I collapsed on the bed, fingers dug into the edge of the mattress. Lulled by the ticking clock on the wall I relaxed. A soft pillow welcomed my heavy head when I tipped to the side.
The alarm pulsated through my head. Eyes flew open, scanning the room. I swallowed against the dryness in my mouth.
“What happened, are you okay? Did they take the key?” Aym hopped down from the headboard, and marched across the blanket, leaving a maroon glitter trail in his wake.
“Schhh!” I hitched a nod in Salma’s direction. “I saw my mom.”
“You saw your mom?” He took my fingertip between his tiny hands, and looked up at me with saucer eyes. “When?”
“Yeah.” My breath trembled. “It was so weird. It was like… I don’t know. She wore armor. It felt so real.” The images obscured, like a bad dream giving way to real life. “I’m acting like an idiot. It was just…” I rubbed the base of my nose. “I must’ve passed out.”
Aym hawked. “It’s happening.” He chewed on his bottom lip.
“What? What’s happening?” Heart raced in my chest. “What’s happening, Aym?”
“They’ve broken through.” He spread his wings and took to the bed frame. Pacing along it while he patted a finger to his chin. “It’s been so long,” he said, more to himself than to me.
“Aym? You’re scaring me, and considering what I’ve seen, and killed, that’s not easy to do.”
He stopped, shoulders dropped in realization. “I’m sorry.” He sat down on the bed frame with a sigh. “I’ll try to explain, but I’m not sure it’ll do any good.”
I pulled my legs up on the bed, watching him intently as he struggled to find the words.
“Imps, and demons, and the Devil. You know all about that. And you know they want the key.”
“Yes, and I know why. Skip to the parts I don’t know.”
“There’s a war in hell. And the heavens have sent their brightest Stars to make sure the Devil doesn’t open the gates.”
“Wait? Stars? In hell? Shouldn’t it be angels?”
“Angels, Stars. Same thing, different name.”
Fifteen years ago, we sat like this, in a little girl’s room. Her life had been turned upside down, and she was crying, trying to make sense of everything bad in her life.
I’d never be that girl again. The abandoned, unsure little girl, I’d made sure of that. I grabbed a pillow, wrapped my arms around it, waiting for Aym to continue. “What does mom have to do with it?”
“She never made it through hell.”
I gritted my teeth, the wicked darkness licked my minds door.
Aym paused, and tilted his head, rose colored eyes shimmered. “She did it to save you. Don’t forget that.”
I stonewalled at the memory of mom’s suicide, laying another brick on the wall around my emotions. “I know. Keep going. What do you mean, made it through hell?”
“Everyone has to go through hell, it’s the only way to heaven.”
“What? Even babies?”
“Yes. But they have it easy. It’s all about what you’ve done, and to whom.”
“Whom? So love it when you go all grammar freak on me.” I snatched Aym from the cover and gave him a peck on the head. He shuddered away from me with a scorned expression.
“Don’t do that. You know I hate it.”
“Sorry.” I chortled. “Continue.”
With a hasty disapproving glare, he grabbed his tail between his slender fingers, and continued.
“For the last hundred years, anyone who’s died, has been drafted into the war. Threatened to join the Sins, or be stuck in the endless loop of Cerberus’ hunger.”
“Who?”
Aym drooped at my question. “You know? A little studying goes a long way.”
“I’m sure it does. Still don’t get why they didn’t just give the key to one of those fancy stars.”
His eyes drifted, and he scratched the tip of his tail. “Well, that would have been a good idea, I guess.”
“Aym? What are you not telling me?”
His ears perked, and stared at the door, muscles in his legs tensed. “I have to go. They’re calling me.” Before I could protest, he shimmered out.
Bastard.
So? Left with more questions than answers. Again. I forced air through my lips, and tipped sideways. A glance at the phone, two hours of sleep left. This day was gonna suck. I picked up the pillow, and pressed it over my face.
Chapter 11
I entered the cafeteria, scouted the tables, and zoned in on Salma. After grabbing my morning cup of coffee, and chocolate cupcake, I joined her at the table. With her nose deep in a book, she barely registered that I sat down. The cupcake suffered the fate of my bite, before I slouched down in the chair, and let the steam from the cup caress my face. I rejoiced in the sweet taste of icing. "What you reading?" Hand cupped over my mouth to keep from spitting cupcake pieces over the table.
"The Quran."
"Uhm. Okay." Too early, too tired. Religion wasn’t my thing, and something Salma and I had decided to keep away from in conversation after one of our heated midnight discussions.
She closed the book with reverence, and placed it gently in the small bag hanging over the back of her chair. "How many times do I have to tell you, it doesn’t bite."
