Zen and the Art of Major Magical Control Read online

  Dylan opened his mouth to protest, but the warden cut him off. “Other people in this town might consider you some kind of hero, but I’m watching. You’re dangerous. Powerful and you’ve got a bad attitude. You assaulted a student last year—”

  “You mean Conner? He’s a bully.”

  The warden’s eyes flashed. “I’m not finished, Mr. Galloway.”

  Dylan glared up at him. Yeah, this asshole was on a power trip. You wouldn’t stand a chance if I used my magic on you. As tempting as the idea was, Dylan wasn’t stupid. Attacking a warden was a guaranteed trip to prison, even if he was a minor.

  “You’ve been suspended several times. You’ve threatened fellow students. Until recently you had poor grades and skipped classes on a regular basis. You’re a time bomb, Mr. Galloway, and I personally don’t want to wait for you to go off.” The man crossed his arms.

  “You gonna arrest me because I might do something later?” Anger boiled inside him. The guy was baiting him, had to be.

  “Unfortunately, no. Warden Johnson continues to argue for leniency on your behalf, and he has allies in the council. But he can’t protect you forever.” He leaned closer to Dylan. “You’re one screwup away from expulsion.”

  Dylan clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms. The faint scent of smoke and heated rock rose up around him. “You think you can read a few files and know who I am? You don’t know shit about me.”

  The warden’s eyes went hard. “Please try it, Mr. Galloway. I’d love to have one less problem to worry about.”

  That’s all Dylan was to him. A problem. The way people had been treating Dylan lately, he’d started to forget how much most people hated him just because he was a dragonkin. “You’re not worth it.”

  “Pity.” The warden kept glaring. “I’d rather have you attack me than someone else.”

  “Is that all you dragged me in here for? To threaten me?” Another bully to deal with. Too bad Dylan couldn’t take care of him the way he’d dealt with Conner.

  “I know you’re hiding something, you and your little fae pal. My job is to keep supernaturals safe, and that’s what I intend to do.”

  Dylan was used to authority figures treating him like crap, but his threatening Aiden almost pushed him over the edge. His magic hummed, ready to be unleashed. “Guess I don’t count as someone to keep safe, huh?”

  The warden’s head tilted just a bit. “I think you’re more than capable of taking care of yourself.”

  They stared at each other for a moment. The warning bell rang.

  “You done?” Dylan asked.

  The warden looked like he was about to argue, but then he nodded. “Get to class. But remember, the next time you step out of line, I’ll know.”

  His own personal warden bully. Great.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  They were in the middle of dinner when someone rang the doorbell.

  “I’ll get it,” Dylan’s mom offered.

  A moment later Dylan heard Mr. Johnson’s voice. Great, what now?

  The warden walked in with Mom.

  “Mr. Johnson would like to talk to you,” she said.

  Of course he did. Aiden had told him that Mr. Johnson was staying in Shadow Valley for a few more months at least. Hooray.

  Dylan led Mr. Johnson to his mom’s study, which felt like less of an invasion than going to his room. Mr. Johnson closed the door, and Dylan waited for him to use his silence ward. To his surprise, the warden turned and started talking. “I’m not sure if you’re aware yet, but your school now has a warden liaison.”

  Dylan snorted. “Yeah, I met the jerk.”

  Mr. Johnson frowned. Of course he wouldn’t want to hear bad things about his fellow warden. “You spoke with him? What did you say?”

  “He made some threats, warned me he wanted to get me suspended. He tried to make me attack him, but I wouldn’t take the bait.” Thinking about it made Dylan’s blood boil again.

  “He tried—?” Mr. Johnson frowned. “Dylan, you have to be very careful around him. Warden Bradley is very… stringent.”

  “Yeah, he has it out for me. Thinks I’m dangerous. He called me a time bomb.” Dylan crossed his arms and leaned against one of the bookshelves.

  “It’s very important that you don’t do anything to provoke him or break any rules. He won’t hesitate to punish you, and there’s only so much I can do to protect you.”

