Astrid turned hearing that voice and there he stood.
Same posture. Same unbothered face. Same folded arms that made her want to rip them clean off his body and beat him with them until that expression finally changed.
Behind him stood Roxana. And around her, Seris, Seraphina, and Elira. All of them looking at Astrid with varying degrees of concern that she didn't ask for and didn't want.
Seris spoke first. "Professor, it's not the time to—"
Jax cut her off. "Leave this instance.... All of you."
Roxana stepped forward hesitantly. "She's injured and I don't think it's the right time to—"
Jax's tone dropped heavier. "I said leave us alone. I need to talk to her."
No one dared say another word. They retreated slowly, each of them glancing back at Astrid's condition, at the bloody hands and the cuts and the swollen knuckles and the nose that had only recently stopped bleeding. Then they were gone.
When the last footsteps faded, Jax spoke. "You think that was a win?"
