Deity (Covenant #3)(4)

“You,” Leon gestured at Olivia, “get to class.” He turned his attention back to me. “You are coming with me.”

Biting my tongue, I grabbed my bag off the floor and commenced my walk of shame down the now-crowded hallway. I caught a glimpse of Luke, but looked away before I could gauge his expression.

Leon took the stairs—gods know how I loved them—and we didn’t speak until we stood in the lobby. The furie statues were gone, but the empty space left a cold hole in my stomach. They’d be back. I was sure of it. It was just a matter of when.

He towered over me when he stopped, nearly seven feet of pure muscle. “Why is it every time I see you, you are about to do something you shouldn’t?”

I shrugged. “It’s a talent.”

Reluctant amusement flickered across his face as he pulled something out of his back pocket. It looked like a piece of parchment. “Aiden asked me to give this to you.”

My stomach dropped as I reached out and took the letter, hands shaking. “Is… is he okay?”

His brows furrowed. “Yes. Aiden is fine.”

I didn’t even try to hide my sigh of relief as I turned the letter over. It was sealed with an official-looking red stamp. When I looked up, Leon was gone. Shaking my head, I went over to one of the marble benches and sat. I had no idea how Leon could move such a massive body around so stealthily. The ground should tremble in his wake.

Curious, I slid my finger under the crease and broke the seal. Unfolding the letter, I saw Laadan’s elegant signature at the bottom. I quickly scanned the parchment once, and then I went back and read it again.

And I read it a third time.

I felt unbearably hot and cold all at once. My mouth dried, throat seized. Fine tremors racked my fingers, causing the paper to flutter. I stood and then sat back down. The four words replayed before my eyes. It was all I could see. All I cared to know.

Your father is alive.

Chapter 2

HEART RACING, I TOOK THE STEPS TWO AT A TIME. SPY-ing Leon near my uncle’s office, I broke into a sprint. He looked mildly alarmed when he saw me.

“What is it, Alexandria?”

I skidded to a halt. “Aiden gave this to you?”

Leon frowned. “Yes.”

“Did you read it?”

“No. It wasn’t addressed to me.”

I clutched the letter to my chest. “Do you know where Aiden is?”

“Yes.” Leon’s frown turned severe. “He’s been back since last night.”

“Where is he right now, Leon? I need to know.”

“I don’t see how there could be any reason you’d need Aiden badly enough to interrupt his training.” He folded thick arms across his chest. “And shouldn’t you be heading to class?”

I stared a moment before I spun around and took off again. Leon wasn’t stupid, so he hadn’t accidentally told me where Aiden was, but I didn’t care enough to look into the reason behind that.

If Aiden was training then I knew where to find him. A cold, damp breeze sprayed my cheeks as I burst through the lobby doors and headed toward the training arena. The milky gray sky was typical for late November, making summer seem so long ago.

Classes for lower level students were being held in the larger training rooms. Instructor Romvi’s impatient barking from behind one of the closed doors followed my quick footsteps down the empty hall. Toward the end of the building, across from the med room where Aiden had brought me after Kain had handed my ass to me in training, was a smaller room equipped with the bare necessities and a sensory deprivation chamber.

I had yet to train in that thing.

Peeking through the crack in the door, I saw Aiden. He was in the middle of the mat, squaring off with a punching bag. A fine sheen of sweat coated his ropey muscles as he swung, knocking the bag back several feet.

Any other time I would have admired him rather obsessively, but my fingers spasmed, crunching the letter. I slid through the gap and crossed the room.

“Aiden.”

He whipped around, eyes flaring from a cool gray to a thunderous shade. He took a step back, wiping his arm across his forehead. “Alex, what… what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in class?”

I held the letter up. “Did you read what was in this letter?”

He had the same look as Leon. “No. Laadan asked me to make sure you got it.”

Why had she trusted Aiden with such news? I couldn’t even begin to figure that out unless… “Did you know what was in this letter?”

“No. She just asked me to give it to you.” He bent, swiping a towel off the mat. “What’s in the letter that has you chasing me down?”

A stupid, totally unimportant question rose to the surface. “Why did you give it to Leon?’

He averted his eyes, growing still. “I thought it would be best.”

My gaze dropped from his face to his neck. There was that thin, silver chain again. I itched to know what he wore, since he wasn’t a jewelry type of guy. I dragged my eyes back to his face. “My father is alive.”

Aiden tilted his head toward me. “What?”

A bitter feeling settled in my stomach “He’s alive, Aiden. And he’s been at the New York Covenant for years. He was there when I was there.” The swirling emotions I felt when I first read the letter picked up again. “I saw him, Aiden! I know I did. The servant with the brown eyes. And he knew—he knew I was his daughter. That must be why he always looked at me strangely. It’s probably why I was so drawn to him whenever I saw him. I just didn’t know.”