  “Yeah, gotta protect me so I can do whatever creepy thing you want me and Aiden to do for you.” After Dylan had released a dark fae into the world, Mr. Johnson had promised to keep his involvement secret in return for some mysterious favor. Dylan had been ready to accept punishment, but Aiden had pleaded for his sake. Now if Dylan got caught, Aiden might get in trouble too.

  Mr. Johnson gave him a look. “I am your best advocate within the wardens. If you speak to Warden Bradley the way you speak to me, he will find a reason to punish you. Suspension is not the worst consequence. He wants to see you in prison.”

  “I know.” Dylan wanted to punch something. Or burn something.

  “So please control yourself. I know that isn’t your strongest trait, but Warden Bradley is set against you. Don’t give him an excuse.”

  Dylan’s stomach tightened as a thought occurred to him. “He isn’t… one of them, is he? The corrupt ones? Or working for them?”

  Mr. Johnson made a noise that was almost a laugh. “No, quite the opposite. Finding corruption within the ranks lit a fire under him, and he’s determined nothing like that will ever happen again. Warden Bradley believes wholeheartedly in the treaty and keeping both supernaturals and mundanes safe. He truly considers you a threat to safety, so please don’t provide him with more evidence to support that idea.”

  “So what am I supposed to do if he attacks me?” The guy sounded like a fanatic.

  “He won’t. He may verbally antagonize you, but he would never attack an underage supernatural in Shadow Valley. Not unless he thought you posed an immediate threat.”

  Dylan scoffed. “He thinks I’m an immediate threat just for being alive.” He knew the consequence for attacking a warden was prison time, but would the council consider self-defense a legitimate reason?

  “No, he considers you a potential threat and with good reason. If you got in another fight, he would be justified in using force against you. Or if another fight looked immanent. So no more standoffs in the lunchroom.”

  “Conner’s not a problem anymore.” There had been several confrontations with him in the past, but that had ended when Dylan kicked his ass without even using magic.

  Mr. Johnson sighed, shaking his head slightly. “You must be absolutely blameless as long as Warden Bradley is the school liaison. No justifications or excuses. And if you can’t do it for your own sake, then do it for Aiden’s.”

  Dylan glared. The asshole knew Aiden was his weak point. “Fine.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Why aren’t you the liaison?” If Mr. Johnson was so keen on keeping Dylan out of trouble, he should’ve taken the job.

  “Unfortunately I don’t have the time. There’s a lot of work still to be done on the investigation into the dark-fae murders and in preventing such an occurrence in the future.”

  Mr. Johnson didn’t have to say it, but this was all Dylan’s fault. “Any sign of Morgan?” That was the dark fae Dylan had released from Faery. A stupid mistake he regretted now, especially after one of Morgan’s buddies killed three people and then came after Dylan and Aiden.

  The warden shifted uncomfortably. “I wouldn’t want to worry you unnecessarily.”

  “Oh shit.” That meant more people had been murdered.

  “There hasn’t been anything definite, but a few people have gone missing. I would appreciate if you wouldn’t mention this to Aiden. If we find any evidence that points to Morgan or another dark fae, I’ll let both of you know.”

  “If you don’t want Aiden to know, why are you telling me?” Dylan hated keeping things from hi
s friend.

  “Because I know you won’t panic, and I’d like to maintain a level of trust between us.”

  Yeah, right. Trust.

  Something must have shown on his face because Mr. Johnson said, “I know you’re wary of me, despite all I’ve done for you, but I don’t want to give you reasons to doubt me. Thus, I’m telling you there have been disappearances just in case there is a tie to Morgan.”

  Dylan’s anger rose. “All you’ve done for me?”

  Mr. Johnson took a step closer, shoulders stiff and face drawn into a scowl. “Yes, all I’ve done for you. Cleaning up your mess after you let Morgan out, keeping it a secret even though I risk my job, my freedom, to do so. Saving you from those hunters. Constantly standing up for you with my fellow wardens and the council. Keeping you from being expelled when you beat up Conner Mays. The list is getting very long, Dylan, so please stop testing my patience.”

