Page 40 of Faerie Marked

Not only the thought of being returned to my so-called fated mate, but the look on Mike’s face right now, at this moment. Both tore me apart. The pain of heartbreak I saw casting a shadow on his features. My heart clenched in response and all thoughts of Kendrick disappeared.

“Hey, you aren’tmyprince. I grew up human.” Or close enough. I playfully tapped him on the shoulder to get him to move back. “I just thought maybe you were too cool to be my friend. Although we might have a problem if you expect me to curtsey every time we see each other. I’d trip over my own feet.”

His smile returned slowly, and it lit something inside of me. “Maybe you’re too cool to bemyfriend. Did you ever think of it in those terms?”

I looked around the empty room, thinking about how we were missing out on dinner and I didn’t even mind. “Me? Cool? You have me mistaken for someone else. Although just maybe we can be too cool as friends together.”

Mike held out a hand. “Shake on it.”

We did, and that was that.

* * *

A week later, rough hands shook me awake. I tried to burrow down into my pillow until those same hands, most assuredly not a part of my dream, yanked at my hair and I jumped up with a scream.

“Keep it down, newbie. Jeez. It’s not like wehurtyou.”

I knew the voice. It wasn’t a dream, more like a nightmare. The nightmare of my reality.

“What do you want, Persephone?” I grumbled.

“I want you to wake up,” she said snidely.

When I cracked open my eyes, Persephone and two of her goons were there staring at me over the edge of the bunk like little gremlins. Their eyes practically glowed in the dark. They’d dressed in black and had their hair in long ponytails down their backs.

“A bunch of us are going outside to play Capture the Scroll. Do you want to come play?” she asked.

Glancing over toward the wall, I saw the batter of rain against the front window.

“It’s raining.”

“Don’t you think we know?”

I shifted and dragged my blanket closer. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to get out of bed for some stupid game of yours.”

“Tavi, get real. You’re theoutsiderhere. I know, you know, everyone who has met you knows you don’t belong.” She shared a smile with her friends. “But winning a game of Capture the Scroll can go a long way toward changing your image.”

Like I’d believe she wanted to help me. She’d rather toss me out the window than work toward “changing my image.”

“I don’t even know how to play,” I hedged.

She leaned forward further, smile widening. “Exactly. We grew up playing Fae games and you did not. It’s about time you learn a thing or two. We’re giving you the opportunity to learn. And youseriouslywant to lie there and blow us off? How lazy can you get?” This to the other girls, who agreed with her with a low snicker.

I alsoseriouslydidn’t want to get out of bed because I needed my sleep. Rain, plus a game I didn’t know how to play, plus Persephone more than likely plotting to make me look like an idiot? It sounded awful. No thanks.

“One game,” I finally agreed, against my better judgment. “And then I’m out of there.”

Persephone nodded. “Of course. One game.”

I caught the second look she shared with her friends. This one full of promise to make my night a living hell.

Barbara had warned me to stay out of direct moonlight. Or was it the full moon?Gah, I knew I should have written these things down. It wouldn’t have been a problem at all if I’d stayed in my bunk, which remained in the shadows most nights. With the rain pouring down outside, which meant no moon, I could manage one game with relative ease. But I had to make sure I followed the rules of the potion no matter how Persephone taunted me. My safety came before the acceptance of my peers.

But with the rain…

“Fine.” I pushed out of my bunk, crawling down the ladder with care and grabbing a sweatshirt from a nearby peg. The rest of the girls waited for me to dress, to lace my sneakers, before gesturing for me to follow them outside.

I raised my face to the sky, letting the water sluice down my cheeks. My hair sopped up the moisture and hung in heavy red strands. I drew in a deep breath and held it inside my lungs.

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