by L. A. Sable
“Why isn’t it attacking?” Maeve whispered.
The imp turned on her with a low growl, bending low to the ground as if preparing to launch itself at her.
“Stop,” I commanded.
And the little demon froze in place. When it turned back to me with an eager sound, mouth falling open as it panted.
“Oh, Goddess,” Amaranth croaked, voice high and reedy with fear. “It obeys her command.”
“Are you listening to me?” I asked, not sure if I believed it myself.
Its mouth stretched wider, in what almost looked like a smile, and the imp made a barking sound. A long tail whipped against the floor as he wagged it like a dog.
Primrose looked more angry than afraid, but there was a note of uncertainty in her voice. “I don’t believe this.”
With another growl, the imp shifted to face them as if it were interested in protecting me. Even though I had no idea how any of this was happening, the look of shock and fear on their faces was a pleasant turn of events. “It’s been fun, ladies. But you might want to go before I think too much about how you just tried to kill me.”
They don’t wait to be told again. Primrose was the last out the door and her gaze rested on me for a moment before she fled. Unlike the others, it wasn’t fear that dominated her expression, but frustration.
“I know they looked tasty,” I tell the imp as the door shuts. “But I can’t let you eat anybody until I figure out what the hell is going on here.”
And the even bigger problem was that I had no idea how to send this thing back to wherever it came from. My hands touched the grimoire as I moved to stand. Primrose had left it behind, probably because a demon had been standing between it and her.
I shifted around the imp and it tracked me with its gaze. It seemed to have no interest in attacking me, but I had no idea how long that would last. Hopefully the incantation for unsummoning could be found in the grimoire. I flipped through the pages as the imp licked my fingers until I pushed it away. It went to the corner and turned a few times in a circle before dropping to the floor with its head resting on its clawed front hands.
Demons were mindless and evil, everyone knew that. The few documented run-ins with them on this plane always ended in bloodshed. But this one acted like it was more interested in becoming my familiar than ripping out my heart and eating it.
And then I remember Bastian’s whispered words as he kissed me.
What are you?
Chapter Twelve
Cynth
It didn’t fucking work.
As I entered the large atrium at the center of the castle with its differently colored hallways leading to each house’s dormitory, I knew down to my very bones that the little bitch was still alive. But it was common knowledge that witches couldn’t be trusted to fulfill their end of things.
I glared at the flock of harpies that only had one job to do, fighting the urge to rip each one of their throats out. It had been a while since I fed on a supernatural creature and they would make delicious buffet. But there was no point in killing the witches if I might need them later.
For now, I clenched my teeth to keep the elongated incisors inside my lips. “You assured me that our problem would be taken care of quickly and quietly.”
“The demon didn’t attack her,” Primrose replied with a shrug, all buttoned up and proper as per usual. But I could see the traces of fear in her eyes. “I even had her sit in the southern position because demons are most attracted to flame. We broke the circle and doused her in blood, just like we planned.”
Ripping out her throat would be too kind. At this point I wanted to tear her arms off her body and beat her with them. “And yet the apostate still lives.”
“I don’t know what you want me to do,” Primrose groused, crossing slim arms over her chest. Her dress gaped a bit near her belly from where she’d skipped a button. It was the first time I’d ever seen her looking anything short of perfect. Shit must have really gone down. “The demon should have made easy work of her. It looked like it was going to attack and then it just…stopped.”
“Stopped,” I repeated the words as a cold rage settled over me. “Demons don’t just stop. They tear into anything in their path until they’re banished back to the underrealms.”
Primrose had the nerve to glare at me. “Not this one.”
This was an interesting, if completely unwanted development. Jinx Darkward had to die, if just to satisfy the code of honor that my family had lived by for generations. Blood price meant nothing to that ancient code, our blood had been spilled and only blood could be used to repay that debt.
One of Primrose’s little underlings spoke from behind her, I hadn’t bothered to learn either of their names. “It was like the demon listened to her.”
I had no time for lesser students not under the control of my house, but my gaze cut back to Primrose. “Is this true?”
She sighed, as if acknowledging it caused her pain. “It would seem so. We left before she could turn the thing on us. I assume it’s still in there with her.”
The pressure of a migraine built in my temples. “We can’t have a rogue demon wandering the hallways. You need to send it back.”
“I can’t do that right now,” Primrose responded through clenched teeth.
“Why?”
“We had to leave the grimoire behind,” one of the other witches said when it was clear that Primrose wouldn’t respond. “The apostate still has it.”
“Well, this has certainly been a spectacular series of failure on your part.” My hand itched for a whip just as I felt the almost irrepressible urge to sink my teeth into unwilling flesh. “Be happy you are not members of my house, otherwise I would flay you alive. House Night knows better than to disappoint its acolyte.”
“Luckily for us, House Essence doesn’t have an acolyte,” Primrose snapped. “At least, not yet.”
I scoffed at that. “If you think you’re still in the running when you can’t even take care of a single apostate witch, then you are tragically mistaken. You certainly won’t have my support.”
