Chapter 28
Piper
As I walk towards the main academy building with music blasting through my headphones to drown out the rest of the world, I allow myself to appreciate the fact that Elaris Island is unusually mild this morning.
There’s even a bit of sun for once.
I barely slept last night.
Every time I closed my eyes, yesterday’s conversation with Julian replayed itself in my head until eventually I stopped bothering trying to sleep at all.
By five in the morning, I was already out of bed because there seemed little point in lying there staring at the ceiling any longer.
So I threw on my training clothes and went to the rink.
The ice was empty when I arrived, which wasn’t surprising considering the hour.
And for a little while, it almost felt like the entire place belonged to me.
I skated alone until my legs burned, letting muscle memory take over while my thoughts slowly quieted for the first time since yesterday.
Eventually, though, the quiet started disappearing.
Voices echoed from outside the rink, followed by the sound of lockers opening and slamming shut.
The football team had arrived.
Their locker room is in the same sports building as the rink, which means the peace there never lasts very long.
After that, I went back to my room, changed, and now I’m heading towards the academy for another day of classes.
Fortunately, I don’t have a first period this morning, so I decide to stop by the dining hall for breakfast before classes start.
There’s a chance the girls will already be there, and I would at least like to see them for a few minutes. Just to reassure myself that everyone is alright.
Though, honestly, none of us seem particularly alright lately.
Octavia and Adelaide can barely exist in the same room without tension erupting between them.
Ophelia has been disappearing deeper and deeper into her own thoughts recently, carrying around something she clearly refuses to speak about.
Which, admittedly, makes me a complete hypocrite for noticing considering I’ve been doing exactly the same thing.
And lately, it almost seems like wherever the girls are, the Ferrum Syndicate is never very far behind.
Then again, considering Hunter has recently developed the exact same habit when it comes to me, I really have no room to judge.
As I pass the main building, I notice that while most students are already in class, a few are still gathered outside, enjoying the rare bit of sunlight.
I head towards the separate building that houses the dining hall. It’s smaller and more modern than the main academy building.
I slip my earphones out as I step into the dining hall, and my eyes immediately land on Ophelia sitting alone at our table.
I head over to her.
She glances up from the menu the moment I approach, a small smile appears on her lips, and I find myself returning it automatically as I slide into the seat opposite her.
“Just you this morning?” I ask.
“Seems like it,” she replies lightly. “Although I saw Adelaide earlier, so if she doesn’t have class, she’ll probably show up eventually. And Octavia was still asleep when I left, but I did wake her before leaving, so she might come down too.”
I nod, glancing at her briefly.
There’s something in the way she looks at me.
Like she wants to ask me something but keeps deciding against it at the last second.
Before she gets the chance to say anything, I turn my attention to the digital menu built into the table.
We place our orders through it, and the food usually arrives a few minutes later.
I don’t come to the dining hall very often anymore.
Usually, it used to be the girls dragging me here back when things between us felt… easier.
Now, if I do come, it’s mostly just to see them anyway.
Most of the time, I prefer staying in our private dorm.
It doesn’t really feel like student accommodation at all. It’s more like a small apartment with its own kitchen, and whenever I don’t feel like cooking, I can always order food from the dining hall and have it delivered straight to my room.
Although, since Arlo decided to overhaul the entire academy menu and make it fully vegan for Ophelia’s sake, I can’t say I’ve been particularly tempted.
Not that I have anything against it.
But I do occasionally miss the double cheeseburgers here.
Just thinking about it makes me smile slightly.
Arlo is completely gone for my friend even if he tries to hide it.
Though honestly, anyone with eyes can see it.
I place my order without much thought because breakfast is probably my favourite thing about this place.
I honestly don’t think I could ever get tired of the acai bowls here.
My attention turns to the door when Adelaide walks into the dining hall.
Her leather jacket sits perfectly on her, dark curls frame her face, and I can already see the usual mischief in her green eyes.
“Morning, ladies,” she says as she drops into the chair beside me.
I smile at her, and she immediately leans closer, throwing an arm around me in a quick side hug.
“How have you been, my love?” she whispers near my ear.
“Fine.”
It’s the only answer I give her, though I do manage a small smile.
Adelaide leans back slightly so she can properly look at me.
