Page 40 of The Goddess is Angry
George was younger than the other two victims and hadn’t been asked to do independent study, but that was just a matter of time. She was already being singled out in magical combat and George was fucking brilliant on the dodgeball field. Her family was chaotic and a little crazy, but they were also powerful, intelligent, and had some pretty high-ranking jobs. It was just a matter of time, even though the only time George showed off was on the dodgeball field.
I didn’t wantanyoneelse at this college to die, but I needed my girlfriend to worry abouthersafety, too. Matilda and Azren didn’t seem to be worried about George, either. Matilda and George shared a womb and Azren had this forbidden romance going on with her. I wasn’t a god, but I had opinions about them joining what we had if Azren wasn’t going step up and protect her.
But I’d think about that later. If I ever had to have this conversation in my life, I wouldn’t want a supernatural in the room who could manipulate emotions and make the whole thing about theirs. Energy vampires were rare, but other supernaturals who could nudge certain emotions weren’t.
The moon orgy was officially over. Banshees shrieking would do that. Azren found out what dorm they were in, but we didn’t have to ask around for Saffron’s coven. A group of men came rushing up as soon as they saw Azren.
“It’s Saffron, isn’t it? She’d been acting weird and distant lately, but tonight was her anniversary with two of usanda full moon. Saffron had finally figured out the recipe for a healing potion she’d been working on that was going to put her on the map. Saffron liked to celebrate in certain ways. She’d never miss a moon orgy.”
“It was the same person who hurt Fleur, wasn’t it?”
“Is there a place we can talk privately?” Azren asked.
One of the guys was a massive wolf shifter with a ton of amazing tattoos most college students couldn’t afford. They were all grieving, but they were mostly angry right now.Myanger was under control. These men wanted justice. The wolf faced the common room.
“Everyone clearthe fuckout of the common room. We’ve got two shifters and a vampire in this coven, so we’ll know if you eavesdrop and you donotwant to fuck with us right now.”
“The God of Death also gets cranky when people don’t respect death. Get the fuck out or face divine wrath,” Azren purred.
Damn. I’d never been scared of Azren until that very moment. Everyone scurried to their dorms, and we sat across from Saffron’s coven. We were all angry for different reasons. I was trying to keep my shit in check and send calming vibes because I didn’t want that anger to turn into some kind of mob.
“Yes, it was the same person who hurt Fleur. The board and the Paranormal Investigation Bureau would prefer I lie to all of you and say nothing happened after the Banshees screamed. But this has happened before. It’s going to happen again in the present and if I don’t stop it now, it’s going to be a problem in the future. Were Fleur and Saffron friends? I know they are different years.”
“Yeah. All the independent study students are friends, regardless of specialty or race. It’s a huge honor to be asked, but not everyone can handle it. It’s a ton of extra work and the professors are brutal. You and Professor Morningstar were the only ones who didn’t expect them to be geniuses in your classes because they were brilliant in their independent study. They talked about that a lot.”
“Yeah, like, all the independent study students are brilliant in their chosen subjects. They’re all smart, but they have subjects they struggle in, just like everyone else. Their other professors wouldn’t let them mess up. And Headmaster Krauss was the worst about pressuring them to do more than they were already doing.”
“She’s been bothering Saffron from home. She thinks a witch who hasn’t even graduated from college yet is going to come up with a potion to fix the hex she got hit with. Which is fucking ridiculous because her great-aunt was Minerva Krauss. If Minerva Krauss didn’t figure that out, shouldn’t her family be smart enough to break it when they get stupid and hex the wrong person?”
“Harassing her is more like it,” the big, tattooed wolf growled. “She kept threatening to pull her independent study, which would make it hard for any door to open for her in the future…much harder. Saffron wouldn’t let us step in and deal with it because Headmaster Krauss is petty enough to expel us.”
“She was lying about where she was a lot. Saffron had a fiery temper, and we were constantly fighting about it. We’d just made up and were supposed to put it all aside for the moon orgy. When she didn’t show up, we didn’t know if she was still mad or that stupid woman pulled her away again.”
Wow. The Krauss women were shitty. I didn’t think anyone was as bad as Kaylee, but her mom was awful. Was Lindsay Krauss the campus serial killer? She wasn’t a strong witch, but George said she stole Minerva’s spells once.
“I don’t think Lindsay was the reason you thought she was lying to you. I don’t even think Saffron knew she was lying,” Azren said.
“No offense, but why?” Oscar said. “Headmaster Krauss was terrorizing her. She’s plagiarized her great aunt before.”
“I’m going to stop you,” George said. “Minerva never would have written something dark like that. The blood-lock spell was meant for the Paranormal Investigation Bureau for cases, but she didn’t release it because it requires so much blood. Minerva’s life mission was to break curses and hexes, not anything that would hurt people.”
“Doesn’t mean Headmaster Krauss wouldn’t,” the vampire snarled.
“No,” Azren said. “Lindsay didn’t do this. She’s a weak witch, and she’s not all that smart. She’s also worse than carrion birds. Lindsay Krauss is headmaster because of Minerva and a stolen spell. She wants fame, and she knows damn well the only way she’s going to do that is by piggybacking off famous graduates.”
I wasn’t the God of Death or even a scholar. I was just an eighteen-year-old who ran away from home. But Ididknow how dangerously ambitious people worked. I mean, my dad tried to drown me in primary school so I could be a vampire faster and then used me to manipulate people into signing contracts who wouldn’t usually go near his business with a ten foot pole. The contracts were always worded that if they tried to get out of it, he'd take them for everything in court.
Azren knew death, but I knew how people like Lindsay Krauss and my dad worked.
“The murders started after Kaylee cursed her and you took over as headmaster. You became a lot of people’s favorite professor but a lot of people had some ideas you proved wrong when we found out you’re the God of Death. Lindsay Krauss is like my family back in Ireland. She’s not going to be happy with secondhand fame.
“Coming back to the Academy of the Profane after getting hexed by a student and heroically catching a serial killer is instant fame. Especially if the killer happens to be the God of Death.”
Azren looked dumbstruck for a minute.
“That’s…”
“It’s plausible,” Drake said. “It would also give her an opportunity to get rid of George for good. The two of you were at the scene every time the Paranormal Investigation Bureau arrived. There are a lot of preconceived notions about you.”
