Page 40 of Shattered & Returned

Sebastian lounged nearby, flashing that flawless smile. Gorgeous, yes, but he didn’t make my pulse stutter the way Ravencrux did. My pulse spiked as I noticed the sudden silence, the weight of every gaze locking onto us.

Shit.

“Baguette tastes like home, doesn’t it?”the golden boy said.

My fingers tightened around my fork. How had he dug up my origins so quickly?

He dropped into the seat beside me without invitation. Sindy gaped, starstruck.

“Thank you,”I said, dabbing my lips with a napkin. His eyes tracked the movement, lingering before meeting mine again.“The coq au vin is excellent.”

I set the napkin deliberately on my lap, conscious not to make any dramatic moves to attract the predator.

“The duck confit is better,”he said, leaning in. “I could show you that. In private dining. Among other things.”

A proposition. A temptation.

“I grew up simply,”I said, holding his gaze.“I don’t hunger for finery. This is enough.”

A knowing glint flickered in his eyes, as if we’d met long before today. It reminded me of that same unsettling recognition in Orren, Dante, and Morrigan when they’d stormed into my garden. The coincidence prickled the back of my neck.

“You deserve every luxury,”he purred, before leaning close enough that his breath warmed my ear.“But be warned. This place isn’t safe for you. You’ll need my protection.”

“I can handle myself.”

“I don’t doubt your skill.”His smile didn’t reach his eyes.“But you’re new. You don’t see the rot festering beneath these ancient marble halls.”His voice dropped further.“When death comes knocking on your door, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Nero Ravencrux isn’t just dangerous. He’s dark and twisted. A psychopath! Unfortunately for you, he has his eyes fixed on you, and nothing good follows that unwanted attention. Get close, and he’ll ruin you.”

I already knew Ravencrux had marked me. Sindy had confirmed no other student had ever been detained by him. His threats had been clear, though not of death but something more intimate: ruin, disgrace, the slow unraveling of everything I was.

A cold knot tightened in my stomach. I’d known he was dangerous from the first moment our eyes met. Known it in the way prey recognizes a predator.

Sebastian’s smile deepened at my unease, and my right eye twitched—whether fromhisproximity or the mention of Ravencrux, I couldn’t tell.

“He’s charmed countless naive women with that brooding act,”Sebastian continued, voice slick with disdain.“They line up for him like he’s the forbidden fruit. And redheads?”His gaze lingered on my hair.“His favorite.”

White-hot fury seared through me. Images of Nero with other women—their limbs tangled, his hands ontheminstead of me—flashed behind my eyes. The urge toriptore through me: to bleed Nero’s flesh, to claw Sebastian’s smug lips raw for putting those images in my head.

I recoiled from my own violence.“My sweet, meek daughter.”That’s what Mom had always called me. Yet here I was, fingers strangling my fork, my other hand a shaking fist under the table. One reckless move, and I’d stab it into Sebastian, warningor not.

“But isn’t it forbidden? Professor-student…relations?”I fought to steady my voice, but heat flooded my cheeks regardless.

Sebastian’s gaze darkened with desire at my blush, and my pulse jumped. Two days here, and already I’d drawn the attention of the academy’s most dangerous men—while back home, not a single French boy in the town had bothered to speak to me. Was America different? Or was it simply that Sebastian and Ravencrux weren’t ordinary men at all?

“Oh, it’s forbidden for a professor to fuck a student,”he said, fingers tracing the rim of his glass.“But rules have never stopped Ravencrux.”

My head snapped up, scanning the hall—but Sindy’s glazed expression confirmed she heard nothing. A faint shimmer in the air indicated a sound barrier. Clever.

“You mean he’s actually broken that rule before?”

“Repeatedly.”Sebastian’s lip curled in distaste.“With half the redheads in his advanced classes.”

“Then why hasn’t he been fired or arrested?”

“He’s never been caught.”His knuckles whitened around his fork.“He’s meticulous. Leaves no traces.”

I quietly studied him while rage still simmered in my veins, though tempered by suspicion. These were the words of Ravencrux’s rival—hardly impartial. History had taught me how easily truths were twisted in personal vendettas. I’d only trust what I saw.

“He’s a pervert,”Sebastian added.“The kind that enjoys breaking his toys.”

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