Burn Like Fire Read Free Page B

tilted upwards. “Please, Anna. Don’t even worry about it. Most of the students who go here and who’ve never met me usually assume I’m a man because of my name. ‘Chris’ is short for Christina. I no longer go by that name because of . . . well, reasons,” she explained, obviously changing her mind about going into the details of why. She folded her hands on the desk in front of her. “Anyway, you requested to speak with me?”
    Anna nodded and nervously twirled a lock of pink highlighted hair around her finger. “Yes, um, the reason I came here—to Huntington—was because my mother was killed by a vampire,” she began to say.
    Chris Morton nodded knowingly. “Yes, I am aware of that. It’s all in your file.”
    “Oh.” Anna was surprised that Chris Morton had even had the time to glance at her file, considering she was such a busy woman. “I’ve recently received a tip about the vampire who killed my mother. Well, it was sort of a tip, I guess you could say. Someone sent me a letter from Briar Creek telling me that if I meet them in Ohio, they’ll provide me with more information about who killed my mother. Anyway, I was just wondering if I could have permission to go to Ohio and then pursue this vampire if the tip turns out to be a valuable one without losing my place at Huntington.”
    Chris tapped her finger against her chin hesitantly. “What makes you think this isn’t some sort of setup?”
    Anna shrugged. “I . . . I don’t know, honestly. It could be, but I have a feeling this might lead to something.” She paused before adding, “I have a feeling this could lead me to the information that I’ve been looking for all along. I don’t want to risk missing out on it.”
    Chris stared Anna for a few moments before sighing. “Even though I’m not one hundred percent convinced that this is the best idea, I’m not going to be the one to tell you not to go for this. I know this is the whole reason you came to Huntington, and I fully understand how important it is for you to find your mother’s killer.” She hesitated. “I would offer to accompany you, but I’ve already committed to other obligations. Do you have anyone else who would be able to come with you for this mission? I always encourage students to have at least one other hunter join them—especially for their first mission.”
    “My boyfriend will come with me,” Anna blurted out. Even though she knew that Austin would be willing to come with her, the truth was, she was volunteering him because she didn’t want to be away from him for any length of time. Just thinking about being away from him while she went to Ohio made her feel an intense longing deep inside her heart; there was no way they could be apart for that long.
    Chris Morton nodded and gave her a small smile. “I’m glad to hear that he’ll be willing to accompany you, and the fact of that matter is, that’s probably a good idea. No one is more protective over us than someone we love. But there is a problem with him going with you.”
    “What?” Anna questioned, a knot forming in her stomach. Was the Headmaster going to tell her that she couldn’t bring Austin with her? Maybe Chris Morton was one of those vampires who didn’t believe that men made good vampire hunters. A lot of vampires only believed that women were good at hunting—or anything else in life—due to their seductive nature.
    Chris Morton laughed. “No, I don’t think men are bad fits for hunting, Anna. There are many men who have gone on to be successful vampire hunters.”
    Anna held in the gasp that she wanted to let out. Had she said her thoughts aloud without even realizing it?
    Chris laughed again. “No, you didn’t say anything out loud. Being able to read minds is one of my abilities. Anyway, what I was going to say is that the problem I see about your boyfriend going with you is that it’s easy to become distracted. You’ll want to be aware of your surroundings at all times, but