Page 40 of The Hunt of Night

“Miss. Drummer?—”

“No, Professor Tora, I refuse to pretend as though everything is okay when that cunt killed my father. I deserve vengeance, and she deserves to die.”

“But—”

“Watch out!”

I don’t know who calls it, but my gaze darts up and I see the ice tumbling down at an insane speed toward me. Not just me. Flora and Arlo too.

Shit.

My heart lurches, lodging in my throat. Without thinking, I shove at Flora, sending her straight into Arlo, and the pair of them hit the deck, sliding through the snow just as I hoped. Before I can consider joining them, the ice hits the groundexactly where they stood a moment earlier, crashing through the ice beneath my feet.

Plunging into the ice-cold water, my body stiffens. My muscles instantly ache from the tension, almost overriding the shock of the chill that seeps down my bones. Panic sets in, the weight of the water pushing down on my shoulders as I will my body to move.

I need to raise my arms and kick my feet, but it’s easier said than done.

I’m locked in, coiled tight. My mind may be alive, but my body…it’s preparing for the worst.

Blinking up at the world above me, I consider the fact that this is the end, but it’s as if my subconscious laughs at me. When I go, it will be more painful than this.

As the fleeting thought enters my mind, something falls into the water, beelining straight for me. I can’t see with all the bubbles, but a moment later, hands grab my waist, tugging me toward the light.

Certain it’s the afterlife that awaits me, I choke on my first breath as I’m wrenched from the icy depths of Hell and thrown onto snowy land.

“You’re okay. You’re okay, Addi. Everything’s going to be okay.”

The words of reassurance are barely audible over the sound of chattering, which I acknowledge a moment later is my damn teeth. It hurts to breathe. It hurts to move. It hurts to fucking think.

“She’ll pay for this. She better fucking pay.” The snarl comes from Raiden. I know that for certain, even if I can’t see him.

“W-w-who?”

My body racks with pain, but I manage to slip the stuttered words past my lips. It’s so quiet that I’m certain he hasn’t heard me, but after a beat, I feel his breath against my skin.

“Vallie will pay for this. I swear it, Adrianna. She’ll pay.”

17

ADRIANNA

Ishiver. I’m not even cold. It’s just my body reminding me of the pain it’s been put through at the hands of Vallie.

Fucking Vallie.

Fucking ice.

Fucking Glacier Lake.

Remind me never to go there again.

Rising from my bed, the sheets tousled since I’ve spent the rest of my day nestled in their warmth, I pace back and forth in front of my window. I’m fine now. I was fine soon after it happened, but no one would hear it.

Bed rest, as ordered by Professor Tora.

The smug look on Vallie’s face as I was carted away will forever be imprinted in my mind until I seek my revenge. My father would tell me to calm down, not react or show emotion, but we’re long past that now.

Kryll brought me back here, and thank goodness it was him because anyone else would have forced their presence on me. Not him. No. He heard the sincerity in my voice and respected my space, like always, giving me time to heal alone. How that man is a virgin is beyond me. I don’t think I’ll ever understand.

---