by LJ Swallow
"Where we headed, man?" asks Clive.
"To meet my friends." He grins. "We have a little party house."
Little?
"Which friends?" I ask.
His eyes narrow for a moment. "Friends from years back. We're reconnecting, and some young blood would be awesome."
"You a secret society or something?" asks Seamus with a laugh.
Vince smirks at the gangly shifter. "Not quite. But we're tight. Reckon you guys have what it takes to join us?"
My stomach lurches. With every word, I'm positive Vince is about to lead me into a shifter underworld.
No. That’s a shitty thing to think. Vince isn’t capable of leading an army. He's known for physical prowess and coasted through classes at the academy, but he isn’t the smartest. Vince had special treatment for being so bloody good at sports and winning for the academy.
"I hope we're not taking part in an initiation ceremony." I say the words with a straight face, but others around me laugh.
"Nah." Vince's eyes fix on mine. "You guys can't shift yet. That would come later if you want to be part of this."
Holy crap. I don't hear the rest of the conversation as Vince talks up our planned night of beers and fun. I'm half-inclined to make a break for the hallway and hope Maeve hasn’t left yet.
Vince hangs back as the rest of the guys file from the room. "You okay, little bro?"
"Does Theodora know about your secret society?" I ask as we walk behind the group.
"Pfft. Ashley. No secret society. Just a group of friends banding together. We can teach you some tricks to help win the games."
"This feels like a recruitment drive."
He grabs my arm to stop me. "Why are you weird about this?"
"What? I'm not?"
"Rather be with your witches?"
I shrug him off and keep walking. "You're supposed to be impartial, Vince."
"Doesn't matter what happens. The students are screwing this up on their own." He points at Clive and Remi. "Though I'd like to know what happened to them in the woods that night."
I sense his suspicion. "Those two? Not the first time they've smacked each other about."
I'm telling the truth, but Vince's expression stays doubtful. He wraps an arm around my shoulder, and I stumble as he leads me away. "Tell me about your witch's visions."
"Nothing to tell," I say lightly.
He cocks a brow. "Liar."
"Just the usual," I say. "Maeve sees people dying, and it freaks her out."
"Who?"
I chew my lip. I'm managing half-truths here, but I don't like him pushing me. "I didn't think you believed witches' visions."
"Others pay her a lot of attention. I'm just curious why."
"I've nothing to tell you, Vince." I hold his annoyed gaze. He needs to realise I'm not his kid brother who will follow him blindly.
Am I already blinded by him?
We head to the edge of the academy grounds, where I expect to see vehicles to take the six of us to the ‘party house’.
Nothing.
"Taking a long walk, are we?" I ask Vince and nudge him.
"Yeah. We are." He's deadpan serious.
Beside me, Remi's face falls. "Where're we headed, Vincent?" he asks.
Vince smirks. "For a nice walk across the moors."
His confusion turns to horror. "In the dark?"
"What's up with that?" Vincent slaps him on the back. "Your family are big cat shifters. Your night vision must be above average already.
"Yeah, But…" He trails off. "How far are we walking?"
"A few miles."
"Define a few," I interject.
Vince winks. "Shifter miles."
As Vince walks away to chat with two of the other guys, Clive approaches. "Do you know where we're headed?" he asks.
"Nope."
"All good as long as there're beers once we get there, am I right?" Remi nudges him.
I'm relieved to see things are resolved between Clive and Remi after Maeve's slip up, but the five of us worry that they'll remember the truth.
"I'll ask Vince," I say.
Using this as an excuse, I approach Vincent and pull his arm. "Promise me this isn't a crazy initiation ceremony."
He chuckles, and I stagger as he claps me on the back. "Nah. My friends have a place they can go to hang out. Middle of nowhere. No dramas with shifting. Some of us don't like to keep that part of us under wraps."
I bite my lip but can't avoid asking the question. "Do you feel up to shifting again?"
"Do you?" His eyes shine as he studies me.
"No. I can't yet. I don't want to end up as a Mid."
