Deadly Alliances (Dark Shifter Academy #5)

Chapter 31 Shea

The entire surface of my skin was buzzing with both excitement and anxiety as I returned to the party from the Initiate bathrooms. I was beyond thrilled that Arya had come back to her senses and was my partner in this insane escape attempt. I didn’t realize how much I needed her until she hopped on board—not just because she knew her way around this place, but because her encouragement and emotional support bolstered me more than anything else. I was so grateful that she was my best friend.

But the wind got knocked out of my sails when I contacted Caesar and heard about the vampire attack on the camp. The fact that he was okay and dispatched the vampires was a double-edged sword. What would Hadrian do when his minions didn’t come back or respond to his calls? We absolutely had to get out before he sent an even bigger team of scouts into the woods.

The Grand Hall was just as I’d left it, bouncing with dancing bodies and the tang of blood sharp in the air. I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the number of couples pressed up against the walls—vampires not only feeding on their Initiates but apparently playing with them at the same time. Not that I was one to judge because I’d been there, but what Julian and I had was real, whereas the humans here were just toys to the vampires.

I turned away from the lascivious scene and scanned the room for the blonde demoness. Though I was loathe for her to see me and decide to unleash further depravity on me, I needed to know where she was for what I had in mind.

I shivered as the memory of her sucking my boob sent worms crawling beneath my skin. I had never felt so violated in my entire life, not even when Solomon attacked and nearly killed me in the alley. The sounds she was making as she drank from me, like she got some deranged sexual gratification from defiling me like that. It was utterly disgusting, and completely terrifying. What could I do if she decided to indulge more of her perverted desires? I didn’t want to be one of those humans pressed up against the wall, especially not under her.

As I rounded the large room, I finally spotted her draped over a chaise lounge, eyes closed, with a glass of wine loosely clutched in her hand that dragged toward the floor. If the glass was tipped any more, its contents would spill all over the polished marble, and I had to assume she was passed out drunk.

I didn’t know vampires could get drunk, but I was glad of it either way. At least I knew she’d be out of commission for a good while—long enough for me to slip away and quickly visit Julian.

As inconspicuously as I could, I swept out of the room, relieved that at least the other humans were keeping the attention of their vampires off me. I took the elevator up to Julian’s floor, and thankfully, I didn’t come across any vampires along the way to Marguerite’s room.

I gingerly gripped the knob and tried to turn it, but it was locked. All the vampire rooms needed key cards to grant access, but I had something better than that.

“Sahad,” I whispered, and the door clicked.

I smirked, enjoying this fleeting moment of victory before opening the door and quickly sliding in, then quietly closing the door behind me.

Julian was lying in the same position as before, sprawled on the lavender sheets like a rag doll. It broke my heart to see him like that, but at least I knew he wasn’t in that terrible pain anymore.

“Julian,” I whispered as I flocked to his side.

He startled as if stirring from sleep and fluttered his eyes at me. Even weakened and starved, he was still so beautiful. His cheeks may be sunk in and the skin under his eyes might be thin and bruised, but the sight of him still made my heart skip achingly.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice dry and cracking. His eyes widened as he became more awake, anxiety animating his features.“Marguerite—”

I put my finger gently against his lips. “It’s okay. She’s passed out at the party. And I just had to come and see you while everyone was distracted.”

He closed his eyes firmly for a moment. “You shouldn’t have taken the risk. If anyone finds you here—”

“They won’t,” I insisted soothingly. “Trust me, they’re all having way too much fun downstairs.”

He relaxed against the bed slightly, but I could still feel the tension in his body beside me.

“Arya and I have a plan to get you out of here,” I said. “I’m not exactly sure when it will happen, but you need to be ready to leave at a moment’s notice.”

“How will I do that?” he asked, a deep frown forming on his handsome face. “I’m so weak. I can barely move.”

I cupped his cheek, hating the paper-thin texture of his skin beneath my fingertips. “When the time comes, I’ll remove those damn cuffs and give you as much blood as you need to get your strength back.”

