<h4>Chapter 38: A Dragon?</h4>


    <strong>*****************</strong>


    <strong>Chapter 38</strong>


    <strong>~Valerie’s POV~</strong>


    The handsome young guy staring at me had his head tilted, and for a second, it was like he was trying to figure me out.


    "I should be asking you that," he said in a calm, low, and smooth manner—like a ripple across still water.


    I pulled back a bit, but his arm remained around me, keeping me steady.


    "Umm okay. You just saved my life," I muttered. "So... thanks. But also, can you let me go now?"


    He chuckled, finally letting his arm drop.


    "You were seconds away from frying yourself, snowke," he teased.


    My eyes narrowed. "Don’t call me that."


    He grinned at me. "Sure. But you kinda look like one."


    Okay... Who was this guy?


    He moved past me, crouched near the now-destroyed control box, and picked up his dagger. I caught a glimpse of the symbol on the handle—something ancient, something scaled and fire-forged.


    My heart started racing again. But not from fear this time but from curiosity and danger.


    "You always hang around girls at night, throwing knives at fences?" I asked, arms crossed.


    "Only the ones who don’t know how to look before walking into traps."


    I rolled my eyes. "I knew. I was just... distracted."


    "Mmm," he hummed, unconvinced. He rose and walked toward the fence, pressing his palm against a concealed panel.


    It flickered blue, scanned, and clicked open like magic.


    My jaw almost dropped. "How the hell—?"


    He turned halfway, violet eyes glinting in the dark. "This isn’t your first time sneaking out, is it?"


    "No," I said carefully. And immediately when I said that, I mentally face-palmed. I shouldn’t admit something as dangerous to a mere stranger. Damn it, Valerie.


    "Then tonight won’t be yourst."


    Cryptic much?


    He stepped back and gestured toward the open fence. "You going through or not?"


    I hesitated. "Why are you helping me?"


    "I didn’t say I was," he replied and I swear I could hear the amusement dancing in his voice. "Just happened to be here. Right time, right moment. Maybe fate."


    Oh, now he was being cute? Like hell that was fate.


    I gave him onest look before walking past him towards the fence. He didn’t follow, but I felt his gaze on my back.


    The kind of gaze that didn’t just watch you, it saw through you.


    Rather than head out and disappear into the woods and then toward the club, I realized something and turned around.


    What if he was watching me? What if he were a spy? What if he were the person who had sent that first anonymous letter?


    Was I truly safe?


    Would going to the club and asking about the emblem be a good call, especially after that link disappeared from the site mysteriously?


    Everything in me screamed caution.


    Whoever that guy was—an international student or something—he sure as hell wasn’t ordinary.


    And I had a very bad feeling I’d be seeing him again.


    I walked back into the school. I could tell the look in his eyes was entirely different like he hadn’t expected me to make that decision but I smiled it off.


    There were a lot of things he didn’t know about me.


    I knew bait when I saw one. I wouldn’t be someone else’s bait.


    "Not leaving?"


    "No. Why would I?"


    He pointed to where I was prior. "Nah, running outte wouldn’t be fun. I’d stay inside."


    "But you said..."


    "I said what?" I questioned, cutting him short. I smiled back when he closed his mouth. "Thought as much."


    For all I could say, he could be a young teacher or dorm coordinator. I was still new to this school and needed toy low.


    "If you say so," he said simply, and I smiled.


    "Night."


    That wasn’t fun, but I wasn’t here for fun, and I also needed to report something to Storm.


    <strong>****************</strong>


    <strong>~Author’s POV~</strong>


    The screen flickered softly in the dim light of the room. Shadows danced across the walls as fingers moved swiftly over a sleek ckptop, keys clicking in rapid session.


    The glow of the screen illuminated a single image—the Nightshade thorn emblem on a bandana. A digital site was opened beside it, lines of code scrolling beneath the icon.


    The boy working on theptop leaned back, cracked his knuckles, and smirked.


    "Let’s see who bites," he murmured to himself.


    No sooner had he said that than...


    WHACK!


    A hard pnded at the back of his head.


    "OW! What the—" he whirled around in his chair while rubbing the spot and ring up at the tall figure that now stood before him.


    The intruder’s presence darkened the already moody room. His arms were crossed, his face unreadable but his eyes—those cold, calcting eyes—were unmistakable.


    "Delete that link. Now<i>,</i>" came the t, sharpmand.


    The younger boy groaned, spinning his chair all the way around and shooting the figure a look. "Seriously, Xade?"


    "Don’t ’seriously Xade’ me," Xade snapped. His tone was steel. "I told you not to try anything stupid and definitely not to encourage anyone digging into the emblem. But what do you do?"


    Xerxes, still rubbing his head, made a face and turned back to the screen.


    "It’s not stupid. It’s called <i>setting bait</i>, genius," he muttered. "We put the emblem up in the farthest corners of the, the ck market and anywhere we can think shady people would search. Then we track the IP address of anyone curious enough to click. Trace it. Bam—culprit found."


    Xade narrowed his eyes. "You think whoever’s looking for the Nightshade Death Raid is dumb enough to just click a link?"


    Xerxes frowned, mumbling something under his breath.


    "What was that?"


    "I said," Xerxes huffed louder, "what if it’s not a single person?"


    "Yes, exactly my point. What if it’s another group? An organization, or someone with influence? A Council mole? A rogue pack? We don’t know, Xerx. They wouldn’t be that stupid."


    "But someone’s looking," Xerxes argued.


    Xade walked forward, closing theptop with a snap that made Xerxes flinch.


    "And if they’re smart, they’ll know it’s a trap the second they see it," Xade said tightly. "They won’t click. They won’t slip. They’ll watch. Wait. n."


    Xerxes looked up at him, annoyed. "Okay, but we wouldn’t even be having this convo if you just loosened up. I do not know what’s going on with Father, but if I were the one, I’d want to dig in. Maybe let’s let them."


    A dangerous silence settled.


    "I trust my instincts, Xade," Xerxes said again, more firmly this time. "Even if they’re shitty right now."


    Xade’s eyes glinted, and the side of his mouth twitched into a humourless smile.


    "If you want me to tell Father about your little game, then please, by all means, lil bro. Go ahead."


    Xerxes groaned and slumped in the chair. "Ugh. You’re such a pain."


    "And you’re reckless," Xade replied coldly. "Now wipe the site. We’re not ready for eyes on us. Not yet. What if the council finds out and thinks we had a hand in it?"


    Xerxes muttered something foul under his breath as he powered theptop back on. The emblem lit the screen onest time before fading into ck.


    Deleted. Buried. Gone.


    "Good, but you have my word that we will find this person. Let’s wait for them to act. I have eyes and ears everywhere. Be good. I must return to school."


    Xade turned and walked away, leaving his little scheming brother behind. And somewhere far across the school grounds...


    Valerie Snow’s curiosity had just dodged its first trap.