Page 59 of The Lost Empress

Gen shrugged. “That’s fine. He wouldn’t help me, anyway. He believes he needs to empower me to learn and know things on my own.”

The leader of the Rogue Riders sighed, narrowing his eyes at her, not at all amused. “Also, you can’t use a cell phone in here. No electronics work due to the security.”

She nodded, not at all deterred. “I don’t really know how to use one, anyway.”

“Fine, then if you’re ready to take the exam, then I’ll lock you in here,” he said, making for the door. “I’ll be back around midnight. I have an event to attend. Work on the exam and then keep yourself occupied until I return. You might want to try praying that you passed because if you don’t then you can guarantee that your training will take years to complete.”

Gen nodded, waving as he shut the door, faking an overwhelmed look at him. He seemed to relish in her misery.

She knew that he was trying to make it impossible for her to complete her training. Judging by the thousand-question exam, he was trying to break her spirit. But she knew he was off to the Commissioner’s Ball for the night, so it was best if he thought that she was suffering in the windowless room—when in fact she planned to be having her own party soon.

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

BREAKING RULES, BUILDING TRUST

Exam Room, Rogue Rider Mansion, Beverly Hills, California, United States

Gen had started on the exam, surprised to find that she knew most of the answers. She hadn’t thought that she’d studied enough, but it appeared that she’d understood the core concepts enough to pass Dwayne’s test on her own.

After an hour passed, Gen was actually so engrossed in the questions that she startled when there was a knock at the exam door. She straightened, not saying a word, not knowing if this was a trick or not.

When a key clicked in the lock, Gen simply remained frozen, wondering if Dwayne had returned to berate her more or check up on her progress. The door peeled back a few inches with a creak.

“Room service,” a voice called through the crack. “Do you want your pillow fluffed or chocolate?”

Gen grinned, shaking her head with laughter, but feeling instant relief. She stood, sighing. “You did it.”

Amanda pushed the door open all the way, nodding. “Of course I did. I told you I would. As soon as I learned that man had created an exam room where phones didn’t work and riders couldn’t communicate telepathically with their dragons, I stole Dwayne’s keys and had copies made.” She motioned around. “This isn’t an exam room. It’s supposed to be a torture chamber and I won’t allow that.”

“Thanks for breaking me out,” Gen said, turning to her exam. “But I have this other complication. It’s supposed to be done by the time Dwayne returns and I need to pass or I’m doomed to years of training.”

“And again, Amanda to the rescue,” the house manager cheered, pulling out a folded up piece of paper from her back pocket. “I found the answer key when I was cleaning Dwayne’s office. I’ll fill in the multiple choice answers for you, getting a few wrong, but scoring you an A minus. Then you’ll pass and he’ll be furious and I’ll be delighted. It’s a win, lose, win. So yay.”

Gen grinned at the woman, so very grateful for her help. “Thank you so much. I don’t know what I’d do without you on this.”

“You’d be screwed,” Amanda countered. “But also, the City of Los Angeles would be screwed without you, so we need you out there stopping bad guys.”

Gen’s mouth popped open in surprise. “Oh, so you know what I’m doing then…”

“Yeah, someone told me,” Amanda said, turning to the open door.

Sully swung around the corner, materializing with a goofy grin. “Your chariot has arrived. And by that, I mean, your dragon is ready to take you to a bank robbery.”

Gen’s eyes widened with glee, followed by worry. She looked between Amanda and then Sully. “So we’re okay? Amanda, you’re not mad at me for breaking Dwayne’s rule?”

Amanda laughed, shaking her head. “If he had rules that made sense, then maybe. But if you didn’t break his stupid, nonsense rules, well, I’d question your sanity.”

“Thanks,” Gen said, and then turned to Sully. “And you’re really going to help me?”

“Not just me,” Sully said, stepping to the side.

Jack slid into the small room, making it feel really tight suddenly. He grinned at her, a provocative look in his eyes. He pointed to his friend. “Do you think he gets to have all the fun? I want to catch some bad guys too. And that is my job, anyway.”

“Wow, thanks,” Gen said, stunned. “When I asked for your help, well?—”

“You thought we’d be like everyone else and reject you,” Sully said, shaking his head. “Those guys are dumb little lemmings who do everything that Dwayne says.”

“And it was bold of you to ask us,” Jack added. “Which I appreciated.”

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