by Jaymin Eve
A minute later, a heavy weight landed on me as Ilia flung herself onto the bed. “I’m awake, so you’re awake.”
A tired laugh escaped, taking with it the last of the air in my lungs—she was surprisingly heavy. I shoved her to the side. “I never should have allowed you access to my room,” I groaned. “What if I slept naked?”
I felt her shrug. “Wouldn’t bother me. I sleep naked.”
Good to know.
I swung my legs off the bed and rubbed my face as I tried to get my brain online. “Okay, I’m up now. Give me time to shower and get dressed, and I’ll meet you downstairs.”
Ilia shot me a grin as she jumped to her feet, looking fine as fuck in a short denim skirt and tucked-in white tank. Her dark legs looked even longer than usual under the short hem, and I let out a low whistle.
“Damn, you look way too good to be just going shopping.”
She posed, fluffing her hair up. “I might have convinced Josh to come along and carry our bags for us.”
I high-fived her. “Good thinking!”
As I stood, Ilia eyed me closer. “You might as well sleep naked.”
Looking down I shrugged. “Sometimes I do. Depends on how much I hate my boobs that day.”
I was wearing a tiny pair of white panties and a matching soft bra. Turning, I rifled through my drawers, managing to find a clean set of denim shorts and a plain black tank. I grabbed the rest of my stuff, and by the time I turned around Ilia was gone and I was able to shower and change in peace.
Once my hair was brushed, some makeup slapped on, I was ready to go.
Ilia was in the communal area of the magic users' tower, chatting with a few girls I hadn’t met before. When I entered, she spotted me immediately and waved goodbye to her friends. She all but sprinted to my side.
“Someone likes shopping,” I observed when she almost knocked me over with her hug.
“Best part of being an adult,” she said. “Like Christmas every day of the year.”
That reminded me... “How do I find out how much money I have?”
The card from Princeps Jones was burning a hole in my pocket, and while I wasn’t quite Ilia level of excited, I also wasn’t dreading this trip. To think I could spend a little frivolously because my basic needs were being met here at the school was such a novelty.
She dragged me across to a small gray machine in the corner. I’d seen it before but hadn’t really paid attention. “Scanner is here. You can either withdraw cash or check your balance.”
Oh, so pretty much an ATM, or the supernatural version of one. There was no slot to insert the card, I just had to place my hand against the screen and a beam crossed my palm.
“Your card is linked to your magical resonance,” Ilia explained. “The same sort of thing as the lock on your room. The card is just for in town.”
When the total popped up on the screen, I almost died. “What in the heck?” I whispered. “Five thousand dollars!” I’d never had that much money in my life.
“Euros,” Ilia corrected. “It’s not much; the student allowance kind of sucks. I think they want us to be reliant on them. But the money will increase to a much nicer level once you get out in the world and start working.”
“It’s a lot,” I said breathlessly.
She blinked at me, and then it was like she remembered where she’d found me. The life I’d lived. Her cheeks went a little pink. “Sorry, Mads. That was insensitive of me. It is a lot of money, and you deserve to have fun with it. Let’s go shopping!”
I wasn’t upset at all. “I’m excited! What time do we have to be back for Louis, though?” I couldn’t miss that; I needed to know what the hell was going on with my power.
“Just after lunch. Princeps Jones will text me if he arrives early.”
Awesome, so we had the entire morning for retail therapy. As we walked toward the commons, Ilia asked me about Asher and our private lesson last night, and I told her a hurried, condensed version of what had happened.
“So you can’t touch him anymore?” Her tone was incredulous. “You’ve just won the worst lottery ever.”
I shoved her, grimacing. “Fuck. So true.”
Josh was waiting for us on the other side of the commons, his tall frame leaning against a table. Ilia’s face lit up as she waved, and he shot her a slow grin that almost had my stomach doing flip-flops. That was a nice look. If I ever got a boyfriend, he’d better look at me like that.
