Page 8 of Honorable Convictions
Without the advantage of getting familiar with the facility, Pierson used his senses to memorize where everything was, so he didn’t have to rely upon Wade any further. They arrived at the dining area, and Pierson’s tray soon brimmed with delicious-smelling food. Knowing Wade wouldn’t want to sit with him, Pierson chose a table adjacent to his and lifted his fork. From the corner of his eye, he noticed the rest of the recruits filing in, and his eyes locked with the aqua orbs of his other half.
Even if they knew each other well enough to read expressions, there was too much distance to know what Mitchell was thinking. Their gazes locked until Mitchell had no choice but to accept his food. It was little surprise to Pierson that the other fallen knights chose chairs close to Wade. Giving his attention to his meal, Pierson methodically ate every bite and ignored Mitchell’s stare. There was chatter, but Pierson preferred not to listen to their discussion. Once his plate was cleared of even crumbs, he stood and brought his dishes to the proper place.
Mission accomplished, Pierson left the mess hall and followed the small signs that pointed toward the classrooms. They were expected to start with a lecture on rules and obligations. When he walked in, Venerable Knight Roman Calixtus was already near the blackboard, writing on it.
“Good morning, VK Calixtus,” Pierson offered.
“Good morning, how is your resurrection sickness?”
“I am well, VK Calixtus, thank you. I am ready to start my training.”
“That’s the kind of attitude I like. If you pay attention, you can crush this stuff, I promise.”
Before Pierson could respond to his statement, the other recruits filed in, and he was glad Mitchell chose a chair far from his. The last thing he needed was distractions. Their matebond was important, and Pierson had every intention of straightening things out, but they had a single shot to qualify for a good assignment.
Once VK Calixtus greeted everyone, he passed out blank sheets of paper. “Now, I don’t want to hear any grumbles, but I like to start with a test. You’ve had a chance to look through the training manual, and maybe you’ve decided to read ahead in the textbooks. This is to determine what you know and what you don’t. This is the only quiz that will not affect your overall score. This is to get a baseline. Go slow and reason through the questions carefully.”
Pierson listened attentively as VK Calixtus went through the few questions he’d scrawled on the blackboard. Since he’d committed the entire guide to memory as well as the first few chapters of the rules and regulations text, Pierson jotted down the answers in a few minutes. When he was finished, everyone else was still writing, so he took VK Calixtus’s advice and inspected each response.
Satisfied with everything, Pierson rose and handed his sheet to the Venerable Knight, who raised a brow as he took it from him.
“Did you want to double-check these before you hand this in?”
“I already did, VK.”
“Fast reader. Okay, go ahead and take a seat. We’ll give these guys the opportunity to catch up. If you’d like, you can take a copy of the textbook to your desk and familiarize yourself with the information on the first one hundred pages. That’s going to be your homework for this evening.”
“Thank you, VK,” Pierson said and bit his tongue so he didn’t inform his superior that he’d already read and committed to memory eighty of the hundred assigned. That left him with twenty pages, so Pierson dutifully sat and buried his nose in the words. Completing his task, he was pleased that most of the others had walked to the front with their answers. With a quick glance around, Mitchell caught his eye. Pierson scowled when Mitchell winked.
His attention went to VK Calixtus, who was working through their tests with a fountain pen and he ignored Mitchell, who returned to his chair without further incident.
“Okay, everybody, let’s talk about where we are,” VK Calixtus announced. “We had a perfect score. I can tell you that rarely happens. You might’ve been sick, Murphy, but you used your time wisely. Nice job.”
Pierson smiled and was proud that he’d already accomplished something rare. “Thanks, VK.”
“The rest of you averaged roughly three incorrect responses. So, let’s go over the questions you got wrong. Murphy, you can help me catch these guys up.”
For the next ninety minutes, they discussed the points that Pierson’s fellow recruits had missed, and he was sad to say that the experience was boring. Pierson had memorized and comprehended plenty already, so he hoped things would get more exciting as they progressed. VK Calixtus told them to head straight for the gymnasium for their next class. Wanting to escape to avoid dealing with the others and having no clue where his destination was, he allowed them to file out in front of him.
“Nice job on the test, Blondie,” Mitchell teased, coming to a stop at his side. On his handsome face was a perfectly charming smile, but Pierson’s brain supplied a fresh image of his dick in Trista’s mouth, souring his mood.
“I’d prefer if you addressed me properly,” Pierson snapped.
“Relax, he’s only calling you that because of your hair,” Wade said. “Let’s go, Mitchell. Murphy’s going to find something to complain about if you give him the chance.”
Besides running out of Trista and Darcie’s room, Pierson didn’t know how he’d earned such a shitty reputation with Wade.
“Hey, I didn’t mean—”
“You heard Wade,” Pierson told Mitchell, marching forward. “We need to get to the gymnasium.”
“We need to talk,” Mitchell argued, following on his heels.
“Not now. We have responsibilities.”
“Nothing is more important than—”
Pierson halted and Mitchell did the same, much to the disgust of Wade, who was behind them. The fallen knight let out a curse and stomped off to catch up with the other recruits, who were already at the end of the hall.
