Academy of Magic Collection

by Angelique S Anderson et al.

Sage’s heart thumped hard beneath her rib cage. They were in over their heads. She was in over her head. Drowning before she even realized she was in too deep.

  At the other end of the corridor, Camila steamed toward them. As they met outside the classroom door, she asked, “You heard?”

  “Yes,” the three of them echoed in unison.

  Four hands smacked the door and they launched themselves in.

  Tessa swiveled in Makoto’s chair at the commotion. “Well, you guys are eager for class.”

  “We’ve got a problem,” Caspar announced. “Well, more of a problem than we had before lunch anyway.”

  “Sit,” Tessa commanded, standing up. She strode to the door and closed it. And when she turned back, she found the four recruits still standing. She repeated louder, “Sit.”

  Sage stepped back until her thighs hit a chair in the front row. She let herself fall into it. The tiny thought swirled in her mind like a record, volume growing louder. Her hands shook as she pushed the thought away. She couldn’t go there, she couldn’t think it. Surely, Mason wasn’t capable of murder.

  Beside her Camila muttered, “Is this really happening?”

  “Okay,” Tessa said, pacing in front of them. “Something has really shaken you all up. What’s going on? Is AJ okay? Who’s with him now, Arielle?”

  Nadya was the only one of the four who remained standing. She extended her hand to Tessa. “Hi, I’m Nadya. All due respect but we don’t know you. I’d prefer if we waited for Makoto.”

  Tessa curled her tongue around the corner of her mouth, giving a pithy smile as she studied Nadya. “Well, lucky for you he’s already here. And no offense, Nadya, is it? You haven’t experienced anything close to what I have. You’re lucky to have me.”

  Nadya took a quick glance at Caspar, who nodded. She sniffed, cocked her chin, and sat down. “We’ll wait for Makoto.”

  “That’s fine by me. I’ve got an assignment in Cedar Falls anyway. Makoto just asked me to swing by on my way through. Because you bunch of ingrates don’t know how to act like a clan. By this time in my training, we were living out of each others’ pockets. We leaned on each other, we trusted each other. There were no secrets. We were a team, a family. You guys need to sort yourselves out, something isn’t adding up and it needs to be dealt with before it’s too late.”

  The door clicked and Makoto stepped in. His eyebrows rose, then dropped as he scanned the four of them sitting in the front row. He greeted Tessa with a hug. “You really did give them a stir up.”

  “Not enough,” Tessa replied. She swung an arm down their line, like they were prizes on a game show. “There’s something else they’re hiding too. More than AJ being marked.” She covered her mouth with her hand and whispered loud enough for them to hear. “They’re scared.”

  Tessa walked toward the door without turning back. No goodbyes. Just a flippant wave as she left the room.

  Makoto took Tessa’s place, pacing in front of them. After his fifth walk by, he halted and swiveled on his heels. “So, AJ’s been marked?”

  “Yes sir,” Caspar replied. “We’ve been on watch during his incubation. Arielle’s with him now.”

  Makoto glanced to Sage . “Anything else?”

  Sage opened her mouth, but only a squeak came out.

  “It’s bad.” Camila leaned forward. “A boy was killed in the woods. Two others are missing.”

  Makoto flared his nostrils. “Right. That sounds serious. Is that all I need to know?”

  His darkened eyes stared down at Sage as though waiting. As though he knew. That was her chance to get it out. To finally be rid of the burden.

  She glanced away.

  “It’s a Fallen isn’t it?” Caspar asked.

  Makoto nodded. “Unless any of you broke my rules, then yes, we’re dealing with a Fallen.”

  “Oh my god, this is happening.” Camila ran her hands down her face, fear streaming out of her eyes. For all the times she wanted to face a Fallen, Camila’s excitement was long gone. A ghost of her normal self.

  It would have been funny to Sage—finally knowing that Camila was all talk—if she couldn’t stop thinking about Mason.

  The PA crackled and the Principal’s voice boomed through. “Students. Due to our sudden and dreadful loss, all classes are called off for the afternoon. Please make your way to your dormitories in an orderly fashion while animal control surveys the campus. Stay vigilant and aware.”

