by LJ Swallow
Ash glares at him. "No. That’s not why."
Jamie narrows his eyes then turns back to Andrei. "I’m still coming with you."
Andrei claps his hands together. "Hot date, me and you, since everybody else is so bloody boring."
Ash splutters with laughter but I’m not amused. Jamie’s response changed my mind.
"Fine. I’ll come with you," I say.
Andrei bites on his bottom lip. "Cool. Eight p.m. See you there."
In typical Andrei style, he stands and walks away.
Ash shakes his head. "I like the guy more than I did, but he’s weird."
"Everybody here is weird," I remind him.
"Some weirder than others." Jamie stands. "You coming to class?"
How weird will the people be tonight?
Ash grabs my fingers as I prepare to follow Jamie. "Can we talk?"
Each time he says those words my stomach lurches. What now? Does Ash want to break off our friendship entirely?
Hesitantly, I sit by him. Ash’s face is strained, and the brightness in his eyes fades with each day his brother is here.
"I’m worried about you," he says and takes my hand between his. "How are you coping after the vision?"
I dip my head and stroke the back of his hand with my thumb. "I’m frightened, Ash."
My breath is knocked from me as he seizes me in one of his bear hugs, squishing my face against his chest. "I’m sorry."
"What for?" I ask, voice muffled.
"For listening to Vince."
I wriggle from his embrace and look up. "I saw him threaten you, Ash." He blinks rapidly. "That’s why I didn’t push you for reasons why, when you pushed me away."
He rubs a hand across his short hair. "I thought cooling things between us was the right thing to do. That Vince would calm down about witches after a couple of weeks at the academy, but he’s worse."
"Has he threatened you again?" He shakes his head. "Because you’re doing what he tells you to do?"
"Yeah."
He’s defeated and my heart swells for the confused, unhappy guy in front of me. "You didn’t abandon us completely, so don’t worry. I don't blame you. You’re in a horrible situation."
"I wasn’t there for you, Maeve." He squeezes my hands tighter. "I wanted to help Vince, but he’s making my life too difficult. And..."
"And? What’s he done?" I ask sharply.
"Tell me something, Maeve and be honest. Do you trust Vincent?"
His eyes plead with me to give him the answer he wants, but I can’t. "No."
He pulls his hand away and wipes both of his across his face. "Am I stupid to trust him?"
What do I say? That Andrei thinks his brother is a construct created by a necromancer? The words sound crazy in my head, but what if Andrei’s theory is true? I take a deep breath. "You’re not stupid, Ash. Your loyalty to Vincent and love for him influences your decisions. Too much."
I tense, waiting for an angry reaction, but if Ash will listen to anyone, I hope it will be me. Doubt hovers around Ash’s mind, which means Vincent’s grip over him isn’t absolute.
"I want him to be Vince." Ash’s voice cracks and my heart shatters for him. "I want him to be the same person who disappeared."
I swallow. "Vince would never be the same after whatever he experienced, Ash."
"I guess."
"Has he done something to make you doubt him?" I ask cautiously.
"No, but he’s intense. Obsessed about shifters being the underdogs." He half-smiles. "No pun intended. I don’t think he’s linked to the Dominion, but there’s something off about him."
"What are you going to do?"
Ash reaches out and smoothes my cheek with his thumb. "A couple of things. I’ll go with Vince tonight to see what he’s doing, and I refuse to follow blindly what he says. I won't stay away from you."
"Even if he threatens you?"
Ash nods and smiles. "I can look after myself. You’re too important. I hate this tension between us."
"Me too," I whisper and place a hand over his.
"I told you I’d keep you safe and be there when you needed. I let you down."
"I’m sorry I didn't step, but I didn't want to lose you completely." I touch his face. "I hope I did the right thing."
"You did. I didn't."
And I hope I’m doing the right thing keeping our theory quiet. "What is important is we stick together. All of us."
