DESCENDANTS OF AZAZEL

Chapter One The Boy Nobody Notices The first thing I heard that morning was my mother’s voice. “Jack! You’re going to be late!” I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling. For a few seconds, I didn’t move. My room was still dark except for the thin strip of sunlight squeezing through the curtains. My alarm clock sat on the nightstand, its screen glowing. 7:12 A.M. I sat upright. “Crap.” I threw the blanket aside and jumped out of bed. I had exactly eighteen minutes. My school was only a fifteen-minute drive from home on a good day. Unfortunately, mornings were never good days. I pulled on my uniform while trying to put one sock on without sitting down. My tie was somewhere under my pillow, my shoes were beside the bed, and I couldn’t find my phone. “Where is it?” I searched the desk. Nothing. I checked the floor. Nothing. Then I heard my mother’s voice again. “Jack!” “I’m coming!” I stopped. Something felt strange. Her voice had sounded like it came from right beside me. But my bedroom door was closed. I walked over and opened it. Mom was downstairs. I could see her standing in the kitchen. I frowned. Maybe I was still half asleep. “Jack!” she shouted again. This time, it sounded normal. “Coming!” I grabbed my phone from beneath a pile of books, shoved it into my pocket, and ran downstairs. My younger brother, Ethan, was already sitting at the kitchen table eating cereal. He looked at me and smiled. “You look terrible.” “Good morning to you too.” “You’re late.” “I know.” Mom placed a plate of eggs and toast in front of me. “Sit down.” “Mom, I’m already late.” “You’re not leaving this house without eating.” “I can eat at school.” “No.” She gave me the look. The one that meant the argument was already over. I sighed and sat down. Ethan laughed. “Mom controls you.” “Eat your cereal.” “I already am.” “Then eat it quietly.” He grinned. For a moment, everything felt normal. Just another morning. Just another school day. I had no idea that before the year was over, normal would become something I desperately wished I could have back. At the time, I was seventeen years old. I had a family. A best friend. A crush I pretended I didn’t have. And a group of students at school who seemed to have made it their personal mission to make my life miserable. I wasn’t popular. I wasn’t a genius. I wasn’t an athlete. I wasn’t even particularly interesting. I was just Jack Carter. The kind of person teachers remembered only when they were taking attendance. The kind of person who could walk through a crowded hallway and nobody would notice. At least, that’s what I thought. “Jack.” I looked up. Mom was watching me. “You’re staring at your food.” “I was thinking.” “About what?” “Nothing.” She smiled. “You’re always thinking about something.” I didn’t answer. Because she was right. I had been thinking about Amy Bennett. Again. Amelia Bennett. Everyone called her Amy. She sat two rows ahead of me in English class, had the highest grades in our year, and somehow managed to be friends with almost everyone without acting like she was trying. She wasn’t the loudest girl in school. She didn’t need to be. People noticed her anyway. I had spoken to her exactly three times. The first time, she asked to borrow a pen. The second time, she thanked me for returning her notebook. The third time— Well, the third time I had embarrassed myself so badly that I preferred not to remember it. “Jack?” I blinked. Mom was still staring at me. “What?” “You’re smiling.” I immediately stopped. “I wasn’t.” “You were.” Ethan laughed. “Is he thinking about a girl?” “Shut up.” Mom raised an eyebrow. “A girl?” “No.” Ethan pointed at me. “He’s definitely thinking about a girl.” “I said shut up.” I grabbed my backpack. “I’m leaving.” Mom laughed. “Have a good day.” I reached the front door. “Love you.” “Love you too.” I stepped outside. The morning air was cold. For some reason, I stopped. I looked down the street. Nothing seemed unusual. Cars moved along the road. A dog barked somewhere behind a fence. A man across the street was loading boxes into his truck. Normal. Everything was normal. Then I heard something. A whisper. Very faint. I turned around. Nobody was there. I frowned. “Jack?” I looked toward the road. Dad was standing beside his car. “You coming?” “Yeah.” I walked over. “What happened?” he asked. “Nothing.” He looked at me for a second longer than necessary. Then he nodded. “Get in.” I climbed into the passenger seat. As we drove toward Ravenwood High, I looked through the window. I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching me. I was wrong. Someone wasn’t watching me. Several people were. ⸻ Ravenwood High was already loud when I arrived. Students filled the parking lot, rushing toward the building before the bell. I stepped out of Dad’s car. “See you later,” I said. “Don’t get into trouble.” I smiled. “That’s Tyler’s department.” Dad laughed. “Fair enough.” The car pulled away. I adjusted my backpack and headed inside. “Jack!” I