Page 39 of Unshaken

“Why?” I ask, looking between the two of them with concern. I’ve only been here a week, granted I’ve caused quite a stir in the past few days, but my classes are going well so far.

“Oh, you know, Soul Tethering her sons to you. Rodyn calling off the engagement with Sasha. You know, the everyday, you’re ruining my plans for my sons type of conversation,” Ty says playfully, like nothing of what he’s saying is making my food feel like a lead weight in my stomach.

“Why would Rodyn do that?” I ask. Just the mention of his name has me seeing red, but what is his reasoning behind it. A part of me is relieved, a little tiny bit, the Tether between us is still seeking him out. Logically, he can go fuck himself. He tried to kill me and he damn near succeeded with Esme.

“Because he sees the truth. He wants—” Ty’s reply is cut off when a loud bang sounds from the front of my house immediately followed by a crash. Something hits the floor in the front room hard. I stand and run to investigate, finding a fire beginning to spread fast. Thinking on my feet, I call on my magic and remove the oxygen from the room. It doesn’t take long for the fire to extinguish, but not before it does some serious damage to my furniture.

“MICAH JONES! YOUBITCH! I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!”A slurred feminine voice yells at the top of her lungs as another loud crash hits my front door, sending it up in flames. Trys uses his Water Elemental power to douse the flames as I look out the window to see who the hell is trying to burn my house down with me in it. Standing inside my gate is a very drunk Sasha, swaying on her feet, with a lighter and her little girl squad, who are holding up Molotov cocktails for her to light.

“Did they just Molotov cocktail your house?” Trys stomps towards the back door but I call after him.

“No. I don’t need anyone dying on my front lawn. I will go out there. I can handle this myself.” Ty and Trys frown. “I promise,” I say reassuringly. I walk to my damaged front door and realize I am not wearing my Anchor key. I panic for a second until I realize it’s on my nightstand. I cross to my room as another boom hits somewhere at the front, causing Ty and Trys to curse.

“Damn it, kitten. You just say the word,” Ty says as I pick up my key and slide it over my neck. The key warms and I ready myself for the onslaught.

“Micah, are you just going to ignore me? Listen, we need to talk,”Rook says as I make my way to the back of the house, opening the back door I run around to the front. By the time I make it around the corner, my door is gone. Trys and Ty stand on the porch, waiting for me to appear.

“COME OUT HERE AND ACCEPT, YOU LIGHT GUARDIAN, MANSTEALING WHORE!”Sasha screams. I immediately flick my wrist and send her friends up and over the fence and off my lawn. The bottles of alcohol land all around them as they scream to get out of the way.

“Micah, please,”Rook chimes in again, but I have more pressing issues at the moment, so I brush him off.

“Rook, this is important. Whatever it is, you can wait,”I pull my key away from my skin, feeling slightly bad for brushing him off. I watch Sasha, her makeup is melting off her face with her tears. She’s clearly stupid drunk. What kind of friends would let you go somewhere like that, and issue a challenge when you’re not in your right mind?

“Accept the duel, bitch,” Sasha slurs her words. She’s barely standing, but I am not going to help her if she falls on her ass. I turn to Ty and Trys, not worried in the least that she will try something.

“Do I have to accept? Look at her.” I point to her as her weak-ass friends wait across the path for her. I sneer at them in disgust. I mean, not one of them is brave enough to come back here and support her. Pathetic.

“All challenges must be met, sunshine. Even drunken ones,” Trys say with a sad smile. I think my man feels sorry for her. Hell, I feel sorry for her too. Just a bit.

I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose, fighting the blooming headache this has created. “I accept.” Two words. Why did they feel so hard to say?

“I didn’t make Rodyn do anything for what it’s worth,” I say to her with a shrug.

“Don’t you pity me. I don’tneedyour pit-y." Sasha sways as she tries to poke me in the chest.

“I’m going to kill you. The whole Academy will see you for who you are.” She stumbles and I step back as she hits the ground hard.

“One of you, please, grow a pair and help her home,” I say to her friends as a brunette with glasses runs across the street to fetch her.

“You’re a bedazzler!! You harlot!! You Demon freak whore!” Sasha spits at me as her friend helps her to her feet. I let her words hit me, but they don’t stick. I learned a long time ago to rise above petty name calling. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been called freak. I’d be a rich bitch by now if I let it matter to me.

I don’t say anything as they go. I can hear Sasha wailing loudly long after they disappear out of sight. I’ve only been here a week. Two attempted killings, a Demonic bomb drop, radio silence from my family, my first kill, and now a duel to the death.

At this rate, I could be dead in a month.

Fuck. My. Life.

Twenty-Five

MICAH

My day starts on a high, cuddled between Ty and Trys after I had no choice but to come home with them last night. My place has no door, and fire damage inside. I’m going to have to wait until it is repaired before I can go back to my place. I’m reluctant to stay with Ty and Trys because I don’t want to run into Rodyn, yet where else can I go? I’m not ready to confront the issues between us, and my feelings are all over the place. The Tether between us wants him closer to give him the opportunity to seek my forgiveness, but when I think of how that could affect Esme, those thoughts go out the window.

Honestly, I’m not surprised to find they live in a two-story home that is palatial in comparison to everyone else’s tiny homes. The red brick home towers over the entire Quad. There’s a predominantly open plan first floor, with a few other questionable rooms that no one wants to tell me about. Apparently, they are used when they have parties. They copped a serious side-eye from me in response. They each have massive bedrooms with separate bathrooms on the second floor, and one look at the large beds has me sold.

As hard as it is to slide out of bed, the need to check on Esme is strong. After a shower in Ty’s bathroom, with a very unwanted guest, well, I definitely wanted him, but he is slowing me down, I put on my uniform and grab my tablet because today is looking up. I don’t want to think about tonight. I am determined that by nightfall I won’t have to face Sasha in the pit. I don’t see the point of her challenge. She clearly wasn’t in her right mind, and as much as she pissed me off, I don’t want her blood on my hands. No matter if I awake my Demonic side that craves blood, death and destruction, I believe Trys’s words, and I know that I am still me. I don’t want to hurt anyone unless I have no choice.

I quietly make my way through the massive house thinking it must be nice to have a mom that runs the place. Even if she is the wicked witch, she made sure her sons slept in style. Of course, I doubt that’s why she did it. This place is about status and her sons place amongst the rest of us here. I wonder if that is what Marcus experienced, if our own mother made sure he had the best of the best.I guess at this rate, I will never know,I think to myself, not paying attention to my surroundings as I collide with a hard chest, almost falling to the floor. I look up just as Rodyn grabs my arm to stop me from busting my ass.

---