by M Guida
“Would you stop calling him that?”
“Oh, so you don’t want to know what he said?”
“Rusty,” I drawled out his name.
“He said you are all he thinks about. He lit that stupid candle you made him every night and the girly scent drove me nuts.”
Joy fluttered in my chest. “He did?”
“Yeah, next time, use a manly scent.” He scowled. “Is this all they have for breakfast is cereal?”
“Yup.”
“Damn, I should have stayed at Havenwood. Abrianna was cooking up a hell of a sendoff breakfast."
“Suck it up, wolf boy. I have lots to tell you.”
Rusty ate three bowls of cereal as I told him everything I had learned at Red Rose Academy and what happened when I got back. I drummed my fingers on the table. “I just wished I could get inside. Raven would have found a way.”
Rusty shoved his bowl away. “Are you an idiot or what?”
I glared. “Don’t call me an idiot.”
“Raven couldn’t turn into fog, but you can.”
I folded my arms to keep from punching him, but once again, my horns made their appearance. “So?”
“So, dumbass, fog can slip under doors, or didn’t you think of that?”
My eyes widened. “Oh, my God, Rusty. I didn’t even think of that.”
“Duh? You could start believing in yourself, Ebony. You’re just as powerful as your sister. So, what if you can’t shift into a dragon? You’ve got a badass sword, you can turn into fog, and you’re faster than hell.”
Heat swelled from cheeks all the way down to my toes. “Thanks, Rusty.”
“Don’t let that go to your head, or I’ll bust your ass.”
I cocked my eyebrow. “Couldn’t say a compliment without a barb.”
He shrugged. “What can I say? I'm Rusty Owens.”
“I’ve got to get into the dungeon, Rusty. I’ve got to see what’s down there, but I need a lookout.”
“Well, go get Mr. Nosey Pants.”
“Don’t call me that.” Montae suddenly flashed behind Rusty and slapped him on the back of his head, knocking his sunglasses off.
Rusty grabbed his sunglasses and put them on the back. “Do that again and I’ll kill you.”
Montae towered over Rusty and had bulging muscles threatening to burst through his T-shirt. “Like to see you try.”
“Will you two stop.” I studied Montae. “Gregori sent you and Rusty to watch over me, huh?”
“What can I say,” Montae said. “The King has a soft spot for you, so does someone else.” He reached into his black leather jacket and pulled out a white tissue. “Here, someone made this for you.”
My hands shook as I opened up the tissue to see a two turtle dove gingerbread ornament with white frosting. The doves were inside a heart. “This is so beautiful.” I couldn’t believe he made this for me.
“Abrianna was making gingerbread ornaments and Gunnar wanted to make one for you.”
“He’s such a pansy-ass.”
I glared. “Shut up, Rusty.”
“I didn’t see anyone making you an ornament.”
“No one made one for you, either, ass fuck.” Rusty got out of his chair and went nose-to-nose with Montae. They had a love hate relationship, but I knew they’d do anything to protect each other.
“So, did you hear everything, James Bond?”
Montae wrinkled his brow. “Why did you call me that? You know my name is Montae.”
“Because you’re always spying, Nosey Pants.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. Montae gave me a crisp glare, making my laughter die out.
I cleared my throat. “Okay. Sorry. Will you stand guard for me while I investigate?”
“Of course. If I said no, you would do it anyway and both the King and your father have ordered me to keep you safe.”
Rusty picked up his dish. “I’ll stand out guard to keep Greenwood out. Too bad, Hades isn’t here. Greenwood wouldn’t go near Anton’s place if Hades was patrolling.”
“That’s so strange, he’s afraid of Hades,” I said. “I keep thinking that’s some kind of clue.”
Montae frowned. “Yeah, maybe. Hopefully, you’ll find something down there.” He put his hands on my shoulders and I winced.
“What?”
“Nothing. My shoulder is sore where Dr. Greenwood gripped me.”
Rusty moved my T-shirt to the side. “Damn, there are fingernail marks. Where is that fucking asshole? I’m going to knock his dick in the dirt.”
