Chapter 228

“Well,” Rafe says, glancing between Luca and I and clearly intuiting that a little distraction might be necessary, “leave it to the Academy to get Ari out of bed, through a run, and then through a royal meeting before seven in the morning.” I turn my attention gratefully to my brother, and he gives me a surreptitious wink.

“Are you implying that I’m lazy, Rafe Sinclair?” I counter, raising my coffee to my lips and lifting a challenging eyebrow in his direction.

“Oh, I wasn’t implying that, Ari,” he says, training his innocent gaze on me. “I was blatantly stating it.”

We all laugh at the easy joke, but it does its job, allowing conversation to restart at the table, letting us all relax a bit. Even Luca unwinds, though I think he forces himself to do it – to smile broadly and turn to Jesse next to him and start to chat about some lesson the Warrior track has going on today. I note, though, that his bond to me is closed down – perhaps for my sake.

I take a moment to register this – to note that Luca is trying. He’s not having a temper tantrum, after all. It’s progress, isn’t it?

Next to me, Jackson gives me a nudge with his elbow. “You okay?” he asks, quiet enough that maybe only Ben hears.

“I’m great,” I say, smiling up at him. Because this is it now, isn’t it? My life with two mates who are both in my life and agreeing, however tacitly, to share space. There are going to be moments of tension like that and we’re all just going to have to…deal with it.

Jackson just nods once and accepts my words, allowing himself to get swept up in the conversation around the table. I chat with Ben about his plans for the week and his schedule as I try to shove as much food and coffee down my throat as I can, knowing that I need it. To my joy and surprise, I discover that Ben and I have a free study period tomorrow.

“Want to go to the library?” he asks, I think as pleased as I am. “I know we won’t have much to study yet, but we can scope out the best reading spots.”

“Speak for yourself,” I sigh, knowing that I have Chemistry this afternoon and will certainly have a pile of homework from Neumann. “But yes, library sounds amazing. Do you think…”

But I stop mid-word, my focus completely shifting as a familiar figure stands at a table across the room, a man dressed in military browns and greens standing behind him.

Jackson and Luca, feeling my shock and surprise, instantly straighten in alert, turning in the direction I’m looking.

“What?” Jesse says, noticing the change in atmosphere at the table. “What’s going on?” Ben and Rafe likewise put down their forks, looking around.

Luca sees the Cadet in question first and lets out a long string of curses. Jackson is next, simply emitting a long, dangerous growl that I can feel vibrating through me. Jacks puts his hands flat on the table, clearly intending to stand up, but I whip out a hand and grab his wrist, begging him to stop.

He glances down at me, his body tensing as he wills himself to stay in his seat, as I have asked.

“Holy shit,” Jesse says as his eyes focus on Alan Wright across the room. “What the…how the fuck is he still here!?”

Rafe growls as Jackson does, standing abruptly as he doesn’t have me at his side to grab his wrist as I’ve done Jackson.

“Rafe!” I bark, and he glances over at me before returning his eyes to Alan, clearly on the verge of striding over there and using his fists to let Alan know precisely how welcome he is at this school.

“Did you guys seriously not hear?” Ben asks, looking between us. “It was…all over the halls last night.”

“What was?” Luca asks, turning to Ben, his own shoulders shaking with rage to see the man who almost killed me clearly still enrolled.

“Would you all sit down?” Ben snaps, clearly focused on Rafe.

Rafe’s growl intensifies but he does as Ben suggests, lowering himself to his seat and focusing on our friend.

“Honestly, you all need to take a little time to speak to people besides each other,” Ben says, frowning around at us. “How can you honestly be the last people to know about this?”

“This is why you’re our ambassador, Benny,” Jesse says, going for levity even though I can see that his face is totally serious and very upset for my sake. “You speak to everyone else while we remain insular and aloof. Now, spill.”

“The committee met,” Ben says, casting a hand out towards Alan as he moves towards the door followed by the man in brown, apparently wanting to get to his first class earlier than the rest of us. “They decided that the case was too inconclusive to kick Wright out completely – that there was no real proof that he shot Ari with the intent to kill.”

“Um, hello!” I say, pointing vehemently at myself. “I am the proof! Me! I told them that he did it on purpose!”

“I know,” Ben says, turning towards me with a little frown. “And for what it’s worth, Ari, I think they believed you. But…technically, it was one cadet’s word without another. And they did send us into the Examination with weapons in hand – people get hurt in there. The compromise was that Wright is on probation and must be guarded at all times.”

“Shit,” Rafe says, crossing his arms as his eyes follow Alan across the room and out the door. “Well. We’ll just see how long he lasts.”

“What does that mean?” I ask, leaning forward towards him, narrowing my eyes.

“It means he’s a Warrior cadet, like the majority of us, Ari,” Luca says, meeting my eyes with an intensity I’m not used to from him – which I’ve only really seen when he’s boxing, if I’m being truthful. “If he’s happy to use violence to take you out in Academy-approved ways, then we’re going to return the favor.”

“No,” I snap, glaring around the table at my collection of gigantic Alpha. “None of you are risking your place here for the chance to beat the pulp out of Alan Wright.”

“He’s just going to hate you more now, Ari,” Jackson says, looking down at me from his place at my side. “He’s not going to be cowed by this – I know his type. He’ll want to…complete what he started, to make his point by taking you out.”

I take a deep breath, setting my shoulders as I look down at my plate, considering this point. But still, I shake my head. “I won’t be part of that – I won’t stoop to his level. No one makes a move against Wright unless he makes a move against me.” I raise my eyes and slowly look around the table. “Am I understood?”

To my surprise, everyone just looks evenly at me. Except for Rafe, who can’t help himself.

“Wouldn’t you say, Ari,” he counters through gritted teeth, “that shooting you in the gut with a crossbow already was the move against you?”

“The Academy made its decision to keep him,” I snap, definitive. “We’re not in charge, even if we are smug enough to sometimes think that we are. If he can be an asset to the war then he’s staying.”

Rafe looks down at his plate and clenches his teeth, but I can tell by the way he exhales slowly through his nose that he accepts my point. “Fine,” he growls, unhappy. “But the moment he does, Ari…”

“You’ll have to beat me to it, Rafe,” Jackson says, and the slow, soft vehemence with which he speaks reminds me that my sweetheart mate is still as brutally capable of violence as we all initially assumed he was. I look up into Jackson’s stark face and can’t help but smile, ridiculously pleased and proud to have him on our side.

Your side, he reminds me, turning his head to look into my eyes and using words down the bond for the first time.

I break into a wild smile at the development but Jackson just smirks a little and looks away, not wanting to make another scene at the table.

“Right, so, we’re all calming down now?” Ben says, looking curiously around the table and reminding us all tacitly that we’re at breakfast, not on a battlefield. “We’re having coffee and croissant?”

“I’m afraid time for that is up,” a woman’s voice says, and we all spin a bit to see a willowy dark-haired woman sauntering over to our table. “Or, at least, for Cadet Clark it is.”

Each of our mouths drops open simultaneously. Because who the hell is this?