Suddenly, my face is pressed up against the glass. Are we inside of it? I want to reach out and touch it, but this glass is in the way. We descend and the aurora gets farther away. I have to crane my neck to track it. Then the plane lands in the smallest airport I’ve ever seen.
That green in the sky is so much like Kian’s green. Chartreuse. There’s a dark mossy green in there, too. The pink goes from rose pink to a tint more like mine: lotus pink.
This is something everyone else can see the way I do. This is how I could describe their Colors, down to the way it moves and… fades.
Just like that, it’s gone, leaving only a dark sky and dull stars obstructed by the airport’s lights.
I wish the aurora would come back.
Honey, chai spices, and mint leaf hit my nose. I’m still not sure about that combination, but my mouth is. It waters at the thought of smelling it. I look at Kian, sitting in the row across from me and Emery, next to Oskar. His Color really is just like the green in an aurora. And he’s facing me for some reason.
I avert my gaze. I don’t want to give him any reason to look at me, not like that. Pink hair, fine, that makes sense, but the way his Color was crawling—like a half-frozen aurora—means he was staring way more intensely than that. Maybe he still is.
Don’t look, Nova.
My silent treatment has worked on all of the students except for Emery and Kian.
Every day Kian’s seen me, he’s said, “Hi, Nova.” Just those words and a simple wave. I’ve been ducking my head and pretending I don’t see him, but he always sees me.
Forget the demons, vampires, werewolves, and other monsters. Nightshade Academy has weird people. Demon blood shouldn’t make someone friendly, right?
Unless they’re experiencing this bloodlust too and want to lull me into a false sense of security so they can eat me.
A lamb led to the slaughter. Shit. The thought freezes the blood in my veins, and my heartbeat slows, quiets, while everyone else’s gets louder and louder, gongs and cymbals ringing without any sense of rhythm.
Blood. I should take another sip. When I unscrew the lid and stare at the dark contents, I stop. I’m going to be sick if I drink any more of this. Food, animal blood, nothing works for me. Human blood is the only thing I can stomach. Barely. Zanza said it would take some getting used to, but I’m not getting used to it. My body hates it more the more I try. I don’t know. It could all be poisoned, but no one else acts like they’re dying.
I can’t go home like this
Home.
After we’ve put on our coats branded with the school’s dragons crest and slung our backpacks over our shoulders, we pile out of the plane. I take my phone out of my pocket. There’s a bar. Two bars. Three!
I have service.
I spot Madeline’s vermilion. (What kind of principal—headmaster—goes on field trips when not even half of the student body is present on that trip?) She didn’t confiscate my phone, gave me a charger, and hasn’t asked about my phone even though she must know this little town has service.
My fingers run over the smooth glass face of my cheap smartphone. If I call, I’ll be able to verify if Madeline is telling the truth. If Mom doesn’t answer, she’s picked up and moved again without a word, and she doesn’t want me to know where she’s gone.
I’ll wait until I’m alone.
Against my iron grip, I force my phone back into my pocket as we’re met with a bus as black as this damn plane. Apparently the people in Barrow are used to Madeline’s little trips, and Nightshade even owns property here. The bus has heavily tinted windows, and we don’t drive through town long to get to our house for the trip. It looks like all the others around here, almost trailer-like with stilts—except they’re not trailers. They’re proper houses, and the one Nightshade owns is big enough for everyone who came. It’s practically a hotel. And—surprise—it’s painted black. At least the interiors are always highlighted with royal purple.
“Claim a room with your partner, drop your backpacks, and let’s head out,” the Crow says. “There’s still plenty of night left, and another aurora has just popped up. We’re going to check out the Arctic ocean. Some of you have never seen it before, so now’s your chance. Maybe we’ll even go on an excursion out of town to find some polar bears. Who’s up for that?”
Some students cheer. Students like Emery sort of huff, though. Emery mutters under her breath, a grumpy, “I’d rather go to Fairbanks. Anchorage would be a dream.”
