Page 140 of Glutton for Punishment

“Don’t.”

“You’re in love with your best friend.”

“I said don’t,” I bite back.

“And she’s got a bond with half the nation.”

I shove him into the wall hard enough that his shoulder slams against the stone, but he just bursts out laughing.

Fucking Wraths. We’re all psychopaths.

“You are unbelievably annoying.”

“And yet,” he says, straightening with a grin, “you can’t deny it.”

I leave before he can say anything worse.

***

The burner phone buzzes in my pocket three hours later while I sit alone in one of the abandoned training fields set away from the academy. Every muscle in my body tightens.

UNKNOWN CALLER flashes across the screen. Right on schedule.

I stare at it for a long moment before answering on the third ring.

“Yes?”

Static crackles through the speaker before the distorted voice responds.

“This is Jessie, aide to Councilor Drow, calling for your report.”

I lean forward, resting my forearms on my knees as I stare out across the empty field. The ground is now overgrown with weeds and brambles. In the distance, I can hear students sparring, metal clashing and instructors barking corrections.

Life keeps moving.

I think about Arwen laughing in the hallway earlier. I picture the panic on her face last week when she admitted her power wasn’t working. The words sit on the tip of my tongue. One sentence is all it would take to change my sisters’ lives forever.

My jaw tightens hard enough to hurt.

“She attends classes,” I say, keeping my voice flat. “Mostly spends time with the same people as last year.”

Silence hums through the line.

“And her power?”

“She hasn’t mentioned it. Said the Dean advised her to keep quiet about what she can do.”

A frustrated sigh sounds across the line.

“Anything else?”

I stare at the cracked stone beneath my boots while guilt claws through my stomach.

“She’s annoyed about the rumors spreading around the academy,” I continue carefully. “People stare at her constantly. She hasn’t confirmed if anything is true.”

Another long pause follows.

“He instructed you to observe carefully.”