Chapter Thirteen
After her grandmother left, Valmont wrapped his arms around Bryn and kissed the top of her head. The gesture should have been reassuring. What did he mean by it? Big brothers kissed their little sisters on top of the head. While it was affectionate, it didn’t seem like something a boyfriend would do to his girlfriend. Then again, she didn’t have much experience with the whole boyfriend scenario, so what did she know?
On the walk back to the dorm, Valmont kept his arm around her shoulders. “What did your grandmother say to upset you?”
Bryn glanced around. Other students walked on the sidewalk a few feet away from them. God forbid they overhear anything. “Let’s wait to talk until we’re back in my room.”
“Is it that bad?” he asked.
“It’s not good.”
In her head, she’d always thought that even if she had to marry Jaxon, she’d still have her knight. She hadn’t realized she’d be required to release him before the wedding ceremony. Not that she couldn’t still have a relationship with Valmont, but would he want one?
This whole arranged marriage thing was all so backward and archaic. Why couldn’t Jaxon just marry Rhianna? They wanted to be together. An odd thought invaded her brain. If she were injured, or less than perfect, Jaxon would have to find someone else to marry. A limp would almost be worth not having to spend the rest of her life in a sham marriage. But that would not be honorable or loyal, and she cared about those things now, damn it. She was stuck like a fly in a web.
Once they reached the privacy of her dorm room, Valmont said, “What’s wrong?”
A mild headache beat in Bryn’s temples. “My grandmother shared something with me that sucks, big time.”
Valmont pointed at the couch. “Step into my office.”
She plopped down on the couch, where he joined her. “Whatever it is,” he said, “we’ll deal with it together.”
How would they deal with it? As a couple? As best friends? There were too many balls in the air right now and she was sure they were all going to come crashing down on her head at any moment. What she needed was some reassurance about his feelings. “I’ll tell you, if you kiss me.”
Valmont’s lips pressed together in a thin line. For every second he waited the beat in her temples increased.
He took her hands in his. “Bryn—”
Not this again. “Damn it, Valmont. I need some proof you care about me as more than a friend. If you don’t, what I have to tell you won’t matter, anyway.”
“I’m trying to do the right thing.” Valmont closed the distance between them and placed his hand under her chin so he could stare into her eyes. “But you’re making it difficult.” In slow motion, he leaned down and brushed his lips across hers. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
“If that’s how you want to kiss me, nothing’s wrong.” Was she being rude? Yes. But she needed more from him, some sign he wanted her. Then again, maybe the small, brief, I-want-to-kiss-you-about-as-much-as-I-want-to-kiss-a-dead-frog was the message he intended to send.
“Bryn, we discussed this.”
Flames banked in her gut. “No. You made a decision without me. You decided to treat me like a little sister.”
His eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
Anger felt better than feeling sad and pathetic, so she decided to go with it. “That kiss and the other one where you kissed the top of my head…those were affectionate, and nice, but they weren’t the same as the kiss at Rhianna’s.”
“I told you—”
“I know, ‘blah blah blah, I’m being honorable.’ I don’t want honorable.” Smoke shot from her nostrils. “I want you to really kiss me, and if you can’t do that, then don’t bother.”
One minute he was glaring at her, and the next minute, she was flat on her back. Valmont’s weight pressed down on her. His mouth moved against hers. She clutched at his shirt holding on to him as the kiss grew, fueled by the magic of their bond, full of hunger and longing and need. It felt like they were flying, soaring through the air except in this weird role reversal her legs were wrapped around his back.
A growl reverberated through her chest, and Valmont froze. He pulled away with a questioning look on his face. “That was a good growl?”
Good God, how can he form coherent sentences? She nodded, not trusting what might come out of her mouth if she tried to talk. Probably gibberish or some embarrassing, hormone-fueled comment about how pants were overrated.
He pressed his mouth to hers in a languid, lingering kiss. Warmth filtered through her body, and her grip on his shirt relaxed. Without breaking the kiss, he shifted back to an upright position pulling her with him, so she was sitting on his lap. Staying tangled up with him like this forever seemed fabulous.
When he pulled away from her, she sighed in equal parts frustration and satisfaction.
“Was that the type of kiss you had in mind?” he asked.
“Yes.” She laid her head on his chest. “That is exactly the type of kiss I’ve been missing. I wasn’t sure if you still wanted me.”
