Chapter 6 Alaric
Alaric
“Kinara’s dead.” My father tore his attention away from his phone and frowned at the state of me. I’d wiped the worst of the gore off my face and chest while outside, but I still looked like an extra from a human zombie movie.
“Dead? What on earth are you talking about?”
“She’s dead. A demon ripped her apart.” Kinara’s death hadn’t sunk in yet. Part of me wondered whether I ought to be upset. After all, she had sort of been my fiancée. In name, at least. But then I remembered I hated the bitch.
Unlike mine, Dad’s tuxedo was in pristine condition. No damage or bloodstains. No wonder. He’d moved to the main building the minute the demons arrived, where it was safe. The coward.
“For fuck’s sake,” he grumbled, more annoyed than upset that my fiancée was dead. “Why couldn’t the silly bitch stay inside where it was safe? Now Regina will blame me.”
“Why would she blame you?” That made no sense. The demon attack was a random event. Gears turned slowly in my head. Had my father known something like this would happen?
If he’d known and not warned the school, students and parents would be understandably upset. Kinara wasn’t the only student to lose her life. Two shifters had died, plus another witch, and several of the mage security staff were missing, believed dead.
The whole thing was a clusterfuck of immense proportions.
Montgomery had called everyone to the main hall in a feeble attempt to control the narrative before it ended up all over social media, but bad news traveled faster than the speed of light these days.
I hadn’t checked Magigram or WitchTok, but I bet there were already videos doing the rounds.
At least both platforms were invisible to humans. If the humans saw videos of demon attacks, their tiny minds would implode. They barely coped with the idea of magical beings like witches, mages, and shifters. Demons were a step too far.
“Never mind. It’s not important.” Dad waved his hand dismissively. “I have to leave now. Go to the meeting and keep your ear to the ground. If there’s any anti-mage sentiment, I want to hear about it.”
“Why would there be?” Once again, he wasn’t making sense. “If this is a random attack, surely nobody’s at fault?”
“Of course it’s a random attack. What else would it be?” He huffed in annoyance and shoved his phone back in his jacket pocket. A security mage appeared in the doorway and nodded to let him know it was time to go.
“Don’t you want to stay for a bit? Offer the students and parents reassurance that this was a random event?” I placed extra emphasis on the word random, which he noticed.
“Montgomery has it all in hand.”
“What about saying goodbye to Uncle Adam?” I hadn’t seen the guy since the demons appeared, but I assumed he was safe.
The witch was safe too. I’d spotted her once the shadows faded. She and the obnoxious familiar she called Kenji. Part of me wondered whether I ought to mention the mysterious wall of shadow that appeared in the middle of the chaos, but then Dad would ask too many questions.
Questions I couldn’t answer.
The last thing I wanted was to draw his attention to Raven. It was better if he didn’t know she existed.
Dad ignored my question.
“I’ll expect you home shortly, Alaric. I believe Montgomery plans to send all second- and third-years home tomorrow rather than wait for the end of the semester in three days.”
“Can’t wait,” I replied with a fake-ass smile. The only reason I’d bother to spend the winter break at home was for my mother. Not that she acknowledged me much these days. She’d almost lost her grip on reality thanks to the damned collar Brianna and my father insisted she wear.
If only I could find a way of breaking the spell, but so far, everything I’d tried had failed. Brianna had used black magic, which put me at a disadvantage. But if I had to go down that route, I would.
“Good. I’ll let Brianna know to expect you for dinner on Friday. We have guests.”
Goddess, save me.
My father picked up his jacket and swept out of Montgomery’s office. I plucked a stringy piece of demon flesh from the ruins of my shirt and dropped it on Montgomery’s desk. The bastard deserved no less for being a pathetic little sycophant.
The tether in my chest tugged, making me wince. My witch must be nearby. Even though I hated that I cared about her safety, I headed in her direction.
I’d check she was fine and then go back to my apartment. My father could fuck himself if he expected me to hang around in the hall after spending the last hour battling demons. My magic reserves were low. I needed a shower and sleep.
And possibly a witch weed joint to keep the nightmares at bay.