My Books!

My Books!

Hey, guys! Welcome to my profile, here you'll find my books (which are partially available here on Tumblr).

My books are self-translated, so my English might fail me sometimes, so I'd thank you if you could spare some minutes to critique my work if you decide to read it (I hope you do!)

Besides that, just enjoy the ride, I hope you love my stories and my characters as much as I do <3

All Creatures on Earth - Summary

The series will follow Adra, a witch born in a world of demons who has to navigate this world to get revenge for her father's murder. A murder mystery filled with political intrigue and a bit of Dark Academia vibes.

To Decadent Poets - Summary

The series is a coming-of-age type of story and will follow Chris, Annie, Oliver, and Noah as they grow up together in the north of Scotland as World War II devastates the world. A historical fiction with some mystery, a lot of comfort vibes, and Light Academia aesthetics!

The Freak Show Series - Summary

The series is based on two independent books but both are focused on heroines leaving abusive relationships with their families and discovering a whole new world ahead of them (and falling in love, of course). Ah, and there is a circus of horrors (running away with the circus was never more appealing haha).

Prologue - A Broken Heart, Like a Clock

Summary - find more chapters, read the synopsis, and trigger warnings here!

Part 1 – Shall be Lifted… Nevermore “And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor Shall be lifted… Nevermore.” The Raven, Edgar Allan Poe

To make it right, Cinara needed to break two hearts that afternoon and conquer another one by night time.

If she couldn’t, lives would be ruined, all because of a failed-before-it-even-began engagement. At that moment, Cinara would pay to have her own head struck by something heavy, anything to get the hell away from that familiar campsite, full of motorcycles and motorhomes.

Full of freedom.

How the hell, Cinara asked herself, could she have the courage to break her own heart?

Go to Chapter 1

All Angels from Heaven Above - Chapter 1

Summary - find more chapters, read the synopsis, and trigger warnings here!

Buy the whole book through this link!

The walls of Lethe Academy carried its ghosts the same way blood stained the walls of Jerusalem: just because it was impossible to see them, it didn’t mean they weren’t there. But, just like any dark past, they’d always come back to haunt innocent generations, which were ignorant of the crimes committed before their existence in the world. 

So, when all the papers in the city of Agraés published that Death had visited the Academy, none of their elders were surprised; but the young ones, anxious to hold the world in their hands and naively believing apt to do such inconceivable feat, watched it all with attentive and morbid curiosity, very little moved by the death of one of them.

Not that it mattered now that she was already dead, though Adra Anoixi while walking through the dark wooden floor of the store, her steps producing a hollow sound on the floor while her black dress rustled against the surface. She faced the three girls, as dazzling as goddesses, who waited for her in front of the counter, facing the entry. All of them wore the most expensive dresses money could buy and had their hair done in a way Adra would never use on a day-to-day basis.

Or to a funeral, like the one they were going to.

“Here it is,” she gave them the incense as it was asked.

The girls looked at Adra for a second longer than necessary before one of them — the taller one, with black dark skin — took the incense from her hand with a last look of contempt. 

Without any more words or thanks, they left the store, imperious as just demons could be, leaving her payment on the counter to not have to touch her. Adra looked to the ceiling with an impatient sigh.

“I should’ve given them the fake incense” she murmured to herself, remembering the terrible smell of that specific product. “It’d be deserved if they whisk away everyone with that stink.

But since the death at the Academy, the sales were low. The city hadn’t been receiving as many travelers as it used to every week and that was worrisome: if the tourists started to avoid the city because of superstition, a lot of stores would be forced to close.

If Witches & Daughters were one of them, that would break her mother’s heart. And that wasn’t acceptable, not when the store was a gift from her father, Kia’s only love.

Despite the lack of humans visiting Witches & Daughters, demons were interested enough in her to buy some cheap trinkets that humans made the mistake of thinking were magic. If they did it for mockery or because they believed the same as humans, it didn’t matter to her. What did matter was that the store would survive another month's savings from debts and debt collectors.

Many hours passed until the bell above the door rang again with the presence of other people in the dusty store, full of dried herbs, crystals, and other natural products. Happy to have something to do, Adra got up from the small chair behind the counter and raised her eyes to her new client.

The man in front of her wasn’t older than Adra herself and watched her with his black eyes full of glow — like a star —, there was a silver earring in his right ear and his brownish lips were curved in an arrogant smile. A demon, but not any demon: Adra could feel his power making her shiver, even two meters away from him. 

Powerful and handsome as Death: that was a dangerous combination, especially when talking about a fallen angel.

Adra was immediately suspicious and curious, and that made her frown: it wasn’t common for such a powerful demon to enter her store and Adra didn’t like what it could mean.

“It was way too easy to find you, miss Anoixi,” he said, his voice calm as a breeze.

Every single one of Adra’s instincts were alert at his words, the coldness in his expression. Carefully, she slipped her hand to the slit of her dress, just below the carpet, feeling the dagger’s hilt her father had given her.

