for everyone.”
The other teachers stood and moved to the bottom of the steps, covering all the sections and herding the students toward the doors that Gina and Chris had already walked through.
Mack and Jetta stood up, shared a glance, then both looked our way. “So, he was sitting behind us for how long?” Mack asked. There was no question who he was speaking about.
“Not sure, maybe the whole time. He has lots of… skills,” I said.
“You know him, don’t you?” Jetta asked.
“Yes, and it appears so do you,” Caeco replied.
“True. He intervened and saved our lives just before he got shot. But that’s a long story,” Mack said, following his sister toward the stairway. “How about you?”
I looked at Caeco and read agreement in her eyes. “You know that whole thing with the missile silo in New Hampshire?” I asked. They both nodded. “We were there. With his goddaughter. But it’s a bit of a story too,” I said.
“Wow, understatement much? Maybe later we can trade stories,” Jetta offered. I nodded, then looked toward the end of the row where our stairway was. The vampire girl was still sitting and making no bones about staring at us curiously. I gave her a nod, but she just tilted her head slightly, then looked down at her phone and started texting or something. Odd or snobby or maybe just normal by vampire standards. I was mildly curious, but my brief interactions with the vampires of Tanya’s group had taught me serious respect for the species’ abilities. Keeping our distance would be a really, really good idea.
She was still sitting there when we filed out the door and into the hall. Sitting and texting. Wasn’t she coming to dinner? Oh wait, if she did, then who would be her dinner?
Chapter 3
The dining room shared the brick-wall-and-open-overhead-décor style of the classroom, but the concrete floor was colored to look like granite. That made it seem a bit dressier, as did the various pieces of art hung on the walls. The air smelled of delicious foods and my stomach rumbled in anticipation.
Eight round tables were spaced about the room, draped with white tablecloths and each set for eight places. Three long buffet tables were set with stainless steel chafing dishes lined up, each with a card identifying its contents. At the end of two of the tables were carving stations; one chef cutting roast beef, the other slicing a turkey and a ham. Chris was already at the roast beef station, two overloaded plates in his hands, chatting with the chef. There were a few other smaller tables with other things on the sides of the dining room.
We were among the last to arrive but there was obviously lots of food. One buffet table was nothing but salad and cooked vegetables. Jetta headed to the line of girls already there, while Mack, Caeco, and I gravitated to the table with the turkey and ham.
Gina had been right. There was something for everyone. There was even a taco table set up with all the fixings and another table of nothing but desserts. I loaded a plate with mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn before accepting a big slice each of turkey and ham. Caeco had already secured a table and I headed her way.
A few moments later, Mack showed up, followed by his sister, who had a really serious salad mounded onto her plate. We still had four places open but nobody else sat down. That is until Chris came over, leading the two girls who’d been sitting behind the witches.
“Declan, Caeco, meet Ariel and her roommate, Ashley. And this is Jetta and her brother, Mack,” he said, smiling.
My radar was up. First the look and the nod in the classroom and now a direct introduction. He had an agenda.
“Ariel is precognitive and Ashley has a very special form of telepathy. Mack and Jetta are extremely capable hunters. And Declan and Caeco are the reason my goddaughter is still alive. The six of you should get to know one another,”
he said, giving me a clap on the back. “And Declan, can I see you after dinner? There’s a certain something I’d like you to take a look at for me,” he said.
“Ah, sure Chris. Where will I find you?” I asked, already having a pretty good idea what he wanted me to look at.
“Gina’s apartment is at the other end of this floor. Just knock on the door marked Director.”
He smiled and nodded at everyone, then proceeded