Chapter 44
Ben sweeps me up a few staircases, away from the rest of the boys, and he
really does take a minute to show me the incredible library that takes up a large
portion of the top floor — presumably on the other side of our rooms. I gape
around at it in complete awe.
I mean — we have a pretty impressive library in the palace — but this? The arching
ceilings are almost entirely made of glass, like the entire space was once one
giant. greenhouse or something. The stacks are all tall and white, reaching so
high I can’t believe they don’t topple over, with these gorgeous brass ladders
steepled all over them.
Obviously, all I want to do for the rest of the day is wander around picking out a
stack of books and sinking onto one of the plush velvet chairs with them, but Ben
laughs, leading me away to my chemistry classroom with plenty of time to spare.
As we walk, I smile at him even as he glances at his map, trying to find the right
halls. Because as much as I know he’s dying to ask me what’s going on with
Luca, he’s also sensing that it’s somehow private, and that I’m not ready to go
there yet.
Unlike Jesse, who I know will tease me mercilessly and press me for details the
moment he gets a chance, Ben lets me have my space.
And so as we arrive at the door to my class, I take a minute to bump my shoulder
into his what I’m coming to learn is the manly version of a big hug. “Thanks,
Ben.”
“Anytime, Ari,” he says, grinning at me. And by the crinkle around his eyes, I can
tell that he understands that I’m thanking for him for more than the escort. “Good
luck in there,” he says, nodding towards the classroom.
I bump him again, and he grins at me before heading down the hall.
When I step inside, I’m surprised both by the smallness of the classroom and by
the fact that I’m…
Alone.
I stay perfectly still for a second, the two boys who are already in the class
turning to look at me.
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Chapter 44
I mean, it’s not that I’ve never been alone before…
But, I mean, have I?
I have spent my entire life in the company of my family, watched and guarded.
Even when I’d go to sleepovers they’d send a guard or two along to stand
outside of the house.
But now…
“Are you staying or going,” a deep, bored voice asks, brushing past me into the
room.
I stumble a little — he didn’t hit me or anything. I was just…surprised.
I watch with interest as the tall man sweeps to the front of the room, putting his
book down on the black desk at the front, raising an eyebrow at me. He has dark
hair, just going grey at the temples, and a long crooked nose.
I smile, liking him instantly — I don’t know why. Nothing about him screams nice,
but…I don’t know.
I like him too, my wolf says tilting her head with interest, and I stand up straight,
trusting my instincts. “Staying,” I say. “Sorry,” I apologize, coming into the room
more fully now and taking a seat at an empty table.
The professor nods and looks down at his book, flipping through the pages.
I sit a little awkwardly, not knowing what to do. I mean I recognize the two other
cadets already in the room, and the five more who filter in after. They were all
candidates with me. But what Ben said last night holds true
Rafe and Jesse, they
really did do a good job of isolating me away from everyone else.
I have no idea who any of these people are.
“All right,” the Professor says, marching to the door and slamming it shut, twisting
the lock and striding back for the front of the room, all business. “Welcome to the
Espionage Track. I’m Dr. Neumann, I will be your advisor and your professor of
Chemistry.”
We all sit up a little straighter then, I think anxious and eager to impress. He
smirks a little at us, not unkindly, and then launches into a speech about what
we’ll be expected to do here. My eyes go wider and wider as he speaks, detailing
the
Chapter 44
incredible amount of information that we’ll be expected to learn in a very short
amount of time. I jump when he takes a textbook from below the desk and drops
it on the table in front of him, the text making a huge thwapping sound.
“This is the first of your four textbooks for this course. I will expect you to be
proficient in all of the information contained within this text by the time the holiday
break rolls around.”
Holiday break? We….we have those?
“Those who do not succeed…” he says, his voice slowing now as he looks
around at all of us, “will not be accepted back next term.”
I breathe in sharply. What?
“This is in addition to the school’s standard cuts at the end of the first semester,”
Neumann says, looking around slowly at all of us, and the other students all
flinch and begin to murmur. I look around, confused and a little upset —
Further cuts — god, I’d forgotten all about those —
Neumann’s eyes focus on me now, perceiving that I am completely lost. “In case
some of you are unaware,” he says, his voice dry, “which is… frankly abundantly
clear from some of your expressions, Alpha Academy cuts a further 40% of its
entering Cadets at the end of the Examination.”
