Chapter 13
THIRTEEN
Aiden
I didn’t wait for Jupiter’s response. The moment Percy made the declaration, I moved to her dresser and yanked open the top drawer. Someone in this academy wanted to hurt her. Maybe even kill her. The thought sent a wave of possessive rage through me that I didn’t care to examine too closely.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Jupiter demanded as I began pulling out stacks of clothing.
“Packing. Unless you’d prefer to stay here and wait for whoever left that charming note to come back and finish what they started.”
She crossed her arms. “I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for years.”
“Clearly,” I said, gesturing to the threatening note still in Percy’s hand. I moved to her closet next, pulling out shirts and pants, not bothering to fold anything. The urgency coursing through me wouldn’t allow for neatness.
Draco had already found a duffel bag and was methodically collecting her books and study materials from the desk. Eris was gathering toiletries from the bathroom, and Percy stood guard at the door, glaring down the hallway as if whoever it was, was lurking nearby.
“This is ridiculous,” Jupiter protested, trying to grab clothes from my hands. “You can’t just decide where I live!”
I caught her wrist, my fingers wrapping around it entirely.
She was so small compared to me, yet the power thrumming beneath her skin was undeniably strong.
“Someone just tried to hurt you. They got past security, past the wards, and into your private space. Next time they might do worse than leave a note. Fuck if they’re getting past me. ”
I felt her fear beneath the anger, and it only strengthened my resolve. She could hate me all she wanted, but I wasn’t leaving her here unprotected.
“We have a room,” Draco said, his words gentler than mine as he carefully packed her notebooks. “It’s been empty for three years. Waiting for our axis.”
“I never agreed to be your axis permanently!” she snapped, but her resistance was weakening. I could feel it, her exhaustion, her uncertainty.
“The bond says otherwise,” Percy interjected from the door. “And whether any of us planned this or not, you’re connected to us now. That makes you our responsibility.”
“Oh, how romantic. Like a pet you didn’t ask for but now have to feed.”
Eris emerged from the bathroom with an armful of her products.
I returned to packing, moving to her nightstand.
When I opened the drawer, I paused at what I found.
A small silver dagger with ancient runes etched along the blade, a worn photograph of what must be her parents, and a journal bound in dark leather.
Personal items. Precious things. I handled them more carefully than I had her clothes, wrapping the dagger in a t-shirt before placing it in the bag.
“Don’t touch that,” she snapped, seeing the journal in my hands.
I placed it in her hands instead. “You can carry this yourself.”
“I’m not going,” she said, but there was less conviction in her voice.
‘Yes, we are,’ Noodle declared, slithering across the bed to the duffel bag Draco was packing. ‘Safer with them. Many eyes to watch.’
Jupiter looked betrayed. “Et tu, Noodle?”
‘Want you safe,’ the snake replied simply. I felt an unexpected surge of affection for the creature.
Jupiter’s friend Lydia stood there, concern all over her face. “Jupe, are you okay with this?”
“Ugh, it’s fine, Lyd.” Jupiter said tightly. “They’re assholes, but they’re not completely wrong.’“
I finished packing what I could and zipped up the bag. “Is this everything essential?” Jupiter glared at me, but nodded, and I counted it as a victory. “Good. We’ll get the rest of your things tomorrow.”
As we moved toward the door, Lydia approached Jupiter. “Want me to come with you?”
Jupiter hesitated, then shook her head. “No, it’s okay. I’ll be fine.” She forced a smile. “Besides, don’t you have a certain Dreadwatch leader to track down?”
Lydia didn’t look convinced. “If you need me—”
“I’ll call,” Jupiter promised. “Go. Really. Tell Tye where I am.”
Something bristled throughout the bond as I met the eyes of each of my friends. The thought of her huge male friend, Tye, felt like a fucking threat.
The five of us made our way through the empty corridors of Dominion, Jupiter walking stiffly between Percy and me, Draco and Eris trailing behind with the rest of her belongings. I could feel her roiling emotions—anger, fear, resignation, and a tiny bit of morbid curiosity.
Our shield quarters were in the west wing with a common area dividing all our rooms. There was a spacious room with comfortable seating arranged around a fireplace, a kitchenette in one corner, and doors leading to our individual rooms.
“This is us,” Eris said unnecessarily, setting down the bags he carried.
Jupiter stood in the doorway, taking it all in with wary eyes. “Cozy,” she said flatly.
I moved past her to the door we’d kept closed for three years, the one reserved for our future axis. I pushed it open and stepped aside. “This is yours.”
She walked over slowly and peered inside.
The room was simple but comfortable, with a queen-sized bed with dark blue bedding, a desk by the window, a wardrobe, and an attached bathroom.
Unlike our rooms, which had accumulated years of personal touches, this one was a blank slate, waiting for its occupant to make it their own.
Still, every single room in Dominion had an old-world kind of charm, with dark mahogany furniture, stone walls, a large fireplace and tall windows with long, flowing curtains. It was definitely luxury living.
Jupiter glanced around the room as if searching for traps. Noodle had already made himself comfortable on the bed, coiling into a tight spiral on one of the pillows.
‘Nice,’ he declared. ‘Warm. Smells safe.’
“At least someone approves,” she muttered.
An awkward silence fell over the room. Jupiter sat on the bed, her posture rigid, while the four of us hovered near the door like sentinels who didn’t know what to do with their charge now that they had her.
“We should let you get settled,” Draco finally said, backing toward the door.
“Right,” Eris agreed. “Bathroom’s stocked with fresh towels if you want to shower. The kitchen has food if you’re hungry.”
Jupiter nodded stiffly, meeting none of our eyes.
Percy and Draco filed out, but I lingered, watching her. She looked small sitting there, surrounded by hastily packed bags, in a room that was foreign to her. For all her power, all her fierce independence, she looked so fucking lost.
“I know you didn’t ask for this,” I said quietly. “None of us did. But you’re safer here, and I’m glad you’re close.”
She finally looked up at me, those silver eyes piercing. “Is that really what this is about? My safety?”
“What else would it be about?”
“Control,” she said simply. “Making sure your unexpected axis stays where you can watch her.”
I felt heat rise in my face, remembering the sight of her with that Leo’s hands all over her. “That’s not—”
“Be honest, Aiden. You don’t want me here because you care about me. You want me here because I’m yours now, whether any of us like it or not.”
The words hit uncomfortably close to home. Part of me—a dark, possessive part I didn’t like to acknowledge—did see her that way. As ours. As mine. The bond had created something primal between us, something that had raged when I saw another man’s hands on her.
“Maybe,” I admitted with a shrug. “But that doesn’t make the threat any less real. Someone wants to hurt you, and whatever else is between us, I won’t let that happen.”
For a moment, we stared at each other, and I felt her acceptance. She wasn’t an idiot, or under any delusions. But what she didn’t know was that right now, it was taking every ounce of my willpower not to sweep her up into my arms.
“Get out please, Aiden,” she said, not unkindly but firmly. “I want to be alone.”
I nodded and backed toward the door. “Lock this behind me. The shield quarters are warded, but better safe than sorry.”
After I pulled the door closed, I heard the lock click into place.
Through the bond, I felt her emotions—exhaustion, resignation, and beneath it all, a sliver of relief that she wasn’t alone tonight.
That sliver gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, this forced arrangement might eventually become something more.
I walked to my own room and closed the door, leaning against it as I exhaled slowly. The bond between us pulsed with her proximity, stronger now that she was under the same roof. I could feel her more clearly than ever before and it made something in my chest feel crazy.