ChaoticArmcandy

  I stiffened, arm pulsing under the surface of my skin, as an office door far ahead of me banged open and a figure strode out.

  The arrogant tilt of his chin, the set of his shoulder—it was him.

  Oh fuck.

  We were the only two people in this otherwise empty curve of corridor. He hadn’t looked or turned my way yet, hadn’t clocked me.

  With a pounding heart, I spun my back to him and began to mince back the way I’d come, slowly picking up speed, the mop bucket clutched close to my chest.

  I didn’t dare look behind me, but my ears strained to pick up the slightest noise of pursuit. By now, he must have seen me, right? Would he be curious enough to pursue? From this angle I looked like any other maid—I hoped.

  Then I heard the quick, abrupt click of his boots, echoing down the corridor.

  I sped up slightly, my hands shaking. Was he following me, or going in the other direction?

  A tidal wave of adrenaline flooded my veins as I heard him begin to trot.

  Shitfuck. I dropped the bucket and bolted.

  Behind me, he began sprinting. I was braced for yelling, but it never came. There were no shouts, no calls for arm, just the ever-growing sp of boots.

  I ran full tilt down the corridor, gasping for breath. He was getting closer, though I didn’t dare look behind me to check. If I could keep my lead, get back to the central staircase, and descend a few levels, I could lose myself in the crowds.

  Unfortunately, my dress was definitely not made for running. Breathing raggedly, I snatched fistfuls of fabric to lift my skirt and willed my legs to go faster.

  My blurry, wavering vision began to tunnel and close in. The corridor seemed endless—where was the way back to the stairs? Had I missed it, passed it heedlessly in my panic? My lungs ached. My mind was a cacophony of terror, my ears full of crashing pursuit. Why hadn’t he raised the arm? Was there nobody else around to hear?

  A burning smell—the waft of sorcery—and then all my limbs cramped at once. I bleated in pain and surprise as the ground rushed up, and then all the air was driven out of me as I bounced off the hard fgstones.

  My vision fuzzed out for a second, then swam back, just as a bark of ughter echoed down the hallway.

  I bit back a groan and tried to push myself upright but I couldn’t force my legs to work, and it was all I could do to raise my head.

  Creswell had slowed to a walk, panting. We locked eyes from a hundred paces away and his flinty gaze sent a chill through me like a bucket of cold water thrown over my head.

  I redoubled my struggle to rise, but the sorcerous bonds only constricted and I yelped in pain as my legs cramped even tighter. With no other options, I rolled over to face my approaching predator, gritting my teeth.

  A cold chuckle rolled down the corridor towards me. “So. You were a degenerate all along, right here under our very noses. I knew there was something off about you, kuffa filth.”

  Acrid hot rage fshed through me. Who was this fascist bully, this bootlicking creep, this total stranger—hating and hunting me for no reason other than my desperate lunges towards my own survival? If my irrepressible longing to live as a girl made me his enemy, then so be it! I hated him.

  “Go suck a knife,” I spat back, desperately wishing Monarda were still here to back me up. Through sheer force of will, I managed to get one of my cramping legs under me, fighting through shooting bolts of pain. Unbelievable as it was, we were still alone in the corridor. If I could break his concentration, somehow…

  He prowled closer, his grin mocking. “By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be singing a different tune, you deviant little snack.”

  I cwed myself backwards, away from him, my mind grasping for anything to defend myself. What could I do? He was getting closer and closer. There had to be something…

  “A social viotion like you is dangerous because you’re so insidious,” he continued blithely. “You can look and act the part of a girl, but you’re not, are you? You’re a contamination, an impurity.” He tapped his teeth with a fingernail. “But no matter. Down there in the darkness, where you’re going, there are many hungry mouths to feed. And you’ll at least be good for that, won’t you?”

  Behind him in the corridor, I saw a door inch silently open.

  What in the—

  He was still talking, unaware. “Believe me, you’ll be pleading for a different fate. You saw what it’s like down there, yes? I wonder who that other girl was, hm? Don’t worry, we’ll be pulling all sorts of secrets out of you, soon enough.”

