Page 17 of Blinding Light

“And? You think he’s lying? Come on, give me more. He was sitting at your table! Plus, he’s drop-dead gorgeous, and unless you tell me why I shouldn’t pursue him, that’s exactly what I’ll be doing.”

“I met him on the spaceship last night. He…let’s just say he drew my attention.”

“It was the eyes, I bet,” Helianth mused. “He’s got nice hair too.”

Moargan imagined the wild mop of raven strands. He wouldn’t mind grooming those locks and bathing that pale body in hot, steamy water, only to dress him in his own clothes, then set him free and chase him down.

Yes. He liked that idea. A lot.

“He does,” he hummed. “He’s got a nice cock too.”

Helianth sucked in a shocked gasp. “You didn’t.”

“I did.” He shrugged, but inside, he was gloating.

His brother leaned in, and he licked his jewelled incisors, visibly excited. “Did he run at least?”

“He did.”

“Fight?”

“Hmm.”

“Bite?”

“That’s enough to feed your curiosity. If you want a snack for yourself, go find a willing conquest. This one’s mine.”

“Greedy bastard,” Helianth grumbled. He looked at his multi-slate, which had turned into a glowing board. “That’s Vandor. He’s been shadowing your guy. He says they’re walking home.”

“They? Who’s he with?”

His brother typed onto his multi-slate, and they waited for the buzzing confirmation of the stranger’s identity. “Archer Lyre. A senior here at the Academy. Studies Science.”

“Let Vandor check where they live.”

“You got it.”

“Actually…” Moargan stood up from his chair, flipping off the two Luminaries, who immediately got into position. “I feel like going for a walk. Send me the exact route Xander is taking on his way home. I’ll see you tonight for dinner. Don’t come before seven, and I will have a word with Father.”

Ignoring his younger brother’s final words, Moargan strolled toward the art building. Being the smallest section of the Helion Academy, the U-shaped construction was situated on the far end of campus and bordered next to Umbral Park, an enormous green zone that led to Helion’s capital city Zephyr.

Besides a teachers’ meeting, the corridors were empty. The walls were decorated. Deserted classrooms waited for pupils to come in and make a difference.

Art students.

Moargan snorted at the thought. Desperate creatures who were too caught up in their own minds. What would Xander’s mind look like from the inside? Walking past the open workspaces, he wondered which classes his yellow-eyed beauty had chosen.

He wondered why he cared at all.

A few students chatted about, but when they caught sight of Moargan, they pressed their backs against the walls and let him pass with a polite nod he didn’t return. He reached the classroom for the freshmen and peeked inside. It was spacious and messy, with canvasses and other equipment already set down for tomorrow’s start of the year. They had a great view of the park here.

His multi-slate pinged with a new message from Vandor. Anaddress and itinerary appeared on the fine lines of his tanned skin. Archer Lyre lived in a decent side of town.

Too bad for him.

Xander Devers was about to discover a whole different part of Helion.

Pleased with his train of thoughts and the decisions they had formed, he hummed a tune to himself as he left campus. He flipped off Vandor’s guys, who had been waiting for him outside the hovercar. He did feel like going for a walk.

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