“Goddess,” Aurea said, gasping.

  “And that was Morgana’s point,” I continued. “She wanted out of here and out of her role as hostage. Enough to kill for it.”

  Headmistress Aurea’s eyes were very round, and she shot out a hand to steady herself when she swayed. Her fury had drained away almost as easily as it came, leaving her looking older than ever before. For the first time since I’d met her, she looked... vulnerable. Scared.

  “Is this true?” she demanded, looking past me.

  “It is,” Maverick said. “And three of your students helped stop it. I think you should be a little less eager to scream at them and, instead, listen to what they have to say.”

  Headmistress Aurea looked ready to throw up. I couldn’t blame her. Hecate moved first, stepping a little closer to us, though she didn’t seem willing to get within striking distance of my new fangs. Probably wise.

  “Tell us what happened,” Hecate said after a moment. Her voice sounded faint. “We want to know everything.”

  I motioned to the chairs and the overturned conference table. “You might want to sit down. It’s a long story.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Astrid

  “I didn’t mean to kill her,” I whispered. “I just wanted to get her away from my brother.”

  The contents of my Styrofoam cup sloshed as I fought down the tremors in my hands. The scent of the blood made my mouth water, but I couldn’t force myself to drink it. When I closed my eyes, I saw Morgana flying backward, rapping her skull hard against the stone wall before falling into a crumpled heap on the floor.

  Headmaster Thorne rubbed circles into my back. “Of course, we know you didn’t mean to end her life, dear girl. The headmistress knows that as well.”

  Right. Because witches were historically known for their even tempers and reasoned compromises. The only reason Headmistress Aurea wasn’t tossing me out on my newly undead ass was the optics of this whole fiasco. I’d managed to deliver the school from complete and utter chaos by the skin of my fangs and yet a Grimsbane had still died. Aurea was going to get flack for not addressing the problem sooner and she’d look for someone to blame... but a decade or two down the road, when things blew over.

  “Drink,” Headmaster Thorne said gently. “You’ll attack someone soon if you don’t.”

  My eyes fluttered shut and I couldn’t retain a shudder. I knew he was right. Morgana had managed to cut Mav before she’d been blown off her feet and after the dust settled, I hadn’t been concerned with the grisly aftermath. I only had eyes for the scarlet collecting in my brother’s collar. Thank the goddess that Rook had dragged me away from the scene before I could do something inexcusable.

  Headmaster Thorne gave me an approving nod when I took a sip. “Drink as many cups full as you need. I understand Desmond wasn’t feeding you properly...”

  “Desmond wasn’t ‘feeding’ me at all,” I answered. “He gave me enough blood to turn me and that was it.”

  The headmaster nodded. “It’ll be a few days before you feel entirely yourself again.”

  “Where is he now?” I asked. “Valserak, I mean. Is he still...?”

  “Undead? Yes, for now. He won’t stay that way though,” Headmaster Thorne said darkly. “He will pay for what he and his allies did.”

  “How many allies did he have? Beyond Morgana, I mean?”

  Headmaster Thorne nodded again. “We discovered the network spans quite a ways outside of the school. It will need to be dealt with swiftly. For now, I’ll ask you to stay with Chesley so he can help you with your transition. Usually, such things are left to sires, but in this case, obviously that’s not an option.”

  “Right.”

  He nodded for the third time. “I trust Chess to take care of you, and after everything’s sorted, you can start night classes together next term.”

  I raised an eyebrow. With the way Fox had been talking, I wasn’t sure I’d be here that long but...

  “Next term? It’ll take me that long to adjust?”

  The headmaster smiled wanly. “No, but it will take that long for Aurea and I to sort things out. You are a vampire, and you killed a witch, so it technically broke the pact that keeps us from going for each other’s throats.”

  “Oh, no,” I started.

  He held up a hand. “It won’t come to that,” he said with a wan smile. “We’re considering other options for addressing our long conflict. Hostage exchange clearly won’t work any longer. We’ll be ending term after Samhain to begin a peace conference.”

