Page 28 of Serpent In White

"Haven't seen you around these parts in a while," Xander says, leaving his mask up, dark eyes narrowed in my direction.

"Yea, I was just taking a walk," I explain. "It's my day off, so..."

"Day off?" Lorn huffs, pulling a cigarette out of his jacket and sticking it between his lips. "What's that like?"

Xander chuckles along as Lorn lights his cigarette and takes a drag.

"Hey, you guys know what you signed up for, right?" I grin, eyes unwittingly falling to the very large gun on his back.

"That's true." Xander nods. "Plus, the perks are worth it." He glances at Lorn, who grins a wide, devilish thing, taking another drag of his cigarette.

I stare at them for a moment, wondering what they're talking about. I'm sure they're well compensated for putting their lives on the line, working crazy hours, enduring all the training and the secrecy. The Tribe keeps us running too, but in a very different way.

"Um... is Drake around?" I ask, and the second the question leaves my lips, I immediately want to take it back.

Lorn and Xander go still. They gape at me like I've lost my mind for five full seconds, before Lorn mutters, "What do you want with the Serpent, Harmony?"

Well, you see, Lorn, I watched him fuck his brother last night, and now I really can't stop thinking about him.

"Paul and Gina suggested I talk to him," I answer as evenly as I can. "About classes..."

"Chelsea handles class registry." Xander squints at me again. "Unless... you thinkin’ about the lab?"

"I don't really know..." I reply with more uncertainty in my tone than I can control. "It's just something I was considering."

The two of them share a look for a moment, then their eyes of trepidation come back to me, the tension between the three of us easily palpable.

"Well, there's a wait for The Alchemist." Lorn tosses his cigarette onto the ground and stomps it with precision. "As I'm sure you'd expect."

I nod. “Of course.”

"But we'll let him know you stopped by." Xander glares. It's not a happy-looking expression, nor is it one that instills confidence in him doing what he says he will.

I'm not surprised, though. You don't just wander up to the Field and get invited into the lab to speak with The Alchemist. It's a process, I guess. And honestly, I didn't know I wanted to talk to him until I got here.What would I even say?

I've never spoken a word to Drake in my life. He makes me even more nervous than Head Priest does. But in his case, it's not because of fascination, or a crush. It's because he's theSerpent. A strange creature who lurks in the shadows. Who knows everything about you from a look and uses that knowledge to get what he needs.

That's the impression I get from Drake. He's smart, but not necessarily in a good way.

"Thanks, guys," I breathe, readying myself to walk away from whatever is happening here. "Good catching up. I hope to see you at reflection one of these nights."

"Yea, sounds like a plan, Harmony," Lorn says with a little wave, before tugging his mask back up. He's more pleasant than his colleague.

Xander just stares, watching me closely as I decide on my next move. I was going to hike the mountain a little. But the way the guys are watching me, now I'm not so sure it's a good idea.

We're entitled to the mountain. The Field of Influence and the lab areas are protected by the Tribe, and authorized personnel are the only ones allowed in. But the mountain isn't part of that.

That said, people avoid White Trumpet Mountain. There are things up there... things that Head Priest warns the Regnum from stumbling into. He says if you're going to go up there, make sure you're ready to face what you may find.

I've always wondered what that means. And my curiosity is close to piquing. I want to know what's up there, and why Drake lives there alone.

But then, that's where it happened...

I close my eyes for a moment and rub the back of my neck, where the hairs are standing straight. I can't go up there. I shouldn't.

Reopening my eyes, I turn away from the guys and walk back in the direction I came. I'm not doing this today. The mischief that burns inside me is one thing, but to willingly go wandering up a mountain where the bodies of my parents were found...

That's a part of my curiosity to be avoided.