A Lesson in Obedience (Mystic Riegan Duet #2)

Chapter 1

Riley

Chancellor Fowler breathed heavily as he hovered over me, letting his words hit me all at once. There was a sinking feeling in my gut and the air in the room tasted stale as I tried to breath.

“Y-you’re what?” I stuttered, finding it hard to swallow.

His previous look of insanity morphed into one of what anyone not in this situation would call a caring expression. His tone was almost soft. “I’m your father, Riley.”

“That can’t be true! I am not your daughter.

You killed the only man who gets to call me that.

” I spat at him, my eyes flicking over his shoulder to Grayson, whose expression looked confused and defeated.

I had no sympathy for his feelings on the matter; I currently had no sympathy for his feelings on anything.

Chancellor Fowler chuckled, releasing my arms. My biceps felt hot and I looked down, noticing red handprints that were raised and looked painful to the touch.

He casually moved his hand towards my wounds.

“I’m truly sorry about that. I never want to hurt you.

You’re my daughter. I’ve just missed you, and it frustrates me that you were so misled. ”

I shot up from the couch and pushed him away from me. Vertigo set in with my sudden movement and I stumbled backwards, colliding with the arm of the couch. I reached out for it, digging my fingernails into the fabric. “You’re lying!”

Chancellor Fowler slid his hands down his black jacket and sighed. “I am not. I knew this would be difficult, but this is why I wanted to have a chat. I think it is well within my rights to know my own daughter, my successor.”

“Your…your what?” I waved my hands in front of my face, stepping even further away. I swung my head towards Grayson. “Did you know this?!”

Grayson raised his head to look at me as if he just knew I wanted his attention. “Riley, of course not. You really think I would have done any of this—”

Chancellor Fowler tsked. “Don’t blame the poor boy. He doesn’t matter at the moment, so please refocus on the here and now. We are together and now we can get to know one another.”

I took another step back and nearly tripped backwards. I caught myself, looking down at what it was. The bile that had settled in my stomach started to rise again when I saw Marianne’s body. I held my hand to my chest and the tears that had stopped minutes ago were back.

Her blonde hair was now soaked in blood and her once lively aura that never faltered was nowhere to be felt or seen.

There was so much blood and I noticed shoe marks where I stood, telling me I had stepped in it.

I had stepped in my best friend’s blood.

My best friend who didn’t think twice about why I was at Mystic Riegan and just made the best out of a fucked-up situation.

I fell to the floor, letting my jeans get soaked in her blood, reaching out to fan her hair out of her face.

It was like I didn’t recognize this person lying lifeless in front of me.

I ran my knuckle over her cheek and her skin still had some warmth in it, but not much.

I tentatively touched where some glass pieces were lodged in her neck and her blood coated my fingers.

My hand shook when I pulled it back. Tears ran down my cheeks, but my breath caught in my throat when a hand gripped my shoulder.

I don’t know if it was meant to be comforting but it just felt cold.

I slowly turned my head up to see Chancellor Fowler with one of his hands in his pockets, looking down at me.

“I am sorry about your friend.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. It unnerved me that I was starting to see the resemblance.

In the tiny moments that I wasn’t just viewing him as a monster, I could see the things that certified our relation to one another.

I didn’t want to believe him, but there were some things I couldn’t just decide were false.

Resemblance could fuck off. He wasn’t my father.

“Fuck off,” I said, shrugging roughly so he would quit touching me.

He sighed deeply. “This attitude will get you nowhere. You do understand that, right?”

“My attitude?” I spoke through gritted teeth as I stared down at the lifeless body before me.

Chancellor Fowler cleared his throat. “Yes. Your attitude. Death is a part of life, Riley. You should let this unfortunate event make you stronger. I assure you that you’ll need focus and strength…”

I pushed away from the ground and whirled around so I could face him.

His eyebrows shot up, surprised. “Unfortunate event?! You are insane! You murdered someone! She was someone I cared about and you think that will be something I can just get past! You think that will make me want to fucking talk to you?!” I shoved my hands against his chest, getting blood on his jacket.

