Legacy Academy: Year One: Paranormal Academy Romance Read online

  Legacy Academy: Year One

  M Guida

  Buffalo Mountain Press

  Copyright © 2020 by M Guida

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Dear Reader

  About the Author

  Also by M Guida

  Chapter 1

  “Raven, where are you going? We need to talk.” My mom followed me out of my room like a bloodhound.

  I lifted my beach bag packed with my cellphone, swimsuit, towel, and comb. “To Stacy Miller’s end of the summer pool party. I told you this morning before I went to work. Remember?”

  Dark strands of Mom’s hair fell out of her messy bun, and worry filled her tired brown eyes. “Oh, I forgot, but Stacy’s can wait.”

  “Yeah, but I can’t.”

  She hurried down the hallway after me, her bare feet plopping softly on the hardwood floor. Mom hardly ever wore shoes, especially in the summer.

  Our ranch house wasn’t that big and only had two bedrooms––mine and hers. Mom hated carpet, so we had hardwood floors throughout the house. Small but homey.

  Mom was too close. Her body heat nearly smothered me. I swear I could feel her breath on the back of my neck, making me feel hotter than I already felt. Working as a waitress at Randy’s Pizza made me sweat with the ovens and bustling tables. Even after taking a cold shower, I was still a sweltering mess.

  “Honey, did you hear what I said?”

  “Yes, I heard you.” I plopped my bag over my shoulder.

  Blood pumped harder through me, and all I could think about was jumping into Stacy’s pool.

  “Why do you want to go to this party anyway? You’re not going to school.”

  “But my friends are, and I want to say goodbye.”

  “I think you should reconsider going to college.”

  “Mom, I told you. I’m so done with school. I just want to work for a year or two. I don’t even know what I want to do yet, so why go to college?”

  “Because you’d be safer.”

  I frowned. “What?”

  Mom’s cell phone pinged, and she pulled it out. Her face paled, and she shoved her brown hair behind her ears. “We really need to talk.”

  “Why? Who was on the phone?”

  “No one.”

  “Fine. Whatever.”

  She gestured toward the overstuffed leather sofa in the living room. “Raven, can’t we just sit for a few minutes? I’ll take you to Stacy’s party later. We need to talk about your future. Now.”

  My T-shirt and shorts stuck to my hot skin. The stuffy living room with the wall-to-wall furniture and fireplace was the last place I wanted to talk. Chlorine and fresh air were on the agenda.

  “We’ll talk to tomorrow. I want to party tonight.”

  “You can party another time.”

  “Really? Remember, it’s my birthday. I want to go out with my friends.”

  She smiled and stroked my arms. “I know it is, sweetheart. I’m so proud of everything you accomplished in high school and that’s why we need to talk.”

  A car rumbled outside, and a red Mustang pulled up alongside the sidewalk.

  Honk Honk Honk

  My best friend Julie sat in her graduation present from her dad. She looked like a movie star with her blonde hair pulled into a glorious ponytail and wearing her dark sunglasses.

  What did I get from mine? Nada. Not even a damn card.

  “Tomorrow, Mom. We’ll talk tomorrow. I promise.”

  Mom slipped in front of me and clutched my arms. Desperation flickered in her green eyes. “Please, listen to me. We need to settle this tonight. It’s important. Don’t stay out too late.”

  “Why?” I jerked free of her grasp. “What’s so special about tonight?”

  “It’s your eighteenth birthday.” She cleared her throat. “There are some things you should know about me. About your dad.”

  “The last thing I want to talk about is my dad. He said plenty when he left us.”

  “Raven––”

  I held up a finger. “Don’t. I was only eight when he walked out. Just drop it.”

  Mom put her shaking hand on her forehead. “You don’t understand.”

  “I don’t want to understand. I’ve got to go.”

  Beep Beep Beep

  She glanced nervously through the plantation blinds. “Please, I don’t think we should put off talking about your future. There are things you should know.”

  “We’ll talk tomorrow.” I impatiently whipped open the front door. “Julie’s waiting.”

  “Be careful.” Mom hugged me hard. “No matter what happens, remember I love you.”

  “Will you stop?” I wiggled out of her bearhug. “I’m only going out for a couple of hours. What’s with you? You’ve been acting weird all day.”

  “Nothing.” She wiped her glistening cheeks. “I’m fine.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. I promise.” She motioned with her hand. “Go with Julie. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

  I slowly headed toward the Mustang, but I couldn’t shake the feeling something was really wrong. Mom leaned against the door and crossed her arms. She gave me a weak smile and looked so small. Mom and I were both the same petite firecrackers.

  But tonight, her flickering flame seemed to have been doused.

  I hesitated.

  Julie honked the horn again. Her yellow sweetheart sundress showed off her fabulous tan. Cut off jean shorts and a lacy midriff weren’t her thing.

  “Come on, Raven.” She pulled her sunglasses down her nose, showing off her big blue eyes. “We’re going to be late.”