Vince snorts. "Yeah. Can't see a permanent dragon tail would suit you."
His humour adds to my discomfort. Or is he deflecting from the question whether he'll shift?
"Ashley, dude, don't look so stressed." My shoulders sink under the weight of his arm around them. "Tonight I’ll show you what I was part of before the witch ruined my life. Have you ever wondered what will happen if the hunted become the hunters?"
Vince jogs away, towards the group gathered close to the academy gates. I glance back at the building as I debate what to do. The words echo in my head.
The hunted become the hunters.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
ANDREI
Maeve’s easygoing attitude around Jamie is the opposite to how I’m sure she feels around me. I'd be jealous, but honestly this is my own fault for pushing her away. Again. I’m ridiculous, but scared of myself. Anyone who makes Maeve smile is good by me.
Does Jamie know about me and Maeve, or am I her dirty little secret? The way she kissed me left me hanging on the edge—confused how I'd managed to stop myself taking Maeve's blood. A different desire took over—for her wanting me. To give in to her truth: acknowledge that I feel. I crave the euphoria from the snatched moments, something I won't find from Maeve tonight, so I'll find something else.
I know this dealer, Jay, and after five minutes searching, I can't find him in the club. Gritting my teeth in frustration, I step outside into the night. The sharp human scents carry towards me on the breeze, along the street lined with shops and clubs. You'd think the supernatural owners would hide or glamour the place, but no. As with many things, blending in plain sight is the key to surviving in their world. That makes life tough. Maeve asks about drugs, but humans are the real addiction.
I’m learning to keep away.
Once, I went to a nearby human club. Big fucking mistake. That was the day the naïve Andrei Tepes sealed his reputation as someone who attacks humans. How was I to bloody know the human chick wasn't serious when she believed I’m a vampire? I've heard humans like to pretend vampires exist and offer themselves up. The girl got cold feet at the last minute.
Yeah, blood touched my lips, but I backed off the moment she screamed. Some would’ve killed to shut her up. I didn't and that saved me. But again, my family’s legacy colours peoples’ opinions over what happened. Unfair, because I'm not the only teenage vamp who's been in that situation.
Blowing air into my cheeks, I seek what I need to blank out these thoughts. I know where Jay goes if he’s caught dealing and slung out the club. There's an alleyway between the building and the back streets, one that leads to a car park. Few humans use the route, as if they automatically sense something inhuman lurks in the shadows.
The guy who owns the club lives out of the city, but the manager lives above the club in a small flat with a door leading out this way so he can avoid walking through the people. I hang by this door and wait for the dealer to finish with the two girls he's with. I'm not interested in talking to the pair and turn my back as they wander back to where music belts through the open door.
Jay shoves handful of bank notes in a pocket and I dart over to the dealer before he can move.
"Fuck!" he exclaims and shrinks back. "I wish you bloody vamps wouldn't sneak up."
If Jay dressed better, he wouldn’t stan
d out as much when he touted for business in the club. His black hooded jacket probably hides his usual black T-shirt with holes, and his faded jeans are filthy.
"I'm not sneaking. I wanted to catch you before you leave."
He cocks a brow. "Are you buying?"
"Why else would I be chatting to a dealer?" I look behind him, half- expecting Maeve to appear and tell me to stop. "Can we be quick, dude?"
Moistening his lips, Jay delves into his inside jacket pocket and pulls out small, square pieces of paper. I frown. "What's that?"
"New delivery method."
"I'm not fucking stupid. Sell me some Lix."
"That is Lix. On paper. You’ll still get a hit from this. How many do you want?"
I narrow my eyes in suspicion. "It's definitely Lix?"
"Man, you haven't bought recently, have you? Supply is short since some bastards stole half our gear." He huffs. "Look, I've a long-term business here. I'm not fucking that up by dealing dodgy shit and getting myself killed. You want the Lix or not?"
I push hair from my eyes and pull out cash. "Three."
"Big night, huh?"
