Bitter Brambles (The Ivy Institute #2)

Chapter 22

brIAR

I ’ve been biting my tongue for what feels like hours, and the need to speak is driving me batty. “How much time do you think is left?”

Sunny turns his head, but if that’s an answer, I don’t have any way of deciphering it—not that I expected much of a reply anyway. He’s been in his wolf form since all of this began, and I’m getting antsy. It feels like it’s been too quiet for too long. Even the short-lived battles from the other side of the wall seem to have stopped ages ago.

Sunny and I are tucked behind a small wooden structure that reminds me of the corncrib back home that my brothers never finished building. Most of the other elites have broken off into smaller groups, occupying areas within the bay dotted with similar structures. I gave up trying to figure out what they were for a while ago.

“About seven hours.” I turn to see Jeh standing not too far behind me. It rankles me that I didn’t realize he was there.

“It feels longer,” I admit while watching him with suspicion.

“I know. I didn’t expect to be sitting around.”

“I guess it’s better than fighting or running the entire time.” This is the first time I’ve actually spoken to the other shifter. He’s kept his distance since Sunny kicked him out of his room.

“Somehow I don’t think this is what the Undertaking will be like.” A sigh of annoyance slips from him as he leans his shoulder against the structure. “Foley probably doesn’t want that many of us dead. Frostburn was in last place in the previous contest.”

“How many trainees survived?” The question in my head spills from my mouth before I can think better of it.

“Frostburn trainees?” Jeh asks with an arched brow.

I shift so I can see him better, making sure I’m still pressed against Moros, who hasn’t moved since the conversation began. “Yeah, how many from Frostburn made it home?” It’s a dark question, and I know the answer isn’t going to make me feel any better.

He exhales heavily. “Twelve.”

That’s actually more than I was expecting. “Out of how many?”

“Two hundred.”

I realize my eyes are bulging out of my head, but I can’t help it. Why the hell do we do this to ourselves?

I don’t realize I asked the question out loud until Jeh answers, “It’s not like we have much of a choice. At least when you try, there’s a chance of survival. Refusing to come is a death sentence.” He looks away, and I get the feeling he has some personal experience with the matter, or maybe someone he knows does.

“It’s bullshit,” I announce, even though it’s pointless.

“What isn’t?” His eyes dart to Moros next to me before he leans his head back to look up into the air. I get the impression my arrival here is lumped into the same category of bullshit for him, but I can’t really blame him. I know what a broken heart feels like.

I never asked Sunny if he had feelings for Jeh. He seemed so blasé about kicking him out of his room that it never really crossed my mind that there might have been more to their relationship until later. By that point, I didn’t want to know if there was something between them other than being on the same team. Now, though, I’m wondering if I’ve been so self-absorbed I didn’t realize Moros was missing someone too. I can’t imagine those feelings would just disappear because I’m his mate.

I look over at my wolf and start to ponder if there’s another reason he’s avoiding Jeh. I honestly hate to think of him with anyone else, but I’d feel just as bad if I ignored his feelings for my own. My instinct is to reach over and sink my fingers into his fur, but I don’t want it to seem like I’m rubbing it in the other shifter’s face either.

Sunny chooses that moment to look over at me as if he knows what I’m thinking. His citrine eyes don’t break from mine when he leans forward and licks the side of my face. I chuckle softly at the unexpected affection then look back at Jeh, but the male is no longer behind us. In fact, I don’t see him at all when I glance around our makeshift camp.

“Did you love him?” I can’t phrase it any other way than past tense.

Sunny nudges my cheek with his nose when I avoid eye contact, prompting me to brave a glance in his direction. Seeing a wolf shake its head in denial is a strange sight, but more than welcome in this case.

“It’s so selfish of me, but I want to believe that.” It’s easier to admit out loud when I know he can’t respond in kind. However, he does make sure I know he isn’t bothered when he licks my face again. I don’t fight the urge to touch him anymore and wrap my arms as far as I can around his back.

Unfortunately, the stolen moment doesn’t last long, because a strange roaring sound fills the arena, causing him to bolt upright and me to scramble to my feet. I search the area around us, not finding anything that could be making the deafening noise, but it’s coming from somewhere.

“What the hell is that?” someone hollers. I can’t even tell who it was at this point.

“Sounds like water, like crashing waves,” a male about five feet away yells.

I look behind us and see the twenty foot wall we thought would act as our protection. “We have to get out of here.” I tug on Moros then come to a realization. “Can you swim like this? You need to shift!” I start to panic. If they flood the arena, we will be trapped here. At least out in the open we have a chance to reach the stands and climb higher.

“They are flushing us out!” Jeh shouts, waving the elites toward the opening. From the corner of my eye, I see a few other trainees scrambling out from behind objects near the other wall, coming to the same conclusion.

Moros doesn’t shift like I hoped he would, but he does get behind me and start nudging me forward using his body. After the third jab to my back with his nose, I break out into a run.

