Page 34 of Escaping Hallow Hill Academy
And how the fuck am I supposed to do that? How do I heal a creature that should already be dead with a silent heart?
But he’s an Ancient One, so he’s not like other vampires. He’s different, powerful
I don’t ask the question that’s screeching through my mind. Isn’t healing him kind of futile at this point? I’m not sure about other prisons, but isn’t it pretty standard to have fucking cameras installed in their secret labs with weird-ass metal monsters and shit? Or was that a no? Evidence to use against them, and all that.
We all but stumble through my door, Styx closing it with his paw as I drag Rue, and he flops back-first against my bed.
Silver dribbles from his ears and stains my sheets, but that’s the least of my worries. His whole body wracks with shivers, and I can feel his soul slipping away in my chest.
“Sekar—” He breaks off on a gasp. I know the silver is still being injected into his blood, keeping him under control. He trembles out a laugh, as if anything about this situation is funny. “What a fucking way to go, eh?”
My knees press into the mattress, and I find myself straddling his waist. As if on instinct, his body curves up against mine, but I press him down against the bedding with firm determination.
“You’re not fucking dying,” I tell him from between gritted teeth. Like if I speak those words to the universe, it will listen. “I won’t let you.”
His plump lips curl into a smile that flashes fang. “Youdolike me.”
“Fuck you and tell me how to heal you.”
His hands reach up and skim across the sensitive flesh of my wrists. It’s not the time, it’s the worst possible timing, and yet my pussy floods with arousal at the single touch from his fingertips.
Warmth electrifies my senses, and I press down harder, feeling his thick bulge press against my core through the clothes that separate us. His hand encircles my wrist, and I marvel at how delicate I look against his frame, how his rich mahogany skin contrasts with mine.
I don’t fight him as he slowly brings my wrist up to his mouth. I hold my breath, knowing what’s coming, bracing myself for the pain that doesn’t come.
Instead of biting, he presses the softest kiss against my skin. My breaths come out in shallow pants. I can feel that kiss through my whole body, and it makes my heart betray me with wild fluttering.
“Relax,” he whispers against my skin, and the sound of his deep voice is erotic all on its own. I find myself groaning and grinding softly down onto him. His other hand touches my waist. He’s warm all over, and I wonder if this is nothing more than a fevered dream that I’ve made up in my confinement. But he’s real. This is real.
He spreads my thighs wider, palm pressing onto my inner thighs and pushing. The slightest bit of pressure has me arching. He’s seductive and alluring and every movement is deliberate, bent on salacious promise. Never in my life have I wanted to sin so badly.
“Let me take care of you, pretty Sekar.”
My heart nearly stops. That . . . that scares me more than anything else ever could.
“I don’t know you.” Not really. I know nothing beyond flirtatious fanged smiles and teasing words. He’s an Ancient One: one of the oldest of vampires in supernatural society. An original. Born, not bitten. “I don’t even know why you’re here.”
His eyes blink slowly, and he takes his bottom lip between his teeth. I see the hint of white fangs, and I imagine them pressing into my flesh. Fuck, that’s hot. I wonder if he’s contemplating what to tell me, how honest to be.
In a place like this, it’s not safe to be vulnerable. It’s dangerous to show anyone your weaknesses, because they can use them against you.
“I’m not here willingly.” The confession seems to pain him. “They sing the Academy’s praises, claiming they’re here to help the rarest supernaturals, to save them from the black market or from being hunted.” His breath fans against my wrist, and his hand still grips tightly at me. He’s drawing strength from me by tightening his hold on me. “It got me during the day. We’re at our most vulnerable during the day, you know. One of those monsters attacked me. Wrapped a collar around my neck like a fucking dog.” He scoffs. “I’ve been waiting for the perfect chance to escape. I never found the opportunity. Until now.” His gaze is piercing, and I feel it press all over my body with a single sweep.
“Why now?”
His tongue darts out and traces the pattern of my veins. “Because of you.”
My whole body trembles. “M-me?”
“I cannot escape Hallow Hill Academy on my own, little Sekar. You’ve seen how weak this makes me.” His chin dips as he gestures at his collar. “They will not even let me out of these walls like they do you because they don’t trust me. I am well and truly confined.”
I feel his sadness through the bond we share. The hopelessness, the frustration. Everything raging like a storm inside him mirrors within my own body. And it’s in this instant that I feel closer to him than I’ve ever felt with anyone. Even the Sekar, who shares Lady Death’s blessing and heritage through our veins. It’s Rue who truly understands what it’s like to feel trapped, tricked, who desires his freedom as much as I do.
I cup his cheek and stare deeply into his eyes. For the first time since our souls conjoined, I open up to him instead of pushing him away. I let the phantom touch of his psyche invade my own personal thoughts. He’s gifted me with a bit of himself; now it’s my turn to match him, vulnerability for vulnerability. It’s as terrifying as it is thrilling.
I feel the ghost of his consciousness push against my own as I convey the matching feelings deep in my soul to him as well. It’s as close as two supernaturals can ever be, and it doesn’t repulse me as it did before. It doesn’t anger me. It . . . it feels surprisingly nice.
His dick hardens beneath me and rises, until I can feel it straining through his uniform pants. His dark eyes look into my face, searching silently for permission.