  Makoto clapped his hands together. “Right, team. There’s no lesson this afternoon. We have a new assignment and this time, I’m the lead. The whole school needs protecting. We need to find the Fallen who did these monstrous acts. We need to get their blood, cure AJ, and kill them. But we need to do it in secret. No matter how dire it gets, no civilian must know of our True existence. Is that understood?”

  Everyone nodded.

  “Go then!” Makoto snapped. “Caspar you’re on boys’ dorm, Nadya you are on girls’. Camila building A and Sage building B. I’m going to find the surveillance footage and scan it for anything. Report back here if anything changes.”

  Caspar and Nadya jerked to attention. Sage followed suit, helping Camila slowly rise to her feet. As they all marched behind Makoto, the thought rang like a megaphone through Sage’s mind…

  Mason was a Fallen.

  And she—Sage Windsor, orphan and coward—had brought this hell to Graystone Academy.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Along with a plethora of panicked students, the Shadow Society scrambled down the corridor. Sage pushed her way past a crying Freshman to catch up with Caspar on his way to the boys’ dorm. She bumped in beside him. “Caspar?”

  “Yeah?” he asked, straining his head above the crowd.

  “Can we swap?”

  “Huh?”

  “I need to protect the boys’ dorms. Please…” she cringed at the words that came out of her mouth next. “Mason. My boyfriend. I need to make sure he’s okay. Can you stay here in this building, please?”

  Caspar slowed his pace and placed a hand on her shoulder. Nodding, he said, “Sure. Be careful.”

  “You too.” She stepped toward him, an urge to give him a hug. But he turned around before she got the chance.

  Sage took short, hasty breaths as she squeezed past the swarm of boys heading for their rooms. She wasn’t looking for a Fallen, she knew exactly where to go. When she found the right door, she pounded her fist against it.

  Mason opened the door, a surprised look on his face. It was followed by a smile. “Sage? Oh my god, what the hell is—”

  “Give me your blood,” she demanded.

  “What?” Mason frowned. “Why?”

  Sage pushed him into his room and slammed the door behind her. For a split moment, she was distracted by her surroundings. A meticulously made bed, an Iron Man poster hanging on the wall, a bookshelf lined with history books and fiction, and a dark blue armchair sitting in front of the window. Her breath lengthened. It almost felt homey.

  “Why do you need my blood?”

  Shaking her head, Sage’s heart rate rose. She pointed at him “Did you kill Mal?”

  His mouth dropped open. “Why would I?” And then his jaw clenched. “You really think it was me?”

  Sage started pacing. “I don’t know. Makoto says that only certain types of people make good Guardians and the rest are at risk of becoming a Fallen. And you are…” She stopped pacing to look him up and down. “You’re a little reckless already and—

  “I’m not a Fallen.” Mason took her shoulders. “I’m reckless, sure. But I’d never dream of killing anyone. I know how to use my strength. I’d never use it to hurt someone. And I have my dad, remember. I know what a True Guardian looks like.”

  Her head felt light. How could she know? How could she truly know? Makoto said that a Fallen great at deception. “You lie all the time.”

  “No, I don’t.” Mason sighed and let his hands drop to his side. “Not all the time.”

  �
�So, maybe you’re not a True.” Even as she said the words, her gut raged against them.

  Please say you are. Please say you are.

  Mason’s fingers curled into fists. The edges of his jaw protruded. “I am.”

  He said what she wanted to hear but it didn’t feel like enough. “So, why would you mark your brother even though I told you the rules?”

  Mason laughed. He clasped his hands over his head and looked to the ceiling. “Oh, Floss.” Returning his gaze to her, he said, “I didn’t mark him. I never said that. I said he was marked. We don’t know who by. Maybe by the crazed Fallen who marked me. Probably, most definitely by the same one who killed those jocks.”

  Sage’s breath hitched. She stumbled until her back hit his door. “You didn’t mark him?”

  He closed the gap between them. With earnest eyes and warmth in his tone, he softly said, “No.”

