The Border Trilogy (Book #1) Enemies to lovers, Forbidden love

Part 1

Chapter 1

Eva

I opened my eyes slightly as the sun peeked in through my window, aiming straight into them. Giving a light groan, I sat up groggily in bed, stretched my arms and legs, and rubbed my eyes. I waited for the 'good morning' that always came from my sisters, who shared the room with me, but when it didn't, I looked around and noticed their beds were already empty and made.

Crap. I overslept.

Jumping out of bed, I quickly dressed, throwing on a pair of black leggings, a white tank top, and black boots before running outside to join the tribe.

Tonight is Hunting Night, a night that comes once a month during the moon's first or third quarter. During this time, everyone in the tribe plays a part in preparing for the long night ahead.

The adults spend the day readying their weapons and preparing themselves for the hunt. Boys over the age of eighteen assist the adults at the weapon preparatory grounds, while girls over the age of eighteen report to the counselors for our assignments, which vary from all kinds of important duties. I turned nineteen six months ago, so I'm in my second year "on assignment," as we call it. Mostly, we gather all the younger kids into the stone houses and make sure we're stocked up well enough to stay indoors until sunrise.

The stone houses are the most secure buildings in the tribe. Used every Hunting Night, during any attack or battle, and daily for classes, each one can hold up to fifty people, and there are eight of them throughout the village.

Our tribe is in its most vulnerable state on nights like these. With the majority of the adults gone, any tribe could see it as an open invitation to attack us. I don't think we've ever been attacked on a Hunting Night, but the threat still exists, so we take every precaution, which is why we switch between the first and third quarter of the moon every month.

After the hunters leave and all the children and teens are safely inside, the girls stay with them while the boys spend the night as Watchers and Protectors, guarding us from outside.

Watchers are like Protectors, but it takes less training to become one. They don't necessarily need to fight or restrain anyone during their shifts because tribe members know better than to defy a Watcher. Mainly, they make sure we aren't breaking any of the many laws we live under, harming each other, or doing anything wrong.

Basically, they watch and they report.

I suppose it's similar to the way humans get traffic tickets. They get caught, receive a ticket, and then show up before their own council.

I began walking toward one of our counselors, Brenda. She's sort of our boss. On Hunting Day, we go to her and ask for specific jobs, such as rallying the children, doing a head count, making sure there's an equal number of children in each stone house, all that fun stuff.

"Eva, wait up!" someone called from behind me.

I looked back to see my older sister, Katrina, running toward me.

"Nice of you to join us," she said, throwing an arm around my shoulders.

"Yeah, sorry. I went to bed kinda late last night."

"Mhm, I know. So tell me about it."

"About what?"

"Oh, don't play dumb. I know you were with Lucien!"

"Wha—how did you know?"

"I didn't. You just confirmed it." She smiled like she was proud of herself. "I figured no one else would be able to keep my little goody two-shoes sister out past curfew, not even that best friend of yours, Madeline."