Dragonkin Are from Mars, Changelings Are from Venus: Shadow Valley, #5

By Devin Harnois

Fear hangs over Shadow Valley as Aiden and Dylan begin their senior year. Mr. Johnson finally calls in his favor, and it might be more than Dylan and Aiden can handle, but the fae are magically bound to keep their promises and Dylan won't abandon his best friend.

When someone claiming to be from Aiden's past appears, he's faced with a dangerous dilemma. Is one of his fondest wishes coming true, or is he walking into a trap?

Then the anti-treaty extremists make a shocking move to bolster their forces, leaving the already weakened wardens reeling. An old foe returns, forcing Dylan to face his mistakes. While the town braces for another attack, Dylan considers taking drastic measures to make things right.

In the thrilling conclusion to the Shadow Valley series, Aiden and Dylan risk everything to save their town, their loved ones, and each other.

• Language: English
• Publisher: October Night Publishing
• Release date: Oct 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781546403487

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

Dylan paced, occasionally shooting a glance toward the door. Aiden sat on the sofa with his parents, Tiago in a chair. They deliberately kept distance between them whenever they weren’t alone. Mom and Dad were on the other sofa, and Tiago’s guardian sat in a chair against the far wall.

They were all waiting for Mr. Johnson, and Dylan got more nervous by the second. "Why wouldn’t he just tell us what this is about? Why does he have to make everything into a… thing?" Calling them all together like this, it couldn’t be anything good. Had Morgan shown up? Was he coming to kill them?

The doorbell rang and Dylan jumped.

Dad got up. I’ll get it. As he walked past Dylan, he said, Stay here, please.

Dylan crossed his arms but didn’t argue.

A moment later, Dad came back with Mr. Johnson and a woman.

I’m sorry if I worried you, the warden said. But I wanted to meet with all of you together. This is Warden Nichols. He gestured toward his companion. She’s going to be your new school liaison.

"What? Dylan clenched his fists. After all the shit that happened last year—"

Mr. Johnson held up a hand. That’s exactly why I’m introducing you to her here, now. I want to assure you that things will be different this year.

I’ve been briefed on what happened with Warden Bradley, and I promise you I’m not him, Warden Nichols said.

Do you have enough wardens that you can assign one to the school? Aiden asked. The wardens and the cops had been slaughtered by a group of antitreaty people at the end of the school year. They’d lost over half their number, and the ones left were scrambling to maintain order.

Not really. Mr. Johnson sighed. "But student safety is one of my top priorities. The junior high and elementary schools will have liaisons as well. And they will protect students, not treat them like suspects."

The antitreaty extremists attacked the school, so we have to assume it may be a target if they make another attempt, Warden Nichols said. That is if there are enough of them left to organize.

Oh God. If they come back… Aiden rubbed his arms, and his mom put an arm around him.

If they do, we’ll kick their asses again. A little part of Dylan hoped they tried so he could take out his anger on them. But the other part of him remembered the terrible fight at the school and the destruction at city hall and hoped they never came back.

At this point, everything is a precaution, Mr. Johnson said. Otherwise, I want everyone to get back to their normal lives as much as possible. Having a warden at school will hopefully reassure parents, and the police will regularly patrol the borders to look for any suspicious activity.

Great, Dylan muttered. Because his parents’ property was along the border, that meant there would be cops snooping around all the time. Just what he needed—less privacy.

We appreciate everything you’re doing, Mom said. I know you must be working hard.

Yes, thank you. For just a second Mr. Johnson’s neutral expression slipped, and Dylan got a glimpse of how tired he was. Dylan felt just the tiniest little bit sorry for him.

My parents? Tiago asked, a slight tremble in his voice.

I’m sorry, we still don’t have any information on their whereabouts, Mr. Johnson said.

Aiden had trapped them, but by the time someone had gone to check, they’d disappeared. They hadn’t been among those dead or captured.

If they dare to come after you again, we’ll take care of them, Dylan said. At least Cat Boy had stopped protecting his parents and told Mr. Johnson that they’d tried to kidnap him twice. Dylan had thought the warden would be pissed Tiago kept that information from him, but he hadn’t acted like it. Maybe Mr. Johnson had too much else to worry about to care.

We won’t let anything happen to you, Rosalind, Tiago’s guardian, said.

Tiago looked between them and nodded, though he didn’t look sure. Thanks.

We’ll all look out for each other, Aiden said. His eyes met Tiago’s for a second and… How could Dylan have missed that they liked each other?

Let us know if there’s anything we can do to help, Aiden’s mom told Mr. Johnson. It had to be rough on them. Like his dad, Aiden’s parents didn’t have any magic, so there wasn’t much they could do. Unlike his dad, they’d had all this dumped on them only a few years ago.

