Dragon Fire Academy 3: Third Term

by Rachel Jonas

  There wasn’t a doubt in my mind about that, and my heart raced as I envisioned the possibilities. What little breath he hadn’t already stolen was suddenly nonexistent.

  A kiss pressed to my skin and his heat moved through me. “Please, don’t make me beg.”

  Those words were spoken against my shoulder, as my thigh was brought to rest over his tight waist.

  My heel brushed his backside and, a few ragged breaths later … “Okay.”

  I felt his smile against my skin when I caved, and my awareness of it brought one out of me, too. He wasn’t the only one who’d missed this, the closeness between us.

  There were very few seconds between the time it took to remove what little clothing we wore, to him staring down on me as our bodies connected. His powerful forearms slipped beneath my shoulders when he lowered, bringing his face within inches of mine, and his weight covered me.

  I didn’t know how to keep quiet when it came to them, and the more my volume rose, the more it seemed to feed his hunger. It was more than apparent that I’d been missed, and for the most part, I endured what I likened to a pleasurable punishment by wincing and biting my lips. Only, after a while, it got to be a little too much, leaving me no choice but to speak up.

  “Ease up, okay? Just a little,” I panted, causing Rayen’s pace to taper off right away.

  “Sorry. Guess I missed you more than I realized.” The soft apology was whispered into my hair, and his words brought a smile out of me. I’d missed him while he was away, too.

  I kissed him when his forehead pressed to mine and I relaxed into the mattress, letting my fingertips wander over the smooth rolling hills of his muscular back, his shoulders. It was no wonder we’d given in to our flesh that first time. It was as if one’s body anticipated the need of the other’s, responding in kind.

  The explosive tension between us was just beginning to mount, but I was taken out of the moment when another jolt of discomfort had me wincing. Yes, my request had slowed his pace considerably—which I’m sure he thought was enough—but it had done nothing to lessen the power in those hips of his, his unrelenting drive.

  I wrestled with whether to speak up again, knowing he was just worked up from it having been a while. Only, when his hand lowered to cup my outer thigh, squeezing harder than I knew he meant to, my thoughts raced to my lips.

  “Rayen, you’re hurting me.”

  I didn’t have to say it twice. The moment my words touched his ears, all movement ceased, and he seemed suddenly aware of how he held me, because his hand fell away from my skin.

  “I … I’m sorry,” he said breathlessly, squeezing his eyes tightly shut, as if only now coming to his senses. “I got caught up and I—”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong,” I promised him, smiling when I placed a hand against his neck. “I’m not made of glass. You didn’t break me.”

  Despite my reassurance, it didn’t take long for guilt to overtake his expression.

  An F-bomb quietly fell from his lips as his body lifted from mine, easing off to the side. On his back, he stared at the ceiling a few seconds before gripping his temples between his middle finger and thumb. The other hand was balled into a tight fist at his side, telling of his growing frustration with himself.

  “I’m not mad,” I clarified, hoping to ease some of whatever he was feeling. That wasn’t a lie; it wasn’t like he’d forced himself on me, or like he ignored my discomfort.

  “I just … I never want you to feel unsafe with me.”

  “Unsafe?” I scoffed. “The last thing I’d ever feel with any of you is unsafe.”

  “Still, I lost control, and—”

  Smiling, I pulled his hand to my lips, quieting him when I kissed the back of it. “You stopped. You listened. We’re good,” I assured him. “Seriously.”

  He finally met my gaze and I kissed his lips this time, holding his stare.

  “Maybe you were right. We shouldn’t have tried this before I’m rested. I guess, if I’m honest, you’re not the only one who doesn’t feel like yourself,” he admitted with a sigh, before slipping deep into his thoughts. “Maybe … there’s something wrong with—”

  I shut him up again, by covering his mouth with mine. Lifting the cover away from his body, I didn’t break our kiss when I climbed on top of him, feeling his warm skin slip beneath me.

