by LJ Swallow
"You're correct, Anastasia. She's... different." His voice holds the same dulcet tone as his sister’s and matches her upper-class English accent. Taking his knife and fork, he cuts into the eggs in front of him, as if we're at a family breakfast.
Tobias sits with his hands on the table, a plate of food in front of him, and gazes unblinkingly at me. I reach out to him again, but he's as shut down as the day we met.
Mhairi interrupts by placing a white dinner plate filled with bacon, eggs, and fried tomatoes in front of me. I stare at the ordinariness in the extraordinary place.
"Hello, Tobias," I say.
He moistens his lips but doesn't speak. Eyes fixed on mine, Anastasia places her hand over Tobias's.
The room lurches and the belief I hold in Tobias shatters the moment she touches him. Tobias urged me to trust him, but is he the traitor in the academy? I shake away the thoughts. If this were true, why would Tobias attack Anastasia last night?
What are you doing? I ask in my mind. His expression remains inscrutable and he doesn’t move his hand from beneath Anastasia’s.
Is he affected by magic? Surely Anastasia can't mind control someone as skilled in mental magic as Tobias.
"Do eat, Maeve. We have a busy day ahead,” she says.
"Doing what?" I ask sharply.
Anastasia merely smiles and forks more food into her mouth.
I can't eat, but pick at the eggs on my plate, as the bizarre breakfast continues in silence.
I mentally reach out to Tobias again, but he's still blank. With each moment I’m in this room, the dizzier I become.
"I'd like to go back to the academy," I say and place my fork onto the table.
I'm ignored.
"Are my friends hurt?" I continue.
Anastasia licks a speck of food from her lip. "I told you, I saved your friend's life. He and the shifter boy are unharmed—apart from the beating Vincent gave him. They may have some memory issues, though."
Nikolai chuckles.
She didn't mention Andrei. Is he safe? "And Vincent?" I ask.
Anastasia pulls a face. “Lucan took the man. I've no clue where.”
"Is he Ash's brother or not?"
"She asks a lot of questions, Tobias. Is that normal?" asks Anastasia.
A muscle twitches in Tobias's cheek. "Don't underestimate Maeve."
Anastasia sighs and removes her hand from his. "As you keep saying. I'll discover for myself later."
"Is Vince really Ash's brother?" I press.
"Hmm. Is he, Nikolai?” She tips her head at her brother. "You were involved."
"I passed him over years ago," he retorts. "Once I'd solidified his hatred of witches."
How much information can I get from them? “The man with you last night. Was he a necromancer?" I ask.
Anastasia doesn't flinch. "Yes. Draw your own conclusions."
Omigod. The Blackwoods know Vincent spent time in the academy. Did they place him there? Instruct him? I glance at Tobias again. We had our suspicions, but the witch hatred threw us off the scent.
"When can I leave?” I ask Anastasia. "You can't keep me here—wherever I am.."
She places her knife and fork on her now empty plate and stands with a white cloth napkin in her hand. The dress clings to her perfectly proportioned body, reminding me of Theodora. "You are at my home. My guest. Fortunately, few know where the Blackwoods are located since they banished us years ago. We're hidden, behind wards, protected by the magic they want eradicated. You're honoured that we allowed you in."
"Honoured?" I choke out. "You abducted me!"
Anastasia moves around the table and I shrink back as she looks down at me. "Maeve. You need to be here, if you want to become stronger. I can teach you more than that useless academy. We have a connection now, remember?"
She throws her scrunched white napkin onto the table and walks towards the door. Mhairi stands to the left, watching proceedings with her hands clasped tightly in front of her, and dips her head as Anastasia approaches.
"Please find Maeve a change of clothes, Mhairi," Anastasia says as she stalks by. “The girl looks disgraceful.”
My hands shake and I put them beneath the table. Now Anastasia has left, the energy from the guy beside me fills the space. Nikolai’s malevolence frightens me, but something worse radiates from him as he shifts in his seat to face me. “I’m looking forward to spending time with you.”