“I wasn’t hiding,” Adra said, raising her chin proudly. “So, I’d imagine that finding me wouldn’t be a problem.”

She was, after all, one of the best witches in Agráes and people would look for her often, but never a powerful demon like that one in front of her. The shadows whispered to Adra as if feeling her uneasy with the demon’s power, even though he didn’t seem menacing.

“How can I help you?” Adra asked then, her voice professional, but the warning in them was unmistakable.

She didn’t think he’d do something bad, but being alert near demons was already an instinct for a long time now, especially those ridiculously handsome.

Her words made the corner of his lips tremble up as if he was finding all that quite funny for reasons Adra could only imagine, his dark eyes shining mysteriously.

Adra didn’t smile back, even though the amusement was taunting the corner of her own lips too.

The demon wore a dark gray overcoat, black social pants, shirt, and shoes — Lethe Academy’s uniform, she easily recognized. He walked to the counter, watching Adra carefully before saying anything else.

She didn’t move, uneasy under his scrutiny, but didn’t recoil from the slow and interested eyes of the demon, choosing to hold the dagger tighter instead, just in case. Finally, he smiled, still politely, and said:

"I am looking for you, Adra."

She didn’t ask how he knew her name. Most demons knew her because of her father, as was expected, but the fact that he had that little bit of advantage over her bothered Adra.

Despite her grip on the hidden dagger, Adra trusted that the demon wouldn’t dare to attack her. She knew that, in a power match, she couldn’t defeat him, but demons knew witches didn’t fight with their powers only. So Adra just arched an eyebrow while calmly asking:

“And what do you want?”

“Damian Kolasi” the demon introduced himself and held out his hand. Adra looked at it for a couple of seconds before shaking it.

Fortunately, her free hand got to keep holding the dagger.

“And do you know how to answer a direct question, Damian Kolasi?” Adra asked slowly.

The man laughed lowly and Adra was forced to suppress a shiver so he couldn’t notice the impact he had on her. The demon, however, looked at her like he knew exactly his effect.

“I want to make a deal with you.”

Absently, he walked away from her, examining the store. Damian gripped and shook a jar full of eyes. All of them false, of course — the eyes. Despite the gossip going around between the humans, no witch had the need to use anything but their own minds to yield their powers.

Adra watched him, expressionless, while he roamed through the place, picking up random products and crouching down to get a look at what interested him. She wouldn’t admit it, but she was disappointed. That demon looked dangerous enough to be interesting, but it looked like Adra was wrong.

“Any witch with common sense knows she shouldn’t make deals with demons, mister Kolasi,” she said, her voice stable and unperturbed. “So, your answer is no.”

“I don’t want... favors, Adra,” said Damian, and there was an edge of tension in his voice, something dark and gloomy that made Adra shiver. “I want you to join Lethe Academy as a student. The first witch student. I think you heard that there’s a place available.”

A rude way of saying that one of the students died, no doubt. Adra raised an eyebrow to him, but the demon just crouched to analyze the crow’s feathers in one of the lower shelves, without realizing his own lack of empathy.

Meanwhile, Adra’s mind was like a scorching cauldron about to overflow. The Lethe Academy had never had a witch among its students, since all the vacancies were destined to legitimate children of demons. 

As she was possibly the only witch who was the legit daughter of a demon, maybe she could enter, but it would have consequences for her father, so Adra never asked this of him, even when her fascination for the school was evident every time she got near it.

The fact that that unknown demon had entered her store and simply handed her oldest dream to Adra could only be some fucked up kind of prank.

“What do you want in return?” she asked this time, knowing very well how tricky the words of a demon could be. 

Damian smiled at her as if pleased with her question and got up from where he had crouched to look at the crow’s feathers, walking towards her again.

“I knew you’d be more intelligent than your friends,” he said and Adra rolled her eyes.

She filled in the information that Damian had already spoken to other witched about that ridiculous idea, however. It’d be useful to ask about that to her coven later. For now, she had to deal with a demon.

“Answer my question.”

“I already told you,” he said quietly, trying to judge her skills in detecting his bullshit. “I want to help you to become the first witch student in Lethe Academy.”

“I heard you the first time,” Adra said, raising her chin. “But I want to know why you want me at the Academy. I’m not stupid enough to think it doesn’t come with a price.”

“You’re the first witch I found that thought about indulging me,” Damian said with a satisfied smile.

“That’s because no other witch is interested in going to that place,” she said in an explanation tone of voice, but impatient nonetheless: “Far too many demons.”

“You don’t like us, do you?” he didn’t expect an answer so Adra didn’t give him one. The hate between their species was obvious and had good motives to exist, and yet, there he was, searching for a witch to help him in whatever it was he wanted help with. Even so, it was intriguing and Adra couldn’t deny to herself the shadow of curiosity present at the back of her mind. Damian analyzed her again and clicked his tongue. “I wonder what’s different about you.”

