Page 20 of Darkness and Deceit (Obsidian Academy #2)

Seventeen

VAUGHN

Lilith’s kiss still burns on my lips, like it’s carved into my damn soul.

The last thing I saw was her retreating figure disappearing down the spiral stairwell with Simon, a burst of light illuminating their path before they vanished altogether, while Kai darted off in the opposite direction, already enveloped by the inky tendrils of his shadows.

And just like that, we’re scattered like leaves in a storm.

I stand there for half a second, my fists clenched so tight my knuckles turn white, pulse pounding like a war drum in my throat, echoing the urgency in my chest.

Then I move.

I snatch my jacket from the floor, shove my arms through the sleeves, and let the rage settle low and tight behind my ribs.

I bolt into the corridor, blue magic flaring across my hands, my wolf right behind me. “Fuck,” I mutter, the full weight of everything crashing into me like a cold wave.

The Rogues are here.

Attacking the academy.

And this time… this time, it’s war.

I’ll burn the entire fucking forest down before I let them get to the people I care about.

I barrel down the stairs, skipping half of them. By the time I hit the ground level, I’m already covered in a crackling sheen of light. The courtyard looms ahead, flickering with firelight and chaos. Spells crackle, students shout, shadows spill from every direction.

Savina’s already there—of course she is—red magic curling around her wrists like smoke. Beside her, Rey and Cassian are arming up, sharp-eyed and silent. One of the professors barks orders in the distance.

“Took you long enough,” Savina says, turning toward me without missing a beat.

“Didn’t know you missed me.”

“I didn’t. But someone’s gotta stop you from getting your idiot self killed.”

I huff a dry laugh as I fall into step beside her. “Trail’s marked?”

She jerks her chin toward the west gate, where the stone arch pulses faintly with magic. “Three-layer ward. Rogue magic touches it, they won’t have a soul left to scream with.”

Rey snorts. “Guess we’re done playing defense.”

“Damn right,” Cassian says, rolling his shoulders. “Time to make them bleed.”

Savina doesn’t look at them. She’s already scanning the treeline—assessing the fire, counting shadows. This is why I trust her. Why we all do. Not because she’s warm. Not because she cares. But because when shit hits the fan, she doesn’t flinch.

I let the moment settle, then nod once. “Code Shadow.”

Everything shifts.

The air thickens. The real Predators—the ones built for this—snap into motion. We’re the ones who survived things the records don’t mention. We don’t hesitate. We don’t wait for instruction. We follow blood.

The portal crackles to life as I drag my palm across the stone seal. Blue light flares—and a gust of wind slams through the gate from the other side, tearing across the courtyard as the threshold rips open.

Savina steps through first, followed by Rey and Cassian, blades drawn, Preds right behind them. No hesitation. Not from them.

I pause.

Because if this goes wrong—if I don’t make it back—Lilith will never know how much of me already belongs to her, even when I’m half-feral and full of rage.

I have to trust the wards to hold.

Trust Simon to keep her safe.

I grit my teeth, shove the emotions down, and let the portal swallow me whole.

We land just past the perimeter. The fire is brighter here, unnatural and blue, devouring everything in its path. The earth smells like ash and blood. And the Rogues?—

Gods, the Rogues are everywhere .

Rey snarls, flings out his arm, and his Predator bursts from the shadows. A hyena, all snarling teeth and fury, hits the dirt running, its chaotic laugh splitting the air as it rips into the first Rogue that moves.

Beside him, Cassian mutters something low—and from the shadows, a massive obsidian scorpion emerges.

Its sleek body glistens, tail arched high, violet venom dripping from its curved stinger.

It skitters forward with eerie grace, then vanishes beneath the earth—only to burst upward a heartbeat later, impaling a Rogue clean through the chest.

Savina doesn’t hesitate. Her panther coils beside her like a shadow in motion. “There,” she says, pointing through the smoke.

I follow her gaze.

Kai.

He’s already deep in the thick of it, katana slicing through the dark like it’s an extension of himself. Shadows burst and snap around him and he’s faster than I’ve ever seen him—more vicious, more focused. He moves like a storm—uncontrolled and untouchable.

But then he falters.

Just for a second. A beat too long.

And that’s when I see him.

The Rogue who steps from the smoke is massive—scarred head to toe, shaved skull gleaming with sweat, eyes black and unblinking. There’s something about the way Kai stiffens—like something inside him just tore loose—that makes something twist deep in my gut.

