by K. G. Reuss
And there it was. The reason for his appearance. Eric must not have had accurate information. He’d said I wouldn’t be in trouble. This was definitely me in trouble. Huffing out a breath, I focused again on the candle. I put it in my mind that if I did it, I’d get it over with and then get whatever he was going to yell at me for out of the way.
Burn, baby, burn!
The candle ignited, making me jump in surprise. I did it! I jumped up and down in excitement, clapping my hands while I squealed like one of those ditzy cheerleaders in the movies Nina loved so much. Screw it. I’d done it. I didn’t care if Mr. No Smiles cared about my excitement.
“Excellent, Miss Torres!” Professers Davis and Hall exclaimed, coming over to me quickly with wide smiles on their faces.
“This one has caster blood in her!” Professor Hall rubbed her hands excitedly. I watched as Professor Davis made marks on his check sheet, the grin still embedded on his face.
“Professors, if you’d excuse us, I’d like a moment alone with Miss Torres,” Raiden broke through their excitement in his monotone. They nodded happily and moved away from us.
Raiden nodded his head, indicating for me to follow him. I caught Eric’s eye across the room and gave him a “help me” look. He said something to Damien who looked in our direction before nodding to Eric. Eric gave me a tentative smile, not moving. It made me wish for a moment that I had telepathy, so I could beg him to come rescue me.
“Miss Torres—”
“It’s Ever,” I cut Raiden off as we moved away from the chaos of the center.
“Right. You’ll have to excuse me, Miss Torres. I prefer to keep my relationships with students on a professional level. That includes me addressing them properly.”
“Whatever,” I muttered at him, rolling my eyes. “Is this about me walking out of orientation? Because I worked it out already with Eric—”
“I wanted to discuss your attire with you,” he interrupted me.
My attire? The only thing added to my uniform was my scarf. I had to use it to cover the ugly mark on my neck.
“It’s against school policy and dress code to wear anything not Dementon related on the grounds when classes are in session. Would you care to explain the black scarf around your neck?” His eyes swept over me quickly.
“Actually, General Hawthorne, I don’t care to explain it to you,” I seethed at him. Was he really this uptight? It was a freaking scarf! Not like I was carrying a bag of werewolf heads over my shoulder or something.
He looked like he was grinding his teeth, a muscle popping in his jaw.
“You’ve already nearly gotten yourself into trouble once. Let’s not make this a habit. Please remove the scarf.”
“Or what?” I demanded, my hand flying to my hip. The sudden urge to light his black robes on fire entered my mind. “You’ll give me detention? What are you now? The fashion police?”
“Miss Torres, I’m asking you nicely. Please remove the scarf.”
“No,” I refused, my voice wavering.
In a flash of movement, Raiden’s fingers were on my scarf, tugging it from my neck. My hands immediately shot up to cover the ugly purple mark from the rotwraith attack, but I wasn’t fast enough. Raiden’s lips parted, his eyes zeroed in on the damage.
“The mark on your neck,” his voice was low and hoarse, almost pained. “Is that why you’re wearing the scarf?”
“Yes,” I whispered, my face heating with embarrassment. The last thing I needed was him to think I spent my time necking with guys in dark corners. It seriously looked like an ugly hickey. Beth had gotten one from one of the basketball players sophomore year. It had stuck around for over a week before even starting to fade. I didn’t want to get a reputation on the first day, even though it wasn’t a hickey. Kids were cruel, that much was for sure. If he wasn’t judging me before, he certainly would be now.
“And it’s not what you think. I-it’s not because I was making out with someone and he gave me a hickey,” I rushed on, needing to explain to him. “I-I was attacked coming here. Ask Eric and Damien—”
“I know what happened,” he cut me off in a low voice. “I was there.”
“Oh,” I muttered lamely, eyeing him. I hadn’t seen him there. To be fair, I wasn’t exactly in my right mind near the end.
“I can fix it.” He cleared his throat. “If you’ll let me.”
“How?”