  Through the gap of the door, for the briefest instant, I saw the tensed profile of a tall figure, the sharp fsh of dark eyes.

  My heart made a wild leap. Was that—?

  I forced my gaze back to Creswell, looming closer, grinning smugly down at me. “You won’t be the first, or the st, I promise you that.”

  I said the first thing that came to my lips. “Why don’t you just—just leave me alone! I’ll scream if you don’t!” The threat sounded empty even as I said it.

  He shrugged. “Scream all you like. Somehow, I think they like Eating the screamers more.”

  I bore my own gaze into his, letting him see all my rage and fear and hatred of him, letting him feed on my helplessness. Anything to keep his attention on me.

  Behind him, I glimpsed a hand extend and the air around it shimmer with sorcery as the fingers crooked. I mustered a grin and looked back at my tormentor just as the spell released.

  Standing over me, Creswell frowned at my expression, and then his eyes rolled back in his head and he crumpled into a heap. An instant ter, the bitter cramps wracking my limbs eased and dissipated.

  I scrambled to my feet, wincing, just as the door swung open and Alexi darted out, his face tight and grim.

  “Oh my gods, Alexi—” I blurted, dizzy with gratitude.

  “What in the nine hells are you doing here, Ellie?” He hissed, bending to grab Creswell’s arms and start dragging him backwards, into what looked like an empty storage closet.

  Wait. Alexi had just been hiding in a storage closet this whole time?

  “What were you doing here?” I gasped, chest heaving.

  “Shut up and help me,” he snapped. “Grab his legs. Quick, now. This will buy us some time.”

  I obeyed, flushing. From his tone, I knew I was in trouble.

  Hauling and yanking, we got the limp body past the threshold. Alexi closed the door carefully behind us, shooting me a gre as he did.

  I winced and opened my mouth but he was faster.

  “Nope,” he cut me off. “I don’t want to hear it, Ellie. You are in some deep shit and we need to move fast, before anyone else comes. I can probably get you out of here, but you need to do as I say, when I say, without question or hesitation, got it?”

  I nodded quickly.

  “Good. Now, are you hurt?”

  “No,” I muttered, looking at the floor.

  “Look at me, Ellie.”

  I gnced up, my face burning from his rebuke, trying not to squirm. By all the faceless gods, why was there a warm tingling between my legs?

  He was watching me with sharp, almond eyes. “Are you ready to follow me, close and quiet and quick?”

  “Yes,” I mumbled. “Sorry, Alexi.”

  Alexi shook his head in irritation. “Save it for ter.” He muttered something under his breath, gesturing, and dark silky ropes sprung out of thin air and began spinning a cocoon around Creswell’s unconscious form.

  I hung my head, fidgeting, my pulse racing. Alexi was clearly sticking his neck out in order to save my life, and was understandably irate about it. Creswell would sound a school-wide arm about me when he regained consciousness. Aralia would be sure to find out. The full realization of my error was starting to sink in.

  I had just bungled everything, so badly. Why oh why hadn’t I bailed earlier, after I’d first seen Creswell? I’d had the chance.

  “Ready?” Alexi was already reaching for the door handle.

  I nodded, and felt his hand grasp my wrist as he carefully swung the door ajar, and slipped out, pulling me along. A tense few moments followed as we hurried down the still-empty corridor together. I could feel my heart hammering against my ribs. My ears strained, my muscles bracing for a sudden shout that never came.

  We’d barely made it twenty paces before Alexi juked sideways abruptly, yanking me along. I squeaked as he shouldered open another door, whirled me through, and closed it behind us.

  “Ohh,” I breathed, clutching his shirt and gncing around.

  We stood on the nding of a much smaller staircase, spiraling away below and above us. Distant sounds drifted up from below.

  “What do you mean, ‘oh’?” Alexi narrowed his eyes at me. “Don’t tell me you came up the Spiral?” He sighed at my look of confusion. “The central staircase? With all the students on it? In that maid outfit?”

