Page 8 of Soul Bound (Cursed Descent (MistHallow Academy) #2)

8

LUC

Loitering outside Death Magick Mastery, waiting for that douche canoe I was cursed to have as my brother, I feel a chill skitter down my spine as the magick flying around that classroom is unpleasant, at best. I will never understand how we shared a womb. I’m all fire, and he’s all ice. What the fuck is up with that? Cosmic fuckery at its finest, I think, nodding at my own conclusion and drawing a weird look from a Professor passing by. I plaster a smile on my face, which just makes her more suspicious.

Finally, Draven exits the lecture hall and spots me immediately. “What do you want?” he clips out before walking away, expecting me to follow. Usually, I would fuck this off and leave him to walk away, but I can’t this time.

“We need to talk,” I mutter, hurrying after him. “About Xavi’s little visit to Tilly.”

He stops walking and faces me. “Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Sooner, rather than later.”

“Tonight? After we’ve seen Blackthorn?”

I throw down the challenge to see if he will bite. We were told under no circumstances were we to leave the grounds of this academy. But this is worth the Devil’s wrath. Xavier had no right to go to Tilly to threaten her with anything. And I don’t really care if her words were pleasant, Pestilence just standing in front of you is a threat. End of story.

Draven’s eyes narrow as he considers my proposal. For a moment, I think he’s going to refuse, but then he gives a sharp nod.

“Tonight,” he agrees, his voice low. “After we deal with Night and Blackthorn. We’ll need to be careful sneaking out, though.”

I can’t help the wicked grin that spreads across my face. “Please. Sneaking out is my speciality. Leave that to me, brother.”

He rolls his eyes but doesn’t argue. “Fine. Just don’t do anything stupid that will get us caught before we even make it to Hell.”

“Would I ever?” I ask innocently.

Draven just gives me a withering look in response.

Fair enough.

As he stalks off, I clench my jaw, remembering him wrenching control over that skeleton army earlier. Draven may be an insufferable prick most of the time, but he’s damn good at what he does. And what he does is impressive, even by Hell’s standards.

Turning to head back the way I came, I wander outside and feel the chill of winter hit my skin. I shiver and pull my coat tighter around me. Going back to Hell tonight is a risk, but one I’m willing to take to get Xavi to back off Tilly. Even more so if what we did is forcing Tilly into a life of Hell Demon without her consent or her knowledge. Mom will have my horns for this if it has happened. I slip into the library, glad that my classes for the day have already finished. I make my way to the Demonic section and search up a book on Succubi. As closely related as they are to Incubi, there are fundamental differences. I’ve never cared enough to look before, but now I need to know.

I settle into a secluded corner of the library with a few dusty tomes on Succubi lore. As I flip through the pages, my unease grows. There’s a lot of contradictory information, of course, there always is with Hell creatures, but there has to be something in here that can help me figure this out. I scan through the dusty tome, looking for any signs or symptoms of transformation. Most of it is stuff I already know: increased libido, heightened sexual allure, ability to feed on sexual energy. But then I come across a passage that makes me pause:

In rare cases where a human is transformed into a Succubus through ritual means rather than being born as one, the change may occur gradually over time. Early signs can include increased appetite, unpredictable surges in magickal ability, and a growing resistance to injury or harm.

I frown, thinking back to Tilly devouring those sandwiches at lunch. She could’ve just been ravenous after everything, but… the fact that her soul didn’t respond to me in the altar room is unnerving. I know Draven wasn’t shielding her. But I wasn’t actively trying to stop myself from devouring her. I couldn’t. It was impossible in the hedonism of the moment.

“Fuck,” I mutter. This is not good as another memory flashes into my head.

When Draven took control of the army, his call to arms knocked Tilly to her knees. What does that mean?

Those two events separately might not be so bad, but together… I’m fearing the worst right now, and she is going to kill us.

I keep reading, hoping to find some way to reverse the process if it has started. But the book offers little hope on that front. Once the transformation begins, it says, it’s nearly impossible to stop.

Slamming the book shut in frustration, I lean back in my chair and run a hand through my hair. What have we done? I never should have gone along with that blood ritual. Now, Tilly might be paying the price for my recklessness.

I gather up the books, intending to check them out for further research, when I spot a familiar figure entering the library. It’s Tilly, looking exhausted and upset. She doesn’t see me as she makes her way to a secluded table and slumps into a chair, burying her face in her hands. Her shoulders shake like she’s crying.

For a moment, I debate whether to approach her or not. I’m not good with shit like this. Okay, to be honest, I’ve never been in a situation like this, so I don’t know how I could or would handle it.

But it’s Tilly, so I move forward and crouch down next to her. “What’s up?”

She looks down at me and tries to smile, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “I’m fine. I’ve had a rough day in classes.”

I slide into the chair across from her. “Want to talk about it?”

