Page 105 of Cerulean Truth
“Don’t you understand?” another kid asked me. “Nurse Lucy is gone! The only one who doesn’t make us hurt.”
I shrugged and stayed quiet, watching as they all cried and hugged and cried some more. It was like a big, messy ball of sadness rolling around the room, and I didn't know how to stop it.
I had liked Nurse Lucy. A lot. She was the only one who cared. Even when I didn’t.
The memory faded as quicklyas it had surfaced. It had been years since I had allowed any recollection from my time before Cyclos to emerge.
But Emma had ripped it all open.
TWENTY-SEVEN
EMMA
He stormed out of my room, his steps heavy and deliberate, like an angry child. If I hadn’t been as pissed off as I was, I would’ve laughed at the absurdity of it.
Mr. "I have it all figured out," Mr. "I’m going to be your president someday soon," Mr. "I don’t hold back in telling you everything that’s wrong with you." Nothing more than a stubborn little child.
The shock of discovering he was Humanborn was slowly diminishing, and I felt his pain, only able to guess at what it must have meant to spend so much time in foster care.
But still! Where the heck did he get off talking to me like that?
I was seething with anger. My hands were clenched into tight fists, and I, too, began to stomp around the room. If he could stomp, so could I. And so I stomped. I stomped to my door and all the way downstairs. Leaving seemed like the only option. I had no destination in mind, just a burning need to escape.
Left, right, left—I stormed past floors and towers, consumed by anger at the audacity of the man who had crossed me. Every hallway blurred together until I reached the last corner of the Fall Palace, where James's voice unexpectedly pierced the air.
I froze, instinctively seeking cover behind the nearest wall. The idea of having to face him again, made my stomach churn.
Peeking around the corner, I watched as he conversed with a stranger, blocking my path. Darn it, he was literally standing between me and my exit. Deciding to wait him out, I pressed against the wall, melding into the shadows.
Perhaps I should have turned away. But I didn’t.
I hadn’t intended to eavesdrop, and I really shouldn’t have listened in. But I did.
They exchanged words—James and someone named Enzo, apparently. I strained to decipher their discussion, unable to resist the pull of curiosity.
“I don’t understand. You won’t assign me to the Bastille?” Enzo sounded anxious.
Bastille? The term was unfamiliar to me. I concentrated even harder.
“No,” James replied curtly, his boredom evident as he attempted to shake off Enzo, who persisted in following him.Not smart.
“Why not?” Enzo pressed.
“Because you’re not suited for it,” James stated bluntly, increasing his pace. I discreetly trailed behind them.
“But I’ve been training for months!” Enzo protested, growing visibly frustrated.
“Enzo, you were trained as a Defensive. You want to switch careers and become an Offensive, go right ahead but don’t bother me about it in the middle of my fucking day,” James dismissed, his patience clearly wearing thin.
Undeterred, Enzo foolishly pushed further. “But I trained extensively with AJ!”
“And I extensively don’t give a shit,” James countered, his tone firm.
Enzo’s persistence reached a tipping point. “Clearly. You haven’t given ‘a shit’ since you started your futile training sessions with the granny.”
I swallowed and my heart sank at my unflattering nickname, now realizing what it really meant.
James halted and turned around slowly, his fists clenched, his gaze fixated on Enzo with seething anger. My breath caught as I witnessed the intensity of his glare, potent enough to crush a small army.