“Get whatever you need, and let’s go,” the Crow finishes. “We’ve even got some of Zanza’s new sunscreen. Maybe we’ll brave the sun.”
Can’t I get two seconds alone to call my mom? I linger in the bedroom Emery claimed for us, but Emery hovers by the door instead of stepping out and asks, “You coming?”
I purse my lips and nod. I grab my stupid blood bottle out of habit and consider taking a swig, but then I set it back down on the nightstand. I shouldn’t need it for a while. I’ve had plenty. With the way my stomach is churning, it’s going to make me sick if I force more.
CHAPTER 13
In no time, we’re back in the bus and heading toward a stretch of glittering ice chunks and water. It takes on the colors of the aurora dancing overhead. I discreetly check my phone again when we step out. If I go out too far, I’ll lose all of my bars.
That aurora sure is something, though. Everyone’s staring. If they knew this is similar to how I see them, maybe they wouldn’t get on my case about when I stare.
“Hey! Be careful. You could fall right through that ice, Wes,” the Crow warns. I can hardly see his Color with all the layers he’s wearing to hide his feathers.
“Kyrie,” Madeline says mildly, “these aren’t our kindergartners.”
“You could have fooled me. It’s like we have a bunch of two-year-olds out here.”
Madeline’s vermilion sand does a weird little swirl, as if a gust of wind found its way inside of the hourglass, and she laughs. I didn’t think she was capable of laughing. Then she does something even weirder: she reaches for the Crow’s hand. It’s a subtle thing when she laces her tiny fingers through his much larger ones. I doubt anyone else notices.
Students start branching out; Emery forgets about being my buddy because the aurora has her that entranced. Since the Crow, Madeline, and the guy who flew the plane are our only supervisors, I carefully time my escape for when they aren’t looking my way—which turns out to be ridiculously hard since there’s next to no cover out here. I just need to make it to the closest house. I can hide behind it, get my bars back to three, and make my damn phone call in peace.
Another group of people swings by, likely tourists. Permanent residents probably see auroras all the time. These people Ooo and Ahh like you’d expect tourists to, so I take my chance. I get behind them, look over my shoulder only once, and start running the hell away to the nearest house. When I’ve reached its blue walls, I skid to a stop and double over with a stomach cramp. The ice-cold dirt eats through my thick pants, but I ignore it and grab my phone.
Three bars.
I go to my contacts, all three of them: Mom, the Chef, and Blow Dryer. It’s a little hard to navigate with these gloves, but it’s close enough to freezing out here that I don’t want to take them off. Oh, I have missed messages. I never took my phone off silent, so I didn’t notice when they came in. There are a few missed calls from the Chef and Blow Dryer. Texts, too. I glance at the texts. Both of them say to get my ass back into work. After taking a deep breath, I listen to my first message. It’s the Chef.
“Nova, you ran out on us with no explanation, and you aren’t answering your phone. I even went to your damn house, because I don’t believe in just letting kids quit like that. You’re going to have a hard-ass future with keeping a job and making a living if you keep that up. Hell, you aren’t answering the door and neither is anybody else. Just get your ass back to work.”
I listen to my second message, the only other one I have.
It’s the Chef again.
“You know what? Forget it. I’ve dug up some information about you. Seems you up and left without a word or care for anyone else. I went by your house again, even asked around. No one’s seen you or your mom for days. They say the lights are never on. You’re fired, though I’m sure you don’t care and that you’ll never listen to this message.”
He’s right about one thing: I don’t care. I did listen to his message, though. I delete the messages and texts. I delete Blow Dryer’s and the Chef’s numbers, too. Down to a single contact, I press it, and hold the phone to my ear.
A single cut-off ring is all I hear before it goes straight to a beep, Mom’s voicemail.
“Hey, Mom. It’s Nova. Are you around? I need to talk to you.”
I hang up and wrap my arms around my aching stomach. It’s nothing to get worked up over. She’s probably just in one of her dazes. It doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t mean Madeline’s telling the truth about the house being deserted.
