Chapter 13
Chrome
Ifist-bumped Cardinal Kittle, smiling at his improvement over the past few months. “How much longer before you’re officially considered an Assassin within the Guilds?”
The deep scarlet of his hair lay matted to his head from sweat as he worked to slow his breathing. He winced as he heaved for breath. “Eh, I would say…maybe…another month?”
I raised my brows at his exhaustion. “You good?”
Cardinal waved a hand in my direction. “Yeah!” he gasped. “Fucking perfect.”
I laughed. “Maybe you need to work on your stamina. Get some laps in before and after training sessions?”
“I’m good. No need for all that.” He bent down, resting his hands on his knees.
I shook my head. “I think I’ll talk to Smokey and see if he can arrange your training schedule to work that in.”
“No!” He reached out his hand toward me. “Please don’t!”
I eyed his palm dubiously. “It’s really no prob—”
“Seriously, bro. I’ll kill you in your sleep if you do.”
I laughed. “Not with stamina like that. You’d wake me up with your breathing.”
Cardinal rolled his eyes. “Oh, fuck off,” he huffed, cracking a smile.
“See you tomorrow, Kittle,” I said, patting his shoulder at a safe distance. “Tell Granite I’m ready for that rematch any day now.”
Cardinal chuckled that time. “He’ll keep making excuses for why he can’t follow through.”
After parting ways with Cardinal, I returned the weapons to the cache in the training room and gathered my belongings, ignoring the gawking Kinetics eyeing me as I passed by.
I walked to the elevator, being sure to follow the schedule that I had in place.
I needed to be back in my family’s suite in five minutes.
The button lit up as I tapped it and waited for the metal doors to slide open. I glanced at my bicep, wrapped in the newest bandage from my latest Kill Mark. Another day and it should be fine to remove.
“Chrome!” Slate’s voice echoed as he jogged to catch up to me.
I spun to face him, my brow pulled down as he approached, hiking my thumb over my shoulder toward the elevator. “Hey. I gotta get—”
I caught sight of Kale Brighton passing by, a top-ranked Scout who was close to the king.
His neon-green curls sat close to his skull while presenting his blue currents with pride.
With his ability to manipulate sound, I had to be careful what was said in his vicinity.
Otherwise, he’d happily report it back to the king. I hated the entitled prick.
“I know. I just needed to tell you really fast that Dad got the green light from Forest for me to start training the princess. Tomorrow,” Slate said in a low tone, coming to a stop in front of me.
“Oh, really?” I asked, to which Slate nodded with a smile.
“Good. Make her unstoppable. And protect her with your life. Even from herself.” I gritted my teeth, remembering how close she had come to dying four days ago.
Had it not been for our connection, she would’ve.
And that thought alone brought me more agony than anything Grim or Forest did to me.
“You know it. I’ll teach her everything I know.”
“Good. I have no doubt.” The elevator dinged, and I bid him a rushed goodbye so I didn’t give my overlords any reason to send me down to the prisons for more punishment. The sooner Forest was dead, the better everything would be.
The elevator ride to the twenty-ninth floor was quiet, and I eased my shoulders from the growing tension that cramped my neck.
The news that Gray would soon be trained lifted the heaviness that had been clinging to my chest for weeks.
More than anything, I worried for her mental health, hoping Forest didn’t break her before she could shatter the psychological prison he kept her in.
I still didn’t understand how I didn’t realize sooner that the king was hurting the princess.
What pissed me off most was that I subconsciously had known, but I buried it because I couldn’t have coped with not being able to help her.
Of course, Forest abused her. It wouldn’t have aligned with his character if he didn’t.
I was a fucking idiot for not acknowledging it years ago.
My only hope now was that it wasn’t the same treatment I received from Grim.
I didn’t think Forest himself would do something so depraved, and maybe it wasn’t necessary for him to wield that type of control over Gray, especially since she was unaware of her Elemental side.
I realized with a harsh certainty that it needed to remain that way.
The moment she discovered her hybrid nature, Forest would turn to further extreme lengths to keep her subdued.
My heart ached, wishing I could just be there for her—with her.
Just the thought of holding her made my heart speed up and my breath falter.
That was just insane, right? We didn’t even know each other.
