Page 20 of Blood Legacy (Eternal Descent (MistHallow Academy) #1)

20

LUKE

Terror flashes through her like a jolt of electricity, leaving her frozen in place. Her eyes meet mine, those blue depths swirling with panic. My fingers slip away from her, and I can sense the shock and pulsing need left in their wake.

I snap my fingers, clothing her instantly. I pull her off the desk, now cluttered with books and papers as they were before and guide her into a chair. My own attire is pristine again, every button fastened precisely.

“One moment, Davos,” I say, maintaining a calm and controlled tone despite the circumstances. “I’ll call you back. I have a visitor.” I end the call, allowing myself a fleeting second to acknowledge the frustration and desire coursing through me before my composure takes over. I become the epitome of a composed Headmaster as I settle behind my desk.

The door swings open, and Aurelius, her father, strides in, exuding the aura of an ancient pureblood vampire lord. His eyes scan the room, evaluating everything with a discerning gaze.

“Aurelius,” I greet, offering a slight nod. “This is unexpected.”

His eyes flicker between us, pausing on her a little too long. “Clearly,” he remarks with dry amusement. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything important.”

I notice the blush rising in her cheeks. Can he sense it? Can he detect the lingering scent of her arousal? This must be utterly humiliating for her.

“Dad,” she says, her voice pitched higher than usual. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to learn more about the severed bonds,” he says gravely. “Perhaps you should leave us?”

It’s not a question. I remember what she blurted out to me about her relationship with her father, and I watch closely. Her eyes tighten, and her smile is stiff. I see the underlying currents now that weren’t visible before.

She rises from her chair, her movements stiff and overly formal. “Of course. I should get to class anyway.”

“We’ll catch up later,” Aurelius says as she skirts around him to leave.

Once she has slipped out of the door, I relax a fraction. I don’t have any fear of Aurelius for myself, but I’m now very wary of what he might do to Gaida if he is disappointed in her. That causes me to watch my step very carefully.

Aurelius sits and crosses his leg at the knee. “Two?”

“Two.”

“Any idea how?”

“None.”

“Are we sure the sires are still alive?”

“They are both with their charges now.”

“Hmm. Inside job?”

“I’m not sure. There is no motive that I can see. There have been no reports of this occurring elsewhere?”

“Not yet. But this place…” He looks around, I wouldn’t say uneasily, but definitely cautiously. “This place is a nexus of power, as you are fully aware. Things happen here.”

“You could say that,” I remark, thinking of all the crazy things that happen on these grounds. I had hoped we would have a break from it all, but fate has other ideas.

“We need to keep a close eye on the surrounding areas,” he says. “If this is ground zero, it could expand outwards.”

“I’ve already doubled the wards around the academy, as you will have noticed, and I’ve established monitoring stations at key points in the surrounding forest.”

Aurelius nods, his ancient eyes calculating. “Good. But we both know wards can be breached by those who know how.”

I keep my expression neutral despite the growing unease I feel. “What aren’t you telling me, Aurelius?”

He smiles, that familiar cold smile that never quite reaches his eyes, so like hers. The family resemblance is striking, though her fire is nothing like his ice.

“The Council is concerned that this could be the beginning of something we’ve feared for centuries.”

“The Severance,” I say quietly.

He looks mildly surprised. “You know?”

“My sire is a knowledgeable man. He taught me well.” Or used to as a looming threat to keep me in line.

“Ah, yes. Lucius.” He pauses and gives me a scrutinising stare. Whatever he wanted to say, he doesn’t and moves back to the topic I’ve been trying and failing to find information on. “This is based on myth, as you know. The great purge of vampire kind.”

“Kind of like the bogeyman hiding under the bed.”

“Something like that.” He sits back, more comfortable now. “As pureblood, my family has researched it extensively over the centuries but never found anything concrete. As it didn’t affect us, it’s not something that took precedence.”

I narrow my eyes, but that is the only outward sign of my annoyance. Purebloods think they are above it all.

“And you think it is happening now?”

“I don’t know,” he admits. “But severed bonds aren’t natural. They don’t just happen.”

“I agree. But severed bonds have happened before. Rarely, but they have.”

“Not like this. Not without cause. Not without warning.” He leans forward, his eyes intense. “You know as well as I do that vampire bonds are unbreakable except through death or the most powerful magick. For two to break simultaneously, in the same location? That’s not a coincidence.”

I nod slowly. “I’ve been looking into ancient texts, trying to find precedents or explanations. There’s very little documented.”

“Because those who experienced it didn’t survive to document it,” Aurelius says grimly. “At least, that’s what the oldest records hint at.”

A chill runs down my spine despite my age and power. “How did you get here so quickly? I only reported this to the Council yesterday.”

“I was already on my way when the report came in,” he says, and something in his tone makes me pause.

“Why?”

He hesitates, and in that moment, I see something I rarely witness in an ancient pureblood—uncertainty.

“Gaida,” he says finally.

“You are concerned?”

“About her behaviour to get your attention, yes?”

My blood runs cold, but I keep my face completely neutral.

He narrows his eyes at me but continues, “That aside, Dante DuLoc. Do they associate?”

“I believe so.”

“Is that a yes or a no?”

