by Brenda Trim
Maurelle’s head cocked to the side and her long pink hair fell over her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
The question startled him and made him school his expression. He thought he’d been hiding the turmoil, but apparently not very well. With a smile, he nodded. “Yep. I’m good.”
“Why don’t I believe that?” she asked as she nudged him with her shoulder.
It was a gesture typically only done by close friends or family. He hardly knew Maurelle, but the connection between them was undeniable. Still, he took a step and put a bit more distance between them.
He assumed he was driven only by his physical attraction to her and his desire to stay as far from her side as possible. He wasn’t doing a very good job keeping his distance, but he was relieved that at that particular moment he wasn’t thinking about kissing her or taking her into his arms, hoping they could have some sexy naked times. Okay, now he was, but that was only because his mind conjured images of her soft mouth pressing into his.
Before that he considered telling her his suspicions. Would she think he was crazy? Hell, he worried about his sanity. Especially when he considered telling the female his doubts.
“I’m, uh, well. I’m not exactly sure,” he admitted as he paused outside the mess hall.
“What’s going on?”
“Probably nothing, but…if I am right, we have bigger problems as a race than being ruled by the humans.”
Maurelle’s gaze shifted around the area, checking to see if they were alone. “I have no idea what you mean, but I can guarantee the Fae have major problems. One of our kind stood by and did nothing while a human killed my mother.”
That was why he wanted to share these thoughts with her, he thought. She understood what he was thinking unlike anyone else at the academy. Could he trust her? He wondered as he waited for her to get angry and start hitting things, but she said that as if she were talking about the weather.
“When you mentioned seeing my collection after touching the cuffs, I wondered which male took action against your mom.”
“It was the human officer. If the Fae male hadn’t stood by and watched it happen before hauling me away, then we could have subdued the human together, regardless of the weapons he carried. Fae are more powerful than humans.”
“You’re right about that. I heard my mother complain a million times about humans and their ability to control Fae. It pisses her off like nothing else. She bitched about needing to band together to fight and take Mag Mell back. I thought she was exaggerating, but that’s only because I based that belief on ignorance. I never imagined things were that bad,” he admitted.
A group of students entered the building, cutting off what he was going to say. Maurelle lifted the book she held in her hand and opened it then started asking him questions about the math they covered in class earlier that day.
As soon as the group passed, Ryker wiped the sweat from his forehead. “Good save,” he observed. “Do you have any thoughts about this situation?”
“You mean aside from the fact that we’re forced to attend the academy?”
“Good point,” he replied, thinking it shouldn’t surprise him if he discovered Fae working with the humans. “What I’m thinking about now is everything else that goes on here. You, for example, are not the same female that came to the school over a week ago.”
“What do you mean? I’m as perky as I’ve always been.”
“That’s just it. You weren’t perky when you arrived. You were pissed and ready to kill Gullvieg. Now, you talk about your situation as if it was a minor inconvenience.”
Maurelle’s lips pursed as she considered what he said. “I’ve kept some of what I’m feeling to myself after the way I was treated. I know I can’t trust anyone, but it should hurt far more than it does now.”
The Headmistress stood up and looked through the doors at that moment. Ryker ducked his head and motioned Maurelle forward. “Let’s go in. We’re attracting attention. When you get your food tell me if you notice anything odd about it.”
“Why?” she asked as she followed him to the table where his roommates sat.
“I noticed an odd flavor the morning after you arrived. It might just be me,” he admitted. She nodded and continued forward in silence.
“Hey, beautiful,” Brokk called out in greeting as they approached the table.
She took a seat next to him, making him slightly uncomfortable. He ordered while she greeted his roommates. Gullvieg, the Fae female in charge of the academy was right in his line of sight.
Ryker continued ignoring Maurelle, not liking the attention on their table. Deciding he needed to throw suspicion off them, Ryker turned his head toward Danielle and winked. The Fae female smiled and blushed furiously and waved at him.
Flirting when he was disgusted by Dani made him feel guilty for giving her the impression that he was interested in her, but something told him having Gullvieg believe he was interested in Maurelle would cause nothing but problems, and he had no desire to encounter any more problems.
Maurelle noticed his behavior and her forehead furrowed before she ordered her food then turned back to Brokk. The moment of hurt he saw written across her face made him regret his behavior. He liked Maurelle way too much and didn’t know how not to want more than friendship from her, so it was better this way.
The lie twisted his gut. His resolve to keep from falling for Maurelle was not going to be an easy one, he thought. At that moment he wanted to take her into his arms and tell her he was sorry.
“Now you’re just trying to suck up,” Maurelle teased Brokk.
The male gasped and his hand flew to his chest. “You wound me. How was studying? I could have joined you.”
Ryker’s scowl deepened, and he was ready to punch Brokk in the face. Did he have to flirt so openly with Maurelle? The thought was unfair given his resolve to remain friends with the female, but he couldn’t stop his reaction regardless.
