Chapter 25 – Billie
Twenty-Five
BILLIE
Islip out of the dorm while Olivia's still unconscious, her pink sleep mask pulled down over her eyes.
The hallways are empty, silent except for the soft padding of my boots against the absurdly plush carpet.
Even the ever-present magical lighting seems dimmer, like the university itself is still half-asleep.
Good. The fewer witnesses to this, the better.
The key sits heavy in my pocket, iron against my thigh through the thin fabric of my skirt.
I changed into the darkest clothes I could find—a deep burgundy skirt that's almost black, paired with a charcoal blouse.
The collar around my neck catches what little light there is, a constant reminder that I'm a sheep making deals with wolves.
The gardens are different in the pre-dawn gloom. All those impossible flowers that bloom in colors that shouldn't exist look subdued, almost normal. The fountains still sing their crystal harmonies, but quieter, like they're trying not to wake anyone.
I find the wall of vines easily enough. They look different in this light. Less decorative, more… defensive.
The flowers that bloom between them aren't the cheerful pastels covering the rest of campus. These are deep purples and blacks, petals that look velvet-soft but probably secrete something that would make your skin fall off if you touched them.
I pull out the key, the iron cold against my palm despite the warmth of my pocket. It's heavier than it looks, solid and real in a way nothing else at this university seems to be.
The lock materializes the moment the key gets close. One second there's nothing but vines, the next there's an iron gate that looks like it was ripped straight out of some gothic nightmare. Wrought metal twisted into patterns, designs that writhe on their own.
I insert the key into the gate, and the lock clicks open with a sound that's far too loud in the morning quiet.
The vines part like a curtain being drawn back, and I step through.
The world changes.
It's subtle at first. The air tastes different. The light seems wrong somehow, like it's coming from a sun that's not quite the right color. And the garden beyond...
This isn't Valemyre anymore.
The plants here don't belong in any botanical textbook I've ever seen.
They're too dark, too twisted, growing in patterns that defy the careful cultivation I've seen everywhere else on campus.
Trees with bark that looks like obsidian, their branches reaching toward the sky like obscene gestures.
Flowers that bloom in shades of deep purple and midnight blue, their petals edged with frost. Or poison.
And the thorns. Holy shit, the thorns.
Everything here has them. They cover the trees, wind up the stems of flowers, even sprout out of the grass lining the path before me.
This is a garden designed to keep people out. Or maybe to keep something in.
"Charming, isn't it?"
I spin, my hand going automatically to my hip where a knife should be but isn't, and find Caelyx leaning against one of those obsidian trees like he owns it. Given the key in my pocket, I'm assuming he does.
He's dressed differently. No uniform, just black pants and a shirt that's open at the collar, revealing skin that's paler than it should be and covered in even paler scars.
"You're early," he observes, pushing off from the tree. "I like that. Punctuality is a virtue so few people appreciate."
"You said dawn." I cross my arms, trying to look less rattled than I feel. "I'm here at dawn."
"So you are." He moves closer, and I catch his scent. More concentrated. Like being in this garden amplifies whatever makes him him. "Corvinus is never an early riser, so if you enjoy even a modicum of privacy, I recommend being one. So, what do you think of my little sanctuary?"
"It's..." I search for the right word. Terrifying? Fascinating? Like something that crawled out of an obscenely beautiful nightmare and decided to put down roots? "Different."
He laughs, the sound rich and dark. "Diplomatic. I appreciate that." He gestures around us, pride evident in his voice. "This is a piece of the Unseelie realm. A garden my mother tended before she died. I liberated it when I was younger."
"Liberated." I raise an eyebrow. "That's a fancy way of saying you stole it."
"Theft implies wrongful taking." He smiles wickedly. "I simply claimed what was rightfully mine. The Unseelie Court wasn't using it anymore."
I study the garden with new eyes. This is Unseelie. The dark court, the dangerous ones, the Fae that make even other Fae nervous. And Caelyx brought a piece of it here, tucked it away behind wards and iron gates where no one would think to look.
"Why show me this?" I ask, genuinely curious in spite of myself.
"Because," he says, moving to a bench made of the same black stone as the trees, "this is where we'll meet and plan. Where you'll learn everything you need to know to kill my brother without getting us both executed in the process."
