Night Shade Academy

by Kelly Carrero

  Feeling ashamed of what I’d done, I lowered my gaze to my hands resting on my lap. Reagan may have deserved an ass-whooping, but she didn’t deserve to die. And if it weren’t for Hunter’s kiss, her family would’ve probably had to plan her funeral. “I’ll do it.” I lifted my gaze up to Bethany. “But once I’ve gained control, I’d like to be able to return to normal classes.”

  “I think we can arrange that.” She turned and picked up another paper. “We’ve also taken the liberty of organizing a new room for you.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Because I don’t think Nova will feel safe having a Shadow Walker in her room while she sleeps.”

  “I would never do anything to hurt her…” I sighed. “But you’re right. It’s not about me; it’s about her.”

  Bethany nodded. “You can collect your things as soon as we finish here then make your way to your new room.” She handed me a second piece of paper.

  Studying my new room’s location, I realized it wasn’t on the same floor as the first years. I was in a completely different area. “Where is this?”

  “You’ll be staying within the faculty section, where you will be safe from the other students and them from you.”

  My time at Night Shade just kept going from bad to worse. I hated hearing I was a danger to others. It was soul crushing. “Will I be sharing with anyone?”

  “You’ll be sharing with your sister, as long as Kayla agrees. We believe having someone who grounds you will be paramount to you learning control. But we must inform her of the risks and let her make her own decision.”

  Hope soared in my heart, knowing full well Kayla would never say no to staying with me, and for the first time since those damn ward alarms went off, I was looking forward to staying in this school—barely.

  “Now, I’m sure you’d like to get settled in. You’ve been through a lot today,” Bethany said. “You should get some rest, and we can discuss this some more tomorrow, once you’ve had time for everything to sink in.”

  “Hunter?” Bishop said, getting his attention. “Could you please help Zalia with her transition?”

  Hunter gave him a nod. “I’ll drop by later, so we can tailor her programs.”

  I stood and walked out the door, not bothering to look back. What could I say? I felt defeated but also uplifted, knowing I was going to have my sister with me again. I felt awful about leaving Nova so soon in our friendship, but Bishop and Bethany were right; it wasn’t about what I wanted. It wasn’t fair for me to put that kind of pressure on Nova. She deserved to feel safe. And right now, I was a ticking time bomb.

  Okay, so maybe I wasn’t, but not everyone knew that.

  Push me hard enough and I’d push back.

  Or at least that’s what I thought it was. After all, I hadn’t displayed a single part of my Dark side up until today.

  Hunter caught up with me in the hall. “You understand why we’re doing this, don’t you?”

  “Which part? Me moving out on Nova? Or the part about training me to be some killing machine in some war?”

  “It may seem that way, but I can assure you it is not.”

  “Why do you think your assurance means anything to me? You’ve lied to me since the very first time we met.”

  “No, I haven’t. I never once said I was still a student at this school and you never asked.”

  “Omittance is just as bad as lying.”

  “Only it’s not,” he said, as we entered the elevator. “What would you have me do? Tell you we thought you might be a Shadow Walker? Then how would you have reacted? And what if you were completely innocent?”

  I spun around to face him. “I am innocent. I never asked to be an evil monster. And I probably would never have known if Night Shade hadn’t decided to let their students beat the shit out of each other for some bullshit prize. I’m not a bad person. I’ve never hurt anyone in my life.”

  “Until tonight,” he said, his words cutting me to my core. “And I don’t think you’re an evil person. I don’t think you would ever intentionally hurt someone. The girl I saw out there today was terrified of what she was doing. That doesn’t make for murderous tendencies, but there are people that will try to use you, and you need to be prepared for whatever will come our way.”

  “Our way?”

  “Your way,” he corrected. “You must’ve heard the stories?”

  “No. I haven’t,” I said, getting a little exasperated. “I don’t know anything about the Shadow Walkers other than what the Lights have told me.”

  The elevator door opened, and three students piled inside before letting us off, one of my pet peeves. Didn’t people know it was polite to let others off before they entered? There was an unspoken rule about it, and they weren’t following it.

  Hunter trailed me into my apartment, where I hoped to find Nova, so I could fill her in and not just leave without any explanation. I wasn’t a dog to my friends. And as strange as it was considering I’d only just met her, Nova was a friend.

  I flipped my suitcases onto my bed and began packing, not bothering to be neat. I wanted to get in and get out, so I could go to my new room and escape from Hunter and his manipulative ways.

  Maybe I was being harsh, and maybe I was taking my frustrations and fears out on him, but it was what I needed to do at the moment.

  I sighed. What I needed was my sister. And maybe a Valium. Not that I’d ever taken one, but I’d heard they were good for anxiety, and I was pretty sure my anxiety was going through the roof. That wasn’t a good sign, considering what I was.

  Hunter curled his hands over my shoulders. “Just breathe. Everything will be fine. You’ll see.”

  I whirled around, breaking his hold on me. “How can you be sure? Are you a clairvoyant or something?”

  “No,” he said.

