I can’t decide if my new avoidance of the dining hall is because I have money to eat everywhere else, or because I’m avoiding our neighbors from across the hall whenever I can. Regardless, it’s my new default, and I don’t have any interest in diving deeper into it.
Taking a bite of my breakfast, I spy the academic building up ahead, aware of the potions class we have first thing, but it seems Ocean is hellbent on extracting more from me. Glaring at her, I sigh. “I barely speak to one of them, another is a total golden retriever, and the third is my guardian asshole,” I grumble as my stomach churns, recalling Thorne’s admission the other day.
Scythes killed his family. People like me destroyed everything he knew, every person he loved, and with that admission comes a weight I don’t know how to bear. But instead of contemplating how to hold it, I ran. I ran so fast my shins burned. I’ve never taken off so quickly in my entire life.
“You love it,” Ocean mumbles at me with a smirk, and I wave her off before popping the last bite of my croissant into my mouth.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I hate them.” I avoid her gaze as I drain the last of my hot chocolate and place the cup in the trash.
I can’t look at her because I know what she’ll see. Lies. My mind believes it to be true, but my body? Damn, it’s weak at the mere thought of them. Especially when they manage to fuck my brains out like Kael did in the gym. Apparently, I’m a sucker for good cock, and it seems I’m in excellent hands when it comes to the vampire and the wolf; it’s just the shadow fae I don’t think I will ever learn more about. That fact shouldn’t cause such an ache in my chest, but it does.
“No, you don’t hate them. Maybe you can make a love potion in class,” Ocean states, holding the door of the academy building open to the sea of students that continues to bustle around us.
I snort at her. “A love potion? Cute idea, but I was going to try an ego-shrinking elixir instead. You know they’ll thank me later.”
We break into a fit of laughter, giggling together as we find the potions class at the end of the hall, but when I step over the threshold, my breath lodges in my throat. My eyes water as the room spins, but I somehow manage to remain on my feet as my surroundings settle. It’s not the familiarity of the potions class that greets me, though. Not even close.
A rich green forest stands before me, tall, looming, and earthy. The scent is overwhelming incomparison to the derelict and dry surroundings of Institute Thirteen, and confusion ripples through me. Brushing my hair off my face, my gaze lands on Ocean, who looks as bewildered as I do, when an almighty roar echoes from deep within the lush green center.
“What the fuck was that?” Ocean asks with a gulp, and a shudder runs down my spine.
Peering over my shoulder, I take in the grandeur of it all as more and more students filter in, each person looking just as surprised as the last. I quickly refocus on the forest, which takes up the majority of the space. It only takes a second for me to spy our neighbors arriving at the same time The Sanctum appear as a projection above the trees.
The five of them stand in line, holding the same position they were in the first time I met them. The women hold up the ends, Anya to the left and Cordelia to the right, each looking so different, yet striking that same level of power and intensity. Anya smirks, her red hair in waves around her face, the color accentuated by the white silk shirt she’s wearing. Cordelia, on the other hand, has her white hair slicked back into a low ponytail, and her lips are painted a bright red. She keeps her head raised just enough to make it clear she’s looking down her nose at us.
Wonderful.
Saken stands dead center, his pepper-dusted hair coloring his temples as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. His stare is unwavering as he takes everyone in, as though he’s committing everything to memory, while Toman stands to his left, and Rikard to his right. Toman looks completely irritated by our presence, while Rikard stands tall and proud, as if he relishes the attention.
“Welcome to the next Institute Game,” Rikard hollers, his voice echoing around the space like thunder crackling through the air. “Today, you get to experience what I like to call The Heart of the Beast.” I rack my brain, trying to recall anything similar to that name in the books I’ve been reading, but I draw a blank, hating that my efforts have currently left me blind. “The rules are simple: find the beast tagged with your institute colors. Once located, all you have to do is carve out its heart and place it on top of your institute’s spear to make it through to the final eight.”
I blink at him in disbelief. “That’s all? That’s. All?”
“This is insane,” Ocean mutters. “And disgusting.”
I can’t disagree with her as a siren blares through the air, jolting everyone into action.
My feet carry me before I even realize I’m moving, surrounded by a cluster of students all wearing the same deep purple as me. Kael, Rion, and Thorne form a line right behind me, while a few of the other Institute Thirteen students take the lead. I’m happy to follow, uncertainty warring inside of me.
Nobody speaks as we enter the forest, the sunlight dimming in the shade of the tall branches and thick leaves, but our steps slow with the uneven terrain and rocks scattered across the ground.
When the other institutes continue to disperse, and the few other members in front of us stop, I frown with confusion. The girl who questioned what I have to offer the group turns to face everyone with her arms folded over her chest.
“Divide and conquer?”
“No,” Kael grunts. With a few steps, he moves from behind me to the front, standing between the girl in question and everyone else. His lips part as he attempts to take the reins of the conversation, but before he can speak, a roar rattles through the air, drawing everyone’s attention to the sky as birds flee.
Panic zips through me and I instinctively reach a hand out, blindly finding an arm and squeezing tight as I try to steady my breathing. No one speaks,and I can’t help but wonder what the hell kind of beast makes a sound like that. When it doesn’t come again, I take a deep breath and relax my grip on… Thorne.
I glance from where I’m holding him to his eyes, finding them already aimed at me, and I gulp, but my apology is frozen on my lips as I face forward again, coming face to face with Kael.
“We’re not dividing and conquering. We stick together as a unit. Our combined strengths will make it easier to take down whatever the fuck that is.” His words are firm and resolute as the girl behind him grabs his arm, attempting to shove him out of the way, but he doesn’t move an inch. Instead, all she accomplishes is pissing me off.
“I say we?—”
“What’s your name?” I interject, cocking a brow at the girl who is quite clearly the reason we’re all stopped right now instead of searching for our damn beast.
She turns a withering look my way as she flicks her hair over her shoulder, standing so close to Kael that their arms are touching. “Brenna. I would ask who you are, but we’re all well aware of you and your failures,” she grunts with an eye roll, and my hands ball into fists at my sides as I give her an impassive look.
