Midnight Kisses (Shifter Island Book 1)

by Leia Stone

  “What’s wrong with them?”

  Pivoting to face Justice, I frowned. He held a squished piece of foam between his thumb and forefinger, but he—like most of the other students—gaped slack-jawed at the doorway, from where the song flowed.

  Frozen.

  “Justice!” Rage sprinted forward as a stunning woman stepped into the room.

  Her arms outstretched as she sang, water ran in rivulets down her legs, leaving small puddles where she walked. Clothed in a gauzy white dress that left little to the imagination as it clung to her soaking wet form, the woman wore her pale green hair down, hanging in loose clumps, resembling seaweed. Without breaking her song, she pounded a fist on the wall.

  A dozen men entered dressed in slick black sealskin armor. With their swords drawn, they split into teams of two and advanced on the alpha heirs.

  Selkies were a proud race of shifters. The females had spellbinding voices with the ability to sing in high frequencies—like mind-numbing, ear-bleeding noise. The males were fierce warriors. Why were they attacking us? We were just innocent kids at a school.

  I grabbed the foam earplug from Justice’s hand and stuck it in his ear as Rage skidded to a halt beside me.

  “What are you still doing here?” he growled. I could see the yellow bit of a balled-up earplug sticking out of his ears. Then, he looked down at me, gaze zeroing in on my ears. “The song doesn’t affect you?”

  I had no idea how to answer that, but we didn’t have time to discuss it now.

  Two of the selkies charged us, and I scanned the area for something—anything—I could use as a weapon.

  “Here,” Rage snapped, shoving his sword at me, his only weapon.

  I wanted to ask him if there were more deadly weapons secretly scattered about, but there was no time. Hopefully, he had something else to use against our attackers.

  Hefting the weapon, I shifted my stance and zeroed in on the two selkies.

  A fireball soared through my peripheral vision, startling me. I glanced at Rage, who was conjuring another sphere of live flame.

  “I hope you know how to use that.” His gaze dropped to the sword, and he shook his head.

  Like he didn’t believe me capable and he was mad he had to babysit me.

  “You worry about your fireballs,” I snapped. If he thought I’d spent the last nineteen years in Montana picking apples, he had another thing coming.

  The selkie warrior on the left dodged the fiery mass and lunged at me with his machete. I stepped forward and swung to meet his blade. The clash of metal rang through the cafeteria, interrupting the female’s song. I slid in closer and followed up with an elbow to my opponent’s nose, smiling at the satisfying crunch of bone and spurt of black blood.

  He grunted and doubled over.

  Rookie mistake.

  Both hands on the hilt, I rotated and clobbered the man right in the temple with the pommel.

  As he dropped, I spun to meet my next foe.

  Only, no one was there. With a moment to breathe, I scanned the cafeteria, trying to absorb the scene. All of the students still stood rigidly, staring at the singing woman while Rage, Justice, Honor, and Noble, all with little foam earplugs, fought the selkies. Maybe Justice had been busy shoving earplugs in his brothers’ ears. If the cafeteria was equipped with swords and earplugs hidden under tables, then maybe this was a regular occurrence.

  Rage hurled another ball of flames, his lip curled in disgust. But magic could be just as hard to wield as a sword, and the flames crashed two feet from its intended target, extinguishing on the ground upon impact.

  I pried a deadly machete from the unconscious male selkie’s fingers and closed the distance between me and Rage. “Here,” I said, returning Rage’s blade now that I had my own. “I hope you know how to use it.”

  Take that, asshole.

  He plucked it from my hand, giving me a small glare. “You worry about yourself. I’ve got this.”

  He rotated and swung the massive blade in one fluid movement. The two selkies advancing on us screeched and tried to get out of the way of its deadly arc.

  One of the selkies darted to the side, but the other…

  The metal slid through him from shoulder to hip like a hot knife cutting through butter. One second, he was standing; and the next, his knees buckled, and his torso toppled forward.

  Rage obviously didn’t need any help. Which meant I needed to protect the frozen students, specifically the five Harvest girls whom I’d grown to love. If Evil Barbie got whacked during this attack … oh well.