  I waved. “Bye, Mom. I promise we’ll talk tomorrow.”

  She nodded, but didn’t answer.

  Something in my gut told me to stay, but I didn’t want to be late to the party.

  “What’s with your mom?” Julie pulled away from the curb. “She looked so sad.”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know.” I fingered the dragon charm necklace she’d given me that morning. “She kept insisting we talk about my future like it was life or death.”

  “That’s bizarre.” Julie glanced at me. “I’m sure everything’s okay. Maybe she’s just tired.”

  “Maybe.” Mom didn’t seem like herself. More like a nervous newt. “I don’t know. Mom kept insisting I talk with her about my future. Like tonight was super important.”

  Julie patted my thigh. “Well, it is important, girlfriend. You’re eighteen, and it’s the end of summer pool party!”

  Trying to shake the gloomy feeling in my gut, I laughed. “Yeah.” I raised my arms and wiggled in my seat. “Party, party, party.”

  Within a few minutes, we were at Stac
y’s. We could have walked, but Julie loved to driving her Mustang.

  Talk about pampered. Stacy’s house––no, mansion––oozed money. It sat on five acres, had a stable with horses, and a barn bigger than my house. Her dad was a pilot for United Airlines, and her mom was a lawyer. Stacy was the only girl and spoiled rotten.

  Julie had to park a ways down the long driveway. We grabbed our stuff. Music blared from the backyard.

  I reached into my bag. “I’m gonna call Mom to make sure she’s okay.”

  She grabbed hers out of the backseat. “Yeah, of course.”

  “Mom?”

  “Raven, where are you? Are you safe?” Her shaking voice echoed with fear.

  “At Stacy’s. What’s wrong?”

  Bam Bam Bam

  “Mom, what’s that sound?”

  “Raven, I need you to stay away. Don’t come home.”

  I stiffened. “Mom, what’s going on?”

  Ka-Boom Sharak

  Mom screamed. “Stay away from me.”

  My eyes widened, and I tightened my grip. “Mom! What’s happening?”

  Clank

  “Mom! Answer me!”

  Whumpf

  “Mom, are you there?” My voice choked.

  Glass shattered. A loud shriek stopped my heart.

  Julie clasped my arm. “Raven, what’s wrong?”

  “I’ve got to go home. Something’s wrong.”

  Her green eyes widened. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. I’ve got to go.”

  “Raven, wait! We should call the police.”

  “Then call them!”

  I ran as fast as I could, my arms and legs pumping. By the time Julie turned around her Mustang and maneuvered through the cars coming down the crowded driveway, I’d be home.

  Despite living next to open space, Stacy lived only a half mile from me.

  I sped to my front lawn and gasped. Piles of splintered wood littered the front porch and the entryway. I froze. I inhaled smoke and coughed. My eyes watered.

  “Mom!”

  Sirens flared.

  I rushed inside and skidded to a stop. My heart dropped to my feet.

  Flames flickered on the hardwood floor. Red sparks glowed on the leather couch. Out of the smoke, a tall, mountain man with long blond hair and a beard emerged with Mom thrown over his broad shoulders, and he held her limp legs.

  “Mom!”

  But she didn’t move.

  The man narrowed his golden eyes at me and smiled. A pair of black wings flipped out from his back. He rushed toward me, but I picked up a vase, the only weapon I had, and threw it at him. “Let go of my mom.”

  The vase whizzed past him. I don’t know how I could miss.

  He stretched out his hand to seize me.

  I ducked.

  He laughed and held out one palm.

  FWOP FWOP FWOP

  A dark figure emerged in the smoke, but the smoke burned and blurred my eyes. I couldn’t tell what it was.

  The mountain man scowled and hissed. “You have to choose. You can’t save them both.” A ball of fire formed in his palm.

  Not possible.

  I coughed, nearly hacking up a lung. “Mom. Wake up.”

  Suddenly, the He-man threw the fireball.

  Scrreeeeee

  I screamed. Pain hit me square in the chest, and I smashed into the fireplace and hit my head on the mantel. Stars fluttered around me as agony exploded in the back of my skull. My vision blurred, and my lungs burned. All I heard was the man’s fading evil laugh.

  “Mom.” My voice croaked.

  WEEEEOOWEEEE

  Sirens screeched outside. Red and white lights pierced through the fog.

  “Raven, are you in there?” Julie’s frantic voice called from outside.

  “You can’t go in there, Miss,” a rough voice said.

  I tried to answer but only let out a small gasped.

  Water streamed inside, and steam swished around me.

  Flames flickered around me, growing higher and higher. Blistering heat closed around me. I moved my hand frantically in front of my face, but strength left me. My eyes fluttered. “Mom? Mom?”

  Someone grabbed my hand and carried me out of the fiery blaze. The last thing I remembered was a pair of red eyes.

  Chapter 2

  Fog swirled around in my brain. I moved my head and winced. Pain exploded in the back of my skull, making me moan.

