“No! But maybe I can get some intel on these new developments,” I said.
They all made expressions that said they didn’t believe me.
“Waylon never sends me leaf messages,” I heard Coral say as I made to leave the room.
“He doesn’t have a tree affinity,” Yasmin said. “What do you expect?”
“He could come up withsomething. Those two aren’t even dating, and he shows more interest th…”
It was the last I heard before I closed the door softly behind me and headed for the forest.
Chapter Seventeen
When I climbed into the treehouse, Callan was already there, leaves rustling through his fingers like a game of cat’s cradle as he leaned against the inside hollow of the tree.
“You called?” I asked, finding a stool and planting myself on it firmly.
“Thanks, I wanted to see you after…”
I studied him. His posture was relaxed, but there was that underlying tension that I so often noticed. He was good at hiding it, but once you knew him, you could spot it. The way I had learned to notice it was because of the times ithadn’tbeen there. Times when we’d been having fun.
“Yeah, what was that back there?” I tried to keep my voice gentle rather than accusatory.
Callan let out a breath. “It’s better if my mom doesn’t know how close… friends we are.”
My stomach flipped. What had that little pause meant?
“Bad news. I think she already does. When I met Kale Brightmoor at the autumn equinox, he made it sound like it was common knowledge that I wasfriendlywith the trees.”
His jaw ticked. “Did he?”
“I tried to brush it off and explain I’m friends with a lot of students of different affinities, but I don’t know if he bought it.”
“I was worried about this. I wonder if someone saw me escorting you out on midsummer.”
“So do we just act like we’re strangers when anyone from the board is around?” I asked, thinking that seemed like a simple-enough idea.
Callan sighed and shook his head then ran a hand through his hair. “I’m afraid there’s a little more to it than that. The board has extra eyes and ears at the school this year.”
“What do you mean? Will your mom be sticking around?”
“Not human eyes and ears.”
When I must have looked terribly confused, Callan explained. “I doubt they have permission from Professor East, but I’ve sensed scouting plants since returning to campus. I don’t know who is keeping an eye on who, but it’s safest to assume we’re being reported on.”
“Scouting plants?” That particular bit of botanical magic was new to me.
“They’re unsanctioned without approval. But, again, I think we’re beyond that now. We just have to be… cautious. I want you to fly under the radar as much as possible through all this.”
“Okay. And speaking of all this… how are you feeling about the whole senator thing?” I said the last part softly, leaving an opening for him to share how he felt.
Callan released the leaves he was flipping through his fingers, and they flew out of the tree on a silent breeze. “Please don’t tell anyone about that. If I have anything to do with it, it will never happen. But for now, I have to go along with it…” His voice trailed off, and he sighed.
“But why? I mean, you’re an adult. You can choose your path, right? Professor East wouldn’t force you into a field studies assignment youdidn’t want.”
Callan sighed and scrubbed a hand through his hair. “I’m afraid the decision has already been made.” He glanced out the hole that formed a window in the treehouse.
“I see,” I said, though I didn’t see at all. I had to cool my temper on his behalf and not judge his reactions. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have such an adversarial relationship with your family. My aunt was my greatest cheerleader in the world. She would never try to control me like Callan’s parents did him.
