Bloodlines

How much was an auditing fee? I wasn't sure but knew it wasn't as much as tuition. It was also a onetime cost that I could probably slide into my expenses without raising the attention of the Alchemists. Adrian needed those classes, of that I was certain. If he knew financial aid wasn't an option this semester, there was a good chance he'd just drop them altogether. I couldn't allow that. He'd known there might be "a delay" while the financial aid came together. If I could keep him going to Carlton a little longer, then maybe he'd get invested enough in the art that he'd stay on, even when the truth came out. It was a sneaky thing to do, but it would benefit him - and Jill - in the end.

I dialed back Wes Regan's office, knowing I'd get his voice mail. I left him a message saying that I'd drop off a check for the auditing fee and that Adrian would stay on until he could be enrolled next semester. I hung up, saying a silent prayer that it would take a while for Adrian to find out any of this. The waitress kept giving me the evil eye over just having coffee, so I finally ordered a piece of pie to go. She had just set the carton down on my table when an irritated Keith entered the restaurant. He stood in the doorway, looking around impatiently until he saw me.

"Okay, what's going on?" he demanded, making a big show of sitting down. "What's so important that you felt the need to break school rules and drag me halfway across town?"

For a moment, I froze up. Looking into Keith's eyes - real and artificial - triggered all the conflicting feelings I'd had about him this last year. Fear and anxiety over what I was trying to pull off warred with the deep hate I'd long carried. Baser instincts wanted me to make him suffer, to throw something at him. Like the pie. Or a chair. Or a baseball bat.

"I - "

Before I could say another word, my phone chimed. I looked down and read a text message from Adrian: GOT IT. CALL MADE. ONE HOUR.

I slipped the phone into my purse and exhaled. It had taken Keith twenty minutes to get here, and during that time, Adrian had been dutifully searching the apartment. He'd apparently been successful. Now it was up to me to delay Keith until reinforcements showed up. One hour was actually a lot less time than I'd expected. I'd given Adrian Stanton's phone number, and she would've dispatched whatever Alchemists were closest. I'd figured that would mean Los Angeles, but it was hard to say with the scope of our jobs. If there were Alchemists on the east side of the city, they'd get here very quickly. It was also possible they could cut time by simply flying a private jet in.

"What's that?" asked Keith irritably. "A text from one of your vampire friends?"

"You can stop the act," I said. "I know you don't really care about me 'getting too close' to them." I hadn't intended this to be the topic that distracted him, but I'd take it.

"Of course I do. I worry about your soul."

"Is that why you called my dad?" I asked. "Is that the reason you wanted me out of Palm Springs?"

"It's for your own good," he said, putting on that holier-than-thou air. "Do you know how wrong it was that you even wanted this job in the first place? No Alchemist would. But you, you practically begged for it."

"Yeah," I said, feeling my anger rise. "So Zoe wouldn't have to do it."

"Tell yourself that if you want. I know the truth. You like these creatures."

"Why does it have to be so cut-and-dried? In your view, I either have to hate them or be in league with them. There's a middle ground, you know. I can still be loyal to the Alchemists and on friendly terms with vampires and dhampirs."

Keith looked at me like I was ten years old. "Sydney, you're such an innocent. You don't understand the ways of the world like I do." I knew all about his "ways of the world" and would've said as much if the waitress hadn't come by to take his drink order just then. When she was gone, Keith continued his spiel. "I mean, how do you even know you're feeling the way you do? Vampires can compel, you know. They use mind control. Spirit users like Adrian are really good at it. For all we know, he's been using his powers to endear himself to you."

I thought of all the times I'd wanted to shake some sense into Adrian. "He's not doing a very good job, then."

We bickered back and forth about this, and for once, I was glad of Keith's obstinacy and refusal to see reason. The longer he argued with me, the more time the Alchemists had to get to his apartment. If Stanton had told Adrian one hour, she probably meant it. Still, it was best to be safe.

My breaking point came when Keith said, "You should be glad I'm looking out for you like this. This is about more than vampires, you know. I'm teaching you life lessons. You memorize books but don't understand people. You don't know how to connect to them. You're going to carry this same naive attitude with you into the real world, thinking everyone means well, and someone - some guy, probably - will just take advantage of you."

"Well," I snapped, "you'd know all about that, wouldn't you?"

Keith snorted. "I have no interest in you, rest easy."

"I'm not talking about me! I'm talking about Carly." So. Here it was. The original purpose of our meeting.

"What's she have to do with anything?" Keith kept his tone steady, but I saw it. The slightest flicker of anxiety in his eye.

"I know what happened between you guys. I know what you did to her."

He became very interested in stirring ice around with his straw. "I didn't do anything to her. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about! She told me. She came to me afterward." I leaned forward, feeling confident. "What do you think my dad would do if he found out? What would yours do?"

Keith looked up sharply. "If you're so certain something terrible happened, then why doesn't your dad already know? Huh? Maybe because Carly knows there's nothing to tattle on. Anything we did, she wanted to, believe me."

"You are such a liar," I hissed. "I know what you did. You raped her. And you will never suffer enough for it. You should've lost both of your eyes."

He stiffened at the reference to his eyes. "That's harsh. And has nothing to do with any of this. What the hell's happened to you, Sydney? How'd you turn into such a bitch? Maybe making you associate with vampires and dhampirs has caused more damage than we realized. First thing tomorrow, I'm going to call Stanton and ask that they pull you now. No waiting until the end of the week. You need to be away from this dark influence." He shook his head and gave me a look both condescending and pitying. "No, you need to be re-educated, period. It should've happened a long time ago, as soon as they caught you busting out that murderer."