Demon Child Read Online Free Page B

he’s all right.’
    I picked up the receiver on my desk phone and called Leo’s mobile. It rang through to voicemail and beeped for me to leave a message.
    ‘Fine job chickening out on expelling these students,’ I said. ‘Do you really expect me to do it? Maybe instead of throwing them out for you, I should tell them to come back and see you later.’ I hung up. ‘Stone.’
    ‘Ma’am?’ the stone said.
    ‘You’re never asleep when there’s something juicy happening.’
    ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’
    ‘Where’s Lord Xuan?’
    Otis cringed at the mention of John’s name. ‘I really don’t want to waste the Dark Lord’s time on this, ma’am.’
    ‘Lord Xuan is in the Northern Heavens,’ the stone said.
    ‘Where exactly in the Northern Heavens? Holding court or in the Residence?’
    ‘Hall of Serene Meditation.’
    That meant I shouldn’t disturb him. I rose and walked around the desk. ‘Come on, Otis, let’s do this most unpleasant job ourselves.’
    He followed me out of my office and across the courtyard in the centre of the administration buildings. I passed John’s office and waved to Zara through the open door, then walked along a covered breezeway with a carved stone handrail that ran along the edge of the cliff. There was a bottomless drop on the left, disappearing into the clouds below.
    Leo’s office was in the student residential section: a small standalone house next to the long barracks buildings. The students to be expelled had overflowed out of his waiting room and into the wide paved walkway leading to the barracks. The air was full of the savoury aroma of the evening meal cooking in the mess, tainted by the sour smell of the students’ anxiety. They had a good idea why they were there, and my heart went out to them. They’d be expelled and their memories wiped, and they’d never remember the joy they’d experienced here.
    ‘Do you have the student lists inside?’ I asked Otis as we approached.
    ‘Yes, ma’am,’ he said.
    I sighed with relief when we entered the reception area and saw Meredith standing in front of Otis’s desk. She would handle it better than I could.
    ‘Otis, when I tell you, send them into the office in alphabetical order,’ Meredith said. She gestured for me to follow her into Leo’s office and closed the door behind me. ‘He’s not answering direct calls. Neither is Ming Gui.’
    ‘You’re kidding ,’ I said. ‘They’re off together again ?’
    ‘I’m here! I’m here!’ Leo shouted outside, his deep voice resonating. He charged into the office and raised his hands. ‘Sorry, sorry, I was caught up. Leave this to me, I have it.’
    ‘Where were you?’ I said.
    He grinned broadly. ‘Oh, just busy.’
    Meredith and I shared a look, then both turned to glare at him.
    Before I could open my mouth, he fell into the chair behind his desk, making it creak, and opened one of the student record folders. ‘I know, I know, my fault, won’t happen again.’ He waved us away. ‘Just go and leave me to it.’ He looked up at me. ‘Go and rest, Emma, you look terrible.’ His grin turned mischievous. ‘Don’t you have an energy class to teach, Meredith?’
    I crossed my arms in front of my chest. ‘We will discuss this later.’
    ‘Of course we will, and I’ll be all guilty and stuff, but right now I have twenty students I need to counsel and you’re holding me up.’
    ‘Come on, Emma, let’s leave him to it,’ Meredith said. ‘Doing this job is probably punishment enough.’ She crossed her arms as well. ‘But next time, don’t make the poor kids wait like this. They’ve been standing here working themselves into a frenzy of anxiety, and you’re about to make their worst fears come true.’
    ‘I know,’ he said, sobering. He brightened again. ‘See you at dinner after this?’
    ‘I think I may be at the Northern Heavens in Serene Meditation,’ I said with quiet dignity, and followed Meredith out.
    Meredith