INSTRUCTOR ROE’S EYES burned a hole through me from across the table. The scowl on his face was downright nasty.  Brett sat on my left, his blue eyes bouncing around the room.  Rex was on my other side, his hand messing with the bandage on my neck.  He didn’t think the nurse did a proper job.  Johnston was next to Roe, typing on his phone.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Rex whispered.  “You don’t feel dizzy or inebriated?”

“The room’s not spinning,” I said.  “It’s nothing like before.”  My lips twitched as I recalled the first time I’d received a demon bite.

Rex was walking me home, and we were ambushed.  I was watching him when I let a she-demon sink her teeth into my neck.  I’d been so worried Rex was going to be disappointed.

He wasn’t.  In fact, he was proud.  It was my second kill.

I’d also flirted my ass off with him in the bathroom. 

One side of Rex’s lips hitched up.  “You were trouble from the beginning,” he murmured.

I had to agree.

Johnston cleared his throat.  “Headmaster Ashford should be just another minute.”

We’d been waiting on him for ten.  He was on a conference call he couldn’t get out of.  I’d already explained why I’d stolen the car.  Oh, and the kicker, it was Roe’s car I’d stolen—hence his presence in the conference room.

Out of all the cars in the parking lot, I had to pick his.

Rex was pissed I went off on my own.  Again.  I was going to get an earful when we were alone.  He was worried about me, but I could see the anger simmering in those brown eyes.  Roe couldn’t care less I’d stolen his car to rescue a friend or that I killed three demons, one of which had orchestrated the attack at Magnolia House. 

Finally Ash strode in and took the seat on the other side of Johnston.  “Sorry about that.  Johnston has filled me in on the situation.”

Brett tensed beside me, his face pale as he stared at Ash.  “Holy shit,” he whispered.

Ash glanced up, blinking.  “Hello, Mr. Baustic.  Welcome to Amarose Academy.”

Realization hit me, and I nudged Brett.  “They kind of look alike.”  The resemblance between the ferrum and demon were uncanny.  Ash looked like an older, kinder version of Kye

Brett slowly turned to me.  “I barely saw his face, but I feel like I’m looking right at him.”

A grimace crawled across Ash’s mouth.  “It’s a bit disturbing, isn’t it?”

Brett nodded.

“Can we get to the real issue at hand,” Roe interrupted and motioned toward me.  “She stole my car.”

I sighed.  “I didn’t know it was yours.  Believe me, if I had, I wouldn’t have done it.”

He scoffed.  “Right.”

Ash held up his hand.  “Your car is fine, Instructor Roe.  And these were extenuating circumstances.”

Roe’s face turned red.  “You can’t be serious, Markus!  You let this girl get away with murder.  Killing a few demons doesn’t give her a right to do whatever she wants.  This is out of line.”

Johnston interrupted the instructor’s rant.  “As the leading council member at Amarose, I will decide on what happens to Kory.”  He cleared his throat as he tapped on the tablet in front of him. “Kory will not be reprimanded for this incident.”

Roe’s nostrils flared, but he remained silent.

Johnston motioned toward Brett.  “Rex and Kory, you will personally escort Mr. Baustic safely back to Bishop City.  You will also remain for a few days.”

My mouth dropped.  “What?  Am I being suspended?  You just said I wasn’t in trouble.”

Rex laid a hand on my knee under the table to quiet the rage bubbling up.

“You’re not in trouble,” Johnston said.  “But I do think taking a break from everything here will do you both good.”

I turned to Rex, pleading.  “Do something.  We can’t just leave.  What if something happens?”

Rex’s lips thinned.  “I agree with Council Member Johnston.”

I could see the resolve in Rex’s face and knew arguing was futile.  I was going back to Bishop whether I wanted to or not.

 

“So this is what a dorm room at private school looks like.”  Brett stretched back on my bed, propping himself up with his hand.  I snuck him back to my room from the boys’ wing.  “Why don’t you have a roommate?” he asked.

I shot him an incredulous expression.  “That would be a disaster.  And since the school frowns upon students killing students, they were smart enough to put me alone.”

He laughed.  “Too bad.  I had plenty of fantasies about you and your roommate cuddling up together under the covers to keep warm.”  His blonde brows wiggled.

“You’re disgusting.”  I sat on the edge of the bed and tilted his head to look at the bite.  “Does it hurt?”

