by K. M. Raya
After a few moments of silence, the guy probably figured he wasn’t about to get much more out of her, because he just sighed and started to walk away. Blue turned to him before he reached the edge of the track. “What’s your name?!” she called out through the pouring rain.
He turned. “Xavier!” he told her with a small smile. “It was nice meeting you, Blue Graves.” He glanced from side to side. “But you might want to find a new place to work out, I doubt that’s the last time Jewel will want a piece of you…”
With that, he walked away, tucking his hands into his hoodie pockets as he ran through the downpour. She watched him go, but for some reason, she felt a little warmer inside…
*
She still had energy to burn, but after checking the workout rooms and the training classrooms, she found that most of them were already full. She didn’t want to push her luck and take a chance that maybe these ‘others’ Xavier claimed were out there, wouldn’t welcome her with open arms.
So, she jogged the halls of Arcane, shaking out her limbs that were coiled for a good fight. She’d been cooped up at the school for too long and she was already itching for some action. After spending half her life hunting and fighting, remaining idle for this long was starting to wear on her sanity. At this point, she almost wished for another attack… but then she felt guilty as Savannah’s face flashed before her eyes.
A flash of something white caught her eye as she passed by a staircase to the left of the hallway. There was nobody around at this hour as most people were in their last class of the day or getting ready to head to dinner. She wasn’t hungry in the slightest, and figured if she needed to eat later, she’d just slink back into the kitchens for one of her famous midnight snacks.
Jogging up the staircase, she came to a stop at the first landing and looked around. She’d never been in this area of the castle before. It was dark and damp, and the stone steps were bowed in the center, as if from centuries of feet tromping up and down, wearing them down. Cobwebs lined the walls, stretching from corner to corner, and she could have sworn she heard a slight flutter of what sounded like bat wings above her head. Looking up, she was surprised to see that the ceiling rose way above her, several stories up in the shape of a cylindrical tower. She was on the first level of that tower and noticed that the stairs continued to swirl around the edges of the wall.
Another flash of white caught her eye. This time, she caught it. A small translucent head poked around the corner, close enough for her to make out the face of a small child… a little girl. The spirit smiled at Blue and giggled behind her palm silently, making no sound at all. Blue found herself smiling back, knowing the little girl posed no danger in that form. It wasn’t uncommon to come across a wayward ghost in a castle as old as Arcane. The girl disappeared again, and Blue didn’t hesitate to follow her. She took the stone stairs three at a time, laughing as the swishing shape of a flowy lace dress and ribbons swirled around each corner. She was getting higher up in the tower, about six levels now, but she was more curious than anything.
On every landing, there was a single wooden door in the shape of an arch, and every single time she tried to pull one open, they were all locked. But by the time she got to the very top of the tower, there was one door left, and it was cracked open ever so slightly. The ghost girl was nowhere in sight. Instead of turning back around to go look for her, Blue crept forward, pushing the door inwards, letting a warm draft blow her ponytail over her shoulder.
Inside was a room about the size of one of her classrooms on the lower levels. It was warm inside, almost stuffy. There were two torches on opposing walls, covering the space in a flickering orange light. She closed the door behind her softly. Looking around, she spotted several familiar shapes. The room was filled with punching bags, dummies and weapons racks. She looked around with wide eyes at the impressive setup. It seemed someone at this school was getting special privileges…
Running her hand over a punching bag, Blue gave the thing an experimental punch, and the resounding slap echoed through the room.
“What the hell are you doing in here?”
She whirled around, pulling a stake from her holster at her hip. Even wearing workout clothing, she still refused to leave her dorm room without at least one weapon. She’d learned that lesson a long time ago. Out of the shadows, Dresden appeared, and she felt her mouth dry up instantly.
