Page 52 of Stargazer

“Guys, have some respect. That’s your Colonel you’re talking about,” Griffin half-heartedly chided with a suppressed smile.

“Oh please, Gray. Like you haven’t thought about it,” Carter threw back. And I knew his rebuttal was not wrong.

“I’ve been a little preoccupied with a different Stone woman.” Griffin’s reply was instant. I blushed as silver eyes slid to mine, not bothering to hide anything from the others.

The heat in the gesture combined with his words almost made me choke on my food.

“Can we please change the subject?” I urged, trying to brush it off. Griffin chuckled quietly.

“So what’s the go with training while we’re here?” The female Knight with short lilac hair asked—Winter. I wanted to hug her for the save but decided against it, considering I didn’t really know her.

Three titled Knights had been sent down with the others—ones that I’d passed on occasion in the halls of the compound but never really met. They were usually off on some mission, not training with the rest of us of ‘recruit’ status. Given that the Gray Knights would need to be scattered around the state, three—as well as Griff and Car—was all they could spare for this task force

Newer officially titled ‘Gray Knights’, like Carter, were mostly used around the compound, not yet needed on missions outside the city but useful for patrols and training. They also still slept in the Bunker—as would likely be the practice going forward as the current recruits finished with their initial training, given the lack of space and private rooms combined with the sheer number of us. Only the elite Knights, with titles or notoriety, would get their own rooms. The rest of us would likely continue in a similar way to how we did now, only with the honorary title of ‘Gray Knight’, a pay rise and the requirement to be available for relocation at any given time. Unless you were an official or helped run the compounds.

Even with the addition of ‘Gray’ to the title, everyone mostly referred to anyone within the organisation as a ‘Knight’, or used their official military title if they had one, like Captain Gray in Griffin’s case or Colonel Stone in mum’s. That didn’t stop higher ups from using the term ‘recruit’ like it was an insult whenever it suited them. But such was the hierarchy in an operation like ours.

Kitana and Billie would probably make that title transition very soon, given their age and experience. Thea, with Colonel Lennox’s aid, would decide when someone was ready for that promotion using a few factors to make the judgement. Age was a consideration, as was skill, knowledge, on-field experience and whatever else they deemed necessary.

I would probably take a little longer to reach that upgrade, seeing that I was still very new to everything.

Not that I minded, I was in no rush. I was feeling more and more like a Knight every day anyway, and that’s what mattered to me. Plus, they were still allowing me to have a significant impact in this mission by working with the wolves, even given my lowly status.

The others with us now had been officiated at least a few years back, being slightly older. With their serious demeanour and expertise, I was more than a little intimidated.

Realising that Griffin was their superior was a bit of a mind fuck. Though his position was based on his legacy, over-achieving nature, overall dexterity and enhanced hunter gifts, rather than his age. It was inevitable that Griff would lead them, being a Gray heir. It was his birthright.

I wondered if that made him a Gray, Gray Knight.

Thinking about it—what his position meant and my general lack of respect towards him—made me slightly nervous. He never pulled rank when it came to me though. If anyone else spoke to him like I did, he’d probably find a way to punish them. So I had to consider myself lucky.

I dared another look at him lounging on the armchair to my right, keeping my face forward so he wouldn’t catch my stare. He was eating fried rice from a takeout box, but even the way he sat in his chair oozed confidence and bored indifference. I hated that it was so attractive to me. So I busied myself with my own takeaway box.

Juliet and her friend Rose—the petite one with sunk hair that seemed to be her main companion—looked to the Gray captain expectantly, waiting for him to answer Winter’s question about training. Tom, sitting next to them, had his feet kicked up on the coffee table, occupying himself with something on his phone.

When Griff didn’t deign to respond, it was Billie who chimed in from my other side.

“Vee mentioned something about a setup at the pack house, if I remember correctly?” She eyeballed me for confirmation.

I nodded but didn’t get a chance to verbally reply.

“You lot will love puppy school tomorrow morning,” Griff cut in with a devilish smirk that meant trouble. I shot him a look which didn’t go unnoticed by the others. His overall irreverence to … well … most things was mind blowing. Yet somehow he took all the strategizing and safety stuff seriously—which was a huge relief.

Probably why I noticed so much when he did.

Despite his constant mockery and perceived lackadaisicalness, he was great at his job. A lot of his nature seemed to be a carefully placed facade.

He let people underestimate him. Which made him even scarier when he was in action and his true skill shone through.

Most of the Knights now knew him for what he really was: a threat and predator. But also likely our biggest asset. And they knew not to mess with him.

Kit chuckled, lowering her spoon back down just before it reached her mouth to ask, “What have we missed?”

“Well, Griffin tried to take on a whole pack by himself,” I said, glaring at him before looking back at Kit. “Made quite an entrance on his first day, pinning the Beta to a tree with daggers while surrounded by wolves in their home den, and then proceeded to aggravate and challenge the Alpha the second he stepped onto their training ground.”

That got Tom’s attention, causing him to look up from his phone with a half-smile.

Santiago, the titled male Knight with blonde short hair, contrasting regrowth and a tailored fade, snickered. He had dark eyes and brows, full lips, and soft pretty features that were quite at odds with his collection of sticker tattoos all along his neck and peeking out from under his black tee. When he spoke, he had an underlying Spanish accent that bought out a beautiful cadence to his husky voice.

---