Chapter 26

Twenty-Six

Talon is pacing when I climb the last step and reach the tower landing that overlooks Nightlark Academy. He stops when he spots me, and I can't help but remember the last time I was up here with Becks. I wish I'd thought of a different place for us to meet, because the tower feels like Becks' and my place. Seeing Talon in this space is weird.

We stare at each other in silence as I cross the space to reach him.

"Do you agree to fail out of the next trial?" he asks bluntly, not wasting a moment of time.

"That depends," I hedge.

"On what?"

"On you."

Arching a brow, he waits for me to elaborate.

"I need you to do something for me. If you can, then yes, I'll purposefully fail out of the next trial as soon as an opportunity presents itself."

He folds his arms over his chest, his eyes taking on a glint of suspicion. "What do you need me to do?"

I suck in a deep breath, holding it in my chest for a moment longer than necessary. Becks' warning about Talon being untrustworthy rings in my mind. Once I say the words there's no taking them back. Talon will have the power to go to his uncle and destroy Becks' chances of getting out from under this arranged life-mating. And in doing so, he'll also have the power to shatter my chances of ever truly being with Becks.

I was so sure Talon would agree to this plan, but now I'm not as confident. Am I wrong to place this much trust in him?

I'm sure Talon reads the hesitation on my face and body language, but he stays silent, affording me the time I need to work through my fears before making this leap of faith. But really, is there any decision to make? Besides winning Shadow Striker, which considering what Talon divulged yesterday about my life being in danger makes it even more unattainable than I realized, this is the only chance we have to free Becks—we have to take it.

"I need you to find something out about your uncle that I can use to blackmail him."

Talon's face doesn't hide his shock, but he recovers quickly and then chuckles out a half-laugh. "You must be kidding. That was a good one."

He waits for me to crack a smile or agree with him, but I remain stone-faced.

The smile slips from his face. "You're not kidding."

I shake my head, and he rubs a hand over his mouth. "Why do you need to blackmail him?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Oh, I think it matters a great deal. My Uncle Drake has influence. More than you probably even know. He's a member of the dragon council and—" Talon's eyes go wide. "That's it, isn't it? You're trying to get that dragon shifter you think you're in love with out of the arranged life-mating."

My heart rate spikes. "How do you know about the arranged life-mating?" I ask, choosing to ignore his comment about me being in love with Becks. He might be right, but it's none of his business and certainly not up for discussion right now.

Talon snorts. "You don't have to be a dragon shifter to know their business."

Just like Talon. A non-answer answer. Well, two can play that game.

"It doesn't matter what I need the blackmail for, I just need you to get it. Can you? If so, I'll do what you want me to: I'll throw the next Chaos trial and get myself expelled from the competition."

Talon considers me. His gaze turns contemplative, and I can't help feeling like I'm as transparent as glass. "Not to talk you out of anything. If this is what I have to do to get you to pull out of Chaos, I'll do it. But have you given thought to whether or not he's worth it? I have no doubt that Becks wants you. It's clear to anyone with eyes. But why go to these lengths for a guy who won't even go after what he wants?"

My face heats when he says it's clear Becks wants me. I'm not comfortable talking about my relationship with Becks to anyone just yet, least of all Talon, who enjoys baiting Becks whenever the opportunity arises, but I can't seem to keep my mouth shut about it either.

"You don't know what you're talking about. I know exactly how Becks feels about me."

Talon's eyebrows rise and he cocks his head. "Finally made a move, has he?" He rubs his jaw, a sly smile forming on his mouth. "I'll bet our performance the other night pushed him into it, didn't it? Dragon shifters are a possessive bunch."

My stomach knots when Talon pokes at the one spot I was already insecure about. My face heats, but this time it's not from embarrassment. "Shut up, Talon."

He puts his hands up like he means no harm. "Don't get me wrong, if I was in his position I would have claimed you as well. I wouldn't want to share my female with anyone either. I'm only saying it's about time." He cocks his head. "But let me guess, he's keeping you a secret."

"It's not like that."

"Isn't it though? If he really wants to be with you, why isn't he staking a claim and letting the world know."

"You know we can't go public with that life-mating hanging over our heads."

Talon makes a tsking sound with his tongue and I suddenly want to rip it out of his mouth. "Make no mistake. Your dragon heir has a choice. He just wants his cake and to eat it too. And you're letting him."

"I don't need to justify myself or Becks to you or anyone else. It's no one's business but our own. But now you have a choice to make. Will you give me what I've asked for or not?"

He stares at me hard, his gray-blue eyes drilling a hole into my forehead. I can tell that some part of him wants to say no but it has nothing to do with having scruples over digging up dirt on his uncle, and everything with proving he's right about Becks. But I'm betting that part of him won't win out in the end. Talon's too calculated and wants Shadow Striker too badly to deny me this request.

Taking a step back, he leans against the stone railing, his body going from rigid to languid before my eyes. His mood swings give me whiplash. "Fine. I'll get you what you want."

Relief is sweet as it rushes through me. "Once I have the information I need from you?—"

"No," he says, cutting me off. "I won't deliver you blackmail material."

I furrow my brow. "I don't understand."

"You're reckless to believe you'd be able to blackmail my uncle into doing anything. Drake's ruthless when it comes to protecting himself. He'll bury you the moment he gets wind of the threat, and I do mean that literally."

A chill runs through me. "But you just said you'd get me what I want."

"And I will. I'll get your princeling freed from his arranged life-mating. That is, after all, what you really want, isn't it?"

