Descending Into Darkness (Moonlight Academy Book 2)

When the morning came I didn’t even remember falling asleep. Karina seemed confused too. She was rubbing her eyes looking around and probably wondering if the Elite Academy magic had in fact knocked us out.

I stretched my arms and after a quick trip to the bathroom to freshen up, the doors to our sort of dorm opened up. A human woman stood there staring at us. She wore a long grey dress and heavy boots.

“I have been asked to bring you to the conference hall. My name is Lidia,” she said. She had a pleasant voice and it looked like Karina wasn’t going to argue, because she got up smiling at the newcomer.

“It’s not like we have anything better to do,” I muttered to her when we were leaving the room.

Ten minutes later, we walked into a large class on the east side of the building. Elite Academy didn’t seem much different than Moonlight. Obviously there were many skilled students here from all over the world. We saw several vampires and fae on the way, but not that many of them. I wondered what had happened to the rest of the students.

Oldman was already waiting for us. She was sat at the desk, looking through some paperwork when we both walked in. She must have flown here the first thing this morning, probably arranged straight after the snobby fae informed her about the murder. I suspected that we would have to forget about our fun weekend away in Bucharest. We were back in the business.

“Ladies, have a seat. We have a lot to discuss,” she said, pointing at the chairs in front of her. The human woman left, so I released some of my magic. I felt like I needed to do it after meeting the vampire last night, his presence still gave me chills today.

Oldman as usual looked immaculate. Today she wore long black trousers and a purple blouse. Karina and I hadn’t even had a chance to shower since yesterday, which sucked.

Claude must have sensed Lachlan’s scent on me last night, that’s why his fangs had descended. It was hard to admit, but I kind of missed him.

“We had nothing to do with Marisa’s murder. Someone is trying to set us up,” Karina blurted out. Oldman lifted her blue eyes off her paperwork and then exhaled sharply.

“I think you two were just in the wrong place and at the wrong time. The Elite has always been very secretive. You were caught at the crime scene so the teachers automatically assumed that you were guilty, but don’t worry. I have explained everything to principle Holland and he doesn’t suspect you two anymore,” Oldman explained, folding her fingers together. “There has been another murder though. A female student was found dead by the fountain this morning.”

Karina and I looked at each other in shock. Claude was right. The murderer must be part of Elite. There wasn’t any other explanation for it.

“So that’s why they let us go, because we were locked up when the other killing happened?” I asked, suddenly angry.

“And because you are from Moonlight. They shouldn’t have accused you in the first place. Besides, there is an opportunity for us to find the person responsible for these terrible crimes. Someone obviously is targeting the Elite students. This is our chance to shine,” Oldman explained.

“What do you mean Madame Oldman?” Karina questioned her. I was a little confused too.

“The boys flew here with me this morning. They are staying at a hotel in the city, waiting for my instructions. Elite is still under threat. An ancient vampire that escaped a few months ago might have something to do with what happened here last night. Principle Holland isn’t happy. He doesn’t want anyone from the outside to interfere in academy business, but I guess right now he doesn’t have any choice. I gave him an ultimatum, it’s either us or it’s the High Council.”

“That was smart,” I said, thinking about logistics. It looked like we were going to stay in Bucharest for a while.

“And she agreed? That snobby fae and principle Holland?” Karina asked, like she was reading my mind. I suspected Oldman hadn’t had an easy job of convincing them.

“We are allowed to question students and access main buildings, but we aren’t allowed anywhere near where the trials are taking place. Besides, there will be a vampire that will be keeping an eye on all of you. He’s part of the faculty team and Holland trusts him.”

Oldman was probably talking about Claude. He seemed to be Holland’s puppet.

“So, we will have a baby-sitter?” Karina asked.

“It looks that way,” Oldman said, standing up. That had been quicker than I expected it to be and I was somehow glad that the rest of the team wasn’t here. Lachlan wouldn’t stop talking. It was still early and I wanted to have a shower. “I’m going to brief the boys in the local hotel, but Holland has promised to accommodate us near the dorms. You two should come with me.”

I was happy with that arrangement, knowing that soon enough I was going to be making myself comfortable here in Elite Academy.

* * *

“I bloody missed you darling.”

These were the words that Lachlan whispered to my ear when we met the boys later on in the fancy hotel in the centre of Bucharest. We had stopped on the way to pick up our stuff from the apartment that Karina had rented for us in the city.

“Cut it out Lachlan, I’m really not in the mood for your games,” I told him, playing with my phone, trying to read about any students that attended Elite. Karina was still a little upset over losing her friend.

Everything was new here and I had to get used to a new routine. We obviously weren’t going to attend classes. Finding a murderer was our only priority.

His scent was making me weak and needy once again, but I was never going to admit to that.

“I’m not playing any games beautiful. I simply want you to give me a chance. You can’t deny the attraction between us,” he added, leaning over me and gently brushing his lips over my shoulder. Goosebumps appeared everywhere and I couldn’t hide it. He knew that he had this strange effect on me. My energy was pulsating and the air between us started crackling until the lamp in the room exploded startling everyone.

My palms were burning, there was something happening under my skin. Karina and Judas glanced over in our direction.

“Was that you again Jaymin?” she asked, giving me a concerned look. Suddenly I remembered the conversation with Oldman when she said that I needed to be honest with everyone that I worked with. As a team, we all had to be in sync with each other and that meant that I had to tell them the truth about me, reveal who I truly was.

This wasn’t going to be easy for me, but I had been thinking about it for a while now.

