BREED OF ENVY
Six months ago, Director Greene recruited me to the CGE to train to hunt demons.
Four months ago, I (stupidly) agreed to finish my first Phase in less than half the time.
Two months ago, I got bit by a vampire, almost died, and found out I have demon DNA.
Now, demons aren't the only thing I have to fight.
Because I'm changing, and that changes everything.
DEDICATION
To readers of all genres: Thank you for your continued support of authors everywhere. I appreciate everything you do to support authors, to spread the word about them and their stories, and for your love of books in general.
To my mother: Because you’re my favorite person in the world.
To my friends: Simply put, I love y’all and I hope you know that.
To my cats: I'm blaming all typos on you.
And a small acknowledgment to my keyboard: I’m sorry about the wax. Thanks for not dying on me during the writing of this book.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
Dedication
Chapter 01
Chapter 02
Chapter 03
Chapter 04
Chapter 05
Chapter 06
Chapter 07
Chapter 08
Chapter 09
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
About The Author
Copyright
Other Titles
Excerpt
CHAPTER 01
Phase Two.
It’d been a little less than two months since I’d officially graduated from Phase One.
Two months since I’d come close to dying (but not really). Two months since I’d found out that my mother—and father—had both been CGE agents, and that they’d both had the genetic treatments that mixed demon DNA into their own DNA. And I was pretty darn sure that’s what had kept me from the whole dying-by-vampire-bite thing.
I’d only been at the CGE a little over five months total now, but being here, training to be a demon hunter, was still surreal. Sometimes, I still couldn’t believe I was here. But I couldn’t imagine things any other way. Even with the whole should’ve-died thing and all the other drama (like Felecia Fitzgerald who almost caused my untimely death twice), I was still happy.
The CGE was my home now, and really, it’d felt like it had been since the day I’d joined.
“Jade. You’re thinking again.”
I shifted in my seat to face Lincoln ‘Linc’ Stone. Over the summer, he’d let his blond hair grow out a little, but now that classes were about to start, he had it mostly shaved again. He was leaning forward with his forearms resting on his thighs. His steely-blue eyes were locked on mine. I could see the accusation in them. “So what?” I said, rolling my eyes at him. “I have a brain and, unlike you, I tend to use it on occasion.” I smiled sweetly.
He made a sound between a snort and a scoff and bumped his knee into mine. “You’re thinking about classes starting tomorrow. Are you worried about them?”
I shook my head. “Not really.”
“Jade.”
“Oh, don’t use that you’re-lying-to-me tone. I’m not lying, and I’m not worried. Kind of…excited, actually.”
He shook his head slowly and made a face, like my words pained him. “You would be.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He shook his head again. “Most of us like being here, and even some don’t mind the studying, but I think you’re the only one who actually enjoys it and looks forward to it. We don’t exactly have normal school classes, but it’s still school. You’re not supposed to like it.”
I frowned. “Says who?”
“Pretty much everyone under twenty-one who doesn’t wear a pocket protector.”
“You’re calling me a nerd, but I don’t mind.” I liked the classes and I was looking forward to them. The way I saw it, the more I studied, the closer I got to my goal: finding and hunting the demon that killed my family. Since it was October (the month my mother and brother had been killed), that goal was pressing on my mind more than usual.
That goal was also the main reason I’d joined the CGE in the first place, even though I knew it could take me a few years. One Phase down, three to go.
After everything that had happened since I’d joined, I was amazed I was still here to have classes to start tomorrow.
Beside me, Linc sighed, and though I wasn’t one hundred percent sure, I thought his gaze traveled upward, like he was speaking to some higher power. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; you’re a weird one, Hall.”
I shrugged. “Then I’ll just have to be weird.”
Linc knew me pretty well. Better than anyone else at the CGE. Well, maybe except for Director Greene who seemed to know everything everything, though I still hadn’t figured out how. But Greene was a whole different story, one I hadn’t yet unraveled.
Linc was one of my best friends. We’d just clicked on my first day and we’d been harassing each other since. We’d kissed during last Phase, but neither of us had really talked about it. Of course, one of those times had been the night before our Demonology final, and we’d had the rest of our exams that week. Plus, I’d had the whole death/vampire-scare thing, so was it any wonder neither of us had mentioned it?
We’d talk about it. Eventually. Maybe.
I sighed to myself and glanced around, then looked at the time on my personal tablet. “Is Greene even here?” We—along with all the other Prospects—had been waiting for Greene to arrive for the last forty minutes and there was still no sign of him. It might’ve been after five in the evening, but even in October, the weather was pretty warm. We were all outside on the bleachers at the track, so the sun was beating down on us.
“He’ll be here. Stop worrying.”
“Aren’t you worried? You said he usually talks to the Prospects in each Phase separately at the start of the Phase, yet everyone is out here.”
