Page 11

Chapter Eight

TORIAN

S tudents were hauled into Ms. Rhodes office while we watched. It didn't take long before the sentinels left there and stopped in front of the administrative desk. A moment later, Hawke and Wilder left, but they crossed the main office area to join us in Liam's office.

That was when the yelling started. I couldn't make out the words, but I could tell it was a girl.

Her high-pitched voice was shrill, and she sounded frantic rather than angry.

A few of the administrators looked over, making me aware the pitch had to be even higher out there, but the sentinels just stood together quietly.

Axel, Bran, and Pascal. I knew their names, but I didn't really know them. They were Keir's friends and Hawke's acquaintances. Before today, I hadn't given a shit about any of them, but I was starting to think I should. More than that, I owed them something - something big.

"I'll be right back," I told the court.

"Tor - " Rain tried, reaching out as if to stop me. "Liam wants us to wait here."

"I'll come back," I assured her.

But I made sure to close the door behind me. The sound of it made Pascal turn, and the three sentinels looked at me warily. Not that I could blame them. They'd just stuck their nose in my business, and I didn't have a reputation of taking that lightly.

"Pascal," I greeted him as I made my way closer. "Bran. Axel. I was told you jumped in to help my sister without hesitation."

"Look, Torian..." Axel tried.

But Pascal flicked a finger, making him stop. "We did," he said.

So I offered him my hand. "Which means I'm in your debt."

Pascal scoffed at that and his friends looked away. "Trust me, I didn't do it for you," he assured me, but he did clasp my hand.

"Rumors or not," Bran mumbled.

"Keir's our friend," Axel explained. "Rain's the Morrigan, which basically makes her our leader. Aspen's their friend, so yeah, we jumped in."

"Besides," Bran said, "Aspen's cool."

I crossed my arms over my chest and nodded. "And obviously uses Winter magic."

"Fuck that," Pascal said. "Look, this doesn't have shit to do with you, Torian."

"She's still my sister, so I'm still in your debt."

"Ok..." Pascal thrust out his lower lip and nodded his head a few times. "Then keep Rain charged up and we'll be even. Since she's the thing most likely to save our lives, I think that's more than fair."

And not nearly enough. I looked at the other guys, who simply shrugged, then back to Pascal while trying to figure out what I was missing.

"Why so little?" I finally asked.

Pascal just stepped closer so he could lower his voice, allowing the ranting of the students in Ms. Rhodes' office to cover his words.

"Because this isn't about you," he said.

"Or Wilder. Or anyone who doesn't run out into the Hunt when they come.

This is about those of us who do, why we do it, and that fighting back doesn't only happen outside. "

I nodded, making it clear I'd heard him. "Then I'm even more in your debt than I realized."

And before he could reply, I left, but I didn't head back to Liam's office.

No, I marched straight to Ms. Rhodes' and stormed in.

There, four students were braced up before her.

The dean had her hand up, clearly negating any magic they might want to throw.

Liam was standing just inside the door. Another administrator was there as well, but I didn't care.

My eyes landed on the girl who'd hit my sister. The one who'd swung the tablet.

"Why?!" I demanded, storming toward her.

"Your Highness!" she gasped, dropping to her knees like a rag doll.

"The Prince!" the others realized a split-second later.

Ms. Rhodes just sighed. "Torian, you're not helping."

Yeah, I ignored her. Using my foot, I pressed the toe against the girl's head and forced her face up so I could see it.

"I asked you a question. Answer it, girl!"

"I..." Her mouth flapped, but no words came out.

"We were told to!" another whimpered.

"By who!" I roared.

Silence. Complete silence filled the room, broken only by Ms. Rhodes reaching up to rub at the bridge of her nose.

So I bent lower, my eyes locked on the girl beneath me. "Are you loyal to me?" I asked.

"Yes, Your Highness!" she insisted.

"Loyalty includes answering," I pointed out. "It means you will keep no secrets from me. So who sent you to hurt my sister?"

