“Seven thirty on a Saturday?” Tory huffed. “No chance.”
“Come on, let's go before she realises we lied.” Diego turned left, swerving past Jupiter Hall and into Earth Territory.
We headed through The Wailing Wood, following a paved path all the way out to the edge of campus. A glint of light caught my eye between the trees and we followed Diego toward it into a clearing.
The parking lot rose up several levels inside a glass dome that reflected the tones of the colourful sunset. I caught glimpses of the gleaming cars peeking out beyond the glass walls and anticipation inched into me.
Diego gained entry to the building by tapping something on his Atlas and the glass door slid open.
Inside, the air smelled like new leather and car fumes. The lot circled up in a perfect spiral and we soon arrived in front of a massive black jeep with tinted windows.
“Woah is this your car?” I asked.
“Um no,” Diego said awkwardly, stepping past the huge vehicle and pointing.
We moved around the jeep and I bit down on my lip as I spotted the beat-up, rusted red hatchback before us. “Oh, well this is great too,” I said, trying to save face.
Well done, idiot.
“At least you don't have to worry about anyone stealing it.” Tory tried not to laugh and I poked her in the ribs, a giggle escaping me.
“It will get us from A to B.” Diego shrugged, but the crease on his forehead said how embarrassed he was.
“That's all we want,” I said brightly and Sofia nodded keenly, brushing his arm.
He muttered something inaudible as he dropped into the driver's seat and I took the passenger one beside him.
Sofia and Tory sat in the back and we waited as it took Diego a couple of painful tries to get the car going.
“If you want, I can take a look at your engine sometime?” Tory offered. “I’m not as great with cars as I am with bikes but-”
“It’s fine,” Diego said through his teeth and the engine roared as if his embarrassment had sparked life into it.
We circled out of the lot and headed onto the road that led off-campus. We curved around the edge of a jagged mountain, rising up high toward the twilight sky. I caught a glimpse of a huge iron door set into the side of it with the symbol of earth above it and my heart beat a little harder. Students were milling about outside the Terra House and some of them pointed at us, laughing as they noticed the car which was making a loud clunking noise.
I pressed my lips together in irritation. “At least we have a car,” I muttered, but that didn't seem to cheer Diego up.
The engine protested as he pressed his foot down and we started to gain speed, but not much. I rolled the window down, letting in the evening breeze as the sun said its final goodbye and dropped below the tree line in the distance.
We headed to the furthest regions of campus and finally reached an enormous steel gate, flanked by a fence which stretched off for miles in either direction. A guard nodded to us from a stone booth and the gates swung open as he flicked his hand.
We trundled onto the road and a weight lifted from my chest as we left Zodiac Academy behind.
A night of freedom called to me. And I wanted to make the most of it. No Heirs. In fact, no shitbags period.
We sped along a vast road that stretched on forever, cutting through a thick forest of pine trees which reached up high on either side of us. The moon was rising above them, the shimmering crescent a perfect jewel amongst a bed of stars.
The road soon dropped steeply down into a valley and nestled at the heart of it were the twinkling lights of a town.
“That's Tucana,” Sofia said, leaning forward to poke her head between the front seats. “I grew up juuuust over that hill.” She pointed to the far side of the valley.
“It's beautiful.” I smiled as we drew closer and closer to the town then drove through the bustling streets. People sat outside bars beneath the amber light of lampposts, drinking and eating.
I stared out at the ancient buildings with their weathered stone faces, utterly fascinated by the place. Cafes, bars, restaurants. It was nothing like Chicago. In fact, it reminded me of a holiday brochure I’d seen of Italy once. Everything was quaint, the main streets intersected by cobble alleyways and stone archways. The itch to explore overwhelmed me and I soaked in the buzzing atmosphere as the clamour of voices sailed through my open window.
We were clearly on the main street now and there were people everywhere enjoying the evening. I recognised a few students from Zodiac milling along the sidewalk, but the town was big enough that we'd probably be able to avoid them. The last thing I wanted was to bump into any one of our many enemies from the Academy.
“Pull over here,” Sofia instructed, pointing.
Diego parked outside a restaurant/bar on the corner of a street. The windowsills were painted red and a rainbow of flowers hung from several baskets around the doorway.
“The food here is great,” Sofia said, hopping out of the car.
We followed her onto the sidewalk and I gazed up at a worn sign above the door, naming it as Andromeda's Place.
We headed inside and a smiley waitress hurried over to seat us. The space was brimming with people and the lights were dim throughout. Low-hanging bulbs lit booths and tables and to one side was a long wooden bar with the Zodiac's symbols printed all over it in silver.
“Isn't that Professor Orion?” Sofia asked and my heart lurched upwards.
I located him in less than a nanosecond.
On the far side of the bar Orion was sitting knee to knee with a leggy brunette who looked like beauty on speed.
“Could be.” I shrugged, turning in the opposite direction as I forcibly ignored the strange reaction my body was having to seeing him here. And the raging pit of death in my chest definitely had nothing to do with the Victoria's Secret model sitting opposite him.
“This way,” the waitress said brightly and we followed her to a table with a perfect view of Orion. It was as if the damn waitress wanted me to stare at him all night. I was too slow to grab a seat facing away from him and couldn't voice my complaints to the others in case they questioned me on it.
I sank into the seat beside Diego and took a breath.
He's just a teacher, who cares if he's here?
You apparently.
I picked up my menu, determinedly eyeing the list of sodas on offer.
“Rum and coke,” Diego ordered from the hovering waitress and she nodded as if that was completely okay.
Didn't she realise we were freshmen?
“I'll have the same,” Sofia said brightly, a daring look in her eye. Sofia looked the youngest of us all. Even with the makeup we'd painted on her, she still barely passed for a day over sixteen.
“And for you girls?”
Tory gave me an excited look. “Tequila sunrise?” she asked, seeming to expect the waitress to refuse but she jotted it down without a word, looking to me.
A thrill hummed through me. Tory and I had had fake I.Ds back in Chicago, but even they had failed us occasionally. “Whiskey and coke?”
She smiled and walked away to the bar.
I glanced at the others. “How did we just get away with that?”
“Get away with what?” Sofia asked casually as she perused the food items on the menu.
“Err, the alcohol?” Tory supplied. “We're only eighteen.”