Her magic quickly swirled up her arm and down her legs, eventually grazing the floor of the room and weaving about like an uncontrollable storm brewing in a chaotic mess of dancing gold light. Only the light turned to sparks that were firing across the room and randomly striking whatever was close by. That included Jake’s trench coat. He cried out as it burned a hole straight through the leather and nearly caught his skin before he yanked it off. He barely managed to contain the flames on the sleeve as he mercilessly stamped them out with the sole of his boot.
Adeline rushed over and let her magic out of her hand, calming the mess of McKenzie’s magic in a matter of seconds until it retreated into McKenzie’s body. When the last shred of it seeped through her skin and was out of sight, McKenzie was visibly shaking. She feared being discovered. Maybe from the second she arrived at the academy.
“I don’t believe in making the child pay for the sins of the father, Miss Winters. So please calm yourself.” Ellinor brought her voice down to a tone that didn’t sound as if she was ready to snap at someone if given the slightest provocation. The composed veneer I first saw in Rodrick’s study the night she and I first met back was on full display.
McKenzie stood up a little straighter, reminding herself who she was speaking to and that cowering definitely wasn’t going to gain Ellinor’s respect. She could pretend all she wanted. I knew the truth. On the outside, she desperately wanted to appear stoic. On the inside, she was a terrified little child.
“Mrs. Prescott,” McKenzie spoke. “I’m grateful to be in the presence of such a powerful vixra witchling. Especially one like yourself. But I must ask why you wanted to see me. Why did you want me to show my magic when I’ve gone above and beyond to keep it a private matter?”
Ellinor examined her with a quizzical brow before answering, perhaps wondering where McKenzie’s boldness suddenly came from.
“I have a proposition for you, Miss Winters,” Ellinor said. “One I think you will find intriguing.”
‘You mean one we’re desperate for her to accept?’
This was McKenzie Winters that Ellinor was asking for help. The same McKenzie who claimed Lothar was her territory the second I arrived. The McKenzie who made it clear that I was her competition and a target for harassment from my first class onward? Why would she go out of her way to help me?
“I’m listening,” McKenzie said softly.
“Have you heard of something called the Blackatter curse?”
Now it was McKenzie’s turn to look at Ellinor with curiosity piercing through her cat-like eyes. “Vaguely,” she responded. “It has something to do with Blackatters not being quite as fortunate as they make themselves out to be, right?”
She let her gaze drift over to me as if she was pleased to know that my crowning magic and favor with the vixra came at a price.
‘If only she knew she was insulting Rodrick too. Maybe she’d show a little more respect.’
“The Blackatters are indeed fortunate in many regards, Miss Winters. But this curse does more than harm Blackatters. It harms their families and all those involved with them. And if we don’t break it, it has the potential to harm all witchlings and lycan living in the world today.”
McKenzie’s forehead creased as if she was actually concerned. “How is that?” she asked.
“Dean Everleigh has informed me that first-year students are well-versed in all matters pertaining to the Dolch Erbe,” Ellinor explained. “It is my great misfortune to inform you, Miss Winters, that the Dolch Erbe has indeed returned. The grandmaster is hard at work attempting to bring back his inner circle to complete their task of destroying all lycan and potentially all witchlings within our lifetime. The only way to break the curse and prevent him from completing his insane task requires a great deal of planning. We must gather a vixra, a luxra, a kruxa, a Blackatter, and a vampire. They will partake in a magic ritual to break the curse and hopefully end the immortal souls of the Dolch Erbe’s inner circle for good.”
McKenzie’s heart raced beneath her trench coat. I couldn’t tell if the prospect of dealing with such an ancient evil thrilled or terrified her.
“And you want me to be the kruxa witchling?” she asked, catching on rather quickly.
“Yes,” Ellinor answered her. “I do. I will make sure your efforts are greatly rewarded. I’ve been informed by the leader of the Southern Vontex that they desire adding a woman to their pack in the near future. And given this academy’s track record of educating well-rounded lycan women, I can give your name forward as a direct recommendation. This is, of course, circumstantial on your marks being among the highest in your class and your training completed within the allotted time. But the Vontex rarely reject a recommendation given by a vixra witchling.”
