Infinity Academy

Chapter Eleven

After Adryan and Kaiser had disposed of Rick’s mangled body, Cerberus lifted me from the bed, carrying me bridal style, while Ansel scouted ahead, making sure that nobody else was around. It was oddly quiet as we left the building and I panicked as we neared the spot where the invisible barrier had been. Adryan and Kaiser took Cerberus’s flank, making sure that we were protected from every angle. “Thank you,” I whispered, looking up at Cerberus. His square jaw was clenched tightly and he looked like he was trying not to cry. “Hey,” I said quietly, making him look at me. “This was my fault; I shouldn’t have run off like that.” He closed his eyes, then opened them again, “No it wasn’t. You running away was stupid, but this,” he said, moving his head to the side gesturing back towards the building, “This was the humans’ fault, and Adryans for letting you leave.” “Hey!” Adryan complained from behind us. I leant my head against Cerberus’s chest and exhaled deeply, “Thank you for searching for me. I was afraid I’d have to help that creep, just so I could get away.” “You’re welcome, princess,” Kaiser replied, moving up to walk alongside Cerberus. 

A short time later my eyes began to droop, the shooting pains from all of my injuries now throbbing and making me see stars. “I don’t feel so good,” I said to no one in particular. Cerberus barely had time to put me down before I was on my hands and knees, vomiting violently on the ground. The heaving was making my ribs ache, and my arm and leg were screaming out in agony at the pressure I was putting on them. Between the liquid spewing from my mouth, I let out sobs, but they just made everything feel worse. Adryan and Ansel were looking at me like they wanted to help but didn’t know what to do, and Cerberus was holding my ruined wings steady, while Kaiser held my hair out of my face, yet again. Once my stomach was empty and the dry heaving calmed, I looked up at them, tears still streaking down my face, “I’m sorry,” I croaked, feeling like the worst person on the planet. Kaiser helped me to my feet and lifted me into his arms, much to Cerberus’s frustration. “It’s alright, princess. Let’s just get you home so that someone can check you over.” I nodded weakly and relaxed into his arms. His cologne was so intoxicating that I struggled to resist the urge to inhale deeply. “Why don’t you close your eyes and try to get some rest, Emerald. We will be at the car soon and then it’s only a one-hour drive back to the academy,” Ansel spoke, walking ahead of us still. As much as I wanted to stay awake, sleep sounded amazing. I hadn’t really slept properly since I was taken, so I let my eyes slip closed and drifted off into a deep slumber. 

****

“Where did you find her?” I heard someone ask. “She was in an old school building thirty minutes past the lake we used to go to as kids,” Adryan’s voice mumbled. “Her injuries are quite extensive I’m afraid. It will take about six to eight weeks for her arm and leg to heal, maybe more since the cast that had been put on was so badly done and the bones weren’t aligned.” I heard a deep growl reverberate through the room. “Don’t growl at me Kaiser, I’m just explaining to you what to expect.” Someone took hold of my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. The other person continued talking. “Her wings are another story. Where the feathers were cut, there was quite a lot of damage, I’m unsure if they will grow back, but I’d say if we don’t see some progress in the next few weeks, then we probably won’t at all. The bones in the joint of them are also broken, but that isn’t consistent with the feathers being cut so I can only assume that she has been through more than we know. Other than all of that, she has a few cracked ribs and we had to replace some of the stitches on her face and abdomen. She should be feeling better in a few days once everything starts to heal and then she should be able to resume classes soon after, with a wheelchair of course.” “Thank you for your help, Doctor Beruge, it has been much appreciated. Let me walk you out.” the first voice said, before a door closed loudly, making me jump. “Emerald?” someone asked as I felt the hand squeeze mine once more, “Em, are you awake?” I rolled my head towards the sound of the voice and tried desperately to open my eyes. I let out a small moan as my eyes fluttered slowly. “She’s waking up,” Adryan said frantically, placing his hand on my face. Once my eyes were fully open, I realised that I was back in my own room, all four of my saviours surrounding me. “How are you feeling, princess?” Kaiser asked, his voice all deep and husky. I had no doubt the it was him that had growled at the doctor. “Like I went a round with an extremely pissed off lion,” I tried to say but my throat was dryer than the Sahara Desert; the sound coming out all crackly. “Here, drink some water,” Ansel offered, grabbing a cup off the side table and holding it to my lips so I could drink. “Thanks,” I whispered as I laid my head back, “I needed that.” I closed my eyes and let out a breath. I felt like I could go back to sleep already. My body felt numb and tired, every part aching in some way. Adryan squeezed my hand again and I opened my eyes to look at him. “What did they do to you, Emerald?” he asked. I scrunched my nose and winced at his question. “I don’t think I’m strong enough to talk about that yet,” I hesitated, “I think I just need to get some more sleep first.” He nodded sadly and looked over to the other guys, giving them a nod as well. “Okay, we will let you get some rest. I’ll come to check on you in the morning.” He stood from his seat and left the room, followed by Kaiser and Ansel. Cerberus, however, stopped in the doorway and turned to look at me. “Call out if you need anything, I’ll be just out here,” he said, gesturing towards the living room. “Thanks,” was all I could say in reply. 

