Shadow Blues, The Darkling Chronicles #1

By Tricia Zoeller

*This is the first book (novella-length) in The Darkling Chronicles series*

At the age of four, Patrick Benjamin Solomon becomes Anka Rehmling’s human charge. By eight, he can SEE her. At thirteen, he breaks her heart, and by eighteen, she finds herself fighting for his life.

As a darkling shadowcaster, Anka casts shadows in the human world, harnessing some of the earth’s UV light to bring back to Montenai—a world full of darklings, nymphs, satyrs, phantoms, and dragon lords. Her job is crucial to preserving the vitality and balance in her town of Shadowland. However, Anka has trouble following the strict rules set by the Shadowland Council, a ruling body comprised of three dragon lords.

The lords’ decree states all shadowcasters will abide by the rules or face the penalty of harsh punishment, banishment, or death. Torn between her world and Ben's, Anka must choose to defy the Council or turn her back on love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tricia Zoeller
• Release date: Apr 30, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311802842

Tricia Zoeller

Tricia lives in Marietta, Georgia with her husband, Lou, her little yappy dog, Lola Belle, and her big orange mutant cat, George. Her two stepsons, Joseph and Robert, make stopovers as well, making sure to keep life an adventure.Tricia earned a B.A. in Journalism and Anthropology from Indiana University in Bloomington. After moving to Atlanta in 1992, she obtained her Masters of Education in Communication Disorders from Georgia State University and spent a decade working as a Speech-Language Pathologist, most recently in the pediatric field treating children on the Autism Spectrum.Writing has always been a part of her life–like breathing and chocolate. To reach Tricia or get the latest stories, please visit: www.triciazoeller.com or find her on Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17670526-first-born

Book preview

Did you hear me, Anka? Pops asked.

Yep. I looked at Pops’s fuzzy eyebrows. They made me laugh.

A big darkling came into the room. Anka Rehmling and Bianca Rehmling? he asked. One yellow eye. Funny skin. Scales?

I looked down at the floor. My finger followed the squiggles.

Stop, child, Pops said. Get up and pay attention.

I’m Lord Akton, and these are my brothers, Lord Leasith and Lord Bulosk.

One lord smiled and talked to Bianca. She was quiet. The tree was scary inside. I closed my eyes. Squeezed Pops’s finger.

Say hello to the Lords, Pops said. He sounded mad.

I waved. My sister bowed. I bowed, too. Lord Bulosk laughed.

They are four and six, right? asked Yellow Eye.

Yes, Sir.

Very well.

Yellow Eye kneeled in front of me. He smelled like smoke and apple juice. Anka Rehmling, you are assigned Patrick Benjamin Solomon.

Eye?

Pops pinched my arm. Don’t point. It’s rude.

Pay attention, Lord Akton said. His one eye moved round and round. My tummy hurt. I saw a boy in my head. He had yellow hair and green eyes.

Next, Yellow Eye walked to Bianca and told her the boy’s name, too.

We’re done, sweetie, Pops said. He held Bianca’s hand. I walked behind them. They went out.

Someone sang. He had a rumbly voice like Pops. The room was empty, but I liked the song so I stayed. My shoes clapped loud on the floor. I put my ear on the wall. It was so hot. Singing. Talking, too.

Yellow Eye ran at me. Get away from there!

He picked me up. I couldn’t breathe. I touched his face.

Don’t do that, he growled.

Pops came back with Bianca. Yellow eye put me down, and I ran to Pops. Bianca started to cry.

She cast a dark shadow at me. Who taught her how to do that? he asked.

I’m sorry, Lord Akton. Pops’s eyebrows went up. She’s just a fledgling. She doesn’t understand.

Yellow Eye frowned.

Anka, we don’t cast dark shadows, Pops said.

Bianca hugged me, and I cried. I want a lollipop.

Quiet. Pops’s face was red.

I pointed to the wall. Somebody talkin’.

I’m sorry, Lord Akton. She’s usually such a good fledgling. Pops grabbed my hand, and I fell. Stand up, child.

I wanna go home.

We are going home. Hush now.

Yellow Eye stared at me. I hid my face in Pops’s legs and squeezed his hand so hard it hurt.

My hand shook as I reached out and pushed the hair off Ben’s sweaty forehead. When he sat up suddenly, I took a step back. Could he see me? He looked around the room with cloudy eyes that passed right over me.

When he turned on the lamp, I flicked my fingers, casting a shadow on the wall of a bird flying. He gasped before looking around once more. Now, he knew something was here. After peeking in the corner, the closet, and under the armchair for where the shapes came from, he shrugged his shoulders. He used his hands to create a barking dog. I used my magic to create a meowing and hissing cat with fur standing on end. I barely stopped myself from snorting out loud from his goofy face as he scanned the room. He looked scared but excited.

Anka Rehmling, you are in big trouble. I’d just broken three shadowcaster rules. I tried not to think about it. Instead, I focused on my superhero, ninja, and dinosaur forms, complete with sound effects. Ben looked so happy, I told myself it would be okay just this once. He had been sick all day.

Each pull of my magic started in the pit of my stomach. The energy swirled out to my arms before releasing from my fingertips like thread. That’s how Dad explained it. Then, it snapped as it broke free and became the shadow on the wall or floor. It wasn’t a bad feeling, but felt normal, right.

When Ben grew tired, I watched him lie back in bed and drift off to sleep, a smile on his face. He had light hair with white skin that burned and freckled in the sun. My skin and hair were darker, like the shadows I cast.

In human years, we were both eight. However, shadowcasters, by nature, acted more mature than humans. Our world expected us to be responsible from a young age. The Shadowland Council had assigned Patrick Benjamin Solomon under my charge at the age of four. I cast shadows in his world and would for my lifetime, as long as my strength held. "That’s a lot of responsibility riding on your shoulders"—direct quote from Dad. I removed my hand from Ben’s arm as I thought about what I’d done.

Dad.

Shadowcaster rules flooded my head.

Cast true to form. Don’t talk. Don’t touch the human.

My heart pounded in my ears. I hadn’t cast true. My palms grew sticky. I’d created my own make-believe shadows. Technically, I hadn’t talked, just made sound effects. However, I’d touched him. This realization caused fear to spark in me like fire; then it burned out, and I was so tired. I couldn’t wait to go home.

My family shadowcasted for the Solomons. The Council assigned my dad to shadow Ben’s dad. My mom followed his mom. Bianca and I took shifts with Ben. I covered him by day; she watched him at night. Other shadowcasters rotated in if we needed a break.

As a shadowcaster, I didn’t go to school but trained with my dad. My grandparents, Nana and Pops, ran the household since Mom and Dad worked so much.

Ben’s sigh brought my attention back to him. He looked peaceful. Maybe his fever had broken. When Mrs. Solomon slipped into the room to check on him, my mother followed, casting her shadows. My mother was really tall—five-foot-ten. She