“I told you we’d get it done.”
While the choice of acolyte for House Essence was ultimately up to the headmaster’s discretion, Darius would take the opinions of his current acolytes into account. And Primrose would never get my vote while the apostate still lived.
And Primrose Blackworth had very high hopes of herself, at least when it came to rising to the top of the heap at the Proving Grounds and eventually becoming a member of the Blooded. Her family had made it clear that they never expected her to meet their expectations, and she’d spent most of her life trying and failing to take over the world, if just to make them proud. Ultimately, she was a mediocre witch with outsized ambition. I’d hoped that she would be more useful than she has been.
“I’m disappointed,” I said on a weary sigh, closing the small distance between us. I understood well the effect I had on women, one of the benefits of being a vampire. It was difficult to feed effectively if you couldn’t attract prey in the first place. My hand lifted to gently stroke her cheek as Primrose’s eyes widened but she didn’t pull away. “I thought that we would be able to create something together. But we can’t do that with this obstacle in the way.”
Primrose bit her bottom lip, puffing out the tiny bit of pink flesh. The move was meant to be enticing but actually only served to annoy me. It was almost sad that she thought it was possible for her to distract me with sex. “No, sir.”
We’ve fucked a few times in the past. Primrose was a squealer when she didn’t think her underlings could hear her. But that was about control. It had always been about control with me, the woman underneath me were always interchangeable and I felt nothing for them as individuals.
The only woman I’d ever felt anything for was Jinx Darkward. And that emotion was a hate so deep, it made me see red anytime I heard her name.
I suppose in that way, I was almost pleased that Primrose hadn’t
managed to kill the girl like we’d planned. If anything was going to eat her, it should be me. The thought of sinking teeth into her throat and then ripping it out was the most satisfying thought I’d had in a long time.
Belatedly, I realized the witches were staring me because I’d gone quiet as visions of maiming and torture danced through my head. “Leave the apostate be for now. Clearly, I’ll need to take a firmer hand in things.”
I always took a firm hand, but Primrose was fully aware of that. A simpering smile crossed her lips as she shrugged, acting as if she had no problem going along with whatever plan I came up with next. I held no illusions that she did any of this out of love for me. The witch was attracted to power and little else. But I had that, which made her useful to me.
This was the second time I’d been thwarted in an attempt to harm Jinx. Another failure and I’d start to wonder if the dark gods were granting her special protection.
“You said the demon obeyed her command,” I murmured, wheels turning in my head as I pondered that inconceivable turn of events. The last thing we needed was an imp running around without a leash. “Did she cast some sort of spell on it?”
Primrose made an angry sound as her eyes narrowed to dangerous points. The very idea that she would be outmatched by another witch clearly struck a nerve. “The bitch doesn’t know any spells. Even the most basic thing is completely over her head. I don’t know how she did it.”
Because what Jinx had done shouldn’t be possible. Nothing she’d ever done should be possible, including what happened to my brother.
“It doesn’t matter,” I declared, as an uneasy feeling rose in the pit of my stomach that I chased away. I hated mysteries almost as much as I hated losing. “Return to House Essence and keep an eye on the apostate. But make no moves against her until I say.”
“Yes, sir.” Primrose took a step forward as her friends retreated toward the hallway behind them, lit with sconces of purple glass. “Should I expect a visit to my room tonight?”
She pressed her body to mine as I held myself immobile, not giving her so much as an inch. Sure, I could put her up against the wall right here, but I didn’t appreciate the attempt at manipulating me. While I always appreciated a woman who refused to cry under the whip, Primrose had a tendency to get clingy. I didn’t want to inflict pain only to hug it out afterwards. Where was the fun in that?
“Not tonight,” I replied with a mocking smile. “Contemplating your failures doesn’t really put me in the mood.”
“You’re an asshole,” she declared, wrapping her arms around her belly and glaring at me as she backed away. “I wasn’t interested in seeing you, anyway.”
“Keep telling yourself that, witch. Your legs will still spread if that’s what I want.”
A dangerous light entered her eyes. “If you’re expecting me to put up with your shit forever, then you’re in for a rude awakening.”
The threat meant little to me. “And if you’re expecting to survive until graduation, then I suggest that you not test my patience.”
Without bothering to reply, Primrose flipped the fall of dark hair over her shoulder and marched toward the hallway leading to House Essence. It was impossible not to notice the switch she put in her hips as she walked away, which was clearly her intent. If she hoped to tease me into regretting my words, then she vastly overestimated my weakness to her charms.
“Darius will be quite put out if he discovers you conspiring to murder his new protégé.”
I turned to see Bastian’s form coalescing from the shadows in the corner, as if his body were made of smoke and darkness. Blending with the shadows was one of his talents. “I’ve told you not to skulk around like that, listening into conversations that don’t concern you.”
Now fully formed, Bastian emerged from the darkened corner with a manic smile on his face. “But how else will I hear all the best secrets? It isn’t as if anyone actually tells me anything.”
