Reyld dedicated his home to other creatures of myth just like himself. As the school grew, so did the mansion. The next addition was the Sunshine Hall where the cafeteria, auditorium, gymnasium, and most of the larger open-roomed necessities were kept. Finally, the Autumn Wing was where the rest of the classrooms were, as well as the science labs.

Denver was in the Autumn Wing and making his way toward Lord Reyld's Manner. The Autumn Wing got its name because of the close proximity it had with the forest. Every fall, the trees displayed an assortment of colors for all to see. The interior of the building was decorated in solid maroons, oranges, and browns. As he passed into the Sunshine Hall, the orange became more of a focal point and the halls started to brighten, much like the name of the building implied. The deeper he moved through the Hall, the more classic the architecture became. Where the Sunshine Hall and Lord Reyld's Manner met, there was a perfect seam. One wouldn't be able to figure out there were ever a new building and an old one unless they paid extra close attention to where they were going.

The main office was located close to the intersection of the two buildings. Denver strutted inside and took a seat in his usual chair while the secretary informed the rest of the staff of his presence. He couldn't help but wonder who he would be meeting with today. Some of his visits were with the Dean of Students, others the Principal or the Guidance Counselor. Each one was a surprise, so at least he had that element to entertain him.

“Mr. Collins, they will see you now.”

They
meant more than one person would be sitting in on the meeting with him. That could make things even more interesting. Denver stood and was met by Mr. Anais, the Dean of Students. The guy liked to come across as rough and difficult to work with, but when it came to the office staff, he was by far the nicest of them all. The rough and tough was all an act. Deep down the guy was a softie who was easily pushed around by The Divine Council and other rich alumni. Denver paid attention. The entire office was like a chain of dominoes. Push one over and the others fell too. The Dean was the easiest of them all.

Mr. Anais led him into a conference room and motioned for Denver to take a seat. “Mr. Collins, we wanted to talk to you about your graduation track.”

“Right,” Denver said. “That's what you usually want to talk to me about. I'm showing up to classes and I'm passing them. That's what you wanted from me, right? I'm getting C's and B's in just about all of my classes. The few where I'm not, that's because I'm getting an A. I made friends with some of the smart kids recently. They seem to be rubbing off on me.”

“That's good, although your choice of smart friends still leaves something to be desired,” Mr. Anais said. “I've noticed how close you're getting to the Loveless girl.”

Denver shrugged, trying to show a lack of caring at the mention of Cheyenne. “You say that like she's some kind of criminal and I should stay away before she gets me hooked on drugs. The girl is more boring than paint on a wall. I don't think she's going to get me into any trouble.”

“She's already gotten you into a lot of trouble, and you're already hooked on a drug of sorts. Her blood, or have you forgotten about your three random feedings on her neck from last year?”

His jaw tensed.
Actually, I've bitten into her seven times, but we don't need to talk about that.
“I didn't do anything she didn't want me to.”

Mr. Anais shook his head. “It's still wrong.”

“I guess. So have I been called in here for another lecture? And why are we here instead of your office?” Denver tapped his fingertips on the conference table in front of him. He hated rooms like this. They always had him feeling suffocated and trapped, like he might as well have been in chains.

“Again, we're going to discuss your graduation track.”

That was when Mrs. Bobbine, the Guidance Counselor entered the room, and Ms. Lis, the Principal, followed after.

“Wow, this is a real party,” Denver muttered.

“Your grades and remaining credits will have you graduating in the spring of next year,” Mrs. Bobbine said and opened up a manila folder with a stack of papers in it.

Ms. Lis leaned in toward him. “Our goal is to get you out of here by the end of the summer.”

“Get me out of here?” Denver raised an eyebrow. “Come on, I'm not that bad of a guy to have around.”

“The Divine Council feels that—”

He rolled his eyes and leaned in toward Ms. Lis, closing the space so they were only a foot away from one another. “Ah, the Divine Council. I see. Well, that changes everything.”
Do they know who I really am? Do they know that I'm a part of them? Would they be singing a different tune if they did?

