Chapter nine

Maxine

The words hung in the air and I struggled to remain composed while I processed Xander’s revelation.

“A hybrid?” I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper.

Derek was the hybrid? He was my mission?

“Yes. Half vampire, half human,” Xander clarified, his tone grim. “They’re rare and if I’m correct, the only living one.”

I leaned back in my seat,my heart racing. Indeed,do not judge a book by its cover. Here I am, making friends with a Vampire and Derek who had seemed nice earlier was now the one I had been told was a hybrid.

That explained why i couldn’t sense him earlier in the day. Hybrids were an anomaly, unpredictable and hard to track, they could turn on their human side or their vampire side at will.

They were even an enigma among supernaturals. But something didn’t sit right with me.

“The vervain didn’t affect him,” I said aloud, piecing together the events of the night.

“That’s because dhampirs aren’t vulnerable to vervain like vampires are. Their human side gives them certain... immunities,” Xander explained.

I glanced at him, grateful that at least I had made a decent vampire friend. He was a vampire, but he wasn’t as cruel and terrifying like my roommate, although he gave off a dark aura.

The hybrids were scorned by both Vampires and werewolves alike.

I clenched my fist tightly as a thought suddebky occured to me. If vervain couldn’t subdue Derek and my spells were ineffective on him, then how was I supposed to stop him?

“And what about the compulsion? You managed to control him.” I narrowed my eyes at Xander. Something didn’t add up.

Xander gave me a wary look and then shrugged. “That shouldn’t have worked. I don’t know why it did. Maybe his human side made him susceptible.”

I frowned, my instincts telling me that there was more to Derek than even Xander realized. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this before?”

He burst out into laughter. “Really? So, I should just begin telling you about him. Come on, Max,I get it, You’re angry. But hybrids aren’t just dangerous, they’re hunted. If word gets out about Derek, it won’t be just you he’ll have to worry about. There are creatures out there far worse than him who’d want him dead.”

I decided that this was a perfect opportunity to find out what the vampires knew about hybrids. I crossed my arms, pretending that I was irritated.

“What makes him so special? Why does everyone want him gone?”

“Because dhampirs are considered an abomination. Neither vampires nor wolves accept them. And some believe they have abilities that make them a threat to everyone,” Xander said, his voice low.

“Abilities?”

Xander hesitated, as though he was debating whether to say more. Finally, he relented. “Legends say that hybrids can channel power from both their vampire and human sides, making them stronger than either. If Derek’s unlocked even half of that potential, then he’s even far more dangerous than we realize.”

I let out a sharp breath before I realized and masks it with a small yawn. He knew nothing about how useful Derek was to the witches. That was good. I would let my mother know about him quickly and then move on to become the leader of my coven.

“Just Stay away from him. He doesn’t know who you really are yet, and you need to keep it that way. I believe there are a few supernaturals in this school, and I can tell you for a fact that they’re not really welcoming towards witches, so lay low,” Xander said and I nodded.

But he doesn’t seem to be convinced by that. ““Max, this isn’t about pride. Derek’s dangerous, and if you push him too far, he won’t hesitate to kill you. Trust me, I’ve seen what hybrids are capable of.”

I wanted to argue, but Xander’s intensity made me pause. I saw genuine concern in his eyes.

“Fine,” i said reluctantly. “I’ll back off... for now.”

Xander relaxed slightly, although I could see that he still seemed on edge. “Good. Just promise me you’ll be careful.”

I nodded, but my mind was already racing with several thoughts and plans.

As i stepped out of the car and watched Xander drive away, I clenched my fists, determination burning in my chest.

I shoved my hands into my pockets and grabbed my phone, toting with it for a while as I contemplated between calling Henry and my mum.

I ended up dialing Henry’s line and he locked up after the first ring. It was as though he was expecting my call.

“Babe, you’re back from the party?” His deep smooth voice came from the other end of the line, melting my heart and I smiled.

“Yea, I got tired. It was just the normal teenage party, alcohol, drugs…you know…not my style, and nothing is really happening.”

“Oh, do you want me to come?” He asked and I shook my head before realizing that he couldn’t see me.

“No, don’t worry, I’m a bit tired, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I lied effectively before ending the call as I glanced at my dorm room, wondering if my roommate was in there.

I felt guilty about lying to Henry, but he wouldn’t understand why I had to take a vampire as my friend and would want me to leave the dorm room immediately upon finding out about my roommate.

Also, I didn’t want to leave the school, at least not yet, until I was able to solve the mystery of Davis death, there was just something about it that kept pulling me in.

My ankle throbbed as i climbed the stairs to my dorm room, The strain from the earlier encounter was worse than i thought, but i ignored the pain. There was no time to rest.

Once inside, i locked the door behind Mr and leaned against it, exhaling sharply. The small, dimly lit room felt suffocating tonight, bjt nothing looked out of place.

My roommate wasn’t around and I wondered if he was somewhere out there sucking the blood of some poor soul.

I crossed to her desk and opened the drawer, putting the egg-shaped device back where it had been.

I then grabbed my grimoire. Flipping through the worn pages, I searched for anything about dhampirs, legends, spells, anything that could help me.

Page after page offered nothing. Dhampirs were a myth, a footnote in supernatural history. Most witches didn’t even believe they existed.

Until now.

My thoughts drifted back to Derek. His face when he’d grabbed me, the fury, the confusion. It wasn’t a monster I had seen. I had seen someone desperate, someone cornered. But that didn’t make him any less dangerous.

Right?

My phone buzzed almost immediately, interrupting my thoughts. I furrowed my brows as I glanced at the screen, it was an unknown number.

Strange!

Why would someone call me this late?