“A threat?” Souxie asked as he showed her his phone to read the email.
“A baseless one at that,” he retorted as he started to eat again. “I am only attending this idiotic school for one reason. I don’t necessarily need this so, whatever this is? I want in. What do you know so far about the missing women?”
Souxie looked at me as I shrugged.
“He could be useful,” I silently mouthed.
“The witch who was attacked by–––”
“Xavier,” he replied. I froze as Souxie’s mouth fell open. “Did you not gather that from what the dean said? A student who she’s had a problem with before? Xavier was attacked. One of the men I deal with told me he heard he was attacked outside of the school, drained of his blood and everything. My guess is he’s going to use this to his advantage and with your friend gone…and out the way? It leaves room for someone to step in her place.”
“What place?” I asked. “She never had a place. Maggie is our friend.”
Harvey leaned forward as his eyes blacked out and remained fixated on me.
“Have you not been watching the news? The fall of Dr. Marvin T. Holmes is being televised. It’s all the media can talk about, breaking apart this man’s life and wrong doings. There is no other First Family that is stepping up or coming to his defense. There is no one except for her. She is the last one remaining. Whether that’s true or not, it doesn’t matter. If she’s truly gone…she’s left it wide open for others to step in. My guess is this is just the start. My suggestion…you all should not be sitting so close to one another every time.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because you all will become targets next. Whatever you do, move in silence from now on.”
“You sitting next to me makes you a target, Harvey,” Souxie said softly while touching his ear. “Is this not dangerous as well?”
His eyes blacked out completely as if he had empty eye sockets and turned to look at her. Souxie grinned as she playfully leaned back but you could see her eyes darken briefly, fluttering like she struggled to keep the lights on.
“Who is going to step to me at this school?” He asked, voice deep, bordering on demonic when he spoke. There were layers to his tone where you could hear the threat until he cracked his neck as his eyes blinked back to natural dark brown.
“It is only a mere suggestion,” he said with a scrunch of his nose as he pushed his glasses up. Souxie stared at him, clearly turned on before gently patting his thigh, and exhaled name with a sigh.
“Oh Harvey…Harvey…Harvey…”
Chapter Ten
Dr. Joy Felicia Vaughn
“Tell us about yourself Dr. Vaughn and explain why you’d be a fit for the head of academic affairs and student relations.”
I sat up with my ankles crossed over one another as my hands laid perfectly in my lap. My posture was straight, and my chin raised in the air as I smiled.
“Well my name is Joy because when I was born to a litter of seven, my father said I brought joy and tears to his eyes being the youngest of my siblings. He knew I would do great things,” I stated as I looked around the cold office. The images and paintings of the First Family were all over the place, leaving its mark on the history of the school. “I come from a family of familiars from the deep south, and we have a long history of serving some of the witches and warlocks when needed or asked. My father worked on different farms, and my mother would clean the houses and apothecary shops of witches. I’d sit there after school with my books while she assisted with spells, cleaning, and eventually that became my first job.”
I smiled at the memory.
“I am the first to attend college and seek a doctorate degree here at Thee Drew Collins University. After years of serving the academic community, I see there is a new for reform and a neutral head. The Underground is heading in a direction wehave never seen before. The First Family has always been the leader, the solution, and the fix. As a new generation comes up, the face of the mythic community is changing. After the incident at the white church, the idea that Drew Collins is still being led by the prestigious Dr. Holmes makes people uneasy.”
I stared at the paintings of Dr. Holmes and his siblings, admiring the family portrait that looked centuries old. Gaia stood above all with her white hair spread out like vines and her arms out over her apparent family. There was no one else in the room during this interview. Just me sitting in the chair with my bag by my feet and four decorated walls.
“I believe the longer Drew Collins relies on the First Family, the more it will lose its credibility. Dr. Holmes with all due respect is no longer a trusted leader in this community. Although my family is not as elite as his. We do not come from wealthy backgrounds but humble beginnings with Sunday gatherings, second hand clothes, and stories of how witches create magic for bedtime stories. Everything I am today, is because of where I come from.”
It became silent as I briefly closed my eyes before smiling. This is what confidence looks like. It’s not overly loud or possessive, not too cocky…but informed and intelligent.
I took a sip of my coffee as I stared at the family photo on my desk. Eyes just barely peeking over the rim, I smiled against the mug before inhaling the aroma. My mother stood in her Sunday best attempting to hide her cat’s tail while my father stood proudly by her side with the head, the ears, and face of a fierce black feline. A hard-working man who sacrificed a lot to get me to where I am today.
I glanced at my coffee maker, seeing the enchanted machine move on its own as I watched the creamer be poured. I learned a few different spells in my day, so I was able to spice up my office. The sudden sound of the intercom on my desk went off as I listened.
“Dr. Vaughn, Xavier Martin is here to see you for his appointment?”
“Send him up.”
