Chapter 17 Elodie
SEVENTEEN
ELODIE
What do I have to offer?
What do I have to offer?
What do I have to offer?
That damn question has been circling in my head all day and I can’t stand it.
I have plenty to offer, but I can’t show them the magical side of me; otherwise, I’m screwed. I need to figure out how the hell I can ascend without revealing myself so that The Sanctum will have no choice but to let me go.
My gut niggles at the certainty of that fact, but it’s the only hope I’ve got, so I’m sticking to it. I can’t let doubt creep in. Not when I’m officially leaving my past in the past. That’s step one. Step two, remove myself from The Sanctum’s radar.
Permanently.
“Elodie.” The barista calls my name and I reach for my drink with a smile. The sweet scent of hazelnut hot chocolate heightens my senses as I bring it to my lips.
Content, I all but skip out of the coffee shop on campus and turn toward the library.
With the late-afternoon sun on my face, I feel like I can accomplish anything.
Especially after the long day I’ve had. My instincts screamed for me to head back to my dorm to pass out, but before I could fall into a deep slumber, I changed out of my uniform and into a cute little summer dress.
The blue floral print across the white fabric is a little too cutesy for me.
Well, the old me, I should say. I would never wear this back home, fearing ridicule or feeling like a fraud, but here, no one knows how out of place I am.
The cuffs irritate my upper arms and the hem feels like it’s sitting an inch too short, but I fight against the need to tug it down.
Instead, I take a gulp from my mug of sweetness and stride with a confidence I didn’t know I had.
Nearing the library, my stomach swirls with uncertainty, and at the same time, my cell phone chimes, confirming an incoming text message.
I pause at the bottom of the steps leading up to the stone building and pull my device from my small purse.
Ocean: Are you sure you don’t want some company?
Elodie: I’m sure. Thank you, though. You deserve a break from my drama, and I need to remember what it’s like to stand on my own two feet.
Ocean: Fine, I’ll hit the gym alone. *Insert sad face*
Elodie: I’ll be there next time!
Tucking my cell phone away, I roll my shoulders back as I stand tall, clutching my hot chocolate like my life depends on it.
The reality is, I need to see if I can find out what I am, and if it’s bad, I don’t think I want anyone else to know.
Especially not the one person who wants to be my friend.
Or the man guiding me through the darkness while keeping me alive for people I don’t even know.
I shake the thought of Walker from my mind as I reach for the door handle and step over the threshold. The rich scent of books fills my lungs and a sense of comfort washes over me as I take in the room before me, my jaw falling looser with every breath I inhale.
The high ceilings rise to a glass dome in the center, the natural light cascading over the room, dancing across every wall stacked to the ceiling with books. There must be three floors, all with pages and pages of knowledge, and I’m ready to sink my teeth into it all.
“Hey, do you need any help with anything?”
I blink at the girl who materializes before me. Her blonde hair is cut into a bob, framing her bright-green eyes as she smiles.
Clearing my throat, I hold my drink to my chest and plaster a smile on my lips. “I’m just wanting to do some research on all supernaturals,” I offer, trying to remain as vague as possible.
Her eyes widen a fraction. “Why?”
My mouth dries with panic. “Honestly, The Institute Games sound daunting, and I want to be able to understand everyone I’m up against so I have the best chance of winning.”
A grin spreads across her face. “Competitive, I like it.” She turns to stand at my side, waving her hands at the room.
“Everything there is to know about anything worth noting is in the far right section. No one goes over there, so you’ll pretty much have the space to yourself.
Just make sure you tidy up after yourself,” she states with a wink, and I smile, more genuine this time.
“I will, thank you.”
Her gaze dips to my drink. “And no spilling drinks,” she adds before sauntering off.
Following her direction, I bypass rows and rows of books before I arrive at the section she was referring to. The layout of the bookcases is different here, almost curved as they separate me from the rest of the room, and it feels like I’m in my own little bubble.
In the center of the shielded space sits a round wooden table with four chairs. Placing my hot chocolate down, along with my purse, I lean back against the edge as I survey the books before me, trying to guess where exactly I’m supposed to start.
