Vitra’s gazewent immediately to the bruise on my face as I took my seat in class, but he didn’t say a word. We’d barely spoken the past few weeks. Even though I’d seen him around the tower, our encounters had been brief and guarded on both sides. But despite the distance, the chemistry between us was still there, flaring every time we spoke or looked at one another for too long.
Frankly, it was annoying as Fel.
Today was quiz and essay day, so the hour passed quickly. I’d done the reading, so answering the many questions on wood weavers and writing an essay about salamanders didn’t take long.
The fire-elementals were fascinating. Hailing from an elemental world occupied by beings called djinn. Salamanders were distant cousins to creatures called efreet. Not all salamanders were Horrors; some were benevolent, and both kinds occupied the forest. The only way to tell one from the other was if they attacked or not. They also had a hierarchy of their own, and according to ancient lore, you could make pacts with the higher-level salamanders by giving certain offerings.
Vitra ended the session with a clap of his hands and instructions for us to drop our papers on his desk on the way out. “Please stay behind a moment, Miss Onyx.”
My stomach did a little flip that I studiously ignored. I needed to ask Vitra about Selina, so it was just as well he wanted to speak with me… But what did he want to speak with me about? My stomach quivered again. Dammit.
I waited in my seat while everyone filed out, noting a couple of side-eyes from some of the older female students. They probably thought there was something going on between me and Vitra.
The door closed behind the final student, and Vitra took his favored spot, leaning up against his desk, arms crossed. “How did you get the bruise, Ana?”
Of course,that’swhat he wanted to talk about.
Like Fel was I telling him about Tamina. He’d made it clear what he thought about me going up against her. “Combat class.”
His jaw ticked. “Don’t lie to me. That bruise wasn’t there when you left for counseling this morning, and you don’t have combat today. So tell me, how did it get there?”
“I ran into a fist. I’m fine.” I shrugged.
The air was suddenly charged, pricking my skin. “Whose fist?” he bit out.
“It doesn’t matter.”
A strange tension in the air pressed against my skin for a beat before it vanished.
His eyes narrowed. “Then you won’t mind telling me who put it there.”
Dark skies, he was persistent. “Fine, one of Tamina’s cronies.”
“Which one?”
I threw up my hands. “I don’t know. Now, can we drop it?” I held his gaze steadily and arched a brow.
He smiled coolly. “Consider it dropped.”
Just like that? After he’d pushed so hard? Hard to believe, but I’d take the reprieve. I had more important things to worry about. “I actually wanted to ask you something. Do you know a Selina Evergreen?”
He shook his head. “No. Should I?”
“She was a student here. Maybe still is.”
He smiled wryly. “There are and have been many students here.”
“She was in Bramble at some point.”
He frowned. “I would remember her if she’d been in Bramble.”
“She definitely was.”
“Like I said, I would remember.”
“I found her journal.” I filled him in on what I’d read and my sleepwalking dreams.
He leaned back against his desk, arms crossed, his attention focused on me as he listened. I stumbled through my account, hyper aware of every moment his gaze dropped to my lips. The heat of that awareness coiled low in my belly, a far contrast to the cool, collected figure that he presented.
