Crossroads (Crossroads Academy #1)

by J.J. Bonds

  **********

  I’m aware of a presence in the room even before I open my eyes. I slide my hand under the pillow and grab Nik’s ruby encrusted dagger. Will this nightmare never end?

  “Katia? Are you awake?”

  “Aldo?” I release the knife and roll over. Aldo is sitting at my desk. From the looks of it, he’s been there a while.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you,” he apologizes. “I let you sleep as long as I could. I’ve already spoken to the others.”

  I sit up and throw the covers back, trying to clear the cobwebs of sleep from my brain.

  “What are you doing here?” I glance at the clock. It’s late afternoon. I slept most of the day.

  “I was worried about you after our talk yesterday. I knew you weren’t going to stay put. When I couldn’t get you or Anya on the phone last night, I had Viktor charter a plane.”

  He says this as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. Who can’t charter a private international flight at a moment’s notice? I smile and pull my knees up to my chest as I wrap my arms around them. It makes a good chin rest. For the first time I notice Viktor’s presence. He stands stoically in the corner of the room hands clasped together. I know from experience that he could spring to action at a seconds notice. His relaxed demeanor is surprisingly deceptive.

  “Hello, Viktor.”

  “Katia.” He’s a man of few words. It’s one of the things I like about him. He hasn’t changed a bit since I last saw him. He’s a hulk of a man, standing 6’4. His head is shaved, and the only telltale sign of his natural hair color comes from his goatee, which is brown like his eyes. More often than not, Viktor’s eyes are hidden behind dark sunglasses. Today is no exception. He always wears a black suit with a black shirt and shoes. I’ve never seen him wear anything with color. Everything about him says he means business. I feel safer just having him here.

  Aldo clears his throat, and my attention returns immediately to him.

  “I owe you an apology, Katia. It was arrogant of me to assume that I could protect you from the harsh realities of this world. I knew from the time Viktor and I found you that your sire might come looking for you some day. When the dreams started, I should have told you what I suspected.” He pauses, shaking his head. “Instead, I tried to control the situation by having Anya keep an eye on you. I just wanted to protect you. You had been through so much already.”

  “I know you did what you thought was right Aldo, but I’m not a child. I don’t need to be protected from everything that goes bump in the night,” I tell him. “You have to let me stand on my own two feet. I’m stronger now. I deserve the truth, and I deserve the right to choose for myself.”

  “You killed him?” he asks. His tone is emotionless and I wonder how my answer will be received, if it will please him.

  “Yes, with Nik’s help.” I can’t take all of the credit. I might not have lived through the night on my own.

  “Despite the Nexus you were able to maintain your free will and overpower him?” he asks, now clearly intrigued. He moves to the edge of his seat anticipating my reply.

  “It wasn’t easy. To be honest, I wasn’t sure I could do it at first.” I wrap myself in the comforter that lies at the foot of the bed. It’s not really for warmth. It’s for security. “But, I couldn’t let him kill Nik,” I say fiercely. “I couldn’t let him kill anyone else. I did what had to be done.”

  He looks out the window, seemingly contemplating his next words.

  “Do you remember the night that Viktor and I came for you in that tenement?”

  “How could I forget? I’d just drained a drug dealer. But he was a child. He couldn’t have been any older than sixteen or seventeen.”

  “We came to kill you.”

  His words are a revelation to me. I had never considered that Aldo had come for me with the intent to kill. He never presented himself to me as a threat. Not even then.

  “I was in New York for a Council meeting, and there was talk of a murder spree in the city. We all suspected it was the work of a mixed-blood.” He leans back in his chair and crosses his legs. “They were going to send a local Linkuri team, but I volunteered Viktor instead.” He pauses. “I will never know what compelled me to do it. I just knew that I had to go, that it had to be us. I hadn’t been on a mission like that in ages,” he tells me shaking his head.

  I’m speechless. I guess I hadn’t thought about what kind of irregularity it would have taken to get Aldo on the hunt again. To say it was beneath his position would be a gross understatement.

  “When I saw you crouching over that child, remorse evident in your face, repulsed by your actions and longing for death, I knew that you could be saved. I had great faith in you, and that is why I brought you to my home in Romania. You, too, were a child in need of help.” He looks at me guiltily, and I wonder what’s coming next. “I did something then with the best of intentions that I never disclosed to you.”

