19. Ambrose
Chapter 19
Ambrose
TUESDAY
“ W hat the actual fuck is happening?!” Thatcher yelled, stomping into Vesper Hall. Maybe he meant to come off as intimidating, but he resembled a child mid-tantrum, trying to get what they wanted. In two words, fucking annoying.
“The school’s defenses have not been tampered with,” Professor Falke informed him sternly. His eyes flashed with menace, daring someone to question the effectiveness of his precautions. “Whoever the attacker is, they are within the school grounds.”
“A student?” President Thatcher asked as he approached our group of professors. Although most people moved out of his way, Julian and I stayed where we were. Thatcher shot us angry looks, but I just arched an eyebrow. Julian didn’t deign to acknowledge the other man’s annoyance. Brave vampire. If push came to shove, I’d have to admit I had a grudging respect for him. Not that I would willingly ever admit that out loud to the man.
“Who was attacked?”
“Another student,” I informed him blandly.
“Who?”
“There wasn’t much left of them to tell.” Falke joined the conversation, kicking a few chairs and tables out of his way. “I believe it was a female student, but I’m not even sure about that. Thatcher, you might be able to tell with your magick.”
“It’s President Thatcher,” he corrected the centaur haughtily.
“There’s a dead student on our watch! Titles are meaningless,” Falke replied to him, unimpressed.
Thatcher bristled and whirled around, going over to where the body had been discovered.
The student had been eviscerated; the body annihilated beyond recognition. If not for the student bag nearby, one would think it was roadkill or the remains of a shifter’s prey, left behind on the premises. Tufts of hair littered the ground, and the stone was marked by bloody streaks that told me the victim had been dragged. Parts of the body were missing. Had they been ingested, along with the missing organs? What could someone do with all those pieces?
Interested to see what Thatcher would make of it, I wandered over, aware that Falke and Julian were behind me. The other professors didn’t have the stomach to see the remains again.
Interestingly enough, the president didn’t puke when he saw the body. Instead, a cold gleam flickered in his eyes. It reminded me of my father the moment he found something that interested him. Being the focal point of his interest had never been a good place to be, and I had a suspicion this didn’t bode well either.
“They fought hard,” Julian murmured. “The drag marks start outside the building and end here.”
“A few bloody spots along the wall make it seem like they almost got away a few times.”
“Or they let them think they could,” I commented lightly. “Played a bit of cat and mouse with their prey until they killed them to make them... tastier.”
“Sounds like we should start our questioning with you, Ambrose,” Thatcher stated coldly, his eyes glued to the scene.
I chuckled, reaching into my coat for a cigarette. “I grew up in both the Seelie and Unseelie Courts where cat and mouse is an art form.” Inhaling deeply, I breathed out a small bit of fire to light my smoke without a lighter. It would tide me over until I could get back to my room for more opium.
“So maybe one of the fae students,” Falke replied, unbothered.
“I doubt it. What use would they have for the organs? I can’t feel anything from the student. The attack must have drained her of magick.” Thatcher looked away from the body, directing his words at us.
“What about the students?” Julian inquired, changing the subject. He watched the necromancer closely. “Some upperclassmen are standing guard at the dorms to keep the others safe and inside during the lockdown.”
“We do not coddle our students,” Thatcher snarked. “Tell them to stand down and get back to their rooms. As for what happened here, the students don’t need to know.”
“Is that really…” Falke’s question faded as Thatcher walked away.
“Remember your place, centaur, and do your job.” The words were tossed over his shoulder without looking back. Tension built with each of Thatcher’s footsteps. He only stopped for a moment to tell us to clean up the mess before morning classes began tomorrow. Even I was surprised by the president’s dismissive attitude about the matter.
It was true that Greywood didn’t coddle. There were no orientations or hand holding to walk people through things. We toughened up our students because the world would do it much more harshly if we didn’t get to them first. Life wasn’t easy. There were no guarantees, and the ones that would be viewed as outsiders, like many of our students, needed to know how things were going to be.
But the idea of destroying the body and acting like the student didn’t even exist… That didn’t sit right with me. Everyone deserved to be remembered.
“What should we... Never mind.” Falke stopped speaking once my magick stirred.
I inhaled, the darkness of the smoke unfurling in a golden glow as my eyes began to shine. My fire magick flared, covering the entire hall in bright flames. Neither Falke nor Julian reacted, but the professors on the other end of the hall jumped and rushed away, leaving the three of us alone. We silently watched the flames burn away the blood and whatever else was left of the student.
“A funeral of fire and smoke. A fitting sendoff.” Julian nodded a few times. “So what are we going to do about this?”
“Thatcher already said what was going to be done. Nothing,” I replied, occasionally scrunching my nose when a whiff of burnt flesh hit me. I took another drag to get the taste of it out of my mouth.
“Yes, but what are we going to do?” The vampire looked at myself and Falke with a calculating expression. We all knew the other professors would follow Thatcher’s lead.
“I can increase internal security without raising too much suspicion,” the centaur said, his tail flicking. “Do we have any idea of what to look out for?”
“They took the heart, liver, and left hand.” I slowly reined in my magick, letting the flames die down to reveal a clean, dark hallway. “They must have a use for them.”
