"— You... ! — Hope was about to snap at him, her face burning with shame, but the words caught in her throat the moment the training room door was pushed all the way open.
— Hope, I... — Alaric started to say as he walked through the threshold, holding a clipboard under his arm, but he froze dead in his tracks.
The headmaster's eyes widened in absolute shock as he saw the two of them sprawled on the floor, with Ethan hovering right over Hope in a dangerously intimate position and both of them breathing heavily.
Ethan, without showing the slightest sign of distress, stood up with flawless agility. He dusted off his pants with the casual calmness of someone who had simply tripped over a rug and strolled toward the door with unhurried steps.
— Alaric — Ethan said, giving a polite yet terribly cold nod as he passed the headmaster.
Before disappearing down the hallway, he glanced sideways at Hope, flashing a smirk and murmuring in a velvety voice:
— See you around, little wolf.
The door clicked shut slowly behind him, leaving a thick silence and an unbearable tension hanging in the air. Hope was already on her feet, hurriedly smoothing down her clothes and trying to combat the flush creeping up her neck, lacking the courage to face the headmaster head-on.
Alaric crossed his arms, adjusting his glasses on his face as he stared at Hope with a mixture of severe concern and suspicion.
— Is there something I need to know? — he asked, his tone mildly curious.
— It was nothing! — Hope blurted out quickly, trying to sound as natural as possible while picking up her training wrap from the floor. — I was sparring with him... then I lost control a bit, ended up throwing him hard against the wall using magic, and went over there just to check if he was okay.
— Hm, putting that aside, sorry for the delay — Alaric said, breaking the heavy silence and shaking his head slowly. He walked over to the side table, set the clipboard down, and let out a tired sigh. — I was caught up on the phone with Caroline, sorting out some school business, and I lost track of time.
Hope released a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding, using the opening to mask her nervousness.
— It's fine, Mr. Saltzman. No worries — she replied, trying to keep her voice as steady as possible while wrapping her wrists.
Alaric watched her for another beat, keeping his suspicions to himself, though his attentive gaze made it clear that the matter was far from settled.
— Right... Shall we get back to training, then? If you still have any energy left after that "session" with the newbie.
— I've got plenty to spare — Hope retorted, forcing a focused posture and taking her place in the center of the mat, grateful for the change of subject, even though the phantom sensation of Ethan's stolen kiss still burned on her lips.
Sometime later, night had completely fallen over the Salvatore School. Outside the building, in the same quiet, secluded spot where he and Hope had hung out the night before, Ethan was leaning back against the wall, watching the darkness of the woods.
Several minutes passed until the soft sound of footsteps on the grass announced her arrival. A slow, smug smile curved Ethan's lips—he knew she would come.
Hope walked over in silence, sitting down next to him on the cool grass without saying a word for a moment, staring out at the horizon.
— So... you're working as a mechanic? — she began, breaking the ice with a question completely out of tune with the heavy vibe lingering between them.
Ethan frowned, looking at her with an amused and genuinely confused expression.
— Seriously? Is that what you want to talk about right now?
— Yes — she retorted, crossing her arms and staring right back at him. — Because if you don't feel like talking, I'll just get up and leave.
— Easy, little wolf... — Ethan said, letting out a low chuckle and shaking his head. — Fine. Yeah, I'm working as a mechanic. More like a mechanic's assistant, actually. I want to save up for a motorcycle... I've kind of always wanted one.
— Hmmm, got it... — Hope nodded slowly, her gaze thoughtful. — Well, if you want, I can buy you one. What do you think? That way you don't have to work your fingers to the bone and can focus on other things.
Ethan raised his eyebrows, surprised by the direct proposal, but quickly shook his head in denial.
— Just so you know, my family is filthy rich — Hope continued, trying to convince him. — So money is absolute no issue for me... Even if back in the day my mom barely gave me any allowance...
At the mention of her mother, Hope's voice wavered. She dropped her head, her gaze lost in the grass as the longing and pain of loss squeezed her chest.
Ethan noticed the shift in her tone. He reached out and placed a hand on top of Hope's head, lightly ruffling her hair to comfort her. Hope tilted her head away in a sulky gesture, pretending she wanted him to stop, even though the touch made her heart settle.
— Even if you're rolling in cash, I don't think it would be very manly to accept something that big from you — Ethan replied with a sideways smile.
— But... it would be a gift from me — she insisted, glancing at him.
— Nah, forget about it, little wolf — Ethan cut in smoothly, changing the subject. — But tell me... how is your family doing?
Hope let out a long sigh before answering:
— My family is pretty much traveling the world... including my dad. After I came back to school, right after you pulled Hollow into yourself, my dad used to come visit me periodically. Until I told him to pack up and go live his life. Of course he didn't like it one bit at first, but he ended up accepting it.
— I see... So they're out exploring the world — Ethan commented, absorbing the information.
— Yeah — she nodded.
— Now... there's something I need to ask you — Ethan said, changing his posture and turning more serious.
— What? — she asked, looking at him.
— Why are a bunch of monsters coming after this school? And what exactly is the point of all this? I only got the basics from Alaric that day in his office.
Hope stared at him in disbelief.