That was a dangerous question and the way he tilted his head to the side, looking at her, intrigued, was even more so.

“What do you want in exchange for the available place?” Adra asked again, tired of walking in circles with that annoying man.

“I need a witch to do a job for me,” said the demon with a dangerous smile forming on his face while his dark eyes made Adra want to recoil because of their intensity. She stood stubbornly still. “You see, I have a hunch about the murder of my... colleague.”

“You don’t know if it was murder,” Adra said, frowning.

All the papers had said was that the cause of death was a mystery and no one could say for certain if it was murder, suicide, or just an accident. No other detail. It was that, among other things, that made people so nervous about that situation.

“Oh, but I know,” he said, walking toward her again with that damned smile on his face. 

Adra had her dagger in his neck before Damian Kolasi could lean over the counter and the demon froze. She would rather go to prison for his murder than allow him to do something to her, thought Adra, alert to his every move.

Instead of being annoyed, however, Damian Kolasi laughed, looking even more amused by Adra. He looked at her like a cat would at a bird whose efforts to escape its claws were useless, even when she was the one holding the blade.

“Oh, you really are sweet, aren’t you?” he asked as if there was not a dagger about to slit his throat.

“I wouldn’t say that about someone who could kill me,” she said and he smiled, gloomy.

Adra frowned, allowing Damian Kolasi to lean over to her a bit, leveling their eyes, his face near enough that she could see the cracks of his lips.

“You’re so dangerous, candy” he smiled as the sweetest of the poisons when he said that as if he was satisfied with that. “Anyway, there is no motive for violence, I’m not going to attack you.”

Adra didn’t lower her dagger. She knew better than to trust a demon.

“How can you know that was a murder?”

He looked at her, incredulous.

“Do you really think that a completely healthy, right-handed young adult would stab herself in the ribs with her left hand, even in an accident?” Asked Damian as if Adra was stupid and she hissed at him, her shadows gathering around her, reacting to her feelings before she could control them. 

Damian’s black eyes followed that power, showing a little bit of preoccupation for the very first time.

And admiration.

Adra frowned — it was the first time a demon that wasn’t her dad looked like he was awed by what she could do. The shadows retreated, reacting with confusion to Adra’s control and shock. No one had seen her power without fearing it, not even other witches, because unlike them, Adra controlled them as easily as she breathed.

“And how do you know all that?” she asked.

“Oh, I found the body,” he said as if it wasn’t a big thing while shaking his hand to dismiss further explanations. “Criminalistics classes did the rest.”

Adra’s grip on the dagger relaxed a bit. Lethe Academy for Demonic Arts trull offered criminalistics classes, just like anatomy and necromancy lessons, each one depending on the year one was. It made sense that, if Damian Kolasi had found the body, he’d know all that. It would also make sense, however, if he was the murderer.

“And why, exactly, do you want me to enter in the place of your colleague?” she asked again, watching while the smile crept back to Damian’s perfect face.

“I have a hunch.”

“A hunch,” she repeated.

“I think the murderer at Lethe Academy is just at the beginning and you’re the only one that can help me to catch them, candy,” said Damian.

With a quick move, he took Adra’s dagger from her, twisting her wrist slightly before nailing the blade to the wood of the counter with a yellowish paper and backing away from her, smiling before pulling the doorknob.

“Meet me at this address in a week at six pm if you want to know more about it, Adra Anoixi. I’ll be waiting.”

Damian Kolasi laughed when Adra threw the dagger at him, missing by a few centimeters before he closed the door behind him.

She watched as he walked away through the street as if he had just had a nice afternoon tea, incredulous with the nerve of him. Then she circled the counter to catch her dagger from the doorframe.

When she turned, a simple letter had appeared at the side of Damian Kolasi’s address. Adra groaned when she recognized the letter’s handwriting.

Go to Chapter 2

All Angels from Heaven Above - Chapter 3

Summary - find more chapters, read the synopsis, and trigger warnings here!

Buy the whole book through this link!

“I offered help to one of Detective Carino’s superiors and found a memory ritual that could answer the Royal Guard’s question regarding that… unpleasant situation,” explained Eupraxia before Spiridon could talk again, ignoring the strong tension in the saloon. 

A memory ritual demanded a lot of a group of witches and it was done in extremely delicate steps. The first part consisted of letting the shadows take their magic to where the situation had happened, which wasn’t so difficult. The second part, a bit more complicated, depended on the witch’s ability to weave a thin, intricated web of their own power so that memory could be trapped in it. 

The third one, the most dangerous of them, occurred when the other witches joined in the ritual: all of them, together, would build a bridge that would pull the memory from inside the mind of the witch responsible for the first two steps and project it into an open space, like a shadow theater.