  A weight lifted. She wasn’t responsible for the death of Mal. And with Mason, she hadn’t created a monster.

  “Do you still need my blood?” Mason asked. Without waiting for her reply, he strode to his bookshelf and grabbed a small transparent container filled with paper clips.

  She watched silently as he emptied the contents, half-shifted, and dug his claws into his palm. He dripped blood into the container and placed the lid carefully over it.

  As he held the container out for her to take, Sage stared at the crimson droplets. Looking back to him, she pushed the container toward him. “I don’t need it. I believe you.”

  “Take it anyway.” Mason turned her hand around and placed it on her palm, curling her fingers around it. Still holding her hand, he leaned closer. “As a peace offering. As my apology.”

  “What are you sorry for?” she asked, placing it onto his bookshelf.

  His lips lilted and a frustrating, yet endearing, glint lit his eyes. “That your white-haired friend likes me more than she likes you.”

  “Ugh.” Sage rolled her eyes and pushed his chest. “I swear everything is a joke to you. Do you care about anything?”

  Mason took a step. His eyes deepened. “I care about you.”

  Did he really mean it? Vulnerability swept through her. The leather against her skin felt like it tightened around her neck. Her mother’s words rang through her head—stay out of trouble. Trouble, trouble, trouble.

  Sage frowned at herself. Why were those the only words she recited? Her mom told her many things before her death. Things like “Take your shoes off, feel the grass between your toes,” and, “Sage Windsor, how many times have I told you to believe in yourself? You can do more than you think.”

  But those weren’t the last words she heard her mom say. The very last words told her to stay out of trouble. And, then days later, she was shipped off to live with her aunt, who loved her for a brief moment before wishing she never existed.

  The words became a mantra for her to fall on when things felt out of her control. As if they were the only thing that would make everything okay in the end.

  She remembered them at nine-years-old when Aunt Blaire told her to stay in her room or risk being grounded. She dared not leave that room for twelve hours straight, until her bladder felt like it was about to explode.

  She remembered them at twelve-years-old when a school friend tried to get her to taste champagne at a sleep over.

  She remembered them at sixteen-years-old when she joined the Shadow Society.

  She remembered to stay out of trouble for years. Until Mason.

  Dropping her head, Sage said, “Don’t do that. Don’t make light of all of this.”

  “I’m not making light. Look at me. Sage?” Mason tucked his finger under her chin, forcing her to look up. “I’m being honest. I care about you. It’s not a joke to me.”

  Why did he have to look at her like that? She wanted to be strong around him, but deep down she knew she was already a lost cause. There was no staying out of trouble with him.

  “If I’m honest,” Mason continued. “I’m not really this positive light-hearted guy. I mean, most of the time I’m this cool, but other times I revert to it because it’s just how I cope with uncertainty. Sorry if that annoys you.”

  Sage shook her head. She wasn’t annoyed, she was scared. Like the misleading comfort she felt when her aunty first took her in. “I just want to know if it’s real.”

  Mason had inched so close that if she lifted her hand, she could rest it on his chest. If she leaned in, they could kiss.

  She stared at his lips as he said, “You want to know what is real exactly? My personality or…” he winced.

  A wave of bravery hit her and she rode with it. “I want to know if the way you look at me means something.”

  “It means something,” he whispered, reaching for her.

  He tucked her hair behind her ear. His eyes flitted between hers before they snapped to her lips. He kneaded his fingers into her skull, urging her closer still. As his breathe tickled her nose, she closed her eyes and waited for the sensation of his lips.

  A loud cry resonated from the other side of the door. Footsteps stormed up and down the corridor. Mason tore away from Sage, and the sudden absence of his body close to hers left her cold.

  “What the hell?” Mason said as he clutched the handle. He opened door carefully and peered through. A storm of boys ran in all directions.

  Within a moment, a body came tumbling against the door, knocking it wide open. A freshman writhed on Mason’s floor. His face was scratched, blood dripping from four places.

  “What’s going on?” Sage asked, bending down to inspect the wound. Even though she knew in her heart what it was. A Fallen, right there in the boys’ dorm.