Linc shrugged. “Things change. Maybe he decided to tell everyone the same thing, or maybe he couldn’t think of four different speeches to give.” He flashed me a quick, lopsided grin. “You just want this over with so you can get back to studying.”
It…wasn’t entirely a lie, so I didn’t argue. I did want to get back to studying, but I also wanted to know what was going on. If Greene had called everyone out here, there had to be a reason. And according to Linc himself, the last time he’d called all the Prospects out, it was right after I’d been attacked by the vampire. That hadn’t exactly been a warm speech from what I’d gathered.
When I didn’t respond, Linc said, “How far ahead are you?”
“I’m not.” Another lie.
He snorted. “Yeah, right. With your brain, you’ve probably got Demonology finished already.”
“I do not.” And I didn’t. Of course, I was a few chapters ahead. But really, what did he expect? I liked being ahead, and since I’d spent most of last Phase playing catch up, I didn’t want to repeat that.
“Fine, so you’re only half ahead.” He rolled his eyes. “You’re not getting any help this time around.”
After letting me skip the required five-month Probationary period, Director Greene had let me start Phase One early. The Phase had been in full swing by then, so I’d been seven months behind, but Linc had tried he
lping me catch up. Demonology had been my easiest class. It was all reading, and since I read really fast and remembered everything I read, I’d caught up pretty easily and had ended up helping him. But I didn’t point that out. I was a nice friend.
Instead, in a move that was probably not as mature as it could’ve been, I stuck my tongue out at him.
His laughter rang out. “Smooth, Hall. Smooth.”
“Oh, bite me.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him wink. “You know, you’d think getting bitten by a vampire would make you less anxious to get bit again.”
“I’m not going to point out that you’re comparing yourself to a blood-sucking, stinky demon.”
His blue eyes narrowed. “You just did.”
“Oh. Right.” I smiled. “My bad.”
Before he could comment—because I was sure he was about to—a car pulled up the driveway and stopped right outside the track. The passenger door opened and Greene got out.
“See?” Linc hit my knee again. “He’s here.”
“I still don’t think it’s a good sign,” I muttered.
Greene had on a fitted suit (I’d never seen him in anything else) that was a few shades darker than his brownish hair. His stride was brisk as he walked over and stepped up to the podium. He set his computer tablet down and smiled at the crowd. “Good afternoon, Prospects. My apologies for keeping you waiting.”
Most of the crowd waved or mumbled hi.
“Welcome to a new Phase.”
I frowned. I’d only seen Greene a few times in August, after the graduation party, but I hadn’t seen him at all in September. He’d pulled another vanishing act (like he’d done during my first Phase), but this one had been the longest so far. It was still amazing how a man who was hardly seen could know everything. And I was sure he knew everything that had gone on, even if he hadn’t been here.
“I trust you all had an uneventful time in my absence?”
He’d smiled as he said it, but I just shook my head. The man knew everything about everyone. If something happened here without his knowledge, I’d be surprised. And then I’d eat my own shirt, and maybe Linc’s, too.
Isabelle Barnes—the assistant director—had run things while Greene’d been gone. Not that she’d had much more to do than yell at a few people for doing stupid stuff, like Chris Stevens. He was the guy we all suspected set off fireworks behind the North Tower at graduation. Greene must’ve been a in a good mood that night, because he hadn’t done anything about it, though I was sure he knew exactly who’d done it.
Chris had pulled another stupid stunt a few weeks ago by setting off a smoke bomb in one of the common rooms. But he’d actually gotten caught by a senior agent. Mrs. Barnes hadn’t found it amusing or been as forgiving as Greene.
The good news: soon-to-be demon hunters didn’t get detention. The bad news: they got twenty-page book reports on demons.
Chris had finally finished the report yesterday, but he’d spent the last two weeks complaining about it to anyone who’d listen—which was everyone, since he made them listen.
Greene’s eyes landed on someone behind me. I twisted around, not surprised to find Chris sitting there. I wasn’t surprised to see Tasha sitting beside him, either. They’d been spending a lot of time together since Tasha discovered he’d set off the fireworks. She’d decided he was cool because of that, and said it didn’t hurt that he was cute.
He wasn’t bad looking, I thought. He was probably the same height as Linc, give or take an inch, which would put him close to six-feet tall, but he was slightly bulkier than Linc. His dark blond hair was on the long side and always kind of messy, and his eyes were a light green (though it was hard to tell because he always kept his gaze on Tasha).
Chris gave a fake cough and glanced away, trying to act like he hadn’t seen Greene’s look.
When I turned back, I saw Greene’s jaw twitch. He said, “We’ll talk later, Mr. Stevens.”
I glanced back again. Tasha’s shoulders shook and she patted Chris’s knee. He buried his face in his hands and shook his head.
“I’m sure you’re all anxious to get back to whatever you were doing, so I’ll try to make this short.” He paused. “Many of you just completed a Phase, so congratulations.”
