Page 1

Chapter 1

TATE

I hiked my duffel higher on my shoulder, gazing up at the great stone building in front of me. Gray rock stretched toward the sky. Gothic wrought-iron gates creaked open in front of me, like they just knew I was there. Ivy crawled up the exterior of the building, and tall turrets on each corner stretched high into the sky, coming to a point like a gothic castle straight from a storybook. Large gargoyles perched to either side of the massive wooden door. The air was warm, comfortable for now, but the threat of “too-cold” lingered just beneath the surface. Nothing like the bitter, frigid temperatures back home.

I grunted and stumbled as something crashed into my shoulder, somehow regaining my footing before catching a mouthful of dirt.

“Watch it, bro!”

A tall shape blurred past me, dashing away with any hope I had of responding. Did… did he have antennae?

I picked my jaw up from the ground. You aren’t in Kansas anymore, Tate.

Shaking my head to clear it, I stepped over the threshold, effectively beginning my time at Creelin University.

A light blew my mousy curls into my face, tickling my nose. Noises filtered through the windows and open doors, voices of the upperclassmen that had already been on campus for a day.

A whole twenty-four hours to reunite with old friends and make new ones. As usual, I was behind literally everyone else. With a deep breath, I forced my feet up the concrete steps, between the two great gargoyles perched there. Their stone surfaces glistened with what must have been evidence of a light rainfall.

The large wooden doors were propped open, students and staff milled about, a mix of humans and monsters alike. I tried hard to keep from staring.

Standing in front of me were some of the most mythical creatures I’d only ever heard about. I tugged at the hem of my oversized hoodie, feeling out of place in my old, tattered clothes in a room where everyone else had stepped right out of a fairytale.

A flicker of motion caught my eye. I turned, and saw one gargoyle that looked… different from the others. His iridescent skin was closer to a deep plum rather than rocky stone like the others. He hovered near a closed doorway, seeming to watch the room. Curiosity had me moving in closer for a better look. Though when I got a few feet away, a neon blue rushed over his eyes, and he looked directly at me.

I yelped and leapt backward, only to freeze when the creature took a step toward me. There went my jaw again, sinking to the floor like it belonged there. The figure I assumed to be a statue smiled at me, and I reminded myself that it was rude to stare.

Even here.

“Sorry,” he said in a deep, gravelly voice that matched the great creature standing in front of me. He towered above me, easily a foot taller than I was, maybe more. And he could have thrown me around like a ragdoll if he wanted to.> Long black hair cascaded down his shoulders, with twisted horns protruding from his forehead. His strong, chiseled jaw and intense cheekbones gave him an intimidating look, but his smile gave him away. He knelt, picking up my bag with a single claw-tipped finger and offering it back to me. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I was only trying to find my permanent spot. I’m Ryker.”

“T-Tate.”

“You’re new, aren’t you?”

I choked out a nervous laugh. “That obvious?”

Ryker laughed and lifted a shoulder. “It’s the nature of this place. You’ll adjust and remember, we’re people too.”

Ryker turned away, but I called him back. “Wait! So, are all of the gargoyles here real?”

That vibrant blue flashed across his eyes again, his grin turning mischievous. “Some of them.” And then he was gone. I followed his wings as they vanished into the throng of people.

Noted: Prepare to be jump-scared by gargoyles on a regular basis.

Head down, I followed the instructions to check in and get my dorm assignment. While I waited, I scoured my notes again, making sure I wouldn’t make a fool of myself on the first day.

Again.

The line crawled forward and with it, something large and dark moved in my periphery. I raised my head from my screen… and jumped a foot into the air.

“Oh, fuck!”

My phone clattered to the floor and I scurried backward, colliding with a group of students. A spider the size of a mastiff skittered in front of me, almost in a challenge. Apparently, my reaction amused it because it turned around and shook its little—or, not so little—spider butt at me.

“Trent, stop scaring the babies!”

That was when I registered the hands around my waist. Face on fire, I scrambled out of my captor’s arms.