John Wright - Orphans of Chaos

“Well. Damn Dr. Fell to Hell,” he said softly. Brave words, but he looked like he wanted to cry, too.

The first words out of my mouth were: “The Greek gods run the school. We’re hostages in a war. They’re afraid to kill us, because our families will attack. Quentin can fly. They’re going to send us to Hell for safekeeping. Except Vanity is being sent to Atlantis. Zeus is dead and Mars and Vulcan both want the throne. Mercury was in the Common Room last night, and he knew I was in the wall, and he said he’d give us anything we wanted. Taffy ap Cymru is actually a goddess. And a cross-dresser, I guess. Taffy works for Mercury. I fell into the Fourth Dimension, and Miss Daw, who is actually a fourth-dimensional siren shaped like a wheel, played music, which forced me back into normal time-space, except I landed in a pile of snow.”

Everyone was just staring at me.

“Mercury made it destined for me to find a hypersphere that awakened my powers, which is locked in a safe in the Great Hall, where I was hiding because Dr. Fell caught him, because Boggin (whose real name is Boreas) was waiting for me, and he shined a blue beam of light on him and Quentin had this look on his face but I couldn’t tell what he was looking at that looked so horrible and I wanted to ask him but now he can’t remember. Someone in a dream told me how to break the spell. Vanity has to help. Her real name is Nausicaa.”

Everyone continued to stare.

I said, “You believe me, don’t you? Would I make up something like this?”

Colin said, “Did Quentin really tie you up? And make you kiss him?” Without waiting for an answer, he turned and pointed at Quentin, “Big Q!” then he gave him the thumbs-up, “You the man!”

I said in exasperation, “It wasn’t like that! I was only blindfolded.”

Vanity stamped her foot. “You said he kidnapped you and threw you out the window!”

I said, “No, I said he picked me up and carried me out the window. We were flying, or levitating, or something.”

Quentin looked both pleased and sad. “It worked, then. It actually worked! I’m a genius!” Then he muttered: “The best night of my life, and I can’t remember it.”

Colin said to Quentin, “I am so jealous of you it is going to make me barf. How come you get the blonde? Dibs on the redhead.”

Vanity stamped her foot again. “Shut up your horrible face, Colin, or I’ll have Quentin turn you into a toad! Amelia is trying to tell us the most important thing we ever found out about what is going on here, and all you can do is jabber!”

Victor said, “Amelia, did you mean that the dream told you how to break the so-called spell on Quentin?”

“Yes. No. It was ambiguous.”

“We should hear your story out, but also try to get Quentin repaired as soon as possible. Two witnesses see things one witness misses.”

I said, “It’s a long story. I am not sure how long we will have the house and grounds to ourselves. There was some sort of party last night after the Board meeting, and Venus was running it. I think everyone is sleeping it off.”

Victor said, “Are you saying we should try to undo Quentin, first?”

“And maybe break into that safe I found. It’s on the way. The table in the Great Hall is the thing the dream said could break the spell.”

Quentin jumped to his feet. “Let’s hurry. Actually, let’s run.”

“Good idea. Race you.” Victor leaped to his feet and was out the dining room door, followed closely by Quentin. Their footfalls echoed in the corridor.

Vanity hesitated. “Are we just going to leave Mr. Glum laying here?”

Colin rose to his feet and was sauntering toward the door, in no great hurry. “You’re right. Let’s slit his throat now. Save us the trouble of doing it later.”

“You’re sick!” she said, and ran out the door.

Meanwhile, I was not relishing the prospect of an early morning run through the snow, so I was not moving any faster than Colin. I tried to tug my skirt back down into place, but the apron strings were tied so tightly behind my back that my skirt (which was hiked up high and trapped under it) was pinned in place. I was trying to undo the knot when Colin stepped up behind me.

“Allow me,” he said. “Thank you. It will be a relief to breathe again.”

“Here, suck in. I need some slack.”

I blew out my breath and then tried to make my waist even smaller, and Colin tucked and tugged at my back where I couldn’t see. He hummed happily to himself.

I should have been more suspicious, more quickly. I tried to turn, but he yanked, and the apron sash cinched even more tightly.

“You bastard!” I clawed at the small of my back, but the knot seemed to have somehow grown into a super knot.

He grabbed both my hands by the wrist just a moment before I was about to swing on him. He watched me struggling a moment, smiling darkly.

“I’m stronger than you,” I said, feeling foolish. “I can move huge iron doors you can’t lift.”

“Show me,” he said.

Because he was standing behind me, he simply twisted both my arms up behind my back. My possible options at that point consisted of arching my shoulders back as far as possible and standing on tiptoe.

Somehow, somewhere, Colin had turned from a little annoying boy into a dangerous young animal. I could not even really struggle in his grip; he had grasped me too cunningly.

I noticed that he smelled nice. And tall. When did he get to be taller than me? I hadn’t noticed. Had that happened this year?

And strong. And ruthless and confident.

I suddenly began to feel silly and out of breath. I told myself it was because Colin was holding me in an awkward position that I could not catch my breath. I tell myself a lot of things. I lie to myself a lot.

It was because Colin was holding me.

I had been trying to toy with Victor, and so I let Vanity, harebrained Vanity, talk me into one of her flirtatious schemes. I had hiked up my skirt and pulled down my blouse, thinking a little nectar would attract the bee I wanted. I had gotten a wasp instead. There was something dangerous and reckless about Colin that Victor did not have.

I do not believe a man can hold a girl, squirming and helpless, and not know the effect it has on her. I wanted him to do something. I wanted him to kiss me. But he just stood there, his grip getting tighter, his eyes like two blue embers glinting like the eyes of a devil.

I was blushing with furious embarrassment by this point. I told myself I was blushing with fury. Like I said, I tell myself a lot of things.

“Let go of me.” My voice came out in a husky whisper. That surprised me. He had only had his hands on me for a moment, no longer. I was in love with Victor. Wasn’t I?

“Why?” Little mocking sparks seemed to glitter in those blue devil-embers of his eyes.

“Because, from this position, I cannot kick you in the crotch, break your nose on my knee when you double up, and step on your neck when you fall over.”

Colin whispered in my ear, “Don’t make me jealous of Quentin. He’s my best friend.” I felt his lips brush my earlobe.

Victor and Vanity reappeared in the doorway at that moment, with Quentin looking downcast behind them.

Victor said, “What are you doing, Colin?”

There was a sharp snap in his voice I had never heard before. Jealousy…?

Victor’s eyes drank in the sight of me. I felt as if he were looking into my soul, reading my mind. He saw the rose blush to my skin. Unlike Colin, Victor knew what it meant. I could not hide the blush on my skin, the shortness of my breath, the dilation of my pupil, or the helpless quiver deep inside me. I could not even move my hands to cover my face because Colin was still holding me, helpless as some prize doe caught by a hunter, exposed to the penetrating gaze of Victor Triumph.