“No.” Montae grabbed Rusty’s arm. “We don’t know what or who he is. I think the answers in that basement.”
Rusty looked at me. “I’m upping my protection game. I don’t give a shit what Anton says. Guess who's coming from dinner? You’re not staying alone without me.”
Montae tilted his chin. “That’s my job.”
I pulled my T-shirt up. “Guys, we’ll fight about this later.”
We headed toward Anton’s with my two protectors arguing who would be by my side at Anton’s. I was go glad to have those two back. I didn’t realize how much I missed them, especially Rusty.
When we got to Anton’s, Rusty immediately shed his clothes, and he was beautiful with his abs and, um, his cock. Oh, my. Heat washed over me as he laughed.
He winked. “Bashful, badass.”
“Shut up,” I murmured.
He shifted into a wolf. He was a red timber wolf, and I laughed. I petted his head. “You’re almost as fierce looking as Hades.”
He growled and nipped at me. I rolled my eyes. Dr. Greenwood wasn’t the only one who feared Hades. He wasn’t number one on Rusty’s list, either.
Montae turned invisible. “Are you ready?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I am. But first I want to go put my ornament in my room.”
“I’ll wait for you by the study. You’ll know I’m there because I’ll touch your hair.”
Nothing creepy about that, but I didn’t say anything. As long as I knew he was there, I’d be fine. I opened the door and Anton looked up from reading the book.
“Done with breakfast?” He looked chipper this morning but maybe I was reading too much into it. His eyes didn’t seem as blood shot.
“Yeah. Montae brought me a gingerbread ornament that Abrianna had everyone made.” I held it up.
“Oh, that’s lovely.” He yawned. “I just got up, but I feel I must sleep again. What do you plan to do today?”
“Nothing. Really. Just wait for my friends to get here.”
“Nice.” He got up and walked with me down to my room, then disappeared into his. I rushed over to the desk and put my ornament on it. It was so beautiful. It meant so much to me that Gunnar had made it.
I opened my door and headed toward Anton’s study. I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
You can do this. You can do this.
When I got there, someone gently tugged on my hair. I closed my eyes.
Please, help.
The same familiar cold glided over me, sending tingling sensations to every part of my body. I slid under the doorway and spun around in the room one more time before I made my way to the bookcase. I easily slipped into a crack and found myself in a torch lit corridor. Raven said that Anton liked the old medieval lighting of torches rather than electricity.
My heart pounding, I floated down the stairwell, hoping not to run into Greenwood or something far more evil. I expected to find dust and cobwebs and rats, but instead I found a neatly swept dungeon, similar to what Gregori kept at Havenwood. At the bottom of the staircase, I was shocked not a signal torture device. Torture obviously wasn’t high on Anton’s favorite things to do list.
The cold tingles dissipated and I couldn’t keep my form, or maybe it was because I was too damn scared to concentrate.
No one was down here except from the flickering torches.
There was another door that led to another corridor and I forced my shaking legs to move. I reached out
for the doorknob and turned. Cells were in this section of the dungeon and one door was open. I hurried over to it and gasped. It was the only one that had wadded up blankets and discarded pillows on the floor. Someone or someones had been living here.
But I didn’t see anything here that gave me a clue. I was about to leave when I saw something sticking out from one of the mattress. I pulled out a piece of paper and I immediately recognized the writing. It was Evan’s.
If you find this paper, I’m being held captive along with Dr. Greenwood. They’re going to move us to some place else. Or kill us. The person impersonating me is a doppelgänger. Be careful. I don’t know what is impersonating Dr. Greenwood, but he’s extremely dangerous and desperate. He’s looking for the Blood Stone, but it requires a sacrifice to get it. I don’t know what it is. Please watch over Kyle.
Adrenaline surged through me. I rushed out of the cell and back up the stairs.
Please, help.
I immediately changed into fog and hoped I could keep the form long enough to escape from the dungeon and Anton’s office. I slipped through the bookcase crack again and bolted toward the doorway.
