House of Mages and Raven (Shades of Ruin and Magic #4)

Chapter 14

14

Barbie

I tossed around on my new bed, spending the first night away from the House of Chaos, my thoughts dark and my emotions in turmoil. When I closed my eyes, nightmares plagued me as usual—my father coming with his army, Killian laughing with his betrothed as she wounded me, and me draining Mist of Cinder and destroying all those I cared about.

When I finally sank into a dreamless sleep at dawn, a knock on the door jerked me awake. I fluttered open my eyes, groaning in displeasure while taking in my new room. It was a standard dorm with simple, streamlined furniture— a desk, a chair, a chest, and a couch paired with a wooden coffee table.

Cade actually gave me special treatment by assigning me a single. Even Bea, who had leveled up to mage, had two roommates.

“Barbie, we need to go to class!” Bea called outside the door.

The bright side of transferring to the House of Mages was that I was close to Bea. Not many mages or witch students were allowed on this floor, but Cade had given the guards a list of my friends who had permission to come up.

“You go first,” I said, needing more shuteye. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

“That won’t do.” Fred, an aide to Cade, raised his voice outside. “Your tricks won’t work in the House of Mages. You’ll go to your class with Bea right now. Prince Cade has a reputation to maintain. Your being tardy and undisciplined will reflect badly on His Highness.”

“I thought the perk of moving to a new house was that I could skip a few early morning classes,” I said. “I should definitely take a few days’ break due to the trauma from the murder trial. Who would be so insane as to attend class right after being released from a dungeon?”

“You can whine to your friend on the way to class,” Fred said. “But you need to leave within six minutes. I’m unfortunate enough to be on duty to escort you today.”

“We need to hurry, Barbie,” Bea urged.

“Just give me a second,” I called toward the door as I rolled off my bed in my pajamas and rushed to the bathroom.

I blinked at the girl in the mirror. She stared back at me, her golden curls bouncing, her mismatched eyes puffy, her lips pale. I could barely recognize myself these days.

I recognize you, Sy assured me. I recognize you everywhere.

Mages were big on healthy indoor-outdoor living. Bea and I walked across the common area crammed with exotic plants, stylish benches, and impressive shelves of books of special editions. We jogged out of the building, with Fred trailing after us in a bad mood.

“Are you sure we can’t go grab some breakfast real fast?” I asked Bea for the hundredth time with undying hope in my eyes.

“There’s no time,” Fred answered for her. “You overslept, Barbie. If you want to blame someone, consider yourself.”

Fred and his light-skinned pal, Matt, were Cade’s errand boys instead of being included in his security detail, since they were only mid-level mages.

“Here.” Bea pulled out two peanut bars from her backpack as we traipsed through the pentagon courtyard.

The mages had strengthened their wards since last time I’d visited the House of Mages. Elaborate spells and runes crawled over every brick, piece of glass, and stone. All five houses in Mist of Cinder were paranoid to a shocking decree and put a lot of effort into their defenses with wards, spells, and patrols.

I could rip off any spell, but I was behaving myself.

Magic from the House of Mages followed me out, bouncing at my feet. It wanted me to return to the house. Bea widened her eyes in amazement, but Fred narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously, his wand sticking out of his jacket.

“I’ll have to go to class, but I’ll be back,” I told the magic. “Go back to the house. We live in dangerous times.”

The house magic dashed back into the house. In its wake, my golden curls ruffled and Bea’s long blue hair billowed.

I wolfed down the peanut bars and followed Bea into the first class since my return to Shades Academy.

“Potion class again?” I asked.

“And you’ll sit your ass down until it’s done,” Fred said. “I’ll check on you before your last class is over. You make my life easy, and you won’t on my shit list.”

“Whatever.” I shrugged.

Mages were lazier than other species. They never liked hard work.

Sitting down in the class, I planned to take a nap, but a kick from Sy crushed my small hope. I turned my head to the entrance of the lab just as Grace strolled in. Her school uniform—white shirt, red tie, red skirt, and black stockings—fitted her like a glove. The crest of the House of Underworld—a pointed star above hellfire—was pinned to her chest.

Even since the House of Underworld established itself as the sixth house in Shades Academy, the demon students had all gotten brand-new uniforms. Hell hosted a variety of species and all sorts of monsters, but only highborn demons, who were mostly former fallen angels, attended the academy.

I no longer wore the House of Chaos’s crest of seven arrows in a radial pattern. I bore the mages house’s symbol of a wand and open scroll pasted on the chest of my gold-and-sapphire jacket.

