Chapter 1
“Amara?” Trinity shouts as she walks into her daughter’s room. She looks around and sees she isn’t in there. “Where the hell is she? she asks as she looks around. Trinity leaves the room and heads to her husband’s office.
“Nokken, do you know where Amara is?” Trinity asks as she walks into the office but stops when she sees her daughter sitting across from her father. “There you are. Do you have your stuff ready?” Trinity asks her daughter.
Amara rolls her eyes and refuses to look at her mother. She is full of anger about having to go to the academy. “Don’t roll your eyes at me, young lady.” Trinity says with a scowl on her face and arms crossed. Nokken was sitting behind the desk, hiding his smirk. Trinity won’t admit it, but their daughter is just like her mother when she was younger.
“Mom, I still don’t see why I have to go to this stupid school.” Amara says as she stands up and storms out of the room.
“That is all you,” Nokken says, pointing towards the door as he walks over to his wife.
Trinity rolls her eyes and crosses her arms. “I don’t know why she has to be so difficult; she knows this will be good for her.” Trinity says, looking at her husband.
“This is all she knows, Amore. She hasn’t left the walls of the palace since the day she was born. “She is scared,” Nokken says as he pulls Trinity into his chest. Wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing the crown of her head. Trinity’s heart flutters with just the smallest gesture. After all these years, her husband still makes her feel like a teenage girl in love for the first time.
Trinity lifts her head and brings her hand to Nokken’s face and stands on her toes. Bringing her lips to his. Their lips connect, and what was supposed to be a gentle kiss turns into a passionate kiss. Nokken takes her bottom lip in between his teeth, causing Trinity to moan against his lips. She runs her hands around Nokken’s neck and runs her hand through the little hairs at the back of his head. Nokken hands run down her back to her bottom.
They hear someone clearing their throat, causing them to break apart, leaving Trinity dizzy and breathless.
“Ah, man, come on,” Ace says, shaking his head and looking at his parents. Shuddering at just catching his parents making out.
“Eww, come on, this is nasty. I’m never going to get that image out of my head now. “Really, Mom and Dad?” Xavier says as he walks away.
Nokken shakes his head, laughing at his boys. “What do you need?” He asks Ace.
“Amara just took off to the woods again.” Ace says. Nokken looks at his wife and shakes his head.
“Again I will say, she is your daughter.” Nokken says.
*****
Amara walks through the woods and stops once she comes across a boulder that sits on the bank of the crystal blue river. She takes her shoes off and steps on the boulder and sits down on its smooth surface. She lifts her head back and closes her eyes as she feels the warm sun hit her face and the gentle breeze of the air kisses her cheeks.
“Now, princess, aren’t you supposed to be getting ready to leave for school tomorrow?” Amara hears a husky voice from behind her. This causes her to jump, and she turns around to see none other than Zane.
“What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be back at the academy bossing kids and newly turned vamps?” Amara asks, smiling at her uncle’s best friend.
“Well, yes, but I’m also here to meet with your father and mother. Something about making sure everything is ready for the princess.” Zane says, walking closer to Amara, a muscle twitches in his throat as he pauses, his eyes scanning over as he freezes momentarily where he stands.
“Please, what can you teach me that I cannot learn from my parents or private tutors? Why do I need to go?” Amara huffs, shaking her head, not liking the idea of being uprooted hundreds of miles away from her family. She hears all of the horrible tales of how all the vampires had at one time hated the faes and how the vampires fed off some of the students with the teachers knowing. Ace told her how addicting vampire venom is to a person. “I don’t understand why I have to go. Why can’t I just stay home? It’s not like I can do magic anyways.” Amara mumbled under her breath.
Zane groans, narrowing his eyes at her. This little feisty female is testing his patience, what little he has. “You know exactly why! No one is supposed to know that you do not have powers, Amara. Now please stop being so damn stubborn. I know you are your mother’s daughter, but do you have to act like her damn twin? I am surprised your father has any hair that is not white. You know you cannot be saying that at school, right?”
Amara crosses her arms and rolls her eyes as she walks towards the palace.
Zane groans and runs his fingers through his hair. “She’s so damn stubborn,” he mutters as he follows behind her. Once they get to the palace, Zane watches his feisty princess storm up the stairs before he walks to Nokken’s office.
“How do you put up with two of them?” Zane asks as soon as he walks into the office. Nokken looks at him and raises an eyebrow, wondering what he was talking about.
“I found the princess out by the river, and she is not pleased with going to the school.” Zane says, answering the unspoken question.
Nokken laughs, shaking his head and grinning at Zane. “It is simple. I continuously remind Trinity that part of our lovely daughter is all her doing.” He shakes his head. “I know she will keep you on your toes a lot, though, Zane, so I hope she will not be too much of a handful at the school for you.”
Zane shrugs with a half smile, glancing back up at Nokken. “I am positive she will without even trying to too.”
Nokken shakes his head, smirking as he nods in agreement. “That I cannot disagree with at all.”
Zane sits down in the chair opposite Nokken, puts his hands behind his head, and smirks. “So everything is set up. Amara and Kesley will have their own rooms on the top floor. Ace, Xavier, and Mykel will be in the rooms across the hall, and there will be guards at both entryways,” Zane says, looking at Nokken.
“What about the rebels that have been making threats? Is that under control?” “Nokken asks with a serious tone.”
“Yes, Korey and I have created an elite team that has special skills to take care of that threat. They are a mix of werewolves, vampires, and fae. And they are trained by none other than myself and Korey.” Zane says, smiling,
Nokken smiles and stands up, sticking his hand out to shake Zane’s hand. “Sounds good. I guess we will see you tomorrow then,” Nokken says before Zane leaves the office.
Zane walks out and stops at the entryway, looking towards the stairs. He debates on if he should go up and say his goodbyes to Amara or not. But he decides against it once he starts to feel his fangs enlarging and his gums start to throb. He rushes out of the palace without saying goodbye; he knows he needs to feed. It has been almost two and a half weeks since he last fed.
Amara stares out her room window and happens to see Zane rushing from the palace, and she can’t help but wonder what is going on. Normally he always tells her and her siblings goodbye. Furrowing her eyebrows, she shakes her head, confused by the oddness of today.
The one thing Zane hates about himself is the vampire side of him. He can last longer than most vampires because of who his mother is. As he runs through the forest, he comes to a stop as he sees a deer in the distance. Zane crouches down and focuses on the heartbeat from the deer. He rushes to it and tackles it to the ground and sinks his teeth into his prey. As the warm, thick, coppery liquid hits the back of his throat, he groans in delight. Listening to the heartbeat from the deer start to slow down, he releases his prey and stands up. Wiping the corner of his mouth, he stands up and backs away from the deer. And rushes back towards the school.
