Half Blood Rising

Chapter 17

“You’re both fools, I’m not making this up. She’s shady as fuck, the sooner you realise it, the better,” I Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

shouted, losing my temper. At that point, I was shaking with anger, staring at the principal of Moonlight

Academy like she’d lost her damn mind.

She’d showed me that there was another life beyond what I knew. This couldn’t be the end for me just

yet, I wasn’t ready for it.

Dimitry stood abruptly, shaking his head. My magic started swirling around me like a windstorm,

pumping through my veins. I’d never in my life been angrier.

“Don’t make accusations about our people,” Dimitry spat. “You have no idea about our code of ethics.”

“You screwed up, and now you’re blaming me for your stupidity. That’s just pathetic.” Ramona laughed,

and I wished I could shut her up.

At that point, I was done playing nice; my breathing was coming in short, ragged pants. Oldman was

using her magic, trying to get into my head, calm me down, but this time, I knew how to keep my

thoughts to myself.

I walked up to Ramona, sensing thick tension in the air, and leaned over so my face was only inches

from hers. “I know what you’ve done and I’m going to destroy you,” I whispered, so close to using my

magic against her, but that would have only made me look guilty. Moments later, I stormed out of the

room, feeling like the biggest failure amongst all supernaturals. This was ridiculous. Oldman was

foolish enough to believe Ramona wasn’t working against the academy.

Karina, Marco, and even Judas were in my room when I stormed inside, causing me to stop in my

tracks. They must have heard what had happened because they avoided looking me in the eye. I

mean, I didn’t care at that point. I was so done with this bullshit. I needed to get the hell out of here. I

couldn’t let them see me upset.

“She didn’t expel you yet, Jaymin. I think you should stay,” Karina said as I took out my suitcase and

began packing my things.

I’d have to track that idiot pretty boy myself, because no one wanted to believe anything I said. It was

so damn frustrating. Lachlan was in trouble. And they were willing to take that bitch’s word, and not

even bother to check on Lachlan. Not even a phone call to check my story? Nothing. None of this made

sense.

“They weren’t in the club the entire time, so we couldn’t see what was going on. Are you sure Lachlan’s

being held by the clan?” Marco asked as he walked towards me. Another jolt of electricity shot up my

spine as he touched me. I expected them all to be loyal to Ramona, but instead, they were here with

me. This made me feel a little better about myself.

“It’s not the first time I’ve seen him involved with mages. They captured him because, apparently, they

believe he can influence his father who’s high up in the council. It’s all about the Elite—these mages

want to gain control over the admission process. And Ramona’s been playing us this whole time.” I

explained my theory. Although I had no evidence against Ramona, and it was still her word against

mine, the bottom line was, I’d screwed this up. Perhaps Dimitry and Oldman were right; maybe I

shouldn’t have gone inside and tried to rescue Dorothy myself.

“Lachlan is a strong vampire, so he can take care of himself. I mean, where are you planning to go

now? You don’t know the city,” Judas spoke, and for the first time since I’d met the guy, he said several

full sentences all at once. He had a deep voice. I’d never noticed… And he seemed genuinely worried

about me.

“No idea, but I can’t stay under the same roof with that leech,” I said as I picked up my suitcase. “I’ll call

you guys once I find out something useful.”

I knew that they weren’t happy about it. The truth was, I still didn’t have a plan. Karina walked up to me

and tried to hug me, but I pushed her away. She was sweet, but this was way too difficult already. My

emotions were taking over, and she needed to understand that I had to clear my head, get to the

bottom of everything, with or without the team. I used the back door to leave. I didn’t want to be

bombarded again by Oldman and Dimitry, and as I was on my way out, Roxanna approached me once

again.

“Take this and follow your nose. I always knew there was something wrong with that girl,” she muttered,

and I smiled at her. “Leave your bag.” She nodded towards my suitcase, and I thought it was strange,

but I did as she requested. If I needed anything, I could always call Karina.

