Page 249 of The Blairville Legacies

He laughed as if I'd made a joke.

“Won't the pack let you go?”

He looked up again.

“I have nothing to do with them, and that's the way it's going to stay. They allow me to live in peace as long as I live in this area of Blairville. But if I leave this territory, I will be forced to join their pack or another one.”

I'd noticed he had something against the Copelands because he cut himself off from them. He had assured me that he was different. Did he meanthat?

“Aren't you friends with Emely?”

He laughed dryly.

“We get on well, but since I've been out of there, I try to keep it that way.”

I'd seen the two of them together on campus a few times and wondered how deep their friendship went and if they were reallyjust friends.

I would ask him about it again later, because even a blind man could tell that Emely was seeking his company.

“Why did you leave?” I asked instead.

“You ask a lot of questions, don't you?” Julian looked at me insistently, and I had to keep my grin in check.

“This is all new to me, and I'd at least like to understand it,” I sighed.

Of course, I wanted to get out of here as soon as possible, but learning a bit more in the meantime wasn't a bad idea either. Who knew, maybe it could save my life sooner or later. If I had known about those vampires, I would never have gone into that damn forest.Never!

“Normally, each species minds its own business. And normally we wouldn't even talk to each other, because you're a Quatura, and I'm a Senseque.”

What a poor excuse. Here I was being pigeonholed again.

“First of all, I'm not one of them.”

He laughed.

“What?” I asked demandingly.

“It's just funny how we both don't want to belong to our species. And believe me... Life here can really suck. Once you belong somewhere, you have duties to fulfill.”

The last thing I wanted to do wasfulfill any dutiesfor this sect.

I wondered whether such a wolf pack also functioned like a cult, whether they had their own temple and also performed such rituals at the full moon. I wondered if they howled at the moon together.

“Do you transform on the full moon?”

Julian's expression became more serious. “Normally, we do. I don't.”

I raised my eyebrows questioningly.

“There's a plant that was originally used against us by the Quatura that weakens us.Wolfsbane.If you use it on a regular basis, you won't have to turn.”

The Quatura had used itagainstthe Senseque? What was going on here that they hated each other so much?

I sighed. “It's a good thing I'll be gone soon and won't have anything to do with all of this.”

“You're not leaving.”

“I will.”

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