He probably took the easy way out and got reports from the seer. Plucking bones and organs were a hell of a lot better than that, anyway.
I tilted my head as I studied him. He looked calm as fuck on the outside, but deep-seated pain steamed off him, silently feeding my magic reserves. “You’re different than I expected the legendary founder of the academy to be like.”
“I’ve heard that a few times.”
He didn’t make an effort to look away from the carnage. He also didn’t seem particularly upset about it as much as he seemed angry and in pain.
Rowan Barrington was overflowing with negative emotions, and I hadn’t ever seen anyone look so calm and collected with the massive amount of shit coming off them.
A chuckle broke out of me. “Fuck, you’re just as broken as I am.”
His head snapped toward mine and his lip curled up. “I’ve lived a long time. Breaking is just a part of that. You’ll realize that soon enough.”
“Nah. I found someone to pick up my pieces.” I swirled my shadows around my arm as I held it up.
“Must be nice.”
“It is.”
He exhaled and shook his head. “Let’s head back to the academy. I need to report this mess. Leave it to you to find this.”
“My reputation precedes me?”
His lip quirked up in a smirk. “Entirely.”
TWENTY-FOUR
Wren
Mychestachedina way it never had before. I’d gone through a mate rejection, but that didn’t even come close to how I felt after getting into a disagreement with Damien. I hated that I upset him, but I also hated that he blamed Trixie for something out of our control.
“How’re you feeling?” Kian flipped over from his back onto his side so he could face me, propping his elbow on the pillow and putting a hand on his cheek. His glasses were on the end table, and his bright green eyes were trained on me.
Trixie had fallen asleep after we talked for about an hour, and Kian helped me put her back in her room. The whole ordeal had taken a lot out of us. Her more so than me since I couldn’t provide any defense.
Kian had brought me to bed and told me to rest, but I’d asked him to stay with me a while longer. There was no way I was going to get any sleep knowing Damien was somewhere out there upset with me, probably acting recklessly.
“Worried,” I answered him as I flipped around to face him, my hands tucked up next to my chest.
The bed was small. Our faces were so close that our breath mingled, and the wave of comfort around him was the only thing keeping me sane.
“He’ll be fine. He’s Damien. I’m more worried about you right now.”
“Me?” My brows bumped together, and he let out a chuckle.
“Of course you. What’s going through your mind?”
I sucked in a sharp breath at that question. It seemed simple, but nobody had ever bothered to ask me that. “Guilt, mainly. I should’ve known not to leave academy grounds when Damien had specifically told me he wouldn’t be around for a bit. If I hadn’t—”
“Don’t.” He moved his hand forward and threaded his fingers through mine. “Thinking like that won’t help anyone. What’s done is done.”
His warmth enveloped me, and I nodded.
He squeezed my hand. “What else is bugging you?”
“They’ve been intervening because others have been a threat to me…” I pulled his hand to my chest and covered it with my other. “Thornnevertold me. I didn’t think he’d keep anything like that from me.”
“I don’t think Damien meant to tell you either, but for what it’s worth, he only exploded because he cares for you.”
