Jax's Rebellion (Coalition Training Academy #1)

  Table of Contents

  Jax’s Rebellion

  Copyright Acknowledgement

  Trademarks Acknowledgment

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  About the Author

  Jax’s Rebellion

  Coalition Training Academy #1

  Stephani Hecht

  Copyright Acknowledgement

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright 2017 by Stephani Hecht

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

  Published by

  C&J Publishing

  Cover Art by Kris Jacen

  Editing by Kris Jacen

  ebook format

  Issued 2017

  This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of International Copyright Law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines and/or imprisonment. This eBook cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this eBook can be shared or reproduced without the express permission of the publisher.

  Trademarks Acknowledgment

  The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

  PlayStation: Nintendo of America Inc.

  Assassin’s Creed: Ubisoft

  History Channel: A&E Networks

  SyFy: NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group

  ComicCon: San Diego Comic Convention

  Garanimals: Garan, Inc.

  Harvard: President and Fellows of Harvard College

  Netflix: Netflix, Inc.

  4-H: 4-H

  American Horror Story: 20th Century Fox Television; Ryan Murphy Productions; Brad Falchuk Teley-Vision

  Chapter One

  Jax wore his favorite red shirt on the day that he was going to break his parents’ hearts. He sat on the side of his bed, looking at his room that suddenly seemed so small. It could barely fit his twin-sized bed and dresser, but for years it had been his hideaway—the place that he went to after he had a rough day at school, the sanctuary from his angry father and his mother who was always nervous or depressed, the one spot where he felt safe. Now, he was going to willfully leave it and jump out into the real world, all at the age of fifteen.

  He would be giving it all up in just a few hours. It both scared and excited him. He would be venturing onto a new path in life, yet that meant leaving his PlayStation, laptop and DVD collection behind. It may not seem like a lot to others, but to a dork like him it was everything.

  Yet, as he looked around at the Assassin’s Creed posters that his mother had bought him, the quilt that she’d sewn for him, the stack of books that she’d collected for him, he felt a pang of guilt, too—one so huge that it made his stomach hurt almost as bad as the time Ava had gut-punched him.

  It had been his mother who’d always been kind to him, even though his father had always yelled at him, talked down to him, made him feel as if he were a lesser-than. Well, to be fair, his mother had always stood at her husband’s side even though he’d treated his only son like dirt, but at least she’d tried in her own little way to make things better.

  It was going to be a doozy of a day for all of them because his father was going to find out that all his dreams of Jax attending a human college were going into the dumpster. Not only that, but Jax was about to set said dumpster on fire.

  Jax still couldn’t wrap his head around that one, how his dad wanted Jax to leave the Coalition for four years and live in the human world just so he could crunch some numbers for rich people and become an account like his parents. Sometimes Jax wondered if his father resented being a shifter. He was so mad all the time because his father had never been comfortable around other feline shifters. His dad was so anti-feline that he had almost refused to allow Jax to attend the school that was run by the Coalition. It wasn’t until their leader, Mitchell, had spoken up that his father had relented.

  Jax stood up, smoothing out the wrinkles of his dress pants. He usually wore jeans, but he figured that since he was about to have the most important meeting of his life, it only seemed right that he wore his best. Somehow, it didn’t seem right to be wearing one of his comic-book tees and usual worn jeans. After all, it was a landmark day.

  He could hear his mother, rushing in the kitchen to get breakfast ready. The smells of bacon, fresh coffee, and pancakes filled the air. Jax breathed in deeply, knowing that it would be a long time before the scent met him. Not that she was an amazing cook or anything, but home cooking was…well, home cooking. He was going to miss it.

  Jax worried about going out and facing his parents, that maybe he would say or do something that would give him away. He had never been good at hiding his emotions, which was why he never played poker. It was important that he do so, though. He didn’t want to tip them off. He wouldn’t put it past his father to interfere and lock Jax up or something. Even though Coalition law stated that Jax was now capable of making important decisions, his dad did not like anything shifter. Including, their rules.

  Since he couldn’t stay in his room all day, he finally went into the kitchen. His father was nowhere in sight. Jax breathed a sigh of relief. He wouldn’t have to listen to the same lecture that he’d been hearing from his father for a month.

  Remember, it’s best to be a civilian and not join the Coalition’s Solider Training Academy. You’re way too thin and short to make it as a soldier. Sure, you may be a Lion shifter, but you’re not built like one. You’ll fail if you try. Do you want to be a bigger embarrassment? You’re not tough enough to make it.

  Jax shook his head. He couldn’t think about all of that. It had hurt so much to hear it in the first place, let alone dwell on it. Besides, Jax was only a teen. He had a lot of growing to do, yet. He hadn’t even had his first shift yet. That may not happen for years. By that point he might be as big and strong as the other members in the Coalition. Yeah, right. And maybe he’d grow a set of horns and learn how to fly, too.

