Chapter 31 Rune
rune
. . .
Zara flinched, and the rest of us grimaced.
Jonas and Mara had died in the simulations, so we knew firsthand that Jarvins meant what he was saying.
Cora stood next to me. She had gotten better after a few days, which was faster than the rest of the supernaturals that had been poisoned.
Unfortunately, the number of poisonings had sky-rocketed over the past week, and the academy watchers and professors still hadn’t caught the culprits.
I was trying not to think about it, but when I did, it made my blood boil.
Dimitri was on my other side, and his arm rested against mine. Ever since having a fully honest conversation with him, something between us had changed drastically.
My soul buzzed around him, and I was just waiting for the bond to snap.
“Rune,” Jarvins called. “You’re up first.”
I nodded, squeezing Dimitri’s hand quickly before walking inside the simulator.
Jarvins had already given us an encrypted file of our mission last class, so we knew exactly what we had to do. It was an individual mission, but that was what tested our abilities without being able to rely on a squad, since spies usually went on missions alone.
The door shut behind me, and a luxury high-rise formed around me. It was the type of building I’d only ever seen in the human territory back when Mom took me to a meeting with the Human Council when I was a kid. Only I wasn’t in the human territory. I was in a building here in the Apex Capital.
I stood in the front office of a magic-tech company that created and sold items that were both technology and magically infused. My uniform had changed to a simple black skirt and cream blouse with heels.
My mission was simple: poison the CEO with a poison that would cause him to seize up exactly an hour after ingestion, when he would give a press conference. I didn’t know why it was necessary, but I didn’t need to know.
A secretary sat at a marble reception desk, smiling at me. Two silent, broad-shouldered guards were stationed on each side of the desk, and behind them all was a heavy door labeled FOUNDER this is meant to be. Our mating will be explosive, don’t you think? Now listen, we have to teleport to Bram’s, but his brother-mate already said he’d take us to my house. How sweet of him.”
I choked. “You’ve had this planned!”
“Of course I did.” He was already skipping, literally skipping, dragging me behind him and pulling me onto the wayfaer crystal.
Slater flashed a grin as the world pulsed silver and folded inward.
A second later, we appeared inside his brother’s living room. A bunch of distinct scents, caramel being the strongest, filled my nose.
“Hey, brother!” Slater yelled to Bram, who stood next to the sofa.
A massive, shadow-like chaos wolf padded into existence beside Bram. “You only ever show up unannounced when you want food, money, or a favor,” Bram deadpanned.
Slater’s red eyes sparkled as he regarded his brother. “I have a fourth option! I brought home my future mate!” He threw an arm around my waist and tugged me against his chest.
Chaos magic slithered around me as Snakey took shape around my shoulders. His little tongue came out and licked my cheek. “We’ve met, but it’s good to see you again, Bram.”
Bram’s lips tugged into an uncomfortable smile. “Good to see you again.”
“Dex!” Slater snapped his fingers and spun toward a black spot in the room. “Your brother-by-mating needs a shadow taxi!”
“Pandora has no brothers. You’re Bram’s brother.” Dexter’s form peeled out of the corner of the room. “Are you at least going to pay this time?”
Slater pointed at Bram. “I’m sure he’ll write you a sweet poem for being nice to his big brother, right, Bram?”
“I hate you,” Bram muttered, running a hand through his dark hair.
“I do want to know what you’d write me.” Dexter winked at Bram, and his shadows slithered over Slater and I before we vanished into the dark.
We stepped out into a home with walls of limestone and stone floors.
Slater’s manor smelled like pine sap and vanilla-sugar bread.
Family photos filled an entire wall, starring Slater growing up, and then, Bram started appearing in recent years when they’d reconnected.
All the photos also included a woman, who looked just like him, but with black hair, and I assumed it was his mom.
“Best of luck.” Dexter shadow-traveled away.
“Slater!” a voice called from the other room before a woman with wild dark curls and red eyes burst out, wiping her hands on an apron that read CHAOTIC COOKER in all capital letters.
“Mom!” Slater beamed and charged toward her, pulling her into a tight hug.
“I’m so glad you brought your potential mate home,” she cooed, pulling back to look over at me.
“She’s my fated mate. We may not have bonded yet, but it doesn’t matter.” He pointed at me dramatically. “Mom. This is Rune. Mine.”
Her smile softened into something warm and kind.
She walked right up and hugged me without hesitation, squeezing with demonic strength. “I’ve heard so much about you, Rune. You’re even prettier than he’s told me, which is an immeasurable amount. Come in, come in, I made dinner!”
“Hi,” I managed to say as I kept up with her pace to the dining room. “You must be Melinda.”
“Oh, so polite,” she cooed, pulling out a chair and sitting me down at the long, wooden dining table.
“Slater said you like poison. I found a rare poison from the Bizarre and bottled it for you.” She gestured toward a fancy bottle on the table in front of me.
“It’s supposed to cause hallucinations.”