Nightshade Academy Episode 4: Den of Demons

by Kestra Pingree

  Archer shrinks behind me. I’ve never seen her back down like this. It makes me feel like I should grab Kian’s hand and run with the both of them. I peek at the ice fires floating overhead. If Kian asked, would they stop this intruder?

  Kian must have the same idea, because he flicks his red eyes to them. They jolt out of their formation and start circling around the salmon vampire like a school of carnivorous fish. He’s mostly undeterred, but he does fold his arms, making himself a slightly smaller target.

  “Why did he do it?” Archer asks. “What’s Eduardo’s damn plan? Why let me go?”

  “Nightshade’s location. That’s all he needed from you. He knew they’d pick you up.”

  Archer’s voice cracks. “How?”

  “Because word has spread. Because he’s been watching. Nightshade is something of a fairytale to monsters like us, a rumor that has only grown with more monsters being accepted into their ranks.”

  “But what does he care?”

  “Let’s just say he and the vampire who runs Nightshade have some bad blood between them.”

  Those articles my mom found come to mind, and I find I’m not surprised. This future fire is probably because of him. Kian probably saw it connected to me because I’m related to Eduardo.

  Damn it. Does this mean we’ve been wasting our time with Helena and Ginzo?

  “I didn’t give you Nightshade’s location,” Archer insists.

  “You didn’t have to. We always find you, remember? Shared blood is something, isn’t it? Power for some and a chain for others.”

  “You sure are chatty,” Kian remarks.

  “Because he knows they’ve already won,” Archer moans.

  The salmon vampire shrugs. “She’s right. There was nothing any of you could do about it, not when Nightshade picked up Archer like Eduardo wanted. It’s impossible not to admire the coven leader. He sent me here to bring his daughters home. Officially this time, Archer.”

  He flicks his gaze to me, and a full-body shudder descends to my bones. Can Eduardo see me too? Because of our blood? He contacted me before, but this vampire is acting like it’s all Archer. Eduardo couldn’t get one twin, so he went after the other? How does this tracking work? That is what he’s been doing, right? Tracking Archer by shared blood, from the sound of it.

  “Kian.” I intend to say more than his name, but my mind goes blank.

  I regret everything. I want to apologize. He should have never brought me to Nightshade. He thought he could fix things by helping a sad, lonely girl make friends, maybe find a family, but he’s doomed everyone instead. Chartreuse pales to yellow, and I’m sure he’s come to the same conclusion.

  Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub, a stutter.

  His scent sours, detritus in late fall.

  He must hate me.

  “You’re lying,” Kian whispers.

  “No,” the salmon vampire puts a finger to his lips, “I have no reason to lie. Eduardo’s already won.”

  “What are you doing in my ruins?” Helena emerges from the tunnel opposite of the salmon vampire, strutting in clunky boots like their high heels with Ginzo in tow.

  The salmon vampire takes one look at Ginzo, and his Color retreats like paint diluted by water. “Demon,” he squeaks. “A real demon.”

  Helena nods and squeezes Ginzo’s rock-hard arm. “A wonder, isn’t he? Answer my question.”

  The salmon vampire backs away, but he doesn’t get a chance to run. Ginzo brings the wind, moving faster than any of us can see. He appears behind the salmon vampire and locks him against his unforgiving chest.

  “Better answer before I make you,” Ginzo says. “It’ll hurt less.”

  “Blood bonds,” the salmon vampire wheezes, chokes, and smacks at Ginzo’s arms. “Those two girls. Eduardo.”

  “Eduardo,” Helena repeats. “I’m properly interested.” She walks up to the salmon vampire and inspects him from several different angles. “Blood bonds, you say? Yes, they hold power, but not as much as you might think.”

  Helena waves her hand, and Ginzo releases the vampire. The same moment his body hits the ground, his head slides off his neck. The cut is so clean the blood doesn’t start pouring until after the fact.

  CHAPTER 15

  “Ginzo, clean that up,” Helena says. “I’m tired of this dirty pink permeating my beautiful blue floor. Eat the body or something.”

  Ginzo huffs, walks around the body, and settles next to it. Oh, God. It’s still twitching, the Color faint but alive. Ginzo rips open the vampire’s coat, buries his face into his chest, and bites. Lub-dub, lub-dub—CRUNCH. The salmon Color bursts into steam and vanishes as Ginzo swallows the vampire’s heart whole.

  I look away.

