The door opened and Eli stepped in. Our eyes met and my whole body lit up as if he were lying right next to me, caressing me. My heart raced and I felt my cheeks flare white hot. I dropped my gaze back down to the Persian rug, hoping my cheeks cooled off fast. Eli kept his cool. I thought once you had sex, the desire was gone and it became a normal thing. Why wasn’t that happening to me? Why did I want him even more than I did before?

Eli was off duty and therefore he wasn’t wearing his uniform. He still looked amazingly drool-worthy in his loose jeans and plain white t-shirt that clung to his chest and arm muscles.

Mr. Aleksandrov entered the room with a large smile on his face. Gwydion stumbled in behind him. I had forgotten what Gwydion even looked like, but when I saw him in his deep blue robe, it all came flooding back. The short white hair and matching short beard, his chubbiness, and his little knitted bag that hung over his shoulder and across his chest. Behind Gwydion came the tattooed man that had bonded Eli and I together—The Shar. The Shar pushed past everyone without any greetings and set up his tattoo machine on the flimsy table.

“Ruby, you remember Gwydion, don’t you?”

Mr. Aleksandrov pulled my attention to Gwydion. I pushed off the armchair and stood up. I extended my hand to Gwydion. He took it before pulling me into a hug. I held my breath, there was something off about his choice of cologne. It smelled moldy… like wet earth.

“It’s so good to see you!” he exclaimed.

“You too.”

Gwydion was oblivious to my reaction and squeezed me for a few seconds longer. I felt a small twinge of pain on edge of my hair line as my hair got caught on something. I glanced at Eli, his face was completely professional and composed, but I swear I saw something flickering in his eyes, a look of amusement or pleasure. I glowered at him—the strange smell of this man was not amusing. At last, Gwydion released me and stepped toward Eli. There was no hug for Eli, only a handshake. Once Gwydion had exchanged pleasantries with almost everyone in the room, he turned his attention to Mila, who was nervously tapping her finger on her knee.

“Are you ready, dear?” Gwydion asked.

Mila glanced at me and then at Eli, who gave her a reassuring nod. She nodded quickly, her lip snagged between her teeth. She chewed it nervously.

From his knitted bag, Gwydion produced a small scalpel and a vial to catch the blood. As he stepped toward her, she flinched away from the knife. I placed my hand on her shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.

“Mila, it’s okay. He only needs a little blood.”

She swallowed hard, her brown eyes cloudy. “I know, I just didn’t think he’d need a knife to get it.”

Gwydion waited at a distance while Mila gathered her thoughts. Eli sat down on the small stool beside The Shar, presenting his wrist on the table. The big, scary, tattoo-covered Shar tapped his leather boot on the rug impatiently.

Mila’s breathing deepened and I knelt in front of her, forcing her to look at me and not the scalpel Gwydion held in his hand.

“It will only sting for a second, I promise.”

She used her index finger to push her lip against her teeth.

“I’ll hold your hand if you want,” I offered.

She nodded and extended her hand toward Gwydion. Gwydion wasted no time in slicing her hand—afraid that she’d change her mind and we’d have to hold her down. I grasped her hand and she squeezed her eyes shut. She winced as the scalpel came into contact with the palm of her hand. Like I promised, it was over in a second. Quickly, Gwydion pulled a small vial filled with clear liquid. I recalled the smell of it—petrol. He unscrewed the lid and everyone turned up their noses—except Gwydion and The Shar. They seemed accustomed to it. He poured the liquid into the palm of her hand and she gasped at both the stinging of the liquid and how rapidly the cut healed.

Subtly, I glanced down at the faint scarring of my feather. It had been so long, I couldn’t remember the exact feeling of the burning liquid or the tingling burn that came from the tattoo gun. Gwydion took the small vial of blood over to The Shar. The Shar mixed the blood with the ink and the machine buzzed to life. Like last time, Eli’s face remained content as the tiny needles cut his skin. Every now and then, he’d look at me—to make sure I was okay. I was proud of myself. Not once did I swallow hard out of sadness or jealousy, even though I wanted to tear the tattoo gun away from his skin and run away with him.

