Page 60

Once Riven was done doing his ridiculously thorough check of our dorm suite, he told me to lock up behind him and not go anywhere because he was going to take a shower while he attempted to be the bigger man.

I refrained from the short joke because it would have been too easy...

Low-hanging fruit if you will.

Most likely Riven was either going to attempt to apologize to Majandra for trying to execute her, or he was going to attempt to apologize to Viggo for attempting to execute his aunt.

Either way, it was a bridge that wasn't burning at the moment and that's how I wanted to keep it.

After locking the main door, I headed to my room, kicking the door shut behind me so I could change into something to workout in because I was wearing pajama pants and a hoodie. Zane would kick my ass if I worked out in his clothes since they were two of his few limited possessions in Vancouver; I had taken them from home over this summer when he wasn't looking.

Poor Zane was still waiting for his personal effects to be delivered from Stockholm.

After Majandra healed me, physically I felt better than I had in longer than I could remember. The stiffness that I had become accustomed to since my accident in my hips and lower back when I overdid it or slept on it wrong even, was gone, and I felt ready to take on all of the crazy stuff that was coming at me.

The creepy old guy who kept referring to me as if I was his lap dog.

The weird evil Ari dreams were more concerning than anything else, mainly because they weren't terrifying in the normal sense. They were just...

Dark.

Dark I could handle, I think

Someone trying to kill me I could handle; I just wish it didn't come with a body count.

Whatever slithering black shadows Majandra found when she was pulling the soul from my body was concerning, and something I needed to ask about, but when did I have the time? And it wasn't as if Majandra would tell me even if I knew how to get in touch with her.

It was as if everyone was going out of their way to make sure I didn't have a moment of clarity to simply organize my thoughts and ask everything that I should have been demanding answers to...

"That's how it was when I was a child as well," I said, pulling a sports bra down over my breasts. "That I remember. Whenever I started to reflect on things, I was sent off to train or visit... Huh, there has to be a reason for that-" I stopped in mid-sentence when I was suddenly hyper-aware that I was no longer alone.

Instincts kicked in and I completely freed the open dresser drawer that had my undergarments in it then spun around, hurling it away from me, towards the door that shouldn't have been open.

Continuing to use the momentum, I spun around, away from them, in a low crouch with my fists up and at the ready.

When the dresser drawer made contact with the interloper, they grunted and stumbled backward, holding their stomach as bras and panties flew all over the floor and into the shared living space.

"Ow," Viggo complained, rubbing his stomach.

Instantly my raised fists fell and my eyes widened as I erected myself.

This is not who I was expecting to see.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were here," I said. "Are the others back already? I thought Zannie would have still been trying to talk the Architects into putting a shower and full-service bar and other questionable renovations in our suite by now. They could never tell him no, even as kids," I rambled, tucking my hair behind my ears. "You should have seen the clubhouse they made us at Grandma and Grandpa's vacation home in Scotland when we were five... You might have and I just don't remember it."

He gave me a look.

"We asked for someplace we could play so Grandpa and Uncle Keithen made us a fortress bigger than the main home with full functioning cannons and a moat filled with a battle fleet that shot little cannon balls at anyone that tried to breach the walls or make us turn in for bed. Uncle Keithen and Grandpa thought it was hilarious and their best work to date. Grandma, not so much. I hadn't seen them run that fast from someone so tiny before."

Viggo rubbed his throat before clearing it. "You're rambling, and it's just us," he said before clearing his throat again, winching as he did.

I gave him a look. "I locked the door to the suite per Riven's directive," I said. "Did you break in?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"No, I was let in. I'm a Prince, I just have to ask and I get what I want," he reminded me with a smirk, kicking my drawer out of the doorway where it had landed before closing the door behind him. "Oh, how easily you forget that."

That isn't normal.

Viggo hates having to wield his crown.

I looked across the room to the windows; the sun was coming in.

When I heard the soft clicking, I looked over at him.

"Don't do that," I said.

"Do what?" he asked, heading towards me.

"Lock the door," I warned, backing away from him. "You know I don't like it when the wards and sigils are activated."

Viggo smirked. "What? Are you scared to be alone with me?" he mused.

That was a stupid thing to say.

Viggo knew that he was one of the few people at the Academy that I felt unconditionally safe with.

"No."

"You're dressed as if you were expecting my company," he said, eying me in my sports bra and workout shorts.

"I wasn't expecting to kick your ass until tomorrow in Combative Arts, but if you want to start today, we can," I said. "I have a key to the gym."

Viggo continued towards me and I continued backing away from him since he was acting weird. "I brought you a gift," he said with a smile, pulling something from his back pocket then offered it to me.

"Really?" I asked, quickly snatching it from him, causing him to jump, startled. "Why so jumpy?" I asked, hopping up on the edge of my bed and looking at the polished wooden box.

It wasn't overly long, thirty centimeters is all, seven and a half centimeters wide, no hinges or locks, just polished wood with a beautiful grain and ribboning of darker tones throughout. "What kind of wood is this?" I asked.

"Old. Why does it matter?" he asked.

I looked up at him. "Because you don't do anything without a reason," I said, trying to figure out how to open the box. I held it up to my ear and softly shook it, to see if anything was inside since it was strangely lightweight, but I couldn't hear anything within.

"Show a bit of gratitude and say thank you properly," Viggo ordered, puffing his chest out.

Where's a stake when you need one?