“For now,” Tobe added with a half-smile, which looked kind of endearing and weird at the same time, on the face of a freaking lion.
“The matter of the Bestiary concerns you, too,” Alton said. “Besides, it’s time you meet some of the other magicals you’ll be working with.”
Ah, yes. Those magicals probably included the ones I’d seen in the living quarters. The way-too-cold platinum-haired guy, the girl with black curls and chocolate eyes… and Wade. Ugh, I was going to see Wade again. It had been so nice and calm and quiet since he’d left us.
I was curious, though. Particularly about the Bestiary issues. From what I’d understood and from what I could also feel from him, Alton was worried about the Mage Council, the big kahunas of the magicals, and their reaction to a gargoyle escaping from the Bestiary. I had a feeling that I’d get a lot more information from this meeting in the Main Assembly Hall.
A young coven trying to reform itself. A Bestiary that was simply too big and complicated to control. Alton had his hands full already. He certainly didn’t need me to put up a fight and make things even more difficult for him.
Frankly, I didn’t want that, either. The month trial was my best way forward—for now, at least.
Chapter Eleven
My brain was already overloaded with new information. As I set foot inside the Main Assembly Hall, however, I understood that a lot more was coming my way. Thankful that I’d yet to get the urge to turn around and just run away as fast as I could, I stayed close to Tobe and Alton as the gathering crowd parted before us.
The Hall was huge and rectangular, with more of the coven’s signature dragon statues cast in bronze stretching between the marble floor and the high ceiling, flickering chandelier lights reflecting off their wings.
Flames burned bright in wall-mounted torches as a couple hundred witches and warlocks moved to the center, in front of a wide, circular podium. All eyes were on me, for some reason. I wasn’t comfortable with all that attention, and it was becoming more and more difficult to shut out the flood of emotions chipping away at my self-control. All those people were looking at me, wondering what my presence there meant. I recognized the wariness, the suspicion, and, in some cases, the disdain. It was as if they didn’t need another magical on the premises, an idea further cemented by an overall air of competition between them.
I recognized the looks they gave each other, the confident half-smiles and arrogant smirks. The athletes back in my high school did the same whenever a competition was about to begin.
Seven tall mirrors with frilly bronze frames were mounted on the floor at the back of the podium, their surfaces rippling as if liquid. Something told me those weren’t regular mirrors.
Large paintings of various witches and warlocks—or so I thought, at first glance—were hung on the wall behind the podium. Judging by the clothing styles and brush strokes, they belonged to different periods, some going as far back as the 1100s and even earlier. Their eyes seemed to peer into my very soul, and I really didn’t like that vibe, given what I was already experiencing as an Empath in a room full of people.
“Harley, I need you to stay by Wade’s side for now, while I make some announcements,” Alton told me, pointing at Wade, who was among the first people to reach the podium.
“We’ll get to speak more afterward,” Tobe said, giving me a soft smile. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”
There was something so sweet and heartwarming in the way he said that, it almost smothered my growing anxiety. That state of mind quickly dissipated, unfortunately, once I moved to stand next to Wade, whose forced wariness and struggled reserve were quick to get on my nerves.
I watched as Alton and Tobe went up the podium stairs, where a microphone mounted on a tall stand awaited, before looking at Wade, who gave me a rushed sideways glance and a brief nod. He was trying so hard not to pay attention to me, while his emotions screamed at me. I found it ironic, though—the more he tried to hide, the better I could read him, and the more noise it made in my head.
“You know, you can’t really hide your emotions from me,” I said, gritting my teeth, as I felt a migraine coming on. Wade’s head snapped around, and he looked at me with raised eyebrows.
He’s going to try and play it cool, just wait for it.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he replied.
There it is.
“Are you serious?” I shot back. “Listen, the more you try to hide, the louder it gets in here,” I explained, pointing at my head.
“How good is your… radar, anyway?” he murmured, his brow furrowed.
“Right now, it’s off the charts because of all the people.” I sighed. “I’m not good with crowds. They make me hypersensitive. And for some reason, the more you try to keep me out, the better I feel what you feel. And, Wade, it’s okay to be wary of me. I totally get it. I’m still getting used to this ability, and I’ve never had to deal with people knowing that I can feel them. But you should just let it go. Whatever you’re feeling, just feel it. I’m not going to pay attention, anyway. There are so many feelings going through me right now, I can barely focus.”
