Academy of Protectors (The Protector Guild Book 1) Page 6

  “That was impressive today.” She paused a beat, before quietly adding, “and I particularly loved watching you kick the shit out of Reza and my brother.”

  My mouth fell open slightly, probably making me look like a fish. “Theo’s your brother?” I catalogued her dark hair and shorter frame. Knowing they were related, I could see the resemblance, but this girl definitely made it out of the womb with the better personality. And I’d only heard her utter one sentence.

  “Unfortunately. Not that he likes to admit we’re related,” she laughed. “He’s an ass, but he has his moments. Like all brothers, I suppose.”

  Her smile was warm, friendly, and infectious, automatically inspiring one of my own.

  “I’m Izzy. It’ll be nice to have another girl around here, Max.” Her hand clasped mine in a firm but amicable shake.

  Maybe beating people up was the way to find friends here after all.

  “Hey listen, there’s a get together tonight if you want to come? I imagine being new here is probably overwhelming, so it might be a good way for you to meet some people outside of gym time. Your brother’s welcome too, of course. The more tolerable people I can con into showing up, the better. It’s Theo’s birthday. And I’m sort of required to show up.” She tossed me her water bottle and I drained half of it instantly, feeling slightly bad for beating him up on his birthday.

  “That would be really great,” I said, trying not to stumble over my words in my excitement. “I’ve never been to a birthday party before.”

  Izzy frowned slightly, studying me until I broke eye contact, embarrassed by the revelation.

  “Really? That’s cool, it’ll be an even more fun experience then.” She smiled again, revealing bright, straight teeth, and I exhaled, relaxing a bit. “I was thinking of going to the mall later to buy something to wear. One of the guys who carried your stuff up last night mentioned that you didn’t bring too much with you, so you’re welcome to join me. And I’m guessing none of the boys mentioned it yet, but when you’re part of The Guild, you get a pretty hefty expense account.” She winked conspiratorially. “You should see my shoe collection. It’s my pride and joy.”

  An actual trip to the mall? With a friend who wasn’t Ro?

  “That’d be fantastic.” My voice cracked with excitement. “I just have to check in with Cyrus before leaving. I’m not really sure how things work here yet, or how comfortable he’ll be with me leaving on my first day.” But oh man was I willing to put him through the world’s largest guilt trip if he didn’t let me go.

  Eli walked up, laughing as he collected a few stray wooden staffs from the session. “Who knew that a girl who fought like you do would be interested in a shopping spree?”

  “Hey.” I shoved him playfully in the arm, but hard enough to cause him to stumble slightly. “Just because I know how to kick ass, doesn’t mean I’m not also allowed to like shoe shopping. It’s not an either or kind of situation. Women aren’t monoliths.”

  “Hell yes,” Izzy said, her voice sing-songy, “I knew I liked you.” She grabbed her gym bag before threading her arm through mine. “Let’s get lunch. I could eat an entire cow right now.”

  ◆◆◆

  The afternoon theory class was interesting, but almost impossible for me to follow. Judging by Ro’s blank face and the doodles he etched into his notebook, he’d felt the same. I never realized just how basic our understanding of our own history really was. And I was starting to seriously question Cyrus’s reasons for keeping us in the dark.

  Not to mention that it was hard to come into the middle of a lesson, in the middle of the year, and take anything worthwhile from the hour-long session. Especially since so much of the lesson focused on specific surveillance techniques and discussions of various supernatural battle strategies. Not to mention the fact that Ro and I weren’t used to learning in a traditional classroom. It felt like we’d been plopped down in the middle of a new world with no primers.

  Confusion aside though, I was eager to learn everything that I possibly could. And I hoped that we could still take Arnell and Wade up on their offer of extra lessons.

  The instructor was young, maybe in her early thirties. But I guess most protectors were young here. I’d only seen a few walking the grounds who appeared any older than fifty. She had long black hair and a no bullshit attitude about her which I liked instantly.

