Darke Academy 2: Blood Ties Read online

  The atmosphere in the Trustees’ Room couldn’t have been more different from the last time she’d sat here, nervous and alone. This time Cassie stood, relaxed but determined. She felt comfortable in the room’s grand elegance, and she wasn’t overawed by the row of Elders seated behind the long table. They seemed smaller now.

  Studying the line of faces, she met each gaze individually. Some of the figures, even the most familiar ones, were fidgeting uncertainly. Such a meeting was unprecedented, Sir Alric had told her. This ought to be interesting …

  ‘You can’t call the meeting to order until Brigitte and Vaughan get here,’ objected the female senator, tapping a sleek fountain pen on her leather organiser.

  ‘Brigitte Svensson and Andrew Vaughan will not be attending this Council.’ Sir Alric ignored the collective intake of breath that greeted this announcement. ‘For reasons that will become clear, I think we may assume that they send their apologies.’

  ‘Then let’s hear it,’ drawled an A-list Hollywood actor. ‘What’s this about?’

  Cassie looked at him coldly, unintimidated by his famous devilish grin. ‘I’m here to register my protest about your last decision.’

  A red-haired supermodel exchanged glances with her neighbour. ‘That would be the decision regarding the Johnson boy?’

  ‘That would be the decision regarding Jake, yes.’

  ‘May I ask,’ murmured the actor, ‘what business it might be of yours? Or in fact, how you even came to know about it?’

  Cassie breathed steadily, ignoring his last question. She was determined not to lose control and scratch his eyes out.

  ‘First, he’s my …’ A faint pause. ‘He’s my friend. Second, he’s an innocent party. And third, what you did was wrong.’

  While her words sank in, there were a few muttered exchanges and even a gruff laugh or two. The senator smirked and sat back in her chair.

  ‘I hardly think that a recently converted, half-Few mongrel can appreciate the very complex issues involved in this case. Sir Alric, I suggest that your convening of this Council was extraordinarily ill-judged. The meeting should be terminated at once. We’re all busy people.’

  Mongrel? The insolence!

  Cassie felt her spine stiffen with shared indignation, but still she almost laughed at Estelle’s mortified tone. Time for the gloves to come off.

  ‘Actually, the issues aren’t complex at all. I think that even a politician should be capable of understanding what I have to say.’

  ‘I beg your pardon?’ The senator went crimson.

  The supermodel sniggered, and so did Estelle.

  That’s telling them, my dear.

  ‘How many of you,’ asked Cassie, ‘have checked on Jake Johnson in the Confine?’

  ‘Checking isn’t necessary, my dear,’ a cardinal told her with a little smile. ‘He’s perfectly safe there. The Confine isn’t an unpleasant place. Not by any means.’

  ‘So it’s not much like the Living Soil, then?’

  That shut them up. The cardinal went a colour to match his cassock.

  ‘My dear Miss Bell,’ he coughed. ‘The very mention of that is a blasphemy. Use of the Living Soil was banned centuries ago. Let us not hear any more of it.’

  ‘Oh, up until last night, it was still very much in use,’ said Cassie calmly, ‘and you almost condemned Jake Johnson to it.’

  The uproar was satisfying.

  ‘How dare you—’

  ‘Darke, this is unacceptable.’

  ‘I demand an explanation!’

  ‘Then Cassandra,’ murmured Sir Alric quietly, ‘will give you one.’

  Cassie shot him a grateful look, but her expression hardened as she studied the row of Elders.

  ‘Brigitte and Vaughan have made fools of the lot of you,’ she said coldly. ‘They’ve been taking prisoners from the Confine and feeding them to the Living Soil for years. I can show you the place where it happened. You can determine how true it is for yourselves. If you can face it.’

  ‘Indeed?’ drawled the actor. ‘And you can prove this?’

  ‘If you don’t believe me,’ retorted Cassie, pointing, ‘ask him.’

  All eyes in the room swivelled from Cassie to the handsome features of Sir Alric. He cleared his throat.

  ‘Cassie came to me with her story last night. Needless to say I was as shocked as the rest of you, but I did visit the place she described. I am afraid what she has told you is true – there are human corpses under the ground there. I have also been to the Confine.’ He paused. ‘It was empty. I fear there can be little doubt that all those who were being held there have been fed to the Living Soil, here in New York.’