  “If you’re scared, I’ll take over,” I whispered into his mouth, letting him know I didn’t see stopping as an option. Movement in his lips ceased for a second, and perfect teeth flashed at me when I playfully pinned both his wrists to the mattress.

  “If I say yes, you’ll be gentle?” he teased, prompting me to shrug.

  “Eh … for now, yes,” I grinned, “but we’ll see how it goes.”

  Chapter Four

  Kai

  “So, you just let her waltz back in here?” Ori fumed. “Like nothing happened? Like she didn’t use her magic against us and take out not one, but two guards without batting an eye?”

  He’d been like this the entire flight home, ranting in my thoughts about how Noelle would be the death of our hive if she kept up like this. How he didn’t see a way to trust her moving forward. Only, underneath all the rage and grief, I knew what had really brought this on.

  He was hurt.

  Hurt that he’d been ignored.

  Hurt that Noelle’s actions might have dire consequences.

  None of us wanted to see Rayen in that state, nor were we prepared to let our brother go, but our tribe had very specific views when it came to death.

  In short, whoever Spirit saw fit to take was meant to be taken. We didn’t tamper with the delicate balance between our realm and that of the afterlife.

  Paulo stepped aside when Ori began wearing a path across the living room floor.

  “And now, we’re just supposed to stand out here, pretending this is all okay?”

  Paulo lifted his hands and brow at Ori’s question. “Look, if you want to walk in Rayen’s room and get an eyeful of dick, hey, be my guest, but I’m not following you.”

  On cue, it seemed like the sound of the headboard slamming Rayen’s bedroom wall got louder, only grating on Ori’s nerves more.

  “Charging in there won’t change anything,” I sighed, trying to do our brother a solid by not interrupting. “They’ll be out eventually, and when they are, we can talk and air everything out.”

  “Talk?” Ori scoffed. “There’s nothing to talk about. Until we figure out if she can still be trusted, I want her gone.”

  “You don’t mean that,” Paulo corrected.

  “Like hell I don’t.”

  Paulo’s gaze went to Ori at the exact moment mine did. His expression reflected his anger, but I was certain his heart would tell a very different story. He felt as deeply for Noelle as we all did, which meant the idea of letting her out of his sight terrified him just as much as it did us.

  “She did this for Ray,” I reminded him. “She didn’t go dark to conjure up a million dollars, or to pass an exam. She did it to save one of us.”

  “Yeah, and at what cost?” Ori’s voice thundered against the walls, and a furious glare leveled on me. “And let’s not forget the lives she took. Are you saying it makes it okay that she did it in the name of love?”

  “No, but—”

  “She went against the very thing we’ve fought to do all these years,” he pointed out. “Our only mission has been to save the innocent people on this island. And the only time any of us have taken a life has been if the Darkness had too deep a hold and action was needed in order to keep others out of danger. Never because someone didn’t cooperate. Never because someone didn’t have the right answers.”

  His shoulders heaved as he spoke.

  “This is just … different,” Paulo tried reasoning.

  “Why? Because she’s ours? Because we love her?” That word—love—it hung in the room long after it was spoken. “Because if that’s the case, we should all be doing whatever the hell we wa
nt, and just get a pass because we’re family.”

  My gaze lowered to the floor.

  “She’s a loose cannon,” he went on to add. “And I, for one, don’t see how she’s fit to stand at our side. She’s proven she can’t control herself, and the last thing we need is a queen on our hands who might, literally, bite the head off the next person who crosses her.”

  “I didn’t realize I’d become so much trouble for you four.”

  All our heads spun at the sound of Noelle’s voice. With our attention so heavily focused on Ori, none of us had noticed the racket in the bedroom had quieted. There she stood, wrapped in a sheet from Rayen’s bed, with him towering over her from behind.

  A chilled look passed between Noelle and Ori. One that sent ice running through my veins. From the start, these two had butted heads, only finding peace once Noelle became our queen. However, now, I wasn’t sure her role within the hive was enough.