I saw a sly smile beginning to form at the corner of Ellinor’s mouth. She thought she had her.
McKenzie locked eyes on Lothar. I knew exactly what she was thinking. If she joined the Southern Vontex, her chances of being with Lothar were next to nothing. She wanted to join the Northern Vontex.
“What’s the catch?” McKenzie dared ask.
Ellinor clasped her hands behind her back, clearly offended by such a question but knowing she couldn’t show it. Like or not, we needed McKenzie. Unless Ellinor knew of another one we could randomly ask to give up a few years of their life to break some obscure curse.
“What do you mean, Miss Winters?”
“There has to be a catch. No one breaks powerful curses without some sort of negative effect.”
‘She’s smarter than I give her credit for.’
“You have to sleep for a minimum of three years,” Lothar loomed closer to McKenzie and took the attention away from Ellinor.
McKenzie unconsciously plucked at the cuff of her shirt. It wasn’t difficult to imagine how hard she was trying to appear undisturbed by what Lothar just said.
“The Dolch Erbe killed themselves in order to bind the curse so they could eventually come back and make their new bodies permanent, insuring they would never die again. Those who partake in breaking the curse must kill themselves.”
McKenzie nearly took a few steps back from Lothar, not liking what she heard and hating being placed in such a position even more. Lothar never gave her the chance. He closed the gap between them until they were close enough to touch.
“Margaux has concocted a potion that will revitalize you after death,” he went on. “You will go to sleep and wake up a few years later. You will lose three years of your life.”
I didn’t know what Lothar was playing at. McKenzie would never agree after knowing those terms. But he persisted.
“It’s a sacrifice of enormous proportions,” Lothar went on. “One I can only imagine the strongest of women would consider let alone agree to.” He lowered his head, making sure her eyes met his. And to my surprise, he softened them.
McKenzie tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, trying her best to appear focused and failing miserably.
“We need such a woman, McKenzie,” he continued. “One who sees the value in placing the good of everyone above themselves. One who can look beyond her immediate needs and wants to do what is right. It’s no small thing Miss Prescott is asking of you. But I think I can speak for everyone here when I say if you were willing to make such a sacrifice we would all be in your debt. In more ways than one. Including me.”
A shiver ran down my spine and struck the deepest confines of my stomach. Lothar was flirting with her. Was this some kind of strategy to get her on board? Or did he just realize like I did that McKenzie would need more motivation than simply doing what she was told? She needed a reason. And Lothar being in her debt might be good enough for her. McKenzie would see it as an opportunity. One that would help Lothar to see her in a brand new light. But was that good enough?
I guess it didn’t matter in the end. She was blushing. In the sort of way only the most lovestruck girls can. He was wielding her like he did his sword when striking down a werewolf. And as mu
ch as I wanted to break the curse, I didn’t want to see him manipulate McKenzie in such a way. Especially when I knew he didn’t have the faintest of affection for her.
Not that McKenzie knew it. For such a smart girl, she was smitten when it came to Lothar.
McKenzie’s eyes wandered over to Rodrick, then me, and finally Ellinor. Even if she still didn’t want to do it, she couldn’t refuse a vixra witchling. Especially one that sat on the vixra council. And she knew it.
She took in a deep breath and rolled her shoulders back with her chin held high. “I’ll do it,” she said softly.
“Excellent,” Ellinor said, clearly realizing what was going on. How could she not after Lothar took control of the conversation? As long as she got what she wanted she was satisfied. And as much as I hated it, I was equally pleased to hear the words come out of McKenzie’s mouth.
I didn’t want anyone dying for me. Especially her. But if she got a solid future before her with the Southern Vontex then it would crush the blow of me having to feel like I owed her something for her efforts.
“As for the two of you,” Ellinor said. She beckoned both Margaux and me forward.