He scoffed and sat up.  “I’m fine.”  A lazy smile curled his lips.  “If you want to get close, you don’t have to come up with a flimsy excuse.”  He leaned forward, his mouth zooming toward mine.

My hand flew up, landing on his chest to stop his pursuit.  “I can’t.”

Brett blinked.  Realization broke across his face, and he backed up.  “You finally forgave Rex.”

“It’s a little more complicated than that.” 

He smirked.  “How so?”

I averted my eyes as I kicked my shoes off.  This wasn’t something I talked about to anyone.  It was still new to me.  “We’re soulmates.” 

Brett’s laughter echoed through the small room.  “I never thought you were one of those girls.”

My face was deadpan.  “I’m serious.  That sort of thing exists with pureblooded ferrums.”

“No shit?”

“We’re called caeteras.”  I kicked my feet up on the bed and leaned on the pillows.

Brett followed and spread out beside me.  “The blue-haired demon mentioned something about caeteras when we were in the club,” he said.  “I had no idea what the hell she was talking about.”

“Keep your mouth shut.  Only a few people know.”  My fingers ran over the bandage on my neck thinking about Rex.  He’d wanted me to stay in his room tonight, but I couldn’t leave Brett over here all alone.  This wasn’t his world.  “It’s complicated because I’m only seventeen and he’s my teacher.”

Brett wiggled his eyebrows.  “So salacious.”

“Wow, Brett.  That’s a big word for you.  Are you sure you’re using it right?”

“Funny.”  He nudged my arm.  “You know I’m smarter than I look.”

Brett was smarter than he pretended to be.  He also knew about demons.  I taught him to be cautious, especially at night.  I gave him the guys’ numbers in case he was ever in trouble. 

But this was Kye and his blue-haired she-demon friend.  No one could have avoided their attack.  “How did Kye get you?”

Brett’s face sobered, and he leaned closer, his arm brushing mine.  “I was coming home from Jason’s the other night and that Mariska chick jumped me.”  He rubbed the back of his head.  “The next thing I remember, I was in some house and she was snacking on my neck.”

My brows furrowed.  “So Kye wasn’t the one that actually took you?  When did you see him?”

He shrugged.  “She and that other demon stuffed me into a van and then brought me to that club.  I didn’t see Kye until I was already tied up in the chair.”

I chewed on my bottom lip, mulling over Brett’s words.  Something didn’t seem right.  If this was a ploy to get me out of the school, why didn’t Kye take me?  He never even showed up at the club.

Brett’s hand touched mine.  “What are you thinking?”

I met his baby blues, my mouth glued shut.  He had no idea who Kye really was.  He didn’t know he’d been stalking me since I was thirteen.  Brett didn’t know Kye wanted to turn me to save me from his brother. 

And then there was his brother.

I couldn’t get Brett mixed up in this whole mess.  It was too dangerous, and he’d already been hurt because of me.

My gaze scrutinized his face, landing on a faint blue and purple bruise stamped across his jaw.  “What’s that from?”  I ran my fingers along the fading mark.  Images of his father hitting him while I watched from the shadows flashed through my mind.  My insides bubbled and churned, mixing with darkness and hot anger.  “Did your dad do this?”

Brett’s hand reached up, grabbing mine.  “This is from baseball practice.”  When I wasn’t convinced, he continued.  “I swear.”  He licked his lips.  “He hasn’t hit me since that day.”

Since the day I shoved his father up against the refrigerator and scared him shitless.  “Good.”

A knock sounded at the door.

Great.  It was probably demon hunter Barbie.

It wasn’t.

When I opened the door, Rex stood in the hall with a hard, unreadable expression.  He was holding a bundle of blankets.  “Uh, Rex, what are you doing here?”  My heart thumped, and I was pretty sure I had a glowing neon sign over my head that said guilty.

“I thought you’d need these.”  He brushed by me and entered my room, unsurprised by Brett’s presence.  He tossed the blankets on the other bed before turning and glaring at the teenage boy.  “You sleep there.”

His angel eyes were wide as saucers.  “Uh, yeah.  Of course.”

I swallowed hard and closed the door behind me.  “How did you know…?”  He cut me off with an incredulous expression. 

“I knew he’d be here,” Rex said, crossing his arms against his chest and making his biceps bulge.  “But I sure as hell won’t let him share a bed with you again.”

