Vendetta {The Serpents of Veilwood #1}

SEVEN - SERAPHINA

"I'm beginning to think all the students in Veilwood Academy are insane," I said as I pushed a tree branch out of my way. "There is no reason why anyone would willingly come out into the woods at night to play capture the flag. Why couldn't we do this during the day?"

"The nighttime comes with a certain thrill," Isa said, flashing her torch at a spider web. "At least that's what Bethany says."

I rolled my eyes, stepping over a rock. We had been walking for what felt like hours and my legs were tired. As we went deeper into the woods, it seemed to get darker, caving in like the sky was coming down.

"This place is creepy," I muttered.

And that was just the start. The woods got a lot creepier the further in we went. The trees were beginning to look gnarly, like claws stretching toward the sky. I kept my gaze on the dirt trail, trying not to think about how I had gotten myself into this.

If I didn't find the flag, Damian would probably use his wish to make me do something I definitely didn't want to. It was so hard being around him. If I had to get close to him to take him down, I needed to learn to tolerate him. 

"Do you hear that?" Isa whispered.

I stopped, straining my ears. I heard nothing. "No?"

She glanced around. I heard the sound of branches snapping, the rustle of leaves. Isa pointed her torch at a cluster of bushes a few feet ahead of us. There was a deer, its ears perked up, its brown eyes trained on us.

"Oh," I said, letting out a relieved breath. "It's just an animal."

It ducked, the leaves rustling as it ran. In its place was a green flag. My eyes widened. "Is that..."

"House Sage's flag!" Isa said excitedly. She jogged forward, bending to pick up the flag. "We found one."

"We did," I breathed. "We should see if we can still find some on the way, so we're not entirely useless to House Dahlia."

She nodded, tucking the flag in her pocket. We continued down the path, our pace quickening. My heart was pounding against my chest. The path we were on was a jagged one, with uneven ground and large rocks.

I slipped on one, cursing under my breath.

"Are you okay?" Isa asked.

"Just peachy," I muttered. "I'm convinced Damian only sent me out here to trip and die."

Isa snickered. "I doubt it," she said. "He has a huge crush on you."

My heart skipped a beat, and I gritted my teeth. "Why would you say that?"

"Because of the way he looks at you," she said, flashing her light at a tree.

I frowned.

"I have never seen Damian Delacroix even look twice at a girl," she added. "Let alone flirt. It was a bit hard to watch, unreal actually. He's not even being subtle about it."

"I don't like him," I said and even that was an understatement. He killed the only parent I had left. I despised him.

"Maybe not now," she said, chuckling. "Maybe this will be one of those love-hate situations."

"I would rather die," I said flatly.

"Woah, relax," she said, holding up her hands. "I was just saying. He seems really into you."

I flashed my torch at the bottom of a tree, my mouth twisting into a frown. I didn't care about Damian or his feelings for me.

"Damian Delacroix is not a good guy, Isa," I said. "Look, there's another flag!"