Page 45 of Stormbreaker

“Oof,” she says with a wince.

“Sorry,” I say, releasing her. “I’m so happy you’re awake.”

“Sort of,” she says, touching her head. “Still pretty woozy. They have me on some strong painkillers and all these antibiotics.”

I sink down on the edge of her bed.

“I was so scared,” I say, taking her hand.

Her expression crumples. I know what she’s thinking. Soon enough, she’ll have to face what happened during initiation. She can hide in this room until she’s healed, but she can’t stay here forever.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask. Her lips press into a grim line, suggesting she never wants to think about it again. That’s when her gaze falls behind me, landing on Rook.

“Uh? Hi?” Trinity asks, her gaze widening. “How long have I been out?”

“Rook helped carry you when you fainted,” I supply. “He wanted to check that you were okay.”

“Oh,” she says. “Well, thank you. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome,” he says before dipping at the waist in a slight bow. “I’m glad to see you’re physically on the mend, at least.”

His gaze pings to me and lingers for a heartbeat before he turns on his heel and walks away. I watch him pass Dr. Perez, who eyes him like he might pounce. He stops and stares at her again—I presume to shake her nerves up a little. Maybe she kind of deserves it.

Then he walks out and disappears.

I frown at the empty doorway before focusing on Trinity, who’s studying me with an inscrutable look I can’t interpret.

Her shoulders relax a little, and she asks, “How was your initiation? I never got the chance to ask.”

I exhale a sharp breath, and then I tell her what I did.

“You tested for Aria?” she says slowly when I’m finished speaking.

“Yes, but I’m fixing it.” I feel like I’ve been saying that an awful lot.

“Why did you do that?” she asks, her eyes wide.

“I couldn’t kill a man,” I answer, a little more sharply than I intend.

Trinity flinches, and I huff out a breath, recognizing the judgment in my outburst. Tests are still ongoing, but I’ve yet to hear of anyone else from Fiama who refused. Maybe that’s to be expected when most of my House wants to join the Patrol. Briefly, I wonder if Fiama’s initiation has always been this violent or if this is my father’s doing.

Regardless, Trinity tried.

Even if she lost, she had every intention of killing that man.

That truth sits between us for a moment until she finally asks, “What did your father say?”

“He threatened me, of course, and said the Ardens would ally with the Jenkinses instead if I don’t fix this. My family could lose everything . . .”

Something passes over her expression, there for a moment and then gone before she shakes her head. “I’m proud of you,” she says, and I blink.

“You are?”

“Yes. You made a decision for yourself. I know it wasn’t easy, and people are mad, but you stood up for yourself. I haven’t seen you do that in a really long time.”

I’m too stunned to speak for a moment.

“You really think so?” I finally ask, and she nods. “Everyone hates me, and I thought maybe you also—”