Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 112849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
I put my attention on my own book and I can feel the female’s gaze on my head. It’s hot, like a laser is trying to burn a hole in my skull, and I realize she’s trying to pry inside, perhaps read my thoughts.
Why me? That’s the last thing I need.
Then the pressure stops.
“What are you doing here so early?” I hear Valtu’s tense voice as he comes over now and I know they’re standing behind me.
“I didn’t think anyone would be studying so late,” the female says. “Bunch of nerds.”
I almost laugh at that.
“They can hear you,” Valtu hisses.
“I compelled them,” she says. “They aren’t paying attention. Now, take us to the room. We cut our previous dinner short for this. Mayor of the city, you know.”
So this vampire, whoever she is, just had dinner with the mayor of Venice? Interesting.
Valtu sighs. Though I can’t see them behind me, I can tell from his energy that he doesn’t like this woman. Good. I don’t like her either.
I hear them walking off and once I’m sure they’re far enough down the aisle, I get out of my chair and grab my books, heading into the stacks to put them away while also keeping an eye on them. I make sure to stick to the opposite side of the shelves so I’m not too close.
I keep still, holding my breath, and spot them through the spaces in the shelves. Valtu leads them to the door at the very back of the room, punches in a code on the keypad, and then the three of them step inside total darkness, the door closing behind them.
What the hell?
Then it hits me.
The two vampires.
I know who they are.
Saara and Aleksi. No wonder they creeped me out so much. They’re the ones with the book. Which means there’s a chance the book could be behind that door. Maybe that’s where they keep it.
Forget the book, a voice in my head says. Go home and get your blade and kill them all. They’re sitting ducks right now. Those two killed a witch to get that book, killing them is your top priority.
It’s hard to ignore my instincts. This is what I was trained to do. This is why I’m here. I need to get the blade, come back here, and kill them.
But then how am I supposed to get inside? I suppose I could charm Valtu to let me in, but that’s highly unlikely.
All I know is I have to take some kind of action. I won’t have many chances like this.
I shove the books back on a shelf where they don’t belong, then hurry back through the aisles over to my table, put my belongings in my purse and take off. No matter what, I need to get back home to figure out what I’m going to do. I should probably text Livia and let her know, but I feel like that might just complicate things. Better to just do the thing and then report in when I see her face to face for drinks tomorrow night.
The question is, what is the thing am I doing? Getting the blade, heading back to school and somehow getting back in the library—which will be closed by then?
No. As much as I feel the vengeful need to kill the two vampires, I need to be smart about this. If I fuck up now, all of this is over.
I hurry through the darkened streets of Venice, and even though I’m heating up from the exertion, the air has a chill to it and fog is wafting through the canals, just hovering above the murky surface. It feels like autumn has truly arrived and I wish I’d brought my cardigan to school, but those thoughts take a backseat to the pressing matter at hand.
It isn’t until I step foot inside my apartment that I know what I have to do. It’s going to take everything out of me, I may not even make it to class tomorrow if I feel the way I’ve felt before, but it will at least give me answers.
I need to put aside my glamor for a moment.
I need to astral project.
Astral projection isn’t an easy thing to do, but neither is putting on a glamor spell. While we were taught both at the academy, astral projection was always harder for me. I can do it, but I can’t do it for as long as others, and it leaves me absolutely wiped the next day. But right now it’s the only chance I have to figure out where the book is, especially if Valtu and the leggy vampires are together in that mysterious room.
I lock the door behind me and start clearing the floor, picking up my scattered pieces of clothing that have overflowed from my suitcase. Even though I’ve been here a few weeks now, part of me doesn’t want to unpack and start hanging up my clothes for fear it would mean I’ll be here longer. Also, I’m lazy.