Page 46 of Dance of the Phoenix
Ragnor would’ve asked her, but he knew she would not give him a proper answer.
A notion that sent him spiraling all over again.
When he arrived at his suite, prepared for an ugly fight with his Alara Morreh, he found it empty.
Thinking she might come back later, he took a quick shower that did nothing to soothe his anger, sat down on the sofa, and attempted to read a book while waiting.
But as the hours passed, there was no sign of Aileen. More confused than angry, he left the room and searched for her. First in the Troop gym, then at his office, the infirmary, and even the greenhouse.
She was nowhere to be found.
Until the next morning, he saw her walking into the cafeteria with her two friends. And he finally realized Aileen had chosen to sleep elsewhere.
And his anger with her reached a breaking point.
Chapter 21
Aileen
My body’s discomfort woke me up.
When I opened my eyes, it took me a few moments to remember where I was, not only because the surface I was lying on was that of a sofa rather than a bed, but also because the living room I was in was smaller than the one in Ragnor’s suite ...
Right. Last night, I crashed at Isora and Zoey’s place.
Cuddling the comforter close, I stared at the ceiling, wishing I could disappear, if only for a short while.
Because today, I had to start training with Logan, my now partner for the Hecatomb. And if that wasn’t enough, I would also have to see Ragnor in the afternoon for the private training.
Every fiber of my being rebelled. I didn’t want to see either Ragnor or Logan. The mental fortitude required for dealing with both of them was beyond me at the moment.
I was too tired and felt too guilty to be able to face both the demons of my past and the sad reality of my present.
But the Hecatomb waited for no one. And overruling my other emotions was the steadily rising anxiety about it being so soon and my feeling so underprepared.
And I had to remind myself that at least my situation was far less miserable than Jada’s.
I heard a door creaking open followed by approaching footsteps. Then Isora’s face popped up, her cobalt eyes peering at me. “Good morning,” she said, giving me a concerned look.
“Morning,” I retorted and forced myself to sit up. “Slept well?”
She nodded, and I could feel her eyes follow me as I put on my sneakers and rose to my feet. With a sigh, I turned to her and gave her half a smile. “Thank you for letting me crash.”
“Anytime,” she said quietly just as another door opened, revealing Zoey’s haggard look. “Morning, Zo.”
Zoey yawned and gave both of us a nod. Then, as we’d done many times before, we went to the cafeteria together for breakfast.
Unfortunately, I had barely put a spoonful of bacon and egg in my mouth when a familiar redhead made her way toward me, her eyes fixed on my face.
Swallowing the food hard, I ignored Isora’s and Zoey’s looks as Margarita stopped right next to me, her expression disdainful. “Come with me,” she barked.
My first instinct was to refuse. But something in her catlike green eyes made me clamp my mouth shut and rise to my feet. “Lead the way,” I murmured, grimacing as I felt many pairs of eyes peering at me from across the cafeteria.
As I followed Margarita to the exit, it felt as if I was being led to the guillotine. I mean, it was Margarita, Ragnor’s Lieutenant, who’d hated my guts almost since day one. In fact, she had tried to sabotage me multiple times during those horrid times before the Auction, when I was still a newbie.
She’d also threatened me to stay away from Logan and Ragnor. Which made me wonder if that was what this was all about right now.
While Ragnor and I were being discreet about our relationship, I doubted she wasn’t at least a bit aware that something was going on between us. It wasn’t like we were purposely hiding; I had been stayingin his suite ever since I came back to the Rayne League. It would’ve been weird if she, and others, hadn’t noticed something.