  “Lie still, Raven.”

  I frowned, not recognizing the soft male voice.

  Someone brushed long fingers over my skin. “Interesting you have that necklace.”

  I slowly forced my eyes to open and froze.

  A dark long-haired man with a mustache and goatee wearing a leather jacket and a pair of jeans sat next to me. I lay in a red canopy bed in the middle of the most luxurious bedroom I’ve ever seen, furnished in Dracula style. Long velvet drapes were pulled back to reveal French doors that seemed to lead to a balcony. Two chairs with high straight backs and arms faced a fireplace. A hand-carved oak dresser was three times the size of mine.

  I knocked his hand away and clutched the pendant. Mom had given me the necklace for my eighteenth birthday. “Don’t touch me.” I immediately went into coughing attack; my lungs seized up, and tears blurred my vision.

  “Don’t move,” he said. “You have a concussion.”

  I scooted away from him and got rewarded with more anguish. My throat went dry, and my stomach swirled uneasily.

  “Just lay still, Raven. I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe.”

  Who was he kidding? I gulped for air and frowned. “Who are you?”

  “My name is Anton Lange. I’m a friend of your mom’s.”

  “Where’s Mom? Is she okay? Did the police catch that mountain man?”

  He shook his head. “No, they didn’t.”

  Tears pushed on the back of my eyes. “Do they know who has her?”

  “No.”

  “Do you?”

  Anton’s brown eyes darkened, and he gently padded a cool rag on my slick forehead. “Unfortunately, the leader of the Dark Demons, Ryker, has her.”

  “Demons? Are you serious?”

  He smiled. “Your mom raised you human and sheltered you from our supernatural world.”

  Great, mom’s friend was a looney.

  “You don’t believe I’m a vampire, do you?”

  I shrugged, but kept my mouth shut.

  “Fine. I’ll prove it to you.” He pulled back his upper lip. Fangs elongated and his brown eyes turned red.

  My mouth dropped, and my heart pressed against my chest.

  “I’m a vampire, and the Headmaster of Legacy Academy.”

  I put my shaking hand on my throat. “Vampires... don’t exist.”

  “Actually, they do. So do demons, shifters, elves, witches, angels, and shifters.”

  The thick blankets pinned me to the mattress, and I broke in a hot sweat.

  “What… what are you going to do?”

  He cocked his eyebrow. “Do? Nothing.” His fangs disappeared into his gums, and his eyes returned to brown.

  “What do you want?” I pressed the blanket against my neck.

  “I have a proposition for you.”

  “I’m not going to be your blood slave.”

  “That wasn’t my proposition. Don’t you want to know where you are?”

  “In Transylvania?”

  He laughed. “You’re in my private quarters at Legacy Academy.”

  Figures.

  “Just in case you’re wondering,” he said. “We’re still in Colorado. The Academy is shielded from mortal eyes.”

  I stared at the door that was across the room and wondered if I had even a half a chance before he pounced on me. I had to call the cops, the FBI, Julie, or whoever.

  “I need to call the police.”

  “That would be foolish.” He followed my gazed as if he knew I was thinking.

  Idiot, of course, h
e knew. He was a freaking vampire and could read minds.

  “The police aren’t equipped to find your mother, and relying on them would only lead her to a worse fate.”

  I gave him a hard stare. “You’re a liar.” Every time I moved even the slightest, my head threatened to explode.

  The lines around his mouth and eyes tightened. “If you want to save your mother, you need to listen to me.”

  I put my fingers on my pounding temples, trying to piece together what he was saying. This couldn’t be happening.

  He got up and grabbed one of the ornate chairs facing the fireplace. He sat next to the bed. “I know you have a thousand questions.”

  I dropped my arms. “Was that mountain man with black wings Ryker?”

  “No, that was Faas. One of Ryker’s henchmen.”

  “So, do all Dark Demons have wings?”

  “Yes. And so do Golden Demons, except theirs are gold.”

  “I’m having a hard time believing all of this.”

  “You’re very lucky. Not many supernatural beings can survive one of Faas’s fireballs.”

  “You’re bat shit crazy. I’m human.”

  “You survived a fireball unharmed. Only a powerful dragon shifter could have survived.”

  “Unharmed? Tell that to my pounding skull.”

  “That’s not from the fireball. Don’t believe me.” He scanned his gaze over me. “Check your body. Not a single burn mark. Your head hurts because you slammed into the fireplace marble mantel.”

  “I can’t think. My head hurts.”

  “Stay here. I’ll get something for you.” He got out of his chair and disappeared through a door. I tossed back the blanket and sat up, immediately regretting it. Agony stabbed the back of my head, and my gut did a nausea spin.

  But I didn’t have a single burn mark on my skin. How could this be?

  Anton came back, holding a cup of water. “These pain killers will ease your aching head.” He handed me the cup and pills.” You need to rest, and right now, you’re not officially enrolled in the academy, so you don’t have a room.”