I recognized the name immediately. Aiden rarely ever spoke about his family, but I recognized the name from his official file. Eliza Reece, his sister. That was why they looked so much alike. Under the floating orbs, her eyes had caught the light to look golden like his, but as she tilted her head, I saw they were actually a calculating, piercing hazel. Other than that, the resemblance was uncanny.
The same immaculate bone structure, the same sandy blonde hair—hers styled into a flawless, razor-sharp bob.
A heavy, suffocating dread settled in my stomach, making the delicious smells of the Great Hall suddenly nauseating. It felt as if the universe was actively toying with me, writing a sick cosmicjoke just for its own amusement. I’d flown across a fucking ocean. I’d ripped my own heart out, stretched a soul-bond until it bled, and abandoned everything I knew just to get away from him. Only to come face to face with the female version of his face—a face I was going to have to see every single day.
“You okay, Jupiter?” Rowan asked softly, leaning forward to catch my eye. His dark curls fell slightly over his shoulder.
“Yeah,” I lied, tearing my eyes away from Eliza and focusing on my water glass. “Just... realized who she is. Aiden’s sister.”
A heavy silence fell over our section of the table. James paused with his fork halfway to his mouth, his scarred face tightening. Lucas’s jaw clenched so hard I could see the muscle jumping beneath his beard. Even Phoenix seemed to swell in size, shifting his massive frame so that he effectively blocked my line of sight to the other table.
“She is,” Lucas confirmed through gritted teeth. “She’s the axis for the Riftward Shield. The two meatheads bracketing her are part of her unit.”
“And she’s a piece of work,” James added.
“Aiden mentioned they didn’t get along. He said she was obsessed with status. He has other sisters too, and from what I gathered, they’re not close.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” Theo muttered. “She sees relationships as transactional. She spent years maneuvering her way to the top of the social hierarchy at Imperium. And now, the famous thirteenth zodiac drops right into her lap, stealing the spotlight without even trying.”
“She hates you already,” Rowan said with a rueful, apologetic smile. “Not because of who you are,remember that.”
I groaned, rubbing my aching temples. “Perfect. Just what I needed. More drama.”
‘I can bite,’ Noodle suggested helpfully, his head poking out from the collar of my long coat. ‘Just a taste.’
“No biting, Noodle,” I murmured under my breath, though the image of Eliza Reece swelling up like a balloon brought a brief, vindictive spark of joy to my soul.
“Familiar?” Lucas asked, his gaze softening as he looked at the black mamba.
“Yeah. This is Noodle.”
“How old is he?” Theo asked, trying to get a better view of Noodle’s body.
“He’s only three, so he’s not very big yet. But he’s damn fast and sneaky, so watch your backs.” I patted Nood on the head.
“He’s a pretty snake,” Phoenix said, offering a small piece of roasted chicken from his plate. Noodle eyed it, then darted forward to snatch it from the giant man’s fingers with lightning speed. Phoenix chuckled. “We’re going to get along just fine.”
Dinner went on, and the Stardust Shield did an admirable job of distracting me. They filled my plate with foods I wasn’t used to eating at regular dinners—shepherd’s pie, roasted root vegetables, and thick cuts of meat that actually tasted incredible, despite my waning appetite.
They explained the labyrinthine politics of Imperium, detailing which professors to avoid, which pathways to take, and so on. Whenever my gaze started to drift toward Eliza’s corner of the room, one of them would effortlessly draw my attention back. But she lingered in the back of my mind.
They operated like a well-oiled machine, completely in sync with each other, and surprisingly attuned to me for some weird reason. It was admittedly intoxicating, and also freaking terrifying. I recognized the dynamic all too well. It was the same seamless coordination the Nightfall Shield had. It was as if they were five parts of one whole person.
Stop it! They aren’t Nightfall. And you aren’t looking for a damn replacement.
As the meal wound down and students began filing out of the Great Hall, Lucas stood. “We should get you back to your room. You look like you’re about to fall asleep sitting up.”
“I am pretty exhausted,” I admitted, pushing my chair back.
Lucas stood first, the others following his lead. “Training at six tomorrow. We usually have the combat hall to ourselves that early. You’re welcome to join us.”
“I might take you up on that.”
The prospect of training with people who didn’t look at me like I was contaminated was appealing.
“I’ll walk you back to your tower,” Phoenix offered as we left the table. “The grounds can be confusing at night.”
People kept saying that, as if I’d never walked a dark campus before. Was this place really so old and untamed that the very grounds were out to get me? I almost declined. I’d never been one to need an escort, but something in his expression stopped me. It was… genuine kindness, and I wasn’t going to turn my nose up at it.