Everyone swept their gazes toward Grace, full of adoration.

“Hi, everyone,” she greeted them with a bright smile.

“Princess Grace!” the class shouted, rushing to her, including our geek friends.

Bea and I were the only ones who stood where we were. It was so weird to see a stranger who looked exactly like me except for the eye color, and it was a cold punch in the guts to know that your doppelg?nger had come into your circle to replace you. She’d appeared to be my upgrade last time I spotted her. She’d drawn every eye to her when she entered Jubilee Haven, until I’d stolen her show and derailed her debut—not in a proud way, though, since I’d been dragged to the chaos court for a criminal trial.

It seemed my copy had recovered her ground, judging by how everyone hung on her every word, while she was all smiles, handing out her blessings to the masses.

Even the potion professor, a top witch from my new house, beamed at Grace, as if her new student brightened every corner of her dull lab.

The scene felt surreal.

Bea bit her lip and whispered, “I didn’t get a chance to tell you. While you were away, Princess Grace has taken over everything that you built. The underdogs all go to her now. Almost everyone from every house, except the heirs and their circles, has become her fan. She’s super popular on every supernatural social media, too.”

Bea was a powerful mage, but mages who were more powerful than her were smitten with Grace as well. She stood by me unfalteringly only because of her loyalty to me.

The class surrounded Grace. When she spoke, they all stopped to listen, every ear straining to catch her words, every mind keen to obey her orders.

Sy fumed as she peeked out at the Princess of the Underworld. Her solution was to eat our competition to stay on top.

“They’re eating out of her palm,” Bea whispered, her expression wary, as she watched Grace flip her curls for her groupies to admire. “I can’t believe she looks just like you, except the color of her eyes. She showed up when you were gaining the favor of every prince. It’s like Prince Killian’s betrothed sent her to knock you down.”

I had to give it to Queen Lilith. It was clever to move her pawn, a perceived improved version of me, into my turf. If the princes were drawn to my looks, especially Killian, now they could do better with Grace.

“Maybe she’s your lost twin?” Bea asked.

Sy bristled. I’m your twin!

I thumbed my jawline and pondered, staying cool despite Sy’s fuming. Was Grace really like me? My nostrils flared, taking in my double’s magic scent.

Sy sneered. I don’t need to sniff at the fake to know she’s all empty inside.

But could Grace be divine, like us?

Sy tilted her head, sniffing now. A second later, she let out a whistle. She isn’t like us. She doesn’t have an ounce of goddess blood. We trump her.

“Could you feel her power?” I asked Bea, wanting a second opinion, not that I didn’t trust Sy. Now and then, I preferred to stay on the cautious side. “Is it like mine?”

Bea blinked at me. “In fact, I’ve been analyzing her power. While you were locked away, the academy hosted a feast to honor the Queen of the Underworld. She made a grand speech in front of the entire school, and her ward stood tall beside her. Their magic are similar.”

“Did Prince Killian stand by Queen Lilith when she made the pretty speech?” I asked.

Bea nodded.

I hadn’t expected hearing that to hurt like a hot iron rod running through my chest, since I’d braced myself. I almost doubled over, but Sy pumped her strength into me, straightening us before I could fall apart.

“I see.” I tried to sound casual, not wanting Bea to see my pain, not wanting to see the sympathy in her eyes.

I had been dumped, all right, and now some girl had been sent to replace me. I shoved the bitterness down and focused on feeling out Grace’s magical signature. Sy was right. Despite Grace and I resembling each other, our powers were different. Her magic had the signature of an archdemon.

Archdemons were fallen angels. Their origin could be traced back to Heaven. After their rebellion and exile from Heaven, they took the domain of Hell, and their powers mutated and were tainted by Hell. My father had warned me that the combined forces of Heaven and Hell could do us great harm. That was why the Seed of Heaven had nearly unmade me.

For eons, Heaven and Hell had been at war, but the ancient gods were their common enemy. The celestial fuckers had targeted the wrong person. They should’ve tried the Seed on Ruin, but instead, I’d taken the hit for him. Another terrible thing about being his daughter.

Ruin was wary of his ancient enemies. One of them couldn’t counter him or me, but a legion with weapons forged in Heaven then finished in Hell could probably eradicate him and his bloodline.

Grace had a celestial power. She was dangerous to me.

As if she knew that I was studying her, Grace winked at me across the room.

“Class!” The potion professor clapped her hands after she’d given everyone ample time to worship the Princess of the Underworld. “Let’s break into six groups. Today, we’ll try to make a perfect invisibility potion.”