He sits, crossing one leg over the other. The picture of a prince holding court, even in a garden that looks like it wants to murder you.
I don't sit. Not yet. "You said you'd tell me about my mother."
"Eventually." He pats the space beside him. "But first, we need to discuss your current situation. Sit."
It's neither a request nor a command, but rather something in between that makes my spine stiffen with the urge to refuse on principle. But I'm here for information, and standing around being stubborn isn't going to get me any closer to the truth.
I sit, keeping as much distance between us as the bench allows. Which isn't much.
"Better." He turns to face me, those red eyes catching the strange light filtering through the canopy. "Let's start with what you already know. The Golden Triad consists of my brother, his familiar, and Professor Locke Drakiss."
"The shifter," I murmur, practically able to feel the Professor's onyx eyes tracking me. "What is he, anyway?"
"Wouldn't you like to know," Caelyx says with a velvety chuckle. "Most of the school would."
"Do you know?" I challenge.
"I know everything that happens on this campus, and when I think you should know, you will," he says, poking the tip of my nose, because apparently, he doesn't value his fingers nearly enough.
"At least tell me why he's bonded to your brother," I say, staring him down. "You have to give me something."
"They're soul-bonded," he answers. "Same with the familiar. I assume they covered that in hunter school?"
"Of course they did," I admit. "Kill one, and the others feel it. Maybe die too, depending on the strength of the bond."
"Close." He shifts, angling his body toward mine.
"The bond between them is old, and stronger in proportion to their power.
Centuries old. But power is also a weakness.
Killing one would absolutely kill the others.
But it's not instantaneous. There would be time—minutes, maybe hours depending on how they died—for the survivors to retaliate. "
My stomach drops. "So even if I managed to kill Corvinus, his triad would have time to hunt me down before they died."
"Precisely." He looks almost pleased that I'm following along. "Which is why a direct assault is suicide. You'd never make it off campus alive. If you want any chance of getting out alive, you have to kill all three of them at the same time."
"Then what do you suggest?" The words come out harsher than intended. "I'm not here to make friends and attend classes. I'm here to kill your brother."
"I know." His voice goes soft, almost gentle, and it's more unsettling than when he's being sharp and dangerous. "But you need to be smart about it. Patient."
"I've been patient for eight years."
"And you can be patient for a few more weeks." He leans back, studying me with those unnerving eyes. "Let me tell you what you're up against. Starting with Tallon."
"The familiar."
"Yes. He's a shifter, though not any common breed you've encountered. His wolf is... special. Enhanced by his bond with Corvinus. Faster, stronger, more resilient than any natural creature. He's also intensely loyal, which makes him dangerous in ways that have nothing to do with teeth and claws."
I think about Tallon's easy smile, his warm manner, the way he'd invited me to that party with what seemed like genuine friendliness.
"He doesn't seem dangerous."
"That's precisely what makes him dangerous." Caelyx's smile turns knowing. "He's the friendly face of the triad. The one who makes you feel safe, welcome, like you're among friends. And then you wake up with your throat torn out, wondering how you didn't see it coming."
Love that mental image.
"And Corvinus? Since you refuse to tell me anything helpful about Professor Mysterious."
"My brother is arrogant, entitled, and convinced that his title makes him untouchable.
" The bitterness in his voice is palpable.
"He's also clever when he wants to be, which is unfortunately more often than I'd like.
Right now, he sees you as a challenge. Something to be won, tamed, and added to his collection of pretty little things. "
"I'm aware," I mutter. Corvinus basically said the same thing. He's honest, I'll give him that.
"But that's not what you really need to worry about." Caelyx leans forward, elbows on his knees. "What you need to worry about is Locke."
The name lands like a stone in still water.
"You don't need to know what he is, not yet," he goes on.
"You just need to know he's the smartest of the three by a considerable margin.
He's been protecting Corvinus since before your grandparents were born.
He knows how hunters think, how they operate.
And unlike my brother, he won't underestimate you just because you smell like an omega. "
I bristle at the unwelcome reminder. "He already suspects me."
