19. Vex
19
VEX
It takes me all of one second to decide to go after her. I launch myself forward, knowing the library will fix itself. It’s part of the magick here at MistHallow. Seeing Matilda with her rainbow hair round a corner, I roll my eyes and, with a snap of my fingers, transport myself directly in front of her. She crashes into me, and I grab her arms to stop her from toppling over.
“Let go of me!” she exclaims, tears streaming down her face.
Her sister’s betrayal has hit her hard, and she is shaking uncontrollably. I wrap my arms around her, holding her tight as she struggles in my grip before collapsing against me, her cheek pressed to my chest, wetting it with her tears.
“Shh, honey. It’s okay,” I murmur, stroking her hair as she sobs her heart out.
“No, it’s not okay!” Matilda cries, pulling back abruptly and dashing the tears from her eyes. The pendant is still clutched in her hand, and she glares at it. “My sister lied to me. She’s been suppressing my magick all this time. She said she was on my side! Why would she do this?”
I shake my head, resisting the urge to find this sister and show her what real power is. “I don’t know, Matilda. I don’t know what the circumstances are?—”
“They used me! Abused me, lied to me, treated me like shit and someone to suck off their friends whenever they felt like it! That’s what the circumstances are!” she yells at me, but I stopped listening after the suck off part.
“They did what?” I rumble darkly, my magick rising up and whipping black electricity around us.
She stares at it and shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter. Just forget I said anything. Forget everything.”
She ducks around me, but I grab her arm lightly. “Don’t run, Matilda. You are too volatile right now.”
“You’re saying I’m dangerous?” she scoffs. “Hardly.”
“The library would disagree,” I point out.
Her eyes widen in horror, and she drops her head into her hands. “Fuck! Fuck my life!”
I gently pry Matilda’s hands away from her face, tilting her chin up to meet my gaze. “Listen to me, honey. You’re not dangerous. You’re powerful. There’s a difference. And I’m starting to figure out why your family did this to you. They knew, and they wanted to keep you down.”
“They called me useless, worthless, pathetic…” Her blue eyes search mine, seeking something, but I’m not sure what. Validation? Praise?
“You are none of those things, Matilda. Those are words to keep you in your place, to make you think that’s what you are, but you are the opposite. You are strong and powerful, beautiful and feisty. You have been treated like shit by the people who were meant to care for you, but you are fighting back, taking control.” I cup her face, and she leans into my touch. It jumpstarts something in me I didn’t know existed. Protection, possessiveness, lust, craving, need, want and a dozen other things that make my head spin. She looks up at me with those big blue eyes and fists her hand into my shirt. She drags me closer, slamming her lips against mine in a kiss that will end all kisses.
I respond immediately, shoving her up against the outside wall of the library. She gasps into my mouth as her back hits the cold stone, and I deepen the kiss, my tongue exploring her mouth as she moans softly. Her body arches against mine. I slide my hands down her sides to grip her hips, pulling her flush against me.
Matilda breaks the kiss, panting. “Vex, we can’t do this. I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” Her cheeks are flushed, eyes dark with desire.
Staring into her panicked eyes, I narrow mine and step back, my cock not impressed by my willpower.
“Draven,” she pants.
“You’re official?” I ask quietly.
She shakes her head. “No, but I can’t do this.” She places her hand on my chest to push me back, the runes on my chest flaring at her touch.
I grab her hand as she moves away and kiss it. “We can do this if you talk to him. Tell him you want it. I’ll wait.”
And with that, I vanish from her sight, cursing her and admiring her for her integrity and strength.
That was one hell of a kiss to pull away from, and next time my lips meet hers, there will be nothing, no force, no plea, that will stop me from taking her and claiming her, marking her as mine.
I land on the rooftop and crouch down, watching as she straightens her clothes and smooths down her hair. She opens her fist and stares at the pendant for a long time before she does exactly what I expected her to do. She puts it back on. Her wild power scared her, and with good reason. That magick is feral, untamed. I don’t even have a classification for it. I couldn’t tell you if it’s light or dark, born of fire or air. All I know is that witch has something running in her veins that is far more powerful than I have seen, experienced, or read about. No wonder her family tried to cage her. They are terrified of her.
But they haven’t met me yet.
I grin, rubbing my thumb over the tips of my fingers as sparks of dark magick flicker over them.
Matilda hurries away, her rainbow hair swinging behind her. My lips still tingle from our kiss. She may have pulled away, but I felt the desire coursing through her. It’s only a matter of time.
Leaping down from the rooftop, I land silently in the shadows. I need to learn more about Matilda’s family and what they’ve done to her. The rage that filled me when she mentioned being abused still simmers beneath the surface. I’ll make them pay for hurting her.