  “Typically,” she paced back and forth at the front of the room, her shoes making a weirdly comforting click-clack sort of sound, “you will be placed in a team that can use your specific talents. The Guild works to create balanced teams that are best able to utilize each protector’s strengths. As you know, we study you intensely throughout your schooling, so that when the time comes to join your team—or,” she paused, her crystal-blue eyes meeting mine briefly, “potential bondmates, you will be positioned for success.”

  Bondmates again. I repressed a shiver and glanced over at Ro. He was studying her with rapt attention, taking diligent notes. I wasn’t surprised. He had that model student air about him.

  I raised my hand, drawing the attention of everyone in the class.

  “Yes, Ms. Bentley.” She tilted her head to the side, studying me like a cat. Her voice was crisp, but not unfriendly.

  I cleared my throat, all too aware of the attention lasering in on me. Izzy was next to me and I felt her squeeze my hand gently, offering some much needed encouragement. “Er, Ms. sorry—:”

  “Everyone calls me Reese,” she said, arching a brow to encourage me to continue.

  “Right, Ms., er, Reese. Are we given no choice about which teams we work with or who we bond to?”

  A soft, almost imperceptible smile lit her features. “The Guild does try to take into consideration your choice, yes. But the success of the unit as a whole is of utmost importance. The stakes are too high to place too much attention on individual whims.”

  I sank back into my chair, highly aware of the tension running through Ro on my left. He was thinking the same thing I was: there was no fucking way we’d be joining separate teams. There was one person I trusted to have my back at every obstacle, and it was him. So we’d either need to prove to everyone that we worked best together, or else we’d have to consider going out on our own when the time came.

  Reese turned, ready to continue her lecture, but I wasn’t done. “Sorry, but what if we don’t want to bond?”

  I felt more than saw Izzy’s head whip in my direction, and several heavy intakes of breath sounded around the room. Slowly, Reese turned around, once again pinning me with her bright, intelligent eyes.

  “Bondmates are a long, time-honored tradition, Ms. Bentley. If Guild leaders feel you are valuable enough to pair up, it is not something you turn down. Again, the stakes in our world are high.”

  “Isn’t it, I don’t know, a little creepy though? Being forced to bind your life to someone else? Kind of arranged-marriage-like, don’t you think?”

  Her face drained of emotion as she scanned the rest of the class, assessing before responding. “You grew up around humans, Max. It’s to be expected that our customs and traditions seem odd to you.” She walked a few steps closer to where I was sitting in the first row. “I can assure you that the relationship I shared with my own bondmate was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. We were a team, even closer than—” she broke off, her eyes glistening a bit as she cleared her throat. “You’ll learn, as you come to understand our world, you’ll come to understand the nature of bond ceremonies. They serve an important purpose.”

  I wasn’t sold, but I also didn’t want to upset her, so I simply nodded and sat back in my desk, pen poised over paper. The rest of the lesson was uneventful as she walked through various techniques different teams used, while going over old field missions as examples for us to learn from.

  At dinner, we found Cyrus sitting at a table with Seamus, the rest of the hall’s eyes trying to inconspicuously study the man who was apparently a legend to these people. I wondered what they’d think of him if they saw him wandering around the cabin wearing boxers and a beat up Seinfeld t-shirt while making his way through a six-pack of beer. He wasn’t exactly a Clark Kent figure when he was off the job. He was just Cyrus.

  “Can we go to the mall and a party tonight, Cy?” I looked up, blushing at the soft snickering from the next table over. It must have seemed strange to these people that I asked permission. Yes, I was eighteen, but Ro and I were used to respecting Cyrus and he was used to keeping us on a tight leash. Something about living in paranoid isolation in the middle of the mountains did that to a guy. And well, he had his faults, but he did his best to be a father figure to us and we had no problem seeking his approval or advice. He’d more than earned our respect over the years.

  His eyes flashed briefly to the mocking glances and when he turned back to me he nodded, his eyes pinched slightly.