My cheeks heated.  When I ran away to Bishop, Rex had come back to find Brett in my bed.  Nothing happened, but he didn’t like seeing his caetera sleeping with someone else.  In my defense, I hadn’t been told we were caeteras yet.

Brett awkwardly cleared his throat and scooted off my bed.  “I’ll just…”  He trailed off and walked toward the other bed, bypassing Rex.

“Yeah, you do that.”  Rex watched him until Brett was seated on the bare mattress.  He turned to me, his eyes softening.  “How are you?”

“I’m fine.”  I resisted the urge to fiddle with the bandage on my neck as I walked to my bed and perched on the edge.  “Just tired, I guess.” 

Rex took a seat next to me, his fingers brushing the hair off my shoulder to look at my neck.  A shiver ran up my spine from his touch.  “Are you dizzy or anything?” 

“No.”  I was a tad lightheaded, but I didn’t want to worry him.

“Liar,” he whispered, a hint of a smile in his voice.

I mentally cursed.  He was like a Kory lie detector.  “I’ll be fine after I get some sleep.”

His hand slid down my back, rubbing gentle circles.  “You’d feel much better if you stayed with me,” he murmured, his breath warm across my cheek.

My lids fluttered as my body began to fall into the lulled bliss he was creating.  I mumbled something unintelligible.

Rex chuckled.  “I didn’t quite catch that, Koralein.”

Someone cleared their throat, and my eyes snapped open.  I’d forgotten Brett was in the room.

“Do you guys want me to leave?”  He was wearing an awkward grin. 

I said no the same time Rex said yes.

Brett laughed.  “Aren’t soulmates supposed to agree on everything.”

Rex’s brows dipped.  “No.”  He glanced at me.  “You told him?”

I shrugged.  “He won’t tell anyone.”

His eyes narrowed as they landed on Brett again.  “Now that you know, I expect you to keep your hands to yourself.”

“No doubt,” Brett said.  “I wouldn’t try to compete with soulmates.”

“You’d lose.”

I nudged Rex.  “We’re just friends.”

He made a harrumphing sound.  “Still.  I’d rather you stay with me tonight.  What if Kye decides to pay you a visit since his plan with Brett failed?”

That was just it.  What the hell kind of crap plan had that been?  Lure me off campus to rescue my friend, have your lackeys try to kill me, and not even show up.  It didn’t make sense.

“Kory?”  Rex’s voice snapped me out of my reverie. 

“Kye won’t come tonight,” I said.  He hadn’t bothered to show up when I was alone outside of campus.  Why would he come here now?

 

∞∞∞

 

Holy crap.  It looked like a party store exploded all over the apartment.  Streamers in every color of the rainbow except pink hung from the tall ceilings.  Confetti glittered in the setting sun.  A silver and green Welcome Home sign hung from the rafters.

“Surprise!” The boys yelled in unison as they stood around the living room.

Definitely a surprise.

After the jet landed in Bishop City and we were safely on the ground, Rex dropped Brett and me off at his house.  He said he had a few errands to run.  I’d thought he was simply giving me time to hang out with my friend, but now I realize it was so the boys could put the finishing touches on this horrific scene.

Bryson ran over and crushed me in a hug.  “Do you like it?  Jack said to get anything but pink.  So I got everything but pink.”

I’d missed that country accent.

“You sure did.”  I laughed.  “It’s great Bry.  Thanks.”

“Move out of the way.”  Sven shoved him aside and hugged me.  “How’s my little Trouble doing?  I heard you’ve been raising hell at school.”

I scoffed and shoved him back.  “Lies.  All lies.  I admit to nothing.”

He grinned, scratching at the blonde stubble on his chin.  “Deny until you die.”

Jack barreled through Sven, picking me up.  “I missed you, short stuff.”  He put me down, his dark brown eyes glinting with humor.  “I really missed watching you walk around in a towel.”

Rex smacked his chest.  “Cut it out.”  His eyes slid to mine.  “You don’t seriously do that, do you?”

I shrugged.  “I’ve got to get from the bathroom to my bedroom some way.”

He grimaced.  “I’ll buy you a robe.”

Sven clapped.  “One of those slinky silky numbers.”

That earned him a hard glare from Rex.

“Relax.”  Mikhail strode forward and ruffled my hair.  “They’re only kidding.  Kory’s like our sister.”