We’d made an invisibility potion last time, and I’d poked fun at Fake Silver, who was back to Fake Blonde now, and made her look stupid with only her mouth visible. The professor wanted us to improve the potion. Well, no matter how perfect it was, I could always see anyone who drank the invisibility potion.

Bea was the team leader of our group. She led us to a cauldron in the east corner of the lab. Herbs and ingredients were piled on the long workstations. She gave each of us an instruction as to what kind of herbs we needed to collect to make the potion.

I might not know all the names of the herbs, but I recognized the magical intention of each one and their combined intent when the casters tossed them into the pot, and thus I could derail my opponents’ potion while it was brewing and strip its magical effect.

“Yes, Queen Lilith, Killian, and I have spent a lot of time together.” Grace’s bright voice drifted toward me. She called him Killian instead of Prince Killian, which hinted at how close they were.

She stood at the center table with the biggest group around her doing all the work. They tossed ingredients into a big pot while two witches and a demon stirred the brew diligently. Everyone swooned at her revelation.

She darted a glance at me, delivering a message that while I’d been locked up in the dungeon, Killian had had a marvelous time with his betrothed and her. No wonder he hadn’t come to visit me. He’d been busy with my replacement.

While I tried to forge iron walls around my heart and Sy offered me her strength without reservation, I stared at the new enemy who wore my face, feeling like my soul wanted to abandon my body. A blink, a few wild heartbeats, and I sucked in a ragged breath, back to this reality. Had the ward of the Underworld just used her mental power on me?

“Of course, Killian is amazing,” Grace bragged. “When he’s with my queen and me, he isn’t as cold as he appears. He’s rather warm and caring and fun.”

I’d once thought he was only warm, caring, and fun toward me.

How generous of her to keep sharing things about the chaos prince as if he were her new beau. The entire class, including everyone in Bea’s group, turned their heads, trying to catch every drop of the romance between Queen Lilith and Prince Killian. Well, Grace wasn’t shy about including herself as well. “And hot! You know what I mean?” She giggled, and other girls joined her, full of envy and longing.

“They say Prince Killian can’t touch any woman except his betrothed. Is it true?” Fake Blonde asked in a hushed voice.

Probably almost every bride candidate had experienced a wet dream about the chaos heir, who remained forbidden fruit to them.

“He can touch me,” Grace said in a confidential tone.

Shocked silence spread through the lab amid the sizzling sound of the potions boiling.

“Tell us more, please,” someone begged.

The copy is lying, Sy said, but somehow, it didn’t sound like a lie.

I swallowed the bile rising to the back of my throat and listened in as well.

“My queen allows it.” Grace lowered her voice for show. “Queen Lilith is so generous that she doesn’t mind sharing her beloved with me. In the entire universe, Prince Killian can touch only two women—my queen and me.” A dreamy look settled on a face that was a polished reflection of mine. “The three of us…”

Rip out that slut’s throat! Sy urged. Or let me do it, and I’ll chew on her bones.

My darkest flame rushed through my bloodstream, so hot and powerful that I felt like my veins were going to burst. And when they did, my flame would break out. I needed to get the fuck out of here, or I wouldn’t only torch my double but also burn down the entire place with the whole class in it, with Bea in it.

It might already be too late, as a trail of smoke streamed from my lips.

Before I could bolt, cool fingers clasped around my forearm, and Bea hugged me to her tightly while turning my back on Grace, so my eyes wouldn’t spit fire where anyone could see.

“On me,” she said as we embraced in a corner. “I’m your best friend. You aren’t alone. No matter how everyone turns on you, how the world turns on you, I stand with you. I vow it, and you know I’ll die for you.”

The fire cooled in me as I fought it back with sheer will, not wanting it to burn my friend, my only friend.

“Don’t let anyone get under your skin,” Bea said. “They don’t matter. They’re not worthy. None of them are worthy.”

What had I done to deserve such loyalty? I would not abuse this friendship. I grasped my control, my rage cooling, and let the dangerous wave recede and return to the safe shore.

You’ve never been alone, Sy seethed . Haven’t I always been with you? I’m your best friend, not that witch. Not anyone else. Aren’t we two peas in a pod?

Sy was being territorial. But both she and Bea had just helped distract and calm me. My breath evened. My dark flame subsided into embers.

“The new girl lies,” Bea whispered. “She wants what you have, but she can’t take it from you. No one can take what’s yours.”

But what did I have?