Now we just needed to find ways to strike back at the rest of them.
I shut off the hot water reluctantly and headed back into my bedroom, running a towel through my hair.
I’d left most of Darius’s treasure hidden in Darcy’s room for now but a stack of eight fat coins sat in a tower on my desk where I’d left them last night.
I took a golden coin from the top of the pile and twisted it through my fingers. Looking at it made me feel stupidly happy. Like we'd won a point against them for once and they didn’t even realise it. I inspected the coin for a few moments. A dragon was engraved on one side of it and a crown on the other. I pressed my thumb down on the dragon’s face, drawing a little bit of heat to the surface of my skin until my thumb print blurred the features of the snarling beast.
I withdrew my thumb, smirking at the improvement to the coin before putting it down again so that I could get dressed.
I pulled on a pair of black jeans and a black vest and did my eyeliner a little thicker than I usually would during the day. Today, I seriously needed to channel the badass chick who stole super bikes in her spare time and didn’t take shit from any of the assholes at Joey’s bar.
My Atlas pinged persistently from my nightstand and I sighed as I headed over to retrieve it. As I snatched it, my fingers brushed against the dagger I’d stolen from Darius and that funny sensation seemed to start up again like its presence was responding to me, urging me to take it. I grabbed it on an impulse and quickly took a seat at the foot of my bed as I opened up my Atlas.
Your daily horoscope is waiting for you Tory!
I pursed my lips as I opened up my horoscope, not really wanting to read yet another warning about watching my back today. But Darcy was adamant that paying attention to these predictions could help us avoid the bullies in this school so I would at least give it a read.
Good morning Gemini!
The stars have spoken about your day.
A shift in the alignment of your stars may just have a positive effect on your day. But beware of trusting in change too easily; if you want this to be a permanent situation then it will take hard work and dedication to your cause. You could find yourself on a collision course with a Taurus today but if you can keep a level head, the interaction may be better than expected.
I drummed my fingers against my thigh as I considered the words for a moment. I sure as hell wanted to think that our stars were about to change but the whole thing was so vague that I could hardly rely on it. The only Taurus I could think of off the top of my head was Caleb Altair and I had zero intentions of having any kind of interaction with him if I could avoid it, so keeping a level head probably wouldn’t be an issue.
I dismissed the horoscope and decided to check in on the FaeBook homepage. It wasn’t like I enjoyed seeing embarrassing stories and comments about me and Darcy but if I didn’t know what was out there then I wouldn’t be prepared to face it.
I bit my lip as I spotted all of the stories filling the newsfeed and couldn’t help the breath of laughter that escaped me as a picture of Darius’s livid face greeted me with a caption and plenty of comments.
Milton Hubert: what a cruel world! The Fire Heir’s room was burned to a crisp while we were all out of the House. Where will he sleep now? #anyoffersladies #worstluck #evenhisclothes
Marguerite Helebor: Poor baby! You can always come and stay with me.
Comments:
Tyler Corbin: Pretty sure he publicly dumped you Muffscruff, but way to go on looking desperate.
Marguerite Helebor: We’re on a break, loser, check your facts.
Tyler Corbin: I really hope you have that chat with him in public again so that I can watch you get dumped twice. #bitchesbecrazy
Elouise Pirot: There’s plenty of space in my bed, Darius
Tilly Farbringer: I’m in actual tears over this tragedy. Lighting a candle for Darius’s loss tonight. #yourpainismypain
I opted to save myself from the need to vomit in my own mouth as I noticed the long line of sympathetic messages from half of the school and stopped reading, but my gaze was drawn back to that picture. Darius didn’t just look furious, he seemed genuinely upset and I really hoped that there had been some things in his room he truly cared about. He deserved some bad luck and I wasn’t the least bit against the idea of giving him some.
