Half Blood Rising: (Moonlight Academy Book 1)

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  “She didn’t expel you yet, Jaymin. I think you should stay,” Karina said as I took out my suitcase and began packing my things.

  I’d have to track that idiot pretty boy myself, because no one wanted to believe anything I said. It was so damn frustrating. Lachlan was in trouble. And they were willing to take that bitch’s word, and not even bother to check on Lachlan. Not even a phone call to check my story? Nothing. None of this made sense.

  “They weren’t in the club the entire time, so we couldn’t see what was going on. Are you sure Lachlan’s being held by the clan?” Marco asked as he walked towards me. Another jolt of electricity shot up my spine as he touched me. I expected them all to be loyal to Ramona, but instead, they were here with me. This made me feel a little better about myself.

  “It’s not the first time I’ve seen him involved with mages. They captured him because, apparently, they believe he can influence his father who’s high up in the council. It’s all about the Elite—these mages want to gain control over the admission process. And Ramona’s been playing us this whole time.” I explained my theory. Although I had no evidence against Ramona, and it was still her word against mine, the bottom line was, I’d screwed this up. Perhaps Dimitry and Oldman were right; maybe I shouldn’t have gone inside and tried to rescue Dorothy myself.

  “Lachlan is a strong vampire, so he can take care of himself. I mean, where are you planning to go now? You don’t know the city,” Judas spoke, and for the first time since I’d met the guy, he said several full sentences all at once. He had a deep voice. I’d never noticed… And he seemed genuinely worried about me.

  “No idea, but I can’t stay under the same roof with that leech,” I said as I picked up my suitcase. “I’ll call you guys once I find out something useful.”

  I knew that they weren’t happy about it. The truth was, I still didn’t have a plan. Karina walked up to me and tried to hug me, but I pushed her away. She was sweet, but this was way too difficult already. My emotions were taking over, and she needed to understand that I had to clear my head, get to the bottom of everything, with or without the team. I used the back door to leave. I didn’t want to be bombarded again by Oldman and Dimitry, and as I was on my way out, Roxanna approached me once again.

  “Take this and follow your nose. I always knew there was something wrong with that girl,” she muttered, and I smiled at her. “Leave your bag.” She nodded towards my suitcase, and I thought it was strange, but I did as she requested. If I needed anything, I could always call Karina.

  She placed a bunch of bank notes in my hand as she closed the door behind me. I didn’t waste time thinking about it. I ran to the street, stopped a taxi, then told the driver in broken Ukrainian where I wanted to go. It was time to be as far away from that house as possible.

  I didn’t have to be angry anymore, at least my team believed me. Now I just needed to find some kind of evidence that Lachlan was indeed missing. The old Russian taxi driver kept staring at me from the rear-view mirror. My knives were on the seat beside me.

  I didn’t have a chance to hide them.

  When he dropped me outside the large square, it was gloomy, dark heavy clouds were covering the sky. Roxanna had given me quite a lot of cash, and suddenly, I was grateful for it. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who noticed Ramona’s odd aura, and Roxanna was a very old vampire. It surprised me that she was working for Dimitry. I needed to locate Lachlan before it was too late, and then solve the rest of this case. I was tempted to return to the industrial part, but Leonidas wasn’t stupid. The vampires had moved on. Now searching for Dorothy would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Moscow was huge.

  I walked around a few streets, trying to think on my feet, searching for a vampire-populated area. My stomach started growling again, and after some time, I needed to rest, figure out my next move. I found a large restaurant on the back street, went inside, then ordered Russian dumplings with some kefir. The smell of freshly cooked food made my mouth water.

  The waitress had a face like a slapped arse, and she practically threw my food on the table in front of me once it was prepared. Charming, I thought, but apparently Russians were like that. I wanted to laugh, especially after the shit couple days I’d had. They always seemed to be in a bad mood, but I couldn’t complain. Everything looked delicious. I started eating, watching as people walked by from the window. The food warmed my belly instantly, giving me the energy I so desperately needed.

