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CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

ISOLDE

The Crimson Moon bathes my room in an unnatural glow, transforming the familiar space into something alien and foreboding.

“Has anyone else had the thought that the Crimson Moon isn’t here because of Isolde but because of The Collectors?” CJ asks suddenly.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“It’s a warning signal, not a beacon to your location. You’ve been here for a while now, and no red moon until now.”

“Good point,” I say. “That actually makes more sense. But basically, it means we have run out of time. We need to figure this out ASAP.”

I sit cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by a circle of candles that William insisted would help focus my intention. The guys form a protective triangle around me, watchful as I prepare to explore the connection Blackridge’s blood has created.

“Remember,” William murmurs, “don’t push too far. Just try to feel the boundaries of the link. We don’t want to alert him to what you’re doing.”

“I’m pretty sure he will know,” I respond, dryly.

“Probably, but if it’s gentle, testing, he might not think much of it.”

I nod, closing my eyes as I turn my awareness inward. The black sigils that have been shimmering under my skin all night feel different now, more active, responding to the magical currents flowing through SilverGate. I focus on that sensation, that subtle pull, and let it draw me deeper.

The connection blooms suddenly, exploding behind my eyes in a network of glowing threads that extend throughout the academy.

SilverGate’s magical foundation spreads before my inner vision like a vast, complex web, ancient and powerful.

At its centre sits Blackridge’s office, a nexus point where countless strands converge.

“I can see it,” I whisper. “The entire magical structure of SilverGate. It’s incredible.”

“What does it look like?” CJ asks, his voice seeming to come from miles away.

“Like a living organism. Veins and arteries of pure magic flow through stone and earth. Blackridge’s office is the heart.”

“Makes sense,” William murmurs.

I follow one of the larger threads, curious where it leads. It takes me down, deep beneath the foundations of SilverGate, to a chamber I’ve never seen before. Dark and ancient, its walls covered in the same black sigils that now mark my skin.

Another thread leads to the Sanctuary, revealing hidden passages and chambers beyond the main room we’ve explored. One particular doorway vibrates with invitation, whispering promises of knowledge and power.

But something else catches my attention. Throughout the magical web, there are distortions. Places where the natural flow of energy is disrupted, twisted into unnatural configurations. I focus on one such anomaly, located in the residence building.

The vision shifts, and suddenly I’m looking at a girl I vaguely recognise from Advanced Blood Magic.

Emma something. But there’s something wrong with her.

Beneath her human appearance lurks something else, a shadow that moves independently of her body.

As I watch, the shadow senses my observation, turning to look directly at me with eyes that burn like dying stars.

I gasp, jerking back into my body with enough force that the candles around me flicker wildly.

“What is it?” William demands, instantly alert.

“They’re here,” I pant, cold sweat breaking out across my forehead. “The Collectors. They have agents inside SilverGate already. Students, maybe even professors, wearing human forms like masks.”

“How many?” CJ asks.

I shake my head, still disoriented from the abrupt transition. “I don’t know. I only saw one clearly, but there were other distortions in the magical web, and one of them sensed me watching.”

“Great,” William mutters. “So much for the element of surprise.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Cassiel says, his wings rustling with agitation. “If The Collectors are already inside SilverGate, they’ve been watching Isolde all along.”

With each throb of the sigils, fragments of knowledge bubble up from depths I didn’t know existed inside me.

Images, sensations, memories that aren’t mine.

Blackridge’s blood has done more than just mark me with these sigils; it’s planted pieces of himself inside me, fragments of ancient knowledge that surface at unpredictable moments.

“There’s something else,” I say slowly, trying to organise the flood of foreign memories. “Something about my bloodline. The Morvorens weren’t just any vampire family.”

“What do you mean?” CJ asks, moving closer to me. “How do you know this?”

I press my palms against my temples, trying to hold onto the fragments before they slip away again. “It’s in bits and pieces. Information floating around in my head. Damadere is my ancestor.”

