8. Raven

8

RAVEN

It’s almost reassuring that the locker rooms at Silvercrest Academy are no different in layout from those at Shadowmoor High. Coat hooks line the walls with oak benches beneath them, only breaking off for the exit and the opening that leads to the showers.

The main difference is watching each student press their thumb against the tip of the coat hook to reveal a set of shorts, a t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers moments later. Glancing at Leila, she nods for me to do the same, and I nervously wet my lips. The cool metal presses against my thumb and nervous energy has my pulse ringing in my ears but, to my relief, I’m treated to the same garments appearing in front of me.

Switching out my clothes, I’m not shocked that the shorts and t-shirt fit me perfectly, and the sneakers too.

“Please tell me why you have the Bishops glaring at anyone who looks in your direction?”

“Who?”

Leila shakes her head with amusement flickering across her lips. “The Bishops. Eldon, Creed, Zane, and Brax.”

“The Bishops? Why are they called that?”

“Do you always answer a question with one of your own?” she pushes, cocking her eyebrow at me.

“No…well, maybe, but that’s beside the point,” I admit, both impressed and irked by the fact that she can call me out so quickly.

“Noted, but I asked you first. Why are they glaring over your shoulder at everyone that glances in your direction?”

I peer around the room, making sure everyone else is involved in their own business. Not that it makes a difference, I’m not about to tell her a deep, dark secret, but it’s instinctive for me to cover my back. My gaze locks with Genie’s for a brief second, who is glancing at me over her friend’s shoulder with a deathly stare. She’s not a threat from this distance, but that could easily change.

“Honestly, I have no idea. They’re my housemates and—”

“They’re your what?” she blurts, cutting me off as her eyes bug out, and I snicker at the comical expression.

“My housemates,” I repeat, soft and calm, but it still doesn’t change the sheer shock on her face.

“They don’t mix—”

“Boys with girls. I know, but one of them spoke to Burton and he didn’t change his mind.” I shrug, not sure what else to say. “That doesn’t explain the way they’re acting, though. I’m getting whiplash from some of them, and honestly, I don’t need the drama on top of everything else.” It’s a good thing they’re hot as hell or I wouldn’t be putting up with any of it. For now, though, they’re on thin ice.

“Damn, no wonder Genie instantly has daggers aimed your way.” I glance in her direction, expecting the physical kind, but it’s the deathly glare that still remains on her face that Leila is referring to.

“People love to hate me. It’s not a new thing.” I fix my hair tie as Leila starts to follow the crowd out of the changing room, leaving our clothes hanging from the hooks. I keep in step with her and my body tenses as we pass Genie and her friends.

“How gross. Pink hair is so trashy.” It’s the same sickly-sweet voice from earlier. Genie. I want to teach her a lesson now before this continues, but Leila grabs my arm and yanks me out into the hallway.

“Pick your battles, Raven.”

“I do. I choose all of them.” I glance back to sneer at the bitch smirking at me with her friends.

I pull my arm free from Leila’s hold, ready to make good on my promise, when a hand grips my throat and I fly through the air. My back hits a wall and I grunt as the hand flexes around my neck, cutting off my air supply.

Through the rage that instantly consumes me, I blink to see Sebastian in my face. A red mist coats my vision, draping in the reddish Hell inferno he reminds me of. I have no idea if people are watching us now, but none of that matters. I have to keep my gaze fixed on him.

Even with me clutching his wrist, he doesn’t relent, only inching me higher up the wall until I’m no longer touching the floor. Every breath is an effort, becoming more and more labored as each second passes. Digging my nails into his skin, he barely hisses as he snarls in my face.

“Why the fuck are you here?” he bites, his lip somehow curling even more as I choke in his hold. My head feels like it’s going to burst and, as much as I swing my legs at him, it’s no use.

I can’t breathe, let alone answer his damn question.

How the hell do we have the same DNA running through our veins? It shouldn’t be possible.

“Answer me,” he growls, his tone dropping an octave or two.

Is this guy dense?

“How the fuck is she supposed to do that, Sebastian, when you’re cutting off her air supply?” Leila hisses, her voice cutting through the fog. I still can’t pinpoint where she is.

Her words somehow have the opposite effect of what I can only assume she was going for as he squeezes my throat even tighter. My vision starts to blur and my breaths are nothing more than short, shallow gasps until he suddenly releases his hold on me and I slump to the floor.