  Someone left a newspaper on the side table, and I picked it up. Surprisingly it was in English, so I began reading it until someone familiar strode into the café. I nearly choked on my dumplings as soon as I recognised the vampire who was standing with his back turned to me.

  It was Vlad, but what the hell was he doing in here? He glanced around, and, luckily, I managed to hide my face behind the paper quickly enough. I was nervous that he might sense me, as he’d seen me the other night. Shit. This was suddenly going terribly wrong. He started speaking in Russian to someone a few tables away from me, laughing and pointing towards something outside.

  I peered over the paper, trying to see if I knew the other guy. He was human, so it didn’t make much sense, at the same time, I didn’t bloody believe in coincidences. Vlad couldn’t be here because of me, or if he was, he must have noticed me from the street. I finished my food, telling myself to be damn careful. Vlad spent another twenty minutes talking to the older Russian, and then vanished in the narrow corridor near the washroom.

  I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering if it was wise for me to follow him. Last time, it didn’t end well, but right now, I was on my own. It was ultimately my decision, and no one even knew I was here.

  A few Russian customers stared at me as I stood from my seat and casually strolled over to the loo, then quickly walked over to the other side towards the men’s room.

  There was a door leading outside, so I started searching through the bins until I found a thin wire. My luck seemed to be turning around, because it was exactly what I needed right now.

  Seconds later, I inhaled and picked up the scent of fresh blood. I placed my ear against the door, trying to listen. Vampires weren’t like humans; they didn’t have physiological needs.

  “Pretty, I bet you taste incredible; virgins are always so juicy.” I heard him say in a thick English accent. My jaw dropped. He had a girl in there. I heard her whimpering, then moaning with pleasure that wasn’t there.

  I kicked the door open without even considering my actions and barged inside as a flashback from the past rolled through my head.

  It was a very small bathroom, but Vlad made use of the space. He was draining this poor human dry, and I suspected that this wasn’t the first time he’d preyed upon such an innocent woman. She was extremely young, possibly not even eighteen. I needed to remind myself that Vlad wasn’t a convict.

  “Tbi Kto?” he asked in Russian as blood trickled down his face. His pupils were dilated. He didn’t recognise me, which was a good thing. The girl was trembling, and her clothes were torn. Had he raped her?

  “I’m your worst nightmare,” I roared and jumped on him, wrapping the wire I’d found earlier around his throat. I didn’t even know how I found the strength to do it. Everything was swift and quick. Obviously, he tried to fight, but I stabbed him in the jaw with a small knife I’d brought with me. Vlad growled and then howled like a wolf. The girl screamed, then passed out. Her fear was rubbing off on me in a bad way—she was infected by him, and her soul was now tainted.

  Then I pulled the wire harder, but realised I couldn’t kill him just yet, although my anger was out of control. He disgusted me because he was so vile.

  He still hadn’t connected the dots from last night. Things weren’t adding up.

  “I’m going to ask one question, and you only have one chance to answer,” I told him, and loosened the wire a little. He inhaled. It was much more difficult to suffocate a vampire than a human, but he had a knife in his jaw, besides with a little
bit of my magic, the wire could easily cut off his head. He was aware of it. I could sense it.

  Maybe this was the worst-case scenario—something I avoided at all costs.

  “What the fuck do you want from me? I’ve never seen you in my life, and this girl has been looking for a vampire for a long time,” he spat, and I knew that the knife was undoubtedly hurting him as he spoke. It was a motivational tool on my part.

  “Lachlan, annoying Scot, has gone missing and your clan has him. I need to know where he’s being kept. Show me three fingers if you know what I’m talking about,” I said, and then pulled the wire tighter. My hands were nearly bleeding as I was pulling it so hard.

  My heart was jackhammering inside my chest, and for a moment, all I could hear was his heavy breathing. He didn’t give me the sign, then tried to kick me. The wire sliced through his throat as I yanked harder; it was the most disgusting form of torture I’d ever used, but he needed to get the message. Split seconds later, he gave me a sign, and I loosened it again.

