After dinner, I spoke to Tala in private. She could go back to her life, if she wanted. Though she was warned Saldrea might be out to get her. With that in mind, I askedher if she wanted to stay at the training compound for a while.
“Would I be in the way?” she asked, voice small. “You’ve got so much going on, you’re… so important now… and I… I’m…”
I hugged her tightly.
She was trying to distance herself from me, formybenefit, and I wouldn’t let her. “I need you, please stay,” I whispered. “You’re the only friend I have.”
“You have… so many people to help you.” I caught the hitch in her voice, the hesitation. I must have been getting better at reading people because I could hear loud and clear what she hadn’t said:you have all those guys.
“You’re my only female friend… around my age.” I added that last bit thinking of Olinara and Lhorine. Zora was older too, just not thehundreds of yearsthat my grandmother or mentor were. “I don’t want to lose you.”
Tala relaxed in my arms. She didn’t want to leave. She was scared, and I didn’t blame her. Saldrea was a psychopath.
“Thank you,” she whispered, hugging me back.
“We’ll make a trip and get some of your things tomorrow… or soon. Just… stay put for now and train with me when I’m working with my grandmother.”
She smiled. “I’d like that, thank you.”
I, however, wouldn’t be staying here. I had to keep up appearances at school or Saldrea would get suspicious of my absence and might come looking for me. And the last thing I wanted was for her to find this place.
Myel took Vyns, Koar, and me back to Rook’s room for the evening. This time Vyns let Myel sleep with me. I thanked him, loving the soothing feeling of my Goth shifterso close. Despite my many fears and worries, there were no tears when I fell asleep that night.
Morning came all too soon. I’d slept more than eight hours, but I still felt tired the next day. I’d been pushing myself too hard… and it wasn’t going to stop.
I debated whether I should go to Magic 101 that morning. I didn’t want to. Saldrea would be there and I wanted to avoid her. But I needed to be seen by her and others on campus, even if all my other time would be taken up with training at the compound. So, I went.
Perhaps Saldrea would let something slip about Myel?
Myel returned to the shifter barracks, as much as I wanted him to hide away for a few days. He said he couldn’t. One missed training session and he’d be in a lot of trouble. Vyns said he’d watch over the shifter, for which I thanked him profusely with a very deep and passionate kiss.
So, Myel left with Vyns, while Koar came with me to class, never far from my side. I took a seat at the back and waited, having gotten to the room early. When Saldrea arrived, she made a beeline straight for me, a giant grin on her face.
Yeah, this didn’t bode well.
“I feel like we got off on the wrong foot,” she said, all mock-apologetic. “As a peace offering, I’d love for you to come with me to the punitive deathmatch on Sulnari. It’s one of this world’s rare delights, you’lllovewatching the fight.”
Oh yeah… she knew. She was behind Myel’s summons no doubt.
“Although…” she drew out the word as if reconsidering, “I hear the shifter they’ve chosen for this one is rather weak. I sure hope he doesn’t die. That would be such a shame, wouldn’t it?” The beatific smile and pleasant turn of her head told me everything I needed to know. She was enjoying this. “Would you like to join me?”
“Oh… I’ll be there,” I said with my own false pleasantness. “And I have a sneaking suspicion that shifter, whoever they are, is going to be a lot stronger than you think.”
If I could train up my ability to enhance others, I’d make sure Myel was strong enough to beat whoever he might be fighting. I didn’t even want to consider the alternate option of trying to break the mate bond.
Hana gasped.
I blinked as the sylph whispered something desperately into Saldrea’s ear.
Wait… no…
Had she just read my thoughts?
Fuck!
She had.
I could see it in Saldrea’s expression of shock, then sheer bliss. She knew about me being bonded to Myel.
