Page 49

THIRTY-EIGHT

K el gripped the parallel bars tighter. The wood wobbled as she struggled forward.

Maybe the bars were broken. There had to be some reason why she couldn’t do this.

She growled through clenched teeth. “This is impossible.”

“Only if you believe it is,” said the man in green scrubs—Arren. If she could manage to pry up a splinter from the wooden bars, she might jam it into Arren’s throat. Anything to stop those infuriatingly positive, cheerful vocal cords from preaching more bullshit.

“I know you can do this! Just a little farther, and then you’re done for tonight,” Arren added. His nasal voice had haunted her recent nightmares.

Kel was glad for Cristo’s medications and machines that had sped up her recovery.

She’d been able to spend the last week laughing with friends and carving the Howlers’ emblem into their uniforms with her new kit.

But right now, she wished for the pain of her old injuries. She would have preferred that pain.

Arren stood behind Kel, unmoving, holding the ends of a large, elastic band. The rest of the band was wrapped around Kel’s torso, pulling against her as she tried to walk forward. Pain lanced up and down her hip every time she sucked in a breath, despite the knife wound having mostly healed over.

“I believe in you, Kelyn,” he said, urging her forward. “But you need to believe in yourself, too!”

Kel bit her tongue. This is it , she thought. I died when I fell, and this is hell.

Dira, standing to Kel’s right, shifted until she stood in front of Kel, just beyond the wooden bars.

“Come on, Kel,” Dira taunted. “I’ve seen you move faster when you’re cleaning Savita’s shit. This is pathetic.”

“Right now, I’d give anything to be cleaning Sav’s shit,” Kel mumbled. She managed another step forward.

After tomorrow morning’s assessment, she’d be allowed out of the hospital wing. Her team—all crowded around her—had promised her that Sav was safe. But nothing would ease the tension squeezing Kel’s lungs other than seeing Sav herself.

Since waking in the hospital, every thought of Sav was drowned beneath flashes of the forest. Her stomach would lift and she’d remember the prickling, half-conscious realization that Sav wasn’t going to save her.

It made her breath catch, every time. But if she could just see her phoenix, she knew everything would right itself.

Even Coup had refused to help Kel sneak out of the hospital at night. They were all traitors.

She managed one more step. Another.

“Dira’s right,” Coup said, folding his arms. “I’ve seen newborn phoenixes wobble around faster than you.”

The four Howlers had come to see her progress; Bekn in an armchair, Dira ahead, Coup to her right, and Rahn rifling through a nearby crate of rehab equipment.

When she’d seen the four of them lined up at the door, she’d wanted to cry. Now, she wanted to throw Dira and Coup from the room.

Bekn stood and rubbed a hand over his face. “I can’t tell if you two are actually trying to help her, but if you are, stop it.”

Dira poked her tongue out. Rahn giggled, encouraging Kel forward, before returning to inspect the tools inside the crate.

Rahn had surprised Kel by visiting her in hospital almost as much as Coup had, both with and without Dira.

Though it had been a battle of wills to keep Rahn from blaming herself for Kel’s fall, Kel felt a newfound ease in Rahn’s presence.

The technician had brought Kel desserts from her favorite bakery and asked for endless details of her encounter with the Fume, as if preparing to find and battle them herself on Kel’s behalf.

After another minute of Kel stumbling forward, Rahn stood. She moved beside Dira.

“Imagine that I’m Savita. You’d try harder than this to get to her .”

Kel ground her teeth as she pushed and pushed until the band around her stomach seemed to loosen, just a little, allowing for two more steps. She was so close .

Dira’s lips pulled up in a lopsided smirk. “If you get to the end, Bekn will make enough pancakes to feed every one of Cristo’s phoenixes.”

Bekn sighed. “Only if Kel and Coup promise to stay out of the hospital.”

They all laughed, and that sound—deep and high and gruff and teasing—spurred Kel on. Step by step, with sweat beading down her back, Kel forced herself forward.

“ I was moving faster than this on day one of recovery,” Coup taunted. He clutched the ends of the bars ahead of her, drumming his fingers and waggling his brows. “You really want me to hold that over you?”