She placed a bunch of bank notes in my hand as she closed the door behind me. I didn’t waste time

thinking about it. I ran to the street, stopped a taxi, then told the driver in broken Ukrainian where I

wanted to go. It was time to be as far away from that house as possible.

I didn’t have to be angry anymore, at least my team believed me. Now I just needed to find some kind

of evidence that Lachlan was indeed missing. The old Russian taxi driver kept staring at me from the

rear-view mirror. My knives were on the seat beside me.

I didn’t have a chance to hide them.

When he dropped me outside the large square, it was gloomy, dark heavy clouds were covering the

sky. Roxanna had given me quite a lot of cash, and suddenly, I was grateful for it. It seemed I wasn’t

the only one who noticed Ramona’s odd aura, and Roxanna was a very old vampire. It surprised me

that she was working for Dimitry. I needed to locate Lachlan before it was too late, and then solve the

rest of this case. I was tempted to return to the industrial part, but Leonidas wasn’t stupid. The

vampires had moved on. Now searching for Dorothy would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Moscow was huge.

I walked around a few streets, trying to think on my feet, searching for a vampire-populated area. My

stomach started growling again, and after some time, I needed to rest, figure out my next move. I found

a large restaurant on the back street, went inside, then ordered Russian dumplings with some kefir.

The smell of freshly cooked food made my mouth water.

The waitress had a face like a slapped arse, and she practically threw my food on the table in front of

me once it was prepared. Charming, I thought, but apparently Russians were like that. I wanted to

laugh, especially after the shit couple days I’d had. They always seemed to be in a bad mood, but I

couldn’t complain. Everything looked delicious. I started eating, watching as people walked by from the

window. The food warmed my belly instantly, giving me the energy I so desperately needed.

Someone left a newspaper on the side table, and I picked it up. Surprisingly it was in English, so I

began reading it until someone familiar strode into the café. I nearly choked on my dumplings as soon

as I recognised the vampire who was standing with his back turned to me.

It was Vlad, but what the hell was he doing in here? He glanced around, and, luckily, I managed to hide

my face behind the paper quickly enough. I was nervous that he might sense me, as he’d seen me the

other night. Shit. This was suddenly going terribly wrong. He started speaking in Russian to someone a

few tables away from me, laughing and pointing towards something outside.

I peered over the paper, trying to see if I knew the other guy. He was human, so it didn’t make much

sense, at the same time, I didn’t bloody believe in coincidences. Vlad couldn’t be here because of me,

or if he was, he must have noticed me from the street. I finished my food, telling myself to be damn

careful. Vlad spent another twenty minutes talking to the older Russian, and then vanished in the

narrow corridor near the washroom.

I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering if it was wise for me to follow him. Last time, it didn’t end well,

but right now, I was on my own. It was ultimately my decision, and no one even knew I was here.

A few Russian customers stared at me as I stood from my seat and casually strolled over to the loo,

then quickly walked over to the other side towards the men’s room.

There was a door leading outside, so I started searching through the bins until I found a thin wire. My

luck seemed to be turning around, because it was exactly what I needed right now.

Seconds later, I inhaled and picked up the scent of fresh blood. I placed my ear against the door, trying

to listen. Vampires weren’t like humans; they didn’t have physiological needs.

“Pretty, I bet you taste incredible; virgins are always so juicy.” I heard him say in a thick English accent.

My jaw dropped. He had a girl in there. I heard her whimpering, then moaning with pleasure that wasn’t

there.

I kicked the door open without even considering my actions and barged inside as a flashback from the

past rolled through my head.

It was a very small bathroom, but Vlad made use of the space. He was draining this poor human dry,

and I suspected that this wasn’t the first time he’d preyed upon such an innocent woman. She was

extremely young, possibly not even eighteen. I needed to remind myself that Vlad wasn’t a convict.

“Tbi Kto?” he asked in Russian as blood trickled down his face. His pupils were dilated. He didn’t

recognise me, which was a good thing. The girl was trembling, and her clothes were torn. Had he

raped her?

