Page 59 of Wicked Dove
“Rion showed up last night,” she blurts, and my eyes widen in surprise.
“He did?”
“He insisted on seeing you.”
My eyebrows furrow in confusion. “Asleep?”
She nods, grimacing slightly. “He stormed off after that, but I thought you might appreciate one of these,” she states, rushing to her nightstand where she pulls something out and offers it to me. “It’s a camera. I have one set over my bed,” she explains, pointing to the small device hidden in the top corner of the room. “You could do the same for yours. You just have to link it up to your phone,” she offers, grabbing my hand and placing it in my palm when I don’t immediately take it from her.
I smile, curling my fingers around the device as I meet her gaze. “Thanks, but I don’t have a phone.” Embarrassment threatens to claw up my throat, but if she notices, she doesn’t acknowledge it as she waves me off.
“We can figure it out. Put it in your nightstand for now,” she says, and I do just that as she grabs the door handle, ready to leave.
She waits for confirmation, and the moment I shut the drawer on my nightstand and nod at her, she pries the door open again to find the three of them still standing in the exact same spot.
“Can we help you?” Ocean asks, planting a hand on her hip as she cocks a brow at them, but they ignore her as Kael’s stare meets mine.
“After much consideration, and as Elodie’s guardian, I’ve decided it is essential, after yesterday’s events, that she receives a daily escort to The Vale.”
EIGHTEEN
ELODIE
My skin prickles with every step I take toward The Vale. Ocean’s arm is linked through mine, holding me up like a safety float out at sea, while Rion is pressed against my right side. The blood running through my veins feels electric at his proximity, but even though he’s so close, he doesn’t utter a word to me. His focus is on Kael, who is on the other side of him. What they’re saying, I don’t know, my brain can’t compute.
They’re acting like this is normal, but it feels far from it. Especially with Thorne a step behind me, his gaze unfocused as he drifts off to somewhere else while his body remains physically present with us.
My teeth sink into my bottom lip as nerves get the better of me. Is this because of yesterday? Because of what he saw? The energy in my body threatens to turn to ice at the idea of them gossiping about it, but I don’t dare ask, just in case he didn’t. My mind is already shot from my trauma-induced wake-up call. I’d rather go about my day pretending like it never happened. Compartmentalization feels like a specialty at this stage.
Ocean squeezes my arm, gaining my attention, and she raises her eyebrows at me in silent question, which makes me gulp. Shesmirks as if this is all amusing to her, and I give her a withering look, which only makes her cackle like the evil witch she is.
It feels like we’ve been walking for an eternity, but the second the dining hall doors loom ahead, I want to backtrack and make it take longer, or we could just go somewhere else altogether. Leaving would solve all of this.
Despite my silent protest, we enter the dining hall as a unit, instantly feeling the stares from Institute One. Flashes of red fabric seem to be everywhere, but it’s the sneer from the redheaded handful that is Willow that my gaze settles upon.
With her lips pursed and eyes narrowed, I brace for impact, but in reality, that’s all she does. Tiran sits beside her, nostrils flared as we pass, but there’s no mention of yesterday, not even an inkling of it.
Relief floods me, but I don’t let my guard down completely; that would be silly. Approaching the line for food, my stomach grumbles, reminding me that I’m doing a poor job of feeding it, but as I reach for a tray, an arm slinks around my shoulders, pulling me away.
“Ocean, you too,” Rion grunts as I tilt my head to look up at him, but his gaze is set dead ahead.
He pulls out a chair, nodding for me to take a seat, and I blink at him in confusion. Chairs scrape across the floor from across the table, and I watch Kael and Thorne take a seat. Looking to Ocean for guidance, she shrugs, slipping into the seat on my left without question. Uncertain, I follow suit, and the moment my butt hits the seat, Rion falls into the one on my right.
My lips part, but before I can speak, plates are placed in front of us, each one piled high with pancakes, eggs, and layers of bacon. My mouth waters with excitement as I inhale the godly scent. Ocean digs in without a word, Thorne and Kael too, but Rion is hanging off of my every move.
Turning to him, he cocks a brow in question, and I shake my head. “You’re putting a target on my head,” I mutter, and he smirks, his hazel eyes lighting up with amusement.
“You do thatallby yourself.”
I narrow my stare at him, but the sound of Ocean groaning over her next bite cuts through the rising tension.
“I knew I made the right decision by being your friend,” she declares, eyes closed as she wags her fork at me.
Rubbing my lips together nervously, I consider my options, and quickly fall short. I need to pick my battles, and arguing over actual food instead of slop feels dumb. Tamping down my unnecessary frustration, I grab my fork and scoop up some of the scrambled eggs. It takes everything in me to bite back the hum of delight that ripples through me, but when I quickly take another forkful, Rion nods with a grin as though his job here is done.
Asshole.
“Fuck, Elodie. This is so good,” Ocean groans, making my eyes widen. She sounds close to climax, earning a few glances from farther down the table, but it’s the intensifying sneer from across the hall that holds my attention.
