THE NEXT DAY
"The cafeteria food is usually hit or miss, but luckily today's one of the good days," Evelyn remarked as we headed toward the cafeteria.
She sounded far too cheerful for someone who had barged into my room late last night, practically kicking the door open while yelling about how she'd been searching for me for hours. That was how I knew she had a spare key to my room.
I had barely been able to get a word in between her rapid-fire questions.
Where were you?
Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?
Do you know how worried I was?
I'd apologized multiple times but when she asked how I'd managed to get back on my own, I conveniently left out any mention of Devon.
The last thing I needed was Evelyn asking questions I couldn't answer.
Or worse, questions I didn't want to think about.
As we walked through the bustling corridors, I couldn't help but notice something that had struck me yesterday but now felt even stranger in the light of day.
Humans and hunters moved around each other here. Talking, laughing, and walking side by side without the careful distance I was used to seeing. Outside Safe Land, the two groups did not mix like this. There was always an invincible line between them, but here, the lines were erased. It seemed entirely ordinary, which was strange.
The cafeteria was large, louder than anything I had been in recently, full of people eating and talking and calling across tables to each other. For a moment, standing in the entrance, it felt almost normal. The kind of normal I had not felt since before the Great War.
"How can everyone act like this?" I asked no one in particular.
Evelyn glanced at me, instantly understanding what I meant. "Safe Land is about the future. It is a reminder of what things could look like, what they will look like if enough people keep fighting for it."
I watched a human boy and a hunter walk past us, their shoulders bumping as they laughed about something.
"But how can there still be hope?" I whispered more to myself than to her.
The fact remained that the war wasn't over. It wasn't even getting smaller but worse each day.
Wasn't hope a fantasy we couldn't afford?
Evelyn turned to me, her eyes burning with determination.
"As long as people are willing to fight," She said firmly, "there's always hope, Kira."
I tried to mirror her confidence, but the best I could manage was a half-hearted smile. She seemed to accept it anyway.
"You'll learn everything about Safeland today," she said, clapping her hands once and totally resetting the mood. "But first, I'm starving. Let's eat."
She led the way through the crowd, weaving easily between tables. I followed.
We stopped at a table where three guys were already sitting. I immediately recognized the blonde from the party last night.
Evelyn greeted them warmly, told me to sit, and disappeared toward the food line before I could follow.
Great.
Left me with strangers.
I sat at the end of the table, aware of three sets of eyes on me.
The blonde spoke first. "Hi. I'm Michael. Sorry, I didn't get to introduce myself properly last night. "
"Kira," I said, shaking his hand.
The guy sitting beside him spoke next. "I'm Steven."
His dark green eyes and strong earthy features made it obvious what he was. An earth elemental.
The third guy finally spoke. "I'm Jack."
His pale skin contrasted sharply with his striking aqua-blue eyes. His head was completely bald, though I couldn't tell if it was by choice or simply how he looked. Either way, his aura made it obvious. Water elemental. I'd seen a few before, but I'd never actually watched one use their powers.
"Nice to meet you," I said, and found I meant it more than I expected.
Before the atmosphere could grow awkward, Evelyn returned balancing two trays. She set one down in front of me.
The moment I looked at it, my stomach churned.
"I thought you said the food was good today?" I muttered.
On her tray sat muffins and tea.
On mine?
A depressing pile of green leaves drenched in something yellow and buttery.
Evelyn burst out laughing.
I stared at the plate as if it had personally offended me.
"I can't eat this."
"Seer would know if you don't, " Michael chimed in casually.
I froze.
"And those herbs are good for your powers," Steven added.
Powers. The word made my heart drop. They did not know. Only Evelyn and the others who were in the room when I woke knew, and I intended to keep it that way for as long as I could
I swallowed hard, trying not to show the panic bubbling within me. I picked up the fork and forced myself to take a bite. It tasted worse than it looked.
Halfway through chewing, I questioned every life decision that had led me here. But I kept eating, there was no other option. Each bite felt like a punishment.
Halfway through the plate, a shrill ringing suddenly echoed through the cafeteria.
The reaction was immediate. Everyone stood. Chairs scraped across the floor as people began filing out quickly. I was confused.
"Training," Evelyn said, already groaning.
"Lucky for you, you get to leave the walls today," Michael said, glancing at Jack.
Jack leaned back smugly. "That's what happens when you reach grade twelve."
Michael rolled his eyes. "You just got lucky."
Jack's smirk only widened. "Considering I beat you during the test that got me there, I'd call it skill."
"Can you both stop," Steven said flatly.
Michael glared.
Jack chuckled.
"What happens in grade twelve?" I asked.
Michael glanced at me. "You'll find out soon enough."
That didn't sound reassuring.
Jack pushed back his chair. "See you all at dinner," he said and headed out.
****
Evelyn walked me to what she called the introduction hall before heading off to her own training. I was left standing among a group of other newcomers. Most of them looked just as nervous as I felt.
At the front of the room, a woman was speaking quietly with two hunters. She had the bearing of someone used to being listened to. Minimal movement, no wasted gestures.
Then she paused and looked up. "Where is Devon? He should be here."
My stomach dropped.
Why did he have to be involved?
"I'll go find him," one of the hunters said. He was a tall man with red hair. He had barely taken a step before Devon walked in.
The reaction moved through the room in a wave, with tension thick enough to the point of suffocation. Most of the hunters were not pleased.
Their confusion was obvious.
A demon walking freely in Safeland or anywhere else for that matter wasn't exactly normal.
The humans on the other hand, most of them unfamiliar with what he was, did not react the same way. I heard comments near me actually admiring him.
I rolled my eyes.
"He's so hot," one girl whispered to her friend.
I resisted the urge to gag.
He wore black from head to toe. The outfit hugged his form perfectly, and his messy hair somehow made him look even more annoyingly appealing.
Before I could stop myself, my eyes lingered on him.
Just for a second.
Fine.
Maybe two.
I told myself I was watching him the way you watch something unfamiliar in an environment you do not yet trust. Observation. Nothing more.
I sighed internally.
If he wasn't a demon... I might have actually thought he was attractive.
Then—
His eyes found mine.
I froze.
He held my gaze for exactly one second, and then the corner of his mouth lifted, not quite a smirk, but close enough. Like he had heard every single thought, before he turned back to the woman.
My chest tightened.
A terrible thought crept into my mind.
Did he...
Could he...
Read minds?
A cold shiver slid down my spine.
If he could—
Then he knew exactly what I had been thinking.