Page 5 of A Taste of Torment
“We don’t get many new students that aren’t timid freshman.” She chuckles. “Brings a new meaning to fresh meat, if you know what I mean.” She wiggles her eyebrows, still staring at my schedule like she’s memorizing it. God, please don’t let me have a vampire stalker in my first five minutes here.
Her gaze slowly rises to mine. “You do know what I mean, right?”
“Yeah.”
Her eyes narrow. “Okay, good, ’cause I mean, I know you’re human—you are human, right?” She leans in, her eyebrows furrowed.
This time, I allow a small smile and nod. I mean, I’m mostly human. I don’t have any magic or anything, but my great, great, great grandmother was half-fae and half-demon, and my family has worked as scientists in the magical community for generations, so we’re well aware of what’s around us. It’s just that, me and my sister have always stayed away from it all.
Well, almost always.
Neither of us had spoken to a magical being in three years—until this summer, when she made a choice that altered both of our fates.
“Yeah, humans are pretty rare here,” the girl chatters away. “But you, like, know what this place is, right?”
“Yes, I know what this place is. Hell itself. I’m out of my league. Yada, yada. I get it.” I force my steely determination to resettle into my bones. This place terrifies me, and I hate feeling this way. But I will conquer this school like I’ve conquered every other goal I’ve set for myself. I do not fail.
She shrugs. “Human or lesser magical being makes little difference. It’s usually more to do with the knowledge. Humans get too freaked out when they learn about all the secrets in their world.” She wiggles her fingers at me. “Most of us don’t have much power. There are only a couple students here you should watch out for.”
I nod and instinctively peer around the corner to watch the students scatter through the hall. One of them has horns. Another is two feet tall. “I’m well aware.” I sigh and force my attention back on the girl, allowing the last of my jitters to leave my body.
“Oh, good. Come on, your first class is this way.” She curls her arm in mine and pulls me down the hall—farther away from the crowd at the entryway, to my immense relief.
“I’m Janet, by the way. What’s your name?”
“Candice,” I answer.
She nods. “So, what brings you, a human, to this school?” she asks as we bound up a set of stairs.
I shrug. “My parents work in potions.”
“Oh! Awesome.”
“What about you? What order are you?”
“I’m a betweener. Half-troll, half-witch, and not the strong parts of either.”
“Troll?” I ask. “Sorry, I mean—” Is it offensive to be surprised at someone’s heritage? Or maybe she’ll find it flattering that she doesn’t look at all like a troll?
She waves me off. “Don’t worry about it. Get it all the time. Luckily, the smell didn’t pass down to me, and my Brazilian complexion from my papai’s side helps hide the color.” I note the slight green tint to her skin. I doubt a human would ever notice.
Now out of direct danger from the heirs, I allow myself the chance to examine everything. The mahogany trim and sleek marble flooring. The thick doors with numbers labeled on every window. It’s an ivy league high school cliché.
Only those that already know will see the differences in this part of the school.
The lights are a dull yellow, casting odd shadows around. Many of the creatures here prefer darkness, so bright lights aren’t common. Perches sit near the ceiling for the pixies. Gemstones hang over every doorway.
It just makes the place feel even creepier.
I head down another hall, still arm in arm with my new half-troll bestie. We turn a corner to a large corridor, where there are more students hanging around chatting casually. Apparently, these are students uninterested in the drama below.
I take in a long breath and note that it feels normal here. No pressure of suffocating magic, and no predator gazes rousing my fear instincts. “It’s much calmer up here.”
Janet nods quickly. “Yeah, you want to stay away from the craziness on the north side of campus. I don’t know how much you’re up on magical politics, but those kids by the stairs? Bad news.”
“The demon heirs. Yeah.”
Janet shrugs. “They’re not literal demons. You know, heaven and hell or whatever. But they’re from a world that’s dark and scary, where the creatures have inspired some of the darkest human legends.”
