A University of Betrayal (The Blairville Legacies #2)

Chapter 40

Larissa

I pressed the doorbell for the fourth time. And I wouldn’t leave until she opened the fucking door.

She hadn’t come to campus today, and I knew from a conversation between Vivienna and Kelly, which I had overheard, that she had been absent from the last four cheerleading practices.

Bayla had told me what had happened. And I hadn’t felt as guilty as that for a long time.

But after the twenty unanswered phone calls, it had been enough for me and I had left campus and made my way here, doing my best to get away from Miles.

“Come on, Mady! I know you’re there!”

It was the faint sounds: the barely audible creaking of floorboards, the pulling back of blankets and curtains... I even heard her sigh.

“You can’t hide in here forever!” I shouted even louder, but then reminded myself to lower my voice and looked over to Diana’s house, feeling paranoid.

She had really threatened me with a godforsaken shotgun! What was wrong with this woman?

“Mady, please! I’m sorry. I had some issues I needed to take care of, and...”

The door opened, and the first thing that met me was the sweet smell of blood. I stared at Mady in confusion.

Let It All Go

Birdy, RHODES

“If by issues, you mean the DeLoughreys...”

I tried not to breathe, but the water was already pooling in my mouth.

“Damn, I’m sorry,” I began, remembering why I’d come here.

“It’s okay, Mia didn’t get in touch at all,” she said with a wave of her hand. “I didn’t even expect it from you.”

“Ouch” A painful feeling of guilt filled my chest. I wish I could have been there for her. “I’m a lousy friend.”

It was so easy with Bayla. It felt like she was my sister. And I’d never had any other friends, except for irresponsible gang members in Sacramento.

Mady turned away and walked down the hallway of the dark first floor in her gray sweatpants and a way-too-big pine green Vanderwood hoodie, and I was forced to follow her through a mess of shoes and clothes.

“You’re not. I see you with Bayla. She ’s your friend,” she sighed, and we both arrived in the kitchen. “I just expect too much from those around me.”

I looked at Mady with pity as she started the electric kettle and pushed the empty noodle boxes to one side to make room for a cup from the sink.

“Would you like something to drink?” Mady asked, turning to me.

I accidentally started to breathe, and once again, the sweetness of her blood flooded my nose, making me thirsty, almost insane.

Hold your breath, Larissa. It was as if this was coming easily to me, until the moment I ran into people who had AB in them.

“No, it’s okay,” I said, confused with myself, and Mady turned back to the cup.

She was a human. And I was a monster searching for food. I should never have come here…

“Sorry about the mess, I...” Mady began, but I interrupted her.

“This is your house. You have nothing to apologize for.”

Mady turned around, and a sad smile spread across her full lips. They looked puffy, dry, reddened, just like her eyes, which were covered by individual strands of dark brown hair.

“My house,” she began, looking around the messy kitchen. “God, I wish he’d sold it.”

I swallowed.

It was always easy for me to talk, always, really. But Mady had lost her entire family. She’d known them, had grown bonds with them. Not like me... I didn’t want to imagine how much this loss must hurt.

“If he’d sold it, he wouldn’t have had to work as much, would never have gone to that diner...” she whispered, staring at a baseball cap on the fridge. “I could have worked, but I was too weak, too irresponsible.” Tears filled her eyes, and she looked at me. “That’s probably why I don’t have any friends.”

Without hesitation, I stepped up to her and pulled her into my arms. A lot of things seemed to be falling apart inside her, and she had no one left. No parents, no brother, not even friends. I wanted to be her friend...

“Shit,” I mumbled apologetically. “I should have been there.”

Again, I smelled the sweet scent, but I didn’t want to break away from her because she needed someone. Any slightest sign of rejection could only hurt her further.

“No, no, it’s all right. My life is a tragedy.”

She broke away from me, smiling through her tears, and turned away, but I grabbed her arm.

“Mady...” I looked into her emerald-colored eyes. “I’m sorry.”

When I felt her pulse under my hand, I let go of her arm.

She just nodded. “Thank you.”

Then she poured herself a cup of tea, the smell of which suddenly made me feel nauseous.

“What kind of tea is this?” I groused, stepping a little further away from the cup as I felt my eyes begin to glow.

“Vervain,” she said without looking at me, and I remembered what Miles had said. He had told me something about a plant that could cause pain in our bloodstream, that weakened us.

Why was Mady drinking this stuff?

I stepped back even further until I stopped in the doorway, and my eyes returned to normal.

“How do you manage it, Larissa?” I looked at her in surprise. “You don’t have a family. How do you manage it all?”