I smile then, but it’s dark, chilling. “Yes. I have seen them together.” I reach for the athame, gripping it tightly, seconds away from yanking it from its place to drive into my thigh to stop me from going for him just to shut down this line of questioning. I know where it’s going. It’s what I pushed for. But I hate it. Loathe it with every cell in my body, especially after tasting her. Her blood. Sweet, wild, and addictive. Her arousal, which I was desperate to drink, still lingers in my senses.

Aurelius nods. “Good. A union between them would be beneficial to both our families.”

“It would protect her,” I practically spit out.

“She needs protection?” he frowns.

“There are older, unpleasant vampires out there who will want her for what she is, not who she is; of course, she needs protection.”

He glares at me. “Do you think I cannot protect my own daughter, Luke?”

I level my gaze at him, careful to keep my expression professionally neutral despite the rage bubbling beneath the surface. “I have no doubt.” Common sense wars with my desire for his daughter. I should tell him about Lucius, but to what end? “Can I ask you a blunt question, Aurelius?”

He sits back, assessing me closely. “Of course.”

“A union between DuLoc and Gaida would be beneficial for all involved. It would protect Gaida further from predators who wish to claim her for her bloodline. But what if someone came along who offered you more?”

“More?”

“Everything.”

“I already have everything.”

“So you would decline?”

“Did you have someone specific in mind, Luke ?”

I smile. It’s cold, chilling, but it has no effect on him. “My sire is making a nuisance of himself.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Lucius LeClerc. You think he wants to claim Gaida?”

“I have it on good authority that he does.”

“He told you?”

I remain silent. I’ve lived long enough to know when words aren’t necessary.

“And you are only telling me this now?”

“It is a new development, and I’ve been rather preoccupied with students going feral,” I say lightly.

“I know all about Lucius LeClerc, Luke, and by proxy… you.”

My grip tightens on the athame. I don’t know what I was hoping to achieve by bringing this up, other than reassurances that Aurelius wouldn’t pimp his daughter out to the highest bidder, but it wasn’t this. “Oh?”

He smiles. Slowly. If I thought mine was cold, his is downright icy. “I’m not here to judge or send you back from whence you came. Even if I knew how. It intrigues me, this parallel universe idea. We should discuss it over an 80-year one night.”

I keep my breathing steady, showing signs of panic would destroy everything I’ve built here.

“I would like to know one thing, though,” he says. “Why did you come here?”

“To run from Lucius. Now, do you see my concern over his interest in your daughter?”

His eyes harden. “Running from your sire? That tells me the rumours are true.”

“Every one of them, and probably a whole load of other things you haven’t researched.”

“Has he shown up here?”

“No. I am cloaked from him, so is this institution, using the very darkest of magick. MistHallow is safe. For now. If Gaida sets foot outside of these walls, she is fair game.”

“Do you expect his presence?”

“Yes.”

“For you or for her?”

“Both.”

“Are you fucking my daughter, Luke?”

The question hangs in the air between us like a blade, ready to fall. My face remains impassive, centuries of practice allowing me to hide the storm of emotions his question provokes. I let go of the athame with deliberate care.

“No,” I say, meeting his gaze directly. “I am not.”

It’s technically true. We haven’t consummated anything. Yet.

“But you want to,” he states. Not a question.

I weigh my options carefully. Lying to an ancient pureblood is futile; they sense deception like sharks sense blood. But admission could be catastrophic.

“Aurelius,” I say, my voice measured, “I want many things I cannot have. Your daughter is my student. That creates boundaries I respect.”

He studies me, those ancient eyes seeing more than I’m comfortable with. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“I believe I did.”

“No, you deflected. Like a politician.” He leans forward. “Let me be clearer: Do you desire my daughter?”

I match his posture, leaning in. “Does it matter? I am the Headmaster of this academy. She is under my protection, as are all students here. My personal desires are irrelevant.”

“They become relevant when Lucius LeClerc is involved,” he counters. “Your sire’s obsessions have a way of becoming destructive.”

“Which is precisely why I’ve kept my distance,” I say, the partial lie burning my throat. I don’t want to discuss Lucius, not with him, not with anyone.

Aurelius sits back, a slow, knowing smile spreading across his face. “I see.”

“What exactly do you see?” I ask, maintaining my composure despite the growing tension.

“I see a man fighting a war on multiple fronts,” he says simply. “Your sire, the academy’s troubles, my daughter.”

I remain silent, unwilling to give him any more ammunition.

“Let me be clear,” Aurelius continues, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper that would make lesser beings tremble. “I have plans for Gaida. Her bloodline is precious, perhaps the most ancient and pure left in our world. The DuLoc boy is acceptable, his lineage is complementary to ours.”

“And if she chooses differently?” The question is the single stupidest thing that has ever come out of my mouth.

His laugh is cold, devoid of humour. “My daughter has always had an independent streak. But in matters of consequence, she knows her duty.”

I think of her defiance, her passion, her refusal to be contained. “Are you certain of that?”

“She will do what’s necessary,” he says with absolute confidence. “As we all must.”

The subtext hangs heavy between us. I’ve lived too long not to recognise a threat when I hear one.

“Now,” Aurelius says, suddenly businesslike, “about these severed bonds. I want to see the affected students.”

And just like that, the conversation is over.

Except it is far from over. It will never be over because after having her in my arms, after tasting her blood, after feeling her arousal for me, I can never walk away.