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“I’m fine, Leila. See, it’s all okay. Your father did the right thing,” I insist, interrupting her, and she gives me a glare.
A huff falls from her mouth as she twists her lips, trying to find a suitable retort, but she knows I’m right and eventually shakes her head, giving up.
“How bad was it?” she asks instead, my shoulders tensing as I fail to hide the wince on my face. There’s no point lying, though. She knows it couldn’t have ended well.
“It was bad. Like, really bad.” Keeping hold of the towel, I take a seat beside her. “Finn’s dead,” I add, recalling his lifeless body in the room. He wasn’t a close friend or even an ally, but he was one of the few people I didn’t completely despise outside of the Bishops and Leila. Leila’s eyes widen as she gasps, her hand lifting to her mouth with shock. “I don’t know about anyone else, but there was so much destruction everywhere, I can’t even begin to imagine,” I admit, and she nods in understanding.
“My father insisted things weren’t okay the moment they declared that the first years would also take part in the Gauntlet. It was too extreme, too fast, but he still doesn’t seem to understand what the threat is. Or if he does, he’s not willing to share it yet.”
If Leila’s father, Professor Fitch, is seemingly unaware of the bigger picture, what hope do we have? “Surely, after everything that just went down at Shadowmoor’s outpost, they have to give us something. A reason why lives have been lost.”
Leila runs her hand over the checkered school skirt she’s wearing and it slowly dawns on me that she’s still wearing her uniform.What time is it?
“Well, let’s hope that’s what they want us for.” I frown at Leila’s statement as she rises from the bed. “I’ll wait for you outside while you get dressed.”
“Get dressed? You say that like I have somewhere to be.” I’m wiped. I don’t have the energy for anything but sleep.
“You do.” She opens my bedroom door and offers me a weak smile.
“Please tell me you’re pranking me or something because I swear, all I want to do is collapse in this damn bed.” Her smile spreads but doesn’t actually get any stronger and I know I’m screwed. “Fine, hit me with it. What am I getting dressed for?”
“A gathering has been called. They’re going to officially confirm the casualties.”
FOUR
RAVEN
It’s not a surprise to find Zane, Eldon, and Creed waiting with Leila, all dressed in their uniforms and ready to go. But it is a surprise to see Brax there too. He’s standing closer to the kitchen while everyone else is by the main door, so the distance he’s trying to keep is clear, but the fact that he’s still with us is a relief.
My pink hair is braided, the ends falling between my shoulder blades, but I’ve left my face makeup free. The night looms dark outside the back windows, I have no idea what time it is, and I’m ready to face-plant into my mattress as soon as I get back.
No sooner do I close my bedroom door behind me does Zane rush to my side, clasping my hand with his and heading for the exit without a backward glance at the others. I shiver at the chill in the night air as we step outside, but with the pace Zane has us walking at, I quickly shake it off. Leila appears to my right a moment later, and a swift glance over my shoulder confirms the others are right behind us as we follow the thin crowd of students sullenly heading toward the main academy building.
Zane’s thumb softly strokes over my knuckles, grounding me, but I still have a niggling feeling in my gut because we haven’t had a conversation about what happened and how they feel about it. It’s like a barrier between me and them, and I can’t deny that I want it gone. Yet the fear of rejection claws at my insides, despite my best efforts of exuding the “badass bitch” vibe I’ve wrapped myself in for most of my life.
I try to compartmentalize the irritation, but it still lingers at the edge of my thoughts as we step through the marbled halls and out into the courtyard where they hold all of the gatherings. I manage to cast a glance over my shoulder at Brax as we come to a stop at the back of the crowd, but he’s gazing off into the distance, making it impossible to get a read on him. Eldon catches my attention, and the smile he offers fills me with hope, which only intensifies when the corner of Creed’s mouth tips up too.
The murmurs that fill the air aren’t the usual bubbly type. There’s no giggling, no joking, nothing. Just a whole swarm of worry and fear, and it’s so thick it feels like it’s going to crackle through the air at any moment and zap everyone in the vicinity.
Through the sea of people, my eyes lock on the blue pools that match my own and my back stiffens. His eyebrows furrow as he blinks, almost as if he’s seeing things, and a knot forms in my stomach, but before I can decipher any more of it, Genie appears at his side and steals his attention.
“Are you okay?” Zane murmurs against the shell of my ear, and I nod. The movement is more sluggish than usual, the tiredness seeping through my bones too hard to conceal at this point.
“Students.” One word in greeting from Professor Burton, who appears as a projection in the sky as usual. It’s odd seeing him with the dark background and the stars flickering instead of the light-blue sky we’re used to. “I believe we have everyone in attendance?” His voice continues to echo around us, but the question is aimed at Lyra, who appears on the projection beside him. I haven’t seen her since the first day I arrived, the memory instantly coming back to me.
The last time I saw her, she was in her office with her nose high in the air, a snarl to every word she spoke, fueled by a level of sass that could rival my own. Until she learned who my father was, that is. Then everything changed. Now, she stands to Professor Burton’s right, her hair a little more unruly, chewing on her bottom lip, and a flash of fear in her eyes as she nods back at him.
With that confirmation, Professor Burton turns to look back out over the crowd, all gathered and ready. “Thank you so much for coming together after a devastating turn of events unraveled at Shadowmoor’s outpost this afternoon. I’m sure many of you want to get a good night’s sleep, but it felt imperative that we address the situation as swiftly as possible.”
“It definitely could have waited until morning. I’m exhausted,” Leila whispers, and I chuckle in agreement, thinking the exact same thing.
“For the second and third years that haven’t been caught up to speed yet, the first years were able to take part in an outpost visit to Shadowmoor this afternoon. An attack ensued not long after their arrival. An attack that involved trolls, fireballs, and the faceless Amayans.”Amayans, that’s what they’re called?Putting a name to their not-so-existent faces makes a shiver run down my spine. Gasps ring out around us from the older years clustered in the courtyard, but the first years continue to remain silent, still dwelling on the events that unfolded.
“Where did they come from?” someone asks, but I don’t see who over the throng of students.
“We’re unsure at this time,” Professor Burton advises, and Zane scoffs, mouthing the exact same word that’s floating around in my head too.
Bullshit.