  His mother looked up from the stove and gave him a huge smile. Even though she was still wearing her pajamas and a robe, she had her makeup on. Some of her bright, red lipstick was on her teeth, and her eyes had bright blue shadow on them. Jax knew that she always made sure that she was the first one up every morning. That way she could look her best. He swore that she could have every bone broken in her body and would still make sure that she did her face every morning. He had never understood that.

  “You look nice today,” she said as she filled a plate up for Jax.

  She set it down before him. He looked at the food. Normally, he liked breakfast, but he was so nervous that his stomach was tied up in knots. He picked up his fork then began to make lazy circles in the puddle of syrup. He hoped that his mother would be distracted as usual and not notice. There had been one day when he’d even made a sculpture out of his hash browns, and she didn’t blink twice.

  He thought about his old friends, Myer and Body. They were small, yet smart as hell. They often spent their entire weekend role-playing or watching the History Channel. They had big dreams of growing up and making their own hit SyFy show and being headliners at
ComicCon.

  Jax had never wanted that. Sure, he pretended that he did when he was around Myer and Brody. Truthfully, Jax had long ago grown bored of sitting around and staring at a TV screen all day long. He wanted to do more, something big that would contribute to the Coalition. He often wondered if Myer and Brody had figured that out and that’s why they had stopped hanging around him. That and maybe they were a tad bit afraid of Ava, which was stupid. She was so sweet and loyal. She would do anything for Jax, and he felt the same about her.

  After several moments, his mother let out a gasp. “Look at the time! You better hurry up and get going. You wouldn’t want to be late for your appointment with Mitchell.”

  Mitchell was the leader of the Coalition. He was meeting individually with all the kids in his class. It was time for them to enter high school, and the students had to make a choice. One, continue on at their current school and get a regular education or, two, volunteer to enter the Coalition Academy. There they would be trained to become future soldiers for the Coalition.

  It was just more than changing schools. All Academy students were required to move to the Coalition’s headquarters and live there. They did allow the pupils to go home on special occasions. Jax had a feeling that after he had his little chat with Mitchell, there would be no going home. In fact, Jax wouldn’t be surprised if his father never spoke to him again. He’d probably disown Jax and make it so his mother would never talk to him either. Jax knew deep down that if she had to choose between the two of them that his father would win. It hurt like hell, but there was nothing Jax could do to change it, even if he was pretty charming, if he did say so himself.

  He got up, grabbed his backpack, then looked back at his mother. There were so many things he wanted to say to her. She may be a huge pushover when it came to his father, but Jax adored her. He only hoped that she someday would find it in heart to forgive him, that she wouldn’t hate him, that she would still want to call him her son.

  “See you later,” she called. “Your father took off work today for your ceremony at school, not that the civilian members get that much attention. They save all that for their precious future soldiers.”

  Jax wanted to ask her why she hated soldiers so much when her own father had died protecting the Coalition twenty-some years ago. He didn’t want to give himself away, though. He just waved goodbye then raced out the home.

  Since, his father hated being around the Coalition so much, Jax had to take the bus, which sucked since it was so far away. Not only did he have to get up early in order to catch it, but it was full of humans. Most of them hated shifters, too, so Jax had to make sure that he didn’t call attention to himself.

  There was a slight bite to the air as he walked down the street. Spring had come, but winter was reluctant to leave. There were slight patches of snow all over the place. Jax’s shoes soon became wet from all the slush and mud that was on the cement. He grimaced. He knew that meant he would have wet socks all day, which sucked because it meant blisters and stinky feet, neither of which made him look tough or cool.

  He did have some luck, though. The bus was pulling up as soon as he approached the stop. He got inside then found the only empty seat left. As soon as he took it, Jax reached into his pocket then pulled out his earbuds.

  Even though he had his favorite playlist on, Jax couldn’t enjoy the music. He was too busy running over what he would say to Mitchell. Jax was so nervous, his stomach wouldn’t stop fluttering. He just hoped he didn’t freeze up and make a fool of himself. That wasn’t exactly how he wanted the first day of his new life to begin.

  For the past two days he’d watched as his classmates had been called out to meet with the leader. Since Jax’s name was at the bottom of the list, he had to watch and fret until the last day. This meant he would be going straight into the Academy, even though some of his friends had gotten to stay at home for a few days before the big ceremony.

  It had been a stressful couple of days, but he was glad he didn’t have his meeting earlier. He felt certain his parents would have found out about his choice. It would not have been a pleasant confrontation, to say the least.

  It took him half an hour to get to school. It was housed in the back of Coalition Headquarters. Jax had never gotten to see what lay beyond the classroom. He knew there was a training center, a huge communications area, a cafeteria, and even an infirmary there. It was basically a whole city in one big building. A lot of the soldiers and some civilians lived there.

