Page 51 of Darkness and Deceit
“Be careful,” she says, voice low. “Come back to me.”
And then her lips are on mine.
It’s fast. Fierce. Like she’s burning it into my mouth in case it’s the last. I cup her face, fingers threaded through her hair, anchoring myself in her warmth for a single, fragile second?—
Then Vaughn grabs her and kisses her like he’s promising war.
Simon doesn’t wait. He pulls her back toward the door, already calling on his bear. Light flares around his knuckles as they vanish down the hall.
I watch her go.
Every part of me wants to follow. To keep her in reach, in shadow, in safety. But I can’t. I need to know she’s somewhere safe—out of the blast radius, away from the front lines—so I can stop holding back and do what I do best.
Hunt.
Strike.
Eliminate.
I turn back to the window.
The blue fire is closer now, blazing through the woods like it has a score to settle. The Rogues’ silhouettes stretch long across the field. The whistles echo. Their blades gleam.
I grab my katana from under the bed, and the shadows answer my call without hesitation.
I let the stillness settle over me. I let the rage come next. Let the bloodlust bloom. Let them come.
I’ve been waiting for this. And if I get to carve through a few of them for daring to wake my mate when she was finally sleeping peacefully?
Even better.
Seventeen
VAUGHN
Lilith’s kiss still burnson my lips, like it’s carved into my damn soul.
The last thing I saw was her retreating figure disappearing down the spiral stairwell with Simon, a burst of light illuminating their path before they vanished altogether, while Kai darted off in the opposite direction, already enveloped by the inky tendrils of his shadows.
And just like that, we’re scattered like leaves in a storm.
I stand there for half a second, my fists clenched so tight my knuckles turn white, pulse pounding like a war drum in my throat, echoing the urgency in my chest.
Then I move.
I snatch my jacket from the floor, shove my arms through the sleeves, and let the rage settle low and tight behind my ribs.
I bolt into the corridor, blue magic flaring across my hands, my wolf right behind me. “Fuck,” I mutter, the full weight of everything crashing into me like a cold wave.
The Rogues are here.
Attackingthe academy.
And this time… this time, it’s war.
I’ll burn the entire fucking forest down before I let them get to the people I care about.
I barrel down the stairs, skipping half of them. By the time I hit the ground level, I’m already covered in a crackling sheen of light. The courtyard looms ahead, flickering with firelight and chaos. Spells crackle, students shout, shadows spill from every direction.
