Chapter 14
Jupiter
The rare appearance of the London sun was enough to pull me out of my tower room the next morning.
After the intense emotional whiplash of the past few days—the portaling, the mind-bending kiss with Phoenix in the greenhouse, the lingering, electric memories of Jamie in my dreamscape—I needed to physically burn off the excess energy vibrating under my skin.
I pulled my hair back into a messy ponytail, laced up my running shoes, and hit the paved walkways that wound through the sprawling campus.
The air was crisp, biting at my lungs in a good way as my feet pounded against the stone paths.
I wore practical athletic leggings and a loose black tank top.
Noodle was wrapped securely around my neck, his scales soaking up the unexpected sunlight.
He was mostly quiet, save for the occasional flicker of his tongue to taste the morning dew in the air.
‘Too cold for running,’ he grumbled sleepily into my mind as we passed the botanical gardens.
“It’s refreshing,” I murmured aloud, dodging a group of students carrying stacks of heavy books and equipment. “Builds character.”
‘I have enough character. I require a heat lamp.’
I huffed a laugh, my breath pluming faintly in the chill air. I pushed myself harder. As I rounded the corner near the stone amphitheater, my groove was abruptly thrown off.
Standing perfectly still in the middle of the pathway, effectively blocking my route, was Eliza Reece.
I slowed my pace to a jog, then a walk, my pulse thudding in my ears.
I hadn’t spoken a single word to her since arriving at Imperium, though I’d seen her from afar.
She had made a point to ignore me, turning her nose up whenever I entered the dining hall or classes we shared. But here she was, waiting for me.
She looked immaculate, as if she’d stepped straight out of a salon spa.
Her sandy blonde hair was perfect, not a single strand out of place despite the breeze.
She wore a tailored, cream-colored trench coat over impeccably pressed trousers, paired with leather boots that probably cost more than my parents’ cars combined.
Her eyes were completely devoid of warmth as she sized me up. I could feel the faint, insidious hum of her Leo magic, burning hot under her skin like a distant flame.
“Jupiter Black,” Eliza said with disgust. “Out for a morning run? How... delightfully pedestrian of you.”
I stopped a few feet away, crossing my arms over my chest, mindful of Noodle shifting against my neck.
“Eliza. Did you dress up in your Sunday best just to come find little ole me, or are you lost?”
A faint smirk played on her lips. “I just thought it was time we had a little chat. Woman to woman.”
“I don’t think we have anything to talk about.”
“Oh, but we do,” she purred, taking a slow step forward. “I’ve been watching you parade around with the Stardust Shield. It’s quite the spectacle. The legendary thirteenth zodiac, reduced to picking up my sloppy seconds.”
A spike of hot, violent anger flared inside me.
My magic surged, a faint silver glow threatening to bleed into my irises, but I ruthlessly shoved it back down.
I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction.
I wasn’t going to jeopardize my standing at Imperium by blasting this basic bitch into the nearest hedge.
“Sloppy seconds?” I raised an eyebrow, letting a dry, mocking laugh escape my lips. “Is that what you tell yourself to feel better about the fact that they upgraded?”
I was lying, of course, because I had no formal plans on taking them as bonded shield mates. But I reveled in the way her jaw tightened fractionally, the illusion of her perfect radiance flickering for a microsecond.
“They’re using you, Black. They’re desperate.
They’re a pack of used-up, broken cast-offs that I decided I was far too good for.
Lucas is a rigid tyrant, Rowan is a man-whore, Phoenix spends all his time in the dirt, Theo wishes he was Rowan, and James.
..” She let out a cruel, dismissive sigh.
“Well, we both know James is too damaged to ever be of use to anyone.”
My nails dug into my palms so hard they nearly broke the skin. I thought of Jamie’s gentle hands in my dream, the vulnerability and utter fucking trauma and grief in his eyes. I thought of Phoenix’s warmth and kindness, Lucas’s protective instincts, Rowan’s easy laugh, and Theo’s brilliant mind.
I wanted to rip her delicate little throat out.
Instead, I leaned my weight onto one hip, looking her up and down with an expression of profound boredom. “Such a shame you peaked in your second year. It’s all downhill from here.”