  “Um.”

  “Damn all the sightless gods of dread.” He started up the stairs, pulling me along. “Your only job was to keep your head down and not draw attention to yourself, Ellie. And yet here I find you, waltzing around in the open in the st pce you should be, without a damned-gods care in the—”

  “Wait a minute,” I interrupted, yanking free of him. “How did you know I even have a job? And why weren’t you more surprised to see me? And why are we going up?”

  Alexi scowled at me. “Can we at least—”

  “No!” I gred at him, folding my arms. “Who are you? Tell me now or I’m not going anywhere with you!”

  With an impatient growl, Alexi began digging around in his pocket. “I’m supposed to be doing something entirely different right now, but I guess we’re doing this instead. Since you’re so curious, we’re going up because that’s the st direction they’ll come searching if someone finds that piece of human garbage we stashed, and you need a pce to wait while I go find some new clothes for you because your cover as a maid is blown, Ellie.” He pulled out something small, a fsh of gold, and brandished it at me. “Nice going on that, by the way.”

  I blinked and then my eyes widened. It was a coin. One I recognized. “That’s—”

  “Yes.” Alexi arched an eyebrow at me. “Now, will you be a good girl and do as you’re told?”

  I fought down a blush, staring at him. “You? You work for Aralia?”

  He rolled his eyes. “How do you think she caught you in the first pce?”

  I gaped at him.

  “There is still halia on Faso, you know—I’ve seen its effects before, and I noticed the changes in you. I can put two and two together, Ellie.” He began climbing, gesturing vigorously for me to follow, his voice low and urgent. “Listen, okay? Creswell didn’t see who hexed him but he’ll be able to give your description just fine when he wakes up, and if anyone else sees the two of us together, my life is worth fuck all.” He shot me a meaningful look over his shoulder.“So please keep up, Ellie.”

  I groaned, and hurried after him. “I’m sorry, Alexi.”

  “Believe me,” he snapped. “I’m not the one you’ll have to answer to.”

  An image of those golden-brown hawk eyes, narrowed in ire, fshed before my mind’s eye.

  Fuck.

  I winced. “Um. Still, though. Thank you for, ah, stepping in when you did. And saving my life.”

  He frowned at me as we reached the next nding. “You know, Ellie, you’ve caused me a fair bit of trouble. Even before today.” He put his ear to the door.

  I bit my lip, my cheeks heating even more. Why was I blushing? “Wh-what do you mean?”

  “Hush now.” Alexi eased the door open and led me through. We found ourselves in an identical corridor to the one we’d just left, curving out of sight in both directions. He made for a door directly across from us, shoved it open and hustled me through, into an empty cssroom. Desks and chairs were arranged in orderly rows, facing a giant, bnk chalkboard and lectern.

  “For reasons I won’t go into right now, I spend a lot of time lurking around this particur area,” he murmured, locking the door behind us. “So I know this room will go empty and unused until tonight.”

  “Thank you,” I breathed, slumping against the wall and shaking my head in dumbstruck relief. “I-I can’t believe I made it out of that.” I looked at him shyly. “If you hadn’t been there, Alexi…” I swallowed and trailed off as his eyes narrowed at me.

  “Are you serious, right now?”

  I flushed and dropped my gaze, before looking back up. “Wh-what?”

  He crossed his arms. “Don’t go all moony at me right now, Ellie. Our little fling nded me in hot water with the others. They all think I took advantage of you.”

  I cocked my head. The others. Meaning Pasha and Aralia, and who else exactly? “Well, you kind of did t-take, ahh—”

  Alexi reached out and cupped the back of my neck, making me gasp and stumble over my words. His thumb slipped around to the side of my throat, and he gave a single, light squeeze of his hand.

  “Ahhhnn,” I whimpered, melting in his grip, a hot glow igniting between my thighs.

  He dropped his grip and I sagged against him, my mind mushy and my gaze unfocused.

