He was holding a thick folder. It was stamped with a symbol I didn't recognize—a circle with a line through it.
"The Null List," Stone read. "Candidates forRe-Alignment."
I took the folder. My hands were shaking. I opened it.
The first page was a profile.Name: Sarah Higgins. Bond: Twin. Status: Consumed.
"Consumed?" Ivy squeaked.
I flipped the page.Name: Marcus Thorne. Bond: Mate. Status: Pending Extraction.
"He's not just cataloging us," I said, my voice cold. "He's harvesting us. He's breaking bonds to feed himself."
"We have to go," Stone said urgently. "Now."
"Wait," Ivy said. She was staring at a specific spot on the map wall. "That's... that's my dorm."
There was a red pushpin on Ivy's dorm. And three strings coming off it. One to Jax. One to Stone. One to Rook.
"Target: The Chaos Nexus," Ivy read the label. "Priority: High."
"He knows," Jax said, his vampire stillness breaking. "He knows about the harem."
"We leave," Stone commanded, grabbing Ivy's arm. "Right now."
We turned to run/
Click.
The lights in the office flared on.
Sitting on the corner of the plain table, swinging his legs like a schoolboy, was Dean Marrow.
He was smiling.
"I was wondering when you'd drop by," he said pleasantly. "Did you enjoy the dragon opera? I thought it was a bit pitchy."
Stone stepped in front of us, growling. "Dean Marrow."
"Captain Stone," Marrow nodded. "Disappointing. I had high hopes for you. A man of order."
"You're eating students," Stone snarled.
"I'm pruning," Marrow corrected. "Gardening requires sacrifice."
He looked at me. His eyes were void-black.
"And you," he said softly. "Lina. My little Circuit Breaker. Did you bring me a snack?"
I stood my ground, though my knees were shaking. "We know what you are."
"Good," Marrow said, hopping off the table. "Then you know you can't stop me."
He raised a hand. The air in the room vanished.
Stone dropped to his knees, choking. Jax blurred, trying to attack, but slammed into an invisible wall. Ivy screamed, her hands sparking with useless magic.
Marrow walked toward me.
