Forsaken (Book #1)

I stared at him in pure bewilderment, not quite sure if I had heard him right. He was sent here to protect me? Protect me from what? Evil modern day appliances? I wasn’t in any danger. My family may be rich but they weren’t rich enough to have a ton of enemies that would require me having a bodyguard.

“I’m sorry, what are you supposed to be protecting me from?” I asked him, crossing my arms.

I didn’t believe one word that he was saying, though he hadn’t said much. I didn’t need a protector or a bodyguard or whatever the heck he was supposed to be.

“Afterdark.” He answered, making it sound so mysterious.

“What the heck is, Afterdark?” I questioned frustration and confusion coloring my tone.

“I can’t tell you.” Grayson muttered.

I narrowed my eyes at him. If he couldn’t even tell me what it was, why even mention it at all?

“You don’t understand, telling you will put you in more danger.” Grayson said, trying to make me understand his point of view.

But I didn’t. Maybe he was just trying to protect me – but couldn’t he just protect me from the shadows? He didn’t have to introduce himself to me. Unless…it was because I could things when other people couldn’t.

Wait. Was I seriously buying this? I mean, there wasn’t much that seemed impossible to believe. You know, other than the fact that I needed a protector. Grayson appeared tangible and real, but so had the other boy. Finally I sighed, coming to a decision.

I needed to know what was going on. What was happening around me and there would be no beating around the bush. If he refused to tell me, I wouldn’t accept his protection.

“Tell me what’s going on.” I said my voice firm. Grayson looked ready to argue but I swiftly continued, “Tell me or I won’t accept your protection. I’ll do everything possible to thwart you.”

A furious look crossed Grayson’s face before being replaced by a resigned look. He sighed, running a hand through his dark hair.

“The Afterdark is a…for lack of a better word, cult. That’s all you need to know about them. They want to kill you,” Grayson revealed, “because you were able to see their top two assassins Alaric and Lucian, and you were able to see the aftermath of an explosive battle. So they want to end you before you can become a threat.”

“I wouldn’t be a threat though. I don’t know how to fight and I’m probably the weakest human around,” I pointed out. I eyed him doubtfully. “Are you just making this up?”

“Of course not!” Grayson sounded affronted.

I hummed, not fully believing him. Unless he could provide me with some sort of proof, it was unlikely that I was ever going to believe him. And his reluctance to talk about what was going on, wasn’t really reassuring.

“I knew that you wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” Grayson muttered, seeming like he was talking to himself. Then he looked back up at me. “Look, I can provide you with proof. Just give me a little time.”

I pursed my lips. Then I gave a stiff nod. A beaming smile shot across Grayson’s face and then he was running out the door and down the street before completely vanishing. Oh I was definitely going insane.

* * * * *

That night I tossed and turned as I tried to sleep. My life it seemed was going to spiral out of control. Everything was going to change, I could just feel it. And I had this sickening feeling that it wouldn’t be for the better. Waking up in the morning was a difficult affair. It was hard for me to actually gain the motivation to get out of bed and then ever harder for me to drag myself out the front door and into the car that was waiting to take me to school. One would think that after a fire and a death, that the school would be closed for several days. But nope. Our school had declared that it would be opened right away and that classes would resume immediately. The car pulled up to the school and I quickly stepped out, my bag clutched tightly in my hand.

The wind buffeted me, stirring my hair and causing it to fly in front of my face. Irritated I brushed my hair out of my face and felt my mouth drop open. The school was in ruins. By that I mean it was all rubble and ash, with a fire burning in the back of a building. My eyes fell on figures fighting near the school, with magic and swords. Blood spilled onto the ground and winged women flew down from the heavens, grabbing the bodies and flying them away before flying into the fray, lances and celestial swords appearing in their hands as they attacked figures clothed in all black.

In the mass of bodies fighting, I could make out a shock of golden hair. His head turned towards me, golden eyes meeting mine and I withheld a gasp. I blinked and then the whole scene was gone, leaving me standing there with wide eyes as I gasped for breath.

I rubbed at my temple with my forefinger and I wanted to cry. I was going crazy. There was no other explanation for it. No matter what Grayson said, I was going crazy. There wasn’t some crazy cult out there to get me just because I saw their top two assassins. No, I was going crazy because things – people! – don’t just disappear and reappear with a blink of an eye. Not unless one is hallucinating and going crazy.

Which is clearly what is happening to me.

“Hey Cal,” Cassie said sidling up to me and linking our arms. “You okay? You look a little disoriented.”

“Yeah,” I lied, “I’m just a little tired.”

