Night Shade Academy

by Kelly Carrero

  Kayla’s mouth dropped, clearly stunned by my revelation. Then a moment later, she chuckled. “That’s a good one.” She shook her head. “Like you believed that.” Her smile faded when she saw the look in my eyes. “Tell me you don’t believe that shit.” She glanced at Nova. “No offense.”

  Nova held up her hands. “None taken. Remember, I’m half Light, so I get the inconsistencies. But it’s the truth—no matter how hard it is to believe.”

  “I think Nova’s right,” I said. “We’ve always joked about the Lights having such superiority complexes.”

  “If that were true, then why would they form this school and force us all to get along?”

  I shrugged. “I have no idea. Maybe it’s that thing where ‘you keep your friends close and your enemies closer.’ Or maybe they’re trying to repair the damage the older generations caused.”

  “Or maybe there’s something bigger at play,” Nova said, raising a brow. She opened her mouth to add something but quickly shut it as her gaze lifted over my right shoulder.

  I took a peep at what she was looking at, my stomach turning to moosh when I spotted Hunter striding toward us with my jacket in his hand.

  “You left this behind.” He handed me my jacket, his fingers brushing against mine and bringing a deep sense of longing to be back on that mat with him.

  Who would’ve thought? Me wanting to train?

  “Thanks,” I said, laying the jacket over my legs.

  “Same time tomorrow?”

  I nodded.

  Hunter gave me one of his devilish grins. “Ladies,” he said before retreating back inside.

  “Who the hell was that?” Kayla asked, practically drooling.

  “No one.”

  “No one, my ass. And do tell why he has your jacket. Is my baby sister finally being a tramp?”

  Nova screwed up her face in confusion. “Wait. I thought you two were twins?”

  “We are,” I said, stabbing a roast potato with my fork. “She was born a whole two minutes earlier than I was.”

  “Oh, right,” Nova said with a laugh. “The age old twin smackdown.”

  Kayla snatched my fork from me. “Don’t think you’re getting out of telling me who that hottie is.”

  I grabbed my fork back and shoved the potato into my mouth, making her wait until I’d finished chewing before she got her answer, and it frustrated the hell out of her, as I knew it would. “His name is Hunter, and he’s in my gym class. He’s been helping me catch up to speed with their drills.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “As intriguing as it sounds to have that gorgeous man-candy helping you with your moves, I have to ask why you even need help.”

  That was the million-dollar question I couldn’t tell her. “The Darks are pretty damn competitive, and I’m a little out of shape to keep up with them.”

  “So, he’s like your personal trainer of sorts?”

  I nodded. “Of sorts.”

  She leaned in closer to me. “I know what moves I’d get him to show me.”

  Nova snickered. “I like this girl.”

  Kayla’s smile dropped. “How are you doing after Brody?”

  Anger swirled through my veins at the mention of his name. “You know, I thought I’d be devastated if we ever broke up, but I’m not. I’m pissed he could throw me away so easily because it means that what we had meant shit to him. And if he felt that way, then why should I allow myself to feel anything for him?” I stabbed a piece of meat with my fork. “I refuse to waste another second of my time on him.”

  Kayla wrapped her arms around me just as I was about to bring the piece of beef up to my mouth. “You deserve so much better than jerk-face.”

  “You deserve someone like Hunter,” Nova said.

  Kayla released her grip on me. “Exactly. Someone who doesn’t seem to care that you come from Light and are now a Dark. I mean, I saw the way he looked at you. The tension…” She fanned herself.

  Laughing, I shoved her arm. “I can’t take you anywhere.”

  The night ended way too soon, as we were all ordered to go back to our dorms for the rest of the evening until lights out.

  Most of the first year Darks hung out in the communal lounge area, but of course Nova and I headed back to our room, where I continued to unpack then hit the books, including one Dark spell book Nova had found for me.

  I didn’t ask where she’d gotten it from, and she never offered the information up.

