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I gasp in horror, glaring at him for a split second before quickly looking away.
“You wouldn’t,” I spit, my heart galloping in my chest as worry starts to consume me.
“Try me,” he snarks back, stepping toward me, and my spine stiffens.
“Go ahead. You do that. You take away my trust and prove you’re no better than Sebastian.”
Silence hangs over us, seeping into my body and clawing at my veins, ready to cut me open and offer me on a platter to these assholes.
“Whatever. Take care of yourself, then. See if we care.”
12
RAVEN
Groups gather outside in the open field as a few Professors arrange everybody into organized lines. “Find your symbol and join your group,” someone orders, pointing up to the sky. I follow their finger and notice six glowing symbols, each with a magical category etched beneath it, thankfully offering me the extra guidance to figure out where I will assign myself.
“Miss Hendrix, I’m going to assume you’ll be joining the nature-based group I’m leading, just like your brother.” I freeze at the mention of Sebastian as I turn to see a professor I haven’t met yet. Despite my instant need to snarl at him, I put a forced smile on my lips instead.
“Thank you, but I’m nothing like my brother.” Before he can respond, I spin in the opposite direction and settle in the line forming for the medics. I can’t change my mind now, so I just keep my head down and wait.
“Raven?” I glance over my shoulder at the sound of my name to find Finn. “Hey, fancy seeing you here.”
I’m acutely aware that someone is watching us, and I know it’s one, if not all, of the Bishops, scrutinizing our every move right now.
“Hey, it’s a small world, huh?” He smiles wide at me, inching closer.
This isn’t going to end well. I can already sense it. He gazes around us as if feeling tension before looking back at me with a gulp. Yup. The Bishops are definitely watching.
It’s irritating as fuck. I shouldn’t be worrying about their reaction. I should be able to talk to whoever I want. They don’t control me.
Looking up at him, I stare into his wide eyes, taking in his blond curls and considering my thoughts from earlier. He’s handsome, sure, but not as hot as the Bishops. That’s also a fact. Well, inmyopinion, at least. Would trying to have a good time with him be more hassle than it’s worth?
“Students, we’re ready to roll out. Stay with your groups at all times and do not try to be with your friends. All off-campus visits come with safety precautions. Stay in your magical categories or find yourself taken off the next outpost visit,” Professor Fitch states, and I turn to face the front, very aware of Finn’s presence behind me.
“Nice, we’re using gateways,” he murmurs, almost to himself, but I’m too intrigued not to peek around the person in front of me to see what he means.
The air swirls at the front of our line, morphing before my very eyes until a translucent oval appears. It shines in the morning light, a pale iridescent purple dancing in the wind as the person at the front steps through it.
Wow.
I don’t recall hearing about or seeing a gateway in Shadowmoor. Your immediate mode of transport was on foot, or if you were gifted with the ability to teleport, you could do that. Although, if you had money, which nobody did, you likely owned a vehicle.
There’s so much I don’t know, so much that people around me are familiar with, leaving me at a disadvantage. Maybe I need to add this to the list of things I need Leila to teach me, but I don’t want to put everything on her shoulders.
As the line starts to move, student after student stepping through the gateway, my body thrums with a mixture of excitement and uncertainty. I twist my hands together for a beat before turning back to Finn.
“Have you been through a gateway before?”
He smiles down at me with a nod. “Yes. Only once, but it was cool as fuck.” I can’t decide whether to push for more details or ask how he usually travels around, but I’m forced to take a step back when a figure stands between us, blocking Finn from my view.
The rich smell of sandalwood swirls around me and I don’t even need to glance up to know who it is.
Brax.
Tilting my head back, I glare at him, but he continues to stand there unfazed, with his arms folded over his chest. Seconds turn into minutes as we stare each other down and I can’t decide whether I’m surprised or not that Finn doesn’t even try to move around him. Just when I’m sure he’s turned into a statue before me, Brax suddenly juts his chin forward, signaling me to move.
Reluctantly, I glance over my shoulder to find the line has dwindled to only three people ahead of me waiting to go through the gateway, and one of them is Finn. Shit, when did he move around us? I was so focused on Brax that I hadn’t even realized he had moved past us.
