Shadows Entwined (Shadows Descent #3)

17. Violet

17

VIOLET

“They’re making their move,” Caine says grimly, helping us up. His cane has created a perfect circle of ice around us, a defensive reaction to the attack. “We’re out of time.”

“No,” I say, determination filling me as I brush glass from my clothes. “We still have a chance. Flint, get the first years to safety. Caine, do what you can with the wards. Thorne...”

“I’m not leaving your side,” he says firmly, his shadows wrapping around me in a possessive display of unity that makes my heart skip.

I nod, grateful for his presence. “We need to find Xaxis and Liam before they can do any more damage.”

Then, we freeze.

Maniacal laughter echoes through the corridors. The sound makes my skin crawl.

“Xaxis,” Flint growls. “I guess he didn’t get the message the first time I kicked his arse.”

“Did you really think we wouldn’t strike back after what happened to Amara? Did you think we’d let that go unpunished?” Xaxis’ voice rings out around campus on a supernatural loudspeaker.

“Violet,” Thorne says warningly as I start towards the door, his hand catching my wrist. “Don’t let him bait you. He wants you angry. Wants you to make mistakes.”

“I’m not,” I say, even though my blood is boiling and my magick is pinging violently with the need to fight. “But we need to stop him before he hurts anyone. Before the students pay the price for our mistakes.”

Another explosion rocks the academy. Through the broken window, I see figures moving across the grounds, emerging from the forest like shadows given form. Their dark robes billow in the winter wind, and their combined magick makes the air thick with power.

“Go,” I tell Flint and Caine, trying to put all my faith and trust into my voice. “Do what you need to do. We’ll handle these traitors.”

They hesitate for a moment, then nod. As they hurry off to their tasks, I turn to Thorne. “Ready to hunt some infiltrators?”

He grins. “Always. But shouldn’t we get Blackthorn?”

“Too late,” I state.

We slip outside and across the courtyard to the main building, carefully following the sound of Xaxis’s taunting voice. The academy is in chaos. Students are running, professors are trying to maintain order, and the occasional explosion makes everyone jump. The paintings on the walls shudder and watch us pass with their creepy, moving eyes.

We round a corner, and Xaxis and Liam stand at the end of the corridor as if they own the place.

Xaxis’s features are twisted with malice, and flames dance across his skin in patterns that scream chaos rather than control. Liam has partially shifted, caught between human and wolf, his amber eyes gleaming with feral hunger.

“Well, well,” Xaxis grins, his form flickering with barely contained flames that leave scorch marks on the stone floor. “Look who finally showed up. The vessel and her shadow puppet.”

“You really want to do this?” I ask, my anger and frustration at this entire situation from the day I was turned boiling up and over making me a very dangerous Violet to be around right now. But it has to happen. I can’t back down. I have to show these fuckers exactly which beast they have awoken.

The air between us shimmers with power.

“Two against two? I think we can kick your arses to Jupiter and back,” I growl, dropping my fangs and cracking my knuckles, determined to win this, however that is going to play out.

Liam laughs, his werewolf features becoming more pronounced. “Who said it was just us? Did you really think we’d confront you without backup?”

Movement behind us makes me spin around. More figures emerge from the shadows. Order members who’ve been hiding in plain sight, waiting for this moment. I recognise faces from classes, from study groups, and from casual conversations in the dining hall.

“How fun, you brought friends,” I mutter as we back up, surrounded, but I won’t show my fear. Not now, not ever. I glance at Thorne. “Any bright ideas?”

Thorne’s shadows spread out around us protectively, creating a dome of darkness. “A few. None of them pleasant.”

“Works for me,” I say, calling on every ounce of power I possess. Morgan’s essence wraps around mine, and I gasp. She had some serious firepower. “Let’s show these traitors why you don’t fuck with MistHallow.”

The tension snaps as both sides prepare to strike.

“You know what the best part is?” Xaxis taunts, flames wreathing his hands. “The Order isn’t just here to destroy MistHallow, Violet. We’re here to remake the world.”

“And you think I’m going to let that happen?” I snarl. “Do you even know who I am?”

Thorne snorts. “Bet you’ve been dying to say that.”

I flash him my fangs. “You have no fucking idea.”

Liam’s laugh is ugly, distorted by his partial transformation. “Doesn’t matter. You’re outnumbered, outmatched, and out of time.”

I tilt my head. Does he not know about Morgan’s life force coursing through me? Guess not. That means we have an advantage over these douche canoes. They are expecting a baby vampire with Morgana powers she doesn’t know how to control.

Well, this just got way more fun.

The flicker of malicious amusement takes me aback. For a second. And then I let Morgan’s, my mother’s, legacy wash over me, sweeping me away and bring purple lightning to my fingertips.

This is it. The moment everything changes, and everyone sees who I really am.

And as I stand there, back-to-back with Thorne, facing down enemies on all sides, the battle for MistHallow Academy is about to begin and not a fucking chance am I letting these arseholes take my sanctuary. My home. Because, let’s face it, I’ve got nowhere else to go.

Another explosion rocks the foundations of the academy, and Xaxis’s flames flicker higher. His eyes meet mine, and the hatred in them, only fires me up more. He lunges forward, and Thorne’s shadow magick rises to meet him. Going solely off pure instinct, I raise my hands and blast out the purple lighting.