Phoenix Crossing

by Cara Carnes

  “I don’t get nervous.”

  “Of course. I meant, are you excited?”

  Seriously? “Why do you have to be so irritating?”

  A deep chuckle rumbled through the car. “You know you love me.”

  “Not today.” She bit her bottom lip to hide her smile.

  Nervous was an understatement. She was terrified. Mixed feelings on whether she should leave home played over and over in her mind the past few months. She’d established a solid position as a junior soldier, working her way up to a sentinel. Yet, a part of her felt guilty for leaving.

  Everything will be fine. Stop being a baby.

  Devon pulled into a parking lot next to a large three-story brick house. Sam exited the car, mesmerized by the simple, yet beautiful home. It was not at all what she pictured for a dorm. Black shutters accented the windows against the two-tone red brick. A wide porch ran the length of the front of the house with white railing that matched the columns at each end.

  After opening the back door, she removed her large, pink duffel bag and matching cosmetic case. With a bump of her hip, she closed the door and headed toward the house. She climbed the steps to the porch and waited for Dev to get the box from the truck. A swing hung at one end and a few tables and chairs scattered about the rest of the open area.

  “Nice place,” Dev said when he stopped next to her.

  Nodding, she inhaled and sighed. “The forest is near and a stream.”

  Tigers, especially Samira, loved water. She could swim all day without tiring. Dev nudged her arm and opened the door. “The dorm mother is a wolf.”

  Sam froze, staring at the back of her cousin’s head as he entered he dorm. A wolf? It wasn’t just a rumor that cats and dogs didn’t get along. Well, in most cases they didn’t. Sam hadn’t had any experience with wolves, so she didn’t know how her tiger would react to the other female.

  “Are you sure? I mean…well, you know. I’m not….”

  “Diversity is what your too-aggressive tiger needs to learn balance.” He glanced at her over his shoulder, one brow raised in challenge. “Scared?”

  She stuck her tongue out and pushed past him to enter the house. He let out a playful growl as he followed her inside. A laugh escaped her before she could rein it back in. “No.” Lowering her voice, she asked, “How many humans live here?”

  “Three, when the dorm is full.”

  Turning toward the voice, Sam found herself staring at a very dominant she-wolf. She was shorter by at least three inches than Sam. Her long, curly, black hair hung loose around her shoulders, framing her thin, yet beautiful, face. To Sam’s surprise, her tiger didn’t lash out or hiss at the wolf. Instead, the cat cocked her head in curiosity.

  Dev, however, growled beside her, drawing Sam’s attention away from the female. Raw annoyance with a hint of something else she didn’t know how to describe surrounded him before he reined in his emotions, blocking Sam from getting a clear read on them. She was about to ask him what his deal was, but he spoke first. “I was told there were no other dominants in the dorm.”

  Ignoring Dev, the female fixed her attention on Sam and extended her hand. Nothing in the female’s expression betrayed her thoughts or feelings. Her aura seemed equally quiet, not registering any reaction with Sam’s empathy. Intriguing. “I’m Camile, a second-year student, and until they find a replacement, the acting dorm mother. I put you on the third floor with Jesse and me. I stay in the west corner. Jesse, a submissive leopard, is in the middle. You’re at the other end, near the stairs.”

  Next to her, Dev fisted his hands and allowed his mental walls to fracture. Clearly, this female affected her cousin. Sam smiled, her earlier anxiety eased, and decided she liked Camile. Anyone who could put her cousin in his place while putting him on edge at the same time was okay by her. “That’s great.” Glancing at Dev, she crinkled her nose at him. “Isn’t that great?”

  He growled again and leaned into her. “You’re a brat.”

  She patted his face. “I know.”

  Giving her attention back to Camile, Sam noticed the female’s lips twitch right before she turned away to lead them up the stairs. “Only you and Jesse have arrived so far. You have a little time to familiarize yourself with the house before the others get here.

  “There are three rooms and one common area on each of the second and third floors. We do sometimes eat meals together, but it’s not mandatory. Some will take their meals to their rooms. This is an all-girl dorm, so no boys are allowed to sleep over.”

  Sam bobbed her head as she followed Camile up to the third floor. Once at the top, Camile moved to the room in the middle and gave a light tap. A moment later a small, shy female opened the door. Her brown hair was braided into two pigtails, and she had the most beautiful blue-violet eyes.

  Camile offered her a warm smile. “Jesse, this is Samira. Oh, and her cousin, Devon.”

  The annoyance in Camile’s tone as she said the latter made Sam glance behind her at Dev. He lifted one shoulder but said nothing as he slammed down his shields. No more reading his emotions for her. Figures. He knew her well enough she used her gift to her advantage any time she could. Sam would discover what all the tension was about between Dev and Camile one way or another. Later, though.

  Extending her hand, Sam smiled at Jesse. The female immediately broke the brief eye contact as a spike of nervous fear rose within her, but it quickly eased before she shook Sam’s hand.

  “Hi. Would you like to show me around campus after I get settled?”

  Jesse glanced at her, their gazes connecting briefly. A shy smile formed as warmth surrounded both of them. “I’d like that.”

  Sam’s tiger purred, happy with the small thread of friendship springing up between them. She gave a short wave and followed Camile to the room where she’d be staying. Once inside, she glanced at Dev, who stared at her with a one-sided grin. “What?”

  “I’m proud of you.”

  Sam rolled her eyes and tilted her head in the direction of the desk in the corner of the room as she set her bags on the bed. “Set the box over there.”

  Camile spoke from the doorway. “It was a gracious thing you did. Jesse is so timid and shy. This is her second year here, and she still hasn’t made many friends.”

  Sam nodded. “She’s a submissive and needs to feel needed. Her timidity is due to not knowing others.”

  “Yes, but you picked up on it right away.”

  Dev cleared his throat. “Sam is empathic. She can pick up on things others miss.” He stepped closer to her, touched her cheek, and said, “I need to go check into my dorm. You okay?”

  She gave him a one-arm hug. “Of course I am. Jesse and I are going sightseeing on campus.”