by Rachel Jonas
“You could say that again,” Manny scoffed.
“Then that’s our plan.” Marcela rose from the floor, standing beside her brother. “We stick by Noelle, and work together.”
I sighed, wishing we had more options, more allies.
“That’s basically the long and the short of it. We’ll keep eyes on her, report anything strange, and keep our objective in mind.”
“And what’s our objective?”
I met Toni’s gaze to answer. “We have to get Noelle off this island … by any means necessary.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Noelle
The Overseers hadn’t exaggerated when they said exams would be tough this term. Not only had we taken finals all week, we also faced intense evaluations to test our physical abilities, as well as our psychological fortitude.
Now, it was all coming to a head for me right here in the gym.
As if it wasn’t insulting enough that I’d been forced to do my final evaluation on the opposite side of the room, my instructors—Sira and Claire—had put up a magical barrier between me and the other students as well.
Just in case.
My nerves were frayed, and my head had been all over the place since Rayen was taken. It’d been two weeks with no word, no update as to where he was being held or how long he’d be there.
The guys had been to Chief’s office daily, pleading for information, only to be turned away. I promised Ori I’d give it a little more time, but if he didn’t tell us something soon, I would be paying their island’s leader a visit myself.
Apparently, I, too, was at risk of being arrested—thanks to that little love tap I’d given the man—but I wasn’t afraid of him. Not even with his gaggle of nasty witches hanging around.
All of this made for a very crowded mind, and it definitely reflected in my final grades. Straight C’s so far. Now, lucky me got to bomb this last test in front of the instructors, my peers, and of course the three scouts from The Guard who watched from the far corner of the gym.
Fun.
I mean, only my entire future hung in the balance. No big deal, right?
“Again!” Sira yelled, prompting us all to resume our stance.
Others around me, including Blythe and Toni, created brightly colored forcefields that moved from their bodies slowly, inching toward the opposite side of the room as they doubled in size, and all I’d done was make a few pink sparks fly from my hands.
Frustrated, I peered up at the scouts as they watched me, whispering.
“Is that her?” one asked.
“It is,” the other answered with a nod. “Such a waste. All that power and no talent to back it up.”
“The worst part is the lack of self-control. Apparently, she’s injured others during her time here. One girl has even lost her magic after partnering with her.”
Heat flashed across my face after my wolf stepped forward to eavesdrop. They had no idea I could hear their quiet conversation, but I could.
Loud and clear.
I shook with anger and tried channeling it when I took my stance again, letting my feet press into the mat. I focused on my hands as a surge of energy filled them. Next, I imagined myself getting this right. A shield would form right before me, and then spread outward as it moved away. Just like everyone else had done.
Don’t screw this up.
A deep breath left my lungs and I pushed, waiting for some display of magic to manifest. It was all I could do to redeem myself in front of the scouts, although I feared my reputation here preceded me. Meaning, it was already too late. My thoughts snagged on that idea, and I lost focus. Instead of a pink shield shooting from my hands, there was a huge fireball that filled the room with heat.
Screams and gasps echoed off the vaulted ceiling, making the scene way more dramatic than necessary.
Of course, all eyes were on me, and I was certain I’d just sealed my own fate. The looks of exasperation on the scouts faces told me as much.
I felt both Toni’s and Blythe’s gazes locked on me, but I didn’t turn their way. The last thing I needed to see was the look of horror I was positive each wore. I knew how badly this had gone without their expressions confirming it.
I’d done it, ruined everything.
“Well, I … think that’s enough,” Sira said, putting me out of my misery. “Hit the showers, everyone. Your final grades will be posted right outside the gym at nine a.m., one week from today.”
The sound of feet shuffling from the room and quiet conversation were the soundtrack of my failed attempt at impressing those who held my future in their hands. I turned, heading toward the door slower than everyone else, defeated and angry with myself.
“Noelle, it’s not—”
“Don’t. Please,” I said sharply to cut Toni off.
I knew what she was going to say. She’d tell me it wasn’t that bad, and that this wasn’t the end of the world, but I couldn’t let her spin such a huge lie. It was that bad.
Blythe caught up and stood on my other side. Only, I wanted nothing more than to be left alone.
“Listen,” I sighed. “Why don’t you two just go ahead without me. I’ll catch up with you this evening.”
Neither spoke after I made the request, but they shared a concerned glance.
“I’ll be okay,” I assured them. “I just need to clear my head.”
Eventually, Toni released a deep breath, and then nodded for Blythe to follow her, granting me the space I desperately sought.
The exit opened and the two flooded out with the sea of bodies that moved out into the hallway. Meanwhile, I trailed far behind on purpose.
“The crazy part is, her dad’s a living legend. Didn’t he teach her anything?”
I paused, hearing the scouts speaking about me again.
“Apparently not. Maybe he expected her status as a princess to carry her through life,” the other laughed.
“From the looks of things, she should have stuck with that plan.”
My chest felt tight and I recognized the rage right away, but their careless words not only awakened my dragon. The deep growl humming in my chest meant my wolf hadn’t taken the comment well either.
