Graduating (Covenant College Book 5) (24 page)

Reagan’s eyes, a hint of red glowing in their depths, focused on me. “I think she’s the one I underestimated.”

“Oh, you definitely underestimated her,” James said. “You underestimated the loyalty she inspired in those around her, too.”

James motioned for Mark to step across the stage. “If you leave now, we’ll just take you into custody. Zoe has asked for you to be spared. If you don’t leave, we’ll kill you.”

Mark had one more chance to be brave. He had one more chance to be a man and take a stand – even if it was for the wrong side. As usual, he went with his gut. “I surrender.”

“I figured as much,” James said, ushering him to the side where one of the commandos slapped a pair of handcuffs on him and handed him off to another armed sentinel.

That left Nick, Paul, Reagan and Blake to deal with. The rest of Reagan’s security force had been rendered neutral – or just plain inept – with very few blows even being thrown.

“Well, I guess I have no choice but to surrender, too,” Reagan said.

“What?” Blake was incensed. “We are not surrendering. We’ve come too far.”

“And yet, it seems, there’s nowhere else to go,” Reagan said.

“You always were pragmatic, Kennedy,” James said. “Unfortunately, surrender isn’t an option for you.”

“You may have cleared the crowd, but someone will surely see if you kill me,” he said.

“Not if we erected a barrier spell so people can’t see,” Aric said, glancing over to the spot where Angela and Paris were still standing. “I want to thank you for giving us that idea, by the way. If you hadn’t done it while hiding bodies on campus, I never would have thought of it.”

“Well, aren’t you just a smart boy,” Reagan snapped. “What about your friend, Brittany? She knows.”

“She’ll be glamoured by the end of the night,” I said, thinking of Rafael. “She won’t remember any of this. She won’t remember you. She won’t remember Will. She won’t even remember me. She won’t remember the heartache. The only memories she’ll have of this place will be fond ones.”

“Now, come on, James,” Reagan said, starting to sound desperate as he scanned the area for a way to escape. “We can come to an understanding.”

“An understanding like the one you came to with Will?” I challenged.

“The one where you were going to give my girlfriend to him?” Aric asked.

“Well, that was just a misunderstanding,” Reagan said.

“You can’t possibly be considering bartering a deal with them,” Blake said. “They’re monsters.”

“And who are you, Professor Blake?” I asked. “Because we all know that isn’t your real name.”

“How do you know that?”

“That’s what Rafael was closing in on when you took him,” I said.

“And that’s what my investigators managed to uncover as well,” James said. “We still don’t know who you are, but I’m not sure it matters in the grand scheme of things.”

“You can’t just kill us,” Blake said. “I’ll be missed on this campus.”

“Or you’ll just be another disappearance the police investigate but don’t solve,” I replied. “Isn’t that the norm here at Covenant College? A crime occurs, and then everyone just looks the other way?”

“You’re still a suspect in the murders on the library campus,” Blake said. “You’re still a suspect in Heather’s death. We’re the only ones who can clear you.”

The minute he said her name I knew. “You fed Heather to your vampires, didn’t you?”

“She held on a long time,” Reagan said. “We took her because she was the last roommate to leave your house before Christmas break. We thought she might have some information that we could use against you. It took us months to realize that she didn’t know anything about you.”

“And you let your vampires feed on her that whole time?” I felt sick to my stomach.

Aric rubbed my back soothingly.

“For a time, we thought she was holding out on us,” Reagan admitted. “Then, after that, she had no worth.”

“Well, I hate to break it to you, but I was never a suspect in Heather’s death.”

“You were taken in for questioning,” Blake said.

“You should have looked around the neighborhood a little more closely,” Aric said. “The police were watching us for months. They saw Heather get dumped on the lawn.”

Reagan shot Blake a scorching look. “I told you that was a possibility.”

“We looked,” Blake said. “We didn’t see anyone.”

Something about their relationship bothered me. Blake was subservient to Reagan, but he also talked back to him. If I didn’t know better, I would think they were related. Since Blake wasn’t supernatural, though, that was impossible.

