by Jayme Morse
“Should I go with a sword or a bow and arrow?” I asked Colton through mind-speak.
“You excel in both,” he replied. “I think either would be a good choice for you.”
“Which would you choose?” I asked him.
He paused for a moment. Then his eyes met mine from across the room. “I think a bow and arrow could be more useful. Not only are you already really good at using it, but each individual arrow will be able to function on magic, too—which could be pretty dangerous if it ever gets into the hands of the wrong person.”
I nodded my agreement. I was going to be like Katniss Everdeen on steroids.
***
The next day, Iris came back to class. She didn’t mention my text messages at all. She just said she hadn’t been feeling good the day before, and we left it at that. It was obvious that she had been going through stuff. I just didn’t really know what.
As we waited in the classroom for Lupine Genetics to begin, Vince asked, “Is Professor Rodriguez ever going to teach us about his fine ass genes?”
I laughed. “He is insanely gorgeous.”
“Seriously. Someone call the doctor because this Professor Hottie is going to make me faint,” Vince said with a laugh.
Iris shot a glance at us. “You guys! He’s going to walk into the room any second. How awkward will it be if he overhears what you’re saying?”
Not even ten seconds after she’d said that, I saw Professor Rodriguez walk into our classroom. He was donning a black suit and tie, and his hair was cut even shorter than usual.
Holy. Fuck. He was hot. It was easy to see what Professor Wickburn saw in him.
“Are you, like, a psychic or something?” Vince asked, glancing over at Iris.
She shrugged. “Maybe psychic predictions are one of my werewolf talents.”
“Yeah? You think you could predict some lottery numbers for me?” Professor Rodriguez asked from the front of the classroom as he opened his brief case on his desk.
Shit. How much of our conversation had he overheard?
Iris wasn’t joking. It was completely awkward to know that he might have heard what we’d said, especially considering the fact that I had four mates, he had Caroline Wickburn, and he’d already asked me to kiss him once this school year. The last thing I wanted was to make him think that I was interested now.
“Miss Gallagher, may I speak to you in private for a moment?” Professor Rodriguez asked.
Shit.
I shot Vince and Iris a nervous look and then followed Professor Rodriguez out of the classroom. He led me a few doors down, into his office.
Closing the door behind us, I swallowed hard. “Professor Rodriguez, I can explain.”
His dark eyebrows shot up high. “Explain what?”
“Oh.” Maybe he hadn’t actually heard us. “Why did you want to speak to me?”
“About your genetics.” He let out a little laugh. “I was speaking to Professor Lee about you earlier this morning. Do you know what she told me?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Professor Lee says you have the strongest Lunar Magic powers out of any student—and any werewolf, in general—who she’s ever encountered. In fact, she’s not even sure if you should be taking Lunar Magic 201 this year. She says you’re more advanced than any of her fourth-year students. That just got me thinking, Miss Gallagher.” His gold eyes locked on mine. “What is it about your genetics that has led you to be so powerful?”
“Well, I am an ancient,” I replied.
“So I’ve heard,” Professor Rodriguez nodded, his eyes not moving away from mine.
“We’re naturally more powerful,” I reminded him. Of course, he already knew that. He did teach Lupine Genetics, after all.
“I’m just curious to know what we can learn about your ancient bloodline. What is it about your lineage that gives you such strength, such power, such control over magic, that the rest of us are lacking? So, I wondered if it would be okay with you if I took a sample of your DNA.”
“I don’t know,” I replied hesitantly. “What will you do with the sample?”
“Study it. Try to figure out what it is about your bloodline that makes you… you.” His gold eyes didn’t move away from mine. In fact, something about his gaze felt completely captivating. I found it difficult not to swoon.
Actually, scratch that. I was already swooning.
He was so freaking cute.
I wasn’t sure what came over me then. It was as if I was willing to do anything he wanted. I had never experienced anything like it.
“So, what do you say? Will you allow me to take a sample?” His gold eyes flashed a brighter shade of gold then, mesmerizing me.
“S-sure,” I managed to squeak out under his gaze.
“Perfect.” Professor Rodriguez reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a vial and a syringe to draw my blood. “I promise this won’t hurt a bit.”
As he plunged the syringe into one of my veins and drew my blood, he stared into my eyes.
Something came over me then. Something that I couldn’t quite explain.
Once Professor Rodriguez had filled the vials, he moved in closer to me.
“Kiss me,” he whispered.
It felt like I didn’t even have a choice as I stared into his golden-brown eyes. I was completely entranced by him.
It was as though I wouldn’t have been able to say “no,” even if I wanted to.
A wave of confusion washed over me as I pressed my lips to his. It was as though my body was responding to him, even though my heart and mind were both telling me not to. It felt like it was entirely out of my control, but it was too late.
I had already kissed him.
His kiss felt eager, desperate. He parted my lips with his tongue, kissing me frantically.
As he pulled away from me, the pain hit.
It washed over me, rippling through every vein of my body.
“W-what happened?” I asked Professor Rodriguez.