  The next day came all too quickly, and after a full day of easy subjects, I was in gym class again. Ready for my next fight.

  11

  Mock fire ripped in a circle around me, locking me inside with my opponent, who was none other than the bitch from the elevator—Reagan.

  My stomach sank as I watched her predatory display, stalking me, toying with me, waiting for me to make the first move, so she could put me down like the newbie I was.

  If my fight yesterday was anything to go by, she had this in the bag. But after my training with Hunter…

  Who was I kidding? She probably still had it in the bag.

  But I was going to make it a little more difficult for her.

  Making sure I didn’t give my first move away, I shot a current of electricity through the ground, connecting with her feet. It was only a small voltage, slightly more than I’d used in training, but it was enough to get her going.

  Shock momentarily marred her face before she threw an orb of fire toward me. I saw it coming and dodged to the side, but not quite fast enough. The fire caught onto my clothing, singeing my skin before it was put out by the magic contained in this room.

  Turning toward her, I threw my hands out, sending a blast of energy at her and knocking her into the air. Her body landed against an invisible wall around the ring.

  She screamed out in pain as fire momentarily engulfed her feet before, once again, the magic in the room extinguished it.

  Landing onto the floor, her gaze locked onto mine, and I swore I could see steam rising off her head just before she launched a dark orb twice the size of any I’d seen in this class before.

  I threw my hand out, casting the demonic orb to the side. It narrowly missed me before it fizzling against the invisible wall. But I didn’t see the ball of fire that had been hiding behind it, and it hit me in the stomach, sending an electric shock radiating through me. She’d hidden one spell inside another, and had sent the dark orb as a distraction.

  This bitch played dirty.

  Anger coursed through me as I looked up, ready to bring hell down on this bitch when her fist connected with my face, knocking me to the ground, where she proceeded to kick me in the stomach.

  I tried to get up, but her boot came down on my face, and I wasn’t sure if that was what caused me to become paralyzed, or she’d cast a spell on me. Either way, I was consumed by absolute fear. This may have been the way of life for the Darks, but I had never been put in a position where I’d had to fight for my life. And it made me second guess everything I’d started to believe about the Darks. Because no one came to save me from my ass kicking. She was going to kill me, and not even Hunter stepped in to stop her.

  Rage engulfed my soul then I noticed a whirlwind of fire connecting with the mock fire surrounding us. It started spinning, taking on a life of its own, the heat of the flames turning the ring into an oven.

  Reagan was going to kill me. I was going to go out in agony, burning to death, my skin melting away.

  The beating stopped, and for a second I thought someone had tackled the bitch, but when I looked up, Reagan’s eyes were wide with fear. “What are you doing? You’re going to get us both killed!”

  It took me a second to realize Reagan wasn’t causing the fire.

  It was me.

  Clambering to my feet, I looked around, trying to work out what I had done, and why I was able to bypass the magic in this room that was supposed to contain the spells to a bare minimum. This fire was quickly turning into an inferno, as it crackled higher then cr
ashed over the top of us like a wave.

  My head snapped back as Reagan smashed her fist into my jaw. “Stop it,” she screamed. Then she sent a massive wave of air blasting under me, propelling me into the fire above us.

  I waited for the fire to melt my skin, but all I felt was the warmth enveloping me as I clung to the—

  I whipped my head toward the ceiling, trying to see what I was holding onto as gasps and screams filled the air. My breath caught in my throat when I realized I was somehow sticking to the ceiling with nothing but my hands and feet.

  In a panic, I crawled across the surface, away from the fire, pushed off, and landed outside the flames surrounding Reagan.

  My body shook with a mixture of fear and rage, as I stared at the scene before me. It was straight out of the Lights’ textbooks, documenting the evil the Darks possessed.

  And if it wasn’t Reagan producing this fireball, then than meant it was me. I could walk on the ceiling and break down the spells of the most elite magic users in the school.

