Bloodline Diplomacy: A Young Adult Urban Fantasy Academy Novel (Bloodline Academy Book 3), Lan Chan [best way to read an ebook .TXT] 📗

She rubbed at her chin. “I’m almost terrified to try,” she said. Then she saw the look on my face. “I said almost. But if there’s anyone qualified enough to do it, we’re the ones.”

Oddly enough, she turned around and skimmed her fingers over some of the books in the loaded shelf behind her desk. She pulled out a thin-spined one that looked like it had been very loved. When she handed it to me, I saw that it wasn’t a book but a journal.

“This has been handed down to us for centuries,” she said. “Your great-grandmother was the last one to own it. There are some notations in there about bone witches. It’s not an ability that we’ve had much contact with. But you might be able to make more sense of it than we can on that small front.”

I latched on to it greedily. She didn’t let go straight away. “Bear in mind that if you try any of this, I want you to do it inside a protective circle. Not your usual one. A circle that contains your power rather than amplifies it.”

I nodded. She gave up her prize. I swallowed hard and touched the old black leather cover. It was well-worn but also well-kept. At least my great-grandmother wasn’t messy.

“You understand why you can’t reveal what you can do to the monsters?” she asked. “If they know that you can tap into the power of the river of souls, they’ll label you a threat. I understand your friend Sophie has felt the taint of that brush before. And she was only touched by association. Being able to harness the power of the dead is not something to be taken lightly. They will want you contained.”

“How do you know so much about the supernatural world?”

“We’ve had a lot of time to watch them while they believed we were extinct. It’s a shame Sophie has spent so long with the shifters. She would have been a great addition to our ranks.”

“Why does it have to be one or the other?”

She cocked her head like I was asking something silly. “Because that’s how power works. There can only be one alpha.”

“Two,” I corrected. “Male and female.”

“It amounts to the same thing. We’re not living in a time of peace. Sooner or later you’ll have to choose, Alessia. Your friend seems to have already chosen.” An alarm beeped on her phone. It still tripped me out whenever someone took out their devices and checked them. I hadn’t even turned my phone on. Not that I’d had a chance between getting half-drowned and all.

“Time’s up. I can tell you this has been truly enlightening. I wish we’d had the chance to get to you earlier. Next time I’m bringing in somebody else who is proficient in soul splitting to join us.” She brushed a stand of hair that had come out of her bun when I’d shocked her with the dark power.

Somebody knocked on the door. I thought it might be another student but it ended up being Jessica. She popped her head in, saw me, and nodded. “Sam,” she said. “There’s been another incident.”

Samantha’s spine went rigid. “Which facility?”

“Geelong.”

“Alright, I’m coming now. Alessia was just about to head off to her next class.”

I understood the dismissal but not the hurry. “Facility?”

She waved me off. “We’ll talk about it another time. Someone else will be able to fill you in.”

They put their heads together, and Sam grabbed for what I saw were charms from the top drawer of her desk. At that moment, she looked the part of the head of a witch coven.

I went up to my room and grabbed the phone. Somebody had already done the hard work of installing everything. That was good because I didn’t have the slightest clue about sim cards or the like. I had heard a lot of talk about it when I jumped on the trains to get out of the cold, but it was all gibberish to me.

I scrolled through until I saw the downloaded icon and opened up the document that was my timetable. Curious. I had a class with Ashton now. Maybe this was part of my studies into animal agriculture. They tended to blend the magical with the practical in this place. Maybe I’d get to milk a cow. I stowed Hilary Hastings’ diary in my suitcase and left.

When I reached the lawn beside the big paulownia tree, I came to a halt. There were a few other students milling around including the Evil Three and Rachel. But they were peripheral to what I was focused on. Sitting on the grass were a number of metallic weapons. I’d never seen the likes of them before, but the sharpened points on the machine that looked like a gigantic crossbow didn’t leave much to the imagination.

“Alessia.” Ashton grinned.

“Ahh...hi.” I took a step closer.

Harlow smirked at me. “Come over here,” she said. “Let me show you the angel killer.”

I could feel my face morphing into a grimace. “The what?”

Rachel grabbed her arm and pulled her away, speaking furiously into her ear. I turned to Ashton. “What did she just call that thing?” I pointed to the crossbow machine.

“Nothing,” he said. “Ignore her.”

A furry head appeared at my side. Phoenix nudged my palm until I patted him on the head. “That doesn’t look like nothing. It looks like it could pierce right through armour.”

“Nah,” Winnie said. She ran a hand lovingly over the notched metal arrow. “It doesn’t need to go through armour. Just bones. Like the ones in the wings of a Nephilim.”

I stared at her for a second before taking a step forward. My eyes flicked between them and the thing sitting like war refuse on the lawn.

“What kind of class is this?” I said. “It says Containment of Beasts on the timetable.”

Harlow flung Rachel off her. “What kind of beasts did you think we were