“That kiss sealed the deal.” Bringing the vial of blood to his lips, he drank every last drop. “We’re blood mates now.” His gold eyes locked on mine, a look of amusement swirling around inside of them.
“Blood mates?” I managed to squeak out through the pain that continued to radiate through me. It was all too much.
Before I even knew what was happening, my body was twisting and contorting.
Shifting.
As light gray fur began to cover my skin, I let out a low growl.
I wasn’t sure why I was changing into my wolf form, but somehow, I knew that this pain, this shift, had been sparked by Professor Rodriguez’s kiss.
And the worst part about it was that he knew. Judging from the look of amusement that remained in his eyes, I could tell that he had known all along that his kiss was going to cause this to happen.
“I’m going to close the door so you don’t go running the halls while you’re in your wolf form,” Professor Rodriguez told me. “Just don’t go tearing up my furniture or anything. Office furniture is very expensive.” He wagged his finger at me, scolding me as if I was his pet wolf.
Without saying another word, he stepped out into the hallway then, leaving me to wonder what the hell it meant to be someone’s blood mate.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Once I had turned back into my human form, I headed straight for Aiden’s office.
I didn’t even knock on the door as I stepped into the room.
“Aiden, something… happened.” I swallowed hard. “Something strange.”
My mate glanced up at me then. “What is it, Raven?”
“What’s a blood mate?” I found myself asking.
An indescribable look filled Aiden’s honey brown eyes. “Why do you ask?”
“I kissed Professor Rodriguez.”
“What?” Aiden looked completely shocked by my words.
“But the thing is, I didn’t kiss him. I mean, I did, but it was almost like it wasn’t act
ually me doing it,” I explained. “It was like I was a robot or something. But that’s not all.” I paused, recounting exactly what had happened. “Professor Rodriguez took a vial of my blood and—”
“Why would you allow him to take your blood, Raven?” Aiden interrupted.
“He said he wanted to study it,” I explained. “To figure out why I’m so strong. But I didn’t feel like I was actually agreeing to that, either. It was like I was saying yes, even though my mind was saying no.”
Aiden’s lips remained in a flat line. “So, let me get this straight. He took your blood, then you kissed him, and then he drank your blood. Then you shifted into a wolf?”
“How did you know?” I asked with raised eyebrows.
“Damnit, Raven. What were you even doing alone with him?” Aiden was so angry he was shaking.
“He told me he had to talk to me in his office,” I replied.
“The reason it felt like all of this was out of your control is because he used compulsion to make you do it.” Aiden met my eyes. “Javier Rodriguez is a vampire, apparently.”
“He is?” I found myself asking, but it made perfect sense.
Vampires were the only ones who were capable of compulsion, and I was pretty sure Aiden was right. It had definitely felt like he’d used compulsion to get me to give into what he wanted.
“Yes, and now you’re his blood mate. This isn’t good. In fact, this is quite possibly one of the worst things that could have happened.” Aiden took a deep breath. “We have to kill him. That’s the only way out of this.”
“Wait, slow down. What the hell is going on? And what is a blood mate?” I asked.
“A blood mate is someone who a vampire becomes connected to. For life.” Aiden’s eyes met mine with a look of seriousness behind his gaze. “The connection is made when a vampire kisses someone and then drinks their blood within one hour. It means the vampire will always know how to find you. The worst part about it all is that vampire has to continue to drink his blood mate’s blood for the rest of his life, or else he will die.”
“But isn’t that a good thing?” I asked. “If he dies, then our blood mate bond will be broken?”
“No, that’s not how it works,” Aiden replied, shaking his head. “If Javier dies due to not drinking your blood, then you die, too. He has to die due to other causes. That’s why we have to kill him.”
“I don’t understand,” I replied, trying to process everything he was telling me. “I have so many questions. How was Professor Rodriguez an instructor at Werewolf Academy if he was a vampire?”
“I have no idea,” Aiden replied.
“He told me his mother was an ancient,” I recalled.
“Yeah, Javier’s mother came from an incredibly powerful pack. She came from the Rose pack,” he explained. “They were one of the most powerful ancient packs.”
“He said his father wasn’t an ancient.” I swallowed hard. “Is it possible that he’s only half-vampire?”
Aiden nodded. “Yeah. A half-vampire can still have a blood mate.”
“Why would he choose me to be his blood mate, though? Wouldn’t he want a human?” I asked. But then I remembered what Aiden had taught us in class last year.
The vampires thought that werewolf blood was more powerful than human blood. They thought they could take advantage of werewolf powers by drinking their blood.
And Professor Rodriguez knew I was a powerful werewolf. I was the most powerful student at Werewolf Academy.
“He thinks he can become more powerful by drinking from me,” I realized aloud. “Because I’m a wolf. A powerful one.”
“Bingo.” Aiden sighed.
I swallowed hard. “Do you think it’s possible that he knows?”
Aiden stared back at me blankly.
“That I’m Princess Fallyn. I mean, he says his mother was an ancient. What if he somehow figured it all out?” I asked.