“Liar,” she murmurs before lightly tapping the tip of my nose.
I roll my eyes while a satisfied grin plays at her lips and she starts scrolling through the menu.
“So,” Adelaide says brightly, trying to look annoyed as she turns towards Ophelia and failing miserably, “what vegan masterpiece are we being tortured with today?”
Ophelia shakes her head, a smile touches her mouth while her cheeks turn slightly pink.
“I do believe you and my sister are the ones struggling most with the new menu.”
“You’re not wrong,” Adelaide replies, glancing up. “But let’s not put me and your sister in the same category. It feels… offensive.”
“Yeah… someone clearly needs to be put back in her place as per usual,” Octavia’s dry voice echoes from behind us.
“Well,” Adelaide says slowly, turning towards her, “that sounded almost threatening.”
Octavia narrows her eyes and I instantly feel this might escalate.
“Octavia,” Ophelia hisses quietly.
Octavia just shakes her head before smirking at Adelaide.
“I’m simply stating a fact.”
She pulls out a chair and drops into it before rubbing both hands over her face.
“I need at least five more hours of sleep to function properly,” she mutters.
Adelaide glances up from her phone.
“Then go back to sleep. That way I won’t have to suffer looking at your face this early in the morning.”
I give Adelaide a look and she only winks at me in return.
Octavia slowly looks between me and her sister.
“Did a certain cartel bitch just speak to me?”
Adelaide doesn’t look remotely bothered by the insult.
“I might be a bitch, but in this case is necessary,” she replies sarcastically, and something about the way she says it makes me think the meaning behind it runs deeper than I realise.
Octavia laughs without humour.
“Careful, Adelaide. One day I’m really going to lose my patience, and my blade might actually find an artery.”
That finally wipes the amusement from Adelaide’s face.
The two of them stare at each other without backing down, the tension between them becomes so heavy it makes me uneasy.
Thankfully, we’re saved when the food arrives at the table, and I breathe a little easier.
I have no idea what happened between those two, and judging by the tension between them, I highly doubt either of them plans to explain it anytime soon.
So instead, I pick up my spoon and start absentmindedly playing with it.
It’s strange to think that only two weeks before the Ferrum Syndicate party in August, all of us were perfectly fine.
We laughed together, and existed around each other without this constant tension in the air.
Now Octavia’s hostility towards Adelaide is obvious.
And Adelaide, for reasons I still don’t understand, seems almost determined to provoke her whenever she gets the chance.
And the more I watch them, the more certain I become that this didn’t appear out of nowhere.
Octavia doesn’t turn on people without reason.
She may be intense—completely unhinged on occasion—but she is also fiercely loyal. Protective in a way that can turn violent when it comes to the people she considers hers.
Her sister.
Us.
If you are on Octavia’s good side, there is probably no safer place to stand.
But if you are not…
Which is exactly why I can’t stop thinking Adelaide must have done something extremely serious to destroy whatever existed between them before.
But I’ve also caught Adelaide looking almost guilty more than once.
Small flashes of regret cross her face sometimes before disappearing so quickly I almost think I imagined them.
And maybe, like the rest of us, she is carrying problems none of us know anything about.
Being the future cartel queen cannot exactly come without pressure. If anything, I imagine it crushes her more than she lets anyone see.
I just don’t understand why she refuses to talk to us about any of it.
We’re supposed to be friends.
Before I can think any further on it, the loud scrape of a chair pulls me from my thoughts.
Milo drops into the seat beside Octavia and casually throws an arm over the back of her chair, his hand briefly brushes her shoulder.
She immediately pushes it away.
His arm falls back without protest, and he only smirks.
Completely unbothered.
“What are you doing here, Markev?” Octavia snaps. “I really can’t find peace anywhere without you somehow appearing.”
“Miss me that much?” Milo replies easily.
Her glare darkens.
Before she can answer, more figures enter the dining hall.
My breath catches.
Hunter.
My heart immediately loses its rhythm the moment my eyes land on him.
I’ve always found it strange how he dines with us and lives in the dorm building beside ours despite being faculty.
But I suppose being part of the Ferrum Syndicate means the rules don’t really apply to him.
The atmosphere in the dining hall changes the moment they step inside.