I will. The PTA and the neighborhood watch will have to play a bigger role this year. As Aiden said, we all have to look out for each other.

I’ll have regular office hours twice a week after school and every Saturday, Warden Nichols said. To handle any concerns and help build a sense of community.

Dylan wondered if they were all about to hold hands and start singing. So we can all forget the wardens murdered that guy?

Everyone looked at him.

What? Just because those antitreaty assholes wanted to ruin everything doesn’t mean we should ignore what the wardens did.

Dylan— Mom started.

Mr. Johnson sighed. Considering the circumstances, investigating Mr. Abelli’s death isn’t a priority. And one of the wardens involved was killed during the attack. But I’ll do what I can to make sure we follow up once things are settled.

Which was a nice way to brush things off, but it was true the wardens had to focus on other things. They had to catch all the people who had escaped. And the wardens still hadn’t been able to find Morgan, the dark fae Dylan had released.

For what it’s worth, I’m in support of a full investigation, Warden Nichols told Dylan.

He arched an eyebrow, wondering if she was trying to win points or if she really meant it. So you don’t think wardens can do whatever they want?

Her face tightened, but she said, I think we can make mistakes just like anybody else, and because we have a higher responsibility, we need to be held accountable.

Hmm, Dylan said thoughtfully. Definitely in Mr. Johnson’s camp and not Warden Bully’s, but Dylan didn’t really trust any of them.

Mr. Johnson’s phone beeped and he pulled it out, frowning at the screen. I apologize, but I need to be going. Warden Nichols?

It was nice to meet you all. Feel free to contact me if you need anything. She pulled out business cards and passed them around.

Dylan hesitated but ended up taking one. She had to be better than Warden Bully.

CHAPTER TWO

The first day of senior year. Aiden took a deep breath and closed his locker. Grades weren’t too much of a worry. Unless he suddenly started failing everything, he would easily get enough credits to pass. Even Major Magical Control didn’t seem so daunting this year, although he might change his mind depending on how the first few weeks of class went. He was now in the master class, the most challenging level taught at school.

Okay, maybe I’m a little nervous about it.

Aiden pulled out his class list, checking his homeroom number yet again. As he looked up, he froze.

A few feet away, two girls leaned against the lockers. Kissing each other. Right there in front of everyone.

Aiden’s mouth dropped open.

One of the girls pulled away, her smile dropping as she spotted him. She had long black hair that reached the middle of her back. Don’t like it? Too bad.

The other girl’s jaw tightened. She had hair that only came down to her chin, but she’d still managed to dye it three different colors.

Aiden realized what he must look like, staring at them like that. I-I didn’t…

But they were already walking away, hand in hand. The girl with long black hair turned to glare at him before they disappeared into the crowd.

Neither of them was familiar, which meant they were probably freshmen. Two girls younger than him, brave enough to kiss in the middle of school. And there he was, almost an adult, a town hero, and too afraid to admit he was in love with a boy.

I really am a huge coward.

While he walked to homeroom, he kept talking himself into coming out and then talking himself out of it again. This year homeroom was Advanced Spellcraft, and Maggie waved to him as soon as he walked through the door. They already knew they had class together. Last week there’d been a lot of texting back and forth when everyone got their class lists.

Something wrong? Maggie asked as Aiden slipped into the seat next to her.

He glanced around. There weren’t many other kids in the room yet. Leaning close, he whispered, I saw two girls kissing in the hall. Like, if they can do it, why… Why can’t I? She was the only one besides Dylan who knew Aiden was dating Tiago.

Maggie patted his shoulder. "Everyone is different. You have to do what’s right for you."

Was hiding his relationship what was right for him? The thing he’d worried about most—Dylan finding out—had already happened. There were still his parents to think about, which bothered him more than kids at school knowing. They wouldn’t disown him or anything like that—finding out your kid was queer had to be nothing compared to finding out he wasn’t human, wasn’t even really yours. So why did the idea of telling them make his anxiety spike?

And what about Tiago? Was hiding the right thing for him? Tiago had told the whole school he used to kill and eat people. Yet he was hiding that he was gay for Aiden’s sake, to make sure no one would suspect anything.

Have you talked to the counselor about it? Maggie asked.

No. God, no.

She gave him a look. "You know that’s what they’re for, right? To help you work through this kinda stuff?"

Aiden rubbed his finger along a burn mark on the table. I guess I should probably bring it up. Mr. Emery, the school counselor, was supposed to keep everything private, and over the years Aiden had been seeing him, there’d been no indication he’d ever broken that trust.

Maggie squeezed his arm. Whatever you decide, I’ll support you. I haven’t said anything to anyone, not even my best friends, and I won’t unless you tell me it’s okay.