turned. Danny Brooks came running toward me. He nearly crashed into me. “Bro, where have you been?” “I was at home.” “Obviously.” “So why did you ask?” “I don’t know.” I stared at him. He grinned. “Morning.” “Morning.” Danny was my best friend. We had known each other since middle school, and somehow, despite being completely different people, we’d survived all these years together. He was loud. I was quiet. He talked to everyone. I avoided everyone. He could walk into a room without knowing anybody and leave with five new friends. I could walk into a room full of people I knew and still somehow feel alone. “So,” Danny said, “did you do the history assignment?” I froze. He stared at me. “You didn’t.” “I forgot.” “You’re dead.” “I’ll do it during lunch.” “Mr. Reed is going to kill you.” “He won’t.” “He literally threatened us yesterday.” “He said he’d give us detention.” “Exactly.” We entered the hallway. Students moved around us. Someone bumped my shoulder. “Watch where you’re going.” I turned. Tyler Morgan. Of course. He was standing with Ryan Cole and Brandon Hayes. Tyler was the kind of guy everyone knew. Football player. Popular. Confident. Tall. And completely convinced the school belonged to him. Ryan looked at me and smirked. “Look who finally decided to show up.” Brandon laughed. Danny stepped forward. “Leave him alone.” Tyler looked at Danny. “Did I ask you?” “No.” “Then don’t talk.” Danny opened his mouth. I grabbed his arm. “Forget it.” Tyler smiled. “That’s what I thought.” He walked past us. His shoulder hit mine. Hard. I stumbled. Danny caught me. “You okay?” “Yeah.” “You need to stop letting him do that.” “What do you want me to do?” “Fight back.” I laughed. “Against Tyler?” “Yes.” “Have you seen him?” Danny looked at Tyler walking away. “Fair point.” The warning bell rang. We hurried toward class. I didn’t notice the girl standing at the other end of the hallway. Maya Sterling. She had been watching us. More specifically, she had been watching me. Her expression was unreadable. Beside her, Nora Hayes whispered something. Maya didn’t respond. Her eyes remained on me. For the briefest moment, her pupils seemed to narrow. Then she looked away. “Come on,” Nora said. Maya followed. Neither of them looked back. ⸻ By lunch, I’d almost forgotten about the strange feeling from that morning. Almost. Danny and I sat beneath the large oak tree behind the cafeteria. Malcolm Reed joined us a few minutes later, carrying two books. “You actually brought textbooks to lunch?” Danny asked. Malcolm sat down. “Yes.” “Why?” “Because unlike you, some people actually study.” Danny looked offended. “I study.” “When?” “Sometimes.” “When?” Danny thought about it. “That’s not important.” I laughed. For a few minutes, we talked about school, teachers, football, and the upcoming party one of the seniors was planning for Friday. Then Amy walked past. I stopped talking. Danny noticed immediately. “Oh.” “Don’t.” “I didn’t say anything.” “You were about to.” “I was going to say hello.” “You weren’t.” He smiled. Amy stopped. “Hey, Jack.” My brain stopped working. “Hey.” She smiled. “Do you have the history notes from yesterday?” “Yeah.” She looked at me expectantly. I reached into my backpack and pulled them out. “Here.” “Thanks.” “No problem.” She looked at the pages. “You write really neatly.” I stared at her. “Thanks.” There was a brief silence. She smiled again. “I’ll return them later.” “Sure.” She walked away. Danny waited exactly three seconds. “You are hopeless.” “Shut up.” Malcolm laughed. “You should have asked her to sit with us.” “I wasn’t going to do that.” “Why?” “Because.” “Because what?” I didn’t answer. Across the courtyard, Amy joined Chloe Anderson, her best friend. Chloe glanced in our direction. Amy whispered something. Chloe looked at me. Then she smiled. I immediately looked down at my food. Danny started laughing. “This is going to be entertaining.” “I’m going to leave.” “No, you’re not.” I smiled despite myself. For a few minutes, everything felt completely ordinary. Then a scream came from inside the school. Everyone turned. A second later, the fire alarm started ringing. Students jumped to their feet. Teachers shouted for everyone to remain calm. The cafeteria erupted into chaos. I stood. “What’s happening?” Nobody knew. Students poured into the hallway. Then I heard it. A heartbeat. Not mine. Someone else’s. Fast. Terrified. I looked toward the corridor. My expression changed. “Jack?” Danny grabbed my shoulder. “Where are you going?” I didn’t know. I just knew I could hear someone. Very clearly. Even through the shouting. Even through the alarm. A heartbeat. Then another sound. A voice. “Help…” I froze. The voice was coming from somewhere inside the building. I looked toward the hallway. And for the first time in my life, I heard something no ordinary human should have been able to hear. A heartbeat from behind a wall. And it was getting weaker. I didn’t know it yet. But that was the first sign. Something inside me had already begun to wake up.