Nephilim (Academy of the Fallen #2) (3 page)

SIX

Angela gave me a change of clothes… a pair of jeans and a plain white shirt.  I hated that place already.  Once I was ready, I opened the door and she came back in.

“I know that Mr. Daniels already told you this, but just as a reminder, if anyone asks you must say you are one of the haunted.  Never, EVER, mention that you are a Nephilim or even that you know of its existence.”

“Why?” I asked.  “What does it really matter if they know?”

“Because in this Academy there is no in between, you are either a fallen or one of the haunted.  Mr. Daniels doesn’t want any disturbances or any speculations about where you came from.”

“You can just come out and say it.  I know that you mean he doesn’t want anyone knowing that he is my—my biological father.”

“Kayla, there is more to this world than you can possibly imagine.  Trust me that his reasons are not personal.”

“… but won’t the others know what I supposedly am?”

“They won’t.  The only ones who know will keep it quiet.  Now let’s go,” she said in a warning tone, clearly indicating that she was done with the questions.

Before we even left the building, she said, “You know… you should give him a chance.”

“He gave me away when I was only three years old!  He doesn’t deserve a chance!”

“No, I’m not talking about Mr. Daniels, although you should give him a chance as well.  I’m talking about Hunter.”

I gave her a puzzled look.

“He was willing to risk his life for you.”

“His life?” I asked.

“Yes.  Please keep this a secret if you don’t want to see him get in trouble, but I sensed when he went for you… that is one of my abilities.  Anyway, for one of the haunted to go to the Otherworld in order to bring someone back…” She shook her head,  “that is very risky.”

I just kept quiet.  Clearly, this woman didn’t know that Hunter, like me, didn’t belong to either of their ‘categories’.  I remembered back when Hunter told me about what he was… an immortal…  He had mentioned that only his mentor knew what he was, and it was obvious that Mr. Daniels was his mentor.  I just wondered why Mr. Daniels would trust Angela with knowing about what I am, but not about Hunter.

I froze as soon as that front door was open. 

Outside of this place was like a different world.  It was nothing like home.  It was foggy, cold…  the building that now stood behind me looked ancient, and all I could see around the Academy were mountains.  The Academy would remind anyone of an old, creepy castle. 

It was early afternoon, but it looked gloomy.  Angela showed me the important places including Mr. Daniels’ office and some of the classroom buildings.

At that time of the day there weren’t many of
them
outside.  Angela explained that most were in training.  Still, there were—beings walking around and they all seemed to be staring and talking about me.  That actually gave me a sense of familiarity.  I guess that gossiping about the new girl is the same everywhere.  I only wished that I wasn’t that new girl.

Up until that point I couldn’t even tell the difference between the so-called haunted and the fallen, with the exception of those who clearly displayed their wings for everyone to see.

“Questions?” Angela asked.

“Yes, how do I tell the difference… you know, the haunted from the fallen?”

“Some of the fallen have gained their wings back.  Others have scars where their wings used to be, but you won’t be able to tell unless those scars are exposed.  Mostly, you will be able to tell by instinct… eventually, that is.”

I didn’t say anything… just kept walking. 

“These are the dorms,” she said.  “I’m not sure how much Hunter has told you about the Academy.  Clearly, he has told you a few things or you would have had questions.  Anyway, you will have a roommate, and--”

I didn’t like that at all.  Not once in my life did I have to share a room and I wasn’t going to start now.  “I don’t want a roommate,” I interrupted.

“It is not optional, Kayla.  All of the haunted room with one of the fallen.”

I took a deep breath.  “Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse.”

“Things will improve over time.  You will get used to how we run things,” she said dismissively.

“Whatever…”

She clearly ignored my rant.  “There will be clothes already in your room, and there is a schedule of classes that you will start tomorrow.  Your roommate will be accompanying you to most of your classes.  The majority of them are with the haunted and quite a few are normal classes for when you go back to… well, to your mundane life.”

