I shake my head. I can never tell with them.
Berserkir swarm in, all noise and chaos.
Sure enough, Tala’s boyfriend shows up last. Isaac takes the seat next to Tala, leaning over and kissing her cheek. “Hey, babe.”
Val tries to hide it, but I catch her watching them out of the corner of her eye. She drums her fingers on the table.
Just when I think everyone’s here, Edith arrives. She takes the only empty seat in the room. Thankfully, this time it’s beside Tala and not me.
Edith leans over to Tala, but she’s looking at me. “Do we really have to take a class withthem?”
“Unfortunately,” Tala says with a frown. “They have heightened senses like we do.”
“Too bad ours are better,” Val mutters.
Tala twitches. “Youknowthat’s not true.”
Maeve clears her throat. She looks over the classroom, frowning at the clear division between us. Hunters on the right, berserkir on the left. “Why don’t we do something different today? Instead of working with your usual partners, why don’t you pair up with someone on the opposite side of the classroom? You can use your heightened hearing to actually listen to each other.”
Tala stiffens. “You want us to practice withhunters?”
“That’s right,” Maeve says. “Ask each other questions and get to know each other better. I think you’ll be surprised to learn that heightened senses aren’t the only thing you have in common.”
When no one moves, Maeve gives an exasperated sigh. “Either pick your partners now, or I’ll start assigning them.”
If Helga isn’t going to interrogate Edith, then I will myself, and Maeve has given me the perfect in. I approach Edith’s desk and stand there, unsure what to do.
She scowls up at me. “Do you have to loom over me like that?”
“Yes,partner.”
Tala looks between us with a frown.
Val strides over, dagger in hand, and uses the tip of her knife to tilt Tala’s chin up until she’s looking at her. “Looks like you’re with me, ma chère.”
“I thought I told you not to call me that,” Tala mutters.
Val grins. “So you prefer She Wolf?”
A low growl escapes Tala’s lips.
“Okay, well, I’ll leave you two to it,” Isaac says, raising his hands and backing away slowly.
Edith seems… unbothered. She’s even colder and crueler than I realized if she can sit here and act like everything is normal. I’ve been racked by guilt, and I’m not even the one who killed Emilía.
“Turn your chairs to face each other and ask your partner some questions,” Maeve says. “Listen to what they say, but also what theydon’t. Pay attention to their body language, facial expressions, and even their heart rate.”
My chair scrapes on the floor as I turn toward Edith. Our knees bump once we’re facing each other. Just the briefest brush sends an electric current through me. I look away, glancing over at Val and Tala. They glare at each other, their pulses quickening.
Val leans forward, reaching for Tala, only to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. “Careful, She Wolf.”
Blushing, Tala reaches up and smooths out her hair.
Now her heart isreallypounding.
Edith clears her throat. “Are you going to ask me a question or not?”
I turn my attention back to her. There’s only one question I want to ask Edith:Why did you kill Emilía?Because of Helga, I can’t ask her that outright. We’re the only ones here who know Emilía is dead.
