Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 89379 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 358(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89379 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 358(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
I found a quiet corner and sat on the ground, hugging my knees to my chest. Maybe I’d been too hasty accepting the mission. I was already hanging on by a thread, and I hadn’t even made it through my first full day.
“Not made any friends yet?” Belinda asked, appearing at my side. Her ghostly form sat on the ground next to me. Evidently, she still hadn’t figured out how to change her clothes. I was just glad I couldn’t smell her. There was nothing worse than old, gone-off blood.
“Didn’t you hear what that Lara girl said? We can only make friends with our own kind, and there is none of my kind in here,” I said, keeping my voice low, so people didn’t overhear and think I was talking to myself.
I watched as Vasilios and Sven entered the courtyard. Vasilios spotted me right away, his attention zooming in on me. I turned my head, refusing to give him my eyes.
“There’s that bastard who killed my uncle!” Belinda fumed when she saw Sven.
“Yep. That’s him,” I replied.
“Why are they coming over here?” she questioned, and I looked up to find them walking directly toward me. Well, crap.
“I have no idea.”
“Get up,” Vasilios ordered coldly. “You look pathetic sitting on the ground like that.”
“Tell him to go fuck himself,” Belinda said, and I grinned because it was the perfect suggestion.
“Go fuck yourself,” I spat.
“Ha! I can’t believe you said it,” Belinda chirped.
“Who is she?” Sven asked in a low voice, his accent similar to Vasilios’s. He was staring at Belinda.
I gaped at him. “You can see her?”
“He can see me?” Belinda echoed in disbelief.
“Of course, I can see her,” Sven responded as his gaze traversed Belinda’s bloodied uniform. “She looks almost as terrible as you do.”
“Okay, listen here, you murderous bastard!” Belinda said as she launched herself at him. Her attack was to no avail, and her translucent form passed through him. Sven appeared mildly amused.
Vasilios seemed irritated as he looked at his friend. “Care to fill me in?”
“Darya has a ghost companion,” Sven explained, and Vasilios peered at me curiously. It was the first time he’d looked at me in a way that wasn’t filled with hate.
“How can you see her?” I demanded of Sven as I continued to ignore Vasilios.
“I have the same ability as you, though mine comes from my demon side,” he replied evenly. “So, who is she?”
“I’ll tell you who the hell I am! I’m the niece of the warlock you murdered, and I swear to all that is holy I will bring you down if it’s the last thing I do,” Belinda declared.
“Is that so?” Sven replied with a relaxed chuckle. “Well, good luck with that.”
“Go ahead, keep laughing. I’ll figure out how to kill you, and I have all the time in the world to do it now that I’m dead.” Then she vanished, and I felt oddly alone at her departure. I didn’t want to deal with those two on my own.
“What is she saying?” Vasilios demanded.
“She’s the niece of that teacher you had me kill, and seemingly, she’s hellbent on my demise,” Sven told him evenly.
Vasilios turned to stare down at me. “Belinda Williams is dead?”
He had the gall to feign shock. I glared up at him frostily as I gritted out, “Yes, she’s dead.”
His eyes held mine, the cogs turning in his brain. “Is that why you’re here?”
I wanted to scoff at his pretence, but I had to play along, pretend I was completely in the dark about his sneaky machinations.
I stood, lifting my chin to meet his gaze. Vasilios wasn’t ridiculously tall like Peter, but to my annoyance, he still stood a few inches taller than me, more than a few if you counted his horns. “Someone killed Belinda and pinned it on me. I bet you’re disappointed now that you won’t get to enact your revenge. My life is ruined, and you didn’t need to lift a finger.”
Then I walked away from him, needing some space. Unfortunately, we don’t always get the things we need.
9.
I was retracing my steps, making my way back to my cell, when Vasilios caught up to me. Sven must’ve remained in the courtyard because he was nowhere in sight. Before I could react, he tugged me around a corner into an empty corridor.
“Will you please just leave me alone?” I griped. “Go back to ignoring me like you were earlier today.”
“Tell me who did this to you?” he demanded as he inspected me. “You’re covered in bruises and vampire bites, and what is this? Did someone pull your hair out?” He sounded furious on my behalf, which confused me. All day I’d been the recipient of his silent hate, and suddenly he cared? Sorry, but I wasn’t buying it.
I bristled self-consciously at him noticing my bald patch. It was tender and sore, and my stomach turned at the thought of what it must look like. “Didn’t you endure the same initiation ceremony when you arrived?” I questioned in annoyance.