"I'm sure," he said. "But his father isn't a joke. People say my mom's bad, or that Luka's mom is bad. I mean, she is a princess of hell."
My eyes widened. I'd never discussed Luka's family with him but now I was thinking I needed to. If his mom was royalty, didn’t that make him the same? What had I gotten myself into? Luka and I needed to have a serious talk. Soon.
I sighed. It didn't change anything. I knew I'd be with both of them no matter what their parents were like.
Matt leaned closer. "Ben's dad is so much worse than either of them. You need to be careful."
My throat bobbed. Ben himself had tried to warn me but I'd blown it off. Now that we were sneaking around the school and people were starting to find out, I was a little nervous.
"Thanks for looking out for me," I said.
"You know where to find us if you ever need anything," he said, a forced smile on his lips. "I can't say I'm happy that you chose someone else over me, but I'm still here if you need me."
It was a rare, real moment with Matt. Usually, he was all self-confidence and laughter. I'd never seen this side of him before. And honestly, it was both terrifying and sexy as hell.
"See you later tonight." He turned and walked away before I could process what just happened.
It seemed the word was getting out about me and Ben. And that Matt was still interested in me even after I'd been blowing him off.
Things at the Academy were never easy. Complicated was a way of life here.
30
Raven
I skipped dinner that night. I wasn't sure yet how to handle the Ben situation until I knew how many people were on to us. Instead, I grabbed a few snacks from the stash in my desk drawer.
Swiss cake rolls and beef jerky sure weren't healthy, but they were perfect when you were trying to work out what the hell you'd gotten yourself into.
I knew I couldn't walk away from Luka or Ben. Ever. We were connected, bonded in a supernatural way that I didn't want to break. But that didn't make it easier to comprehend. I'd been raised in the human world with most of the world telling me I got one partner.
It was odd because the concern from Matt wasn't over the fact that I was with two males, it was regarding the dangerous family one of them came from. Though, it turned out Luka's mom was apparently pretty badass. I sure hoped she liked mages.
Even Ben and Luka, who hated each other, were going along with it. For me. It was a lot to wrap my head around.
I woke with a start to someone pounding on my door. My room was dark and I knocked the box of cake rolls to the ground when I crawled off my bed.
Running a hand through my hair, I walked toward the door. "Who is it?"
"Makayla," she hissed in a loud whisper. "Raven, open up."
I flipped on the light and then opened the door, letting my friend in.
"You look like hell," she said. "What happened? Did one of those assholes say something to you?"
"I fell asleep. Wait, what assholes?" I asked.
"The Obscura twins stopped by the common room after dinner and asked to talk to Ben," she said.
I lifted my eyebrows in surprise. "Seriously?"
She nodded. "I didn't get to hear the conversation, but Ben was pissed when they left. I was surprised he didn't shift and chase them down."
I scrubbed my face with my hand. "Fuck."
"You weren't in here because of them, were you?" she asked. "Oh, love, the snack cakes? What happened?"
I walked over to the box and scooped the fallen cellophane wrapped cakes back into it and then offered the box to Makayla. "Want one?"
She held up a hand. "No, thank you."
I set the box on my desk. "Matt stopped by after gym."
"And?"
"And he told me he knew about Ben," I said.
"That asshole," Makayla said. "You can't trust those mages."
I cleared my throat.
"Present company excepted," she said.
"He didn't threaten anything and I don't think he'd tell people, but if he figured it out, everyone probably has." I narrowed my eyes at her. "Wait, I never told you about Ben."
She smiled sheepishly. "He told me."
"Of course, he did," I said.
"But just because I'm his best friend, doesn't mean I'm not yours, too," she said.
"I don't want to put you in the middle of anything," I said.
"You're not," she said. "Ben didn't even tell me what the twins told him."
"It probably had to do with the fact that they're worried about me," I said.
"Worried? Ben could kick anyone's ass who tried to hurt you," I said.
"Except his father, apparently," I said.
She was quiet for a moment. "Yeah, there is that."
"Is he really that bad?" I asked.
She nodded, her expression grim.
I supposed there were perks to not being plugged into the supernatural world. If I knew everything about Ben's dad, would I have tried to stay away from him? Would it have even worked? Somehow, I doubted it.
"Well, I guess we'll have to figure out how to deal with that once we get there." I glanced at my clock. It was almost midnight. "But now, I guess we should get going before everyone else comes looking for me."
"Just be careful around the twins," she said. "I don't trust mages."
"Again, mage here," I said.
She winced. "I always forget you're a mage. You're not like the rest of them."
"Yet, Ben's murderous dad is okay?"
"No, he's not," she said. "But none of us are our parents."
"True," I said. Those were heavy words. I didn't remember my parents, but they were apparently very powerful and well liked. I wish I knew them. I'd been left instead with someone I didn't ever want to be like.
I grabbed a hair tie and pulled my hair into a messy bun. "Ready?"
"Let's go." Makayla opened the door for us.
We walked quietly through the dungeon and crept through the silent halls of the school. Occasionally, I heard the sound of students talking in the distance, but we never encountered anyone on our walk to the gym.