Ash nods, but he’s distracted, staring at me with a look I’ve seen before. One I’ve craved from him for days. Affection. I tiptoe and place my mouth against his, hoping he doesn't push me away. I needn’t worry because Ash wraps me in his arms and kisses me in a way that tears the breath from my lungs and answers the niggling doubt in my mind.
The guy whose protective arms hold me to him is still a part of us. Of me.
I’m determined to solve the mystery surrounding Vincent, and Ash is now in the position to help us. There’s no love lost between me and Vincent, but part of me hopes he’s truly Ash’s brother.
Because if he isn't, the truth could tear apart Ash’s life all over again.
Chapter Thirty-Six
MAEVE
The club is located in a suburb on the city outskirts and from the outside looks like a small hotel, the brick building squished between a café filled with late-night customers and a boarded-up shop with no sign what the place sold. The club building has four floors but the top two are unlit. Burly men stand outside, and scan people with handheld metal detectors.
Or I think they’re to detect metal. Can they detect magic?
There’s another group from the school in front of us—witches. Jamie’s twitchy, but settles a bit when he sees witches. I’ll be happy once we find Andrei, but I wish Amelia and Ash were here.
With no clue what to wear to a supernatural club, I dug through my clothes to look for something other than my usual jeans or sweatpants. The best I could find is a blue sleeveless dress where the loose cotton skirt stops just above my knee. I’m not a fan of low-cut dresses, and the thin straps and neckline reveal more of my skin than I’m comfortable with. So, I add a thin cardigan, almost tempted to wear a thin scarf, but that obviousness would upset Andrei.
I’d often head out with Tessa on a Friday night, which makes this partly normal—even though this place isn’t normal. We step inside and are told to stand inside the doorway. A circle beneath my feet glows in a similar way to the one in Tobias’s room and a guy with slicked-back hair and intense eyes that seem to stare right through me nods curtly and gestures us inside.
The noise grows as we walk along a hallway decorated by red carpet and black walls. We step through the double doors at the end and the narrow space opens up into a wide atrium set with rough wooden tables and metal chairs. A bar across one wall serves an eager crowd, and a drinks menu is chalked up on the board behind beside lights shining above rows of bottles.
I’d pictured somewhere similar to the Petrescu building, with gothic fittings and furniture, not the deceptively ordinary. The spotlights above pick out the visitors, including kids from school, but also older people I don’t recognise. I laugh at myself. Older by a lot of years.
Andrei stands at the bar and waves us over with enthusiasm and his eyes light up as we approach. "You’re late. I never thought you’d come."
The music plays low and chatter fills the air. Others waiting to be served bump us, and Andrei holds his hand out to catch my arm and stop me fully falling into him.
Jamie chews his lips and looks around, touching his throat as he does. Is he worried a vampire will attack? But his fingers move downwards to touch his shirt.
Andrei wastes no time in ordering from the bar, a seasoned visitor who the barman recognises enough to serve his usual order. Jamie guides me to a table and I drag a chair to sit.
"Do mostly academy students come here?" I ask as Andrei joins us with the drinks.
"On a Friday, it’s mostly us, yeah," says Andrei.
> "I told Tobias," blurts Jamie. "Just in case."
Andrei groans. "I hope he won't charge in after us again."
"I wouldn’t be surprised," I mumble.
"Nah. Tobias knows we're pretty safe here. No hunters or Dominion ever get inside."
I take another look at the visitors around us. In many ways, this could be a normal club—perhaps an exclusive and pricey one where the young and beautiful attend, since the majority are alluring vampires. A handful of shifters are tucked in a corner, and a witch nearby has conjured a crown of brightly lit flowers to sit on his delighted date's head.
Another, a tall slender guy but without the vampire-flawless looks, moves from group to group and most refuse to talk to him. The shifters scowl and turn away. He finally finds someone who’ll talk to him, but seconds later he edges away, head down. His new friend follows, glancing at the security guys as he passes to the back of the club.
"Do people deal drugs here?" I ask, staring after him.
"Potions and powders, yeah." Andrei cranes his head. "Who's dealing?"