“Why is everything a competition to you?” Kel muttered.

Kel grumbled as Coup laughed, and she shoved herself along the last stretch of the bars. The band loosened around her stomach. The shift in pressure sent her tumbling forward, headfirst toward the hard ground just beyond the matting—

And then Coup was there, catching her before she could hit the floor, arms wrapped tightly around her.

The two hadn’t talked more about whatever it was that had so recently blossomed between them.

But they had agreed to wait until Kel was out of hospital before having that conversation.

Still, their agreement hadn’t kept Coup from refusing to leave her bedside.

It hadn’t kept them from stealing kisses when the hospital was empty, and the lights dimmed.

They’d fallen asleep together most nights, sharing that cramped hospital mattress.

Coup’s arms had encircled her and she’d buried her face into the crook of his arm, and it felt as right as if she was curled under Savita’s wing.

“Nice work, tamer,” he whispered. She felt his lips faintly brush her hair.

She heard Arren mutter something before he scuttled out of the room, signaling the end of Kel’s session. She hardly noticed, with Coup’s arms wrapped around her.

Dira snorted. “Well done, Kel. You’ll recover in record time out of spite.”

Kel straightened, resisting the urge to cling to Coup’s warmth. His arms remained on her back, only lightening a fraction.

“Don’t you want a reward?” Coup batted his lashes.

Kel’s cheeks heated. “Depends what kind you have in mind.”

His lips twisted into a familiar, wicked smirk. “The kind that isn’t appropriate for a crowd.”

Kel couldn’t help it. She laughed, leaning into his embrace, her hands tightening around his arms.

Behind her, the room fell silent.

Eventually, Coup and Kel turned to see the remaining Howlers watching them with slack jaws.

Rahn pointed at Kel and Coup. “When did this happen?”

Dira pointed between Kel and Coup, as if trying to solve a puzzle. “No idea. I thought they hated each other. But they’re both assholes, so I’m terrified what kind of tyrannical power they’ll wield together.”

The winger turned to Bekn. A wild grin was plastered to his face.

“I knew it. I knew it!” He laughed, a loud, hearty sound, and threw up his hands. Kel wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d broken out into a jig.

“Quit ogling,” Kel said.

“Well, if nauseating PDA is officially sanctioned, Rahn and I will be putting you to shame.” Dira turned to Rahn with a raised brow.

After a silent exchange, Rahn nodded, and Dira smirked.

“Last night, Rahn and I made it official. I performed a romantic gesture like none of you will ever come close to achieving.”

Kel beamed. “Official, huh?”

Rahn nodded, a slow blush creeping into her cheeks. “There were rose petals.”

Kel shifted, and Coup slid one hand around her waist. The casualness of his touch made her stomach flip.

“Congratulations?” Bekn said, almost a question. He rubbed his hands together, brow creased in thought. “Do I need to get HR forms drawn up if multiple Howlers are dating each other?”

Kel’s face started blazing. She had no clue if she and Coup were dating —and she didn’t want Bekn’s legal musings to prompt that conversation.

Coup scoffed, seemingly unfazed. “You don’t need to put out a company-wide memo, brother. We’re just… putting in some overtime together.”

“And we’re taking a hands-on approach to team bonding,” Dira drawled, slinging an arm around her newly official girlfriend.

“All right,” Bekn interrupted, raising a hand. “I’m leaving before I throw up on expensive rehab equipment.”

“Coup,” Dira said, pointing at him. “You haven’t left the hospital wing since Kel was brought in. Go take a shower. You reek.”

Kel mouthed Thank you to Dira. Coup placed his hand against his chest in mock hurt before pulling away.

“Go,” Kel laughed. “Dira’s right. You need to rest. You’re still recovering, too. Take a shower and sleep in your own bed for a change. I’ll be out of the hospital tomorrow, anyway.”

So long as her final medical assessment went well, everything would be back to normal. She could see Savita. She could call the construction team at her farm and check their progress. She could be free .

Coup’s eyes scanned her. “Promise you’ll try to get some sleep tonight without me there to pin your arms to the bed?”

Kel’s stomach tightened at his words, smothering a laugh as Bekn made a gagging sound and hurried toward the exit. Dira and Rahn swapped weary expressions.

