Chapter 236

The run is as grueling as I knew it would be, with Rafe, Jesse, and Jackson each taking turns to backtrack and run at my heels, forcing me to pick up speed or get trampled down by their gigantic feet.

By the end of it, I’m bending over with my hands on my knees, my head hanging, trying to catch my breath while the three of them chat casually about their plans for the day.

“Come on, little man,” Rafe says, clapping me on the back and making me stumble a few steps forward. “You smell terrible. Let’s get you showered before breakfast.” He just grins when I straighten up and glare at him.

I scowl, following along with them, but glance anxiously up at Jackson when he drapes a casual arm around my shoulder. “Do I really smell?”

“It’s a nice musk,” he says, giving me a sad smile that breaks into a laughing grin as I tilt my head back and groan with embarrassment. Together, the four of us hurry back to the rooms to clean up before breakfast.

Breakfast passes quickly as we fall easily back into the rhythms of the school. Ben and I sit on either side of Luca, giving him some tips about how to pay attention in lessons when things get particularly boring – something he’s apparently never tried before – but before I know it, we’re slugging down the rest of our coffee as we stand, Ben and I still planning to head for the library for our free study period.

“Remember,” Rafe says, stepping close to Ben and pointing a finger in his face. “You’re on bodyguard duty now and when you walk him to class. If Ari even –“

“Oh, enough,” Ben says, rolling his eyes at Rafe and ducking under the finger as he heads for the door. “We’ve survived this long, I’m sure we can make it out of the library alive.” I laugh and hurry to keep up with Ben, waving over my shoulder at my brother, my cousin, and my mates, who all wave back.

“Finally,” Ben murmurs, tossing me a grin as we start for the elevators that will take up to the library on the top floor. “An Alpha-free moment.”

“Oh, you’re an Alpha too, Benny,” I say with a happy sigh. “Plus, they’re not so bad.” We step into the elevator and begin to move swiftly upwards.

“Because you’re inured to the presence of two of them, and making out with the others,” Ben says, dry, shooting me a glance out of the corner of his eye.

“Don’t be so jealous, Benny,” I counter, flicking him lightly on the shoulder with my finger as the elevator doors pop open again. He laughs, shrugging as he admits it, and the two of us make our way into the library together.

My breath is stolen, again, by the sight of the place – the towering stacks of books that reach high towards the glass ceiling, the round velvet and leather chairs gathered together in little study groups. “This place is amazing,” I murmur, shaking my head as I look around jealously at all the books I haven’t yet read, following Ben to a set of green velvet chairs in the corner. “We should come here more often. We don’t make enough use of the resources here.”

“If you did study here you wouldn’t get much work done,” Ben says, flopping into a chair settled neatly next to the fireplace as I take the one across from it. “Not with people coming over all the time to fan over Luca, to try to buddy up with Rafe and Jesse as royals.”

“Well, that’s we have Jackson to scare them away,” I say cheerfully, folding my legs beneath me and opening one of my books in my lap.

Ben laughs, grinning at me. “Don’t think he doesn’t have his own fans too.”

“As he constantly reminds me,” I murmur, rolling my eyes and thinking of all the girls sliding into Jackson’s nonexistent social media inbox.

“What does that mean?” Ben asks, leaning forward towards me with his chin in his palm, eager for the details. I just wrinkle my nose at him and shake my head, letting him know that it’s not important, the two of us get started, sorting through our assignments and deciding individually where to get started.

Unfortunately, we don’t get far before a shadow falls across my book.

I frown, wondering if it’s a particularly dark passing cloud, but then my mouth pops open when I look up and see…

Well, see my mortal enemy – quite literally - standing there, glaring at me, his arms crossed, his guard standing stoic behind him. I just gape at Alan Wright looming above me, fear rushing through me, instantly flashing back to the memory of the last time he stood over me like this – when he shot a quarrel right into my stomach – when he –

“Do you fucking mind?” Ben snaps, intervening when he sees me gaping, fear locking my limbs as well as my tongue. “We’re trying to study. You’re blocking our light.”

