I grinned. ‘That was precisely my plan, Alec, to visit some unexpecting grannies.’
He shrugged. ‘Who knows what festers in that halfling head of yours? I’m beginning to find your kind increasingly fascinating. You’re all so odd.’
‘Thanks. You always know what to say to make a girl feel special.' I patted his shoulder, stepping toward the portal.
He neared the door and said, ‘There will be a guard by the portal in the college; tell them why you’re there.’
‘Why is there even a portal in a War College for fae that can portal spontaneously?’
‘If only you had access to literature explaining our ways,’ he exhaled and left me alone.
Looking into the captivating void, I couldn’t believe all the possibilities, and that although I wished for a portal for some time, now that I had it, I didn’t even want to go anywhere.
For the first time since coming here, the choice was mine.
But I was grateful; at least it would take me to Fogoya without having to ask one of my siblings for a piggyback ride. I just had to get River to authorise my access, which I knew he would.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Avari
The energy wrapped around my body like sticky glue, clinging to my skin and clothes as though it were reluctant to let me go, before vanishing the moment I stepped into the dark room. My erratic pulse throbbed at the base of my throat, as my horrific imagination worked overtime, coming up with increasingly deranged ways they might train their students.
They wouldn’t dismember me, would they?
In my mind the place was anything but ordinary, yet the room resembled a regular portal chamber. Slightly more opulent than the ones at the school I attended, as the brick walls had been embellished by massive portraits with shiny, golden frames depicting people I didn’t know. Thick velvet curtains covered the back wall, though with how stuffy it felt, I had a sneaking suspicion there was no window.
‘How did you get that clearance?’ A tall, muscular woman asked in an accusatory tone, appearing on my side and snatching the key from around my neck.
I summoned it back into my hand just as easily. ‘Didn’t anyone ever teach you not to touch what doesn’t belong to you?’
‘This key belongs to royalty and upper ranks; you are neither,’ she hissed. ‘Give it back before I take it from your severed hands.’
Though I never used my flames in battle, I bet I could have scorched her stubby fingers before she managed to lay them on me. Whether it was Anya’s violent predispositions rubbing off on me or my tired brain pushing me toward danger, the idea brought a smile to my face that the strange warden didn’t appreciate.
‘You would sever my hands?’ I asked with a chuckle. ‘That’s unnecessarily drastic, don’t you think? Besides, would you kindly use your brain cells? Out of all the places I could go with this key, would I choose the War College for a forbidden stroll?’
Her eyes widened, constricted, then returned to normal as a sour scowl pulled her scarred face downward. ‘Who the fuck are you? Speak before it gets ugly,’ she warned before unsheathing her knife.
And perhaps it was my stupidity or a complete disregard for consequences, but with a quick twist of my hand, I summoned her blade to admire the carvings. ‘Pretty.’
‘You–’ she hissed, charging at me like a bull before a simple declaration stopped her in her tracks.
‘I’m a Nightborn,’ I said proudly, fixing my posture.
‘Lies!’ the woman screeched, staying away and typing away on her phone, glancing at me what felt like every second.
‘Message Isaac while you’re at it. He’s the reason I came here and received your overwhelmingly pleasant welcome in the first place.’
She demanded, ‘Isaac who?’
I didn’t actually know. ‘The combat professor.’
The girl erupted into a fit of wicked laughter. ‘I don’t know what sort of god complex you have, little girl, but mark my words, show him respect, or he will destroy you.’
‘Should I bow when I meet him, then?’ I mocked her devotion.
‘Your funeral,’ she responded cheerfully. ‘Turn left; his office is at the very end. Give me my blade back before I gut you with it.’
