Chapter4
Sol
“Itold you that you should have stayed away from the Halfling,” I muttered as I ripped clothes out of his dresser and tossed them onto the bed. “Now we’re stuck in the thick of it. She’s a loose cannon, and the Spirit Fae she attracts are no better.”
Vox sighed and cast a breeze over his tousled things, brushing away loose stones I’d managed to conjure. I tried not to irritate him with debris everywhere, but my power and I never got along very well. It was part of an illness I’d been born with.
An illness caused by the Spirit Fae.
And by the Halfling’s mother.
Vox’s black eyes glimmered with a ring of silver that made him stand out from other Air Fae. “You’re just being possessive. Now I have another student, but you want me all to yourself.”
I frowned because that was partially true. I didn’t like the idea of sharing Vox. He’d helped me come so far, and more than that, I was on a mission to help him as well. “If you graduate with honors, you’ll be able to clear your family name.”
Vox flinched. He did not like to talk about his royal ties—much less how an entire side of his family had been shunned and denied their heritage. He insisted that he wanted nothing to do with the royals, didn’t care about his heritage or fortune. All he wanted was to prove his place in society and become a professor at the Academy someday. It was a lofty goal, but it would take more than graduating with honors for that to happen. It was a miracle he’d been accepted into the Academy at all.
It was why he’d been stuck with me in the first place. What better way to sabotage a disgraced fae from graduating with honors and making his dreams come true than by pairing him up with an impossible case?
Except, Vox actually helped me and we made a good team.
Vox ignored me while he carefully folded each shirt before placing them into a neat suitcase. It drove me mad how meticulous he was with everything. We shouldn’t even be packing. We should be telling the king to go shove his orders up his ass.
But he hadn’t ordered me.
No, he’d ordered Vox, making this the Air Fae’s decision.
Of course, that didn’t mean I had to be quiet about my disapproval. “You know that no good can come of this.”
Vox shrugged. “Maybe you’re wrong. Claire isn’t so bad.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re attracted to her. I get it, but I’m not talking about Claire. I’m talking about the king.”
“I’m not attracted to her, even if my magic thinks I am,” Vox mumbled, plucking another stone that had somehow made its way into the suitcase. Perfection ruined, he took out one of the shirts he’d already folded and started over, making a low scream build in the back of my throat. “She’s just vulnerable, Sol. If she uses earth power around you and you’re forced to step in, then you’ll see what I’m talking about.” A wry grin took over his face. “I’ll bet you an entire month of credits that when that happens, you’ll fall for her—hard. You know what they say.” He winked. “The bigger the Earth Fae, the harder they fall.”
I snorted. “That’s an easy bet. My magic isn’t a wimp for a pretty face like yours is. You’re on.” I thrust out my hand.
Vox took it and we shook on it, my crushing grip encasing his lithe fingers. The Academy gave out credits once a day for standard purchases—namely, meals, amenities, and frivolous purchases I never bothered to save up for. I preferred to spend my credits on food and more food. Credits could also be earned through high scores in classes and winning intramural games between fae, although I never wasted my time on either of those. I had plenty of food to keep me happy.
Speaking of, I was starving. “Are you done packing yet? We can hit the cafeteria for a snack on our way back.” It was open twenty-four hours a day and would be pretty much vacant right now. Especially on a school night.
Vox groaned. “Really, man, the cafeteria is for those who can’t afford their own ingredients or kitchen supplies. I have more than enough credits to feed both of us.”
I eyed the damage I was already causing to the bedroom floor. “Maybe we should eat at the cafeteria today, since I owe you for property damage again.”
Vox glowered at me. “What’s the point of making a bet with you if I have to spend all of my credits on you anyway? Let’s get out of here so that the tab is on the Spirit King’s bill and not mine.”
Finally, he was talking sense.
My earth magic was raging inside of me, dying to get out. Doing some damage that the king would have to pay for sounded like fun to me.
After a snack, of course.
Chapter5
Exos
Fuck.My head ached, the world spinning behind my closed eyes.
