Ella's Masquerade: A Midnight Fae Academy Prequel

by Lexi C. Foss

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Ella’s Masquerade

  Copyright © 2020 Lexi C. Foss

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. This book may not be redistributed to others for commercial or noncommercial purposes.

  Editing by: Outthink Editing, LLC

  Proofreading by: Barb Jack

  Cover Design: Jessica Allain, Enchanting Covers

  Published by: Ninja Newt Publishing, LLC

  Digital Edition

  ISBN: 978-1-950694-39-6

  Created with Vellum

  To Alyssa, for letting my muse spew nonsense at you daily—Ella’s Masquerade was created as a result. You’re an amazing friend, and I’m so glad angels brought us together. I’d be lost in this industry without you!

  Contents

  Ella’s Masquerade

  Prologue

  1. Ella

  2. Tray

  3. Ella

  4. Tray

  5. Ella

  6. Tray

  7. Ella

  8. Ella

  9. Tray

  10. Ella

  11. Tray

  12. Ella

  13. Tray

  14. Ella

  15. Tray

  16. Ella

  17. Tray

  18. Ella

  19. Tray

  20. Tray

  21. Ella

  22. Ella

  23. Ella

  24. Tray

  Epilogue

  Midnight Fae Academy

  Chapter One

  About Lexi C. Foss

  Also by Lexi C. Foss

  Once upon a time, a handsome prince asked the academy wallflower to the ball. She was blinded by the stars in her own eyes and the pitter-patter of her lonely heart. Little did she know this prince was no prince at all, but a villain disguised behind a charming smile.

  Ella

  There are no such things as fairy tales or happily ever afters. Not in my world. My reality is riddled with pain and loss and immense hatred.

  Until him.

  Trayton Nacht, the new transfer student at Darlington Academy.

  Something about his darkness calls to me. The way his eyes glimmer in the night and the cruelty of his handsome smile. With a single glance, he turned my world inside out. And now I can’t get enough.

  But what if he’s just like the rest of them? What if this is all just another masquerade?

  Tray

  She stole my heart, once upon a time. Three years ago in an alley where she left me with a pair of sodden blue slippers.

  Her life had been mine for the taking, until I discovered the fae magic lurking beneath her skin. Now it’s time to recruit her, to take her to her fate.

  But first, we’ll play a little game.

  One that will end in destruction.

  Because fuck fairy godmothers.

  What Ella needs is a Dark Fae.

  One who can help her burn Darlington Academy to the ground.

  A Dark Fae like me.

  Freshman Year

  Laughter.

  Jeers.

  Cruel words.

  It all blended around me, but certain voices peaked above the crowd.

  “I can’t believe she thought Dash actually wanted to go to the dance with her.” Carmen’s giggle followed, the sound grating on my nerves. My stepsister often woke me with that noise, usually before acting on whatever nefarious activity she and Ryan had plotted together.

  “Classic Cindersoot, always living in her little dream world instead of our reality,” Ryan said now, her cackle holding a sinister touch to it. I had no doubt this latest scheme was her idea. She was the more intelligent of the twin brats.

  And somehow, they’d recruited Darlington Academy’s very own prince to play in their twisted game.

  I swallowed, the pain of their joint betrayal making it hard to breathe. As if I hadn’t gone through enough this year. But that was exactly what Dash Charming had preyed upon. He was the one I’d confided in and cried to after my father’s death.

  Dash had just been so convincing.

  After weeks of courting me, kissing me, holding my hand in the academy halls, telling everyone he adored me, I actually thought he liked me.

  What was worse than falling for it was falling for him.

  His wicked grin now told me it was all a lie.

  A savage joke with me as the punch line.

  And everyone knew.

  What had he said about me behind my back? What had he told the others? Did he tell them all about my nightmares? About the shadows?

  I shivered.

  I always knew deep down something wasn’t right. I’d just ignored my inner misgivings and given in to the fairy tale of reality. One my mother always told me existed. But her death had proven otherwise.

  And then my father’s passing this year…

  I hung my head, my throat tight with emotion.

  The entire freshman class stood around me, most of them amused. Some cast pitying glances my way, which was somehow worse.

  Here I stood in my ruined blue gown, soiled by the punch Ryan had poured over my head. My blonde curls had absorbed the brunt of it, but my entire outfit was destroyed. Even my cerulean slippers.

  My heart ached. No one could know what this night had meant to me. I’d dug the old dress out of the attic from my mother’s former wardrobe and hemmed it myself to make it fit. Only to have it all so spectacularly spoiled.

  I’m sorry, I whispered to her. I’m so incredibly sorry.