  That only made Dylan angrier, and he stood glaring at the warden with his fists clenched. Magic tingled inside him, a faint scent of smoke rising from his body. “Yeah, well… Where were you when the dark fae attacked us at Aiden’s house?”

  Mr. Johnson stared at him. “Oh, no. Don’t play that game with me. You know I feel guilty about that, but the dark fae wouldn’t have been there at all if you hadn’t let Morgan out. If you want to place blame, this one lands squarely back at your feet.”

  Dylan threw his hands in the air with a growl and started to pace. Bad enough that he was trapped in Shadow Valley, but he was also trapped in his own mind with the guilt that was always waiting. People were dead because of him, and likely more would die before the wardens caught Morgan. If they could catch him at all.

  “Dylan.” Mr. Johnson’s voice was gentler now. “Not everyone is out to get you. Try to accept that.” He walked out, leaving Dylan to simmer in his frustration.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Dylan tried not to, but every day he glanced over to where Hanna sat with her new pack. All the tables in the square were full, but the group seemed to be happy sitting in a little cluster on the grass. Dylan hadn’t heard from her all summer, and she’d come back to school looking pale. Had her parents done something to her? Had they made her break up with him?

  She’d said she wanted to figure out who she was, but that might have been a lie to cover for her parents. Hanna might have been afraid to tell the truth because Dylan wouldn’t take that lying down. He wasn’t Aiden.

  Ouch, that was an asshole thought.

  Maybe she’d left him because he’d done something wrong. Said something wrong. Because deep down he was nothing but an asshole and a screwup, and she’d seen through him.

  Hanna had said she wanted to stay friends, but then she’d avoided him completely. Had she told Dylan that just to placate him or something? She was avoiding Aiden too. His friend hadn’t heard from Hanna all summer either. Should he ask Aiden to check on her?

  No, that was a chicken thing to do. He had to talk to her himself. If she refused to talk to him, then he’d have Aiden make sure she was okay.

  Hanna did seem happy with her new friends. He’d caught her smiling and laughing a few times.

  Turning back, he looked over at Aiden. They locked eyes, and he realized his friend had caught him staring at Hanna. For a moment they didn’t say anything.

  Aiden broke the silence. “You should go say hi.”

  If it was just Aiden, he might have admitted something, but Dylan was all too aware of Tiago sitting right next to him. “Don’t want to bother her. She’s with her friends.” The ones she left him for.

  “Invite them over. We can squeeze in,” Tiago said. The outside picnic tables fit six average kids. With Hanna and her four friends, that would be eight. Possible, but uncomfortable.

  And it would be four extra kids Dylan didn’t even know.

  Aiden must have seen something in his face. He smiled. “Just for today? It won’t kill you, I promise.”

  Dylan sighed. But the truth was he really missed Hanna. “Fine.”

  As he got up, he tried to ignore the fluttery feeling in his stomach. He knew Aiden and Tiago were watching him, but he was sure everyone else in the square was watching him too.

  The ghoul boy noticed him first, glancing his way and going tense. A ripple went through the group, and they fell silent as Dylan took the last few steps. Hanna looked up at him, also tense, but he thought it was from awkwardness instead of nervousness. At least he hoped so.

  “Hi,” Hanna said with a shy smile.

  “Hey.” What should he say? Why haven’t you talked to me all summer? Or Did I do something to chase you away? Or even Are you afraid of me? But Hanna had been one of the rare few who hadn’t been afraid of him, at least since he’d rescued her from Conner. Now Conner she’d been afraid of.

  “So um, we uh…” Dylan glanced back at Aiden and Tiago. “We were wondering if you wanted to join us? Just for today.” Why had he said that? It made him sound jerky. “We miss you.” Kind of a chicken thing to include Aiden instead of just admitting that he missed her, but it was also true.

  Emotions flickered over her face, ending with something that might have been longing. “I don’t want to leave the pack.”

  “You’re all invited.”

  Hanna perked up. “Are you guys okay with that?” she asked the others.

