Sometimes I almost forget why I’m really here. It’s easy when the classes are interesting, and I have actual friends to hang out with for a change. But last night I found another invitation from the Order of The Golden Throne, and I realized it’s been a month since the last meeting. I need to bring something to the trial tomorrow night, or I won’t pass this first test. This secret society is the only lead I have, and I can’t blow it.
I’ve done everything else I can think of to find Jonah. I watched a video of the championship game against the fae last year, but it was so boring I nearly fell asleep. Nothing happened that seemed suspicious, and no one I questioned saw anything odd that night. Another dead end. I checked out the other members of the baseball team, but none of them have any reason for hurting Jonah. And so far, neither Grace nor the Princes have given me any other leads, even though I’ve been getting closer to all of them and trying to subtly ask them questions about Jonah.
The Order of the Golden Throne is my only hope of finding him. Ever since Marcus told me about Uriel’s private library, I’ve been observing the headmaster using my Ishim invisibility and Mother’s necklace. He keeps a strict schedule, which isn’t good for his security, but it’s great for my need to steal something from his office. There must be something in there I can steal, and I purposefully waited until right before the next meeting to steal it. I don’t want my stolen item anywhere near me if he notices it’s missing and goes on a hunt for it.
Even with a plan in mind, I’m a bucket of nerves. I’ve skipped out on Angelic History, complaining to Kassiel that I have a headache, and he gave me a pointed look but nodded. He probably thinks I need to feed, which is true, but I’ve been surviving off of light and the lust I receive from him and the Princes and I’m okay for now. I’ll need to feed pretty soon though.
With my lock picks in my pocket and the light bent around me to make me invisible, I walk out of my dorm and make my way toward the Headmaster’s house. Since the bell has rung and everyone is in fourth period, it’s easy to move undetected across campus. At this time of day, I know the house will be empty because the Princes have class and Uriel uses the time to walk around the campus and meet with some of the workers.
I tiptoe onto the front porch of Uriel’s home, but footsteps behind me make me freeze. Bastien walks up the path toward the house. Are you kidding me? They’ve followed the same pattern for a month, then on the day I’m breaking in, Bastien has to bring his sneaky ass here. Why isn’t he in class?
I freeze, afraid if I move the wood under my feet might creak and he’ll hear me. I stand to the right of the door, and there is just enough room for Bastien to use his key to unlock and open the door. If he moves a few inches to the right, he’ll bump into me. I hold my breath.
As I wait and try not to move, silently urging him to go inside, he stiffens and breathes deep. He looks all around, and a white glow fills his eyes. He must suspect there is an Ishim hiding near him, but even his Ofanim magic can’t get past my necklace. He sees nothing.
“Weird.” He opens the door and strides in the house without bothering to make sure it closes behind him. I slip in on his heels and breathe a quiet sigh of relief when I make it without the door bumping into me.
I start to head for Uriel’s office, where I visited on my second day here, but I want to scream in frustration when Bastien goes straight for the room I need. But then, luck! He unlocks it with his own key, and doesn’t close the door behind him. I sneak in and watch him sit at Uriel’s large desk and turn on the computer. I creep behind his shoulder silently to watch what he’s doing. The monitor lights up, showing views of all the cameras on campus. Bastien fiddles with the controls and brings up the parking lot, then rewinds through the entire freaking night. But he doesn’t go at full speed, oh no. He goes slow enough that he can keep a close eye on any movement in the lot. Pausing a few times when he thinks he sees something, he continues backing up until yesterday evening comes on and the sun reappears.
This is taking forever. Bastien needs to leave so I can get a book off the shelves and get the fuck out of this house. If Bastien is still here when his father gets home, I might be busted. I still don’t trust that my necklace is really working with Uriel, and I don’t want to test it again.
Bastien hits a few buttons and looks at the live feed, scanning through the cameras like he’s searching for something. “I’ll catch you leaving again, Olivia. It’s only a matter of time.”
The sneaky asshole is looking for me. He knows I’ve been leaving campus at night. Damn it. That means I’ll have to fly from now on. I’m getting better, and I can probably make it to the town, but I don’t want to. The thought of soaring over all those trees makes me nervous. What if I get too tired to fly back? I’ve never gone long distances before.
Just when I think we’ll be in here forever, Bastien stands and leaves the office, locking the door behind him. Good thing I brought my lock picks.
First thing’s first. Find a book that’s dark and scary enough to impress the Order of the Golden Throne. After searching Uriel’s bookshelf, I find what I need on the top shelf: Daemon Death, imprinted on a cover that looks suspiciously like skin. I shudder and put the book in a pouch slung cross-body just for this purpose.
The sound of footsteps have me flinging myself toward the window, praying it opens without a sound. Uriel must be back from his meetings. No time for lock picks, I need to get out now.
I dive out the window and tuck myself into a roll, landing on my feet and running toward the front of the house and around the corner. We learned that in Combat Training last week, and I silently thank Hilda for teaching it to us.