Not really. But since that day on the playground, the connection between us had locked into place, and being forced to see her through mere glimpses, I could only imagine a reality where we could be free to be together. If she even wanted me.
The white marble tile glistened, mesmerizing me as I remained lost in my swirling thoughts.
The elevator shook to a stop, and when the doors slid open, I was surprised to look up and clash gazes with the princess’s ice-blue eyes.
My heart free-fell, and my stomach fluttered at the thought of being in her presence.
At the same time, paralyzing fear gripped me in its clutches, knowing the cameras in the hallway would capture everything.
We stood facing each other, staring at one another in shocked surprise. Gods, she was beautiful. I couldn’t pull away from the allure of her eyes. They absorbed me, consuming me as her willing captive.
“Hi,” she whispered.
“Hey.”
“I was just…” she rushed out, averting her eyes, “going home. Sorry.”
I shook my head from the stupor she’d held me in. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”
Princess Gray inhaled. “Uh—” She stepped aside, making room for me to exit. “Go ahead.”
“Are you okay?” I blurted, wishing I could snatch the words back into my mouth.
Gray crinkled her brow. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?” She shrugged, donning a mask I could easily see through.
“Just know that you’re not alone,” I whispered, wanting more than anything to pull her into my chest. “And I’m sorry for…what happened. The public punishment.”
Gray clenched her jaw and closed her eyes. “It’s fine. No big deal. Daddy can’t play favorites, right?” Her voice dripped with so much bitterness it felt aimed at me.
I opened my mouth but came up short for a response as I realized through her emotions that the bitterness was aimed at me.
Like her, my punishments were kept secret.
She probably assumed that I was the favorite, as her father wanted the Kinetic world to believe.
“Trust me,” I started slowly, “he doesn’t. ”
Gray huffed a humorless laugh, an angry tug on my heart jolting me backward. “Oh, yeah? Where’s your public punishment?” she quipped. “And why are you talking to me all of a sudden?”
A painful tightness restricted my throat, my voice shaking. “Just because it’s not public doesn’t mean the punishments don’t happen, right?”
Gray startled, her shock halting her angry tracks. “What?”
“I got punished, too. Like I said, you’re not alone.”
Staring at me in stunned silence, she twisted her fingers together in front of her.
“And to answer your question, I’ve always wanted to talk to you, but you know the rules, I assume.”
Gray nodded slowly, looking up at the camera. Her eyes widened, and panic stiffened her posture. “I gotta go.”
“I know. So do I,” I said, reluctant to leave her. “Don’t give up, okay?”
Pushing the button to her floor, she met my longing gaze one last time, a sadness so heavy that I suffocated under its oppressive weight. “Okay,” she whispered as the doors slid shut.
I closed my eyes, burying my fingers in my hair and forcing my lungs to expand. “Fuck…”
The sinking claws of dread latched onto each organ one by one, knowing that I now would have double the punishment: one for being late and two for being around Gray again, even if this time was unintentional.
But it begged the question, what was she doing on this floor? Its entirety consisted of my family’s penthouse suite. So that meant either my mother or Grim had business with her.
The persistent sense of doom hovered over me as I reached the front door, knowing what was to come for being late.
Once again, I wanted to disintegrate and float away into anonymity.
They’d never find me out in the world today.
Well, that wasn’t entirely true. There were domains all over the globe that reported to the Royal Domain; I’d be recognized too soon unless I hid amongst humans, but I didn’t know how long I could withstand suppressing my magic.
Doing so for too long would inevitably drive me into psychosis.
After typing in the code, I tilted my chin upward and rolled my shoulders back to straighten my spine, exuding faux confidence as I opened the door. The suite had always been cold. Sterile. Heartless. The only light in the barren, elegant prison was Peri.
It was meant to be where I called home, but my home was hell. So, I guessed that’s where I laid my head at night.
I walked with a lazy gait, compelling my arm to relax at my sides, to my bedroom suite, which was basically a miniature apartment within a loft. On my bed sat a girl in the shadows cast by the waning sun spilling through the curtains. “Why are you late?”
I sighed, dropping my bag on the floor by my dresser. “I got caught up.”
“Chrome…” Peri chastised. “Stop doing shit to make things worse for you.”
“I’ll be okay. Always am. I’ll take the punishment like the big boy I am.”
