Page 80 of The Vampire Court

I whirl at the sound of my name.

Clara emerges from the shadows to stand in a thin shaft of light, wearing a black cloak over dark clothes.

Seeing her face is a relief, but it also breaks a piece of my soul.

She inches forward, cautiously.

“How long have you been here?” I ask.

Clara sucks in a sharp breath.

“You need to leave.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Clara

Alaric closesthe door behind him and stops halfway into the room. He hangs his head, heaving a sigh, letting his shoulders slump.

I lift my hand, reaching out then curling my fingers back into my palm. Something is off, and it sends a sense of foreboding through me when seeing him should feel like a relief.

“Alaric?” His name slips out from between my lips.

He whips around, startled. I expect him to close the distance, to smile, but his face remains an unreadable mask.

“How long have you been here?” he asks. The coldness in his question takes me aback. “You need to leave.”

I take a tentative step forward, uncertainty tugging on the corners of my heart. “Several hours. I snuck up here once the halls quieted. When you didn’t show up yesterday…”

I’ve been afraid Varin was right. I chanced a visit because I have to see for myself if they lied. Looking at him now, I can’t be sure.

“Where have you been?” I ask when he doesn’t say anything.

He recoils. The movement is subtle, but I catch it.

“What are you doing here?” He takes a step forward and another, stopping an arm’s length away.

The unease coils tighter, settling between my shoulders. “It’s been two days. You said you would come back, but when you didn’t, I thought…” My throat constricts, and I can’t voice the words. He feels distant, and the space between us might as well be a chasm. “I hate it here. When can we go home to Windbury?”

I never considered Windbury home before this moment. Now I realize it is, more so than Littlemire ever was.

Alaric lifts his hand, and for a brief moment, I think he might pull me into him. My breath catches as I wait to feel his touch.

Instead, he shrugs off his jacket, draping it over the back of a chair. His hands grip the backrest, fingers tightening.

Alaric rubs his forehead and says, “We don’t.”

I inch closer, stopping at his side, and reach for him. He pulls away and looks me in the eye.

“We will never return to Windbury.”

The words are harsh and unexpected. I suck in a sharp breath. It’s a simple statement, but I can’t accept it.

I take a step back and shake my head.

“Stay with Cassius,” he says darkly. “He will be your guardian as long as you wish him to be.”

Irritation flares. I press my lips into a tight line to keep from snapping at him.