Ryker focused on the front table to see if they were being watched. The Headmistress didn’t give their conversation a second glance. Brokk was far more likely to have something going on with Maurelle than Ryker was, and he was collected peacefully, so there was no suspicion there.
“I managed just fine without you this afternoon,” Maurelle told Brokk. “I like learning how to identify what elements I am calling up and using, and especially, what I am capable of doing.”
Averting his eyes, something on Maurelle’s plate caught his attention. Ryker swore the food glowed green, but when he turned his head it didn’t look any different than what was on anyone else’s plate. His heart started racing in his chest and the back of his neck prickled telling him they were now being watched. When he looked up, he noticed Danielle and Gullvieg were both watching him.
He forced a smile on his face for Dani and ignored the Headmistress entirely. Not wanting to draw more attention, he picked up a fork and speared some roast beef and shoved it in his mouth. No hint of a foul taste or tingle of magic registered as he chewed and swallowed. Still, the meat sat like a stone in his churning gut, making him want to hurl.
“Well then, it sounds like the instructors are doing their job. Since the purpose of the academy is to teach us to manage our powers. Apparently, that’s why whatever King created it centuries ago,” Ryker added, relaying information his mother told him.
“Yeah. My older brother told me we will learn that in history class.” Dain added as he shoveled food in his mouth.
Taking a bite of her food, Maurelle turned to Brokk. “I hated history in school. Hopefully, these classes will be more informative. So, who are those guys over there?”
Everyone at the table followed the direction of her hand to a group of males that were posturing and boasting loudly while most hung on their every word. Ryker admitted to himself they were stronger than he was at the moment and there was no way for him to compete with their power and control. They easily tossed balls of flame and water from hand to hand while females ooohed an
d aaaahed over them.
“Those are the top seniors who will be graduating this year,” Sol explained.
Once again, green glowed in his periphery. Ryker tried to focus on the glow without being too obvious that he was looking. The prickling sensation had yet to decrease telling him someone watched them avidly. Even if he could focus on the food, he had no way of determining if something was in fact wrong with it.
The group of males waved their hands and made bites of fruit float into the mouths of nearby females. They used their power with skill and confidence.
“How long before that’s us?” Ryker asked, suddenly anxious to have more control over his ability to cast spells. It wasn’t only because he suspected the food was poisoned, but also because he wanted to be better able to defend himself.
“Most students will reach that level in their fourth year, but some reach it sooner,” Brokk explained.
“That seems so fucking far away,” Ryker cursed. “I’m ready to get a good job and contribute to society,” he added quickly to cover the anger that seeped through in his tone of voice.
“You and me both,” Sol quipped with a shake of his head. “I’m tired of having no money.”
“It’s not like we will make much money, but I hate that my parents struggle to buy food because they’re sending me money,” Brokk added.
“You have to pay attention in classes in order to be successful, Numbnuts,” Dain told Brokk with a laugh.
As Maurelle and his friends talked about classes and making progress, Ryker wracked his brain for how he could get the answers he needed about the food. He hadn’t eaten very much over the past week, and the lack of fuel for his body weighed heavily on him.
At the prime of his life, he should be able to run literal and figurative circles around the staff. Unfortunately, eating enough calories was vital to staying at the top of his game. And, it was the rare day that he ate enough to even cover half of his needed caloric intake given his suspicions about what they were feeding him, and Maurelle he realized.
With eyes still on him and Maurelle, Ryker ate more at that meal than he had the previous five days. The pants that had loosened on his tall frame were slightly tighter by the end of the meal. They were still big, but not as much as before.
“It was good to see you again, Pinkie,” Brokk said to Maurelle. “I’m afraid I have to get going. I have an assignment to finish before class in the morning. But, don’t cry. We can have breakfast in the morning before class.”
Ryker found himself laughing despite the way his jaw clenched and anger at the smile he invoked from the female. Brokk wasn’t a vicious male, and he didn’t want Maurelle for himself, so he had no reason to get upset by someone that made their desire for her obvious.
“I’ll find some way to make it through the long evening until I see you again,” Maurelle teased Brokk.
“I need to head up as well. See you guys later,” Sol added.
Ryker watched the two leave before turning to Maurelle. “Grab that muffin to go, Mari. You have to see the sunset from the upstairs landing. There’s a perfect view of the cliffs and ocean beyond.”
Maurelle cocked her head to the side and wondered about the sense of urgency she picked up from Ryker’s comment. Did he want to talk more about the change in her demeanor? They were cut off abruptly before. “Um, I’m done.”
Climbing from his chair, Ryker picked up the muffin and wrapped it in a napkin then handed it to her before picking up his tray. “Take it with you. You’re still recovering and need extra fuel to heal your body.”
Smiling, she kept the food in her hand and followed him to the trash cans off to one side. The room was simply decorated with flags for each of the leagues hanging on the walls. The one for air was blue and greys and reminded her of a windy afternoon. It was the wavy shapes on the vinyl.
The water had darker blues and greens while the earth had shades of brown. But, the fire with its red and orange flames drew her eye. Mainly because it was so colorful, and because there was a brighter glow emanating from the banner.