  When she was satisfied the freshman was in no immediate danger, she jumped to her feet and joined Mason out in the corridor. Chaos swirled around them. Bodies lined the floor, some crying out, others lifeless. And right in the middle of it all was AJ—fangs protruding from his mouth, blood coating his lips and chin. Not longer the meek and nerdy student, muscles ripped at his T-shirt.

  They were too late. He’d already been turned by a Fallen. The assignment was a failure. If she wasn’t so hung up on Mason she would have been paying more attention to AJ. Protecting him. Maybe he wouldn’t have even been marked.

  As AJ stepped over a body and dug his claws into another’s side, Mason roared. He’d already half-shifted, red eyes blazing like a smoke covered sun. He leapt for AJ, tearing him off the innocent boy. Sage bolted for the wounded body, pressing her hands against the deep bloody cuts.

  She looked up in time to see Mason throw AJ. His head thumped against the wall and then he wilted to the ground. Mason stood over him, fist ready to give another blow.

  In the other direction, Caspar and Nadya barreled down the hallway. Still running, Nadya noticed the boy under Sage’s hold and grabbed her phone. As she dialed for an ambulance, Caspar diverted to Mason.

  He balled his hand and pulled his arm back, ready for impact. Eyes burning neon blue he yelled, “Stop right there!”

  “Wait!” Sage leapt to her feet. “He’s not the bad guy. Look at AJ!”

  On the floor, unconscious at Mason’s feet, AJ lay limp. Blood dripped from his fangs, down his chin, and pooled on the floor. A spiral mark curved around his neck.

  Caspar pointed at Mason as they both returned to human form. He shot his eyes to Sage and he said, “Was this your secret?”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “I knew something was up with you!” Caspar said, pacing Mason’s room. “We gave you the chance to tell us. We offered to help.”

  “She didn’t want it,” Nadya scoffed.

  Camila let out a long and loud groan. “Chill out, guys. I’m sure he’s good. If Sage believes in him, we believe in him. Like a clan should, right?”

  On the floor at the end of Mason’s bed, AJ stirred. He moaned, eyes twitching. Within a second, Caspar sent his fist against AJ’s jaw, knocking him out again.

  He turned to Mason. “And wha
t do you say all about this?”

  Mason sat next to Sage on his bed. He rested his elbows on his knees, not knowing who to look at. Five faces stared at him. Including Sage, who was desperately hoping he’d opt to say something profound instead of some lame quip.

  He leaned toward her and whispered, “Does this mean I’m in the society?”

  “I can’t believe you turned someone,” Arielle said, hands sifting through her red locks. “I just can’t believe you of all people would disobey Makoto.”

  “What? And let this guy die?” Camila sneered. “Don’t you get it? She had no choice.”

  Sage felt Mason stiffen beside her. She would have had a choice if his brother didn’t stage the whole beat down. But when they asked what the hell a tiger Guardian was doing as her fake boyfriend, she left that part out.

  “Still, we’d better tell Makoto. About this guy, I mean.” Arielle glanced at AJ, laying on the ground beneath Caspar’s feet. She gave a dramatic sigh and pulled out her phone. “I’ll be the one to do it. The assignment was mine to lead, it’s mine to report failure.”

  As soon as Arielle left the room, Camila muttered, “Crap leader if you ask me. We should have turned him ourselves, he would have been True then.”

  Caspar shook his head. “We never had the chance. He was turned as soon as his mark appeared. What more could we have done?”

  “Actually telling Makoto straight away?” Nadya glared at Sage as she added, “Not keeping secrets.”

  Sage held back a smile. She couldn’t help it. Nadya’s judgmental face was exactly what she had envisioned. It didn’t feel as bad as she thought it would, though. In fact, for once, Nadya’s disapproval didn’t bother her.

  Nadya must have sensed the transformation in Sage, she blinked a few times quickly and looked away. “I knew I made the wrong choice by following Arielle’s orders and now here we are cleaning up a mess we shouldn’t have made.”

  Camila rolled her eyes. “Oh yeah, because you’re the best Guardian there is. We are allowed to make mistakes Nadya, even you.”