  “You crossed every line there was to cross today,” Ori accused, addressing her through clenched teeth. “And are you even sorry?”

  “Sorry?” A humorless laugh slipped from her lips. “You mean sorry I saved Rayen? Because, if that’s what you’re asking, then the answer is no. I’m definitely not sorry about that.”

  Disappointment filled Ori’s gaze, maybe realizing she couldn’t see the deeper issue. Maybe realizing they’d already reached a stalemate.

  “And what about the witch you caught?” He paused to toss Noelle the tattered, bloody cloak we came across. “Did you even think to get answers before you finished her off?”

  “First of all, it’s a he, not a she,” Noelle clarified. “Second, the answer to your question—or rather … your accusation—is no, I did not kill him. And yes, I’m working on getting answers.”

  Ori clearly hadn’t expected that response, because there was only one warlock any of us knew by name. After half a second, the look of mild shock quickly wore off his face when he posed another question.

  “Then, where is he?”

  “I’ve got it handled,” was Noelle’s only answer.

  There was another stare-down between the two, ending with Ori shaking his head, seeming to find our queen’s behavior hard to believe.

  “So, what about what you did to those guards? Was that a part of saving Rayen, too?”

  Noelle’s expression faded, until all that remained was a blank canvas where emotion had once resided.

  “They wouldn’t have led us to him otherwise,” she reasoned.

  “So, killing them was the answer?” Ori shot back. “Why not use a spell? Maybe the same one you didn’t hesitate to use against us.”

  The statement was hurled from his mouth like a dart, and with the way Noelle lowered her gaze, I guessed it had struck its intended target.

  “Can you even admit that you screwed up?” he asked incredulously. “I mean, do you even realize—”

  “I did what I felt I had to do,” Noelle interjected, staring Ori straight in his eyes. “So, if you disagree with that, or if you want to demonize me because of how I reacted to finding your brother, my mate, lying on the ground … DEAD,” she screamed, “then, I guess I’ll have to live with that.”

  Her voice was shrill when it echoed through the bungalow. The intensity of her words, and the emotion within them, was made more apparent when tears streaked her expressionless face.

  “So, if you’re looking for an apology, I can’t give you that,” she added, her shoulders quivering as her entire body shook. “This is who I am. If that’s not good enough, or if it gets in the way of who you were called to be … then, I guess I’ll do what you don’t seem to have the courage to say,” she forced out. “I’ll leave.”

  Her hand moved to her cheeks to push tears from them, and dead silence followed. She lowered her gaze when she could no longer look at Ori. Her pain was apparent, hanging heavy in the room like a dark cloud covering us all.

  She didn’t want this—the changes she couldn’t control, Ori’s rejection. She’d gotten enough of that from others. I suppose this realization was what made me take that first step in her direction, and I didn’t stop until I reached her.

  “We’re not letting you go anywhere.” The words left my mouth despite knowing I’d get more than a little pushback from Ori. Only, when Paulo stepped up, too, my claim held a bit more weight.

  Behind her, Rayen’s fingers laced with Noelle’s and he squeezed, making his stance clear without there being a need for words.

  This went against everything our hive stood for. Our solidarity began with the four Firekeepers, and our queen was merely an addition to that unit. Only, now, as we stood with Noelle, a line had been drawn in the sand.

  And two of my brothers and I were clearly on one side, while our alpha was on the other.

  Ori’s steps were loud and angry as he stormed across the room, ending the short walk with a slam of the front door as he made his exit. Noelle, visibly shaken, grew still when I cupped her chin and brought her eyes to meet mine.

  “This has never been conditional,” I declared. “Our bond is non-negotiable. It might take some time, but Ori will realize that, too.”

  She clearly didn’t find much hope in that statement, but I had enough for both of us.

  This ordeal didn’t mean any of us were against Ori—even if he may have seen it that way. It meant we were willing to hold things together until he came to his senses. Letting Noelle walk away from us now, only to realize it was a mistake later, would have been catastrophic.