  I look from Aldo to Viktor and back. Their faces reveal nothing. The suspense is killing me! Aldo has never been so forthcoming with me before. Usually our conversations are fraught with obscurity and cryptic messages. We’ve never talked much about the things that happened before I came to live with him, before he adopted me into his family.

  “I began feeding you with my own blood. I stored it and diluted it with small amounts of animal blood so that you wouldn’t know. I only wanted to offer you control. I wanted to give you the ability to tame the thirst that comes with age. But with that control came speed, strength, and wisdom.”

  I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Aldo’s blood runs through my veins? He is one of the oldest living elders. The power of his blood is virtually unmatched. There are those who would trade their soul for a vial of it. I wonder if it was the presence of his blood that allowed me to neutralize the Vampiric Nexus with Luka. I have no doubt that, although I’d already been transfigured, the effect of his blood passing through my body would have sparked additional changes, not the least of which would be increased mental and physical strength.

  “I don’t understand. Why?” I’m totally confused at this point. Feeding on Aldo’s blood is completely out of the realm of things that are likely to happen. We are way past the impossibility of dying a human and waking up a vampire now.

  “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to doubt your own morality or control. Your initial transgressions do not define you, Katia. You will be so much more than that, if only you would let go of the past and embrace your future.”

  He sees me in a way that no one else does. I have no idea what gives him such confidence in me, but I’m touched by it. Still, my mind is reeling with the enormity of this news. What kind of untapped power am I sitting on? If what Aldo says is true, then it may only be my conscious mind that is holding me back. And what of the risk? It’s dangerous enough that he’s passing me off as his heir. But, if anyone knew that he’d fed me with his own blood? I can’t even think of the repercussions.

  “Aldo, you take too many risks for me.” I watch as he toys with the bloodstone ring. Anastasia. “I can’t replace her, Aldo.” His body goes rigid. I’ve struck a chord.

  “I never expected you to.” His face is sad. I’ve hurt him. I throw back the blankets and climb from the bed. I go to Aldo’s side and kneel by his chair. Wanting to make things right, I kiss his hand gently to show gratitude for his continued grace.

  “Tell me about her.” We’ve never discussed Anastasia. Although I pretend to be born of her bloodline, even I don’t know the real story about what happened to her. Lissette warned me long ago that the subject was off limits. But today is a day of revelations, so I decide to push my luck.

  “Anastasia.” He says her name reverently and closes his eyes. They remain closed as her story unfolds. “She was always strong willed as a child. As a young woman she was no different. She was like you in that way.” He opens his eyes then and looks out the window. “Things were very different then. Wome
n did not enjoy such equality, nor did vampires who were de sange amestecat. The Consiliul de Batrani was less forgiving, and punishments from the Linkuri were swift and bloody. Our father was a ruthless man. He ruled by fear. Anastasia was one of the few people that ever crossed him and lived.” He smiles sadly and I am anxious to know the rest of the story.

  “I found out that Anastasia had entered into a relationship with one of our servants, a vampire of mixed-blood. I was afraid of what would happen if someone else told my father, so I did it myself. In hind sight, I don’t know if I was trying to protect her or myself.” I glance at Viktor to see if he’s as engaged in the story as I am. His stony face gives nothing away. I quickly return my gaze to Aldo.

  “My father was so angry with her when he found out. He tore his chamber apart. I was immediately sorry I’d told, but the damage could not be undone. He would not stand for such a betrayal.” Aldo pauses again turning to face me. “Back then this type of scandal would have cost him his reputation. Imagine how it would have looked if he couldn’t even control his own house. His own daughter consorting with de sange amestecat? It was the worst kind of betrayal.”

  The implications are obvious. The story would have spread like wildfire and would have been used to undermine his authority. Still, I’m disturbed. Maybe it’s because I was born human, but I really don’t see what difference it makes. Purity of blood has nothing to do with strength of character or the bonds of love. Crossroads has shown me that.

  “I’ve never known for certain, but I believe my father had Anastasia killed that very night by the Linkuri. I never saw her again and was forbidden to mention her name. Eventually stories spread about her running away.” He shrugs, raking a hand over his closely cropped hair. “I’m certain my father perpetuated them.”