  “That’s what I thought,” he smirked, shrugging me off and refolding his arms. “Now, here is what’s going to happen next, Ellie. I’m going to leave and get trustworthy help. You will wait here quietly and patiently for that help to arrive. They will bring a change of clothes for you, and they will make sure you get out of here safely.”

  “Okay,” I breathed, swaying and blinking rapidly to clear my head.

  “And since you clearly can’t be trusted not to disobey orders, wander off doing gods-knows-what and get yourself caught, I’m going to tie you up until they get here.” He arched one eyebrow at me. “And we both know what effect that will have on you.”

  I stared at him, my sex clenching. “You can’t be serious,” I choked.

  Alexi leaned closer, his perfect mouth curving up at the corners. “Oh, but I am. When the others get here, they are going to find a wet, pliable puddle of a girl, and that alone will do quite a bit to clear my name. All you have to do is be yourself.” He winked at me. “Just own it.”

  I gred at him resentfully, my cheeks fring with heat. “And if I don’t?”

  “Then I’ll never fuck you again.”

  “Hmph.”

  “Don’t pout at me like that.”

  “I’m not pouting!”

  He snorted. “Anyway, unless you’ve gotten a lot better at hiding your reactions, you won’t have much of a choice. Hate to break it to you, but you’re pretty transparent, Ellie.”

  “I have a choice,” I fred at him, clenching my fists. “I’m not—I can hide my—shut up, Alexi!”

  “Ellie,” he said in a low voice, stepping close to me.

  My eyes widened.

  He pointed at the nearest chair. “Sit.”

  I opened my mouth, hesitated, closed it, then slunk to the chair and sat, eyeing him resentfully.

  He prowled around behind me, and a wave of goosebumps tingled up my spine, making me shudder. “Hands between your back.”

  I obeyed slowly, my cheeks coloring.

  He began muttering under his breath and I closed my eyes and inhaled as I felt the familiar silky ropes slide out of thin air and begin to wind tightly around my wrists and ankles.

  “A-Alexi,” I protested as the bonds slithered more intimately around me, slipping beneath my clothes before looping around my upper thighs and passing between my legs. I couldn’t contain a low moan as the spellrope cinched down around my hips and breasts.

  “That’s it,” said Alexi encouragingly. “All you have to do is show them what a little slut you really are. It won’t be that hard, knowing you. What do you say?”

  I groaned, blushing, and hung my head. On the one hand, he had just saved my life. On the other, this was embarrassing as hell—

  The silky cord that passed between my legs pulsed suddenly and my eyes flew open. “A-Alexi!” I moaned.

  “Yes?” He smirked down at me.

  I whimpered, eyelids fluttering, as the crotch rope began to squeeze and thrum softly against my clit.

  “I didn’t quite catch that, Ellie,” he said softly. His fingers stroked lightly through my hair, teased my ear.

  “Th-this isn’t fair,” I gasped.

  Alexi chuckled and lifted my chin with a single finger until our gazes met.“Your choice, Ellie. You know what you have to do to earn my attention back.”

  “F-fuck you,” I moaned, my breathing ragged.

  “Exactly.”

  I mewled as his thumb pushed slowly past my lips, into my mouth and began to slide in and out. The sensation made my eyes gze over and roll up under heavy lids.

  “Good girl. You’re doing so well, Ellie.” Alexi withdrew his saliva-covered thumb and wiped it on my cheek.

  I whined in protest and the hungry look he gave me in turn made my cheeks fre scarlet.

  “Just keep squirming away. That’s it.” He turned away, and strode to the door. “Someone should be here inside half a bell to collect you. I’ll ward the door so only they can get in, and those enchanted bonds will release when the ward drops.”

  The rope passing between my legs was driving me wild as it tightened and loosened, tightened and loosened. I couldn’t resist bucking my hips against it. “W-wait, Alexi,” I groaned, my cheeks flushed dark. “P-please don’t leave me like thiss.”

  He threw me a look of satisfaction. “Not a word of this to anyone. Remember our deal, Ellie.” The door clicked shut behind him.

  ChaoticArmcandy