  So, for now, Rayen, Paulo and I would do our part to keep our unit together; would do our part to make sure neither our mate nor our brother took a step that couldn’t be backtracked.

  There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that either would eventually come to regret it.

  Chapter Five

  Ori

  Wood splintered across the rug on the opposite side of the threshold. If anyone had been inside, they would have certainly known I was here after the entrance I’d just made. Arriving to find the door had been locked left me no choice but to kick it in.

  My eyes darted from one end of the small lobby to the other. Only silence reverberated off the walls, and it didn’t take long for the pieces to fall into place.

  Chief was gone, and he wouldn’t come out of hiding until he was good and ready. That seemed just like him—start a fire, fan the flames, then run the other way as it spreads out of control.

  Walking to the office, instead of flying, hadn’t cleared my head like I hoped. The argument with Noelle hadn’t been more than an hour ago, and it was all I could think about. Anger swelled within me like the rising tide, moving through my limbs as I walked the entire space. I scanned for any clue as to where Chief and his team had gone, but they’d practically cleared the place out. The few sheets of paper scattered about were meaningless.

  Now, not only could I not save Noelle, I also couldn’t speak to the man responsible for it all.

  Perfect.

  A spike of rage sent me in search of something to destroy, and a heavy chair made it into my hand the next second. Hurling it through the air brought me no satisfaction, nor did the sound of shattering glass when it broke through the window and landed in the garden outside it.

  Dead end after dead end.

  No hope.

  Only failure.

  That’s what the past several hours had been. And now, as the sun began to set, our lives had spun even further out of control.

  Trudging from the building, the argument continued to play on a loop. I heard every word we both used as weapons, and I admittedly wasn’t sure which had been said out of anger and which were true.

  For now, they all felt like the latter.

  I took to the air, having no idea where I’d go. The only thing I knew was that I wouldn’t be returning to the bungalow anytime soon. However, when I landed within the gates of the academy, I realized I’d come to the one place I might possibly find good news.

  Blythe wore a concerned exp
ression as she sat beside the fountain with the others. That seemed to be the group’s typical hangout. One by one, they spotted me, and from that moment, their gazes stayed glued to mine. Blythe had likely filled them in on the latest regarding Noelle, which accounted for the hopeful looks currently being hurled my way. They wanted answers, wanted to know she was okay. However, unfortunately for them, I could give them nothing.

  I had no answers, and I wouldn’t give them false hope by confirming a lie. Noelle was anything but okay.

  “Did you find her?”

  “Yes. Mind if I talk to you for a sec?” I asked in the same breath I’d just given Blythe such a short answer.

  Being singled out, her eyes widened. “Uh, sure,” she replied quickly, standing to follow me between the two brick buildings nearby.

  “You rushed off earlier to see if you could find help. Whose help?” I asked, cutting right to the chase.

  She hesitated a bit as her gaze crept along the brick wall behind me. Eventually, she let out a breath and her eyes fell shut. “I sent for the royal family.”

  Curious, my brow tensed. “Her parents?”

  “Not exactly.” Blythe met my gaze wearily. “Maybe it would have been more accurate to say I sent for the entire royal family.” When her voice trailed up at the end, it sounded more like a question than an answer. “I sent a smoke signal of sorts to her Aunt Hilda, and if she gets it, I told her to bring the cavalry. Noelle’s parents, grandmother, uncles … everyone. Because I think we’re gonna need everyone,” she insisted.

  I didn’t disagree.

  “I know Noelle will be pissed when she finds out, but it’s for her own good,” she concluded.

  “Well, did it work?” was the next logical question.

  When her expression turned dim, my heart sank. “I wish I had a more solid answer for you, but all I can say is I tried. We won’t know if it worked … well … until it does.”

  It felt like she was talking in circles. When I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried calming myself, Blythe exhaled sharply.