The other elites scatter once we’re out of the barricaded section of the arena. My eyes rise to the instructor’s platform on instinct. A few are leaning over the railing, pointing as if the spectacle of us running like rats in a maze is exactly the entertainment they were hoping for. It makes my blood boil.

I stop in my tracks, causing Moros to bump into my back. I let my gaze travel over the group, and my anger intensifies. When I see the female front and center of the group with her hands raised, I know what I need to do.

Moros tries to push me again, but I stand my ground, not taking my eyes off the tutor. The unfamiliar sound of waves emanates from behind me, but the result of her magic feels unimportant. Instead, I go directly for the source—her.

It takes me precious seconds to find her magic since it isn’t really directed at me. It’s not until I let the absence of something lead me to the telltale tingles that erupt on my skin that I know I’ve found it. I seize those threads so tightly, she physically responds. Her back bows as if there are strings all along her torso that are being tugged on.

She looks down at me, and her mouth falls open. I know the moment she makes a fatal mistake. Instead of reining in her magic and cutting off my access, she tries to shove more power through the connection.

Everything around me ceases to exist. It’s like being in the void if the world were upside down and inside out, but I know without a doubt I’m still in the arena. I can feel the grains of sand sifting under my boots and feel the spray of water brushing against my exposed skin, but she and I are the only thing not locked behind the barrier of emptiness.

Her panic is delayed, as if she can’t fathom where she went wrong, but it’s already too late for her. I’m tired of allowing things to happen to me, tired of worrying about the consequences. This world values power, and I’m about to show them you need to be careful what you ask for.

The female collapses, crumpling to the ground like a sail that lost its wind. It’s only then the others around her seem to notice something is wrong. They were too busy watching the havoc and panic she caused to see what was happening right before their eyes.

The male nearest her looks down at her form with confusion before crouching beside the female’s remains. He reaches out as if to touch her but snatches his hand back before he can make contact. His withdrawal from her motionless figure is smooth, prompting the others around him to back away as well, save Foley.

The headmaster steps forward with a cruel smile curling his lips, and I realize maybe someone was paying attention. Our eyes lock, his gaze holds a possessiveness I will never accept. I’m not sure what he sees in mine other than what he wants to see—his champion.

MOROS

My shift is quick and painful, but I don’t have time to acknowledge the splintering of my bones. I have to save Briar. No matter how many times I nudged her to get moving, she ignored me to the point where I knew I would have hurt her if I kept trying. I stepped away from her only far enough to give myself the room I needed to force myself through the fastest shift of my life. Thankfully, my beast didn’t fight it.

Her eyes are still locked on the viewing dais. Someone up there must be controlling her. I can’t think of any other reason she would be frozen in the middle of the ring while there’s a wall of water steadily growing behind us.

My movements are stilted as I trudge through the dampening sand on my way back to her. I have every intention of picking her up and moving her myself. We need to get to higher ground, and that means the stands, but when I reach for her, my hand passes right through her. No, that’s not possible . I must have misjudged my nearness. I reach for her again, but there’s no mistake. My hand passed right through her as if she’s a specter.

I look down at my fingers, searching for an explanation, but my mind can’t comprehend what just happened. This time, I use both arms so I can wrap them around her, but I end up stepping right through her and slapping my own shoulders when I come out the other side.

I look up to where she is focused, intent on figuring out who is doing this to her so I can kill them, but instead, I witness a tutor fall to the ground in a heap.

The roar of water I’d almost gotten accustomed to vanishes, leaving my ears to ring in the absence of sound. I spin to find Briar still frozen in the same position. Panic threatens to overwhelm me when I realize I have no way to protect her. I can’t even touch her.

Foley’s voice fills the chamber, pulling my attention back up to the platform. “The qualifier has concluded. Congratulations, you’ve made it to the selection, and I have a feeling we won’t need to settle for second place.” His smile is unhinged. I can’t think of any other way to describe it. When he turns to walk away, the other tutors follow him, leaving the body on the ground.

“What the hell just happened? There were still hours left!” Jeh questions, but I don’t know how to answer it, nor do I care to. The only thing I care about is Briar and making sure she’s alright, but he doesn’t know that, so he keeps talking. “Do you think it’s a trap so we’ll lower our guard?”

“Briar.” I try to pull her from the trance with my voice. When she turns to look at me, I nearly jump out of my skin in my haste to reach for her. “Gods, you scared the hell out of me.” My words come out muffled because I’m wrapped around her, burying my face in her neck. She’s stiff in my arms, but I’ll take that over nonexistent any day.

“What did he mean we won’t need to settle for second place?” Hildi asks, just as confused as Jeh, but a theory is forming in my mind, and it has everything to do with Briar. He was testing her, and it seems he thinks she passed.

I let the muffled conversations around me fade into the background. “Please tell me you’re okay,” I beg.

“I’m fine,” she answers, but it doesn’t satisfy me. Her voice is flat, devoid of any emotion, and I begin to fear I didn’t get her back at all.