Sven wiggled his brows.  “Hot step sister.”

Jack interrupted before Rex could smack Sven.  “We made you guys a welcome home cake.”  He motioned toward the counter in the kitchen where what resembled a massive lump of coal sat.  “We made it from scratch.”

My stomach churned just looking at the thing.

“And we’re making you guys dinner tonight too,” Sven said.

Rex swallowed hard as if he could already taste something disgusting.  “Wow.  Um, it looks… nice.”

“Awe, don’t lie, Rex.”  Bryson clapped him on the shoulder.  “It looks like a pile of cow poop that’s been baking in the sun.”

I snorted on a laugh. 

Bryson grinned.  “But I’m sure it tastes way better than it looks.  Trust me.”

If this was the cake, I could only imagine what we were having for dinner.

Mikhail quickly divvied out a piece for everyone.  They all stared at Rex and me, waiting for us to taste it first.

Oh god. 

Rex dug in, and I followed suit.  Bottoms up.

He chewed, his eyes blinking quickly.  I had the fork to my mouth, the piece of—I guess it was chocolate—cake moments away from crossing the point of no return.

The fork was suddenly yanked from my hand.  “Don’t eat that.”  Rex shook his head and took my plate.  “Sorry guys.  I can’t let her eat that.  It’s awful.”

The guys didn’t look too surprised.

“How about I make dinner instead,” Rex said, grabbing everyone’s plate and tossing them in the trash.  “I appreciate you all wanting to cook, but let me do it.  Really, I don’t mind.”

Jack shrugged.  “I guess if you want.”

“Great.”  Rex grabbed his keys.  “I’ll check my apartment and see what I have before going to the store.”  He disappeared out of the door.

Sven and Jack pounded their fists together.

My lips curled.  “You guys made this cake taste like shit on purpose, didn’t you?”

Sven ruffled his chin-length light blonde hair.  “We might have used salt instead of sugar.”

I laughed.  “You guys miss Rex’s cooking that much?”

“Hell yes,” Jack said.  “The frozen stuff he left ran out weeks ago.  We’re starving.”

I shook my head.  “He would have cooked it if you just asked.  No disgusting cake needed.”

Sven grinned.  “Yeah, but it was fun.”

 

Rex and I hadn’t been hunting in Bishop together since before I killed that man.  It seemed like a lifetime ago.  We were both different people.  I’d certainly changed.  A lot.  And Rex had learned not everything thing in this world was black and white.

I was far from it.

We cut through the alley between Jake’s Garage and The Barber Shop, our eyes scanning the periphery.  A smile laced my lips as memories flooded my mind.

“Do you remember this spot?” I asked.

A quiet chuckle slipped out of Rex.  “How could I not?”  He jerked his chin in front of us.  “It’s where I finally caught up to that firecracker ferrum I’d been looking for.”  The gold flecks in his eyes danced in the darkness.

“I was so cocky.  I really thought I could take you.”  Part of me had wanted to punch his lights out.  The other part wanted to jump his bones. Back then, Rex had always evoked those two opposing urges in me.  Now, I just wanted to be with him.  He could still piss me off though.

Rex shoved his hands in his pockets.  “I had no idea what to do.  I was instantly drawn to you, but you were seventeen.  The way I thought about you, well, it was so wrong.  And I couldn’t understand why you didn’t want to be a hunter.  You were born to be one.”

I rolled my eyes thinking of how idiotic I’d been.  It was stupid to deny what I knew was true.  “I was dumb.”

“You were angry,” Rex interrupted, his hand brushing my arm.  “Your whole life had been a lie, and it made your trust in people nearly nonexistent.”

I shrugged and dodged a large crack in the shitty asphalt.  “I trusted you pretty easily.”  It was probably because he was my caetera.

Rex shook his head.  “And I threw it back in your face when I believed Bridget over you.”

“Hey.”  I pulled him to a stop, staring up into his worry-lined face.  “I’ve already forgiven you. We can’t change what happened.  I’ve moved on.”

Rex averted his gaze to the building behind me.  “I wasn’t there when you needed me the most.”  His lips thinned, and a look of disgust crossed his features.  “It’s my fault you were so close to turning.  It’s my fault that son of a bitch Kye has his hooks so deep in you—”

“Stop.”  My hands cradled his face, tilting it toward mine.  “Kye doesn’t have any part of me,” I said, hoping it wasn’t a lie.  I was still just as confused as ever, even more so after Brett was taken.  “I’m your caetera, and we’re together now.  Nothing is going to separate us.  Not ever again.”