  Miss Mariah Carey was keeping everyone entranced. Only those with earplugs seemed fine. I should probably have pressed my father further when he spoke of selkie powers.

  Spinning around, I spotted a large kitchen knife on the counter and scooped it up.

  Jackpot. Could never have too many weapons.

  I glanced across the cafeteria and spotted Kaja, frozen but safe in the corner with Nell. Her other three sisters stood just behind them. No selkies were advancing on them. However… my gaze landed on Honor and Noble, who were cornered by four selkie warriors.

  The pair were outnumbered; we all were.

  We needed the ratios to change. I needed to stop this damn song.

  Blood rushed in my ears as I sprinted forward, bumping the inert Evil Barbie—totally by accident—and I forced my attention to narrow until only my target existed. Sorry, selkie, your show is getting canceled.

  “Nai!” Rage yelled, his voice buzzing in the distance, a mixture of panic or anger. “Stay put!”

  No time for chitchat. I didn’t care if he approved of my battle plans.

  Tipping my wrist back, I flicked the kitchen blade just as I had a billion times in the woods of Montana. The slender silver knife sang as it sliced through the air, and the female selkie’s voice became a wet gurgle as a thin line of blood beaded on the right side of her neck. Her eyes widened, and she clutched her throat. The strike had hit true, just as deadly as Rage’s.

  Within seconds, the rest of the cafeteria roared to life, no longer frozen.

  I pivoted to get to Honor and Noble, and pain exploded up my arm. My vision turned white, and I screamed. Agony pulsed up my arm; my fingers went limp as the machete tumbled from my grasp, clattering on the ground.

  Blood ran from my elbow to fingers, and I clutched the injury and spun … to see a Siren warrior bringing his blade up for a death strike. I flinched, preparing for the blow, but the pain never came.

  There was a wet thwack followed by a thud at my feet. My eyes sprang open to see Kaja standing over the selkie. She pulled the blade from his body and held it out to me.

  Total BFF.

  “Thanks, girl.” I snatched it from her and spun, bolting for Noble and Honor. Thank the mage that the selkie warrior only grazed my arm, or I might be missing it right now.

  Darting through the melee, I pushed away those rousing from their cursed sleep until I reached my two favorite Midnight boys.

  One selkie lay on the ground, blood pooling beneath him, but the other three were raining blows onto Honor and Noble. At any given second, it was two on one, and I tried to assess which brother was in more need of help.

  Noble slid his weapon out from underneath the selkie’s and went on the offense. The risk was big, given the numbers, but it seemed to be working.

  Honor reached up to deflect another selkie’s sword, leaving a gap from his armpit to his hip.

  Time seemed to slow as the other warrior lunged for the kill.

  “No!” I screamed, darting forward. I crashed into the selkie, using my momentum to drive the machete into his side, right between his ribs. He stumbled back; the knife dropped from his hand, and then he slumped to the ground, pulling me down with him. I released my hold on the machete and scrambled off the warrior. Climbing to my feet, I stared at the gore pooling beneath him.

  Holy mage. I…

  The selkie’s eyes widened, and he grabbed for the blade, but his fingers slipped
from the slick surface. Without considering my actions, I reached forward, and in one swift movement, I yanked the weapon out and … dropped it.

  Bile burned the back of my throat. My stomach churned. I spun away from the dude with his silvery and pink entrails spilling out of his abdomen.

  I had to fight not to close my eyes. I’d been preparing for battle my whole life, only to discover I wasn’t that prepared.

  I’d never killed anyone before…

  Noble shouted, and it snapped me from my stupor. There were still two selkies fighting to take the brothers down, but now they turned their focus on me. Stepping back, I reached over by the trashcan, picked up a metal food tray, and then whacked the selkie nearest me, right at the base of his head. The edge of the metal cut right into the side of his neck, and he went down screaming. Noble took care of the other one, cut him open like a fish.

  Gross. Training with my father did nothing to prepare me for this. Seeing a man bleed out and—

  My thoughts derailed as Rage suddenly swam into view.