“One of my abilities is healing. I can make it go away. You have to let me touch you though. Can I touch you, Miss Torres?” his words sounded strangled, his voice wavering slightly. Maybe the idea of touching me disgusted him. But if he could fix it, then I could handle his disgust at me.
“Yes. Just don’t hurt me,” I mumbled, fidgeting.
He didn’t say anything, his hands moving forward and cupping my face. I let out a shaky breath as he moved closer, and our eyes locked. Such pretty eyes. Aquamarine with little flecks of gold. Long sooty lashes. I could get lost in eyes like that. Oh, and his smell! Seemed a weird thing to be hooked on, but it was familiar.
Stop fangirling! You’re a nobody to him! Besides, being on his radar is the last thing to be on. Chill!
A surge of warmth flooded through me, making me feel comfortable and content. I closed my eyes, my lips parting as I breathed in deeply, relishing in how good it felt.
When I opened my eyes, he was still cupping my face, a storm brewing on his handsome face. He seemed conflicted, his eyes darkening as they darted down to my still parted lips.
“You could’ve just let me wear the scarf,” I murmured, staring up at him. “Then you wouldn’t have had to touch me and make yourself tired from healing me.”
“Or I could’ve paid closer attention and taken care of this sooner,” he answered, his mouth turned down into a deep frown. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s OK,” I mumbled awkwardly, his hands still on my face. Why did it matter if I had a mark on me? He made it sound like it was a great offense to him, one he needed to apologize for. There was something about the way he touched me that made me not want him to let go. I kicked those ideas unconscious. He certainly hadn’t denied that touching me had been a major inconvenience. That alone made me feel icky.
“Thank you,” I said after he didn't reply.
“You’re welcome,” he answered, finally dropping his hands from me. I frowned at the empty feeling it left behind.
“Am I in trouble?” I ventured, wondering if he was still angry I didn’t take the scarf off when he asked me before. Or maybe he wanted to punish me for orientation. Eric said that I’d probably have one-on-one time with Raiden. This must have been it.
He surveyed me for a moment, seemingly contemplating it, before letting out a sigh.
“No. My job isn’t to really police the fashion here. I just noticed it and didn’t want you to get into trouble. I’m surprised the professors haven’t already said something to you.”
“Well, thanks, I guess,” I said awkwardly, suddenly not knowing what to do with my hands. I decided keeping them at my sides was the best idea. “And thank you, really, for whatever you just did.” I gestured awkwardly to my neck. “It happened to me before when we were attacked a few days ago. Your member, Brandon, I think his name was, came and did that for me in the infirmary after Damien tried sucking the life from me.”
“I should’ve been paying more attention.” Raiden rubbed his eyes tiredly. Suddenly, I was focused on that. He did look exhausted. Definitely far older than his age, which I pegged to be around mine.
“It’s no big deal,” I assured him. “But I’m going to get going now.”
A muscle thrummed along his jaw as he took me in. Clearly it was a big deal. Maybe he got into trouble because I got hurt. Not knowing what else to do, I shifted awkwardly, wondering if I should ask to be excused or just leave. I opted for just leaving.
“Hey,” Raiden said as I moved to walk away. “Good job on that candle. I didn’t take you for a caster.”
I opened
my eyes in surprise. “I thought everyone had a little magic in them.”
“No,” Raiden stated. “That’s just something they say to build confidence. We’re all magical, but not everyone can cast.”
“But you said you weren’t a caster. I don’t understand.”
“I’m not.” He shrugged, not meeting my eyes. “I’m something different.”
“What—”
“You need to get back to classes,” he declared abruptly, his guard back up, his voice stern and authoritative. “And please, keep in mind the dress code, Miss Torres.”
“I’ll see what I can do, General Hawthorne,” I commented with a shrug, sort of wanting to push a few of his buttons myself.
He shook his head, his soft, silver-white hair falling away from his forehead. “It could mean you end up in my office for punishment.”
Feeling braver than I really was and suddenly wanting to taunt him just a little more, I replied, “Don’t threaten me with a good time. I’m a glutton for punishment, General Hawthorne. Maybe I’ll be seeing you sooner than you think.”