“You should take a mental health day then.” Cassie said towing me towards the school. “I know that I would have if my parents didn’t threaten to cut off my allowance.”

“You mean your yacht fund?” I questioned wryly.

“Potato, potato.” Cassie said with a wave of her hand. “Anyways, are you sure you’re okay? You don’t look to good. By that I mean, you’re pale but paler than usual, and you have these hideous bags underneath your eyes.”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I lied once more, “I’m just tired Cassie, like I told you.”

She hummed but didn’t look like she believed me. If I looked as bad as she said I did – I probably looked 100 times worse than what she said though – then I wouldn’t believe me either. But I couldn’t talk to her about what was going on. Even though she was my best friend and had been for some time, she would drop me like a hot potato if she found out I was seeing things that weren’t really there. I wasn’t going to risk my friendship with Cassie over things that weren’t real.

Over things that couldn’t be real. Uh uh. No way. Not happening. I was just going to forget about it, and if I had to take some pills to alleviate my headache and stop hallucinations. That was it. If it worsened then I would tell Cassie. Maybe. But for now, I could handle it on my own.

Walking into school was a foreign feeling. We had been gone all summer and then on the first actual day back, we weren’t able to come back because of a fire and a murder. Because of all that, it kind of felt like we weren’t supposed to be at school. Something that didn’t really worry me at all, because I didn’t want to be here.

“So I know Halloween is like two months away, but I have these awesome costume ideas already thought up.” Cassie said as we headed to the second floor where our lockers were. “Of course I’ll go as a sexy Vampire and you go as a sexy angel.”

“Hearing ‘sexy’ and ‘angel’ in the same sentence just doesn’t sound right,” I murmured with a small laugh.

Cassie gave a light giggle and then promptly slapped me on the arm. “Shut up,” she said although there was no concealing the laughter still evident in her voice. “But seriously what else could you be? A sexy demon? No, you’re too innocent for that. So sexy angel it is.”

I rolled my eyes but didn’t attempt to disagree with her. If she had her mind set on me going as a sexy angel for Halloween then that is what I would be going as. I wouldn’t be able to change her mind. That was one reason why we were such good friends. I was indecisive and Cassie wasn’t. She didn’t second guess her choices and she helped me to do the same.

“The party is still going to be at my house and there will be copious amounts of alcohol.” Cassie continued, ignoring my reactions. “Of course all upper classmen will be invited but definitely no freshmen. What do you think?”

“Why are you asking me?” I said with a laugh. “You’ve already made up your mind Cass.”

“I know.” Cassie said with a shrug of her shoulders. “But getting someone else’s take is important. Whatever.”

She opened her locker, and stuffed her purse into it. She closed the door, securing it with a lock and turned to me.

“You look tired Cal. Are you really sure that you’re okay?” She peered at me, worry in her eyes and in her body language.

“Yes,” I said a little annoyed. “I’m fine, Cassie. You’re worrying too much.”

Cassie rolled her eyes but chose not to argue with me. Her concern was heartwarming. However, this was the third or fourth time that she had asked me if I was fine. Now it was starting to get a little more annoying than heartwarming. Cassie flicked her hair over her shoulder, her eyes roving the hallways searching from something or someone. I closed my eyes, leaning my head against the locker.

A headache was building and I wanted to stave it off as best as I could. When I reopened my eyes, I was standing in the middle of the ruined high school, ash falling from the sky around me. Fire was burning and I looked around nervously, my eyes wide. In front of me there were dozens of people fighting. Bodies were falling and I could see the golden haired boy in the middle of the fray.

He moved with a deadly grace, the blade in his hand glinting harshly in the sunlight. He was mesmerizing to watch, even as he killed people. He paused in his movements, his head turning and his eyes landing on me. I froze, my breath stilling as he stared at me. Then with a blink, the whole thing had vanished taking the golden haired boy along with it.

Coming back to the present – or reality – I rubbed at my temples. If what Grayson had said – if he was even real – was true then that boy was an assassin and would later be after me to kill me. But if I was just hallucinating there was nothing to worry about. I looked to my left, my eyes meeting Cassie’s and I could see that she was staring worriedly at me, her eyebrows creased with concern.

She didn’t say anything for a few minutes. Then, “Calla, maybe you should go home. You keep zoning out and you don’t look too good.”

“No. I’m fine.” I lied shaking my head.

She pursed her lips, looking like she didn’t believe me. I didn’t care. I was determined to make it through the school day no matter what. Crazy hallucinations – at least I’m eighty percent sure they’re hallucinations – and all. Besides if what Grayson had said was true and assassins were going to be sent after me then leaving school because of a few headaches and hallucinations was the least of my problems.