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“No, thank you. We should head back to campus,” Mr. Dawson said.
Dad pulled me into his arms. “I don’t care what he says, if something isn’t right there, you come home. There are other options.” His lips were set in a firm line when he pulled away from me.
“I’m going to be fine, Dad.” I hoped I wasn’t lying.
“Forgive me?” Mom said.
“Totally.”
She came down and wrapped her arms around me. “Call if you need me.” She pulled away. “And call your brother. He’s freaking out.”
“I bet he’s having an awesome time in Austin and isn’t thinking about me at all.”
Mom grinned. “You’d be mistaken, kiddo.”
We walked around the side of the house to the black Escalade parked in the drive. Dastien pulled a pair of flip-flops from his back pocket. “Missing something?”
“Apparently.”
“They were like a trail to you. One not far from here, one at your front door.”
I yanked them from his grasp. “Thanks.” I slid them on and got in the car.
Dastien held my hand in the backseat as Mr. Dawson drove us to St. Ailbe’s. I watched the trees fly past.
All too soon, we pulled through the gates, and into the small parking lot next to the main building. Dr. Gonzales ran up to the car.
“We have a problem,” she said as we got out.
I barely heard the rumble Mr. Dawson gave before it stopped. “What now?”
“It’s Imogene,” Dr. Gonzales said.
Oh shit. “Is she okay?” I asked. “I mean, is she still—”
Dr. Gonzales held up a hand. “She’s fine, although she might not be for long. Rupert Hoel is here—”
Mr. Dawson’s door slammed so hard that for a second I thought the SUV might flip over.
“Why is he here this time?” His voice was too calm and soft.
“He believes you’ve lost control of the student body. That our prize student has gone Feral and turned a local. That the mutt is uncontrollable and almost killed his daughter. He believes this situation is very serious, and needs to be tended to. He demands that the two of them be held before a full tribunal.”
What the hell did a “full tribunal” mean?
Mr. Dawson’s fists were in tight balls as he looked off into the woods, at seemingly nothing in particular. At least I thought it was nothing until four people stepped out from beyond the thick. Four men wearing all black with no shoes. They flowed as one.
Cazadores. And I sure as hell didn’t like the way they were watching me. Their eyes pinned me in place as they navigated around the last of the forest.
The tallest one stepped forward. “You’ll have to come with us.”
He couldn’t mean me?
Chapter Thirty-Five
Mr. Dawson stepped in front of me, blocking the leader’s path. “She won’t be going anywhere.”
“What would you have me do, Michael?” he said. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t place where I’d seen him before.