  I would have guessed that a century ago, when Blood War Two broke out, but it wasn’t my place to say it. I sipped my blood instead, trying not to drain it all in one pull. I wasn’t sure my stomach could take too much, and it would be embarrassing to puke all over his nice, antique office rug. Headmaster Thorne must have sensed the comment poised at the edge of my tongue because his lips twitched in amusement.

  “Prince Reynard has put forth the notion that we take advantage of the Sidhe representatives who’ve arrived to take stock of the damage and put this fight under the aegis of Faerie for now. It seems childish to need babysitters to mediate our quarrels, but as it’s spilled over into their territories, it might not be the worst idea. Perhaps in a few more centuries we’ll have enough maturity to solve our problems with words instead of hexes and fangs.”

  I finished my blood in silence and Headmaster Thorne refilled the cup, as promised. I started to feel full around the fifth and it was only then that I started to feel any semblance of better.

  “I am sorry this happened to you, Miss Depraysie,” Headmaster Thorne said quietly. “Desmond will suffer for it. And if there is anything we, as the staff, can do to be sure that something like this doesn’t happen again, I do hope you will let us know.”

  For the first time since the dust had settled, I smiled.

  “Well, there are a few things...”

  Epilogue

  Astrid

  As Headmaster Thorne predicted, the remaining staff came to a unanimous decision to end the term after Samhain and start fresh next term.

  They’d need the time to seek out and thoroughly vet any new night class instructors. A quarter of them were involved in the faerie-turning scheme and had been subsequently dealt with by Headmaster Thorne. I’d been resting in Rook’s room at the time, so I hadn’t been present, but I’d been told it hadn’t been pleasant or quick. Which suited me fine.

  There’d been more faeries than we knew about, stolen from town and stuffed into even more cramped holes to be starved and brainwashed. In total, Valserak and his cronies had ended two dozen lives, including mine. Public execution was the least they deserved. I was just salty it hadn’t been with something flashy and memorable like a guillotine.

  “Do you want any punch?” Oleander asked, jarring me out of my moody reverie. “I think they have a bowl that’s laced with blood for the vampire students. I could get you a glass if you’re thirsty.”

  In honor of Samhain and the school dance, Oleander had opted for the classic tux and bowtie combo I’d grown familiar with at mundane high school dances. He’d even managed to grow his own boutonniere with Professor Lavant’s instruction. The scarlet dahlia was a match to the corsage on Elly’s wrist. After getting lost in a foreign land, foiling a vampire plot, and helping me stop a spurned witch from ending the school, asking Elly out had seemed like small potatoes. I hadn’t seen them apart for days now.

  The relationship was new, but I was fairly confident it would continue, now that they had a full ride to Blood Rose. When they graduated, they could get away from home with its small-town mentality and settle anywhere they wanted. It had been the least Headmistress Grimsbane and Headmaster Thorne could do after all we’d sacrificed to save their school. I trusted the headmaster to keep Aurea honest and do what he could for the legacy staff, even if the mercurial witch changed her mind when public interest died down.

  I shook my head with a tight, closed-lipped smile. I still wasn’t used to the fangs, so it felt odd when I tried for a real grin. I waved Oleander off good-naturedly.

  “Rook let me feed from him before the dance so I wouldn’t risk getting blood on my costume. I’ll be fine. Go ahead and dance with Elly. This is a good song and I think she misses you.”

  I smoothed my hands over my dress self-consciously. I hadn’t had time to buy or make a costume before the dance, so Rook’s father had stepped in at the last minute, saving me from attending in my uniform. The rich material of the dress I wore was heavy and undoubtedly priceless. It had belonged to Headmaster Thorne’s human wife at one point. The brocade dress was done up in shades of green with gold trim. Elly had helped me into the corset and twisted my hair into complex knots to match the style of the time. Thankfully, I didn’t need to breathe, or the binding garment and all the sundry petticoats would have already dragged me into unconsciousness.

  Oleander cast a glance over his shoulder, smiling faintly when he found Elly hovering near the edge of the dance floor, trying to look inconspicuous. I was sort of glad I was leaving. They’d get insufferable if I had to spend all term watching them dance around the desire to fall into bed together. But that couldn’t happen until they were married—as far as Elly was concerned, anyway. I had a bet it was going to go down before their vows did though.

