Azure Dragons (Supernatural Shifter Academy #2) - G. Bailey Page 0,7
eh?” teases Landon, although his tone is good-natured. “What else is new?”
There’s a long pause, and the big dragon shifter sighs. “Actually, I, ah… I think I might head up to bed, you guys. It’s been a long day.”
“Already?” asks Hazel. “You’ve hardly eaten anything.”
Silas glances down at his plate. “I’m not really hungry anymore. This whole trip thing is putting me off a little.” Getting to his feet, he nods at the rest of us. “Might as well get a head start on packing though, yeah? I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
“Later,” Shade replies, and we watch him disappear into the crowd.
“Wonder what’s gotten into him,” Landon says, frowning.
“Hawthorne,” I reply, leaning an elbow on the table. “And I don’t blame him.”
Hunter’s brow furrows. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” I shrug. “Don’t you think it’s a little odd that they’d decide to bring us all out to America so soon after what happened with Samantha?”
“I don’t see how that tracks,” Hazel replies.
“I’m not sure I do, either,” I admit, looking down at my hands. “It’s just a little weird, that’s all. It feels like all this stuff with humans and shifters has started happening all at once, you know? I mean, had you guys heard about any of what Hawthorne was talking about back there - riots, skirmishes, conspiracy theorists?”
“My dad’s mentioned it a few times,” Hunter admits. “We were talking to him last weekend, actually. He said one of the shifter settlements in Russia was attacked by a pro-human fringe group. It sounds like the government is doing an okay job of keeping a lid on the rumours, but…”
“It can’t be an easy job,” Hazel remarks. “Think about it - you’re basically having to keep the existence of a whole species a secret from the general population. And with the internet and everything…” She shrugs. “I’m honestly just surprised this hasn’t happened earlier.”
“It’s a strange time to be a shifter,” Shade comments.
“Yeah,” Landon agrees. “Damn right, it is.”
The excitement doesn’t seem to die down, even after dinner concludes and the students start making their way up to their rooms. I say goodnight to the others, and I’m on my way to the girls’ wing of the dormitory when I catch sight of Silas in the downstairs common area. He’s looking out one of the broad bay windows, his arms crossed as he sits slumped in one of the armchairs. “Hey,” I say, coming to stand next to him.
He seems a little surprised to see me. “Hey, yourself,” he says. “You guys finish dinner already?”
I nod. “The others are headed to bed. I was thinking of going too, but…” I chew the inside of my lip. “I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I appreciate it.” He stands up, and I’m stunned again by just how much he towers over me. “I think this trip thing just caught me off-guard, that’s all.”
“Yeah,” I say, rubbing the back of my neck. “You and me both.”
“Do you feel a little like…” He purses his lips. “Like this is a bit sudden?”
“Yes,” I exclaim, relieved that someone else had the same reaction. “Yes, I was just saying that to the others!”
He nods in the direction of the stairs leading up to the boys’ dorm, and I follow him to the door. There aren’t many students left in the common area, but Silas keeps his voice low when he turns to me and says, “I’m worried, Boots. What if this is just some kind of ploy to get us away from the Academy? What if…” He trails off, but I see where the question is going.
“You’re worried they’re going to use this as a way to continue the experiments.”
Silas nods. “Maybe that’s just my paranoia talking. I don’t know. But if it’s not…” He looks down at his hands, which are still shaking a little - the tremors have gotten a lot better since we first broke him out, but he’s still not back to a hundred percent.
Instinctively, I reach out and take his big hands in my own, looking up into his dark eyes. “We’re not going to let them,” I tell him, even though I know there’s no way I can really promise something like that. “They’re not going to pull that shit again, Silas. I swear. I’m in your corner on this - we all are.”
“That makes me feel better than you would believe,” he tells me, a small smile creeping onto his face.
“That’s what I’m here for,” I joke, my