Chapter 12: Psycho Academy : Chapter 7

The breaking period: Day 1, hour 18

Before, I was depressed.

Now I was catatonically slumped over a desk.

Lothaire had informed us with a sneer that we would attend battle strategies class with the normal students, who weren’t being tortured to death.

A humbling reminder that my life sucked worse than others.

It was a fact of life that some people were blessed and not stressed. I hoped all those people got gonorrhea.

Yes, I was wallowing in despair.

All eight of us assassin recruits sat together in the back of the small classroom. About a dozen royals filled the seats in front of us.

While we were barely surviving, the other students seemed to be thriving. All the royal students had changed into tailored purple clothes.

The men wore black pants and dark-purple button-downs, and the women wore fitted purple dresses with black stilettos. They were elegant and polished with perfectly coiffed hair and expertly applied makeup.

We were the only ones suffering in black sweat suits.

One of the few things I’d always enjoyed in life was getting dressed up in fine clothes. Nothing felt better than a tailored fit and combed hair.

In comparison, I looked like a drowned rat.

But I struggled to care about my shitty appearance because it all seemed so superficial and pointless.

The bottoms of my pants were still torn to pieces, and I was caked in dried blood, bare toes curled on the black marble floor.

I was still waiting for someone to give me shoes.

As I raked my hand through my mess of wet curls, another tremor racked my frame.

Teeth gnashed with ferocity, I struggled to keep the enchanted pipe between my lips.

The sun god must not have completely abandoned me because our sweatpants had zip pockets, and my two pipes had survived the ocean.

Bless the god for drugs.

The enchanted haze expanding my lungs and calming my thoughts was the only thing keeping me sane.

I shivered uncontrollably and sank into misery. My thoughts were obsessively fixated on one thing: warmth.

A hot fireplace.

A steamy shower.

Mother lighting me on fire each night.

At this rate, I’d take any of it just so the insufferable convulsing would stop.

The pen in my hand shook across the paper, and my usually perfect cursive handwriting was only partially legible as I wrote as fast as I could. I was barely conscious of what I was putting on the paper.

The assignment was to write an essay about the best way to beat an opponent.

A ridiculous question.

It was so open-ended there was no way to answer it without any context.

But our teacher Ms. Gola had just repeated the ridiculous prompt and told us we had an hour to answer.

At first, I grumbled under my breath as I attempted to answer the impossible.

It didn’t help that cold water dripped off my hair, left blotchy marks on my paper, and ruined my barely legible words.

Then I just stopped giving a shit.

And from what I could tell, the rest of the assassins weren’t faring any better.

John sat next to me at the two-person desk, and his page was even worse than mine. It was covered in holes. He kept accidentally stabbing the pen through wet spots.

“Pens down,” Ms. Gola said abruptly, and she walked around collecting papers.

Just like the royal students, our teacher wore a perfectly tailored dress. She glided around the room on stiletto heels, and her bright-blonde hair hung in artful waves around her red-lipsticked face.

Ms. Gola was stunning.

As she moved down the aisle and took my paper, I stared up at her, slightly entranced by her otherworldly beauty. How does she get her hair so shiny?

“Aran Egan, isn’t it?” she asked as she took my paper.

I nodded, too tired to do anything else.

Her skin shimmered like she was dipped in golden oil, a sharp contrast to my own pale complexion that had turned an unattractive shade of blue from the cold.

She was dry and clean.

Not relatable.

Ms. Gola leaned closer, and a delicious musky scent wafted off her.

“I always make a point of getting to know the assassin recruits. You guys are my favorite, after all.” She winked a kohl-lined eye at me as she sashayed past, her ridiculously plump backside swaying.

Sun god, how many squats did she do to get thighs and an ass like that? Sadie would be so jealous.

Then I realized Ms. Gola had just sexually winked at me. Her student.

I couldn’t tell if I felt violated or flattered. It was close.

Ms. Gola walked past my table and said, “Corvus Malum, Scorpius, Orion, I hope you enjoyed your break.” She spoke in a sultry whisper as she leaned unnecessarily close to collect their papers. “Or should I say sirs?”

First, wow, this woman was impressively horny.

Second, apparently Corvus was the only one with a last name.

Malum. I rolled it over in my brain. Mal is a root word that means evil.

Yep. He was definitely a Malum.