  It didn’t look that way from the outside, though. The building had once been an auto factory. When the big car companies had left Flint, the building had been abandoned until the Coalition had moved there. In order to blend in better, they had left the outside looking worn-down.

  He got out of the bus then stared at the building. After the ceremony, it was going to be his home for years. He wasn’t even going to have his own room. Instead, he would be living in a dormitory with all the Academy students. It was going to be a huge adjustment for him. He was used to having his privacy, and it was going to be hard for him to give up. It was a sacrifice he was more than willing to make, though if it meant making his dream come true.

  Once he got inside, he stopped at his locker to stash his backpack then made his way to first hour. It was science, which was usually his favorite subject, but he couldn’t pay attention today. He was too stressed out to think about anything other than his meeting with Mitchell.

  Other classmates were being called out. Jax’s stomach did a summersault with each name that was announced since he knew it was getting closer to the time when he was going to be summoned. He just hoped he didn’t throw up in the meantime. He was suddenly glad he hadn’t eaten anything for breakfast.

  The class was within five minutes of being finished when Noah, one of Mitchell’s numerous brothers, came into the room. The Jaguar was small by shifter standards, but he still helped out with the Coalition. Noah didn’t realize it, but he was one of the ones who inspired Jax to make his decision to become a Coalition soldier. While Noah might not go out to fight, he still managed to make a huge contribution. Jax hoped he would be able to do the same thing.

  Noah looked around the room until his gaze fell upon Jax. Noah crooked a finger at him.

  “Come on, Jax. It’s your turn.”

  Jax stood, his heart hammering in fear. Once he sat down and told Mitchell his choice, there would be no going back. Sure, Jax might flunk out of training or decide to quit, but by then he would be able to live by himself. He would never hear the end of it from his father.

  It seemed to take forever for him to walk to the front of the room. His pulse was racing and his mouth felt dry. Even though he knew it wasn’t the case, he felt as if every gaze was on him, which was stupid. Over the past few days, he and his classmates had grown accustomed to people being called out. Besides, nobody cared about him aside from Ava. To the others, he was a nobody.

  By the time he reached the door, a cold sweat had broken out over his body. He wiped the palms of his hands against the leg of his pants. He didn’t want to gross Mitchell out when they shook hands. It was bad enough his soggy shoes made a squishing sound with each step that he took.

  “Ready?” Noah asked with a kind smile.

  All Jax could do was nod and attempt a grin of his own. It probably came across as a grimace, which probably made him look constipated. Great, he was already making an idiot of himself, and he hadn’t even seen Mitchell yet. Maybe Jax should just run screaming from the school and save them all the trouble.

  Noah put a hand on Jax’s shoulder then said, “Don’t worry. Mitchell is really nice, and he’ll support you. No matter what your choice is.”

  Jax waited until the door shut behind them before he asked, “Is there any way he will refuse my request?”

  Noah frowned. “Why would he do that?”

  Jax shrugged as he looked down. “I don’t know. Maybe, because I’m too small to be a soldier.”

  “Nobody is ev
er too small to do anything they want. There may be some adjustments to your training, but that’s about it. Look at Shane. He’s not too big, but that has never held him back.”

  “Do you think I could do that?” Jax blurted out.

  “You can do anything. All you need to do is believe in yourself,” Noah said.

  “What if Mitchell shoots me down?”

  “He won’t. I promise you.”

  They began to walk down a long hallway to the leader’s office. Jax had never been that far into the building before. They even passed some soldiers. Jax looked at them with longing. They wore an all-black uniform. The only splotch of color they had was the official Coalition patch. They all looked so confident and strong, as if nothing could take them down. They certainly didn’t have squishy shoes, sweaty palms, or queasy stomachs. No, he alone held that honor.

  Jax wanted to wear that uniform someday. He’d even dreamed about it on several occasions. Now, he was only one conversation and five years of training away from his goal. No big deal…right?

  They finally arrived at Mitchell’s office. Noah gave Jax an assuring smile before he knocked on the door. When Jax heard Mitchell’s voice telling them to enter, his heart started beating even harder.

  Noah held the door open. Jax walked in. There was a chair in front of Mitchell’s desk. The room was large, and Mitchell’s mate, a Wolf shifter, sat in the back. The Wolf had short brown hair and eyes. He smiled. Jax smiled back, sat down, then looked at his leader.

  Mitchell was big, even by shifter standards. He wore the black uniform, which made him seem more intimidating. He had super short brown hair. His hands alone were bigger than Jax’s head. He could have probably snapped Jax in half if he wanted to, but Mitchell’s eyes were kind and welcoming.

  Jax had seen the leader before, he had just never had a conversation with him. Jax swallowed hard. This was his first impression, and he wanted it to be a good one, so he sat straight up then forced himself to meet Mitchell’s gaze. He could do this. He had to do this. Failure just wasn’t an option.