I breathed out slowly, hoping to dispel some of the anger. However, it didn’t dissipate, and I knew I’d have to let it out somewhere if I didn’t want to lose my cool. As I neared the door, my eyes flitted to the cinderblock wall, and without thinking, I slammed my fist into it, leaving a basketball-sized crater behind.
The red stain on the cracked white paint meant I’d busted my knuckles, and the sickening crunch that accompanied it meant I’d broken at least a few bones as well. Still, somehow, I felt relief sweep over me.
I didn’t turn back to see the shocked looks on the scouts faces. They officially didn’t matter anymore. The sooner I put them out of my head the better. My dreams of joining The Guard were over before they really even started.
It just took me falling flat on my face in front of them to realize it.
I pushed the door open and stepped out into the hall long after it had emptied. The rest of my classmates were already in the locker room, so the two sets of footsteps hurrying toward me belonged to Ori and Paulo.
“What the heck happened?”
“Is it broken?”
I kept walking when both called out. “I’m fine. It’s already healing,” I said quickly, never looking back as I made a beeline for the doors straight ahead.
I didn’t want to talk about any of this. I just wanted it to be behind me, and I wanted Rayen back, and I wanted to be normal—all things I had no control over.
I left them on the other side of the threshold, hearing the entire locker room go quiet when I stepped in and my classmates laid eyes on me, which meant I’d been the topic of conversation.
Nice.
As I passed each one, they lowered their gazes to the floor, and I could practically smell their fear just from being in my presence. Taking shampoo and a few other items from my
locker, I headed toward the shower without a word, turning on the water to block them all out.
The clothes I’d worn to gym were in a heap on the floor, and I stood beneath the stream. The wound on my hand stung a bit, but the bones had already shifted back into place, leaving only the broken skin to mend now.
My eyes closed. Everything was falling apart, slipping right between my fingers, and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt lost, broken, like a piece of me was missing without Rayen. Our unit had five members, and with any one of them missing, we wouldn’t feel whole.
Minutes passed, maybe fifteen when I lifted my head at the sound of a gasp hitting the air.
“What are they doing?”
“Are they allowed in here?”
The questions had come from the few girls who still hung around, and the sound of heavy steps crossing the tile told me exactly who they spoke of.
I whipped my head just in time to find Ori and Paulo approaching, as I stood naked, in all my glory beneath the water.
“Seriously? I’m not the only girl in here,” I reminded them, passing a look toward them from over my shoulder. “You can’t just barge in like that.”
“Tell us what happened to your hand,” Ori demanded, ignoring my comment. Apparently, I’d taken too long to come out for their liking.
“It’s nothing,” I said dismissively. Honestly, now that I’d settled down a bit, I felt embarrassed to tell them it was self-inflicted.
“I’m gonna need a better answer than that,” he grumbled.
A deep sigh left my mouth and I lowered my head beneath the water, letting it run down my body. This day had been one humiliating event after another, culminating with these two not letting me shower in peace.
“I punched a wall,” I admitted on the tail end of a sharp breath.
“Why?”
I pictured Ori’s confused expression, but didn’t turn to witness it.
“Because today sucks. Because I’m losing myself. Because Rayen’s gone and I miss him. Because … everything’s a mess,” I unloaded, adding, “Especially me.”
It was no relief sharing my burden with him. Mostly, because I knew no one could fix it all. This was simply the state of my life, and I’d just have to deal with it.
“What happened in there?” he asked, taking a few steps closer.
His question went unanswered, because I couldn’t even find the words to say that I’d singlehandedly sent my future up in flames. Literally, considering the fireball I’d just made a little bit ago. To put it plainly, nothing was going the way I imagined.
There was a long span of silence and I didn’t move, just let water hit my shoulders.
A deep sigh left Ori’s mouth. “Clear the room and wait for me outside. Don’t let anyone back in,” was the vague command he barked at Paulo.
There were no questions asked, and a few seconds later, I heard the remaining girls being rounded up and asked to leave. There were shuffling footsteps, the sound of a door closing, and then just the water.
My shoulders heaved when I breathed deeply, feeling like they held the weight of the world. Ori was somewhere behind me, but I didn’t open my eyes. He stepped closer, his feet moving across the wet tile, until the next thing I felt against my back was his skin.
At some point, while making his way over to me, he’d come out of his shirt. A breath of relief passed from my lips and my head reared back, landing gently on his shoulder. His hands splayed across my stomach, slicking over the moisture that gathered on my skin. It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him he couldn’t stay, that we could get caught even with Paulo standing guard, but I didn’t bother fighting the fact that I wanted him here.
Needed him here, because the guys were my one, continuous source of comfort.
Without giving permission, I was turned to face him seconds before his mouth crashed down on mine. The heat that rushed to my lips radiated through my entire body. He moved lower, letting his tongue trace slow swirls down my neck to my collarbone, then then to the valley at the center of my chest.
I leaned into the tiled wall behind me, panting as feather-light kisses trailed down my stomach, until he lowered to his knees.