But first, I need to deal with Draven. I respect her wish to talk to him, but I’m not about to sit idly by while he stakes his claim and potentially talks her out of being with me.
Following the stench of death, it leads me to his room. I rap sharply, and he opens it straight away, dressed only in black jeans. He squints at me.
“Not who you were expecting?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
“Why do you smell like her?” he asks steadily, leaning on the door.
“Mm,” I murmur. “Honey-covered chocolate. She is a treat, isn’t she?”
He grabs me and hauls me into his room, slamming the door behind him. “What did you do to her?” he growls.
“Nothing she didn’t want. But calm your tits. I didn’t hurt her. I wouldn’t do that.”
He glares at the sincerity in my eyes, which is a new one for me. This girl has twisted me upside down and inside out.
“You fucked her?” he asks, eyes flashing black with danger.
I smile slowly, enjoying the rage that descends on him, but I put him out of his misery. “No, not yet. But I will. My question to you is, what do you plan to do about it?”
Draven’s eyes narrow dangerously, the darkness in them expanding until his entire gaze is an inky void. “What I plan to do about it,” he says, his voice low and menacing, “is make sure you never touch her again.”
“And how do you propose to do that? Lock her away? Control her every move?” I take a step closer, my power crackling just beneath the surface. “You can’t cage a storm, Draven. And that’s exactly what she is.”
“She’s mine,” he growls, shadows of death writhing around his feet.
“Is she?” I challenge. “Have you claimed her? Marked her? Or are you just assuming she’ll fall into your arms because you’ve decided it should be so?”
His jaw clenches, and I know I’ve struck a nerve. “Don’t get in the way of fate,” he growls.
“Fate? Big word to throw about, considering you haven’t even claimed her yet.”
Draven’s hand shoots out, gripping my throat. I let him, curious to see how far he’ll take this. “Stay away from her,” he snarls, his fingers tightening, the icy hand of death tightening on my throat.
It kind of turns me on to feel death creeping over my skin, into my soul. It’s like a sick high, and I want to feel how far it will go before?—
I smirk as the forbidden rune protecting me from death flashes bright blue, knocking the Necro across the room.
He straightens up and wipes the corner of his lip with his thumb, tasting blood. He shakes his head, a dangerous smile forming. “You are such an arsehole. You know that’s forbidden, right? Could get your arse kicked heavily by the Supernatural Council.”
“Oh, I know, and I don’t really give a fuck about the Council. Neither do you. You answer to someone else. Someone bigger, badder, and quite gorgeous for pure evil. But then again, so do I.”
He pulls a face of pure disgust, choking back the retch, “Oh, my fucking gods,” he spits out. “Talk about my mother like that again, and I will bypass that rune so fast you won’t know what hit you.”
“Try it. But yeah, nope. Redheads are not my type. But blondes with rainbow streaks? Now we’re talking.”
“She doesn’t want you. She wants me.”
“Who says she doesn’t want me? Who says she can’t have us both? I’ve read about your family, Dray. Pretty sure you are in no position to deny Matilda more than one lover if she chooses it.”
He glowers at me, knowing he can’t refute a single word I’ve said. “Who do you answer to?”
My grin is smug, and it annoys him. “None of your business.”
“Oh, but I think it is. If you plan on making a play for Matilda, I want to know every fucking thing about you so I can make sure you don’t hurt her or get her hurt.”
“So you accept that she can ride my dick if she wants it?”
“Fuck you,” he growls. “First my arsehole half-brother and now you. You’re both pieces of shit.”
“Luc. I’m not surprised. Half-Incubus, half-Devil. I’m surprised he hasn’t got into her knickers already.”
“He tried,” Draven grits out. “She refused him.”
I raise an eyebrow, impressed. “Really? She has got some willpower.”
“Or maybe she just has standards.”
I chuckle. “Does he know you talk about him that way?”
“I couldn’t give a shit if he does or doesn’t.”
“Family drama aside, we both know Matilda’s going to make her own choices. She is strong, despite her upbringing. But she is tasting freedom for the first time in her life. I’m not going to stop her from taking whatever she wants, and neither should you.”
Before he can respond, I vanish from his room, reappearing on the academy grounds. The night air is cold, the mist curling around me like a cloak as I consider my next move. Matilda’s power is unlike anything I’ve ever encountered. Raw, wild, and completely untamed. She needs guidance to control it to harness its true potential, and I intend to be the one to show her just how powerful she can be.
But first, I need to deal with that damned pendant. As long as she wears it, her magick will remain suppressed. I need to find a way to convince her to take it off and destroy it before she fails here in a spectacular way and is sent packing back to her family.