Supernatural Academy: Year One (Supernatural Academy #1)(89)

“Incredible,” I breathed, my hand pressing against the glass, like I could reach out and run my hands through the fluffiness.

“I love all your firsts,” Axl said, shooting me an odd look. “You’re the best thing that happened to the five of us. We needed…” I waited with bated breath for what he was going to say. “You,” he finished. “We needed you in our lives.”

“It’s true,” Calen added from the chair behind Jesse.

“Yep,” Jesse chimed in.

Rone didn’t say anything, but he shot me his version of a smile, and my heart fluttered at this sweet moment. No one had ever said anything like that to me before. I’d never been needed or wanted. I’d never been anything.

“Thank you,” I whispered, reaching out to squeeze Axl’s hand, and then Jesse’s. Jesse had been my rock these last few months as we searched for the library and I dealt with my powers and school, both of us missing Asher with a desperation that was borderline obsessive. I wasn’t sure I would have made it through without him.

Without them all.

I must have dozed off at some point, waking up as we came in to land. Axl was still doing his tracking thing, making sure we were on the right path. “How does it work?” I asked, watching as he filled the page with symbols and numbers and small graphs.

“I tag your energy with mine,” he said softly, his forehead creased in concentration. He was only giving me half his attention. “Then I receive coordinates when I tap into the spell.”

Wonder filled me at the possibilities magic could bring. “Can everyone do that?” I asked.

Calen snorted. “Nope. It’s advanced magic that Axl shouldn’t be playing with. But he’s never been great at waiting for his age to catch up with his magical abilities.”

Axl finally lifted his head, dark smudges under his eyes. The tracking was tiring on his energy, that much I already knew. “Tyson Compass managed to become a sorcerer last year, and he’s pretty much the same age as us. Sure, the quads are famous, and he has no peer, but still … it’s doable. You just have to exercise your magical muscles.”

I had no idea who Tyson Compass was, or the quads, but I believed that Axl could do anything he set his mind to. I’d already seen him do amazing stuff.

The plane really started to descend now, and I spun in my chair, tightening my belt and checking the small tray table again, making sure it was locked in place. “You okay, sweetheart?” Jesse said, looking relaxed across from me.

I sent him a tense smile. “Yes. I’m good.”

We were that much closer to Asher. I was fucking amazing.

The plane landed smoothly, and when we exited via a set of stairs, I stared around, trying to take it all in. It was late, but I could see bits and pieces of the sparse landscape. It was warm as well, the breezes carrying a hint of salt in them. We couldn’t be more than a few miles from the ocean, the body of water calling to me.

“We will find a room for the night,” Rone said, “and then come morning we will track Asher.”

I didn’t argue, though the thought of waiting one more night almost drove me crazy. I understood, though. We had to take a boat to wherever they were, and heading out in the dark wasn’t smart or safe.

A large black car was waiting for us, a driver ready to take us into the small village nearby. There were not a lot of accommodations available, but Axl had managed to secure us two rooms in a three-level, white-walled, grecian villa. There were two double beds in each room—we were going to have to share.

“It’s just one night,” Axl said pragmatically. “Let’s get some sleep and head out at first light. There is a speedboat with our names on it waiting at a nearby dock.”

I sank down onto one of the beds. “I’m going to share with Maddi,” Jesse said. “And I think Rone should take the other bed. We need to keep her safe now that we’re out of the Academy.”

No one disagreed. “We’ll be next door,” Calen said.

I tried not to worry about sharing a bed with Jesse, and it would be nice to sleep soundly because I wasn’t worried about being kidnapped.

We’d all brought a small bag with us, and I used the bathroom first, changing into a tank and soft pj pants. I brushed out my hair, braiding it to keep it out of my face. Jesse went in right after me, and I was already in the bed, squished to one side when he returned. I was across from Rone, his bed two feet away. Having these two on either side of me was about as safe as a girl could be.

We were quiet for an extended time, but I sensed none of us were asleep. I was actually afraid to fall into a deep sleep, because then the dreams would come.

“Why do you think I’m having the dreams?” I asked. “I mean, if they’re real … that’s got to be odd, right? Me seeing Asher’s situation…”

“We don’t know,” Rone said gruffly. “Asher mentioned … from the first time he caught you in his arms … that there was a connection between you. We thought at first that it was because of your strong Atlantean blood and the shield over your power.”

“But then you broke that,” Jesse added, “and the connection never went away.”

“It didn’t,” I admitted. “I mean, at first I thought it was just because Asher is insanely hot.”