Page 39 of Ocean of Silver

“Yes,” Rainer added delightedly, then turned to face Scottie. I noticed the way his knee pressed into hers, the way she pulled slightly back. “You have to come dancing with us. It’s so much fun.”

“She can’t,” I said and hated myself for it. Everyone turned to look at me, even Rumor. “She could be recognized. She can’t go into public places like that yet.”

Kallon slumped down into her seat. “Fine, then I want to take her to the waterfall.”

Scottie’s eyes lit up. I assumed that she used to love water. Most Advenians favored the element they possessed, and whenever the King had Kole shift through her memories at school, she practically lived in her dorm room bathtub. At the time, I couldn’t process the sadistic look on the compulsion user’s face when he noticed it too. It wasn’t until I saw the memory of him drowning her that I realized what it was. I’d never been so livid in my life.

“A waterfall? Here in Lux?”

“Yeah, it’s not too far from here,” Rainer said, noting her excitement. “It’s one of our favorite spots to hang out, and it’s private, so it’s perfect.”

“I’ve never seen one,” she started to say, meeting my eyes. I could see the lingering question there. She wanted to go.

“We can go in a couple of days. I already had planned on taking you back to the hut to train at the end of the week. There’s something I want to try that we can’t do in the pool. The waterfall is not too far out of the way.”

Kallon clapped her hands together. “Perfect, I can’t wait.” Then she turned to Scottie. “You’re going to love it.”

“Can’t wait for what?” Brock asked as he joined us again. Dovelyn was trailing by his side.

“We’re going to take Scottie to the waterfall,” Rainer said with a grin. Dove let out a hiss as she rolled her eyes but managed not to comment.

Rainer wrapped his arm around Scottie. “Let’s play a game.”

Everyone groaned.

“Rainer, come on. I know you’re still a child, but no one likes to play drinking games,” Dove said smoothly.

“Just because I’m not ancient like you doesn’t mean I’m a child. I am thirty-three years old, thank you very much.”

Dove huffed. “Exactly. A child.”

“Come on, don’t be a party pooper, Dovie. We can play truth or dare. It’ll be a perfect way to get to know Scottie better.” Rainer flashed Dovelyn his award-winning puppy dog eyes.

“It’s Brock’s birthday. Let him decide,” Dove replied, then looked longingly up at my friend.

Brock shrugged. “Sure, why not.” Dovelyn frowned, clearly annoyed that Brock didn’t side with her. I didn’t particularly care for the game, but if it made my friends happy, I wasn’t going to stop them.

Rainer started, “Okay since it’s Brock’s birthday, he can go first. Scottie, the rules are simple. You either have to answer something honestly or do something that we say. If you refuse, you drink. Brock, truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“Hmm,” Rainer made a point to tap a long, dark finger to his lips, pretending to think. “Do you have a crush on someone in this room?”

Brock didn’t hesitate to take a sip from his drink. Everyone knew he liked Dovelyn, but he would never admit it. Brock was a rank four, and she was a five. They could never be together.

“Lame,” Kallon and Rainer both grumbled.

“Tez, truth or dare?” Brock asked.

“Dare.”

“I dare you to chug an entire cup full of Kallon’s ale.” Brock grinned.

“Are you trying to kill me, Brockwich?” I asked as I poured myself one of the infamous ales Kallon made.

“What is that supposed to mean, Tez? My ales are amazing.”

“Kal, your ales are disgustingly strong, and we all know it. It would knock anyone out. Except you,” I said as I chugged the drink. It went down smooth enough. Her ales were usually thick and heavy, great for sipping casually but vile to chug. It would have been easier to just take a sip, but I didn’t want to offend her.

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