— You've been here for over a week and you haven't bothered to look into any of this yet?
— My bad... — Ethan shrugged, showing not a shred of shame.
Hope sighed, shaking his head at his absent-mindedness, and explained:
— From what we know so far... Malivore is a being that basically wants to devour every supernatural creature in the world. He was created specifically for that. But to break free and make it happen, he needs three keys that open the portal from his dimension to ours. The first was the knife, the second was the urn... and we're still trying to figure out what the last key is.
— And this urn and knife are at the school? — Ethan asked, narrowing his eyes with his gaze locked on her.
— The knife... was stolen by Rafael's ghost girlfriend, who came back to life because of the Necromancer. She threw the knife into Malivore's pit, breaking the first seal. As for the urn... — Hope paused, letting out a heavy sigh. — The day before yesterday, we went after the urn Mr. Saltzman had thrown in a river under the influence of a parasite larva. So we went to retrieve the object and ran right into a mummy.
— A mummy? — Ethan interrupted, letting out a muffled laugh of sheer disbelief. — Of all the monsters... seriously, a mummy?
— Hear the whole story first! — Hope complained, giving his shoulder a light nudge. — Anyway... There was this guy there working for a company called Triad. He kind of put us in a stalemate on our way back. He captured Dorian and Emma, and to save their lives, Mr. Saltzman had to hand the urn over to him.
Ethan brought a hand to his chin, lowering his gaze as he digested every detail. The calculating side of his mind began connecting the dots rapidly.
— What is this Triad? — he asked, his voice taking on an analytical tone.
— We don't know for sure — she admitted. — I only know that this company protects Malivore's portal facilities down in Georgia.
Still with his hand on his chin, deep in thought, Ethan began to articulate his reasoning out loud:
— So, if everything is tied to this Triad, and they're "defending" Malivore's portal... what's their actual endgame here, anyway?
— Ryan Clarke, the same guy who was on our trip against the mummy and stole the urn, said they work to defend humans from monsters, wiping people's memories and creating smoke screens so no one finds out there are creatures out there — Hope explained.
Ethan narrowed his eyes, a cold, sharp smirk forming at the corner of his mouth.
— So... basically, they are the "bad guys".
— !! What do you mean? — Hope asked, frowning, surprised by his conclusion.
— Think about it, Hope... If their mission is to defend people from monsters, and Malivore's ultimate goal is to swallow and wipe out every supernatural creature on earth... what is Triad's actual function in this story?
Hope's blue eyes widened in pure shock as the puzzle pieces finally clicked into place.
— !!! Wipe out all the monsters... — she finished, her voice fading in her throat.
— Exactly — Ethan confirmed, in a cutting tone. — They are using Malivore to retrieve the three keys. You've already handed two of them over on a silver platter. If they find the third one... like you said yourself, it's pretty much game over for all of us.
Hope swallowed hard, staring at the floor with her mind racing a mile a minute.
— I... I hadn't thought about it from that angle... — she confessed, stunned by the cold clarity with which Ethan had read the board in a matter of minutes.
— Now things have gotten way too serious. I have zero plans of going back to that hellish place anytime soon — Ethan replied, his voice dropping a few octaves, overtaken by a dark gravity.
He shifted on the grass, staring into the dark woods with green eyes gleaming with pure determination.
— Looks like on your next expedition I'm going to have to get off my ass... Because, by the looks of it, you guys don't have the slightest capability of putting an end to all this. By the way... have you asked your dad and your family for help with any of this? — he asked, turning his face to look straight at Hope.
Hope shook her head no, avoiding his gaze.
— I didn't ask them for help... You know how they are. If they find out, they'd show up here in a heartbeat and cause even more trouble than what we're already dealing with — she answered, trying to justify herself.
Ethan raised an eyebrow, letting out a laugh of pure mockery.
— Are you an idiot, Hope? — he blurted out, completely unfiltered.
Hope's face scrunched up instantly, her wounded pride making her cheeks burn with anger.
— Why are you calling me an idiot, you...?!
— You refuse to ask for help from practically the oldest and most powerful being in existence, which is your dad, and from your uncles, who have centuries of knowledge and must have answers for everything in this crazy world of monsters... Just because they worry too much about you? — Ethan asked, cutting her off with surgical coldness.
Hope froze. Her mouth snapped shut and she fell completely silent, unable to counter his crushing logic.
— It's not just your life on the line here — Ethan continued, his voice low and unyielding. — If I'd known all this was going on, I would've made my move a long time ago and gone with you guys to get that damn urn.
Hope crossed her arms, huffing in frustration.
— And what do you think you are? Superman, who's gonna fix everything all by himself? — she sneered, looking at him with a challenge.
Ethan just shook his head slowly, maintaining his composure.
— I may not be Superman, but I'm not stupid enough to talk big about something I can't back up. Call your dad and tell him exactly what's going on here. He needs to step up and help us with this... Or even he's going down with the rest of us if this Triad and this Malivore get what they want.
Hope let out a long, heavy sigh, running her hands over her face as she stared at the ground. Ethan's authority and strategic vision were taking their toll—and deep down, she knew he was entirely right."