Once in front of the house, I dart down the path, praying Uriel isn’t looking out a window and Bastien isn’t about to jump out from behind a bush. I’m much more comfortable creeping around at night, even though my Ishim magic should protect me, but I feel a lot better when I near the cafeteria. I hide behind a tree, until I’m sure it’s clear, and then I release the light bent around me, coming into view again.
Leaving the protection of the tree, I walk into the cafeteria like I would any other day of the week. Nothing strange to see here. Just a girl getting some food with a dark and dangerous book resting on her hip.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Olivia
The meeting is in the same spot as last time, so I make it there with no problem, even in the dark. This time, my white mask and robes only match ten other people’s. We stand for some time in a line, waiting for the meeting to begin. Without warning, the golden-robed figures emerge from the trees and surround us.
“Your numbers are considerably lowered,” the leader says, standing in front with the crown on his or her head. “But it’s as we expected.”
Another robed figure steps forward, with a smaller build. Female, I think, though it’s hard to tell in the robes and with the voice-altering masks. She holds out her hand at the person on the far left. “One at a time, bring your stolen objects forward.”
The person walks forward and pulls a bracelet from under their white robes. “Professor Hilda’s bracelet.”
The leader nods and the mysterious voice speaks. “We accept your offering.”
The white-robed person moves to their spot again with a sigh of relief. The next person steps forward. “One of Professor Raziel’s bow ties.”
The smaller person in gold takes the bow tie. Another golden-robed figure steps up and shakes his or her head. “This does not belong to Raziel. There is none of his essence on this.” The masked figure tilts his or her head. “You bought this in a store and hoped to deceive us, didn’t you?”
“Um, no, never…” sputters the person in white.
“Your offering is unacceptable,” the leader says. “Leave this clearing and never speak of anything you’ve seen here.”
“What?” the initiate asks. “You’re wrong! I got it from his bedroom, I promise!”
“You think we can’t see through your lies?�
� asks the second robed figure. Something about the way he speaks and moves reminds me of Bastien. Could it be him? “Fool.”
People in golden robes suddenly surround the initiate, grabbing the person’s arms, and dragging him or her out of the clearing. There’s a lot of yelling, and then it goes eerily silent. After a few minutes, the masked figures return to their places among the trees. Everyone in white shifts nervously, now that we’ve seen what happens when we don’t have a good enough offering.
After he leaves, the next person steps forward with a pair of tight black briefs. “Professor Kassiel’s underwear.”
Oh, damn. The thought of Kassiel in those briefs sends a zing of lust through me, along with jealousy too. How did this person get his underwear? Is Kassiel getting involved with another student? I quickly dismiss the thought, since it doesn’t seem like something he would do, especially if he can resist me. This person must have snuck into his bedroom to get these.
“Are they clean?” the female in gold asks, sounding almost amused. I hear several snorts and coughs.
“Yes, they are. And it was fucking hard to get into the professor dorms without anyone noticing.”
There’s a long stretch of silence, and I worry we’ll have another person escorted out, but then the leader says, “We accept your offering.”
They continue moving through the group, until it’s my turn. I swallow hard, step forward, and try to dislodge the book from the bag under my robe. Damn it.
“Hang on,” I grunt, but my voice sounds weird. I pause, then realize it’s the voice change. Get it together, girl! I manage to get out the book, ready for the strange voice this time. “This is a restricted book from Headmaster Uriel’s private library.”
The golden-robed figure hesitates before taking the book. “Daemon Deaths.” The dark eyes behind the mask are familiar to me, but I can’t place them. I need to find out more about these people, and a plan hatches. “Do you know this book is cursed?”
I yank my hand back. Good thing I got it earlier today. Who knows what it would have done if I’d kept it in my dorm for weeks. “I did not.”
Silence stretches over the clearing, and I hold my breath, worried the object being cursed will be a problem and they’ll drag me out of the clearing too. But then the leader nods. “Your offering is accepted.”
I breathe a huge sigh of relief as I move back to the line. I’ve past the first test. I’m one step closer to finding Jonah.
They continue down the line, sending one more person home, until the last initiate has made their offering.
“Congratulations on passing the first trial. Your next task, if you are up to it, is to guide a human to confession. You must prove that you’re willing to help lead humanity down the path we have chosen for them, and take action against humans who commit evil. Many humans have dark secrets and have done things they’re not proud of. Find one, convince him or her to reveal his secrets, and then expose them.”
“Sorry, but I’m out,” the initiate to my left suddenly says. “Stealing an object, fine. Ruining a human’s life? Nope. I am not on board with this.”
“You must do this if you want to join the Order.”
“Yeah, no. This is not my jam. Thanks, but no thanks.”
The person walks out of the clearing, while the rest of us stand there, stunned. The golden-robed figures whisper among themselves, shifting around uncomfortably at the disturbance, but the leader holds up a hand to silence them. “It’s fine. That person will change their mind and come back to us. If not, they do not deserve to be the in the Order anyway.”
