School of the Crown Assassins

20

"Don't throw up," I whispered to myself. "Don't you dare throw up."

My hands clenched the sides of the toilet bowl as I tried to keep the nausea spinning in my stomach at bay. Sweat matted my forehead despite the cold marble ground digging into my skin.

Don't fucking throw up.

It didn't work. The contents in my stomach spilled out into the waters in a murky mess. Wiping my mouth, I sighed as I was relieved of the feeling of nausea. I flushed the toilet, brushed my teeth, and washed my face to relieve myself. The water dripped down my face, running the sweat down with it. I stretched a little before walked out of the elaborate bathroom and back into the large, ornate bedroom. The gold-lined clock at the end of the room read 4:45 am.

After reviving Axe and cleaning up the diablo mess, we left Los Demonios and reached Cressida at a little after midnight. It was even later when we had given our report to the Crowns, so they told us to just stay at the palace until morning. We always had the day after official missions off anyways.

So, I stayed in one of the many large guest bedrooms which consisted of a lounge area, kitchen, the actual bedroom, and the bathroom. It reminded me of my dorm room back in the Alpha Suite, except everything was ten times bigger and covered in gold. And there were paintings on the walls depicting beautiful sceneries, which was a welcome addition.

I had hoped sleeping in a new place and my total exhaustion would keep the nightmares at bay, but I guess dreams held no rules. I had woken up dreaming of prisons, little girls, blood, and drowning in bodies of water. And, unsurprisingly, I had thrown up once again. If I had been at school, I might've gone to train or hung out at the library, but I had no idea how to get around the palace plus the diablo mission had sapped all of my energy. So I settled for crawling back into the ten-by-ten bed.

I twisted and turned, my muscles clenched, my mother's voice ringing in my ears. But today, it was paired with the voice of the Crown Fortier. He told me just 18 hours ago that I could visit my mother if I wanted to. The decision weighed on my chest in the early hours of the day, making me even more tense than normal. I didn't even see my mother during the Court case—my lawyer, who happened to be Echo's mother, took care of it all for me so that I didn't have to go to the Court. Then Echo's family took me in and we lived in the Midwest, just off the major lakes, nowhere near Cressida. The last time I saw my mother was the night of my father's death when she had been in her crazed state. I don't know if I could face her again.

But what did I have to lose? Hours of trying for sleep that would never come? The rest of my years wasted by nightmares that refused to leave?

I only hesitated for a moment longer before climbing out of bed. Changing out of my clothes, I grabbed the room's temporary key card. I was about to walk out the door when I paused and went back to grab my daggers, stuffing them under my sleeves. I wasn't expecting a fight, but I still enjoyed their presence.

I walked out the door and down the wide hall where a light glowed in another hallway. Two guards, one of each assassin color, stood chatting amongst themselves in hushed voices. I made my best effort to make as little sound as possible as I walked across the marble floor, though I wasn't sure why.

The guards turned when I was about five feet away. One man raised an eyebrow. I thought about just walking past them, but realized I didn't know where I was going. I paused and cleared my throat.

"I would like to see the Crown Fortier."

"No one is permitted to enter his supremacy's chambers at this time," the Unassailable guard informed.

"It's important," I insisted.

The guard tilted his head before saying, "I could send a message to him in the morning."