“What are you two to each other?”

Blake was startled by the question. “What?”

“You act like … you act like he’s your father,” I said. “You’re not a wolf, though, so that’s not possible. Caitlyn wasn’t a wolf either.”

James rubbed his hand over his chin thoughtfully. “That’s a fine observation, Zoe,” he said. “And, it occurs to me, Reagan here has been married twice.”

“So?”

“So, his first wife was human,” James said.

I glanced at Aric for an explanation. “I thought that, if you’re a wolf, that you have little wolves for kids.”

“Not always,” Aric said, catching on to his father’s train of thought. “It depends on who has the dominant genes. If a wolf mates with a human, the children can be normal if the human genes are the dominant ones.”

“You see, Kennedy here left his first wife when he was still in his twenties,” James said. “I didn’t think they had children, but I never looked into it very closely. He was off the council. There was no reason to look into it. When he resurfaced about a decade ago, he had a new wolf wife and two small wolf children. No one thought anything of it.”

“Which would explain why Blake hates supernaturals,” I said. “His daddy abandoned him and prefers his full-bred children. He ignored the mongrels.”

“And Kennedy knew he could use his son’s hate to his own advantage,” James said. “He planned this whole thing from the very beginning. And, when the time came for a scapegoat, he had his own son to offer up on a silver platter.”

“You’re a sick bastard,” I said to Reagan, a small swell of pity welling up in my chest as I regarded Blake. “I’m sorry your daddy is a dick, but you let it color you and fill you with hate. You have to see that.”

“Who says he was the one with the plan?” Blake challenged. “Maybe I was the one with the plan.”

“Then you’re sick, too,” I said.

Aric pulled me in tighter to his side. “I think we’ve all had enough of this.”

“We have indeed,” James said, his face landing on me. “I don’t think Zoe needs to be here for the end. She’s done enough. She’s been through enough. Why don’t you take her home?”

Aric glanced down at me, his face unreadable. “You’re right. I think we should probably go. Come on.”

I let Aric turn me around, the need for vengeance waning. Sometimes getting all the answers is enough.

“Wait,” Reagan said, desperately calling out. “You can’t just walk away.”

“Why not? You would have done no different,” I said, looking at him one final time.

“We can come to an agreement,” Reagan tried again. “You’re powerful. We could join forces. We can rule this entire state.”

“You can’t join forces with her,” Blake scoffed. “She’s not a team player.”

“Not your team, no,” I agreed, turning and letting Aric lead me away. “I was never part of your team.”

I heard the horrified howls and screams as we left. I had no doubt that both Reagan and Blake were being torn limb from limb – and maybe Paul and Nick, too.

It was
finally
over – and that was enough for me.

The rest of the semester (all two weeks of it) was uneventful. I took finals. I slept. I even went to a party. Most of that time, though, was spent with Aric. Both of us needed down time – and we took it together.

Rafael had agreed to glamour Brittany, completing the task that night. I’d seen her once on campus after that and she’d looked right through me, not even a hint of recognition on her face.

Rafael left town a few days later, his time at Covenant College officially coming to an end. Aric and I stopped at his house the night he left to wish him and Fiona the best before their journey. Rafael gave Aric a phone number in case he needed to contact him, both agreeing that glamouring certain members of the Academy before releasing them into the populace again might be necessary.

As a parting gift, Rafael had given me a small jewelry box – a tiny red teardrop crystal charm inside – and an awkward hug. He didn’t say what the charm meant, and there was no inscription, but Aric had affixed it to my turquoise bracelet that night – right next to his charm – without complaint or comment.

The day of my graduation arrived. It was like a bright and shiny gift, and instead of an ending I saw it as a new beginning. A really terrifying beginning.

The ceremony itself was held on the same lawn where Blake and Reagan met their fates. Blake’s disappearance was whispered about for a few days, but then forgotten in the end-of-the-year shuffle. That is Covenant College’s way, after all. He deserved nothing less.