Adra looked around, to the officers with equally disdainful and fearful expressions, and then to the nervous and cautious witches and wizards. She didn’t like the idea of doing such a difficult ritual with so much tension around her at all but the Guard would hardly accept leaving without it being done or giving them privacy.

To those demons, they needed to see to believe it. And they wouldn’t accept anything less because demons didn’t trust witches and vice-versa. The simple fact that they had accepted Eupraxia’s offer to one of her high-ranking lovers was a surprise, considering how the Royal Guard treated witches: pitiful beggars in the best-case scenario, prostitutes whose bodies and dignity were free-for-all in the worst case.

“Very well then,” Spiridon agreed begrudgingly. Not even he could deny such an important favor to the Royal Guard. “But if we’re going to do it, I want our most powerful witch doing the first two steps.”

Of course, you do, though Adra, frustrated when every pair of eyes turned to her. She didn’t like that attention and didn’t want it but didn’t have a lot of choice in it. 

Regardless of her power, the memory of the ritual would only indicate the culprit if the witch who was doing the ritual knew them. The most they would see were shadow figures and that was making her worry. Adra hoped they didn’t have too much hope about that, despite Eupraxia’s presumption.

Sighed in resignation, she stepped forward, letting Thalassa’s hand slip from her own, and stared at Eupraxia, who seemed ready to kick her. Adra ignored the lead detective’s stare when she spoke:

“Let’s go on then if no one is opposed.”

Despite Thalassa’s last warning, the woman didn’t interfere in the clash, probably too shocked by Eupraxia’s lack of prudence. That was big but it surely wasn’t good, especially considering that the chances of it going wrong were too high.

The witches seemed calmer now that Adra was chosen to do that task — she was the one in danger after all — and accepted her request, positioning herself. Spiridon nodded towards Adra when passing by her. His dark eyes didn’t apologize but Adra didn’t want apologies, so she only nodded back, walking towards the north side of the circle the other had opened in the middle of the room.

Eupraxia took to herself the task of moving the officers to a place where they could see what was happening but couldn’t interfere with the shadows. When everyone got silent, Adra closed her eyes, focusing on the Darkness, on the points of the room filled with it.

For witches, the Darkness was its own language that sang to them like old friends, as mermaids would sing to unsuspecting sailors. It could be good and bad and, especially, it could be controlled. Adra knew each song and each pun, therefore she let It flow around her, like the breath of a night breeze, cold and humid, making her hair flutter and trying to mix up with her soul.

It wasn’t so difficult to go through the city she was born into the Academy, even in the shadows, jumping from shadow to shadow quickly. And, when she entered the walls she had never entered, Adra followed to where the shadows came together more tightly, attracted by evil and Death.

She followed that still energy and, when she reached the place where Aglaie Kalliergei had died — even if she didn’t know which room was it because everything around her was just an echo of her power —, Adra focused on reviewing the dark memories, just like one would leaf through a book to see what was it about.

It wasn’t hard for her web to catch the memory she needed like a fly in a spiderweb. As soon as she got it, all the other witches felt the threads that connected them in that ritual being bound tighter, thus completing the ritual.

It was hard, however, to try not to be offended when they began to pull out the memory from her head: the feeling of being invaded was like strong dizziness and, for a moment, Adra couldn’t tell where she was or what she could see as she opened her eyes. With a deep breath, her sight adjusted to the scene that played in front of her.

The first figure appeared and Adra guessed it was the victim, even when all she could see was a black shadow like ink and water mixing up in the form of a manikin, with no sign of their own identity.

As a consequence of the successful ritual, Adra felt more than saw the restlessness of everyone in the saloon while her powers projected that image. 

If Aglaie’s death had really been a murder, the Royal Guard would have had serious problems to deal with, especially with King Stavros, since the prince had been studying at the Academy for a few years now. A piece of news like that wouldn’t be kept from the media for much longer, especially when there were other people involved in that ritual, which could chase away the usual clients of Agraés and would bring serious economic problems to the city.

Then, a second figure appeared and Adra frowned. Different from the first one, the second silhouette was diffuse, almost transparent, and she could see Thalassa’s blurred face through it.

It worried her.

Darkness called Darkness, and every kind of It — shadows made by the lights, inner evil, bad and/or too intense feelings — answered to the witches in the same way. It didn’t make sense the second figure was so different from the first one.

Confused, Adra followed the way through her own powers, trying to find something wrong in the web in which she captured the memory but there wasn’t anything. The silhouette just seemed to not have an inner darkness, which was quite literally impossible: every single one of them — demons, witches, and humans — had something bad that forced them to respond to a witch’s power, and that’s why they were so feared.

The two figures looked like they were talking but the Darkness didn’t speak the language of people and couldn’t hold on to words, that had their own power, therefore all they could hear was the cold silence of a possible fight. Then, like a snake, the blurred figure attacked the first one and a searing light blinded Adra for a second, cutting her powers off like one would cut the strings of a puppet, sending a sudden ray of pain through her throat and her chest. 