Corvus Malum raked a tanned hand over his shaved head, and the harsh planes on his handsome face pulled tight as he smirked up at her. “Corvus is not fine. This year, you’ll continue to call me sir.”

I shivered at the deep rasp of his voice. The low octaves should have been scratchy in their resonance, but somehow they were smooth like honey. Creamy.

Gently, I reared back. Then I violently stabbed my pen into my hand.

“What the fuck?” John whispered as he looked at my now-bleeding palm like I was a freak.

I mimed strangling myself. John just rolled his eyes and shook his head like he was used to sitting next to lunatics in class.

What was I supposed to do? Tell him that I thought Malum’s voice was creamy?

Even thinking the word again made me homicidal.

I needed to die. Quickly.

Malum’s shaved head erupted with flames and distracted me from my rapidly deteriorating mental state.

I leaned across the aisle, trying to get closer to the warmth.

He shifted away from Ms. Gola, and I casually scooted my chair closer to him.

Scorpius and Orion sat beside Malum at the only three-person desk in the room.

The blind fae’s voice dripped with scorn as he addressed our teacher, “You will also refer to me as sir.”

“Of course, sir,” Ms. Gola said breathlessly as she leaned across their table to grab his paper. “I didn’t forget.”

Why did our teacher sound like she’d just ran up a flight of stairs?

Weak-lunged bitch.

Unlike Malum, Scorpius didn’t pull away from Ms. Gola’s advances. His pale face was completely still, white teeth flashing as he chewed gum.

As I studied him, I realized something horrible—there were no gods.

Because Scorpius’s short black hair had survived seventeen hours in the violent ocean and was still slicked back, looking perfect.

I itched at the curls plastered to the back of my neck.

Ms. Gola leaned forward until her face was so close to Scorpius that their breaths mixed, her generously endowed body draped across the table.

Her face hovered inches from his unseeing eyes.

Like they were about to kiss.

“Creepy!” I shouted into my hand as I pretended to cough. John erupted into laughter beside me. Some royal students snickered, and I couldn’t help but feel good about my contribution to the class.

However, Horace was not to be outdone, and he fake-coughed, “Penis.” At that, every male in the classroom burst into laughter.

“Not funny,” I mouthed to all the idiots who were howling like Horace had said something witty.

Why do men ruin everything?

Ms. Gola flushed beet red and pulled back while patting her hair like she needed a minute to compose herself.

What she needed was to learn how to stop being a pervert.

I’d give her Dr. Palmer’s number. My therapist would destroy her creepy sexual confidence in five minutes.

However, it quickly became clear that she would probably need heavy medicating and a light round of torture to get her over her proclivities.

Ms. Gola turned to Orion and scolded him playfully as she took his paper, “I hope you’ll actually participate in class this year, sir.”

Orion lowered his eyes and slumped lower as pink tinted his golden cheeks. Just like Scorpius, his blonde hair hung in perfect waves around his shoulders, and his red lips were bee-stung like he’d applied moisturizer and not drowned for hours.

I picked a chunk of dead skin off my upper lip and grimaced when a pebble fell onto the desk.

Yep, there had been a pebble lodged inside my upper lip.

There went my dream of someday frolicking on a fae beach with a cigar in one hand and a large, enchanted glass of sparkly fae wine in the other while a thousand palace aides trailed behind in full ceremonial garb and told me how pretty and smart I was.

Ocean waves were definitely a new trigger to add to the list.

Another trigger was asshole fae men who looked ridiculously handsome after drowning. With their long legs stretched out casually, they seemed completely comfortable.

My teeth chattered so hard I bit my tongue and banged my knee against my desk.

Was there no mercy left in the world?

The only sign the kings had suffered was that their sweat suits were sopping wet and clung to their muscles like second skins.

“I expect you to speak up more this year,” Ms. Gola purred again to Orion. His stunning chocolate-brown eyes lowered to the ground as his face turned bright red.

Beside him, Malum’s shoulders straightened, and he threatened, “Orion will speak when he wants to speak.”

His deep voice was rough with anger, and every hair on my arms stood up. It’s because you’re cold, I lied to myself.

Scorpius snapped his gum as he placed an arm across the back of Orion’s chair.

Where had he gotten the gum?

Scorpius sneered, “Never speak to Orion like that again. From now on, you will not address him unless he addresses you.”

Ms. Gola paled as she nodded at the kings.