After two boring speeches, and the processional up to get my diploma, I found Aric waiting for me at the back of the crowd. He gave me a big hug and kiss, pulling me close so he could whisper into my ear.

“How do you feel?”

“Glad it’s over with. How are you?”

“I’m happy,” he said. “I’m really happy.”

“Because you have the best girlfriend in the world?” I teased.

“That’s part of it,” Aric said. “Another part of it is that we’re done here.”

“Are we?”

Aric raised an eyebrow in question.

“What happens now?”

“Now we figure it out,” Aric said. “We do have a big dinner ahead of us right now, though.”

“We do?”

Aric pointed to a spot on the lawn where his parents and my parents were chatting amiably. I felt my heart drop. “Oh, no, what are they talking about?”

“I have no idea,” Aric said.

“I can’t believe your parents came. How did they get tickets? I only had enough for my mom and dad and you.”

“My dad has ways to pull strings,” Aric said. “I think they wanted to come for you.”

“That’s sweet,” I said. “It’s a little frightening, too.”

“And now everyone is going out to dinner together,” Aric said. “Which is good, because I’m starving.”

“Define everyone.”

“Well, Angela is here,” Aric said. “She’ll be joining us. And I think Kelsey’s parents are over there, and they’re going, too.”

“Oh, you mean everyone.”

“Everyone who is important to us,” Aric agreed.

I sighed, pressing my face into his chest. “Why does a dinner with all of our parents sound like it has disaster written all over it?”

“Because we come from people with big personalities,” Aric said. “I can’t wait until my mom tells your dad I blackmailed you with mistletoe all Christmas break.”

I snickered. “That does sound fun.”

Aric smoothed my hair away from my forehead, staring intently into my eyes. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“What are we going to do after dinner?”

Aric smirked. “If you want to do that, I think I can find a closet or something. I’m not that hungry.”

I pinched him. “That’s not what I meant.”

“What do you mean?”

“Part of me didn’t think I’d actually make it to graduation,” I said. “I have no idea what to do now.”

“See, that’s why you have me,” Aric said. “After dinner, we’re going to say goodbye to the parents and then we’re going to a big graduation party at your house. The last party we’re going to attend there, by the way. I don’t have the stamina to keep fighting Kate off.”

I rolled my eyes. “And then what?”

“And then tomorrow we’re packing up all of your stuff and you’re moving out.”

“I am. Where am I moving? I don’t have a job. I haven’t even considered looking for a job. I have no money, and I’m kind of at a loss.”

“Well, I guess it’s good that I have a job, and I have money,” Aric said.

“I’m not living off you,” I said. “That’s … well … that’s just codependent.”

“You’re not going to live off me,” Aric said. “You’re going to live with me, though.”

“I am?”

“No more separations. No more travelling between two homes. We’re going to have one home and go on from there.”

“I’m sure that will thrill my parents.”

“Something tells me they’re going to be okay with it,” Aric said, chuckling. “Then, on Monday, you’re going to put your resume together and find a job.”

“And we’re going to stay here?”

Aric shrugged. “We’re going to stay here at least for a little while. When you find a job you want, then we’ll move.”

“You’re just going to pick up and move with me?” Talk about codependent.

“The good thing for you is that my father has offices all over this state,” Aric said. “I can work in any of them. You’re the one who has no marketable skills,” he teased.

“Are you sure you want to do that? I mean, are you sure you want to uproot your life for me?”

“Sweetie, I’ve uprooted my life for you since I met you,” Aric said. “Something tells me you’re worth it.”

I stood up on my tiptoes, wrapping my arms around his neck and pressing my lips to his. Aric’s arm was around my waist, and he lifted me off the ground to make my task easier.

“This is only the beginning, Zoe,” Aric said. “There’s a lot of life out there left to live.”

“And hopefully we’ll be able to do it without being attacked every few weeks,” I said.

“That would be nice,” he agreed, lowering me back down to the ground and extending his hand. “So, what do you say, are you ready to start living?”

I slipped my hand into his. “Bring it on.”