Graduating (Covenant College Book 5) Read online

  “I’m here looking for my roommate,” I said. “I know she’s here. Where is she?”

  “How do you know she’s here?” Blake asked.

  “I have inside information,” I said.

  “Meaning?”

  “I’m magical, haven’t you heard?” There was no way I was going to reveal my witchy help.

  “I think you’re only magical in certain circumstances,” Reagan said. “And, since you haven’t been trained, even you have no idea how to control your powers. What happened last spring was a fluke.”

  “What about what happened the spring before?”

  Reagan faltered, if only slightly. I knew I’d caught him off guard. “And what was that?”

  “I fried my roommate and sent her to that great big coven in the sky.”

  “You said she ran away,” Blake said. “That was a lie?”

  “There’s no limit to the number of lies I’ve told you,” I said. “In fact, the amount of truth I’ve told you is so miniscule you’d need a magnifying glass to find it – just like your penis.”

  Will snorted, fighting to tamp down his laugh. “What? It was funny.”

  Blake scowled. “You have been nothing but trouble since the moment you landed on this campus,” he said. “I can’t tell you how glad I am that you’ll be gone after today.”

  I ignored the threat. “Where is Paris?”

  No one answered me.

  “Mark.”

  He refused to look at me.

  “Mark!”

  He reluctantly turned his head, his eyes a mirror of confusion and uncertainty. “We already knew you were still with the Academy,” I said. “We knew you were lying all this time.”

  “H-h-how?”

  “Aric and I saw you out at a restaurant together in the fall,” I said.

  “So, what, you’ve been playing with me all of this time?”

  “Don’t be such girl. If it’s any consolation, I wanted to believe you when you approached us at the UC that day. I couldn’t quite bring myself to. You admitted being weak, which I know is true, but I just couldn’t fathom how you could suddenly find courage. I guess I was right.”

  “Don’t listen to her,” Blake snapped. “She’s still playing games.”

  “If you’ve known I was with them all this time, why didn’t you say something?”

  “We needed information,” I said. “Blake took Rafael. We wanted to know where he took him. Is he here, too?”

  “Oh, your little vampire has been taken care of,” Blake said.

  My heart flopped painfully. “You killed him?”

  “What did you expect? You let that … thing … glamour me. You poked holes in my memory.”

  “Well, he wanted to poke holes in your chest with his fingers,” I said. “I saved your life.”

  “After burning my sister alive,” he spat back.

  “That bitch had it coming,” I said. “She was a sociopath.”

  “I’m going to love watching you die,” Blake seethed. “It’s going to be the best thing to happen to me in four years.”

  “Maybe you should try getting laid,” I suggested. “You seem to need an outlet for some of your … frustration.”

  “You always go to the crude, don’t you?”

  “Whenever possible.” I turned back to Reagan. “What’s your game here? You obviously want to wipe out the bulk of the Alpha Chis. Is this part of that whole plural-marriage thing you have planned?”

  Reagan frowned. “I see Mr. Winters has been chatty.”

  “He talks in his sleep. Hey, Will, does Brittany know you want to make her have sister wives?”

  Will scorched me with a look. “What? Don’t you know? You were supposed to be my first wife, before you went and ruined everything.”

  I mimed gagging. “I’m not a wolf.”

  “But you have certain other attributes,” Reagan said. “For years, we’ve been trying to get you on our side. After last spring, it became apparent that your worth was outweighed by the work associated with taming you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Now you’re just an obstacle, Ms. Lake,” Reagan said. “You’re an obstacle that we can’t afford to stumble over again.”

  “Is that why you took Rafael?”

  “No. He was looking into things he shouldn’t have been,” Reagan said. “We took him to keep him quiet.”

  “Revenge was just an added bonus,” Blake sneered.

  “What about Paris?”

  “Oh, her capture was merely fortuitous,” Reagan said. “Spying on us was stupid. Separating from each other was idiotic.”

  “How did you get ahead of her?”

  “We had an operative waiting in the woods just in case,” Blake said. “One that would give your precious Paris some pause.”

  Realization hit me like a ton of bricks. I swiveled, fixing Mark with a hateful look. “You? You took her? You took her knowing what they were going to do? Come on, Mark. I knew you were a coward … but to do this? What is wrong with you?”

  Mark had the grace to look ashamed.

  I glanced back at Will. “And what’s your part in all of this? Have they promised to give you first pick of wives in the new wolf order?”

  Will’s smile was small – and evil. “Something like that. Of course, my first pick is out of the question now.”

  “Trust me, Will, you wouldn’t want me as a wife,” I said. “I’m the type of wife who would hack off your manhood – if I could still find it, that is – while you were sleeping. Instead of dumping it in a field, though, I would have fed it to you on a bun with ketchup.”

  Will cringed at the visual.

  “Ms. Lake, as amusing as I find your … vulgarity, I am on a bit of a schedule here,” Reagan said. “We knew you would come after your roommate. We were expecting you. We’ve been a step ahead of you your entire tenure here.”

  “Then how come you keep losing?”

  “Have we lost? Because you came to us,” Reagan said.