"Like I said before, suspicion isn't knowing," he says with a dismissive wave of his hand. "If he truly had evidence you're a threat to Corvinus, you'd be dead by now."
A shiver runs down my spine at the certainty in his words. Evidently, my new omega biology comes with a primal sense of fear and self-preservation they breed out of hunters.
Lovely. That's going to be fun to have to overcome at every corner.
"So what do I do?" I demand, frustration bleeding into my voice. "Corvinus won't leave me alone. Locke's watching everything I do. Tallon's being suspiciously nice. And you're…" I gesture at him, at this whole fucked up situation. "I don't even know what you are."
"Your ally." He says it simply, like it's fact instead of the most questionable alliance since someone decided trusting a Trojan horse was a good idea. "For now, at least. The enemy of my enemy and all that."
"You really want to kill your brother?" I ask, needing to be sure. If this guy gets a guilty conscience halfway through, I'm undoubtedly going to take the fall for it.
"I've wanted to kill my brother since the day he was born," Caelyx says with a rueful smile.
"So why haven't you?"
He doesn't respond immediately, but his gaze grows distant, as if he's looking into the past. "It's complicated."
"Let me guess. I don't need to know?"
"Now you're catching on."
I roll my eyes. "So you won't tell me shit, but I'm supposed to trust you."
"You don't really have much of a choice, do you?" he counters.
I chew the inside of my lip, because we both know the answer to that. "Then I guess we're allies. Until you get what you want."
"Until we both get what we want." He stands, moving toward a plant that looks like it's made of shadows. "But that requires you to trust me. At least enough to follow my instructions."
Trust. Right. Because that's worked out so well for me in the past.
But I can't kill Corvinus on my own, not with his triad and the entire university protecting him. And Caelyx is offering me exactly what I need. He's offering information, access, a way to actually complete the mission instead of just flailing around hoping to get lucky.
"What does that entail?" I ask warily.
He plucks a flower from the shadow plant, and it dissolves into smoke the moment it leaves the stem. "It entails you accepting my brother's offer."
The words feel like a gut punch. "To be his fucking pet? Absolutely not."
"Listen to me." He turns back, and there's urgency in his voice now. "Corvinus won't give up. You've already seen that. He's going to keep pushing, keep cornering you, keep making it impossible to refuse."
"So your brilliant plan is for me to just give in?" The rage makes my voice shake. "To smile at the bastard who killed my mother while he parades me around like a trophy?"
"Yes." There's no hesitation or apology in his voice. "Because it's the only way you're going to get close enough to strike."
I'm on my feet before I realize I've moved, putting distance between us. "You're out of your fucking mind if you think…"
"Your mother tried the direct approach," he interrupts, and the words halt me mid-retreat. "How did that work out for her?"
I freeze. This son of a bitch has me painted into a corner, and he knows it.
"Besides," he continues, "if you're Corvinus's pet, you're also Drakiss's pet. And Tallon's. That's three times the chances to kill my brother through their shared bond when the time comes."
"And when might that be?"
"Not yet." He plucks another shadow flower and offers this one to me.
I hesitate before reaching out to take it, only for the flower to break apart in dark, smoky wisps within my grasp, as if it can only be held by someone made of the same darkness as it.
"Patience, little hunter," he says, lowering his voice as he leans in close enough for his alpha scent to wrap around me like a silken noose.
"You may think you know how to navigate this world, but you've only been trained to hunt our kind in isolation, and I guarantee you've never been up against anything like the triad.
Stick with me, do what I tell you, and we'll both get what we want in the end. "
"I already refused him," I say, holding his gaze. By far the most annoying part about being an omega is how difficult it is to avoid the instinct to look away from an alpha's stare. "How am I going to agree to be his pet without making the triad suspicious?"
"Leave that to me," he says, turning to walk toward the gate. "Just keep doing what you're doing."
So suffering, pretty much. Got it.
"If you're lying, I'll kill you," I call after him. "Even if it's the last thing I do."
He stops in front of the gate, the ivy curving back for him, retreating from the iron bars. "I would expect nothing less."
With that, he's gone, leaving me alone in the garden with his strange shadows and a key that's become my only chance at vengeance.
If Caelyx betrays me, I'll just melt it down into an arrow to pierce his heart.