17. Raven

SEVENTEEN

RAVEN

Ican’t stay bundled up in Creed’s arms any longer. The need for the bathroom after being so royally fucked is unavoidable. Not even magic can make it go away. The second I step back into the room, I spot Creed perched at the bottom of the bed with my night tee in his hands.

He waves me closer, a lazy and relaxed smile on his face as he watches me approach. Wordlessly, he slips the material over my head and I silently appreciate the way he performs the actual task of it instead of just using magic to do it. His fingers drag down my sides delicately, reconnecting us once more as he plays with the hem of the top.

“No lessons today,” he states. It’s not a question, and I can’t think of a single reason to push back.

“It sounds like the perfect plan to me. I don’t give a fuck what trouble we might get into. That man was on the brink of no return yesterday and it wiped the floor with me to bring him back,” I admit, and a darkness attempts to fall over his features again. “Don’t do that,” I murmur.

“I’m not. I swear it.” He smiles, pressing a kiss to my stomach as his hands wrap around the back of my thighs, drawing patterns over my skin. “Is there anything I can do to help you?” he offers, and I shake my head.

“I’m good. I’m just tired. Is there anything I should know about after I passed out? We didn’t really talk much when I first woke.”

He shakes his head, a hint of disappointment flashing in his eyes. “No, I wish I had something to give you. But the second you hit the ground, we got you the fuck out of there. You’ve been sleeping ever since.”

“That would probably explain why I’m so hungry then.”

He’s on his feet in the next breath, pulling me toward the door before I can utter another word. Heading into the lounge, I expect to see the others outside of the patio doors in full workout mode, but to my surprise, they’re sitting around the dining table.

“Oh good, the fuck bunnies are here,” Zane says with a smirk, making my cheeks heat as Creed throws his arm around my shoulder.

“What time is it?” I ask, hoping to distract them from the fact that there’s definitely the scent of sex clinging to Creed and me.

Brax shovels a forkful of eggs into his mouth before replying. “Almost ten.”

My eyes widen in surprise. “It’s a good thing we’re not doing classes today then,” I state as Creed guides me to my seat between Zane and Eldon before taking his own across from me beside Brax.

“You’ll return to classes when you’re fucking ready. Not when anyone else tries to tell you so,” he quickly retorts, waving his fork in my direction, and Creed knocks it away even though I’m completely aware that it’s not me he’s aiming it at.

Hopefully, what he’s saying doesn’t cause more of a stir, but truthfully, I still feel drained, and he’s right. I need to take a minute to heal myself. Otherwise, I’ll be no use to anyone.

I’ve located the new bunch of black strands in my hair, right at my crown, and I’m silently dreading the day that my entire head is black. So today, I don’t have to worry about anything going on past these four walls. It’ll be like the weekend again, only this time, I don’t have the luxury of forgetting all of the bullshit that’s happening.

“What do you want to spend the day doing?” I ask, and Zane grabs my thigh, drawing my attention to the fact that he’s wagging his eyebrows. Before he can speak a word of what’s going through his mind, Eldon beats him to it.

“I was thinking we could eat then figure out what the fuck is actually going on around us—what Erikel is actually planning. We need to try to piece everything together the best we can. Then we can try to figure out what our next step is. It feels like we’re sitting ducks and I’m done with that shit. We’re not here at Erikel’s will. You’re not. We need out. Now.”

Damn.

That’s just as hot as Zane’s fingers digging into my skin hard enough to leave bruises.

“Count me in,” I breathe, eager to get ahead of the game. Eldon is right. It may not have even been two whole weeks since Erikel stabbed Burton and exposed my magic, but it’s been long enough. I’m done sitting idly by.

That’s not who I am. That’s not who we are.

“Eat first, Dove. Then maybe, if you do good with the jigsaw puzzle that is our lives, I might eat you,” Zane murmurs against my ear, and my thighs clench in excitement.

“Deal.”

I can’t knock the smile off my face as I stuff my mouth with bacon, avocado, eggs, and toast. It’s clear I’m not only exhausted from the strain on my magic, but I’m starving, too, as I refill my plate and keep going.

