Bloodwood Academy Shifter: Semester Two (Bloodwood Year One Book 2)

by Rae Foxx

  “You seem to know much already.”

  “I found a book in the library, but I left with more questions than answers, which is why I am here.” Her smirk slid into oblivion with each word, the polite smile twisting into malice and then into something that reflected in the firelight looked like scorn.

  “Unfortunately, I may not be able to answer your questions,” she said, flitting toward a long table that was smothered with those jewel-bright clothes and the broadest array of food I had seen in a while.

  I gave Finn a look, but he held back, watching, surveying, standing behind a line of chairs so as to keep him and his junk out of the limelight. It was so adorably innocent. I couldn’t help but smile.

  Delaney was standing, waiting for me, looking like a poof of frosting beside the cakes, chocolates, pies, and apples that covered the table. They were all normal enough. But they were all covered in clay or twigs, or sprigs of lavender. The lavender made sense, but everything else made it look like no one had covered the food when a hurricane had come through and smothered everything.

  “Why not? It’s just a history.” Her smile snapped back with my question, and she offered me some weird red juice that was too warm to have come from fruit.

  I tried to act casual as fuck as I lifted the concoction to my nose and almost gagged. It smelled like someone had grown carrots, waited until an animal ate it and shit it out and decided, hmm, this would make a good festival punch.

  Note to self: Hold the punch. Don’t drink it.

  “It would be the same as disclosing the secrets of your kind, that of the first shifter. Not public knowledge, but the truths. The secret makeup of your kind. Shifters have secrets just as witches do. We may have a truce, but we do not need to share.” She paused, fixing me with a scowl that could kill baby gerbils. “You are not a witch, so the information is not proprietary to you.”

  I bit my tongue. She was so wrong, but correcting her was not the right thing to do at this moment. My mom’s name had been burned out of the book for a reason after all. That tower of a bonfire was so close it was best not to try my luck.

  “I hope you enjoy your time with us, Ivy,” she turned, clearly ending the conversation, but I wasn’t about to give up that easily.

  “I have one question,” I piped up as she turned to leave. “That high priestess... her last name was Silverthorne, but she represents that house of Junius. I looked, and all the other houses are headed by direct descendants of that house,” I wasn’t sure that was true, but I was working on a hunch and wasn’t about to back down now. “Why is that house led by someone who wasn’t born into it? Is there no other ancestor who could lead it?”

  The sounds of screams and drums that filled the clearing echoed loudly as Delaney turned to glower at me.

  Man, if there were Olympics for bossy know-it-all stares, she would win the medal. This lady should work as a receptionist somewhere. She was furious, all that lovey-dovey summer solstice stuff seemingly forgotten. She was one step away from throwing herself in the fire--or me.

  “The book was burned, but it looked like the last of the line was Ivor--”

  “Ivory Junius is a shame to this coven. She’s a cheating, betraying bitch. They ought to burn her at the stake—old school.”

  Well, that didn’t take much to push her over the edge. Looks like Mama had a track record of pissing everyone off.

  “Okay, damn girl,” I said honestly, trying to hide the shock that was collapsing my spine. I felt as if I’d been punched. “I didn’t expect that. What did she do?”

  Delaney paused, sipping on her drink as she stared at me. I guess I was worthy of her secrets because she set her glass down, leaning in with those same fiery eyes. Secrets or not, these ones didn’t seem to want to stay hidden.

  “She was the heir to the most powerful of covens,” she hissed conspiratorially. “Heir to power and generations of knowledge.”

  “Sounds like a princess,” I mused, chuckling in the weird irony. With all the princes I was surrounded by, it would make sense why I was a magnet for them.

  Now, where’s my fucking tiara?

  “She was selfish enough to be,” she gave a heartless laugh and finished her drink, slamming it down on the table as though it was spiked. “She was betrothed to a warlock from the Magganus family. The most powerful of the males who are worthy enough to seed us. They were to be joined and carry on the line…”

  “Let me guess, she ran off with a werewolf.” I gave her the answer I already knew to be true. The whole werewolves and witches being enemies thing was starting to make sense. Some long-ago Romeo and Juliet that ripped them asunder.

