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“That makes no sense.”
“It will, in time. I’ve laid a lot on you in the last few days. We had hoped to give you more time, but there are undercurrents which have forced our hand, not the least of which is the bet Stanley placed on you.”
“Stanley...” She pales at the reminder and drops her head into her hands, tugging her hair. “Fuck. Everyone has lied to me.”
“To protect you.”
“Jesus,” she breathes out, the word a wisp of sound in the charged silence. “Don’t give me that bullshit, Alistair. Not now.”
“This is not just history, Ever—it’s a burden. One we only share when the time’s right.” I pause, watching her absorb it all. “And that time is now, Ever. It’s your turn to help us wield that power. It’s about protection, about claiming what’s ours.” My fingers trace the line of her jaw, a silent assertion of the promise I’m making. “We’ve watched over you without you knowing, waiting for the right moment. It was supposed to be after the Alumni ball when you were primed and ready to accept the history of this place on a different level.”
She swallows hard, and I can tell she’s wrestling with the reality of it all. The vulnerability that flashes across her face tugs at something primal within me, an urge to shield her from every monster lurking in the darkness we are dragging her into.
“Christ, Alistair,” she whispers, her hands balling into fists at her sides. “This is insane. The killings, the getting people kicked out of school, and God only knows what else...”
“Maybe,” I concede, my heart racing with the gravity of what I’m revealing. “But it’s real. And whether you like it or not, you’re part of this—of us. You were born into this world of power and secrecy. It’s time to embrace it.” My voice is firm, needing her to accept this fate, this part of her life that she cannot walk away from. I need her to gather her inner strength and push the guilt and nightmares aside of killing Robbie and the murders she has witnessed, but it’s only the beginning of how deep down this shit goes.
“Embrace it,” she echoes quietly, more to herself than to me. Her gaze locks onto mine, and I see the spark of a warrior’s spirit igniting in her battered soul, a storm of green, churning with questions and the burden of centuries. I see her — truly see her — not just as Ever, the girl with the cumbersome legacyand the sharp wit, but as someone who’s become part of my very essence.
“Okay. Say, I believe you. What now? Where do I go from here?”
“With us, and right now, we have a mess to clean up.”
“You mean the chamber downstairs?” Her expression is queasy as she thinks about the horror down there.
“No, a bigger mess. One brewing on campus that we have just exacerbated. It’s time to take the gloves off, angel. Shit’s about to get real, real fast.”
“Great,” she mutters, but I smile and lean forward to kiss her lips softly, knowing she’s got this.
4
EVER
Blood pounds in my ears, louder than the whispers that snake through KnightsGate University’s stone pathways. It’s like they all know. The way their eyes slice into me, I might as well have it stamped on my forehead: Ever Knight, murderer, betrayer and whore.
“Bitch,” someone I don’t even know, hisses from a huddle of students as I pass. The word clings to my skin, heavy and suffocating. I try to shake it off, to steady my wobbly legs that threaten to buckle with each step.
I remember the blood—the way it pooled beneath Stanley’s lifeless body after Alistair’s blade found its mark. And Robbie... oh God, Robbie. His face haunts my dreams, twisted in horror as Damien coerced my hand to end his life. My stomach twists, acid rising in my throat. I swallow, pushing back the urge to vomit right here in front of everyone, under the judgemental gaze of the ancient oaks lining the quad.
“Hey, Ever! You got something to say about the fire?” The voice cuts through the murmurs around me, sharp and accusing. I turn and find myself encircled by a group of students—some I recognise, others just faces in the crowd.
“No, so fuck off and leave me alone,” I mutter, but my voice is frail, drowned out by the hostility.
“Come on, we know you did it, so you could get in with the Cardinals. Are you their little slutty mascot now?” a girl sneers, her words barbed and venomous.
“Or maybe she’s sleeping her way to the top. Is that it, Ever? Using what you’ve got to stay in their good graces?” another adds, laughter bubbling cruelly among the group.
Heat creeps up my neck, flushing my cheeks with shame and rage. With their old money and dark secrets, the Cardinals have cast a shadow over my entire existence since I stumbled into their world. But now, with every slanderous jab sent my way, the walls close in tighter, suffocating me with the weight of accusations I can’t outrun.
“Shut up,” I spit out, more forcefully this time. “You don’t know anything.”
Panic gnaws at my insides, clawing its way up until it sits thick in my throat. I need to escape.
“Looks like the little princess can’t handle the heat,” someone sneers, their voice slicing through the tension like a knife.
I’m about to crumble, but Charlie races into view with a glint in his hazel eyes. “Ever, you have to stop sneaking out,” he says smoothly, stepping beside me, taking my hand and kissing it for all to see. Despite the raised eyebrows and mocking laughter, his presence is a shield, his confidence pushing back against the encroaching crowd.
“Sneaking out of his bed?”