Once I’m done, I fall back in my seat with a sigh, my stomach full as I consider whether a nap would be worthwhile before we dive straight into everything. But it seems Brax has other ideas.

“Let’s go, Shadow. Before you have everyone else at the table tugging at their dicks over the noises you make when you eat,” he grunts, pushing up from the table as the others snicker at him.

Eldon adjusts himself through his shorts beside me and I nip at my bottom lip.

“But I think that would be hot as hell to watch,” I state, quirking a brow at Brax as he glances back over his shoulder at me.

“I’m sure it will be. Once we get through all of the bullshit. It can be your prize, along with Zane snacking on your pussy, I promise.”

Damn.

That’s a promise I’m going to hold him to.

I tug the hem of my tee down as I stand, following him over to the sofas without another word, and as my ass hits the cushions, he produces a random whiteboard out of nowhere. It stands dead center between the two sofas so everyone can see.

“Where do we begin?” Creed asks, taking the seat to my right, and I lean into his side. After earlier, I feel closer to him, now more than ever, and I’m happy to keep riding that high.

“I think the issue is there’s so much at play. So maybe we categorize what we do know, and then we can break down whether it connects to any of the other chess pieces,” Eldon offers, sitting across from me, and I nod in agreement.

“Okay, what is there?” Brax asks, making a red marker appear in his hand a second later before he raises it, ready to scrawl on the board.

“If we’re talking categories, we have Erikel, his men, Burton, The Monarchy, and the Monarch they were keen on saving yesterday,” Zane reels off rapidly.

“I think Sebastian needs to be up there too, and the unknown creatures that Ari mentioned,” I add, watching as Brax scatters the words around the board.

“Anything else?”

“My father… me,” Creed states, his voice wavering slightly as I glance at him. I want to tell him he’s wrong, that they don’t belong up there, especially not him, but the reality is, he has no idea what happened yesterday and that just leaves gaping holes in everything.

Brax adds the golden warrior and Creed’s name to the board, and I don’t miss the fact that he didn’t actually write ‘Creed’s father.’

“If we think of anything else, we can add it, but for now, let’s break down the points on the board,” Brax states, and that’s exactly what we do.

We note the fact that Erikel managed to get past the guards and wards that protect the perimeter of the academy, along with his men, and that it likely links to Sebastian, who is a total dick. We discuss the fact that Erikel has never actually shown his magic, and that becomes a big question mark. We point out that his men are feral, but we still know very little about them.

Burton hasn’t shown his face since the Guild meeting last week and he is supposed to be our leader. But more importantly, why is Erikel happy for him to remain alive and in hiding among us?

Sebastian is a total dick.

The Monarchy is giving us major red flags, Rhys currently included since we haven’t heard anything from him or anyone else in over a week, except when the two men yesterday agreed to leave Erikel here to save that guy’s life.

Sebastian is a total dick.

The creatures in the forest with Ari are definitely a new addition, but why has no one actually mentioned them? Yet they’re here, lurking in the shadows on campus.

Then there’s Creed.

And Sebastian is still a total dick.

“What feels off the most to you about yesterday, Creed?” Brax asks, and my hand tightens around Creed’s in silent comfort. He put his own name up on that board, which means he has to open up to us the best he can.

“Honestly, it all started in the arena,” he admits, making my chest clench with worry.

“What do you mean?” I ask, turning to face him head-on.

“My father practically deflected every single flicker of magic that was thrown his way. From ice to random items, shifters, and even psychic abilities.” Each of the Bishops nod in agreement. I recall watching everyone’s magic practically hit a wall around the warrior before dispelling, but I never got to go up there myself to understand properly. “When I got up there, whatever defense he had around him fractured, just for a second, almost like he let me in.”

Holy shit.

“What did he want you to see, Creed?” Eldon asks, interlocking his hands as he stares at his friend.

“He just kept chanting the same thing,” he admits, swiping a hand down his face before he looks up to meet my eyes. “He just kept saying, ‘I love you, son. I love you, son. I love you, son,’ and it’s thrown me for a fucking loop.”

Fuck.

My knuckles turn white as I tighten my hold on his hand.

