CHAPTER 37: A NEW STUDENT

Andria’s POV

"Whoever sent him will learn I wasn’t killed, which means either he failed to finish the job or he betrayed them. And the punishment for betrayal is worse; he’ll have to watch his family die before he does.

By killing him now, I’m doing him a favor. Better for him to die in the mission than return having failed," Aven explained as he stuck out his claws and stuck them into the demon’s neck.

I felt nauseous from the smell and sight of blood dripping from Aven’s hand.

"Clean this mess, and I might consider moving in with you three," I said, averting my eyes from him

A faint smirk tugged at Aven’s mouth, though it wasn’t one of amusement; it was satisfaction.

"Your wish is my command, my princess," Damon said with a teasing bow, a sly smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

Tristan didn’t even blink. Instead, they exchanged a silent look, then moved in unison to handle the body like they’d done it a hundred times before.

They lifted the lifeless form between them, Damon gripping the shoulders, Tristan taking the legs. Without a word, they carried it out into the cold night. I followed at a distance.

When we reached the clearing, Damon dropped the body to the ground with a dull thud. Tristan knelt and began setting up small twigs, dry leaves, and then heavier logs.

The sound of their movements was muffled, almost respectful, to avoid drawing unnecessary attention.

The silence and event of the night sent chills crawling through my spine. I was visibly shaken; I hadn’t witnessed murder up close, not to mention partaking in it.

Tristan turned to look at me and, studying my pale look, he said, "You shouldn’t have come with us."

"Coming with us is the safest option for her," Damon fired back at Tristan, "Her room isn’t one hundred per cent safe, yet remember, the enemy might be lurking around still."

Aven lit the body, and it went up in flames, the smell of burned flesh invading my nostrils.

"This will be our little secret," Aven voiced out as he turned his face away from the fire to us. And we all nodded affirmatively. I just couldn’t wrap my head around what was unravelling before me.

Now I share a secret with the Alpha successors? How fast and deadly

Next day

My phone rang, waking me up from sleep. I was lying in bed while Tristan was sleeping on the couch opposite the bed.

I examined myself to be sure nothing went amiss in the night, and yes, I was fine. "Thank goodness."

Following the sound of the ringtone, I fumbled around until I found it buried inside the drawer.

Mel’s name lit up the screen.

"Hey, Mel," my voice was still hoarse. "What is it?"

"Where the hell are you?" she hissed. "I came to knock on your door this morning and found out you weren’t there. Is everything okay? "

I sat up slowly, rubbing my forehead. "I stepped out."

"At dawn?" Her tone was sharp with suspicion. "Aria, I’m concerned about you. I heard noises last night, weird ones. Like thuds and growls, like you were being attacked and I was too scared to get off my bed."

A shiver rippled through me, not from the memory of last night, but from knowing Mel wasn’t imagining things.

"If I were under attack, and you were the only person to save me, I would have died," I teased her. "It’s nothing for you to worry about."

"Are you sure it’s nothing to worry about?" Mel insisted, raising her voice pitch.

"I am worried," she shot back. "You vanish in the middle of the night after such monstrous noises I heard last night, it’s enough reason to panic, Aria."

Silence hung for a beat. Then she said, softer, "Aria... just be careful. I don’t know what’s going on with you lately, but it feels... dangerous." Her voice was visibly shaken.

"Take care of yourself, " she murmured before she hung up.

Tristan had already woken up by the time I hung up the call. "You had to wake me up this early", he murmured grumpily.

"You wouldn’t sleep there forever, besides, it’s almost school time and you have to get ready."

I walked into the shower and as the water poured on me, I recalled the events of yesterday, from Kaelric to the demon attack.

"I would love to join you there", Tristan teased, causing a jolt of electricity to run down my spine.

"No, you wouldn’t come here; that wasn’t our agreement."

"We never even had an agreement except for clearing the mess we made in your room. Besides, you slumped on my bed immediately you were shown the room you would sleep in." He defended.

From the tone of his voice, I could tell his lips would be curled up in a cunning smile; he was enjoying teasing me.

He let out a slight chuckle, "Was a joke, but I wouldn’t mind if you asked."

I finished my shower, wrapping myself in a towel as I stepped into the room. Tristan was leaning lazily against the couch armrest, his gaze following me in that unblinking, predator-like way that always made my stomach twist.

"You’re staring," I said flatly, rifling through my clothes that were already displayed in his huge wardrobe.

"Observation is a survival skill," he replied with a straight face.

I ignored him, pulling on my Ashwood Academy uniform piece by piece. My fingers moved more slowly than usual, and every movement tugged my thoughts back to last night.

I brushed the crippling feeling and continued getting ready.

When I was ready, Tristan stood and brushed past me, the faint scent of spice and smoke trailing him. "I’ll be keeping an eye out today," he muttered, almost as if to himself.

"I don’t need your overprotection," I murmured back.

"Couldn’t say that last night, when that demon nearly killed you."

I stepped out of their dormitory, which was made for royalty; there was a wide class gap between my dormitory and theirs in the grandiose furnishing and space in their apartment.

Students were already scattered in small clusters across the courtyard, laughing, chatting, pretending life at Ashwood was just normal as I got to the school building.

That’s when I spotted Larissa across the path. She glanced up, and for a split second, our eyes met. I opened my mouth to greet her, but she simply turned her head as if I were nothing but an empty space in her peripheral. No nod. No smile. Not even a flicker of acknowledgement.

Well, I just averted my eyes and walked into the main building, ’Two can play the game.’.

The hallway was busy as usual, but they seemed to be in groups. I wonder what had happened this time.

"Did you hear?" I overheard one of the group say. "About the new student." Their voices were whispers and uncertain, probably a rumor as usual.

I got to class and noticed that everyone was in pairs too. This doesn’t feel like a rumor, and whoever the new student was, they must be special.

I slid into my seat, my bag thumping softly onto the desk. "What’s with all the gossip?" I asked Becca, who was scribbling in her notebook.