Odin's Murder

And her face afterward. Disgusted. And maybe even scared. The way she’d run back to her college boy, who couldn’t even get a girl his own age, so he hit on students. In five years, he’d be sexually harassing his secretary over a photocopy machine.

“Mr. Tyrell, how are you this morning?” Mr. Anders walks next to me, his grungy sneakers keeping pace with mine. He’d be about my height, too, if he didn’t slouch.

“Alright,” I say, hoping I don’t wince as I say it.

“I know you were concerned about your co-op—are things working out?”

“It’s okay.”

He glances at me. “Just okay?”

“It’s fine. The group is fine. The other kids are fine.” I don’t know what he wants me to say and I’m getting pissed. “We’re missing a girl.”

“Ah, Sophia Williams.”

“I thought her name was Sonja.”

“Same thing. Same meaning, in Greek.” His beard twitches as his lips purse tight with annoyance. Laid-back or not, he doesn’t like being corrected. I say nothing.

“It’s important that you connect with your peers. It will help with your anger management issues.” He steps in front of me, stops. “Yes. I’m privy to your file and aware of your current circumstances. Dean Burnett did you a great favor by allowing you into the program.”

I swallow a surge of anger. His words are mild enough, but his tone sets me on edge. I manage an “I know,” before he gestures for me to go ahead of him.

“One aspect of being in this program is getting to know your collaborators and making an effort beyond the class work.” He’s trying to bait me somehow, pushing for the last word. This conversation isn’t about me playing well with others; it’s about me getting along with him.

I nod, clear my throat. “I’m making an effort, sir, believe me. It’s not an issue. Ask my team. I’m behaving. No fights, no arguments.”

A wide smile appears under his scruffy half-beard. “Excellent. You have an incredible vision, Mr. Tyrell. I’m very interested in how you use it.”

I keep my mouth shut. He looks me up and down, and I know that look, a gang boss assessing a new inmate for his worth. I take a swig of my soda, watching him watch me.

“You’ve got some steel in your spine, young man. Six credit hours of my class would take you far, should you ever want to look into an internship in conflict-zone photojournalism.”

My head throbs as I try to make sense of what he’s saying. He nods once, and walks off.

“What was that about?” Julian asks, coming up behind me, donut in his hand. His cheek bulges as he chews.

“I have no idea, just asking about the project, I guess. He’s really weird.” And kind of a bastard, I don’t say, because I’m more pleased with his praise than I want to admit. Me, some kind of war correspondent. Mary would get a kick out of that.

“Yeah, but a he’s genius,” Julian says. “I’ve read his research papers. His dissertation on the antagonist’s point of view in folklore is fascinating.” He sighs at my mock yawn. “He may have personality quirks, but his name carries a lot of weight in academic circles. And his courses are impressive on a transcript.”

“Personality quirks? Try one turd short of bat-shit.” I should have taken all his marbles. And let the bird out.

“Come on, Memory says she has something to share with the group. She sounded pretty excited.”

“Fantastic,” I groan. He gives me a look. “Sorry, I just have a headache. I’m sure whatever she has to tell us will be enlightening.”

“You two are going to have to get along.”

“That’s what Anders was just telling me.”

“He’s right. I need you two working together, not screwing up because of personal issues.”

“There’s nothing personal going on between us, trust me,” I say, almost believing my own lie. “I’m hanging out with Danielle. And your sister’s attached at the hips to her college boy-toy.”

He flashes a glare at me, and then mutters, “She always wants what turns out to be the most trouble.”

I snort. She’d wanted that kiss last night. She’d been reaching for me, eyes sliding over my face, fingers moving toward me. There was no curbing that, and her want had me responding with automatic focus, zooming in on her mouth, still red from kissing another guy.