He huffed out a breath. “Hello…knight…trying to do the right thing.”
She laughed. “Stop that. Don’t do the right thing. Kiss me while you still can.” Oh, crap. She hadn’t meant for that to come out.
“What do you mean?” Valmont asked, his light, happy tone gone.
Damn it. Back to sucky reality. She put her forehead against his. “My grandmother told me that before I marry Jaxon, I’ll be expected to release you from the bond.”
Valmont closed his eyes and exhaled. “Without the bond, I will still want to be with you. Is that what you were worried about?”
“Yes.” She gave a small laugh to try and break the tension which had sprung up between them. “I wasn’t sure you still wanted me now.”
“And did I reassure you?” he asked.
“Mostly.” She pressed her lips to the side of his mouth. “Maybe you can show me again.”
“Just my luck to be bonded to a slow learner,” he deadpanned. And then he pulled her in for another kiss.
…
After Mr. Stanton’s class Wednesday morning, Ivy yanked Bryn into the girl’s restroom. “What’s going on with you and Valmont?”
“Just a minute.” Bryn glanced under the stall doors for feet to make sure they were alone. Once she realized they were, she jumped up and down. “Valmont kissed me and things are complicated but wonderful.”
“Thank God. For a while there you two were weird around each other and since you weren’t sharing, I didn’t know what was going on.”
Bryn rolled her eyes. “It’s hard to share when the guy you’re talking about is in the room with you. I wish I still lived in your dorm.”
“We should have a slumber party. I could stay the night. We could invite Rhianna. It would be fun.”
That sounded like an awesome idea. “Too bad Jaxon would never go for it.”
“She doesn’t need his permission.” Ivy headed for the door. “Come on. Clint and I need to go to history class.”
Bryn headed toward the library with Valmont. He didn’t say much on the walk over. Once they were tucked away at their usual table on the third floor, he winked at Bryn. “You shared, didn’t you?”
“Maybe.” Her face heated. “Maybe not.”
“Nope, I’m pretty sure you shared about how fabulous I am.” He ran his hand back through his hair.
Bryn reached over and mussed up his hair. “It’s sad that you’re so insecure.”
“You should compliment me more often, to help with my self-esteem.”
“I’ll get right on that.” She grabbed the Proper Decorum book from her bag. “But first, you’re going to help me memorize what fork is for which course when some idiot decides to put six of them on the table.”
“Why would you ever need six forks?” Valmont asked.
“I’ve no idea.”
They’d been working for twenty minutes when a pair of students who looked to be in their college years came toward them. Both had the freckled skin and auburn hair of Red dragons. Bryn ignored them, expecting them to walk on by to wherever they were going. Valmont closed the book, stood up next to Bryn, and placed his hand on his sword.
“Hello,” the Red female said, “I’m Eve. This is Adam. We wanted to talk with Bryn.”
“Adam and Eve?” Valmont’s eyebrows went up. “Did your parents have an odd sense of humor?”
“She’s not my sister. She’s my girlfriend, and those aren’t our real names.” The boy grinned. In a flash, his hair changed from red to black, and then it changed back. “Those are our hybrid names.”
Bryn’s mouth fell open for a moment. This was what she’d been searching for. At a loss for words, she pointed at the chairs across from her. “Have a seat.”
“Not to be rude, but keep your hands flat on the table where I can see them.” Valmont unsheathed his sword and held it at the ready. “You can never be too careful.”
Eve gave a nervous laugh. “Just so you know, we had nothing to do with the attacks on the school or Dragon’s Bluff.”
“If you say so.” Valmont didn’t relax his stance.
“You’re Black and Red?” Bryn said.
Eve nodded. “We’re trusting you not to turn us over to the Directorate.”
“I wouldn’t,” Bryn said, “unless you gave me reason to.”
Adam glanced around. “We have friends watching out for other students, but we shouldn’t talk about this here. We’d like to meet with you somewhere later tonight.”
“No,” Valmont said.
Bryn’s knee jerk reaction was to snap at him, but he was only trying to protect her. She glanced at her knight. “What if we picked the place to meet?”
He frowned. “We still couldn’t be sure they wouldn’t bring reinforcements.”
