The Devoted: A Reverse Harem Omnibus (The Devoted Season Book 1)(13)

He doesn’t have to.

A precipice of pain explodes at the center of my spine. How did he? I didn’t even feel the earth gravitate and pull against his magic, the spiked rocked simply grew.

I slide along the length of the spikes, tears springing up in my eyes from the prickly pain, and hit the ground with a thud.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” Instructor Caterina pops into my field of vision, “And you were doing so...well,” she slowly shakes her head, her eyes showing mock pity—or real pity—I can’t really tell. I’m dizzy and seeing three of her, “Well, at least you didn’t light your partner on fire this time,”

“Get up,” my partner calls, his shadow falling over me, “Class isn’t over yet.”

Instructor Caterina dissipates in a blur of pale skin and black hair. I shove myself up, heart hammering in my chest. Embarrassment stiffens my arms and legs, and for once I can’t blame my magic on this one.

I’m holding back and the only person I can blame is me.

“Come on, Witch,” my partner spits that last word out. Some students nearby eye us with burning curiosity, their rapid blows increasingly becoming more sluggish as they turn their attention toward us, “Scared of hurting me? Feel bad for what you did to Iris?” he taunts me with a hand, beckoning me closer, “You gonna keep holding back?—”

I fling a ball of ice his way, a rush of blood silencing everything else around me. I’m not seeing red or anything—not yet. My ball collides with his steaming wrist and he slaps his palms to the ground, making the earth groan.

Inhale. Exhale. I’m not letting this bastard beat me.

I throw the breathing exercise out the window—it’s only slowing me down. I just need my magic to overreact this once—so I can beat this overconfident guy and make it clear to him that what happened to Iris had been a mistake.

The earth rocks and rolls beneath me and this time, I let it bring me to my knees. I call up water again, but instead of making it seep through the cracks in the earth his magic creates, it falls from the sky.

A storm cloud gathers. A collective gasp swims around me as little droplets of water rain down in a deluge. The students surrounding us begin breaking away from their partners to encircle us.

“Am I holding back now?” I shout back, water congealing around my arms to form twin tails of water whips. “Think you can take me easily now?”

The storm above balloons, one dark cloud breaking into three. Something snaps in my head and a thwack of pain spears between my ears. The water whips grow, creeping along the field toward my partner who’s just standing there, grinning from ear to ear. My stomach clenches. Steam rises from his shoulders and head. My eyes pop open as a pike of electricity strikes the ground between us and blackens it, smoke puffing up from the spot.

Inhale. Exhale.

It’s not working this time. My tongue contorts, it’s like I can’t breathe as my heart tries climbing up and out of me. I try to stand, but the water whips won’t let me. It’s like they’re pinned into the earth. The storm above breaks and a silver sheet of rain screams down.

The smoke runs. Literally, runs. I’m glued to the spot as my magic goes haywire and a figure emerges, smoke concealing his body. He charges at me, eyes blazing. Fire running up and down his entire body. Within an inch of me, he rears back his fist and launches it.

A sickening crack follows the blow. Along with stars. Lightning. The rain thins to a drizzle and stops. I let go, shutting my eyes and hitting the ground. Wishing that everything would just fade to black.

But it doesn’t.

The clouds part. My nose throbs, the bridge on fire. My partner’s shadow disappears, grass blades crunching. A presence appears over me, its head shaking.

“Remedial,” Instructor Caterina whispers, “Until you get it, new join.”

I could have laid in that field forever. My haywire magic was bested—bested! When has that ever happened?

But, then again, the students in this school are special. Powerful. While I’m just...special in a different kind of way.

A freak.





Making it Up





Five days pass like this. Me getting knocked on my ass over and over by the same guy—Iris’s friend. Then, attending remedial training with a guy so calm and collected in the face of my constant failure that I begin to wonder if he even cares.

A hammering fist at my dorm room door jolts me awake.

Dammit, I’ve got night watch. Can’t this wait?

The hammering comes again. Three pounds. Each one makes me flinch and my muscles scream as I push myself up. Mr. Kitty pokes his head up from the foot of my bed, rolls his body up, and forces his front paws forward in a stretch.

“Isn’t it nice?” I growl at him. He cocks his head at me in response, then angles his huge ears toward the door as the knocking comes again.

“Coming!”

A screaming peal of anxiety buzzes in my ears. Breathe in, breathe out. I curl my fingers into fists, but the breathing doesn’t help my heart rate. Dropping to the floor, I kneel before the footlocker flush with the bunkbed’s headboard and throw it open. Tossing on the academy’s uniform—a white tunic and loose breeches—I stomp toward the door and throw it open.

My heart hiccups—what are you doing? What if those Initiates...