Fae of the South (Court of Crown and Compass Book 3) by E. Hall (libby ebook reader .txt) 📕

the forge on Franklin Street. Can’t stop now. With every step, I’m closer to Lea’s apartment but increasingly hungry as I try to stave off the painful desire.

All at once, her signature smell mixes with something else...leather, aggression, other vampires. If anyone hurts her, I will destroy them. An acrid smell stings my senses. When I round the corner, flames lick the edges of her building. Smoke fills the windows.

I fumble for my phone but don’t have it. Could Lea be in there? Sirens wail in the distance. People shout for help.

Even though the flames don’t yet touch me, the proximity of the fire scorches my skin like a warning. The vampire instincts bring me to a halt. Mind over matter. But I remain rooted to the sidewalk as the inferno devours the building.

Chapter 5

Leajka

 

 

I’m alone in a room, seated at a table, and still cuffed. A single bulb hangs overhead. The stench of demons, from the other side of Riker’s, fills the air—it’s my understanding that they’re sent to one section of the facility to be vaporized while the rest of the prison consists of supernatural lawbreakers. There are natural mortals or nats, short for regular, mortal humans and supernaturals who are those of us with powers.

Powers I never want to think about.

Except I do now.

Whether it was a purposeful police tactic or not, I’ve had plenty of time to dip into then drown in my thoughts while sitting here. My mind skips from old memories to the incident sophomore year, to earlier when Ivan told me I stood accused of murder.

I won’t lie. It’s crossed my mind. I came close once. But it was self-defense. Something inside stopped me—along with Ivan, but he’d almost been too late. Nonetheless, I existed in a dark place after I was attacked and fought back with magic I didn’t even realize I had.

For months, I grappled with an overwhelming fear of what I could’ve done. So I hid away. Holed up at home. Stopped going to school and seeing my friends—well, everyone except Tyrren.

When the magical energy wants to be released, I’d opt to do other bad deeds, but ones that won’t result in murder or jail time—driving luxury cars that aren’t mine, for instance.

Since that day sophomore year, my power has always existed just beneath the surface, itching to be let loose like a caged animal. So the fact that I’m locked up, after all that effort to keep people safe from myself, makes me want to explode.

That fierce urge rises in me now.

I grit my teeth and take a deep breath.

Even if I wanted to cast a tiny drop of magic from my palms, something tethers it, locks it down.

A man with a shiny bald head enters the room. Glasses sit over a smug expression. He wears plain clothes and sits down in a chair opposite me. “Lea Vladikoff?”

I nod.

“Care to tell me what happened?”

I shake my head.

“I can make this easier if you cooperate.”

I stare.

“Friday night you were seen using magic against two natural mortals. It’s illegal no matter the circumstances. They died. The investigation is ongoing, however, several eyewitnesses claim it was you. If you admit to the crime, I can help you. If you deny it, we’ll see how long you last inside the walls of Riker’s.”

“Sounds like a threat.”

The man shrugs.

Fear worms its way inside of me. I might be tough, but I’m not sure I’m supernatural prison tough.

The man leans in so close I can see the pores in his skin. “We’ve been watching you for a long time—you’ve been a very bad girl. Whether you know it or not, your uncle helped you out more than once, but he can’t get you out of this. The fun and games are over, Lea.” He gets up from his chair.

I kick it, sending it flying across the room.

The guy snorts as though my behavior only strengthens his case.

I clench my fists because I know exactly how this works. Cooperate, they might help you. Act out, you’re on your own.

Just then a woman breezes in. She’s tall, has short hair, and sharp cheekbones. She wears a police officer uniform and her badge reads Heather Bond. She hauls me to my feet.

“What do you think you’re doing, Bond?” the interrogator asks.

“Bringing her to the reform school.”

“On whose orders?” he demands.

She exhales sharply through her nose and furnishes a piece of paper. Again, my name is printed across the top. “Arshad, she’s underage and hasn’t finished high school yet. Law says she goes to reform school.”

“I forgot you’re one of those soft-hearted sympathizers,” says the cop named Arshad.

“I’m just doing my job,” Heather replies.

I recently had my eighteenth birthday, but I keep my mouth shut because reform school sounds a heck of a lot better than Riker’s.

Arshad crosses a pair of stubby arms in front of his chest. “It’s only a matter of time before she’s back here. I’m watching you, Vladikoff. You too, Bond.”

When we’re down the hall and out of earshot, she whispers in my ear, “Consider yourself lucky, but in two weeks, when the paperwork is reviewed, your luck is likely to run out.”

I remain silent as a van takes us to the other side of the island. I glance over my shoulder at the high-security prison with its barbed wire and magically enhanced security to keep criminals inside. The stench of demons becomes overwhelming.

Heather seems completely unaffected. She must be a nat. However, considering she’s the one that’s facilitating my stay at the reform school rather than the prison, I’ll consider her an ally, for now.

I try not to fidget. Being surrounded by so much power, even though it’s suppressed, makes my own squeeze