Deep in thought, I mindlessly tap at my cupid’s bow as I take a step toward the looming shelves, daring to trail my finger over the row at eye level.
My gaze latches onto a book with one word etched down the side: Witches.
I take it off the shelf and quickly hunt for a few others relating to vampires and wolves so I don’t look like a liar if the girl reappears.
With my distraction books splayed out across the table, I return my attention to the available books, taking my time to read each title so I don’t miss anything.
Searching through the S titles, I sigh with disappointment when I don’t find one that screams scythe.
When it’s clear it’s not going to be as simple as that, I look for more generalized books, selecting a few titles that are a mixture of texts.
Some resemble encyclopedias, while others look like folklore tales.
My real stack of books holds my attention as I consider where to start, unable to sit down as I tower over my selection, but when my cell phone pings, it’s not a text message; it’s a notification from the surveillance camera I have set up over my bed.
I stutter a short, sharp breath as I press on the notification, watching as my screen comes to life. Releasing a calming exhale, I convince myself it must be Ocean, but when my bed comes into view, the figure that fills the frame definitely isn’t her.
Dressed head to toe in black, I watch as they stand at the foot of my bed, running their gloved hand over my sheets before they inch even closer and take a seat on the edge.
I can’t breathe, my attention enraptured in their every move as they spin, lifting their legs as they fully lie down on my bed.
Their hood is up, obscuring their face from my view.
I take a backward step, my gaze still locked on my cell phone as I contemplate running back to find out who it is, but the moment I think it, they move, and a moment later, all that remains in the camera frame are my crumpled sheets.
My fingers tremble as I quickly open my text messages and type one out.
Elodie: Did you lock the door when you left?
I hit send, recalling the fact that Ocean mentioned going to the gym. I don’t have to wait long for a response.
Ocean: Of course, how come?
Elodie: No reason, I was just checking.
Ocean: Don’t worry so much. We’ve got this.
Sighing, I open the surveillance camera app again, rewatching their every move three times, but when I draw my finger across the recording line for the fourth time, I pause when I notice movement sensors had been triggered earlier.
Going further back, I gulp when I spot the moment Ocean woke me from my dream, but it’s the notification from mere moments earlier that stops me in my tracks.
I’m in the frame, sleeping, but I’m not alone.
The familiar black-clothed figure is beside me, and I’m… nuzzling into them.
How much of my dream was actually a dream, and what could have been my reality?
The scent.
The warmth.
The comfort.
Was it… real?
Fuck.
I toss my cell phone down on the table, unable to look at it any longer as I attempt to take a calming breath, but each pass is a failure as my shoulders slump and I brace my hands on the edge of the wood.
Clearly, the lock isn’t keeping them out, whoever they are. I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do. I should probably tell Ocean, but none of this is helping me figure out the bigger issue I have: learning myself.
Grabbing one of the books, I spread it out on the table and skim my fingers over it, remaining on my feet since my muscles are coiled too tight to even consider taking a seat.
I skim over the content page, but at first glance, nothing stands out.
Before I give in and run my attention over each page, I do the same with the next book and the one after that, to no avail.
I reach for another, hunched over the table with determination, when I feel a soft breeze ghost over my skin and I freeze in place.
Before I can glance over my shoulder, a presence presses against my back as lips meet the shell of my ear. “Did you wear this for me?”
The woodsy scent that swarms me matches the eyes I peer into a moment later.
Rion.
“I wore it because it’s warm,” I murmur, my skin tingling from head to toe at his proximity.
“You’re not sweating,” he rasps, his fingers trailing over my hips, and my thighs clench as I try to remain strong.
“Exactly. Because I wore the dress,” I reiterate, but even I can hear the way my voice shallows out.
His eyes darken as his lips kick up and his fingers dance over the hem of my dress. “Let me change that,” he rasps, returning his lips to my ear as he crowds me even more. His hand glides over my center, stealing my breath as I almost buckle before him.
“Rion,” I croak, feeling his breath dance over my skin as he snickers.