  “Here.” His voice was gruff, but I could tell amusement was hiding behind it as he slid over a phone and credit card to each of us. “These are yours now that you’re officially considered a part of The Guild. Your account will go up if and when you become a member of a team.”

  Something about the way he said that made me think he planned on getting us out of here long before Ro and I had a chance to join a team in any official capacity. Which was a bummer, I kind of wanted a life purpose and a clear path to obtain it. The Guild offered that. Why did he work so hard to shield us from this life?

  “You’re both going to this gathering, correct?” Cyrus’s eyes traveled back and forth between us as we nodded. “Still, I’d be more comfortable if you left the grounds with someone more suited to protection. You two get into more trouble than you’re worth.”

  “I’ll go with them.” Eli pulled a chair up next to me, dropping his overflowing tray onto the table. Without saying another word, he grabbed a large piece of pizza and dropped it on my now empty plate.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled, my mouth watering.

  “You earned it. Now I know why you eat so freaking much. I haven’t seen someone expend that much energy on a single sparring session in, well, maybe ever.”

  I grinned behind a mouthful. At first, I was a little put off by his overt flirtation, but anyone who brought me food was okay in my book. This was the start of a beautiful friendship.

  Wade walked up, dragging another chair with him. He shoved Eli over and sat down between us. “Yeah, she’s small but mighty. You guys going to Theo’s party later on?” He asked, grabbing a handful of fries off of Eli’s plate and eyeing my crust.

  “Don’t even think about it,” I said, grabbing the crust before he got any ideas. “I don’t share food.”

  He smirked but withdrew his hand immediately. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” Wade looked over at Cyrus and Seamus. “I heard the first day of class was a bit overwhelming, so if it’s alright with you both, I think Arnell and I should start additional tutoring sessions soon, to get Max and Rowan caught up as quickly as possible.”

  How did he know that Ro and I were basically lost during most of our classes? Aside from my obvious skepticism about teams and bonds, I thought we’d done a decent job of pretending to understand everything.

  Cyrus looked grim. I imagined the idea of us learning more about the protector world didn’t settle well with him. There was a reason he’d kept us bunkered in the woods for eighteen years. We just didn’t know what it was.

  While he’d taught us the basics: vampires and werewolves, bad; knife to the heart and decapitation, good, he wasn’t fond of discussing the world in detail. Especially when it came to magic or the unexplainable. I had no idea what made him leave the world in the first place, and was just as clueless about what made him suddenly want to return to it. Mysteries didn’t sit well with me, so I was determined to unpack this one eventually.

  “Fine,” he mumbled, sipping his drink which smelled way too strong to just be a soda. I wasn’t sure what the rules at The Guild were, but hopefully Cyrus wouldn’t get fired just yet—I was having way too much fun and it was only my first day. Who knew what else this place would bring?

  “I’m also available for any extra sessions too,” Eli said, face splitting into a mischievous grin. “For the record, I was a top student and excellent tutor, so feel free to take advantage of me.” He whispered the last part so quietly that I barely caught it.

  Cyrus studied Wade and Eli, every muscle in his body tensed and still. There was something unfamiliar in his eyes that I hadn’t seen before. If I had to put a label on it, I’d call it...fear.

  Chapter Six

  Wade

  I pushed into the cabin, my brain buzzing with frustration. After quickly tossing my keys onto the table and kicking off my shoes, I took the stairs three at a time before busting into the team office, not even bothering to knock. I knew that only Atlas would be around.

  “What the hell, man,” I said, trying and failing to keep the heat out of my words, “why the hell were you such an asshole today? That was totally uncalled for.”

  I wasn’t used to Atlas calling me out in front of other people, and today he went way too far.

  He was leaning forward in his usual chair, his head bowed over the notebooks scattered across the desk. His muscles were tense and after a couple of deep breaths, he turned and met my eyes, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

  Good, I was frustrated too.