By the shocked gasps that Adra could hear through her own surprise, she could understand she wasn’t the only one who had felt it.

When all seemed back to normal and the room adjusted back to how it always was — the shadows slipping back to their rightful places — the witches looked at each other, all surprised and fearing. The ritual wasn’t supposed to end up like this, the memory should have continued.

But they still had an answer. 

“Murder,” Spiridon announced in a low tone of voice while the rest of the witches whispered among themselves, unease with what had just happened. 

Adra observed with caution when the officers walked as far away from the witches as they could while they moved but looking convinced enough to not cause trouble — or maybe they were a little more preoccupied with getting the hell out of there. She turned to Eupraxia, whose green eyes shone with presumption while facing the lead detective.

“As I said it would be,” she said.

Adra had the desire to recoil back at the danger those words could mean. By what she knew about the woman, Eupraxia was ambitious but rarely a fool. That was one of the few moments when the matron was purely stupid.

Detective Carino’s jawline was tense when he stared at Adra, ignoring Eupraxia and Spiridon’s verdict. It was just when she nodded that he turned to the woman and said:

“I’m going to send this information to my superiors, madam Skourleti, and I thank you for the help, just like I would for the discretion,” he said formally, his voice tight and rigid, his eyes sharp with an authority that seemed to come to him naturally, not from empty threats.

Eupraxia looked pleased with that answer and nodded, quickly moving away to join the fool group of women who admired her when the rest of the coven stared at her with caution. Spiridon, taking the reins of the situation, announced to the rest of the room, his voice echoing through the shadows this time:

“Well, this night was surprising to us all and I’m sure we’re all tired. Therefore, I think going home and having a good night's sleep.”

The witches grumbled their agreement, all ready to get rid of the officers, even when none of them were really planning to go home.

“Adra,” the lead detective’s voice caught her attention and Adra looked at the soft violet eyes they both shared. “We should go together.”

“Fine, Dad,” she agreed with a sigh, knowing that Carino would want to talk about what had happened that night in one way or another, so it would be better to be done with it.

Ignoring the equally disgusted looks from witches and officers, Adra took the overcoat her father gave her and put it on, sighing happily when she felt the warm flannel from the lining under the black fabric, pleased to verify that the garment was from her own wardrobe and it went all the way down the end of her equally black dress, hugging her waist like a bodice.

“Thank you for doing this,” she said, smiling at Carino, who returned the smile, still tense but caring.

“I thought you’d be here, with all this happening,” was his answer.

He sighed, looking tired, and Adra just pressed her lips together, without voicing her preoccupation. They would have time to talk while walking home.

In silence, both climbed up the stairs, emerging to the cold night air and the mist, the golden lights of the poles were the only thing they could see in the distance. Other officers from the Guard were there too, no doubt waiting to get company for the night and Adra tried not to frown at them when their eyes locked.

All of them knew she was the boss’ daughter, the only untouchable witch in that city. And not because Carino protected her but because she was the only one who had the chance to attack them back and not face the consequences of it. It was enough that they feared her even more than they feared other witches.

“Adra!” Thassie’s voice came to her ears, making her turn in time to see her friend climbing up the Coven’s stairs, her expression preoccupied but Thalassa’s arm was pulled by one of the officers, a heart-shaped man that was probably useless. 

Adra saw the panic growing in Thalassa’s eyes from afar and made her way back to her without thinking twice, in time to hear the officer saying:

“You’re a pretty piece, huh?” he sniveled, tightening his grip on her arm when Thalassa tried to escape. “Maybe you could show me what you can do, witch.”

Thassie tried to escape once again, looking scared but he just raised his hand to grip her hair. Adra caught his wrist before he could, however, making the unknown officer let go of Thalassa to face her.

“It’ll be better for your health if you don’t touch her,” Adra just said, her voice whispering the danger in the Darkness but it was the dagger in her hand, hidden from the other Guard officers, that posed the biggest threat.

The man’s eyes widened with fear when he felt the blade against his stomach.

“You little whore...”

“Careful, Gregório,” Carino said, appearing behind Adra, his voice soft, like his daughter’s, just a ruse to hide the promise of violence underneath his words. “My daughter is a bigger threat than I need to be. And I’m still your boss. Go home.”

The man looked from Adra to Carino, doubtless recognizing the semblance between them, and made his way back, whining his protests as the filthy pig he was. Letting him go, Adra turned to Thalassa, using the shield of her father’s broad shoulders to hide her dagger back in its place.

“Are you okay?” she asked and Thalassa just nodded, embracing herself. Adra’s voice got softer than she was used to when she spoke the next words: “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Thalassa said, staring at Carino, who sighed and walked away just enough so that they could talk without being heard. When she got comfortable, Thassie grabbed Adra’s hand and said, her blue eyes shining brightly. “Promise me you’re not going to hear that demon, Adra.”