But the Chef’s last message plays over in my head. I don’t want to believe Mom would leave just like that, without knowing why I disappeared, but I can believe it. That’s the problem.
I bring my knees to my chest and bury my face in them. What now? Do I go to the airport and see if they’ll let me buy a plane ticket? I do have my wallet, so I should be able to afford one. Then what?
If I somehow get home and Mom isn’t there, do I start living solely at night and victimizing people to survive? So far, Nightshade Academy hasn’t helped the bloodlust much. They’ve given me the king of all stomachaches. Then again, I haven’t attacked anyone. Maybe a constant stomachache is my new normal.
I stand up and shake out my limbs. Nightshade dressed us well, but the bite of cold out here is fierce. My tailbone is sore, pins and needles burst through my legs, and I shiver.
Guess I could walk to the airport and see how I feel after I get there. Then I’ll really have to decide. I doubt Madeline and the Crow will let me go missing for long. They might already be out looking for me. The aurora’s gone, so that distraction is no longer distracting.
I start walking down the muddy dirt road, passing more houses and coming up on a tiny restaurant. It’s late, so it isn’t open, but it must somehow get enough business around here to afford to stay.
A weird hiss hits my ears when I’m in front of the restaurant. I shake my head like a dog, trying to get rid of it, but then the hiss turns into words. “Find anything?”
“No, and I’m not entirely convinced the culprit is a wendigo.”
Two male voices, but I don’t recognize them. I don’t see them either. They must be hidden behind the building. What are the chances that people outside of Nightshade would be talking about hunting a wendigo while making it sound so serious?
“You say that, but I think this is the perfect place for a monster to hide out—for the exact reason why you’re not convinced.”
“C’mon, though. Polar-bear attacks are definitely a thing.”
“But this many in such a short amount of time? Use your brain, newbie.”
“One could have come down here, decided the food was good, and stayed for the time being.”
“But monsters are as smart as humans. The wendigo could be wearing a polar-bear pelt. Hell, it’s entirely possible the bastard is a resident here and just goes out, with the polar-bear pelt, when its ready to feed. Wendigos tear into their prey much like a bear would, or any other apex predator.”
The little hairs on the back of my neck twinge and stand on end. I also take a step back, quietly. These people aren’t from Nightshade. That much is obvious. They’re talking about changed humans like they’re beasts. These two are hunters. I’m not exactly surprised after everything that’s happened, but I didn’t expect to run into any, especially not out here.
When I take another step back, I slip on a patch of lonely ice. It’s a dull thud when my ass hits the ground. It wouldn’t have been noticeable if there were streetlights buzzing and alley cats scurrying around. Out here in the dead quiet, I’m not so lucky.
“What was that?”
Fight or flight. Deer in the headlights.
I force myself to turn around, to walk normally. I have to play this off as if I were just passing through. I can’t give them any reason to suspect me. But my skin crawls anyway.
“Hey, you.”
No. Please no.
I keep walking.
“Pink hair, black earmuffs, talking to you.”
I stop, look over my shoulder. “Yeah?”
“What are you doing out here?”
“I was looking at the aurora. Weren’t you?”
“C’mon, man. She’s harmless.” His Color reminds me of lava rocks.
“Live and learn, newbie.” This man’s Color is like sandstone. He takes a wood stake from a belt hidden underneath his coat. “We have a few questions for you.”
“Yeah, no,” I say. “That looks dangerously like a weapon.”
Blood rushes to my ears and lub-dub plays in dissonant stereo, both of the hunters’ heartbeats stabbing my ears. Shit. The waterfall’s about to turn on. I seal my lips and try to swallow, but it isn’t enough, so I do it again. And again.
The hunters freeze. “See that? That’s what you call bloodlust,” Sandstone says to Lava Rock.
“She’s just freaked out. You basically pulled a knife on her!”
My gums are burning. Their scents are similar, sweet on the surface, but rotten at their core. Poison. Rip them to shreds but don’t drink their blood. My lips part, and I growl, actually growl.