My throat burns with every rasp as I cough and splutter, gulping lungful after lungful of oxygen into my body. I lift my hand to my chest, willing the tightness to ebb as my head pulses with pressure. It feels like I’m inching my way closer to death before I finally get a handle on myself, and when I lift my head, I find my brother still looming over me with a pleased grin on his face.

My nostrils flare with anger as I force myself to my feet, refusing to lean back on the wall for support so I don’t look any weaker than I already do. Swiping a hand down my face, I find dampness coating my fingertips. Tears must have spilled from my eyes with the intense pressure and struggle. That will definitely make Sebastian grin.

“I’m going to guess that Abel didn’t listen to his favored child either and I’m here to stay, despite the fact that I’d rather not be.” I look up at him, really look up at him. The irritation in his brown eyes, the quirk to his brows, and the way he naturally bears his teeth makes him look like a petulant child who didn’t get his way.

“You won’t be here for long, little sister. Sending you home isn’t the only way to get rid of you. Facing the trials will be your demise. I’ll make sure of it,” he rages, hands clenching at his sides, and I’m almost certain he’s going to stamp his foot, but he manages to hold it together. “And you,” he adds, whirling around to the left. “Keep the fuck out of shit that has nothing to do with you.”

I follow his line of sight to find Leila with her arms folded over her chest. “Try me, asshole.”

He creeps one foot toward her and I’m ready to pounce on him, but he surprises me by spinning in the opposite direction and getting the fuck out of here. I don’t move a single muscle until he’s completely out of sight. Only then do I slump back against the wall with a heavy sigh.

Fuck my life.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m good, thanks,” I muster as Leila steps closer and squeezes my shoulder.

“Raven…please tell me, for your sake, that Sebastian isn’t your brother.”

I scoff, head dipping until my chin hits my chest. “I wish I could tell you that.”

The sound of pounding footsteps echoes around us, getting louder until the floor practically vibrates beneath my feet. Expecting a herd of assholes ready to finish what Sebastian started, I stand tall again, bracing myself for a fight. Instead, Eldon, Creed, Brax, and Zane appear moments later.

“What the fuck did we miss?” Eldon barks, sweeping his hair back off his face as he casts his eyes over me from head to toe.

“Nothing,” I grumble, relaxing at the fact that I’m not under attack.

“It definitely wasn’t nothing,” Leila argues, and I glare at her, but she’s not looking in my direction anyway. “It was Sebastian.”

Traitor.

They’re already confusingly overbearing as it is. Why is she making it worse?

“The fuck?” The cords in Brax’s neck tense as he scans his eyes over me, but I wave them off.

“I’m good. I need to get to class.”

“We’ll walk you,” Creed offers, but even as I shake my head, Leila steps to my right side and the four guys seem to circle behind us in a protective stance.

“I’d rather you didn’t.”

“Why?” Zane asks, a hint of hurt to his tone, but that can’t be possible. I don’t even know these people.

“Because I have enough drama with my brother. You guys didn’t mention you’re known as the freaking ‘Bishops’ on campus, and even if I don’t know what that means, it’s causing more issues and giving me unnecessary attention. I’m strong enough without you. You have no idea what I’ve already survived getting here.”

Silence is all that greets me as I continue toward the open field where the rest of the students are all spread out and seem to be warming up. I’m almost sure they will take my statement and respect my boundaries, but I’m foolish like that.

A hand wraps around my waist, pulling me back against a hard chest as lips brush against my ear. “Get used to it, Little Bird.”

* * *

Focusing is more challenging than I care to admit. The run-in—or hijack as I prefer to call it—with Sebastian has me on edge. It definitely, one thousand percent, has nothing at all to do with the way Eldon held me earlier.

At least in this lesson, the professor introduced herself to me. Professor Eleanora Figgins. A soldier, a warrior, and, as far as I can assess, a badass bitch. Her brown hair is braided back off her face, revealing the three claw scars that dominate her right cheek. She wears them with pride and a sense of honor that bewilders me. The realm is so much bigger outside of Shadowmoor. I don’t understand the greater good we’re training for, the sacrifices being made, the belief in the cause, and the integrity that some have.

I’ve only missed three ordnance classes since the term began, so everyone is still in preliminary training mode, which involves endurance, strength, and agility. Apparently they want our bodies to be weapons too before we can actually get our hands on the real deal. Luckily for me, you need all those things to survive Shadowmoor for more than a day.

