Tate frowned. “Have you heard from her?”
Xinyi exchanged a look with Iris. “She texted me. She’s coming back today but… she seemed off.”
A growing dread grew at Xinyi’s words. That dread only grew as I moved from the cafeteria to the classroom, not quite aware of how I’d even gotten there. I certainly didn’t remember anything the professor said nor did I care.
This terrible sensation continued as I crowded into the halls, where students moved like herds of cattle headed for slaughter.
I’d never been in the auditorium. Never had a reason to. This time, I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be to watch some silly little musical put on my fellow poorly taught students.
The room was dim. The stairs moved in a downward motion leading up to the stage rows and rows of chair spread out through the room.
Halfway down the steps, my gaze slid up to the stage where a podium stood and several familiar faces congregated. It was as if they had stepped out of one of my nightmares, ready to chop my head off for offending their delicate sense.
The Durands.
Tate caught up to me. “Hey, what are you…?” His gaze followed mine to the stage, his brow furrowing. “Wait, I know them… I saw them—”
“They’re the Durands,” I snipped, stepping into a nearby row as a silver-haired vampire moved in front of the podium.
Muffled whispered spread through the room until they went silent at the daunting presence of the head of the Durand household.
“Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules,” Antoine Durand began, his voice so arrogant that it took everything in me not to throw myself onto the stage and attack him right then and there. “Your education here is of the utmost importance to us, and we want to make sure we are continuing to promote supernatural unity amongst the species.”
My jaw tightened, and my fingers curled into fists on the arms of my chair.
“Kyren,” Tate murmured, placing a hand on my knee. “Breathe.”
I couldn’t hear him over the thudding of my heart in my ears. Everything just raged and screamed thattheykilled Kleon.
“There will be several changes in the coming months,” Antoine continued, his gaze sweeping out across the crowd, “and I hope you will all help us to welcome the hunters to our cause, as some of their junior members join our student body.”
There was an uproar from the crowd, unsurprising with his announcement. No one wanted to study alongside those who might one day be their judge, jury, and executioner.
When Antoine couldn’t get the crowd to quieten on his own, his powers pushed out over us. “Silence.”
My throat closed up, any attempt to make a sound completely rendered useless. Tate grabbed at his neck, a panicked expression on his face. That’s right, he’d never been at the receiving end of such power.
Pushing my anger down, I laced my fingers with his, giving him a reassuring look before turning my attention back to the stage.
“I know this must be a shock to many of you, and I understand your apprehension, but if we wish the hunters to know us andunderstand us, what better way than to have them live and study alongside you?”
No one said anything, still choking on his command. A power like that could control nations. It could create and end worlds. And yet, he used it to fuck with the supernatural populace here.
One could be grateful for tiny miracles.
Antoine sucked in a breath and glanced over at the blonde female on stage with him, who gave him a subtle nod and smile.
“Along with the hunters, you will have a very special guest, someone who I and my family cherish more than anything else in this world. She has already been living amongst you seeing how the school works, but she — we — have decided now is an appropriate time to drop all the pretenses.”
A sinking feeling grew in my chest. Tate’s hand smacked mine repeatedly, trying to say something but unable to.
“I would like you all to welcome our daughter, Jaquelynn Durand.”
The doors to the auditorium slammed open and, almost in slow motion, I turned in my seat, my eyes moving to the head of the stairs. A thick emotion in my throat made it difficult to swallow as my eyes landed on the very woman I had been trying to find all weekend.
Jack walked down the stairs one at a time, her eyes sliding over the room until they settled on Tate and me. For a moment, I thought I saw a flicker of regret, then those gorgeous eyes I’d spent so many hours gazing into grew cold.
I jerked to my feet. Desperate to get to her, to shake her, to demand her to tell me it wasn’t true. I couldn’t be. This was a trick. A lie. Something they cooked up to fuck with me.