A few people let out whoops. I didn’t. At least not vocally. I kept my whoop internal so Linc didn’t roll his eyes at me, and so I didn’t bring any unnecessary attention to myself. The last thing I wanted was Greene calling on me as an example for…well, anything.
“For some of you, this will be your first Phase. For others, this will be your second, third, or fourth and final. In any case, you all have something in common. You’re all one step closer to becoming hunters.” Greene’s gaze landed on me and he smiled. “And tomorrow, you all begin a new Phase.”
“He’s going to mention me,” I muttered under my breath, lowering my head so Greene couldn’t see me talking. “I just know it.”
“Why?”
“Because he looked at me. And because he always does.” Anytime we were both in the same place, at the same time, and there was a crowd of people around, he seemed to find a reason to single me out. I eyed Greene darkly. “He’ll find a way.”
Greene continued. “This last Phase wasn’t the easiest on some of our Prospects. Some, like Miss Hall—”
I groaned and slapped Linc’s knee. “See?”
“—went through more than most Prospects during their entire stay with us.” He looked at me again. “I know you hate being the center of attention, Miss Hall, and I apologize for putting you there, but I want this next point to serve as a reminder, and a warning. Last semester, many things happened that shouldn’t have. A demon escaped in the South Tower and came too close to attacking Miss Hall and Miss Fitzgerald—all because of a prank that went awry. Another incident involving vampires could have easily ended both of their lives and nearly did.”
Everyone’s eyes went to me (including some I recognized from my original Orientation) and I could almost feel the heat from their gazes, or maybe I just imagined it. It left me struggling not to squirm.
“The first should have been avoided. Security was well aware that Miss Fitzgerald had a reputation for sneaking Prospects into the South Tower as a prank, and yet they did nothing to stop it. This will not happen again.” His eyes went cool. “Secondly—and this is the most important thing I’m going to say today—the vampire incident would not have happened if Miss Fitzgerald had followed instructions. Instead, she ran off by herself, putting herself and everyone else’s life in jeopardy, because she didn’t want to be a team player. Demon hunting is teamwork. This means inside the CGE and outside. There is a reason we hunt in teams.”
A few people nodded and looked around. Others looked pointedly at someone around them, casting glares. I just kept my head down. How could I be a good example and a bad example at the same time?
“As a whole,” Greene continued, his tone lighter now. “I discovered a lot about the CGE in the last six months. More, I discovered a lot about our Prospects, new and old. While it may sound like I’m focusing only on the negative occurrences, we did learn some invaluable things as well. Things that may not have been revealed otherwise. We’re all going to make mistakes. That’s fine and is acceptable. What’s important is that we learn from those mistakes, and we have. For that reason alone, I’m prouder of our organization and what we represent than I have been ever before.”
Everyone seemed to relax. But not me. I was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“Now, on to better news. As you all begin a new Phase, the CGE will be entering a new one as well.”
There wasn’t a person in the crowd that I could see who didn’t frown or look at someone else, like they were all trying to gauge if anyone had any idea what Greene was talking about now. Judging by the dozens of confused looks, shrugs, and quiet whispers, no one seemed to.
“I’m sure some of you noticed my absence this past month,” Greene s
aid, the sides of mouth lifting. If anyone else had been as curious about that as I’d been, they didn’t announce it. “I won’t bore you with the details of the where or why, but I will say that I came back with something very important.” There was a long pause. “Funding.”
“Weren’t we—the CGE—already funded?” a P3 girl asked, looking really confused.
“We were, and are, yes.” Greene nodded. “But more funding is always a good thing.”
“How does this affect us?”
“It affects you because we’re going to be undergoing some upgrades, in particular to our computer systems and our medical department, as well as various other departments. The biggest change that you’ll notice will be new tablets for the Prospects. These are high-end, top of the line.”
“New tablets?” A guy a few seats over from Linc almost drooled. “Really?”
“Yes, Mr. Smith. However, if you lose or break the new tablet, you’ll be paying to replace it and will have to use one of the older models until you graduate or can afford to pay for your own.”
“What?” He gaped. “That’s not fair.”
“No, I suppose not, but these are expensive tablets and since you have a…knack for breaking or losing them, you’ll just have to deal with the consequences from now on.”
The kid managed to look indignant for about four point three seconds, but then pink flushed his cheeks.
“Among some of the other changes that will be happening, there will be ongoing construction inside the South Tower for the foreseeable future. Because of the demons and the research, there will be a security fence around the entire building. And no one—” Greene’s gaze landed on me briefly. “—will be permitted inside the building or around it.” This time, Greene looked to someone else. I almost sighed with relief. “It has always been, and will always remain, off limits to all Prospects unless, or until, express permission is given to enter. If anyone risks sneaking in, I promise they will not like the consequences.”
No one argued, not that I thought anyone was brave—or stupid—enough to. And no way was I going into the South Tower again. I’d learned my lesson.
Breed of Envy (The Breed Chronicles, #02) Page 1