Chapter Thirty-One
Anabelle barely had time to slid into her seat in the cafeteria, when Polly and Agatha immediately plopped down beside her like it had always been the plan. She blinked once, then looked to Rian across the table. He only smiled. Then winked. She shook her head, biting back a groan. Of course.
She didn’t mind the girls, not really. They were friendly, normal, and honestly a relief compared to… everything else. But Joshua had specifically told Rian to save him the seat to her right, and now here they were.
Fuck. Not her problem, she decided. She wasn’t getting involved in whatever territorial nonsense was brewing. Cameron and Dominik had gone with Joshua to grab food, leaving her momentarily unsupervised, with Rian of course. A rare thing.
Agatha leaned in first. “Hey, girl, how did you get on?”
“Me?” Anabelle said, lifting a brow. “Did I miss the class where they told us there’d be an essay? Because I nearly cried.”
Polly laughed. “It wasn’t that bad. I think they didn’t warn us on purpose, to see if we actually understood what we were learning.”
“Still,” Anabelle muttered, tapping her fingers on the table, “a little warning would’ve been nice.”
“Mmm,” Agatha said thoughtfully. “There’s actu—”
She never finished the sentence. A low growl ripped through the cafeteria, followed by the unmistakable slam of a tray hitting the table.
“What the hell, Rian?!” Joshua’s voice echoed far louder than necessary, snapping heads in their direction.
Anabelle closed her eyes. Gods. For one afternoon. Just one. Could you all be a little normal? She opened them and glanced at the girls. Yep, both Polly and Agatha looked deeply uncomfortable. That decided it.
She pushed her chair back and stood, smoothing her expression into something sweet and deadly. She whirled on Joshua. “While you two sort out your little… thing,” she said pleasantly, “I’ll be going to the bathroom.”
Cameron took one step forward.
She spun on him instantly. “No. Uh-uh. No escort. I’ll be fine.”
Then she turned to the girls. “Come with me.”
They nodded like bobbleheads and were on their feet in a heartbeat. Anabelle had to clamp down hard on her laughter as they practically fled the table together.
The moment the bathroom door shut behind them, all three released long, audible breaths.
“Jeeeesh,” Polly said, leaning against the sink. “So much testosterone.”
“I know, right?” Anabelle replied, washing her hands. “I mean, they’re sort of becoming my best friends, but couldn’t they take it down a notch?”
Agatha laughed. “We won’t take offense to that. You practically live with them, but… uh…”
Anabelle glanced up at her in the mirror. “What?”
Polly exchanged a look with her sister. “We were wondering… how did you even get paired up with The Four?”
“The Four?” Anabelle snorted. “Gods, you say that so poshly.”
“No, no,” Polly said quickly. “I mean The Four. Capital T. You know, the Queen’s favourites.”
Anabelle froze. “How do you know they’re the Queen’s...” she swallowed, “...favourites?”
Agatha blinked. “Uh. Duh. Everyone knows who they are.”
Polly nodded and glanced around before lowering her voice. “Like two years ago, the Queen took them from their jobs and reassigned them to protect the community. It was everywhere.”
Agatha picked up seamlessly. “Yeah, it was super controversial. The elders weren’t happy, said there was insufficient reasoning.”
Anabelle frowned. “So… what though? She overruled them.”
Polly grimaced. “Well not exactly. To counter the backlash, she put herself on the line.”
Anabelle’s eyes widened. “What do you mean put herself on the line? She’s the Queen. They can’t just remove her, especially with who she’s mated to.”
“No,” Agatha said softly. “As in—”
Polly jumped in. “Okay. You know how they were in Zaninsk because they were the strongest? The only ones capable of handling what was down there?”
Anabelle nodded slowly.
“The elders forced them into that service,” Polly continued. “Hunted them down and bound it as their duty. When the Queen petitioned to remove them, she had to prove they’d serve the community better elsewhere.”
Agatha sighed. “There wasn’t much evidence. And even though her word is law, the elders still had to sign off on certain transfers.”
“So,” Polly said quietly, “she told them if they wanted her to continue ruling… they had to approve it. And if the four ever failed? She signed away part of her ruling authority back to the elders.”
“What?” Anabelle breathed.
Agatha nodded. “Yeah. Everyone knows. Well...everyone except them I think. They know she got them out, but I don’t think they know how far she actually went, they weren’t permitted in the hearings.”
“That’s why we were shocked to see them with you,” Polly added. “We thought they were still with the Protection Agency.”
Anabelle’s mind reeled. “So… what gives?”
She swallowed. “The Queen thought they should be my protective detail. I’m the only caster this term who didn’t know she was a caster. I...I didn’t think it was a big deal.”
