“Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“What is the chance that he can kill me in the ring?”
Dad stayed quiet.
“Dad?” My heart pounded.
“With releasing your abilities,” he shook his head. “But he is more than just his abilities. He can still tear your limbs apart.”
I got what he was saying. I could die.
“Hey, have faith that you will succeed.”
“Dad, it boils back to what he is. They are not just abilities, they are beasts, with teeth and scales, and tails and legs the size of trees.”
“They try to stop it if they see it going that way. You will come out of that ring alive, I promise, Elena.”
I nodded, and he gave me a one arm hug. “I know you want to go to this orientation thing, but so close to the claiming, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Are you kidding me now?”
“Elena, Micha only has one more week with us, and then she has to go back. Use this week. Next year you are going to be there every single day, away from me.”
My face fell. “It’s not why I wanted to go. I just need to be with people around my age, try to make friends. They say orientation is where everyone makes their friends, Dad.”
“You will have plenty of friends, I promise. You are not like those kids. They need orientation. You are going to walk next year through those doors and everyone is going to know who you are. You can choose your friends.”
I nodded.
My entire body deflated, but Dad was right. I only had Micha for seven more days. I needed to use it as best I could.
37
BLAKE
Six more days and Elena would face me in that ring. I tried not to think what my dragon form was going to do to her. I just prayed that she would walk out of that ring on Saturday alive.
I forced it to the back of my mind as she was going to come tomorrow for orientation week. I would see her for an entire week and I could work on fixing the bond.
I couldn’t wait to show her I wasn’t that asshole that night at Longbottoms.
I also told Isaac to do everything in his power to get the pre-show gig at Saturday’s claiming. I needed that gig to show her just how important she was to me.
The door opened and Lucian walked in with his bag.
“Blake.” He didn’t look at me as he walked over to his bed and plopped his bag on it.
Oh, fuck.“What did you do?”
He laughed. “Nothing. She kicked my ass.”
“What?” Hope warmed my core. She kicked his ass.
“They put me in the ring with her. Micha is training her.”
“Micha Le Clerk!” My eyes grew. She was one of the ancient’s guards. A ruthless Dragonian and rumors had it she would be the one to chase me when the darkness consumed me completely.
