Descending Into Darkness (Moonlight Academy Book 2)

My jaw dropped and I stared at the piece of paper for a long while, wondering if he was joking.

“Why? I mean why do you have this, but more importantly why are you helping me?” I asked, right before he was just about to walked away. Lachlan was going to ask me the same questions later.

Jeremy smiled at me.

“A very good friend of mine asked me to give this to you,” he said, although that confused me even more. “And please watch out for master Moore. He’s dangerous Miss.”

My thoughts started racing. Jeremy was a great guy, but he couldn’t just expect me to believe him.

“What friend?” I snapped, annoying little irritated. This was exactly what I didn’t need right now.

Jeremy smiled and brushed his thumb over his white beard. His magic zoomed over the room, embracing mine highly. Even he was warning me from Lachlan’s sire.

That was interesting.

“Someone that cares about you Miss. You must forgive me, but I cannot say anymore,” he replied. “I treat master Lachlan like my only son and I do worry about him. I see how much he had invested himself in this murder case. I hate seeing him struggle.”

Wow that was definitely not what I expected to hear. How come Jeremy was so close to Lachlan? I thought he was working for Oldman and his father.

“So, you can’t tell me who gave you this file?” I asked, still trying and still hoping that he would say more.

I hadn’t seen Jeremy since he left me with Lachlan in Moonlight. Obviously, a lot things had changed since then. Maybe I should try talking to Lachlan about Jeremy. I began to realise how much I didn’t really know him. This wasn’t going to be an easy conversation for sure.

“Unfortunately, not right now. It’s a matter of honour, but this person cares about you Miss. Just trust me,” Jeremy said and then carried on walking downstairs.

I wasn’t going to get anything else out of him, so I decided to get back to Lachlan. He looked disturbed when I showed up. I quickly put the piece of paper inside my bra along with the picture of my aunt before he could see them.

I had a feeling that Lachlan had no idea what his own father was up to and I had to be careful with what I could tell him. Moore and his clan was somehow linked to my family, my past, and this was huge. The photograph wasn’t just another coincidence.

“Where have you been?”

“Nowhere, I’ve just been looking around admiring this place. It’s such a huge house. Have you lived here long?” I asked him, attempting to change the subject.

He shook his head. I knew he was in a bad mood. I could sense it.

“No, my father only uses it when he has business with the Academy. This house is too big. I have never been fond of it,” he replied, brushing his hand through his hair. Jeremy nodded to both of us and then left us alone.

Then I remembered that I was actually mad at Lachlan about this whole “girlfriend introduction” situation.

“What the hell was that about in there, that mating thing? I see that your father has your whole future already figured out for you,” I said, folding my hands over my chest.

The images of a bloodied Roger on the floor were flashing through my mind. I knew that I was the cause of it.

Lachlan was a complex vampire and I felt for him. I had prejudged him way too soon when we first met. He was trying hard to distance himself from the vampire, from the male that was his sire too. I had a feeling that Jonathan Moore was much more powerful and ancient than I had ever met before, and he wanted to control Lachlan’s nature. This whole thing had something to do with the school.

“I told you, we are made for each other,” he snapped at me. “And I’m not going to mate with Elizabeth. I’ll handle my father, so don’t worry about it hen.”

“It doesn’t matter. We hadn’t discussed it beforehand, instead you’ve put me in a very awkward situation.”

“Shut up hen. It’s better if this is out now rather than later,” he muttered. It was time to drop this subject, because I really needed to tell him what I’d found in the attic.

I felt like someone was listening, so I was too anxious to tell him anything here. Moore was powerful enough to use compulsion.

On top of that I had never seen pretty boy in such a state.

“Let’s just go. I really want to get back. How is that vampire that started bleeding?”

“Sadly, he’s going to survive,” Lachlan replied. “You’re right. Let’s get out of here hen.”

Lachlan took my hand and dragged me through the long corridor. I was so relieved when we were finally out of there. My magic was raging. There was something going on with my abilities lately, or maybe it was Moore that influenced me in some way.

I really needed to figure this out.

It started raining once we went outside and Lachlan called us an uber. My dress was a little wet and I lifted it off the ground, because I was too afraid to get it dirty.

Lachlan was quiet, way more quiet than I was used to. He was much much older than me and I was curious if he managed to keep in touch with his human family. My own emotions were still pretty all over the place. We both felt it–the lust and vibrations when we were together, but I knew what I wanted. I was not ready for mating, or for any kind of a relationship.

It was very late when we returned and everyone was fast asleep, well as much as vampires can be asleep. Judas was most likely playing cards in his room. We were nearly soaked from head to toe when we stepped out of the uber car as the rain was pouring down in sheets. The academy grounds were deserted, of course light was still surrounding the trial building.

“Hen, come here,” Lachlan said when we ran upstairs. I was already thinking about my bed. I felt suddenly so exhausted.

He grabbed my waist and spun me around, so I was facing him. My heart skipped a beat then danced when his eyes bore into mine.

“We are not doing this here,” I told him breathlessly, as the heat rushed through my core. He held me tightly, so I couldn’t escape. The warmth started travelling down between my thighs, igniting desire inside me.

“We are, especially after that shitty evening that we had. Better shut your mouth hen and enjoy the ride,” he said, giving me that wicked smile, then he kissed me so hard and so quickly that I couldn’t even react.

For a split second, I was certain that he was only playing a game, but then his lips were on mine. The storm of intense emotions embraced me so unexpectedly that I lost my bearings. His hands pushed into my buttocks and I felt his erection pressing over my vulva as his lips were devouring me.

I panicked a little, expecting to be assaulted with another memory, but his deep, sexy moan made me realise that I wanted more in this moment alone.

“All right, enough Lachlan. This isn’t a good idea and you know it,” I somehow managed to say, pulling away. My breathing was laboured and my heart was racing.

