Page 25 of Escaping Hallow Hill Academy
This is one of those times.
“You smell like blood, pretty Sekar.”
Wow, two nicknames in one night. One right after the other. I am a lucky, lucky bitch.
I try to make a mockery of the situation. “You aren’t going to eat me, are you?”
I can see his serious expression even in the shadows. He doesn’t speak. He’s completely silent, and I can’t even hear or see his footfalls as he prowls towards me. Seriously. One moment, I’m blinking, and the next, he’s in front of me.
“Whoa!” I shove against his chest from the surprise and nearly lose my footing, but he grabs my elbows to hold me steady. My heart rises and sticks in my throat at the close contact. His body is warm, and I feel his breath fanning across my cheeks. “Let go of me, Rueren.” I’m glad my voice doesn’t shake.
He does as I ask but not immediately. No, first he slides his hands down my forearms, big hands encircling my wrists. Then, ever so slowly, he drops to his knees before me like he means to worship.
I bite back a sliver of hysteria. It slips out in an embarrassing, gagging breath of laughter before I find my seriousness.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
His hand encircles the ankle on my injured leg. I want to pull away, but his intense eyes are captivating as he stares back at me. He doesn’t say anything, but there’s a dare in his gaze, a challenge, as he takes my pant leg and rips straight up.
The sound echoes loudly through the halls.
A million curses tip my tongue, but all I can do is glare at the crazy man. I start to pull away, but he’s holding me firmly in his grip.
He still doesn’t say anything, but he does tear his eyes from me and lifts his wrist to his mouth. Before I can repeat myself, he tears through his flesh with shining teeth and presses his damp flesh to my leg. Drops of blood slide from his body to mine and just like that, I feel warmth pool through my opened wounds and spread on a tingling sensation. The sensation builds to an overwhelming thrum of power. I gasp as my skin pulls together, flesh knitting into perfect smoothness with no scar to show that I’d ever suffered at all.
“That should do it,” Rueren finally says. He stands up, nearly towering over me. I catch the flash of his grin in the darkness. “Fighting is against the rules, ma chère.”
I grunt, discreetly testing how much pressure I can put on my leg. “Tell that to the headmistress and a so-called doctor—” I bite my lips.
Fuck.
I was about to give away the mysterious Dr. Hyde.
Rueren’s eyes snap to me, narrowing as if he gauges what it was I was about to say.
“Anyway, thanks.” I gesture at my leg. When I stalk past him, I’m almost to my door when I hear the whispered, obscure tone of his breath in my ear.
“Do you plan your escape?” His chest presses against my back, presses my body against the door. The strange thing about this is, it doesn’t make me feel crowded or intimidated. It makes me feel something else entirely. Maybe it’s the after effects of my shitty day, the adrenaline and violence catching up to my tired mind. Or maybe it’s the magic of his blood coursing through my veins. His fingers slide up my arms. “When you leave to hunt, do you plan their demise and your freedom?”
It feels like a sin to answer that question, but I’ve courted darkness my whole life. “Yes,” the word hisses out of me softly. “Every fucking time.”
“I’ve heard things.” His lips graze along the lobe of my ear, and I fight back a shiver. “I’ve heard of creatures and mad doctors who make them. They say the bad supernaturals are thrown out, and the good ones go missing.”
My whole body stills at those softly-spoken words. This is what I’ve been waiting for. Information. Someone who knows, someone I can glean for answers in the most discreet way possible. I just never expected Rueren DeVoure to be the one who held the key to that mystery.
“What do you know about it?” My voice is equally dark.
His chuckle vibrates across my skin. “Less than I wish and more than you know.” It’s an answer and yet . . . not. “We should learn more together sometime, little Sekar.”
And then he’s gone, leaving me in the darkened hallway, with my whole body on fire and my mind desperate for answers.
Groaning, I open the door to my dorm and nearly fall into bed next to Styx. No matter how badly I want to sleep, it won’t claim me. Not when my mind is racing miles, demanding answers, confused with Rueren’s words and behavior. Does the vampire really know something, or is he just fucking with me? Is this some sort of setup?
At Hallow Hill academy, it’s hard to discern who you can trust. I’ve never trusted anyone my entire life.
And I certainly don’t plan on starting now.
Chapter Eight
