Page 21 of Unshaken

“Three Soul tethers.” Trys paces slowly, tapping his finger to his lips, like he trying to figure out the meaning of life and our magical existence. “Possibly, four, but I guess only time will tell if our third wheel of a brother gets his head out of his ass.” He smirks at Ty, who makes some kind of throaty grunt in response. My eyes won’t stop moving between the two of them, like at any moment one of them is going to strike like a viper to get rid of me. I don’t want to die today.

“What are your thoughts on the subject, little spirit?” Trys points to me, and my hands find my hips as if they have a mind of their own.

“Esme or Esmeralda. That’s my name, not little spirit, and definitely not ghost.” I lift my eyebrow, giving them both a pointed look, trying to look braver than I feel. Oh God, I think I am going to be sick. Ty walks forward, like a magnet drawing Trys towards me as well. They sandwich me in between them, leaving just enough room so that we’re not touching. They peer down at me, their strange white eyes cutting into me as if they are reaching down into the depths of my soul seeking out my deepest, darkest secrets.

“You have balls, spirit. Good. Our sunshine will need us to be strong for her.” Trys smiles and Ty elbows him, causing Trys to grunt. The disturbing part of all of this is that they haven’t stopped looking at me through this entire exchange.

“She’s our equal, so we will respect her wishes. She is Micah’s Tether, so we will treat her as such. Do you think that’s fair, Esme?” My name falls from Ty’s lips, haunting and dark as he calls me by the shorter version of my name. OK, so they’re extending an olive branch to me. I get it. Message received, thank you boys.

“Yes, thank you.” I nod my head in agreement, feeling so out of my depth with the two of them. I feel like I can’t breathe, they are so close.

The sound of someone clearing their throat has us all lifting our heads in the direction of Micah’s house. My eyes land on Micah, and I feel like I can finally relax. She stands with her hands on her hips. She looks uncomfortable in her uniform; I can tell by the way she tugs on her skirt that she is out of her comfort zone. The black lace tights and combat boots are a dress code violation, but with Ty and Trys beside her, I don’t know any Professor who will call her out on it. Well, maybe Professor Bodin.

Ty and Trys don’t move though. It’s beginning to feel uncomfortable. Micah rushes down the steps and opens the gate, allowing it to swing closed behind her. She stops, and her eyes lock with mine, offering me a small smile, she immediately reads the situation, her hands shoot out, pushing Trys and Ty away from me.

“Give Esme some room, please. You were making her uncomfortable. Boundaries. You two need to get some.” She shakes her head and holds out her arm for me. I hesitate at the comfortable yet friendly gesture, as if we’ve been best friends for years. I find I want to loop my arm through hers. I’ve never had a friend, hell, I have never been in a relationship of any kind really. I was isolated from the rest of my coven my entire life, only brought out for official ceremonies to give the rest of my family proof of life, but other than that I was alone. I slowly hook my arm with hers, and she starts walking, not looking back to see if the boys are following behind. I look back, both Trys and Ty walk behind us like Micah’s personal bodyguards. Trys is whistling a lighthearted tune and Ty has now pulled out his tablet tapping away at it like this is an everyday occurrence. I look over at Micah in shock.

“What did you do to them?” I ask, almost certain I may just find a pair of twin voodoo dolls in her backpack. I could laugh out loud at the thought, but I don’t really want to share. Did she cast a spell to calm them all the way fuck down? By now, they would be terrorizing students at breakfast, yet they are here, content, and silent.

Micah shrugs. “They wanted to walk me to class. I don’t mind. Honestly, I am still in disbelief. It’s been the craziest twenty-four hours of my life. I haven’t processed any of it. So, I’m going with it.”

“You survived the night, though. My sight was good for something finally.” I sigh. She gives my arm a squeeze of reassurance, and I have no idea what to do with it. It’s nice, and her touch spreads up my arm, warming my heart, making me smile in return.

“Yes, I did. Thanks to those two. It helped that you gave me the heads up, though.” She gestures behind her, and I glance back to find the two of them smiling at me. It’s so unnerving to see them this way I immediately turn around, ushering Micah to the side of Lux Hall towards the Underground where our cafeteria is.

