Page 28 of The Order

“I didn’t mind,” I whisper back, speaking without fully processing my words.

He looks ready to say more, but the sudden presence of my father and Kai with Max quickly cuts him off. Kai and Max look curious, watching over Xavier with two very different expressions. Where Kai looks enthralled, Max looks displeased, maybe even annoyed. Xavier clears more space, joining me against the wall.

“How much did you all hear?” my dad questions, looking around at the three sets of eyes on him.

“Do you want me to lie and say I didn't hear you yelling?” I question, feeling Kai's annoyance even from this distance.

“He sounds grumpy when he's frustrated, doesn't he?” Xavier questions, grinning wildly at my dad's gaze.

“That I do,” my father says, smiling just as wide as Xavier.

The two men's banter is unlike anything I have seen before. In most scenarios, that comment would have ended with crude words and shaming from my father. Instead, he laughs along, seeing the humor in Xavier’s statement for once in his life.

“Five minutes alone yelling in a room together, and you make him smile?” I question Xavier.

“His presence might be growing on me,” my father says, patting the man on the back.

My dad's knuckles are coated in a thin layer of scabs. Only now do I see the matching wounds covering Xavier's hands. It's relatively fresh. Some knuckles are cut deeper than others. I grab Xavier's hand, examining it closely before dropping it with two pinched fingers.

“Just made conversation today?” I question, watching Xavier's brows crease with a perplexed look.

“A few Unfortunates needed a brief talking to earlier for being away from their sector for too long,” my father says.

All I can think of is the Unfortunate woman from the tram stop and Fallan’s defiant walk straight into our sector.

“Looks to me like you two handled some deviant assholes,” Max chimes in, moving closer to the young Official towering next to me.

“I heard Forest handled some assholes herself,” Xavier says.

My dad's eyes snap to me, waiting for me to confirm or deny the statement.

“Has she been fighting again?” My father questions Kai, not bothering to ask me for the truth.

“It was two boys taunting her. The ones with all the violations on their scorecards. Untouchables. I took the liberty of viewing the footage so you didn't have to. To me, it was justified, possibly even lenient,” Xavier says, saving me from having to pull together an excuse. I mouth a small “thank you,” watching his smirk grow at the praise.

“He's right. Colton and Josh have been going at us all nonstop,” Kai says in defense. Even he is done with their thoughtless actions.

“It was only those two you all dealt with today? You saw nothing else?” my father questions everyone in the group.

I can tell he’s trying to find answers for his leadership about the damage at the school. They genuinely have no idea what happened. They are as in the dark as me. I was hoping maybe he would have an explanation.

Max begins to explain what he saw to my father, taking the claims of my other two companions as Xavier motions me to follow him. The four of them are engrossed in their conversation, not noticing our silent exit through my father's study door. Xavier adjusts the door, keeping it semi-open to continue listening to the conversations outside.

My father's study is lined with bookshelves, filled with old literature long forgotten in the new educational systems. A perfectly filed cabinet is open, revealing countless names I don’t recognize. His computer screen is dark. The small stand of bourbon and scotch is raised high next to his leather chair. Xavier grabs a vile from his pocket, moving closer as he pushes the hair away from the side of my face. I feel my cheeks warm at the touch. His fingertips linger over my skin, his free hand cupping the side of my face. I wince once his fingers meet the cut Max had failed to heal fully with his Cure-All.

“This room has no devices. What did you do?” Xavier questions, spraying my face lightly with the medicine. His eyes watch the wound, continuing his hold on my face long after the cut is healed.

“I tripped. I’m clumsy,” I say, trying to feed him the lie everyone has believed all day.

“Yeah? Is that what the twins believed?” he questions, dropping his hand from the side of my face. He keeps a piece of my hair between his pointer finger and his thumb as he rubs down its length.

“There's nothing to believe,” I say, feeling the warmth spread in my cheeks once his eyes finally meet mine.

“Is that why your face is so red right now? Honesty has never looked so guilty,” his free hand raises, cupping my cheek. He rolls his thumb over my skin in the same way Fallan had when he touched the soft skin of Valerie's thigh. I shove away the image of Fallan, letting Xavier's enthralling eyes coat my vision. The touch is gentle. It feels different than the kiss I shared with Max. Every touch from him so far makes me nervous, and he can sense it.

“I-I’m not guilty-”

“Then what are you? You've looked lost ever since you ran into me,” Xavier says, keeping me flustered.

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