“I’m your worst nightmare,” I roared and jumped on him, wrapping the wire I’d found earlier around his

throat. I didn’t even know how I found the strength to do it. Everything was swift and quick. Obviously,

he tried to fight, but I stabbed him in the jaw with a small knife I’d brought with me. Vlad growled and

then howled like a wolf. The girl screamed, then passed out. Her fear was rubbing off on me in a bad

way—she was infected by him, and her soul was now tainted.

Then I pulled the wire harder, but realised I couldn’t kill him just yet, although my anger was out of

control. He disgusted me because he was so vile.

He still hadn’t connected the dots from last night. Things weren’t adding up.

“I’m going to ask one question, and you only have one chance to answer,” I told him, and loosened the

wire a little. He inhaled. It was much more difficult to suffocate a vampire than a human, but he had a

knife in his jaw, besides with a little bit of my magic, the wire could easily cut off his head. He was

aware of it. I could sense it.

Maybe this was the worst-case scenario—something I avoided at all costs.

“What the fuck do you want from me? I’ve never seen you in my life, and this girl has been looking for a

vampire for a long time,” he spat, and I knew that the knife was undoubtedly hurting him as he spoke. It

was a motivational tool on my part.

“Lachlan, annoying Scot, has gone missing and your clan has him. I need to know where he’s being

kept. Show me three fingers if you know what I’m talking about,” I said, and then pulled the wire tighter.

My hands were nearly bleeding as I was pulling it so hard.

My heart was jackhammering inside my chest, and for a moment, all I could hear was his heavy

breathing. He didn’t give me the sign, then tried to kick me. The wire sliced through his throat as I

yanked harder; it was the most disgusting form of torture I’d ever used, but he needed to get the

message. Split seconds later, he gave me a sign, and I loosened it again.

“I’m listening—where is he?” I repeated, wanting to get the fuck out of here.

“Elite… old cathedral tomb, but you won’t make it. They are planning some sort of ceremony, and they

have human sacrifices, too,” he rasped, but his voice was broken, unclear. I managed to make out what

he said, but just barely.

“Elite? Tell me exactly where he’s being kept? St. Kilda Elite Academy is in Bucharest, and we’re in

Russia,” I said, smelling burnt and rotting flesh. It was too much, my stomach was turning, but I had to

finish this before I vomited.

“There is an Elite branch in Moscow, but only a few know about it,” he continued to choke out.

I turned my head to the right, noticing that the girl had awoken all of a sudden. Her face was horror-

stricken, and she appeared to be in shock.

The vampire jerked his head so hard, that the wire cut straight through, before I could pull it away

completely.

His head fell from his shoulders and rolled along the bathroom floor. It happened so quickly, and I

stared at my bloodied hands, wondering if I’d gone completely mad.

I’d become a monster, but I’d never truly planned to kill him. The girl had seen everything as it unfolded

—the decapitation—and began screaming, then she fainted once again. I rubbed my forehead, trying to

breathe at the same time. Vlad deserved to die. His dark aura made me nauseous. It nearly felt the

same as when I’d dealt with a real convict. He must have raped girls for fun, many times before, mostly

virgins.

I pushed his body off me and rose to my feet, feeling a bit light-headed. At some point, someone would

discover the girl here, but I didn’t want to leave her with a burning corpse. Most of the time, their bodies

turned to ash after a while, so I decided to drag her out of the loo and leave her in the corridor. She was

going to cause a scene, anyway. I had no idea how the supernatural council worked in Russia, but in

Ukraine, they normally sent a team to clean-up and wipe the memories of humans who’d been exposed

to our world.

My head was banging, and I needed to rest, but I didn’t have time. Lachlan was being held in one of

the tombs that apparently belonged to the Elite Academy. This confused me even more, but at least I

now had a lead. There was no way I was going back to headquarters. Ramona was only waiting for me

to reappear. At the same time, I had to gather the rest of the team. It was possible Oldman had already

asked them not to talk to me, but I had to at least try and tell them what I was planning to do next. It

was my chance to prove to them that I deserved my place in Moonlight.