Read Prophecy Girl for Free Online Page B

youngsters at Green Clover are all the children I need.” He smiled weakly, as if he truly didn’t believe that.
    For some reason, she felt very close to Mr. Quinn, as if he were a second father. She loved her own dad, but after the divorce, when she lived with her mom, her dad didn’t come around that often, except on the weekends, when he would take her to the movies. That seemed like a lifetime ago. 
    Her reverie was interrupted by a car horn honking. She turned to see a metallic gray BMW with black tinted windows and black wheels, parked alongside the curb. 
    Mr. Quinn shook his head. “Finally.”
    “What?” Eva asked, confused.
    “Our ride,” he explained, holding out his hand for her bag.
    She gave it to him, hearing the trunk pop open. Then the driver door opened and out stepped a tall guy, older than her, but still a teenager. He had sandy blond hair that fell below his ears, glistening under the sunlight. He was tan, well-built, and had a surfer look to him. Very cute. 
    After Mr. Quinn put Eva’s bag in the trunk, he approached the young driver, and said sternly, “I’ll take the keys.”
    The guy sighed, handing them to the headmaster. Then he walked over to Eva, smiling. His outfit was plain, but she thought peculiar, like a uniform: black dress shoes, black pants, a white short-sleeved dress shirt tucked neatly inside, a black slim tie, and a black vest with a green shamrock stitched on the upper right side. In the crook of his arm was a black cap styled like the headmaster’s that he removed and adjusted on his head. 
    “Hey,” he greeted, holding out his hand. 
    She held out her hand, trying to contain her trembling. “Hi,” she squeaked back.
    He took it and gently squeezed. She felt a rush of excitement when their skin touched, and didn’t want it to end, but he let go, slowly. 
    “I’m Lucas Daly and you must be Eva Nolan. All the school is talking about you.”
    “Me?” she asked, nervous. 
    Back at her old school, everyone did talk about her, but only to call her “that crazy chick.”
    “Yeah. We always love it when someone new arrives.” He smiled, looking at her as if she were extra special to him.
    She looked in his warm blue-gray eyes, like soft clouds on a tranquil rainy day. “You…love it?”
    “Yeah, sure,” he said, nodding. “We’re all outcasts in the world.” He glanced at the travelers. “We’re called freaks , but at Green Clover, we’re all the same, except of course for the differences.” He leaned in closer, smelling of intoxicating cologne, but also of tobacco, and she assumed the cigarette odor had attached to him from the last driver. “You know about Banshees and Leprechauns, right?” he whispered.
    “The headmaster told me.” She tried to answer evenly, despite her heart thumping against her chest. “You’re a Leprechaun, right?”
    He smiled and leaned back. “Yep! And in my fourth year.” He thumbed in the direction of the car. “That’s why I was allowed to come and pick you two up, and I’m also the most reliable student at Green Clover,”—he smirked—“but I do have my moments.”
    Despite his good-boy charm, Eva sensed that he could be a rascal if he wanted to, and it filled her with a rush of that “bad boy” excitement that girls secretly crave in guys. 
    “Daylight’s burning,” Mr. Quinn said loudly, staring at them from where he stood next to the driver’s side. 
    Lucas rolled his eyes. “Well, back to it. C’mon!” He opened the back door and held it open for her.
    She smiled, amazed at his chivalry, and got inside, settling on the forest green leather seat. Mr. Quinn finally sat on the driver’s seat. Lucas walked around to other back door, and got inside next to Eva with only a small space between them. 
    “The tank’s almost dry,” the headmaster remarked, narrowing his eyes at Lucas from the rearview mirror that had a green shamrock air freshener around it. “ Where have you been?”
    Lucas