“Well, now I am curious. Tell me all about it,” I say to her, wondering what strange new world I have now been thrown into. Hoping like hell that it doesn’t swallow me whole.

Fourteen

MICAH

It’s as if last night never happened. I walk up the path feeling uneasy and disgusted at the lack of regard for the lives lost overnight. It was like all the violence was washed away, like it was some bad dream. The morning sun warms my skin as I turn my face up to it, drinking in the rays with a deep inhalation of breath. I guess this is my new morning ritual. I’m so happy to be alive to have a grateful intake of breath. I’m so glad I didn’t die last night to be able to see the sunrise this morning as we walk to class. No, I don’t want this to be my new normal, but what can I do?

True to the word of the guys, the rest of the night was uneventful. I removed Rook from around my neck, laying my key under the pillow next to me but at least within reach. I really didn’t want to talk about what happened outside; I was too weary to do so. Plus, I wasn’t in the mood to hear him lecture me about how I need to gain more control of the magic I hold inside of me. Yes, I know I can access all four Elements, but I can’t control all of them. I know I am lacking.

I could still hear the screams, shouts, and growls from outside, but I decided there was nothing I could do to help the poor souls who were out there alone. To drown out the noise I put my earphones in and let D'Angelo sing me to sleep. When I woke to my tablet giving me a breakdown of the dead, I felt so nauseous that I ran to the toilet and dry heaved, my empty stomach contracting with pain. How can people do this every day? How can you stomach walking around, staring people in the face, sitting next to them in class knowing that today might be their last? Your last?

This morning the students all greet each other meeting up in groups, smiling, hugging, with heavy books, and satchels hanging from their shoulders. Everyone looks immaculate in their uniforms, well, everyone except Trys standing out as bright and beautiful as a peacock wearing his uniform like the latest catwalk creation, and I can’t say that I don’t love it. Using his necktie as a hairband is a nice touch. They all seem to be walking in the same direction as us. There’s a slope in the pavement leading downwards as students file in behind each other.

“I will go and secure us a table and seats,” Trys says, bouncing on his heels like an excited puppy and bounding down the slope, disappearing into the building literally built like an underground bunker. I watch his bright yellow boots vanish behind a row of glass doors before I turn to ask Esme where we are going but she beat me to it.

“This is the Underground, basically the cafeteria, open to us all day until—” she coughs, then continues, “—until night falls.”

My eyes widen, impressed by the structure, even though the idea of eating under tons of dirt and concrete doesn’t seem like my idea of fun. At least there are large windows that let natural light in so that helps fight the claustrophobic feeling I am having.

“Hmm. I am surprised the cafeteria is not a part of the main building like most Academies, but this place is different all the way around,” I say out loud, making conversation with two people that are bound to me now. I know nothing about them or how to navigate this at all. Yes, Micah, just throw out those awkward as fuck statements like this one for no reason at all to see who bites.

“How so?” Ty asks behind me, and I almost laugh at his ridiculous question. He knows exactly what I mean. Is he serious?

“Are you serious right now?” I ask, not turning around, the hold Esme has on me tightens slightly in warning, but I don’t care. I have a feeling in my soul that Ty won’t harm me. But I am sure she doesn’t see it that way. The fear in her eyes as they surrounded her earlier when I walked out to greet them spoke volumes about how people perceive Ty and Trys, and more importantly how she saw them. She is terrified, and it makes me wonder who the hell I’ve been tethered to.

“I’m honestly curious, kitten,” he purrs. Why is his voice so damn seductive? We are having a normal conversation for crying out loud.

“Never mind, Ty. I assumed that would be the case, that’s all. This place is like nowhere on earth. So, I shouldn’t assume anything. I don’t know any Academy that lets its students kill each other off like they are animals in the damn Savannah,” I huff my frustration as the echo of a faint scream rings in my ears from the night before. “This survival of the fittest bullshit is for the birds,” I say as Ty rushes ahead of us to open the doors.

“Here, here,” Esme whispers to me, and I can’t help but smile at her. I’ve never had a girlfriend before of any kind, so I am happy to finally have someone I can be close to. I expect nothing from her, her friendship is enough. I just hope she’s not too afraid to see where this goes.

“Ladies.” Ty holds out his arm to let us pass. My own personal psycho butler.

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