Page 54 of Deadly Alliances

“This is the Master’s Trophy Room,” she intimated to me as she knocked. “It’s an honor to be given an audience with him here.” Judging by the clipped way she said it, I suspected she’d never received that honor.

“You may enter,” Hadrian’s velvety smooth voice said on the other side.

Kristen opened the doors, then scowled at me as she stood off to the side for me to go in.

“Are you just going to wait here for me? Or how does this work?” I asked her.

Her eyes narrowed to slits, and I flashed her a cheeky smile as I strode past her. The doors closed behind me, and I stopped just inside the room, the shock of the decor rooting my feet to the spot.

The so-called trophy room was more like a horror showcase. Bits and pieces of different shifters lined the walls. A green snake-like tail with a stinger at the end. A cluster of fluffy, tawny fox tails. A pair of feathery wings that reminded me so much of Caesar’s gryphon wings. There was even a burgundy dragon head, mounted with its mouth open, its teeth on display.

My stomach turned as I stared at the mountings with a slack jaw, envisioning the shifters they’d belonged to—shifters like Arya and Ashlyn and Tobias.

“Ah, the witch of the hour. Come in, come in.” Hadrian beckoned me to the seat in front of his desk.

The flash of his fangs as he smiled kickstarted my nervous system, urging my jello-y legs into motion. I sat down across from him, giving him as genuine of a smile as I could muster. If I just stared at his face—his flawless, incredibly drool-worthy face—maybe I could forget he was a soulless monster, for at least long enough to get through this conversation. In this room. Surrounded by the evidence of his cruelty.

“You did very well aiding in the defense of the citadel this morning,” he said. “The capture of the Dracul heir is a greatvictory for our cause.”

I cleared my dry throat. “Thank you.” I didn’t know what else to say.

His smile widened, and he looked down at his desk. “But there is a small matter we must discuss before we go any further in the admission process.”

Tension rippled across my body, something about his tone setting off all my alarm bells.

“I seem to recall reports of a witch who was seen cavorting with a vampire traitor named Julian Asher in Chicago on several occasions.” His dark eyes flicked up to me. “A witch named Shea.”

Fear shot through me, forcing my heart and my lungs to pause their functions. Cold heat flushed up my neck and face.

“Oddly enough, the scout who reported the findings has no memory of the events he reported,” he continued. “What do you make of all this?”

I only had milliseconds to decide on my plan of action. There was no point in denying any of it. He clearly already knew—fucking Adam. But if he knew how deep my relationship with Julian was, I doubted we’d be having this conversation.

“Yes, I was working with Julian in Chicago,” I admitted, my voice cracking.

I cleared my throat again, but no amount of swallowing could replenish the moisture that my fear had leached from my mouth.

He arched a thick black eyebrow as he regarded me. “And what was the nature of your affiliation with him?”

I took a deep, bracing breath. “He sensed my magic and offered me a deal. He would give me the grimoire he had in hispossession if I agreed to use it to bring his wife back from the dead. I was desperate to learn magic, so I took the deal.”

He nodded, seeming somewhat pleased with that answer. “Ah, yes. His lost love. I should’ve suspected as much. He’s never been very good at letting go of the past. I take it you were unsuccessful?”

“No amount of magic can truly bring someone back from the dead,” I said, remembering everything Gram had said on the subject. “Even if I were able to find such a spell, the thing that would come back wouldn’t be her.”Because I am her.

“I see,” he said, leaning back in his leather chain. “Did you tell Julian as much?”

I shook my head. Time to start lying my ass off. “No. He stopped contact with me out of nowhere. I haven’t seen or heard from him since.”

I leaned forward, giving in to my shallow appreciation for Hadrian’s undeniable beauty. “If I’m being honest, he’s the reason I’m here. When he told me about this school, I knew it was the place for me. I had hoped to use him to gain entrance, but when he ghosted me, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I hope that you will give me the chance to prove myself worthy of you.”

The glimmer in his dark eyes and curl of his lips told me he’d taken the bait. “I respect your ambition and tenacity. You remind me of myself at your age, and I don’t dole out such compliments lightly.”

The blush that rose in my cheeks was real, and I felt a twinge of guilt for the effect his praise had on me. “Thank you, sir.”

He leaned forward and folded his arms atop his desk. “Were you aware that Julian is a traitor? He was working with the vilegryphon that runs the shifter school on some plot to betray the vampire cause.”

I gasped, hoping to mask my fear as surprise. “Really? I had no idea. We didn’t talk much outside my magic progress. Is that why he disappeared? Did you kill him?” Saying the word made my heart clench painfully in my chest, every fiber of my being hating this rouse I had chosen to play.

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