Nightworld Academy - L.J. Swallow Page 0,19

the emo kid title which he hates. But the guy’s personality is as edgy as his look.

"Dude. Are you crazy?" he continues.

I stand and slam the book closed before pushing it into my jacket and zipping up.

"What do you mean?" I ask with mock confusion.

"Uh. You’re hiding out down here doing fuck knows what with fire."

"And?"

"And, I'm guessing that's not a legal spell. Y'know, since you’re away from the academy in the middle of the night.”

"I'm just playing around—looking for a new trick to perform.”

Andrei shakes his head. "I saw the book. Why are you hiding it?"

"I'm not," I retort and grip the book tighter against myself. "Why are you skulking down here?"

He blinks at me. "No reason."

I smile at his cautious protest. "Hiding again?”

"No."

I look past him. "Are you sneaking humans on campus again, for a light evening snack?”

He glowers. “I said, no.”

"You sure?" I step forward and stare at his mouth for signs of feeding. Rumours Andrei feeds on humans follow him around school. No hemia vampire is allowed to touch a human without facing harsh punishment, and tasting human blood starts hemia vamps on a slippery slope to addiction. There aren’t many of his kind at Ravenhold, so he’s focal.

"Would you believe me if I said I come here when I want alone time?" he asks.

"Alone time with who, Andrei?” I ask, pushing the conversation further away from me. "Are you sure you're not with a human?"

He tips his chin and his fringe falls to the side, eyes seeming to glow in the dark. "You have your struggles, I have mine."

"You mean your bloodlust?"

"Wrong."

"Oh, come on, you must've heard the rumours. Everybody knows you've lost control before."

His fists clench by his sides. "And everybody knows you plan to defect to the Dominion."

I reel at his words. “Bullshit," I growl. “But then you know all about Dominion defectors, don't you?”

Andrei takes a step forward. We're equal height and build, both with supernatural strengths. Andrei's lies in the power inside his lean frame, and mine in my magic. But I'm also a rugby player who can tackle anybody to the floor in seconds.

"Does everybody know your family history, Matt?"

I straighten. "What history?"

"Every witch family can be traced back to the five original families. I heard you’ve Blackwood in the mix. That would explain a lot. How many Blackwoods ended up at Ravenhold? Pretty much all of them apart from the ones in hiding.”

My blood heats at each taunt—I want to get away from him and finish my spell. Suggesting that I'm descended from the exiled witch family oversteps the mark—that has never been proven. I don't get along with most vamps, apart from those my family have loose connections to and Andrei just pissed me off.

I seize Andrei's hand and lift it to examine his skin under the moonlight. Am I relieved when I don't see blood—or disappointed I don't find bargaining power to shut him up?

He snatches his hand away. "Look, I get it. You can't control your obsession with magic, just like I struggle to keep hold of my control around humans. Just don’t be holier than thou with me, because this magic addiction shit will cause you as much trouble as mine."

I ready a retort, but deep in my soul I know he's correct. My need to show people I’m the best and show people how bloody good I am holds me in a vice.

"The difference between us is that I'm fighting mine. You should too,” Andrei continues. “But don’t worry, your life isn't any of my business. I won’t say anything about you hiding here with your secret book."

"Thanks," I say, and the word chokes me. "If you screw up one day, I might be able to return the favour."

Andrei barks a laugh. "I won’t ask for favours from you, witch. Nobody sensible will associate their name with you. Your little gang will drop you soon.”

A girl calls Andrei's name and my mouth drops open. “You told me—"

"She's a lamia, asshole, so don’t bother threatening me." He steps back. "Check if you want, if you’re happy for Tegan to know you’re here.”

"There's no evidence I've done anything," I retort.

Andrei leans forwards. "Not this time."

The girl calls Andrei's name again, her voice closer than before, and I step back into the shadows.

I've nothing to panic about because I'm not doing anything wrong. The spell I performed is a harmless illusion—a challenge of my own, since the academy refuses to challenge me.

"I'm watching you," I tell Andrei.

For