I walked up to her with my head bowed to show her respect. I didn’t want to appear weak. But I also couldn’t afford to look ungrateful after she had shown us all mercy.
“You have two weeks to find the grandmaster and release him from the Dolch Erbe’s possession,” she said.
My heart skipped a beat. Two weeks? How could I possibly find Dirk in two weeks when I couldn’t even manage to get Alina without her crippling me?
I nearly spoke up to protest. Only one thing stopped me. She didn’t mention Dirk’s name. A kindness of sorts given I would be mortified if McKenzie knew my flesh and blood was being possessed by such great evil. Then again, she clearly had skeletons in her closet as well.
‘I’m perfectly fine not knowing as long as she doesn’t learn about Dirk.’
Ellinor turned her attention to Lothar. “If you don’t have him in your custody by that time, I’ll have no choice but to have the vixra guard use all the force they have to bring him to Hungary and present him before the vixra council.”
‘They haven’t managed to find him yet. She has to be bluffing. I just need to find him first!’
She walked right up to me and stared into the pit of my soul.
“I’m giving you a privilege I would be hesitant to provide anyone other than a Blackatter that had already proved their obedience. Don’t use my generosity unwisely.”
I swallowed hard and bowed my head down once more, not wanting to anger her any further given I was already on thin ice.
“As for you, Addy,” Ellinor spoke to Adeline. “I order you to stay here with Margaux until I permit you to leave. You made it possible for her to escape our custody. Therefore you can take charge of her from this moment onward. If she succumbs to the Dolch Erbe once more, I will hold you personally responsible.”
Adeline didn’t falter. I don’t think a single hair moved as she listened to her grandmother lay down the law. “I will do so gladly, gran. But please, don’t act as though this entire ordeal wasn’t worthwhile. We managed to free Margaux from the Dolch Erbe. If it can be done once, it can be done again. We have an opportunity now that we’ve never been fortunate enough to have before.”
“We’ll see.”
Ellinor walked away in silence, not even giving Rodrick a handshake or Lothar gratitude for talking McKenzie into helping us. She marched out of the ceremonial hall and opened the door with a flood of green light shining through the crevices. It swung open and she was gone. Victor and Clara followed her out without a word. The next thing I knew, the ceremonial hall lit up in a bright luminous glow only for it to dissipate seconds later. I could only assume Ellinor had opened a vixra tunnel to go home.
I should have relaxed a little. I should have felt something related to relief, satisfaction, or even joy at the prospect of not only being relieved from death but being back in the lycan realm in one piece. Margaux was free. I could chase after my brother. We could break the curse.
I felt none of those things. The only thing I could process was a deep sense of resentment.
“I’ll have Professor Addair find a spare room for you both,” Rodrick said to Adeline and Margaux. “Miss Winters, please return to your room. The rest of you retire for the day. I think we’ve all had a little too much excitement for one night.”
“Alexei?” Margaux politely asked.
“I’ll summon him,” Rodrick assured her. “I promise you.”
Adeline led Margaux out the door with her new arm perfectly intact and her pride somewhat restored, while Jake took a rather frazzled McKenzie away. She had been revealed as a kruxa witchling, asked to sacrifice three years of her life by a powerful vixra, and potentially offered a place in a new pack. It wasn’t a stretch to imagine she was a little overwhelmed. That didn’t stop her from making eye contact with Lothar right before she disappeared. He didn’t look away. In fact, he showed her a hint of a smile. Something he rarely did with anyone. Especially me.
“And Miss Winters, stay on academy grounds until ordered otherwise by Lothar.” Rodrick added before she rounded the corner to leave. He wasn’t the only one who caught onto McKenzie’s crush on Lothar. He knew she would listen to Lothar above anyone else. “If we do manage to capture the grandmaster we’ll need to plan our next course of action immediately. Miss Blackburn, please see Nurse Roslyn before going to bed. You’ve had little time to recover and I don’t want your magic depleting anymore than it already has. You’ll need it.” His final words to me were stern. As if he longed to say that what I did was unforgivable. I made him look like a complete mockery in front of his students. And for some reason, I feared that meant more to him than potentially dying by the wrathful hand of Ellinor’s magic suspending him in mid-air.