“Do you think—”

“I don’t know what I think, honestly. I just… shit. Is he hidden away? Is he doing everything demanded of him to protect me? My mother? Does he know what he’s doing? I don’t fucking know, but hope is a fickle thing, and I don’t know if it’s something I can entertain right now.”

My heart aches for him. That’s shit. That’s shitter than shit. That’s shitter than my father murmuring some crap about loving me no matter how much I hate him.

“Parents are fucked up, man. Who knows why they do anything?” Zane grumbles, his lips pursing, and I know he’s thinking about his own father. Rhys was a guiding light before all of this, and now he’s non-existent, and that must be even worse because it’s not hope Zane has in him; it’s undying trust.

Brax clears his throat as Creed glances down at the floor. “What’s on the top of our to-do list?” he asks, circling back to the board.

“We need to figure out a way to get more information on Erikel’s men, understand more about the creatures in the forest, demand that Burton explain what his fucking game plan is, and understand the golden warrior’s motive,” I list off, and Creed’s gaze snaps to mine at the mention of his father. He shakes his head as he tries to dismiss my last point, but I cut him off before he can speak. “You’re probably going to tell me that everything with him doesn’t matter among everything else, but it does, Creed. It matters a lot, and I’m not going to enable you to hide from that fact.”

I immediately worry I’ve overstepped the mark and my pulse pounds in my ears, but, to my relief, he offers me the smallest of smiles.

“Thank you, Raven.”

I’m beaming inside, happiness and that fickle thing called hope blossoming inside of me, when a knock sounds from the front door.

“Fuck,” I grunt, staring at it like whoever is on the other side will be revealed to me without me getting up to answer it. Zane is already moving, though. Swinging the door open wide without a backward glance.

His shoulders relax as he nudges the door open further to reveal Leila, who doesn’t attempt to take a step inside as she smiles at me. “Hey, there’s a meeting tonight. I know you weren’t in classes today, but I wanted to stop by and see if you guys were in.”

“Was there an issue with our absence today?” Zane asks, glaring down at her, and she shakes her head.

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“What time is the meeting?” he presses, giving her a pointed look.

“In an hour,” she answers, her tone a little snappier as she matches his energy, and it’s almost amusing.

“An hour? What time is it?” I ask, glancing at each of my men as I frown in confusion.

“A little after six,” Brax states and my eyeballs almost fall out of my head.

“We have not been sitting here talking for that long,” I insist, but we clearly have.

“What’s that?” Leila asks, distracting me, and I find her pointing at the board.

“Uhhh…”

“We’re trying to piece together everything we know about all of the bullshit we’re drowning in,” Eldon states, leaning back in his seat as he waves her in. “Anything to add?”

Leila steps into the lounge, taking small, measured steps toward us as she fixates on the red scribble on the board. She’s wearing a long black coat that she wraps tighter around herself as she assesses everything. Her eyes scan from left to right again and again, and my nerves start to spike when she gets to the bottom of the board and seemingly goes to the top and starts again.

“Is this a collection of facts?” she asks, looking to Brax, who remains beside the board with his marker in hand, and he nods. “Then you should add my father to it,” she states, her tone not wavering or seeming uncertain.

“Why’s that?” Brax asks, folding his arms over his chest as he looks down at her.

“Because he’s holed up with Barton and I haven’t really seen him since the last meeting myself, either.”

I frown. “How do you know there’s a meeting if your father hasn’t told you?” I always assumed he was the one to tell her, so if she hasn’t seen him, I’m intrigued to know where she got her information from.

“Grave.”

“You mean the guy you say fucked you and made you hot gossip? Because I’m going to be real with you right now, Leila, that’s not the story he’s telling me,” Creed interjects, and my head whips to him. Since when?

“One and the same. He called me out after you questioned him at training, and it seems Genie has a talent for taking pictures of quite a lot of people against their will.” Her gaze drops to the floor and my jaw tightens with anger for her.

Genie is a total dick too.

“Okay, we’ll be there.” Creed stands, pulling me along with him. “Is there anything with your father we should be more focused on?”

Leila shakes her head. “I don’t know.”

It seems that we don’t know much at all between us. Let’s hope the Nightmares Guild can offer us something.