"I..." Again, her mouth flapped, but this time there were little grunts with it.

I added a push of power, compelling her to tell me what I wanted. "Speak!"

"I don't..." Blood began to trickle from the corner of her mouth. "I made a promise!" she tried instead. "We're not to speak of it!"

"Then you are not loyal," I said. "Do you know who I am? I am your prince! I am the heir to the Summer throne and I demand an answer! Why did you attack Aspen?!" And I pushed at the compulsion I was laying on all four of them.

A man at the back broke first. "Winter cannot live. We must protect you - even from your-" He coughed up a mouthful of blood. "-self."

"Then you are not loyal," I growled. "You are traitors!"

I lifted my hand, intending to crush the lot of them, but Liam grabbed my wrist. The contact surprised me enough to make me look over, but he simply shook his head. Then Ms. Rhodes set her hand on my shoulder.

"Torian, you've said too much. A wise man doesn't show his hand before the enemy," she said soothingly.

Which made me snarl again. "Then you four will promise me that you'll say nothing about my title, position, or family relations!" I told them, quickly releasing the compulsion. "Swear it and I'll let you live. Don't, and we'll see just how powerful I am."

"I swear it!" the girl hurried to assure me.

"I promise," the other girl breathed.

Both guys were nodding, but when my eyes hit them, they realized it wasn't enough. "I swear!" the first said.

The second coughed again before managing to say, "I vow that I will say nothing about your family, rank, title, or position, Your Highness. We're loyal! We did this for you!"

"Bullshit," I growled, turning to leave.

But as I reached for the door, Ms. Rhodes stopped me. "Is Aspen ok?"

My hand clenched on the knob. "She is now.

" Pulling in a breath, I turned back. "There is one thing the four of you can say - and I hope you say it often.

Aspen Fox is dear to me. I will destroy anyone who touches her.

If you think you are saving me from myself, think again, because I do not need to be saved.

Aspen is a part of my plan, and you - or whoever the fuck convinced you to do this - almost ruined it!

Tell them that. Make it clear that I will not have my hard work compromised by foolish peasants who think sucking up will get them a title.

I will hand those out, and those who get in my way will be left on Earth to rot. "

The four bowed so low their heads were on the ground. They couldn't talk because of the promise they'd already made, but they were definitely groveling. Looking up at Ms. Rhodes, I lifted a brow as if to ask, "Good enough?"

Without waiting for her response, I finally left. Anger was rolling through me. Those idiots hadn't said much, but they'd avoided enough for me to know there was a real problem. So, the moment I was back in Liam's office, I told my friends exactly what had happened.

"But who would do that?" Rain asked.

Keir began listing off options on his fingers.

"The Children of the Exodus, of course, but also the Summer Court, those who wish to be on the Summer Court, those who believe killing off Winter magic will make them have more power, those who are loyal to the Queen, those Torian's pissed off, those who think the Hunt will stop if Aspen's dead. .."

"We get it," Hawke assured him. "Basically, most people here."

"Fucking stupid," Rain grumbled.

Aspen just sighed. "Tor, this means they know, doesn't it?"

"That someone does," Wilder said.

"The Silent," Rain said. "That's what the last group called themselves. Sounds like they're part of the Children of the Exodus. Tag said they're the ones doing the gesture."

"But," Hawke pointed out, "they might not be the only threat. I'm pretty sure Harper and her mother weren't related to the Children of the Exodus, and they called the Hunt on Aspen."

"This!" Aspen hissed, catching my eye. "This is why I didn't want that fucking crown, Tor."

"And if you didn't take it?" I asked. "Then what, Asp? I'd get it? All your power would go straight to my mother? And Wilder's. I don't even want to think what that would do to Hawke, Rain, and Jack!"

"Morrigan," Jack cawed.

Which made me grumble again. "What does that mean?"

"It means," Rain said, "that my magic is made from yours. It is the answer, not another problem. Hawke's too, I'm guessing?"

"I don't actually know," Hawke admitted. "I get it from the sidhe, so it's different from yours."

