Page 18 of Wings and Shadowthief

Her mind was clogged with too many concerns to make any sense of his words. “So, there aren’t any dark witches in this world, then.” Why would she ask about them?

“There weren’t,” the teacher replied, staring pointedly.

Her throat went tight. Shit.

“How could I… My family’s filled with elemental witches. Nothing else.”

“Hm. And you’ve never been different from the rest of them, have you?”

Always.

But not like this.

Spotting her white curls in the corner of her eye, she shook her head. “I don’t want this.”

“Then you’re either a fool or a coward.” Fin Varra turned elegantly to leave. He had no time for those of either ilk.

He’d already crossed half the courtyard when she called him back.

“Who should I speak to?”

Further than Blood

24thof March 2158

"Again."

Jack sighed, getting seriously tired of these endless sessions. He was eager to get to the bottom of his problem, of course, but getting his ass kicked by his former trainers didn't seem to be the solution here.

"That thing's not going to come out against you, Kas," Jack stated. "You're a scary motherfucker, but Iknowyou're not a danger to me."

Over the last week, they had tried to trick his alter ego into surfacing. Spells and potions hadn't worked. Getting a beating wasn't doing the trick either.

Kassandros tilted his head. "You seem to understand the creature."

Frustrated, Jack cracked his nose back into place. "It seems pretty simple. When I can't handle something, it takes care of it. It was one thing when it surfaced in the middle of a battle, but now it comes forward when I get a nightmare, or something. I need to be held accountable for what I do. I have to be watched or restrained."

He was analyzing the situation as Jack Hunter, head of one of the largest division of huntsmen in the world. If it had happened to anyone else, he would have come to the same conclusion. He needed shackles or to be locked away.

"Your mother disagrees." William Drake was sipping a glass of vintage red from his sofa, arm thrown behind his wife's shoulders. Fay read a book, ignoring the display of violence as much as she could, though Jack had seen her wince once or twice. His honorary aunt had always been a softie. "And your mother is usually right."

"My mother doesn't want her most useful subordinate out of commission if she can help it, but you know what it's like to not be in control."

The Drakes came from a line of dragon shifters, so their inner creatures were considerably more powerful and cranky than the average vampires, hence why Jack had gone to them, rather than surrendering himself to the huntsmen. He'd hoped for a solution, or at least some understanding. And if it came down to it, he preferred to be killed by his extended family rather than his own mother.

"I do, which is why I know it's not the case with you. You came to us. That thing inside you could have prevented it, but it didn't. We need to understand it. Again," the vampire archduke of America repeated.

Jack exhaled as Kas drew his fist back.

Blow after blow, hit after hit, he took the beating, but as he'd guessed, he remained entirely conscious and in control through it all, because well, Kas was Kas. A tough motherfucker who would murder a litter of puppies and sleep without blinking if it was to protect his people, but Jack wasn't a threat at the present, so Kas wouldn't hurt him.

Jack twisted his shoulder back into its socket with a wince. "This is getting boring. And useless."

"Useless?" William repeated. "You think I'd waste precious moments on useless ventures, boy?"

Jack truly hated spending time with immortals. He was twenty-eight, dammit.

"The thing isn't going to come out."

---