  Wet, fleshy sounds taint the lab. Blood that is similarly spicy and sweet to Kian’s hits my nose. I wonder if that means this guy has AB negative blood, too, or if Ginzo’s blood really cured my sensitivity. According to how blood works in the real world, with O negative being the universal blood type, I never should have had such a ridiculous sensitivity to begin with. No wonder Madeline was at wit’s end with me.

  “You, boy.” Helena sidles up next to Kian and walks her fingers along his shoulder. He recoils as if she burned him. “If you’re hungry, there’s your meal. Ginzo might snap at you, though. It seems he’s in the mood to indulge his gluttony.”

  “I’m not a cannibal.”

  “Picky, picky, turning down a perfectly good meal handed to you for free. What about you, girls? Free blood.”

  Neither Archer nor I move.

  “As endearing as your collective stubborn streak was at the start of this little field trip, I grow bored of it. So, let’s make a deal. Ginzo and I will help you save your precious Nightshade, and you’ll sign your lives away on this contract.” She pulls a roll of paper from her coat. It’s yellowed, like old parchment from a fantasy movie.

  “If you don’t sign, I’ll make sure Eduardo destroys everything little Maddie built. Sound fair?”

  “But you said you didn’t want to destroy Nightshade,” I counter.

  “I change my mind from moment to moment.”

  “Then how do we know this contract is any good?” Kian asks.

  “I never go back on a contract.”

  Her words don’t offer much comfort.

  “It’s no big deal anyway,” she continues. “When I call on you, you’ll simply come, no questions asked, and provide your services for a while. Granted, this will start with perfecting control of your abilities, but you know, details. I’m sure I’ll find uses for you.”

  “No way,” Kian says.

  “I’m not interested in you signing anyway, aswang. I want the twins.”

  My ears pick up the grizzly sound of Ginzo tearing into bone. He’s already mutilated more than half of that vampire’s body.

  I cringe and turn to Archer. “Eduardo had you before Madeline brought you to Nightshade. How long?”

  “God, I don’t know,” she says, “okay? Time didn’t exist there.” She hugs herself. Her knees wobble, and she collapses onto the ground. “I’m not going back to him. No way.”

  “He’s the one who ruined your Color.”

  “Oh,” Helena singsongs, “so I was on the right track. The twins aren’t equal. Maybe never again. Unless we can retrieve Archer’s ‘Color.’” She claps her hands like a deranged seal. “Yes, sign this contract. We’ll save Nightshade and fix Archer’s Color.”

  “He’s strong.” Archer rubs her arms. “Too strong. At least I can fight you, Nova, but I couldn’t do anything when he took my aura. My Color.”

  “And he’s kept it.” My mind cycles through all the times I’ve done the same with Kian’s Color. “What if he had taken all of it?”

  “You know the answer to that.”

  Helena nods again and again, black curls bouncing. “Yes, yes. Fascinating.” She shoves her contract in front of my face, holding it so it rolls down and reveals the words written on it; it’s all handwritten.
>
  I take it and read through it, looking for tricks, but it’s nothing more and nothing less than what she said. The length is just for show. Essentially, Archer and I would be signing our lives away.

  Ginzo stands and starts licking his fingers. He washes his mouth with his saliva afterward, sort of like a cat—if cats were demonic monsters.

  “It’s a long-ass piece of paper,” he says. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

  “Oh, yes it does,” Helena replies. “Really, Ginzo. It’s about them being willing, making the deal in their hearts.”

  “Your games are exhausting,” Ginzo grumbles. “It’s still just a long-ass piece of paper. Take the boy hostage instead.”

  “I don’t want to play with their heart magic. It’s a pain in my perfectly round ass. Besides, I’m their only option if they don’t want Nightshade taken over or destroyed. Isn’t that right, darlings?”

  Maybe. Probably. If Archer is anything to go on. My first meeting with Eduardo didn’t include even ground, but Madeline fears him, tried to kill him, and she hasn’t succeeded. I’m still a very new vampire. What could I do?

  “Don’t do it, Nova,” Kian says.

  “We can’t lose Nightshade,” I tell him. “Oskar could be in trouble.”

  Kian bites his lip.

  “He’s in trouble,” Archer murmurs. “All of them are. Eduardo wants eternal life.” Her piercing eyes flash to Ginzo. “More than anything, he wants a demon.”