“Excellent, now I want each of you to run the circuit three times, starting at a slow jog and building up so that the third time is as fast as possible. It’s not about being the quickest. It’s about training your body to maintain a steady speed, but harbor the energy to push hard and fast when necessary,” Professor Figgins orders. A few groans ring out around the field from the other students. She has already had us lap the circuit twice, getting a feel for what everyone can do, and now she wants us to go again.

“Save me now, Raven. I’m going to pass out,” Leila mutters, sweat beading at her temples at the mere thought, and I grin at her.

“You’ve got this. You just have to dig deep.” My attempt at reassuring her fails drastically when she side-eyes me with a huff.

“When I call out your names, I want you to join the starting line. I’m matching you with those I think you can hold and maintain with. Let’s see if we can make that possible.”

“Yup, definitely separated then because you’re crazy fast and I’m the little slow tortoise you hear about in old folklore,” Leila whines before moving to the line at the sound of her name being called.

She glances back over her shoulder with a pout and I stick my tongue out at her, which only adds a glare to her disapproving features. Genie, two of her friends, and a handful of other girls step forward before Figgins shoots a flare gun into the sky. As we watch, they all set off at a slow pace, allowing me a moment of reprieve as I take a deep breath or two.

A shadow casts over me after a few seconds and I really should have expected it, counted down to it happening, if I’m honest. Glancing to my left, I find Creed, but he’s not looking at me. He’s watching the other students run the circuit. After staring at him for a solid thirty seconds, I realize he’s simply standing beside me and not forcing a conversation. That I can handle.

The silence becomes more comfortable as Leila enters her second lap, the two of us standing side by side. His arm grazes mine occasionally and I try to act as unfazed as possible, but it’s more complicated than it looks. Every nerve ending is on edge, especially after my encounter with Eldon earlier. I can’t think when they’re around, and it’s a feeling I’ve never experienced before, which leaves me completely off-kilter.

All too quickly, the group reaches the end of their third lap and another group joins the starting line. I’m acutely aware that the Bishops, two other guys, and myself are the only ones not yet called. Leila doesn’t mention anything as she comes panting to a stop on my other side, basking in the comfortable silence until the second group finishes too and I’m called forward.

“The seven of you come and line up. Now, for you guys, I expect you to keep a faster pace for the first and second runs, but I want you to push as hard and as fast as possible on the final circuit. Don’t worry about staying together then. I want to see who gets to the finish line first. Understood?”

I nod in response as Creed keeps to my left and Zane slips to the starting line on my right. Another flare flashes red in the sky and we take off. It’s a slow-paced run that everyone settles into and it’s a good groove. I’m startlingly aware that I’m the only girl, which means I’ll likely be under more scrutiny than the others, but I’ve never had a problem rising to a challenge.

As we round the end of the second circuit, I inhale deeply through my nose, ready to transition into an all-out sprint as I step over the white line. The grass rumbles underfoot as everyone takes off and I straighten my spine, angling my body to cut through the air with precision as I move my legs as fast as they will go.

Excitement pools in my stomach when the two guys I don’t know drop back behind me and it only blossoms further when Creed and Zane hover behind me.

“The fuck?” The surprise in Brax’s voice has me grinning like a fool.

Keeping my gaze fixed ahead, I round the final bend with Brax and Eldon two steps ahead of me. My lungs burn as I push harder, coming into line with them again, then a step forward, then two. Holy shit, am I going to…

“No fucking way,” Eldon grunts, leaning forward and rolling over the finish line first.

Motherfucker.

I slowly stop, hands braced on my knees as I try to catch my breath. Brax stares at me for a moment, a flicker of wonder in his eyes before he dismisses me. He’s quickly replaced with Eldon, who throws his hands up in the air like a champion. Asshole.

“Are you pleased with yourself?” I ask, instinctively reaching up to pull a blade of grass from his hair. I’m suddenly aware of how close we are, just like we were earlier, and my mouth goes dry.

“Hell yeah, I am.”

“Creative, Eldon. Crazy, but creative,” Figgins states as she moves toward us and I take a step back, finally managing to breathe again. “But I must say, Raven, you have me impressed so far.” I turn to face her as she assesses me, eyes slowly trailing from the tips of my sneakers to my face. “I have a feeling you’re going to shine like a star here, Raven.”

I laugh, shaking my head at her. That’s not the compliment she wants it to be. Not to me, at least. “The issue is, Professor Figgins, stars don’t shine. They burn.”