Curse of the Fae Moon
Allied Kingdoms Academy 2
J.M. Kearl
J.M. Kearl
Copyright © 2020 J.M. Kearl
All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
Cover design by: J.M. Kearl
Library of Congress Control Number:
Printed in the United States of America
For Jaylee and Titus. May you both follow your dreams
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Books By This Author
About The Author
Chapter 1
With a shaking hand, I shielded the sun’s blinding glare. Getting knocked down for what felt like the hundredth time made it difficult to want to get back up. But I wasn’t the type to stay down. Struggling to my knees, I wrapped my fingers around the hilt of my sword, my nails scraping the dirt.
“On your feet!” shouted my father.
Heaving a breath, I stood. With a lift of my chin, I met his steely gaze.
“If you wish to go back to the Allied Academy you will prove to me that you deserve to be there,” he reminded me yet again, and took a step to the left, never taking his eyes from me. “If you are to leave my protection, you must give me a reason to allow it.”
After the vampire attack and my brush with death, Father treated me differently. When I told him Senica sunk his fangs into my neck, and that I watched Aric turn into one of the blood drinkers… the horror in his eyes… I’d never seen that look before.
I gritted my teeth and swung my sword at him. He blocked it easily, shoving me to the side. My arms and legs had grown weak. At this point, I felt I could barely stand but I had to keep standing. I had to. We clashed again and again. He spun, his elbow collided with my face and I hit the ground. The tang of blood filled my mouth.
“I’ve been too easy on you for too long,” he said. His long shadow cast over me. Hand wrapping around my bicep, he pulled me to my feet. “My leniency as your father could have cost you your life.”
He’d said something akin to this so many times in the last three months it only made me angry now. He shouldn’t blame himself for my lack.
I stomped on his foot and with all my strength, I slammed the hilt of my sword into his chin. He stumbled back and gave me a bloody toothed grin. “Good.”
With renewed vigor, I swung my weapon. We hit swords over and over. When the flat of his blade smacked into my thigh, I winced. He went to hit me again, the same spot, and I vanished. The world went black as I squeezed through space and reappeared behind him. Oh yes, I could do appearus magic. He made sure of that.
Father whipped around, ducked under my sword and kicked my feet from under me. I went down, pulled my boot dagger, rolled and sliced through his calf.
“Ouch,” he mumbled and hobbled backward.
I hopped to my feet, staring at the blood soaking his pants. “Sorry, Father.” But inside my heart thrummed with triumph. I had never gotten him before. No one ever did.
Holding up a palm, he half smiled. “I’m proud. It’s been a long time since someone cut me.”
My chest swelled with pride. Most girls probably wouldn’t be happy to slice their loving father with a dagger but here I was grinning like a fool. “Because your sparring partners are afraid to hurt the king?” I teased.
With a deep chuckle, he bent down to one knee and examined the slice. “I very much doubt those vampires were afraid to hurt me. Didn’t get a single scratch.”
I laughed. “True.”
A nearby guard who’d stood watch, entered the sparring arena. She opened the flap on her hip pouch and pulled out a bottle of clear liquid. “Sire, a healing potion.”
“Thank you.” He popped the cork and took a swig. Within moments the wound began to close.
If this match hadn’t done it, I had one more week to prove to my father that I could go back to the Allied Academy. We’d been training one on one every day. Each week he pushed me harder. Today he fought me like he fights his soldiers. Like an equal. Which is why I got knocked on my behind so many times. He didn’t appear to hold back and I appreciated it even though my swollen lip throbbed.
He said fighting other students during classes or tournaments wasn’t enough. After watching me for a week when I’d first come back, he seemed disappointed and that hit me in the gut. “The other students are too easy on you. All of them,” he’d said.
From the time I was old enough to hold a wooden sword, he’d trained with me. But our training sessions became few and far between once I entered the academy. He had my twin brothers to teach as he’d done with me when I was young and plenty of other things to do as King. He’d relied on my training in classes to be enough. Now he didn’t think it was.
Perhaps the students from other kingdoms didn’t ease up when fighting me but I’d been back in Delhoon for months now. I hadn’t realized it before but after he said that, I began to