“That’s because you gossip like a fish wife.” I turned to face him with a scowl, taking in his mussed appearance. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, with one missing completely, his jacket was wrinkled and it looked very much like he had just spent the last hour rolling on the floor. “I assume you’ve just come from a visit with the headmaster.”
“For a bit.”
The mischievous grin on Bastian’s face made it clear exactly what sort of visit it had been. The Fae were notorious for their sexual proclivities, not so much playing for both sides as just swinging for the fences. I was nearly certain that Bastian had fornicated with things that didn’t even walk on two legs.
And dealing with him required more patience than I currently possessed. “And Darius hates the little bitch of a witch more than I do.”
“But he needs her alive, at least for now. She’s his ticket to Valentine.” Bastian circled me with lazy strides, jumping away with a laugh when I tried to cuff him. “And you didn’t even like your brother, why all the hate for a witch just trying to defend herself.”
I glared at him as I fought back a rising tide of anger. “She burned him alive.”
“And he would have turned her into a puppet which I suppose might be attractive to a certain sort of person, but probably isn’t how she planned to spend eternity. Big bro was a bit of an asshole, let’s be honest.” Bastian skirted away as I lunged for him. “You didn’t even like Ceres. Nobody did.”
Accurate, but beside the point. “I am honor bound to avenge his death.”
“Oh vampires and your blessed honor.” Bastian waved away centuries of tradition like he was batting at flies. “My people live for millennia and you don’t see us holding useless grudges.”
My lips quirked despite my annoyance. It was difficult to stay angry with someone who never took anything seriously. “Wasn’t your family kicked out of the Summerlands for a thousand generations? Don’t talk to me about grudges.”
“That was a small misunderstanding,” he replied with a lazy smile. “But tell me more about your plans for Jinx. You don’t think this is bordering a bit on obsessive.”
The asshole was lucky he’d retreated to the far side of the room. “I am not obsessed. I just hate that the girl is still breathing.”
“You do realize that love and hate are just two sides of the same coin, right?”
As if my mood could turn any darker. The only part of Jinx Darkward that I wanted to touch was her skinny neck when I snapped it in half. “Time for you to go now, elf. All this talk is making me hungry and I’ve always wondered what the Fae taste like.”
“Temper, temper.” Bastian held his hands up in a placating position but a wide grin still spread across his lips. “I think the whiny vamp doth protest too much.”
“Get the fuck out of here, Bastian, before you have to be carried out in pieces.”
“I do so love all that unbridled aggression, but remember what I said. Eating Jinx is not allowed. Or summoning underworld monsters in the hope they’ll swallow her whole.” Bastian seemed to ponder that for a second. “Although you really should be asking how she got an imp to follow her around like a lapdog. I bet there’s a great story there.”
As much as I wanted to tell him to go straight to the underrealm himself, I couldn’t stop myself from questioning him. “What do you know about her?”
“The same thing you do.” But the shit-eating grin on Bastian’s face clearly said otherwise. “And a few tidbits from the headmaster. You know how he loves his pillow talk.”
The last thing I wanted to think about was the combination of Headmaster Aquinas, Bastian and pillow talk. “That isn’t exactly helpful.”
“Who says I’m trying to be helpful?” Bastian backed towards the shadowy hallway behind him that led to House Aether, his face lit with growing green light from the sconces. “The girl might prove to be very important and not just as a tool in our quest against Valentine. You might regret tearing her heart out. And then you’ll never get to find out how good she tastes.”
And without waiting for a response, Bastian was gone.
Fucking Faeries.
I reminded myself that I felt nothing for Jinx Darkward aside from overwhelming hate and disgust. I’d never stared overlong at her face or wanted to taste her skin under my tongue. But now that Bastian had left that tantalizing image in my head, it somehow became difficult to imagine anything else. I wanted to kill the girl, not hold her down and force her to take my cock down her throat.
But she evidenced no fear, despite the overwhelming odds stocked against her. Even in this place, where most of the students would sooner kill her than look at her, the girl kept her head held high. Jinx never should have survived childhood. Her family name painted a target on her back and without any magic to speak of, she’d spent her most vulnerable years as anyone’s meat. But like a cockroach in a nuclear winter, she’d survived. And through it all, she hadn’t lost her sense of self.
I almost understood the fascination that had ultimately consumed my brother, the one that had compelled him to claim her instead of killing her when he was done feeding. It made me want to break her down and see what lay underneath. But unlike Ceres, I couldn’t afford to get reckless. Whatever was in her that had been my brother’s downfall and attracted Valentine, one of the scariest motherfuckers I’d come across in my life, I had to be careful of it.
For the briefest moment, I almost regretted that I’d have to kill her.
Chapter Thirteen
Jinx
Classes continued with no further incidents for the next few days. The Three Fates seemed to be content with ignoring me and I hadn’t needed to fend off any more attacks. None of the acolytes had approached me for training, so I’d focused on learning what little I could in class, despite the fact that other students were all miles ahead of me.