Page 14

I thought I might vomit right then and there. I’d left her alone for less than two hours—nearly forgotten about her. Now she was enthralled. Someone had it in for this girl. I knew the lives en-thralled blightborn led weren’t all terrible. In fact, in some ways they were downright cushy, their room and board generally provided for as long as they served a specific highblood or highblood family. But overall, they were cattle. They were at the beck and call of whoever had enthralled them. And they balanced a strange position in Sangrathan society. They were supposed to be serving a vital role. They were treated better than sellbloods, and yet they were also subtly stigmatized. Most crucially, they weren’t truly free to leave their … jobs.

“Get the fuck off her,” I said loudly.

The highblood feeding from Dani ignored me, but one of his friends stepped forward. This one had mellow golden skin, brown eyes, and a square jaw. He was dressed in House Mortis colors, his jacket a dark crimson with white accents.

“Why?” His voice was falsely polite. “Is she your sister? I don’t think I’ve had the honor.” His eyes raked up and down my body in a lewd way I hated. “Miss … ?”

One of his friends punched Square Jaw in the arm. “You’re such a dumbass, Silvio. Can’t you tell who she is just by looking at her?”

“Dani,” I said, ignoring Silvio Square Jaw and his delightful friend. “Get away from him. Come on. I’ll take you back to your dorm.”

The highblood feeding from her lifted his head. Blood dripped down his chin. “She’s fine. See for yourself. Aren’t you, sweetheart?”

“Of course, Brocklin,” Dani murmured. She looked over at me dreamily. “Never better.” She reached out a hand languidly. “Come join us. It feels so nice. Mm.” Her eyes closed.

I’d never been less interested in a prospect.

“Excellent idea,” said Silvio, still staring at me with far too much interest. “Who did you say she was again, Cade?”

The boy he’d called Cade laughed and elbowed him in the ribs. “The fucking rider, you idiot. Just look at her hair.”

Silvio’s handsome face flushed slightly. “Oh. Right.” He stretched his hand towards me, like I was a dog he was entitled to touch. “Come here, pretty girl.”

I moved before his hand reached me. Fast. So fast his eyes widened.

He whistled. “Shit. She’s quick for a blightborn bitch.”

My whole body hummed. Ready to move again. Ready to fight. I looked past him to Dani. Could I get to her? Would she cooperate with me? My heart sank as she let out a throaty moan and the highblood holding her latched on again.

“She’s Blake’s, you know,” Cade observed. “Better watch out. You know how he gets.”

Undeterred, Silvio looked at me with even more interest. “Marcus’s little brother? I’d forgotten about that.”

Cade nodded and grinned. “But I don’t see Blake anywhere around. I think you should try again, Silvio. She obviously wants to play. If you catch her, maybe she’ll give you a little taste.”

Silvio stepped towards me, his brown eyes glowing at the thought of a challenge. “Come here, baby. I’m not going to hurt—”

He didn’t finish. Because suddenly someone else was in front of me, blocking me completely from their view. I froze. For a split second, I thought it was Blake.

Broad shoulders tapering down to a narrow, lean waist. Lithe, muscular legs clad in perfectly fitted, silver-gray trousers. His dark eyes narrowed as he looked at the other highbloods.

Kage.

“Well, well,” drawled Cade. “Hear you made House Leader.”

Kage’s lips pulled back in a snarl. “Old news. What the hell are you doing in my school?”

Silvio laughed. “Your school? Seems like it’s still just as much ours as yours.”

Still? Who were these assholes? I’d never seen them at Bloodwing before. They were older than even the oldest students, maybe twenty-five or twenty-six.

Then, the one feeding from Dani lifted his head again. “Relax, Avari. We’re just doing what we were told. Regan called us in. Meet your new Bloodguard.” Cade wore silver and gray like Kage, House Avari colors. Nice to know Regan was being so undiscriminating in her selections for her goon squad.

Silvio laughed. “That’s right. Keeping the halls clean. Cracking skulls and sucking blood. This pretty little thing—” he gestured at Dani “—was out wandering the halls when she should have been in class. Naughty, naughty.”

“Keeping the halls clean?” I spat. “Is that what you call harassing students?”

Silvio winked at me. “We don’t have to stay in the halls. Come back to our rooms with us. I promise, you’ll have fun.”