Adam leaned forward. “I get it. People tried to kill you, but if anyone outed us, the Directorate would charge us with war crimes we didn’t commit and throw us in jail without a trial. You’re not the only one who needs to be careful.”
What he said made sense. There had to be a place where dragons of different Clans could meet without raising as much suspicion. And then she had it. “You could help rebuild the theater, and we could talk there. No one would think it was weird to see us together.”
“That might work,” Eve said. “Especially since Adam is planning to be an architect.”
“And what area do you study?” Bryn asked.
“I’m working on my accounting degree.” She reached over and laced her fingers through Adams. “But we’re a couple, so no one would be suspicious if I went with him.”
“Okay then.” Bryn was dying to ask questions about who their parents were and where they lived, but it wouldn’t be smart to talk here. “We’ll see you at the theater building later this week.”
After the pair walked off, Valmont re-sheathed his sword. “That was interesting. What do you think they wanted?”
“I don’t know. But if my grandfather ever finds out I know about them, things will turn ugly.”
“Is it worth talking to them?”
“Absolutely.” Discovering there were hybrids that were peaceful made the world seem like a more balanced place.
It was physically painful not to tell Clint and Ivy about Adam and Eve. Bryn felt like a can of soda someone had shaken up. After their last class she convinced her friends to grab carryout from the dining hall and have dinner in her room.
Once they were all seated at the study table in her front room, she let loose with the details about the other hybrids. “And of course you can’t tell anyone about this, and you can’t let Adam and Eve know that you know, but what do you think?”
Clint shook his head. “I don’t like it. How do you know they’re hybrids. How do you know they aren’t just good with Quintessence like you?”
Bryn slumped in her chair. Should she tell them about the hybrids in Dragon’s Bluff? “Theoretically, let’s say I may have proof other hybrids exist.”
“You’ve developed a real sharing problem.” Ivy glared at her.
“If I share with you and someone else finds out you know things you’re not supposed to know, then the Directorate can come after you. So, if I don’t share, it’s to protect you, not to exclude you.”
“Friends share,” Ivy said. “End of story.”
Wow. Ivy is mad. “Okay. From now on, I’ll share.”
“Good.” Ivy opened her carryout container and dug into her chicken and dumplings. “Update us on everything we need to know.”
She didn’t feel good about this, but she told them about the dead bodies in Dragon’s Bluff. “I swear. Even though I know the Red-Black hybrid boy attacked the town, and that is unforgivable, his face with those dead milky white eyes was the saddest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Ivy looked at the dumpling on her fork and put it back in the container. “Maybe I should have asked you to share after we ate.”
“Let’s say we believe Adam and Eve. Now we know there are hybrids on campus,” Clint said. “In the big scheme of things, what does that mean?”
“It means not all hybrids are dangerous,” Bryn said. “And maybe it means Directorate Sanctioned Arranged Marriages aren’t necessary.”
“I love that idea,” Valmont said, “for obvious reasons, but to play Devil’s Advocate, if the dragons that attacked the campus and Dragon’s Bluff were all hybrids then the bad seems to outweigh the good.”
“Maybe,” Ivy said, “it’s a certain combination of Clans that creates aggressive or violent hybrids.”
“No, that doesn’t work,” Bryn said. “If we believe Adam and Eve are good, they are the same hybrid mix, Black and Red, as that boy I saw in Dragon’s Bluff.”
“Maybe it’s like with the rest of the population,” Valmont said. “Some people are good and some are not.”
Clint walked over and picked up one of the Days of Knights books Bryn had left stacked on the library table. “We still don’t know how these tales fit into the system.”
“They may not fit into it at all, except as a way to needle the Directorate,” Valmont said.
Clint lined the books up in various patterns. “Wait a minute. That looks like a staircase.”
Bryn gazed at the area of the leather book cover. “You’re right.” She grabbed another book. “This one has the same pattern.”
“Are they stairs going up or stairs going down?” Ivy asked as they crowded around the table.
Bryn shuffled the books until a pattern came into line. There was a building, with a star on top of it. Underneath the building stairs went down for two stories. “This makes it look like there’s a secret staircase leading down to a basement somewhere.”
“I don’t think any of the buildings on campus have basements,” Ivy said.
“The dorms don’t.” Clint scratched his head. “Maybe some of the other buildings do.”
“We should start with the library,” Valmont said.
“Why?” Bryn asked.