I knew I couldn’t let him in just yet. This was too dangerous. Lachlan gave me a gloomy but very heated look, before he turned around and walked away, whistling. He was in a strange mood tonight.

Karina was snoring very loudly when I took off my clothes and got into bed.

For a long time, I couldn’t sleep. I kept tossing and turning, thinking about Roger and his blood. When I eventually drifted off I had dreams filled with smog and clouds, but I didn’t remember anything specific in the morning.

“How was your night Jaymin? You have to tell me everything!” Karina asked, yawning loudly and stretching her arms.

I rubbed my face, trying to remember my dreams, but everything was fading away quickly.

“It wasn’t good. Jonathan Moore definitely didn’t expect to see me there. He basically organised that dinner to make Lachlan mate with some high class vampire,” I explained, trying to put it across mildly, but I didn’t think that was possible. Karina’s jaw dropped.

“Oh my God, he didn’t?”

“Oh yes he did and on top of that, Lachlan introduced me as his girlfriend, so that started the evening well. And then a vampire started to choke right in front of us, so we didn’t even finish eating. Anyway, besides that, we didn’t leave empty handed. I got the location of Marisa’s boyfriend. Also, I found Chris’s file. Moore had it, but it was basically empty.”

Karina widened her eyes in total shock. I just blurted out the last few sentences and she was probably only expecting me to say that Lachlan had managed to seduce me last night.

Well, he almost did.

“What? Slow down and start from the beginning,” she said, shaking her head. “His girlfriend? Oh dear Lord, so I bet his father wasn’t too happy about that?”

It seemed that she was much more interested in the drama at the dinner table.

“Cutting this story short let’s just say that this whole “event” was a huge disaster. Anyway, enough about that, I need to get everyone in the living room. We might have finally scored a lead,” I added, biting on my lower lip.

“That’s good, maybe at least this whole investigation can move forward. No one wants to talk to us in here, and on top of that Claude has been following me like a shadow,” she said, sounding frustrated. She wasn’t the only one. I had a feeling that the whole group was kind of in the same boat. Oldman wanted results and so far we couldn’t pin anyone down for both murders.

Half an hour later after I was washed and looked more decent, I walked into the common room with Karina. Marco was video chatting with some Italian fae, and Judas was talking to Lachlan. My stomach made a funny jolt when I saw him, I instantly remembered that kiss as my emotions unfolded.

He looked up and gave me the look that said that he knew exactly what was going inside me.

“Hey everyone I think we might need to get a move on. Fancy a trip to Transylvania– the origins of the tale of Dracula?” I asked. Marco finished his video call, so then I explained about Nolan’s family and a gift from the stranger.

“I’ll get myself ready,” Judas jumped off the sofa, vanishing off to his room. Karina started jumping up and down, sounding excited about this sudden change of plans.

“Transylvania eh … it’s definitely not somewhere where I want to be right now, but this trip may be interesting. Have you thought about where are we going to stay?” Marco asked, staring at his own reflection in the mirror. His magic was calm in the mornings. I was slowly getting used to the fact that he could tap into my energy and sometimes randomly sent me these snippets of his emotions, now that he knew that I was half fae too.

“No, but I–”

“Don’t sweat it girl, I’ll find us a decent hotel. Damn it I can’t wait to charm a few Romanian vampires,” he added, cutting me off.

“Where did you get that information from?” Lachlan asked, walking up to me when we were left alone. He had a serious expression on his face, so he was already pissed.

“Jeremy passed it to me last night, right before we left your father’s place. He said a concerned friend asked him to give it to me and before you ask, no I have no idea who he is talking about,” I said, deciding to be upfront about it. “By the way he mentioned that he sees you almost like a son. What’s the deal about that?”

“Nothing, Jeremy was the one that was teaching me when I was first turned, so maybe that’s why he has a soft spot for me. We have always had a strong bond even though he’s a warlock,” the grumpy Scot explained. “A concerned friend hmm … I hope it’s not that clown. I’m telling you, he wants your blood.”

“Don’t be absurd. Claude is up to something, but he’s not interested in me,” I said, although last night things between him and Lachlan got heated.

“You’re very naive if you think that hen. That vampire wants something that belongs to me,” the Scot snarled and I had to roll my eyes.

“Don’t be such a cave man Lachlan, that doesn’t suit you. I told you. Relationship aren’t for me. You’re better off with someone else. We leaving shortly, better get yourself ready,” I told him, feeling heat rushing over my spine. Lachlan moved closer to me. He was still trying to push my buttons when everyone was in the room.

“You’re wet for me and you know it, so stop denying it,” he muttered, before he got up and walked away. I was just about to throw something back at him, but he quickly vanished into his bedroom.

An hour later, we were all sitting in the car with pretty boy at the wheel.

The drive to Transylvania was long and pretty uneventful. It was a sunny day and the temperatures were still rising, so at least the weather was on our side. Everyone was quiet inside the car. Lachlan kept staring at me from the rearview mirror the entire drive. I didn’t know how he could focus on the road at the same time.

I wanted to drift off to sleep as it was going to be a couple of hours before we could reach that part of Romania, but he was distracting me too much. I couldn’t relax.

“I think we have a problem,” Marco said from the front seat.

“What do you mean?” Pretty boy asked. Marco was also now looking at us from the rearview mirror. A tangle of energy whooshed through me and my fingertips started to sparkle. Something was wrong. Even Judas, who was sitting next to me, felt it.

“Claude is driving behind us, it looks like he’s tagging along,” Marco said. Lachlan swore and punched the steering wheel. Damn it, that was unexpected.

“See hen, I told you he was after something of mine,” he said loud enough for everyone else to hear him, giving me that sexy, intense look.