  I knew better than this. All those who attended this academy were rich, elitist assholes who only thought of themselves. I was the one who didn’t belong—the poor daughter taken in by her father’s widow.

  I’d begged my stepmother, Clarissa, to send me to the local high school. But she said I needed the academy, that it would set me up for the future.

  Was this the future she had in mind?

  Four years of hell?

  “Oh, I think she’s going to cry,” Ryan mock-whispered.

  Dash chuckled. “Should I offer a pity fuck?”

  “She did look hot in that dress,” his best friend drawled. “Bet she’s a virgin, too.”

  Gross, I thought. We were only fifteen. Why wouldn’t I be a virgin?

  “Of course she is. No one in their right mind would ever touch her,” Ryan replied, sounding far superior despite being a month younger than me.

  Why am I still standing here? Because my feet had forgotten how to move. Well, they quickly remembered now. I refused to cry in front of them. Refused to let them see another moment of my agony.

  I picked up my skirts and ran, their uproarious laughter trailing in my wake.

  They’ll all pay, I vowed. One day, somehow they—

  A sob threatened my throat, cutting off my thoughts. I could plot my revenge later. Escaping mattered more.

  Doors seemed to open for me, allowing me to burst into the night where all the cars waited.

  I sprinted by them all, not caring in the slightest about the damp, snowy ground. The upcoming holidays were going to be hard—my first ones spent truly alone.

  But this? The Freshman Holiday Ball? Had made it even worse. Because I h
ad no one to run to.

  No family.

  No friends.

  Not even a pet.

  Tears trickled down my face, freezing in the night air. But onward I pushed, longing to leave everything behind me.

  I had a month to pull myself together, to harden my shell, to not let their comments and cruelty impact me. I could do this. I had to.

  Three and a half years. I could survive that. In three and a half years, I would be done with school, done with them.

  My stepmother couldn’t access my inheritance. Neither could I. Not until I graduated.

  But on that very day, I would withdraw every penny and run far, far away.

  Once I graduated, I would be free to—

  My slippers gave out beneath me, sending me careening into a nearby wall. A wall with hands that grasped my hips to keep me upright.

  I shook my head, clearing it and seeing the darkness around me for the first time. I’d run with a single-minded purpose of escape without paying any mind to my surroundings.

  “Are you all right?” a deep voice asked, his face shrouded in the shadows. All I could make out were his piercing black eyes.

  A chill swept up my spine. Something about this male was dangerous. It seemed to cloak his aura, allowing him to blend right into the night.

  Or maybe it was my imagination.

  Hell if I knew.

  I took a step back, only to find myself caught in his too-strong grip. “Let go of me,” I breathed, the demand in my tone hidden somewhere beneath my fraying emotions.

  He released me in an instant, causing me to fall flat on my ass in a pile of dirty snow from the road. Of course. I wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all, to whimper at the cold, and to beat some sense into my guardian angel. Assuming she even existed. I was seriously starting to doubt any aspect of the universe cared about me at all.

  The stranger’s hand appeared, but I batted it away, too irritated to accept his help after being so unceremoniously dumped on the ground. A consequence that I recognized was more my fault than his.

  I shoved myself upright, slipping again and landing against a real wall this time. With a determined growl, I took off again—in the right direction toward my home.

  Home, I scoffed. What is that anyway?

  “Hey!” the male called out behind me.

  I ignored him.

  This was the night from hell, and I just wanted it to end. My entire body was frozen, shivering, and probably dying from the wintry mix.

  Wouldn’t that be a grand finale to it all?

  I wiped at the icy streaks against my cheeks, pushing myself onward. It wasn’t until I reached the back entrance to my house that I realized why I was so cold.

  I’d lost my slippers.

  My mother’s slippers.

  I collapsed into a heap on the stoop, done with it all, and finally allowed myself to truly cry.

  My fairy-tale evening had turned into a happily never after.

  Because there was no such thing as love or joy in my world. Only harsh realities and cruel games.

  And I was done being the butt of everyone else’s jokes.

  Chapter One

  Ella

  Senior Year

  School uniforms were the bane of my existence. What I wouldn’t give for a damn hoodie to hide under.

  Today’s gossip surrounded some new kid. A transfer who had to shack up with his rich uncle for unknown reasons. Of course, the student population at Darlington Academy had several theories to discuss.

  “I heard he was kicked out of his last school for lighting a teacher on fire.”

  “Meghan told me it was because his dad is in jail for embezzling money. So now he’s, like, in hiding or something, with some super-pissed-off people after him.”

  “Pretty sure it’s not that. I mean, did you see his car? Can’t buy that limited edition without funds, Cas.”

  “Tommy said he’s the son of some mafia boss.”

  “Hmm, Tommy would know.”

  “Right?”