The surreal world I’m in darkens.
Nikolai Blackwood is interested in more than my magic.
Chapter Four
MAEVE
I ask Nikolai if I'm allowed time alone in the building's grounds, fully expecting him to say no. He merely shrugs and reminds me how powerful the magic surrounding the place is, in case I decide to leave. I've no understanding how powerful and don't want to find out; I only care about breathing in fresh air away from the cloying scent and energy inside.
Mhairi, who appears to be my constant companion, escorts me back to my room, where somebody has lain clean clothes on the bed. A short black dress that reaches my knees and is cut lower than I'd like at the top. I explore the bathroom where a modern shower behind a glass screen contrasts with a claw-legged oval white bath beneath a window. After I shower and use the rose-scented soap, I'm in half a mind to put on my jeans and shirt from last night, but they're muddy and smell bad. Trying to clothe me and forcing me to join in their family breakfast unnerves me, as if they want to bring me into the fold. In the end, I wear the dress but replace the stupid heeled shoes with my trainers. Mismatched clothing is the least of my worries.
Unsurprisingly, Mhairi waits outside the door and asks me to follow her to a rear set of stairs, that are less ornate than the first. Once we reach the lawned gardens, I'm convinced she'll trail around after me, but she retreats to the house.
A small glimmer of peace washes through me as I stand on the lawns and take in the scents of freshly cut grass and roses from the bushes lining a narrow path of circular stones. A few moments of respite from whatever I'm facing later today.
I study the house. I'm at the rear of the expansive mansion, pale-bricked and three stories high. I'd expected the place to look similar to the academy, but instead the bright exterior hides the shadowy lives inside.
I turn back to a small stone bench not far from the path and perch on the edge, smoothing my ridiculous dress. I try to untangle my thoughts and fail, because I'm unable to see past my fears. What will happen to me while I'm here? Has Tobias betrayed us? He and Anastasia behave as if they're old friends, and she implied Tobias worked with her in the past. But most frightening of all, Anastasia hinted that she could 'cure' Tobias and return him to normal.
What if this is what Tobias wants?
I can't begin to take on board what the possibility means for me, the academy, and our group’s future. For our future.
Tobias would be a different man.
Something unnerves me about the place I'm in, beyond the residents. This morning, I convinced myself I'd slept until midday as the sun was at its peak. Now I'm unsure, as the sun hasn't moved position. How far does the Blackwood ability to manipulate time stretch? I'd read the family were involved in necromancy and blood magic, and once created a vampire hybrid who's now in Ravenhold, but never thought much to the temporal side. With the ability to stop time, they hold more power than anybody else in the world. And if they join with the Dominion, the insurgents hold that ability too. How the hell could anybody stop this?
No wonder the coven is exiled.
How much do the Confederacy know?
And what does this mean for me? Us?
Anastasia and her brother appear on the terrace I crossed when I left the house and pause to talk to each other. Nikolai slowly turns his head towards me and I’m hit with the uncomfortable sensation that ants crawled across my skin. I look down. No ants. Nikolai? I brace myself for his approach, but he turns away as Mhairi appears and walks towards me. I squint at her against the sun.
Protesting would be useless, so with a heavy heart I follow her, body prickling with disgust as I pass the now-silent brother and sister.
Chapter Five
MAEVE
I sit alone in a room. I'm unsure how long for, and I sway between happy nobody arrives and frustrated that nobody explains what's happening.
I've taken in every detail in the time I've waited. How subtle runes are carved into the panels and the worn patches on the old-fashioned burgundy armchair. I stare at the pattern on the rugs, eyes following the circular and square patterns and counting them to distract me. White gauze curtains blow from a breeze entering a partially opened bay window, lessening the pervasive Blackwood house smell.
The room holds a strange emptiness despite the furnishings—I can't detect any magic around me.
