Page 121 of Caelum

Dre had one of the worst attitude problems in the entire school. In an academy of four hundred students, his rep was the worst.

We all had attitudes, had all come from shitty backgrounds, had each been stashed in too many asylums to count. We’d had to handle genuine crazy people, and I was sure that along the way, there’d been abuse and only God knew what other kind of treatment, but of us all, Dre was the worst. The biggest jackass south of the Equator.

An uneasy silence settled after Eren’s warning, though, and I hesitated over trudging deeper into the room.

Frazer's quarters consisted of a double bed that was too small for him, a sofa, and a TV. He was a minimalist, which came as a surprise considering his past. He was, I knew, wealthy as fuck. Samuel had been managing his money since Frazer had turned eighteen when a part of his trust fund had opened up to him. Because Sammy was a whiz kid with anything attached to a dollar sign, it made sense. But the number of zeros in Frazer's bank account in no way fit with the state of his room.

I'd seen jail cells that held more decoration, and that was no lie.

There were no personal photos, no bookshelves with books, no photographs or paintings on the wall. It was literally three pieces of furniture. That was it. It was depressing, to be honest. I really didn't like being in here, and actually preferred hanging out in the common room, but there was something going on that apparently necessitated our worst enemies being in one of our bedrooms.

The phrase ‘worst enemies’ might have sounded a little dramatic, but Stefan, Nestor, Eren, and Dre were the only Pack in the year—hell, the school—who actually had the ability to best us, and had. Several times, to my shame.

Stefan’s and my Pack were close to being ready for true battle conditions. The second our souls manifested was the second we’d be out on the front line.

Funny that until Eve had come along, that was all I'd hoped for. The day I could actually be useful. When the monster deep inside me would have a purpose, would have a means of expressing himself.

I wasn't scared of dying, but I was scared of the beast inside me. Hell, it was more like a demon. I loathed that side of myself, and being able to liberate it on the battlefield was the only thing that kept me going, kept me thriving. Until her.

Eve had changed everything, and she didn’t even fucking know it.

“I have something to tell you,” Frazer murmured softly, breaking the awkward silence that had descended on the room. He winced then continued, “In fact, several things...”

“Get on with it,” Dre ordered with a growl. When there was more hesitation from my Pack leader, he grunted, “If you want something doing right, do it your damn self. Stefan and Frazer are Eve’s Chosen.” He sniffed. “Both of them.”

If he'd told me unicorns existed, I'd have been less surprised.

As I was standing in the doorway, with the door closed behind me, I staggered back against it, grateful I'd shut it so it kept me upright. “You can't be serious,” I wheezed. That meant she had three Chosen. Three.

Frazer nodded when I caught his eye. There was a strain in his face I didn't recognize, but it made me confirm, “You're marked?” Another nod.

I cut Eve a look and saw her alabaster skin was paler and peakier than when I’d walked into the room. She was also trembling, and every five or so seconds, she'd shiver like she was cold. But it was warm in here—hell, it was always warm at Caelum. We were on an African island, for God’s sake. We didn't exactly get blizzard conditions. Still, the fact she was shivering told me how nervous she was, and having spoken to her several times, I was well aware that Eve wasn't like normal girls.

She dealt with the world a tad differently than most, not just because of her background, but she saw things in a way that was unusual to me. Not in an uncomfortable way, just one that spoke of her innocence.

To be honest, it was refreshing.

Most of us here at Caelum were jaded. Experience taught us that the naiver we were, the more danger we were in. Innocence didn't last long in a place like this. I didn't just mean mentally, but physically as well. Sex was a common part of life here, and though that was great for me, it was a whole other world for Eve. It was why I left her alone—as much as I was able to, even if it fucking killed me to deny myself her presence during my days.

I allowed myself more access to her than the faculty would permit if they knew what she was to me, but that was it. Nothing more, nothing less.

“Eve?” I called, trying to break her out of whatever thoughts she was lost in. At her name, she blinked up at me, and her beautiful face was filled with so much bewilderment I just wanted to go to her, take her in my arms, and tell her everything would be okay.

But how could I?

How could I do that?

It wouldn't be okay.

It wasn't possible. Having three Chosen mates at Caelum? Anythingthat was outside of the strict parameters of life here, rules we all rigidly lived by, was grounds for annihilation.

And as hard a word as that was, it was the truth. There was no way the faculty would allow Eve to survive.

“Yes, Reed?” she whispered.

“Are you all right?”

Her smile was tight, pained almost. “I've been better.”

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