Fractured Soul

“
Fractured Soul
is a brilliant sequel, exceeding even the remarkable first book in the series. It will haunt your every waking moment between the times you’re reading it, and it will stay with you long after you’ve finished. It’s an amazingly well-written and engrossing story that I highly recommend—after you’ve read the first one, of course.”

—
Cindy Bennett
, bestselling author of
Geek Girl
and
Rapunzel Untangled

“Rachel McClellan delivers a stunning sequel to
Fractured Light
. The romance remains as passionate and pure as ever, the characters achieve even greater depth, and the action is absolutely unrelenting. McClellan’s world is frightening and beautiful, a realistic and fascinating mix of darkness and light. Do yourself a favor, and clear your schedule before you start reading—you won’t want to stop!”

—
Heather Frost
, author of the Seers trilogy

“When I read
Fractured Light
by Rachel McClellan, I was intrigued by the original story line and engaging writing. Fractured Soul picks up where
Fractured Light
left off and Llona is a strong heroine. I loved following her throughout the book as she learns more about herself and her powers. Lucent Academy was not what I expected it to be. Instead of being a safe place for Llona to train, it is filled with clueless girls and leaders that don’t want to face the truth of their existence. Full of heart-pounding action, breathless romance, and killer drama,
Fractured Soul
by Rachel McClellan has it all, and I can’t wait to read
Fractured Truth
!”

—
Christie Rich
, author of the Elemental Enmity series

“I love these books! A kick-butt heroine and a hottie love interest, with a refreshingly original concept. Be prepared—once you start, these are hard to put down.”

—
Paula Cotton
, book reviewer at
ReadingLark.blogspot.com

“Rachel McClellan’s
Fractured Soul
is a masterfully executed sequel—it’s built upon the foundation laid by its predecessor, but instead of merely living up to expectations, it chooses to redefine them in creative and compelling ways: new characters threaten to outshine the old, tension and action are interwoven with exquisite skill, and the story line is nothing short of inspired. Fans will clamor for the next book.”

—
Thomas Winship
, author of the
Vaempire Revolution series

“
Fractured Soul
is a mysterious, engaging follow-up to
Fractured Light
that will keep you on the edge of your seat till the very end.”

—
Alicia K. Leppert
, author of
Emerald City

© 2013 Rachel McClellan

All rights reserved.

This is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, places, and dialogue are products of the author’s imagination, and are not to be construed as real.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, whether by graphic, visual, electronic, film, microfilm, tape recording, or any other means, without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief passages embodied in critical reviews and articles.

ISBN 13: 978-1-4621-1180-0

Published by Sweetwater Books, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc.

2373 W. 700 S., Springville, UT 84663

Distributed by Cedar Fort, Inc. www.cedarfort.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

McClellan, Rachel, 1977-

Fractured Soul / Rachel McClellan.

pages cm

ISBN 978-1-4621-1180-0

I. Title.

PS3613.C3582F737 2012

813’.6--dc23

2012041533

Cover design by Rebecca J. Greenwood

Cover design © 2013 Lyle Mortimer

Edited and typeset by Emily S. Chambers

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

People told me life would return to normal, but how could it after you’d killed someone? Or some
thing
. Life would never be the same again, apparently starting with my new dorm room at Lucent Academy.

“Why does it smell like blood in here?” I dropped my duffle bag on the perfectly made bed. The pink floral bedspread wrinkled its way out of perfection.

“What a silly thing to say,” my aunt Sophie said. “This room is practically brand new.”

I looked under the bed. “I don’t think so.” Where was the smell coming from? “Did a butcher live in here?”

May, my best friend, walked through the door. “What butcher?”

“The butcher who killed a cow in my room.” I looked around. My dorm room was twice the size of my bedroom back home but not nearly as comfortable. The wild-rose-colored walls and heavy wooden chests screamed pretentious. So not my style.

“There was a cow?” May asked.

Sophie frowned. “Really, Llona. You have such an imagination.” She turned to May; her long and ruffled blue skirt followed. “Did you find your room satisfactory?”

“I did. And thanks again for inviting me here.”

Sophie placed a hand on her shoulder. “Lucent’s glad to have you. We always look forward to having new Furies.”

“When’s dinner?” I asked. May and I had been traveling for a week since leaving Utah. Sophie thought it would be fun to let us sightsee before we started school again. At first I thought it was a great idea, but by our third museum and our tenth fast-food restaurant, all I wanted was a good meal and a place to call home.

“In about twenty minutes,” Sophie said. She swiped her finger along the edge of the chair rail, obviously inspecting for dust. “Why don’t you get settled, and then come on down when you hear the chimes. Do you remember where to find the dining room?”

“Um, first floor, all the way at the end,” I said. Sophie had given us a quick tour on the way up. There were so many rooms, I was surprised I’d remembered.

