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Marigold

My knees ached where they’d hit the carpet, but I barely noticed. My breathing hitched, quick and ragged. I was alive. I was in my living room. But the air still felt wrong—like the nightmare hadn’t let go of me yet.

My hands shook violently as I clutched my chest. The last few seconds played on repeat—monsters, glowing light, impossible portals. No, no, no. That wasn’t real. That couldn’t be real.

I turned toward the woman who had pulled me through reality itself. She smoothed back her already smooth hair, as if ripping open the universe was just another Tuesday for her. My pulse pounded in my ears. She had light in her hands. Magic. Real magic. And she was standing in my house.

I scrambled backward until I hit the couch. “Who—how—” My throat closed. “What the hell was that?”

“I’m Ms. Parker,” the woman introduced herself, as if we were meeting for a business lunch rather than… whatever just happened. “From Wickem Academy. And we need to leave. Now. Before more come.”

I stared at her, my heart still racing and my mind struggling to process what I’d just seen. “More what? What were those… things? How did we get here? What—”

“All excellent questions,” she said, checking something that looked like a compass, but glowed unnaturally. “Which I will answer after we get you somewhere safe. Pack quickly. You’ve just drawn a lot of unwanted attention.”

She turned to my mother, who still hadn’t moved. “Ms. Brook. I imagine you have questions too. But right now, your daughter needs to come with me. She needs protection. Training. Or what happened tonight will only be the beginning.”

“Protection?” Mom’s voice shook. “From… from what? What just happened? How did you get in here?”

“Ms. Brook—” Ms. Parker started, but I interrupted.

“Those things at the Conrads’—they weren’t real. They couldn’t be. Like the ghost wasn’t real, like the mice weren’t…” I trailed off as cold settled in the pit of my stomach. If they were real… If I wasn’t crazy…

“All of it is real, Marigold.” Ms. Parker’s stern expression softened slightly. “Just like the incidents when you were younger. Your cat that came back from the grave. Those dead birds knocking at your window during tests.”

“How do you know about those?” Mom demanded.

“Mom…” I said, wrapping my arms around my nauseous stomach. “You remember those things, too? You always said they were just my imagination.”

“Because they had to be,” Mom insisted. “Things like that aren’t possible. They’re not…” She turned to Ms. Parker. “Who are you? Really?”

“As I said, I’m from Wickem Academy,” Ms. Parker said. “But more importantly, I’m part of the Shroud Guard. We protect people like your daughter from things like what just tried to attack her.”

“Things like…” I swallowed hard. I’d had a letter from Wickem Academy, and I’d shoved it to the back of a drawer. What if I’d responded? What if it had stopped… “What were they?”

“Vampires.”

I barked out a laugh, but it died in my throat at her serious expression. “Vampires? Like… Dracula vampires?”

“Much worse, actually.” Ms. Parker checked that strange compass again. “And they’re particularly drawn to untrained magical ability. Especially necromancy.”

Necromancy. The word made my stomach twist, like something inside me already knew it was true.

Mom went pale. “Like… death magic? My daughter isn’t… she doesn’t…”

“The mice,” I whispered, feeling numb. “They were all dead, weren’t they? And Mrs. Conrad’s ghost…” My legs trembled and I leaned against the back of the armchair.

“Your father’s gift,” Ms. Parker confirmed. “He was one of the most powerful necromancers of his generation. Until—”

“James?” Mom sank back onto the couch. “He was… Magic was real? All this time?”

Gesturing to the matching rings Mom and I wore, Parker said, “The protection charms you wear—”

Mom interrupted, “They were to be our wedding rings.”

I fingered the ring on my necklace. This was my father’s?

Parker nodded. “They’ve been helping hide your abilities, but after tonight’s display…” She gestured at the compass, which was pulsing with an ominous red light. “We need to get you somewhere safer. Somewhere with proper magical protection.”

“Wickem.” I said the name slowly. I’d ignored it when the acceptance letter had come in the mail. I’d figured it was a scam. Who invites someone to attend a college they didn’t even apply to?

But now I took a steadying breath and asked, “It’s not just a college, is it?”

“It’s a university for witches. But you, Marigold, are more than just a witch.”

Mom just gaped at her.

“Her father is one of a long line of Grimley witches to attend Wickem,” Parker confirmed, then turned back to me. “But he was also a Council member and a member of one of the four most powerful magical families. And you are his heir.”

The room spun. “I’m… what?”

“A royal heir,” Ms. Parker said quietly. Her eyes jumped from us to her compass while she looked increasingly agitated. “Which makes you an even bigger target.”