She hesitated, caught by surprise by the gravity in Thalassa’s expression, and then pressed her lips together in a tight line, incapable of promising something she wasn’t able to uphold. When Thalassa saw that, her blue eyes shone with her frustration and she let go abruptly of her hand.

“Fine, and then,” she said, already climbing down the stairs, back to the Coven, no doubt to alert the other witches to use the alternative exit that night.

Adra watched her walking away, wanting to ask her friend to come back and promise her whatever she wanted but she knew she couldn’t. That was her only chance of getting into the Academy, of being the first witch to ever do such a thing. And Adra knew the importance of being the first. But she also couldn’t promise something to Thalassa because at the back of her mind, around a thin web, shone a part of the memory that wasn’t seen. 

And in it, Damian Kolasi entered the room where Aglaie Kalliergei had died just a couple of minutes after the killer.

Chapter 4 - Coming soon...

Buy the whole book through this link!

Just saying...

but technically...

TECHNICALLY...

Odysseus' crew isn't supposed to make it past the River Styx because they didn't have proper burials and don't have the coins to pay Charonte (????????)

Just saying they'll never see their loved ones again because most of them are probably able to get proper burials (:

All Angels From Heaven Above - Chapter 2

Summary - find more chapters, read the synopsis, and trigger warnings here!

Buy the whole book through this link!

The address Damian Kolasi gave her was public and known enough so no one would find it strange seeing them together. On the other hand, it was also dangerously close to her coven’s headquarters, where witches gathered every time they could, which could mean that, if she decided to go, she’d have to explain herself to some curious wizards and witches. 

All those thoughts swirled in Adra’s mind while she closed the store and walked through the cobblestone street without a hurry, positioning her keys between her fingers. She wasn’t especially worried that someone could try to attack her — she had her powers to defend herself — but it was always good to be alert.

As if in mockery of Adra’s lack of fear, a thick fog filled Agraés, making her steps a mystery that should reveal itself in each corner while the old and imposing buildings loomed before her like ancient giants. She liked the city, despite the constant gloomy weather and the silent streets, full of danger waiting for her in every block.

Damian Kolasi’s deal, vastly different from the path she was taking because of the posteriors letter she had received, was intriguing and mysterious enough to make her suspicious. Adra didn’t like to be in that position, mainly because the demon knew her curiosity would be louder than her caution. He knew Adra would meet him even before she made her decision and that was utterly annoying.

Even so, that was a unique opportunity. Lethe Academy for Demonic Arts — a name she’d rather change — was quite literally the best school in all Nikaés, teaching demons from all over the world for dozens, if not hundreds, of generations. 

It didn’t even have a foundation date because no one knew how old was the school. It had five different libraries for each main subject of teaching, plus one for recreation, more than fifty classrooms, and a faculty with the best of the best teachers: the Academy was the most wonderful and intriguing place Adra had ever seen in her life.

And there she was, on the edge of getting in, if only she could dare to be the first witch to do so. Even if it hurt, even if it was going to be difficult as hell, even if she had to crawl her way onwards, that would be her only chance to get in.

Deciding she’d think about it, Adra sighed and hurried, in haste to get to the Coven. 

She heard footsteps behind her and tensed, unable to avoid them, even knowing that whoever it was would probably go away once they noticed she was a witch. And indeed it didn’t take long for that to happen, letting her relax again.

The city where Adra had grown up, Agraés, was in the south of Níkaes and it boiled down to a set of old-structured buildings, almost all of them beige or grayish, narrow streets and silent alleys between buildings, with a central river called Thanatos, which divided the city in two. Quite often, that was the description of tourists and uninterested visitors whose final destination was the capital, Mávros.

But to the residents and the Academy’s students who were brave enough, Agraés had its own magic inside its ancient structure and its alleys that would only wake up at dawn. At the main avenues, like the one where Kia and Adra’s apartment and store were located, the nights were monotonous and quiet, like no living soul lived there, but one just had to walk a couple of blocks to see the first evidence that Agraés wasn’t like any other city.

Adra turned at the familiar alley three blocks up from her apartment and smiled when she saw the awnings of the little underground pubs with their golden round lights spread through their metallic structures. 

As she crossed the alley, Adra saw young demons — probably local children, as the Academy didn’t allow its younger students to go out of its walls — walking through the place, amazed as a young human man did magic tricks that in reality had no magic at all, but were impressive enough so that they could cheat and delight others.

It took some minutes more and several other alleys for Adra to finally reach the Coven. Unlike other passages, the place where wizards and witches gathered didn’t look especially cozy or inviting. With a simple used wooden door, the only sign that there was some kind of life inside the cold gray building was the soft light pouring through the crescent moon-shaped hole in the door, which led to the underground saloon of peeled-off walls and hard capable of conserving a corpse — something Adra had already witnessed happening there.

The letter she’d received — sent through the Shadows — had been adamant that her presence at the Coven that night was required, something that intrigued Adra. Therefore, she entered the underground building, climbing down quickly the few steps that led to the door.