“I’m the premier axis of this academy,” she snapped.
“I chose the Riftward Shield because they possess actual power and political standing. Stardust is nothing but a cautionary tale. They don’t want you.
They just want your designation. You’re a shiny new toy to distract them from the fact that they weren’t enough for me. ”
“Are you done?” I asked, checking my fingernails. “Because my heart rate is dropping, and I really wanna to finish my run.”
“You think you’re so clever,” she sneered, stepping closer, her gold brown eyes flashing with genuine venom.
“You think because the Assembly made a fuss over you that you’re untouchable.
But you’re just a stray dog they let into the house.
And Stardust? They’re just using you to fix their bruised egos.
The moment a better option comes along, they’ll drop you just like your precious Nightfall Shield did. ”
That hit a nerve. A deep, raw nerve that throbbed with the phantom pain of my smothered bond. But I refused to let her see the wound bleed.
“You know, Eliza, for someone who claims to be ‘too good’ for them, you’re spending an awful lot of energy trying to convince me they’re worthless,” I took a step into her personal space.
I was an inch taller than her, and I used it to my advantage, looking down my nose at her.
“It screams insecurity. What’s the matter? Daddy didn’t hug you enough?”
Her perfectly manicured hands balled into fists.
I’d hit the bullseye. I knew from what Aiden had told me of his family, that his sisters were kiss-asses, and Eliza was desperately obsessed with validating her own worth, specifically to her cold, distant father, a high-ranking official who barely acknowledged her existence unless she was advancing their family’s social standing.
“Keep my family out of your fucking mouth.”
“Or what? You’ll cry to your daddy and get me in big twouble? I’m terrified. Truly. Shaking in my boots over here.”
‘I could bite her,’ Noodle offered helpfully, uncoiling slightly. His tongue flicked out, tasting the expensive, cloying perfume she wore. ‘She smells of desperation and fake flowers.’
“Down, Noodle. She’s not worth the venom,” I said aloud, never breaking eye contact with her.
Eliza’s eyes darted to my familiar, a flash of genuine revulsion crossing her face. “You’re disgusting. You and your little monster.”
“And you’re boring. You threw away five incredible men because you were too busy chasing daddy’s approval, and now you have to watch them move on with someone whose magic could literally eat yours for a snack.
” I leaned in closer, my voice dropping to a deadly whisper.
“If you ever speak about Jamie, or any of the Stardust Shield like that again, I won’t use my words next time.
I will show you exactly why the Assembly kept my designation a secret. Do you smell what I’m cookin’?”
We stood there, locked in a silent staring match.
The air between us practically crackled with the opposing forces of our magic.
I was fully prepared for her to unleash some perfectly tailored, venomous retort.
I braced myself for the Leo fire, for the condescension, for the Assembly-bred arrogance.
But it didn’t come.
Instead, the sound of heavy, synchronized footsteps echoed on the stone pathway. From around the corner of the amphitheater, four large men strode into view. They moved with the unmistakable, arrogant swagger of elite warriors. The Riftward Shield. Eliza’s mates.
They didn’t look at her the way bonded mates out to look at their axis. There was no soft reverence, no protective warmth. They looked like wardens.
For a fraction of a second, something in Eliza’s expression broke. The mask of the untouchable ice queen completely dissolved. Her perfect teeth clamped down on the inside of her cheek, and her gold-brown eyes flickered to the ground.
She leaned in, closing the distance between us before they could get within earshot.
“You think I wanted this? You think I was given a choice? If I didn’t leave them.
.. if I didn’t bond with Riftward, my father would have intervened.
And it would have been bad. You don’t know what he’s capable of.
You don’t know what he does to the things we actually care about. ”
It was the exact same visceral fear I’d seen in Aiden’s eyes whenever he talked about the Reece family patriarch, which was rare.
I stared at the woman I’d just been ready to mentally and physically dismantle, and suddenly, I didn’t see a cruel, shallow mean girl.
I saw a victim. I saw a girl who’d been forced to break the hearts of five men she most likely loved, and her own in the process, just to keep them safe from her father’s wrath.
I realized I didn’t know a damn thing about the hell she was living in.
“Eliza—” a booming voice called out.