Page 34 of Martyr

“Relax,” the Demon laughed. “I’m not going to beat you up, and if I was, I wouldn’t have to bring you all the way there to do it.”

That was true…

“Can you answer some of my questions as we walk?” Nix asked. He kept his hand in West’s as they headed down the path, ignoring everyone they passed. “If you do, I’ll pretend like I don’t know why we’re taking the scenic route.”

West laughed again. “You’re so fun, Nixie.”

“You wanted me to like you more than the others, remember? If you give me answers, I probably will.”

“You’re fun,” he repeated, a warning edge to his otherwise still light tone, “but there are certain games you shouldn’t play. Attempting to pit us against each other? That’s one of them. You won’t like the end results, and honestly, at this point, neither will we. We all like you, in our own ways. Don’t make us regret it.”

“Oh, so I’m the only one who has to carry around regrets here?”

West shrugged but left it at that, and when Nix tried to pull away, he tightened his grip. “Ask your questions. I can’t promise I’ll answer, though.”

“What’s a fourth?”

“You don’t—”

“It’s too late. Beck mentioned it yesterday already. Lake didn’t explain it fully because he was too worried about finding out who pushed me into the stall, but he knows I know.”

West’s eyes narrowed. “Would have been nice if he’d shared that detail with the rest of the class.”

“So you tell me.” Nix sighed when West hesitated. “Come on. It’s not like you need Lake’s permission or something. Unless you do?”

“What did I just warn you about?” The Demon growled.

“West. Please.”

He grew quiet for a few minutes, and Nix didn’t dare interrupt whatever thoughts he may be having. After a while, once the gym building was already in view, he finally spoke again. “How much did Beck let slip?”

Nix tried to remember in detail, but the whole conversation was fuzzy. He’d still been too freaked out over the attack. “…Something about how being the fourth is different from being your boyfriend. What does it mean, exactly?”

“You sure you want to know?”

“Don’t I deserve at least that much?”

West glanced at him and hummed. “Now that you have that on your neck, it’s not like you can leave us if you don’t like what you hear anyway…Okay. I’ll tell you. But you aren’t going to like it.”

The fact that West was saying as much made Nix’s stomach clench painfully. Because he wouldn’t if he didn’t one hundred percent believe that to be true.

“What is it?”

“There are three of us this year, that’s pretty rare,” West began. “There would already have been four, but one of the other Legacies bitched out. For the best, really. Yejun, Lake, and I have a bond unlike any of the past Demons. We already pull more rank, for instance. Anyone else around would always be beneath us. There aren’t typically a ton of Legacies, believe it or not. There are even full years where the Roost is empty, or at least devoid of seniors. You have to be a senior to take part in the ceremony.”

“What ceremony?”

“It’s called the Night of the Nightshade.”

“When is it?”

“Worrying already?”

“Didn’t you just say I should?”

West tutted at him. “Think of it as an initiation ceremony of sorts,” he continued, ignoring the question. “The three of us will be one step closer to becoming official members of the club once we present our sacrifice to the Order.”

“What?” Nix came to a standstill, forcing West to stop as well. He refused to budge when the Demon tried tugging on him. Sacrifice. This was it. This was what they’d meant earlier when he’d overheard them talking in the kitchen.

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