Page 32 of A Fate Everlasting

Dorian’s mouth curved at the edges, amusement tracing his features, though his eyes didn’t change. “I’m a prefect, Davenant.” He flashed his sharp teeth. “Head of Seraphim House. They say your score is the company you keep, you know.”

“Right.” I rolled my eyes. “So, you’ve come to corrupt me instead?”

“No,” Dorian said, shifting into step. “Actually, I wanted to show you something. It’s about your mother.” Mymother?

He brushed past me without another word, his presence pulling the air with him. Despite myself, I followed. There was something about the way he moved, quiet and watchful, like he was always bracing against something. The world. I hated how much I understood it.

The moment we crossed into the corridor, the moonlight faded. The sconces along the walls flickered weakly, theirflames struggling against the weight of the darkness. When we stilled, Dorian leaned against the wall, watching me.

“Well?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. Trying not to picture his teeth sinking into my neck. Trying not to imagine his arms weaving around my waist.

He didn’t speak, just dragged his gaze from my throat to my lips, as if replaying everything from last night. My skin prickled in response. His collar hung loose, one of his buttons had come undone like he’d put it on too quickly. I stepped back, wholly unaware I’d even drifted closer.

“You’re staring,” I snapped.Deflect.

He laughed softly. “It’s just above you.” He gestured, and with the flick of his wrist the flames in their sconces grew brighter. I turned. It was a picture frame, the glass cracked. The ink on the photograph inside was faded, but I could see that it was an old class portrait of Evermore graduates. Below it, on a gold plaque, was a name that didn’t belong.

Evangeline Morningstar. My mother’s maiden name.No.That wasn’t possible. I stepped forward, my fingers trembling as they brushed over the engraving, over her past.Here,as a student at Evermore.

I looked up, searching for her face in the photo. Her image had been scratched out, but I recognized her curls and the necklace around her neck. Thick, dark ink slashed through her features, erasing her from existence. She had played this game, too. What did this mean? Was she not human?

Dorian was watching me, but not with amusement this time.

“This isn’t possible,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. My fingers traced the black ink that marred her face, a sick, ugly void where she should have been. “She never mentioned Evermore.Never.”

Dorian tilted his head, watching me closely. “Maybe she wanted to protect you.”

“Protect me?” A dry laugh broke from my throat. That couldn’t be further from the truth. “She died last week. My inheritance is locked. I get nothing unless I graduate. What part of that seems protective?” I demanded, turning to him.

“I didn’t know,” he said simply. “I’m sorry.”

“Dorian.” My stomach turned. “What does this mean? Do you think she graduated, became something…like you?”

“No.” A muscle in his jaw twitched. He was lying. I knew he was lying. “You’re asking the wrong questions, Davenant.” His fingers lifted, brushing against my wrist, his touch cold against my skin. “And trust me, you don’t want the answers.”

“Don’t do that,” I snapped.

“Do what?”

“Touch me like that. Like you know more about me—more about mylife—than I do.”

His lips curved. “Maybe I do.”

My heart sped desperately. “Youdon’t.”

But the look in his eyes said otherwise. His voice lowered in warning.“Coming here was never a choice, Arabella. You are Luminari. You belong to this place, and really you always have. It’s in your blood.”

“No.” I shook my head. “I willneverbelong here.” I’d never belong anywhere, except home.

“Something tells me,” Dorian leaned in, eyes flicking up toward the photo. He was so close I could smell the peppermint on his breath, heat curling low in my stomach. “That’s what your mother thought, too.”

A shiver ran through me. I didn’t know if it was grief or hunger or exhaustion. He lingered for a moment, a hand reaching for me. Every inch of me braced, except for the part that softened. Some monstrous part of me thought he looked beautiful in the dark.

But I despised that part of myself with every inch of mybeing. I brushed past him, shoulder clipping his chest. It was petty, sure, something that meant nothing and too much all at once. I was delerious—delerious andtired.I didn’t want anything from Dorian Cavendish except distance.

Before I reached the first step to the girls’ wing, his voice sliced through the dark. “You run from all of this, Davenant, you’ll end up just like her. Indefinitely dead, with no promise of anything after.”

I froze, the heat rising to my cheeks. He was wrong. He had to be.

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