Page 80 of Trivium

Barrow had been training Ahmina for weeks but they never met this late, and Zeina was unprepared for any sort of run in.

All she had to do was play the part of Ahmina and get out of the session as soon as possible, she reminded herself. She could do that.

Barrow led her into the classroom, the door closing with a soft click behind them.

“Do you remember what we covered yesterday?” he asked.

“Yes,” was all she said as she turned to face him, even though she didn’t have a clue. He put his hand on her waist and pulled her closer, his scent wafting over her, making her nose scrunch. He smelled like damp, fallen leaves—like something once beautiful, now rotting and decrepit.

Without warning, he undid his belt buckle, sending her pulse flying.

“If you do this for me, I will return the favor.” It felt more like an order than a request.

“Ew, get off me!” Zeina felt caged at the thought of it. Disgust coiled in her stomach.

Barrow looked at her, confused. “I thought you were willing to do whatever it takes to make it here at the Academy.” His nostrils flared. Zeina’s eyes darted around, looking for all the ways she could escape. Barrow had her by the arm, not tightly though; he probably expected her to ease into submission, just like Ahmina.

But Zeina wasn’t Ahmina.

And Zeina had been escaping the hands of captors her entire life.

She twisted and his arm followed, causing it to bend in an unnatural way. He let go, but it was too late; Zeina was too fast. “AHHHRRHGGG.” He screamed as he fell, clutching his arm with his free hand. “Bitch!” Spit flew from his mouth, hitting her in the face. But she was free of his grasp.

As he went to stand, he stumbled, tripping over his own leg. And a little bit of satisfaction grew inside of her. She was about to use his stumble to counterattack, when suddenly, he became disoriented.

Frustrated, he tried to get control of his limbs before lunging at Zeina. Again, she slipped his grasp, causing him to fall into a desk, his white knuckles clinging to it like it was the only thing keeping him upright.

Barrow tried to stand, but fell backward, dizzy.

A sense of relief washed over Zeina as his head cracked on the stone ground. She stared at his lifeless body, breathing hard.

“Well, that didn’t take long.” The woman’s voice startled her, but Zeina would recognize it anywhere. Ahmina.

Zeina looked behind her. Ahmina’s face looked haunted. Dark circles framed her eyes, and her jaw had gotten sharper. Ahmina glanced down at Barrow and back up to Zeina before shutting the classroom door behind her.

“You did this?” Zeina blinked.

“Just a simple anesthetic potion I bought from the village. But he should be out for a while.”

Zeina couldn’t shield the surprise written on her face. “Nicely done.”

“You’ve been stalking me,” Ahmina said, stepping closer. “Feeding me potions… why?”

Zeina swallowed the lump in her throat and remained silent.

Ahmina studied her, and Zeina couldn’t help but notice the depth in her golden eyes. She had never been this close to Ahmina before, and her eyes captivated her. She wondered if this was how others felt when they looked at her.

“At first, I thought I was seeing things.” Ahmina pulled out a chair with a scrape and sat down gently. “I was so tired and stressed, I assumed it was my mind playing tricks on me.” A soft smile graced her lips. “But then I caught you slipping into my dorm with a vile and I knew.”

“Why didn’t you do anything?” Zeina asked, curious.

“Because I was getting better. My mind was becoming clearer. Those goddess awful headaches were decreasing. My skills were improving… and I thought, whatever it is you’re giving me, I didn’t want it to stop. But what I didn’t understand was why?”

Zeina cleared her throat. “He was poisoning you. That’s why you were doing so poorly. Why you were forgetting things.”

“I had no idea.”

“He used a complex potion, making it hard for you to identify that you were being poisoned at all. It’s actually impressive you discovered what I was doing given your, you know, mental state.”