Page 34 of Blood Oath
11
MAVEN
I don’t know how much time passes before I’m brutally wrenched back to the cold bathroom floor, choking back a sob. The side of my face is sticky with cold blood. So is the hair plastered against my cheek.
Trying to keep my groan to a minimum in case someone else is in this bathroom, I sit up and grimace at the amount of dark blood pooled around me. That’s certainly enough to kill a normal person. When I reach up, my head it tender—but the wound is gone.
I suppose that’s the one perk to my condition.
Unfortunately, my face, hair, and clothes are all stained with blood. If I pass any vampires on the way back to my dorm, they’ll think I’m advertising a free snack. I glance around the stall helplessly, but there’s not much I could use for cleanup. No ingredients for a cleaning spell. And to be honest, I’m shit at those, anyway.
Well. I suppose there’s one way I could spin this.
Pulling my cell phone from one of the hidden pockets in my baggy sweatshirt, I wrestle with the damn thing until I manage to shoot a text to Kenzie.
Help. Period came early. I look like I lost a fight with my uterus.
She responds immediately.
OMG I was worried sick. Uteruses are such bitches. Where are you? I gotchu.
For the first time ever, I thank the universe for modern technology. Then I quickly send her which bathroom I’m in before cleaning up as much blood as possible. No one else is in the bathroom, so I slink out of my stall to wash up—but it’s still all over my clothes. I use up all of the paper towel dispenser rolls, mopping up the mess.
Luckily, by the time Kenzie sweeps into the bathroom in a glittering purple halter top and a miniskirt that shows of her long legs, I’ve made it look like this was all just a horrible period.
“Poor thing, are you okay? What happened to your pretty olive tones? You look so damn pale! No offense. Do you need painkillers? I brought extra clothes and pads and shit, but I should’ve thought of painkillers!” She smacks her forehead.
“You’re enough of a lifesaver as it is,” I insist, thanking her for the big purse she hands me that’s full of some of my most oversized, comfy clothes and anything else I could need. Of course, I can’t tell her that my pallor is because I just lost a lot of blood.
By the time I’ve changed and reemerged, looking no worse for wear, Kenzie is chattering as she sits on the bathroom counter, picking off her manicure and swinging her long legs.
“—and so I made a list of pros and cons for all of my quintet’s emphasis options. I mean, I would love to do something like covert operations or even the holy guard just because it would keep us away from the Divide, but we’d still be decently ranked in those careers—but I know Dirk would love to be stationed at a more challenging active combat location. Vivienne is okay with anything as long as we don’t have to wake up too early, wherever we end up.”
She pauses her chatter to look me over and smiles. “Ta-da! You look good as new. You’re still way paler than I’ve ever seen you, though. Do you have skin like mine that goes pale in the wintertime? Maybe after graduation next semester, we should all take a trip somewhere warm! Get some sun. I’m thinking Bermuda. I’d love a beach vacation with my matches. Speaking of matches…your guys were freaking out when they couldn’t find you.”
I pause in stuffing my blood-soaked clothes into the bag and frown at her. “Firstly, they’re not my guys. Secondly, did they bother you?”
“They didn’t threaten me, if that’s what you mean. Although the Nightmare Prince looked like he was debating ripping my head off a few times.” She does a full-body shudder and shakes her head. “Gods. I still cannot believe you’re going to have your heart bound to his. I mean, a lot of people say that legacy doesn’t even have a heart.”
A sharp laugh escapes me before I can help it, but I quickly clear my throat. “It’s a moot point because I’m not getting bound to any of them, remember?”
She quirks a brow. “Oh, yeah? How many of them have you fucked so far? And be honest! I’m dying for deets. As possessive as your matches are, you’ve got to be having some hot sex.”
“No dice.”
Kenzie boos loudly, hopping off the counter and stretching to pop her spine. “Okay, fine, you gloomy, stubborn monk. But still, I wanna hear about everything.” Then she frowns and throws a glance at the door. “Although…not sure now is the right time for a catchup sesh. I’m pretty sure Baelfire is about to burn this place to the ground, and if the rest of your quintet is as worked up looking for you, I doubt the “ladies only” sign will keep them out of here.”
A couple of weeks ago, I never would have thought I’d say this, but now I face Kenzie and sling the bag over my shoulder. “How about a girl’s night out in Halfton? I could use a break from my not-a-quintet.”
Kenzie’s brow jumps up. “Uh…they were really worried about you, Maven. And it’s true that you’re a target, so shouldn’t you at least reassure them that you’re okay so they don’t needlessly worry? They’ll probably be pissed if you just ghost them.”
“Even better.”
Understanding dawns on her face, and she blows out a big breath. “Damn. You’re, like…really trying to get rid of your quintet, huh?”
“Yes.” As soon as fucking possible.
She snorts. “Then this is going to be even more entertaining to watch than I imagined because there’s no way a bunch of scary, possessive alpha-type legacies will let their keeper go.”