  Oleander took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance before he darted away, taking Elly by the hand, and disappearing into the crowd of dancers.

  The strains of music and laughter drifting through the room did a lot to ease the tension, but couldn’t erase it entirely. By now, the news of what Valserak had been ready to do was the talk of the school, and not everyone condemned the plot for the horror it was. Enough students, witches and vampires alike, were sick of playing nice and were spoiling for a fight. The headmaster and headmistress were going to have their hands full with sorting out who was inclined to start shit before next term, or it was going to be a rough year.

  But however it shook out, I wouldn’t be here to witness it. I was bound for sunnier climes and I’d be taking Rook along for the ride. As Headmaster Thorne had said, I’d need a surrogate sire until I could get the hang of this undead thing. Uncle Fox had agreed to a layover in Haven Hollow before we really got underway.

  Wanda had been furious that her vampire cover story had kept her in the Hollow while Mother was the one to escort me home. I wouldn’t see Wanda and the Haven Hollow crew until tomorrow evening, after everything wrapped up here.

  After that, who knew? Fox had thrown around a few out-of-the-way locations where he could begin my training. Haven Hollow was a hotspot for autumn fae, so it was imperative that I stay far away. Not everyone would be thrilled to have a half-breed on the throne, so assassination attempts were inevitable—at least, that’s what Fox thought (and I did think he was a little paranoid, but what did I know about fae politics? Not much, it seemed). Furthermore, I had to stay away from my friends and family for their own good.

  “I wouldn’t have pegged you for a wallflower,” a familiar voice said.

  I turned and found Rook standing beside me, leaning casually against the wall. He was dressed to match me, wearing an elaborate and ridiculously frilly coat over a brocade vest and breeches. It looked like he was also wearing tights but I couldn’t tell in the strobing light of the dance floor. If my heart had been beating, it would have fluttered at the sight of him. On anyone else, the clothing would have made me laugh, but they looked... right on Rook.

  “I’m usually not. It’s just this thing.” I fluffed my skirts for emphasis. “I don’t know how to move in this many layers. I’m afraid I’m going to knock anyone over who’s unlucky enough to get in my way.”

  “Sneak out with me and we’ll find a nice corridor where no one can see us. I’ll teach you the Viennese waltz.”

  I laughed. “I think you just want a private moment to get under my skirts.”

  He flashed me a devilish grin. “Well, yes, that too.”

  I gave him a light shove. “Pervert. Besides, this is your mom’s dress. I wouldn’t want to ruin it. I’m not even sure it should count as a costume for the party. Is it really a costume if your dad basically raided his wife’s closet?”

  “I won’t tell if you won’t,” Rook said. His eyes swept over me appreciatively. “Besides, I like it. You look beautiful.”

  I waited for the blush to creep up my neck and steal across my cheeks, and realized with a sickening lurch that it wasn’t coming. I was still being carefully monitored with vampire blood and it would be a long time before I’d be safe enough to feed on a human without hurting them. So, that meant I was going to be cold and waxy for a while.

  Rook’s playful smile slipped, and he stepped closer, sliding his hand into mine. “I’m sorry. I said something to upset you.”

  I blinked rapidly, refusing to cry. This wasn’t his fault damn it, and I wasn’t going to ruin my last night at Blood Rose by blubbering all over his mother’s dress. I forced a wobbly smile.

  “It’s not you. I just... this whole thing is hard. I go for a while feeling like everything is normal and then it just sucker punches me again. I’m dead. My pulse is never going to speed up. I’m not going to blush. All the physical reactions I was used to having when I touched you...” I freed one hand and trailed a hand up his arm in demonstration. “They’re not the same.”

  Rook’s expression softened. His hands came up to cup my face, swiping at a pair of traitorous tears that had squeezed their way past the clench of my eyes. He pressed a kiss to my temple and my answering sigh ruffled the ridiculous lace at the collar of his jacket.

