Page 103 of Mortal Blood
Celeste tilted her head resentfully, exposing the pale column of her throat. Saliva flooded my mouth as my fangs extended from my gums. I breathed through the sudden, overwhelming hunger, clinging to my control.
Then Celeste’s scent enveloped me, and the sweet allure of her blood. Thaden’s simmering gaze seared into me from across the room, sparking an entirely different kind of hunger.Stop it!I growled internally, dragging my focus back to Celeste.
Before I could second guess myself, I struck, fangs piercing soft skin. My eyes rolled back in bliss at the first hot gush of blood. Rich, viscous, divine. I swallowed greedily, all thoughts of failure and Thaden obliterated by dizzying need.
Distantly, I heard Celeste cry out in pain, but the sound barely registered. More, I needed more! I sucked harder, blood slaking my thirst like the most exquisite wine.
“Seems like our dhampir is destined for failure,” Demir said, his voice penetrating my feeding haze. “Such a shame.”
At his words, the memory of Thaden’s hands on my body flashed through me, followed by the gut-wrenching shame of his rejection. Rage ignited within me, directed at Demir, at Thaden,at everything I’d endured in this brutal place. The fury burned through my hunger, reminding me of what I was doing here, of what I stood to lose. I just had to stop, just stop and I would pass. That was all. But the blood…
“Sebastian, you may begin your assessment. Drain number 21-012 to unconsciousness but stop before death.”
“Yes, Instructor,” Sebastian replied, his face a sadistic sneer as he snapped his fingers at Sam.
“Try not to get carried away,” Demir said in an offhanded tone, but the way his eyes fixed on me sent terror flooding through me. He didn’t care if Sam was killed, and he would do nothing to stop it happening.
As Sam obediently bared his throat, Sebastian viciously grabbed a fistful of his hair and jerked his head to the side. Sam’s face contorted in pain, but he didn’t make a sound. Years of conditioning had taught him not to. Sebastian smirked, his pitiless gaze meeting mine across the room.
Seeing him abused so casually snapped my last thread of control. Fury blazed through me, hotter than any bloodlust. A snarling scream tore from my throat. I tossed Celeste aside and threw myself at Sebastian.
“Stop her,” Demir drawled, sounding bored.
Hands grasped my shoulders, hauling me back. I threw them off and launched myself forward, but a figure blocked my path.Thaden. His hands slammed into my chest, tossing me back, and my eyes snapped to his as I readied myself to go through him. He gave a slight shake of his head and I drew in a steadying breath.
“Ms. Ellis,” Demir said, stepping into view. “It would seem you were overcome by bloodlust, abandoning your assessmentto steal another vampire’s feeder.”
My mouth popped open. “No, I didn’t. I—”
“Such loss of control is an automatic failure,” he continued, ignoring me. “Such a shame. And dangerous conduct, too. I shall inform Astor that you are barred from progressing to the next year…and that as a danger to those around you, I recommend your immediate incarceration.”
I stared at him in horror. “You can’t!”
“Oh, I assure you that I very much can.”
“Astor gave her until the end of the year to pass her assessment,” Thaden said, and my eyes snapped to him.
“This is the end of the year,” Demir said coldly, but Thaden shook his head.
“The year isn’t over until tomorrow evening. She has thirty-two more hours.”
Demir curled his lip in a sneer. “Thirty-two hours. Seems like you have a stay of execution, Ellis. I’ll look forward to watching you fail again tomorrow afternoon. Now get the fuck out of my feeding den. I have assessments to complete.”
I stumbled towards the doors in a daze, catching a glimpse of Sebastian setting Sam on the floor as I opened them. The last thing I heard before they swung shut behind me was the slow but steady thud of his heart.
Which didn’t change the fact that I was royally fucked.
Chapter Thirty-Two
The silence inthe common room was suffocating. No one spoke as we waited, the minutes crawling by. I gnawed my bottom lip, leg jittering—not helped by the adrenaline and power still flooding through me after that morning’s feeding. Beside me, Cole sat statue-still, a muscle twitching in his jaw the only sign of his anxiety.
Before long, we’d be called to start our final assessment. We’d barely survived last year’s—hell, some of ushadn’tsurvived it—and I felt sick just thinking about it. Or maybe it was the knowledge of how easily Demir had played me that was making me nauseous. Or the fact that Thaden, of all people, had bought me some time. What did that even mean?
I snorted and shook my head. It meant he was worried I’d get locked up and he’d lose access to my blood. No point reading anything more into it than that, so my hormones needed to do everyone a favor and get back under control. I had enough to worry about without wasting energy pining over a guy who clearly hated me. I mean, how pathetic was that? I already had the most incredible guy in the whole academy, and I was getting my feelings hurt because some asshole vampire didn’t want me? I don’t think so.
“I can’t take this waiting,” Alina burst out, jumping to her feet. She paced agitatedly, her steps short and choppy.
“You need to calm down,” Jax said. “Freaking out won’t help.”
