The writer in me wanted to know more, as did the woman. I managed to pay attention through the rest of class but it was hard when all I wanted to do was ask Dr. Sherman if she was a Sister and where I could sign up.
“That’s it for today, folks,” Dr. Sherman announced ten minutes before the end of the hour. “Your readings are uploaded to the group doc already. Make sure you’re checking it daily.”
I held back while students shuffled out, chatting with friends or rushing off to get a moment of solitary peace. When the room was empty, I strode up to the desk where Dr. Sherman was tucking papers into her bag. She looked up in surprise when I cleared my throat. “Oh, Ms. Jensen. Is there something I can do for you?”
I chewed my bottom lip for a moment, hoping I wouldn’t come off sounding like an idiot, then just went for it. “I was actually wondering about The Sisterhood and if there’s a chapter here at Alpha Wolf Academy.”
As always, Dr. Sherman’s face showed every emotion she had. Her eyes sparkled with interest as she sized me up for what seemed like too long, then shrugged delicate shoulders and shook her head. “I really couldn’t say, Ms. Jensen. If there is, it’s certainly well hidden.” She nodded once as if dismissing me and turned to gather more papers.
I left class disappointed. Despite not being the obvious choice, she was my favorite professor, and I’d really hoped her enthusiasm about The Sisterhood was due to the fact that she was a member. I pulled my book bag tighter over my shoulder and made my way across campus, thankfully without seeing a single member of the bitch squad. I breathed a sigh of relief as I pulled open the door to my room and stepped into the blissful silence of privacy.
I was in the mood to stare at the ceiling while music played too loud into my earbuds, at least for the next hour until I had to get ready for chemistry class. I tossed my bag at the foot of my bed and pulled off my shoes, wishing I could get away with wearing Converse sneakers with my uniform like Rory but lamenting that I wasn’t cool enough to pull it off.
Clothes came next, tossed, this time, on a chair so they wouldn’t wrinkle and cause me the grief of having to iron them. I was pretty sure none of the other students here ironed their own clothes but I was also sure their mommies and daddies were rolling in coin, so…
It wasn’t until I was standing in my bra and panties that I noticed the rose. I frowned and glanced toward my closet, instantly on alert. Just like my first day here, someone had been in my room without my permission, and this time they’d left something other than a uniform.
I picked up the nearest heavy object, a vanilla bean candle I’d bought in Montreal, and approached the closet, sure I’d find a creeper in there. When it stood empty of all but my clothes, I relaxed incrementally. There was still the bathroom to check.
My heart thudded in my chest as I yanked back the shower curtain, candle raised, and shouted loudly to throw off my attacker. The tile mocked me.
I eyed the rose as I reentered my room, still holding the candle. There was a silver ribbon tied around it as if it were a gift, but breaking and entering wasn’t a fun pastime in my opinion. Unless…
I flew to the bed and picked up the rose, which was, thankfully, dethorned. Threaded through the ribbon was a little slip of paper that I was now sure would bare Bash’s name. I frowned at the decidedly feminine cursive writing and wondered what the hell it meant.
Sisters in arms, 9:00 p.m. tonight.
Chapter 9
I read over the message again, despite the fact that I’d already committed it to memory.
Sisters in arms, 9:00 p.m. tonight.
Sisters in arms. I chewed my lip and tried to bite back the flare of excitement in my stomach. It had to be from The Sisterhood. I’d read about invitations for initiations before and watched way too many secret society movies, so I knew that a rose with a cryptic hint was par for the norm. Or, at least, I hoped it was.
The possibility that it was from Bash had disappeared the moment I’d read the message, although the thought had crossed my mind that this was another of Daniella and the bitch squad’s nefarious plots to get back at me. But none of the squad were in my history class, so why would they even know about my interest in The Sisterhood? It wasn’t as if I’d made it obvious.
It had to be real, which meant I had only a few hours to figure out the clue.
Sisters in arms had to refer to The Sisterhood but it didn’t tell me where to go. The time was obvious, I thought, although…
I let out a groan. 9:00 p.m. was just after sunset. There was no way I’d be able to meet Bash at the wolf gate and attend the meeting, if there actually were a meeting. It was an impossible decision, I wanted to do both with every ounce of my being.
But I could meet Bash tomorrow and there would only be one invitation. I picked up my phone and typed out a message.
I can’t make it tonight. Can you meet me in the solarium after lunch tomorrow?
I held my breath as three little dots appeared almost instantly.
See you then. ;)
My breath whooshed out in relief. The words alone were ambiguous, although, to my knowledge, guys tended to say exactly what they thought. The winky face, though, lifted my lips in a smile.
My next urge was to text Rory and tell her about the rose but I hesitated. Weren’t these secret society invitations usually… secret? What if bringing in another person disqualified me from membership?
I put the phone down and decided if it were actually a Sisterhood meeting that I’d ask whoever was in charge if Rory could get an invitation to the next initiation. She was, after all, a strong, smart, female. What more could The Sisterhood ask for in a member?
A glance at the clock on my wall reminded me that I had another class to attend before I could give this mystery more thought. I still had a while before I had to get dressed but my desire to check out and listen to music was now gone. I grabbed an oversized t-shirt and pulled it on then sat at my desk. Maybe there was something about Alpha Wolf Academy and The Sisterhood online.
I searched the underground wolf net for ten minutes, trying every combination of search words I could think of but nothing gave me what I was looking for. I found articles about Sylvie LaFlamme and her role in establishing AWA and lots of articles about The Sisterhood. I scrolled through the links and skimmed more than a dozen but found nothing that linked the two subjects.
I made it to class with only a minute to spare and took my place on the stool next to my lab partner Louis.
“Hey,” he glanced up with his usual crooked smile that always made him look half stoned. If I didn’t know that wolves’ exceptionally high metabolism made intoxication almost impossible, I’d think that he was a stoner.
“Hey Louis,” I set my books down and glanced at the board. We were studying atomic structure and the prof had apparently gotten there early enough to fill the board with formulas and notes. I sighed, took out my notebook, and started writing in case she decided to erase the board and add more. Dr. Sweets was anything but sweet.
We worked together in silence for most of the class while my mind wandered back to the invitation. If the wolf net didn’t have what I needed, maybe the library would. I was so deep in thought, I barely heard Louis talking until he nudged my arm.
“Sorry,” I apologized. “What were you saying?”