Page 88 of Blood & Betrayals

“Night, Sum.”

“Night, Al.”

37

Summer

I’m already dressed when Connor knocks on the door. I expected him around thirty minutes ago, but he hasn’t replied to my texts. How dare he make me rely on his presence and not text me back? I’ve obviously become accustomed to him instantly responding and being at my beck and call. I open the door, and any frustration I feel melts away at the sight of him. His face is pale, his eyes haunted, and he’s visibly shaken. The sight of his distress puts me on immediate alert.

“Con?” I whisper, touching his cheek.

“N-no classes today. A-a student has been killed.” Connor’s voice is quiet, uneasy, and trembling.

Connor barges past me, bolting into my room, and I hear him retching into the toilet. I run after him, kneeling next to him and rubbing his back. “Connor?”

He pants into the toilet, his hands clinging to the porcelain. “Fuck. Her eyes are full of flies…”

I grab a towel, running it under the cold water before pressing it to his forehead. He’s dripping with cold sweat. Mystomach rolls as his words finally sink in. A student has been killed.

Connor sits back, looking down at his hands. Horror lines his face as if he can see the victim’s blood clinging to his skin. I know that look. There was a time I sat in the same exact place and stared at my fingers in the exact same way. Though I actually had blood coating my skin. I glance at Alice, who nods and goes to the kitchen to get him a glass of water.

“Fuck.” Connor’s whole body is shaking. “I got… I got the deputy headmistress. She-she said she would bring the headmaster.”

I nod, cupping his cheek and pressing the cool, damp cloth to his face. “You did well, big guy. You did well.”

His eyes fill with tears, and the sight nearly breaks my heart. “She was…” He closes his eyes, squeezing them tight. A look of agony flashes across his face before he opens them again. “They fuckingbrokeher. There was barely anything left.”

I’ve never seen him like this. He’s sunshine. He’s happy. Now, something’s shattered in him. And his eyes… Oh gods, I know those eyes. I see the same haunted shadows in mine when I look in the mirror, the same grief and devastation of spirit. My chest aches. Something pure was lost today, and it is a tragedy. Connor should have remained unspoiled his whole life. There needs to be some true good left in the realms.

I shift so I’m kneeling between his legs and cup his cheek, gently lifting his head. “Con. Look at me.”

He whimpers, and his haunted gaze meets mine. “I was such a coward.” A tear slowly trails down his cheek, and another pang echoes through my chest. He is a warrior angel, raised to fight in the Heavenly Host, but theory and reality are very different.

“She was dead when you found her, big guy.” I move closer and press my forehead to his.

There is another loud knock on the front door. “I’m here to speak to Mr. Morningstar.” The headmaster’s voice rumbles through the dorm, carrying into the bathroom even though there are two doors separating us. Within a few moments, his tall build fills the doorway. I wipe the tears from Connor’s face but look up at the headmaster, surprised to see him in something other than his tailored suit. He’s wearing well-fitted dark jeans and a sweater that hugs every muscle.

“Mr. Morningstar. Miss Tuatha De Daanan.” Even his voice is different. It’s less icy, though there is still no warmth in it.

I stand and offer Connor my hand to help him up.

“We have some things to discuss,” the headmaster continues, gesturing for us to leave the bathroom. The headmaster leads the way back into the living room, and I make sure to keep myself between him and Connor. Alice offers Connor a glass of water.

I sit on the couch next to Connor, and the headmaster picks up one of the dining room chairs, placing it across the coffee table from us. I forgot how suffocating his presence is in a normal-sized room. His silver eyes slide over me before settling on Connor. Every nerve in my body lights up with that single look, and I know he has seen more than any of us wants.

Connor swallows, placing his hand on my thigh, and I link my arm around his, holding onto his wrist.

“Did you see?—”

“I did.” The headmaster nods solemnly. His face gives nothing away, but his eyes whirl, the silver alive. “Her family has been notified, and we will release a notification to the school once they collect her.”

I shift against Connor, and the headmaster immediately turns his attention to me as if he is hyper aware of my every breath. “Who was she?”

He lifts his chin, his gaze locked on mine, caging me there. “She was a third-year fae. Gia Tuatha De Daanan.”

Connor closes his eyes, and I look at him, placing my other hand on his arm. I scoot even closer, pressing against his side as if I can protect him from the horrors he witnessed. If I could, I would soak them from his skin and into me. What’s a few more in a lifetime of them?

“What were you doing on campus so early, Mr. Morningstar?” the headmaster asks, and my eyes flash back to him.

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