Peri rose from the bed, and I moved to turn on the light, so we wouldn’t be weirdos sitting in the dark. Without stopping, she crashed into my torso, wrapping her arms around my waist.
“Chrome, please. I hate what he does to you. It kills me. I can only cover for you so much, ya know?” she said, her voice muffled in my sweat-stained shirt.
“I know. You don’t have to keep covering for me,” I said, slowly putting my arm around her shoulder, hugging her.
“Yes, I do. You’re always protecting everyone around you.” She pulled back to look up at me. “But who’s protecting you?”
My chest caved and my vision blurred. Dipping my head, I averted my eyes from her earnest gaze that I knew would unravel me if I looked too long. I couldn’t let her see me break. She saw me as the strong one. “I don’t need protecting, Peri. I’m the generational Warrior of our time, remember?”
“You know what I mean,” Peri snapped. “And it’s not in battle.”
“I’ll be okay, Peri. I always am.” I tried to sound assuring, but my voice lacked any life. “I worry about you more. Now, you should get to your room before one of them comes in here to collect on my punishment.”
My sister paused, assessing me with a frown. “Okay. Don’t make it worse on yourself. Keep your mouth shut and just minimize it. For me?” she pleaded as she backed away toward the door.
I gave her a tight smile. “Yeah,” I lied. “I will.”
After Peri left, I showered. I didn’t even bother to find something to eat. I knew my mother and Grim were home, which only meant they aimed to make me sweat it out. Keep me wondering when the guillotine would fall.
I distracted myself with the violin. Playing my favorite piece by Vivaldi, notes that had embedded themselves into my essence wept from my soul. It was the only time I truly found peace. Safe. Free. I might as well be floating away with the notes flying through the room.
I didn’t know how much time had passed as Vivaldi morphed into Bach, then Bach transformed into Beethoven. My door squeaked open, followed by the click of it shutting, startling me, but I didn’t falter. I would play until the assholes dragged me out of here.
I closed my eyes and ignored my racing heart, knowing what awaited me. I sensed Grim and Amethyst’s energy draw closer to me, but I wouldn’t acknowledge them until forced to.
“Chrome.”
I kept playing, despite hearing Grim’s corrupted voice taint the art I created.
“Boy, look at us.”
I didn’t.
“Chrome,” my mother tried. I damn sure wasn’t going to acknowledge her. I believed she was well aware of what Grim did to me in the prisons. She probably considered it “part of the process.”
When I didn’t respond again, she said, “Fine. Do what you must…” Her tone was exasperated.
The wrist that held the bow was snatched from the violin. I didn’t resist. The music abruptly cut off, plunging the room into thick tension. The final note was a high-pitch screech that raked its nails against my eardrums. Hopefully theirs, too.
Cold metal slapped around my wrist just before it locked into place, causing my Kinetic magic to go dormant within my veins.
I shuddered just before the violin was yanked from my other hand and a black bracelet locked into place by my mother.
This one silenced my Elemental power, leaving me empty and frigid.
“Not only were you late,” Grim said with excitement. “You were late because you were talking to the princess. Why is that?”
I shrugged. “It was an accident. I’m sure you saw it on camera.”
“We did,” Amethyst answered. “But what did you talk about?”
“World domination...”
I braced for a blow that didn’t come. “Watch your mouth.” Grim snapped. “If you want to make it difficult, then we can add your punishment onto Gray’s.”
My heart lurched to a stop as chills tremored down my spine, I wanted to dice them up slowly with Elemental blades, covering their bodies in deep cuts that would gradually poison them to their agonizing deaths.
The wrath consuming me boiled on the edge, threatening to bubble over. The last thing I could give them was any indication that I cared, so I remained placid, shutting down every emotion that raged inside, going numb.
“You gonna sit here and talk to me all night or get this show on the road?” I asked, void of life.
“There’s the compliant little soldier we know,” Grim taunted. “Remember, if you resist, Gray gets it worse.”
My first thought went to her public punishments and how she was set to start training tomorrow. I couldn’t allow them to put her through another one if I could help it. Keeping quiet, I stared at the wall past my sorry excuse for a mother and stepdad.
“Good,” Amethyst said. “Get up. Let’s go.”