Finally, the handles move and somebody pushes open the double oak doors to step inside. A man I've not encountered yet walks in. He's older than Anastasia, his black hair short and peppered with grey, and shares the same eye colour. He's dressed in black trousers and a partially unbuttoned black shirt revealing a pendant similar to Jamie's. Or is this the one Jamie wore?
I shiver as he meets my eyes, but he doesn't linger on my body the way Nikolai does. A sharp pain stabs behind my eyes and I cover them with my palms, immediately throwing up a barrier. He's attempting to read my thoughts, so he'd see nothing but images of this room. But I don't want him to sense my emotions or see Tobias in my mind.
"This is her?" he asks in a thick Eastern European accent.
Anastasia steps into the room behind him. She's dressed the same as breakfast, and she smooths her hair with a hand covered in silver rings. "Yes. Can you sense our magic?"
"Stand." He steps forward.
I'm not controlled by magic, but in his intimidating presence I do as he says. His magic surrounds him with a magnitude I've not felt—even greater than Anastasia's. "I'm Ruben. Anastasia's father and the head of this family."
I swallow hard, but don't reply. He reaches out and his long, pale fingers touch my temples between my eyes, and I flinch as if he jabbed needles into my skin.
Ruben steps back and addresses his daughter. "Hmm. I'm unsure if this is a good or bad situation. How about the others? Has the boy manifested any further magic?"
"No. He's not absorbing our energy." Anastasia crosses her arms. "He is highly skilled and has attempted to perform the magic asked, but so far he’s failed."
Throughout the conversation, Ruben's eyes remain on mine and I can't look away. I don't sense any mind reading, but this is more than unnerving. Inside I'm screaming 'what are you going to do to me?' and using everything I can to stop any invasion.
Ruben places his hands behind his back and runs his tongue along his teeth. "You keep bringing me the wrong people, Anastasia."
"This is the witch the Confederacy values above the others. The one I told you about—she has the witch, vampire, and shifter mates."
I fail to hide my surprise. "Friends,” I say.
Anastasia laughs. "Lovers."
Fighting my indignance, I straighten. "Call them what you want."
"But is she capable of what we need?" asks Ruben, ignoring our exchange. "She's too protected."
"Obviously not." Anastasia gestures at me. "We have a chance to teach her. To build on the Blackwood energy."
Ruben makes a humph sound and turns away. Then pauses and looks back. "Have you seen the Blackwood grimoire in the academy, girl?"
"No." He narrows his eyes. "Read me. I'm telling the truth."
"I believe the book is at your academy." Ruben's eyes darken. "If the pendant was located there, why not the book?"
"Perhaps Tobias has the grimoire," I say pointedly.
"No. Why would I be asking you if he did, silly child."
I grit my teeth. Does Tobias know where the book is? Blackwood magic seduced Matt when he took the grimoire, perhaps the same happened to Jamie and he took the book.
"Your grandmother should've written the spells again before she passed," Ruben says, clearly exasperated.
"Since her passing was a little sudden, I imagine she didn't have time," replies Anastasia.
"She had over sixty years!" Ruben throws his hands up. "Now we have the pendant, but we need that book. I don't know how the hell the items ended up in a Nightworld academy."
Anastasia looks the other way. She knows why. A secret within the family?
"What time does Gabriella arrive?" he asks her.
"Dusk, today."
At the mention of Andrei's mother's name, my chest tightens until I can’t breathe properly. The Blackwoods have me—and the Dominion are definitely involved.
"Good. I'd like her to see how potent we are. We have the ability to locate and retrieve her most wanted possession." His eyes burn my skin. Is Ruben talking about me? A possession. "But I will not make my brother's mistake," he says. "No more hybrids."
Anastasia cocks her head. "Not from us, but who knows what Maeve's future holds."
Ruben's lip curls. "Yes, you do, Anastasia." He straightens his sleeves. "If the magic is in there, heighten it. I'm not happy with how weak she is."
"And will that help?" she asks.
"The stronger the magic, the better." He takes one last displeased look at me and then stiffly leaves the room.