I couldn’t help but to smile at the sound of that.  Maybe Mr. Daniels wasn’t lying after all.  There was a possibility that I would get out of this place.

Angela continued, “Mr. Daniels arranged for you to take private lessons to catch up with everyone else.  Those will teach you what you need to know in relation to what you are.  Tools you will need to protect yourself from beings like your brother.  I will be picking you up for those classes, which happen to be when your roommate has her own private lessons.  Less things to explain.”

“Ugh.  You all sure do a lot of lying and sneaking around.  Aren’t these fallen ones supposed to be getting a second chance for their mistakes?  Doesn’t seem like lying would send the right message.”

I swear I could see Angela grinning as if she agreed with what I was saying.  “Sometimes, lies are a necessity in order to protect the ones who need protecting.”

I shrugged.  I now fully understood why Hunter had trust issues with everyone in the Academy.

***

The hallways leading to the dorms were empty and cold.  Angela opened the door to my room, and inside wasn’t so different.  Bare walls… bare everything. 

“Your roommate’s name is Ember.  She should be here in about one hour so that should give you time to adjust.”

I nodded.  Looking around, I didn’t see how anyone could stay in that room and actually be able to sleep without having nightmares.

“Meal times are on your schedule.  Ember will lead you there.  Is there anything else that you need?” she asked.

“Yes, why is Ember here?”  If I was going to share this room, I wanted to at least know what I would have to watch my back for.

Angela smiled.  “Nothing too serious, I suppose.  You will soon find that Ember has a very spontaneous personality, and she is very… how can I put this?... She is very flirty.”

I rolled my eyes.  “Great!  My ‘protector’ is the Academy’s slut.”

Angela actually laughed; then quickly recovered, but she was still grinning.  “I’m sorry, that wasn’t funny.  Excuse my behavior.  It is not exactly like that.  Ember is one of the fallen angels of lust.  It is not something that she can help.  It is like an addiction.  Truly, if you consider what others are here for, that is barely an issue at all.”

“If you say so.”

SEVEN

Hunter

Hunter barged into Daniels’ office.

“This is becoming a very annoying habit of yours, Mr. Chambers,” said Daniels.

“I saw them walking toward the dorms.  You must have decided who will be around Kayla.  I want to know who.”

Daniels looked startled.  “I owe you no explanations, Mr. Chambers, but since this seems to be important enough for you to skip class, which you will be making up by the way… Kayla is staying with Ember.”

“Are you freaking kidding me?”

“That is enough, Hunter!  You know that Ember’s problems hurt no one but herself.  She is the best choice for Kayla.  Now, you need to go back to class.”

Hunter hesitated to leave.  “Mr. Daniels, what are you going to do about Kayla’s situation with her parents… I mean, with Mr. and Mrs. Gallagher?”

“I will figure something out.  This is not something you should be worried about.”

“I have an idea that may help.”

That got Daniels attention, because he really did have no idea on how to proceed.  He had a feeling that Kayla wouldn’t stop trying to find ways to contact her adoptive parents… it was only a matter of time before he ran out of excuses.

“I’m listening.”

“Chase—“

Daniels interrupted.  “As I said before, Chase cannot be allowed in here.”

Hunter was getting frustrated.  “Yes, I know!  But Kayla knows Chase.  If I could maybe summon him to the Academy’s gates and ask him to keep an eye on things for Kayla… to let her get updates about her parents through him…”

“…and just how are you going to convince Kayla to listen to you?  She seemed to want you away.”

Hunter ignored that reminder.  “I will find a way.”

Hunter got up to leave.

“Sit down, Hunter,” ordered Daniels.

Daniels sighed.  “I must admit that you know a lot more about Kayla than I had anticipated.  What can you tell me that might help her let go of her adoptive parents?”

Hunter looked at him, startled.  “Not a thing.  Kayla loves them.  Mr. and Mrs. Gallagher would do anything for her and I know it is not my place, but you shouldn’t even attempt that route with Kayla.”

