“Will that save him,” one of the vampires asked.
I wiped my hands off with a towel. “Cassius will need additional medical care, but the garlic should stabilize him until we can get him to the infirmary.”
A group of vampires gathered around Cassius. They picked him up off the ground, careful to keep his body evenly balanced as they carried him back to the academy. He was still unconscious, but I had a good feeling that he would recover. The vile of putrid blood he drank was small. If he had consumed the average amount, he’d likely be dead already. It was lucky that he barely had enough for a snack.
“I’m sorry I questioned your intentions.” The vampire bent down and kissed the back of my hand. “Thank you for doing what you did, Mina.”
Before I could respond, he ran to catch up with the rest of his clan.
I didn’t miss the fact that he said my name instead of the reaper. It was a small gesture, but it meant a lot. If I managed to build trust with one supe, it could spread and give this terrible incident a much needed silver lining. It would be nice not to have to worry about someone trying to kill me all the time. I searched the crowd for Sacha and his pack. Selfishly, I hoped he saw the whole thing. If he witnessed me helping Cassius, he might decide not to have me watched.
But I didn’t see him.
The witches and warlocks stayed behind. They were busy cleaning up the mess that was left, and I imagined most of them were disappointed over their ruined ritual. The best thing for me to do was go. As I headed for the bushes, Kiera called out to me. I hadn’t realized she was still here. When she caught up to me, I said, “I’m sorry you missed all the foolishness. Hopefully, they’ll have a summer solstice ceremony in a few months.”
“Are you kidding?” she asked. “That was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. You saved Cassius’s life.”
I did my job. That was how I saw it. “Let’s wait until he recovers before we celebrate.”
“You’re right,” she agreed. “Now, it’s time we focus on the investigation.”
I tilted my head to the side. “The investigation?”
“Sure,” she replied. “I mean, you’re a reaper. That’s what you do.”
“Yes, that’s what I do,” I confirmed. “Alone.”
“Oh, come on. These last few hours have been the most fun I’ve had in months. Let me help you. I can be your assistant.” Her eyes danced with excitement. “You’ll be Sherlock Holmes, and I’ll be Doctor Watson.”
I wanted to burst out laughing, but I could tell she was completely serious. “I can’t have you involved. Whoever did this to Cassius meant to kill him. I won’t put you in danger.”
“Put me in danger?” she chuckled. “I’m a shifter with supernatural strength and healing abilities. The only person who’s in danger here is you.”
In a way, she wasn’t wrong. I might be highly trained, but I was still a human. It was much easier to kill me than it would be to take her out. Plus, I didn’t have any of my weapons. This train of thought made me miss my taser wand. We’ve had good times together. “I can see your point, but I work better on my own.”
“I’ll admit that I don’t know much about you or reapers for that matter. I don’t have a pack.” She paused for a moment as if she were weighing her response. “What I meant to say is that I’m alone here just like you, and the two of us could watch each other’s back.”
There was so much sincerity in her words, making it impossible to believe she didn’t mean it. And there was a strong pull inside of me that wished to take her up on her offer. But I couldn’t jeopardize my mission. Still, I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so I came up with an alternative. “If you want to help me, I’d like you to keep tabs on Sacha and report back to me.”
Kiera put her hand over her mouth and whispered, “Do you think Sacha tried to kill Cassius?”
“No, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think he’s dangerous,” I replied. “I want you to watch him because of what he said to me. For some reason, he thinks I’m a spy.”
“A spy,” she questioned. “A spy for who?”
“I have no idea,” I shrugged, trying to pretend I was just as surprised as her. “He said he was going to watch me, like that’s not creepy.”
She put her hand on my shoulder. “You don’t have to worry about Sacha. I’ll keep my eye on him and his pack.”
With Kiera’s help, this could all work out in my favor. If I didn’t have to worry about Sacha and his pack of mutts, I could come up with a plan to get the evidence I needed. “Perfect.”
She clasped her hands together. “Now, all we need is a name.”
“A name,” I questioned.
“Yes, a name,” she started counting on her fingers. “There’s the Justice League, and the Avengers, oh, and the Suicide Squad.”
I chuckled. “You read way too many comic books.”
She waved her hand, dismissively. “You can never read too many comic books.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
“I’ll work on the name. In the meantime,” she held out her hand. “Partners.”
I shook her hand. “Partners.”
Chapter Thirteen
By the time I made it back to the academy, the sun was rising over the mountain tops. Clouds with a purple and orange hue filled the skies. The lack of sleep was beginning to wear on me. My body still ached from the fall hours before the witches ceremony. I’d never been happier that it was the weekend. I couldn’t imagine going to any of my courses with no rest. Archery could’ve gotten interesting for all the wrong reasons.
I made my way inside and headed for the infirmary. I needed to check on Cassius, and also find out where he got that vile of blood. The academy had a blood bank, and as far as I knew, they kept records of their distributions. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go down there and request information from them. I’d lost my official reaper credentials. I might be able to use my last name, but that would only alert the administration.