He tried to shake his head, only managing to move it an inch in either direction. “I can’t feed from you again. I took too much last time. I’m so sorry.”

“Oh, my love, there’s nothing to be sorry for,” I cooed. “It wasn’t your fault. I’m fine, and we’re fine. You know I do have the power to stop you if you go too far.”

He chuckled, the sound dry and raspy. “Leave it to you to make me laugh in this place.”

I smiled, pressing my palm against his face. “Please, let me feed you. It’s the only thing I can do for you, and I need you to let me do it.”

He frowned as he stared up at me with conflicted eyes, but I could see the thirst dilating his pupils. A spark of desire flared inside me, just as it always did when he looked at me like that—like he was the predator and I was his prey. It didn’t matter that he was too weak to charge me, it was just knowing how badly he craved me and what he was capable of, that made my core tighten with need.

When no objection came, I pulled my hair back and held it with one hand, then leaned over him, offering my neck right above his lips. Slowly, he spread his mouth over my skin, and I quivered with longing as the pad of his tongue dragged across my flesh. The tips of his fangs pricked at the sensitive tissue, then finally penetrated, sinking all the way in.

My eyelids fluttered as elation spread across my body, fueling the fire in my core into an inferno. His hand came up to curl around the back of my head, cradling me into the ideal position, and even the scrape of his fingers over my scalp felt divine.

My hands had a mind of their own as they pulled at the skirt of my dress, gathering the silky material over my thighs. Without disturbing Julian’s sucking, I slid my leg over his waist, saddling over his pelvis and letting my body melt against his. And when the hardness of his desire beneath his pants brushed against my center, I lost all caution and rational thought, driven by the pure carnal need to please him.

I began to rock my hips, pressing against his cock in a rhythm that sent my eyes rolling up into my head. His moan vibrated against my neck, resounding through my veins, and my body responded to his demand for my friction even as the roughness of his jeans began to chafe my tender flesh.

But I was beyond caring about such trivial discomforts. In that moment, Julian was mine. After all this time worrying and fighting through hell to get to him, I was here, and there was nothing I wouldn’t offer him.

Suddenly, there was a sharp yank on the back of my head, and faster than my mind could process it, I was flying across the room. My back slammed into the wall, and I collapsed in a daze on the floor.

“I knew it!” came a seraphic hiss.

Sluggishly dragging my hands in front of me, I pushed myself up, fighting the burning pain in my scalp and the throbbing stiffness of my back. Through strands of hair that had fallen in front of my face, I could see Marguerite glowering down at me, her angelic face twisted in a nightmarish snarl.

“I knew there was something between the two of you,” she hissed, her hands at her sides curling into claws. “How dare you think you can touch what’s mine !”

In the next instant, her hand was around my neck and I was dangling above the floor, gasping for breath.

“Marguerite, stop!” Julian shouted behind her, dragging himself to the edge of the bed.

“I’m going to enjoy your every. Last. Drop!” she shrieked.

“Wi di sa,” I gasped, tugging desperately on the well of magic within me as my fingers pried fruitlessly at her cold, immovable fingers.

“What?” she barked.

“Ma’at sheut asfet,” I rasped, my face throbbing with the lack of circulation.

“What the hell are you saying?” she shrieked like a banshee.

“Hekah…meh,” I mouthed, completely choked off.

The room filled with a gentle glow, even as my field of vision began to narrow.

“What did you do to me, witch?” Marguerite cursed. “Why can’t I move?”

The spell had worked despite my lack of breath to voice all of it. Marguerite was frozen in place. But the problem with that was her hand—locked in its position around my throat. I kicked my feet and clawed at her fingers, but my efforts only drained what little oxygen I had left in my lungs with no way of replenishing it.

“Hold on, Shea.” Julian’s voice sounded so far away, my vision tunneling and blurring as little rainbows faded in and out of my dwindling periphery.

Just as the pressure in my head was becoming too much, my throat was released, and I crumpled onto the floor once more. With a hoarse gasp, I sucked in one sharp breath after another, desperately straining to fill my deflated lungs. My vision expanded, the rainbows blinking out of existence, and the pressure in my head and face rescinded, allowing the voices in the room to become clear again.