“Okay, well, that makes a lot of sense,” William says.

“That’s why my parents hid me. They knew she would come looking for me.”

“And Blackridge knew,” CJ growls. “He’s been waiting for you all along.”

Before I can respond, a sharp pain lances through my head. The sigils flare to blinding brightness beneath my skin, and Blackridge’s voice echoes inside my mind, clear as if he were standing beside me.

Miss Morvoren. Are you trying to contact me?

His voice in my head is intimate, invasive, like cold fingers trailing across my brain. I try to slam mental barriers up, but the sigils beat with his power, overriding my defences.

“Get out,” I snarl aloud, knowing the others can’t hear his side of this unwanted conversation.

You’ve been exploring, haven’t you? Testing the boundaries of our new bond. How deliciously predictable.

“What do you want?” I force the words through gritted teeth.

I want you to stop testing me.

“Why? You are testing me, aren’t you?”

Cease this at once, Miss Morvoren, or there will be consequences.

His connection to me slams shut, and I shudder. I’m left gasping, the abrupt severance of the mental link leaving me with a splitting headache and the taste of copper in my mouth.

“Isolde!” William’s hands are on my shoulders, steadying me as I sway.

“Blackridge,” I manage, wiping blood from my nose. “He was in my head.”

“Figured, it was him.”

I shake my head, trying to clear the lingering echoes of Blackridge’s presence. “He threatened consequences if I keep testing the connection. But that’s exactly what we need to do.”

CJ’s skin shimmers with black scales for a second before they vanish, his dragon fury bleeding through his vampire control. “He’s playing with you. Using the connection to intimidate.”

“Let him try,” I say, standing despite the lingering dizziness. “I saw something else when I was connected to SilverGate’s foundation. There’s a chamber beneath his office, older than the academy itself. The walls are covered in the same sigils.”

William’s eyes sharpen with interest. “A ritual chamber?”

“More than that. It felt like a control room, a place where someone could manipulate the entire magical structure of SilverGate. If I can access that chamber physically, I might be able to override his control entirely.”

“Or he might be waiting for you to try exactly that,” Cassiel warns. “This could be another test, another manipulation.”

“Everything is a test with him,” I snap, frustration bleeding into my voice. “But I’m tired of being his test subject. The time to act is now. We are running out of it, and if The Collectors come and he can control me, the gods only know what he will do.”

“Then we go together,” CJ states firmly, his amber-flecked eyes blazing with determination. “No more separations. No more leaving you vulnerable to his games.”

“Agreed,” William says. “But accessing a chamber beneath Blackridge’s office won’t be simple. The magical defences around his domain are likely impenetrable.”

“Not impenetrable. Not to me. The blood bond works both ways. If he can reach into my mind, I can use the same pathway to bypass his defences.”

“That’s incredibly dangerous,” Cassiel warns, his wings twitching with agitation. “Using a connection he created, on his terms, in his territory. It’s like walking into a spider’s web.”

“Everything we do now is dangerous,” I counter, moving to the window to stare out at the Crimson Moon. “The Collectors are already here on the other side of the wards. Damadere is coming. Blackridge is manipulating us all like pieces on a chessboard. At some point, we have to make our own move.”

CJ joins me at the window, his presence warm and reassuring against my back. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking we stop reacting and start acting,” I say, turning to face the three of them. “Blackridge doesn’t want me to test the connection for a reason.”

William’s expression shifts from concern to intrigue. “What exactly are you proposing?”

“We use tonight. The Crimson Moon is amplifying magical energies. I can feel it in my blood. If I’m going to attempt accessing that chamber beneath his office, now is when I’ll have the most power.”

“And the most risk,” Cassiel adds grimly.

I nod, acknowledging the truth of that. “But also, the best chance of success. The moon won’t last forever, and once it’s gone, we’ll be back to playing defence.”

CJ’s hands settle on my shoulders, his touch grounding me. “What do you need us to do?”

