I wait for several long moments after they clear the doorway to trail after them in an effort to make sure they don’t realize they are being followed. I’m honestly a little surprised Ziv didn’tnotice I was in the room, but he didn’t seem to be aware of me at all. Keeping myself swathed in shadows, I track the two of them down to the main floor, then over to the dorms. It’s going to get much harder to monitor them without anyone’s knowledge, so I fall back with hopes that the abnormality of her being shown to her room by our head combat instructor in the wee hours of the morning will cause enough of a stir to get people talking about them, and they won’t notice me stalking them.
When I was biding my time earlier, before I could return to her, I scoped out the dorms, looking for vacant rooms they may put her in. With that information in mind, I make the quick decision to head to one of the halls that had two unoccupied rooms, but before I break away, I notice a few novices still lingering in the halls, tempting the fates by being out of their room at this hour. As Ziv and Briar walk down the hall ahead of me, I catch more students emerging from their rooms instead of running for cover, confirming I was right about her arrival causing a stir in the dorms.
I go unnoticed as I blend with the others peering out doors and blatantly standing in the halls. The news of her arrival travels fast through the ranks, ensuring almost everyone is out of their rooms. My creature keeps her head up and her eyes trained straight ahead, allowing me to get a good long look at her delicate features and sharp gold eyes.
Whispers follow in their wake. Some are questioning why Ziv is escorting her, while others seem more interested in who she is and where she came from. I find myself holding my breath the closer she gets. Every cell in my body is fighting to announce myself to her, and to snarl at everyone sneering at her back with suspicion.
I exhale like I just took a hit to my gut when her eyes dart in my direction, and her golden irises gleam with something like recognition. Every fiber of my being is keyed to her as if shetrapped the breath in my chest. I find it impossible to look away, even as she continues to stroll past me, breaking the connection. It’s not until she and Ziv turn the corner, heading toward one of the other empty rooms, that I actually start to breathe again. It takes effort to keep my feet rooted to the spot, even as the questions of who and what she is grow louder and more insistent.
I barely remember walking back to my room. All I can think about is her eyes on mine, as if she knew me or felt the connection we share. My guts feel like someone just shoved a corkscrew down my throat and gave them a mix. I don’t know if I want to throw up or peel my skin off. The one thing I know is that I want to see her again, and I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to fight the urge.
BRIAR
The deeper we get into the residence halls, the more of a spectacle I become. Figures scurry out of rooms to openly stare at me, and Ziv does nothing to dissuade them from doing so. I keep my eyes locked on the space ahead of me, not making eye contact with anyone or even acknowledging them until we round a corner and deep blue skin catches my attention. The image of the male from my thoughts solidifies, bringing him into focus. He’s stunning in an otherworldly way. His eyes glow an eerie purple much lighter than his rich skin tone and are offset by his inky shaggy hair. He doesn’t have a pupil, but I know he’s returning my gaze without question. My stomach drops, and I swallow convulsively, untilit’s as if my body can’t remember what I’m supposed to be doing anymore.
I force myself to break eye contact when I move past him, even though I’m tempted to turn my head to keep him within sight for a moment or two longer. When we finally turn the corner ahead, my shoulders sag in what I’m going to call relief, even though I don’t really have the proper words to describe it.
Ziv shifts his attention to me long enough to relay the fact that he noticed my distraction, but he doesn’t question me about it. If I were braver, I might ask him to confirm that was Kage, the male who found me, but I’m not.
It takes me a heartbeat to realize Ziv has stopped, so I end up taking a step too far and nearly colliding with his shoulder and arm, but thankfully, my body reacts for me, almost repelling me back with the memory of his strange touch fresh in my head. I turn my attention to the door he’s standing in front of. There’s a small window above my eye level, with an iron cage barring it. If I had to bet, it’s to keep whatever’s inside there, not to stop anyone from getting in.
“It’s for your protection,” Ziv mutters under his breath so only I can hear him, but his effort is wasted since we’re alone now. There are no prying eyes watching my every move…at least that I can see anyway. There are other closed doors with similar protection cages, and for all I know, there are monsters behind each window, biding their time to escape. The bars on the window don’t make me feel safe, they remind me I’m trapped.