"But I get fueled by them too," she countered, just as the door to the office opened.

All of us jumped, spinning around to see Liam and Ms. Rhodes make their way in. Politely, Liam gestured for Ms. Rhodes to take the chair behind his desk. He headed to Aspen, moving close enough to check her over himself.

"We have a problem," Ms. Rhodes said. "Those four were vowed to silence. Torian decided to step in and make it worse. Now I know basically nothing about who sent them, why, or what their goal was."

"But they won't do it again," I pointed out.

"They won't be alone!" she snapped, slamming a fist down on the desk.

"Listen to me. If someone is willing to attack Aspen, they won't do it alone.

Harper didn't. Her mother didn't. Now that they know who you two are?

They will be even more careful, so if you think there are only four people involved in this, you're an idiot of a prince. "

"A little harsh," Liam chided.

But Ms. Rhodes was staring straight at me. "I think he needs harsh to get this through his thick head."

"I think," Rain said calmly, "that throwing blame around does nothing to keep Aspen safe. Or Wilder. Besides, Torian's not the only one who's worried. He's just the one who can do something about it."

My head whipped over to see her standing there. Rain's dark brown hair fell in loose curls down her back. Her chin was up, and the crow on her shoulder looked like an adornment that belonged right there. The girl had all the beauty humans were blind to, but also something else.

I wasn't sure if it should be called defiance, pride, or strength, but it was written all over her. Standing before Ivy Rhodes like that, she looked like a true fae warrior. A strong enough one that the most accomplished general in history was little more than her equal.

"So how do we solve this, Morrigan?" Ms. Rhodes asked.

From the side, Keir chuckled. "Well, Torian and I came up with a few plans last night. I think the court needs to talk about it, weigh our options, and put our protections in place."

"And set up a few more gates in case any of us need a quick escape," Wilder added. "Wouldn't hurt to teach Rain how they work either."

"She might even have the power to make her own," I said.

"Fine, then take the rest of the day off and do that," Ms. Rhodes decided.

But Liam looked over, catching my eye. "You think Rain can make a gate?" he asked.

I glanced at Rain and smiled. "Yeah, I do. It will take work and experimentation, but I think Rain le Fae is a lot stronger than any of us realize. Strong enough to send her shadow out to collect the court for backup even as she held the assassins."

"Assassins?" Aspen whimpered.

"Do you think they were trying to make friends?" I asked her.

"I told you I didn't want to do this!" she quickly snapped at me.

"And you didn't get a choice!" I shot back. "Neither did I, nor did Rain. Not Wilder or Hawke either!"

"I did," Keir said, leaning so he could see her. "I chose this, and I will not run away now, Asp. Not what partners do."

He reached out his hand and she took it, squeezing gently. I simply turned my attention back to Ms. Rhodes. The dean watched this all play out in front of her for a moment before she realized I was waiting.

"I'm done playing by your rules," I warned. "They came at my sister, and that means they need to be stopped."

She lifted her chin. "Will you become a tyrant like your mother, then?"

"No." I closed the distance to the desk, then leaned over it. "I also won't be a pushover. The Mad Queen made me a weapon. I'm no good in a trophy case."

"Then who will wield you?" she asked, taunting me. "Or will you go off half-cocked?"

Slowly, I licked my lips. "My court will. I trust them. They're the control I need - and that Titania would never accept."

She dipped her head to look at the desk. "And if I say no?"

"I don't care," I said softly. "Don't you get it? This isn't about me. It's not even about Aspen. It's about the magic! If anything happens to her, we're all fucked, so yeah, I'll kill them first if I have to. It's better than killing us all. "

Ms. Rhodes pulled in another breath and slowly lifted her eyes to meet mine again.

"I trust you, Torian Hunt. Not the prince.

Not the Queen's son, the heir to the throne, or anything else.

I trust you , the boy who has surrounded himself with his friends.

It means you care about more than power, and that's enough to make me agree. "

"I do," I assured her. "I also care about how my power can destroy it all."