Read Online Mystics 3-Book Collection by Kim Richardson - Free Book Online Page A

away what
Tristan had meant about not wanting to get on her bad side. The
woman had the permanent scowl of a sergeant major.
    Tristan made his way over to an empty desk
at the back and sat down. Zoey followed his example and seated
herself at the desk next to him. She folded her hands in her lap
and waited. The classroom was as still as a tomb, the only sound
was her heart thumping rapidly in her ears.
    “Zoey St. John.” Agent Ward’s voice blasted
through the eerie silence like a bomb. “Please stand.”
    Reluctantly, Zoey pushed her chair back and
stood. She looked nervously at the old woman.
    “Please introduce yourself to the group—tell
us a little about yourself,” said Agent Ward in a commanding
voice.
    Zoey’s throat was dry, her heart started to
drum louder in her ears, and her arms felt unnatural hanging by her
sides, almost like they didn’t belong to her. Speaking before a
group of people wasn’t new to her, she had done this many times
before in front of new foster families. But this time was
different—she was facing a new environment. The speech that she had
practiced the night before wouldn’t work, so she decided to wing
it.
    She cleared her throat. “Hi, uh…my name is
Zoey St. John…uh…but I guess you already know that.”
    Giggles and snorts filled the room, but she
ignored them and continued. “I’m fourteen years old, and I’m from
Toronto. But I don’t know where I’m really from ‘cause…well,
I’m an orphan, see—I’ve never known my real family. Agent Barnes
found me yesterday and brought me here, because I’m a Seventh like
you—”
    “You’re not like us,” said a boy.
    He turned around in his seat, glowering at
her. He had perfectly groomed wavy black hair and piercing blue
eyes, like a husky’s. He wore expensive designer clothes, and Zoey
noticed a ruby ring in the shape of the letter O around his pinky.
His porcelain skin made him look more like a vampire than a
student.
    “We come from good families, ancient
families. We’re not from the streets like you , so don’t try
to compare us. You’re nothing like us, Drifter .” He nearly
spit as he said the last word.
    “That’s enough, Stuart King,” said Agent
Ward. “I will not tolerate rudeness in my class.”
    Stuart gave Zoey a menacing glare and then
turned around in his seat.
    It took all of Zoey’s inner strength to stay
where she was, because she wanted to leap over and punch him in the
face.
    Agent Ward eyed her darkly. “Let’s make one
thing clear, Zoey St. John. You are here as a result of
Management’s decision, not mine. I for one would have never permitted a Drifter to share my classroom, but again, it was
not my decision to make. Understand this. You will not get any special treatment from me. If you cannot keep up with
the rest of the class, you will fail, and you will be forced to
repeat the program next year—if there are enough students to start a new program. My job is to make agents out of this
group, and if I feel you are a distraction to the others, if your
presence affects their studies—I will fail you. I will keep
failing you until I feel you have proven yourself capable. Am I
clear?”
    Zoey didn’t answer right away. Her
nervousness was suddenly replaced by anger. “Perfectly clear.”
    “ Agent Ward.”
    Zoey lowered her eyes. “Perfectly
clear… Agent Ward.”
    Agent Ward raised an eyebrow. “Good. I look
forward to observing your special talents. I’ve heard so much about
you from Agent Barnes.”
    The students laughed, and she raised her
hand to silence them.
    “Now, each program starts in January, which
means you are six months behind this year’s group, Miss St. John,
so you’ll need to work very hard to catch up—if you can.”
    More students laughed. “We are studying the
rank two mystics. We have already covered all of the rank ones—you
will have to learn them on your own. Please sit and login to your
computer. Your username is your first and last