I scrolled on but all I found was post after post dedicated to Darius and his bedroom disaster. The posts about what the Heirs had done to me and Darcy had been buried by the new school drama and I was more than pleased to realise we were yesterday’s news already. I grinned at a short video clip which showed the flames bursting from the roof of Ignis House and for a moment it was like the pain the Heirs had caused us had been banished.
A loud knock came at the door and I flinched, almost dropping my Atlas in surprise. I cursed myself for my frayed nerves but it wasn’t that surprising; a couple of nights ago I’d almost drowned and now I was an arsonist.
I half considered pretending I wasn’t here but that felt a little too like cowering in my room so I stood and moved towards the door instead.
I quickly scooped Darius’s gold coins into my satchel and tossed it to the floor on my way to the door.
My fingers closed around the handle, I fixed a bored expression onto my face and I tugged the door open.
At the last second I realised I hadn’t hidden Darius’s dagger and my heart leapt in panic but it was too late to do anything about it.
Caleb Altair stood leaning against my doorframe with half a smile on his handsome face and a hand mid-way through messing up his blonde curls. So much for avoiding him today.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he said as I full-on glared at him.
I didn’t bother to wait for another word to pass his lips before slamming the door in his face.
He jammed his foot in the doorway to stop it from closing and I stalked away from him as the door bounced back open. My gaze snagged on the dagger lying on my bed so I flopped down on it like I didn’t have a care in the world and one of the most vindictive men I’d ever met hadn’t just intruded on my personal space.
“Can I come in?” Caleb asked, his voice softer than I would have expected. He hadn’t set foot in the room yet and I couldn’t help the surprise that flickered over my face.
“Well we both know I can’t stop you if that’s what you’ve decided to do,” I said coldly.
“Which is why I’m offering you the choice,” he replied. “I just want to talk. I swear I won’t lay a finger on you, I’m not even going to bite you. I’d just like you to hear me out.”
“Why?” I demanded, narrowing my eyes suspiciously.
“In private please, sweetheart, I’m drawing a bit of a crowd out here already.”
I glanced over his shoulder and noticed a few of the other Fire Elemental students lurking beyond him like he’d said. I guessed the Terra House Captain didn’t come to Ignis House all that often but he held the Element of Fire so he could get in easily enough. And it was probably even more intriguing to see him calling on me.
My magic built in my chest as I prepared to defend myself from him if necessary but he didn’t make any move towards me. He genuinely seemed to want my permission to come in and despite myself, I was curious to hear what he had to say.
“Fine,” I said eventually, beckoning him in. I scooted myself upright and pressed my back to the wall beside my bed, keeping my ass on the dagger.
My pulse spiked as Caleb stepped inside and his lips twitched a little as if he’d heard it. Which he probably had.
Damn vampire asshole.
The door clicked shut and Caleb waved a hand through the air. A wave of warmth slid over my skin and the hairs on the back of my neck prickled to attention.
“Silencing bubble,” he explained as he noticed my confused expression. “Just to keep our conversation private.”
I nodded vaguely, trying not to think about the fact that that also meant no one would be able to hear me scream.
/>
Caleb moved towards me like he was going to come and sit beside me on the bed and I pointed at the chair by my desk instead. No way did I want him that close to me again.
He perched on the seat and ran his hand over his jaw as he surveyed me with his navy eyes.
“What do you want?” I demanded when he didn’t seem inclined to enlighten me.
“It just occurred to me that you probably don’t know much about The Vampire Code,” he said slowly.
“The what?”
“Well, the different Orders of Fae all have their own governing body to guide the actions of their members while under the influence of their Order form. With so many different behaviours, natures, instincts and abilities to juggle, it's much easier to maintain control by having individual factions. And as my Source, I thought it was right that you know a bit about-”
“Caleb?” I asked, interrupting him. “If you’re not here to bite me then maybe you just want to piss off? Because unless your latest form of torture is trying to bore me to death I’ve got absolutely nothing to say to you. I don't know if you’ve forgotten, but you and your twisted bunch of friends almost killed me the night before last so I have less than zero interest in spending any time in your company.”