I turned away from him right as the smallest of smiles blanketed his lips. Something about that kicked my heartrate up a notch.
I shook my head and walked back to the center to finish up my workshop. The guy blew hot and cold. It was enough to make my head spin.
Eight
Raiden
“What are you smiling about?” Damien asked as we walked out of the workshop.
“Everly,” I supplied, shaking my head, her taunting words on repeat inside. Don’t threaten me with a good time. I’m a glutton for punishment. Her words had nearly stopped my heart, the brave little minx. I hadn’t expected them from her but was pleased when she said them. And if I was being truthful, I was a little more turned on than I should be considering I’d told myself that she was off limits. But man. Her eyes. Her lips. Her sweet innocence. The way my name spilled from her mouth. Her pushing my buttons. Everything about her left me in knots on the inside. I was surprised I’d even been able to get through the conversation alone with her. I’d never been like that before.
“How was your private chat with her?” Damien inquired. “Did you come to your senses and tell her you’re in love with her and want her in your bed after class dismisses?”
“No.” I gave him a fierce look. “And I wouldn’t want that with her—at least not like that.”
“Liar!” Damien snorted. “I know you’re wild, man. You’ve kept us up I don’t know how many times with Amara. You really need to start casting a silence charm on your bedroom.”
Eric let out a soft chuckle at Damien’s words. I didn’t have an answer for him. But I was definitely going to make it a point to put the charm on now, even though I knew I’d never have Everly in my bedroom for any reason.
“Anyway…” I shot Damien another withering look that only made him blink innocently at me. “The conversation was taking a turn for the worse there for a minute.”
“But?” Eric prompted.
“She just took me by surprise, that’s all.” I smiled at the memory. Eric and Damien cast each other knowing looks which made me scowl. “Doesn’t matter though. Hopefully, she’ll keep herself in line here, and our paths won’t cross again.”
“Sure.” Damien nodded. “Keep telling yourself that, Gen.”
Knowing I didn’t really want that to happen, I ignored rebutting it. Maybe just a few run-ins every now and then wouldn’t hurt.
“We need to have a meeting tonight when everyone gets back from classes,” I stated Thursday as I walked with Eric and Damien. We’d just finished the last of the workshops. Silently, I’d watched as Ever seemed to talk more to Eric than work with him. An angry jealous bubble welled up within me when he made her smile. It was even worse when I saw her laugh. All week she’d kept a low profile, her head ducked and her hair masking her pretty face. I observed as she sat with Harper and Abby, trying to assess what was going on inside of her. She wore a tight smile on her face, the laughter never meeting her eyes. Except with Eric. Her eyes lit up with him, making my insides ache.
Everly Torres hadn’t gone unnoticed at Dementon. Countless guys talked about how “hot” she was. Girls eyed her jealously. A few guys actually approached her, but she gave them that fake smile she wore, clearly telling them she wasn’t interested. There was something about seeing her ignore them which made me feel both elated and sad. Elated because she hadn’t fallen for some teenaged, werewolf douchebag yet, and sad because she seemed so distant. So broken. So… not Ever. At least not the girl I thought I knew.
Pushing away all the morose thoughts I had on the subject, I brought myself back to the task at hand. The meeting.
I’d gotten reports via fire message from the Order that small attacks and skirmishes were breaking out north of us. People were getting hurt. Some were even dying. “There’s a mess up north. Wraiths in and out of a small, sleepy town in the Upper Peninsula. We need to get out there sooner rather than later. We need to meet to discuss timing and strategy.”
“You’ll have to do the meeting without me,” Eric said, clearing his throat.
“What?” Damien and I asked in unison. Eric never missed meetings.
“I’m, uh, meeting with Ever tonight.”
“What?” we exclaimed again.
I shook my head. “Why?”
