Bloodline Secrecy: A Young Adult Urban Fantasy Academy Novel (Bloodline Academy Book 2), Lan Chan [readict TXT] 📗

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I’m sorry, have we met?”

He teleported away. I hopped off the railing and spun in a circle, thinking he was playing a trick. A minute later he returned with a picnic basket. “What’s that?”

“Dynamite,” he said. “What do you think it is?”

He opened the basket and laid out food on the wooden table inside the gazebo. He opened his mouth and then shut it again. I could tell he had been about to just issue another command. He held out his hand. “Would you like to have dinner with me?”

So polite. I was definitely in trouble.

25

Kai teleported me back to the dorms after dinner. He decided not to make an appearance in the girls’ wing this time. Sophie and Diana were both in the room when I walked in. They practically jumped on me.

“I don’t care how private it was,” Sophie said. “You’re telling us everything!”

“I believe that’s my cue to get out of here,” Basil said. He marched out the door before I could close it, a note I’d written for him balanced precariously over his head.

“Umm....”

“Don’t even think about trying to weasel your way out of it,” Diana said. She was sitting on my bed, her legs tucked underneath her. “Everybody in the dining hall saw him teleport you out.”

I looked from one of them to the other. Their faces were set in grim determination. “I’m not sure what’s happening,” I said.

“Bullshit!” Diana said. “You’re redder than an orangutan’s butt right now.”

“Thanks for the visual.”

“You’re welcome. Now return the favour. Did he kiss you or not?”

My face cracked into a smile before I could stop it. They leaped up and high-fived each other. “I knew it!” Sophie said.

“Can we please just calm down,” I said, pushing Diana aside a little so I could get some room on my own bed.

“Calm down?” Sophie said. “This is the biggest bit of gossip to hit this place in years.”

“I think the fact that we’re facing down a squad of assassins overshadows whatever might be happening between Kai and me.”

“I said gossip, not reality.”

“You guys are acting like he’s never dated anyone before.”

Sophie turned her head to the side, her expression quizzical. “Actually, now that you mention it, I can’t actually remember the last girl he dated.”

“Wasn’t there that one from Seraphina?”

Sophie shook her head. “I don’t think he dated her.”

This was not the conversation that I’d had in mind. Seeing the look on my face, Sophie changed tactic. “Anyway, the point is, Kai hasn’t been serious about anyone since we’ve known him. So yeah, this is massive.”

I didn’t like the sound of that. I’d been so wrapped up in the fear of him dying if Lucifer got wind of my attachment to him. I never thought about what it would mean in a practical sense. My stomach knotted. Diana tugged my sleeve.

“Hey,” she said. “It’s not going to be that bad. You’re pretty much ostracised anyway, right? Might as well have it be for a good reason.”

“I guess.”

Diana lay back and flapped her arms. “Now we just have to work on that one and Max.” She indicated Sophie with her thumb.

“Don’t even go there,” Sophie said. Her expression darkened.

“What happened?” I asked.

She balled her fists. “He somehow found out about the board asking me to help be a guard and decided to voice his opinion about it. Like he owns me or something.”

“He is a shifter,” Diana said.

“I don’t care!”

Diana traded a look with me. I couldn’t blame Sophie for being defensive. “What about you?” Sophie asked me. “Or is there even any point asking.”

I had thought about saying no for about three seconds. But I knew myself too well. “I’m going to do it.”

“You may as well get paid for it,” Diana said. “You’re way too paranoid to just let it go.”

I swatted at her. “You know what, smarty-pants? Let’s talk about this thing you have for Evan McKinnon, shall we.”

She went deadly stiff. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Evan just tutors me in Dead Languages.”

“Yeah right,” Sophie said. “As if you need his help!”

We spent the rest of the night laughing and joking. It made me feel like maybe things would be okay. That was the thing with delusions.

The next week proved my assessment that there were things Malachi Pendragon did that the rest of us mere mortals would never get away with. So many of the looks I was getting were with slitted eyes. Like they were hoping I would just drop dead. I wanted to say it didn’t affect me but that would be an outright lie.

On the Monday, the first time I’d seen Kai properly since the gazebo, his expression was drawn tight. We met on the portal field for my appointment to see Skander. My eyes tracked to the demon blade he held awkwardly in his right hand. It jerked and hissed as though it didn’t want to be touched by him.

“I thought we agreed you wouldn’t run,” he said. He didn’t seem to care that Astrid was standing right beside him. I held my hand out for the demon blade. He dropped it into my grip without ceremony.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said. Maybe I had been avoiding him just a little. It was just that he had this way of monopolising the attention in the room. Now that the cat was out of the bag, he seemed to be doing that ridiculous guy thing where he was marking his territory. He’d come close to punching Roland just for opening a door for me when my arms were full of books. It was a two second interaction that had the gossip mill turning for days.

I could see the vein in his jaw throbbing. “Since you didn’t care to have this conversation in private, I’m going to assume you don’t mind me interjecting,” Astrid said. She was hugging her elbows in a relaxed