Chapter 18
Facing off with Evelyn got her to admit she wasn’t a student, at least, which was step one in figuring out how the heck I was going to get them back to their time.
I rubbed my arm where her damn black cat had scratched me. The little bastard had totally come out of nowhere, but I guessed that I deserved it for capturing and studying one of Royal Coven Queen’s mates.
“Stay here,” I ordered them, not that I needed to. The Academy’s defenses were on overdrive when it came to Central Hall and they’d be trapped in an electric net before they got two feet out of bounds.
Taking a deep breath, I left them in the lobby and mentally prepared myself for facing the Dean… as well as Dante.
I’d have to play this exactly how Olivia’s vision had gone.
The Dean needed to be let in on who this girl was.
Despite Calamity chipping away at her sanity, in this we shared a common desire.
We both needed Fortune Academy to exist. Without it, she wouldn’t be able to plot world domination and seek revival of her long-lost lover trapped in Hell.
Fortune Academy was unique in that it could merge with Hell’s occupation in the fabric of space-time without being destroyed or having adverse effects from those trapped inside—at least, not too many adverse effects.
Regardless, she wouldn’t want Fortune Academy to cease to exist any more than I did.
“Okay, here it goes,” I said on an exhale as I stepped into the waiting room and found my Hunter waiting for me.
I chewed on my lip before approaching him. I kept my chin high as I crossed my arms. “Hey.”
He glanced up at me. “Hey.”
We stared at each other for a moment before I rolled my eyes. “Look. I know that you’re infected with Cole’s rage and you and Hendrik have an… arrangement, to work it out.”
He frowned and his hand went to his dagger as he stood, fumbling at the hilt that didn’t seat quite right. The blade shifted, revealing the Angelstone shoved into the scabbard.
That took hiding in plain sight to a whole new level.
Catching my gaze, his orange eyes gleamed with rage, but I sensed a nudge in the dormant mate-bond that he wanted nothing more than to grab me and release all his frustration on me like Hendrik had.
But we couldn’t. Unlike Hendrik, my Hunter wouldn’t survive if I let my succubus-side out even for a moment. I’d gotten better control over that part of myself, but with Cole’s influence in the mate-circle, I didn’t trust myself not to lose control.
Not until we were all together again and the mate-circle linked us as one. I held onto that dream that I’d finally get to be myself with all of my guys and they could be themselves with me.
Instead of being his charming self, the Hunter seemed to have regressed to the angry assassin he’d been before we’d met.
“Aren’t you going to say something?” I snapped.
“Why did the Dean call me here?” he asked, narrowing his eyes at me.
“Because I have a young Queen of the Royal Covens out in the lobby along with one of her mates that you captured for Monster Studies.”
That got his attention.
The Hunter blinked a few times before responding, “How is that possible?”
“Do you remember what we learned in Founder Histories? One of Queen Evelyn’s mates is a time-traveling warlock.
” Not that Dante needed to know I’d only just learned that a few minutes ago when Olivia had excitedly told me about it when she ran into me rushing over to the Dean’s.
She’d actually suspected who the vampire really was, but didn’t want to influence the future from her vision by warning me before Evie showed up.
Time-travel made my head hurt.
“So what does that mean?” he asked, his fingers flexing as if he wanted to punch somebody. “I hope the Dean isn’t going to make a big deal over this. I brought that vampire in.” His jaw worked with irritation. “Hunting monsters is the only thing keeping me sane right now.”
“That and a certain sexy Dark Mage,” I teased.
He glowered. “Shut the fuck up.”
“Oh, hit a nerve, did I?” I asked, poking him in the ribs.
The Hunter grabbed me by the arm and slammed me into the wall harder than I expected, leaving stars sprinkling across my vision.
Well that escalated quickly.
I went still as he pressed in close. “Hendrik is the only reason I haven’t found you in the night and done something I’d regret.
That damn demon’s rage has influenced me worse than anyone in the mate-circle and I want to fuck you and hurt you at the same time.