It is, so I nod, feeling like I'm walking into a trap, but not knowing any way else to move.

"How are you going to do that?" I ask, starting to think that Becks might have been more right about Talon than I had wanted to believe, and that there were layers to him I haven't even begun to understand.

Talon flashes me a wolfish smile full of teeth and charm. " That is none of your business."

I bristle that he's using the same argument against me that I used against him. I cross my arms over my chest. "And you just expect me to trust that this is something you can do on your own?"

He shrugs. "I expect you to realize that you don't have any other option but to trust me."

I press my lips together, agitation toward Talon growing by the second. "I won't fail out of the next trial until after you deliver."

Talon nods. "Naturally."

It can't be as easy as that. There has to be a catch, but as I stare at Talon, he's giving nothing away. All I see right now is the easygoing guy he portrays himself to be to the rest of the school. That he can switch back and forth between personas so easily should be unnerving, but if he can do what he says he can do and get Becks out from underneath the arranged life-mating, do I really care what mysteries the guy is keeping to himself?

He holds out his hand for me to take. "Do we have a deal?"

I look at his outstretched hand, knowing what he's offering me is weightier than a simple handshake, but I take it anyway.

The moment my hand slips into his, a rush of heat swamps my body, starting from the point where our hands connect and running up my arm straight to my head and then down my body. It leaves me lightheaded.

I gasp. "What was that?"

"I was just sealing our agreement."

I blink back up at him, realizing what he just did. He used magic, vampire magic to be exact, to create an unbreakable bond between us. If he comes through on his end of the bargain, I'll have no choice but to come through on my end. So if he gets Becks free of the life-mating, then I won't be able to pass the next trial even if I want to. The only thing that frees either of us from this arrangement is if the other person releases them.

I realize I'm still gripping Talon's hand and let go immediately, but the heat from his grip lingers.

"You just used vampire magic," I accuse, my mind trying to put together the pieces so that they make sense.

"So I did," he says.

I've seen Talon use lots of different types of magic, but never one thing that I knew only belonged to one species. But now, even though it doesn't quite feel right, I can't deny it. Talon is a vampire.

With a wink, Talon turns from me and starts toward the stairs, leaving me gawking behind him.

I push the revelation of Talon's creature species out of my mind. I always knew Talon had to be something, so why not a vampire? It explains the darkness that lurks in his gaze. But something about it doesn't exactly feel right, and that nags at me.

I make it back to the table before the end of lunch, but the space is crowded with our usual gang as well as a few dragon shifter friends of Becks' that I don't really know and there isn't a spot for me. Becks spots me first and jumps up to grab an empty chair from another table and slide it next to his. I smile my thanks as I slip into the seat, and when he settles into his own chair he rests his arm against the back of mine. No one seems to notice when he picks up a piece of my hair and starts to play with it, but I'm acutely aware of the way he twirls the strands around his fingers.

"Where have you been, girl?" Shayla asks, and several heads turn in my direction, including the dragon shifters that don't usually sit with us.

Letting go of my hair, Becks reaches for a fry on his tray. I try not to be disappointed, but I can't help but wonder if he stopped because he didn't want anyone to know he was touching me.

"Oh, um, I had to catch up with Talon about a project we're working on." I really hope no one knows either of our schedules well enough to call me out on that lie. I don't have to look over at Becks to know that he's stiffened up next to me.

"Talon, eh?" Carmen, one of the dragon shifters says, and then wiggles her eyebrows at me. "I wouldn't mind having a special project with him. He is one fine creature."

"I second that," Shayla says with a laugh, and then she and Carmen high five.

"Hey," Owen says next to her, looking properly annoyed.

Giggling, Shayla plants a kiss on his cheek to mollify him. "Don't worry, babe, the mysterious bad boys don't really do it for me. Besides, I'm partial to blonds who can light stuff on fire."

Owen grumbles under his breath but picks up Shayla's hand and kisses her palm. As they stare lovingly into each other's eyes, something in my heart tweaks. I thought I would be content with knowing Becks wants to be with me as much as I do him, but I want more. I want Becks to publicly claim me as his. I don't want to hide in the shadows. I want to stand in the daylight, free to express our feelings for each other for all to see, but we can't. I remind myself that if Talon comes through, maybe we will be able to soon.

"How did that go?" Ensley asks, leaning forward. "Is Talon prepared to do his part? His part of the project, I mean."

She and Becks knew I was going to talk to Talon. I'm surprised Becks didn't ask me about it immediately, but maybe he just forced it from his mind. He certainly wasn't happy to hear I was planning on meeting Talon alone.

I nod and smile. "We're all set. He's confident he'll be able to get his part done quickly. In fact, he wanted to take an even bigger role in the assignment than I expected."

Her eyebrows rise.

"What does that mean?" Becks asks.

"Um . . ." I glance over at Becks to see the frown on his face. How am I supposed to answer that in front of everyone? "He just pointed out that he's more familiar with the material than I am, so it might be better if he runs lead on the work."

I'm not sure if that made any sense to Ensley or Becks, but that's all I'm going to say about it until we're in private.

Becks nods and then says, "Here, eat," and pushes his plate over to me. He's already eaten a burger, but there's an untouched chicken sandwich left.

I look down at the food, touched he thought to leave me something when I know for a fact that Becks can easily put away two sandwiches on his own.

"Eat up," he encourages. "The bell's going to ring any minute."

I offer him a small smile of thanks and then dive in, sitting back to listen to the conversation bounce around the table for what's left of the lunch period.