As soon as Adra entered, every other witch — and the few wizards that existed in the city — looked at her, none of them happy to see her. Adra just smirked, sarcastic: she wasn’t exactly happy to be summoned to attend the meeting tonight. But the Coven did what its matron witch determined and, as a witch, Adra owed obedience to her. 

Not that she respected Eupraxia Skourleti, the matron witch of her coven, very often. Adra just knew which fights to choose. Most of the time, at least.

Some witches smiled at Adra, not for affection, but purely for politeness. They never tried to make any conversation, however. 

To most, their coven was a refuge from a world that wasn’t made for them and didn’t make any effort to understand them. A world that was dominated by demons that believed themselves to be superior to any other species and whose oppressed — the humans — were too bitter and suspicious of any demonic thing to embrace them, considering that witches were the offspring of demons with humans. So, to the witches, their coven was the family most of them didn’t have and a refuge from the cruelty all of them endured.

But Adra was different and all of them knew that. Some few people didn’t resent what she had, but most hated her for having something they could only dream of: parents who were in love with each other. Most witches were born because of a meaningless seduction of human women by demons who would abandon them without hesitation with a bastard child in their arms.

Or worse.

Adra’s parents’ union wasn’t usual — in fact, she could easily affirm she was the only legitimate daughter of a demon and a human in all Nikaés.

That should include the Nephilim, children of angels and humans, and the ouralasi, children of angels and demons: they were too few, considering the country didn’t allow the entry of angels into its territory.

Like the witches, however, they had a lot of power: while the witches could control the Darkness, the Nephilim had a powerful affinity with at least one of the natural elements, and the ouralasi had ways to transform the matter if needed.

“Adra,” the known voice called her from one of the corners of the room. The shadows of that dreary place, however full, carried the call for her alone to hear. 

The voice had the shy tone that Adra knew very well and she turned to Thalassa Stathi at the other side of the room, sustaining the relieved look of her friend and ex-girlfriend. 

Well, Adra thought while walking towards her, maybe she was a friend. The things between them were complicated since Thassie had broken up with her months ago, but the relief was undeniable, and the gratitude both of them to see a familiar face in the crowd.

Adra looked at Thalassa’s black skin, which shone under the soft, golden light of the saloon, making her a queen of gold and shadows while she leaned in the gray stone wall.

“I’m surprised you came,” said Thassie before Adra could think of something to start a small talk. “You hate all of this.”

Adra tried not to sigh when she heard the slight accusation underlying the casualty of her tone. It wasn’t her fault that the Coven wasn’t exactly welcoming.

“Oh, you know, I have to make an appearance from time to time so that they remember I exist,” she said trying to sound excited despite the insistent looks from those who couldn’t tolerate her cutting her back without remorse. Thalassa snorted. “Actually, Eupraxia called me here today. Do you have any idea of what’s going to happen?”

“Well, she called all of us, but she doesn’t seem happy to see you,” said Thalassa, pointing her head in the direction of the Coven’s matron witch. “I guess she thought you’d disobey her again.”

Fearless, Adra turned to stare at Eupraxia Skourleti. The witch, who had curly voluminous hair and emerald green eyes, was one of the oldest witches of the coven and she simply hated Adra with all her might. The feeling was surely mutual. Their motives, however, were always unknown by all, including the two of them.

But behind that obvious rivalry, Eupraxia was a talented witch, powerful and full of ambition, something that made her dangerous and admirable in the same measure. If she had said that something big would happen, it was probably true.

When their eyes met, the witch showed her teeth, deeply displeased with Adra’s presence at the Coven that night, which was ironic, considering that it was Eupraxia who had sent the letter that called her, to begin with.

The dim golden lights of the saloon flickered when Adra smiled at her, the shadows fighting to fill the place like they did when Adra was mad at Damian Kolasi just a couple of hours ago. This time, however, the anger came from Eupraxia to Adra, who became immediately alert to any possible attack. 

But Eupraxia could control herself with as much ease as it escaped her and the witch went back to her always sober expression to murmur what was probably an excuse to the older witches that stood around her and walked towards Adra and Thassie, who straightened up in her place, locking her hands behind her back in a sign of respect for the matron witch.

Adra didn’t bother to do the same.

“Hello, Mrs. Skourleti,” greeted Thassie with a nervous half smile, receiving a polite and professorial nod in exchange.

“Miss Stathi,” said Eupraxia in a murmur before turning to Adra, the emerald green in her irises shining with hatred when the girl raised her chin. “Miss Anoixi, it’s a surprise to see you here.”

Adra smiled with the displeasure she found in the matron’s voice, perfectly delighted with that.

“Well, it’s your letter's fault, ma’am,” said Adra, just to see her squirm with anger. “It sounded important to be here tonight.”

