Chapter 51 Alaric
Alaric
My father was the last person I expected to see as I crossed the campus for my Advanced Tarot class with Professor Rain. Reading tarot cards didn’t interest me, but it pissed Dad off that I’d chosen a bullshit class aimed at witches.
Anything that pissed Dad off was worth doing in my book.
“Why are you here?” I no longer cared enough to mince my words.
Dad gave me a tight smile. “Now, now. That’s not the attitude I’d expect from a loving son.”
“Love?” I snorted derisively. Dad didn’t know the meaning of the word love. He’d sure never shown me any.
A pair of witches heading our way simpered at the sight of my father, and his smile became more genuine. He lived for the adulation he received from those who looked up to him. I’d once read a book on malignant narcissists and discovered Dad ticked all the boxes. It explained a lot over the years.
As the witches got closer, he took hold of my arm and steered me away, no doubt concerned I might misbehave and show him up.
Once we reached the entrance to my apartment, he pressed the thumb pad to open the door. It annoyed the shit out of me that Montgomery had given him access to my personal space, but there was nothing I could do about it.
I trudged upstairs, my shoulders tense. No doubt a fucking lecture about family commitments was incoming. It had been a while since I’d been home.
The minute we entered the apartment, he turned on me.
“Need to get anything off your chest, Alaric?” His barely concealed rage said I’d be wise to confess my misdeeds, but I smirked anyway.
“Such as?” Damn Arron for fucking off to the gym.
If he’d been here, Dad would have had no choice but to leave.
Jamieson had not returned after the Solstice Ball massacre.
His parents didn’t trust the academy to keep their precious son safe and had elected to transfer him to a different magical school.
I didn’t blame them.
Montgomery was my father’s stooge, which made him fucking useless at the best of times.
“Care to explain why you stole dragon scales from my personal store?”
I pasted a bored expression on my face. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.”
Dad cast an ice dagger and held it to my throat. “Try again.”
Did he honestly think his stupid ice dagger would frighten me into submission? It worked when I was younger, but not now.
With a flick of my wrist, I shoved him away. The ice melted into a puddle at my feet, a reminder I was more powerful than him.
I leaned forward and grinned. “What makes you think I stole your dragon scales?” I still had no clue why the kitsune took them.
“Have you any fucking idea how expensive those scales are or how difficult it is to find them?” Dad’s face turned purple. Fuck, he looked as if he was about to stroke out. Maybe the goddess was on my side after all.
I shrugged. “I took a small quantity of powdered brimstone for an experiment, but I didn’t touch your dragon scales.” Dad threw a truth spell at me. The magic slid under my skin, making me shiver with disgust. He frowned in consternation when the spell revealed I wasn’t lying.
“See? Now if you’ve finished interrogating me over something I didn’t do, I have a class to go to.”
My father glared, unhappy he hadn’t got the answer he sought. If the idiot had half a fucking brain, he’d have asked a few more searching questions while the truth spell was still active, but thankfully, he didn’t.
After telling me he expected me home this weekend, Dad left.
I waited a few minutes and then headed back to the main building for my tarot class.
As I strode down the corridor that branched off to the admin department, my witch stumbled toward me, her complexion ghostly and her eyes glassy with pain.
“What’s wrong?” Had someone hexed her? I couldn’t sense any malignant magic, but some of the nastier spells were very subtle.
“Montgomery,” she choked out. “Tested…my…magic…” I caught her just before she collapsed.
That fucking bastard. He must have pulled his usual trick where he cast invasive magic to assess a student’s power. He’d tried it on me when I first arrived. While I’d successfully repelled his magic back then, unless you knew what you were dealing with, it was hard to shield against it.
The corridor remained empty, but I wasn’t taking any chances: if anyone saw me with Raven, it could get back to my father.
But I couldn’t leave her while she was vulnerable.
“You need to call one of the others,” I hissed as I pulled her into an empty office stacked high with files and cast a locking spell to prevent anyone from entering.
“I can’t. They’ll kill…Montgomery!” I wasn’t sure why she cared; I sure as fuck didn’t.
“The merman won’t,” I scoffed. “He’s not violent.”
Her answering snort made me wonder if perhaps I’d underestimated the meek merman. He’d shown no homicidal tendencies that I’d witnessed, unlike the insane incubus, but then, I’d spent very little time with him.
“I can’t risk anyone finding out about Rasmus either.” She slumped to the floor, whimpering as she held her head.
“Okay, fine, but let me heal you.”
Seeing her in pain made me want to tear Montgomery’s head from his shoulders. Had he done this at my father’s behest? Dad’s presence on campus certainly rang alarm bells.
My father hardly ever visited Starfall Academy. There was no need to with Montgomery running the place like a well-oiled machine.
I sank to my knees in front of her and tried not to think about the possibility he’d heard rumors about my relationship with Raven.
She sniffed as I wiped her tears away. “It hurts!”
“I know, sweetheart,” I murmured before pressing my hands to her cheeks and closing my eyes.
Waves of pain shot down my arms, almost knocking me backward.
What the fuck had Montgomery done to her?
This was way beyond his usual invasive party trick.
The bastard must have forced his way into her head.
Raven’s eyes fluttered shut as I pushed healing magic into her, soothing her pain and repairing the damage caused by Montgomery’s brute-force mind sweep.
“Thank you,” she whispered in relief when I’d done all I could to heal her.
“Can you stand?”
She nodded, so I took her hand and helped her to her feet. “You should get back to your mates.” As much as it irritated me, I knew they’d take care of her.
“Are you not my mate?” A valid question considering what I’d said to her in the library, but I hesitated, still afraid of what my father would do to her. Especially now that Montgomery had been in her head.
Goddess save us all if that slimy fucker had discovered my link to the witch. Or that a vampire prince had survived the bloodborne virus and was currently living it up on campus. My father would go postal.
“Raven, I…”
Someone rattled the doorknob. Fuck. If they caught me in here with Raven...
A female cursed outside the door. Mrs. Peabody. Lucky for me, the old bitch wasn’t an especially powerful witch, so it would take her a while to unpick the lock spell.
“I have to go before she sees me with you.” I pulled Raven to her feet. “If my father gets wind…”
Raven’s shoulders slumped, and she nodded. “Go. I’ll be fine.”
Before I could overthink it, I pressed my mouth to hers and kissed her like this was the last time we’d see each other. She tasted of coffee and mint, and for a few seconds, I couldn’t breathe as my magic surged inside me, causing sparks of electricity to spark above our heads.
The doorknob rattled some more, breaking the spell holding me in place. I rested my head against Raven’s, soaking up her scent, and then dashed over to the window.
“Go back to the dorm,” I told my witch before I dove out the window and crash-landed in a bush.