  “What the hell were you thinking!?” Rage grabbed the front of my shirt and yanked me forward until my body pressed up against his. “You could have been killed!”

  The motion, combined with my nausea, wrenched my insides, and I pushed his hand away.

  “You’re welcome,” I growled, stepping back and turning away from the blood and guts for fear of puking.

  Around us, dozens of people were shouting, but the attack had died down. No more sounds of fighting. Mother Mage, I hoped the others were all okay. But…

  The nausea churned my guts, and my breath grew shallow.

  Just like that, in a split second, I took a life…

  Saliva pooled in my mouth, and I sprinted for the nearest trashcan. Leaning over it, I grabbed the rim and vomited.

  “It’s one thing to train for killing and quite another to actually have to do it,” Noble’s sweet voice came from behind.

  I thought it was him resting his hand on my shoulder until Honor spoke.

  “Thank you, Nai.” Honor’s voice was barely a whisper, and he rubbed circles onto my back through my shirt. “You saved my life.”

  Why were these two so sweet and Rage so douchey?

  I nodded and spit the last bit of bile from my mouth. “It’s all good.”

  I’m fine. Everything is fine.

  Does this school offer therapy?

  I’d never seen someone’s insides spill out like that. Even the occasional skirmishes with the rogues were nothing like that. Even hunting with my dad and taking down a deer, I’d never seen insides become outsides. He was young… at most in his twenties… with his whole life ahead of him…like me.

  “Come on,” Honor said, cupping my elbow. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

  “I’m in charge here, Nai.” Rage invaded my space, pushing Honor back. “If I say stay put, you better damn well listen. You pull something like that again, next time, I’ll throw you in the dungeon of my father’s castle for a week.”

  Did he say dungeon?

  His eyes glowed orange, and I knew his wolf was close to the surface, but legit… what … the … hell? Definitely not my mate.

  “Everyone here—” I waved my arm in a wide circle “—might bow to your every whim, but technically, you aren’t the alpha king yet, so you’re not in charge of me.” I was 67.3% sure of this.

  Or was he in charge of me?

  The fuzzy swirling in my head made it difficult to put a percent on that—maybe not 67.3%, more like 43.9%—but I hated bullies more than I was worried about being right.

  Towering over me, Rage glowered, running his eyes over the length of my body, causing my cheeks to warm. “Actually, as first prince, I am in charge of you, along with every other student when it comes to safety.”

  Well, damn.

  Fury burned away the nausea, and I straightened my spine to get every last inch of height as I glared at Rage. First prince? Whatevs. I offered him a one-finger “first prince” salute. “Don’t tell me to stay put next time, and I won’t have to ignore you.”

  I crossed my arms, and my wolf growled. Dude better back down, or his pretty face was going to get up close and personal with my snarling teeth.

  Rage stepped forward, and dark fur rippled on his arms. “It’s my job to keep the students at our school safe when the king isn’t around. He gave me that charge. Don’t test me, Nai. Understood?”

  Dammit. Maybe he did have some power around here. Where was my rulebook? Probably with my supply list and official uniforms.

  I wanted to demand to see it in writing, but I knew better than to poke a wolf covered in blood and surrounded by the bodies of his enemies.

  My nostrils flared, but I swallowed my pride and choked out, “Understood. Also, your school sucks.”

  Honor bumped Rage. “Don’t be a douche. She saved me from getting skewered.”

  “Dude,” Noble added, snickering as he stepped up to join us, “she got to the singer before any of us could. Well done, Nai.”

  Rage shook his head, glaring at his brother just as Evil Barbie stepped up next to him.

  “Prince Courage!” she gushed. “That was so brave—oh, oh, what happened to your pants?”

  I blinked, seeing the situation with new eyes. His crotch area was all wet with selkie blood, but his pants were really dark, so it looked like…

  “I think he got a little nervous in the scuffle,” I told her, holding back a grin.

  Rage narrowed his eyes at me as he cocked his head to the side, but he didn’t look pissed. He looked…

  Holy mage. Was he about to smile?

