Three minutes passed. Hot-cold flashes shook her body and Lorian’s as he held her.
Four minutes into it, and she purged the last of the toxin, retch after retch until there was nothing left to get out.
At five minutes, she finally stilled. The tremors ebbed to small shivers, and she leaned against Lorian with a heavy breath.
The color hadn’t returned to her face, but the fog behind her gaze had faded.
“It burned,” she rasped, voice like sandpaper, “but I think I can stand without help. That’s something.”
Aura’s mouth flattened into a line. “Infirmary is a better choice than forcing her through Jarvins’s final. It could make her worse.”
“No,” she protested as Lorian eased her down. She planted her feet and wobbled, bracing on his forearm. “Finals.”
Aura shot her a look. “I hate the idea of you stressing your body when you’re in this state, but okay.”
“I’m more concerned abouthowEleanor was poisoned in our house.” I frowned, crossing my arms.
Slater’s arms wrapped around me from behind as he dropped a kiss to my shoulder. “It was probably during class or something.”
“Or the walk to and from,” Zuko added, stealing a kiss from my lips. “We’re in an academy of future agents. Who knows how it happened.”
“Unfortunately true,” Dimitri muttered, turning his head away from us and walking toward the door. “Let’s move.”
Jarvins clockedthe issue the very moment we strode into Apex Simulator 1.6 for Charm and Deception’s final. He was practically vibrating with excitement at the control center until he laid eyes on Eleanor, pale and barely upright, leaning against Lorian.
“Eleanor, what the Fates?” Jarvins shook his head in shock.
“She’s here for the exam,” I told him with a hopeful expression.
“She’s worried she’d fail if she went to the infirmary instead,” Lorian explained.
Jarvins clicked his tongue before nodding. “Very well. Dedication noted. You may take the exam, Eleanor. This is good practice for the squad to help an injured, sick in this case, squadmate on a mission.”
Eleanor managed a ghost of a smile. “Thank you, Professor Jarvins.”
“Final brief for this class,” Jarvins announced, clapping once.
The walls rippled before the room melted into a chandelier-filled embassy hall. Under the light, the polished marble floors gleamed. The low murmurs of powerful supernaturals mixed with the music in the air.
We were thrown into the simulation with the smallest amount of information we’d been given yet. We wore dramatic masks and formal wear that replaced our academy suits.
Glittering black fabric hugged me from breasts to thigh like a second skin. I blinked down at my dress. It was a short midnight dress that left my legs bare. The neckline was a deep plunge that framed my collarbones and ended halfway down where my boobs spilled out, barely covering my nipples.
A whisper of air slid across my exposed skin, leaving goosebumps in its wake.
“Damn.” Slater choked on his own breath. He wore a blazing red tux and a velvet bow tie. Snakey peeked from around his neck like he was Slater’s tie.
“Fuck me,” Zuko murmured, eyes glued to my body before resting on my face. He wore a black-on-black suit with an orange lining that flashed when he moved.
“You…wow.” Koa loosened the tie on his obsidian suit and glanced away. Heat haloed off him. The top button was left open, showing off the thin gold chain at his throat.
“I know seduction is a strategy, but you’re dressed to kill.” Dimitri’s fangs slid down as he inhaled deeply in a three-piece charcoal suit that was perfectly in place. The way the jacket broke over his shoulders made him look like he was hiding serious muscles.
I fidgeted with my fingers as I took a deep breath, inhaling all of their scents. “Everyone looks so put together.”
The others wore varying formal wear: Aura and Eleanor wore glittering ball gowns, not nearly as scandalous as mine. Hawk, Lorian, and Raze wore different-colored suits.
An usher glided up with a silver tray of sealed envelopes. “Your assignments.”
