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In turn, Noah smirked. “Alek, we all seek the last laugh in our own ways. Rest assured, the finishing act will be mine.”

ChapterFifteen

KATERINA ELI

Whenever Lorenzo and I found ourselves in the training room, it was empty. Which was both good and bad. Good because we had the space to ourselves. Bad because he forced his training regime on me, using the two laps I owed him as leverage. It was inevitable, but I stalled, my decisions catching up to me as we wrestled.

“You know,” I said through huffs, my arms wrapped tightly around Lorenzo’s neck, “I go easy on Lace because he’s a twig. Those same rules don’t apply to you.”

While Lace was lean with barely any muscle definition, he still held some ground against me when I didn’t use all my strength. Lorenzo, on the other hand? I had to sweat a little bit. Sure, I was stronger than him, but he was still double in muscle and height. And adding his endurance and stubbornness to the mix? He could keep up a fight for days if he wanted to.

I forced him away, and Lorenzo stepped back, creating some distance between us. “Watch it. That’s our boss you’re talking idly about.”

“Oh please,” I muttered while my chest heaved. “Don’t act like you’ve never talked shit about him before.”

“We’ve moved past that time in my life, Nina,” Lorenzo stated, his tone stern. “With everything Lace has done for us, he only deserves praise.” A longing look softened his expression, and his eyes lowered. The same one that seeped through when he spoke about him.

Lorenzo didn’t lie. I knew how much Lace had done for us, especially for Lorenzo. He supported him in searching for anything relating to his mom. Right before my aunt randomly passed away, she’d sent us to the CEG, where Lace opened the doors. He was the only one who knew of my condition and advocated for ways to help me.

He was the glue when we grew distant.

Suddenly,herpresence swelled my bones. I hadn’t sensedhersince my feeding a few days ago, going so far as to assureshewas gone by doubling my intake of medication.

But as swiftly assheappeared,shevanished. My body remained stiff, and it gifted Lorenzo the perfect opening.

He sprinted in my direction and rounded my body, bringing his arm around my waist and lifting me off the mat. He threw me over his shoulder, but instead of resting me against it, he let me tumble behind him.

“Fuck!” My muscles twisted with soreness, a pain blossoming in my mid-back.

He crouched and met my eyes, extending an arm. “How’s your medication?”

Instantly, my body stiffened as I gripped his hand and balanced on the ground. I couldn’t tell if my face was as hot as it felt. “I’ve been taking it.”

One thing I could never deny Lorenzo was a checkup. He didn’t pester us for answers about my condition —because honestly, we weren’t even sure what it was— and waited for a concrete explanation from Lace when the day came.

My medication history was a punching reminder that, even if I did everything right, Lorenzo and Lace would never entirely believe me. I was guilty of fluctuating between taking them and not. But it didn’t stop the hollow hole in my stomach from deepening every time I faced this reality.

“Lace told me the doctors increased the prescription. Has it been affecting you badly?” Lorenzo tilted his head, and his eyes collided with mine.

“What do you think?” I asked, quickly biting my tongue. Fuck. “It’s fine, really. I’m fine. Nausea’s there, but the medication is doing its job.”

A door swung open behind us as Tristan stepped through and bowed. Lorenzo was quick to bow back, but I gave a swift nod at Tristan, avoiding his eyes.

Had he heard the conversation? Of course, my medical history was public record, like all of the other guardians. But mine had a few tweaks to hide the full truth, one Lace and I liked not to face. One that Lorenzo didn’t know about.

“Ms. Eli, your new responsibilities start today.”

“What?” I blurted out, quickly gazing at my cousin. “Which ones, M-Mr. Amelle?”

“Feeding duties.” Tristan kept his tone impartial, but he tilted his head toward the exit.

Lorenzo nodded at me. “We’ll talk more later.” He quickly bowed and stepped out of the training room, disappearing into the staircase.

I fell behind Tristan as he stepped outside and toward the underground pathway. Once we were swallowed by darkness and away from guardians, he let out a deep breath. It was as if he had a switch that intuitively turned on and off depending on who he was around.

Somehow, it felt familiar, and it didn’t settle right in my chest.

“I’m sorry for not mentioning it to you, Katerina,” he said. “I’ve been preoccupied with, you know, everything else.” Although he wore large, black sunglasses, his right eyebrow lowered as he opened his mouth. Was that supposed to be a wink?