Polly’s jaw dropped. “You’ve met the Queen?”
Agatha waved her sister off. “Oh, it’s a big deal. There have been new casters before, she’s never assigned anyone protection. Ever.”
Anabelle felt the weight of it all crash down at once.
So Kat really put herself on the line. Again. And removing them from the agency, after everything, couldn’t have been easy. All so Anabelle would be safe during this program.
Her chest tightened sharply. Fuck. Kat hadn’t just been protecting them. She’d been protecting her. The realization made her heart still, and then expand so suddenly it almost hurt.
Gods. Kat was amazing. Compassionate. Fierce. Selfless. Besides her mom, Anabelle had never had anyone stand in her corner like that. Her vision burned, and she blinked hard, forcing the emotion back. Fuck, she thought again, softer this time.
There was a sharp knock at the bathroom door. Then Dominik’s voice, low, worried, unmistakably him, filtered through the wood. “Ani… Anabelle? Are you okay?”
She laughed under her breath. Gods, they’re relentless. “Yeah,” she called back, still smiling. “I’m alive.”
She opened the door, and Dominik nearly stumbled forward as if he’d been braced to barge in. The sight of it broke whatever tension she had left.
She laughed outright. “I’m alright,” she said, amusement lacing every word. “Thanks for hovering.”
His lips pressed into a tight, apologetic line, one corner twitching as if he wanted to argue but knew better.
She waved him off toward the cafeteria, already turning, And stopped short.
Tyson stood there.
Her good mood evaporated instantly. She groaned. Loudly. “Oh for fuck’s sake,” she muttered, then looked him dead in the eye. “Can I help you?”
Her arms crossed over her chest, posture closed, spine straight. She was in absolutely no mood for this.
Tyson smiled, slow, smug, irritating. “Hi there, Snow White. Is that any way to greet someone?
“What do you want Tyson?”
“I don’t know why you won’t just accept my offer.” He said, clenching his fists.
“What offer?” Dominik asked sharply, stepping forward and folding his arms.
Neither of them acknowledged him.
“Because I’m not interested, bonehead,” Anabelle snapped, patience officially gone. “Get that through your thick skull. You act like a fucking fourth grader, Tyson. Just leave me alone, alright?”
She went to move past him but Tyson took a step closer. He didn’t get another. Dominik moved like a wall slamming into place, solid, immovable, deadly calm. He loomed, blocking Tyson’s path completely, eyes dark, mouth curling into something that wasn’t quite a smile.
“I may not know what she’s refusing,” Dominik said quietly, dangerously, “but you better think very fucking carefully before taking another step toward her. I won’t hesitate to let my demon out to play.” His gaze was pure promise.
Tyson swallowed. Hard. He glanced over his shoulder, calculating, then backed away, but not without one last jab.
“You won’t be surrounded forever, Snow White,” he sneered. “And keep in mind, the huntsmen wanted to cut out her heart. The dwarves...” he bristled, “...as you like to call me, at least took care of her.”
Then he turned and walked off.
Anabelle barely registered his words. All she could think was that Dominik stepping in like that, protective, unapologetic, lethal, was obscenely attractive.
And what made it worse was that she was instantly reminded of his words a few days back ‘...you are not just a job...we care about you...’ Gods.
He’d said think carefully before stepping toward her.
Dominik turned back to her then. His jaw was tight.
One eye twitched slightly, irritation simmering just beneath the surface.
He didn’t say a word, just placed a warm, steady hand at the small of her back and guided her forward.
She didn’t resist. When they reached the table where Cameron, Rian, and Joshua were sitting, Polly and Agatha were following a step behind, hovering uncertainly.
Cameron stood immediately and grabbed two extra chairs. “Come on,” he said easily, setting them down. “Join us.”
They looked to Anabelle for confirmation. She nodded and the girls sat down.
She took a breath, forcing herself back into normalcy. “So,” she said lightly, “what were you talking about?”
“Uh-uh,” Dominik said flatly. “You’re not dodging that. You’re going to explain what the hell he meant by offer. And then,” he added, voice calm but edged, “you’re going to finally tell us what Snow White is.”
Rian and Joshua spoke at the same time. “Offer?”
Anabelle gaped at Dominik. “You can’t be serious. You all know the story of Snow White, right?”
“Anabelle,” Dominik said, eyes never leaving her face, “that can wait. What did he want?”
Before she could answer, Polly blurted, “Oh, he just offered to take her out after graduation.”
Every head snapped toward her. “What?” All four of them, said in perfect unison.
Polly visibly shrank, eyes darting to Anabelle in apology.