  “I do have a question,” I said suddenly, a thought occurring to me. “Before you kill me, I do need clarification on a subject.”

  “Go on.”

  “How did you convince the vampires to work for you? I mean, without another resurrection stone – and someone to wield it – how have you swayed them to your side?”

  “I have a handful of … friends in certain circles,” Reagan said. “We exchange soldiers from time to time. The soldiers in question can be bought off with certain … food products.”

  Bile rose up in my throat. “You fed them?”

  “Everyone needs to eat,” Reagan said. “Do you have any idea how feral a vampire who doesn’t feed is? They’re like wild animals.”

  Something clicked into place. “The bodies at the library, you fed the vampires with them, didn’t you?”

  “Smart girl.”

  “Why did you put the bodies on display like that? And how?”

  “It wasn’t as difficult as you might expect,” Reagan said. “I paid a local witch to cast a spell that hid our actions for a certain amount of time. We were right there – visible for all to see – and yet they had no idea what they were seeing. Magic does have certain uses.”

  “You were actually there for it?”

  “I had to make sure it was done right,” Reagan said. “If you want something done correctly, then you have to do it yourself.”

  “And what was the point?”

  “I was just actually looking for something to distract you,” Reagan said. “It had to be something big. I figured, if you were looking there – looking at those bodies – then you wouldn’t be focusing your attention in other areas.”

  “You’re the one who managed to keep their identities secret,” I said. “I knew that it had to be someone powerful to arrange something like that.”

  “You are certainly smarter than you look.”

  “You know, people are going to figure this out,” I said. “Even if you manage to kil
l me – which I don’t think you’re capable of doing – people are going to still catch you.”

  “You’re cute,” Reagan said. “I can see why Will and Mr. Winters are so drawn to you. You have a certain … attractive quality. Of course, to spend any time with you, someone would have to cut out your tongue.”

  I blew a raspberry out at him – just because it seemed fitting. Where was Aric? He should have been here by now.

  Almost as if he was reading my mind, Reagan smiled. “Mr. Winters has been delayed, I’m sure. We sent a cadre of Will’s wolves to deal with him. Even if he manages to get past them, which is doubtful, he won’t make it here in time to save you.”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Well then, why don’t you show me Paris and get on with it? I’m starting to get bored. Don’t you have a rally to get to?”

  “Very right,” Reagan said, tapping his watch. “Well, since you’re so desperate to see your roommate, why don’t we give you what you want?”

  I remained where I was standing, my hands clenched at my sides, as Reagan motioned to Will. “Open the door.”

  Will nodded, slipping behind the other three men and pushing the rickety wooden door at the back of the basement open. “She’s in here.”

  “And you think I’m just going to trust you and walk into a dark room? Do you think I’m stupid?”

  Will smirked. “I happen to know you’re stupid. But, if you insist.” Will strode into the room. I kept my eyes on Reagan, Blake and Mark, making sure none of them tried to jump me.

  After a few moments, an earth-shattering scream echoed from the room. I recognized that it originated from Paris right away. I took a step forward, rage coursing through me. “Let her go.”

  “No,” Reagan said. “You’re not in charge here. I’m in charge here. If you want your roommate, then you’re going to join her in that room.”

  “I thought you wanted to kill me,” I challenged. “What good does locking me in a room do?”

  “Who says your roommate is alone in there?”

  I faltered. “What’s in there?”

  “Your roommate.”

  “What did you do to her?”

  “I guess you’ll have to find out,” Reagan pressed. “Now, chop-chop. I’m on a schedule.”

  I hated him. I wanted to incinerate him where he stood. Odds were not in my favor, though. Even if I could manage to take two of them out – that left another two to deal with.

  Blake reached over, grabbing my arm and leading me toward the room. “I’m going to make you pay for this,” I promised.

  “What you don’t seem to realize is that this is me making you pay for killing my sister,” Blake replied. “Don’t worry. I plan to record your screams. If Aric does survive, I’m going to play them for him so he can hear you die himself. I think he’ll appreciate it.”

  “I think he’s going to rip your head off,” I shot back.

  Will was back in the doorframe, a sick and twisted look on his face. “It’s too bad you couldn’t follow the program, Zoe. I think you would have made a great first wife.”

  “I think you’re a dickless wonder,” I said. “I also think you’re going to get everything that’s coming to you.”

  Blake shoved me into the room – and perpetual darkness. Before the door shut, I heard a scuffle behind me.

  “What are you doing?” I recognized Will’s voice.

  “While you’ve been a great help,” Reagan said. “Your services are no longer required.”

  “What? You promised me a position in your cabinet.”

  “I’m a politician,” Reagan replied. “I lied.”

  The door slammed shut, cutting off the small trail of light from the adjacent room and trapping us all inside.

  I heard the growling at the far end of the room almost instantly.

  “Great. Now what?”

  Thirty-Seven

  Will was banging on the door, screaming like a maniac. “Let me out of here! You liar! You filthy liar! You let me out of here right now!”

  “Stop your crying, Will,” I said. “You had to have known they would cut your throat at some point. When you ally yourself with snakes, sooner or later you’re going to get bit.”

