Crimson Frost by Jennifer Estep Read Free Book Online Page A

whenever I was scared, upset, or worried. Right now, I was closer to panic—okay, sheer terror—than anything else, but I made myself keep breathing.
    The panic slowly passed, although worry and fear still gnawed at my heart like rats chewing on a block of cheese. I finally looked at the others. Metis had a sick, stricken expression on her face, while anger made Nickamedes’s cheeks burn. Ajax simply looked furious with his stiff shoulders and clenched fists, his onyx skin gleaming underneath the lights. Even Sergei, Inari, and Alexei were giving me sympathetic glances at this point. Only Linus remained calm and emotionless, his blank face giving nothing away of his true feelings.
    “I didn’t do anything wrong,” I said again in a much fainter tone. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
    “That remains to be decided,” Linus said. “Rest assured that we will conduct a thorough investigation and that you will receive a fair and balanced trial.”
    “Yeah,” I said, sarcasm creeping back into my voice. “Because hauling me up there on stage at the amphitheater and announcing my supposed crimes to the whole freaking academy was such a fair and balanced thing to do.”
    Nickamedes’s hand tightened on my shoulder, reminding me that I should keep my mouth shut, but the fear, shock, and panic were quickly simmering away, leaving nothing behind but anger. I embraced the anger, gathered up every single scrap of it and let the emotion sizzle around my heart until it had burned away everything else. As long as I was angry, I couldn’t think about how serious the situation was or how close I was to losing everything that had become important to me these past few months at Mythos—including my life.
    Linus’s eyes narrowed at my words, but his face remained smooth. “Although I am personally against it, the academy bylaws state that you may remain at Mythos and continue with your classes and other school activities until the investigation and trial are complete and a decision is reached regarding your guilt or innocence.”
    Some of the tightness in my chest eased. At least I would still be at the academy with Logan, Daphne, and my other friends, not to mention Metis, Ajax, and Nickamedes. Together, we would find a way to get me out of this. I knew we would. We’d survived everything the Reapers had thrown at us so far. We’d survive this too.
    “But your movements are restricted to campus, and you will be supervised and watched at all times,” Linus continued. “In order to minimize the invasion and distraction to the other students, Alexei will be responsible for you during the day. He will accompany you everywhere you go on the academy grounds—your classes, the dining hall, the library, everywhere.”
    So not only was I to be investigated and put on trial, but I was going to have my own personal shadow too. Actually, I imagined he’d be more like a spy, reporting my every move back to the Protectorate and getting me into even more trouble if I so much as chewed gum in class or cut across the grass on the quad instead of walking on the stone paths. Terrific. Just terrific.
    “You will not interfere with Alexei in any way, and any attempts by you to slip away from him will result in your being kept here in the academy prison for the duration of the investigation and trial,” Linus said. “Do you understand, Miss Frost?”
    “Oh yeah. I understand perfectly,” I muttered.
    Alexei looked at me. He kept his face blank, but once again, I saw the curiosity in his eyes. I wondered why he’d been chosen for guard duty. Most likely it was because he was Sergei’s son. I wondered if being in the Protectorate was a family thing, like being a cop, firefighter, or doctor was in some regular mortal families. I’d have to ask Logan. I’d have to ask the Spartan about a lot of things—and why his dad seemed to hate me when I’d never even met him before today.
    “Inari and Sergei will take turns watching your dorm at