Chapter 90

I shuddered, wanting to push the thought away. I felt ill. Arielle slipped her hand into mine and the sound of the gavel slamming down snapped me back to the present.

"We'll adjorn for recess and pick back up after lunch."

I gripped the arm of my chair trying not to just run out, but I couldn't get outside fast enough. Arielle followed me as I stood outside gulping in breath after breath, trying to push it aside. Press down my panic. Arielle stood with me, as I leaned against one of the columns as the world started to shift and melt around me. The nausea started to fade. I felt steadier and soon Arielle passed me a bottle of water without speaking.

I drank greedily and took whatever glowing vial she handed me and drank it in one go.

"… tastes like chocolate."

"My Dev is a genius. You want to talk about that?"

I shook my head. "Just… Philip. Thoughts that had no place there."

"Trauma is the word you're looking for. Come on, let's get you something tasty… maybe a handsome man will pay for your extra avocado and bacon."

I chuckled at that and followed her and the entourage down the street towards the café nearby. We got inside and I felt them both before I saw either of them.

Neil approached me cautiously.

“Hey,” he said.

“You were…” I shook my head, at a loss. “Thank you.”

He shrugged. “I didn’t do anything you haven’t done for yourself.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, but the smile came anyway.

"You look pale," Neil said gently. Arielle nudged him into her spot.

"I'm going to rally the lawyer team, I leave her in your hands, Lord Blackfang."

Neil nodded and she walked away. "Hey…"

He drew me close, hugging me gently. I breathed in his scent, letting the rushing warmth of his magic over my skin relax me. The potion was definitely working too. My eyes burned. I didn’t want to cry. Not in public. Not now.

"How about something warm? They've got… baked potato soup… I bet I could ask for some extra bacon."

I laughed, feeling ridiculous and happy.

"S-Sounds great."

My pulse was still elevated, my hands were clammy, but I needed food.

He kept me close as we moved up in the line. The place was barely more than a nook with overpriced pastries and decent enough coffee, but it was warm, it was quiet, and it was blessedly free of hostile stares. We ordered and Neil did pay despite my protests before leading towards a table by the window. I sank into the seat with a long exhale, letting my shoulders drop for the first time that day.

Neil slid into the chair across from me, setting a sparkling water and a pastry box in front of me.

"Neil," I pouted at the pastry box. "You… I'm going to gain at least thirty pounds eating with you."

"Doubtful… and with the way you're planning your future, you'll work it off."

My face burned and my jaw dropped. "You.. . You did not just make a dirty joke."

"I certainly did." He smirked. "How are you feeling?"

I shook my head. "Better…"

"The soup's probably the best in the city," Neil said. "I… ended up here often while shadowing Dad on pack business."

I smiled at the bowl he'd placed in front of me. I definitely had more toppings, more bacon, than he did.

"I'll… start with that then."

He leaned back in his seat, loosening the collar of his shirt with a sigh.

"You're… hot?"

"Got a little worked up on the stand is all. I'm fine. How's the soup?"

I scooped some and cooled it before lifting it to my mouth. It was halfway to my mouth when a third chair scraped against the floor.

Dominic.

His tie was undone, jacket slung over one shoulder, and he had a coffee in one hand and his tray balanced on his other.

“Hope I’m not interrupting,” he said with a faint smile.

I blinked. “I didn't think… you'd come sit with us."

"I had considered it,” Dominic admitted, setting his food down, “but Arielle told me you werne't feeling better and bartered mercy points, to encourage me to change my mind."

I chuckled. "Like… a quarter of a point?"

"To be used at a future date. I need all the points I can get, you know?" He dragged his gaze ver me. "How are you feeling?"

"F-Fine," I said. "Did… she say she was coming back?"

As if summoned, Arielle strolled past the café entrance, sauntering past. She stopped just long enough to grin, fluttered her fingers at me, wave her phone and disappear.

My phone buzzed and I opened the message.

