The Lost Saint(35)

I pulled it away. This person standing in front of me wasn’t the Gabriel I’d expected—the Gabriel I’d imagined meeting someday. This wasn’t the Gabriel I’d gotten to know through those letters.

I didn’t know this man at all.

“You can help people, Grace,” he said. “But not in the way you’re thinking. There are other ways to be a hero in this world. That I am willing to teach you if you’ll let me.”

I let out a long breath between my teeth. “Fine,” I said, even though I felt far from it. I just didn’t want to talk anymore. How could the three people who were supposed to help turn their backs on me?

Dad tapped his desk with his knuckles and sat back down in his chair. “I need to get some work done here. But the three of you should get to bed. You’ve all got school in the morning.”

“All of us?” Daniel asked.

Gabriel tugged on his collar.

“Meet Pastor Saint Moon, junior pastor and your new religion teacher,” Dad said. “Gabriel will be taking over Mr. Shumway’s religion classes and covering for me at the parish if I need to leave again.”

“He’s the new religion teacher?” My mind couldn’t really wrap itself around the idea of an eight-hundred-something-year-old Catholic monk turned werewolf teaching religion classes at a Protestant private school for teenagers. But the part that bothered me was that my mental decision to never talk to Gabriel again wasn’t going to work if he invaded my school life—and especially not if he was going to be my freaking teacher.

“This’ll be interesting,” I said, a little too much sarcasm in my voice.

“I agree.” Gabriel grimaced. “But do I have to wear this stupid collar? Makes me feel like a dog on somebody else’s leash.”

“Get used to it,” I said.

“Grace,” Dad snapped, with a very knock-it-off tone. “You should get home. Daniel, will you see Grace back to the house?”

I glanced at Daniel and crossed my arms in front of my chest. I wasn’t in the mood to go anywhere with him, but I’d already learned it was of no use to protest this sort of thing.

“Actually, sir”—Daniel got up from his chair—“I really need to speak with Gabriel—alone. It can’t wait any longer.”


Dad glanced from Daniel to me, as if noticing the tension between us for the first time. “Very well.” Dad picked up a book and put it in his bag. “I’ll finish up here as quickly as I can and then she can go home with me.”

Daniel nodded. He picked up his duffel bag and motioned for Gabriel to go with him outside. He didn’t even glance my way before leaving.

Gabriel put his hand on my shoulder. “We’ll become fast friends yet, Grace.” He gave me an ancient smile. His eyes crinkled with age in his otherwise smooth, youthful face. “You look so much like Katharine, you know. At least what little of her I can remember.” He tapped his forehead and then let go of my shoulder. He followed Daniel out of the office.

“I’ll just be a few minutes,” my dad said.

I nodded and leaned against the door Gabriel had just closed behind him. I held my breath and concentrated as hard as I could, listening beyond the thick metal door. My ears burned only slightly—it was getting easier to call on this power—and then I heard Gabriel’s voice.

“What is it, my boy?” he asked Daniel. They sounded like they were a good twenty feet from the door.

“I don’t know,” Daniel said. His voice was even farther away now. From the sound of it, they were walking toward the back of the parish. Probably back to Don’s apartment. I assumed that was where Gabriel would be staying. “I’m not sure what—”

“Gracie,” Dad called from his desk.

I jumped. It sounded like he’d screamed into my oversensitive ears. I shook my head, and my superhearing dissipated.

“Go call your mother and tell her you’re with me. I imagine she was expecting you home a while ago.”

“Oh. Yeah.” I hesitated for a moment and tried to hone in on Daniel and Gabriel’s conversation again, but then a sneaking voice filled my mind. Already using your powers for ill? Spying on the person you love? Good for you.

I clutched my hands to my head and stepped away from the door. How could I let myself think such disturbing things?





CHAPTER TWELVE


Good Samaritan



SCHOOL, THE NEXT DAY




Pretty much everyone was in a flurry about the new religion teacher on Monday. Considering the median age of teachers at HTA was well over forty, having such a young (if only by appearance) new teacher was something to talk about.

“I hear he’s cute,” April said as we walked to senior religion studies—the last class of the day.

I was glad for her company, since Daniel and I were apparently avoiding each other today. Or at least I was, considering the fact that I’d chosen to sit next to April in the back of the art room since her tablemate was out sick. April had spent most of art class sketching out costume designs for me. Even though I didn’t much care for wearing a violet-purple cape with a big sequined WG (for Wolf Girl!) on the back, I didn’t have the heart to tell her I’d been grounded from training—and if Daniel, Gabriel, and Dad had anything to say about it, I’d never have a need for any of her designs. But now I almost wished April would go back to the subject of optimal crime-fighting footwear, because debating the finer points of Gabriel, or Pastor Saint Moon, or whoever he was supposed to be, wasn’t exactly something I wanted to do.