He stalked forward, wrapping one of his hands in an ace bandage, looking like he was about to jump into the ring at a fight club. His shirt was off, and he wore only a pair of black workout shorts with a white drawstring at the waist. She was fucking speechless. Of all the things or people she imagined might be up there, he’d been the last one on her mind. Her eyes traced over him unabashedly. His skin glowed in the torchlight, and he glistened everywhere with a fine sheen of sweat. Licking her lips, she couldn’t fight the heat that flared in her stomach. The damn man looked fucking edible.
“Do I need to repeat myself, Graves?” he came closer. She could smell the sweat on his skin, but instead of being repulsive, it only drew her in more. “How did you find this room?”
Tearing her eyes from his rippling abs, she looked into his dark eyes and smirked. “You disappointed I found your hidey hole?”
“This room is private, and I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t tell anyone about it,” he grumbled, still wrapping up his fist.
Blue turned around, walking over to the punching bag again and leaned against it. She folded her arms over her chest and crossed her feet at the ankles. “Why are you so special? You’ve got a pretty sweet setup here, it’s kind of selfish to keep it all to yourself, don’t you think?”
“I think you need to leave.” Dresden approached her again, clearly not caring that he was crowding her. She wondered if that was just a guy thing… never giving you enough personal space and always feeling the need to intimidate you with their proximity.
“I call dibs,” she announced. His eyebrows rose to his hairline.
“Tough shit, this place is mine,” he snapped.
Shaking her head, she looked around the room with calculating eyes. “Well unless you want me blabbing about our secret spot to everyone in school, I’d say you’re better off letting me use it too.” She patted him on the shoulder lightly and he frowned down at her hand. “I won’t get in your way... promise.” She smiled as she held up her pinky, showing all of her teeth.
Dresden huffed. “Why do you need it, this school has state of the art training facilities and your tuition is free. Why not use what Arcane offers you?”
She rolled her eyes at his ignorance. “In case it’s escaped your notice, these people treat me like a venereal disease,” she deadpanned. “What’s your excuse?”
He blinked at her for a few long moments and for a minute she thought he was just going to ignore her. It wouldn’t have been a surprise. “I’ve been working out in this room since ninth grade… it used to be a storage room, but the school let me convert it into a gym.”
“Oh right, special privileges…” she mused aloud, making him sneer. His family must have some serious cash.
“I wasn’t planning on sharing it, least of all with you.”
Holding a palm to her chest, she scoffed mockingly, “Oh, now I’m offended!”
Shaking his head, a few strands of his pale hair fell out of his man bun and settled around his shoulders. She tracked the movement of those strands, marveling at the way they kissed his unblemished skin. Fingers snapping in front of her face pulled her back to reality. Dresden had an irritating smirk plastered across his stupidly handsome face.
Before he could call her out on it, she clapped her hands together once and widened her stance with a wicked smile on her lips. “So, are we gonna train, or what?”
He blinked. “I never even said you could stay…”
She rolled her eyes, brushing by him as she stalked to the other side of the mat laid out over the stone floor. “I think we’ve already established tha
t I called dibs, now get your fine ass over here and fight me!” She raised her fingerless glove covered fists in front of her face, but Dresden just stood there, staring at her like a dumbass with his lips partially open. “You’ll catch flies that way,” she singsonged as she started to hop comically around the mat.
Snapping his mouth closed, he narrowed his eyes on her, but she didn’t miss the tilting of his lips as he fought a smirk. “You look like an idiot right now.” Dresden cracked his knuckles as he stalked over. “You’re so eager to have your ass kicked again, Graves…”
She laughed. “The only reason I didn’t lay your ass out in class the other day was because wolf boy decided to intervene… I had it handled.”
Dresden shook his head. “It’s okay to admit you needed your boyfriend to save you from the big bad Slayer,” he teased.
“Cole isn’t my boyfriend…” she muttered. She didn’t know why she felt the need to correct him, but suddenly, his dark eyes flared with heat and he dove for her.
Blue spun out of the way, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Dresden caught himself and rolled forward in a fluid motion until he was twisting back around on his feet. His eyes were alight, more so than she thought him capable of. She jabbed at his face twice, just to test the waters and he dodged the blows easily.
