Page 58 of Ava: Part Three

“I told you to call me Andrei,” he said as he came closer. “You have to get used to it, Ava.”

“The rules say I can’t call you that, and you want me to follow the rules.”

“That would be true if you were an Omega or even a Beta,” the vampire said.

She lifted her gaze and found him too close to her again. The solid wood of the door behind her didn’t allow her to step back as she looked up into his eyes.

“Look at you,” the vampire whispered. “You can look into my eyes without any fear. You’re resisting me, and I don’t even think you realise you’re doing it. The rules are for the sheep, Ava. They weren’t meant for people like you or your mate.”

“The sheep?”

Was that what he called all the students here? The rules had been hammered into all of them from birth at the Council’s insistence, but they thought of them as mindless sheep?

“Don’t get upset with me,” the vampire said, grinning. “People who follow the rules without question can never be leaders.”

“They do it to stay alive,” she hissed.

“Ah, I see. You’re still upset about the Omega,” the vampire said. “She was never your friend, Ava. And she was a useless coward who would bring no value to her pack. You said it yourself.”

Her chest squeezed, and she lowered her gaze. She had said that, but that didn’t mean she wanted Emily dead.

“Look at me, Ava.”

She did as she was told. The vampire was still smiling.

“There is no submissive bone in your body. It makes me wonder how you got that mark in the first place when your wolf clearly does not like your mate.”

Her chest squeezed again as she self-consciously tugged at the collar of her shirt.

“I’m old enough that things never surprise me anymore, but you are just full of mysteries that I’m dying to unravel,” the vampire said.

“You offered to come get her, Andrei, not play with her.”

The witch sounded unimpressed as her voice came from somewhere behind the vampire. Still, Andrei remained where he was, not caging her in but close enough that she felt trapped.

“Aren’t you curious, too, Iulia,” Andrei mused without breaking eye contact.

“Your curiosity will get us into trouble. Come, Andrei.”

The vampire sighed and then stepped back from her personal space, allowing her to breathe again. But Iulia’s words stuck in her head. Did they have rules to follow, too? Clearly, the Head of Council was their boss, but was it not a democracy? Did he have absolute control? Like a dictator?

“Come, little one. We will have to continue this another time.”

She watched him link his arm with Iulia’s and smile at her as they walked ahead.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

Iulia turned back and shifted her dazzling smile to her.

“To start the rest of your life, Ava.”

Chapter 35

“So,hassherejectedyou?”

Zeke glanced sideways at the Alpha walking beside him and then back at the pavement. He felt juiced up on Mr Patrick’s magic and didn’t want to say anything wrong, but he had no idea why Alpha Diego had offered to get him for his meeting.

He didn’t respond.

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