Oooooooo
It was the howl of wolf—Rusty.
I passed under the crack just as I saw movement of a shadow about to come down the hallway. I rushed toward my room and slipped under my door. I shifted back and leaned against the door, panting.
Shit, so one of Aibell’s stones was here and it was the vampire stone, the Blood Stone. But it required a sacrifice. What kind of sacrifice? Human sacrifice? And where the hell were Evan and Dr. Greenwood? Were they going to be the sacrifices?
Chapter 30
Someone knocked on the door and I held my breath.
“Ebony, are you in there?” It was Anton, but his voice sounded robotic, making a shiver go right through me.
I ran my fingers through my hair, frantically trying to think what to do. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little tired.”
“Could you come out? We would like to talk to you.”
I slowly stood, my whole body trembling. I shoved the note into my back pocket and then put my palms on the door. “Who’s ‘we’?”
“Me and Dr. Greenwood.”
“I’m really—“
“What do you want, Dr. Greenwood?” Relief washed over to hear Montae’s voice, and I swung open the door.
Dr. Greenwood was standing behind Anton, as if using him as a shield. He pointed a long finger angrily. “What are you doing here, Montae? You have no business here.”
Montae cocked his eyebrow. “And you do? Aren’t you the doctor? I would have thought you should have been in the infirmary, hmm?”
Anton had looked like he was in a trance with his dull eyes up till now, but suddenly something sparked within him. “Yes, Dr. Greenwood. I think that would best. You need to be ready for when the students come back.”
Dr. Greenwood’s face turned beet red and he clenched his fists as he pushed past Montae and left without another word.
Montae and I both bit back smirks.
Anton put his hand on his forehead. “I’m sorry, I need to lie down again. I get tired so easily these days. I feel like there’s a battle inside me between good and evil.”
I stopped smiling and a shiver slid down my back. There was a battle raging on inside him, for sure. I hoped good won.
Montae clasped Anton’s arm. “Here, let me help you.”
Anton nodded. “Thank you.”
Rusty came down the hall whistling and stuck out his thumb, grinning. “I gave that fucking asshole Greenwood a thing or two to remember.”
I grabbed his arm. “Never mind that. I need to talk with you.” I dragged him to the living room and sat with him on the couch.
“What is your problem?”
“SSSSShh, I need to show you something.” I reached into my back pocket and pulled out the letter. “Look.”
Rusty read through it and his eyes widened. “Fuck, now what do we do?”
Montae hurried into the living room. “What?”
“Here.” Rusty handed him the letter. “We’re in deep shit.”
Montae scanned the piece of paper. “This isn’t good. Even if Evan’s the only doppelgänger, this means we’ve got an even bigger problem. Based on the real Greenwood being alive, this letter, and knowing one of Aibell’s lost stones is hidden here at Legacy, I think I know who ‘Greenwood’ is.”
I frowned. “Who?”
He gave me a hard stare and then Rusty.
“Oh, shit.” Rusty leaned his head back on the couch.
Fear choked me as if cold fingers wrapped around my neck. I looked at Montae. “No, not—“
“Ari. Yes.” I turned to see Gunnar standing in the doorway.
“Gunnar.” I couldn’t stop myself and ran over and threw myself around his neck. “What are you doing here?”
He laughed and kissed me.
Montae cleared his throat.
Gunnar released me and stood a little farther away. “When I figured out who Greenwood was, I had to get here as fast as I could.”
I frowned. “How did you figure it out? We just put it together now ourselves.”
He patted his chest and smiled. “Hades. He told me in his own unique way. He flew into Nicholi’s laboratory and knocked over some of his notebooks. They were all on Ari. Nicholi’s the one that figured it out, really.”
That made sense. Nicholi was a brilliant scientist and a fierce warrior at Havenwood, and he and Hades had always had a close bond.
The door flew open and Armond, Cadye, and Kyle all rushed inside.
Kyle was grumbling. “I don’t care, Armond. I don’t like flying with you. You always act like you’re going to drop me.”