"Spares. Some for later."
Deal done, I dip my head and duck around the corner. The music thuds from inside the club and I rest against the wall as the dealer scuttles back towards the club, no doubt looking for his next customer. Lix. I stare down at the paper for several seconds and debate what to do.
There’s no debate here. From this, I can get the hit to match my euphoria from tasting blood. I’ll lose the temptation around Maeve better than stupid gum chewing. I snort softly. As if I’d get close to her with Jamie protecting her from the big, bad bloodsucker.
The paper dissolves in my mouth, and I grimace at the sour taste as I rest my head against the brick wall and close my eyes. The effect doesn’t take long—never does—and a warmth spreads from my heart through to every extremity as the drug fills my veins.
I won’t lose touch with reality—drunk humans would act out more than me taking Lix, although our inhibitions drop the same way. I call it my ‘no longer give a shit’ drug, because that’s how I feel after taking Lix. I told Maeve I don’t give a shit usually, but that’s not strictly true.
The door to the back of the club bangs and I open an eye. Rainbow colours edge my vision and I’m filled with a new warmth.
Warmth that’s chilled from my body when I see who left the building.
Ione. The last time I saw my sister, she spat at me that I’d regret abandoning my family, which is fucking hypocritical since she walked away with my mother. My family is Tepes. My mother dropped her married name and Ione abandoned it too.
Ione scornfully told me I wouldn’t live to see immortality if I didn’t join them, implying she’d make sure I didn't.
I’m not keen on meeting her tonight. Or ever again.
I shrink back into the shadows that won’t hold me for long and peer through the dark. There’s little light in the alleyway, no streetlights close by, but I know it’s her as soon as the light from the doorway captures her features. She looks like me, something else I hate, with identically coloured hair, the same face shape and eyes.
But Ione is nothing like me.
If I weren’t high, I’d panic and run, but I’m transfixed. Who’s she with?
I don’t recognise anybody, but as Ione is high up in Dominion ranks, these guys are too—or they’re her bodyguards. I’m surprised she’s at the club; Ione is too well-known to get far.
My bigger concern isn’t why the Dominion are here, but how they got into the club. I need to find the others and leave.
As Ione reaches the bottom of the steps, she pauses and tips her chin, cocking her head at the same time.
"Why are you skulking, little brother?" Her voice is like the velvet my mother would dress her in, soft and smooth; sweetly friendly. She’s anything but.
"I’m not," I reply and don’t move.
"So, it is you, Andrei," she exclaims with more delight to her tone than I’d like.
Ione moves towards me, and I sidestep before she can block my escape route. Her long coat is cinched at the waist and fastened, a dark blue scarf wrapped elegantly around her neck. She laughs and it reminds me of happier times, when I amused my big sister with my childish games. Ione, the vampire who’s fifty years older than she looks, and her blood-born brother she grew to resent.
"Why are you here?" she asks.
"Night out. You?"
"Meeting some friends."
I pay attention to the two tall guys with her, hoping to hell that I don’t recognise them from somewhere else.
I don’t. One is clearly a vamp—he has the typical face shape and the light catches his unmarked skin. He’s good-looking, naturally, but old-fashioned in his suit and cravat. This guy stands out one hell of a lot amongst the modern around him.
The second I sense is a witch, again not one I recognise. His magic energy surrounds him and calls out to me as strongly as his blood. Powerful. Spirit witch. If Ione didn’t detect me tonight, he definitely would’ve. He’s young—not much older than me—and he watches me like a cat stalking prey.
I catch her subtly probing my mind and I focus on the sensation of the Lix flowing through my veins, slamming a door closed against Ione’s intrusion.
She laughs softly. "How’s the witch?"
"Which one?"
Her mouth thins. "The one everybody thinks is powerful enough to take down the Dominion. The witch you’ll kill."
My mouth fills with bile. "I’m not killing anybody."
Ione sneers. "Please, Andrei. Your self-control is pathetic. Of course, you’ll kill her one day."