When it was over, it was Mila’s turn. Nervously, she exchanged places with Eli—dragging me along behind her. I knelt on the floor beside the stool and held her hand. Gwydion gave Eli’s blood to The Shar and once again the machine whirred with life. Mila squeezed my hand and I cringed under the pressure. I had no idea that petite, girly Mila had so much strength. My fingers ached. Once the initial ink entered her skin, her grip slackened.

“It’s not as bad as I thought,” she confessed.

I squeezed her hand to let her know she was doing well.

Twenty minuted into Mila’s tattoo, Mr. Aleksandrov announced that he needed to discuss business with Aaron, Lyric and Eli. As they stepped out of the room, my phone vibrated. I pulled my phone form my pocket. I had a text message from an unknown number. I opened it.

Ruby. They’re planning to evacuate the school today. That’s all I could find out. —X

“What’s wrong?” Mila asked. I realized I was staring at the door after Mr. Aleksandrov and the others.

If the school gets evacuated, where do we go? I couldn’t imagine there were too many charmed places that could protect us. I rose to my feet.

“Where are you going? What’s wrong?” Mila asked urgently.

“I need to talk to your uncle, I’ll be back.”

I jogged from the room. I was Mr. Aleksandrov’s head guardian. They couldn’t keep things from me. I burst through the doors of the tea room with my ‘I’m a head guardian, include me’ speech ready to go. They were scattered about the room and all eyes were focused on me and my hasty entry.

“Good, you’re here,” Mr. Aleksandrov said.

My speech caught in my throat and I became confused.

“You wanted me here? I was about to give a speech about not being included.”

They all laughed and I was pretty sure it was at me and not with me.

“Yes, I wanted you here, but I couldn’t ask in front of Mila. There are things I don’t want her to know,” Mr. Aleksandrov replied. “First things first, Ruby, how are you feeling? Last night would have been difficult for anyone.”

I flushed, irritated by being called out. “I’m fine.” My response was abrupt, but I didn’t want to appear weak in front of the others. Mr. Aleksandrov nodded.

“Okay, let’s move on, then.” Aleksandrov straightened his robe and stroked his long white beard. “As we speak, the school is being evacuated. Sage Sanctum is no longer a safe place for our students or staff. They’ll be sent home or placed in other schools until we can guarantee their safety. Luckily, the council left before the intrusion last night. I’d like them to remain in the dark about this situation. The security teams have been informed and they have assured me they won’t say a word.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. Aleksandrov continued. “I want this school to be prepared by nightfall. Hunter told Eli that Lucian is coming on Wednesday, but who knows what the vampire’s real plans are?”

“We have Ruby, so this should be an easy fight,” Lyric interrupted.

“Our greatest asset in this fight is gone,” Eli responded, folding his arms across his chest. “Ruby has a bracelet on her arm that blocks her from using her Heelian powers.”

“I can still fight,” I interjected.

“Absolutely not,” both Mr. Aleksandrov and Eli said at the same time.

I placed my hands on my hips. “Why not?”

“That’s something we should discuss in private,” Mr. Aleksandrov answered. “Right now, your survival is top priority.”

Eli’s face hardened and curiosity flashed in the depths of his eyes.

“When the bonding is done, you will all go back to the school and help evacuate the students—Ruby, you can help. Your uniform will be in your house when you return. Now, we have a bonding session to get back to.”

I sat cross-legged on the floor with my arms folded across my chest, watching as Eli and Mila held hands while The Shar bound them together. I was frustrated… not because of the binding, but because of my sudden irrelevance in protecting Mr. Aleksandrov. Yes, I’d lost my Heelian powers. Yes, I was a nineteen-year-old girl, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t kick ass. I rose to my feet as The Shar hummed his chant. Slowly, I strolled over to Mr. Aleksandrov, who was sitting in a deep leather arm chair. I knelt beside him.

“What if I can prove to you I’m more than capable of handling my own?”