I go pale. What? What?
40%!?
What the hell is this Examination!? Why didn’t Jesse and Rafe say anything!?
“What I am attempting to explain to you,” Neumann continues, “is that Espionage
cuts on top of that. If you pass the Examination but fail your Chemistry exam?
You’re out. The rates for continuing in Espionage are the most competitive in the
school, which I believe is fair, considering that we do not want to produce inept
agents. With an entering group of 8, as we see here, I would expect the
continuing number in January to be…”
He pauses to consider, perhaps doing the math.
“Somewhere between two and three of you.”
Chapter 44
My breath freezes in my chest. What. What?!
“Of course,” he says with a bored sigh, “there is no reason why all eight of you
could not make it if you were the most spectacular incoming group of young
cadets the school has ever seen. I would just…not expect it to happen.”
He takes a moment to look each of us in the eye, and I don’t miss it when he
lingers longest on me.
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“You will be trained for other affinities within Espionage with other professors, but
all of you will meet here three times a week to study with me. You will be
examined in your other affinities as well and will be required to pass those
examinations too. You will also need to be fit enough to pass the Examination,
which will be your own responsibility. I suggest you each work very hard. That
being said, if any of you do not believe yourself up to the task, you may apply to
switch to the…Ambassador Track.”
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But the distaste with which he says
the word suggests to us that to do
such a thing would be a great step
down in the world. My heart twists
for Ben, who is already there. All of
the young men around me straighten
their shoulders, and I see that each is
determined to try. The content is on
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chapter there!
Neumann takes another moment to look us all over, not inviting questions but
leaving the space open in case any of us have anything burning we need to ask.
And even though questions race through my mind, I press my lips together in a
firm, determined line.
1 can ask Rafe and Jesse for answers to those later. Now? Now I need to listen.
“Good,” Neumann says, nodding, and then he reaches below the desk again,
pulling out a stack of notebooks and pens. “Hand these around,” he says,
offering them to the young man closest to him, “lessons begin now.”
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As Neumann speaks I scribble
furiously in my notebook, taking
down everything he says because I
) . > .
don’t yet know his teaching style — is
he the kind of professor whose
lessons you pour over again and
again in an attempt to memorize his
wisdom? Or is he more of a guide
through the field, supporting you as
)
you your own pace? I’ve had both
kinds of teachers — but until I know
) Bn
his style? I’m writing down
everything. The content is on
Novelxo.org! Read the latest
chapter there!
learn at
The pages are soon filled with a wealth of information, and even though I’m
intimidated, by the end of the class I’m also incredibly excited about what to
come.
Chapter 44
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The lesson plan that Neumann has
sketched out for us by the end of the
, 0
semester we’re not going to refresh
our understanding of the basics of
0 ’ 5
Chemistry, but we’re also going to
understand the chemical
compositions and the mechanics. of
how to create twelve subtle poisons
that he understands as the basic
toolkit of any self-sufficient shadow
agent. The content is on
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chapter there!
Those poisons, he promises, will be the basis of our examination at the end of
term.
My hands are almost shaking with nerves and excitement when we close our
notebooks at the end of the three-hour class. I slip my pen into the notebook,
clutching it to my chest as I get in line with the other students picking up my
textbook at the front of the room.
When Neumann places it in my waiting hand, he smirks when I almost drop it, my
eyes going wide at the surprising weight. “Going to have to work on that, Cadet,”
he murmurs. “If you can’t carry the book, how can you expect to carry the
knowledge?”
“Well, it will weigh a lot less when it’s all in my head,” I murmur, lifting the book
more firmly into my arms as I turn away.
To my surprise, Neumann laughs, and he nods to me as I glance over my
shoulder on the way to the door. When I trip over a desk because I’m not looking
where I’m going, he just laughs again good-heartedly, hanging his head a little
with a sigh and
a smile.
I dart into the hall, embarrassed but smiling.
I probably shouldn’t be as surprised as I am when I walk immediately into my
brother, basically bouncing off his chest.
“Ari,” he says, frowning down at me. “What the hell is going on with you?”