Half Blood Rising

Karina was a bit shocked seeing me awake and ready for action around seven o’clock in the morning. Apparently, everyone was done with Moscow and wanted to leave as soon as possible.

She jumped on me, hugged me, and asked millions of questions before she allowed me to explain anything at all. She had no idea I’d woken up in the middle of the night and bumped into Lachlan in the kitchen. Everyone else was a little shocked, too, when they saw me at breakfast looking lucid and not a giant mess.

“I mean, you can all stop staring at me. I’m fine, well, and I ain’t planning to kill anyone today.” I tried to joke, but it just added a bit more fuel to the fire.

“It’s not a joke,” Dimitry said in his thick Russian accent, and I thought he should audition for films, he would have been a great actor.

I started eating, realising my stomach was growling with hunger, while everyone else was staring at me. Roxanna made excellent coffee and eggs. I was going to miss her.

“Okay, I mean, we’re heading back to Kiev soon enough,” I said, thinking I owed the group an explanation, but first, I needed to speak to Oldman about everything that had happened that night. Apparently, she’d already returned to Kiev for an urgent matter, and I hadn’t had a chance to talk to her yet. Our flight was leaving this afternoon. In a way, I was looking forward to getting back to a normal routine. I was so done with being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“How are you feeling?” Judas asked me, and I was a little surprised that he’d asked the question first. I placed a large pancake on my plate and splashed some syrup on top. I was bloody starving.

“Good, the dark energy has almost diminished, and I managed to sleep for a while,” I said and started eating.

Lachlan was watching me as usual, sitting opposite me. That seemed to satisfy Judas and everyone else, at least for now, because for a long moment, no one was saying anything. We were all trying to enjoy our breakfast.

It wasn’t going to be easy to reveal the real truth, but we were all partners and they needed to trust me. This nightmare was behind me, but the horrific memories remained. I could still hear the mage’s terrifying screams, but I just had to breathe.

After breakfast, Dimitry had given a little speech, praising us all for the job we’d completed, wishing us good luck in the future. It was possible that, at some point, we would return to Moscow, but for now, everyone seemed to be done with Russia.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Karina asked later as we were packing in our room. The plane was leaving in about three hours, and our ride was going to arrive at any moment.

“I’m not a hundred percent, but I’ll get there. The whole thing is complicated,” I told her, trying to fit everything into a small suitcase. “Once I talk to Oldman, I’ll explain everything, but please, bear with me. I just don’t want to scare you.” She seemed to accept my answer, because she nodded and didn’t press any further on the subject.

An hour later, we were sitting outside our gate ready for departure. The airport was busy, and I felt a little sick. Nerves about flying were slowly getting to me, but once onboard the plane, I ended up sitting next to Lachlan. He even held my hand during take-off.

beautiful, so chill out and just enjoy the ride,” he said once our seatbelts were buckled, and everyone else was settled. My heart was thumping loudly inside my chest during the entire flight. I was scared, but

when we landed and managed to go through security quickly. A van with the Moonlight logo was waiting for us

had changed there, it was basic, and it stunk of mould a bit, but it was our little home. I

to Oldman’s office, so I could get this conversation over and

drinks at the bar down the street later, that’s all. We aren’t planning

a deep breath and told myself she was probably expecting me. The council hadn’t arrested me yet, so I had

leave Moonlight. Oldman must have sensed me outside, because she opened the door as I was just about to walk back to my room. This was absurd. I told myself that she was on

she said, giving me a smile.

anything, I needed to be open and honest about what happened

and silence filled the space

get straight to the point, shall we?” she said. “The High Council has been pressing me to question you, but I have managed to steer

a feeling she had something to do with it. I took another deep breath and started talking. She didn’t need to know I had a little

a bit, and then my lonely walk around the streets when I needed some time away. When I got to the part where Leonidas started drinking from me, the principal appeared horrified, but I kept talking. I remembered that moment very clearly, then paused, preparing to tell the worst. My stomach tightened, but it was time to be

I said, rubbing my forehead. “All the vampires were killed instantly, and then I burnt

tried to process this information. I was expecting that kind of reaction from her, but that wasn’t all I needed

was

I didn’t want him to die, but it just happened. The mage said something to me before he died. He said that his master thought I had no abilities, that the experiment was successful, and

was a monster, something that shouldn’t exist. I was too dangerous to be walking free—like a ticking bomb that could go off at any moment. Silence stretched for some time as Oldman was thinking. It was hard to read her emotions or aura.

her seat, paced around her

powerful one, and a half-vampire. A

said? I killed all those vampires. I was the cause of that massacre. I’m a freak,” I said, raising my voice, thinking that maybe she didn’t really understand what happened

to miss them. And the

to happen now?” I asked. I was certain I didn’t want to return to

Oldman stated. “Things with the Elite Academy are still complicated, as well, from what you’ve said, I