I glanced at Eli, who regarded me curiously. My lips twitched, he knew I was up to something.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t risk it,” he mumbled back to me. “There was a vampire in your house last night and he managed to clip a bracelet to your wrist and escape with his life. With all due respect, I don’t think you’re as prepared for this as you think you are.”

“He is— was—my friend.”

“Friends don’t sign each other’s death sentence.”

“He doesn’t have full control over himself. You can’t blame him entirely,” I replied quietly.

Mr. Aleksandrov leaned closer to my ear. “You’re more foolish than I thought.”

I ignored him. “Please, sir, let me prove it to you. If I can stand up against Eli, or any guardian of your choosing, will you let me fight?”

Mr. Aleksandrov tapped his lip in thought. “You want me to arrange a fight between you and a guardian just so you can prove you’re capable of killing a vampire?”

I didn’t need to prove anything. I was under the impression that I’d proven myself already. I was capable of killing a vampire. I’d killed loads of them, more than most guardians. Granted, most of them were killed with my Heelian power, but I’d staked and burned vampires as well. I didn’t repeat my thoughts to Aleksandrov. Instead, I nodded.

“No.”

“No?” I repeated.

“No.”

I blew the air out I’d been holding in my cheeks and slumped down. I was sulking and I hated sulking, but it enraged me to think that Lucian was coming for me and I couldn’t do anything to help.

“We’re done,” said The Shar, and like last time, the tattooed man packed up all his things and left in a hurry.

Mr. Aleksandrov rose to his feet and straightened his gray robe. Mila walked over to us, caressing her bandaged wrist.

“Now that’s done, we all have work to tend to. Lyric and Eli, if you could take Mila to her dorm to help her pack her things and bring them back here, that’d be much appreciated. Aaron and Xavier, go help the others with the students. Ruby, stay with me. There are a few things we need to discuss.”

“I’ll see you soon, right?” Mila asked me, squeezing my arm gently.

“Yeah, I’ll catch up.”

Mila, Eli, and Lyric headed off, followed by Aaron and Xavier. When they disappeared out the door Mr. Aleksandrov stepped closer to me, his voice low and urgent.

“I know what the council wants with you.” I leaned in closer, afraid to miss anything. “They want to use your Heelian powers to cure vampires…”

I was almost speechless. Almost. Mr. Aleksandrov fell silent and watched me intently as I thought it through.

“Is… is that even possible?” I stammered, thinking about all the lives I could save … not the just the lives of strangers, but Hunter’s life, too.

“The council’s research team has been working on a cure for many years. They developed a formula they thought worked, but it only disoriented the vampire. It couldn’t tell if it was human or vampire, even though all the signs pointed to vampire. When they discovered you couldn’t be fully turned because you literally had the sun coursing through your veins, they became fixated on the idea that you were the key and they wanted to test their theory… They’ve asked me to take some of your blood and send it to them for tests.”

“If I give them my blood and it works, what does that mean for me? Will I be strapped into a chair and be a test subject? Will I need to donate blood every day, week, or month for the rest of my life? What do you want me to do?” I asked Mr. Aleksandrov.

He smiled sympathetically at me. He was as conflicted as I was. “I want you to do what you think is right. It’s your body—your blood. I’m not forcing you to answer right now.”

Subconsciously, I rubbed the thick metal bracelet locked on my wrist.

“I can fix that,” Gwydion said, pointing to my bracelet.

“You can fix it? How? Hunter said Lucian killed the witch that made the binding spell.”

“Binding spells are hard to break, but not impossible. I’m one of the oldest wizards in the world. Over the years, I have acquired some helpful and powerful spells.”

“Not yet. We need to be smart. Play this out to our advantage.”

I stared at him, wide-eyed. “Are you kidding me? If I get my powers back, this will give us the upper hand! I can help—you know I can.”

Mr. Aleksandrov put his hand on my shoulder, calming me instantly. I shuddered. Mr. Aleksandrov hadn’t used his empathic powers on me since I first arrived at Sage and it felt funny.

“The council made me the higher power because you trust me and they trust me to protect you. Let us handle it. All I need you to do is stay here with Mila.”