Soon there was no one left in the ceremonial hall but Lothar, me, and the outrage building up inside me.
6
My back hurt, my face still felt twitchy from shifting to Adeline’s form, my legs were begging for a chance to sit down, and my emotions were a bed of raging firecrackers just waiting for the right time to spark. Unlucky for Lothar, he was in the same room with me.
I turned away from him and set both my hands on one of the many chairs lining the rows facing the stage, doing my best to channel all my frustration into the wood. It creaked under the pressure of my hands squeezing down.
I heard Lothar walk toward the door to leave.
‘Good. If he stays I might explode.’
That’s exactly what I wanted. To explode. To tell him off. To scream, yell, shout, and give him a piece of my mind. My future place with the Vontex be damned. I had been through enough for one night and I didn’t need him adding to my fury after what I just saw him do right in front of everyone.
The door slammed shut and I let out a heavy sigh of relief. Until I realized he shut the door only to give us privacy. He wasn’t leaving. He stayed behind. And worse yet, his eyes blazed with enough frustration to match my own.
“You want to explain yourself?” he chided me.
I turned around to face him only to realize that I broke off the back of the chair in my hands. I put it down and tried resisting the urge to blush at my own obvious lack of control and my inability to hide how angry I was.
“Myself?” I asked. “You can’t be serious! After what you just did in front of everyone? Manipulating McKenzie like that? She’ll sleep for three years just because you let her believe for a fraction of a second that she might miraculously earn your approval. You and I both know that’s not the case and never will be.”
“I’m not so sure anymore,” he spat. “After what you did tonight I might reconsider her efforts to get my attention and join the Vontex.”
“What? Suddenly you don’t want me to become one?”
The tension building in his shoulders relaxed as if he was warming to the idea. “Your choice of becoming
a Vontex is entirely up to you. But as far as I’m concerned, you might be better off being one in Hungary than you are here. Especially given you’ve already considered the prospect.”
“And why is that?”
My skin became hot. I could feel sweat building up on my forehead. I knew being a lycan made me more hot-headed than I ever was before but this was nearly unbearable. I suddenly understood why Rodrick had such a difficult time not resisting the urge to take a swing at Lothar. Because for a brief second, I considered doing the same.
“I need someone who will follow orders and keep their word to me,” he lectured.
“And I haven’t?”
“How does using your magic to the point of bleeding through your nose, not stopping after I told you to, and yanking an entire dungeon cell through a vixra tunnel against my command qualify as following orders, Riley? I told you when I said it was over, it was over. That is my right as leader of the Northern Vontex. You proved your inability to listen to my authority under pressure. In the end, you did what you wanted.”
“And a kruxa witchling who doesn’t have any control over her magic and has to hide it from everyone is suddenly more appealing?”
“Witchlings can be trained. Perhaps McKenzie’s skills can be honed in a way I didn’t previously think possible.”
I stopped breathing.
‘What did you just say?’
He realized his mistake and rolled his eyes. He knew I caught it.
I leaned in closer. “McKenzie told you what she was ages ago, didn’t she?”
I thought he was going to dismiss my question. Or perhaps deny it. But he didn’t. He stared back at me with a scowl that could frighten the toughest of men.
“Her magic revealed itself during her trials,” he said. “I was her mentor.”
I looked down at the ground as my mind put the pieces together. That was why McKenzie fell for him. He helped her get through the trials. Maybe they even bonded a little in the same way I thought he and I had. Was I deluded? Did I imagine the mild flirtation we shared? Was it something he did to get girls through the trials and make them stronger? Maybe I was just another girl he had to get through the trials. Only I was a special case given I was a Blackatter.
Resummon: (Lycan Academy of Shapeshifting: Operation Shift, Book 6) Page 6