“Did I make myself clear?” Scorpius’s impossibly sharp jaw clenched.

“Yes, sir,” Ms. Gola said as she lowered her head in a bow. “Forgive me, Orion.”

She turned away from the kings and hurried to collect the rest of the papers.

Scorpius went to stand up, but Orion put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back into his seat.

“I told her not to address you.” Scorpius’s voice shook with rage.

“Let it go,” Orion whispered.

Malum cracked his knuckles like he was debating beating the shit out of the teacher he’d just been flirting with and nodded like he’d come to a decision. “Leave it. We’ll punish her later.”

Scorpius snarled but snapped his jaw as he chewed his gum.

The entire scene was so bizarre it was like something out of a fae drama. The ones Mother had always said were “trashy and stupid” and featured “tacky fae.”

Who was going to tell her that torturing people was tacky?

Me, that was who.

When she’d made me miss the series premiere because she was too busy ranting about me being powerless while lighting me on fire.

When Mother had finished barbecuing me with her blue flames that hurt but never left burn marks, I smuggled an enchanted screen under my covers.

Convulsing in the aftershocks of torture—with stiff limbs and chattering teeth—I’d watched the premiere. When a glitzy fae woman flipped a table and crushed her rival, I laughed until I couldn’t breathe.

Back in the present, I turned to John and asked the important question. “Are they fucking the teacher?”

“What do you think?” John’s dimples flashed as he waggled his eyebrows. “She’s smoking hot. I’d nail that.”

Oh, right.

All men were perverts.

At least John’s dark personality had thawed and the friendly, dimpled human was back. His dark eyes tracked Ms. Gola across the room like he was imagining her naked.

I gagged. “Wait, actually? How is that allowed?”

Thinking about John and the teacher made me sick. But for some reason, the wound on my back itched as I thought about the kings doing…things to Ms. Gola.

Another shiver racked my frame, and I grabbed my elbows, pressing my arms to my chest, desperate for warmth.

Malum’s head flames were clearly pointless because they weren’t strong enough to heat us at our table.

I’d have to let him know that he was useless.

John shrugged. “They’re literal kings and very dominant men. I wouldn’t mind being underneath them, if you know what I mean. Plus, the academy is very lenient about extracurricular activities.” He winked.

I sucked harder on my pipe.

The kings’ relationship was extremely close, and it seemed like that of lovers, not brothers. But fae were legendary for their archaic rules about relationships. Three men together was unheard of.

Then again, they didn’t kiss and touch one another like the demons did.

It was confusing.

“You know what I mean?” John wiggled his eyebrows, and I remembered he’d been talking about their dominance in the bedroom.

“That’s disgusting. I don’t want to think about it,” I lied as the wound on my back stung.

John laughed like I was being dumb. “Oh, Aran, you’re so sheltered. I can’t see you as the dominant one, so I think you’d like what the kings are selling.”

“Excuse me? You’re wrong.” I flexed my bicep.

“You’re telling me you’d want to be on top? Riding? Telling someone like Malum what to do?”

My face burned, and I knew my cheeks were bright red. “That’s disgusting.”

“Because a pretty boy like you is on the bottom. No shame. Even I can appreciate being taken care of sometimes.” John winked suggestively.

“I would not be on the bottom!”

I realized my mistake when Malum scoffed loudly, “No, you wouldn’t be on the bottom.”

Scorpius sneered. “You’d be on your knees underneath us as we used you like a hole.”

I choked on air and looked over to find the three kings staring at me. Orion was blushing, Scorpius was frowning, and a vein on Malum’s forehead was throbbing like he was suffering an aneurysm.

John laughed like I wasn’t being verbally assaulted and cut the tension by saying, “We’re all adults here, after all. Plus, it’s one of the best perks of the division. Everyone wants to fuck an assassin.”

“Can we please stop talking about this?” I begged as I sucked on my pipe like it was a lifeline.

At this rate, smoking was not going to be enough and I’d need to start snorting the enchantment. I made a mental note to research to find a dealer. There had to be someone in this place.

John’s dimples flashed, and he playfully punched my arm like he wasn’t driving me to aggressive drug use. “Can’t you feel the energy in the classroom? You’re an assassin now. That’s a big fucking deal, my small, pretty fae man.”

First, I was not small; I was basically six feet tall with a healthy amount of muscles. I literally had a six-pack, and my biceps and quads were impressive.