I shudder at the memory what happened last time I experienced mind-altering magical powder. "Surely you don't want anything, Andrei."
He cocks his head. "Are you judging me, Maeve?"
"No. Just... No."
Jamie huffs. "Be careful what you take."
"I agree. I worry about you."
He arches a brow and looks at where Jamie’s hand rests on my knee. "Do you?"
Is he jealous? The guy told me to back off. "If you're in our gang, someone will target you," says Jamie. I snap my head around. Is he serious? "We're dangerous people to hang with."
Andrei wraps an arm around a horrified Jamie's shoulder. "Then I fit right in, since I’m the academy's resident Dominion traitor."
"Andrei," I warn. "Voice down. You can’t mouth off in front of a room full of people."
He snorts. "I told you before, I don't give a shit."
The dealer slinks back into the room and Andrei perks up as he catches the guy’s eye. "Catch you downstairs."
My stomach lurches as he walks away and Jamie touches my arm as I stare after him. "Don't worry about Andrei. He can look after himself."
"What drugs... potions do they take?" I ask.
"Euphoria Elixir is the most popular—Lix. It’s like human drugs but without any side effects or withdrawal."
"They don't hurt anybody?"
"No. No worse than alcohol. Probably not as bad."
"Then why do they need to deal it?" I ask.
Jamie drains his glass. "The drugs are a rare commodity controlled by gangs who make a shitload from dealing," says Ash.
I take a drink and pull a face at the vodka. "Do you want to sit down or head downstairs?" interrupts Jamie.
"What’s downstairs?"
"There’s a band playing tonight. If Andrei want to go off on his own, I’m not hanging around for him."
My spirits sink. So much for him wanting a night out with us.
Nobody pays attention to me and Jamie as we weave through the tables to stairs at the back of the room. Posters on the wall either side feature the band name and music strains beneath the closed doors at the bottom of the steps.
This time, we walk into a smaller room with a short bar close to the door and a tiny stage a few metres away. The music’s volume hits and excitement surges. This is the type of place I’d love on a Friday night. The room is crammed full as people watch the band, but the stage is too low to see them. Strip-lights line the low ceilings along with narrow pipes and concrete pillars. The industrial look continues with dark walls and metal tables topping barrels, all lined with drinks that others watch over for their dancing friends.
"It’s busy!" I call to Jamie as he guides me, arm around me so that I can work my way through the crowd untouched.
"They’re a popular band. Want to dance?"
"Sure!"
I set my drink onto a round metal table and plunge into the crowd after Jamie, keeping an eye on his tall figure so that I can’t lose him. Moments later, I lose myself in the music and the moment, barely aware of the people jostling as the performance creates a spell that winds around my senses and pulls me away from where I am. All I can sense is the music, and Jamie beside me.
I wrap my arms around Jamie’s neck and half-shout in his ear. "I'm glad you came tonight. I wish everybody else had." Drawing back, I smile, but his tugged brow and pursed lips unsettle me. "What’s wrong?"
With a sigh, he slips his arms around my waist. "We only touch when we dance, Maeve."
I abruptly stop moving to the music. "Oh. I don't mean anything by this."
His brow tugs further. "Dancing with me means nothing?"
"No." I press my fingers into the back of his hand. "With everything happening, I don't spend enough time with you. I’m sorry. I’m not pushing you away."
Jamie points at his ears. "I can't hear you properly."
He takes my hand and leads me from the dance floor to corner close to the bar.
"I’m not avoiding you," I repeat in the quiet space.
"I know." He sighs. "I’m preoccupied too."
Catching his hand between both of mine, I rub my fingers across the back. "Sometimes I think you’re closed off from me."
He wrinkles his nose. "Yeah. I thought about that. I don't like getting in the way of you, Ash, and Andrei."
I blink. "Andrei?"
"Don't pretend I can't see how Andrei behaves around you. You're more than friends now, aren't you?"
I swallow. "Does that bother you?"
