The Apollo Academy (28 page)

“Sky, I had a blast tonight,” she finally admitted. “Even when you’re a complete asshole, I know you mean well.”

Sky carefully placed his head against hers. “I know I’ve been tough on you, but I wanted to make sure you took training seriously and were the best you could be.” He paused and Aurora placed one of her hands on his chest, wanting to feel his words when he spoke. “I wasn’t expecting to like you, but the more you yelled at me, the more that changed. And then I thought you were with Zane.”

Aurora sighed and buried her head further into Sky’s neck. “Yeah, well, Zane sorta stood me up tonight.” Aurora felt Sky nod his head. He began rubbing her back, comforting her.

“Zane does care about you. He’s driven himself ragged trying to keep you safe.”

“Why are you telling me this?” She felt the heat of her own breath brush against his neck.

“I guess I just want you to be happy.” He pulled her back so they were looking at each other. “Listen, there’s something I have to tell you—”

Aurora never got to hear what Sky was going to say.

The door to the hovercar flew open.

ZANE

W
here was she? Zane walked onto the dance floor, pushing his way through the crowd of moving bodies, trying to find Aurora. He knew he was late, but he never thought she’d actually leave the dance without waiting for him.

Zane stopped in the middle of the dance floor and enlarged the screen on his techiwatch, trying to hail Aurora. His screen remained blank.

He tried Akemi. A few minutes later his friend’s face appeared on the screen.

“Zane, where are you?”

“I’m at the dance. Where are you? Is Aurora with you?” Zane began making his way off the dance floor and almost ran into a crowd of reporters. He quickly skirted out of their way but not before he heard the questions they were asking an older man in the corner.

“Mr. Titon, are you aware your daughter was stood up?” Someone said in that annoying, provoking voice all reporters seemed to master.

Zane stopped when he spotted the all too familiar reporter and the man she was talking to, Collin Titon.
You’ve got to be kidding me!
If there weren’t so many people around, he’d probably punch that fucker in the face. There were so many things wrong with this situation. Did he know about him? That Zane’s DNA had been altered? And how in the world did the reporter know Zane was running late? Better yet, why was this news?

“Zane!” Kaylana’s face replaced Akemi’s on the screen. “You’ve got to listen to me—”

“Hold on.” Zane made his way outside. He pushed thoughts of Collin Titon and his own issues away. He would come up with a plan for that later.

“Okay, I can hear you. Where’s Aurora?”

“I don’t know,” Kaylana yelled. “She was supposed to come back to our room. But she’s not here.” Tears streamed down Kaylana’s face. “Do you think she’s okay?”

“Why did you leave her
alone
?” Zane knew his voice sounded cold.

Kaylana rolled her eyes. “
Maybe
because she was mortified at being stood up and wanted to be by herself!”

“I’ll find her. Stay there and wait. She might come back.” Zane snapped the screen closed. It’s not like it was his fault he had to deal with his own major issues.
Why Titon Technologies?
If only he had left with Akemi for the dance. It would have saved him from finding out that they were behind his genetic alteration. Who knew what would have happened between him and Aurora if he had only kept running down the hallway, ignoring Dr. Stevenson?

None of that mattered. He needed to find Aurora. Zane still couldn’t get his mind wrapped around it. Sky was apparently an illegitimate son of Henry Dagan.

Where would she go? The Apollo 1 launch pad?

Zane turned his attention to the sleek black hovercar idling in front of the Academy’s entrance. He just knew she was in there.

Zane ran down the motorized steps and yanked the hovercar’s door open. He practically pulled the thing off its hinges, but he didn’t look to see if it held.

Aurora, dressed in a beautiful green gown with her hair falling down her back, was positioned on Sky’s lap. Zane glared at the hand that rested on Aurora’s flushed cheek.

Aurora jumped off Sky’s lap, adjusting her long gown around her.

Giving him an open path to Sky.

Before Zane even knew what he was doing, he was inside the hovercar, trying to drag Sky out.

Sky was so un-prepared for his attack that Zane somehow managed to pull him stumbling out of the car. Before Sky could get his bearings, Zane punched him in the jaw.

The thunderous sound of his fist hitting Sky’s chin was the only indication that Zane had hit his mark. The pain in his hand didn’t even register.

“What is wrong with you?” Aurora yelled, trying to maneuver out of the car in her long dress.

He ignored her, focusing on Sky’s widened eyes.

Sky rubbed his jaw. “Zane, I’m not fighting you over Aurora. She’s a big girl and can make her own decisions.”

Zane clenched his fists, remembering the real reason he should be pissed.

“What is wrong with you? You’re the one who stood me up! And said you just wanted to be friends.” Aurora stood with her hands on her hips.

Zane glared at Sky. “That’s not why I’m here, Aurora. I just thought you should know that Sky is actually a Dagan, but maybe that’s okay with you. You two certainly looked cozy.” Zane snapped his mouth shut. What was wrong with him?

