Page 64 of A Sea of Secrets
“Our chips? Won’t the Masters know?” Dick asked.
I shook my head. “As far as we can tell, they haven’t noticed ours are missing. I had my magic and adaptation all through the third trial with no one the wiser.”
“It’s going to hurt, isn’t it?” Lou said, chewing her lip. She turned worried eyes to Kendra. “Hold my hand the whole time, okay?”
“Of course,” Kendra replied, planting a quick kiss on her girlfriend’s lips.
Dick stood, tugging his shirt over his head. “I’m ready.”
Kayden, Fallon, and Zane headed to the cafeteria whilst Ace and I worked.
Ace cut the chips out while I quickly healed the wounds. He was no surgeon by any means but was surprisingly quite good at making delicate and precise cuts with the blade. I shuddered to think of how he’d learnt to do it all. Ace had been through some traumatic experiences.
Fifteen minutes later everyone was chip-free and healed. Kendra, Lou, and Dick had gone to meet with Fallon and theothers, leaving me alone with Ace. “Think we can pull this off?” I asked him from the bathroom door.
Ace turned from washing his hands, rested his hip against the basin, and folded his arms over his chest. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that? I know you well enough now to know that you’ve already run through our chances in that head of yours.”
“Real life doesn’t like to follow plans or rules,” I replied. “You’ve done this kind of thing before.”
“I have.” He smirked, then waved a hand. “Look the odds are stacked pretty fucking high against us, but we have a chance. Our group is tight, our magic is top-notch, and most importantly, we simply can’t fucking fail. Not getting that weapon isn’t an option.”
“Get the weapon or die trying.” I nodded. The weapon was key, and we had to have it if we were going to stand a chance at whatever or whoever was coming next.
Ace pushed forward, sliding past me. “Exactly.”
“Not really uplifting, is it?” I said, turning and following him out the door and into the hallway.
“Welcome to my world. Everyone is fighting to survive every minute of every day.”
“That’s pretty grim,” I told him.
“That’s reality.” He shrugged, heading down the stairs. “The trick is not to hide from it. Face it with your fists high and you might just avoid becoming its bitch.”
“Whyisthisshiteven necessary? We’re not even having a sit-down dinner the night of the ball.”
“Aw, the rocks rolling around in your head aren’t clever enough to figure out which fork is for salad, and which is for mains?” Ace teased from his position across the table from me.
I picked up the largest of the forks and waved it at his face. “This one’s for your fucking eyeballs if you don’t shut up.”
Ace sniggered, with Noah joining in. I sighed, looking longingly over at Fallon, who was giggling with Lou, Kendra, and Zane. Stupid etiquette lesson. What a colossal waste of time.
“Cheer up, Big Red,” Dick said as he smoothed out his own utensils. “Just a little longer and we’ll be out of here. Wanna work off some of that frustration at the gym?
“Yes, actually. Yes, I do.” I stabbed the crab on my plate and watched as Dick dabbed at his mouth daintily with a serviette.“Why do they even have this many forks? A fork is a fork. It puts food in your mouth,” I complained again.
Dick chuckled. “In high society, screwing up something as mundane as dinner etiquette will immediately mark you as lower class. Rich people are already assholes, they don’t need more ammo.”
I eyed him sceptically. “You say it like you’ve lived with them all your life.”
He shrugged. “I come from Tritosa. We’re a lot more laid-back than other circles, but we still have a hierarchy. My parents are pretty wealthy, so dealing with all this is pretty normal for me, though I avoid parties and dinners at all costs. Honestly, my parents are probably some of the worst of them.” He bowed his head, his blond hair falling into his eyes.
My poor, sad Little Dick. Something about seeing him down was just too wrong, so I patted him on the back… right after he’d taken a bite. A piece of chewed-up crab flew across the table to land on Ace’s cheek. Dick looked at him in horror as Ace turned stormy eyes onto me.
“What. The. Fuck.”
I burst out laughing, Noah joining me as we both stared at the crab now dripping down Ace’s face.
“It was an accident,” Dick started. “I—I—”