Ms. Lis peered at him. “They are the reason our school exists, in case you have forgotten. As you know, you are long overdue from graduating to begin with.”

“I'm only nineteen. That rumor of me being a century old vampire is just that, a rumor, and sometimes I entertain it for kicks and giggles. You guys? I thought you'd be smarter than to believe that stuff. I'm two years over due from my graduation date. That's hardly a scandal.” He sat back in his chair again.

“We think it's best for you to move on as well, so between the three of us we've come up with a course schedule that will have you graduating at the end of the summer instead. It's time. You can't stay here forever,” Mrs. Bobbine said in a gentle tone.

Denver shifted his gaze to her. “I'm aware, and trust me, I don't want to. There are just a few things I need to do, and I'd like to space out my classes to make sure I have time to do them and adequately learn all of the stuff I need to. I have a ton of magic credits to earn — still. Those aren't the kinds of lessons that should be crammed together.”

Mrs. Bobbine glanced between her two colleagues. “That is where the first change in your curriculum is going to be. We are cutting most of your practical magic courses from your schedule.”

“Why? I need those.” He couldn't believe what he was hearing. They wanted to cut his magic-related classes?

“You're a powerful creature, there's no denying it. Let's be honest, you have a pretty good handle on your magic. Do you need to be schooled in it? All that is for you is an easy A and the potential for a rather boring hour.”

He glared at Mrs. Bobbine. “I wouldn't know, seeing as how I hardly ever get to sit in on the class. You conveniently pull me out of it all of the time. I'm getting this feeling you don't
want
me to understand my magic.”

“Because you're powerful,” Ms. Lis said calmly. “And frankly, we don't trust you to make wise decisions with your power. If you don't know how to tap all of it, then it won't be a problem.”

“I can learn outside of the school.” That's how he'd learned most of his magic to begin with. Even he didn't understand all he could do with it.

“We're aware, but at least then we won't be responsible for whatever you might do.” Ms. Lis leaned back and crossed her legs.

Scoffing, Denver scratched at his chin. “Glad to know you think so highly of me. If you hate me, why don't you just kick me out? I'm not under eighteen, so it's not like you're morally obligated to keep me around. I don't get it.”

Mrs. Bobbine sighed and moved closer to Denver. She even took the time to put a hand on his shoulder. Her touch was cold, so it wasn't done with any genuine sympathy. “We don't hate you. We're merely concerned for the welfare of our other students. As of late, you've had good behavior, outside of a few incidences. Even before, the trouble you caused was frustrating but not necessarily dangerous.”

“And you want to keep it that way and you don't trust me.” He didn't need them to dodge around the issue. Straight and to the point had always been more his style. “Which is fine because I don't care about what you think of me. What I do care about is getting the most out of my education. Let me be clear, if you don't teach me, I will find out how to use my magic, and I won't do so from an approved source. Maybe I'd have been less troublesome to you all if you'd thought of that earlier. I don't think I need to explain why learning magic from demons is frowned upon in everyday society.”

“No, you don't,” Mr. Anais said. “Are you admitting to learning from the demons? You know that is an expulsion-worthy offense at this school. Keeping company with the demons in general is something we take seriously here.”

Even though I'm pretty sure you do it in your spare time.
Denver smirked at the Dean of Students and made a slight wave of his hand. “I'm not saying I have learned anything from them. What I
am
saying is considering where my magic is going, that would be my next source of knowledge to tap into. My magic abilities have always been on the darker side. About the only thing you've taught me here at Vala is how to summon magic from the elements, most particularly stones. A nice trick, handy sometimes, but if you want to keep your precious school safe, as well as the humans, you might want to rethink your policy on keeping me in the dark. One way or another, I will learn how to control my abilities. It's up to you to decide on the source.”