“It seems like a good possibility that he did,” Aiden replied. “We need to go to Headmaster Black about this.”
“No.” I glanced over at him. “Theo doesn’t trust Headmaster Black, and I’m not sure if I do either. We need to solve this on our own.”
“Headmaster Black needs to know that the professor he hired is actually a vampire. Full-blooded vampire or half-vampire, it doesn’t matter. The fact of the matter is that Professor Rodriguez hasn’t been upfront about the fact that he’s a vampire. This is putting all of our students at risk. Vampires aren’t allowed on the premises.”
“Okay.” I took a deep breath. “Let’s tell him.”
***
A few moments later, Aiden and I stood in front of Headmaster Black. We had just finished telling him the entire story, from start to finish.
Headmaster Black frowned. “While this is all very alarming, I’m afraid that I have both good—and bad—news.”
“What is it?” I asked, my eyebrows lifting questioningly.
“Professor Rodriguez just came to my office about an hour ago. He gave his full resignation.”
“So, that’s it? You’re just going to let him get away with this?” Aiden asked, his voice rising in anger.
“I didn’t say that, Professor Flores.” Headmaster Black grabbed a walkie talkie from his desk drawer then. “Security? Could you please go to Professor Rodriguez’s living quarters and bring him to my office?”
The Headmaster glanced back over at us. “I’m not going to take this issue lightly. It is highly inappropriate that Professor Rodriguez didn’t reveal the fact that he is a vampire.”
“And what do you suggest we do?” I asked.
“Do about what, Miss Gallagher?” Headmaster Black asked.
“He’s my blood mate,” I replied.
Headmaster Black leaned back in his chair. “And what, exactly, do you propose I do about that, Miss Gallagher?”
“I don’t know. Something. Anything.”
“Miss Gallagher, perhaps you shouldn’t have kissed him.”
I felt my blood boiling. “Perhaps he shouldn’t have compelled me!”
“Daniel, really?” Aiden asked. “You’re not going to do anything to try to rectify this?”
Headmaster Black glanced over at him. “I’m not sure what you want me to do, Aiden.”
“How about kill Javier?” My mate asked.
“That would cause too much trouble,” Headmaster Black replied, shaking his head. “The vampires would want to go to war with the werewolves… again. I would be overstepping. The most I can do is give Javier a slap on the wrist for lying to Werewolf Academy about what his paranormal race really is. Other than that, I’m afraid there’s not much else I can do.”
“So, basically he’s useless,” I thought to Aiden through mind-speak.
“Pretty much,” he agreed.
At that moment, a voice came over Headmaster Black’s walkie talkie. “We’ve checked Professor Rodriguez’s living quarters. He’s gone, sir.”
“Gone?” Headmaster Black responded. “Are you certain?”
“All of his stuff has been removed from the premises,” the security guard answered.
“That was certainly fast,” Headmaster Black replied, shaking his head.
“I’m pretty sure he was prepared for this,” I told him. “He knew he was going to make me his blood mate, and then he was going to flee.” I sighed, folding my arms across my chest. “Thanks for your help.”
“Miss Gallagher,” Headmaster Black said as I headed for the door. “I do hope you’re able to get this resolved.”
“Yeah, me too.” With no thanks to you, I thought, as I stormed out of his office.
“That was completely useless,” Aiden muttered under his breath as he followed after me.
“You know, I thought it was bad enough that I had to worry about Milos. But now I have to worry about Javier, too.” I shook my head. “Either of them could come back and hurt me at any time.”
“You don’t have to worry about Javier hurting you,” Aiden said.
“You don’t know that for sure,” I insisted.
“Actually, we do know that. There are two things that we do know for certain,” Aiden replied. “The first is that Javier won’t do anything to hurt you if he wants to live.” He paused. “The second is that it doesn’t matter how far Javier goes. He will be back at some point during the next month. He has to drink your blood again, if he wants to live.”
Me and my enchanted bow and arrow would be ready for him.
I wasn’t about to let him drink my blood again without a fight.
No, when Javier Rodriguez came back, I would kill him.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
I was sleeping in my bed at the Darken house one night when the doorbell rang.
Colton, who had spent the night in my room, groaned. “It’s three freaking a.m. What does anyone even want at this hour on a school night?”
“I don’t know, but we should probably go find out,” I replied with a yawn. Tossing the comforter off of us, I climbed out of bed and pulled my robe on. Then I slid into my slippers and headed downstairs, with Colton at my heels.
Colton glanced out the peephole. “That’s odd,” he commented. “There’s no one outside, but there is an envelope on the front stoop.”
He pulled the front door open and grabbed the envelope.
As he came back into the house, Aiden. Theo, and Rhys all entered the room.
“What is it?” Aiden asked.
“It’s an envelope addressed to us,” Colton explained. He handed it to me, I assumed, because I was Alpha of the pack.
I noticed the curly font on the front of the envelope.
To the Darken pack.
Tearing the envelope open, I pulled out the tiny white paper that was tucked inside. It was folded up neatly.
Unfolding it, I began to read the words aloud for the others to hear.
