Supernatural Academy: Year One (Supernatural Academy #1)(87)

I chuckled, dropping my head back with a groan. “I’m not sleeping well, that’s for sure. This new nightmare has decided to appear…” My nightmares before had mostly been about the kidnapping. But the last few nights… “It’s Asher, and he’s trapped under the water, strung up between these massive stone pillars. They bleed him, trying to activate a stone that’s above his head. It feels so real.”

Jesse and Calen went motionless, which was a tell for these guys.

“It’s really happening, isn’t it?” I whispered. Part of me knew or sensed it was, because it was so vivid.

“It might be,” Jesse said grimly. “Like Axl said, the reason they’ve been moving so much is because they can’t find the secret slipstream entrances that lead to the underground pocket that holds Atlantis. They move all the time.”

“Atlantis moves?” I asked, trying to figure out how that was possible.

Jesse shook his head. “No, the entrances move. They’re magically designed to do so, or so the legend says. But … your dream. It sounds like they’ve locked on to it and Asher is fulfilling his promise.”

I was on my feet, my head shaking. “No,” I said, looking between them. “No. NO! I refuse to accept this. If you saw the dream—” I broke off as panic overwhelmed me.

It was one thing when Asher was fine and active, moving with them, his energy strong. But this… I choked on a sob, my clenched fists pressing to my chest as I fought to breathe.

“We can’t keep delaying. We’re never going to find that library. We just have to go and get Asher back. We can take them on, I know we can.”

Calen was nodding with me, Jesse looked less sure. “We should talk to the others tonight,” he finally said. “It makes me uneasy to go against Ash’s orders, because we could easily screw up whatever he has going on. But … I’m about fucking done with him being gone like this, and now that they’ve found the entrance. We might have no other choice.”

Bottom line for all of us: we’d rather die in hell with Asher than be safe while he suffered.

By the time Axl and Rone arrived back at the house, I was dressed and ready to leave. That’s how sure I was we would leave this very night to track Asher down.

“We have to go,” Rone said as I stalked into the kitchen, anger driving my steps to be loud stomps. “Fuck waiting for the library. Asher needs us.”

Yes. Fuck yes and all that jazz.

“I’m already calculating, and it will take us about twenty hours to drive, five hours if we can use the school jet.” Axl was noting everything in his book. “That’s to get us to the island where their base camp is. We’ll have to go by boat after that.”

“Princeps Jones won’t lend us the jet,” Jesse said with an irate shake of his head. “I’ve already run the plan past him, and he wants us to wait. He said that we have no idea what we’re walking into and dragging Maddi into a situation like that is irresponsible.”

Four sets of eyes turned to find me. “Don’t even think about leaving me behind,” I said. “I won’t stay here. I don’t care what I have to do to get loose.”

“It is a big risk for you,” Rone said, his voice softer. “They wanted you first, and if whatever they’re trying is not working with Asher, then you’ll be their next target.”

I didn’t even bother to reply. They knew my stubborn ass by now. They knew that when I set my mind to something, I never wavered on it. Just like Jesse with his order of food placement, I was set in my personality quirks.

“We’ll take Asher’s jet,” Jesse decided, and there was no more arguing after that. “I’ll contact the pilots and see when they can head out.”

Something inside my chest relaxed; I was able to breathe again. Even though this would be dangerous, I didn’t care. We were finally doing something, and that was the only thing that mattered.

A knock at the door startled me, and I was closest, so I got there first to open it. Ilia and Larissa were on the other side, and I remembered we were supposed to go to another school dance tonight. One to celebrate the end of exams.

They both looked over my all-black outfit: skinny jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and black boots. “Are we in stealth mode?” Ilia asked, chuckling.

She looked like a million bucks, dressed in a tight black dress that made the red of her lips and hair pop nicely. Her five-inch heels lengthened her legs, so she was basically as tall as Calen. Speaking of, Calen was on his feet in a heartbeat, stalking toward Ilia.

Those two had had a bit of a thing going on since the night in the pool. Ilia insisted it was just fucking, both of them scratching an itch. It was easy because we all spent so much time together, but … I wasn’t sure that was strictly true. There was a spark there, something that spoke of more than just animal attraction. Maybe not the same as what she’d had with Josh, but … it was definitely not nothing.

He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek, and I heard whispers as Ilia draped herself across him. She was so sexy that he looked dumbstruck every time.

Larissa was extra gorgeous tonight too, her blond hair back in a braid, showcasing the delicate beauty of her face. “What’s going on?” she asked. She’d probably scented the nerves and determination in the room.