Going low, Dresden tackled her, swiping her feet off the mat and her back slammed to the ground, hard. The air whooshed from her lungs as she rolled to the side, not giving him the opportunity to pin her down. Kicking out, she jabbed him in the shin with her booted foot, making him curse and stagger to the side.
Smirking evilly, Blue took the opportunity to tackle him right back. They rolled on the mat, and Dresden tried to grapple with her, attempting to get her arm bent up behind her head. They were covered in sweat as they fumbled, and she was quickly realizing that he pretty much matched her strength wise.
“Come on, you rookie, stop letting me win,” she gritted out.
Dresden scoffed. “Who the fuck are you calling a rookie?” He slammed her shoulder blades down as he fought to pry her thighs open for better leverage. “You think you’re the only one who’s been in the shit?”
For a second she froze, but she shook her head and kept up her resistance. “Bullshit! You’ve been pretty and pampered in this fucking cult your whole life; you don’t have a clue what it’s like out there…”
With a growl, she flipped him over, managing to slam his hands behind his head, trying to hold onto his wrists, but his footwork was too complex. His hips swiveled. She tried not to enjoy the feel of his pelvis grinding against her core. She cursed herself for acting like some sort of horned up juvenile… but it’d been a long time.
Breaking free, he caught her by the throat, which was technically an illegal sparring move. Switching their positions once again, he grappled with her until he had her pinned to the floor by the throat. He was cutting off her air supply as he brought his face close to hers. His lips were almost grazing the corner of her mouth. “Guess again, babe,” he whispered.
Frowning, she let her body relax ever so slightly. She had no idea what he was talking about. Her eyes flitted between his in confusion, but in the next second, his lips were on hers. She’d been blindsided. His tongue pried her lips apart, invading every part of her as he explored her mouth. His grip on her throat only let up long enough for him to remove one hand. The other was still firmly gripping her sweaty skin.
She found herself kissing him back, not sure why she couldn’t find the power to stop. He tasted like sweat and mint, but she savored it. She felt him all around her as his hips pressed her into the ground. Her hips thrust off the mats, grinding upwards against the hardness in his workout shorts. Dresden growled into her mouth. The sound was one of frustration, as if he himself didn’t realize why the hell he was kissing the enemy. She didn’t care. She just craved him. She didn’t know how long this bliss would last, but she wanted to revel in the feel of him while it lasted. The more he held her close, the more she began to… feel. She fought it, but it was too late…
The way he kissed her felt like standing at the edge of a waterfall, staring down into a black abyss. He tasted like danger and uncertainty; like the sureness of the earth beneath your feet but knowing that it was fleeting. He kissed her until it was painful. Until the thought of what came after made her palms sweat and her throat dry up.
She was afraid of the moments that would inevitably come next... the moment reality snapped back into place and coldness replaced the warmth between them. She knew he'd return to that removed, indifferent man she'd been wary of for weeks now. The moment had swept them both away and caught him off guard. The taste of his lips was almost addictive, and knowing that there was a chance she'd never get to indulge again made her feel hollow.
And so, she gripped him tighter, running a hand up the front of his chest, feeling the hard muscle mixed with sweat that slicked his skin. Every part of him was granite. His skin was hot and glowing in the torchlight. His pale hair curled at the ends where it grazed his bare shoulders after somehow coming undone from his bun. She could feel him growing impossibly hard against her stomach as he pushed her into the ground.
He started grinding, grunting against her lips each time his cock brushed her hot core. She wore only a sports bra and shorts, so she felt everything when the hand that wasn’t wrapped around her throat began to drift over the skin of her torso. They never broke their violent kisses, even when his fingers snuck over her abdomen and dipped down, grazing her clit through the thin material of her shorts. She moaned lazily into his mouth as he pressed down harder.
Her hips were thrusting against him, needing him, begging him to get closer, to bring her to the peak she craved. Dresden lifted his hips slightly, allowing his hand to snake down the front of her shorts until he was cupping her mound. She whimpered against his lips as he bit down. He thrust two fingers inside of her, moving them in and out swiftly while the pad of his thumb pressed down on her clit.