” He pushed away as his orange eyes danced with flames.
“I refuse to hurt you, Lily. So I take it out on monsters, instead. And Hendrik is one of them. The soulless bastard and I have two things in common. Our rage, and our love for you.”
It touched me to hear my Hunter speaking of love, even if he did look like he wanted to rip my throat out.
“Let’s explain to the Dean, but I’m going to do the talking, okay?”
He glanced at her door. “Is that really a good idea? If she knows she has one of the Champions under her thumb, she might want to contain that power for herself.”
“That’s a chance we’re going to have to take,” I said, shoving past him. “We need the Dean to help us get them back where they belong, and you need to help me get some of Evie’s blood before she goes through the portal.”
He hurried after me, slamming a hand on the door before I could open it. “Why do you need her blood?”
I rolled my eyes. “Really, didn’t you graduate a few years ago?
The blood of a Founder can open any locked door in Fortune Academy.
” I held up my hands. “Locked doors like… the gate to the Monster Arena? Kaito’s cell?
” I didn’t add I also planned to unlock Cole’s cell as well.
The Hunter would never let me near the demon if he knew my true intentions.
He backed away and grunted at me, showing off his supreme skills of communication. I took his noise of noncommittal irritation as agreement.
I shoved into the Dean’s office and found her with her nose buried in papers. She looked so much like an actual Dean who cared about her students. She glanced up and smiled, putting me at ease despite knowing who she really was.
“Ah, Lily. Olivia said you might be stopping by today.” She set down her pen and straightened. “What can I help you with?”
I took a deep breath before I explained I had a young Queen of the Royal Covens in the lobby yanked from her time period before her ascension to the witchy throne. The only evidence that the Dean wasn’t exactly who she presented herself to be came as a flitting of malice across her gaze.
“She can’t know we know who she is, besides her being a witch. Plus, I don’t know exactly how to get her home. I was hoping you could help me with that.”
The Dean hummed as she tapped her chin in thought. “There’s a portal to Earth reserved for supply deliveries. It could be modified for time travel, assuming her vampire mate has fed.”
I grimaced, recalling the image of the vampire latching onto Evelyn’s wrist. It looked like it hurt, but it also looked pretty… intimate.
Too bad I didn’t have a vampire mate of my own to explore that particular experience with.
“He’s fed,” I answered, shoving aside my succubus-fueled interests in all things even remotely sexual, “so no problem there.”
“Oh. Well, that solves that.” She opened her desk drawer and held up a key.
“This opens a portal to Earth and is three doors down from my office.” When I reached for it, she yanked it away and a light, mischievous smile spread across her face.
“Of course, I want to vet them first. Once they use this portal with a time-warlock inside, his magic will take up the rest, but I’d like to speak to them first.” She offered the key again and I took it before she changed her mind.
She put on an innocent smile that almost had me fooled.
Almost.
“Show them in, would you?” she asked with a sickeningly sweet tone to her voice.
A cold chill ran up my spine. The Dean so better not screw this up for me or I’d take my chances trapping her in the Angelstone that Dante hid in his scabbard.
“Of course,” I managed to say as I turned on my heel before she saw the worry in my expression.
I retrieved Dante and our guests, sitting them down across from the Dean while I sat next to my Hunter.
He absolutely radiated anger and heat, making intimate parts of me respond to his need.
Despite what he and Hendrik thought about my capabilities, I could take whatever violence they cared to throw at me, but I did worry about them for their sake.
My succubus-side had a tendency to go haywire, especially now that we weren’t in Hell where that side of me had seemed somewhat satiated.
“I’m terribly sorry that we mistook your mate to be a rare monster,” the Dean began once everyone was settled.
Her “apology-face” was impressively genuine, so much so that even I almost believed her, but that was probably just an extension of her powers as an ancient immortal.
All the more reason not to underestimate her, even if I did want to dig that Angelstone out of Dante’s belt and trap her here and now.
