Chapter 11 Lindsay
ELEVEN
LINDSAY
I storm down the dim corridor, boots hitting the stone floor hard.
I have no idea where I’m going. And I don’t care.
Fucking men. Fucking confusing men. I want to strangle Raiden.
I scrub a hand over my face, breath ragged. My skin still tingles where he grabbed me, where he—
My fingers press against my collarbone, where that bite landed. It throbs. Not painful. Not bruised. But…a constant awareness just under the surface. Burning low and steady.
He didn’t even break the skin. I grind my teeth.
What the actual fuck was that?
No answers. No explanation. Just dragging me out of the library like I was some wayward child and—God—biting me. I rub harder at the spot, as if that’ll do anything.
Breath hissing out, I glance around and curse. I don’t know this hall.
The runes on the stone are different here—older, etched deeper. The air feels almost musty, shadows pooling in every recess. Great. Lost. Because of an asshole with too many muscles and not enough sense decided to act like a caveman.
I take another step—and freeze.
Something moves ahead. There's no sound, no clear shape. Just a darker patch among the shadows. A flicker of motion, smooth and deliberate.
I blink once.
And he’s there.
Leaning lazily against the far wall as though he’s been part of it all along.
Kael.
Cool, unreadable. Pale eyes catching mine from across the dim space. Kael doesn’t move at first.
He only watches me. Eyes half-lidded, unreadable. Like this is all some private joke for him. Or as though he can read my mind and knows I’m lost.
I square my shoulders, heart still racing. I’m not in the mood for this. After Raiden dragged me away from Nolan and Mira, only to bite me and then leave me, I really don’t want to see or talk to anyone.
He pushes off the wall in one fluid motion, the shadows clinging to him. He steps into the faint glow of a wardlight overhead. His coat catches the little light there is, dark and sleek. His pale skin makes him look ethereal and mystical rather than any man I’ve ever seen.
“Lost?” he asks. Amusement colors his question, and I bristle.
I lift my chin. “No.”
A slow smile curves his mouth, small and knowing.
“No?” His gaze drifts lower, pausing for half a beat, right where my fingers are still pressed against my collarbone.
I drop my hand fast. Heat flares in my face. His smile deepens, just a breath as if he can see the spot where Raiden’s teeth pressed into my skin.
“Rough night?” he murmurs, tilting his head, studying me like I'm an interesting puzzle piece.
The tether with Raiden still burns low beneath my skin—taut, restless, and nothing I can even make out. The bite-mark throbs faintly. And now this one’s smirking at me like he knows everything.
I plant my feet. “What do you want?”
“I was out walking,” he says lazily. “You were...difficult to miss.”
I bite back a curse. Of course. I’m practically broadcasting rage through every pore.
“Do you always stalk girls in dark hallways?” I snap.
His laugh is soft. Low.
“Only the interesting ones.”
He steps closer. Not fast or threatening. But deliberate.
The shadows seem to fold around him as he moves. Like he belongs to them. I keep my stance firm, even as my pulse stutters.
He stops a few feet away. Close enough to remind me how alone I am in this hall. Close enough that I can see the faint glint in his pale eyes.
“Careful,” I say. “I bite back.”
Kael’s smile widens—not mocking this time. Almost… pleased.
“I imagine you do.” He rubs his jaw and glances away before bringing his gaze back to me.
The bond with Raiden throbs hotter beneath my skin at the memory, matching the throb at my collarbone. I force a breath through my teeth.
Kael watches me a beat longer, then shifts his weight back a fraction, one hand sliding casually into his coat pocket.
“Your tether is loud tonight,” he says, tone almost idle. “Anyone within a hundred paces could feel it.”
My stomach twists. That’s a thing? I lift my chin. “Not your business.”
He arches a brow. “Perhaps. But wandering down here alone?” He gestures faintly to the shadowed corridor. “Not wise. A monster could stumble upon you.”
I grit my teeth, swallowing another curse. I’m betting he’s the monster he’s referring to.
His gaze flicks toward the deeper end of the hall. “There are wards here even most Bloods avoid. If you keep going...” He lets the sentence trail off, a subtle warning. He shifts his gaze back to mine. “I could show you the way back.”
A pause. Intent hanging between us.
“Unless, of course…” His mouth curves again, lazy. “You’d rather wander with your temper.”
I narrow my eyes. The last thing I want is help from him. But the thing I want even less…is getting stuck down here with no clue how to get out.
I narrow my eyes. “If it’s dangerous, why are you down here?”
Kael’s smile tilts, slow and easy.
“I’m a demon,” he says simply. “Dark and dangerous is comforting company.”
The words slide over my skin like silk and ice. My fingers twitch at my sides.
He watches me for another beat. Then gestures again, palm up, graceful and patient.
“But you’re not built for this part of the school yet.” His gaze lingers on mine, unreadable. “Come. I’ll show you the way out.”
I hesitate.
He doesn’t move. Doesn’t coax. Just waits as if he’s unbothered, like he already knows what I’ll choose.
The bond with Raiden still coils in my chest, a live wire I can’t unplug. But Kael? He feels like still water. No tug, no pulse. Just cool indifference, wrapped in shadow.
Maybe that’s why I take his gloved hand.
His fingers close around mine, warm despite the chill in the air, steady as he turns without another word and starts down a corridor I swear wasn’t there a second ago.
I have to quicken my pace to keep up. His steps are silent. Mine echo like accusations off the stone floor.
“You always hanging out in creepy parts of the school?” I ask, trying for casual, but it comes out brittle.
Kael glances at me, mouth curving just slightly. “You think this is creepy? You haven’t seen anything yet.”
I shiver—but not entirely from the cold.
We pass ancient-looking doors and broken statues tucked into alcoves like they’re being punished. Everything smells of dust, secrets, and the spell-ink we use in Runic Arts. The scent is oddly floral at first, lavender and something earthy, but it leaves a static prickle in your nose like raw power
“You’ve been watching me,” I say before I can stop myself.
His gaze slides back to me. “Only when it matters.”
A beat of silence stretches between us.
“Why?” I ask.
Kael stops in front of a cracked stone archway, shadow pooling thick around his feet.
“Because you’re trouble, and I don’t trust easy,” he says. “And neither should you.”
Then he steps aside and motions toward a narrow stairwell carved into the wall, spiraling upward into dim light.
“This leads back to the eastern wing,” he says. “You’ll recognize the rest from there.”
I stare at the stairs, then back at him. “That’s it?”
Kael tilts his head. “Unless you want to stay here with me.”
A challenge? A joke? I can’t tell.
I shake my head, brushing past him. “Thanks for the exit, cryptic demon boy.”
His chuckle follows me up the steps. “Anytime, sunshine.”
But it’s what he doesn’t say that lingers, what still burns behind his eyes as I climb away.
He let me go.
For now.