Getting the info directly from Cassius was the way to go. My four-inch heels clicked against the hardwood flooring, reminding me I was still wearing the dress Kiera loaned to me. I glanced down and sighed. This dress would’ve looked much better on her. She had all the right curves to make this sexy as all hell. If I had known she had a thing for Cassius, I would’ve insisted she wear it.
When I finally reached the infirmary, there was a line to get inside. I recognized some of the vampires from the ceremony. A couple of them had blood on their shirts, and I assumed it was from carrying Cassius here. I managed to maneuver my way to the front, and then my mouth hit the floor. Nurses were bustling around, but mostly, members of my reaper team in their tactical gear filled the room. They had to be here to investigate.
Damien, our leader, spoke to one of the doctors. I didn’t even bother approaching him. Now that I wasn’t on his team, he wouldn’t feel any need to tell me anything. The next person I saw was Tony. He was a friend of Damien’s but not a complete douchebag. He was also Damien’s confidant, and the best person to give me what I needed. I strode up to him, trying not to draw attention to myself. He was busy reading something on a clipboard. “Hey, Tony.”
He turned his head in my direction, took one long look at my dress, and chuckled, “I was wondering if we’d see you. Nice gown.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Thanks, I’m planning to wear it on our next mission.”
With the clipboard in hand, he crossed his arms. “Are you sure you’ll be going on a mission?”
I rolled my eyes. “Can we save the cheeky banter for another day? I have some questions I need you to answer.”
He huffed. “What makes you think I’m going to give you any confidential information?”
“You mean besides the fact that I witnessed the crime and stabilized him so that the doctors and nurses could save his life?” I raised an eyebrow. “We could help each other.”
He stared at me inquisitively. “Why do you care what happens to this vampire
?”
I had to be careful about how I answered the question. Cassius had blown our cover with Kiera, but her lack of friends meant she wouldn’t be sharing the info. Other than the fact that he was close friends with Damien, I didn’t know much about Tony on a personal level. There was always the chance that he knew people at the academy. “I care because it’s my job. I might be serving my sentence, but that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped being a reaper.”
Tony watched me for a long while as if he was trying to make a decision. Then he surprised me when he motioned for me to follow him. He led us to a corner hallway, away from the view of everyone else. Was he afraid Damien might see us talking and get upset? He was such a weenie. “Okay,” he whispered, “I’ll tell you what we know, but it isn’t much.”
I leaned closer to him.
“We took samples from their blood supply, and everything came back normal.” His eyes darted around like he was afraid to get caught with me. “We couldn’t find any irregularities anywhere in their processing.”
Vampires were only given a specific amount each day with no exceptions, and everything in this place was monitored and recorded. “Did you check the log from tonight to see who gave it to him?”
“It’s all digital now,” he explained. “They put their code into the system, the allotted amount comes down the shoot, and the refrigerator door opens. But there’s no record of him getting blood today, which means he got it from somewhere else.”
Cassius was paranoid and overly cautious. Why would he accept blood from someone else when he’d told me over and over again that he couldn’t trust anyone, even members of his clan? “Did anyone else have access to the blood bank from the outside, like visitors to the academy?”
“No, only the vamps at the academy have access,” he replied, shaking his head. “That was one of the first questions we asked.”
I wanted to keep him talking, so I figured I needed to throw him a bone. “I overheard Cassius telling someone that he feared for his life. It had something to do with his family. Have you heard anything about trouble within his clan?”
His demeanor shifted from nervous to intrigued. “No, but I’ll certainly look into it.”
“You need to encourage Damien to leave reapers here to watch over him,” I suggested. “There’s no way he can protect himself while he’s unconscious in the infirmary.”
“I’ll make the arrangements,” he agreed. “We’ll keep a reaper in his room at all times, and make sure no one goes in unless they’re part of the medical team.”
That was a relief. Now that Cassius was safe, I could focus on my mission. “We could work together on this,” I offered. “I can sniff around on the inside if you find out what you can from Damien.”
“I’ll do what I can,” he promised. “If I learn anything new, I’ll come back.”
If Tony was sincere, he could be a great asset on the outside. I didn’t know if he was trustworthy, but time would tell. “I’ll have you added to my list of visitors.”
He nodded.
As he was about to leave, I tugged on his arm. “How is Caroline?”
“Still in a coma.” His shoulders visibly sunk. “We haven’t heard any updates in a while.”
The longer she stayed in a coma, the least likely her recovery became. Thinking of her made my stomach churn. I knew it wasn’t my fault that she was there—I begged her to leave—but I couldn’t help feeling guilty. If I hadn’t gone out on my own, none of this mess would’ve happened. “Thanks, anyway.”
Tony turned the corner and left.
Chapter Fourteen
I heard a loud crash that jolted me out of sleep. Kiera stood beneath our doorframe with a massive smile on her face. I sat up and cringed. Every muscle in my body was sore. I glanced over at my clock and groaned. It wasn’t yet ten o’clock in the morning. I laid my head back on my pillow and pulled the covers over my head.
“You won’t believe it,” she said, tugging my covers down. “The entire academy is buzzing, and it’s all about you.”