Some of the worry left his eyes, and he covered my hands with his.  “I love you, Koralein.”

My heart thudded against my ribcage.  I was supposed to say it back.  Nothing I felt for anyone in my entire life could compare to this.  I did love him.

Rex’s head suddenly snapped around.  The saccharine scent of demon filled the night.

“Isn’t this cute.”  A female demon emerged from the shadows of another alley.  Her blonde hair was tipped in purple and braided down the sides.  A piercing in her lip and brow glinted in the dim moonlight.  “Two little ferrum lovebirds having a moment.”

I scoffed.  “There’s nothing little about the T-Rex standing next to me.”

Rex shot me an incredulous expression.  “Really?  You have jokes now?”

I gave a noncommittal shrug.  “Why not?”

A humorless laugh tumbled out of the demon.  “Shouldn’t you be all grim and serious?  I am a demon after all.”

My lips twitched.  “You must be new in town.”  Demons in Bishop talked, and if they didn’t know who I was, they had to know who the massive ferrum next to me was.  His badass reputation was legendary.

She crossed her arms against her chest.  “Maybe.”  Her brown eyes slicked over with black.  “But I brought friends.”

Three other demons emerged, encircling us.

Two against four.  Those odds weren’t too bad. 

I whipped my knife out.  “Do you want to take her out while I deal with the three musketeers and wait for your backup?”

Rex’s eyes twinkled again.  “Sure.”

The leader of their little ragtag group scoffed.  “Cocky much?”

“Much.”  We both went into action, but instead of going for the three lackeys, I did the opposite.  I went for the girl while Rex squared off with the other three demons. 

Her lacquered claws slashed through the air, barely missing my chest.  I feigned to the left and delivered a roundhouse to her side.  She stumbled back, her black eyes wide.  They never expected me to be that fast.

Adrenaline pumped through my veins as we circled each other.  I took a moment to check on Rex.  One demon was already on the ground, gray and dead.

“There’s something different about you,” she said, her eyes flashing between Rex and me.  She was beginning to realize she’d taken on more than she could chew.

I cracked my neck and pushed up the sleeves of my shirt.  Her eyes flashed to my broken infinity marks, widening.  “You’re too young to have that many.  Are you even eighteen?”

“No.”  I twisted my blade through the air.  “I’m just that good.  And yeah, I’m bragging, but my mouth doesn’t write checks my ass can’t cash.”  I flashed her a smile.

Her gaze hadn’t left my arm, still staring at my tattoos.  If I was guessing, she’d noticed the two faded ones I’d gotten when I was turning.

Her black eyes flashed back to mine.  “You’re her.”  She licked her lips as her gaze darted around.

“Her who?”  I lunged forward, catching her cheek with a right hook.  But she didn’t attack me again.  She just played defense.  “Stop being a wuss and come after me.”

Instead she spun around and took off down the street.

Son of a bitch.

“Rex!” I yelled over my shoulder.  “I’m going after her.”

He gave a quick nod and stabbed the second demon. 

I followed the female down another side alley, dodging trash and debris.  A homeless man was curled up on his side, taking a nap.  Or at least he was.  He bolted up when he heard all the racket she was making.

Why the hell was she so loud?  Did she want me to follow her?

The thought gave me pause for a nanosecond.  She couldn’t be leading me into that much trouble.

I emerged out of the alley and caught sight of her as she disappeared into an abandoned building. 

Great.  One of those. 

The air reeked of B.O. and urine, and a few rodents were rooting around in the garbage left behind by squatters.  I stopped running as the demon became quiet.

Eerily quiet.

She’d definitely led me here on purpose.  What did she want from me?

I whipped my phone out and sent a quick text to Rex. 

“Koralein Colt.”

My head snapped up, taking in a pair of sharp green eyes, porcelain skin, and vibrant red hair.  “Bridget.”

A slow, ominous smile curled the British twit’s mouth.  “I knew you’d eventually come back to this lovely city.”

It didn’t take me long to notice the difference in her.  Besides the manic look in her eyes, she was a little more predatory, a little more vicious beneath the ethereal beauty.

I motioned toward her with my knife.  “Been a demon long?”