Thanks, Maggie. She’d been a good friend to him since the first day he came to Shadow Valley High.

But if it’s bothering you this much, I think you should—she glanced around at the filling classroom—be honest.

It would be nice to have it out in the open and have one less secret to carry. But once he admitted it, there would be no going back.

* * *

Just after the last bell rang, Aiden’s phone buzzed with an incoming text. His pulse sped up when he saw it was from Mr. Johnson. Aiden and Dylan, meet me at the gravel pit at 3:30.

Oh God, what now? It was only the first day of school. Were the extremists back? Had they attacked? Was someone dead?

But if it was urgent, wouldn’t he have called to talk to them right away?

Aiden sat there, waiting to see if another text came in. The class was empty by the time he got up, and just as he reached the door, his phone buzzed again.

WHAT IS IT?

It took Aiden a second to realize it was a reply from Dylan. It surprised a laugh out of him. Dylan’s anger could come through even in text.

Dylan was waiting with Tiago when Aiden got to his locker. Did you see? Dylan asked.

Yeah.

Dylan’s phone dinged and he scowled at it. "Please just meet me there. Thank you," he read.

Do you think it’s something bad? Tiago asked, hovering near Aiden like he wanted to touch him.

Guess we’ll find out, Dylan said.

CHAPTER THREE

Dylan was pissed even before he got there. The pit was his place, and now it was going to be tainted by whatever bad news Mr. Johnson was going to give them. Of course, it hadn’t really been the same since Morgan’s buddy tried to kill Dylan there. Even though that fear had faded a bit, Dylan was always a little wary if he heard an odd noise or thought he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

And now that stupid warden thought he could turn it into a meeting place. Dylan knew it must be bad if Mr. Johnson wanted to meet there instead of at his house.

Dylan stomped down into the pit and lit the leftover kindling to burn off some of his anger. Then he sat, then he paced, then he sat again.

Finally Aiden appeared at the top of the hill and slid carefully down the mound of gravel. He’s not here yet?

Dylan sighed in annoyance. No.

Aiden twisted his hands together. Even in the low light, he looked pale. Do you think this is about Morgan?

Maybe. Dylan had been focusing on his anger rather than thinking about what Mr. Johnson’s news might be. The school counselor called that a coping mechanism.

What if he’s killing people again? There aren’t enough wardens to go after him. What if Morgan heard about what happened and he let more dark fae out? And they’re all killing people? Or what if they’re killing wardens because they know they’re vulnerable now? Morgan did say he wanted to kill them all. The scent of nervousness grew stronger as Aiden talked.

Chill. Why don’t we wait and see what he says? But now Dylan was worried about that too.

Headlights flashed, and tires crunched over gravel. A minute later, Mr. Johnson joined them. Aiden. Dylan.

Dylan could feel the tension rolling off his best friend, and it made him angrier. So what is it?

First of all, I want to put you at ease that nothing bad has happened.

Aiden relaxed a little, but Dylan didn’t feel any better.

So why the—Aiden waved his arms around—secret meeting?

Mr. Johnson shifted, gravel moving under his fancy shoes. Very well, I’ll get to the point. Both of you swore to owe me a favor.

Dylan’s stomach dropped. If he refused, what would happen? Mr. Johnson would probably tell the wardens that Dylan was the one who let Morgan out, that he’d done it deliberately. But wouldn’t that get Mr. Johnson in trouble too, for covering it up all this time?

If what Mr. Johnson wanted involved hurting people, Dylan would refuse, whatever the consequences. But what about Aiden? The fae were magically bound when they swore to something. Aiden couldn’t refuse. And the only reason he’d promised in the first place was to protect Dylan.

What do you want? Aiden asked in a strained voice.

I want both of you to become wardens.

Wh-what? Dylan couldn’t have heard him right.

Wardens? Aiden stared.

I was hoping to wait until you were older, but given the circumstances, I need all the help I can get.

"You want me to be a warden?" Mr. Johnson had to be nuts.

Yes. That was my intention when I asked for the favor. You’re both extremely powerful and intelligent, and you’ve proven yourselves several times.

But we’re just kids. Anxiety radiated off Aiden.

Mr. Johnson folded his hands behind his back. You’re nearly legal adults, and you’ll go through training before you’re sent out in the field.

"But I hate wardens." Was Mr. Johnson that desperate for help?

And yet you defended them during the attack. More importantly, you defended the people of this town.

Dylan pictured Warden Bully lying helpless while Mrs. Rhodes stood over him. "That doesn’t mean I want to be one of them."

Mr. Johnson’s expression hardened. This is not a matter of what you want.

Aiden turned to Dylan, his eyes both fearful and