Daniels hid his anger, mostly because he needed to know more about his daughter and Hunter was the only one around who really knew her.  “Okay then...  Tell me about Kayla so that I can find ways to help her adjust faster.”

Hunter grinned.  There was something different about him whenever he talked about Kayla.  “Kayla is… different.  You can’t predict her.  She does what she wants, when she wants.”

“I did notice that she lacks discipline.  I can tell that she was spoiled by her adoptive parents.”

“She did live a sheltered life, but no, that is not what I meant.  Kayla is strong willed…. She gets something in her head and she goes with it… and as you can already tell, don’t cross her or you won’t be trusted.  You have to work to gain her trust and work even harder to keep it.”

Daniels looked at Hunter, eyebrows arched, thinking that Kayla was going to be the most difficult person to deal with in the entire Academy, but mostly thinking about how much Kayla was exactly like he used to be.

EIGHT

Kayla

Inside the drawer there was nothing but jeans and white or black shirts. 
They have got to be kidding me!
  I thought to myself.  The shoes they had left me were just as awful…. And those bare walls were going to drive me insane.

On the desk, there was my class schedule and other things.  The schedule was umm… interesting, for the lack of a better word.  There were a few plain regular classes, then Latin, Religion, Ancient History, Philosophy, Meditation, and the so-called private lessons.  I would literally be in classes most of the day.  At that time, I would have given anything to get out of it, but looking back, I would never wish for what did happen to cause my schedule load to lighten, so to speak.

When Ember walked in the room, all I could do was stare at her.  She was definitely not what I expected.  She had long blond hair with red highlights and she wore a short, tight cute black dress with awful looking boots.

All I could say was, “Cute dress.”

She smiled.  “I’m Ember… you must be Kayla.”

I nodded.

“How come you don’t wear these awful clothes they gave me?  Please tell me there is somewhere around here where I can get something different to wear.”

“I like you already,” she said.  “Unfortunately, what you see is what you get, but when you are not in class, help yourself to my closet.”

“Thanks.  How did you get that stuff anyway?”

“I have my ways,” she said.

“Any chance you have a cell phone or a computer hidden somewhere?”

Ember laughed.  “I guess I’m not that good after all.  Even if I did have them, there would be no signal, no Internet connection.  There is a phone line, but that only goes to Mr. Daniels office and there is just no way you will get to use it without approval.”

“Oh.”

“Look, I know most of you humans hate to talk to the dead, but you could use that to your advantage.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… if there is one of those dead people who you can manipulate in some way… you can have them watch over your human family…give you updates… I’ve seen some of the haunted doing that before.”

“But will I be able to summon them from here?”

“I don’t think so… You will have to go to the front gates where the protection is not as strong as in the heart of the academy.  You may not be able to do it… depends on how strong you are.  I can help you,” she offered.  “Best time to do that will be at night.”

Something about her willingness to help threw me off, and soon, I realized that she was trying to gain my trust for a reason.

“So… what is the deal with you and Chambers?” she asked.

“There is no deal.”

“Are you sure about that?”

I nodded.

“Excellent.  I would hate to get into arguments with my new roomie over a guy.”

“That meaning?”

“That meaning, I have dibs on him.”

I shrugged, turned around and rolled my eyes.  Based on the girls from my school, I mean… old school, Ember was exactly the type of girl that Hunter would stay away from. 

I went back to organizing my side of the room, even though there was barely anything to organize.

I thought that making friends would make it easier to get out of here.  Now, I wasn’t so sure.

After I ran out of things to do, there was nothing left but awkward silence between Ember and I.  I lay down on my bed.  Ember now sat on her bed, holding and staring at a drawing pad as if she was waiting for something to just automatically happen to it.

It was getting dark when Ember suddenly threw her drawing pad down and sat up looking at me.

“So, have you thought about my offer?”