  I rolled my eyes, pushing through the masses to get to my English class. These idiots seriously had too much time on their hands. It wasn’t even first period, and they already had a hoard of backstories crafted for the new guy. Poor fool. He had no idea what kind of hellhole he’d just entered.

  Eight more months, I told myself. Then you’re free.

  Technically, I was already eighteen and could leave now—something my stepmother enjoyed reminding me of every time she told me to earn my keep.

  Alas, I required a degree to access my inheritance.

  A stipulation my mother had put in the will.

  And I couldn’t exactly enroll myself in a public school without an address to call home.

  So I was stuck in this hell until June.

  The price we pay for a future, I thought with a snort, taking my usual seat at the back of the room.

  I preferred to hide and take notes, which was easier back here away from the other students. Of course, that didn’t stop them from harassing me.

  With a sigh, I glanced up at the shadow approaching me. “Yes?” I said by way of greeting.

  Charlie Anderson smirked, his too-perfect blond hair slicked back to reveal his classically handsome features.

  All the girls adored him—the perpetual playboy and best friend to Dash Charming. The duo pretty much ruled the school, their families wealthier than God himself.

  “Now is that any way to greet a prince, Cindersoot?” he drawled, propping his hip against my table.

  “Oh, I’m sorry.” I batted my eyes up at him. “Yes, Your Dickishness? How can I amuse you and your asshole friends today?”

  He reached out to tug on one of the blonde strands of hair that had fallen out of my bun. I allowed it simply because I learned years ago that fighting back only earned me worse punishments. A lack of reaction, however, usually made them go away.

  But not today.

  No, the Royal Dick of Darlington Academy wanted something.

  And he would toy with me until he got it.

  Students began to enter, his back to them all as he considered my blouse and skirt. “Those look a bit big, Cindersoot.”

  “Because they are,” I replied sweetly. “It used to belong to Ryan.” The bitchy princess couldn’t wear an outfit more than five times, despite it being a fucking uniform. And so I often inherited her hand-me-downs. Which would be fine if we had similar proportions. But she was curvy, while I had my mother’s tall, willowy figure.

  “A shame,” he drawled. “I’d love to see more of the figure beneath.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Sure. How about later tonight?”

  His lips curled. “Now you’re speaking my language.”

  I matched his grin with one of my own. “Never going to happen, Sir Dickenstein.” I blew him a kiss.

  “We both know it would if I actually wanted it to,” he replied, completely unfazed. “But no one wants to touch unwashed goods.” He released my hair and wiped his hand on his pressed pants. “Try showering in the morning. I hear that helps.”

  I had showered this morning.

  Then my stepmother had assigned me a last-minute task before school, which left me no time to wash up afterward.

  Hence the foliage in my hair.

  While I adored the autumn colors, I hated the chores that came with it. Because heaven forbid we have leaves in our yard. Why my stepmother bothered to keep all the trees on our property was beyond me. She clearly disliked them and the wildlife they brought into the yard.

  He picked a leaf out of my hair and threw it in my face. “You’re filthy.” He tsked. “Pretty sure that goes against the dress code.”

  I snorted, eyeing the display of tanned skin at his neckline. “So does not wearing a tie.”

  “I put it to a better use,” he murmured, innuendo deep in his tone. “Not that I’d expect you to know anything about it.” He leaned in close. “But maybe I’ll demonstrate on you sometime. Deflowering virgin
s can be fun.”

  I canted my head to the side. “You think you could?” I asked, feigning innocence. “Because I could use a good mentor.” I pretended to consider him. “Hmm, no, sorry. Chuckie Cheesy just isn’t my style.”

  He narrowed his gaze, his playfulness slipping behind the callous mask I knew so well. “You’re all about the nicknames today, aren’t you, Isabella?”

  “Well, when the shoe fits,” I replied, shrugging.

  He gripped my chin, bringing his nose to mine.

  My heart skipped a beat, his nearness souring my stomach.

  I hated when they touched me.

  But they did it often, treating me like a chew toy they could stomp beneath their boot. No one ever did anything about it. Not even when their grip bruised—such as it did now.

  The administrators at this esteemed academy cared more about their budgets than their students. I was just a charity case, someone lucky to be here. It didn’t matter that it was my father’s money that paid the bills. No. He was dead, leaving Clarissa in charge of his estate.

  “Careful, Cindersoot,” Charlie warned, his lips falling to my ear. “Push me and I’ll push back.”

  He released my chin to place his palm between my breasts and gave me a shove that sent my chair back a foot.

  “You reek,” he snapped, standing upright and sneering at me. “Stay back there. The rest of us value our sense of smell.” With that, he turned and approached a horde of giggling girls and smirking guys.