Home > Midnight Truth (Shifter Island #4)(9)

Midnight Truth (Shifter Island #4)(9)
Author: Leia Stone

She grinned.

Reyna cleared her throat, and Sariah jumped.

“Oh dear. You need to hurry. You’re going to be late.” She raised her gaze to Reyna and said, “The high mage of water will meet you in the quad. He’ll take Nai for the first part of her initiation. After you drop her there, come straight back. Don’t let Kian or his men bait you into staying. It’s against the rules, and we have to play by the rules.”

Reyna nodded sagely. “Yes, ma’am.”

Then my grandfather’s shield pulled the front door open. The early morning sky was still pitch black overhead, but in the east, the darkness had been wrung from the horizon, and the sunlight continued to leach away the depth of night. The cool morning temperatures kissed my hands and face, and my heart flipped with anticipation.

Soon enough, I’d be done with this and racing back to Rage.

Sariah kissed me on the cheek and then whispered, “Be respectful, but don’t cut them any slack if they get out of hand.” She looked me in the eye. “Elia said one of them tried to kill her during her initiation. There’s no such thing as benefit of the doubt.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t trust them a bit.”

She smiled, and I turned to follow Reyna, who was already down the steps and waiting for me a dozen paces into the courtyard. More bushy hedges lined the area, and several breaks in the flora indicated wandering paths. The deciduous trees were stripped bare of their leaves, but the evergreens rose into the sky. On the other end of the courtyard was a stone wall at least twenty feet high, and a wrought-iron gate was guarded by two massive Dobermans—each one as big as Rage’s wolf.

As I bounded down the steps to meet the guard dogs, Sariah gasped behind me. I leapt down onto the flagstone patio and spun to face her, my eyes wide with concern.

She offered me a guilty smile. “I can’t believe I almost forgot to tell you. Your mate, King Courage of Midnight, came to the portal last night trying to find you. I couldn’t tell him anything, but he wanted me to give you a message.” She squinted as if she were trying to remember something. “He said, ‘Tell her I love her, and … please, please come home to me.’”

Home. Rage.

I closed my eyes and let his message sink into my soul. My eyes pricked with tears. I missed him so much it hurt. Even knowing why I left and the importance of my purpose here, guilt sank into my chest. Swallowing back the emotion, I blinked away the tears and gave my aunt a watery smile. “Are you going back there today?”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I wish I was, but today is my day off.”

“I understand,” I said, forcing a smile. “Thanks for the message.”

“Nai!” Reyna hollered. “You’re going to piss off all the high mages if you don’t hurry.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m pretty sure me being alive, not to mention me being here, pisses them off already.”

My aunt burst into laughter. “I’m sure that’s true. But really, you should go. Good luck.”

Bolstered by Rage’s message, I set off, determined to face whatever obstacles they threw at me and return to him tonight.

Bruno and Max might be fierce—but they showed nothing but enthusiasm for me. As I approached the gate where Rey waited, both of them spun to face me. Then the one on the left whined at Reyna.

“You can play with her later. She’s late!” she told the dogs, and we set off outside of the castle gates. By the time we were halfway across the quad, the sun had peeked over the horizon, and I noticed four more castles, each one spaced an equal distance from its neighbors.

All of the castles had high walls around them, including Grandpa’s. We approached one of the castles, set on a hill, and the sloping elevation drew the eye to the building and not the blockade around it.

“You’re late,” Kian snapped, stepping out from the gate, his blue robe billowing out behind him. “The summons clearly said six o’clock, and timeliness—”

“If you’re going to say timeliness is close to godliness—” I started.

“Timeliness is a mark of respect,” he snarled.

Oh, bite me, you asshat! I wanted to scream.

I looked at Reyna and rolled my eyes. She rewarded me by sucking her lips into her mouth to stop herself from laughing.

I squared off against Kian and folded my arms. “Shall we do this? Or should I go and get my grandfather and tell him you’re refusing to test me?”

He narrowed his eyes at me and growled. “This way.”

Kian merely waved for me to follow him through the gate and into his courtyard. “Your first initiation course is with me.” He pointed at a stone table with a small bench on either side. The top was empty except for one empty drinking glass. To the left, a fountain chortled and bubbled, but instead of being crystal clear, the water appeared brackish and dark with algae. “Please sit. We’ll assess your water knowledge first, and then you’ll proceed to the other elements.” His gaze flicked up to Reyna. “Would you like to stay? Take a seat.”

She pinned him with a glare. “Nice try. You know that’s not allowed. She’ll do this on her own.” She then looked to me, and I nodded nervously. This place looked benign enough, but what if Kian decided to strangle me with a garden hose?

I took a deep breath and shrugged. “Let my grandfather know I’ve made it safely to High Mage Kian’s grounds to start the initiation.”

Reyna let her gaze scan the grounds before returning to me. Then she winked. “I’m sure he’ll keep an eye on you. He does love to spirit walk.”

I turned to Kian just in time to catch his pinched expression before he smoothed it out.

“There’s no need for Geoff to spirit walk. Each obstacle is magically recorded.” He waved at the sky where an iridescent orb floated. “All the masters can watch your progress at their convenience,” Kian said as he led me to the table. He then took the seat nearest the fountain.

As I walked to the other side of his garden bistro table, I tried to not think about the weird drone orb recording us. Maybe that was a good thing, right? Like, if he tried to kill me, all of the high mages, including Gramps, would know it.

“Tell me, mage heir,” he said, clasping his hands on the table. “Have you had any training with water at that alpha school?”

I decided to treat him like a normal professor and not someone who had tried to kill me. If I was going to make it here, I needed to be fake nice to everyone, at least, for now. Politics, right?

“Yes, sir.” I gave him a sugary smile.

“You know, I’m curious: how were you able to exhibit so much power at the capture the flag final on Alpha Island?” He leaned forward, pressing into my personal space. “Do tell?”

My guard went up. Maybe that power wasn’t something I was supposed to have.

“That’s the weirdest thing,” I said, giving him a wide-eyed fake smile. “I have amnesia about that night. Maybe all the stress? Or maybe I fell and hit my head.” I shrugged. “What power do you mean?”

His expression morphed into a visage of anger.

Did I trust him? Not even 0.1%.

He gritted his teeth and gestured to the empty glass on the table.

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