Something about her tone bothered me.  I snapped back, “I’m still thinking about it.”

“Really?!  I’m offering you something that should require a simple yes or no answer.  It is not that difficult!”

“Look, there are risks, okay?  I just got here and I don’t know you… I don’t know this place.  If I want some time to think about it before making my decision, that is what I will do!”

Honestly, I knew I was going to move forward with the plan.  I just didn’t want her help in doing so.

She seemed frustrated at my refusal.  The lights had gone off by then.  She said she was bored and even though there was a curfew in place, she snuck out.  Once Ember left, I knew that was my chance to get away.

I still didn’t know my way around, but I could see the front gates from my window.  I knew that I would be able to find my way there.

It was dark outside, and the fog didn’t make it hard for me to hide from the few people who were out.

Once I reached the front gates, I crouched in the corner, closed my eyes, and tried to summon Chase.  He was the only one I knew.  Hunter seemed to have trusted him… so I decided to take my chances.

“You shouldn’t be here by yourself,”
he
whispered.  “What are you doing here anyway?”

The sound should have startled me, but Hunter’s voice was so familiar, so soothing, that it didn’t even make me flinch.

I opened my eyes.

“I wanted to talk to Chase.”

“Alone?”

“Yeah, well… my roommate offered help, but I got the impression that she wanted me to owe her for something.”

“Smart move,” he said.  “They are not to be trusted.”

I laughed.  “I AM one of them, Hunter.”

“I didn’t mean it like that, Kayla.”

“It doesn’t matter.  You kept things from me!”

“Kayla, I didn’t have a choice.”

“There are always choices.  The ones who claim not to have one, only do so because they are afraid of living with the consequences of their decisions.”

Hunter didn’t say anything to that.

“So, do you want to tell me what you want to talk to Chase about?”

“No, I don’t.”  I got up and started to walk away.

“Kayla,” he called.

I looked back.

“I would never compare you to any of them.  You are different.  You are not like any of them… you are not like anyone else I’ve ever met.”

No matter how hard I tried, there was just no way not to grin at that.  I just couldn’t stay mad at him.  I hoped that he didn’t notice me grin, but he did.  He rushed toward me, putting his hand on the back of my neck, he slowly pulled me toward him and kissed me… making me think for the first time that there was the slightest chance that what I thought I had heard while I was in the Otherworld, was true.

When we stopped kissing, he reached for my hand, our fingers entwined, and he met my gaze.  “I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you about your father.”

“Hunter… that honestly doesn’t bother me as much as you not telling me about what I really am.”

“Kayla,” he whispered.  “That, I didn’t know, I swear!  Like I told you before, I didn’t even know about Daniels being a fallen… no one does but very few of the fallen.”

“… and you are not lying about that?” I asked.

“No, I’m not.”

I believed Hunter.  Trusting people didn’t come easy for me.  The only ones I was ever able to count on were my adoptive parents.  Yet, here I was, in a place where I knew no one.  Trusting Hunter became easier. 

I told Hunter that I wanted to summon Chase; that I wanted to ask him to keep an eye on my parents.  He said he was thinking the same, but was surprised that I had come up with that.

When I told him that Ember had been the one to suggest it, Hunter looked puzzled, reminding me again not to trust her.  I wasn’t going to argue with that.

“Was she in your room when you left?  Did she see you leaving?” he asked.

“No, she snuck out before I did.”

He rolled his eyes.  “You should probably go back and try to beat her there.  Don’t need her knowing that you were gone.”

“…but Chase?”

“I will take care of it for you.”

I nodded and turned to leave.

Hunter stopped me.  “Crap,” he said as he looked at his watch.  “They’ll probably be doing their rounds at any time now.  I will take you back.”

Hunter shielded me so that I was not visible.  He then led me into the building, and to my room.  Once by the door, he gave me a quick unexpected kiss, whispered to be careful around Ember, and left.

Luckily, she wasn’t there when I entered the room.