  “Do you have any idea what’s in here?” Will asked.

  “Paris, I’m assuming.” I reached out with my hands. “Paris, can you hear me?”

  I heard whimpering and followed the noise, my hands finding a warm and shaking body in the dark. “Are you hurt?”

  “They have me tied up,” she said, her voice hoarse. I had a feeling she’d been screaming all night.

  I felt up and down her body, finally finding restraints at her ankles and wrists. “Hold on.”

  “Hurry up,” Paris said. “We’re about to be in a whole world of trouble.”

  “It gets worse than this? How?”

  The room suddenly went from dark to light, causing me to flinch as an overhead bulb snapped to life. When my eyes adjusted, I looked around. We were in a small room – with a cage grate on the opposite end. The grate was still locked down, but whatever had been growling a few moments before was now throwing itself against the metal as soon as it caught sight of us.

  I focused on Paris. Her face was pale and dirty, her eyes red from crying. Other than that, she didn’t appear to have been hurt. That was one thing to be thankful for – a very small thing.

  I managed to untie her ankles, even though my hands were shaking. The rope securing her wrists was another story. “I can’t reach. Will, stop beating on that door and get your ass over here.”

  “Screw you!”

  “They’re about to let loose whatever is in that cage down there,” I said. “I’m going to let it eat you if you don’t help me.”

  “It’s going to eat me regardless,” Will said. “I’m hoping it goes after the two of you first. You’ll probably give it indigestion.”

  I scowled, focusing back on the ropes. “Do you know what’s in there?” I asked Paris.

  She shook her head, biting her bottom lip to keep from crying. “Whatever it is, it’s just been in there growling and screaming for hours. How long have I been gone?”

  “About fifteen hours,” I said, gritting my teeth as I tugged on the rope fruitlessly.

  “How did you find me?”

  “Your mom.”

  “My mom?” Paris choked on the words. “My mom is here?”

  “She’s outside,” I said. “She’s safe. I told her to wait for Aric.”

  “They’re sending wolves after Aric,” Paris said. “They plan on killing him.”

  “Well, I guess it’s a good thing that he’s not alone,” I said. “His father sent reinforcements. I’m sure they handled the situation.”

  “What do you mean?” Will was suddenly focused on us. “Winters isn’t dead?”

  “Shut your mouth,” I said. “I can’t even stand looking at you. You’re trash.”

  “I’m an important person,” Will said, kicking the ground angrily. “I’m an important person.”

  “Then why are you locked in here with us?” I challenged. “Face it, Will. They used you. And, now that you’re a liability, they cut you loose. Killing you with us was an easy solution, you moron.”

  “It was Mark,” Paris said. “He was in the bushes. I thought I was safe when I saw him, but then … .”

  “Yeah, I know,” I said. “He was out there. I’m going to beat the crap out of him when we get out of here.”

  “We’re not getting out of here,” Will said, laughing hollowly. “This whole place was constructed to kill you.”

  “I don’t suppose you want to tell me what’s down there chomping at the bit to get out and eat us, do you?”

  “It’s a vampire,” Will said. “We’ve been starving it for months. It’s going to rip us to shreds.”

  Fear clenched at my heart. “What vampire?”

  “You know which one.”

  Rafael. A flash of anger rushed through me, causing spa
rks to fly out of my fingertips. The sparks were so intense, they singed the ropes at Paris’ wrists. I tried again, and the rope burned a little more. I pushed out one more time, and suddenly the rope broke and Paris tumbled to the floor.

  I knelt next to her, watching as she rubbed the circulation back into her wrists. “I hate to do this to you,” I said. “You need to get up, though.”

  “I’m not sure I can.”

  “You have to try. They’re going to let Rafael out any second, and when they do … .”

  “He’s going to eat us,” Paris finished.

  I pursed my lips together. “Unless I … stop him.”

  “Can you stop him?”

  “There’s only one way I know to do it,” I said. “And, frankly, killing the guy who has saved me on occasion and helped me a bunch of other times doesn’t seem like a fun way to go.”

  Paris nodded, struggling to her feet. I helped her to the far end of the room and left her standing at the door. I pointed a warning finger at Will. “If you touch her, you won’t have to worry about Rafael ripping you to shreds. I’ll do it myself.”

  Will made a face. “I hate you.”

  “Right back at you.”

  I approached the cage slowly, hunkering down a safe distance away. The light in the room was dim, but a glance through the grate told me that I didn’t want to see the horrors Rafael had faced over the past few months up close.

  “Hey.”

  The bars of the cage shook as Rafael threw himself against the frame.

  “I know you’re in there somewhere,” I said. “I know it’s hard to focus, but I really need you to try. You have survived this far. I’m going to find a way out of this. I promise. Just … try not to eat us.”

  The cage door jerked upwards, making a grating sound as it disappeared into the wall. There was nothing standing between Rafael and me, no barrier to fight off his hunger.

  He crouched low to the floor and bolted out of the cage. I braced myself for impact, wondering if I had it in me to kill him if I had to. Instead of jumping on me, Rafael streaked to the back of the room.