  “But I am,” Nova said, making me jump. She closed the door behind her and made her way over to me. “Well, at least I think I might be because I felt as if I had to come back here for a reason. And I know something is different about you. I can feel it in my skin, and I have since we first met. I was being serious about us ruling the school. Or more so, you ruling the school.” She slipped her hands into the pocket of her jeans. “So, what is it?”

  “Shit,” Hunter murmured to himself. “You’re a Seer.”

  “A what?” Nova and I asked in unison.

  “A Seer. Someone who can see things that haven’t happened yet, and has an insight into the supernatural world the rest of us don’t.”

  Nova stumbled back and sat on her bed. “I thought it was just a coincidence at first, but then…”

  Hunter strode over to the door and peered outside then closed it behind him. “Does anyone else know about this?”

  Nova shook her head. “It only started when I saw Zali. Before then, I just thought it was a lucky guess or never really paid much attention to any coincidences. But with Zali it’s… stronger.”

  Hunter’s gaze shot to mine. “You brought the Seer out in her.”

  “Me?” I asked, getting more than a little defensive. “She was telling me this stuff before I even knew what I was.”

  “Doesn’t matter. You were and always have been a… Dark. You’ve just never had a reason to bring that part of you out.”

  I sneered. “Until you guys decided to play your little game.”

  “What game?” Nova asked.

  “It’s a necessary evil and if you knew—” Hunter clamped his mouth shut.

  “Knew what?” I asked.

  “Never mind.” He opened my closet and grabbed a bunch of clothes off the rack, taking the hangers with them.

  “You can’t just say that.” I snatched my clothes from him. “And you can’t just touch my stuff without asking.”

  Ignoring me, he grabbed the remaining clothes out of the closet and handed them to me before turning his attention to Nova. “You mustn’t tell anyone about these visions.”

  “I’m not agreeing to anything unless you tell m
e what’s going on and why I’m starting to think me being a Seer is worse than it should be.”

  Hunter partially opened the top draw of my dresser. “Is this yours?”

  Nova shook her head.

  I stormed over to Hunter and pushed him out of the way. “What part of leave my shit alone did you not understand?” I hissed, grabbing my underwear out and dumping them in the bag, then turning and collecting my pajamas from the drawer below, ignoring the look he gave me when he saw the sparkly pink unicorns on them.

  “You haven’t answered me,” Nova said, her impatience growing thicker by the second.

  Hunter crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze remaining on me rather than Nova. “Because Zalia is a Shadow Walker.”

  The moment his words left his mouth, Nova gasped, her face turning pale. Her hair changed from blue to grey, as she registered exactly what that meant.

  Nova shook her head, clearing her thoughts. “Is that why you’re moving out?”

  Nodding, I zipped up the larger bag. “Bishop thinks I’m a danger to those around me.”

  “Until you learn how to handle your power,” Hunter clarified.

  “They’re still allowing you here, knowing full well what you’re capable of?” Nova quickly added, “No offense.”

  Hunter grabbed my bag and stood it up on the floor. “That’s what I’m here for, to help Zalia learn to control her new abilities.”

  I grabbed my books off the shelf and shoved them into the other bag. “He wants to make me into an assassin.”

  “That’s not what we’re trying to do.” He sighed. “But there will be others that will. And your best line of defense against them is to make yourself not easily manipulated.”

  “How do I know you’re not trying to manipulate me?”

  “Because he’s not,” Nova said, without an ounce of doubt in her tone. “I think you should listen to him and do what he says.”

  I grabbed my pillow and shoved it on top of the books then zipped up the bag. “Shit.” I raced into the bathroom and grabbed my belongings, returning to partially unzip the bag and tuck them inside before doing it back up.

  Nova hopped up off her bed and stood in front of me, as I was about to do a once over to make sure I had everything. “You can trust him because there’s darkness around, and I don’t just mean our House. Something’s shifting, and I can feel it in my bones. And I know that sounds ludicrous, but it’s true. I can’t shake the feeling something bad is going to happen, and you’re going to need to trust those you never imagined you would.”

  A shiver ran down my spine as her warning sank in, and no matter how hard I tried to pay attention to the details, not much of it made sense. “I trust you.”

  “Good,” she said, with a smile on her face. “Now trust him.” She cocked her head toward Hunter.

  13

  Right now, I had no choice but to trust Hunter. He was all I had protecting me against myself. I couldn’t bear to unintentionally hurt anyone because I lacked control of my curse.

  And as much as I wanted to learn everything about Shadow Walkers, all I wanted to do was curl up in bed and go to sleep while watching something mind-numbingly boring. I was exhausted and desperately needed to give my mind a break.

  My suitcases floated beside me, as Hunter led me to the faculty elevator located near Bishop’s office that took us to the top floor and my new room. I expected it to be set up similarly to the one Nova and I shared, but it was a two bedroom, plus study nook. It was still a very small apartment, with a slightly bigger kitchenette than the one in Nova’s room.

  Each bedroom was fitted with a double bed, a small closet, and our own tiny bathroom, but at least we had our privacy. Not that I cared so much when I was sharing with my sister.

  Choosing the room on the left with a large window over the bed, I set my suitcase down on the bed. “Has anyone spoken with Kayla yet about moving in with me?”