She looked at me.

“Bayla,” I confessed honestly.

Of course, there was more to it than that, but Bayla was the main reason I was still alive and hadn’t died in a gang shooting long ago.

I turned around, left the kitchen, and walked down the hall to the living room to get away from Mady’s vervain tea.

“It looks like a fucking cave in here, girl!” I remarked with a laugh, looking at the closed curtains and all the stuff on the floor. More to-go noodle boxes lined the floor. I turned to Mady, who had followed me, thankfully without tea. “Do you want me to help you tidy up?”

“Larissa,” she sighed, “Please.” There was pain in her expression.

And then my gaze slid down to her carotid artery. It was as if the throbbing was calling out to me.

Creeping Emptiness

RealTunesStudio

I stepped closer.

“Over the last few months, I’ve done my best to lead a normal life, to make friends. No one, absolutely no one, was there for me when Ezra...”

I forced myself to look up, into her desperate eyes. “I’m sorry, I...”

Mady continued. “I don’t want to keep being disappointed.”

My heart broke as I heard her pain.

What had those damn witches done to her? Dumped her just because she’d been with Nash? And suddenly, I felt an abnormal amount of anger toward Grace and Vivienna.

I stared at Mady and breathed to regulate my anger. A mistake. This time, the divine sweetness hit me harder, clouding my head and... sending me rushing forward.

Mady startled violently, but by then I was already right in front of her.

“Larissa… What are you...?”

I grabbed her by her shoulders, pushed her hair aside, and before I knew it, my teeth were on her neck, digging into the soft, warm skin.

Mady sighed. And I drank, moaning.

I had never tasted anything so delicious before. It was worlds better than those blood packages Miles and Bastien regularly forced on me. And so warm…

I sucked harder, more fiercely, wanting to savor the moment.

“Damn it, Larissa!”

Someone yanked me back violently, and I flew into the wall. The wood behind me cracked.

I narrowed my eyes in anger as I realized it was my annoying twin brother, staring at me with widened red eyes.

Mady sank to the floor, and he just managed to catch her and place her carefully before staggering back from her as if something about her was bothering him.

“I’m thirsty!” I snapped at him angrily, ready to keep drinking, but he stepped toward me and pressed me against the wall.

“That’s a human being, Larissa!” he yelled, as if I’d lost my mind.

I stared at Mady, and suddenly, the feeling of thirst disappeared. My eyes widened, and I wanted to lunge forward, but Miles stopped me.

“I wouldn’t advise that. You’ll drink from her again. Your thirst control is hardly trained at all.”

I stared at him, speechless. I was too disturbed by Mady lying motionless on the floor. There was a bloody bite wound on her neck.

“You should see your eyes,” he grumbled, pushing away from me and reaching for his cell phone to send a message. “Damn it. I told you to stay near me!”

Stunned, I stared at him as I tried to fight the guilt.

“Her brother died, and she has no one left!” I finally blurted out, making sure she was still alive. Her heartbeat was clearly audible.

“You could have killed her, and now we have to erase her memories before that’s not possible anymore!”

I had never seen Miles so upset.

“Then what are we waiting for?” I snapped at him.

“I’m not going to do it,” he pressed out and looked at Mady again. “She smells too strong.”

My concern was mixed with bewilderment, and I tried hard not to breathe again.

“You can’t control yourself?”

He pressed his lips together and didn’t reply. Instead, he stared at Mady, indecisive and tense.

“How could you let her out of your sight?” it came coolly from the door.

We spun around.

“Adrian?”

I looked at him, confused.

Miles must have texted him.

Adrian looked down at Mady, and before I could say anything, Miles had already dragged me out of the house.

Alpha

Jordan Beats

I punched and kicked the punching bag like it was my attacker. My heels dug so deep into the fabric-filled bag that the side tore open and the contents – made up of shreds of fabric – emptied out sluggishly. This was my tenth. And I had never felt so strong in my life. A new energy seemed to flood through me, just waiting to finish something or someone off.

The problem was that I’d been feeling like this ever since I’d drunk from Mady.

“You’re not supposed to destroy them, they’re supposed to fly...”

“What’s the point?” I snapped impatiently at my brother.

He, on the other hand, was the most patient person I had ever met. The first thing we didn’t seem to have in common.

We were both in the park behind the Receptum, where I had hung my punching bag from one of the oak trees.

“The point is,” he came closer and gently placed his hands on my raised fists, with which I had actually wanted to finish off the punching bag for good. “...that you learn to control yourself. Control is the most important thing a Ruisangor should master. And you need control in order to prevent something like what happened earlier.”