She cringed when her shoes tapped loudly on the marble floor as they headed out. Of course, her steps had to be louder than anyone else’s. The second they were out of the cafeteria Ryker headed up the stairs without a word. It was clear he expected her to follow. She blinked a couple times, surprised that he actually intended to take her upstairs to watch the sunset.
She assumed he wanted to tell her something else. Shaking her head, she climbed behind him, enjoying the view. He had a fine ass that she wanted to grab, but he was a jerk to her, so she clutched the muffin in her hand and started after him.
The last thing she expected from him after their last few encounters was for him to want to talk to her. He never hid his disdain for her presence or his anger that Brokk flirted with her all the time.
Trying to figure out his motivations would get her nowhere, so she focused on her schoolwork. She’d dismissed the obvious and told herself she was hiding her true feelings. Intellectually, she was pissed about her mom’s death, and her heart hurt. Although, it was no longer all consuming, driving her to lash out at anyone and everyone. Which was absurd given such a short amount of time passed since it happened.
“Look,” Ryker said as he paused on the landing and pointed to the ocean in the distance.
“It’s beautiful,” she replied.
“What I really wanted to talk to you about was the food,” Ryker whispered.
Maurelle barely heard him and turned so she could see if he was actually talking to her or if it was a figment of her wishful thinking. He’d given her the cold shoulder more often than not. “What?”
“Keep watching outside. I don’t want to make anyone suspicious enough that they try to listen in on our conversation.”
Maurelle nodded, a slight movement up and down of her head while she trained her eyes straight ahead.
“I have no idea what’s going on, but I think they are poisoning us.”
Before Maurelle could mask her surprise, her head jerked around, and her mouth fell open. Quickly, she turned away from Ryker and closed her mouth. “Poison?” she whispered.
“I swear I saw your food glowing. Well, not glowing exactly, but I saw a green hue to it from certain angles,” Ryker admitted.
“Why would they do that?” she asked. It didn’t make any sense. Why would anyone want to kill students? They didn’t pose a threat to those in power.
“How else are they going to control beings far more powerful than they are?”
The food Maurelle ate churned in her stomach, making bile rise in her throat. It took all of her effort to concentrate on the waves as they crashed on the shore and shove down her nausea. “What do we do about it?”
Footsteps echoed in the distance, and Maurelle stiffened. They were going to get caught. This was the worst place to have this discussion. From the way the Headmistress dismissed her concerns and complaints, they wouldn’t tolerate anyone questioning their methods.
With her pulse thudding loudly in her ears, she didn’t hear the females laughing until they were upon them. One female snickered and made a snarky comment about Maurelle’s pink hair and full figure.
There was nothing wrong with Maurelle. At least according to her mother. Fae were all stick thin with little dimension to their bodies. Maurelle on the other hand inherited curvy hips and full breasts. It didn’t matter that she wasn’t overweight when compared to some humans, she’d always been teased for being different.
When Ryker turned toward the females, Maurelle panicked and grabbed his hand. Part of her feared he would leave with them, and the other part didn’t want him bringing more attention to them.
Ryker placed his arm around her shoulders. The way he stood there stiff with his lips pursed and his nose scrunched up didn’t make her feel particularly safe or desired. That didn’t stop her from pretending it was real for the few minutes until the females were out of sight. Unable to fool herself anymore, Maurelle too
k a couple steps back and turned to look at Ryker.
“How do we find out if they are poisoning us? Neither of us can cast any spells yet,” she pointed out.
Ryker looked into her eyes for a long second, and his expression softened. She swore one corner of her lips lifted in a close approximation of a smile. The urge to go to her tiptoes and press her lips to his made her take a step to close the distance between them.
Holding up a hand, he stopped her short. “Are you up for a field trip?”
Ignoring the way her cheeks flushed with heat and her desire to run to her room and bury her head under her pillow, she turned away and looked at the color in the sky shift from bright blue to orange and pink. “Um…I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Where do you want to go?”
“I want to see a Peridun,” he informed her.
As tense as she was from their entire situation, she was surprised she was able to hide her reaction that time. The male was losing his damn mind. “Okay. Sounds good. Wait here and I’ll grab my neon green sweater and we can go running down the hall outside the Headmistress’s office.”
“I’m serious. Meet me here at midnight. And, wear black clothing. We will sneak out and be back before anyone catches us.”
“Why go to a Peridun?” Even as she asked it, she knew that was the real reason he wanted her to take the muffin with her.
Periduns were Fae shaman. They could cast many more spells across all elements, whereas the typical Fae could wield two elements, and their abilities were most often limited.
Many Peridun were seen as a sort of holy person by other Fae, but humans hated the practitioners. It was their ability to mask their true power combined with the fact that they never cast anything in public that kept them safe from annihilation.
On the other hand, some Peridun were manipulative and not terribly trustworthy. “Are you sure that’s wise?”
“They are the only ones that can tell us if the food is safe to consume. We can’t limit our intake otherwise we will start weakening and someone will notice and possibly take further action.”
