dismissed the shield. “Control yourself, Acubens,” he said. “Leave the underhanded tactics to the Redbriars.”
Acubens scowled, like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Piss off, Arcturus. I can handle myself.”
Up close, despite the Nightfeld family resemblance, the contrast between the two brothers was striking. From what Acubens had mentioned, Arcturus was only three years older than him, but the gap seemed a lot bigger seeing them interacting. Arcturus radiated grown-ass adult, the ice to Acubens's fire. His face was like something carved from stone, handsome and impassive, framed by crisp business casual attire and immaculate jet-black hair. While Acubens slouched, Arcturus stood with perfect posture, making him appear even taller than he was. He didn’t look like he belonged in a school gym. Hell, he didn’t look like he belonged in this decade.
Why was Arcturus here in a freshman class, anyway? Didn’t he have his own upper division classes to attend? He didn’t strike me as the sort to suffer from senioritis.
But my speculations evaporated as Arcturus turned his gaze toward me. My heart gave a thump as I met his pale eyes, sensing the cold intensity that lay behind them. Even without that previous display of strength, I could tell I was dealing with the most dangerous mage alive.
“Clytemnestra Redbriar,” said Arcturus. “It seems like I underestimated you the last time we met. It seems like that was your intention.”
He was off the mark, but to be fair, no one sane would look at someone’s inconsistent behavior and jump to the conclusion that there were two of them. “I have no idea what you mean,” I said, with a blandness that I knew was more suspicious than not saying anything.
Arcturus stepped closer. God, he was absurdly tall—I wasn’t short myself, but I had to crane my neck to meet his eyes. “You harass a student, then befriend him. You play the weakling, but find ways to win even as you lose. I don’t know what you’re plotting, but I know for certain that you’re more than you pretend to be.”
“Thanks?” I said carefully, risking a sideways glance at Aegis. I really wished he wasn’t listening in right now.
But looking away earned me Arcturus's fingertips gripping hard against the soft underside of my jaw. He would be cupping my face, except he was clearly trying to minimize physical contact, even through the black leather gloves he wore.
He turned my face until I was meeting his eyes again, the leather digging against my skin. Suddenly he no longer seemed a cold marble statue. There was volcanic heat beneath Arcturus's icy exterior, I saw now, and his eyes were blazing as if he wanted to cleanse me off this earth with their fire.
“Your family destroyed my family,” he said softly. “I have never forgotten what it was like to pick up the pieces. Whatever game you’re playing this time, whatever treachery you’re planning, I will discover it. Consider this your warning, Redbriar.”
Abruptly he let go of me, turning to his brother. “Leave her alone from now on, Acubens; I don’t want you anywhere near her influence. I’ll personally take care of things from here.”
“I’m not a kid anymore, you know,” Acubens snapped. “Mind your own business.”
Arcturus shot one last cold glance at me. “My concern is not with your maturity, but a Redbriar’s perfidy. Come with me, Acubens, I have more things to discuss with you.”
He turned on his heel and left the gym. Acubens stormed out after him.
I stared at the Nightfeld brothers’ receding backs, heart pounding irrationally, still feeling the ghost of Arcturus's grip on my face. What the hell had that been?
Also, who the hell used perfidy in everyday speech?
As our audience of classmates and Professor Sarvas turned to whatever they’d been doing before, Aegis came up to me, brow furrowed. “They were suspicious of you,” he said in a low voice.
I rolled my eyes, trying to hide my turmoil. “I’ve purposefully been suspicious this whole time. It’s better to seem suspicious than weak. Besides, they’re way off the mark. Arcturus seems to think I want to ruin his family.”
“That’s true,” Aegis said, but he was still frowning. I knew he hadn’t gotten over his unhappiness with the identity switch for a variety of reasons. Good thing that the real Cly was luxuriating too much in her current lifestyle to care.
“Don’t worry about it,” I told Aegis. “Given he basically runs House Nightfeld, he’s got better things to do than creep on me.” I wasn’t