I move before Eric does. With sharp precision and deadly force, I hurl the blade straight at Eric’s exposed side. It strikes home with a gratifying impact, piercing flesh and tendon.

A scream fills the room, but it’s not Benjamin’s.

Eric removes the blade with a low grunt and whirls in my direction, his knives carving through the air while he searches for his attacker. The copper scent of fresh blood blooms pungent. His fury seeps from his body quicker than his blood.

“What the fuck, X?”

I shrug. “Just trying to keep things interesting.”

In my peripheral vision, I catch Benjamin studying me, his hands shaking. My fighter’s instincts chafe at having limited mobility because of the chains on my wrists. Fighting Eric without any weapons is going to be a challenge, but the McKenzie heir must live.

Eric starts walking in my direction, and Declan takes a step closer to me. The show of solidarity gives Eric pause. His surprise at Declan’s loyalty is obliterated when Simon launches himself at Eric.

From a strategic perspective, I understand Simon’s choice. Eric has no allies, and with him being wounded, he’s vulnerable. But that doesn’t mean he’s weak.

Eric twists away from Simon’s charge with a viper’s swiftness and deflects the blow by drawing his blade across his body. The screech of steel has me clenching my teeth. The fighters are oblivious, the grating sound falling on deaf ears.

Circling his opponent, Simon grins maniacally as some of the spectators begin to toss out insults to both parties, encouraging the escalation of violence. Eric swipes at Simon’s ribs, but the strike doesn’t find its mark.

They trade attacks, each one getting more violent. And desperate. Simon’s physical power contrasts with Eric’s skill. Which one is more valuable?

Chests heaving from exertion, they clash again and again in a flurry of jabs and slashes until more blood is spilled. Simon drives Eric back step by step with sheer force, overwhelming his technical skill set. Their blades scrape violently as each tries to deliver a killing blow.

The room—and its occupants—hold their breath. Eric’s determination to live isn’t to be underestimated, but the chances of him outlasting his attacker’s onslaught is nil.

With an enraged bellow, Simon throws his entire weight behind a powerful strike. Eric sidesteps at the last second and brings one of his knives upward in a vicious scything motion.

Simon gasps, the wet sound cut short as a red line appears on his throat like a red smile across his skin. Blood pours from the wound and lands onto the ground.

Right before his body does.

Declan dismisses him with a shrug, and I do the same. Death is a part of this life.

Benjamin stands with a watchful eye, having never moved to help or hinder Simon’s death. Or Eric’s. Throughout the fight, there was a ceaseless vigilance in the set of Benjamin’s jaw and the stiffening of his spine. He’ll need more of that.

I look from Simon’s body and over to his cousin, Alaric Paine. “Looks like you just got promoted,” I say.

Then there were twelve recruits.

Delilah: Dude, this new foster home is amazing! Emily and Sandra have their own rooms! Can you believe it? Sandra still crawls into Emily’s bed every night. I think it makes the girls feel secure and I don’t blame them. This is a whole new environment with new schools and everything.

Ben: That’s great. I’ll come down after my first exam to check things out.

Delilah: Can’t wait to see you! How’s that fancy college of yours? Everything you dreamed of?

Ben: Haha yeah.

Delilah: Cool. Well, I’ve got to run. Xoxo

Ben: Oxox

Delilah: Pigpig

Ben: You’re so weird.

Delilah: Yup 😊

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter 6XAVIER

Sophomore Year

The acrid smell of herbs and chemicals wafts under my nose as I walk into the classroom. Behind me are the other recruits, all of us a year older, a year deeper into the clutches of the Order.

The fluorescent lights above cast sinister shadows on the array of equipment set up on the lab tables that line the sides of the room. Traditional wooden desks take up the center and the majority of the space.

I slide into one in the back row. Declan sits next to me, followed by Benjamin on my right. Being flanked by the two of them is a little surprising, but not unwelcome. Although I prefer to work alone, allies are good to have in a den of vipers.

The professor watches all the students from behind his desk, facing us. Ames, ruler of the media empire, is renowned for his ruthlessness but also his brilliance. If you want to learn how to kill someone with the greatest stealth, leaving no trace behind, he’s the one to go to.

“Hurry the fuck up and sit your asses down,” he snaps. “You have a lot to learn, and my job is to make sure you don’t kill yourselves in the process.”

Though slight in build, Ames makes up for it in presence. It looms from where he stands, like an aura composed of darkness. From his charcoal three-piece suit—clearly custom fit—to the polished oxford shoes on his feet, this man screams wealth. Along with Ames’s obvious refinement is his sharp gaze that pierces deeper than any blade, digging past pretenses to the vulnerability underneath.

Long story short: he’s not to be fucked with.

Even his silence feels weaponized, similar to his words. “There are three things in life that can get you killed. What are they?”

Declan folds his arms. “Poison.”

“Right.” Ames nods. “Now, someone give me an answer that’s not obvious.”

“Power,” Eric calls out. “Not mine, but someone else’s.”

“Wrong p-word,” Ames says. “They are poison, pistols, and pussy.”

Adam Shipley, heir to the real estate empire, smirks. “Then I’ll die happy.”

“Get the fuck out.” Ames tilts his head when the student remains still. “Are you deaf and stupid?”

“Come on, professor,” Adam says. “It was just a joke.”

Ames walks from behind his desk and over to the door. After jerking it open, he gestures out to the hallway. “Don’t come back until you’re ready to listen without some smart-ass remark. This class is life or death, so the right attitude is a prerequisite.”

Adam mumbles to himself as he makes his way from the classroom with all of our stares following him out. Ames slams the door shut and resumes his place at the front of the room, leaning against his desk with his arms folded.

This man is used to commanding fear and respect. We have no choice but to give it to him if we want to gain the crucial but lethal knowledge locked behind his calculating eyes. After that, he won’t hold any power over me.

Ames clears his throat. “If I’m to keep your young, ignorant asses alive, I need you to learn that what I say is to be taken seriously. Pussy has led to more deaths than you’ll ever know. Women are the enemy just as much as anyone outside of the Order.”

He begins to walk around the room, down the aisles, with his hands behind his back. “Imagine you just fucked the most beautiful woman to exist. She sucked your dick so well that you almost nutted on her face. Instead, by some miracle, you busted a nut inside her tight, warm pussy. So you’re lying there, limp and exhausted, and she whispers a single question. You know better than to answer, but you do because your guard is down.”