The large male beside me grasps the iron ring hanging from the door and turns his wrist before shoving the heavy door open, revealing a dark room. I glance over at him, wondering if he’s expecting me to walk blindly inside and dreading the thought I might not have a choice. He seems to sense my unease and enters ahead of me. His back is swallowed up within two steps, but only for a breath. Light flickers to life, illuminatingthe sparsely appointed room. The space is small but still much more than I could have hoped for back home, where I had to share a room with a number of people. I won’t get into why I was appreciative of that on most occasions, because my head is already in a dark enough space for now.
I scan the room, purposely avoiding Ziv, who seems to be taking in the sight as much as I am as he spins to assess the room. The wood floor is worn smooth but clean, the bed under the single window is wide enough for two people, and the mattress looks much thicker than the one I was lying on upstairs.
“Is there someone else staying here?” I glance at the wardrobe and the small desk, wondering if I’m missing their belongings.
“No, it will just be you. Why do you ask?” From the corner of my eye, I see Ziv squinting at me in confusion. He probably thinks I’m an idiot. Clearly the room was empty before my arrival.
“The bed is huge, but I’d rather take the floor than share it with a stranger,” I answer to give some sort of explanation, even if it makes me look foolish.
He looks over his shoulder and softly mutters, “It’s less than half the size of mine,” then adds, “These rooms are usually held for those who are more…” He glances back at me again and tilts his head. “Larger.” I get the impression he was going to saymore powerfuland corrected himself, but it’s unnecessary. I know my place, and it will never be among the powerful.
“You may place your things in…” He trails off, only now remembering I don’t have any items to place anywhere. “I will have some things delivered for you,” he amends.
“I’ll manage,” I reply dismissively. I don’t want to be indebted to him or anyone else, nor do I have a way to payhim back anyway, because I don’t think they will pay me for myservicesany more than my father did.
The tension in the room only grows from that moment. I take a chance and look over at him, because the heavy silence is too much to bear. When our gazes collide, he slowly states, “I will have things delivered for you.”
I don’t argue with him this time, since his tone offers no room for it. Instead, I drop my gaze, pretending to find the floor very interesting.
“Little flower,” he calls, dragging my attention back to him. He waits several long seconds before speaking, as if to make sure I’m paying attention, or maybe he just wants to make me wait. “I’m going to get you something to eat.” I open my mouth to object, but he silences me with a look. “Do not open the door for anyone but me, do you understand?”
I nod quickly. I’d probably agree to just about anything right now, especially if it means I’m going to get some food. “Tomorrow, I will show you the mess hall. The student facilities are closed for the night.”
“Okay,” I agree again.
“Don’t open the door for anyone else,” he reminds me. I’m starting to wonder who he’s worried about, but I don’t question him. With one final glare in my direction, Ziv pulls the heavy door open and exits the room. I notice he ducks his head when passing through the doorframe—good thing, too, because I’m certain he would have gotten a nasty goose egg on his forehead if he hadn’t.
I spin once the door is closed behind him, taking advantage of my time alone to inspect the room. I leave no door or drawer unopened but find nothing for my efforts, other than a dust bunny or two under the bed in the far back corner when I flip up the blanket. Just as I prepare to rise, I notice a floorboard that’s a little higher than all the others. I drop down onto my belly andreach under the bed, only to hear a loud knock at the door. I hop up so fast, I end up smacking my knee on the side of the bed and have to bite my lip to keep from yelping in pain.
When the knock sounds again, even louder this time, I balk. I don’t even know if I’m supposed to answer it. People didn’t knock at my father’s house, they barged in, as privacy wasn’t something many of us were afforded. I limp toward the door and lift up on my toes to peer out the square window, but I’m not tall enough to see out properly.
“Briar?” Ziv’s deep voice, edged with a tremor of urgency, rings through the wood at the same time the sound of the handle twisting registers. I don’t move back fast enough and end up getting bowled over by the door.
He looks even taller when I look up from the floor after landing on my ass. I think I must have caught him off guard, or at the very least startled him, because his liquid silver eyes are comically large for the briefest moment before he lets out a string of curses that would sear a demon’s horns.