If I were brave enough to answer with snark, I'd say the stronger my magic, the better to take them all on.
"Does Tobias contain Blackwood energy too?" I ask Anastasia as she sits on a nearby armchair and crosses her legs.
"He's a vampire." She shakes her head. "People are right when they say you have little understanding of how this world works."
"Then why is he working with you?"
Our eyes meet, but she's unfathomable. Tobias could be working with her. "Let me explain what will happen."
I'm still standing, my shallow breathing not helping the dizzy fear. What will Anastasia do to me?
"You're pale, Maeve. Is everything alright?" I moisten my lips and keep my eyes on hers. "I'm not about to torture you, if that's what you think." My palm twinges at her words. "I much prefer games. Explore the house, take a look at what we own. But be careful who you tangle with. You wouldn't want to encourage the darker side of yourself."
"I'd rather sit in the room you locked me in last night," I retort.
"Hmm." She purses her lips. "Your guards might disturb you. Did you see them last night?"
A memory of the strange shadowy figures trips the same shiver down my spine as when I first saw them. "What were they?"
"Spirits who want freeing, so they work for us. We have a lot of unusual guests and employees in the building."
The shiver spreads through my whole body and for the first time, tears prompted by terror push at my eyes. Anastasia smiles with a glee in her eyes because she's breaking me.
"Don't be sad, Maeve. I won't hurt you. I want to help, remember?"
"And I won't help the Dominion."
"But why not? The Confederacy are frightened of you, the way they are of Andrei, and look what happened to him."
"You tried to kill me!" I protest. "The spell in Becci's head attacked me."
She shakes her head. "You wouldn't have died. So cute the witch thought he saved you. I'd like to speak to him some time. Do you think he'll try to find you here?"
I shake my head even though I know that's not true. They'll all attempt to come here.
“I’ll be able to control him, the way I can control you. That’s something we really need to work on—you have a poor resistance to mind control.”
“Now?” I ask and eye the doorway.
With those words, I walk backwards and trip over a chair.
Without wanting to.
Anastasia chuckles. “I’d rather you didn’t leave yet. Look at me.”
I turn my face away from her, but my head turns as if somebody has hold.
I meet Anastas
ia’s glee-filled eyes. “A warning for you: my brother excels at mind control too.” Her magic worms its way into my mind and tears through the block I throw up. “Now, what should I make you do?”
“Get out of my head,” I say through clenched teeth.
She walks forward and leans down, face close to mine as I’m paralysed. “What makes you angry, Maeve? Who do you want to hurt?”
“Nobody.”
She covers her mouth with a hand in mock horror. “You want to hurt me. Well, that isn’t an option. Try again.”
The worm-like sensation continues moving through my body, crawling into my veins.
“Oh. You’re rather upset with Tobias.” She waves a dismissive hand. “Understandably, but that would be inconvenient. And angry with Vincent for hurting your shifter, but he’s not a good candidate either.”
“Candidate for what?” I squirm as the magic tracks around inside me, painless but nauseating.
Anastasia’s eyes brighten and she steps back. “You’re angry with the Confederacy for what they did to Andrei. Now that is useful.”
“No. I’m upset with whoever framed Andrei, but as I don’t know who, I can’t be angry, can I?” I snap back.
“If somebody hurt one of your boys, that would make you angry, wouldn’t it?”
“Why are you obsessed with this?” I ask.
“Because I need more of this.”
The worm reaches my heart and I jolt, disconnecting from myself as my mind blurs. A new spell energy replaces the usual tingle when my magic triggers and a shadow flickers in the corner of my vision.
I move my head for a clearer look, but the shadow doesn’t exist—apart from in my head. Whispering joins the shadow, a multitude of incoherent voices in my mind. Terrified Anastasia is triggering a vision, I suck in a breath and draw on my mental magic for protection.
But the magic whispering in my mind won’t let me. My urge is to fight back. To draw all the energy from the voices and darkness and throw a spell at the woman who abducted me.