Horse Stone (Book 1 of Ilyrian Series)

Chapter 20

I glared at Liam when we made it to the history class and sat down with Gwen at my side. I watched as his lip curled into a smirk while he talked to some other people.

"Relax," Gwen said, poking my arm. She smiled innocently when I glared at her, her eyes filled with amusement. "He didn't make you late to class, and you didn't get caught in a lot of traffic."

I let out a breath and nodded my head, trying to relax. I had no idea why I was annoyed with him, but I was. I guess the reason was I have had a panic attack if I was late, and he was the cause of it.

"Hadley?" Gwen asked, her voice shaking with worry. She placed her hand on my shoulder and shook it, and I looked at her.

Her lips were pressed into a thin line, and her brows were furrowed. She studied me, probably trying to understand what I was feeling, what I was hiding.

I offered her a forced smile and shook my head, trying to get rid of my thoughts and back into the present. "I'm ok, Gwen," I said. "Just tired is all."

"Did you have another nightmare?" she asked, frowning. "Is that why you had such a freakout this morning?"

I hesitated but nodded my head. I did have another nightmare last night, and I knew that was probably why I had that "freakout."

Gwen frowned and furrowed her brows. She was about to speak when a person walked in and slammed the door shut, and everyone jumped and look at the front door.

A beautiful woman with long blonde hair stood in front of the classroom. Her ebony colored eyes roamed the classroom as she made sure that everyone was paying attention to her and nothing else.

She stood tall and regal, poised as if she were some queen from a far off place. Her broad shoulders were pushed back, and she gave off this air of importance and authority, and I instantly shrunk down in my seat.

This movement seemed to catch her attention because her gaze was instantly on me. Her dark brown eyes widened for a fraction before her gaze became stoic. She did not say a word as she glanced me up and down before turning her gaze to my sister.

Gwen sat taller in her seat and stared at the female up front. She oozed feign confidence as she stared at the female up front, but we both knew that she was petrified. She didn't like being in the center of attention.

The female cleared her throat and looked at some papers on her desk. "So," she finally said, her voice just as authoritative as the rest of her. "It looks like we have two new students in our class today."

My heart started to pound in my chest, and I placed my hands underneath my desk, clenching them. My whole body was tense, and I was dreading being called on to introduce myself. My breathing became labored as I tried to keep myself from panicking, wanting to hear what she had to say.

She picked up some of her papers and started to flick through them, trying to keep busy. "I would like them to introduce themselves and say something about who they are and what they like to do. But," she placed her papers down and studied us, shaking her head, "none of you are going to care, and you are probably just going to ask anyway. So, I am not going to make them do it."

I let out a small breath of air that I didn't know I was holding onto and felt my body relax. I was safe, for now.

"Anyway, my name is Belicia Carten, and I will be your teacher for this class," she said, looking at us. "Which one of you is Hadley McCormick, and which one of you is Gwenevere McCormick?" she asked after she looked at the names on her file.

"I am Gwenevere, but I go by Gwen," Gwen said. She pointed at me, and I raised my hand hesitantly. "That is Hadley. No, we are not twins, but we are sisters."

"Hmm," Ms. Carten said, nodding her head. "It's nice to meet you both. If you need help studying, ask one of your classmates. I am sure," she glanced around, and her eyes landed on someone that had been staring at me, "that they wouldn't mind helping. Isn't that right, Mr. Treat?"

"Uh, yes, yes, of course," Liam said. "I will be more than happy to help."

Ms. Carten nodded her head. "Good," she said. She turned to the board and started to write some stuff on it. "Then let us turn to page 252, and we shall begin."