  Helena’s hazy purple darkens around her mouth, creating an impression, revealing a sly smile. “He won’t get mine. His power is growing, but we’ll kill him before it becomes a real threat. Right?” She taps the limp contract in my hands.

  “Why a demon?” I ask.

  “Because a demon is the answer to eternal life,” Ginzo says, tone flat. “You tasted that truth already.”

  “This is crazy,” Kian says, but his voice is weak. His Color too. He doesn’t know what to do. “In the end, I couldn’t do anything.”

  “I’ll sweeten the deal,” Helena says. “I’ll ensure none of Nightshade’s residents are harmed.”

  “It might already be too late for that,” Kian growls.

  “No. I don’t think so. In fact, I’m so confident I’m guaranteeing it. I know how Eduardo works. I know he’s been searching for a demon. I know Maddie’s tried her hardest to eliminate him, but he’s the better player out of the two. So just ask, darlings, and I’ll intervene. I’ll keep them all safe. I’ll add Kian to the contract too, Nova. I will never harm him again.”

  She takes the contract, presses it to the ground, and amends it with a strange feather pen filled with ink that somehow hasn’t frozen solid. “If I can’t make good on any of these promises, then our contract is null and void.” She finishes the last sentence with a flourish, throwing her hand into the air, flinging ink onto the already-soiled ice floor.

  “Kian, what do you think?” I ask.

  “I don’t know.” He grabs his head and repeats, “I don’t know.”

  Archer says, “We’re not strong enough on our own. I’m sure of that. He’ll suck us dry, everyone he can lay his teeth into.” She squeezes her eyes shut. “I’m not strong enough.”

  “Did you forget the part where I said I’d make sure Eduardo destroys Nightshade if you don’t sign the contract?” Helena pokes the paper again and again. A dull flutter sounds each time she does.

  “I’ll sign your contract.” I hold out my hand for Helena’s pen.

  “No need for your signature in fancy, swirly cursive. I want your blood. Prick your thumb. Press here.”

  “Nova.” Kian’s voice cracks.

  I stab my thumb with one of my sharp fangs and stamp the collecting blood onto the paper.

  “Wonderful,” Helena purrs. “Archer? You have to sign too, or else this doesn’t mean anything. I want both of you.”

  Archer doesn’t move from her crumpled position on the ground, but she pricks her thumb the same way I did. “Hand me the paper.”

  I blink and two bloody thumbprints sit side by side.

  I don’t feel any different. I thought something might happen, like a jolt, a zap, evidence of some magical bond that’d bind everything with an unbreakable seal, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. It’s miraculously uneventful.

  “Very good.” Helena rolls up the parchment and once again hides it inside of her coat. “Now, let’s save your precious Nightshade.”

  Find out what happens next in Deadly Contract. Here's a link.

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  Nightshade Academy

  Episode 1: Awakened Vampire

  Episode 2: Bloodlust

  Episode 3: Auras and Colors

  Episode 4: Den of Demons

  Episode 5: Deadly Contract

  The Lost Princess of Howling Sky

  Prologue: Phantom Fangs

  Book 1: Taken by Werewolves

  Book 2: Saving the Werewolves

  Book 3: Queen of Werewolves

  Marked by the Moon

  Book 0: Her True Wolf

  Book 1: Her Brave Wolf

  Book 2: Her Fierce Wolf

  Book 3: Her Wild Wolf

  Book 4: Her Noble Owl

  Book 5: Her Bad Cat

  Books 0-1: Collection A

  Books 2-3: Collection B

  Books 4-5: Collection C

  The Holiday Shifter Mates

  Book 1: Halloween Werewolf

  Book 2: Christmas Polar Bear

  Book 3: Valentine's Day Tigers

  These Immortal Vows

  Book 1: Demon Snare

  Book 2: Angel Asylum

  Book 3: Witch Trial

  Novella: Desire

  Short Story: Guardian

  Short Story: On the Precipice

  The Soul Seer Saga

  Book 1: The Wandering Empath

  Book 2: The Lonely King

  Book 3: The Lost Souls

  Book 4: The Beautifully Cursed

  Short Story: The Lunar Dancer

  Standalone

  Novel: Blind to Love

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  About the Author

  Kestra Pingree is a creative who doesn’t know how to stop. They are first and foremost a writer and storyteller with an endless library of books in their head just waiting to be typed. They are also an artist and animator, as well as a singer, songwriter, and voice actor. One day they swear they’re going to make their own video game, too.

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