“Get dressed and get downstairs. Now.” His cold gaze swept over my rumpled clothes with obvious disgust. “We’re leaving immediately.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” I said, surprised by the steadiness of my own voice. “I’m an adult, and I can make my own decisions about where I spend my time. And you can leave Amelia here too?—”
The backhanded slap came so fast I barely saw it coming. The force of it sent me stumbling backward, my cheek burning with pain and humiliation. But what hurt worse was the satisfied look on my father’s face.
“You will not speak to me that way,” he said quietly. “And you will certainly not embarrass our family by whoring yourself out to a vampire.”
Rage flooded through me, hot and immediate. “Don’t you dare?—”
“Silence.” The word cracked like a whip, backed by magical compulsion that made my throat seize up. I tried to speak, tried to curse him out, but no sound would come.
Amelia stared at me, her brows knitted in fury. And I realized suddenly that she was under the same spell.
I heard footsteps on the stairs, and a moment later Valen appeared behind my father. His amber eyes were blazing with fury, his fangs fully extended, and there was something absolutely deadly in his expression that made even my father’s enforcers take a step back.
“Remove your spell from him,” Valen said, his voice dropping to a growl that raised the hair on my arms. “Now.”
“I don’t think so,” my father replied, not even bothering to turn around. “My son needs to learn when to keep his mouth shut. Another thing I clearly haven’t drilled into his head well enough.”
The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees as Valen’s control slipped further. “You have three seconds to release that compulsion before I show you exactly what this vampire is capable of.”
“Are you threatening me?” My father finally turned, and I saw him pale slightly when he got a good look at Valen in full predatory mode. “Because I should remind you that assaulting a member of the Quinn family would be... inadvisable. I’m a major donator to this school. Dean Thornfield is on his way now. You’re already in enough trouble for fucking your students, youbeast.”
The words silenced the room. I watched Valen’s expression shift from fury to something that looked almost like resignation. Dean Thornfield. Of course my father had called in the one person who could actually threaten Valen’s position at the academy.
I tried again to speak, to defend him, to tell my father exactly what I thought of his manipulative bullshit, but the compulsion held firm. All I could do was stand there helplessly while the man I loved faced the consequences of caring about me.
“Mr. Quinn,” Valen said carefully, his fangs retracting as he forced himself back under control. “I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“Has there?” My father’s smile was cold and triumphant. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ve been taking advantage of your position to seduce one of your students. My son, specifically.”
“That’s not what happened,” Valen replied, but I could hear the strain in his voice. He was trying to protect me, trying to find some way out of this that wouldn’t destroy both our futures.
“Isn’t it?” My father took a step forward, knowing he had the upper hand now. “Because I have quite a bit of evidence that suggests otherwise. Witness testimony about private historylessons. And more witnesses that saw you’ve been having visitors after hours to your private cottage. And now finding him in your bedroom, wearing the same clothes from yesterday, with the stench of your disgusting practices filling the room.”
My heart sank as I realized how thoroughly my father had been watching me, gathering ammunition for exactly this moment. Every private conversation, every lingering glance, every time I’d thought we were being careful, someone had been watching. And now he had a substantial case against us.
“The boy is clearly infatuated with you,” my father continued, his voice dripping with disgust. “Taking advantage of that infatuation makes you a predator, regardless of whatever feelings you think you might have. But I guess you can’t help it. That’s what your kind is after all.”
“I love him,” Valen said quietly, and the simple honesty in his voice made my chest ache. “This isn’t some casual fling or abuse of power. I love your son.”
My father laughed, the sound sharp and mocking. “Love? You’re a creature that feeds on blood, Professor Crowe. What you call love is nothing more than addiction to what he provides you. I won’t be selling off my child to be your personal blood bank.”
The words were designed to cut deep, and I saw them hit their mark in the way Valen’s shoulders tensed. But before he could respond, I heard heavy footsteps on the stairs. Dean Thornfield appeared behind Valen, his expression grim and tired.
“Professor Crowe,” he said, his voice carefully neutral. “Mr. Quinn. I think we need to have a conversation.”
“Indeed we do,” my father replied. “I want this vampire removed from the school immediately. And I want charges filed for the seduction and corruption of a minor.”
“I’m twenty-one,” I tried to say, but of course no sound came out.
“Archer is an adult,” Valen said, speaking carefully. “And there was no corruption.”
Dean Thornfield’s gaze shifted between my father and Valen, his expression unreadable. “Mr. Quinn, while I appreciate your concerns, these are serious allegations that require a proper investigation, not immediate action based on?—”
“Investigation?” My father’s voice rose, his composure finally cracking. “I found them practically in bed together! What more investigation do you need?”
“The nature of their relationship, for starters,” Thornfield replied calmly. “Professor Crowe is correct that your son is legally an adult. If this is a consensual relationship between two adults, then the primary concern becomes the professional ethics violation, not criminal charges.”
