Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 126358 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 505(@250wpm)___ 421(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126358 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 505(@250wpm)___ 421(@300wpm)
Ryse’s expression softened somewhat.
“You don’t have anyone to go home to?” he asked softly.
I shook my head.
“My father is dead—I’m sure you know that…that he killed himself—everyone here does. And my bro…I mean, my sister’s gone too. She got married off to the Duke of Brekenshire.”
That really had been the name of one of my suitors, so I hoped it would hold as long as the North Wing Leader didn’t go to the trouble of checking.
“I see.” He nodded. “All right, Lysandra—I’ll come with you to the Head Master and help you explain.” He pointed a finger at me. “Not because I give a damn about your scrawny ass—because I’ll be drawn in anyway, when he wants to know how you survived a fall from the simulator without cracking your stupid skull open.”
I nodded humbly, willing to accept his help, even if it came with a side of insults.
“How did you happen to be in the right place to catch me?” I asked, as he led the way from the simulator cavern. Luckily, there was a lower exit, so I didn’t have to bear the indignity of climbing the rope in front of him.
Ryse frowned.
“My dragon, M’alex, called to me. He woke me up and insisted that I needed to go to the simulator cavern and wait under the net.”
“He did?” I looked at him in surprise. “But…how could he know?”
“Some Gold-wings have special abilities,” Ryse said shortly. “M’alex is the first Midnight Gold-wing to be hatched in almost a century. Sometimes he just…knows things.”
“And do you always listen to him?” I asked. I was walking by his side, nearly trotting to keep up with his long strides as we traversed the long stone hallway.
Ryse’s golden eyes darkened.
“Now I do,” he said and then abruptly changed the subject. “The Head Master is an early riser—he’ll already be in his office. Let’s go.”
22
AURORA
And that was how I found myself sitting in yet another wooden chair as I explained, haltingly, to the Head Master what had happened. At least his chairs were fancier than Professor Griven’s—they were carved with dragons and each foot looked like a dragon’s claw instead of a chair leg. But they were still hard and uncomfortable, and I felt like a criminal sitting in one.
Beside me, Ryse Skoren sat in silence. He had explained briefly that there had been an incident with the Flight Simulator and that it was out of commission, but now it was up to me to provide details.
As frightened and worried as I was, I had to admit I was grateful for the North Wing Leader at my side. He was a warm, solid presence and just the fact that he was there seemed to give me at least a little bit of courage.
“Now, Lysandra, is it?” The Head Master frowned at me over his gold-rimmed reading spectacles. He had clearly been up for some time—his eyes were sharp behind the thin lenses and there was a steaming cup of bitter black tea at his elbow.
“Yes, Sir,” I said, hoping my voice wouldn’t squeak or sound too girlish.
“I’m a man—a very masculine man,” I reminded my Dragon Glass pendant mentally. I hoped the glamour it threw would stand up to the intense scrutiny I was getting from the Head Master.
“And you broke the simulator? Is that right?” he asked, frowning.
“No, Sir—I didn’t,” I said quickly. “Although, it’s true that I was using it outside of class hours and without supervision,” I hastened to add.
“Mmm-hmm. And so what happened, exactly?” he demanded.
Haltingly, I explained how I had been practicing with the simulator when someone started using the controls and making it jerk and buck.
“To the point where the ropes snapped and then Cadet Lysandra slid off and down the wing, which is how I caught him,” Ryse put in.
“You caught him? What happened to the net?” the Head Master demanded.
“Cut,” Ryse said shortly. “Probably by the same person who was working the simulator controls.”
“And who might that be?” The Head Master’s eyebrows rose as he stared first at Ryse and then at me.
“I believe it was…was Cadet Chud Larson, Head Master,” I said, though my throat felt dry as I spoke the name. “I saw him when I looked up to see who was in the Observation Balcony.”
“Larson, hmm?” The Head Master looked troubled. “That’s a very serious accusation, Lysandra,” he said to me. “Can you prove it?”
“Well…no,” I admitted. “But I saw his face and he shouted down to me and said that the, uh, wooden dragon was the only kind I’d ever ride.”
“Which you have to admit, sounds like a death threat, Sir,” Ryse put in.
“Yes, yes, Skoren—let me think,” the Head Master said irritably. He looked back at me. “Why in the world would Larson want to kill you, Lysandra?”
I was surprised that he didn’t know, but I explained about the entrance exam and how he’d been demoted to First-year classes.