  They were less tense but still wary.

  “I won’t bite,” Dylan told them.

  That got a few laughs and shy smiles out of them. The vampire girl said, “Okay.”

  They followed Dylan back to the table, and people were definitely watching them now. The vampire girl ended up next to Dylan as the others squeezed in around the table. Marisa started introductions, and Dylan told them his name even though everyone already knew who he was. Aiden too. Hanna had taken the spot next to him, and they exchanged awkward smiles.

  Dylan wondered if he should be jealous, but the emotion just didn’t come.

  “We missed you,” Aiden said.

  “Did you really?”

  “I didn’t hear anything from you all summer.” Dylan couldn’t help the accusation in his tone.

  She ducked her head. “My parents took my phone away. I’m… sort of indefinitely grounded.”

  “Why? You aren’t even dating me anymore.” Hanna’s parents had only allowed the relationship because Dylan helped catch Dalton’s murderers and it was some kind of werewolf honor thing.

  “Because of my new pack. My parents don’t want me hanging out with them. With Marisa and Carter, at least, but they’re part of the pack.” Hanna poked at her half-eaten fried chicken.

  “Your parents are assholes,” Dylan said. He’d love to punch her dad in the face.

  “But you’re standing up to them?” Aiden asked. When she nodded, he said, “That’s great.”

  “Hanna sticks up for us.” Carter was pressed close on Hanna’s other side. “She says she’s not brave, but she is.”

  So maybe she’d been telling the truth about figuring out who she was without a boyfriend. If spending time with her new pack was making her braver, that was a good thing. Even if he felt a little pang every time he thought about her. There’d been something with Hanna, more than he’d had with Indira. Mostly because Hanna wasn’t a selfish bitch. She was sweet and shy but with a spark of something more.

  God, was he pining for her? No. He missed her, missed their relationship, but he didn’t spend all day moping in his room.

  Hanna ducked her head again. “I’m not.”

  “Okay, I get that your parents took your phone, but why didn’t you come see either of us the first day of school?” Aiden asked.

  After Hanna’s parents made her break up with Aiden, he’d pined for her. When she partly defied her parents and went back to being friends with him, he’d seemed content. He hadn’t minded Dylan dating her, had even encouraged it. When neither of them had heard from Hanna all summer, Aiden had been worried, but he hadn’t been mopey about it. In fact, he’d b
een unusually happy the past few months.

  Relieved that the dark fae was dead, maybe?

  Hanna shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t want to bother you.”

  “It bothered me when you ignored us.” Aiden sighed. “I was worried about you. We both were.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t have to choose, Hanna,” Marisa said. “Being part of our pack doesn’t mean you can’t have other friends.”

  “I know. I’m just”—Hanna waved her hands around—“trying to figure everything out.”

  Aiden squeezed her arm. “Just remember we’re here for you.”

  She gave him a shy, grateful smile. “Thanks.”

  Dylan wished her “figuring things out” didn’t mean leaving him in the dust. He wasn’t going to let himself get all emo about it though. If they went back to being friends, he might be okay with that. Being dumped was no fun, but he was determined not to be the asshole ex-boyfriend. She already had one of those.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  In the intermediate Major Magical Control class, everyone had been a decent opponent, and a few had been a real challenge. This year Dylan was in the advanced class, and most of the other students were seniors. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was struggling.

  The girl facing him was a yuki-onna, like Riko from his freshman class, except this girl had confidence and excellent control of her powers.

  She flung balls of ice at him. Dylan intercepted them with streams of fire, but one got through and clipped him on the arm. It hurt. Growling in frustration, he threw a fireball at her. With hardly a blink, she created a wall.

  The fireball hissed as it slammed into the ice, cutting more than halfway through it. Then it slowed until it fizzled away to nothing.

  Dylan sent more streams of fire, angling them to get over the wall. She stopped those too. They went back and forth, fire against ice. Sweat dripped off Dylan, and he panted as he ducked another attack.

  By the time he noticed the shadow, it was too late.