Page 65 of Brutal Birthright

Which was exactly where she headed as soon as she’d gotten rid of Ruby and Niall. Promising to check in with them both before the end of the day. As a gloomy fog shrouded the entire academy that afternoon, she sat with Brynne and the others, shedding tears for their friend and exchanging stories from their short time together.

None of them were strangers to death, but to lose a friend in such a cruel and unexpected attack was shocking, to say the least.

But it reminded them all of why they were here. What they were training for.

Ultimately, they could never know what the future might contain. Whether that meant eons of life stretching out ahead of them, or only a few more short breaths before that final death knell tolled.

Losing Saskia was the ultimate reminder that nothing was promised. Even for those who claimed immortality.

So, while they mourned their friend over the week that followed, with classes paused and blessings held in solemn tribute to her memory, Ri stuck close to Brynne. She checked in with Ruby each day. And all the while she looked out for a glimpse of tattoos or dark hair hanging across sapphire eyes, but never saw him.

Her brute.

Not that he was hers.

But in some part of her mind, she’d started calling him that, and now couldn’t stop.

She had a thousand questions to ask. None more pressing than how she’d come to be wearing his clothes or how she’d wound up back in her own quarters that night.

However, answers never came. And as the week dragged on, the heaviness only seemed to cling tighter to Astracadia. Surrounded by a perpetual blanket of low-hanging grey clouds that clung to the tree tops and drifted across the manicured gardens in billowing sheets of dense fog.

The academy mourned the loss of one of its own in its own way.

Until one morning finally dawned bright and glistening when they were set to resume their normal routines. With dew drops coating the leaves and bright flowers bordering the footpaths, the day they finally returned to classes arrived.

His sapphire eyes found hers the second she entered the training arena.

Chapter 21

The vampire—Etienne, slammed the girl into the dirt. His smug fucking face lit up with satisfaction at having flipped her legs out from beneath her.

Again.

“Prick.” Oriana smacked at his shoulder, demanding that he get off her.

While it was torture having to watch the slimy fucker touch Oriana in a way he had absolutely no right to, at least she looked ready to tear the vampire’s guts out through his throat.

“Strike.” Finnic’s breezy voice called out from somewhere on the other side of the arena.

“Just putting you in your place, scary girl. Flat on your back, looking up at me while I rule your world.” Etienne grinned as he gripped her forearm. Yanking her up to standing.

Rowan seethed.

Violence consumed him, along with a roaring desire inside his chest to take this vampire by the fangs and snap them. Then do the same to his neck. He’d gladly forgo using any weapons in favour of his bare hands.

But this was the training arena.

He was their teacher.

The students had to complete these sparring sessions. He needed to tolerate every sickening second of watching the two of them together as she continued to shine and take step after step towards reaching her goal of making the elites.

Or, more to the point, Rowan had to endure every torturous moment of this limp dicked vampire touching what didn’t belong to him.

For her.

“Your ego could rule the entire dominion. You know that, right?” Her taunts still came thick and fast.

The two were tied neck and neck at four strikes apiece in a best of eleven rounds. Hand-to-hand combat. No weapons. Only wrestling and grappling and slinging each other into the dirt.

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