Off to see Zeke for lunch, try to have half as fun as I'm going to.

My entire face burned and I shoved it in my pocket. "She's the worst."

“Is she?” Neil chuckled. "I rather like her."

I pressed my fingers to my temples and took a breath. I wasn't sure if that was the greatest thing or the worst thing, but I continued eating. The soup was amazing and I don't know how Neil had convinced the kitchen to do whatever they did to it, but it was great.

"I guess… this wouldn't be a bad time to talk?"

Dominic chuckled, his eyes sparkling. "We could."

My stomach flipped and clenched. Philip's voice hissing from the back of my mind.

They both looked at me, patiently waiting. I fumbled.

“The… situation,” I said, waving my hand in a vague circle. “With… um… us.”

Neil’s mouth twitched. Dominic sipped his coffee.

“What?” I asked, frowning at them.

“You’re cute when you’re flustered,” Dominic said simply. “But now isn’t the time for this discussion.”

Neil snorted. “There’s no whiteboard.”

Dominic laughed. A real, low chuckle that made my insides go warm.

I stared at them, stunned. They were… definitely getting along. I couldn't help but think about what Arielle said. I opened my mouth. Closed it.

I sank back in my chair, a smile twitching at the corners of my mouth despite myself.

"Then… what should we talk about?"

"… how about what your plans for tonight are?"

Vivian

I was going to lose my mind. This whole trial was ridiculous. Dad wasn't doing anything to stop her! How could he just turn on me for her? Like I was some stranger off the street? He'd better be working on shifting everything in my favor over recess. I didn't know how much money this would all cost, but if he let us lose, Brightclaw would take a hit and I had a lot more purses to buy.

The worst part was that I didn't even get to have a real recess. Everyone else got to go prance around with their allies and lovers while I was stuck in what amounted to a holding area with a shitty tray of food, the same slop they'd been trying to force on me for days. I needed to talk to Tyler because what the hell was he doing to help this situation?

Now.

I'd bribed one of the guards to get a few more privileges and information. Tyler wasn't too far from where I was, so I made my way toward his holding room.

Except… it was empty.

The bed was made. The light off. The scent of him faint in the air. I stepped out, fuming, and started walking the hall when I heard something: footsteps. Voices.

I ducked behind the corner just in time.

Tyler was rushing down the corridor, chasing after someone. "Wait! Maya, wait!"

Maya? Who the hell is that?

Whoever she was, she wasn't stopping. Her curls bounced as she strode away from him in cheap-looking flats and even cheaper clothes.

“Wait!” Tyler hissed. “Maya, stop—just wait a second!”

“No,” she said sharply, spinning on her heel. “You don’t get a second. You used me.”

“That’s not true—”

“You made me think you loved me. And the whole time you were just playing some twisted game with her!” Her voice cracked. "And you--- not just me. Not just using me but more than me. You were engaged to be married Tyler!"

I blinked, pressed against the wall, my breath caught. Tyler was cheating on me with someone who looked like she shopped at the thrift store?

“Maya, that’s not what happened. I—Vivian was a mistake. She means nothing to me, and Renee was just a means to an end. Please--”

My jaw dropped.

"How am I supposed to believe a word you say?" Maya scoffed, stepping backward as he reached for her. “How am I even supposed to look at you now, Tyler? Maybe Vivian hasn't treated you well, maybe Vivian coerced you, controlled you, but that woman did nothing to you. People aren't means to an end.”

“She's no one to me, Maya. We haven't—”

“That doesn’t make it better!” She said. "And the fact that you've been fucking Vivian all this time--"

"Maya, please." He tried again to grab her arm, more gently this time, but she yanked it back.

“Don’t,” she snapped. "Don't touch me!"

“I just want to explain,” he pleaded, still reaching for her. “You mean something to me. You mean everything to me. You--”

Maya’s hand moved fast.

The slap echoed through the hallway, sharp and brutal.