“I’ve barely touched you, and you’re already a whimpering mess,” he announces, and I shake my head.
“Am not.”
My refusal is embarrassing. I should be pushing him away and demanding to know how he found me. Instead, I’m a puppet and he’s my master, getting under my skin despite my efforts.
His fingers gloss over the edge of my panties and he gives me a second to push him away, but I can’t, not when I want it more than my next breath. I spread my thighs an extra inch apart, and that’s the only invitation he needs, dipping beneath the fabric to thrust two fingers straight into my core.
“Fuck,” I gasp, splaying my fingers on the table before me as I try to keep myself steady.
“Tell me what you’re working on,” he murmurs, drawing his fingers in circles inside of me so deliciously that I can’t think.
“Huh?” My eyelids drop to half-mast as I rock into him, eagerly welcoming the distraction until he pauses.
“Tell me,” he repeats, and I groan in frustration.
“I can’t think when you do that,” I grumble, and he presses a kiss to my throat.
“Then I’ll stop.”
“Don’t you dare,” I bite, grinding back against him when he starts to retract his hand.
“That’s my girl,” he croons, teasing me once again as I huff.
“I’m not your girl.”
“Of course not,” he muses, upping his pace as another cry parts my lips. My skin heats, the tantalizing whispers of an orgasm rippling over me.
“Rion,” I breathe, and he snickers again.
“Petal,” he retorts, and I tilt my face to look back at him, leaning closer to the table at the same time, which offers him even better access.
“Someone could see us,” I warn, and he shrugs.
“The assistant is too busy sexting some guy from section two, you’re good,” he explains, and I shake my head, searching for another reason for us to stop, but there isn’t one.
“You’re all tense. What has you worked up, Petal?” He glides his hands down my arms, sending another ripple through my limbs.
“Nothing.”
“I’ll stop if you don’t tell me,” he threatens, nipping at my earlobe, and I groan, my veins thundering with adrenaline and need, but true to his word, his movements come to a halt again, and I desperately rush to give him what he wants so I can get what I need in return.
“I can’t find anything on scythes.”
Silence thickens the air for a moment, but it’s eased by his fingers moving inside of me again.
“Some self-research, I like it. But you’re in the wrong section.”
“I am?” My eyebrows gather in confusion.
“They’d never display it where it can be so easily found,” he explains, thrusting his fingers harder and faster inside of me.
“Where should I be looking then?”
“Into my eyes while I fuck you,” he snarls, forcing a squeal from my lips as he lifts me off my feet before swiping every last thing off the table, bar the hot chocolate.
Before I can mutter a word, he unceremoniously plants me on the free space he just created. I prop myself up on my elbows as he nudges my thighs apart, snapping my panties as he inches up my dress to expose my pussy.
His tongue runs across his bottom lip, eyes locked on my core as he presses his thumb against my clit. “Home.”
My jaw falls slack in a mixture of disbelief and euphoria as he tugs his sweatpants down just enough to line his cock with my entrance.
A wink, followed swiftly by a thrust, and he’s fully seated inside of me.
It’s so much all at once, my orgasm tears through me as I cry out with ecstasy.
He rocks into me, prolonging the delicious exhilaration coursing through me.
My pussy milks him like it’s the only thing keeping me alive and he groans, his fingertips clawing into my sides as he fucks me with raw need.
Every thrust comes faster, harder, sharper, hitting that sweet spot inside of me as his thumb remains plastered against my tight nub. His gaze remains locked on mine with each stroke, claiming me over and over again until his movements turn jagged, and the need cranks up a notch.
Meeting him thrust for thrust, I feel the telltale tingles down my spine before they clench my muscles and launch me off the cliff of desire again.
Rion’s eyes roll to the back of his head as he finds his own release, our groans softening with every last thrust until we’re clinging to each other, just as desperate now in the post-sex afterglow.
“Look at that. No more tension,” he breathes, brushing a loose curl back off my face as I shake my head.
“You’re no good for me, Rion,” I croak, and a sad smile curls the left corner of his mouth.
“You’re the only good thing for me.”