Chapter 57 Save Her
I stepped closer and shoved Oliver away from him, but he resisted.
“Oliver, let him go!” I yelled.
He didn’t listen.
“No! he’s dangerous, L! Get out of here!” Oliver shouted.
“No! He’s not!”
I pushed harder either I finally overpowered him, or he let me. Oliver stumbled back.
I immediately leaned toward Julian.
He was breathing furiously, his chest rising and falling like he was fighting something inside himself.
“Julian, are you okay?” I asked anxiously, reaching for his face.
He slapped my hand away.
“Y-you should leave… you shouldn’t be here,” he said, covering his face with his palm.
“No,” I said, trying to pull his hand down. “I can’t leave you here. I got it.”
That stopped him. His eyes lifted to mine, searching, desperate. Slowly, he lowered his hand.
I froze.
His teeth, his fangs, were long, sharp, unmistakable. Blood trailed down both sides of his lips.
“Julian—” I breathed.
“He did that to her,” Oliver said, crouched beside Melanie, examining the wounds on her neck. My eyes darted from Oliver, to Melanie, then back to Julian.
“Is she dead?” I asked, my voice barely holding together.
“No,” Julian rushed. “No… she’s not.”
“But she doesn’t have much time left,” Oliver added.
I stood abruptly. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s take her to the infirmary.”
Julian grabbed my hand tightly.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “No, we can’t take her there… please.”
“Then how are we going to save her?” I asked, panic tightening my chest.
Julian turned his face away, unable to meet my eyes. “There’s a way,” Oliver said. I turned sharply to him. “What way?”
Oliver looked at Julian.
“His blood.”
“No,” Julian snapped. “She’ll wake up being a vampire, you dummy.”
“It’s better than bearing the name of a murderer,” Oliver said calmly, tilting his head.
“Isn’t there any other way?” I asked.
“No,” Oliver replied. “That’s the only way she stays alive. She doesn’t have much time left. You need to decide now before it’s too late.”
The air grew heavy, thick, suffocating.
It waited.
All eyes turned to Julian.
I knelt beside him. His fangs were gone now, as if they had never been there. “Julian,” I whispered. “Please… save her. Losing another isn’t protection.”
“It’s murder,” Oliver interrupted.
Julian shot him a sharp glare.
I cupped Julian’s face, forcing him to look at me. “Julian…”
We held each other’s gaze for a long moment. Then slowly, he pulled my hands away. He picked up a broken piece of wood from the floor and stood.
He stepped toward Melanie’s body. Her skin was completely pale now, her chest rising only faintly.
He pressed the wood into his palm.
Blood spilled immediately—dark, thick.
I turned my face away, my stomach twisting, as if I were the one in pain. Julian didn’t flinch.
As the blood flowed, he guided it to her mouth, letting it spill between her lips.
We stood there in silence.
Only the wind howled around us, whispering through the tower like a warning.
I stepped closer, my voice trembling.
“Isn’t she waking up?”
Julian exhaled slowly. “She will. But before then, we need to lock her up, away from the sun… and blood. If she wakes, she’ll be thirsty… hungry for blood,” he explained.
“Where are we going to keep her? Somewhere far from people,” I asked.
We hesitated.
“The chapel,” Oliver finally said.
We both turned to him. “What if someone catches you while carrying her there… or finds her in the chapel?” I asked.
“The chapel is the rarest place in the Academy. No one goes there, not even on Sundays,” Oliver replied.
Julian arched a brow at him.
“You don’t trust me?” Oliver asked when he noticed.
“I literally don’t trust anyone,” Julian replied flatly.
“But you trust Lexie. That makes no difference,” Oliver said, spreading his hands slightly.
I placed my hand on Julian’s shoulder. “It’s okay. You can trust Oliver,” I said softly.
Julian sighed. “Fine. Then why don’t I check if the coast is clear while you carry the girl alone?” Oliver suggested, already standing up and leaving.
I leaned down toward Melanie, instinctively reaching for her until Julian gripped my wrist.
“Did you find the ring?” he asked. I calmly pulled it from my pocket.
The moment he saw it, a faint smile curled on his face. He released my hand and reached for it but I pulled back.
His smile vanished.
“What?” he asked.
“I can’t give you this anymore, Julian,” I said.
“Why?” he asked, confused.
I gestured toward Melanie. “After this? You’ll hurt more people if this stays in your possession.”
He exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through his hair. “More people? I’ve never hurt anyone.”
“What happened to Sally and Marcus?” I asked.
“Look, I have nothing to do with their death. This? I—I didn’t do it on purpose. I had to eat to… survive.”
“What have you been eating if not anyone?” I asked.
“Animals. But the gates are secure, and all the small passages are locked. She crossed my path, and that’s why…” He trailed off.
I sighed, searching for deceit in his eyes but found none. Then extended the ring toward him.
He searched my face first. “You’re sure?”
“Go on. Take it. It’s our deal,” I said. “But you have to find a solution. You can’t keep feeding on students.”
He took the ring but didn’t put it on. Instead, he slipped it into his inner pocket.
“There’s something I want to show you, Julian,” I said.
“What is—”
“Are you guys coming or not?” Oliver interrupted from behind.
I reached instinctively for my pocket, then stopped and let my hand fall.
Not yet.