****

I stood at the edge of the clearing, looking across at the darkened school-house where Rick had kept me; one lonely, dull light shining through a second-floor window. I knew what I needed to do but my feet were frozen in place, unable to propel me forward. “What are you going to do?” Ansel whispered, reaching out to hold my hand. I recoiled from his touch, refusing to let him hurt himself just to be close to me. “We can’t,” I hissed back, reminding him what happened the last time we got close. He took a step closer to me and wrapped his arms around my waist, a move I wasn’t expecting. I clung to the front of his sweater, wishing I could touch him, kiss him, before I had to face what was inside that building. “I’m in love with you, Emerald. I know you don’t want to hear it, because of what might happen in there. But I need to tell you just how much you mean to me, so that you know. So, no matter what happens in there, remember that.” He leant in and pressed his lips lightly to mine, taking my breath away. After a few seconds, I felt the familiar sizzle of his skin singeing under my touch, and I pulled away, not wanting to hurt him. As I stepped back- breaking his grip around me, and releasing my fists from his shirt- he hunched forward, placing his hands on his knees and inhaling deeply. “I’m going to fix this, Adryan. For all of us,” I said before turning and walking towards the building. 

****

I awoke with a start, panting heavily, sweat beading on my forehead while the rest of my body felt like it was on fire. “It’s alright, you’re okay,” Adryan shushed, running a cold cloth over my face and neck. “You were having a nightmare,” he said, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. My breathing was still heavy as I stared at him, his white hair and blue eyes shining brightly in the darkness, the moonlight reflecting off the vibrant colours. “I don’t know what happened,” I stated, talking more to myself than him. Adryan laid down slowly, trying not to jolt the bed. “Why don’t you try and go back to sleep, there’s still a few more hours until the sun comes up.” He moved closer to me, taking hold of my hand and placing it on his chest. I could feel his heart beating steadily, feel his breath fanning over my knuckle. I rolled carefully onto my side, making sure not to knock my casts or my wings that were tied down behind my back. He re-adjusted himself, pulling my head onto his left arm and wrapping the other one around my middle. He planted the softest kiss on my forehead, before replacing his lips with his own forehead. “Get some sleep,” he whispered as my breathing finally steadied and I closed my eyes once more. 

****

Two Weeks Later. 

“You need to leave this room, Princess. You can’t hide in here forever,” Kaiser laughed, watching me pull the blankets up and over my head. I had barely left my room since the boys had rescued me from Ricks grasp. Of course, I left my room for food, or to watch television, but other than that, I had been cooped up in here, refusing to so much as step foot outside of the apartment. Apparently, not long after I got back, Liam had dropped by with some flowers and a card, but Adryan threw them back at him and told him to f**k off. After the way Liam treated me, I was happy that Adryan didn’t let him come in or I would’ve done much worse than throw some flowers at him. Cerberus spent nearly every day sitting in the small chair in the corner of my room, brooding silently. He didn’t approve of me being too stubborn to go anywhere, none of them did. But I just couldn’t bring myself to leave until my wings finally retracted and these stupid nightmares stopped. My feathers were actually growing back, which made the doctor confident that they would be in full working order in no time. Unfortunately, the bones weren’t healed fully so retracting them was still a no go. I cringed at the thought of people staring and gossiping about me more than they no doubt already were. Every night for the past two weeks, I’d had that same dream, where Adryan was professing his love to me, while I worried about whatever was inside that building. And every night, I awoke to at least one of the guys cuddling me while telling me everything would be alright. 

“The scraps are having a party tonight, another birthday party, and I was thinking we could all take you out for some much-needed fun,” Kaiser said, he sounded grumpy, but what was new? “Hard pass, but thanks for the offer,” I mumbled from under the blankets. My eyes stung and took a second to adjust as he ripped my shield off of me, throwing the whole blanket across the room. “I wasn’t asking. I’m telling you that we are taking you out tonight, so you’d better organise your costume.” I opened and closed my mouth, trying to think of something witty to say, but I came up blank. “Fine,” I huffed, crossing my arms and glaring at him. My relationship with Kaiser had become a lot stronger over these last two weeks and I found myself more and more attracted to him every minute that he was near me; but I could say the same for my other three, deliciously tempting, roommates. I had already kissed Cerberus, and I had kissed Adryan in the same dream every night. My body was aching to get a taste of Kaiser, to run my hands over his perfectly chiselled chest and curl them into his midnight-black hair. Kaiser cleared his throat, pulling me from my daydream. “Is there something you want, Princess?” He asked huskily. His eyes were dancing with excitement as he took me in. I couldn’t hold back anymore. I needed to see if he tasted as good as he smelt. I knelt on the bed- even though I knew I shouldn’t- reaching out to take a fistful of his hair, pulling his face down to mine. When our lips collided, I couldn’t help the breathy moan that left my mouth as I parted my lips to allow his tongue to clash with mine. My head was swimming within seconds, and I wondered if anyone had ever passed out from a heated kiss. His hands ventured up my back, pulling me flush against his chest. Another moan escaped and I think that was when he lost whatever control he had. Suddenly I was lying on the bed, his legs between mine, using his knees to force mine open. Moan after moan echoed through the room as he devoured me. I was sure that he had left a few hickeys up and down my neck, but I didn’t care, I was in way too deep to stop now; I couldn’t stop, even if I wanted to.