  No one moved; no one spoke. The supermodel had paled, and even the senator had her eyes shut and her hand over her mouth.

  ‘My God …’ whispered the old cardinal.

  Sir Alric gazed steadily at Cassie. ‘Cassandra, I can assure you that none of the other Elders were aware of the abomination you witnessed. I hope you believe that.’

  ‘I’m trying to.’ Cassie clasped her hands tightly behind her back, digging her nails into her palms. ‘But even if that’s true, even if you didn’t know about the Living Soil, you are all still responsible. You voted to send Jake to the Confine, along with God knows how many other people whose only crime was to know too much about the Few. But you never bothered to check on them, did you? You didn’t want to know – out of sight, out of mind. So Vaughan and Brigitte were able to do whatever they wanted with them.’

  Nineteen pairs of eyes were focused on her. She clenched her hands tighter so they wouldn’t shake.

  ‘And what’s more – your Confine? It’s a jail. I don’t care how fancy it is, it’s a prison for innocents, and that’s wrong. You want to protect the secret of the Few? Well, here’s the deal – you work out another way to do it. I want the Confine closed. Now. And if I ever hear of anybody else vanishing, if anything happens to Jake Johnson, or any other innocent person, I’ll be the fat lady in the Few’s last act. You hear me? I’ll be singing at the top of my voice. I’ll go to the cops. I’ll go to the FBI. I’ll go to CNN and Fox News and the New York Times and the Washington Post and, damn it, I’ll go to the National Enquirer.’

  Breathless with fury, she forced her voice to calm. There was redness in her eyes. Just enough: she mustn’t let it go too far … The power bubbled like a physical thing, just under her skin, but now she was controlling it, rather than vice versa.

  ‘I don’t care how influential you are, there are still plenty of influential people who aren’t Few. I’ll go to them, I’ll tell them everything. I’ll tell all the normal people. Because there still are some, you know? Normal, decent individuals who don’t have to steal their life-force from other people.’

  ‘And you,’ the Hollywood actor reminded her silkily, ‘are not one of them.’

  ‘No,’ she spat. ‘But I remember what it was like. I remember who I was. Comes of being a mongrel, I guess.’

  ‘If we go down, you will suffer with us, Miss Bell.’ The senator’s voice was frigid.

  ‘Maybe so, senator. But I’ll do it anyway. And I know what you’re thinking: that you could just put me in your precious Confine. Lock me away. Well …’ Cassie forced a grin, summoning all her chutzpah. And that wasn’t so hard when she could already see that at least half of them were visibly afraid of her. ‘… You can put me in the Confine, but can you keep me there?’

  Calmly reaching out with a tentacle of force, Cassie gently lifted the fountain pen from the senator’s numb fingers and snapped it neatly in two.

  The senator let out a choking gasp. The rest of the Elders seemed dumbstruck.

  How’s that for control, Sir Alric?

  And was she mistaken, or was there just a hint of pride in his granite eyes?

  Sir Alric Darke rapped the silver gavel, very gently, so that it made the sweetest of ringing sounds.

  ‘So, ladies and gentlemen, shall we put it to a vote?’

 
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  Cassie lifted her phone as it vibrated silently in her hand. Yet again she studied the glowing display.

  1 New Message

  from

  Patrick Malone

  Once more her thumb moved to the keypad. Once more it gently pressed Delete.

  She rolled over in bed and peered over at Isabella’s shape in the darkness. It had taken hours for her to finally fall asleep. Cassie wasn’t so lucky. Whenever she closed her eyes she saw what would have happened if she hadn’t stopped Katerina and Brigitte in time. If she hadn’t taken the knife. If she hadn’t listened to Estelle …

  Estelle had been there when she needed her. When it came to the crunch, it was Estelle that she turned to. So what did that mean for Cassie? Was she a monster, just like the people from whom she had been trying to protect her friends? She wasn’t even sure she could call Jake her friend now – it seemed clear he wouldn’t welcome it, at least. Since he’d left them in the alleyway, there had been no sign of him. He’d vanished just as surely as the Few knife. Cassie had searched all over the grounds of the Swedish Cottage when she’d returned there with Sir Alric, but the blade had vanished. Of course, any passerby could have picked it up, but somehow Cassie knew that Jake had it.

