Page 64 of Slayer

Okay… So her last name probably wasn’t Blake. I laughed a little, and Celia looked at me like I was losing it. Of course my mom wouldn’t be wiring money to a vampire for twenty years!

That was crazy.

“Let’s get you home. You have school tomorrow,” Celia said as we crossed the street and headed for the park.

I tried to focus as we took the portal back to Veil Haven. I tried to think about starting at the academy and being friends with Harper and Luna and how happy Rae was going to be, living her best life in Paris.

But the only thing that kept looping around in my head was one word.

Emilie.

It was just a coincidence…

Right?

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

We’d gotten back to Celia’s house in Veil Haven just after dinner on Sunday, and Harper was there, wanting to hear all about my day. When we told her there was a bit of an attack before we reached the portal in Spokane, she lit up. Then after dinner, there was a memorial for the three students who had died in the school attack. It was a sobering reminder that this new lifestyle I had found myself in was very dangerous.

When it was time for bed, I slept in Harper’s room again.

“I’m so excited to get my hunter runes tomorrow!” Harper squealed. “I hope I’m a slayer like my mom.”

That was tomorrow? Great. Asher’s hatred for me was going to deepen during that ceremony I was sure.

“What was your dad before he started teaching?” Celia had told me, but I’d forgotten.

“Tracker,” Harper said with a bit of disappointment. “An important role but…kinda boring.”

I didn’t know about that. Finding the vamps that needed to be taken out sounded important and exciting to me.

“Does it hurt? Getting the runes?” I asked. I had no idea what the process was.

“Who cares?” Harper exclaimed. “I just hope I’m a slayer or striker.”

I smiled and then was reminded of my own mother.

Mother. The word still felt weird to say or think.

“So my mom was an arcanist in your mom’s unit?” I hedged.

Harper popped up on an elbow. “Oh yeah. One of the most powerful arcanists of her age. Half the runes protecting the school were designed by her.”

Whoa. I had no idea.

Did she cover me with all those runes when I was a baby? Probably. What did they mean?

It took me a long time to fall asleep.

The first day at Nightguard Academy was overwhelming. I got a schedule, ID card, basic hunter kit, and dorm assignment all within an hour.

I unzipped the leather duffel as I walked down the quiet hallway, the zipper rasping softly, and tipped it open just enough to glance inside. Everything was packed with almost military neatness. A roll of smooth wooden stakes sat secured with straps, their ends etched with tiny runes. A short blade in a black sheath rested along the side, the handle wrapped for grip. A small metal tin labeled in careful script held rune wafers, each slot marked for speed, light, fire, or scent veil. Two marble-size glass spheres glinted in a padded pocket, sunlight bombs if I remembered correctly. There was a compact medical pouch, a slim comms device, and a pocket-size rune notebook with crisp pages waiting to be filled.

I closed the bag gently, my pulse steadying as the weight of it settled against my hip. This wasn’t just school supplies. It was a starter kit for a life that suddenly felt very real.

Next I looked at my schedule, which felt daunting, filled with classes I knew nothing about, but it was also a little exciting.