Free The Revenant by Sonia Gensler Page B

sometime?”
    Mae shrugged and the rest looked blank, but no one frowned or shook her head.
    “Good night, then,” I said quietly, and turned to leave them.
    The older girls were returning to their rooms as I made my way back down to the second floor. They kept their backs to me, so wrapped up in sighs and laughter they did not think to look behind them. I waited until they’d closed their doors before stepping into the corridor toward my own.
    Once in my room, I went to the window. The boys had gone and all was dark outside. I drew the curtains again and quickly settled into bed. But I kept my lamp lit long into the night, almost wishing to hear the tap at my window so I would be forced to think of anything other than Eli Sevenstar.

Chapter 7
    F OR S ATURDAY’S TRIP TO TOWN , I was not assigned to the Bells as chaperone. Instead, I walked with a group of freshmen excited to be making their first outing of the term. These girls were not daughters of wealthy merchants like Fannie or Lelia. They were full-bloods from the country who’d come to the seminary through the charity of the Cherokee Nation. Like Mae and her friends, they’d started their schooling later than the town girls, and thus had been grouped with the more traditional primaries. For two years they’d watched from the third-floor windows as other girls their age made the trip to town. Now that they were freshmen—at the ripe old age of sixteen—they finally were allowed to make the Saturday pilgrimage themselves.
    The day was warm, but a mild breeze cooled our faces without lifting the dust from the streets. Walking with these girls put me at ease. They were close to my age, after all, and seemed anything but pretentious in their simple dresses and bonnets. Their good humor arose from companionship and a sense of adventure. I looked forward to the trip, relieved that the day would not be spent following self-absorbed young ladies. Even more so, I looked forward to an outing free of insults and condescension.
    Or so I thought.
    On our way to Foster’s store, we saw the Bells and Eli Sevenstar. I averted my gaze, certain that even from that distance Eli could hear my blood pounding. The freshmen whispered their excitement, and I could scarcely blame them. Girls’ schools were much like nunneries, after all. What could be more exciting than to break free and gaze upon handsome young men such as Larkin Bell and Eli Sevenstar?
    “Larkin Bell is my distant cousin,” said one girl. “Perhaps we should wish him good day?”
    Her friend smiled broadly. “I think that would only be polite.”
    But when Larkin noticed our approach, his lip curled. He muttered something to his cousins, who giggled behind their hands. He glanced our way once more and then turned his back to us .
    My face flushed hot with indignation—not for myself but for the students. How could Larkin be so ill mannered? Was it because they were charity students? Or did he snub all full-bloods? We stopped in our tracks, momentarily frozen. The girls’ eyes flashed with anger, but they said nothing. I knew I should speak to Larkin, chastise him somehow, but … I was as intimidated as the students.
    At that moment, Eli broke away from the group and walked toward us, chin in the air and a lazy smile on his face. “Good afternoon, ladies,” he said, tipping his hat. “Shall we walk together?”
    The girls greeted him with wide smiles, their cheeks flaming to pink. I could have fainted with relief … and gratitude.
    Eli gestured toward the Bells, who were eyeing us with furrowed brows. “All they can talk about is ghosts. I’ve never seen Lelia so rattled, and even Fannie is flustered, though her arm is healing fine. Larkin gets a thrill from such stories, but I’d rather talk of pleasanter things.” He looked down at me. “Did you enjoy our serenade, Miss McClure?”
    He was smiling, but his eyes were unreadable. Was he teasing me? Or …  flirting ? He had been gazing up at my