26. Kryll

26

KRYLL

F ury burns through my veins as the fucker practically lassoes Addi's wrists together, freezing her in place before he disappears into thin air.

Not alone.

No.

With her.

The sea of people who stand in our way is supposed to be a band of support, but instead, they serve only as a blocker between her and us, rendering us helpless to protect her.

Not from them, from herself.

"Why the fuck would she do that?" Cassian snarls as the students start to disperse slowly. The murmurs are all centered on the girl who no longer stands beside us, making the ache in my chest worsen with every passing breath.

"Because she's Addi. I think I would have been more shocked if she didn't," Brody states before grinding to a halt as Raiden whirls around on him.

"Then why the fuck didn't you stop her?"

Brody doesn't take any of his shit, shoving at his chest with a sigh. "I didn't know she was actually going to hand herself over, but she slipped between all of us before we could do anything about it. Besides, I've heard and been a part of the conversations when she gets mad at being controlled. I won't push her away by smothering her."

"It wouldn't have been smothering her. It would have been protecting her," Cassian interjects, raking a hand through his hair as desperation thickens the air.

"How the fuck are we supposed to protect her now? We don't know where she is, and we're practically trapped here," Raiden snaps, his eyes almost entirely black with rage as a thought comes to my mind.

"For them to have gotten in, the magic holding the lockdown in place must have?—"

"Been lifted," Brody states, finishing my sentence, and I nod.

A look travels between the four of us before we take off. We don't need to take off like fools to the gates, but somewhere a little more private so Brody can work his magic and get us out of here the quickest.

Raiden rolls to a stop as soon as he steps out onto campus grounds, stepping behind a tree as we gather around. "Where to?"

"The Council," Brody grunts in response. "If she's not there, my father will be, and I can push him for answers. Either way, it's a start," he adds, making total sense as the three of us reach out to touch him. A whispered chant falls from his lips, but after a few moments, the usual tingles of magic aren't traveling over me as we shift locations. Instead, we're left with… nothing.

"Hurry up, Brody," Cassian growls, earning an eye roll from the mage.

"Does it not look like I'm trying?" he snarls back, irritation stiffening his shoulders before he sighs. "The lockdown must still be in place," he finally admits, and we all step back.

"How?" Raiden asks, but I shake my head.

"The how doesn't matter right now. What matters is what other options we have," I grumble, scrubbing a hand down my face as I try to remain focused instead of letting myself succumb to the worry that threatens to take over.

"We need to get off campus. That's the main point," Brody explains, and we all nod.

"If we can't use magic, let's try on foot," Cassian states, turning toward the winding path without another word.

The three of us hurry to keep up as Raiden huffs a sigh. "If we can't use magic to get the fuck out of here, how do you think it's going to be possible on foot?" he asks, earning a grunt from the wolf storming ahead.

"I would rather fail trying than not try at all."

Well, then.

"That's the wisest thing you have ever said, and I should know because I'm wise as shit," Brody declares, amusement in his tone, but when I glance at him, the grin on his face doesn't reach his eyes, confirming the worry that's settling over him too.

We need to get to our girl, and we need to get there now.

As if the thought runs through all of us, I grab Brody's arm and take off at speed for the gates. He grumbles his thanks as we slow to a stop at the unmanned post, but when we attempt to cross the barrier, we're met with an invisible wall.

We're not getting out of here.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

The tension thickens between us, worry morphing into anger and frustration as we try with all of our might to get the hell through the magic, but it's pointless. We're locked in.

"What now? There has to be something," Raiden states, his words more like a plea than anything.

"Beau. We need to find my brother," I insist, whirling around on the spot as I try to gather myself before I take the lead. The others don't say a word as we head back toward the main academy building.

I all but skid to a stop outside my brother's office as I rap my knuckles against the wood.

Open the door. Open the door. Open the door.

My begging goes unanswered, but instead of walking away, I try the handle. To my surprise, it opens, but it doesn't reveal my brother on the other side.

Fuck.

"What now?" Cassian grunts, running a hand through his hair before tugging at the ends in desperation.

"Could he be in class?" Brody asks, and I shrug.

"I don't know, but it's worth a try, right?" I can sense the uncertainty in my own voice, the hope dwindling as we keep facing barrier after barrier, but I still head toward my brother's classroom.

Students still line the halls, no one actually moving on from the scene in the dining room, and it makes my gut twist.

Addi, she… fuck. She did what all of us would have done in that moment. Vallie has done nothing but torture and torment our girl, and she had it coming, but I could feel the distress seeping from my princess. She may not have regrets over doing it, but she regrets something.

The second I heard the mention of Nora from Vallie I knew she had pushed too far. I faltered when I sensed Addi lurching from her seat, but this time, I didn't stop her. I couldn't, not after this morning.