Steppingdown into the meeting room, I half expect to see Sebastian pop up out of nowhere, but to my surprise, as I scan around the gathered crowd, he’s not here. With Leila on my left and Eldon on my right, we come to a stop by the golden table where Burton and Fitch stand side by side, murmuring among themselves.

“It’s good to finally see you both. How is the plan to save the academy and the realm looking?” I ask, folding my arms over my chest as I glance between the pair of them. Fitch frowns as Burton purses his lips, and I’m left wondering why the hell I saved this guy if he’s not going to do something useful.

“There’s a lot at play right now, Raven. Patience is key,” Burton states, and I shake my head.

“Patience would be key if there was time for that. Instead, the students are feeling the wrath of the enemy while you two hide away and, when questioned, reveal nothing. I exposed myself and my abilities for two reasons. One, to protect Creed, and two, because I believed in you to be the leader we needed to survive, but I’m not seeing it.”

Apparently, I’m madder than I initially thought and now I’m on a roll with no inclination to stop.

“She does have a point.” The interruption comes from Dalton, one of the fourth years, and hearing his agreement makes me stand a little taller. He’s not saying it to appease me. He has no need, he clearly thinks the same as me and my men, and it’s reassuring. His comment also quiets the other members of the Guild and everyone settles their attention on the two men who are supposed to be our leaders.

Burton clears his throat, adjusting the tie at his neck as he looks around the room. “We won’t be battling tonight. Our focus needs to be on us collectively coming up with a plan of action,” he states, piquing my interest, but it’s still odd to me that this is suddenly now a group effort. It certainly wasn’t that way before Erikel.

“You need to start telling us where the fuck we stand because, from our perspective, you’re just leaving us to rot under Erikel’s reign,” Brax grunts, moving slightly so he’s standing protectively in front of me without blocking me completely.

“I’m not,” Burton attempts to reassure us, but it doesn’t seem like anyone is taking the bait.

“Do you know what happened at Pinebrook?” Creed asks, cocking a brow at Burton and Fitch before turning his attention to the rest of the members. “Was anybody else forced to go?” he adds, and nobody makes themselves known, which makes him scoff in disappointment. At whom, I’m not entirely sure, but that clearly doesn’t make his whole ordeal any easier.

“What happened there, Creed?” Fitch asks, giving him his full attention, and Creed sighs, likely trying to figure out where to begin. I keep my eyes locked on the pair of them as Creed gives them a clipped overview, and when he confirms that I was forced to bring back Monarch Dutton, Burton curses under his breath.

“What?” I ask, wanting to know exactly what he’s thinking. A look passes between Burton and Fitch and it only irritates me further. “How can you lead us if you don’t know any of this and don’t share what you do know?”

“Because I know I have something they want. Something only one other person knows of,” Burton explains, pinching at the bridge of his nose.

“Monarch Dutton,” Zane states, piecing it together, and Burton nods, sighing heavily as he drops his hands to his sides.

“What could you possibly have that they don’t?” Leila asks, her eyebrows pinched in confusion as she stares her father down, but it’s Burton who answers.

“The location of the stone.”

The stone?

“What stone?” I ask, close to needing to sit down as the stilted information comes through. “What does a stone have to do with anything?” I push when Burton starts to shake his head. It’s like pulling teeth. It really shouldn’t be this hard.

“I’m assuming the stone is what he wants to help in his big plan to dominate the realm and merge us with the Basilica Realm,” Fitch states, nostrils flaring with anger as he addresses the entire room. “That’s where we’ve been, hiding it.”

“Hiding what?” another member hollers, the frustration in their voice matching exactly what I’m feeling. But also, they’ve been able to get off campus? How? We’re fucking trapped here, and they can do as they please? Bullshit.

“The Poten’s Ruby.” It’s on the tip of my tongue to demand why the Poten’s Ruby is so important, but Fitch seems to understand that we’ve already worked hard enough to draw this information from them. “You never truly own the Poten’s Ruby. If anything, you’re its vessel if you allow it to control you, and in return, it gives you the power to take powers from others. To leave other supernaturals defenseless, or to take their abilities for yourself.”