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Holy balls, there was something seriously wrong with me if I was checking out the vampire that was stalking me and probably about to kill me! But, come on, were all non-human creatures just blessed with stupidly good looks?

He didn’t look like he was about to kill me, though. If anything, he looked more surprised than I felt.

We stared at each other for a long moment, sizing each other up. The spell worked in three parts—dispelling the shadows he used to cover himself, slowing his blood to weaken him, and binding him to where he stood. The darkness part obviously worked—thanks, Gram—but the other two I wasn’t so sure of. Though, as intricate as the spell was, chances are the whole thing held or none at all.

What do you ask a bound vampire? I hadn’t thought that far ahead with the whole trying-not-to-get-eaten thing. But now that I had him at my mercy, I couldn’t help my curiosity. Maybe I had some sort of morbid death wish after the rejection I’d just endured at the hands of shifters, but I wasn’t ready to walk away just yet.

“Why are you following me?” I asked, my voice displaying more confidence than I actually felt. It seemed as good a place as any to start. I had to be sure he wasn’t after Arya.

His glistening eyes made me feel almost mesmerized as they bore into me. “You’re a witch.” It was more a statement than a question, and I instinctively stepped back like it was an accusation.

“Wait, don’t go!” he pleaded, something about the sheer desperation in his voice lowering my defenses.

I crossed my arms and jutted out a hip, admittedly enjoying the rush of power at ensnaring such a powerful creature. “Why? Afraid your dinner is going to skip out on you?”

The vampire flinched. “I don’t drink fresh blood. Not if I can help it.”

I cocked my head, debating whether I believed him or not.

“Besides, if I wanted to kill you, you’d already be dead. Not a smart move, luring a vampire into an alley.”

I bristled at the insult but put on a smug smirk. “And yet you’re the one stuck to a wall like a fly in a web.”

His features smoothed. “I’m sorry. I don’t get out much, and clearly, my manners have suffered for it. My name is Julian.”

He fluttered his fingers in greeting as his hand was currently incapable of waving. And, was that an attempt at a smile?

“Ooo-kay.” No way in hell was I about to give him my name in return, no matter how surprisingly charming he was turning out to be.

“It’s just, you don’t come across many witches anymore. Especially not ones as powerful as you. You remind me of someone I used to know...” His gaze momentarily darted away from my face for the first time since our encounter began. “...a long time ago.”

I narrowed my eyes on him, trying to figure him out. The haunted look in his eyes as he studied me, like I was a ghost, made me almost believe him. Almost.

“Are you friends with shifters?” Julian continued. “Their smell is all over you. Maybe you go to that school?”

I sucked my lips between my teeth, trying not to respond. I didn’t trust this vampire. If it weren’t for the binding spell, I was sure I’d be dinner. And even if the shifters did hate me, there was no way I’d betray them to a vampire.

But I must have shaken my head.

“But you want to go to the school.” His knowing eyes snagged on my greatest weakness.

I hissed out a breath between my teeth. “I appreciate the small talk and all, but it’s past my curfew, and my carriage is about to turn back into a pumpkin. And if you’re just stalling so your vampire buddies can come rescue you, I’ve got a whole lot more magic where that came from.”

“No. I’m... alone. And I believe you. Your magic, I can sense it.”

That caught my attention. He could sense my magic? Did he have any idea how powerful I was? Hell, I didn’t even really know.

Julian licked his lips, his voice taking on a more desperate tone. “This...friendof mine, she died. Many years ago. I’ve been searching for a way to...bring her back.”

“From the dead?” I blurted. Was this guy on some vampire drug I wasn’t aware of? “What was her name? Bella?”

“Alice.”

I closed my mouth, looking at the vampire a little closer. I was pretty good at sniffing out bullshit, and the sincerity on his face was genuine. “I couldn’t raise the dead if I wanted to.”

“I might have a way.”

I gave him a sidelong glance. “Oh really? And how is that?”