  Why had he gone back for it, that reminder of everything he hated? To try to kill Katerina? Or was he thinking he might need to use it against Cassie herself, some time in the future?

  The future … Cassie sighed. Who knew what that held?

  I do. I know …

  Ever since Cassie had allowed her fully into her mind and body, there had been a new calmness to Estelle’s voice. As though she was certain that Cassie would eventually let her in again, permanently.

  ‘It’s never going to happen, Estelle.’

  Cassie was adamant. But what did it mean, to give that up? What was she losing? The incredible feeling of power that the joining had given her still resonated in Cassie’s mind, like the memory of a drug. It felt like a struggle every moment just to keep the desire at bay. But struggle she would. She couldn’t risk hurting Isabella, losing control, doing any more damage. She didn’t like what she’d become – what she had the potential to become …

  Sooner or later, you’ll have to embrace it, my dear!

  Cassie jumped as she heard a soft knock at the door. Jake? She almost leaped for the door, glancing at her blotched face in the wardrobe mirror. At least her eyes were back to a respectable yellow-green.

  Opening the door, she had to steady herself as she saw who stood there.

  ‘Ranjit.’

  She had to keep her breathing even, however hard it was. Something twisted in her chest, but she beat back the longing, and kept her distance.

  ‘Cassie. Hi.’ The handsome Indian boy clenched and unclenched his fists. She’d never seen him look so nervous and unhappy. It didn’t mean she was letting him off the hook, though. Mindful of Isabella, she slipped out into the corridor and pulled the door to behind her.

  ‘I’m surprised to see you here.’

  He took a wounded breath. ‘Cassie – I’m sorry. About everything.’

  ‘You heard the story, then?’

  ‘I’ve spoken to Sir Alric.’ He looked at his hands. ‘And he’s spoken to me.’

  ‘Back to normal, then. I’m getting talked about behind my back. My ears’ll be as red as my eyes.’

  ‘You don’t think I wanted – needed – to know what happened?’ His eyes flashed, and just for an instant their amber became tinged with scarlet. Scrutinising him, Cassie nodded thoughtfully to herself. Swallowing, Ranjit took a step back.

  ‘I’m sure you wanted to know, Ranjit. Course, you’d have seen it all first-hand if you’d been around to help us.’ She swallowed. Even now, despite everything, the last thing she wanted to do was hurt him. But he needed hurting – she’d had her share from him. It was his turn.

  ‘I’m sorry.’ His face was very solemn. ‘But that doesn’t mean I could have done things any other way.’

  ‘Everybody gets a choice, Ranjit. Everybody’s got free will. We are human, after all.’

  He gave her a sad smile. ‘That’s a matter of opinion.’

  Cassie folded her arms, stared over his shoulder. ‘Why are you here?’

  ‘To ask you … to be careful. Please, Cassie. I don’t want anything to happen to you.’

  ‘Bit late for that.’ She shook her head bitterly.

  ‘I’m talking about the Council. The Elders. You don’t know what they’re capable of, Cassie.’

  ‘Now, where have I heard that before?’ She put a finger to her chin. ‘Oh, yes. That’s what they said about me.’

  ‘I’m serious. They’ve had to accept your demands this time – they couldn’t deny that what Brigitte and Vaughan were doing was wrong – but the Elders don’t like to be crossed, Cassie. Please be careful. For your own sake.’ He took a breath. ‘And mine.’

  ‘I see. It’s a self-preservation thing.’

  With a sigh, Ranjit slid down the wall to the floor, resting his arms on his knees. After a moment’s hesitation, Cassie sat down at his side.

  ‘Ranjit.’ She picked at a hangnail, her voice quiet. ‘Why are you here? Really?’

  She knew the answer she wanted – for him to tell her he’d been wrong, that he never should have abandoned her. That he loved her. She needed him to say that.

  Ranjit turned his head so he was looking into her eyes. That brought his face, his lips, so very close. She could smell him. His skin, his hair, his essence. Cassie struggled to control her breathing. In, out. In, out. No panting, now. She felt dangerously vulnerable under his gaze.