The gym was on the opposite end of the school from the cafeteria, common room and other social gathering places. This time of day, it was a ghost town.
Luka, Jessica, and Starla were already waiting for us.
"Hey, kitten, you okay?" Luka asked.
"Yeah, I decided to rest for a minute on my bed..." I let the words trail off.
"Took a nap, huh?" Jessica asked.
"Yep. Thankfully Makayla came to get me."
I heard the sound of footsteps and turned to see Ben walking over to us with Jamal. He avoided eye contact with me which told me the twins had probably talked about our relationship with him.
With the practice trials hanging over our heads, dealing with relationship issues was the last thing I wanted to think about. I pushed the thought away and turned away from Ben. I would deal with it later.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed more people walking toward us. I looked up to see the twins.
"You invited them?" Luka asked.
"They heard about it somehow," I said. "Better to have them in on it than telling others, right?"
"Did they threaten that?" Luka asked without taking his eyes off of them. He didn't look happy.
"No, they didn't, they just asked to come. They're my friends and they have helped me a lot."
Luka blew out a breath and then turned to look at me. "You're right. I'm grateful to them for helping you with your magic."
"Is that everyone?" Makayla asked.
"I think so," I said.
"No more surprise guests?" Luka asked.
"Not from me," I said.
"Well, here goes," Luka said, holding up a key card. "I'm guessing you all figured out why we're here. I swiped this from the office. Figured it wouldn't hurt to get a peek at what they had in store for us."
"You know this will get us kicked out if we're caught," Makayla sa
id.
"You want to fail the trials again at the last minute?" Jessica said.
"No, I'm just reminding you all. If we get caught, get yourself out. Nobody try to be a hero," she said.
"Good point," I said. "Don't linger, just run."
"Here we go." Luka slid the card into the slot by the door and the light turned green.
All of us filed into the gym and my jaw dropped open in surprise as I stared at the transformation. It no longer looked like a gym. Instead, it was like something out of a reality television show. Climbing walls and zip lines and tunnels filled with who knew what.
In the dim light of the emergency lights, the whole thing looked like something humans would do to prove their athletic prowess. The thing was, on top of that, there would be magical elements added.
From somewhere in the back of the room, something growled. Low and threatening, the sound was joined by several more growls.
And it wasn't coming from any of my friends.
We weren't alone.
31
Raven
"Please tell me that was one of you wolves," Luka said.
"You know it wasn't," Ben said.
"Are there usually other creatures in the trials?" I asked. "Or guards?"
"There weren't last year," Luka said.
"You snuck in here last year and still didn't pass," Makayla said.
"Hey, some of us didn't want to graduate right away," he said.
"Alright, everyone stop arguing. We should go before whatever it is finds us," I said in a loud whisper.
"Too late," Starla said. "Run."
I turned toward her voice and my mouth dropped open in shock. There was a dragon looking down at us. A fucking dragon. It opened its mouth and roared.
Someone grabbed my arm and pulled. I turned and ran, Ben dragging me along with him.
We raced toward the door we'd come in. A rush of air passed overhead and the dragon landed in front of the door, roaring again. The sound made every hair on my body stand on edge.
"Dragons are fucking real?" I screamed as we took off running in the opposite direction.
Nobody answered and I didn't really expect them to. It was obvious from our current situation that dragons were fucking real, but it was still a lot to take in. You'd think humans would know if dragons existed. How the fuck did they keep them hidden all this time?
I risked a glance behind me and saw a second dragon swoop in and join the first. They both screeched in unison as if communicating something. I wasn't sure I wanted to know what it was.
Grateful for all the running I'd been doing the last few months, I kept pace with Ben as we bolted around a climbing wall and around a few platforms.
I caught a glimpse of the rest of our friends as they dove under a structure. Tugging Ben's hand, I dragged him in that direction so we could catch up to the others.
We slid under a platform structure just as the first round of fire blasted the gym floor. I tucked my legs under me to move farther into the back of the little enclosure.
Panting, I looked around at the terrified faces of my friends. "Anyone got a plan?"
"Can't you use fire?" Makayla asked.
"Yeah, but that's a dragon," I said.
"I'm going to cause a distraction," Luka said. "The rest of you, run."
"Luka!" I shouted after him as he darted toward the dragon.
"Come on," Ben said, grabbing my arm.
The dragons flapped their wings, sending stray hair flying into my face. I turned toward them staring in horror as they followed Luka.
"Run, Raven," Ben pulled me toward him but I was paralyzed. I couldn't leave Luka like that.
The rest of the group ran toward the door, reaching it before I even moved.
"We can't leave him, Ben," I said.
"Fuck." Ben dropped my arm. "Come on, then."
The two of us raced toward the dragons. Luka was running up a ramp, ducking from another round of fire. He disappeared and I screamed. "Luka!"
My heart pounded against my ribs and I felt my own magic rising to the threat. It surged through me, demanding that I release it. I breathed in through my nose, doing my best to keep the time magic contained. At least my lessons with Professor Halifax had helped me with that. A few weeks ago, I would have already frozen time on instinct.