Sophie smiled. “Good. I’ll see you girls down there. Oh, and by the way, Llona, even though Auras aren’t normally unkind, just remember that they’re still teenagers trying to discover who they are. Sometimes they say things that surprise even me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She paused. “You’ve been on the outside your whole life. They may view you as different.”

“Fantastic. So I was a freak before and now you’re saying I’m a freak here too?”

“No, it will just take a while for the girls to get to know you. I’m sure once they do, they will love you just like I do.”

Uh-huh, sure. ’Cause that’s how girls are. “I wish Christian was here,” I mumbled and turned my attention to my bag so she wouldn’t see me scowling. It was amazing how easily adults forgot what it’s like to be a teenager.

“What did you say?” Sophie said.

I looked up, surprised she’d heard me. “Nothing,” I said.

Sophie pursed her lips like she wanted to say more. Finally, she said, “Try not to be late, girls.” The door closed.

May jumped onto my bed. “Can you believe this place? It’s like right out of a fairy tale. I feel like a princess!”

I forced a smile and shoved clothes into the nearest dresser.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

I stopped moving. “Nothing, really. I’ll get over it.” I crinkled my nose. “Except for this awful smell.”

“What smell?”

“You really don’t smell it?” I opened the closet doors and—with just a thought—turned on the light. The walk-in closet was bare except for a thin layer of dust covering the wooden floor.

“It might smell a little musty,” May offered. “Do you really think the other girls will be mean to us?”

I shrugged. “Probably not to you. From what I hear, Furies are a rare find. I’m sure they’ll treat you like the diamond you are!” I grinned and sat down next to her, but I secretly wondered how things would be different if I were a Fury instead of an Aura. May’s ability to create and control fire was pretty cool. Not only that, but Furies—especially good ones—were rare. That’s why Auras were always excited to have one around. But then again, being an Aura had its perks too—if I could use my ability to control Light the way I wanted, which was to defend myself. At Lucent, Light was only to be used to edify and beautify the world around us.

May laughed. “You sound just like your aunt.”

I sighed. “This place is going to take some getting used to.”

May nodded.

“How are you doing?” I asked. She had been quiet on the drive over from New York City, but I didn’t dare ask her what was wrong in front of the man who had escorted us to Lucent.

May looked down, and my eyes followed her gaze. Her fingers traced the floral pattern on the quilt. “For some reason, I thought I’d feel better putting all this space between us and Highland, but I almost feel worse. It’s like I’ve run away or something.” May looked at me, searching for understanding. “Does that make sense?”

“It does. It feels like we’re betraying Tracey by being here. We get to live our lives while she’s six feet under.” Beneath the pillow on my lap, I dug my nails into my palm, remembering how Mr. Steele, a Vyken posing as my math teacher, had sliced my friend’s throat. And even worse, it was my fault. My selfishness had left Tracey dead, May injured, and many others traumatized. If only I would’ve left for Lucent sooner.

“Are you going to call Christian tonight?” May asked, like she thought mentioning the name of the boy I loved would help me forget about what happened.

I forced another smile. “I’ll try. I have to call my uncle Jake first to let him know I’m finally here, and if I don’t have someone standing over me, I’ll call Christian.”

“I can’t believe they won’t let you talk to him,” May said.

“Oh, I can talk to him, but it’s”—I made air quotes—“ ‘frowned upon.’ ” Christian wasn’t my official Guardian anymore, but it still wasn’t considered proper for us to speak informally to each other.

May chuckled and stood up. “I better finish unpacking before we have to go downstairs. Come grab me when you’re ready.”

After May shut the door, I opened the window to let in fresh air. I was looking forward to the cooler New York weather. I didn’t think I could’ve handled sunny and warm at this point in my life. There was nothing bright about it. Every night for the last week, I’d been having nightmares like nothing I’d ever experienced before. I kept dreaming of death; vivid pictures of people drowning, burning, being strangled. I inhaled deeply and shook my head, shaking the images from my mind.

A window screen prevented me from seeing the full extent of Lucent. I traced its edges until I found the latch. I popped out the screen, slid it under my bed, and then returned to the window. Leaning out as far as I could, I scanned the area.

My room was located in the right wing of Chadni Hall. I was on the third of four floors, which was for sixteen-year-olds and upperclassmen. When we had first arrived, I was in awe at the size of the school, but now looking at everything from this high in the air, Lucent seemed so much bigger.

The sun was setting, taking the shadows of trees and buildings with it. They stretched long and thin, crossing into each other until they blurred into the forest just beyond a tall rock wall surrounding the school.

Behind the main building were three more buildings almost as big as Chadni Hall. If I remembered correctly, the square, three-story building to my left was Denelle Hall where all the classes were held. To the right of it was a circular, red-brick building with tall, white columns. Sophie had called it Risen Auditorium. That’s where the theatre and the music rooms were. And in between these two buildings was the tallest structure of all: a gray stone clock tower. Finally, toward the rear of the school grounds, the square shape of Lambert House stood, which Sophie said were living quarters. She didn’t say for whom though.