Caleb met the hatred in my gaze with a flicker of a smile. “Well I’m glad they didn’t crush your spirit after all, sweetheart.”
I bristled at the fact that he hadn’t so much as flinched at my words. I didn’t miss the fact that he’d said ‘they’ as if he’d had no part in what had happened to me which was bullshit because I’d seen him standing right there beside them, a part of their group through and through.
Caleb continued to watch me with interest as I fought against the desire to start screaming at him.
What the hell was with this guy? He’d just barged into my personal space and started talking to me about the organisation of an Order I wanted nothing to do with.
“If you won’t leave, then I will,” I said firmly.
I shoved myself off of the bed, flipping the duvet over as I rose to conceal the stolen dagger.
I made it to the door but Caleb shot towards me in a blur of motion, pressing his hand to it beside my head and leaning close to me. I was pinned in by the masculine scent of him and the hard lines of his muscular body. My only choice was to meet his gaze as he trapped me in it.
“I just... wanted you to know that I had nothing to do with what happened at the pool,” he breathed. “I knew the others were planning something, but I had no idea it would be so...”
I frowned up at him, wondering what the hell he wanted me to say to that.
“If you’d just left with me when I asked you to,” he sighed. “Then we could have enjoyed a very different kind of evening.”
“Oh so it’s my fault because I didn’t want to leave with you?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
“No. But I did try to get you out of there, that’s got to count for something.”
“You tried to get me out of there so that you could get into my pants which really isn’t heroic in any way. Did you make any attempt to get Darcy away from Seth before he hacked her hair off?” I growled.
“Well, no, but she isn’t my Source. I have a duty to protect you from harm and I’ve sworn an oath which means I can’t torture or torment you,” Caleb said.
“Oh, how noble. I can’t say I felt particularly protected in that pool though. I was half dead when Orion dragged me out of there.”
“They wouldn’t have killed you,” he said, though his voice held a note of hesitation which made me think he wasn’t entirely sure about that.
“Is that it then? Have you finished your half-assed attempt at an apology because I’ve got somewhere to be,” I snapped.
“I’m not apologising,” he said. “I’m just telling you it wasn’t me. You don’t need to be afraid of me doing anything like that to you. As my Source you can be sure of that.”
“Well don’t go to any special lengths on my account. I don’t want to be your Source and if that’s the only reason you have for not being a psychopath then it’s nothing to be proud of. Why don’t you just relieve me of your so-called bond and then you can have free rein to be as much of an asshole as the rest of your friends and I won’t have to endure the feeling of your mouth on my skin again.” I glared at him as he kept me pinned against the wall, refusing to back down. Magic tingled as it raced along my arms and pooled in the palms of my hands, ready to be unleashed.
Caleb held my gaze for several long seconds then sighed as he took his hand from the door and stepped back. “I didn’t come here to argue with you, Tory. I want you to know that what happened the other night didn’t make me feel good about anything. Fae have to claim their power and fight for their position but you’re supposed to do that one on one. The way they ganged up on you... You know you broke through the ice while it was just Max controlling it? It took Darius’s power combined with his to trap you beneath it.”
“Well you already knew I was stronger than all of you. It’s our lack of training that puts us at a disadvantage. It might be worth reminding your little friends of that, because just as soon as I get a lock on how to use my magic against the four of you, I’ll be doing it. And I hear payback’s a real bitch.”
Instead of recoiling from that statement or getting angry about it, Caleb’s mouth hooked into a smirk.
“I look forward to it.” He took a step towards the door but I shifted in front of it to stop him from leaving.
“Just tell me why,” I ground out. “Why can’t you just accept us saying that we don’t want the throne?”
“You say that now but once you're trained, and once your Order emerges you don't know how your minds could change, how you might embrace your Fae side and long for power like everyone else in this world. We can’t take that risk.” He smiled ruefully like that was just the way it was and I guessed for him it was the truth.
