Page 24 of The Bond That Burns (Bloodwing Academy #2)

The Drakharrow Tower common room was quieter than usual after supper, though several students lingered, chatting or working on homework. Most were blightborn. To my surprise, no highbloods were around feeding from thralls. Maybe that explained the more relaxed atmosphere.

As for me, I’d decided I wouldn’t hide in my room anymore. If I was stuck in House Drakharrow for now, I’d make use of the common room and refuse to let highbloods—or their feeding habits—intimidate me.

I’d taken over a large wooden table on the far side of the room away from the hearth where it was quieter. My books and notes were spread out in front of me in a chaotic mess as I worked on my essay for The Alchemist’s Garden. It was due the next day. I knew Florence had finished hers a week ago. She’d even gone over the word count in her enthusiasm and now was worried Professor Allenvale might not accept the extra pages. She’d asked me if I needed help with my own essay but I’d breezily put her off, assuring her I was fine.

Now I sat there wondering whether my thesis statement was strong enough: “The dual properties of mirthleaf as an energy restorative and poison antidote highlight its importance in alchemical practices and its potential as a tool for survival.”

I wrinkled my nose. It still didn’t sound right. What was the difference between a regular statement and a thesis statement? I was in my second year. Surely I should have figured this out by now. I knew Florence would be more than happy to explain, but I didn’t want to bother her when she seemed to finally have caught up with all of her own homework and extra reading and had a night off.

The soft scrape of a chair being pulled out beside me broke my concentration. I glanced up to see Blake sinking into the seat, a cocky grin on his handsome face.

“Why so glum, Pendragon?”

“What do you want?” I snapped, not bothering to hide my annoyance at being interrupted.

Blake leaned back in his chair, stretching his long legs out in front of him. “Maybe I just want to spend some time with my favorite consort.”

I glared at him, my face heating at his reminder of our so-called bond. “It’s not feeding time yet, Blake.”

I highly doubted he actually wanted to spend time with me for any reason besides taunting me, drinking me, or... Well, I wasn’t even going to think about that. Not while he was sitting there looking so self-assured and gorgeous.

To my surprise, his grin faded slightly and his expression turned thoughtful. He didn’t snap back with a mean retort. Instead he shifted forward and rested his forearms on the table.

“That’s not why I’m here,” he said quietly. He glanced down at my paper. “Although if you need a tutor...”

I blinked, caught off guard a little. “I don’t. What do you want?”

“I wanted to talk to you about the Tribunal evaluation.”

I tensed up. I had one more week. But there wasn’t much I could do to prepare. Nyxaris hadn’t been interested in practicing. Even for a dragon, he was a huge know-it-all. “What about it?”

Blake glanced around. “Do you, you know, feel like you have a handle on what you’ll need to do for the evaluation? How are things going with Nyxaris?”

I stared at him. “Spying on me? Really, Blake?”

Blake laughed. “If I was spying on you, would I really be asking?”

“Maybe you’re just not a very good spy,” I said grouchily, slouching forward over the desk. “Why do you care, anyhow?”

“Well, you’re my meal ticket so I don’t exactly want you to get executed.” When I didn’t reply, he leaned forward so he could look at my face. “That was a joke.”

“Ha, ha,” I said without breaking a smile. “You’re hilarious.”

He was quiet for a moment. “I don’t want anything to happen to you, Pendragon.”

“Of course you don’t. You’d probably die without me. Literally.”

He took a deep breath. “That’s not it. Although sure, probably.”

“Right.” I rolled my eyes. “You need me to survive. You have a pretty clear ulterior motive. But anyhow, let me put your mind at rest. Nyxaris has agreed to help me.”

Blake looked relieved. “That’s good. Really good.” He looked around, as if making sure no one was listening. “I saw you with him the other night,” he said, lowering his voice.

“So you were spying on me? Subtle,” I said drily.

“I keep an eye on you,” he said quietly. “I know you won’t like my saying that, but it’s my job.”

“Your job? As in, you spy on me for your family?” I said bitterly.

Blake’s face tightened. “It’s true that Viktor wants to know that... That I have things under control. With you and the dragon.” He looked at me almost pleadingly. “You have to understand the pressure I’m under. I’m just trying to keep him at bay.”

I studied his face. Was Blake Drakharrow actually confiding something to me? But he’d also confessed he was spying on me for Viktor. If it was progress, it was a tiny step. Ant-sized.

“I don’t understand why you have to do whatever he tells you,” I said softly, trying to keep my temper in check.

He met my eyes. “He controls my whole family, Pendragon. It’s not just me.”

“You mean... Aenia?” I guessed.

“Her, yes. Though she’s somewhere safe right now. Out of the way. He doesn’t care about Aenia as long as she’s always out of sight.” He sighed. “Then there’s my mother.”

“Your mother?” I was curious despite myself. “I thought she was in the Sanctum. Like a priestess or something.”

“It’s complicated,” he said shortly. “When my father died...” He shook his head. “Anyways, you don’t want to hear about all my family drama.”

I kind of did. But I didn’t say anything. And in a moment, Blake changed the subject.

“Look, you might not believe this, but...I want to protect you. And not just because of your blood.”

He met my eyes and I couldn’t help it. I looked away. “The bond between us isn’t real, Blake.”

“Sure. And neither was what we both felt the other night,” he said, his voice low. “But it was amazing. You can’t deny that much.”

“It was...pretty good,” I admitted reluctantly. “But not good enough to make me forget who you really are.”

His lips thinned. “You know what, believe what you want to about me, Pendragon. But I’m here right now. Trying to help you.”

I was quiet. “Fine. So what’s the tip?