“I’m not pretty. I’m powerful.”

John laughed like I’d made a joke.

A few students turned around in their chairs and looked at us, and I couldn’t help but notice the way some of them winked and licked their lips.

I’d assumed they kept glancing back because we’d been tortured and looked like shit. Not because they were into us.

I whispered with outrage, “So you’re telling me the three kings have really had sex with our teacher? And that they were just talking about it in front of everyone?”

They definitely did not have a brotherly relationship.

Malum growled in his deep voice, “If you have something to say, Egan, say it to my face.”

I glared over at him and refused to be cowed by his bullying.

“Sorry, Malum.” I emphasized his last name like it was dirty. “I was just wondering if you’d fucked the teacher, because you were flirting with her aggressively, and frankly, it was disgusting.”

John made a strangled noise beside me.

Scorpius straightened. “Do you want to fucking die, my pampered pretty boy?”

Depends on the day.

“Don’t call me pampered or pretty, Scorp.” I was not going to address the fact that my stomach cramped when he referred to me as his.

He snapped his gum. “Don’t worry, I can set that up for your scrawny ass.”

“Hm, I don’t believe you.” I rolled my eyes. “You all said I wouldn’t last an hour, but I’m s-s-still here.” My teeth chattered and ruined the moment.

Scorpius opened his mouth, probably to eviscerate me, but he was interrupted by Vegar (the nice demon, not Zenith, who was glaring at me like he wanted to eat my eyeballs).

“Aran isn’t wrong. We lost the last four recruits to the Black Ocean.”

The inky lines under Vegar’s eyes had expanded to cover most of his neck, and he was slumped over, looking miserable, as he turned toward me.

Maybe I was a shitty person, but it was nice to see I wasn’t the only one suffering.

Vegar said, “Two died from hypothermia. One let go of Horace’s arm and was lost at sea. The other refused to stay in the water, so Lothaire killed him. None of them made it past this first day. So I gotta say, Aran, I’m impressed. I really thought you’d be a hypothermia case.”

Vegar showcased razor-sharp teeth. Was he smiling or threatening me?

It was as if one of the megalodon sharks from the fae sea had breached the water and grinned at me.

I grimaced and purred, “Thanks, Vegar. Everyone’s been so kind. I couldn’t have done it without all the support.”

I placed a hand over my heart.

“Aw, no problem, Aran.” John put me in a headlock and dragged his knuckles through my curly hair.

Unfortunately, my new friend was too dumb to understand sarcasm.

Maybe it’s a human thing?

“Let me go, you maniac.” I struggled to escape the ridiculously powerful arm that was holding me hostage and giving me a noogie.

Just what I wanted, to be manhandled after drowning.

My quality of life had never been lower.

“Don’t get cocky, Egan. It’s only been one day, and we have a lot of training ahead of us.” The leader of the kings leaned back and crossed his arms with a cruel smirk on his face.

“Whatever, Malum.” If he was going to only call me by my last name, then I was going to do the same.

Someone needed to humble him.

It would be me.

Scorpius’s voice dripped with scorn. “Aw, little Egan’s just jealous because no one wants to fuck him.”

Mother ensured that.

“WHORE.” Written on my skin. Forever.

How right he was. I was a virgin and probably would be for the rest of my immortal life.

But he didn’t need to know that.

“Nah, I’d fuck him. Look at him. He’s cute and pretty with his blue hair. Like a Smurf.” Once again, John wrapped his arm around my neck and dragged his hands through my hair as I growled at him.

He laughed at his joke.

For some reason, the kings’ faces all darkened with rage, and they glared at John like they wanted to kill him.

Vegar said slowly, “I’m honestly glad you survived, Aran. It’s nice to have a new guy.” He spoke as if he’d thought about it a lot and had just decided he was glad I lived.

Next to him, Zenith’s eyes promised me certain death if I tried to take his man.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t the kings who laughed at Vegar’s statement.

It was Horace.

The pale vampire sat unnaturally still as he laughed.

As I wrestled against John, who was still running his knuckles against my scalp, I was extremely grateful that the two demons were sitting between us and Horace.

Because Horace was muttering, “Aran’s going to die painfully.”

My gut told me that the student hadn’t “accidentally” let go of Horace in the ocean.

The vampyre had shoved him out to sea.

To die.