He pulls on his bottom lip. "To be honest, yes. I understand you and Ash, because what girl wouldn’t want his attention? But Andrei's dangerous to you." I open my mouth to protest. "Yes, I trust Andrei, but not the hemia who’s programmed to crave witch blood. I'm scared he'll lose control."
"I'm sure he won't." But the fear follows me after the way he withdrew the other day. "Andrei told me something yesterday and I don't know what to think."
Jamie straightens. "What happened?"
"Calm down. This is about Vincent." I lower my voice. "Andrei thinks Vincent is a thing created by a necromancer. He touched Vincent and didn't detect anything. Like his mind was blank."
Jamie’s mouth falls open. "He thinks Vincent's a construct? The guy is delusional. I mean, I don't believe Vincent is the real deal, but seriously?"
"He seemed pretty convinced, Jamie."
"Necromancers were wiped out years ago. Their existence is an unspoken chapter in our history, because the witch council killed them all."
"But one could've survived?"
"Possibly, but 200 years is a crazy amount of time to stay hidden. Nearly impossible."
"But we can't rule this out."
Jamie sighs and takes my hands. "This is far-fetched. Have you spoken to Tobias?"
"Andrei’s agreed to speak to him."
Jamie chews the edge of his mouth. "If you believe this, aren't you worried about Ash heading out with Vincent tonight?"
"I am a little, but if Vincent is working for the Dominion in some way, I think he has bigger plans than killing a bunch of shifters." My heart rate spikes as I say the words. "Ash wouldn't listen to me anyway."
Jamie huffs. "Typical."
"Jamie!" I look around as a guy calls his name, and a delighted Dane stands with his girlfriend Jade and two witches I vaguely recognise from the common room, as they’re not in my classes. "I didn't know you came here."
"I don't often," he says.
I move away from Jamie and turn to the group. Jade’s intrigued look drops and she gives a wide, slightly false smile. All four hold half-full glasses. Most here are dressed expensively, but Jade and friends are casual like us--their black dresses neutral amongst those standing out around us.
"Hey, Maeve," says Jade. "Is Ash with you?"
I shake my head.
"A night out alone with Jamie?" asks her friend and I catch a hint of snideness.
"A
ndrei’s with us," I reply. "Ash and Amelia are busy."
Why am I justifying myself to these people?
"How are you feeling, Maeve?" asks Dane.
"I’d rather not talk about that."
"Yeah, Maeve’s here for a night away from all that," butts in Jamie. He looks at me. "Another drink?"
"Did you finish already?" I ask and look at his empty glass.
"And?" He frowns at me as if I’m his mother telling him what to do. "Who wants another? Drinks are on me."
I groan. Jamie just guaranteed these people will hang around us, when I’d rather spend time with him and Andrei.
Wherever the hell Andrei went.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
ASH
We assemble in Gilgamesh common room and wait for Vince. Clive and Remi are pumped, ready to go—I swear they hero-worship my brother. Vincent, the shifter who survived incarceration by the Dominion. The one who escaped with his life. but how?
Vince encourages their attention regularly with stories how strong they could all be. Has he given them his rallying speech about shifters versus vampires and witches?
Others from the rugby team sit with me, conversation bouncing between the latest matches and what Vincent has in store for us.
I join in but currently don't care about the match. I want to know what Vince has in store tonight.
Vince steps into the room, and I can't help but shake my head at how his presence immediately draws everybody's attention. Conversation drops and eager eyes watch him, watching and waiting.
"Hey, guys," he says laconically. "I'm glad to see so many of you here."
So many guys. Not one girl. Earlier, I asked Crystal if she was interested and she muttered something about the 'boys club' and walked off.
His gaze lands on me, and he gives a small nod. He thinks his obedient Ash is here. Right now, I'd rather be with Maeve and the others on a night out. Relaxing. Enjoying Maeve's company somewhere Vince can't see.
But I need to be here.
My conversation with Maeve earlier worried me—not enough that I'm ready to admit I'm wrong about my brother, but enough for me to need reassurance I'm right.