Chapter 33
Raven
The room fell silent as Davis's question hung in the air.
A sudden burst of noise erupted from the hallway. The door swung open wider as boys crowded around, pushing and whispering, eager to witness the confrontation.
Maddie squeezed through the spectators, immediately taking her place beside Becca. Their exchanged glance screamed collusion. Good. Of course you'd come to watch my humiliation. Nothing brings vultures together like the smell of fresh blood.
I met Davis's glare with practiced indifference. In my past life, I'd stared down warlords and assassins without blinking. This man, with his limited power and inflated ego, was nothing.
"If I said no, would you believe me?" I asked, my tone deliberately bored.
His face darkened to a dangerous shade of purple. "Are you asking me or am I asking you, Martinez? Your attitude has been nothing but disrespectful since you arrived." He straightened, using his height advantage. "No meals tomorrow. And right now, you're going to apologize to Wilson for whatever part you played in this."
Something cold and familiar settled in my chest. It was the same feeling I got before eliminating a particularly annoying target—a mixture of irritation and resolve. I'd survived interrogations by people who killed for fun. This amateur hour wasn't just beneath me; it was testing my patience.
I turned away, moving toward my bunk with deliberate slowness. The move was calculated—a dismissal more insulting than any words.
"Where do you think you're going?" Davis's voice rose. "I didn't dismiss you, recruit!"
His hand clamped down on my shoulder—a critical error.
My body reacted before my mind could intervene. A lifetime of conditioning triggered by a simple touch. I pivoted, ducked under his arm, and executed a perfect shoulder throw. Davis—all two hundred and thirty pounds of former Navy SEAL—went airborne for a split second before crashing to the floor with a thunderous impact that shook the entire barracks.
The room erupted. Girls screamed. Boys broke into wild cheers and applause.
"Holy shit! She just flipped Davis like he was a rag doll!"
"The drill sergeant just got served by a girl half his size!"
"That's the girl who smoked Jax at Mulholland! She's a fucking legend!"
"Davis just got his ass handed to him! This is better than pay-per-view!"
Davis lay sprawled on the floor, momentarily stunned. A trickle of blood escaped the corner of his mouth where he'd bitten his lip on impact. I assessed the situation rapidly—this could go very badly or... I could control the narrative.
I chose the latter.
"Oh my god!" I gasped, voice rising to a pitch that would make any acting coach proud. I dropped to my knees beside him, extending my hand. "I'm so sorry, Lieutenant Commander! You grabbed me and I got so startled... I don't even know what happened! I was panicking and then you were just... on the ground!"
Davis slowly pushed himself up, wiping blood from his lip. His eyes narrowed to dangerous slits, but he was acutely aware of his audience—dozens of students watching, phones potentially recording. A military man humiliated by a teenage girl was not a good look.
"Sir," I continued, sugary sweet, "you must have slipped. I mean, how could someone like me throw someone like you? That's physically impossible, right?"
A lifeline. I was offering him a way to save face. Inside, I was laughing. Men like Davis were all the same—their pride was both their armor and their Achilles' heel.
The corner of his mouth twitched. "Watch your footing next time, Martinez," he said, accepting my outstretched hand but barely using it to stand.
The gathered students continued their excited chatter. Several boys gave me thumbs up and impressed nods. I could practically see Davis calculating the damage to his reputation versus the cost of acknowledging what really happened.
Becca stood frozen, her theatrical tears forgotten. She glanced frantically between Davis and me, realizing her plan had backfired spectacularly.
One of my other roommates—the quiet one who had barely spoken—suddenly stepped forward. "Sir," she said, voice trembling, "Becca cut up her own uniform. I saw her do it and hide the scissors under Raven's bed."
The second roommate nodded quickly. "It's true. She said she was going to 'teach the freak a lesson' for showing everyone up during training."
Maddie, sensing the shift in power, immediately stepped away from Becca as if she carried a contagious disease. "That's disgusting," she declared, as if she hadn't been eagerly awaiting my downfall moments before. "You can't just frame people because you're jealous, Becca. Sir, she should be severely disciplined."
The speed of Maddie's betrayal was almost impressive. Almost. I'd seen loyalty sold for much less in my past life. At least Maddie was predictable in her disloyalty.
Becca's mouth opened and closed like a landed fish. "I—that's not—they're lying!"
Davis's expression transformed into something truly terrifying as he turned his attention from me to Becca. If looks could kill, Becca would have spontaneously combusted.
"WILSON!" he bellowed, making everyone flinch except me. "OUTSIDE. NOW!"
Becca took a step back, but Davis wasn't having it. He grabbed her by the arm and practically dragged her through the door. Through the open doorway, we could all hear him.
"YOU WILL DO PUSH-UPS IN THE MUD UNTIL SUNRISE! THEN YOU WILL RUN THE OBSTACLE COURSE FIVE TIMES WITH A FULL PACK! THEN YOU WILL CLEAN EVERY BATHROOM ON THIS BASE WITH YOUR TOOTHBRUSH! IS THAT UNDERSTOOD?"
Becca's sobbing response was inaudible, but Davis's voice carried clearly. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU, RECRUIT!"
"Yes, sir!" came the tearful reply.
"AND AFTER THAT, YOU'LL WRITE A FIVE-THOUSAND-WORD ESSAY ON INTEGRITY IN THE MILITARY!"
I calmly collected my toiletries and headed for the showers, feeling Maya fall into step beside me.
"How did you do that?" she whispered, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and awe. "He must weigh twice what you do!"
I shrugged casually, a hint of a smirk playing at my lips. "Oh, that? I was actually holding back. If I hadn't pulled the throw at the last second, he'd still be unconscious."