  Or they held major grudges.

  “Worse. She abandoned us for a mortal of all things.” Wait what? I tried not to let my shock show, I was sure it did because she smiled like any other girl delivering a big fat piece of gossip. “She left to live with him instead of staying to carry the seed of the warlock chosen to breed her. Biggest mistake of her life; a suicide of sorts. A queen among witches, more power in her pinkie finger than I will have in my life, and she blows it all off for a weak mortal cock.”

  I shrugged, trying to act like her story of my mother wasn’t cracking my chest open and pissing me off at the same time.

  “Why is that so bad? I mean, as long as she carries on the line, right?” I pretended to sip on the carrot sewage and almost gagged. Finn laughed faintly behind us. At least he was still paying attention.

  “Witches breed with warlocks—period. We keep our bloodlines pristine. Except that bitch fucked it all up for the Junius line. No warlock would come near them after that, no matter how royal they were. They had to lie with mortals to somewhat appease their needs and none of their bloodlines carried on. Serves them right. Personally, I could give three fucks as to whether or not Ivory Junius is ever found.”

  I let silence fall between us and looked at the fire, at the witches that pranced and danced and laughed.

  So carefree. Happy.

  Like Mama had been once. Because she was once. These were her people.

  Mama was a fucking queen or would have been. But she fell in love. She fell in love with the wrong person and ran to what I am sure she thought was a happily ever after. If these witches saw her now, tits hanging out of her bra, eating church donation oatmeal while sucking on a cigarette, they might want a blood test. And, she gave it all up for my father, who left her with nothing, not even her pride.

  Something was missing. If my mother knew she was this queen when my dad left her, why not return and be the queen she was born to be? And when Nicky showed up, my mother gave no hint at knowing about the school or what I was—none of it.

  I came here for answers and had come up with more questions.

  Delaney finally tired of me and moved away to dance, leaving me alone, watching the fire as my whole life continued to melt into one confusing mess.

  Chapter 22

  Standing here, my toes pressing into the mud, the heat from the fire pressing into my flesh, I never wanted to leave.

  When I had shifted for the first time, I found a part of me I never knew existed, a home I hadn’t expected. Here, with the music and dancing, and waves of power that washed over me, I knew that my shifter blood was only a sliver of me.

  Just a start.

  “Ivy?” Finn asked from behind me, his fingers tracing the curve of my ass before resting on my hip, pulling himself around to face me.

  He was clearly worried, his eyes sad and downturned. I didn’t even have to ask if he had heard everything.

  “Are you okay?”

  I nodded. I didn’t need him to baby me over a bit of bad news. I needed to let it go. Let it sit.

  Right at this moment, I needed to live in this world, because with how much they hated my mother, it might be the only chance I got, especially if word of my parentage ever got out.

  “Dance with me,” I pulled his hand from my hip, intertwining my fingers with his as I pulled him into the mud
with me, the wet earth squelching around toes and legs as the beat of the drum accelerated, as the thunder in my heart moved to match. As the world fell away, it was only me and Finn, dark shapes against the fire.

  Clinging to his hand, I stepped closer to the flames, deeper into the mud, letting the hot earth ooze against me and cling to me like a second skin.

  The fiddle, the drum, the mud, it was everywhere as I began to dance, as I sloshed through the mud, my hand clinging to Finn’s as I stepped and pranced and swooped and spun. He never let go, his hands drug over my body as I closed my eyes and let everything burn through me.

  Let the magic that was a weight inside of me, guide me.

  I didn’t know how long I danced, how many times I felt my way around the ring of mud and fire as I gave way to the beauty of the earth and welcomed summer. When I opened my eyes, Finn was there, dancing right behind me, covered in mud, his face half-masked by the muck as he stared at me with eyes nearly orange from the flames.

