Page 74 of The Last Aether

The healer hovered her hands over my arm and heat flared in my limb. At first it was simply a comforting warmth, and then the pain came. The agony of bones moving, as if they were being rebroken and put back in their rightful place.

I did everything I could to keep from screaming. Light danced in my vision. I tried to focus on anything but the pain. Riven. The students around us. Kerry wringing her hands, worry etched deep in her face. Drue and Xena whispering and smiling. Others looking wary.

I had a feeling no one would even be talking to me after the stunt that Aiden pulled. I could only imagine how my classmates would react to being paired with me in the fight ring.

A few minutes later, the pain subsided. All that was left was a dull ache deep in my tissue.

The healer brushed her hair out of her face. “Take it easy for the next twenty-four hours. Make sure you get plenty of rest because your body will still be recovering.”

I nodded as Riven helped me sit up. “Thank you. You’ve healed me twice and I don’t even know your name.”

She gave me a gentle smile. “Sariah.”

“Nice to meet you, Sariah. Thank you for putting me back together.”

“How about we try not to make it a habit?”

I laughed. “That sounds like a good plan to me.”

Riven helped me to my feet. “Let’s get you home to rest.”

Home. As much as I loved being with the guys, the dorm didn’t feel like home. An ache settled deep in my chest. A longing for that feeling of home, of a space where I felt truly safe.

But with everything I’d faced lately, I wasn’t sure I’d ever feel safe again.

41

“Are you sure you don’t want this pain tincture?” Atlas asked for the third time.

I eyed the glass in his hand. The purplish liquid looked suspect, to say the least. “That thing will make me pass out for hours.”

“Which is what you need. Rest,” Riven said as he continued to dig his thumbs into the arch of my foot.

“I don’t want to go unconscious.” I needed to be awake with all my faculties as soon as Phoenix returned.

I looked over at Kai, who was staring out the window. “Do you know where he went?”

Kai turned, no traces of his typical humor lining his face. He shook his head. “Just took off into the woods.”

Dread swirled through me. Phoenix had been upset on far too many levels. He was distracted. And if he’d gone to burn off some of that anger and grief by taking out people on his kingdom’s hit list? He could be injured or worse.

I tugged my feet from Riven’s lap and stood, moving over to the back windows to stand near Kai. I scanned the trees but didn’t see any sign of him.

Kai moved in close, wrapping his arms gently around me. His comforting heat enveloped me. “I’m so sorry you were hurt. So damn sorry we weren’t there.”

I tipped my head back so that I could take in his face. I spoke loud enough so that all of them could hear me. “You can’t shield me from everything. I have to fight my own battles. If I don’t, this world will never respect me.”

Placing a palm on Kai’s chest, I turned to look at Riven and Atlas. “Aiden’s an asshole, but he didn’t actually break any of the rules. Anything goes other than affinity use and killing someone. He didn’t do either. My arm is healed, and by tomorrow I’ll practically be back to normal.”

The guys were quiet for a moment and then it was Atlas who spoke. “You can’t expect us to be okay with you being hurt. You’re our mate. It’s in our nature to protect to you, to keep you safe.”

“I get that it’s going to be hard. But I have to stand on my own two feet. I’m so tired of feeling on edge, of worrying about what’s around every corner. I’m ready to learn how to defend myself in every way possible. Even if that means getting hurt along the way.”

“Then that’s what you’ll do.”

I spun at the sound of Phoenix’s voice. He stood in the doorway, plumes of smoke swirling around him. He wasn’t covered in blood this time, but he had a gash across his cheek and his clothes were torn in places.

Hurrying towards him, I scanned his body for any signs of serious injury. “Are you okay?”