Breathing hard, she moaned over and over again every time he curled his fingers deep inside her, hitting her in that special spot that made her want to melt into a pile of goo. Her thighs spread wider. Dresden picked up the pace, rubbing her clit in even, fast strokes until a wave of heat rolled over her entire body, flowing through her limbs as her toes curled. He removed his fingers from her pussy and started grinding faster. Tearing his mouth from hers, Dresden buried his face in her shoulder, pumping his hips frantically, dry humping her until she was shattering all over the place. She moaned deep, shuddering in his arms as he stilled.
Dresden growled into her shoulder; his whole body was quivering as he tried to hold himself over her steadily. She knew he just came in his shorts, and that knowledge made her feel powerful. As he slowed and finally stilled, that same feeling of dread and doubt washed over her.
He raised his head, turning his face until their eyes locked and she had to hold back angry tears. The heat in his eyes had been replaced with loathing. Clenching his jaw, he wrenched himself from her body and stood, raking his hands through his long blonde hair. “What the fuck!” he yelled, almost to himself; his deep voice echoed off the walls.
He was pacing now. Blue sat up, her head still spinning, but she couldn’t pry her eyes off of him and his fury. “Dres…” she started to call out, but he snapped his eyes to her, his glare burning a hole through her body.
“Don’t say my fucking name…” he started to back away. “That was a mistake. I can’t want you!”
“What are talking about?” Blue whispered. She didn’t have it in her to yell. She just felt an aching emptiness clawing at her chest.
He was near the door now. “I don’t know what the fuck I was thinking.” He wrenched it open and turned to glare at her once more. Again, there was something haunting in his eyes that she just didn’t understand. “Stay the hell away from me, Graves.”
Her heart dropped into her stomach as he slammed out the door. She listened to the sound of his foots
teps as they began to fade away, but she just couldn’t bring herself to move from that spot. Everything happened so fast; she didn’t know what to think or feel.
She just knew she wanted him to come back…
Chapter Eleven
The weekend passed by without much happening. For the most part, Blue and Ronnie stayed locked up in their dorm, vegging out on pilfered snacks watching Netflix on their laptops. Well, Blue spent most of that time trying and failing at not thinking about Dresden and how hard his rejection slapped her in the face.
One of the things she was endlessly thankful for was the fact that Arcane had wifi. The place may look like a gothic castle, but it was full of teens and young adults who, if given enough down time, could become restless. It was a boring Sunday night when there came a knocking at her bedroom door. Frowning, Blue looked to Ronnie who was sprawled out on her bed eating Cheetos and shrugged. The moment she swung open the door, David came barreling in, shoving past her and holding a sheet of paper in his hands.
“Come on in, Dav…” she drawled as she shut the door once more. David was already perched on the end of her unmade bed, still looking at the paper.
“Don’t keep us waiting, what is that?” prodded Ronnie. The redhead sat up, wiping Cheeto dust from her night shirt and closing the lid of her computer.
David looked up with an unreadable gleam in his bright eyes. “Something's happened. There was an attack in Portland; the Conclave made an announcement this morning.”
Blue was at his side in an instant. “Elaborate.”
His eyes flit over the newspaper again. “Apparently there was some sort of attack last night during a high school football game. The lights went out and the field was overrun with bloodsuckers. The Conclave was notified, and a few teams were dispatched, but they were too late…” He hung his head.
A sick feeling welled in her stomach. “How bad is it?” She fought the bitterness that came next. She had zero faith in the Conclave and their ability to properly handle an attack. She and Harlow had been cleaning up their messes for years. Living in the city, she'd seen her fair share of vampire attacks. They swarmed the more desolate areas and seemed to flock to that part of the state due to its near constant cloud cover and rainy days. It had gotten so bad before she left for school, that three attacks a week wasn't all that abnormal.