“A ritual?” Julian mused before shaking his head. “I’ll do some research, but that doesn’t narrow anything down.”
What we needed was more information, and that meant another body. Another death.
Flashes of black hair, a sassy mouth, and hazel eyes made me think of Isla Hallowes. My obsession had been roadblocked by my duties these past few days. If she were the next victim, would I finally be free of her siren call? I didn’t think so, and the tumultuous swirl of my magick made me believe that my reaction would be explosive at best.
“Or they ate them,” Falke said.
Julian and I gave him a pointed look, but the man just shrugged, “What? They could have. The heart and liver are a delicacy for most.”
“And the rest?” I asked dryly.
“If you’re starving, you don’t question what you’re lucky enough to eat,” Falke replied with a hushed tone. “I have a few contacts. Let me see if I can pull some strings and get more assistance keeping an eye on the students. Do you think the others will question our efforts?”
“No,” Julian replied. “I doubt it, and we need to keep it that way.” That last bit was aimed at me.
I barked out a laugh and shook my head. “My interests are my own. That has never and will never change. Or are you talking about something else?”
“This isn’t the time or place–” Julian protested.
I tsked at the man, enjoying his annoyance at my interruption. “You need to watch your back, vampire. I’m not the only person Thatcher keeps a close eye on.”
“Play your word games with someone who cares. I don’t know what you mean,” Julian bit off.
“Well, there's Bricriu–” I started, but he instantly cut me off with a menacing glare.
Julian snarled. “It’s not just me who is getting close to a student. I’ve seen the way you watch the witch.”
“I don’t think it’s Isla we need to worry about,” Falke commented lightly, already knowing the witch that Julian was referring to. That fact would have bothered me more if I wasn’t busy contemplating whether I could kill Julian without bothersome repercussions. “If the mere mention of her is enough to bring out this reaction in you both. I’ll keep an eye on her. I’ve read what she did to the students at the San Diego Academy. She can definitely handle herself.”
“What did she do?” Julian and I asked at the same time.
“She stabbed a student when she was twelve.” Falke chuckled, admiration glowing in his amber eyes. “After that, she beat them up in fights. From the reports, she always waited for others to start them, but she finished them quickly.”
“I do like fighters.”
“Keep your dick in your pants and stay focused,” Julian admonished.
I smiled lazily at him. “Oh, I am focused.” Taunting him was one of my favorite pastimes.
Falke’s rumbling laugh followed me as I left the hall, wandering across the campus to the dorms. My illusion magick slid over my skin, letting me blend in and hide. I slipped past Bricriu and into the building where Isla and her friends were living. It was almost one in the morning, so they should all be asleep, and I could watch her and get my fill.
She wasn’t in her bed.
My rage burned bright, making my normally fiery blood run cold. I fixed my glare on the object of my obsession. She was in the lounge, and she wasn’t alone.
Isla and the others were all asleep on the couches. Maybe they were looking for reassurance from each other, a sentiment I might have appreciated if she had come to me instead. One of the incubi was tangled around the wolf shifter on one of the couches, leaving no doubt as to his claim to her.
Isla was between two boys, a witch and the other incubus I had seen around her already. The witch was new though. The three of them weren’t cuddled together, but there wasn’t much space between them either.
Just as I considered moving her to her bed, she shifted. Murmuring in her sleep, she tossed one way, then another, as if she were trying to get away from something in her dreams. The incubus reached for her, the rumble in his chest instantly comforting her. Isla sighed and snuggled into his side.
The male witch’s brow furrowed, and he began swatting at the air like he was trying to fight someone off.
“No, no! I didn’t— I didn’t do it. Stop,” he muttered, swinging his hands. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his movements became jerkier, erratic. Whatever he was dreaming of was a memory, not some common nightmare. I recognized the signs of it and the fear in his voice.
The rumbling from the incubus increased. Was he trying to comfort the other man or just Isla? Did he know what he was doing? I hadn’t heard of an incubus having that skill in centuries.
“Wells.” Isla’s husky voice had me stilling.
If only she was saying my name.
One day.
Soon.
She reached out for Wells’ hand without opening her eyes. The incubus also reached out, and together, they tugged him to Isla’s other side. He struggled a bit before he settled again within their grasp. Their lowered inhibitions let them seek comfort with each other, something I didn’t think they would do while awake.
It took every bit of self-control I could muster to not snatch her away for myself.
All in due time.
I reached out, running my fingers along her cheek and brushing her black hair out of her face before walking into her room. Lying back on her bed, I breathed in deeply, savoring the smell of her on the sheets.
My cock throbbed, but I held back. The first time I found my release surrounded by her scent, I needed to be balls deep inside of her as she cried out my name.
I’d hold off for now, but that didn’t mean I would leave empty handed. Glancing around, I made myself get up and move to her closet. The door slid open with a careful push, and I began to search the contents, running my fingers over her clothes, savoring the feel of different fabrics. Then I saw a pair of black fingerless gloves. Snagging them, I brought them to my nose.
Earth, vanilla, and a hint of jasmine— Isla .
Perfect.
My first piece of her. I wondered if she would notice.
After all, I noticed everything about her .