  “My witch queen,” he whispered, slowing my dance to pull me against him. His hand slid over my mud-slicked body, pulling me against him as his hands trailed lower, touching every inch of my skin.

  “What would you like?” He asked, those fingers tracing the crack of my ass, spreading the cheeks, moving closer.

  Witches danced around us, danced around the world that was only pleasure and want and lust.

  A world that was only me and Finn.

  “I want to fuck you,” I said as I pushed him closer to the fire, toward the heat that was trying to harden the earth and a ridge of mud that my magic pulled against. With a tiny spark of power, I thought of Finn, of my magic, and pulled him right to the ground. He gasped as he was pulled flat, as his arms pressed away from him, sinking into the mud.

  Mud and magic held him in place as I stood over him, my legs spread as I straddled him, standing perfectly over the cock that was pulling itself to attention.

  “Do you want me to fuck you?” I asked, the heated air between us as he moaned, as his eyes rolled back in his head.

  I would have to take that as a yes. Dancing to the heavy thunder of music, I lowered myself, hands on my thighs as I sat atop him, spreading myself open for him as I let the tip of his cock slide not into my hungry pussy, but into my ass, slick from the surrounding mud.

  He moaned, the sound deepening as I tensed and tightened myself around his erection. The drumbeat louder, the dancers passing us by as I lowered myself, hovering above him as I fucked him inch by inch, letting his cock slide into my ass.

  Slowly.

  I squeezed him so hard that he winced, his jaw tightening as he moaned, as he tried to fight against the mud and magic that held him down.

  “No, no,” I warned, tweaking his nipple as I pulled myself off him, sliding in the mud as I leaned over him tightening my magic against him as I kissed him. There was no way he was going anywhere now.

  Perfect.

  With one last kiss, I turned, my ass fanning in his face before I slid down, letting my breasts drag over his body as I crawled lower, lower, until my ass faced him, perfectly lined up with his still twitching, hungry, dick.

  “This ass is yours,” I said as another witch danced past us, the fire sparked and showered us with embers. A gift from the dancing witch, I realized. “This ass is going to fuck you.”

  Finn’s lips pressed together as he tried to shift again, my hand wrapping around his shaft as I guided him into me, looking over my shoulder, my ass taking him greedily. Desperately.

  Now, it was my turn to moan as I sat atop him, as I let that massive, long, thick erection spread through me. Impale me.

  “God, your cock,” I nearly screamed, the fire flicking again as my own magic reacted.

  This might as well be the only place I could fuck, or could be fucked, without fear of explosion and I was going to take advantage of it.

  I slammed myself against him, Finn gasping and moaning in pleasure as I felt his cock swell, felt his body tense. He was so close.

  God, I wanted him to come inside of me. But I wanted to play with him more.

  I slowed, letting every muscle relax as I brought him right to the edge and stopped, his heaving gasps the only sign of the ecstasy he was in.

  “You can’t come yet, Finn,” I teased, turning my head to face him.

  God, the guy was desperate to fill my ass with his cum. It was a beautiful thing. His eyes were open, his lips clamped together. He moaned and panted as though words were impossible.

  “I won’t let you come,” I said, my hands moving over his thighs. I laid over his legs, letting him watch his dick pull out, letting him watch as I sat back up and took him back inside of me.

  God, it felt so good--the way he slid against me, the way he filled me, the way the eyes watched the dark shapes against the fire.

  The way I held him in the palm of my hand.

  It was a side of me I never knew, a side of me I never wanted to lose.

  I leaned over again, sitting up and leaning forward in slow, controlled motions, my hands running up and down his thighs as he moaned.

  “Ivy,” he finally got the word out. I sat up quickly, his body tensing as I turned my head to look at him.

  “Yes?” I asked as innocently as I could, my hands still on his thighs as I moved them closer to his balls. He shivered and exhaled as I touched them, as I spread his thighs. I didn’t dare look away as my fingers traveled over his balls, down the sensitive skin and right to his ass.

  His eyes widened in momentary panic, the look clear, the intrigue screaming just as loud.