Armond laughed. “I wouldn’t have dropped you.”
Cadye scanned all of our faces and her expression instantly turned serious. “Okay, something’s up.”
I looked nervously over at Rusty. “Where's Evan?”
“Oh, he wanted to see Dr. Greenwood,” Kyle said. “He thought he pulled something when he shifted.”
I stood up and headed for the door. “Come on, we need to talk. But not here. Let’s go to the library.”
“We’ve got to wait for Evan first,” Kyle insisted.
Rusty grabbed his arm. “No.”
“Hey, let go!”
“Why? What’s everybody’s problem?” Armond frowned.
Rusty grabbed his arm as well and dragged them both away from Anton’s quarters and to the library. When we were safely at a table in the corner, I caught everyone up everyone on what happened and showed them the note. I wasn’t sure how Armond and Kyle were going to react.
Armond remained silent, but tears welled in Kyle’s eyes.
Kyle wiped his cheek. “Do you…do you think he’s dead?”
I looked at him sorrowfully. “I don’t know, I’m sorry.”
Kyle and Armond looked at each other.
“At Havenwood, over the holidays, he didn’t seem like himself,” Armond said. “He was mean to some of the animals. He’s never mean.”
“He was really rude to Sam, too,” Kyle said. “Would picks fights with him, called him names. That’s not like Evan at all.”
Cadye clutched Kyle’s hand. “He was awful to you as well.”
Rusty leaned back in his chair. “I say we kill this fucker and the fake Greenwood and make them tell us where our friends are.”
“No, that won’t work with Ari,” Gunnar said. “He’s loyal to my father and would never betray him. If we kill him, we’ll never find out where they’re holding Evan and Greenwood or what Cormac’s plan is.”
I furrowed my eyebrows. “Cormac?”
Gunnar flashed me a rueful smile. “You don’t think my father’s the mastermind behind all of this, do you? Poisoning Anton, kidnapping Greenwood, making a doppelgänger of Evan, looking for what we now know is the Blood Stone? Maybe even you not shifting? No. It’s gotta be King Cormac. I bet that’s who he
’s been talking to when he uses the magic orb.” His words opened up a bottle of panic inside me.
I forced myself to concentrate as a deathly, despairing silence rushed over us. We were in way over our heads. We needed The Defenders here, but they weren’t here. We had to do this ourselves.
“We also need to know what sacrifice the Blood Stone requires. I doubt we’re going to find that in any of these books.”
Gunnar looked at me. “I bet Anton’s got the secret hidden in his books and scrolls.”
Rusty rolled his eyes. “No, you’re not saying—“
I looked around the circle. “Yes, Research. And need to go back to watching Evan’s doppelgänger and Greenwood—sorry, make that Ari. We also need to hunt through Legacy for where Ari would be keeping the real Greenwood and Evan imprisoned without anyone noticing. We need to be careful.”
I didn’t need to say anything more. If we were caught, Greenwood and Evan would probably both die.
“Great, I’m going to have sleep with one eye open,” Rusty mumbled.
For the next several weeks, we hunted through the Legacy campus looking for clues as to where Evan and Greenwood were being hidden, but the more we searched, the more our hope turned to dread. It wasn’t looking like they were alive. I hadn’t heard the voice since before Christmas break.
I just couldn’t bear to think Evan could be dead. He was one of the most handsome guys I knew. More to the point, he was one of the nicest. I didn’t want to imagine how Rusty was feeling. Rusty and Evan growing up on the hard streets of Denver had made them really close, and then when Evan’s older brother Sam took Rusty in, he became like a brother. Now, he was missing.
Before we knew it, the Academy Games were coming up that weekend, and we still had no clue if Evan and Dr. Greenwood were alive or dead. The only good thing was that Anton seemed to be coming out of his fog.
Welcoming banners were being flown all over campus to welcome all the different academies. Only athletes and their families would be coming to participate in the games, but the games would be live streamed, just like the Olympics. This was the first time Anton was allowing any kind of modern technology like that to be used at Legacy. I couldn’t believe it.
