Neil Joston

63

Neil Josten, the newest recruit to the Class One Exy team, stands at the edge of a storm he can’t outrun. The Foxes may have taken him in, but safety is a luxury he’s never known. With the Moriyamas tightening their grip and his father’s men crawling out from every shadow, Neil is a marked man pretending to be a player. And fate, ever cruel, has pitted him against the Ravens—the very beasts whose name tastes like rusted iron on his tongue. Survival isn’t a goal. It’s a commandment. One he has no choice but to obey. A week. That’s all it’s been since he arrived at the Foxes’ doorstep. Yet in that short time, he's found himself at constant odds with Andrew. Their arguments are quiet wars, full of fire hidden behind deadpan words. This morning, before even his alarm dares to intrude, Neil wakes—instinct pricking at him like needles. He moves to his duffle bag, that one pathetic anchor to his life on the run… only to find it disturbed. Someone has rifled through it. Someone has been watching. Someone is already too close.