  Hunter rested his shoulder against the doorframe of my room. “I’m assuming so, but don’t be too upset if she decides not to share with you. It’ll be a shock to her. And she’ll probably be wondering why she’s not a Shadow Walker and you are.”

  “One, she absolutely will be moving in with me. And two, why is it just me stuck with this? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t wish this upon her, but wouldn’t all my family be cursed, not just me?”

  “I’m not sure it works that way. We have no idea how it works, only that a descendant can appear in the most unlikely of people.”

  The thought of unpacking was exhausting, so I just pulled out my pillow and set it on the bed, putting my suitcases to the side to deal with tomorrow. “What is a likely candidate if not someone like me?”

  “Someone born to the Darks, who has displayed exceptional abilities with a pull towards the darkness of this world. Not a preppy, little Light-born Witch who has never been in a fight in her entire life.”

  Nervous laughter escaped me. “Well, didn’t you all get it wrong.”

  “We didn’t have a lot to go on.

  I strode past Hunter, brushing against him as I made my way to the tiny bar fridge and opened it. The shelves were empty. “How many Shadow Walkers are there?” I closed the fridge, making my way over to the lounge and collapsing onto it.

  Hunter moved my legs to the side, as he took a seat beside me. “In this world?”

  I snapped my gaze up to him. “What do you mean, in this world?”

  “Are you sure you want to do this now? We can wait until tomorrow.”

  “Of course I want to know now,” I said. “I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want to know.”

  He lifted his knee onto the couch as he twisted around to face me, one arm resting on the back. “You’ve heard the stories, but most of them have been adapted. You know how the original Shadow Walker came to be, right?”

  Remembering the fairy tales I’d heard growing up, I said, “There were a sequence of sacrifices aligning with the moons, coupled with an allegiance with the Demons, giving him access to draw on their strengths.”

  “Correct,” he said. “Now, most stories say the Shadow Walker was destroyed, never to walk or breathe again. But what they don’t say is how a Shadow Walker who has done a deal with death can’t die.”

  “Are you saying he’s not…?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

  A shiver ran down my spine. “If he’s not dead, then where is he?”

  “Locked away in a prison in another realm. He cannot get out, but that doesn’t mean to say he wouldn’t be trying.”

  “That’s why you said I need to learn to control my powers.”

  Hunter nodded. “To be able to—”

  “To help him get out.” When I saw the horrified look on his face, I said, “I’m kidding.”

  “This is not a joking matter.”

  I shrugged. “I can’t help it. I make dumb jokes when the pressure is on. And in case you haven’t noticed, the pressure is on. Because if what you say is true, then the original Shadow Walker will be trying to get out, and he won’t be the only one trying. He had followers in the stories, and I’m assuming that part wasn’t fictional either.”

  “No, it was not,” he said. “But we can’t be sure he still has them today. He’s been locked in the realm for more than two hundred years. That’s a long time for his following to remain what it once was.”

  My stomach growled as I leaned the side of my head against the back of the couch. “So, there may not even be a threat.”

  “If you were to believe some, but others believe there still is. And if Nova is what I think she is, then we already know the answer to that question. Plus, we don’t know if there are any more Shadow Walkers out there in this world. It’s one of the reasons why the council built these schools.”

  “And the dog fight to flush them out.”

  “Exactly.” He gave me a small smile. “Don’t worry, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure nothing bad happens.”


  I hoped he was right.

  Hunter stood. “I’m going to get something for us to eat. Did you want to come with me? Or wait here until I get back?”

  There was something very comforting about his presence, but I couldn’t bear to go anywhere near the other students and listen to their snide, hurtful comments about me. “I’ll stay here.”

  He nodded. “Any preferences or allergies?”

  I shook my head. “I’ll eat anything except organs and any other weird animal parts. Oh, and I hate mushrooms, so don’t get me anything with them on it.”

  “Duly noted. I’ll be back soon.”

  A strange coldness descended the moment he walked out of the apartment, and I almost jumped up and went with him, but told myself that whatever this feeling was, it was in my mind. It was just me being me, hating being alone.

  Sliding farther down the couch, I rested my head on a cushion and switched on the TV to some random documentary about the hierarchy of the animal kingdom. My eyes were drooping by the time Hunter returned with seven boxes of food, piled high in his arms.

  He placed them on the coffee table in front of me. “I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I thought I’d get a bit of everything.”

  I pulled myself into a sitting position, my stomach growling when I caught sight of the lasagna and creamy linguini in a box he’d just opened. “You have no idea how much I love pasta. You’d think I was Italian.” I grabbed the box with one hand, as Hunter passed me a fork. “I used to drive Mom nuts when I was little, and pasta was all I used to eat.” I dug my fork in and got a mixture of lasagna and linguini on the fork, shoving it into my mouth.

  “Is Bishop going to tell my mom?” I asked, shovelling another chunk of combined meals onto my fork then popping it into my mouth.

  “No,” he said, as if there was no negotiation on the matter. “We need to contain your existence within these walls for as long as we can. If word gets out about you…” His eyes grew concerned, as if he actually cared about me, and I wasn’t just his charge. “We can’t let that happen.”