Tilly hesitates, then sighs and nods. “My magick has been off. And I know I shouldn’t be surprised or upset about that, seeing as I don’t even know what I’m capable of or even what magick is swirling around inside me right now. But I nearly set the Fire Magick classroom on fire, then I shot a feather into the wall in Air Magick, narrowly impaling someone in the eye, and in Defensive Incantations, my shield charm was so strong it reflected a hex back at my partner. He ducked. He’s fine, but it’s all gone tits up, and I don’t know where I fit in now.”

I try to keep my expression neutral, but inside, I’m cursing. This fits exactly with what I just read about early signs of Succubus transformation.

“That sounds rough,” I say carefully. “Did the professors say anything?”

She nods miserably. “They all think I’m in the wrong level classes. Professor Whiston in Air Magick even said she needs to talk to Blackthorn about finding me a more fulfilling environment to practise safely.”

I reach out and squeeze her hand. “Hey, it’s not your fault. You’re still learning to control your powers.”

“But that’s just it,” she says, frustration clear in her voice. “It doesn’t feel like I’m learning or improving. It feels like something else entirely is taking over.”

My stomach twists with guilt. I need to tell her what might be happening, but I can’t. Not yet. Not until I’m sure and we’ve figured out if there’s any way to stop it. Sending her into a flat panic over something that might not even be true isn’t the way to play this.

“I get it,” I murmur, and she rolls her eyes, making me smile. “Hear me out, my sweet. I do get it. Dray and I are, as you’ve said yourself, not part of the magickal world up here. We are different. More powerful. More advanced practitioners. More everything. We don’t fit in either.”

“So why are you here?” she asks, almost glad to have the attention off her.

“That remains the mystery du jour .”

“Can I ask you something?” she sniffs.

“Yep.”

“Are you in line for the Devil’s throne?”

I chuckle, having expected that question. “No. That honour goes to my oldest sister, Phoenyx.”

“You have a sister?”

“Two. Gaia is the other one.”

“Are they also half siblings?”

I nod. “Phoenyx’s dad is the Horseman of War, and Gaia’s dad is the Master Hellhound.”

“Whoa,” she says, her eyes wide. “You have a very complicated family.”

“It’s definitely not dull.”

“Thank you for telling me.” She takes my hand lightly.

I squeeze it. “I’m an open book, sweet witch. All you have to do is ask.”

“Why do you hate Draven so much?”

I snort. “How long have you been sitting on that one?”

Tilly gives me a wry smile. “A while.”

I lean back in my chair, considering how to answer. It’s not a simple explanation. “Hate might be too strong a word,” I say finally. “We just don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things.”

“Like what?” she presses.

I sigh. “It’s complicated. We were born together but our opposite natures made it difficult to get along when we were younger. I envied his control, and it festered, I guess.”

“Wow. That is a big thing to admit.”

“Yeah. The tunnels of horror were enlightening.”

“You could say that again.”

“Can I ask you something now?”

She nods warily.

“That Christos guy. What’s the story behind that?”

“In a nutshell, he was my brother’s friend. We met when I was still a child. But I knew there was something different about him. He wasn’t cruel to me. He tried to be kind, and when I turned eighteen, things developed between us. He promised he would take me away from my family and protect me. He took my virginity, which we now know was to try and get me pregnant and then left and never came back. I guess because he got trapped underground.” She sighs and sits back.

I lick my lips. “I think that altar was made for you and him,” I say steadily, watching for her reaction.

Tilly’s eyes widen in shock at my words. “Gods. Seriously?” She shudders.

I nod grimly. “Think about it. The altar required blood, soul, and body to be joined. Christos, as one of the Guardians, likely planned to use you in the ritual there.”

“But I was just a powerless witch back then. How did he know?”

“He knew. I think he is probably the one who gave the pendant to your family.”

She closes her eyes briefly. “Fuck. Fuck! Fuck him!”

“I’m sorry, Tilly.”

She’s quiet for a long moment, processing. When she speaks again, her voice is tight with anger. “That bastard. This is even more twisted now than it was before.”

I reach out and squeeze her hand. “I know.”

“I can’t keep doing this, Luc,” she says, shaking her head and pulling her hand back.

My blood freezes. “Doing what?” I ask carefully.

“I can’t keep being shat on all the damn time. I can’t keep having magick that doesn’t work properly. I can’t be kicked out of my classes because my magick is too advanced, but I’m too untrained to wield it. I just can’t do any of it anymore.”

“Tilly,” I say, but she stands up.

“I need to go do some laundry. I’ll see you at five.” She races off, and I let her go. She needs the time to get her head on straight for the meeting with Blackthorn. I glance over at the stack of books I left on the table a few feet away. With a resigned sigh, I stand up and cross over to scoop them up. Checking them out, I take them back to my room and lay them out on the desk, determined to find a way to undo what we did, if worst comes to the worst and Tilly does turn into a Succubus.