Cursed to the Bone

14. Spirited Away

Morning came around before I knew it. Groggy, I went through the motions of my routine and was out of sorts as I stepped into the mailroom to see Lucien there, sitting at a table with a cup in hand.

"Good morning, Miss Tate."

Yawning, I threw my hand in a wave. "Morning."

"Come and sit," he said, gesturing to the chair across from him where another cup steamed. I sat and peered into the mug, wondering if he was drinking the same drink. He was a vampire. Would it be rude to look? "Tea."

The cup warmed my fingers as I took hold of it, and even though I didn't like tea, I took a sip. It wasn't all bad, and not anywhere near as hot as expected. Maybe I never had a decent cup. "Thank you."

Lucien nodded and stared. He stared like I was a puzzle he couldn't figure out. In a way, I felt like one. Knowing his cousin intended to use me against him was puzzling. I shifted under his gaze, wondering if I should say something, when he finally stood.

"Take your time as you deliver mail. You'll be moving up and down staircases."

"Sir," I said, catching him before he could depart. "Do you think it would be better if I left? I can't help but think I'm putting myself in unnecessary danger."

Lucien faced me from the door, his expression impossible to read. "If you leave, there are no wards to keep her from you. I cannot say what her intentions are, but she never leaves loose ends. If you lose your usefulness, she will kill you."

My shoulders sagged with a mixture of relief and worry. On one hand, it was nice knowing I didn't have to leave and that the university afforded me some protection. On the other hand, it unsettled me to know I was on my way to being murdered. What would happen when she realized I couldn't be controlled? That alone made me sick to my stomach.

"Do not think of it," Lucien said. He had somehow crossed the space between us without me noticing. His hand fell upon my shoulder, almost uncertainly. It was a far cry from flirty so I wasn't worried as he gave it a soft pat. His eyes though, were steeled with determination. "I will do everything in my power to keep her from harming you."

Ashamed, I dropped my gaze. There had been moments where I doubted this man, and here he was making solemn promises. "Thanks."

"Drink your tea and get to work."

When he was gone, I sat at the table a short while, sipping until the liquid was lower. I didn't want to drink the last of it, where all the leaves clumped, no matter how beneficial that may be. I wasn't a tea person, after all.

The mailroom wasn't overloaded with mail or anything, but I had to stamp each envelope and package with a red seal-of-approval and sort it by floor and dorm. It was a great thing the room came with a handy little binder that listed who stayed where, because I didn't want to wander the halls all day. I delivered mail to the first floor first, knowing no one would be awake for a little while.

My logic, there, was that a freshman student would be unlikely to assist in the breaching of the wards. Not only would it be impossible to hide that level of talent, it would be hard to believe a freshman could learn the layout of the wards. Naturally, I wanted the skilled upperclassmen.

On the other three floors, I went door-to-door knocking instead of just shoving mail through the chutes. I claimed the headmaster wanted to know if anyone was unsettled or if they saw anything. My investigation was a double-whammy of failure because I didn't get a lot of useful information and nearly all of them wanted to tell me something. I wrote down anything even close to pertinent and went on my way.

Early into the afternoon, shortly after I finished, my legs were wobbly from being up and about all day. I slumped into the mailroom, leaving the door open, and sat at the table to review what information I'd acquired. The only semi-useful information I'd gotten were student locations at the time of lockdown. If Lucien were feeling ambitious, he could fact-check them or something. Otherwise? Useless.