Page 61

Deklyn

T he wind off the Restless Sea slammed into me, forcing me to lean forward as I trudged across the shipyard.

My boots crunched against the gravel, each step bringing me closer to the sleek, obsidian hull of the Inferno Force vessel that would take me home.

Back to where I belonged. Back to what I knew.

So why the hell did my hands keep clenching into fists?

I should've been celebrating. Mission accomplished. Sasha rescued. Both rescue parties back in one piece with intel on those Kronock bastards. All boxes checked. Even my brother’s ship had been found before I’d had to take to the skies myself to find him.

I’d gotten everything I wanted, so why did I feel like I’d swallowed lead?

The salty air howled across the academy shipyard, matching the storm brewing inside me. I glanced back at the imposing silhouette of the Drexian Academy against the turbulent gray sky. The school had once been my home, but no longer. Now my home was with my Inferno Force brothers in the sky.

I spotted the Inferno Force transport waiting for me at the far end of the yard, the stones cracked and uneven between us. It was time for me to return to my life and my duty.

So why did it suddenly feel like I was making the biggest mistake of my life?

I was so lost in my thoughts I almost didn't notice the figure that stepped out from behind the ship's tail, directly into my path. The wind whipped long hair around a face I'd come to know too well during our time as prisoners.

Sasha.

My heart did a traitorous little flip in my chest that had nothing to do with surprise.

She stood with her feet planted wide, arms crossed, hair lashing wildly around her face like dark flames.

The dark circles under her eyes had faded slightly, her skin was no longer marred by dirt and bruises, and her tattered clothes had been replaced by an academy uniform, which didn’t hang loose from her body.

But none of these improvements did anything to diminish the stubborn set of her jaw that had driven me crazy from day one.

I recovered quickly, slipping into the cocky smirk that was as much armor as any shield. “Did you come to say goodbye, sweetheart?" I drawled, stopping a few paces from her. "I'm touched."

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't flatter yourself, Dek.”

"Then what brings you out in this weather? Missing me already?"

Up close, I could see the fresh scar along her jawline, a souvenir from our prison break. My fingers itched to trace it, an impulse I crushed immediately.

"You can't go," she said, her voice carrying over the howl of the wind.

My eyebrow arched. "Can't live without me?"

"Hardly," she said, and for a split second, something flashed in her eyes, something raw and hungry that made heat coil in my belly. Then it was gone, replaced by a steely gaze. “But I can't exact my revenge without you."

Thank you for reading SECRECY! For more hot and hunky Drexian warriors, don’t miss REVENGE , book 6 in the Warriors of the Drexian Academy.