Supernatural Academy: Year One (Supernatural Academy #1)(8)

I nodded, already understanding. I really didn’t need her warning; I’d known it from the first moment I saw them.

They were trouble.





4





When we were out of the commons, my heartrate returned to normal. Ilia led us into a building close by, where my eyes took a moment to adjust as we pushed through a door and into a small room. It looked like an office, and a tall man was there chatting with a tiny blond-haired chick, both of them seated at a desk, plates and cutlery between them.

“Princeps Jones,” Ilia said, hurrying forward.

The princeps rose to his feet, and I was surprised by how young and good-looking he was: thick head of dark hair, dark brown skin that was without a single age line, and arresting blue eyes.

“Ilia, you found her!” While I was examining him, he’d examined me in return. “Pink hair,” he mused. “I like it.” He stepped closer. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Maddison James.”

I’d almost forgotten my new hair color; I self-consciously touched it. “Yeah … it was time for a change. And it’s … nice to meet you as well, Princeps Jones.” Despite the kidnapping, I actually meant that. For the first time, I didn’t have a listless sense of “this is just another shitty day” going on.

He gestured for me to move toward him, and it was only as I did that I noticed the slightest point to his canine teeth. “Vampire?” I blurted, before slamming my mouth shut.

Was that rude? I had no idea what was acceptable in this world.

Relief hit me when he smiled. “I see you’re adjusting well. Did you already know of our world?”

I shook my head, still staring at his teeth.

“Well, you’re correct. I’m a vampire, as is my daughter, Larissa.”

She got to her feet and stood beside her father. As I met her wide blue eyes—just like her father’s—I fought the urge to tuck her under my arm and fight the world for her. She was delicate, nothing like I expected from a vampire. Standing just above five feet, she had creamy brown skin and white-blond hair, which could have clashed, but she pulled it off nicely. She looked ethereal and sweet.

My eyes darted to the table filled with their breakfast, and I wondered why she ate in here with her father and not out in the commons.

Was he really strict?

On first impression, he seemed laid-back, but first impressions were wrong a lot.

“Hey,” she said, her voice as delicate as her face. Her eyes lowered and I got a shy vibe from her. Either that, or she was beaten on a regular basis—a look I’d seen on plenty of girls before.

I glared at the princeps then, wondering if his joviality hid a monster underneath. He was a vampire. Maybe they abused their children as part of their culture or something.

He stared at me curiously, and I waved my bound hands in front of me. “Care to relieve me of my chains?”

My words came out more clipped than it would have before I saw his daughter. He bestowed what seemed like a genuine smile on me. “My apologies. I hate to force you like this, but those raised with humans take longer to … accept their truth. I just wanted you to give it a chance.”

I didn’t disagree with his statement. I would have run if not for these magical restraints.

The moment my hands were free, the tension I’d had since they were first slapped on me eased, and I could finally breathe freely.

“So what now?” I said, rubbing my wrists even though they didn’t hurt.

“Now … you have a choice to make, Maddison Marie James,” Princeps Jones said, using my full name. “Do you want to stay here at the Academy, where you will spend the next four years learning about your abilities and supernatural heritage? You’ll make lifelong friends and grow more than you could ever imagine.” He paused. “Or will you throw it all away out of fear?” He paused again. “Be warned though. If you don’t choose this Academy, you still need to remain in our world until we figure out your race and train you. The closest town that can handle this is in Germany. I’m afraid that living with humans is no longer a safe or viable option for you.”

Well, when you put it like that…

Warring emotions fought inside of me, because I felt manipulated. At the same time, I was here now, and staying at the Academy felt like a better decision than an unknown town in Germany.

“Exactly what does this school offer me?” I said cautiously, “and how much does it cost?”

Princeps Jones smiled; we all knew they’d hooked me, but my motto was never make it too easy for them.

“I’m glad you asked. I’ll give you a basic rundown now, and then we can meet tomorrow in my office, before class, and I’ll go into more detail.”

That sounded like a plan I could get behind.

“You’ll have your own room here, in the magic users’ tower,” Princeps Jones began. “All the races have separate towers, and since we don’t know what yours is, I’ll go with witch for now. I’m fairly confident in ruling out vampire and shifter. So you’re witch or fey … or both if you’re mixed race. Either way, we’ll figure it out sooner or later.”

Witch or fey. I ran that through my mind, trying to connect with one of them.

“You will attend classes of your choosing,” he continued, “along with some basic ones that we assign—building blocks to your future in this world. Once we know your race, we can get more specific. As I said, you’ll make friends who are just like you, you’ll learn of your history, and you’ll find your place in a way that you never could in the human world.”