I snorted in frustration and lowered my fists.

Already, I was feeling that thirst again. Whenever I trained with Miles, I got thirsty faster. Miles said it was because I was using up my energy.

But I didn’t feel any of that right now.

The boxing training reminded me of Sacramento and now elicited the anger that I had wanted to get rid of when I had come to this town. But it wasn’t that easy. I was someone completely different now. The Larissa from Sacramento now seemed very unfamiliar to me. The new one had hurt a friend, almost killed her. I could count myself lucky that she was still alive.

Adrian had taken care of her. Whatever that meant... I would text her, but I wasn’t allowed to see her again until I could control myself better, and Miles had told me that could take months.

How was I supposed to leave Mady alone for months ?

I had to work on my thirst control. As quickly as possible.

Angry with myself, I kicked the bag again.

“I think that’s enough for today.”

“What? No!” I looked at Miles in disbelief, who was once again wearing nothing but his black jogging pants and tracksuit jacket, his hair in a short man bun – which accentuated his undercut –, holding one of the knives he’d been wielding until a moment ago.

He worked out every morning, not as hard as Adrian, who jogged in the morning and spent his evenings downstairs in the gym, but he worked out.

My training sessions with Miles at the weekend – compared to the training of everyone else here – seemed like a joke. I just learned the bare minimum. And that wasn’t nearly enough.

“Don’t be so naive. I can see you’re hungry again.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Why don’t we keep training? I don’t feel exhausted.”

“You won’t feel exhausted. How many times do you want me to tell you?” he said, more amused than lecturing.

He seemed to be repressing what had happened.

“Then why don’t I take advantage of it?”

“What’s the rush? You’ve got centuries, if not millennia...”

Miles didn’t understand. How could he? I hadn’t told him.

“In case you haven’t noticed, Adrian is making fun of me. And as long as I’m weak, that’s not going to change.”

It was hard for me to admit this to him, but even Bastien must have figured out by now that Adrian was a huge pain in my ass, especially when I complained to Camille about his cool attitude.

“Let Adrian live in his bubble,” Miles just said, as if that was the easiest thing in the world.

Enough was enough.

I placed my hands on my hips.

“Maybe I should train with our father instead.”

The look Miles gave me was full of disdain for the man who had introduced himself as my father a few weeks ago. And I continued to avoid him, even though I used his damn gift because it was the only bike I still owned. Lara had disappeared from the parking lot in front of the Dark Lion Club.

Bastien had already warned me twice to take my training seriously, and he himself had tried to talk to me. I just wasn’t ready to deal with Tristan yet.

“If you want something like today to happen again, then go to him. Because he couldn’t care less if people die because of us. Even better, he enjoys killing them.”

I stared at him in shock. And I didn’t know whether I should believe him. After all, he had stood between us and the homeless freak back then.

What if he had never had bad intentions?

Drive

Halsey

Miles suddenly laughed. “Good Lord, why didn’t Camille take you out of Sacramento back then?”

“Me?” And what did he mean by Camille? I didn’t understand a thing.

“I wish I had grown up away from this unnecessary shit,” Miles sighed, shifting a little as I joined him on the stone bench in the middle of the park.

He looked exhausted. Not physically, but mentally.

“What exactly do you mean?”

“I see your ambition, and I see you wanting to be better than you have to be.”

Miles looked down from the hill of the park meadow to the foggy lake with a sigh.

Mist hovered among the dark conifers in the distance on the far shore of the lake, behind which Blairville's conifer-studded mountain range stretched.

I had my reasons, but not everyone needed to know them. Back in Sacramento, people had often laughed at me when I had shared my plans for university or other lofty life goals.

“Tell me about Sacramento.”

Something inside me tightened.

What was I supposed to say? That I had grown up in an orphanage? If he knew that, he definitely wouldn’t want to trade places with me.

“It’s warm there, definitely not as dark as here.” I found it harder than expected to think about this place and then put those thoughts into words. “Where I used to live there are a lot of gangs on the streets, a lot of clubs, but also a lot of guys who don’t know their limits.”

Miles looked at me as if I’d broached an uncomfortable subject. “Are you implying something?”

I shook my head, puzzled, then I realized and wanted to hit myself. “No. God... I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he laughed, trying to cover something up.

I immediately noticed, probably because I was his sister. We barely knew each other, but there was this similarity in our facial expressions.

“What exactly happened the other day? With the girl in the bar?”

