A girl with Institute One’s uniform on stands with her bracelet held in the air slightly. She gapes at it in a mixture of horror and confusion.
Great. I’ll know when I’m close when my arm is burning. I should expect nothing less from The Sanctum.
Irritated, I slip my cell phone from my pocket and check whether my message from earlier has gone through, but it still doesn’t show as delivered. Something tells me this is The Sanctum’s doing too.
Turning my attention to my bracelet, I’m acutely aware of just how cold it actually is. I’m so over this crap, but instead of pointlessly griping about it, I continue further into The Vale, bypassing The Hut and the small shops to head toward the library.
The bracelet remains ice cold against my skin, and no matter how much I glare at it, it doesn’t change. Instead, it only feels colder.
Glancing at the time, my frustration continues to creep higher as I realize over forty-five minutes have passed. I’m over halfway through, and not even an inkling of heat resonates against my skin. Is the other person even trying?
I plant my hands on my hips as I tilt my head back, staring up at the bright blue sky for answers. Just when I’m certain there’s nothing there, a flicker of warmth dances along my wrist. It’s barely there, but it’s enough to startle me from my thoughts. Fleeting, it’s gone by the time I force my gaze to the jewelry, leaving me to question whether it was just a figment of my imagination, but as I slowly turn in a circle, a prickling of heat skirts along it when it’s aimed toward the main academy building.
Taking a step in that direction, my heart stutters as the sensation grows a tiny bit stronger, but what’s strange is how the heat seems to resonate inside of me too. Moving again, my heart begins to race faster as I move further and further in that direction, but by the time I reach the academy building, it’s not much warmer, confirming that I need to keep going.
As I bypass other students, each hunting their other half down, I notice a pair connect, pressing their palms together before they vanish before my very eyes. It’s a stark reminder that time is running out. I need this to be over with as quickly as possible so I can check on Elodie and make sure she’s okay after Jude’s text.
I falter at the thought, my steps pausing as I consider whether I should go hunting for her instead, but the reality is, I don’t know if she’s made it out already.
Sighing, I move faster, upping my pace as the tingles along my skin burn hotter, stealing my breath as they work their way into my chest.
Uncertainty wars inside of me as I reach the outer walkway once again, only this time, my bracelet is guiding me toward Institute One.
I enter their compound without care, trudging down the path with a determined stride, when the warmth at my wrist becomes searingly hot, almost unbearable, but what’s worse is how much I feel it inside. Hunching forward, I place my hands on my knees as I try to breathe through it, but it’s impossible. It feels like it’s seeped deep into my bones.
My breath stutters even more as the prophecy comes to mind once again.
They will rise with fire in their bones.
Rubbing circles on my chest, I shake it off. The two aren’t connected. That’s ridiculous. No prophecy prepares you for some institute games run by the sadistic Sanctum. Taking a deep breath, I stand tall, wincing slightly at the heat before I push on.
When I near Institute One’s building, my gut clenches as I reach the steps leading up to the ornate and grand building, with pretty little turrets and large swooping balconies that line the top few floors. It’s like something out of a fairytale, all pretty and composed, nothing at all like Institute Thirteen, which wears all of its imperfections on the outside. Here, they hide it inside the core of the students.
As I place my foot on the first step, my gut twists even tighter, and my gaze snaps to the right just as a soft grunt echoes in the wind. Lifting my arm in that direction, I shouldn’t be surprised when the burn grows hotter, but the yelp I hear in the distance almost solidifies that someone else is dealing with the same pain.
Racing, I dart around the corner, only to barely keep myself from tripping over my own feet as I stumble to a stop.
Two women stand before me. Well,standingis a questionable choice of a word since they’re both actually rolling around on the ground. A mess of purple waves are tangled with the curls of red hair, and one of them is the other half I’m looking for to get this task over with. The issue is, I don’t think I can handle it being either of them.
One haunts my dreams, and one is nothing more than a nightmare.
Elodie and Willow.
Why am I not surprised that these two managed to find each other again? But the real question is, who is the answer to the trial?
A fist rears back and slams into the face of the redhead, earning a sneer from the girl now on top, but with a quick jab to the side, they’re rolling again, only for the same girl to end up with the leverage again.
“Elodie,” I blurt, and she whips her hair back off her face as she takes me in.
“Don’t you dare interfere right now,” she hisses, wagging a finger at me, and I lift my hands in surrender, despite the heat still throbbing at my wrist and throughout my body.
“I wasn’t planning on it,” I murmur, happy for this to continue playing out as long as she remains in control.
Willow grunts from beneath her, attempting to buck her hips, but it doesn’t knock her off. Yet Elodie winces, her face paling a little, and my apparent protective instincts take over.
“What’s wrong?” I shout, desperate for an answer, and she shakes her head.
“My fucking soul is burning or something, and don’t even get me started on this thing,” she grumbles, nodding at her bracelet, and my heart stutters again.