Blake’s gaze locked onto mine. This time there was no sarcasm, no smirk. That alone was enough to make my heart speed up.

“What?” I demanded. “Tell me, Blake.”

“They’re going to have leverage,” he said, almost reluctantly.

“Leverage? What kind of leverage?”

“They want to make sure you cooperate with the evaluation. That there’s no repeat of what happened to Lord Mortis.”

I stiffened. “I can’t control everything Nyxaris does. He has his own mind, believe me.”

Blake’s expression turned cautionary. “Do not tell them that, Pendragon. Don’t ever even speak it.” He looked around and lowered his voice more. “They plan to push you. And if they think you or the dragon isn’t giving them what they want, they plan to... use one of your friends.”

My blood ran cold. “What are you saying?” I could hear the panic in my voice. “Are you saying they’re going to hurt someone? Who?”

Blake tried to keep a neutral expression. But the awful thing was I could tell he was upset, too. “I don’t know for sure, but if I had to guess...” He trailed off.

“No.” The word burst out of me. Sharp and loud enough for heads to turn. I shook my head, clenched my jaw, trying not to let Blake see the tears welling up in my eyes. “No. Not Florence.”

Not after Naveen. Not after what they’d done with Naveen. I couldn’t bear it.

“Keep your voice down.” But it was a plea. Not a command. “But yes, I think it’ll be Florence.”

“They can’t. She has nothing to do with this. Nothing,” I hissed.

“Try to stay calm,” Blake said, looking at me with real concern. I resisted the urge to slap him for saying that. I knew he was trying to shield me from the other students in the room, but I didn’t know if I could keep myself in check. “I don’t think they’re going to kill her.”

I choked back a sob. “What a fucking relief.” My quill snapped in half between my fingers. “But they might . That’s what you’re implying, right? That they might?” I swiped at my eyes. “So what will they do? Will they torture her?”

“Probably not. Not if you do what they want,” Blake said, his jaw tightening. “Just complete the evaluation. Prove you can control Nyxaris. That’s how you keep Florence safe. Play it smart. Do what they ask. Nothing more, nothing less. Make sure Nyxaris knows how serious this is.”

“He’s a dragon,” I said bitterly. “He hardly cares about me . He’s not going to care about one of my friends. Do you know how insignificant we all are to him? I...” I stopped before I could say too much.

Blake leaned closer to me. “Listen, I’ll do everything I can to keep Florence safe. I swear it. I’ll stay close to her. I’ll hold her by the damned hand if they’ll let me.”

I nodded but the tears were still welling up in my eyes. I hated that I was crying—here in the fucking common room, with Blake of all people. I blinked rapidly but I knew he’d noticed.

Before I could respond to what he’d said, a new voice sliced through the air.

“By the Bloodmaiden, Blake. Did you make the poor girl cry ?”

My head whipped up. Regan stood beside the table. She was alone this time, thank the gods.

But her expression was unmistakable. Elation.

“I told you not to get too comfortable,” she crowed. “Did you get your little heart broken, Medra? Let me guess—Blake finally told you the truth. That you were just a distraction? A phase?” She glanced at Blake, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “Honestly, I can’t blame you.”

I could hardly breathe. My fear and helplessness were on full display. And yet Regan was so stupid she’d gone straight to the wrong conclusion. I supposed I should be grateful she hadn’t overheard what Blake had been warning me about.

“Regan,” Blake said warningly.

But Regan ignored him, her gaze locked on me like a lion who’d spotted a wounded animal. “I mean, it must sting. Thinking you were special, only to find out you were the piece of trash I said you were all along.” Her voice dripped with mock pity. “But don’t take it too hard. Boys like Blake always come back to where they belong.”

She reached out a hand as if to touch my shoulder and I flinched.

“Don’t you fucking touch her.” Blake’s voice was cool but strained. “That’s enough, Regan.”

Regan blinked, clearly surprised, but only for a moment. Then her lips curled into a sneer. “Really, Blake? Is this what you’ve sunk to? I thought you had standards. Maybe you’ve spent too much time with the blightborn. Maybe she’s dragging you down with her mediocrity. Weak. Spineless. Pitiful.”

I didn’t have time for this shit. My throat was too tight to even try to respond to Regan’s vitriol this time, even though she was completely off the mark.

“Just look at you,” Regan said, shaking her head. “You’re not even going to make it to the Tribunal evaluation, are you?” She leaned down. “Tell me, Medra, are you going to cry like this when they chain you up? Honestly, I almost feel bad for...”

“I said, that’s enough.” The sound of wood crashing against the floor silenced Regan mid-sentence. Blake’s chair hit the ground as he shot to his feet, his face thunderous.

“Get. Out.” His voice was low and lethal.

The other students in the common room turned to stare, whispers rippling through the space.

But Regan didn’t seem ready to back down completely. She looked him up and down and for a fleeting moment I thought I saw something like actual regret in her eyes. Then her lips turned up in a malicious smile.

“You know,” she said, her voice dripping with venomous honey. “I don’t even need you, Blake. I’ve already moved on to someone with actual power. Someone who knows how to value a woman like me properly.” Her voice dropped to a near-whisper as she added, “The kind of man who can make or break someone like you.”

Blake didn’t react. “What did I just say, Regan?”

With a haughty toss of her silver hair, Regan stalked out of the common room.

When she was gone, Blake looked down at me. “Just ignore her.”

I nodded. Without another word, I rose from my chair, grabbed my things and shoved them into my bag, then walked past him towards the stairs.

I had to get out of there, to escape. I had to find a place where the tears could fall without me having to hold them back.