I’m disgusted by this task too, but I have to do it and it shouldn’t be too hard with my succubus powers. Still, I’m a seriously impressed by that person for walking away when this didn’t feel right to them. That’s hard to do, especially in a group like this.
The leader begins to speak again. “A camera will be left for you to record the confession. The camera is a fae relic, just like the masks you wear. You cannot fool it, and there is no way to cheat out of this test. You either do it, or you do not. Once you’ve completed the mission, leave it here, and if we accept your offering you’ll receive an invitation to the next meeting.”
With that, we’re dismissed, and the others in white robes head back into the forest. I move a little way away from the other seven people, and then bend light around myself to disappear. Then I head back to the clearing. Time to find out who these fuckers are.
With my hand wrapped around my necklace, I double back just in time to see a glimpse of gold through the branches. Hurrying forward, I catch up to the group of masked figures. They walk on silent feet toward the lake, and when I think they’re going to walk out of the woods and into the open air, they stop beside a boulder. The first person in the line grabs a branch on a nearby tree and yanks. The boulder rolls to the side as if several large men manipulate it, but nobody is close enough to touch it.
Not creepy at all.
A cave has opened up, and the members file into it one by one. I dart forward, on the heels of the last person to go through, and barely make it inside. The boulder must not be able to sense me with my necklace on, because it tries to roll back as soon as the person in front of me enters. I almost crash into them as I narrowly avoid it, and the boulder slams shut behind me, trapping me inside.
The tunnel behind the boulder leads downward in a sharp slope. I’m not expecting it and nearly trip and fall on my ass. I catch myself on the rough stone wall, and continue into the darkness. The ground levels out as the walls and floor dampen. Based on where we entered and how far we’ve walked, I guess we’re under the lake by now.
The golden-robed figures enter a large cavern with ornate stone benches arranged in a circle. There’s a small gap, leading to a large throne made of what looks like gold, carved with intricate designs of angels and demons in battle. It looks ancient.
The members of the Order take their seats on the stone benches, and the person with the crown stands in front. Oddly, he or she doesn’t sit on the throne. Is it not for the leader? Who else would sit there?
“We begin another meeting of the Order of the Golden Throne. Has anyone made any progress in our mission?”
Silence. I clasp my necklace harder and stare at the robed figures. Who could they be? Why won’t they remove their masks? Does that mean even the other people in the Order don’t know who the other members are? Studying height and builds, I can’t tell anything. I don’t know these people well enough, even after all the time I’ve been on campus, but I’ll figure it out. I’ve snuck in here once, I can do it again.
“Disappointing,” the leader says. “Our master will be most displeased.”
Master? Who could that be? I’m dying to know who these people are, but there’s nothing I can do but watch and listen. I can’t even move, for fear someone might hear my footsteps on the cold stone ground.
One of the masked figures speaks up. “The initiate that refused the second trial and left. She’s the one we need, isn’t she?”
“Yes, that was her,” the leader says.
“How are we supposed to do this without her?” another person asks.
“We’ll have to convince her to join after all,” the leader says. “Perhaps we’ll remind her of the evil of demons, and show her that the Order is the only way to stop them.”
“What do you have in mind?” another person asks.
“I have an idea. We’ll take action at the football game against the demons.”
“Even if we can use her, what makes you think we’ll be able to succeed this time? Jonah is still missing. If he failed, what hope do the rest of us have?”
My ears perk up at the mention of my brother. I knew this was the key to finding him. They must know where he is!
“We need to focus on finding Jonah,” a different masked figure says. “He’s been gone way too long now.”
“Has anyone heard from him?” another asks. “Anything at all?”
“No,
there has been no contact with Jonah, despite our best efforts,” the leader says. “But once we have the girl, we can send a team to find him. Which is why we must convince her to join, no matter what dark deed it requires.”
I don’t like the way the leader is speaking, and I can’t help but wonder who the girl is and why she’s so important. How is she going to help them find Jonah? I need to figure out who she is.
“I’ll send your orders when I have a plan in motion. Be ready for them. You’re dismissed.”
The masked figures stand, and some of them begin to file out, while others clump up into groups and whisper to each other. One of them moves to the leader and speaks in a hushed conversation. I really want to listen to what they’re saying, but I’m also worried about getting trapped down here. Plus I have an idea.
I follow one of the people up the tunnel and out of the cave, watching when they press a stone to open the boulder. I continue moving silently behind them as they head through the forest for a distance, before pausing to remove their robes and mask. I throw a hand over my mouth so I don’t visibly gasp when I see who it is.
Cyrus.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Callan
It’s been two months since school started, and there’s still no sign of Jonah. Even worse, we haven’t kept our promise to him. I graffitied Olivia’s door and have been sending her threatening notes, but nothing is working. She isn’t scared enough to leave the school, which means I’m going to have to ramp up my efforts somehow.
One morning, I suggest to Professor Hilda that Tanwen should pair up with Araceli that day. Tanwen went hard on Liv last week, which I’m perfectly fine with, but I want a crack at her now.
Seraphim Academy 1: Wicked Wings Page 13