“Just wanted to see it for myself,” Wright snaps, turning his glare on Ben now. “Because I didn’t believe the Royals would let their two little pets off their leashes to roam free. Do the Duke and the Prince know that you’re out alone? Without your guard dogs, where almost anything could happen?”

Ben laughs, low and derisive. “Are you serious, Wright? You’re the one making leash jokes when you’ve got a literal guard keeping an eye on you all the time? Do you…are you unaware of what irony is?”

Wright scowls and opens his mouth to retort, but Ben interrupts.

“Also,” he says to the guard, his voice harsh, leaning to look around Wright at the soldier. “Are you going to do anything about this? Ari Clark is the student that Wright tried to fucking kill. Shouldn’t you…I don’t know, drag this jackass away by his hair?”

Slowly, the guard turns to look at Ben. “I’m here to intercede if he makes a move against another cadet. Not to stop a bitchy little girl fight.”

Something about this comment snaps me back to myself – maybe because I’m not used to that casual kind of misogyny in my life, and I’m certainly not going to stand for it at my school. “Great, then consider it over,” I say, falling into a cool and collected persona that I’m not sure I knew I could embody. I look away from Wright, back at my books. “So, please take your charge out of here so that those of use whose military careers aren’t completely fucked already can get back to work.”

Wright’s face flushes a livid red. “If you think that –“

“I said,” I snap, raising my voice loud as I whip my face up to glare at him. “That I’m trying to study, you pathetic ass.”

“I should have finished the job,” Wright growls, leaning forward as he holds my gaze with his vicious stare. “And if you think that I won’t someday –“

“Alan!” another voice barks, and my eyebrows raise when I see Perry Gibson dart forward, grabbing Wright by the arm. “What the fuck are you even thinking? Get away from them –“

“I’m not done here,” Wright growls, attempting to shake Perry off.

But Perry digs his fingers in, surprising me by tugging Wright so hard that he almost loses his balance. “Yes,” Perry growls. “You fucking are. Let’s go.”

Without another word, Perry hauls Wright away with him. The guard gives us an impassive glance but then follows his charge at a leisurely pace.

“You good?” Ben asks, leaning forward to look at me over his book.

I look back at him, realizing that adrenaline is racing through me, making my hands shake a bit. But as I glance down at my hands I realize that it’s not all fear – though that’s there, too – but also anger, rage. God, that asshole – who the fuck does he think he is?

Quite suddenly, I hope that he does try to come for me again, just so that I have a chance to rip him to shreds myself.

Suddenly, I’m filled with the new determination to really throw myself into my lessons with Blaze so that I have the capacity to do that when the time comes.

“Yeah,” I say, breathing out a slow breath as I raise my head and meet Ben’s eyes. “I’m all right. Just words, after all. Empty threats.”

“Good,” he says, solid, nodding to me.

We’re quiet for a moment as we both gather ourselves after that unpleasant surprise. But then, Ben continues.

“God, he’s such a coward,” Ben murmurs, looking again in the direction that Wright and Perry walked, though we can’t see them anymore. “No way he’d come over to say a damn thing to you when Rafe or Jackson was around. But the moment he finds you relatively alone, he’s all tough.”

I scowl a little as I realize the truth in his words. “What a worthless, bitter little man,” I murmur, shaking my head.

“And Gibson,” Ben says, turning back to me with raised eyebrows. “I mean, did you know that he made it through?”

“I didn’t,” I say, leaning forward with wide eyes. “I mean, honestly, Ben, I’m kind of shocked. He…did not seem tough. Way less tough than the guys I was in the sniping unit with, and neither of them made it through.”

“Perry’s ambassador,” Ben murmurs, glancing again after them. “But I didn’t think he did particularly well in the course. Or the Examination. I wonder what strings he pulled to be here…”

We both stare for a second, considering it.

But then Ben heaves a heavy sigh and snaps his book shut. “I’m not going to get anything done while I’m all worked up like this. Do you want to get some air?”

“Air?” I ask, frowning at him. “Ben, we’re…on the top floor. What, do you want to go open one of these windows just so Wright can shove me out of it?”

Ben laughs but then gives me a clever little grin. “Come on, Clark,” he says, standing up and holding out a hand to me. “I’ve got something I think you’ll want to see.”