Valmont shrugged. “Isn’t that where people go for answers?”
It was as good a logic as anything she could come up with. Checking the time, she said, “We have about ninety minutes until curfew.”
“Let’s fly over and see what we can find.” Ivy headed for the window, which led out onto the terrace. The rest of them followed. Once they were outside, Bryn shifted. When Valmont settled between her wings, she felt the now familiar rush of power and connection from the bond.
“Whoa,” Ivy said. “You’re glowing.”
“That’s normal,” Bryn said.
“Since when?” Ivy sounded ticked off.
“Did I forget to share?” Bryn asked.
Ivy dove off the terrace without responding. Clint followed his girlfriend.
Bryn dove after them. “It’s not like I didn’t tell her on purpose.”
“I’m sure she knows that,” Valmont said as they flew toward the library. “But she wants to be included in your adventures.”
“Even if she’s safer not knowing some things?” Bryn asked.
“Yes,” Valmont said as they soared toward the library.
They landed, shifted back to human form, and entered the building.
Miss Enid waved at them from the front desk.
“Do you want to ask her about the basement, Ivy?” Maybe if she included Ivy more, her friend wouldn’t stay mad.
“Sure.”
They gathered at the desk, and Bryn let Ivy lead the conversation.
“We have a question about the buildings on campus,” Ivy said, and she asked about the basement.
Miss Enid shook her head. “Not that I’m aware of. There are some storage vaults below ground here and at some of the other buildings, but no true basements. Why do you ask?”
“Bryn told us about the shelter at her grandparents’ house. We wondered if the Institute had anything like that here.”
“Unfortunately no, but that would be a good idea.”
“Could we see the vaults?” Ivy asked.
Miss Enid shook her head. “No one can access the vaults without approval from the Directorate. I have to fill out a form to request access to the keys.”
“What do they keep down there?” Ivy asked.
“Mostly old books and artifacts, which are too delicate to be displayed year round,” Miss Enid said. “Research material the general public would have no interest in. Things of that nature.” She picked up a stack of books. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to return these to their rightful places.”
“Thanks for the information,” Ivy said, and then she turned to Bryn with a smile on her face. “Now that we know the vaults exist, we need to figure out where they are.”
“Good idea.” Bryn smiled back. Huh, Valmont had been right. Ivy just wanted to be included. Having friends on her “adventures” would probably make things easier on her, too, as long as she could keep them out of danger. “There have to be doors to the vaults on the first floor somewhere.
Valmont looked left and then right. “This place is huge. How do we know where to start?”
“We could start with the blueprints.” Bryn headed toward the file cabinets. She knew where they were kept since she’d tried to find the plans for her grandparents’ mansion.
“Sounds like a boring place to start,” Clint said. “I’d rather skulk around like we’re in a spy movie.”
“Fine. You and Ivy can skulk, while Valmont and I check the blueprints. We’ll meet at the entrance to the library in half an hour.”
The blueprints showed vaults underneath the corners of the building, but no entrance points. No stairs and no outside doors. Bryn turned the paper over, thinking maybe she’d missed something. “There have to be doors somewhere.”
“I’m guessing they don’t want to advertise the entrance.” Valmont took the blueprint from her, folded it back up into a neat rectangle, and re-filed it in the appropriate slot. “Let’s head for the corner of the building and see what we find.”
They ended up in the far back right corner of the building and stopped at a mahogany door with huge iron hinges and a plaque, which read, Maintenance.
“Do you think this could lead down to the vaults?” Bryn asked.
Valmont ran his fingers along the edge of the door. “These hinges look like they predate the modern architecture of the building.”
“So they built the library around something that was already here?” That was an interesting thought. “I don’t suppose we can just turn the knob and walk in?” Bryn placed her hand on the knob and turned to the right. Something clicked.
“It can’t be that easy,” Valmont said. “And if it is, there is probably someone or something on the other side of the door waiting to jump out at us.”
Applying light pressure, Bryn tugged on the door testing to see if turning the knob had opened it. It didn’t move. What had she expected? “Yeah, that would have been too easy.”
The sound of Valmont unsheathing his sword had Bryn spinning around with a fireball in her hand. All she saw was her knight staring at the door in awe. “What’s wrong?”
Valmont pointed at the door with his sword. “The words. You don’t see them?”