“Cross my heart,” she said.

“You better,” Dira interrupted. “You’ve been so cranky the last few weeks.”

Kel glared at Dira.

Coup inched closer. “I’ll be back in the morning. We can make sure Bekn holds up his end of the bargain and makes enough pancakes to feed the entire building.”

Kel squeezed his arm. “Sounds perfect.”

Once Dira, Coup and Bekn had left through the main entrance and only Rahn remained, still examining the mechanical rehab tools as if to use them in their next CAPR race, another door slid open. Kel assumed Arren had forgotten something.

Instead, through the side door, marched Cristo.

Rahn frowned, inching closer to Kel.

Ever since Kel had woken up in hospital, Cristo had remained a ghost. She hadn’t had a chance to thank him for his facility’s treatment, or scream at him for making them enter the last race. Rahn claimed she’d tried to speak with him, and yet even she’d been turned away.

Their boss’s blue blazer was unbuttoned, revealing a plain white shirt beneath. His dark hair was slicked back, though stray strands poked out around his ears. When he moved closer, Kel could see the shadows hollowing his cheeks, the red veins ringing his dark irises.

“I’m so glad I caught you, Kelyn. I’ve been wanting to check on you,” Cristo began. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come sooner. But I’ve made every arrangement to ensure that you have the best care.”

A strange, unsettled expression clouded his features. Hairs pricked on her neck.

“Is it true what the papers are saying?” she asked. “That Savita’s behavior might draw council attention?”

After Coup had shown her Nova Press ’s scathing article, Kel had found several more like it.

Cristo fiddled with his sleeves. “I’m doing what I can, but yes, it does seem that way.”

“Has the council contacted you?” Rahn asked.

Cristo cleared his throat. “Like I said, I’m doing everything I can.”

“What the fuck does that mean?” Kel snapped. “I competed in your damn race and almost died. Just tell us the truth.”

Cristo’s mouth thinned. He stepped closer, until only the wooden bars separated them.

He smoothed back his hair, though the few loose waves quickly reappeared. “Councillor Trystas has contacted me requesting details about the situation. But I’ve assured him that Cristo Industries is fully equipped to handle any abnormal phoenix behavior.”

“ Abnormal? Savita reacted like any collared phoenix would in a race gone wrong. She only fought that other phoenix because it attacked us .”

Why did the council care? Sav’s actions had threatened Kel, not CAPR’s spectacle. There had to be another reason for their investigation.

Cristo nodded, unfazed by her outburst. “I know. But the council will need more than words to be reassured. They’ll need records of her temperature fluctuations, interactions with other phoenixes, and film footage from previous CAPR races.”

True fear, like she hadn’t felt since she’d seen Coup vanish in an ambulance, engulfed her. It almost sounded as if the council wanted to find Savita guilty.

Sav was aggressive on CAPR tracks because that’s what spectators demanded.

She didn’t interact well with other phoenixes because she’d been raised in isolation, like most tamed birds.

And her temperature… it would be highly irregular, temperamental, because she was approaching a rebirth. What could they do?

What could she do?

Cristo stepped around the wooden bars. Kel broke through the static filling her ears long enough to hear him say, “I’ll do whatever I can to avoid this, Kelyn.”

Cristo didn’t wait for a response. He turned to leave and, with one foot through the side door, said, “I’m sorry.”

Cristo disappeared. Helplessness flooded Kel in unrelenting waves. She sucked in long, thin breaths, her throat closing around every gasp. Everything she’d done—working for Cristo, racing through Vohre Forest—was to protect Savita. And still, it wasn’t enough .

A hand touched her arm. “Canen and Trystas are close friends,” Rahn said. “Things will work out.”

The words didn’t reassure Kel the way they were probably meant to.

Rahn led Kel to the nearest chair. They both wedged themselves onto the small cushion.

“Are you really sure Cristo would never hurt Sav? He’ll protect her?” Kel croaked.

Rahn’s eyes lowered. Something clouded her gaze, warring beneath her blank expression. She opened her mouth and closed it, before finally, she said, “Trust me. There’s nothing Canen cares about more than preserving phoenix magic.”