I shoved him again and again. I could hear myself screaming, but it sounded like an echo. I already felt like a shell of my former self. My hands turned to fists and I was ramming them into his chest over and over. Hands folded around my biceps, pulling me back.

“Riley, stop. Please calm down.” Grayson’s voice was in my ear, pleading.

The voice that could usually soothe me, now only pained me. I quickly turned around, ripping myself away from him. “Don’t touch me!”

“Riley, I’m so sorry. I promise you, I knew nothing about this. I was just…” I slapped him across the face before he could finish.

“I. Don’t. Care.” I could hear the hurt in my voice and the tears were threatening to fall again.

Chancellor Fowler whistled, adjusting his jacket and running his fingertips over the blood stains I’d graced it with. “So feisty. You are your mother’s daughter.”

I narrowed my eyes at him but said nothing.

“I can forgive your outburst. I may not know you well, but I have a feeling you are eager to know certain things about who you are. I can provide you that insight.”

I let out a humorless laugh. “If I say no, are you just going to kill another one of my friends?”

Chancellor Fowler ran a hand through his curls. “I would like to avoid that, but I have no qualms with crossing lines. I never have. You’d be surprised how many people you know who think just like me.”

I let my eyes flutter close as I took a deep breath.

When I opened them, I glanced over at Grayson, who was looking at me with those deep brown eyes.

I quickly looked away and back over to Chancellor Fowler.

He gave me an expectant look, but there was no tension anywhere in his body.

He would keep me here all day and night until I gave him the time of day.

I wiped my hand across my cheeks, removing any remnants of tears. Without another word, I turned around and made my way over to the couch. I slowly sat down, placing my hands on my knees. I could feel the metal of the dampener ring against my blood-soaked jeans.

“Come shadow wielder, I’ll need you when this is over.” Chancellor Fowler snapped his fingers, walking around Grayson and sitting on the opposite couch. Grayson perched himself on the arm, avoiding eye contact with me.

I licked my lips, feeling how dry they were. “Were you two married?”

The Chancellor chuckled. “Oh no. I would have married her if she would have stuck around. I would have given her the world.” His jaw ticked when he spoke about her.

“Was she aware of your…magic?” I tilted my head to the side.

He nodded. “Jillian loved what I could do. It fascinated her. I let her peek in on coven gatherings and I told her all about my dreams, my plans. Your mother was looking at colleges and I was trying to coax her into applying to Mystic Riegan where we could be together all the time. When I had to take over things changed but I tried to make it better. She was resistant but that was nothing new.”

I remained quiet, letting him continue.

“When she told me she was pregnant, I was overjoyed. She was nervous, but I tried to comfort her and let her know she would want for nothing. Our child—you— would have everything.”

I ran my palms over the top of my thighs. “Then why would she take me away from you? From all of it?”

“Maybe I had plans she didn’t approve of.

Maybe she never really loved me. That is a question for your mother.

She left me before you were born, hid you away without even so much as a goodbye.

You cannot fault me for being upset that she took my child.

And then to find out that she shielded you from me…

” His expression turned into one of distraught.

“It is enough to make any parent go a little insane.”

“She wouldn’t make that decision without a good reason. My mother doesn’t make decisions on a whim. Especially one of that magnitude.”

He clucked his tongue, shaking his head. “Of course, you would take her side. She did raise you for all these years.”

“She did raise me. Along with my dad.”

Chancellor Fowler cracked his neck, shaking out his shoulders.

“That man was not your father. He could play house all he wanted, but you are mine. I had a late meeting with Oliver St. James and on my way out I saw Thomas’s light on and I hadn’t properly met him, so I was going to simply say my hello before I left.

He was a nice enough man and we got to talking, but when I heard him mention Jillian’s name, I swore it couldn’t be the same person.

I pressed for more answers and then he started getting antsy and eventually I couldn’t take it.

That man was assuming my position as your father and it wasn’t right, it wasn’t fair. ”

“So, killing him was the only solution?”

“I was angry and perhaps I let my control slip. You would have never come here if I hadn’t though. Your necklace was a powerful thing, but we have a familial bond, and you stepped onto a campus that was founded by our family. I was going to feel your presence.”

“I’ve been on this campus before I ever enrolled, how come you never went on your hunt for me then?”