  “I know it sounds trite, but you do get used to it, eventually. It’ll take longer for you, I expect because it was an assault and you’ll need help processing that. I, at least, knew what to expect from my father and agreed to be turned.”

  “I have Lorcan, William, and Amos to help me. No one in the Haven Hollow clan was turned by choice, so they’ll have advice, I’m sure.”

  “Then I’m glad you have them.”

  I snuggled closer to Rook, winding my arms around his lean waist. I may have had a discreet little cry into his cravat, but if he noticed, he didn’t call me on it. He just smiled when I could finally pull myself together and offered me his arm.

  “The night is still young. Why don’t we dance? You only get one Samhain celebration here, so let’s make it count.”

  The ballroom was decorated the week I’d been gone, with dried cornhusks, acorns, apples, pomegranates, corn, autumn wreaths, Jack-o’-lanterns, and bales of hay. A controlled bonfire would be lit near the end of the festivities for the final dance. But this year, with an actual Autumn prince in residence, the decor had gotten an upgrade. The hay bales and pumpkins now towered over our heads, the latter lit from inside by hundreds of swirling dewdrop faeries Fox had invited into the castle. The fruits were State Fair-worthy and smelled absolutely divine. And, of course, I was more than sad I couldn’t sample them. Scarecrows dotted the room, interacting with students at odd intervals. Flax and Smudge were trying to make them behave, to no avail. Apparently, the pair had taken to me and were set to travel wherever I went next.

  But the most impressive feature of Fox’s decorations was the fire. It was pure Autumn magic, casting out crisp gold, orange, red, and brown light in turn and would burn until sunrise, allowing the witches in attendance to dance their fill around it. Even Vivian and her cadre of mean girls were in attendance, joining in on a few reels, though they were unusually subdued. Maybe the danger they’d barely dodged had finally made them look past their myopic little social lives.

  Nah. They were just embarrassed that all of this had happened underneath their noses and they’d had no clue. Vivian would be back to her usual pompous self by next term.

  Rook led me across the dance floor and settled near Taliyah and Maverick, who’d begun an awkward shuffle, looking like two uptight teachers at a mundane high school prom. Taliyah hadn’t bothered with her glamor and most people were giving them a wide berth, recognizing her as the fae royal she was. It gave me enough space to spin around in the wide skirts without knocking people over. It was worth the unhappy scowls Maverick aimed at the back of Rook’s head when he wasn’t looking.

  Besides, I was kind of looking forward to the look on Maverick’s face when I suggested Rook teach them to waltz.

  I wasn’t sure how long Rook and I stayed locked in an embrace. The dance seemed eternal, with only the music and the shifts in the fire’s color to mark the passage of time. But some time had to have passed, because an elegant, long-fingered hand steered Rook and I to a stop and a familiar voice asked, “May I cut in?”

  Rook stepped back to get a good look at the woman who’d spoken, but I knew who I’d see. She was tall and regal, with the hourglass figure I’d envied for years and had only just started growing into. One I’d never achieve now. I’d be a curvy but unfinished teenager for the rest of eternity, never to reach the stately maturity she had. She’d let her inky hair down tonight, though most of it was still concealed under the hood of the scarlet crushed velvet cloak she wore. It tumbled down her back when she threw it back, exposing her face to the shifting lights.

  My eyes pricked. Goddess, she was even more beautiful than I remembered. The Assembly was the last time we’d had a proper face-to-face meeting, and it seemed so long ago now. I released Rook and threw my arms around her neck, tugging her as close as I could get. The skirts made hugging difficult, but I managed.

  “Mom,” I said, voice choked with emotion. “I’m so glad you’re here!”

  My mother pried me loose after a few moments and held me at arm’s length so she could really take me in. The lines around her eyes and mouth were tight with concern, but she wasn’t exuding contempt. It was more than I’d expected. She’d lived her entire life as a mother dreading the day when Celestine turned a vampire loose to turn her child. She’d been worried for Maverick, not me, but the fear had finally been realized. One of us was undead, turned against our will by a sadistic vampire. It had to sting like a son of a bitch that it had happened after Celestine’s banishment. She’d finally thought we were safe.