  Arms wrapped around me from behind, lifting me off the ground. I expected to be carried into a jail of some sort, but I was spun around and planted on the floor. Then my assailant moved in front of me, still holding me tightly in his arms. It was Hunter.

  He pulled me against his chest, his warm breath blowing against my ear, as he whispered, “Just breathe. Everything is going to be all right. Just let it go.”

  The problem was I couldn’t. I was so scared and angry I’d been even put in this position.

  “Pull it back,” the coach yelled, grabbing my shoulder and tugging me away from Hunter’s grasp.

  “I don’t know how to,” I said, my voice coming out as a whimper, as tears pooled in my eyes. “I don’t even know it’s me doing this.”

  “Of course it’s you. You’re a Shadow Walker.” The look of fear in his eyes hit my core. “Pull the magic back before you kill her.”

  Tears streamed down my face, as I shook my head in denial. I couldn’t be a Shadow Walker. There was no way I could wield so much Dark magic when I was born to the Lights. Someone was playing a trick on me, and it was getting out of control. There was no way I had an ounce of evil within my soul. I was a good person. I did good things. I couldn’t possibly be a Shadow Walker.

  Hunter twirled me back toward him and planted his lips against mine, drawing me into a deep, searing kiss that made my knees weaken. All of the anger and fear quickly diminished as my mind caught up with the fact that he was kissing me, the way our mouths moved against one another, and the realization that even though I had just broken up with my boyfriend, this kiss felt so right. As if Brody was just a placeholder, nothing more.

  Audible sighs filled the air, and for a second I thought they were as relieved as I was that the feelings I had toward Hunter were not just one sided. Then I realized how stupid that was, and the real reason for their relief—as well as the kiss—when Hunter pulled away, and his gaze darted behind me before returning to mine.

  I peered over my shoulder and saw the fire was finally gone. Standing in the middle of the circle was one very pissed off Reagan, who looked as if she wanted to tear me a new one, but was too afraid to move.

  The coach stood with his hands on his hips. “Hunter, take Zalia to see Bishop immediately.”

  Hunter nodded, took my hand in his, and led me out of the gym toward the dean’s office.

  Once we were halfway down the hall, Hunter gently shoved me against a wall. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Or even what you are?”

  Nodding, I swallowed hard. “I’m an evil monster they’re going to kill.”

  He shook his head and cupped my face in his hand, his face softening as he stared down at me. “They’re not going to kill you. But you’re certainly too dangerous for any first years to work with.” He caressed my cheek with his thumb. “You’re way above this rivalry between our factions, but you’re also the possibility of releasing Orson Reeves back into this world.”

  “Who’s Orson Reeves?”

  “I forgot, the Lights don’t use his name. He’s the original Shadow Walker, but I’ll leave Bishop to tell you more about him. All I want is to make sure you’re not afraid—”

  “So I don’t accidentally kill Bishop and every other person here?”

  “Partly, yes, but mostly because what you’re going to hear will make you doubt everything you ever believed yourself to be, and I want you to know that just because Shadow Walker blood runs within you, you still have a choice about how you use that power. Don’t let anyone change who you are at your very core, which is a good person. Trust in yourself and your heart. Don’t be easily fooled. Question everything and everybody.”

  “Even you?”

  “Even me.”

  A nervous laugh bubbled up my throat. “That’s comforting.”

  “It’s the truth. And you never know who might do something to sway your mind. There are people on both sides of the factions—especially the Lights—who will want to use you to unleash Reeves from his prison, bringing him back to our world.”

  “How do you know so much about this?”

  “Because I’m not a student here anymore. I work for the Council and I was brought back when you first set off the alarm when you tried to get into the Lights’ dorm.”

  12

  Hunter’s hand moved to the back of my neck, his thumb caressing the skin below my ear, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was touching me so I didn’t do anything reckless with my newly discovered magic. “You’ll need someone to teach you how to manifest and use your power for good. I will be one of them, but you will also require others that are specialists in their field,” he said in a soothing tone.