When his lips found me again, air wouldn’t leave my lungs. I held it in, feeling dizzy with pleasure as my thigh was lifted to his shoulder.
It felt like, lately, my life had been in ruins, but my guys had been there at every turn. Their undying devotion had given me back something I thought I left behind when I came to the island.
Not only family, but … love.
My fingers wove their way through his soaked strands as I began to pant, feeling that weight I carried lighten just a little, lifting more and more as I gave in to him. Gave into the feeling of letting go.
When I squirmed, he only held me tighter, forcing me to endure the relentless swells of pleasure that came in like a flood, making me lose my breath as I gripped his shoulder. My voice carried into the air when it all got to be too much, only for the sudden high to come crashing down again, plunging us in silence after the release of one final cry.
Every limb felt weak as I struggled to keep standing. My foot was lowered to the ground, and my gaze followed Ori’s tall frame as he rose to tower over me again. He stared with a sated expression that somehow made him even sexier than before. Leaning closer, soft words touched my ear.
Words that made every concern seem just a little less damning.
“You’re not alone,” he reminded me. “Ever. In any situation. We’re all in this together, right beside you, no matter what happens.”
The room went dark when my eyes fell closed, when my arms went around his neck … when I chose to believe him—my alpha—with my whole heart.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Noelle
I stared at the cloudless sky while I lie there, flat on my back on our claimed, stone bench in the courtyard.
“It is what it is?”
My friends seemed shocked by my response to Toni’s question: “Are you ok with not being invited to join The Guard?”
“It is what it is?” Marcela asked, as if she thought she misheard.
I simply nodded and focused on the flock of birds that flew overhead. “Yup.”
At first, it stung a bit seeing others celebrating after receiving their prospect letters when break first began, but I had a week to cope with my new reality.
“Never know,” Manny chimed in, mumbling as he bit into a sandwich from where he sat on the grass beside me. “Not being invited to join doesn’t mean you won’t be accepted. Just means they need you to prove yourself a bit more.”
I heard him, but knew that wasn’t the case for me. He hadn’t heard the things the scouts said, hadn’t heard how they had clearly judged me before that first encounter. There was no amount of showing and proving I could do, that would convince them to let me in. However, I wasn’t as broken up about it now as I’d been the day of our final evaluation.
No cinderblock walls were in danger this time.
Part of the reason for my level-headed reaction was that my priorities had shifted. Not seeing or hearing from one of my mates for just over three weeks would do that for a girl. Every time I laid my head on the pillow, I wondered if he was comfortable, if he was safe, being taken care of.
Daily, I had to remind myself that Chief Makana thought the Omegas needed to be taken down a peg. Taking Rayen was mostly about showing them who’s boss. It made me worry a little less about his wellbeing, but there was nothing I could do about missing him.
“I think I might be meant to do something else with my life, ya know?” I reached to steal a grape from Toni’s baggie. She playfully slapped my hand before deciding to share.
“But being a part of The Guard has been your dream since you were a kid,” Blythe added. “Sure that’s not frustration talking?”
I shook my head. “Nope. I’ve had a solid week to think it all over, and I’ve come to the conclusion that being a soldier isn’t
the only way I can help people. That was always my real objective,” I shared. “The title and division had little to do with it.”
Manny shrugged when I guessed my reasoning made sense to him.
“Besides,” I continued, “my little sister, Lea, intended to follow in my footsteps and join once she’s of age. Who knows? Maybe she’ll get to be the one to carry the torch for our family.”
“So, what’s the new plan?”
I didn’t have a clear answer to Blythe’s question, so I didn’t pretend to. “I’m honestly just taking it one day at a time.”
What I kept to myself was that I’d honestly considered withdrawing from my final term at the academy, although I’d been forbidden to leave. There just seemed to be less of a point in putting myself through all the studying, training, and then exams if I wasn’t even certain having a certificate from the academy would make a difference in my future. For now, I’d keep my thoughts, and my uncertainty to myself. Once I knew for sure, I’d let them in on my plans, too.
“Well, whatever you decide, we’ve got your back,” Manny concluded.
“Definitely,” Toni concurred.
I didn’t doubt that for even a second, because they hadn’t left my side much since Rayen was detained. If I wasn’t surrounded by my friends, I’d been looked after by the Omegas. When Ori said I wasn’t alone, he meant it.
“Well, I’m due for my midday nap. That’s my routine from now until classes start again, and I’m not breaking it for anybody,” Manny declared, groaning as he stood from the grass. “I’ll be awake for dinner and dessert,” he promised. “I heard someone mention they’ve got cupcakes in the dining hall.”
Kid loved his food.
“Sleep well,” Blythe said with a laugh, and I didn’t miss how her gaze followed after him as he trudged toward his dorm.
Deciding not to call her out, I simply smiled to myself, wondering how long it would take for the two to hook up.
“I think I’m gonna catch up with you guys later, too,” Marcela announced. “Mr. Montrose agreed to work with me a little during break. I didn’t do so hot on my math final. Your girl needs all the help she can get.”