“I’ve been trying to tell you,” the vampire growled, interrupting my thoughts, “that I wasn’t a monster. Yet now when Evelyn forces you to release me, you see the error of your ways?” He crossed his arms. “I don’t buy it.”
Huh, maybe it would be harder to fool the vampire than I thought. Kudos to him.
The Dean didn’t miss a beat and turned her disapproving glare on me and Dante. “What have you two to say to Marcus and our new guest?”
All the blood rushed from my face when Dante pulled out his blade.
Do not use the Angelstone, you idiot! I yelled at him in my head, but I didn’t think he heard me.
My Hunter plucked at the blade’s edge with his fingertips. The Dean waited patiently for his response, not looking threatened in the least.
“How was I supposed to know it was a problem?” he asked defensively.
I thumped him in the ribs. “You’re supposed to say you’re sorry!”
He just glared at me and even though I couldn’t hear his thoughts, I took a moment to consider his position. Capturing the vampire had been one of many jobs, and I had no doubt the Dean had him on overtime getting her new monsters to throw into the Monster Arena.
I relaxed when I realized Dante’s rudeness was actually him playing his role. He’d been given a job, one he’d executed as asked. If he didn’t seem pissed off when told to apologize, the Dean might smell a rat.
He sighed and lowered his knife, turning to the Dean again. “I’m trained to find magical oddities. I found one. A vampire who still had his warlock powers.”
The Dean’s jaw began to tick and I wanted to nudge Dante that he’d made his point, but he continued.
“Vampires are monsters, right? Monsters are only good for two things.” He pointed his dagger at the vampire for effect, but I knew that his comments had a doubled-edged meaning meant for me. “For study, and for killing.”
His gaze raked over my body, leaving no doubt what he wanted to “study” when it came to me. That thought made me swallow the lump in my throat.
“Enough,” the Dean snapped, her control on her powers loosening as the ground trembled. “You two have done enough damage. Apologize to our guest and then show her the way back to her home.”
“We’re sorry,” I blurted before the Dean changed her mind. When Dante frowned, I jabbed him until he grunted out a sound that was as close to an apology as I was going to get.
The Dean leaned back, giving me the silent go-ahead to get Evelyn and her mate back to her timeline.
I didn’t test her patience and looped my arm through young Evie’s, dragging her out of the room before the tightrope I was walking snapped under my feet.
“All right. You from Earth, I hope?” I asked, because that was the only portal the Dean had given me access to that would work with a time-warlock’s powers.
The vampire followed from a short distance along with Dante who didn’t seem all that amused with my antics.
“That’s the only other place I know how to get to,” I continued, “so we’re going there. ”
I went down the hall and counted the doors like the Dean had instructed. When we got to the third one, I jiggled the knob that wouldn’t budge.
“Do you do this often?” Young Evie asked, looking skeptically at the door.
Oh right… locked door.
Cursing, I pulled the key from my skirt.
“Leave the Academy? Not really,” I said, blathering on with enough truths to make my statement believable.
“Only for missions or assignment and stuff like that.” I glanced at Dante, thinking of how many times he’d left me for pursuit of so-called missions for my sake.
Young Evie gave me a raised brow. “Like hunting monsters?”
I offered her a grin as I attempted to hide the unbidden sting that gave me. Dante had hunted me once… too. “Yes, like hunting. That’s my favorite,” I confirmed and glanced at Dante again. This time, I would be the one doing the hunting.
Trying the lock again, I managed to get the door open only to reveal a gaping void of nothing.
Damn. I didn’t envy anyone who had to travel through that.
“Okay! In you go!” I said cheerfully as I shoved Evelyn on through.
Marcus bared his teeth at me and threatened my life before jumping in after her. A black cat materialized, having been nothing but a shadow all this time and followed the pair into the void.
I shut the door behind them and grinned.
“What you smiling about?” Dante asked.
I held up my black claws that had nicked the young Queen on her way out. “Founder’s blood, anyone?”