Ms. Terwilliger had recently revealed herself to be a magic user, a witch of sorts or whatever those people referred to themselves as. Alchemists had heard rumors of them, but it was nothing we had a lot of experience with or facts about. To our knowledge, only Moroi wielded magic. We utilized it in our lily tattoos—which had trace amounts of vampire blood—but the thought of humans producing it in the same way was crazy and twisted.

That was why it was such a surprise when Ms. Terwilliger not only revealed herself to me last month but also ended up kind of tricking me into wielding a spell. It had left me shocked and even feeling dirty. Magic was not for humans to use. We had no right to manipulate the world like that; it was a hundred times worse than what Sonya had done to the red lily on the street. Ms. Terwilliger insisted I had a natural affinity for magic and had offered to train me. Why she wanted this, exactly, I wasn’t sure. She’d gone on and on about the potential I had, but I could hardly believe she’d want to train me without a reason of her own. I hadn’t figured out what that might be, but it didn’t matter. I’d refused her offer. So, she’d found a work-around.

“Miss Melbourne, how much longer do you think you’ll be on the Kimball book?” she called from her desk. Trey had picked up “Melbourne” from her, but unlike him, she seemed to constantly forget that wasn’t my actual name. She was in her forties, with mousy brown hair and a perpetually cunning glint in her eyes.

I looked up from my work, forcing politeness. “Two more days. Three at most.”

“Make sure to translate all three of the sleep of spells,” she said. “Each has its own nuances.”

“There are four sleep spells in this book,” I corrected.

“Are there?” she asked innocently. “I’m glad to see they’re making an impression.”

I hid a scowl. Having me copy and translate spell books for research was how she taught me. I couldn’t help but learn the texts as I read them. I hated that I’d been ensnared, but it was too late in the school year to transfer out. Besides, I could hardly complain to the administration that I was being forced to learn magic.

So, I dutifully copied her spell books and spoke as little as possible during our time together. Meanwhile, I simmered with resentment. She was well aware of my discomfort but made no attempts to alleviate the tension, leaving us in a stalemate. Only one thing brightened those sessions.

“Look at that. It’s been nearly two hours since my last cappuccino. It’s a wonder I can function. Would you be kind enough to run to Spencer’s? That should finish us out for the day.” The last bell had rung fifteen minutes ago, but I’d been putting in some overtime.

I was already closing the spell book before she finished speaking. When I’d begun as her assistant, I’d resented the constant errands. Now, I looked forward to the escape. Not to mention my own caffeine fix.