“James was… royalty?” Mom asked, scrubbing her hand over her face. Then she frowned at Ms. Parker. “If he was so powerful, why did he leave us with nothing?”

Ms. Parker’s face darkened. “No one knew about Marigold. The Council believed your bloodline ended with your father’s execution.”

“Execution?” Mom’s voice broke. “James was executed ?”

I felt like I might throw up. She’d never told me anything about my dad, not even his name. I’d imagined all sorts of things about my missing dad, but not this. “He was killed? For… for what?”

“That’s complicated.” Ms. Parker checked the compass again and frowned. “And not a conversation we have time for right now.”

She turned to Mom. “Ms. Brook, I know this is overwhelming. But your daughter needs to come with me. The vampires won’t stop coming now that they’ve sensed her power.”

I sank down next to Mom, my head spinning. “This morning I was just a maid. Now I’m… what? A witch? A necromancer? Magic royalty?”

“All of the above.” Ms. Parker’s compass pulsed faster. “And right now, you’re also a beacon for every vampire in the state. Pack quickly. I’ve called for a Guard detail to protect your mother, but you need to be behind Wickem’s wards before more hunting parties arrive.”

Mom followed me to my room, her movements jerky with shock. I pulled out my battered suitcase while Ms. Parker stood guard at my bedroom door, that strange compass still pulsing ominously.

“Magic,” Mom whispered, picking up a shirt with shaking hands. “All those weird things over the years… the dead cat that kept showing up in your room…”

I swallowed hard, grabbing clothes at random. “I thought I was crazy.”

“Three minutes,” Ms. Parker called. “More vampires entering the city limits.”

My hands trembled as I shoved things into the suitcase. What do you pack when your whole world turns upside down? When you find out you’re not just a maid’s daughter but some kind of magical princess with monsters hunting you?

“The scholarship letter,” Mom said suddenly. She rushed to the kitchen, moving faster than her bad back should allow. I heard drawers banging open, papers rustling.

“Ms. Brook—” Ms. Parker started.

“Here!” Mom returned with the cream-colored envelope, now crumpled from her grip. “It wasn’t just a scholarship, was it? ‘Legacy admission’—that’s what you people called it?”

Ms. Parker nodded. “The wellspring itself sent the invitation.”

“The what?” I asked, struggling to zip my overstuffed suitcase.

“A source of magical power. One that recognized your bloodline.” She checked the compass again. “One that can protect you, if we get there in time.”

Mom tucked the admission letter in the pocket of my suitcase. Then she pressed her last twenty-dollar bill into my hand.

I tried to give it back but she closed my fingers around it.

“For emergencies,” she whispered, pulling me into a fierce hug. Her voice cracked. “I’m so sorry, baby. I should have… if I’d known what your father really was…”

“Don’t.” I hugged her tighter. “You couldn’t have known. I couldn’t have known.”

A thud from outside made us all jump. Ms. Parker’s compass flared bright red.

“Time to go.” Ms. Parker grabbed my arm but I pulled away.

“I can’t just leave her!” I looked at Mom, thinking of how vulnerable she was with her bad back. “What if more of those things come?”

“Marigold—” Ms. Parker started.

“No.” I moved to stand between Mom and the portal. “Send your Guard people now. I’m not leaving until they’re here to protect her.”

Mom touched my arm. “Baby, you’re in danger—”

“We’ve always protected each other,” I said fiercely. “That’s how we survived. I’m not running away while you’re not safe.”

Another thud outside. Closer. The ring around my neck felt like ice.

“The Guard is three minutes out,” Ms. Parker said, checking her compass. “The vampires are less than one minute away.”

“Then we fight.” My voice shook but I stood my ground. “Or we all go through that portal thing together. I’m not leaving her.”

Mom’s arms went around me. “My brave girl. But she’s right—you need to go where it’s safe. Where you can learn to control this… magic.” Her voice caught on the word. “I’ll be fine...” she looked at Ms. Parker.

“As long as you stay inside,” she confirmed. “They can’t cross the threshold.”

Mom nodded tightly. “I’ll be okay. I’ve survived worse than monsters, remember?”

“Mom…”

“The Guard detail will protect your mother,” Ms. Parker said. Her voice softened slightly. “And once you’re trained, you’ll be able to protect her yourself. But right now, your untrained power is drawing them here. The longer we stay—”

A crash from outside. Mom flinched.

“Go,” she whispered, pushing me toward the portal. “Learn what your father couldn’t teach you. Learn to be strong.”

“I’ll send more Guards,” Ms. Parker promised. “A permanent detail. But we have to leave now.”

Tears burned my eyes as Mom gave me one final push toward the portal. “I’ll call,” I choked out. “As soon as I can. Don’t let anyone in—”