Chapter 79

Rowena

I hurried down the hallway at camp, keeping my head down in the wake of everything that had happened with Heather and Dr. Reynolds—but apparently, it seemed that I didn’t need to.

One apologetic glance turned into another, followed by the occasional sympathetic murmur, and soon, I was realizing that my classmates actually…

Didn’t hate me.

It all eventually culminated when I stopped in front of my locker to find a small paper bag taped to the front, upon which was affixed a little handwritten note: “To Rowena Griffith, for being brave. Love, your fellow combat managers.”

Furrowing my brow, I pulled the bag off of my locker and peered inside. A pile of chocolates, candy bars, and other little treats stared up at me, causing me to smile.

“What’s this?” a familiar voice called out.

I looked up to see Emma sidling up to me with her books clutched to her chest, and I held the bag out for her. “See for yourself.”

Emma took the bag, her eyes widening when she saw what was inside. She pulled out a candy bar and immediately unwrapped it, her eyes rolling back slightly when she took a bite. “This is so nice,” she said. “I think I’ll be stealing all of this for myself.”

I snorted, letting her keep the bag as I unlocked my locker. “It’s all yours. But it is a nice gesture, isn’t it?” I paused, glancing over my shoulder at the students who looked my way as they passed by. “I guess I’m a bit of a hero now.”

“Well, for what it’s worth,” Emma said, toying with her loose braid, “I think you are, too. And what Eric did last night…”

“I don’t even know how to begin to thank him,” I whispered. “And I was fucking useless when those warriors attacked him.”

Emma gave me a sympathetic look. “Don’t beat yourself up.” She leaned in, lowering her voice. “They had Wolf’s Fury. Even if you could have stepped in, there’s no knowing what would have happened.”

“I guess.” I sighed heavily, shaking my head as the events of last night flooded back in. What was most intriguing of all was that strange whistle that had seemed to call the warriors away… like a dog whistle, almost.

But, it was in the past. For now, at least.

“Hey,” I commented, flashing Emma a wry smirk, “I guess Dr. Reynolds did me a favor, huh? It seems like my approval ratings are higher than ever. Maybe I’ll make it to the championship after all.”

Emma’s jaw dropped, and she swatted at my arm. “Did you just make a joke about what that creep did?”

I shrugged unapologetically. "What? If the incident helps prove that I have what it takes to make it, then I should probably be thanking that sick bastard.”

Emma opened her mouth to protest, but whatever she was going to say was cut off by a familiar voice.

“Rowena, could we have a word?”

The sound of that familiar deep voice, smooth like liquid velvet, made my blood run cold. I turned slowly to find none other than Adrian towering over me, leaning against the row of lockers with one hand on his hip and the other hidden behind his back.

“Adrian,” I huffed, pulling my shoulders back. “Can I help you?”

My voice held no love for him; after all, I hadn’t seen or spoken to him since the night he had stood me up for our date weeks ago. Before, maybe my knees would have gone weak at the sight of his striking green eyes and jet black hair.

But now, after everything…

Seeing him just made me sick.

“I just wanted to talk,” he said.

“I’m not interested in talking.”

A slight smirk tugged at the corners of Adrian’s lips. “Is that really the way to talk to an old friend?”

I bristled at the endearment as his overpowering cologne wafted around me, making my head swim. He lifted one hand above my head, resting it against the locker in a casual lean as he effectively caged me in.

“What the hell do you want?” I demanded.

Adrian’s green eyes glinted with thinly veiled amusement. “I just wanted to catch up. See how you’re holding up after last night’s… incident.” He pulled a small flower from his pocket—a single red tulip. “Here. I brought you a little something to cheer you up.”

I stared at the flower in disgust as he held it out to me. “I don’t want that.”

“I’m serious, Rowena.” His expression sobered as his eyes wandered my face. When he saw that I still wasn’t taking the flower, his shoulders slumped ever so slightly. “Look, I really am sorry for standing you up that night. Something… came up that I couldn’t avoid. But I’d love a chance to make it up to you.”

He paused, holding the flower out a little further. “If you’ll let me, that is.”

There was an edge to his words that had me narrowing my eyes suspiciously. Once, maybe I would have fallen for his tricks—once, I would have taken his flower and believed his lies.

But not now. Not when I knew that he had stood me up on purpose. And especially not with Emma standing right there, silently willing me to stay strong.

Sure enough, Adrian leaned in even closer, his eyes burning into mine as that stupid flower bobbed between us.

“And if you ever need to talk,” he murmured, “about Eric and everything going on with his… situation. I’m here for you. I think it’s safe to say that we’re all a little concerned he might have been infected last night when those feral warriors attacked.”

My blood ran cold at the insinuation. There were still so many missing pieces about what had actually happened—all I knew was that Eric had been injured defending me. Which was already more than enough to fill me with guilt.

“You don’t know what the hell you're talking about,” I bit out, snatching the flower from his grasp and crushing it under my boot with a vicious grind of my heel. “Now get lost before I make you.”

Adrian’s eyes widened slightly at my outburst, but he regained his composure quickly and straightened, smoothing down the front of his shirt. “Alright. But my offer still stands.”

“Don’t bother.”

Without another word, I pushed roughly past him and stormed down the hallway, tossing the crushed flower petals over my shoulder. A hush fell over the gathered crowd of students who had stopped to watch the confrontation.

No one ever dared to talk to Adrian that way—especially not a girl like me who should have been rendered a flustered, starry-eyed mess by his attention.

I could feel the weight of their stares burning into my back as whispers erupted all around me. But I didn’t care. I was so done with being the meek, overlooked wallflower. If standing up to an arrogant prick like Adrian was what it took for people to finally see me as more than just a scared little bunny…

Then so be it.

Holding my head high, I rounded the corner—and suddenly ran into a tall, sturdy form.

I looked up to see Eric staring down at me, his eyes wide with shock.