Blake released me, and I spun. It was brief, but a spark of curiosity flickered in his eye, enough that I knew it had not been him to leave the parchment in my room.
"Ezreal is not to be trifled with, but he is not wrong. While you are stronger than the other Initiates, you are not strong enough," he said.
I willed my quivering hands to still, but it was only when his presence withdrew that I was able to steady myself.
“Why are you trying to help me?” I asked. “What do you get out of it?”
Blake watched me, the storm drawing ever closer.
“You know I am drawn to you,” he said, his voice low. “I want to see you get what you want.”
I swallowed nervously; my throat was dry.
“And what makes you think you know what I want?” I whispered.
Blake smiled, the faint starlight barely enough to see him by.
“I can feel it—you long to understand your past, who you are, and where you belong,” he said. He picked up my sword and slid it back into the sheath at my back. “I can also feel your desire to quell that which rages within. I understand that feeling more than you know.”
His words landed like anchors on my mind. Was he right? Was that what I was doing here? I thought of Reece in Malakai's lair, helpless as he tossed her aside. Something stirred within me then, entirely of its own will.
It was because of her. My fury at what was happening to her. And my determination to get her out, like I hadn’t with Skylar, or my mom.
I wanted to know if I belonged here, with these people, with Blake.
But the questions surrounding my past left me lost, unsure what was true and what wasn’t. He was right—rage had taken root deep within me. It stirred in my dreams, fell victim to Melanie’s taunts, and succumbed to Malakai’s games.
It had control of me.
It made me weak.
I had to get control of it.
But I was more certain of one thing now than ever—I was in the right place.
Chapter 22
Adept
ANNA
“Iknow it’s Malakai.”
Isabella watched me as I paced, her head going from side to side as if she were watching a pendulum swing.
“Must you stare at me like that!”
“Sorry!” she said in a high-pitched voice and snapped her attention to the floor.
“Why would he let me down there? And see what he was doing? Is he that arrogant?” I asked. “I mean, what the fuck is happening? First Cody, then Skylar, and now he’s attacked Reece, too? He has to be behind the other disappearances. He decided they might taste good or something crazy and accidentally killed them, then poisoned everyone except me somehow to make them be forgotten. I swear to God, that son-of-a-bitch is going to pay for this.”
Knock-knock.
Roslyn entered my dorm and I stopped pacing. Isabella took her feet off my bed and sat up in the chair. The expression on Roslyn’s face made me tense.
“What is it?” I asked.
“It’s Reece,” she whispered. “She was found missing from her hospital bed.”