“Well, you told me to be friends with her.” Eric rolled his eyes at me. “I assumed that meant I had to hang out with her randomly. I figured tonight would be a good night for that. I can get to know her better, help her unwind from everything—”
“I bet,” Damien interrupted and smirked knowingly. “Hey, Craft, ask her if she needs her back rubbed. I hear that’s a surefire way under a chick’s skirt—”
“Knock it off!” I snapped, shuddering. My stomach rolled with the thought of anyone, even Eric, touching Ever. “She agreed?”
“Yeah.” Eric let out a breathy, nervous laugh after shooting Damien a scathing look. “She actually seemed really happy about it.”
“And let me guess,” Damien said, grinning like the wolf who ate the canary. “You’re a little happy about it too.”
“Well, yeah,” Eric responded, miffed. His eyes searched mine quickly. “I'm just following my mission.”
“Right.” I gave him a tight nod. “Your mission. We can fill you in on everything when you get back. Just, uh, don’t be gone too late.”
“Yes, Mom.” Eric rolled his eyes at me. “I’ll catch you guys later. I need to get to trig early. I hate getting stuck sitting in the front.” And with that, he loped off across the courtyard, his dark cloak billowing behind him.
“Thoughts?” Damien asked mildly.
“He’s doing his mission.” Maybe if I said it enough it wouldn’t feel like a load of bricks crushing my chest.
“And he’s also happy about it. None of us are ever happy about having to do missions. Something for you to think about.”
“I trust him,” I shot out, my heart clenching.
“I do too,” Damien agreed. “Besides, you made it clear to him, right?”
“Little bit,” I muttered. Damien let out a sigh and shook his head.
“Just tell her the truth. Before things take a turn for the worse. I’m not blind you know. I saw you staring at her all week. In the workshops, the halls, pretty much all over. She’s going to find out anyway—”
“No,” I hissed. “It’ll be fine.”
The only problem was I didn’t know if it would be fine. But I trusted Eric. He needed to get to know her. They were going to be training together. Everything had already been set up for it.
I was grateful when Damien didn’t pursue the subject. But his silence and knowing looks amounted to about the same. After bidding him goodbye so I could get to my classes, I forced myself to look around. We were recruiting for Conexus. My eyes swept over each student I passed by, wondering which one held the potential to wow me. I hated having to rip them from their lives an
d put them in a place most didn’t want to be. It seemed unnatural and cruel to force them to serve our people, yet I did it anyway.
Later on, my mind traveled to Ever as I sat in the courtyard at dinner time. I wondered how her day went. I wondered if she was happy. Or sad. Or scared. I wondered what her future held. I wondered what it would be like to know her—really know her. To speak to her for long periods of time. To make her laugh. To make her happy. Could I make her happy?
I scoffed at the stupid notion. Of course, I couldn’t. A pull within me forced me to look up. And there she was. I watched as she walked across the courtyard, her head down, her face hidden behind her curtain of dark hair. She looked like she was trying to be invisible. There was a pang in my heart for her. She’d been through so much.
She sat down at a table by herself, tucking a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. My eyes scanned the crowded courtyard, taking note of the looks she garnered from the male population on campus. Ever looked beautiful in her uniform, her long legs on display, her jacket fitted to her slender body. It hadn’t slipped past me how incredible she looked.
She chewed her bottom lip, balling her hands into fists. Her leg bounced as her green eyes darted around the courtyard. A fae named Jason approached her with a smile on his face. He hung out with Marcus and Nevron. I bristled as she looked up at him, a shy smile forming on her lips as he sat down next to her. He said something which made her laugh. Not the sort of laugh that reached her eyes, but enough to make me see red. I was just about to get up and go to her, not even knowing what I’d say, when Abby and Harper joined them. Ever’s eyes roamed to the two casters, her attention gone from Jason. Letting out a breath of relief, I sank back into my seat.
“You look like you’re ready to pummel someone,” Adam commented, sitting down, Damien, Jared, Brandon and Eric in tow.
“Jason’s over there,” I grunted, glancing to where Ever sat again. She was staring at her hands while everyone laughed and talked. What was she thinking about?