I was afraid I’d broached the wrong subject, because I knew Miles was carrying a lot around with him. Especially the thing with his father.

He narrowed his eyes, apparently wondering if he should tell me more. I wouldn’t force him.

“It’s called bloodlust, and if you’re not careful and give in to it too often, it leads to a blood addiction.” I turned to him attentively. “It happens when we drink emotionally.” It felt like he was really revealing things to me in private right now. “I made the stupid mistake of letting emotions get to me, like you did when you drank from Mady. Only I knew it full well.”

Shit, he’d opened up, and I didn’t know what to say.

The next sentence came unexpectedly and made me sit up and take notice.

“Not everyone can be as perfect as Adrian DeLoughrey.”

Miles’ words sounded pained.

Was he jealous of Adrian? And Adrian? Perfect? It was time someone proved him wrong.

“That’s why it’s so important that you learn to control yourself first. An uncontrolled Ruisangor is weak. And there is no room for weakness in our world.”

My mouth opened slightly.

What had he just said? And why did it sound like he was reciting a rehearsed advertising slogan to me?

“Those aren’t my words, sis. I just don’t want you to get lost in our system.”

Miles’ gaze became more insistent.

We hadn’t known each other for long, and yet he was trying his best with me.

Miles looked down at the lake again, and it was clear to see that he was thinking heavy thoughts.

I would like to take them away from him. There was only one thing I could actually do. Open up as much as he had. At least a little.

“I never felt at home… in Sacramento.” The thought was hard but honest. As hard as I had tried, Sacramento had made it hard for me. “The only person who had been able to distract me from that was Bay.”

I wasn’t mad at her anymore, even though I made her feel that way. I was starting to realize that you couldn’t just talk about the shit that happened here, especially with people you thought were human. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Bay, and if she’d said anything to me, I doubt it would have dampened my curiosity. It had just hurt to be lied to. That was it.

“The witch girl,” Miles said with his gaze turned to me.

I laughed in disbelief at this fact. “The witch girl.”

“You know you’re supposed to stay away from her? Quatura mean trouble.”

Again, it didn’t sound like those were his words, but they reminded me of Grace’s... or the fact that the Quatura really seemed to make a serious business out of who they spent time with, ruining the lives of others. And then there were the Copelands...

“Believe me, it’s for a reason. We don’t get along. There have always been wars between the species.”

I could well imagine it. If every Quatura acted like Bay’s mum...

“That’s total nonsense,” I replied, because I was sick of this topic.

“Actually, I agree,” Miles laughed softly.

Surprise welled up inside me, and I toyed with the idea of telling him about the witch’s diary.

“But Senseque and Ruisangor...” He looked down, laughing. “That’s absolutely not possible. Our family histories keep us apart.”

I decided to keep the secret with the book to myself. The others in the group wouldn’t like it if I just told him, even if he was now my brother. I had to be careful. After all, those rich people had kidnapped me. I couldn’t just forget about that.

“What do you mean?” I asked with interest.

“Back then, our families wiped each other out. At least they tried...”

Great. How could you ever change that situation when the scars ran so deep?

“Anyway, I’m not going to let you guys tell me who I spend my time with,” I said firmly.

Miles wouldn’t stop me from sleeping under the same roof as the Quatura. If only to avoid leaving Bay alone.

“I’ve known her since I was a kid. She’s the one person who’s always been there for me.”

“As long as you don’t get caught by Nicolaj.”

Just thinking about the man made my blood run cold. He was what I imagined a terrifying Ruisangor to be. And I didn’t want any problems with that ancient fella.

Miles and I sat like that for a while, watching ravens fight over a nut, letting our minds wander, until he suddenly said something that really touched me.

“Just the idea that I could have lived a human life… A normal teenager who screws up, meets a pretty girl one day, and starts the family he never had… Raises kids, grows old, dies peacefully.”

He laughed at his own words, and it sounded bitter.

And then it hit me like a plank to the head.

I could have had it all if I’d stayed in Sacramento. A family. A baby...

My heart wrenched slightly at the thought of never being able to have children. It had begun to haunt me since I found out, creeping like a dark cloud of fog. It weighed heavily, as if I was cursed. I would never be able to have children of my own, to give them a better life. And adopt a human child? That was out of the question. I knew how I felt around humans. I would hurt it... Kill it.

And so I was doomed. Maybe it was my punishment for all the things I had done in my youth in Sacramento. Maybe I had also been the biggest asshole in humanity in my last life?

I wasn’t the only one who had to feel this way. I wondered how Camille dealt with it? Had she ever wanted to have children?