“Ugh,” Ilia groaned softly. “I really like him.” Her whisper was barely audible because shifters had great hearing.
“The feeling is clearly mutual,” I assured her.
Excitement lit up her features before she smoothed it away. They were still in the early stages of their relationship and she was playing it cool.
“So back to this Asher thing,” Ilia said. “Have you considered the fact that you might have Atlantean blood?”
I paused, because I hadn’t. “I mean, I guess it’s possible. It would explain my affinity for water magic, and the pull I feel toward the Atlanteans.” It had been pretty obvious at lunch, and now with Asher. “You said there was at least five hundred or so out in the world—not the best odds, but not impossible. How would I find out?”
“When your energy is unlocked, we’ll be able to tell,” Ilia said.
Josh strode over to meet us, dropping a kiss on her cheek. He shot me a welcoming smile. “Hey, Maddi. Ready for some shopping?”
I laughed. “I don’t have much experience in this whole shopping thing, but I’m guessing Ilia will keep us on track.”
She straightened her shoulders like I’d given her an important task. “You have no idea.”
I really had no idea.
Starting with her insane driving. She borrowed a car from the school, which were only given out to staff and certain students. It was a fancy Mercedes sedan, which would have been lovely if I wasn’t clinging to the door in panic. She was foot to the floor, sliding around corners, iced-out roads be damned.
When we entered Queensborough she finally slowed down and I unlatched my fingers, stretched them out from where they’d cramped in panic. “You okay?” Ilia asked, swinging into a parking lot, stopping less than an inch before hitting the curb.
I wrenched my door open and almost fell out in my haste to get out of the car. “You drive like a maniac,” I choked out, sucking in air. “A. Maniac.”
Ilia and Josh both laughed. “I’m magic, girl. I’d stop us before we hit anything.”
My stomach rolled and I had to swallow more than once so I didn’t vomit all over the pavement. Thankfully we hadn’t had a chance to eat yet. When my body finally stopped freaking, I stood straighter and took my first real look at the charming town.
It was so pretty, with a variety of unique and cute shops decorating either side of the long street. It was cold though, and I shivered because I was not even remotely dressed appropriately.
“Here,” Ilia said, and I turned in time to catch a thick ivory wool coat. “Figured you’d forget it wasn’t climate controlled out here.”
The Academy made me forget that the entire world existed, so that wasn’t surprising.
Ilia was buttoning herself into a tan coat, so I slid my arms into mine and sighed at how warm it was. It fell to midthigh, and I quickly buttoned it.
“Let’s shop!” Ilia all but shouted, and I sucked in a deep breath.
I was ready.
Three hours later, I groaned. “Enough, please. I can’t do any more shopping.” Josh had already been back to the car six times, and Ilia appeared to have just hit her stride. “We’ve got all the clothes I need, and a cell phone. Now get me back to the Academy for my appointment with Louis.”
Ilia shook her head like she was disappointed in me. “I guess you’ve got enough. For now. But I still think you should have looked for a formal dress. We have a school dance next month.”
“Dances are not really my thing,” I told her for the fifth time.
“Mandatory attendance,” she told me, “which means you can’t weasel your way out unless you’re legitimately sick. It’s a supe bonding exercise, and it’s usually—”
“Boring,” Josh added.
I hid a laugh, and Ilia shot him a dark look. “Yes, it can be somewhat boring, but it’s also a great opportunity to wear a beautiful dress and eat awesome food and dance with anyone you want.”
“And the after-parties are always awesome,” Josh added, not exactly agreeing with Ilia, but smart enough not to openly disagree with her.
I sighed. “Maybe … maybe it would be fun to let loose for a change. We can get a dress another time though.”
Ilia didn’t argue, but her full lips were pressed thin as we strode from the last boutique. I had loved being in this little town. To see supes in the “real” world owning businesses and interacting with each other made all of it feel a little more real.
