Fallen University: Year One

“Batshit crazy,” Kingston muttered.

I swallowed hard as a beat of guilt rattled my chest. Had I tricked or hypnotized them somehow? Was it like that moment when I’d used persuasion on Sonja? It hadn’t felt the same, but then, I hadn’t been feeling much of anything at the time. When I’d first grabbed Jayce and kissed him, I had been running on pain and instinct.

As if sensing my thoughts, the man in question squeezed my hand reassuringly. “Don’t worry about them,” he said quietly. “They’ll get over it.”

I wasn’t sure they would, and I really wasn’t sure I could afford any more enemies in this school. Sonja and her posse were already trying to make my life miserable. The thought of Kai and Kingston hating me was almost too much to bear, and I couldn’t quite figure out why.

I still hadn’t solved that puzzle by the time we reached the infirmary.

“Ah, I’ve been expecting you five. Come on in. Beedle called—he said you were injured pretty badly.” The healer was a wispy woman with huge ocean-colored eyes and hair that curled in long, lazy strands like bunches of seaweed. She ushered us into the infirmary and patted the paper-covered table. “I’m Cassandra Webber, one of the Fallen University staff healers. Have a seat, please, Piper.”

“Excuse me, but why are we here?” Kai asked gruffly as I clambered up onto the table.

“You are the four men who saved her life, aren’t you?” Her voice was like music. It made me want to go to sleep, but it seemed to make my guys uncomfortable.

“No, she saved herself. We just kissed her.” Jayce winked at me.

“She kissed us,” Kingston argued.

“Potato, tomato.” Jayce shrugged lazily. “But no, she just healed right up.”

“Because you kissed her,” the healer said firmly.

“I’m sorry, what?” Kai was almost growling.

“Let me see your wound.” Cassandra gestured to my stomach.

I lifted my shirt for her. There was a hole in the front of the fabric—probably one at the back too—and the garment was soaked with blood. She wiped at the blood smeared across my stomach with a rag soaked in alcohol.

“Ah! Yes. There,

you see? All healed up. Nothing left but four little marks.”

I couldn’t believe it. I looked down at myself and saw that she was absolutely right. The blood on my skin and clothes still looked pretty gruesome, but the wound had closed completely. The four marks looked more like freckles than scars, though I knew I hadn’t had them before.

“Four. That’s important,” she told me. “That’s your bond.”

“What?” She wasn’t making any sense.

Cassandra turned and counted the men in the room. “One, two, three, four. You’re obviously a succubus. It’s the only reason you’re still alive. Succubi glean power—including healing energy—from sexual contact. The one the succubus is bonded to gives her the most potent power. Now, it’s important to note that you can siphon power from any sexual contact, though none will be as powerful as those you’ve bonded to.”

“You said the one I’m bonded to,” I said slowly. “Which one is it?”

She looked at me with surprise in her big eyes. “Why, all four of them, of course! You must be a very strong succubus to have bonded to four men all at once.”

“I wouldn’t say we bonded,” Kingston said coolly. “She was impaled by a five-foot piece of rebar. It was a brutal thing to witness. We all panicked.”

“Mm? Oh, no, dear, you’ve bonded. Come, look.” Her gaze scanned me quickly, running over my skin like she was looking for something. Then she circled behind me and shifted my long dark hair over one shoulder. “Ah! There! You see those four marks? The next time you’re changing, check your own skin. Each of you will have a single mark which will correspond to one of the marks that run up the back of her neck.”

“And what exactly does it mean to be bonded to a succubus?” Kingston asked, shooting me a look that was almost suspicious.

Oh, yeah. Because I fucking planned this.

“Well, it means that you are her power, essentially. If she comes to you for sexual healing, so to speak, you can be sure that the four of you are best equipped to help her.”

Kai’s eyes were burning with an unspoken question, but I could hear it almost as clearly as if he’d said it out loud. And what if we don’t?

“So you’re a succubus,” Jayce murmured softly. His eyes were getting that sparkle they sometimes got in History when we learned something he found deeply fascinating. “Sweet.”