“Yes, well...” Eupraxia looked like she sucked the sourest lemon, but didn’t have the chance to answer, because one of her apprentices, a girl with an innocent complexion and reverent eyes at her tutor, whispered in her ear. “I hope you enjoy the night, ladies. It’s about to begin.”

With that mysterious declaration, Eupraxia slipped to the other side of the saloon, leaving Thassie and Adra alone again. Adra frowned, resisting the curious desire to follow the woman and discover what the hell was happening under all of that secrecy.

“You shouldn’t treat her like this, Adra,” said Thalassa when they were sure they couldn’t be overheard by the matron, frowning in frustration when her blue-ice eyes went back to Adra. “It’ll come a day when you’ll need her and, with this kind of behavior, she’ll deny you.”

“She’s the adult here,” Adra retorted, looking at the place where Eupraxia had gone. “I’m eighteen, and she’s the one who should overlook my bad behavior.”

“And this was one of the reasons why I broke up with you.”

Thalassa took a deep breath, annoyed, and Adra felt a pang of guilt. She knew that she was a hard person to deal with, but that didn’t take away the merit of her point.

“It doesn’t matter,” Adra decided quickly, brushing off the subject by pressing Thalassa’s arm to catch the girl’s attention. “I need to tell you something.”

And just like that, with a preoccupied nod from Thassie, she told her about what had happened at the store that afternoon: Damian Kolasi, his proposal, and the meeting next week. At Adra’s every word, the girl looked even more preoccupied.

“You aren’t really thinking of going, are you?” she asked immediately when Adra finished and widened her eyes when she saw her hesitating. “Adra!”

“Shh,” Adra hissed, recoiling while the looks turned to them again. Both of them got silent for a couple of seconds. “And yes, I’m thinking of going. It’s a unique chance, Thassie. I could be the first witch to study at Lethe’s. The chances I could have...”

“Of getting yourself killed?” Thassie filled in sharply. “Adra, of all the crazy, dangerous things you did in your life, to think of believing that demon...”

But she never got to finish what she had to say, because powerful knocks sounded throughout the saloon, making all of them turn to the frail wooden door which looked ready to give in. Eupraxia appeared to shine while bouncing towards the door and opening it, allowing a big group of demons dressed in graffiti black to enter the saloon, as disciplined as an army.

The first reaction was a complete stupor of shock and incredulity, which spread through all of them like storm clouds. The Royal Guard of Agraés was there, in a weekly meeting of witches at the saloon of a decrepit building that was falling apart.

“My brothers and sisters,” Eupraxia’s voice sounded louder. Adra perceived she was using the darkness to spread her voice to all corners of the room. “Don’t be disturbed by our current company. The Royal Guard is here because we have something to do.”

Tempers flared — as was to be expected — while the witches looked around with suspicion. None of them trusted the Royal Guard at all. Authorities were full of self-importance and thought they could do anything and not be held accountable, especially when it came to witches.

The worst thing about, it was that they were right: they could easily escape from any harm done to any of them.

Adra frowned when the Guard’s lead detective entered at last, his black hair shining in the soft lighting and his lips pressed tight together in dissatisfaction. She looked away, however, when his eyes scanned the room, analyzing it with his violet irises.

Whatever it was the motive of the Royal Guard’s officers at the Coven at that moment, Adra knew that it was going to end badly: a lot of demons, with their sense of superiority, against the witches and wizard, who were feeling defensive, ready to strike like trapped animals and feeling like their safe harbor was being invaded. It was the perfect combination for chaos.

“Explain why you brought the Royal Guard, Eupraxia,” ordered Spiridon Louganis, one of the few wizards who were part of the coven for more years than Adra had spent on Earth, his guttural voice impossible to ignore. 

Eupraxia didn’t seem bothered by the veiled reprimand in Spiridon’s words and smiled at her brother.

“The Royal Guard of Agraés asked for our help in the mystery of Aglie Kalliergei’s death, the girl who died at Lethe Academy a couple of weeks ago.”

Eupraxia didn’t seem sorrowful for the death of a young woman while smiling to the group in front of her, all those wizards and witches surrounded by officers that would kill them all without thinking twice over it for the slightest sign — made up or real, it didn’t matter — of a threat in their part. None of them dared to breathe too heavily and Adra felt Thalassa squeezing her hand tightly enough to hurt.

“And what can we do?” asked Spiridon, hesitant, but directed his questions to the leading detective instead of Eupraxia. Adra and the others were even more careful and the climate around them was so tense that even that cold underground room was starting to feel stuffy.

“We want to know if the young woman was really murdered like our centers of investigation and criminalistics seem to indicate, or if it was an accident,” said the detective with an unaltered voice, looking the wizard in the eyes without any expression, be it disgust or respect. Damian Kolasi’s words echoed in Adra’s memories. A stab wound in the middle of her ribs. It couldn't be an accident, not if Damian was telling the truth. And, judging by the underlying tension on the detective’s shoulders, he was.

Go to Chapter 3