Legacy

Chapter One

"I'm at the point where any guy is exactly what I'll take. Much as I love you, we're not going to Prom together. Senior Prom pics are eternal."

Okay, then. Glad we'd cleared that up. 

I pointed at the open door. "I'm going in now. Care to join me?"

"We need to work on your pep talks."

"I didn't know I was supposed to bring any pep to school today. You should have messaged me."

She pushed me through the door. "I didn't know you'd need it til ten minutes ago. Just have my back if I talk to one of them, k? And try not to want the same one as me."

As if. Boys weren't part of the plan. Not yet, anyway. Presumably they would be at some point if I was supposed to continue my bloodline. Though how I'd broach that subject with a guy without breaking my cover or making myself sound like a total wack-job remained to be seen. 'Hi there, don't s'pose you'd consider impregnating me so my ancient soul has a vessel to pop into sometime in the future?' probably wouldn't cut it, either way.

Removing the satchel from my shoulder, I dropped into the seat I'd occupied last semester, halfway between the front and the back of the class, in the center of the room. My own personal homage to the Goldilocks Zone after Diana droned on about it's numerous benefits for at least three hours while we drove halfway across the country for the ninety bazillionth time.

The how-to-continue-the-bloodline talk was gonna be interesting. I wondered if she thought it had to include birds and bees or had assumed sex ed would take care of that part. I sincerely hoped it was the latter, cos it was gonna be awkward enough discussing -

I gasped and creased forward at the waist, grasping the edges of the desk with white knuckles. No. Not now. Not here. I'd never experienced it so strongly before, it had been more of a tingling of fine hairs on the back of my neck and forearms, but I knew what it meant.

Demon.

"Lina, you okay?" Meg's voice asked.

Sucking in several deep breaths, I did everything I could to avoid a panic attack, while my gaze checked to make sure my Guardian hadn't already popped into the room. No sword-wielding Diana, so that was good. Which just left the other small problem...

It was close. I knew that much. My senses wouldn't have gone full-on-red-alert if it wasn't. They created a full body cramp, and an ache in my abdomen that pushed all the way through to my spine, which took considerable effort to straighten as I summoned a weak smile for Meg.

"Cramp. It'll pass in a minute."

"That time?" Meg mouthed in sympathy.

Since it was precisely the out I needed, I nodded, my gaze drawn to the wall behind her as my body stiffened. It was in the hall. Right beside us. But there was no way it could know I was there. I was wearing my pendant. The one which hid me from them. So, it couldn't sense me the way I could sense it.

My gaze tracked down the wall towards the door with a growing sense of dread, a small part of my subconscious becoming aware the phone in my satchel was vibrating. Diana obviously knew something was wrong. She needed me to check in. But I couldn't. I was frozen in place. 

Someone was stepping through the door.

The appearance of Mrs. Hedlund, our homeroom teacher, was a bit of an anti-climax. Then another figure followed her into the room. And another. And another. Two tall boys and an equally tall girl. 

Shit.

There. Were. Three. Of. Them.

"Quiet. Quiet everyone!" Mrs. Hedlund called, clapping her hands together to emphasize the demand. "We have three new students joining us today."

My gaze dragged over each one of them in turn as they lined up in front of her desk, heart thudding loudly against my breastbone as I searched for any indication they'd sensed something different. Something none of them would have encountered before or would recognize if they found it. As my hand lifted to the pendant hanging from my neck, I had to remember that, too. There was no way they could know. Why would they, when all of my kind were supposed to have been wiped off the surface of the earth?

All I had to do was stay calm, act normal, ensure they never knew, seize the first possible opportunity, and run.

The first guy was blonde, had deceptively Greek-god-like features, and was smiling warmly at random people in the room like he owned the place and was there to welcome them instead of the other way round. The girl was equally beautiful, with features that hinted at a Native Indian heritage, and a defiant tilt of her chin which said she would take on everyone sitting in front of her if they didn't welcome her.

As my attention shifted to the last one, it lifted a couple of inches. He was easily six feet tall, possibly more, with an athletic physique and a broad chest and a mop of thick, dark hair. But he was looking at his feet and frowning above a pair of black-rimmed glasses, so I couldn't see -

His chin tilted a little. A muscle in his jaw jumped in a way which suggested he'd clenched his teeth. Then his head lifted sharply, his gaze locked onto mine with the accuracy of a heat-seeking missile, and the sharp intake of breath I took in reaction to the intensity in his dark eyes snagged in my chest.

He knows.