He seemed to relax a little, and, as suspected, the avalanche of emotions coming from him seemed to fizzle down a bit. There were about two hundred souls left around me, each feeling something different, and not all of it was aimed at me. As I lost my spot at the center of their attention, other emotions came through.
They were all eager to find out what Alton had to say. Some were worried. At least forty of them were in love, half of their crushes currently in the room and just one third reciprocating. Ten were extremely tired, and two were confused and in desperate need of their families. I had a feeling the latter were new arrivals in the coven, too. The overall picture was exhausting, like hundreds of paint tubes simultaneously stepped on, the colors blobbing out in a tiresome mish-mash, spread across the canvas of my already-worn-out brain.
“They’re exhausting, aren’t they?” Wade said slowly, watching me as I took a few deep breaths.
“For lack of a better word, yeah,” I said. “But it’s a little better when they’re not paying attention to me. They’re like bullhorns, in a way. When they’re pointed elsewhere, they’re still loud, but tolerable. But when they’re pointed at me, it’s just… excruciating. Not sure that makes sense.”
Wade shrugged. “It kind of does. I have to deal with them on a daily basis, so I can relate, sort of. Let’s just say I understand what it’s like when they don’t pay attention to you.”
I stifled a chuckle as Alton took center stage, tapping the microphone twice.
“Hi, hello, everyone!” He smiled, his voice echoing loud and clear throughout the assembly hall.
My gaze wandered around the place, and I was able to recognize some of the faces I’d already seen, including the chocolate-eyed girl and the platinum-haired guy, farther to my right. O’Halloran and other uniformed instructors were in the front row to my left, along with Adley de la Barthe and the preceptors, as well as a few other elder magicals I didn’t recognize. Adley’s gaze wandered across the room and settled on the platinum-haired guy for a second, enough for my heart to pound with something strong, akin to love. I’d felt it in others plenty of times; I could easily recognize the butterflies and the ache of longing. Whether the platinum-haired guy reciprocated those feelings or not was a mystery. Either way, not my business.
Tobe stood quietly behind Alton, his broad back reflected in three of the rippling mirrors.
The murmurs in the crowd died down as we all listened to what the director of the San Diego Coven had to say. I was still processing the fact that I was inside a freaking coven, surrounded by witches, warlocks, mythical monsters, and a ton of… well, a ton of magic.
“As mentioned in my message request to have you gather here at this hour, there have been some new and unexpected developments with the Bestiary,” Alton said. “For the purpose of avoiding panic and unnecessary concern, however, we’ve held off on telling you all about what happened. Now that the problem is contained, it’s time for you to know that seven days ago, one of the gargoyles in the Bestiary escaped.”
He paused, allowing the collective gasp to rise from the crowd, and nodded at Wade, who straightened his back with beaming pride in response.
“Wade Crowley, one of our exceptional warlocks, was quick to go after the beast and return it safely to its glass box.” Alton smiled, then looked at me, and I froze, almost hearing heads turn as people suddenly paid attention to me. “He had help from a new, yet unexpected member of our coven, whom you will all be introduced to shortly.”
Oh, God.
In hindsight, I was thankful I didn’t have any telepathic abilities—like hearing thoughts. Dealing with a tidal wave of emotions was one thing, but having my brain bombarded with a flurry of random words and thoughts? Ugh, I would’ve ended up hospitalized and heavily medicated for sure.
“I want you all to be more vigilant, going forward,” Alton continued, drawing the audience’s focus back to him.
Only as I let out the nervous breath I’d been holding did I realize that I’d gripped Wade’s hand, squeezing tight for some kind of comfort. I looked down, getting visual confirmation of our unexpected physical contact, then up at him. Though his expression remained stoic, he was shocked. I could feel it.
When did I take his hand, though? Did I just black out when they all looked at me, or something?
“Sorry,” I murmured, instantly letting go. My palms were clammy. I rubbed them against my jeans and focused on Alton once more.
“We’ve added a security detail to the Bestiary in order to assist Tobe,” Alton said, “but we have yet to identify how the gargoyle got out in the first place. Tobe’s magical abilities are raw, and, frankly, it is up to all of us to ensure that further incidents do not occur. If they do, I trust you all know what to do, as you’ve all been given your full Bestiary induction.”