Culling

Part II • Chapter V

Something about a sent message, and their team missing a response. It sounded important.

I was too tired to really care right now though. I wondered if Owen would tell me later, or if that was another Academy secret.

☜♡☞

"What happened?" Sean appeared in front of Owen the second the door closed behind us.

True to what Brandon had told us, there were peacekeepers stationed outside of the room and no one was able to leave.

Owen glanced at him before he made his way forward towards the couches where Silas, Luke and North sat. The rest of the boys stood around them. Everyone clearly had been talking before we came into the room, and upon our arrival, and Sean's question, they had quieted. They were now staring at the three of us in horror.

I don't know what kind of expression Owen had on his face, but no one moved. He didn't stop his purposeful walk through the room as he answered, "He brought in Jade William."

There was a collective of curses and gasps, but Owen ignored them and moved until we were in front of Silas. My thoughts were muddled, so I was not paying much attention, but Silas did not seem to be surprised that I was being given over to him. In fact, he held his arms open as if he expected this action.

I doubted that even a Silas hug could make this better, but it was nice of him to give me one.

Then I was put into Silas' lap, he wrapped his arms around me, and the lingering pain evaporated.

"Silas?" I squeaked out, my throat no longer hurt but I found that I still wasn't able to talk normally. That was unexpected, Silas' hugs really were magic!

He gave me a wry grin in response. "Hi aggele mou."

Gabriel hovered nearby, and Silas moved slightly as Gabriel wrapped a blanket around my legs and stomach and tucked it in around Silas' body.

Once Gabriel was finished, Owen nudged him to the side, "Are you alright now?" He cupped my face with both hands as he leaned over us to look me in the eyes. I couldn't hide from the intensity of his gaze. He handled me as if he thought I'd break at any moment. I wondered what he was thinking.

I nodded that I would be fine, and he seemed to be relieved. He moved aside and Sean's face swarmed in my vision.

"Sang, let me see." He fell to his knees in front of us and began to lightly trace his hands up and down my arms, over my collarbones, my face and, with Silas' help, my back. I wasn't sure what he was doing or looking for exactly. I didn't have any physical injuries besides the bump on the back of my head, my tongue and my throat, but Sean seemed to know what he was doing.

Meanwhile, Owen stood up and went to sit at another chair. "What happened here?" He demanded as he looked around at the tense atmosphere. On his way to the chair he had grabbed a gauze from Sean's bag, which was on the coffee table, and held it to his head. Kota went to help him, but Owen waved him off.

It seems like no one else wanted to approach him right now, and Sean was busy with me.

Luke moved behind me and he started fiddling with my hair - something Gabriel had to have noticed but didn't say a word about. North sat on Silas' other side, by my feet, and had taken ahold of my ankles and was rubbing them in a hesitant manner.

The others took places in various locations around the seating area. Without the pain to distract me I was now able to study them and their expressions more closely.

I hated seeing my boys like this. Gabriel and Victor looked to be near tears, Nathan wore a murderous expression on his face, and Kota was deeply distressed as he watched me. I wanted to get up and comfort them, to tell them that they didn't need to worry about me, but my muscles wouldn't obey my thoughts.