Sky’s body tensed as he tried to explain. “I had nothing to do with it, I swear.”

“Dagan?” Aurora’s eyes were so wide that she almost looked like a beautiful cartoon character. “What’s your whole name, Sky?”

“Skyller Dagan, though I obviously don’t go by that.” Sky’s shoulders slumped and his mouth opened, but Aurora didn’t give him a chance to speak again. Zane silently watched the drama unfold, unsure of how his life had gotten so complicated. He always thought life at the Academy would be so much easier: food, shelter, a chance to prove himself better than an unknown. But that was before his past caught up with him and his life intertwined with Aurora’s. For better or worse, he was connected to her—it was some sort of sick fate that the first person he loved was also the key to unlocking his past.

AURORA

A
urora took slow, steady breaths, trying not to explode.

They didn’t work.

“So this is why you’ve been so hard on me? Because I’m the daughter of your father’s biggest enemy?” Aurora looked back at the car and waved her hands. “Was that all some sort of joke? You didn’t mean any of it, did you? Were you actually trying to kill me or just get me kicked out?” Aurora tried not to sound hurt, but she wasn’t sure she was pulling it off.

“I had nothing to do with your accidents. Every word out of my mouth has been the truth,” Sky gritted out. He crossed his arms, his triceps flexing in tension.

“Aurora, he’s a
Dagan
. The techspider is a Frontier Solution’s product.” Zane said, making Aurora realize he was witnessing this entire event. She should have cared, but she couldn’t find it anywhere in her.

“My last name is
not
Dagan. I was never allowed to have that name because my father didn’t want anyone knowing about me. Not that I ever wanted it anyway.” Sky kicked something on the ground. “Wow, Zane. And I actually thought we were becoming friends. If this is how you want to play, then let’s play.” Sky rolled his eyes, glancing from Zane to her. “Aurora, there’s something Zane isn’t telling you either. You’re precious Zane has been keeping secrets from you too. He’s an— “

“Enough!” Aurora yelled. “I’m well aware that you’re both keeping secrets. And I will not be involved in some sort of Titon-Dagan drama.” She hiked up the bottom of her dress, choosing to walk up the stairs instead of taking the moving ones. Aurora needed to let off steam somehow. She was sick of everyone around her hiding things. Aurora already knew Zane was keeping things from her, and it stung that he still didn’t trust her. But she wouldn’t have Sky force his hand.

Sky grabbed Aurora’s shoulder as she walked past him, but she pulled away from his touch. “Listen, I swear I’d never hurt you.” Sky tried to smile, showing her that half dimple. “Everything I’ve said is true.”

Aurora didn’t want to believe that anyone was able to dupe her so completely. “Prove you had nothing to do with my accidents. You have to know something.”

“I was going to tell you everything in the car.” Sky looked at his feet as he paced across the step he was standing on. “I think Hailen is the one placing the techspiders—”

“We already suspected that, but why?” Aurora asked. They kept circling around the same suspects, but never finding any proof.

“Hailen confronted me about who I was the day of the neutral buoyancy training. She hinted that she was close to my half-brother, Rowan.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything? I talked to you that night.” Zane ran up the two steps separating them, his fists clenched together.

“I couldn’t say anything. Hailen blackmailed me. If I had said anything to anyone about my suspicions, she would have exposed my heritage and found a way to blame the attacks on me.” Sky glanced at Aurora but quickly averted his gaze.

“That’s no excuse.” Zane stepped forward, his muscles twitching. It looked like he was just waiting for a reason to punch Sky again.

Sky turned to face Aurora, his eyes imploring hers. “Would you have believed me, or Hailen once you heard my
real
name?”

Aurora sighed. She honestly didn’t know what she would have thought. “I guess we’ll never know now, will we?” Aurora glanced at Zane, realizing she wasn’t even upset with him for standing her up anymore. “If Hailen planted the techspiders, then we’ll find more in her room. Can you get me a copy of the ventilation system?”

“Are you actually going to listen to him?” Zane jerked his thumb toward Sky.

“Yeah, I am.” Aurora looked directly at Zane as she said it. She needed him to know that he could trust her too.

Zane nodded, looking down.

Sky tried to reach out to Aurora, but she backed away, putting her closer to Zane. She wasn’t stupid. She wasn’t completely sure she should trust Sky, but she’d give him a chance to prove himself. “Sky, I’m going to take your word for now. If what you believe is true, then Hailen is the one that needs to go. Once she’s gone, Rowan won’t have access to me anymore. And if you did have something to do with this, I should be safe when you’re on the Moon.”

Sky flinched, color draining from his face. “I’m sorry I kept you in danger. I should’ve trusted you.” Sky moved closer to Aurora, and this time she let him.

He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers leaving a trail of fire.

“I won’t say anything about your past unless I need to,” Aurora promised. She turned and walked up the steps, calling over her shoulder when Zane and Sky didn’t follow. “You coming? We have things to do.”

They both nodded, silently running up the steps next to her.