The victory in the pit was ashes in my mouth.
Every step back to the dormitory was a fresh agony, a sharp, stabbing reminder in my side that eclipsed the lingering adrenaline. The torchlight of the underground felt like a spotlight, and the weight of a hundred stares followed me out. Kai walked slightly ahead, a silent, brooding king returning from his bloody court. He didn’t touch me again, but his presence was a chain, pulling me along in his wake.
The cold night air of the main courtyard was a shock, doing little to clear the scent of blood and sweat from my nostrils. I focused on putting one foot in front of the other, on keeping my breathing even and shallow, on not vomiting from the pain. My mind raced, a frantic animal in a trap. "Recruited". What did that mean? Into what? His per