“Are you okay?” Julian asked, kneeling beside me with his hand on my back.

I nodded frantically, still too air hungry to afford speech.

“Release me this instant, you filthy whore!” Marguerite screeched, spittle flying from her mouth. “You’ll both die for this. Slowly. I’ll rip both of you to pieces and make you both watch!”

Each breath that I swallowed only fueled my murderous rage even more. I hated this vile creature more than I’d ever hated anyone. She had imprisoned Julian and made him her plaything, her punching bag, her slave. She had violated my body and almost killed me. And right now, she was at my mercy—and I didn’t have a shred of that left.

With Julian’s help, I climbed staggeringly to my feet, glaring at her with all the malevolence I felt for her.

“Kapet-khet,” I intoned, flaring out my hand and commanding fire to ignite in my palm.

Marguerite’s eyes widened, the first sign of fear I’d ever seen in her flicker across them. “W-what are you doing?”

“Sending you back to Hell where you belong,” I declared, raising my hand.

“No!” Julian’s hand gripped my wrist, stopping my throw.

I whipped my head in his direction, shooting him a glare of accusation.

“You can’t kill her,” he insisted.

“Oh, Julian,” Marguerite wept in gratitude. “My sweet Julian.”

“Why not?” I snapped, ignoring the succu-bitch. “After everything she’s done to you? You can’t honestly tell me you feel something for her.”

He grimaced and let out a scoff. “God, no. I want her dead more than you do. But if you kill her now, before we can escape, we will be found out. She’s Hadrian’s right hand, he will come looking for her when she doesn’t respond to his call, and we have nowhere to dispose of her body.”

Fury spiked inside my chest, reaching a fever pitch, because I knew he was right. I had her right where I wanted her, and knowing I couldn’t reap the vengeance I so desired—that Julian so deserved—pissed me off more than anything ever had in my life.

I lowered my hand and dispelled the flames it held. “Fine. But we can’t just let her go.”

“Yes,” Marguerite pleaded, her voice dripping with sweetness. “Yes, you can. I promise I won’t tell a soul. This can be our little secret.”

A wicked grin spread from ear to ear as I turned to her. “That’s right. You won’t tell a soul.”

Fear flashed in her face again. “What are you going to do?”

“Sekha hedjefa,” I said, feeling the magic connect to her memory as her expression went blank. “You will forget that you saw me with Julian tonight, and you will forget any and all suspicions you have toward me.”

Like little seeds that were extensions of me, I could feel my command wheedling through her mind, erasing the events of this night. But I wasn’t finished. I wanted to hurt her, wound her beyond repair that would punish her for the rest of her days—at least until I had the clearance to end them.

“And you will forget how to swallow. Even when sustenance passes your lips and touches your tongue, you will be unable to ingest it.”

Dark satisfaction washed over me as I felt that particular seed digging in. Let’s see you bite me again, you evil bitch.

I turned to Julian, who was watching me with a mixture of fear and admiration. “Get back in the bed, so I can release her and seal the spell,” I whispered to him.

Without a word, he nodded and slowly made his way back to the bed. Only when he had returned to his splayed position on the sheets did I release her from the snare and seal the memory spell. The glow that had filled the room faded back to the normal dim lighting, and Marguerite shook her head and blinked as she came back to awareness.

She turned to me with a look of confusion. “What’s going on?”

“You don’t remember?” I asked in my most innocent voice.

She shook her head.

“You had a little too much to drink, so I helped you back to your room,” I lied sweetly. “Maybe you should lie down.”

She frowned, and I hated how fucking beautiful she looked with her stupid bottom lip pouting out. “I think you might be right.” She put her palm to her forehead and trudged toward the bed, waving a dismissive hand at me. “You are dismissed.”

Stealing one last glance at Julian, I gave a single nod and went out the door. When it was closed behind me, I pressed up against it and took a deep breath.

That had been close, way too close. I couldn’t afford to make a mistake like that again. I hoped we could get out of here before I had another chance.