The dark wood of the door shone in the light, but its surface appeared as blank as it had always been. “No. What do you see?”
“Only those who have given their all may enter. Those who have taken everything must give to see,” Valmont recited.
“Well that’s not creepy or ominous at all.” Bryn stared at the door until her eyes watered. Nothing. “What does the writing look like?”
“It’s calligraphy, like in the books.” Valmont held the sword in his left hand and reached for the doorknob with his right. He gripped the doorknob and turned it to the right. A click sounded, but when he tugged on the door nothing happened.
“Maybe there’s a clue in one of the tales we haven’t read,” Bryn said.
“We finished the first book. I guess we need to read the other four.” Valmont checked his watch. “We better go. We don’t want to be caught out after curfew.”
The giant wall clock behind the front desk displayed the time. “Crap, we have fifteen minutes to get back to our dorms.”
They should have watched the time more closely. Where were Clint and Ivy? “Should we wait for them?” Bryn asked.
“We don’t have time.” Valmont glanced around. “I don’t see them. They probably headed back already.”
Bryn didn’t feel right about abandoning her friends but it wasn’t like she could yell in the library at closing time without causing a scene. If cell phones weren’t banned on campus, she’d be able to find her friends right away.
“We better go.” Valmont grabbed her hand.
“Wait.” Bryn snatched a piece of paper off Miss Enid’s desk and wrote. “C&I We left. Call me.” And set it up like a tent. “They’ll know what it means. Hopefully, no one else will.”
They darted for the front doors and exited the building. Bryn shifted, Valmont climbed on her back, and then she shot into the air, flapping her wings with powerful downward strokes, flying faster than she’d ever flown while carrying a passenger.
“No one else is out,” Valmont said.
“We’ll make it.” Being incarcerated without food or water for twenty-four hours wouldn’t kill either of them, but it would infuriate her grandfather. She knew, without a doubt, his reaction would be far scarier than the punishment.
Wind buffeted Bryn’s wings as she came in for a landing on her terrace, knocking over both chairs.
Valmont hopped off her back and opened the window while Bryn shifted. As they climbed inside, Bryn could hear her heart beating in her ears.
“Why does it feel like I’m waiting for someone to jump out and yell, ‘Gotcha’?” Valmont asked.
Goose bumps broke out on Bryn’s arms. “I know what you mean.” She grabbed his hand and led him to the living room. “I’m going to call Clint and Ivy.”
“I’m sure they’re fine.”
Bryn dialed Ivy’s number. The phone rang and rang.
“Crap.” Bryn hung up. “What if they didn’t make it back?”
“Maybe they flew to Clint’s room.”
“I don’t have his number.” Bryn paced the living room, hoping her phone would ring.
“Do you know anyone else’s number in the Black dragon’s dorm?” Valmont asked.
There was only one other number Bryn knew, and she didn’t want to use it.
Valmont seemed to read her mind. “Zavien is the only other number you know, isn’t it?”
Bryn nodded. “He was my friend before the other stuff happened, so yeah.”
Valmont huffed out a breath. “If Ivy doesn’t call in ten more minutes, you should call him.”
They sat on the couch and watched the time tick by.
“Damn it.” This would be beyond awkward. She dialed Ivy’s number one more time. No answer. Double damn it. “I guess I have to call him.”
She punched in the number. When he answered, she had a strange sense of deja vu. “Zavien, sorry to bother you—”
“Bryn?” He sounded surprised.
“I’m afraid Clint and Ivy were out after curfew. Can you check their rooms? I only have Ivy’s number.”
“What were you doing out after curfew?” His accusatory tone made the tinge of sadness go away.
“We were at the library and lost track of time. And before you tell me how stupid I am, could you please check on them and call me back?”
Zavien sighed. “I wasn’t going to call you stupid. It’s just…I worry about you.”
The present tense of the statement made her stomach go cold. “I’m fine. Please check and have them call me back.”
“Okay.”
Bryn hung up and turned to find Valmont. “Just so you know, I didn’t love having to do that, either.”
“I know.” He walked over and flopped down on the couch. “Come here.”
She joined him and cuddled against him. A sense of warmth and rightness settled over her. “There. That’s better.”
Valmont sat up, pushing her away in the process.
“What the hell?”
“Sorry, but look.” He pointed at the books on the table. “There’s an extra book.”