“Fangs,” Lava Rock whispers. His Color generates more black holes, and he scrambles for something on his belt.
No. I shake my head. I have to regain control of my thoughts. These aren’t my thoughts. It’s the demon blood talking.
Another scent wriggles its way into my nose and overpowers everything. Honey-sweet, chai spices, mint leaf. Kian’s footsteps don’t make a sound as he comes up behind me, but I’m aware of him. I don’t see him, but I know he’s there.
“Been looking for you,” Kian says. His voice warms the air, makes the hunters look.
Lava Rock is still messing with his coat, and Sandstone warns, “Stake ready, newbie. That one’s a monster, too.”
“I-I know.”
I don’t care about the hunters anymore. Kian’s breath is on my neck. He’s so close behind me he’s almost touching me. His pulse wrecks my ears, my own pulse. With fangs bared, I turn on him, fully intending to bury them into his neck, but he grabs my hand and moves. Fast.
He nearly rips my shoulder from its socket until my feet remember how to move. I run to keep up with him and spare my shoulder. His grip is tight, with no chance of letting me slip loose. I’d have to pry his fingers off. Not that I want to. I just want to find a way to sink my teeth into his neck. It has to be his neck. I want that specific lifeline, the fat, juicy artery wriggling like a worm under his skin. Bloodlust has overpowered his Color.
I dig in my feet, trying to yank Kian back with me, but he trudges on with a grunt.
Stop, Nova. You don’t want to bite Kian. You definitely don’t want to drink his blood. You don’t.
My legs buckle then, and Kian drags me across the ground on my knees.
“Shit!” Kian ducks, suddenly right next to me on the ground, shielding me with his own body as something makes a loud BANG and a projectile flies by. My nose is pressing into his neck. Spit falls down my lips, my chin. Right now. I can bite him right now.
No.
“Focus, Nova,” Kian says. He takes my cheeks in his hands and applies pressure while his chartreuse wraps around me like a blanket. “We’re going to die if you don’t focus.”
CHAPTER 14
Kian runs, and I do my best to keep up. I try not to stare at that bright spot of chartreuse, where I want to sink my teeth into.
“Here.” Kian makes a sharp turn, crouching and hiding us both behind another building. This on
e has a skirt, concealing the stilts and us.
“Where’d they go?” one of the hunters asks.
“I don’t know. It’s dark.”
“They couldn’t have gotten far.”
Beams of light point away from us, and Kian’s slow-moving green slows down even more. His pulse is steady, too. I wonder how strong his veins are, how thick his blood is.
“No clear tracks,” Sandstone says. “Too bad the ground’s more frozen than wet. Would make this easier. Watch your back, newbie.”
Kian lets go of my hand and keeps his voice low when he says, “Sorry. Again. But I only did it to save your life.”
I press my fingers into my temples and make small circular motions. If I could massage away these morbid thoughts, that would be great. If my stomach would stop drilling holes into itself, that would also be great. Are my fangs going to fall out and grow even longer? Because that’s what it feels like. They’re iron sticks heated in a fire, slowly melting through my gums.
“Did what?” I grit out.
“Grabbed your hand. I swear I listened to what you said and respect it, but in this case, it was unavoidable.”
Right. I told him not to touch me. I’m surprised he’s bringing it up right now. We have other things to worry about. Like the fact that his pulse is getting louder, his smell more intoxicating. I wipe away the saliva spilling out of my mouth, but more replaces it. That point on his neck, I can’t stop staring at it.
My fingers curl and burn. I latch on to Kian’s arm.
He doesn’t move, like good prey just waiting for its predator to rip into it, because it knows it’s already lost. I have full access to his neck.
“We need to get back to the others.” Kian peeks around the corner of the building. “We need to warn them about the hunters, or someone could get hurt.” He’s not paying any attention to me, not to my hand, not to the fact that I’m inches away from biting him. Then, when my teeth are at his neck, he jerks away.
Nightshade Academy Episode 1: Awakened Vampire Page 8