Nightworld Academy: Term One(Nightworld Academy #1)(40)

"I have three terms until the exams. I'll be fine." He shuffles faster, his long fingers sorting them deftly.

"You mean you won't fail this year and need to repeat it again?" asks Jamie.

Andrei slams the cards on the table. "Right. Witchy boy? I'll read your future first."

Jamie looks up at Sofia. "Could I practice my object divination instead of fortune telling? I felt like I was making progress last week."

"Not this time. I'd like everybody working together. We need to foster a little harmony."

Dominic chokes a laugh. Shaking her head, Sofia walks away.

I regard the two vampires and cross my arms. Dominic's eyes are a strange blue to match Katherine's. He isn't as pale as Andrei and doesn't try to rock the emo look. Instead, he dresses like many in Walcott house. His shirtsleeves are rolled up, revealing forearms with a dusting of hair, and his build reminds me of Jamie. Although, Jamie doesn't flirt with every girl he meets—or work his way through the girls like Dominic does. I’ve seen them, drawn in by his lamia nature. The day after the party, I spotted him arguing with Millie, one of the witches in my dorm, who had reddened eyes. Hours later, he was with a young shifter girl.

Mental note: stay away from all lamia vampires.

"Would you like to work with me, Maeve?" he asks in a soft voice.

"No. I'll read your cards," puts in Jamie sharply.

"He's so protective," purrs Katherine from the adjacent group; a mixed bag as uncomfortable as we are. "Tarot cards can't hurt her, sweetie."

Jamie ignores her.

"I'm waiting for the day the witch and the shifter fight over her. We're laying bets already, aren't we?" She looks to her friends, who whisper and giggle.

Omigod, how old are they? Twelve?

"Nobody is fighting over anybody," puts in Jamie.

"Amelia rejected you. Do you think Maeve will too?"

I look at Jamie in surprise. Is that true?

"You know nothing," he snaps backs. "And at least I don't have to throw myself at the nearest guy to feed myself."

"Jamie," I whisper. "Stop."

She tips her chin. "You're the nearest to me now, but I doubt you'd satisfy anybody's hunger."

Andrei chuckles to himself as he cuts the cards in front of him, and Dominic leans back in his chair to join in the laughter. I side-glance Jamie, whose face reddens with anger, not embarrassment.

"Next time you need help passing an assignment, don't ask," he says harshly.

She straightens. "I do not ask you for help."

Jamie gives her a tight smile. "Your talents won't get you better grades. How lucky that you're a rich bitch and can buy anything you want. Including completed assignments."

He turns to Andrei and shifts so his back is turned to her. Katherine gapes, and I can't believe he called her a bitch. Half the academy thinks she is, but few dare speak against her. I'd never expect Jamie to be the one to speak up.

Is Jamie implying Katherine pays him for help? This sheds a new light on seeing them together at the library.

Andrei watches the exchange with a quizzical smile but doesn't intervene. I'd almost say he looks impressed. "Go ahead, Jamie," he says and waves a hand at the cards. "Shuffle and lay them out."

Jamie chooses six cards and arranges them in a cross shape, face down. As he turns over each one, he reveals tarot symbols I recognise as cups and staves. Each card is illustrated in delicate watercolours with bright ink detail highlighting the text.

Andrei huffs. "These are all minor cards. I only know the major arcana."

Dominic peers at the cards before flicking through notes in a book in front of him. "Tarot is just vague bullshit anyway. There's nothing exciting ahead for the witch."

Jamie turns the final one over and slaps it on the table. Finally, he upturns a picture card.

"Whoa-ho!" calls out Andrei in glee. "Look at the card he chose."

Jamie's card reveals a detailed painting of a man astride a white horse with a black cloak falling across his face. Around him, skeletons litter the ground, the bones highlighted in silver. The card name and number are written in a gothic script beneath.

"Death. Ha!" Dominic joins in the amusement.

"When's he going to die, Maeve?" Andrei's eyes flash with glee. I moisten my dry lips and pretend not to hear. "Where's your future sight when you need it? You need to help your boyfriend out, you know."

Waves of emotion crash over me as I stare at the card and try to ignore Andrei's gloating amusement. Jamie. Death. I inhale and dig my fingernails into my palms. This is a sick joke.

An unwanted image flashes into my mind, but I shove it away and grit my teeth.

When we were fourteen, Tessa went through a tarot-reading phase, and I'd flick through the instruction book as she pored over cards and tried to interpret them. "That's not what the Death card means," I say firmly. "He's not going to die. Maybe if you bothered studying, you'd know that."

Jamie pushes hair from his face again—once, twice. "She's right."

No, no, no. Why does Jamie's voice have to echo, as if he's slipping from my grasp? I swallow and grip the edge of the table. Andrei's amused expression drops away as his eyes meet mine.