I don’t know this Rogue. But I don’t have to.

I know Kai.

Recognition. Fear. Rage. All flash across his face like lightning over water. He’s frozen—not by fear, but something worse. Memories.

The Rogue grins and lunges.

“Kai!” I shout—but it’s too late.

The bastard grabs him by the throat and rips him from his own shadows like they were never there. Kai’s katana slips from his hand and hits the ground with a dull thud, swallowed by the grass.

I lunge forward?—

But another Rogue crashes into view. I stagger back, deflecting a clawed swipe with a burst of blue light. My wolf snarls and charges, fangs flashing, and sinks its teeth into the Rogue’s leg—just enough to buy me a second to get my bearings.

I hurl my magic like a spear. It slams into a Rogue near Kai, sending him flying.

But it’s not enough.

The one holding Kai doesn’t even flinch. He hoists him like a rag doll, Kai’s body slack, his head lolling to the side as he’s carried into the haze. Smoke coils around them. Kai’s shadows sputter and recoil, like they’re searching for orders he’s no longer able to give.

And I can’t get to him. Not fast enough. Not with this many Rogues between us.

But fuck, I have to try.

Before the thought is finished fully forming, a Rogue—bigger than most—tackles me from the side, knocking the breath from my lungs. He plants a knee on my chest and drives his forearm into my throat. I choke, flailing, punching upward, landing a hit across his jaw.

It does nothing.

He’s not stopping. I buck and twist beneath him, magic flaring wild—but it’s not enough. My wolf is snarling, locked in a fight with two Rogues behind me.

I’m pinned.

And gods, this fucking Rogue’s breath reeks . His spit hits my face. His nails dig in and then?—

Crack.

Savina’s panther slams into him from the side, and the Rogue’s body goes flying. He hits the dirt in a tangled heap of limbs and groaning rage. Savina’s red magic slices through the air. Her expression is all sharp angles and fire.

“On your feet!” she barks.

Rey’s already cutting down a Rogue behind us. Cassian hurls a bolt of light into the trees—it hits another Rogue square in the chest, sending him flying.

I scramble up, breath ragged.

And that’s when I see him again.

Kai—still being dragged, his boots cutting lines in the dirt, his body limp, blood streaking the grass behind him. The massive Rogue grips him like a prize, but it’s not just strength—it’s purpose. Intent. Like this fucker was sent for him.

And that scares me more than the fire.

More than the Rogues.

Because if they want Kai alive, it’s for a reason.

“Cassian! Rey!” I shout, pointing through the smoke. “Cover me!”

Cassian sends his scorpion underground. Rey’s hyena takes off at full speed, biting into anything that moves. Savina flanks left, clearing a path—and I run. Hard. Shadows whirl, my wolf snarls—and every step pounds like a war drum.

But the fire shifts.

Blue flames lash through the trees—twisting unnaturally, like they’re alive. One twists like a serpent through the smoke—too fast, too precise. I see it a second too late.

It slams into Kai’s side, a jagged strike of living fire.

And everything inside me seizes.

He doesn’t scream.

Doesn’t move.

Just goes still—horribly, completely still.

“No—NO!” I push harder, hurling another strike of magic. It lands, but not where it needs to. Another blast. Another second too late. They’re vanishing with him. Into the trees. Into the fucking dark.

I’m almost there. Ten steps. Five.

Then a wall of blue fire erupts in front of me—roaring and wild and wrong—and I stumble back, coughing, swearing, the heat searing my skin even from this distance. The Rogues disappear into the smoke with him.

Gone.

Kai is gone.

And I’m too late.

I drop to my knees, fists clenched so tight I feel the crack of skin splitting. My wolf paces inside me, snarling and panicking. The scorpion skitters up beside me, agitated. Even the hyena lets out a low, broken growl.

“Fuck,” I whisper. “Fuck, fuck, fuck?—”

Savina reaches me, breathless, her voice sharp. “They’re retreating. Pulling back toward the?—”

I barely hear her because the last thing I saw was Kai—bloodied, silent, vanishing into the dark.

And just before the shadows swallowed him…

He looked back. Not at the fight. Not at the fire.

At me.

And in his eyes, I saw it?—

He didn’t think he was coming back.

Whatever happens next—whatever it takes—I’m going after him.

Even if it kills me.