Chapter 224

Alaric’s POV

With Colin watching the kids, Ryan, Aidan, and I went to spectate the cooking event. The event itself was being held in a large gymnasium, with special mats set up to protect the typical gym floor. Atop the mats, each contender was given their own section, with their own counters, appliances, and even an oven and stovetop.

Compared to the opening ceremony, the amount of contenders here was just over half. Whether those girls avoided this competition because they couldn’t cook or because they simply didn’t want to was in question.

Around the gymnasium, the bleachers had been extended, allowing spectators to sit and observe the preceding.

Cara had gotten there an hour before us, so I wasn’t surprised to find her already set up at her own station. We move to the spot of the bleachers closest to her. There, we found a familiar face already seated.

“Noel,” I said.

The twins shook hands with Noel, but things felt awkward between he and I so we just nodded at each other. Then I took the seat beside his and we sat.

“How long have you been here?” I asked him.

“Since setup,” Noel said. “More or less.”

I looked around Lilia wasn’t here yet, but many of the other girls were, including the bear friends of Cara’s though they were on the other side of the room. I also spotted the panther Georgie near them.

The station next to Cara’s was empty. That didn’t sit well with me. It made me worried.

“Where will they put Lilia?” I asked. Since Noel had been here since setup, presumably he knew the arrangements.

“Where you fear they will,” he said and nodded toward the empty station beside Cara’s.

Immediately I tensed. We were close to Cara, but still a good three yards away. If I had to close that distance quickly… Would I have enough time?

I had to make it work, no matter what.

“Maybe one of us should go down there,” Ryan suggested. “If we’re closer, we can act quicker.”

I was about to agree when Noel cut in, “That won’t be necessary. Not for this event.”

I looked at him in confusion. Though he and I had our disagreements and our rivalry, I never had any doubt that he cared for Cara. Why would he seem so indifferent to her security now? Why was he even here if not to help protect her?

Noel didn’t return my glance though he must have felt it on him. “I already took care of it.”

“How?” Aidan asked, leaning forward to look at Noel from around me.

For him, Noel turned and looked. “You are worried about the knives, yes? You don’t have to worry about that.”

“I need more information,” I said.

Noel shook his head. “I won’t implicate myself. I will simply say that Cara is in no danger here. Not this time.”

Seeing he was clamming up, unwilling to reveal anymore, I faced forward in my seat, just in time to see Lilia and the last of the contestants arrive. Each of them moved to their stations.

Noel had been telling the truth, Lilia was lead straight to the station beside Cara’s.

Cara noticed at once, and looked up into the bleachers. Our eyes locked. She didn’t say she was worried but I could sense it in her. Regardless of what Noel had said or prepared on his own, I was ready and willing to give my life for Cara, which I tried to convey back through the look.

She nodded, understanding. Then her gaze slipped to those around me, seeing her brothers and then seeing Noel. Now, she grew even more confident.

I pushed down on the hint of jealousy rising within me. Cara had already rejected Noel and chose me. To get angry over any contact or friendship between them made me the worst sort of cad.

Noel was a good man, who had helped our family when Mia had been kidnapped. I would never have hard enough feelings for him to rub my relationship with Cara in his face, even if he was being severely frustrating right now, by not sharing the full extent of what he knew.

Of what he’d done.

For now, all I could do was stay tense and vigilant, keep both eyes open and on the room, and be ready to act in an instant if Cara needed me.

Cara’s POV

That Lilia’s station was right next to mine felt like the worst kind of fate, but after exchanging looks with Alaric, and seeing him, the twins, and Noel so near, I rallied my confidence once more.

Each one of them had vowed to protect me if need be. I knew they would be watching Lilia like hawks, ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.

Rather than worry about her myself, I decided to place my trust in them and focus on my own entry.

I needed to do well in this event, to pull ahead while I still had the chance. There were other contests, particularly those that required speed and strength, where I would certainly be docked points.

So, I got my chicken out of the mini-fridge below the counter and began the process I had practiced in excess the night before.

Heat rose in my cheeks as I remembered the brownies and the sweet kisses I had traded with Alaric…

Focus!

Now wasn’t the time to be losing myself to lust again.

I prepared the chicken, then placed it in the oven. As it was cooking, I dared a glance around the room.

Some of the girls were struggling, though I gave them props for even making the attempt. It seemed a fair share of girls had decided to sit out this event rather than compete.

Unfortunately, even my friends seemed to have some difficulties.

Claudia was better off than Charlotte, who was staring at a slab of beef like she was utterly perplexed what to do with it. Claudia was at least pounding hers with a mallet… maybe a little too much. The counter was starting to crack.

There was smoke coming from Georgie’s oven, forcing the officials to intervene. Only the gods knew what she had been trying to cook and at what temperature, because when it came out of the oven, it was nothing more than a charred slab.

Yet, while many struggled, just as many seemed to excel. Already I could see that some had more complicated dishes than mine. One was even cutting up vegetables into flower shapes, likely to act as garnishes for whatever was in the oven.

As I mostly cooked for my children, I hadn’t even considered small details like that. Was presentation going to be that important? Hopefully taste would win the most points.

My oven beeped and I removed the chicken parmesan. After making the final finishing touches to the dish, I plated it, then turned to carry it to the judging table.

Just as I passed Lilia’s station, I saw her abruptly turn toward me.

No one else was looking, everyone worried about their own dish.

But this close, I could see her, just as I could see the knife in her hand!