“Someone accused you of murder?” This sounds like a story I want to hear. I slide my hand down her arm and interlace our fingers to lead her down the hall. I may not get to claim her yet, but not touching her would be torture.
“Syrinx, she’s the headmistress at the Ivy,” she says, though this is something I already knew. Foley is obsessed with the banshee. If I didn’t know he hated her, I would think he loved her. “I’m not even sure who was killed or what happened, only that she thought I had something to do with it.”
“I’m gathering you didn’t.”
She follows me up the stairs and down the hall without question, still rambling on about being interrogated. Frostburn has its own truth detectors. I’ve never been questioned by any of them, but I imagine it’s intrusive at the very least. I wouldn’t want someone poking around in my head. The pack uses different methods to know if someone is telling the truth, and not everyone survives it.
Reining my thoughts in, I return my focus to her comment. It’s curious that she mentioned her ability being part of the cause of this, and bythis, I’m assuming she means being sent here. From what I saw in the field, I can’t believe she was forced toleave the Ivy because she isn’t strong enough to be there, so what else could it be?
“What does your ability have to do withthis?” I put emphasis on the word she used then realize we’re quickly approaching the elite common area. We won’t have the luxury of privacy again until we’re tucked into our room after I get rid of Jeh.
“I—”
“Hold that thought,” I interrupt before sauntering through the shared space of the elites. There are only a few others out of their rooms since it’s so late—or early. I thought she might sleep in the hall all night, and I didn’t have the heart to wake her, especially not when she had her fingers locked around my hair as if she was afraid I was going to disappear.
The moment Briar realizes we’re no longer alone, her demeanor shifts. The sweet girl who invited my wolf to eat her stiffens from her head down to her boots, seeming more alert. My beast notices, prowling at the edges of my awareness, ready to react to the perceived threat she’s responding to, but also aware of the fact that she let her guard down with us.
I glance down, watching the way the light rolls down her silky dark hair as we move deeper into the dorm. Her gaze leaps to mine in question, and my heart skips a beat. Gods, how can she rearrange my insides with a look?
Her little fingers tighten around my hand in a show of silent support. A rumble eases from my chest as my mating musk perfumes the air around us. I can’t help my body’s reaction to her. It would be like telling my heart not to pump or my lungs to stop working.
Briar’s pupils dilate, and she tips her head back to scent the air. The way her body softens and her eyelids lower when she drops her chin nearly sends me into a fucking spiral of lust. Not only do I get to witness her response to me, but thanks to my beast, I can also smell the desire rolling off her.
“Damn,” a deep voice crones, reminding me I’m not the only one with strong senses. At least half the residents on this floor are getting a lesson in shifter bonding. It’s not exactly a secret, but it’s not something we advertise either. Even knowing that, I can’t dampen my response to her. Merely the thought of toning it down pisses off my beast. With sharp clarity, he communicates,Mine,and I understand the intent behind it. Whether we can claim Briar or not right now, he wants everyone to know she belongs to us, and if covering her in our scent does that, then hell yes, I’m down.
I look at the small crowd of onlookers, and I know it isn’t justmyeyes they see staring back at them, but also those of my wolf, daring them to whisper another word. Most of the gazes drop the moment they collide with mine, recognizing the power I have, but a few linger longer than my beast and I would normally tolerate. I take note of each face in case they cause a problem later. Some of them I’ve considered allies, while others I wouldn’t consider strong or reliable enough to call soldiers. It just proves their stupidity. There is a reason Foley, the headmaster, panders to me, and it isn’t because of my last name—it’s because I am the strongest at Frostburn, and he knows it.
Before I can reach my room, Jeh pulls the door open. Confusion colors his features for a brief moment, pinching his expression, until his watchful gaze lowers to my hand, which is still tangled with Briar’s. The color bleeds from the other shifter’s face, turning him as ashen as the snow blanketing the rocks outside.
“You’ll need to find another bed,” is all I say as we breeze past the stunned shifter to our room, but behind me, I hear a distinct curse come from Lana. She knows she’s the weakest of the elite, which means she may be getting demoted back to the nest.
The door shuts behind us with a definite snap. I don’t give a fuck who sleeps in what bed as long as Briar is in mine.
BRIAR
Sunny kicks the door closed, shutting out all the prying eyes. I take a second to look around the space. There are two beds placed on opposite sides of the room, but they are still only separated by a few feet and a small, uncovered window. There’s ice on the outside pane, but the room is warmer than the hall by several degrees, proving my theory about body heat and a small space.
Sunny’s scent is strong in here—not nearly as powerful as it was just outside, but I know he spends a great deal of time in this space. Our hands are still joined, and I don’t try to change that, not even when he sweeps his free arm out. “Welcome, princess. It’s no Ashcroft Manor, but I hope it’s satisfactory for now.”
“I wouldn’t even know how to pretend to be a princess, and this… this is more than I could have hoped for. They didn’t have separate rooms in the dregs or the nest, just bunks spaced out in a big room.”
“You never belonged in either of those places. I doubt very much you belong here.”
A ping of worthlessness causes my breath to catch, but I can’t really argue either. “I guess even the weak can be fodder for the gods.”
“Weak?” He pulls his head back. “You are far from weak, but that’s not what I meant. You shouldn’t have to prove yourself here or anywhere else,” he explains, and I soften even more toward him.
It’s a nice sentiment, but not one based in reality. “I don’t know about you, but I grew up in Rale, not in a fairy tale.”
“Isn’t Rale on the border of Osier?” He takes my other hand, and it’s like he just connected a circuit. His touch vibrates through my bones, sinking into my very soul. It’s easier to understand now that I know what’s happening, but it doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.
My stomach twists, and I can’t tell why. Is it nerves, guilt, fear, excitement, or all of the above? “You know it? It feels like we’re on the other side of the world now.”
“We pretty much are. Frostburn borders the opposite side of the realm.”
I don’t know if it’s better or worse to know how far from home I actually am. The moment the thought forms, I realize I never really had a home to begin with—only way stations, stops along my journey in pursuit of a home. Maybe I will never find it.
I grip Sunny’s hands harder, feeling completely adrift. “We won’t be here forever,” he promises softly, as if he knows how strange it is to be so far from everything he’s ever known. Maybe he’s homesick too.