“Why can’t we just stay here, learn to use our magic and gain our inheritance without it having anything to do with us ruling over a kingdom we know nothing about?” I pressed, refusing to give up on my point.
“Because that’s not how Fae are. We’re born with our magic but we have to work to harness it and wield it better than others. I might have been born an Heir to the Celestial Council but that doesn’t automatically mean I get to sit in my mother’s seat when she retires. I have a younger brother and a sister who are Heirs too and I’ll have to prove that I’m stronger than them to take my place. I’ll also have to fight off any outside challenges that come at me. I might even have to fight my mother for her place on the Council if she doesn't release it willingly. The Royal and Celestial families may be the most powerful in all of Solaria but it doesn’t give us automatic rights to rule. Even here at school we’re being watched, assessed, we constantly flex our magical muscles against the other students and make sure they remember exactly who we are and what we’re capable of.”
“That sounds exhausting,” I muttered.
“It is. But it’s also necessary. For the people to have faith in their rulers they need to see that we can hold our power without question. Unfortunately for you and your sister that also means we’re either expected to keep you in check or bow to you. You were born with more magic than us, not to mention the fact that you’ve both been Awakened with all four Elements. There are countless press articles being published every day calling for the Vegas to take back the throne. We have to ensure that everyone can see we’re stronger than you if we don’t want to let you have it.”
“So what we want has nothing to do with it?” I asked. “And what about the fact that everyone called our father The Savage King? Surely no one would want his Heirs taking over if his reign was so awful?”
“People are fickle, there’s always something to complain about when it comes to rulers and there are plenty of reasons for them to dislike the Celestial Council’s rule even if it is immeasurably better than living under a tyrant. And you
’re not your father, many will wonder what changes the two of you might make to our kingdom. Plus they believe that if you’re strong enough to claim the throne then it should be yours regardless.”
“That’s... really stupid,” I said. “Power doesn’t equal good leadership skills. Beating people into submission seems like a terrible way to choose a ruler. You could end up with a group of vindictive assholes for rulers who try to drown people who get in their way.”
Caleb smirked at me. “Well if you ever take up your throne maybe you can try and shake up the way things are done. I don’t rate your chances though, sweetheart. This is the way Fae are and that look in your eye says you’re just the same as the rest of us.”
“I’m nothing like you,” I protested angrily.
“No? So you haven’t daydreamed about giving us a taste of our own medicine? You aren’t tempted to use your power to throw me across the room every time I bite you against your will?” He smiled knowingly and I shifted a little uncomfortably.
“Well I wouldn’t have to think about doing any of that if you’d all just leave us alone,” I protested.
“That’s never going to happen,” Caleb said with a shrug. “So what you have to decide is what you’re going to do about it.”
He stepped towards the door again and this time I let him leave. I stood in my doorway and watched Caleb as he walked away down the corridor. Other students scurried out of his path as he passed them and more than one nodded or even bowed their heads to him in deference. And it wasn’t just fear that made them act that way; it was respect. Whatever I thought of the Heirs and their asshole ways, it was clear that the rest of the Fae didn’t see it the same way. And although I had no intention of becoming like them, maybe it was time I accepted the fact that Fae did things differently.
If we were going to survive here then we needed to adapt. And I was ready to do just that.
I HEADED OUT of Aer Tower early Monday morning before most other students were even out of bed. It was barely past dawn and the coming light seemed to ripple through the sky. I was miles happier since Tory and I had decided to stay, though I couldn't help but fear the moment I ran into Seth. To see his sneering face, hear his mocking jibes. I wanted to get back at him in the way it hurt most; I'd hit his reputation. Wipe that constant owns-the-world smirk from his face and make his friends laugh at him like they had me. But I had no idea how I'd actually manage that. Not yet anyway.
Zodiac Academy 2: Ruthless Fae: An Academy Bully Romance (Supernatural Bullies and Beasts) Page 6