Page 34 of Dragon Unleashed

Chapter Fifteen: Lorelei

I’m not ready for this. An allegiance meeting. But we’re falling behind. We’re over a month into term. Hellfire, Mabon is nearly here, and we haven’tstartedour thesis. I plod between the students and their asshole bodyguards, dragging my feet across campus.

The notice board in the quad catches my eye. Some idiot has plastered over Val’s concert poster. I pause, peering up at a giant image of the Angel King and the wordsBe vigilant, traitors walk among us.Scowling, I glance quickly over my shoulder. No one’s watching.

I dig my fingernails into the edge of the paper and tease it up. A couple of whispered charm words for unsticking and within a few seconds I’m gently peeling the whole thing back. I scrunch it up into a ball and stuff it into my pocket. Patting Val’s poster, I rub off the excess glue.Good as new.

Chewing on my lip, I start for the library again. Best not delay much longer. At the edge of the forest my steps slow and I slip down the wooded path. Something about the solid trunks and the gentle whooshing of the leaves in the wind calms me. It’s aslight detour. I’m not stalling, not much. I find release trailing my fingers across the rough bark, and kicking at the first of the fallen leaves on the ground.

The peace is broken by rhythmic thudding thundering toward me from somewhere in the bushes, and I touch the dagger at my waist. Whatever it is, it’s rapidly approaching. I flip the knife out and back up, eyes on where the trail bends out of sight. Hellfire, I never used to be this edgy. Maybe the Angel King’s scare tactics are effective after all. A bulky figure barrels around the corner, sweat dripping, arms pumping.

Chano.

He slews to a halt in front of me, and my eyes track his muscles bulging through his T-shirt. I poke a finger into his sweaty chest.

“You scared the life out of me! Anyone ever tell you you sound like a charging minotaur? You need to make those feet quieter.”

He catches my finger and, grinning wickedly, sucks the end of it.

“You’re just looking for an excuse to touch me, chica.” He wraps his arm around my shoulder, steering us out of the woods.

“Didn’t know I needed an excuse,” I grumble.

We’ve booked one of the meeting rooms at the library. We’re already late, but when I push the door open, there’s only Naeve inside. She has a flip chart propped up at one end, and the central table is strewn with books, newspaper clippings, sheets of paper, and colored highlighters. Her tongue sticks out the side of her mouth as she reads the magazine in front of her.

Something inside me settles, seeing how much prep she’s put into this. I flip through the newspaper articles, stacked in neat little piles, all detailing environmental disasters in Venez, with clearly highlighted dates and names.

“You got started, huh?” Chano’s voice is gentle but Naeve gasps and her pen flies into the air. A blush creeps up her face.

“Hi, guys, uh, yeah. We’re behind. I thought if I had hunted out some resources… And, well, I wanted to apologize, Chano. I know it’s important to you. I was just disappointed I didn’t get to look into what happened to my brother and his friends. Your project is a good one too.”

Chano smiles easily and ruffles her hair. “No stress, bookworm, appreciate the thought.”

Diplomacy from Chano. Hell. This man is molding himself. Learning to control his temper, learning how to get along with people. He has to. He’s going to lead the Maveriks.

And then what for us? Then what for me?

I throw myself into a seat and heave a pile of books toward me before I can go off down that particular rabbit hole. We have nearly three years to figure that stuff out. Three years before we graduate…if we graduate.

Time ticks by and it’s nearly twenty minutes later before Zephyr sticks his head around the door. He has the most impressive bedhead I’ve ever seen, and his T-shirt has been dragged on inside out.

Chano’s nose wrinkles and he takes an exaggerated sniff. “Been rolling around a whorehouse?”

I narrow my eyes, peering closer. His neck is pockmarked with love bites, his fly is undone, and I’d bet my life that the red at the angle of his jaw is lipstick. A very particular shade of lipstick, worn by a very particular professor.

“I take it you lost your way and someone fell on your dick en route?” I snap.

Zephyr simply shrugs as he slips into a seat. For someone who’s just gotten laid he doesn’t look very happy.

“And Farrell?” Chano asks. “I swear to the goddesses, if thatputais off chasing skirt too…”

“Not coming,” Zephyr says.

Naeve holds up her hands as both Chano and I start to curse him out. “He has a good reason. Honestly, he does. The Virrey—”

Chano’s chair crashes over as he stands violently.

“So, what? We do all the work, and the little king just takes the credit? This is important. Hell, I toldmi mami.It cannot fail.”

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