“Only that I think it’s unlikely the vamps killed Ysabella when she was carrying a vampire-witch baby.”
“Hybrids were considered an abomination, Miss Blackstone, so it’s very likely Ysabella was killed.”
“Maybe she deserved to die for whoring herself out to a bloodsucker.” Demelza sniffed and examined her nails, oblivious to the many shocked gasps of outrage.
“Well, yes, I suppose one might be forgiven for thinking that,” Dunton agreed. My jaw unhinged. Was he actually condoning the murder of a witch because she’d fallen in love with a vampire?
“Before the bell rings, I would like you all to read up on this topic before the next lesson. Your assignment will be about how the brave coven leaders of New Orleans negotiated a peace agreement, despite the perilous danger they faced from marauding vampires.”
Everyone gathered their stuff while I sat in silence, processing Dunton’s revelations.
“Dunton’s retelling of what happened is probably bullshit, pet, so I suggest you talk to our vampy to get a first-hand account. He doesn’t strike me as a thrill killer.”
Kenji mumbled in agreement before hopping off my desk. While Demelza was distracted reading something on her phone, he sidled up to her bag and cocked his leg, filling it with a pungent stream of urine. When the smell hit her, she looked down and screeched so loud my eardrums popped.
But Kenji had already vanished, so she turned to a wolf shifter standing a foot away and blasted him with a fireball.
“You disgusting piece of shit! That’s a ten-thousand-dollar designer bag you fucking peed in!”
“I didn’t know you had a pee kink, Demented.”
Glynda fell apart laughing at Zane’s remark while I tried to school my expression in case the nasty witch blamed me.
“Come, pet, it’s time to go before Demented loses her mind completely.” Zane grasped my wrist and whisked me away from the classroom while Demelza had an epic meltdown.
34
Raven
The story of Ysabella and Radimir stuck with me for the rest of the day. I sleepwalked through my Magic and Politics lesson, mostly because it was boring, and then headed to the library with Glynda.
Zane left us there under strict instructions that Glynda was to teleport me to the vampire dorm if trouble found us. And by trouble, he meant Demelza and her coven. After Pee-gate, the witch would have revenge on her mind.
But I didn’t care a bit about Demelza. If she was stupid enough to come after me, I’d retaliate.
We settled down at a table in a quiet corner, and then Glynda disappeared into the stacks to search for the books she needed. I halfheartedly ran through my list of topics and then gave up. The essay wasn’t due for another three days, so I’d tackle it tomorrow.
Had Rasmus really murdered all the witches in Ysabella’s coven? Or were the records a misrepresentation of what happened?
Vampires were dangerously powerful, which is why the mages and witches had all breathed a collective sigh of relief when the bloodborne virus caused a mass extinction event. But mass murderers? Surely not.
Rasmus had been nothing but sweet toward me. Unlike Alar-dick, he never reacted to Zane’s rage-baiting or got annoyed when Maverick became all possessive. He was happy to sit on the sidelines, watching me with my other mates.
The images Dunton had painted of Rasmus and his vampire family hunting down and slaughtering witches were barbaric.
“I’d take Ramona’s diary entries with a pinch of sage, Raven.” Glynda slapped some books down on the table and pulled a chair out.
“How do you know I’m thinking about that?” Goddess, I hoped she couldn’t read my mind. I was sick of my thoughts being comedy fodder for my mates.
“Because you’ve barely said a word since Dunton’s class.”
I pushed my notebook aside and huffed loudly. “What if the diaries are right, and I’m soul-bonded to a mass murderer?”
“Is that what you think,mea amica?” Rasmus’s question made me jump a mile high, and when I looked up, he’d appeared behind Glynda. Even though he wore a glamor, I could still see the real him, like a double-exposure photograph. It had freaked me out in the beginning, but now my brain automatically adjusted.
“I think you two need to talk,” Glynda said in a rush while collecting her things and shoving them into her bag. “I’ll catch you later.” She shot off before I could protest, leaving me to face a grumpy vampire.
“I don’t know what I think,” I told him honestly.
