Flight of Life (Essence Series #1) by E. L. Todd

excitedly.
    Joe laughed. “Yes. I look forward to
working with you.”
    Calloway shook his hand. “Thank you so
much,” he said. “You won’t regret it.”
    “ I have a feeling,” Joe
said. “I’ll see you this weekend.”
    “ Thank you,” Calloway said
as he walked out of the office and back to the front of the store.
He turned to the guy he spoke to earlier. “Thank you for directing
me,” he said politely. The man nodded as Calloway left.
    Calloway shoved the t-shirts into his
backpack then jumped on his bike, riding back to the school where
Easton and Breccan were waiting for him in the library. He pedaled
his way back to the high school and arrived five minutes later.
Calloway was relieved he found a job to help out his family. His
Aunt Grace didn’t deserve to pay for his poor choices. Besides, he
needed the money for college applications and to reimburse Mr. Avey
for paying for his SAT.
    When he got back to campus, Easton and
Breccan were sitting in the library. The librarian immediately
glared at Calloway as soon as he walked inside, but he ignored her
and walked to the table where his friends were sitting. Breccan was
finishing a math assignment and Easton was flipping through the
Kirin Book with a confused expression on her face.
    “ Hey,” he said when he sat
down. “Are you ready to go?”
    Breccan looked over his shoulder and
glanced at the librarian, who was flashing them all a look of pure
hatred. The library was closing soon and she wanted them out.
“Yes,” he said quickly. “Let’s get out of here before that witch
curses us.”
    “ Don’t be mean,” Easton
said as she shoved the book into her bag. She glanced at the
librarian and her eyes widened. “Yes, we should get out of here.
Her eyes are raging in a fire.”
    Calloway laughed and helped Easton put
her stuff away. Breccan shouldered his backpack and waited for
Easton to get up. Her stuffed backpack was full of textbooks and
notebooks, along with a few fantasy novels. Calloway was surprised
she carried the weight around all day. He shouldered her backpack
and turned away from the table.
    “ What are you doing?”
Easton asked, her hands on her hips.
    Calloway looked at her.
“Leaving.”
    “ Why are you
carrying my backpack?”
    Calloway shrugged. “It’s weighs more
than you do,” he said. “I was just trying to help.”
    Breccan rolled his eyes. “He’s not into
you,” he said to Easton. “That’s just how Calloway is.”
    They all walked to the front door, and
the librarian immediately locked the door behind them like they
were criminals on the street. Calloway still carried his backpack
along with Easton’s and they walked to her car in
silence.
    “ Thank you,” she said to
Calloway. “I’m sorry I snapped at you.”
    Calloway smiled at her. “It’s okay,” he
said. “I know you aren’t used to people being nice to you or
treating you with the respect you deserve.” He placed the backpacks
in the trunk of the car.
    Easton’s eyes softened at his words but
she didn’t say anything. She unlocked the doors and they got in the
car. Then she drove out of the parking lot toward the Grandiose
Historian Library on the other side of town.
    “ Do you think anyone will
be there?” Breccan asked from the front seat.
    “ A human or a Hara-Kir?”
Calloway asked.
    “ Either,” he
said.
    “ The place is completely
deserted,” Calloway said. “The grass hasn’t been moved in years and
the bushes haven’t been trimmed—it’s abandoned. The only
inhabitants on that property are the statues.”
    “ Well, I hope we don’t run
into a Hara-Kir,” Breccan said. “At least not on our first
day.”
    “ It’s going to happen
eventually,” Easton said as she parked next to the building. “You
may as well accept it. If you’re scared, just remember you aren’t
alone.”
    “ I’m not scared,” Breccan
said quickly.
    “ Well, I am,” Calloway
admitted.
    “ Me too,” Easton
said.
    Breccan shifted his