  ‘Really?’ he said. ‘Truly? Because I wanted – I needed to see you. I’ve missed you like hell. I wish to God that I didn’t have to do what I did. You have to believe me, Cassie. But I still had to do it. And I just wanted to explain myself, so that maybe, just maybe, you won’t hate me so much.’ He hesitated, his eyes imploring.

  Cassie nodded. ‘Go on.’

  He turned his head away to stare at the floor again. ‘And I need to tell you why we can’t be together any more.’

  Those words hurt so much, and so unexpectedly, she had to pause for long moments.

  ‘Right.’

  He took a deep breath. ‘I wanted to be with you at the Council. The night of the meeting, I was ready. In my room. About to come to get you. And …’

  She sighed. Why did he expect her to make it easier for him? ‘And?’

  ‘And Sir Alric came to see me.’

  ‘I see. So you left me alone because you had a more important meeting.’

  ‘You don’t understand!’ he snapped. ‘He told me what he was expecting that night – at the Council. He told me he’d have to fight tooth and nail just to keep you out of the Confine.’

  ‘Did he really?’ Cassie arched an eyebrow. ‘It didn’t show.’

  ‘I think it’s true. He said he had to convince the Elders he could control you. That he could monitor you within the Academy, restrain you, train you. And …’ Ranjit took a breath. ‘And that he couldn’t do that if I was there with you.’

  Cassie bit a nail. ‘What? Why?’

  ‘Because we shouldn’t be together, Cassie.’

  When she could finally breathe out, the sigh was shaky. ‘I see. Well, in that case there’s more nothing to explain. Sir Alric has spoken, so—’

  ‘Cassie, it’s not like that. Please listen. There’s … there’s so much to explain. It’s not that I don’t – it’s not that I don’t like you. Very … very much. It’s not that I don’t desperately want to be with you.’

  Cassie let out a short, mirthless laugh. ‘Hard to see what it is, then.’

  Miserably, he raked his hands through his hair. ‘It’s our spirits, Cassie. You must feel it too. The way things are between us? So volatile? One second wanting to tear each other’s hair out, the next wanting to tear each other’s clothes off? And what happened last time we were together. Remember?
You think you have trouble controlling yourself? Well, so do I. Especially around you.’

  She bit her lip, watched his tormented profile.

  ‘Yeah.’ She hesitated.

  ‘Cassie, Sir Alric had already explained it to me that night he called me back into his office after he saw us together. I didn’t want to believe him. I tried to ignore it. I argued. But what he told me is right. If you think about it, you’ll know it’s true. We bring out the worst in each other, Cassandra.’ He shook his head sadly.

  ‘Yes we do, Ranjit.’ She got to her feet, suddenly desperate not to cry in front of him. Not to grab him, hang on to him, beg him not to go.

  She had trouble controlling herself …

  ‘Not us, I mean what’s inside us. Our spirits bring out the worst in each other, that’s what Sir Alric told me. God, I’m doing this so badly …’ He took an exasperated breath. ‘We’ll become worse, Cassie – we’ll egg each other on. We’re like a pair of evil twins. You know what else he said?’

  ‘Surprise me.’

  ‘If I had shown up at the Council meeting,’ he said intently, ‘he’d’ve let you go to the Confine.’

  ‘He did what?’

  ‘He said he wouldn’t have a choice. If I’d insisted on supporting you he’d have cast his vote to imprison you. For your protection and everyone else’s. So what choice did I have?’

  She put her head in her hands. ‘The choice to fight for me?’

  ‘Oh, Cassie, don’t you see?’ He touched her hair, and it was like a tiny electric shock. ‘I tried. But I couldn’t ignore the basic fact that he was right.’

  ‘You so do not have to explain any more.’ She slapped his hand aside and stepped back, her voice shaking though she wished it wouldn’t. ‘I’ll be fine on my own, Ranjit. I always have been. It was a big mistake, getting dependent again. Not like me at all.’

  She stepped back deliberately from him. ‘After all, regardless of our spirits, you’d never have been there for me. You weren’t there when I really needed you, and now I know you never will be, because you’re a bloody coward. You won’t fight. You’ll just take to your heels and hide!’ She shook her head furiously. ‘I fight, Ranjit. I’m not running. But if you want to, you go ahead. You run for your immortal life.’