  “You were going easy on the girl. I was just stating the obvious, Wade. I can’t always coddle you.” He scratched the scruff lining his cheek, turning back towards his notebook, like that was the end of the conversation.

  I clenched my jaw before walking further into the room. I was not going to be dismissed so easily. I was a part of this team, and it was about damn time that Atlas stopped treating me like a kid. Gripping the corner of his chair, I pulled, spinning it around just enough that he was facing me again. “It was her first day, and that’s not even what I meant. Your comment about getting her killed. Do you—” I dropped down into the chair across from him, sinking down into the buried guilt. “Is that what you really think? Do you think I got Sarah killed? For not pushing her hard enough?”

  It was the thing that had plagued my nightmares—watching her get taken down by three werewolves while Atlas and I tried to hold the rest of the pack back. I blamed myself, but it cut deep to know that Atlas did too.

  His face instantly softened, his dark eyes filling with concern. It was rare for him to show anything like affection to most people, but he was empathetic with his team. “No, Wade.” He groaned, running his hands through his hair roughly. It was one of his nervous ticks, one of the only things he did that revealed what was going through his mind. “What happened to Sarah, that wasn’t your fault. That was on both of us. She had bad intel, and we were overrun. We—you did everything you could. I know that. And you need to stop blaming yourself for what happened. We didn’t stand a chance. We’re lucky that we made it out alive as it is.”

  His hand gripped my forearm tightly, drawing my eyes back to his. I cleared my throat, trying desperately to push the guilt down. But instead of disappearing, it sank into the pit of my stomach like a heavy boulder. “We should’ve protected her. It’s what bonded pairs do. We let her down.” My voice broke slightly, and I hated myself for it. I could usually keep my emotions in check, but not about this and not around Atlas. He could read me too well, so there was no point in even trying.

  Atlas’s jaw tightened before breaking eye contact. He had been against the bond from the start, and only eventually agreed to it because it was the only way he could get good old dad, Tarren, to let us stay at the North American Guild Headquarters, with the rest of our team. Usually protectors didn’t force their children to bond with a female until their mid-to-late twenties, if at all, but Sarah was well connected and so Tarren didn’t give Atlas much of a choice.

  “The bond never fully took.” His voice was soft, and I listened with every fiber of my being. He never talked about it, and I didn’t want to miss a single syllable. “And honestly Wade, it doesn’t matter anymore. They won’t force another one on us again for a few years—hell, maybe ever, if we can get away with it. We’ve done our duty in that department, now we can just focus on our job for the time being—hunting down as many of these fucking killers as we can.”

  Atlas hated forced protector bonds and had since we were kids. Part of me wondered if he was happy that Sarah was out of the picture now. He’d always called the set up a sham and hated daddy dearest even more than he used to since Tarren had pushed it on him. I shook my head, clearing the thought away almost as quickly as it entered my mind.

  Even if Atlas didn’t feel as connected to Sarah as I had, he would never let anything happen to anyone under his protection, especially not someone he’d taken an oath to protect with his life. While being bonded to Sarah had given me a feeling of purpose, like I had something to direct my energy towards, it had only ever made Atlas feel shackled. But even so, losing her broke something in him.

  Atlas didn’t fail, not ever. Until he did. And that night had changed him in more ways than we were prepared for at the time. He was even harder to read than he was before, his focus wrapped so intensely around work that I was sure he would eventually crack open from the pressure.

  Self-loathing was a bitch.

  “You know that’s not true, right? Dad—Tarren, will make sure you bond again and probably pretty soon. Especially if the bond to Sarah, as you claim, wasn’t complete. He’ll use that. He’ll exploit every opportunity he has to solidify his position and your ability to carry out his legacy.” I couldn’t hide the disgust in my voice. I wasn’t jealous of Atlas, nor of the fact that Tarren was far more invested in his future than in mine. If anything, I felt bad for Atlas. As long as I wasn’t the favorite, I had more freedom, more choice. Atlas—he was just stuck.