“What are you thinking about?”

Caught off guard, I turned to Miles, who was looking at me curiously. He was a man. He wouldn’t understand.

So, I jumped up. It was time to take a shower.

“That I’m here now and that I should make the best of it. And so should you.”

I reached for my towel and the water bottle, which smelled suspiciously good, like AB. Something every Ruinouveau received and which gave me more energy than others.

I saw Miles looking longingly at the bottle and decided not to drink it in front of him.

Miles blinked at me and took his greedy eyes off the bottle.

“That ship has sailed with me.”

Suspense Dark Ambient

RealTunesStudio

The last time I’d followed Adrian, it had backfired tremendously. He had caught me and given me an unpleasant lecture. But now he didn’t seem to notice.

To be honest, it hadn’t been my intention to spy on them, and I had never expected Nicolaj’s chambers to be so easy to observe from the park. I had only been walking, actually looking for Bastien, but as usual, he was nowhere to be found. Quiet voices had reached my ears, and now I was sitting here, pressed up against the wall under this stupid window that belonged to Nicolaj’s study, listening to the two men talking.

It was my only chance to find out more about Adrian.

“You’re hardly showing any progress.” That was Nicolaj. His voice sounded cold, almost reproving. “I should take you with me.” Then he let out a curse. “Wouldn’t you study at Vanderwood now!”

Adrian didn’t answer, and so I only heard the clan head’s footsteps until he continued.

“Bastien has been my best student, and I know it’s not his fault that you’re not improving.”

The way he spoke to him was more than odd. Had he ever seen Adrian in the training hall? He was a real fighting machine. And yes, damn, it made me jealous.

“In two weeks, I’m stocking up the clan. The Ruinouveaux we turned in Sacramento will be arriving, and I don’t want things to get out of hand here.” New staff? Ruinouveaux? “Think of it as your chance to get better and prove you’re part of the most powerful and darkest lineage in history.” Nicolaj’s conspiratorial tone sent a shiver down my spine. “And, regarding the plan, I have much to prepare. I hope you know that this is your chance to prove your willpower to me.”

I heard Nicolaj move closer to the open window and automatically pressed myself closer to the wall.

“Yes, sir,” I heard Adrian speak for the first time.

Sir . Who was this man to Adrian? I almost giggled, but then I heard footsteps.

“I’m counting on you. As always.”

Fuck . His voice was right above me. He had to be standing by the window.

When he continued, his voice was deeper, darker, almost menacing.

“I’ve waited far too long for this, and now it’s going to happen.”

“Don’t you think the Quatura are getting suspicious about the high level of activity in our territories? And the Senseque. They sense something like that.”

Adrian sounded more toneless than usual.

Nicolaj just laughed.

“Bastien will handle this.”

What did he mean by handle this ? And what were they even talking about? Did it have something to do with their spy organization? This DUIO?

“But he...” Adrian began, but the head of the clan interrupted him and finally stepped away from the window.

It was a mystery to me how he hadn’t heard my heartbeat. Yes, it was quieter and slower. But Nicolaj was powerful and certainly trained accordingly.

“He won’t. Bastien doesn’t question my command. Besides, we don’t always have to hide our dominance from our enemies. Let them know we won’t just stand by and watch them bring more scum into our town.”

Silence. And a lot of question marks above my head, that if they were really there, would have led Nicolaj to discovering me by now.

“Now leave. I need time to contact my men in Sacramento.”

I listened to Adrian’s footsteps as he left the room. Then a door clicked shut. The next thing I heard was Nicolaj dialing a number. Agonizing seconds passed as he stepped closer to the window again, and I tried to slow my heartbeat.

“It’s all going as planned.”

I almost flinched, so frightened I was by his proximity. He was silent, seemed to be listening to the person on the phone. And I had the feeling that I shouldn’t have been here for a long time. All I had wanted to do was find out more about Adrian. I hadn’t been able to make sense of anything from the conversation, and I had a bad feeling.

What if the DeLoughreys were also keeping secrets from each other ? In my opinion, Bastien was a person of respect for everyone here. But now the head of the clan was planning something behind his back? Why? Could Bastien perhaps not be trusted? Uncertainty gnawed at me, making me wonder if I could trust anyone at all.

Then I pressed my hand over my mouth, because otherwise I would have made a startled sound when Nicolaj responded to the person on the phone.

“It’s time for the Receptum to become the place it used to be.”

Suddenly, he moved away from the window, and I heard a door open and close again.

He was gone.

It was about time I left too and put this strange conversation out of my far too curious head as quickly as possible.