“I would,” he quickly countered as he stared through the windows of my French doors.
“Right,” I stood, brushing my hands over my outfit in a nervous gesture and moving toward the doors.
I didn’t particularly want to leave him in the room considering the evidence I was hiding, but the desperate, clawing urge to get away from him was growing. I didn’t trust that this conversation would stay amicable for long, and if I told him to get out, it would only raise his suspicion.
The minute my hand touched the door knob, he was there in my space, demanding my attention as he grabbed my wrist in a hard hold. My eyes widened as I tried to back up, tilting my head to examine the expression on his face as fear trickled up my spine at the darkness lurking there. I tried to tug my wrist away to no avail.
“Listen to me very carefully, Kieran,” he said in a low, dark tone as he leaned down. “This is your last chance. Youwillplace today. I won’t accept anything less.”
Technically, I had months left to place. What the hell was he talking about?
My lips pressed together in frustration as I tried to keep my voice even, despite the anger I could feel continuing to mount as his grip tightened. “I cannot control my placement any more than you could control yours. I have been trying since day one to place. Dayone.”
“Try. Harder.” He applied pressure to my wrist and angled it to a strained position.
“Try harder!” I demanded sharply, my jaw dropping at the statement. I was so fed up with this rhetoric from him. “All I do is try and try—Fuck, ow!”
I hissed as his other hand came up and grabbed the top of my shirt, tightening it around my throat to the point I worried it would leave a mark. He leaned down to my ear and spoke in a cold, lethal whisper, “I will acceptnothingbut success today, do you understand me? If you fail, do not bother coming home. I refuse to house a constant reminder of failure.”
“Fuck. You.” I bit out as my eyes narrowed with fury, unable to help myself in the face of being hurt physically.
I cried out as he twisted my wrist hard enough that I felt something pop. He dropped my shirt, the sudden change causing my knees to wobble before I stumbled away from him. Cradling my wrist against my chest, the sleeve of my jacket shifted, and I spotted the imprint of his fingers already forming around the delicate bones there. I felt tears prick in my eyes with betrayal and anger.
It was one thing to constantly verbally abuse me, but this was something entirely different. To be physically hurt and told that I couldn’t come home if I didn’t pass placement testing today…Fuck. I thought I’d already given up on the idea of having a father who loved me and cared about me, but apparently I’d left the tiniest sliver open in my heart, because he’d just shoved a knife directly into that piece of it.
“Go, now,” he commanded, turning on his heel, “but don’t forget my words. Do not step foot in this house if you don’t get the official placement letter.”
His retreat was swift following his command, the door slamming shut behind him. I was left in the silence of my room—the very room I was likely not going to be allowed into again ifhe had a say in it. Would my mom stand up to him for this? My shoulders sagged forward. No, she wouldn’t.
Angry and embarrassed tears welled in my eyes, feeling a mixture of fear and betrayal over the fact that he would hurt me like that. Granted, he never had an issue pushing me to the point of being sick in training, so his disregard for my well-being shouldn’t have been surprising…But this felt different. I feltweakin the face of his actions. Using my other hand, I brushed away the few tears that managed to escape and tried to shake myself.
I wouldn’t let him rattle me.Absolutely fucking not.Not when I put so much work into excelling today. I moved onto the balcony after locking my bedroom door from the inside, not wanting to run into him or my mom, before releasing my wings fully. The faster I got out of here, the better.
Launching myself into the sky, I couldn’t help but appreciate what a stunning morning it was. While I was distracted by the pain in my wrist—a physical reminder of my father’s harsh words and threat—I used the flight to collect myself. I spent the time infusing as much confidence into my thoughts as possible as I ran over some of the knowledge I’d gained through my studies the past few days.
The Taming Center I was heading to was located in the Southern Forrest, west of the castle and south of the mountains. The mountain range left the Southern Forrest easily accessible and perfect for taming beasts, but the Western Forrest was only accessible by flying over or traveling through the mountains. The Western Forrest was known as a wasteland. It was one of the places within the kingdom that I had never stepped foot in, but I was far from the only one. I’d heard my father talk often about how no one wanted to be stationed in the western tower, fearful that they would be attacked by the untamed beasts that roamed the dangerous landscape.
Despite the potential danger, a part of me wanted to go there—not that I would have ever been allowed to. In fact, I had only visited the Taming Center when I was younger and accompanied my father for official business. Each trip was usually narrated by him talking shit about the minor placement on the way there and back, making it clear that while he would accept it being my placement, he was far from a fan and demanded I set my sights higher.
Considering it was a longer flight, going from the upper rings of the city down toward the lower rings and in the direction of the Southern Forrest, I felt far more collected by the time I set my sight on my destination. Landing softly on the grass bordering the lush greenery and trees that were a trademark of the Southern Forrest, I felt a small, excited smile pull at my lips, replacing the darkness from this morning.
Following a sign that pointed toward the Taming Center, I made my way down a path sheltered by trees. The environment around me seemed to come to life with the sounds of different creatures, and a soft wind skated over my skin. I could see why Ronan enjoyed his placement so much if he got to spend time here, removed from all of the bullshit of our kingdom. Almost instantly, the quiet place provided me with a sense of calming peace. It felt like an entire world away from the shit waiting for me back home.
“Morning!” a friendly voice called out, pulling my attention. I looked over the large cabin-like structure that greeted me, serving as the official entrance into the center. If I remembered correctly, there was a large training yard past the structure as well as a set of massive stables.
Outside of the center stood a man maybe a year or two older than me, leaning against the wall and offering me a carefree smile that encouraged me to continue toward him.
“Morning,” I said brightly, matching his energy.
“What can I help you with?” he asked, straightening up fully as his dark gaze ran over me with interest.
“I’m…I’m here to see Ronan actually,” I explained in a rush, feeling slightly uncomfortable with his attention before nodding toward the building. “I’m guessing he’s inside.”
The angel deflated slightly, almost as if he were disappointed, before sighing and saying, “Yeah, he is. Come on, let me show you to him. Although Ireally shouldn’t—he’s been a bastard the past few days. Hopefully he treats you better than all of us.”
My brows shot up, wondering what was going on that would cause him to be in such a bad mood.
“Are you two together?” he asked curiously as we walked into the building through a set of large, wooden doors. His question surprised me.