I hadn’t seen much active magic about, but definitely noticed a few things that would’ve had humans scratching their heads if they stumbled on it.
“That’ll never happen,” Ilia told me when I asked her about the possibility of humans finding Queensborough. “There are barriers and securities around the town, the same as around the Academy. If you’re human, you’d never be able to enter.”
Another tick in the “I’m not human” checklist. I loved it every single time that happened.
Just as we were about to hop in the car—the back seats were almost full of bags, but there was just enough room for me to squish in—I caught sight of something that made me pause.
“Uh, is there a race of supernaturals who like to cosplay?” I asked, squinting to see them better.
Ilia and Josh both spun to stare down the street, scoping out the newcomers.
“That’s not like any uniform I’ve seen,” Ilia said, and there was an undertone of worry in her voice.
I counted six of them approaching us, but I had a sense that there were more hidden in the background. They were dressed head-to-toe in black leather, with dark green and blue shimmery accents intersecting across their midsections and arms and legs. I only knew that because the shimmer reflected and was almost blinding at times. The strangest part was the headpieces. They wrapped right around to their eyes, looking a lot like scuba masks.
“Maybe we should go,” I said, an uneasy feeling settling into the pit of my stomach. “I … I think we should go.”
Ilia nodded and slid into the driver seat. I was already in, seat belt clicking into place. As she spun out of the parking space and slammed the car into gear, a blast of energy zoomed past, narrowly skimming our car, crashing into a vehicle parked on the street.
“Holy fuck,” Ilia said, her eyes flicking between all of her mirrors. “They’re definitely not happy about us leaving.”
The Mercedes picked up speed, and I didn’t even bother to hold on for dear life. Instead I turned to stare out the back window, gasping at the sight of them running after us. They were almost keeping up with the speed of a car.
“They’re gaining on us,” I said softly, not wanting to startle her. “What the hell are they? Shifters? Vamps?”
No way for me to tell with their faces covered.
Josh’s chest rumbled as he spun in his chair, his eyes darkening. “Vamps could move that fast, but they are definitely not vamps. Some of the demi-fey as well, but they’re not humanoid in shape, which rules them out too.”
Well, great.
“Are you going to shift?” Ilia asked, shooting him a quick look. “If you don’t, I can try and use magic to buy us some time.”
Josh shook his head. “I can’t shift in the car; I’d rip it to pieces. My beast is larger than a normal lion.”
For a second that freaked me out, until I remembered that I had much bigger issues to worry about. Our pursuers had not shot at us again, which was good, but they were also still chasing us. Which was bad. Very fucking bad.
“If we make it back to the school, then we should be safe,” Ilia said, trying to sound calm and cheerful about the whole situation.
“We’re not going to make the school,” Josh said, and despite his previous assertion, he was starting to shift.
This was the first time I’d ever seen a shifter in action, and I was both fascinated and horrified as his bones cracked, his body transforming into a golden, furred beast that was as big as a damn horse. The seat collapsed under his weight while bits of clothing littered the car. His roar just about busted my eardrums, as he ripped off the door and leaped from the moving vehicle. Ilia spun the car in a one-eighty turn as I screamed.
“What are you doing?” I shouted.
She gritted her teeth, wrestling the wheel. “It’s not me. They hit us with a spell.”
The road between the school and the town was a single lane, ice and snow along the edges. The moment our tires slipped off the asphalt and clipped the slush, Ilia lost all control.
“Shit,” she spat, easing her foot off the accelerator. “Prepare for a fight, girl. Stay close to me.”
“I don’t know how to fight,” I gasped, clutching my seat belt, shopping bags pelting me as we finally came to a stop. “Especially not with magic.”
It was my first week; I was still learning how to create a mage light.
What was I going to do? Shine the way to make it easier for them?
When the car stopped moving, an echoing silence reverberated through my ears. I jumped when Ilia pushed her door open and sprang free. Shoving bags and boxes off me, I pushed at my door too. It didn’t move. It was jammed somehow, and I slammed it with my boot and then my shoulder, trying to get it unstuck.