Lachlan gave me a long heated look, but his expression remained passive. I knew that there was never going to be a right moment to reveal that I was a freak of nature to the people that believed in me but I just had to get it out there once and for all.

“Yes, my magic is out of control again,” I said. “Come on guys gather around. I have something important that I need to share with you. The timing cannot be any better.”

This was it, finally the moment where I didn’t have to lie to anyone any longer. They deserved to know who I was.

“Go on love, no one is going to judge you if you say you prefer women, but I am at your service Jaymin. No one has ever resisted me before,” Marco said, winking at me. Karina giggled and I had to roll my eyes. The pressure was intense, but if I wanted to be part of the group and if I wanted to graduate then I had to share my story.

“Well, as all of you probably know, a few years ago I woke up on the street with no recollection of who I was, becoming a half vampire,” I began, folding my palms together. “I’m not going to lie, that wasn’t easy. I was suddenly in a foreign land. I didn’t understand the language, couldn’t remember what had happened to me and on top of everything else I had these new abilities that I had to deal with. Since then, I always thought that I was just a half breed – half vampire and half human until Madame Oldman approached me in Lviv.”

I recalled the moment when Oldman had walked into that cafe in the city.

“What do you mean you always thought, so now are you saying that this might not be the case?” Lachlan asked.

“If you’ll let her continue then she can tell us exactly what she means,” Judas injected, sounding annoyed. I kept on breathing, knowing that I had done nothing wrong.

“No, I’m not only a half vampire, there is also fae magic inside me too. And before you all start bombarding me with questions, I have to tell you that I don’t know very much about this yet. I have only learnt about my true nature recently. I managed to regain certain memories from the past and that night when I saved Dorothy… well that was me. My magic exploded, I lost control and killed all the vampires and the mage,” I said, pausing, staring at everyone, waiting for the backlash.

That didn’t happen. They were all staring at each other baffled and confused apart from Lachlan. He looked outraged.

“Impossible, you cannot be half vampire and half fae. You wouldn’t have survived such a transformation,” Lachlan said, standing up and dragging his hand through his hair. I didn’t understand how he was suddenly so worked up about this.

“Principle Oldman confirmed who I was. When I was in Moonlight, I had a test performed on me. I remembered what had happened to me in the fae court. Oldman believed that you all should be told the truth because of my magic. It can be unpredictable, I’m craving blood, but for now, I can control it, but the magic, the fae abilities, this is something that I haven’t really mastered yet,” I explained.

Marco’s jaw was literally on the ground.

“You killed all those vampires with your magic?” he repeated after a moment. “I bloody sensed that there was something special about you from the beginning. Vamps just don’t carry that kind of energy, no offence bro.”

Lachlan gave him an annoyed look, but didn’t say anything. Karina walked up to me and embraced me with a well needed hug.

“I’m with you girl, I never realised how hard this must have been for you. Thank you for sharing your story with us,” she said. Her energy always calmed me down, it was like I was getting injected with calming drugs. It looked like Lachlan wasn’t processing this news very well though.

I would have to talk to him privately. Although, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to share with him that he had been the cause of my flashbacks from the past. I still didn’t know how or even why he was involved.

“Half vampire and half fae. I’m surprised that I hadn’t scouted you first,” he finally said.

“I learnt how to survive on the streets of Lviv. I started tracking and killing escaped convicts. I found a contact in the council who paid for a job well done, but one day he dragged another vampire in and that supernatural started asking too many questions. That’s when I had to disappear. I was so lucky to have been approached by Oldman that day, because I don’t think I could have survived on my own after losing my only source of income.”

“Well, let’s have a drink tonight, you’re fucking awesome and we are lucky to have you in our team,” Marco said, then his mobile started ringing. When he glanced at the screen his face brightened instantly. “Sorry, one of my dates is calling. I need to take this.”

“I need to talk to you in private,” the pretty boy muttered, grabbed my hand and dragged me away from the group. This is what I was afraid of. My feelings for him were so confusing. My breathing sped up when he shut the door behind him and gave me a long lustful look.

“You shouldn’t be acting like that in front of them. Karina already suspects that there is something going on between us,” I told him.

“Fuck beautiful, I have no idea what are you so scared of. Your vampire nature is responding to me. We have something between us here Jaymin, we both know we do,” he said, dragging his hand through his hair. “And you being a half breed doesn’t change anything. You should have told me the truth from the very beginning.”

I started chewing on my bottom lip, thinking about that day in Lviv when I saw him for the first time. He was in that basement, talking about the Elite. I didn’t know what to think. I knew that I wasn’t ready to trust him just yet.

“I’m afraid of everything Lachlan, this isn’t easy for me and you’re forgetting that we work together. My magic comes alive when I start being intimate with you. That day when you kissed me, some of my memories came back. I saw flashbacks from my past. That day I learnt that I was a human, a normal human girl that had a family before I was turned.”

Silence fell between us as he stared at me in shock. Then he went pale, like he was still trying to digest everything I had said. I wasn’t planning to share this with him, especially now, but maybe it was better that the truth was out there.

Now I didn’t have to worry about being accepted by the group.

“This could only mean one thing hen,” He finally said.

“What?”

“I’ve heard about this before and it can only happen in one very special situation. Do you realise what that means? I have found my mate. This only happens to vampires that are destined to be together forever,” he said and I laughed thinking that this was the best joke that I heard for a long time. After a while I realised that he wasn’t in fact joking. He was bloody serious.