“Create a distraction. Something big enough to draw Blackridge’s attention away from his office and the magical monitoring systems. While he’s dealing with that, I’ll slip into the chamber through the sigil connection.”

“What kind of distraction?” William asks, though I can already see the wheels turning in his mind.

“The kind that makes him think we’ve finally lost our minds,” I say with a grim smile.

“Dragon time?” William asks, giving CJ a rapid once-over.

“Dragon time. You up for it?” I ask CJ.

He clenches his jaw. “I don’t know if I can?—”

“You’ve been on the brink for days. Just think of something that makes you so enraged that it forces the shift.”

“Like seeing you drinking from Blackridge?” he growls, his eyes flashing red.

“Apparently, that will do it,” I murmur as CJ’s entire body tenses with barely contained fury.

“That’s a dangerous game to play,” Cassiel warns, but his silver eyes are calculating. “A dragon in the courtyard will certainly draw attention.”

“More than attention,” William adds grimly. “It’ll cause complete chaos. Students will panic, professors will mobilise, and Blackridge will have no choice but to respond personally.”

“He said he wanted you off your leash. Let’s do this under controlled settings.”

CJ’s jaw works as he struggles with the decision. I can see the war raging inside him. The need to protect his secret warring against the necessity of our situation. “There has to be another way,” he says finally, though his voice lacks conviction.

“There isn’t,” I reply, placing my hand on his chest where his heart pounds rapidly. “You know there isn’t. The Collectors are here, Damadere is coming, and Blackridge is pulling all the strings. We need to cut through the manipulation and take control.”

“And if I can’t do it?”

“You will.”

“And if the chaos is the reason The Collectors make their move?”

“That’s what I’m banking on. I’m tired of waiting.”

“So, this secret is coming out?”

“Yep.”

“My dad is going to kill me. My mother will resurrect me so she can do it again.”

I give him a sympathetic look. “I know. But I wouldn’t be asking you to do this if we had another way. You are the nuclear option.”

CJ stares at me for a long moment, his internal struggle written across his features. Then something in his expression hardens, resolve replaces uncertainty.

“Fine,” he says eventually. “But when this goes to hell, and it will go to hell, I want it on record that I tried to talk you out of it.”

“Noted,” I reply, relief flooding through me despite the gravity of what we’re about to attempt.

William moves to the window, studying the courtyard below. “The main courtyard will give you the most space and visibility. Maximum impact.”

“How long do you need?” CJ asks.

“I’m not sure. As long as possible.”

“I’ll aim for twenty minutes,” he says grimly. “After that, Blackridge will have me contained or expelled, or worse, and our window closes.”

Cassiel spreads his wings, black feathers catching the crimson moonlight. “I’ll provide aerial support, keep the professors from getting too close until Blackridge arrives.”

“And I,” William says with an evil glint in his eye that scares me but also turns me on, “will slice anything that looks like a Collector.”

“What exactly do you intend to do once you are inside the control room?” Cassiel asks.

I take a deep breath, feeling the weight of their expectant gazes. “I’m going to sever the connection between Blackridge and SilverGate’s foundational magic. If I can override his control, even temporarily, it might give us the advantage we need when The Collectors make their move.”

“You’re talking about breaking the wards,” Cassiel says, his face a fierce frown.

“I know.”

“And if you can’t?” William asks, though his tone suggests he already knows the answer won’t be reassuring.

“Then I improvise,” I say with more confidence than I feel. “There has to be a way to turn this connection into a weapon.”

CJ’s expression darkens further, his markings beginning to pulse beneath his skin. “This plan is insane.”

“All the best plans are, right?” I reply, moving closer to him. “Are you ready?”

He nods. “Let’s get this over with.”

As one, we head out of the room and make our way down the creepy corridors, our purpose, our roles locked into place.

I have absolutely no idea if I’m capable of doing what I need to in order to override Blackridge’s control over SilverGate, but I know I have to try.

If I don’t, we might as well just sit around and wait to die.