Chapter 11 #3
And now Rynlee silenced them with a single touch.
Not Khonsu. Not my father. Not even Jasmine.
Her. That silence wasn’t peace. It was a threat.
Because it made me wonder if the whispers were gone, what the hell would be left of me?
I shoved off the wall, forcing the thought down until it burned.
For now, distance was safer. For both of us.
I made my way through the quiet corridors while Arcanna was still waking, letting the silence press in around me instead.
The feeding hall was quiet this early, only a handful of second years moving briskly through the kitchens to prep breakfast. The scent of baking bread and sizzling fat lingered in the air, but the room still carried that heavy hush before the day truly began.
Mrs. Linnell spotted me the moment I stepped through the door.
Of course she did.
Her gray hair was pulled tight at the base of her neck, not a single strand out of place, and her wrinkled mouth was pressed into its usual line of permanent disapproval. But it was her eyes that always gave her away: sharp, unnervingly bright yellow.
Predatory. They locked onto mine with unsettling precision.
“Unit Leader Dagon, what are you doing here?” she demanded.
Mrs. Linnell had been bestowed a rare body augmentation, one that gifted her the heightened senses of a wolf.
Nothing escaped her notice. Not the scent of blood, not the tremor in someone’s voice, not the shift of mood in a room.
And right now, I was fairly certain she could smell the unrest clinging to me like smoke.
“Just need coffee,” I muttered, moving to the enchanted pot where spoons scooped grounds and steam hissed.
“Shouldn’t you be on your morning run?” She pressed, tone sharp, almost accusing.
I flicked my gaze over at her, jaw tight. “I already finished my run.”
“You should be go—”
“Let me stop you there.” My voice dropped cold. Shadows rippled at my feet, coiling and restless. “I don’t answer to you, Mrs. Linnell. And I sure as hell am not required to explain myself. So, I suggest you back off.”
Her lips pursed, her yellow eyes narrowing, but she didn’t speak again.
Wise choice. I poured a mug of coffee and left without another word, heading into the garden.
The morning sun had climbed above the mountains, pale gold spilling across the frost-kissed grass.
I sank onto a stone bench, exhaling into the morning chill. My chest was heavy.
My thoughts wouldn’t settle. I could still sense her.
The phantom of her skin beneath my fingers.
The echo of her warmth. The way her scent had lodged itself into my lungs like smoke.
This bond was a mistake. The gods had screwed us both.
I set my coffee down beside me and closed my eyes, letting the wind rush through the trees.
When cinnamon and earth wrapped around me.
Jasmine. Her arms slid around my shoulders, her face tucking into my neck as though it belonged there.
“Hey,” she murmured, hugging me tighter. “Why weren’t you on the run this morning? I missed you.” Normally, her touch grounded me. Lit something sharp and familiar in my chest. Now? It felt dull. Off. Like trying to force warmth from dying embers.
“I went earlier,” I muttered, standing, pushing past the emotion.
She frowned. “You, okay?”
“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?” Even to my own ears, it didn’t sound convincing.
“I heard…” She hesitated, fingers brushing my arm.
“About you and cadet Yarrows. About the bond. The Sun Goddess.” Of course she knew.
By now, the whole godsdamn academy probably did.
“Look, Aid,” she murmured, stepping closer.
“We can still be together. Nothing has to change.” I nodded and closed the distance between us, wrapping my arms around her waist and pulling her in. She still felt warm. Familiar. Safe.
“You’re who I want,” I said quietly. “I mean that. I’m only going to work with Rynlee because I have to. I won’t fall for her.” I cupped Jasmine’s cheek, tilting her face up. “I already fell for you.”
I kissed her before the doubt could rise again, deep, insistent, trying to drown out the scream in the back of my mind that this was wrong.
She clutched at me, pulling me closer, and I let myself sink into it.
The shadows howled. I ignored them. Jasmine and I were meant to be.
Not Ruin and me. When we finally pulled apart, she looked up at me, fingers tracing my jaw.
“I love you, too, Aiden,” she said softly.
“We’ll figure this out. Maybe the bond just makes you stronger together, but it doesn’t change us.
” I rested my forehead against her, nodding.
Gods, I hoped she was right. But deep down, something twisted uncomfortably in my chest, whispering it wouldn’t be that easy.
We parted a moment later, heading in opposite directions. I turned toward the training field, coffee still burning in my veins, and there she was.
Ruin.
Standing alone, shoulders slumped, posture all wrong. Her long blonde braid caught the light, a thin streak of red glinting through it. The pull hit me instantly. Tight. Sudden. Unforgiving. A rope around my ribs. A tether buried deep in my chest, and every step closer made it worse.