Page 53 of Fated to Monsters

The one I haven’t quite figured out yet. I had a hunch that Silas wassomethingin line with vampires or dhampirs but Cameron leaves me with a big ol’ blank in the supernatural department.

“That’s a great question.” Sydney reaches for the bottle of water in his cup holder, takes a swig, and then puts it back in its place. “Cam is Cam. He’s no one thing.”

“That’s…”

“Not the answer you wanted?” Sydney glances over at me.

I snort. “Something like that.”

“Cameron’s kind of the glue, if that makes sense. Which I’m guessing it doesn’t. It will over time, the more you learn of your ancestry and how your partners play a role in your magic.”

"You keep mentioning my magic, and I keep doubting it exists." I swirl my index finger over my thumbnail and consider that maybe we have this all wrong. Maybe I'm not really an Oliver. Maybe I don't have magic. Maybe I'm an imposter who is clinging to the hope that she's something that she isn't.

“You’ve had hidden magic your entire life. It may take some time for it to come to fruition. I wouldn’t worry.”

I pray to the Angels that he’s right, that there’s more to me than a washed-up assassin.

“What did you mean about her partners and her magic?” Dash asks from the back seat.

Sydney briefly meets his gaze in the rear-view mirror. "The Olivers are fueled by love. Their magic made more powerful by it, which is no surprise that Olivers are drawn to have multiple mates."

"Willow mentioned a mother and father. Does she only have one partner?" I cross and uncross my legs, unsure of what to do with them. Why am I suddenly so fidgety?

"Yes, but that was from before. Ancient textbooks linked back to the early days suggest that the original Olivers had many partners prior to the curse. It was the cursed magic that put a stop to Oliver's being with their love. A fail-safe of sorts. If the Olivers are powered by love, they are weaker without it, meaning those that wish to steal their magic have a greater probability of doing so.”

“That’s fucked up,” I blurt out.

“It is,” Sydney confirms. “And it will never happen again. Willow made sure of that.”

We turn down another long lane, this one narrower than the last. It takes a minute before a structure comes into view, but when it does, my eyes widen.

“What is this place?” I inch forward in my seat to study the beautiful architecture of the building. Stone walls with vines wrapped up and down them. The circled pathway out front leads to a lush garden that’s concealed by an iron gate.

“This is Harper Academy, or as the supernaturals know it, Harper Shadow Academy." Sydney pulls his car out of the way and puts it into park. "Most of the human faction is on spring break, but there are some that remain." He pivots his body toward us and glances between us. "I'm taking a risk bringing you here. Please don't make me regret it."

I press my hand to my chest. “I promise, I won’t.”

Dash puts his palms into the air in front of him. “I don’t have any magical powers, I’m just weird.”

“Aren’t we all?” Sydney smiles and reaches for the door handle. “Let’s do this.”

Carefully, I follow suit, stepping out of the car and stepping onto the gravel. It crunches beneath my feet and distracts me temporarily from my racing heart. I don’t move any farther until Sydney approaches and waves us over.

“This way.” He strolls through the gated area at a much quicker pace than I prefer.

I want to take my time and consume every detail of this astonishing place. Maybe if things go well, this won’t be my last visit to the Harper Shadow Academy.

The door to the massive building creaks when Sydney opens it.

I go through the threshold, something tingling within me at the atmosphere of this place. My eyes desperately scan the contents in their attempt to take it all in. They stop and widen, my head tilting up to admire the enclosed garden smack dab in the middle of the open area. A tree grows right in the center with lavish shrubbery and flowers surrounding it. I step closer, cautiously and wonder how such a thing is possible. Upon further inspection, the roof to the garden seems to also be glass, and doubles as the floor to the second level of the building.

"This is…magical," I whisper. That would be the only explanation of how it would work.

Sydney appears at my side. “It is, actually.” He winks and turns around. “This is sort of the main floor common area.” He points in the direction we came where extravagant furniture speckles the grand area. “People hang out here between classes. There are stairs to the dorms there and there.” He continues to move his hand around to signal to new things. “Down that hallway is the west wing, this is the east, and I’m sure you can guess the north and south are that way.”

Sydney waves us over like he doesn’t realize how incredibly amazed and entranced I am. “Infirmary is through there.” He taps gently on a door that he walks by. “Women’s restrooms are there, along with stairs that take you to their dorm.” He shifts his body. “Headmaster’s office that way and this is…” He leads us away from that grand display in the main area into a large room filled with empty tables. “The dining hall.”

The space is vast and open, with windows that line the far wall and allow copious amounts of natural light to rush in. Orange and red echo off the floor from the sunset.

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