  “I’m listening—where is he?” I repeated, wanting to get the fuck out of here.

  “Elite… old cathedral tomb, but you won’t make it. They are planning some sort of ceremony, and they have human sacrifices, too,” he rasped, but his voice was broken, unclear. I managed to make out what he said, but just barely.

  “Elite? Tell me exactly where he’s being kept? St. Kilda Elite Academy is in Bucharest, and we’re in Russia,” I said, smelling burnt and rotting flesh. It was too much, my stomach was turning, but I had to finish this before I vomited.

  “There is an Elite branch in Moscow, but only a few know about it,” he continued to choke out.

  I turned my head to the right, noticing that the girl had awoken all of a sudden. Her face was horror-stricken, and she appeared to be in shock.

  The vampire jerked his head so hard, that the wire cut straight through, before I could pull it away completely.

  His head fell from his shoulders and rolled along the bathroom floor. It happened so quickly, and I stared at my bloodied hands, wondering if I’d gone completely mad.

  I’d become a monster, but I’d never truly planned to kill him. The girl had seen everything as it unfolded—the decapitation—and began screaming, then she fainted once again. I rubbed my forehead, trying to breathe at the same time. Vlad deserved to die. His dark aura made me nauseous. It nearly felt the same as when I’d dealt with a real convict. He must have raped girls for fun, many times before, mostly virgins.

  I pushed his body off me and rose to my feet, feeling a bit light-headed. At some point, someone would discover the girl here, but I didn’t want to leave her with a burning corpse. Most of the time, their bodies turned to ash after a while, so I decided to drag her out of the loo and leave her in the corridor. She was going to cause a scene, anyway. I had no idea how the supernatural council worked in Russia, but in Ukraine, they normally sent a team to clean-up and wipe the memories of humans who’d been exposed to our world.

  My head was banging, and I needed to rest, but I didn’t have time. Lachlan was being held in one of the tombs that apparently belonged to the Elite Academy. This confused me even more, but at least I now had a lead. There was no way I was going back to headquarters. Ramona was only waiting for me to reappear. At the same time, I had to gather the rest of the team. It was possible Oldman had already asked them not to talk to me, but I had to at least try and tell them what I was planning to do next. It was my chance to prove to them that I deserved my place in Moonlight.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Teamwork.

  I left the café undetected, using the back door. The smell of blood was overwhelming. I was getting a migraine, only because I’d absorbed some of the vamp’s energy. This only happened at times when I’d become too distracted and hadn’t protected myself enough from the darkness inside them.

  My energy level was low, but I headed towards the area designated mainly for supernaturals. It was on the west side of Moscow, and it took me another hour to get there. It was already dark, so all the vampires were out hanging around the clubs and cafés.

  It was the middle of the week, but everyone seemed to be out and about. I walked to one of the clubs and managed to find a quiet spot in one of the booths. The music there wasn’t too loud, so I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialled Karina’s number. Right now, I was glad that I hadn’t left it behind at headquarters.

  The team was probably waiting for Dimitry to make a decision, so it was a waiting game for them. They’d been led to believe that Lachlan was perfectly fine, although they’d seemed receptive to everything I’d told them. Oldman hadn’t expelled me yet, and I was counting on the fact that they would come.

  “What’s up, girl?” Karina picked up after the third ring.

  “I have some info on Lachlan’s location, and by the way, Vlad is dead,” I said, after I made sure no one around me could hear.

  “Hold on, the guys are here. I’ll put you on speaker,” she said. I bit my bottom lip, wondering if this was such a good idea after all. I could do this on my own, but I didn’t know the area, and that worked as a disadvantage on my part. “All right, they’re all here.”

  “What about Ramona?” I asked.

  “She’s gone out, apparently she had an emergency,” Karina said, and I frowned, wondering why no one decided to follow her. It was too late to voice my opinion, anyway. Dimitry and Oldman still didn’t believe me, even if the rest of the team did.

