13. Adrianna

13

ADRIANNA

T he reflection staring back at me is not the same one that I found this morning. It feels like a lifetime ago that I jumped out the window, yet it was merely a few hours.

I made the right decision not to go back to class looking like this. I look…a complete mess.

Mud is everywhere. It clings to my hair, it's smeared across my face, splattered across my breasts, and smudged with grass stains on my knees.

It's hot.

Hotter than it should be.

This isn't where I anticipated finding myself today. Not when I tried to escape the four of them, not when Bozzelli had me in her office, and definitely not when Cassian whisked me away.

It was reckless, yet exactly what I needed.

My thighs clench, the delicious ache still clinging to my limbs as I brace my palms on the vanity. Exhaustion seeps into my muscles, but I need to shower away the mud before I can pass out. Then eat. Eating needs to be high on my agenda too.

Taking a deep breath, I push up off the vanity and step into one of the shower stalls. Just as my hand wraps around the handle, a bang echoes from outside the communal bathroom. I frown, considering my options, but when I hear my name being hollered a moment later, I pause my shower and slip out into the hallway.

"What are you doing?"

Wild blue eyes find mine.

"Hey."

Clearing my throat, I let the door fall shut behind me as I fold my arms over my chest. "Hey."

He gapes at me, eyes raking from head to toe. Slowly, his head tilts to the side. "What happened to you?"

"Why are you here, Brody?" I ask, trying to redirect the situation, but it's disregarded.

"What happened to you?" he repeats, taking a step toward me, and I look away. He sweeps a loose tendril of hair back off my face, revealing more dirt clinging to my skin, and I feel his grin before I hear a soft chuckle come from his lips. "Cassian happened, huh?"

"Something like that," I mutter, shaking my hair back into place as I look at him.

Worry crinkles the corner of his eyes, making my chest tighten with a panic that doesn't feel like my own. Before I can question him on it, he cups my cheek delicately.

"Can we talk?"

"What about?" I've already done the whole talking thing with one of these assholes today and now look at the state of me. I don't think I'm in any position to do it again.

He wets his lips, nerves revealing themselves in the twitch of his nose. "Are you mad at me?" The question is soft on his tongue, and I frown at him.

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"For knowing," he admits, scrubbing the back of his neck.

It takes a minute for me to figure out what he's talking about, but the reminder of everything that unfolded at The Council comes flooding back to my mind.

"About what they were planning."

"Yeah." Guilt gnaws at him. It's visible in his every breath.

I shake my head. "I don't get the feeling that you knew they were going to do it like that."

"I didn't." He exhales, but the struggle he's dealing with doesn't budge. I nod nervously, unsure what it is he wants me to say. "But that doesn't mean I shouldn't have explained what I did know," he adds, a tight smile on his lips.

"Why would you explain it to me?" Did he technically omit things? Yes, but we've all done it.

"Because…" He gives me a pointed look, like that explains it.

"Because? I didn't tell you I was Princess Adrianna Reagan," I state, and he scoffs.

"That's different." I cock a brow at him, but he doesn't falter. "It is."

"If you say so."

"So, you're not mad at me?"

"There's no reason for you to tell me things like that. About Vallie, about your father?—"

"What if I want there to be a reason?"

My head dips as his hand slips from my face. "I can't handle this conversation right now."

"Well, I'm slightly impressed. I feel like we tested the waters of your feelings and emotions a little more than last time. Progress, right?"

I frown, trying to recall what he means, and the memory of us in the forest together, after my secret was revealed, floods my vision. I don't know if I'm all that progressed, but I'm not going to correct him.

Clearing my throat, I force myself to lift my head up and stand strong. "Is this what you came here for?"

"No. I came because of my father."

"I thought I just said?—"

"I know what you said, but this feels important, and since we all now know it involves you, you have a right to know." How ominous. Perfect. I raise my eyebrows at him in question. "They're going to try again, Addi." I gulp. My nostrils flare, and my heart rate increases. "They don't care about anything but their own goals, and unfortunately, I don't know what those goals are. I just know that I will never lose what little of your trust I might have."

"What's their plan?" I ask, trying to keep my growing concern shielded, but something tells me I'm doing a terrible job of it.

"I don't know for sure, but he told me to keep you close and be prepared."

Wow.

Instinctively, I take a step back. Brody reaches for me, but it only makes me inch back farther.

"Dagger, I?—"

"Sorry," I blurt, hating the concern that washes over his features, but I just need a little space to think.

"It's okay, I just…I'm telling you this because I want you to trust me and realize that I'm not a threat. Fuck, I want you close because I want you, not because of my father, but I can imagine that those lines are blurred on your end right now."

A warmth spreads through my body as he offers me a soft smile, and despite my inner torment, I return it.

"When did you get so wise?"

"I'm a mage, remember? I was born wise."

"There he is," I say with a snicker, shaking my head in relief that the fun guy is still in there.

"Who?"

"Brody the big-talking asshole. He's still able to make an appearance," I muse, and he winks. The tension that suffocated the air moments ago dissipates.

"So you understand?" he asks, hope in his gaze, and I shake my head, making myself dizzy with how many times I've done it in such a short span of time. "I didn't think you would. I'll give you some space, but just know, Dagger, we're not done—far from it."