Page 151 of Specter Bred

“He’s not the only one,” Pike added, oblivious as he glanced over his shoulder toward Redwood’s table.

The humor drained out of the moment.

“Fuck him, too,” I muttered with a sigh.

I didn’t have the energy to worry about Redwood right now. Graves had just sent my head spinning; Helix was preparing to attack one of Arca’s training bases, and Redwood’s little campaign against me barely registered compared to everything else.

I shoveled down a few more mouthfuls before pushing my tray away and getting to my feet.

Hayes looked up at me. “Where are you going?”

“To shower and pass out. I’m exhausted.”

He nodded toward Garrison and Pike. “All right. I’m gonna stay for a round of cards. I’ll try not to wake you when I come in.”

“Try harder than usual,” I muttered, earning a grin from him before I headed out.

The instructor's showers were empty when I got there, which was exactly how I preferred them. There was still something strange about sharing quarters with the training staff, like I was constantly occupying space that didn’t quite belong to me. Even the showers felt borrowed. I never lingered, never relaxed beneath the hot water the way I might have somewhere else. I washed off the sweat and grime as quickly as I could, pulled on clean clothes, and got out.

By the time I reached my room, exhaustion had settled deep into my bones. I reached for the door when I noticed a corner of white paper sticking out from beneath it.

I stopped. For a moment, I just stared at it before bending down, pulling the folded sheet free, and opening it.

Inside, someone had scrawled a short message.

Heard back from Command about the Helix attacks. Meet me at the shooting range at twenty-one hundred hours.

So now Graves wanted me sneaking around base after dark to meet him in secret.

Of course he did.

A small, entirely unreasonable part of me wondered if our interaction earlier had gotten to him too. If breathing me in after weeks of keeping his distance had reminded him exactly what he’d been missing, and maybe the update from Command was simply a convenient excuse to get me alone again.

The thought pleased me more than it fucking should have, even though I hated the sneaking around and pretending there was nothing between us while we were surrounded by people looking for any excuse to tear me down. But as irritating as it was, Graves had been right. The less anyone knew before graduation, the less they could use against me.

Besides, he’d already made it clear what happened afterward. I was coming to his unit. And once I did, neither of us would have to keep our distance anymore. Until then, apparently we were meeting in the fucking woods like teenagers hiding from their parents.

This man was seriously going to give me whiplash.

I towel-dried my hair and worked it into two French braids before pulling on a clean T-shirt and my uniform fatigues. Before leaving, I cracked the door and checked the hallway, waiting until I was sure no one was nearby.

Then I slipped out of the instructors’ quarters and headed away from the mess hall and recruit showers, taking the longer route before doubling back toward the overgrown shooting range beyond the training field.

The outdoor range sat tucked into the trees, close enough to the training field to reach on foot but far enough back that it disappeared from view once you entered the woods. With any luck, no one would decide they needed some late-night target practice.

I spent the walk rehearsing excuses in case someone caught Graves and me out there alone. The simplest explanation was probably the best. He’d assigned me extra training as punishment for some minor infraction. Considering how often he did exactly that, no one would have much reason to question it.

When I reached the range, I scanned the clearing for Graves, but he was nowhere in sight. Maybe he’d gotten held up. I hopped onto a low stone retaining wall and settled in to wait.

Then I heard it.

A low whistle drifted from the treeline.

Miles Redwood emerged from the shadows like a bad omen, wearing that same misplaced confidence that always made my skin crawl. I scowled as he sauntered toward me, smugness rolling off him like a foul smell.

“Well, well, Archer. What do we have here?” Miles asked with a low chuckle.

“Waiting for Graves,” I said clipped. “The bastard assigned me extra training for another stupid mistake.”