Page 1 of Dark Embers

Chapter 1

Arya

I brushed my fingertips over my neck as the warm water rained over me from the shower faucet. Though the skin was smooth and unblemished, with not even a trace of scars from the bite I’d endured last night, I could still feel the vampire’s fangs in my neck.

With trembling hands, I soaped up my loofa and began scrubbing myself. I had various cuts and bruises from my imprisonment in the sim room, but nothing that would have needed the healing touch of that over-eager harpy. While I was grateful for him healing the bite wound, I didn’t want his hands on me any more than absolutely necessary.

I closed my eyes and let the water spill over my face, but all I saw was that vampire’s face. I squeezed my eyelids, trying to push out those flashes, but it didn’t work. So, with a sigh, I turned off the water and stepped out of the shower stall in my bathroom to towel off.

My night had been restless. When I did sleep, it was only in short bursts, and I was right back in that forest, caged in the vampire’s arms as he drained me. I’d wake up in a cold sweat, toss and turn for a while until I fell asleep, and the cycle repeated. I’d hoped that the shower would help relax me.

No such luck.

I put on my uniform and braided my hair because I didn’t have the mental energy to dry it. I was really dreading coming face-to-face with the mer bitches this morning. Part of me was so filled with anger toward them that I wanted to lash out at them. My fists clenched around my strands of hair just thinking about it.

The other part of me, the frightened little girl inside that only ever wanted to be accepted, was deeply wounded—and scared.

The mer girls hated me enough to try and kill me. They’d set up this elaborate hoax to get me close to one of them—Adina—so that she could lock me in that room. How far were they willing to go to get rid of me?

Would they poison my food? Drown me in the pool with their water manipulation during class? Or just sneak into my room in the dead of night and strangle me in my sleep?

I got to the end of my hair and wrapped a hair tie around the base of the braid, letting out a long breath. All of those scenarios led me to the same conclusion: I needed to get a handle on my powers as soon as possible. And I really needed to amp up my fighting skills, which were pretty much nonexistent at the moment.

I sat on the side of my bed for several minutes, debating when I should venture out to the dining hall. Should I rush out and get there early, try to finish my breakfast before Cora showed up? Or should I wait until the tail end and hope they’d already be gone?

“You know what, fuck it.” I hopped off my bed and strode with purpose out of my bedroom and into the hall.

I wasn’t going to hide in my room like a coward. My mother raised me better than that. I wasn’t the one who’d done anythingwrong, and I’d be damned if I was going to let them see how much their little stunt had affected me.

With my head held high, I walked through the halls like I owned the place, passing every mer without a glance like they were invisible to me. I was almost hoping that I’d run into the sea witch trio so that I could flaunt my confidence and show them how little they mattered to me.

I made it to the dining hall unscathed, though, and my mood instantly lifted when I saw Tobias sitting with our little circle of friends.

The stoically sexy dragon prince had clearly been watching the entrance for my arrival, and when his amber eyes met mine across the hall, they burned with an intensity that scorched every inch of me from the inside out.

He offered me an impish smirk that looked so damn gorgeous on his dark pink lips. My cheeks heated, and I was pretty sure my entire body was blushing, even the butterflies flapping around excitedly in my stomach. I grinned stupidly and waved before gesturing with the point of my index finger that I was going to get breakfast before joining them.

I rushed through the buffet line, grabbing random foods in my eagerness to get to him.

Last night had changed everything between us. It wasn’t just that he’d rescued me when I needed him most or that he’d threatened the mer bitches in my honor, but he’d been so vulnerable as he held me, his heart shining right through his liquid fire eyes as he looked at me like I was the only person in the world.

I felt a deep connection to him that I couldn't shake, a need to be close to him when I wasn’t. It was like the world was bitterly coldand dimly gray, and he was my sheltering flame, giving me the warmth I craved and illuminating the brilliant colors that hid in the darkness.

Until last night, he’d played tug-of-war with my heart, pulling me in only to push me away. I knew it was a front for some part of himself he didn’t like—a defense mechanism to keep him from getting too close and ultimately getting hurt. Whatever he was hiding that he didn’t want me to see, I hoped that last night showed him that he didn’t have to hide it anymore.

I set my tray on the open place at the table between Tobias and Ashlyn and sat down.

“Hi,” I said, locking eyes with Tobias and still unable to wipe the stupid grin off my face.

“Hi,” he said back, his gaze smoldering into mine and making me ache.

We stared at each other for a long moment, and I almost forgot there were other people at the table with us.

Ashlyn waved a hand in front of my face between us, snapping me out of my sappy daze. “Okay, what’s up with you two?”

I turned to face her, my gaze raking over the faces of Niko and Brett, who were wearing knowing smirks.

“Didn’t you hear?” Brett asked.

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