Page 24 of Mistress A-0002

“He’smypatient.”

“Not anymore. That’s all. You can go now.”

“I will not go,” she snapped. “And you’re not taking my patient. Besides, we have things to talk about other than him.Important things.”

“I don’t think we do.”

She glanced at the other two men, coming back to me. “Are you sure about that?” At her glare, I shifted between my ongoing need for blood and the uncomfortable unknown. Melissa saw my hesitation. “Nineteen, Master One, leave us.”

“They will not. They can hear whatever it is you have to say.”

Her laugh was loud.

“You most definitely do not want them to hear this.”

“We don’t have a choice,” I exploded, stalking towards her. “You did this!”

“Did I? Are you positive of that?”

I grew silent, forcing myself to meet her stare. If she acted out and did something, she wouldn’t get away with it. Not with Nineteen and Shane in the room. That is…if my own work held together over her power.

“Say it,” I ground out.

Again, she looked towards my men. Whether they were looking back, I didn’t know. Her jaw flexed and she came back to me.

“I have done my best to make you the most respected, most prestigious student possible. I’ve taught you everything I know. I’vemadeyou into the Main Master you are. It hasn’t always been easy. From the beginning, we ran into issues. The summer before you started your master’s degree, you were grieving Vivia. It’d only been a year or so and you relied on me. We spent sometimes up to twenty hours a day together. Do you remember that?”

“Of course.”

“Right before fall semester you contacted me wondering if I was coming back. You were a complete mess because you felt like I was avoiding you. And I was. Why was that?”

I blinked, recalling the memory.

“I attacked you while I was under. You said you were busy, but you were scared. I gave you time. I called. You said there were issues you were having to deal with and that we’d pick up soon. And we did when the fall classes started.”

“But I was still scared of you, wasn’t I?”

My jaw flexed. “You never said or admitted to such, but it was to be expected. I understood that. It’s why we didn’t spend that much time together again until mid-spring.”

She nodded.

“That’s right. But even then, I was distant, wasn’t I.”

It wasn’t a question.

“You were. It wasn’t the same.”

“Would you like to know why?”

“…Because I attacked you.”

Her head tilted, but ultimately, she shook it back and forth.

“I’ll ask again. Would you like to know why?”

Did I? I felt sick. I was suddenly not sure I wanted to know anything she said.

“Why?”

---