Next to me, I heard a familiar growl and I turned to see a huge wolf where Ben had been. He took off, moving faster than I ever could even with all the running practice I'd had lately.
He charged one of the dragons, snapping at its leg.
"Ben, be careful," I yelled. My heart felt like it was splitting in two. On one hand, I had Luka somewhere nearby, possibly hurt. On the other hand there was Ben actively chasing down a fucking dragon.
I stopped moving, trying to decide where to go next. I couldn't choose between them any more than I could choose to breathe.
Suddenly, a fireball shot past me and I lunged to the side, risking a glance behind me. I expected a dragon, but what I got instead was the twins.
Both of them were facing down the dragon that had turned on Ben.
"Go get Luka," Matt said. "We've got the dragons."
I nodded. At least Ben was getting help.
The second dragon flew over me, joining his friend just as Matt and Zach arrived next to Ben. The three of them had a chance, I supposed.
Moving fast again, I raced toward the drop off where I'd last seen Luka.
It didn't take long to find him. He was on the ground and he wasn't moving. A pool of blood was spreading away from him, leaving a red stain on the floor.
"No." I felt like my heart had been ripped out through my chest. He had to be okay. He just had to be.
I ran to him, collapsing onto my knees at his side. "Luka, say something. Please be alive. You have to be alive."
He didn't move.
I pressed my fingertips to his neck, feeling for a pulse as I watched his chest for signs of breathing. His pulse was weak, but it was there.
Leaning down, I moved my ear above his mouth, listening for breath. It came, but it was strained and rattling. I wasn't a doctor but even I knew he was running out of time.
"Raven."
I turned to see Ben. He was covered in blood and his clothes were burned and falling apart. But he was standing and he was taking to me. I allowed myself a second of relief for his safety before turning back to Luka.
"We have to get out of here," Ben said. "The twins got the dragons back in their pen. We have to go now before they break out again."
"He's dying, Ben," I said. "I don't know what to do."
Ben dropped down next to Luka and pressed his fingers to his neck. "He still has a pulse. He probably needs to feed."
"Like sex?" I asked.
Ben slid his arms under Luka and lifted him. Luka's head rolled back, his eyes still closed.
"Ben we can't let him die, please, you have to help me," I said, tears welling up in my eyes.
"Come on," he said. "I have an idea."
I followed Ben to the gym doors where Matt and Zach were holding them open for us.
"Is he?" Matt asked.
"Not yet," Ben said. "But he doesn't have long."
Ben turned and walked toward the nearest door, the women's locker room. "Open the door."
I opened the door and held it while Ben carried Luka in. He paused just inside the room and turned back to the twins. "I need you two to let us know if anyone shows up."
"You got it," Matt said.
My heart swelled as I looked at the twins. They'd come back for us and they were still helping. I owed them more than they'd ever know.
"Thank you," I said.
"Go, help your friend," Zach said. "We've got this."
I nodded then followed Ben into the locker room.
He set Luka down on the ground inside the massive group shower, then he turned to me. "You're going to need to get him some magic."
I looked at Luka. He was laying there unresponsive.
How was I supposed to do anything to help him?
"Kiss him," Ben said.
Leaning over the injured demon, I pressed my lips to his. Then, I cupped his cheeks and gently kissed his forehead. He took a breath and it sounded better than it had before.
I looked up at Ben. "I think it helped."
"He needs more." Ben moved closer to me and then grabbed the back of my head, pulling me in for a kiss.
I broke away from him and looked at him, my eyes wide. "Now is not the time."
"It's exactly the time," Ben said. "He feeds off sexual energy. Not just his. But those around him. You want to save him?"
"Of course I do."
"Then kiss me." Ben pulled me into another kiss, pressing his lips hard against mine.
My body responded almost instantly as tingles shot right to my core. I leaned into him and weaved my fingers into his hair.
32
Raven
Ben's hand slid up under my shirt and my skin felt like it was on fire from his touch. Heat spread through me and my desperation climbed. Just from his touch.
Quickly, I worked the buttons of my shirt and shrugged it off, leaving me sitting there on the shower floor in my bra. Ben's large hands cupped my breasts. One of his hands traveled up to my neck then went around to the back of my head, pushing me deeper into the kiss.
His other hand left my breast, and I whined into his mouth, missing his touch. He grabbed hold of my hand and guided it to Luka, then he broke away from the kiss.
"Kiss him," Ben said.
Panting and already wet from Ben, I turned back to Luka and lowered my mouth to his.
This time, he stirred under my kiss, turning slightly toward me. I moved my hand to his chest, then lower until I reached his cock. It was already hard through his pants.
I pulled away and Luka blinked up at me. Laughing, I planted another kiss on him.
"Easy, kitten," he said.
Slowly, he sat up and I could see the wound on his head where the blood had come from. His blonde hair was matted and filthy.
Gently, I touched the injury. "We need to get you to the hospital."
Academy of the Elites: Broken Magic Page 14