Everyone always talked about me. I was used to being the subject of academy gossip, but I couldn’t discount Kiera’s excitement. “Why?” I asked, rubbing my eyes. “What’s going on?”
She sat on the edge of my bed. “Everyone has heard about you saving Cassius’s life last night. It’s all anyone can talk about.”
Okay, maybe my murderous reaper reputation might finally die out. “That’s good. Thanks for letting me know. I’m going to go back to bed now.”
“Don’t you want to see for yourself?” She pulled the rest of the covers down to my ankles. “Come on. You aren’t the least bit curious?”
There wasn’t a single part of me that didn’t hurt at least a little. I rolled onto my side, facing away from Kiera. “The only thing I want to see right now is the back of my eyelids.”
She sighed. “I don’t think you understand the significance of what’s happening here. Supernaturals from every faction are starting to see reapers in a whole new light. It could be an opportunity for us to see real change.”
I was starting to hate how logical she was. Whining, I asked, “Can’t I be an ambassador of change in the afternoon?”
“No,” she chuckled. “We have to strike while the gossip is hot.” She reached out and maneuvered me into a sitting position. “Let’s go downstairs and make nice. Everyone needs allies, Mina, especially humans, surrounded by dangerous supernaturals.”
Again, with the making sense. “What do you want me to do?”
Grabbing my hands, she pulled me onto my feet. “Get dressed and go have breakfast with me.”
I gazed longingly at my bed. It never looked more comfortable and fluffy, but she was right. This opportunity might never happen again, so I had to make the most of it. Improving relations between reapers and the supernatural factions was something we desperately needed, especially if my father was right about the potential uprising. “Okay, I’ll go.”
By the time we reached the cafeteria, supes from all three factions had filled every table, and the conversations flowed. Kiera let out a little squeal as she tucked her arm inside mine. My first instinct was to pull away, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. It was time to accept that I liked her. She had proven herself to be a friend and ally. And was it so bad that I made one friend while I was here? I’d come to realize it wasn’t.
We made our way up to the line and grabbed trays. I filled my plate with lots of fruit. I’d need the vitamins to help reduce the inflammation in my body and begin to heal. Kiera filled every inch of her multiple plates with eggs, sausage, bacon, fried potatoes, pancakes, and toast. I guess I should’ve been used to it by now, but I hadn’t spent much time with supes. Most of our interactions happened while policing.
Before I exited the line, she sat a large coffee on my tray. “You’re going to need this too.”
“Thanks,” I replied. “Do you want me to grab a drink for you?” I pointed to her mountain of food. “I’m not sure you have any room left.”
“I’ve got it covered.” Kiera pivoted around, and I saw two bottles of orange juice in her back pockets. “I’m a professional.”
I chuckled. “That you are.”
We were heading toward the back table when Brianna stepped into our path. “We’ve got space at our table if you want to sit with us.”
I scanned her table. It was all witches and warlocks I recognized from the ceremony last night. It was nice to see them fully clothed. I glanced at Kiera, and she nodded in approval. “Okay,” I shrugged. “Why not?”
Kiera plopped down next to me on the bench seating. Across from us, Brianna sat with Bethany and Bianca at her sides. As my eyes roamed the table, I realized every single one of them was staring at me like they expected me to start a conversation. Not knowing what to say, I gazed down at my plate like it was the most interesting thing I’d ever seen in my life. Kiera wasn’t any help, either. She was plowing into her food as if it were a contest.
“Mi
na,” Brianna said, drawing my attention. “I’d like to say that I’m sorry for the way I treated you when you first arrived. You didn’t deserve it.”
“Are you referring to the spell you put on my arrow or the faceplant in the hallway?” Yeah, it was petty for bringing it up while she was apologizing, but I couldn’t help myself.
Brianna’s face reddened. “All of it, I suppose. It was cruel.”
Kiera nudged my arm and shot me a knowing look. She was right again. This was my chance to make a difference, and I had to make the most of it. “It’s okay, Brianna. My family has a long history with the supernatural community, and some of it is downright shameful. I suppose most of the supes here feel the same as you do.”
“It’s not just about your family. It’s reapers in general,” Brianna’s eyes moved around the table. “I don’t know one person here who doesn’t have a horror story to tell.”
My eyebrows furrowed. I wasn’t sure what I should’ve said next. Of course, I wanted to correct Brianna and tell her that reapers aren’t the enemy. We don’t go out of our way to hurt anyone. But how could I do that and still build relationships with any of the supes? I had to show them that I could be trusted. That reapers were good people. I glanced around the table, making a point to make eye contact with each person. “If you want to tell your story, I am ready to listen.”
No one immediately spoke. I was about to change the subject when I heard some commotion at the end of the table. One warlock that looked like he might be eleven or twelve was saying something to the boy next to him. The other boy was older and shook his head fiercely in rejection. The younger one turned to me, while the other crossed his arms and looked into the distance. “I’ll tell you my story.”
“It’s not worth it,” the older boy countered. “Nothing will change.”
“We’ve stayed silent, and nothing has changed,” he argued. He rose from the table and came toward me. “It’s time to try something else.”
Van Helsing Academy Page 9