Suddenly it was wrenched so hard that I almost tumbled out.
One of the leather-clad assholes was standing on the other side, and for a brief moment he examined me. I was assuming a male judging by the build, but it could have been a very muscled female as well.
“Are you Macilinta of the Sonaris people?” a heavily accented voice asked me. So heavy that I couldn’t even be sure I heard that correctly.
I gasped before shaking my head. “My name is Maddison.”
He reached in to yank me out and I threw myself back, out of his reach. I scrambled into the front and dove out the opening from the door Josh tore off. Hitting the cold ground was not the most fun I’d had today, but it was more fun than having some weird leather-wearing asshole rip my limbs from my body.
I was up and running, natural athleticism kicking in. On the other side of the road, a freaking lion was pouncing on a few of the leather-clad guys. The thought hit me hard: Josh turned into an animal. A lion.
How is this my life?
Ilia’s red curls caught my eye. She was fighting three … no, four of our pursuers, and she was doing a wicked good job at it. Sparks flew from her hands as she spun and twirled in what looked like a complicated dance. She shouted words that I recognized as the fey language, and I could not imagine ever being that confident and skilled.
“Maddi!” she shouted. “Watch out!”
I heard his footsteps a moment before I was tackled to the ground. Bucking, I fought as hard as I could, managing to turn over. I took us both by surprise when my knee collided with his chin, knocking him back just enough that I could scramble to my feet.
My limbs ached as I started to hobble away. Who the hell were these muthafucking rat bastards? And why were they attacking us? None of this made sense. It was clearly a case of mistaken identity.
“We need you to help save the world, Macilinta,” he shouted in that same heavy accent.
Turning so I could see him better, I started to back up. “You’ve got the wrong person. My name is Maddison.”
Staring directly at him now, I noticed how full and pink his lips were, and the perfect white teeth he flashed when he spoke. Why I noticed that was a mystery, but apparently my brain acted even odder during crisis situations.
“You have blood of the royals,” he said slowly.
My foot
scuffed a few rocks as I continued to back up, hoping that at least I could get closer to Ilia while I kept this crazy dude talking. I risked a quick glance over my shoulder, gasping as Ilia finally went down, a bunch of assholes pushing forward to finish her off.
I had to help her, but how? I looked around, and the guy who was pursuing me paused and tilted his head. “Your energy called to us, but … your hair. It’s pink.”
Probably not a good time to tell him I dyed it.
“And right now I feel nothing from you.”
Also not a good time to tell him that my energy appeared and disappeared at will.
“So it stands to reason I might not be her, right?” I pointed out the obvious.
Before he could say anything more, a screech of tires drew our attention.
19
This car was big and black, with dark windows and shiny silver accents. I couldn’t have told you the make and model to save my life; I’d never owned a car, and my mom only had shitty ones that barely started, but I knew expensive when I saw it.
Four doors opened almost simultaneously, and five huge dudes emerged. I choked out a relieved breath. It was the Atlantean-five.
Asher was here. He’d know what to do.
I had no idea where my faith in him came from, but as long as he—and his friends—saved my friends, then I was not going to question it.
“Maddi,” Asher called to me, and I swallowed roughly.
“Help Ilia!” I said with force, still not taking my eyes off the guy.
From the corner of my eye I saw Jesse, Calen, and Rone peel off and head toward Ilia. Asher and Axl pressed toward me and the crazy guy.
“You would damn them all?” the leather-clad guy asked me. “All of our people?”
I shook my head. “Seriously, what the fuck are you doing coming up here with your cryptic bullshit? You have the wrong person! We don’t have people. We have nothing.”
Asher and Axl pushed forward on either side of us. “Move away from her,” Asher told him, his words a snap of icy warning. “Arterians are not welcome here. You know that. If you don’t want me to rip you all to pieces, you’ll take your friends and leave. Now.”