  Aldo’s guilt is tangible. Living all these years with the death of his own twin sister on his conscience couldn’t be easy. I guess that explains his fondness for me. And his need for redemption. I feel the full weight of his need descend upon my shoulders.

  Anya was right. His judgment is clouded when it comes to me. Not that it matters. This revelation does nothing to shake my loyalty to him. Aldo gave me a second chance at life, and I intend to make the most of it.

  “Enough of this gloom,” he orders, strength returning to his voice as he stands. I join him, straightening up as well. “This is a day for celebration. You are free of that abysmal creature Luka and those horrific nightmares.”

  “Aren’t you forgetting something,” I ask, eyeing him skeptically.

  “What’s that?”

  “Blaine. He isn’t going to stay quiet about what’s transpired here. He knows everything.”

  “Ah, yes. Blaine. I’ve taken care of that. As I said, I visited with the others while you slept.” His tone is ice cold. It sends a chill down my spine. Again, I’m reminded of Aldo’s powerful persona in the outside world. Surely he wouldn’t have taken action against Blaine? My gaze slides to Viktor. He is a punisher by trade. It’s what he does.

  Both men begin to laugh.

  “Not to worry, Katia. Blaine is fine. I had a little chat with him about how nice it might be to have the head of the Consiliul de Batrani owe him a favor. He was beside himself to comply in light of the traitorous acts that he committed against you. He’s sworn an oath to me that I can assure you he will not break.”

  I don’t even want to think about the threat that would make Aldo so confident in Blaine’s loyalty, given his open dislike of everything related to me.

  “Besides,” he chuckles. “I planted a suggestion in his subconscious that will be difficult for him to overcome.”

  I’m intrigued. I’ve heard of vampires that are able to influence the weak minded and wonder if this is a talent Aldo possesses, but don’t ask. Some things are better left unsaid. Whatever it is, it’s between Blaine and Aldo.

  “Sir.”

  Viktor says only this one word, but its meaning is clear to Aldo. Time to go. Our time together is always so short as of late. I resign myself to that fact and hug them both tightly, knowing I’ll be home in Romania in just a few short months. Besides, I have a few loose ends of my own to tie up.

  Epilogue

  The warm spring breeze caresses my arms and lifts a few strands of hair from the collar of my shirt. This mornings’ rain has left the campus fresh and clean. I stroll about among the roses, imagining that the rain has also washed away the tragedy of recent weeks. I inhale the scents of the garden and smile. I feel as light as air.

  I’m relieved to have finally told Shaye the truth about my past. She deserved to hear it from me. The lies had gone on too long, and Anya was right: I do need friends. Besides, I know that I can trust Shaye with my life. I have no regrets about sharing this piece of myself with her.

  I reach out to pluck one of the blossoms from its thorny branch and stop suddenly. I am no longer alone in the garden.

  “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

  Nik. What’s he doing up so early? And why is he wandering around in the garden? “Are you following me?” I look over my shoulder and give him a casual smile, letting him know I’m only half serious.

  “Maybe,” he returns coyly. There’s a twinkle in his eye. As usual, he’s goading me.

  “Oh? I see your manners haven’t improved.” I twist the rosebud from the bush and bring it to my nose, inhaling deeply. The scent is heady and intoxicating.

  “You owe me a rematch,” he says simply. “We never did get to finish our last session. Unless you aren’t up to it?”

  My pulse quickens at the thought of our last match. I recall the slap that ended things early and the sensuous kiss that brought it on. I part my lips to reply and think better of it. I feel a grin spread over my face, confident for the first time that it will be Nik who yields.

  About the Author

  J.J. Bonds is an avid reader, writer, and blogger. J.J. grew up in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and, after a few years of city living has returned to her quiet hometown, where her passion for writing and all things paranormal keeps life interesting. Crossroads is her debut novel and the first in the Crossroads Academy trilogy. J.J. is currently working on book two of the series with the loving support of her husband and the many distractions provided her two rambunctious dogs.

  To connect with J.J. online, visit https://www.jjbonds.com or https://www.facebook.com/jjbondsfanpage.

  Credits

  Cover art and design by Rachel Rivera of Parajunkee Design.

  Photography provided by Andrei Ivan.

  Cover model, Alice Oprescu.

  Editing by Megan French.