"Fuck off," I mutter.
She steps forward and her skin has the luminescence only found on vampires that take blood from humans.
"Such an eloquent response. Don’t they teach manners at the Nightworld academies?" The vampire beside her sniggers. "I don’t need to see inside your mind to know you're worried. Don’t fret, little one, we’re not here to kill your witch."
I should be relieved this isn’t the reason my sister visited tonight, but why won't Ione touch her? "Yeah, you couldn’t."
"Umm. Wouldn’t. I’m perfectly capable of slaughtering the girl. No, she’s a useful distraction for the Confederacy idiots. They pay too much attention to her because they don’t have any other ideas how to stop us."
"While you plan to do what?" I ask.
She shifts so her face moves closer to mine. Ione wears the same perfume she always did, her cheeks rosy from a recent feed, no doubt. Dominion have willing donors they call blood banks, but how many survive? I hate to think.
"The Confederacy can continue their ridiculous attempt to police the supernatural world, but unrest is growing. Their stupid Nightworld academies can’t brainwash the kids into believing we can all integrate. The unnatural state of affairs will end. Five hundred years is too long."
"And you think your Dominion are strong enough?" I sneer. "If you are, why waste time?"
Her thin lips spread into a smile. "Watch. This. Space."
The rainbows at the edge of my vision grow as the Lix moves through my system, soothing and preventing the fear my sister would like to elicit from me.
"Are you high, Andrei?" She takes my face between her fingers and tips my chin.
I recoil, slapping her hand away. "As a fucking kite."
Ione chuckles and touches my cheek again with long, cold fingers. "Andrei Petrescu. Always the rebel. Forever an outcast."
I grit my teeth as her taunting words push through the high embracing me.
Because they’re true.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
MAEVE
Ugh. Why did Jamie leave me with the group? I planned this night out with all my friends and ended up with two. Now they’ve both wandered off. Seriously?
I smile at the four as they discuss the academy games, aware it’s only a matter of time before one of them questions me about what happened
at the mental magic challenge.
The amount of time I spend with my small group of friends prevents me integrating into the academy more, but I try to stay friendly. Which means I need to stay with them until Jamie reappears.
Jamie, who stopped counting how many drinks he had and unsteadily wandered away to the bar five minutes ago.
"Why isn't Ash with you?" asks Jade.
Didn’t we already have this conversation? "He’s busy with Vincent this weekend."
"Yeah, I heard Vincent took a few Gilgamesh kids for some extra training for the final game." Dane huffs. "Not exactly impartial, is he?" He pauses. "Sorry, I know he’s your boyfriend’s brother."
"Ash isn’t my boyfriend." Why do those words hurt me to say? I began the term hoping we’d move in that direction, but instead he’s withdrawn from me. I’ve held onto the idea planted by Tobias that he’s influenced too greatly by Vincent.
Please let that be true, and when we expose Vincent, we don't lose Ash completely.
Jade and Ashleigh side-glance each other. Gossip for them. I smile even though I don't want to.
"Did you split because of Andrei?" asks Jade.
"Or Jamie?" offers Ashleigh.
I grip my glass tighter. Where the hell is either of the guys? "No."
The girls exchange another glance before Jade says, "She wants one of each--vamp, shifter, witch."
Thank god it’s dark in here so they can't see my cheeks, which I swear turned pink.
"Are you sure you’re not a lamia hybrid?" asks Jade and nudges me.
I join in their laughter, but I’m eyeing up an opportunity to walk away. "Are you saying I’m like Katherine?"
"Hell, no," says Dane. "By the way, what happened between you at the mental magic game? Did she attack you?"
Well, I walked into that question.
All three focus on me, waiting for the answer every student at the academy wants. Maeve’s explanation. The drama. The gossip.
I gulp down my drink. "Jamie’s taking a long time. I should find him."
Before they can respond, I dive through the group beside us and head towards the bar. People wait, crammed together in the hope they’ll catch the bartender’s eye first, and I scrutinise the group.
