Solasta Academy: All Hallows Eve

Chapter Thirty

Calia turned back to Malakai, who kept shaking his head and begging the young woman to let him go. But she was determined to end him once and for all. Jax's spirit had the right sense to get out of the way while she was striking him as if that wasn't his son, to begin with. Zale stayed silent as he held out a hand for her, and she took it because, in the end, he was her blood, and she trusted him. "Please, stop," Malakai cried. "I didn't mean to hurt Calia. She was only part of the plan."

"Who's plan?" Calia asked.

She walked over to the young woman who only winked at her, which uneased Calia, to say the least. "The Brotherhood. They wanted me to spy on you, and I agreed in exchange for their help. It was a bargain!"

"I'm assuming they want me dead," she said matter-of-factly.

"Yes," he stuttered. "But more than that, they want to use your blood for their own fucked up ideas of vengeance." As soon as he said that, Calia wanted to curl into her bed and hide forever. If Malakai was worse, she shuddered to think of the hidden society watching her and planning for her to be their own personal blood bag.

To her right, the young woman let her hands to her side as she stopped striking Malakai. She faced Calia with a raised brow as she said quietly, "Your choice, Calia of the Storm." Calia frowned because she swore her voice was familiar, as though she heard it before.

Calia pondered momentarily as she glanced between Malakai and Jax, who looked as confused as ever. She figured most of it was because her ancestors suddenly appeared, and the young woman looked very much alive. Most of all, she thought of Malakai and how, deep down, he was only a scared little boy who dealt with more pain in his life than any other and retaliated by turning himself into an immortal being and seeking vengeance on his dead father and the people he considered family. She turned back to Malakai, who was stumbling upright as he held onto the broken podium like his lifeline.

"Turn yourself in, Malakai Riviera," Calia announced. "Do it or die."

The Vampire wasted no time running out of the academy once and for all, hoping he would run to Ambrosia and do as he was told. She would find him and deliver on her promise if he didn't. Once he was gone, she searched for the Book of the Damned that lay on the floor a few feet away from Jax. She picked it up with both arms and faced the famous human her adopted family loved so much. He pulled his lips into a smirk as he glanced between her blood family and her. "How's my best friend? Is she still being a badass?"

"Don't you already know, Jax?" she laughed. "You watch her all the time."

"Well, that makes me sound like a fucking creeper. I do not always watch Elora because that would invade her privacy."

Calia shook her head because he sounded so much like Soari; it hurt because she wasn't here right now. "Right. You're just hanging out in Hazelthorn, drinking Pina Coladas with the others, huh?"

Jax placed his hands in the air as if he was surrendering. "What do you have against Pina Coladas, Miss Nox?"

"Nothing!" she replied. "I was asking if you were happy over there."

"I am, kid," Jax answered with a genuine smile. "I know life isn't all rainbows and sprinkles for you or the family, but I get to watch you grow into spectacular people that I love so much, and for that, I am happy."

"And what of your son?" Calia asked now. "Do you want me to tell Elora?"

Jax nodded. "She deserves to know that a part of me is still alive. Of course, she'll be shocked and furious that I didn't wrap it up back then, but she will visit him in the end. She and Sebastian," Calia looked down at the spell written in blood in the Book of the Damned and twisted into a frown. She had no idea how to undo it, but she could try. Beside her, the young woman stood beside her now. "All you have to do is chant it backward. This is a powerful object, but it still works like a normal spellbook." Calia nodded once and began the spell from bottom to top and backward, just as the woman said. Jax began disappearing as soon as she was done, but before he left, he said, "If you want, tell him I'll watch over him now that I know he exists."

"I will," she whispered.

Then, the great Jax Collins was gone and back into Hazelthorn. Time began to move back slowly, and she slumped her shoulders with relief.

Seconds later, the Book of the Damned disappeared entirely. She had been holding it a moment before, so she had no idea where it went, but it was gone like Jax. Calia turned toward the young woman with a fearful expression. "Where did it go?" she asked frantically.

"It has a life of its own," she answered.

A few seconds passed and Calia was able to stare at the beautiful woman fully now. Her silver hair was the same as hers, but her skin was different. It was lighter with sharper features, making her look regal and ancient—just like Zale. She glanced at him now, and he turned his lips to a soft smile, making her more confused than ever. Then, she focused on the others she recognized from her dreams: Safiya, Kaius, and Aylin. All three stared with approval and, most of all—love.

Calia turned back to the young woman. "Who are you?"

"Calypso," she answered.

She gasped.