Page 64 of Avalon Tower
As I release the arrow, someone slams into my back, jarring my elbow. A voice screams in my mind, Trying to act like a real agent, you grotesque whore? Nia Melisende—everyone gets a cheap ride.
The arrow flies off target, lodging into the wall not far from Darius. He jumps sideways in alarm, holding up his hands, and stares at me with a shocked expression.
I grimace. “Sorry.”
Someone tuts behind me, and I know who it is before I turn. Tarquin smirks at me, and Horatio, his cheeks red, is biting his lip like he’s trying not to smile.
“Don’t you have some serfs to harass or something?” I say. “I’m trying to work here.”
There’s still an echo in my mind from his thoughts, calling me a grotesque whore. My telepathy, like my other powers, is erratic, but it seems to happen only when I touch someone. Or, in Tarquin’s case, when he touches me, since I would never do that on purpose.
“It was an accident, you lunatic,” Tarquin says. “Anyway, if you can’t shoot straight when someone gives you a little nudge, you won’t be much good in the field, will you? Perhaps you would have been better suited to trying to sleep your way to the top back in America instead of here.” His voice keeps growing louder, echoing off the hall.
The hall falls silent, and everyone turns to stare at us. I bite down on my tongue so I don’t say anything that will get me kicked out.
“Or rather,” he goes on at full volume, “Wasn’t that your mother’s plan? Passed along from one man to another until her allure faded, and she descended into destitution and coke-addled inebriety. I looked her up. So sad, really.” He turns to the hall, grinning broadly. “Cocaine is expensive for someone like her, isn’t it? Someone without a real job? I wonder how she funds her habit, living in her sad little rotten apartment. Have you seen the state of her teeth these days, though? Honestly, is it any wonder her daughter is desperately trying to shag her way up the ladder halfway across the world? Do you know what they called Nia back in LA? Slapper Melisende.”
“That’s not even American slang,” I mutter. Nor was it alliterative.
Horatio guffaws. “I heard her nickname was Nia Shag.”
“Lady Melisende the cock-hungry minx,” Tarquin bellows.
The eyes of the other cadets burn into me.
Blood rushes to my face, and I’m about to lunge for him when a hand clamps around my bicep. Serana’s grip is iron. “Calm yourself, Nia,” she says. “Don’t take his bait.”
“You don’t really want to come after a Pendragon, do you?” Tarquin asks in a mocking tone. “Wouldn’t be very clever of you, considering we founded this place.”
“Aw, poor Tarquin, so frustrated,” I say, trying to keep my tone casual. “I’ve been on four missions at this point. And you…how many missions have you been on? Zero?” I wrinkle my nose in pretended sympathy. “It’s zero, isn’t it? The amount that you’ve contributed to the academy so far, just to be clear. Zero.”
He snorts in disdain, but his fists clench as my barb hits home. “You’re just the transportation. You don’t really belong here.”
“Tarquin,” Serana says quietly, “if I see you get near Nia again, I’ll sneak into your room in the middle of the night and cut off your bollocks with a rusty knife.”
He narrows his eyes at her. “Are you threatening me?”
“Threatening?” Serana draws back in mock surprise. “I’m just telling you what Tana saw in her cards. Isn’t that right, Tana?”
Tana wanders over, her expression serene. “That’s right.” Her voice sounds dreamy. “Both balls, in the middle of the night. There’s a lot of blood.” She closes her eyes, inhaling with a faint smile. “I can see it even now. And the screaming…”
Tarquin’s face grows pale. Everyone knows about the accuracy of Tana’s predictions, and when her voice floats like that, it sounds downright eerie.
“Bloody witch,” he snarls. “Let’s get the fuck out of here, Horatio. We should have never let the mongrels in. It’s like we willingly let the barbarians into Rome, you know?” He turns and stalks out the hall.
The training session is nearly over now, and a small crowd is staring at us. My mouth is dry. What sort of person would investigate someone’s mother in another country just to insult them? Absolute asshole.
Serana is still gripping my bicep tightly.
“You can let go now,” I say through clenched teeth.
“Right.” She releases my arm.
Tana sighs. “It would have ended badly if Serana hadn’t stopped you.”
Shaking with anger, I turn to collect my arrows. I breathe slowly, deeply. I have no doubt that Tarquin will tell everyone about Mom. And as I’ve just received a rambling letter from her, I’m trying not to think of her at all. I’m already eaten up with guilt at the thought of abandoning her, and from her unhinged scrawl, it’s clear she isn’t doing well. She’s furious with me for leaving her. In fact, she doesn’t sound much kinder than Tarquin at this point.
I slide the bow and arrows back into the rack. When I turn, the hall has mostly emptied. Serana and Tana are waiting for me by the large, arched doorway.