  “Give in to me,” I whispered, letting my fingers move over his crack, closer and closer to my target. “Let me into you.”

  He moaned and fought against my binds enough that his hips rocked toward me, pushing his cock deeper in my ass as he tried to coax my finger closer. As I gasped. As he impaled me.

  I would have pulled away from him for that, as I had so often before, but I wanted him too badly at this point. I greedily pushed his cock into me more.

  “You are an animal. My queen. My master.” Each word was a struggle with each of his gasps, his body betraying him as I touched him. As my finger pressed against the tight pucker of his ass.

  “Does that mean you want this?” I asked, still feigning innocence as I pushed my finger in. He moaned. “Wouldn’t matter. You are mine to do with as I want.”

  A sound of pleasure I had never heard from him before ripped through him as I pressed the one finger into him, ride myself against him.

  It was only one finger. Someday it would be more, but for now it was enough--enough to reduce Finn to a writhing mass of pleasure, his cock twitching and swelling inside of me as I brought him closer and closer to climax. I didn’t pull back this time. I wanted to come as bad as he did. I wanted his cum inside of me.

  It didn’t take long for him to come, for me to come right alongside him, for the fire beside us to explode as we did.

  Chapter 23

  Turns out that exploding fires were not usually part of the summer solstice ceremony.

  The second the fire turned into an inferno, Finn and I bolted for the tree line, leaving the confused witches screaming and scuttling behind us.

  Saxon was already waiting, clothes held out as he laughed at the flames that were burning the trees closest to the fires. I didn’t wait to change, I kept running. Better to get out of Dodge before they put two and two together before word got out to Nicky and her sleaze ball cronies that I wasn’t some lowly wolf shifter.

  The only saving grace was that by now the sun had begun to rise and the forest was filled with a twinkling dawn that illuminated enough of the tree trunks that I didn’t bolt head-first into them.

  Didn’t stop me from tripping over brush and undergrowth. My wolf had clearly hidden herself the second she knew we were heading into witch territory and had yet to make a return. I was about as graceful as a bullfrog in here.

  After my third near face plant into th
e forest floor, we stopped, pulling clothes on in the last echoes of screams and panic whispered through the trees. We had moved much faster than I had thought with how much tripping I had been doing.

  “I can’t hear anyone following us,” Saxon drawled, staring into the dark.

  “Well, we aren’t out of the woods yet,” I smirked, earning myself a half-hearted smile from Finn, and a groan - an actual groan - from Saxon. “Come on! That was funny.”

  “Maybe I’ll laugh when we aren’t on a run for our lives from the witches. You destroyed the summer solstice celebration.,” Finn slid on his last shoe and grabbed my hand, yanking me back into a run as I stared blankly forward.

  “Our lives!” I tried to keep my voice down and instead ended up shrieking like a child.

  “Yes, vindictive lot witches are. There is a reason they don’t get along with many other breeds of supernatural,” Finn scowled as Saxon caught up to us, looking as though he was nonchalantly walking through the forest and not keeping up with a struggling Fae.

  “Well, I guess it’s a good thing that we were already on their shit list,” I gasped, panting and jumping over one log and then another. We had to be getting close to the end of this never-ending forest.

  I looked ahead, trying to find the tree line, or the road we had parked Howl’s truck on when I, once again, mis stepped and went head first into dirt, pine needles, and what I was sure was poison oak.

  Shit.

  “Ivy!” Saxon and Finn whisper-screamed as one, both turning on their heels to come and peel me off the ground.

  Their hands wrapped around my arms, both guys hoisting me up with little effort. I nodded in thanks, still trying to peel the fresh clump of dirt out of my mouth.

  You would think after doing that so many times in the last few minutes I would have picked up on the fact that face planting into the forest is best done with your mouth closed.

  “Tell the she-bitch to get off my back.” A low growl of a voice echoed from the left, rattling the leaves of the trees and swirling in the early morning mist that had begun to form. “It’ll come when it’s done. If it’s a day late she is going to have to fucking deal.”