  “According to Vlad, there’s an Elite Academy branch in Moscow, and Lachlan’s being held in one of the tombs. He will be dead by tonight. Apparently, the other clan is planning some sort of ceremony later on in the evening,” I explained, feeling even more pressure mounting inside my head.

  I had to have a drink, or I needed to find a healer who could take away the darkness. This was going to be complicated, especially now.

  “Oldman left, and Dimitry’s with Roxanna. We could leave without telling him and meet you somewhere local,” she suggested.

  “Shouldn’t you talk to Dimitry, he’s part of the team?” I said, rubbing my face. This was too risky, but it was the truth. Dimitry knew the area and he could help, but that bitch, Ramona, couldn’t get involved. I had a feeling she had Oldman wrapped around her little finger. At the same time, I couldn’t allow them to be expelled from Moonlight. They all deserved to be there.

  “All right, let’s not waste time. I hope your information checks out. We’ll meet you in an hour in the Cathedral the Christ of Saviour,” said another voice that belong to Marco. I was a little surprised to hear he was making a decision.

  “Cool, I’ll see you there in about an hour,” I said and then hung up. After that phone call, I was a little relieved, so I went to the bar to get some water. After draining about a litre, my headache eased off a bit.

  Humans were staring, a few supernaturals, too, as I was walking by. My knives were hanging on the side of my belt. I was probably bringing too much attention to myself, but, either way, I didn’t have anywhere else to put them, especially now.

  As I was heading towards the city, I was suddenly reminded of the heated moment Lachlan and I had shared. I kept telling myself that I wasn’t attracted to him, but I knew it was bullshit. Even now, as I thought about him, my core ignited with fire.

  I decided to take the bus after asking some random human how to get to the museum. I really needed to learn Ukrainian, at the very least. My language skills were horrid. Apparently, it was on the other side of the city. My clothes were stinking, and a few passengers stared at me with curiosity. I’d hidden my blood-soaked shirt beneath my leather jacket.

  The area around the cathedral was filled with a lot of tourists. I was surprised to see how busy it was. It was pissing down rain, and I got soaked quickly. The team showed up with Dimitry ten minutes later. My stomach made a funny jolt when Dimitry gave me a sharp look. He didn’t seem happy at all that he was there. The sooner I could convince him I’d been telling t
he truth, the better.

  “I hope this checks out, because the team seems to believe in you,” he said under his breath in his thick Russian accent.

  “He’s inside, trust me, and he’ll be dead tonight,” I said, and couldn’t help but roll my eyes. They were here, and it made me a little emotional. This never really happened to me before. Maybe it was a sign that after everything that had happened, my human genes were still working well.

  “What’s the plan?” Judas asked, looking uncertain. “I hope you have one, right?”

  “He’s being held in a tomb somewhere near the Kremlin. Vlad hinted something about the Chamber of Romanov Boyars,” I explained, hoping that at least Dimitry knew where we would need to head to next.

  “Yes, it’s very famous, this place you speak of,” Dimitry said. “We need to get a car. I had no idea the Elite had a branch in Russia… interesting.”

  He gestured for us to follow him. The van arrived ten minutes later. The driver was human, but that didn’t seem to bother anyone. Karina told me how Ramona had tried to convince them to leave with her, when out of the blue, Oldman told her to find Lachlan before the end of the day.

  “Well, in that case, I’m not surprised she left,” I muttered to myself, placing my fingers on my forehead. I still had a migraine, and this wasn’t good.

  “What’s wrong with you?” Marco asked. “There is a strange aura surrounding you, and your energy is weak.” Of course he noticed. Normally other supernaturals didn’t have that kind of skill, but I’d nearly forgotten he was fae, and he’d sensed Vlad’s dark energy surfacing around me.

  “I told you I killed Vlad, well, it was kind of an accident, but his darkness infected me straight away. I’ve had a migraine from hell since I left that bar in town,” I answered, pushing away the pain and the fact I was exhausted.

  Then Marco did something I wasn’t expecting. He approached me, his eyes were amazing, gleaming with pure energy.