“Let’s go.” Ceredes heads away from the council meeting. “Lana’s more important than whatever they’re discussing. It’s not like they’re going to give us a say.”
We push out of the back of the faculty quarters and press ourselves to the stone, then creep to the edge of the woods. Troops are scattered around the terraces, and ships are in the air overhead, but they’ve simmered down to a relative calm compared to earlier this evening.
Ceredes holds up a hand as a couple of fleet soldiers pass, their conversation focusing on the circle and wondering if it’s a bad omen. Ceredes looks at me and rolls his eyes, then, once they’ve passed, we hurry through the greenery at the edge of the woods.
“We need to get to Lana.” He speeds his pace.
“It’s time Jeren shared her.”
He grunts a small laugh. “I couldn’t agree more.”
We break into a jog and hurry into the forest, our steps carrying us toward the glittering lake where our Omega awaits.
6
Lana
“This is like a dream.” I float on the surface, the water warm enough for me to be comfortable. “All this stuff that happened. I mean, from being kidnapped from my home, to being a student at the academy, to being kidnappedagainby that—” I swallow, and I could swear the water near me trembles. “That monster.”
“You’re safe,” Jeren soothes as he supports me with his palms, letting me float without fear of sinking. He’s shirtless, the black ink that slithers up both sides of his neck and trails down his chest inky and mysterious in the silver moonlight. “I can feel you in my blood. No one can take you from me, from us, without us knowing.”
I paddle my fingers in the water a little, then reach up and scratch my scalp.
“Something wrong?” he asks, his dark eyes eating me up and sending a pleasant tingle through me.
“No. I’m just itchy in a couple spots.” I stop scratching and force myself to ignore the two tingles up there. “Maybe some leftover weirdness from my injuries.” I close my eyes at the memory. The pain is gone, but my body hasn’t forgotten it, not the way it feels to have your flesh burned away down to the bone.
“Don’t think about it.” He leans closer to me. “Keep your thoughts here with me.”
“All right.” I focus on the water, his touch, the glow of the moons, and the sounds in the trees. Footsteps approach us. But I don’t stop floating, and Jeren doesn’t turn around, not even when we hear the splashes.
“About time.” Jeren looks up as Ceredes and Kyte swim to us.
“How are you feeling?” Kyte presses his lips to my forehead.
“You already know.” I trail my fingers along his side under the water. He and Ceredes are both shirtless.
“You’re safe from the Sentients and the council.” Ceredes places one hand beneath the backs of my knees.
It tickles. He smiles as if he can feel the tickle the same as I do.
“Are they going to do anything about the circle?” Jeren asks.
“What could they do?” Kyte’s brows furrow as he probes the itchy spots on my head, then scratches them for me.
I feel like a dog who kicks her hind leg from good petting. “What is that? Why am I itchy?”
“I have a suspicion.” Kyte takes me from Jeren and pulls me upright, then turns me around so he’s facing my back. With a quick move, he yanks what’s left of my shredded dress off, and the bodice floats away. I think about grabbing it back, but then I change my mind. It’s charred and damaged, and even though I’ve been in the lake with the clean water, the fabric is still tainted from Warverian’s touch. Plus, now I’m even lighter.
“Ah ha.” Kyte steadies me.
“What is that?” Ceredes asks.
I look over my shoulder. “What?”
“My marks.” Jeren runs his fingers down my spine.
I shudder and cross my arms over my bare breasts, my nipples embarrassingly hard. My face is surely a bright shade of red, and I hope the moonlight doesn’t give that fact away.