  I nodded. “Will I have to leave Night Shade?”

  He shook his head. “So far your existence is contained within the school. We’d like to keep it that way for as long as possible.” Hunter dropped his hand to mine. “Come on. We better get you to Bishop.”

  He held my hand the entire way there, which I was pretty sure so I didn’t try to make a run for it. I’d be lying if the thought hadn’t crossed my mind. I mean, I was a freaking evil monster.

  Hunter gave a light tap on Bishop’s door then entered without an invitation. As soon as we were inside, he let go of my hand. I guess I was right; he was making sure I didn’t do a runner.

  Bishop stood from the chair behind his desk, his wary gaze locking onto me, letting me know he already knew what had happened in gym class. “Take a seat, Zalia.” He gestured to the leather chairs in front of his desk.

  Taking the one on the left, I expected Hunter to sit on the other one, but he stood to the side with his arms folded across his chest, leaning against a bookcase filled with leather bound books that piqued my curiosity.

  Refocusing back on Bishop, I waited for him to say something—anything. But he continued to stare at me. It took everything in me not to sink into the chair. “Am I in trouble?” I eventually asked. “Are you waiting for someone to take me away?”

  He shook his head and sat back in his seat. “Why would you think that?”

  “Because you’re not saying anything. You’re just staring at me.”

  Bishop picked up a pen and ran his fingers down the length of it then turned it over and continued with the same motion. “I’m trying to figure out how this has happened. You were born a twin, were you not?”

  I nodded as Bethany entered the room, and I could instantly see the energy surrounding Bishop lift by her presence. It was as if he were lost without her assistance, which was strange, considering he was a Light and she was a Dark.

  “So, Miss Moore, we meet again.” She strode across the room and stopped next to Bishop, placing a file on his desk. “All records show you were born a Light, but what we’ve witnessed today tells me you’re not even close.”

  “Maybe I’m a throwback?” I offered.

  “As in a genetic throwback?” Bishop asked.

  I nodded.

  “T
hat’s the most likely scenario at this stage,” Bishop said. “Now, I’m sure Hunter has filled you in on a few things on your way to see me.” He placed his pen with care on top of the file. “When you tried going through the Lights’ door and didn’t succeed, it set off the alarms, so we suspected something had gone astray. At first we wondered if there was an issue with the wards, but then it was confirmed they were working just fine.” He proceeded to tell me everything that Hunter had divulged to me on our way here. Only Bishop left out the parts about whom I should trust.

  Bethany opened the file, grabbed a piece of paper from it, walked around to the front of the desk, and handed it to me. “This is your new schedule. You are no longer required to attend gym class, and your other classes will be limited, so we can spend more time teaching you on a more personal level.”

  I looked over my new schedule and couldn’t believe what I saw. I had almost no classes with the other students, only art of potions, history, and defense magic, leaving the majority of my class time to be spent in combat training with Hunter.

  “What’s this? Are you expecting me to be some kind of weapon in some war?”

  “That’s not what we’re trying to do.”

  I dropped the paper back onto the desk. “I’m not doing combat training.”

  “You don’t have a choice.”

  “Oh, I think I do, and I have no plans of becoming a killing machine.”

  Bethany scowled at me. “Do you understand what you are? You’re a Shadow Walker. You can’t be around others until you’ve learned to control your abilities.”

  “I think I can control myself just fine, as long as no one tries to kill me. I mean, that’s the only reason why I did whatever I did, which helped you figure out what I am. You should kick Reagan out for what she did to me. She almost killed me! Do you even know what goes on in gym?”

  “Of course we do,” Bishop said. “It is all part of the process. We let the students believe they are battling for supremacy while we sift the Darks through a fine sieve, praying we never come across a Shadow Walker. And on the off chance we do, then we pray to the Gods they don’t wipe us all out in some fit of rage.”