Should I have? Maybe, but there's no changing that now.

Checking the classroom my brother sometimes occupies, we come up empty, so I barrel out to the fields where he spends more time, but still nothing.

"How is this even happening to us right now? I feel like we're running around in circles. We're wasting time," Raiden snarls, his words resonating in my chest as I nod in agreement.

Pulling my cell phone out of my pocket, I try to call him, hating the fact that I didn't think to do this first. But as is my luck right now, he doesn't answer. I try once more for good measure but still come up empty-handed.

Desperate, I fire off a message.

Kryll: Call me. Now!

Tucking my cell phone back into my pocket, I make sure it's on loud so I can hear any incoming calls before I turn my attention to Brody. "Reach out to your father. If he has answers, he can give them to us over the phone," I insist, and he swiftly digs out his device, too, and brings it to his ear.

I can hear the rings from here before they drown out and the call is cut short. He tries a second and third time before sighing with defeat.

"Do we take it to Bozzelli?" Raiden asks, making my eyes widen in surprise as I note the seriousness on his face.

"Is that going to be a waste of our time? She's never helped before," Cassian grunts as the four of us start to head back to the main academy building.

"That's true for the most part, but since Addi's speech, she's been… different," I admit with a shrug, my muscles bundling tighter as I try to remain as calm as possible.

"Different doesn't mean she's going to be of any use," he bites back, and Brody sighs.

"Right now, she's the only chance we've got," he adds, making a point. "Besides, what did she say back there to Addi? I can't get you out of this. Would she have tried?"

His question lingers in the air, and none of us are able to answer. Bozzelli is exhausting, and I don't know where we stand with her. She was a bitch, until she wasn't. I think we're all waiting for the reality that she's going to snap back into her asshole role and we can't trust in a single thing she says or does.

She did allow Addi and Cassian to stay off campus for an extra night at Beau's request, and she did defend Addi against Kenner when shit hit the fan, but now? We can't be sure.

Stepping into the main building for the hundredth time, we barrel through the hallways, but just as we turn down the corridor that leads to Bozzelli's office, we're stopped in place by Professor Amos.

"You're not in class," he states, casting a wary gaze over the four of us as I fight off the eye roll.

"How good of you to notice. Now, fuck off," Raiden grunts, stepping around him, but he doesn't make it far before Amos reaches out, grabbing his arm as he holds him in place.

His jaw tics, his Adam's apple bobs, and his shoulders tense.

Raiden could wipe the floor with this fuck in one breath, but the professor doesn't seem to care. "Get your fucking hand off me before it becomes the only part left of you," he growls, his anger flashing through the air at his threat.

Professor Amos shrugs, a curl of a smile on his lips as he stands taller under Raiden's intense stare. "As a human, I've been threatened with much worse. Now, if you're quite done, I was wondering if you were in need of any assistance. But watch the next words out of your mouth because if you upset me, I won't help at all."

"What makes you think you can help to begin with?" Cassian interrupts, folding his arms over his chest as he stares Amos down.

With a simple shrug, he releases Raiden's arm and dusts off his cream cloak. "Are you attempting to get out of here?"

"What makes you say that?" I ask, confused, and he shrugs.

"I'm a human. I might not have magical powers, but I'm not dumb. Adrianna Reagan was just escorted off campus, and the four of you have been fighting over her attention from the get-go," he retorts, making Brody scoff.

"Please, there was no fighting involved. We're excellent at sharing, I'll have you know. Also, not from the get-go. For me, maybe, but these assholes needed a moment to catch up. Some might still need an extra push, but we're getting there. Now, how is it you think you can help?"

"I know where the infused relic is kept that holds the lockdown magic in place."

"Why the fuck didn't you lead with that? Let's go, now," Raiden growls, arms out wide in a mixture of anger and frustration as the professor whirls around and charges toward Bozzelli's office.

"Ungrateful assholes," Amos mutters under his breath, doing little to keep it to himself as we hurry after him.

Stepping into Bozzelli's office, she's nowhere to be found. Being here without her present feels awkward, but the professor doesn't seem to mind. Uncaring, he swoops around to the other side of her desk, pulling open the third drawer without a flourish before waving the small relic shaped like an anchor.

"How is it just lying around like that?" Cassian snaps, eyebrows furrowed in confusion as an uneasy feeling washes over me.

The door slams shut behind us, the sound echoing on repeat in my mind as the professor transforms before us. "Not all shifters are dragons, handsome," the woman before us says with a wink. Her eyes are blacker than black, and her hair is even darker as she lifts the relic in the air, looking nothing like the professor she had moments ago.

A blinding light takes over the room, claiming my vision until there is nothing.