  A warm feeling spread throughout my chest when his lips curled into a smirk, and I rubbed the area because—no way was I getting warm fuzzies over this a-hole.

  “You’re a pain in my ass, Nai.” That was all Rage said, still trying to fight the smile that wanted to grace his sexy face.

  No. Not sexy. Ugly. Ugly troll man who must get off on misery.

  Noble burst out laughing first. “Damn, girl,” he said, patting my arm. “I think I love you.”

  “It’s selkie blood, idiots!” Rage barked, but his grin ruined his attempt at acting pissed with his brothers.

  My stomach flipped over that smile, and I knew in that moment that this man would be the death of me.

  My adrenaline wouldn’t shut off after the selkie attack. School was canceled for the day, and the king was rumored to be beyond pissed. Rage and the other brothers had been called to the castle for a meeting while I sat in Harvest Dorm and recounted the entire story to Nell, Rue, and Kaja. We all sat around a pristine wood-polished coffee table while Mele and Fiona, the other Harvest girls, had their respective noses shoved in books whilst hiding in the corner. Clearly, they wanted nothing to do with today’s drama.

  “So, then, Barbie asked what was on his pants, and I was like, yeah, he got scared.” I finished the story, my eyes flicking over to Fiona to see her wearing a grin. She was totally eavesdropping.

  The girls erupted into laughter, but then Nell’s expression furrowed with confusion.

  “Wait, why didn’t the selkie song affect you? Selkie magic freezes shifters.”

  I shrugged, popping a piece of popcorn into my mouth.

  “No idea. I mean, it was captivating but didn’t really bother me.” I hadn’t given it much thought until now. Maybe because I had two affinities?

  Nell and Kaja shared a look. “Weird, because we were all like … super helpless. I wonder if it has to do with your clan being—”

  She stopped, seeming to realize what she was about to say could be hurtful.

  “Cast out?” I finished for her. This used to be an issue for me. When wolves visited us from the magic lands and brought magical supplies and news of Alpha Island, I was so embarrassed. Back then, it made me angry that we weren’t allowed back.

  She winced. “Sorry, I just meant … it’s the only thing that’s different.”

  “No, it’s fine,
and that’s a good point.” I shrugged. “Maybe that’s why I have two affinities too. Although it was probably because I couldn’t decide which one I wanted and wasn’t focusing on the right color.” I chuckled.

  All three of their foreheads creased. Even Fiona and Mele set their books down from their reading chairs in the corner and stared over at me.

  “What?” Mele asked from across the room.

  “You know…” I considered how to explain the strange experience without sounding even more weird. “When the high mage dude whisked you away to your favorite landscape, made you pick your affinity, and then brought you back…”

  The longer I spoke, the deeper the creases in their foreheads grew. Why were they looking at me like I was an alien?

  “What are you talking about, Nai?” Kaja asked, her face furrowed like I was speaking a foreign language.

  A chill ran the length of my spine, and gooseflesh prickled my skin.

  “Didn’t the high mage let everyone pick their element… at the beach?” I asked. “Maybe I misunderstood when he asked if it was my favorite place—”

  “There was no beach…”

  Nerves churned in my gut as I realized that maybe no one else had had the same experience as I did.

  “Not a beach for real,” I hurried to explain. “More like a mental landscape. I couldn’t see you all for a few minutes, and we were on the beach—like a relaxation technique and then—” Their wild looks made me realize that my suspicions were correct. He’d only done that little number for me. But why would he do that? All the thoughts whirling through my head only scared me more. High mage equaled bad news, and I didn’t want any favors from one of them.

  “Never mind.” I shook my head and waved away my previous words. “I’m a bit traumatized from today, and clearly not thinking … clearly.”

  Was this something to do with that water symbol on my solar plexus? Now, there was no way I was going to ask them about it for fear they’d put me on the crazy train—one-way ticket and all that.

  “You wanna lie down? I mean, you just got in a full-on battle.” Kaja pointed to her room while the other sisters nodded and started to fawn over me.