The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy



"Oh, I just had a little feeling, like a voice on the wind," Luca says with a happy sigh, gathering me up into his arms for a hug and beaming down at me. "That was cool, by the way. I didn't know we could talk that far."

"Well apparently we can!" I say, laughing a little, likewise pleased. Subtly, in my heart, I feel Jackson close down our connection, though - not wanting me to have full access to how my increasing connection with Luca makes him feel. Still, the fact that he needed to close it down at all...kind of tells me what I need to know.

Still, I put it aside, knowing that it's not going to do much to address it now.

"So," I say, putting my hands on my hips and looking between Luca and Ben. "How are we handling this?"

"You two," Rafe says, pointing between me and Jesse, “are filling in these two," he gestures at Luca and Ben.

"Are we?" Jesse asks, curious.

"Yes, because we two," Rafe continues, pointing now between himself and Jackson. "Need to get our strategy together for the draft."

"Right," Jackson says with a sigh, dropping his head into his hand and then dragging his palm down over the length of his face. "I can't believe...we have to do all of that. After everything that happened today."

"Life keeps moving, even if we have a weird morning," Rafe sighs, likewise shaking his head a little and looking tired.

"Weird morning," Ben says, hands on his hips. "Seriously? That's how you're categorizing it after the door got shattered and the Queen got summoned, and Rafe was all...put through a meat grinder? And...did...I mean did I see it right? Does Jesse have some kind of weird...shadow?"

“I mean, sort of,” I say with a sigh, slipping a hand around Ben's waist and pulling him towards the couch. "Come on, Jesse and I will catch you up. But also," I turn towards my brother and Jackson even as they start over towards Rafe's bed, where they'll work tonight. "Can you guys make sure you put Tony on our draft team?"

"Seriously?" Rafe asks, turning to stare at me. “You want Tony? Even though we've...never worked with him?"

"We have worked with him all year, Rafe," I say, snapping my hands immediately to my waist. "Plus, he is our friend!"

"Being our friend does not mean he's a good strategic pick for the draft, Ariel," Rafe counters, frowning at me. "Besides, he's your friend- I still don't get the guy."

"Tony is trustworthy," I counter, crossing my arms and glaring at Rafe. "What's there to get?"

"Why do you think he's so trustworthy, Ariel?" Rafe asks, taking a step towards me, glaring back. "We barely know him!"

"Oh, we know him," I say, waving a dismissive hand that makes me feel like mom. "Besides, I just know!"

"Your gut feeling aside, Ariel,"

Jackson says his arms folded over his chest as he looks warily between Rafe and me. "I'm not sure how important it's going to be to have an another ambassador on our team," he says, giving me an apologetic shrug. "Especially if we already have Ben."

"Wait, what?" Ben asks, stepping forward to peer at Jacks.

Jackson just stands still, looking at Ben. "You're going to need to tell me what part of that was confusing."

"Um, the part where you said that Tony guy was an ambassador," he says, taking a step towards Rafe and Jacks, peering at them curiously. "He's not a warrior?"

"He is not a warrior," Luca replies, frowning at Tony now in turn. "He'd have been in our classes."

"Well, he's not an ambassador," Ben

says, giving us a shrug. "I mean, I

always thought he was a

etnoveldrama

little...scrawny, for a warrior. But he wasn't in my class, and Ariel would have mentioned him as an espionage Cadet. Right?"

Everyone turns to me then as my mouth falls open and I shake my head. Because he is certainly not an Espionage cadet.

So...what the hell is he?