I shrugged. "Well, you never know."
"I might hit you over the head with it, though. If you keep ditching classes." She swayed a finger at me, lips pursed.
"Oh. I’m pretty sure my thick skull can take it." I twisted around, and scanned the room. "Where’s Kaito? Shouldn’t he be here for the scolding?”
"He’s already in class." She snickered. "It’s chemistry, remember?"
“Ah, yes. Aris.”
Kaito made no secret of how he felt about his new study buddy. An obsession that, unfortunately, seemed to be one sided. Salma raised her cup from the table, and glanced at my cupcake. "Finish your, so called, breakfast so we can get to class."
I looked at the tempting chocolatey goodness. "You're right." Warmth spread from my belly. "I hate being late." That was a lie, and she knew it.
"Nem sahih." She rolled her eyes. Steam curled from her cup, the smell of heavy spices followed as she took a sip.
Hairs rose along my back, the fickle movement of green shapes on the table behind Salma. No?! Chest vibrated cold, spiking the hairs on my arms. I counted seven imps, a mix between hairless cats and cockroaches, crawling toward me. That many? Aym wasn’t kidding, the big guy was getting restless.
Eyes scrambled across the room. “Uhm? I forgot. I need to… Uhm… Get my notebook.” I rocketed out of the chair, the clicker of legs twitched in my ear. Oh, please let them follow me. “I’ll be right back,” I hollered over my shoulder, to a perplexed Salma.
I chewed my lip jogging through the hall toward the girls’ bathroom. The hissing, and smatter of small legs told me they’d followed. But how the hell would I be able to kill all of them?
“Aye, Bonnie.” Tell tapped a finger to his forehead in greeting as he jingled past me.
A cacophony of shrieks cut through the air, and forced me to my knees. Hands over my ears, I spun to see the imps explode in glittery fireworks. Jaw dropped. Eyes bugged. What the hell? When the glitter cleared, I caught Lux by the library door, watching me, brows raised over uninterested eyes.
Did he do that?
He turned on his heels and disappeared around the corner. Was he one of the demons Aym warned me about? With a pounding heart, I set after him.
I rounded the corner and found myself swept into strong arms.
“Woah? Where are you off to in such a rush.”
I returned the impromptu hug from Daniel. “Oh. Up to no good, as always.”
My heart sagged when my roaming eyes didn’t catch a glimpse of Lux.
“Good thing I ran into you. I need a favor.”
“Really? What’s in it for me?” Gaze swept the doors along the hall. Not ready to give up on finding Lux ju
st yet.
Daniel’s lips curled into a smile. “I’ll buy you all the cupcakes you want. For life.”
It wasn’t like Daniel to start off with bribes. “Wow. This sounds serious. Are you okay?”
“I need you to stash some beer in Kaito’s room. Mom’s coming, you know how she is.”
Brows elevated. “That’s it? I thought you wanted me to help you hide a body, or… I don’t know… kill someone.”
“I’ll keep you in mind when the time comes.” He chuckled. “But for now, just the beer.”
“I’ll stash it in my room, if you want.”
“Nah. Your room’s always locked, and with… you know… I want to be able to get it whenever, and not have to worry about her.”
He had a point. Kaito never locked his door, and with Salma, the guys knew not to barge in, in case she wasn’t covered. Skin tickled when Daniel ran a finger along my upper arm. Brows raised, eyes darted in my head. “What are you doing?”
His lips parted in a staggering smile. “I thought we could— “
“Uhm. No. Not even once.” I swatted away his hand, and crossed my arms over my chest.
“Fine.” He tossed his hands up with an exhale. “But you’ll talk to Kaito, right?”
Cas and Witchy stepped from the infirmary, fingers laced together, a soft smile on her lips. Loneliness, my old friend, made itself comfortable in my chest. Almost made me regret not taking Daniel up on his suggestion. But that was the price I paid for my secrets. “Sure. I’ll do it. Go get them. I’ll find Kaito.” I pressed past Daniel, eager to escape the happy couple, and the temptation to fall back into old habits.
“You’re a lifesaver.” Daniel hollered after me.
Where’d Lux go? Fingers drummed against my leg as I made my way to where I’d last seen him. Stupid Daniel, interrupting me. What if he was a demon? I’ve never fought one of them before.
“We need to talk.”
I squealed when Aym suddenly popped up on my shoulder. “What the hell, dude? Seriously?” I pressed a hand to my mouth. My sudden outcry had caught unwanted attention.
“Are you okay?” Cas literally had to drag a struggling Witchy with him as he crossed the hall, followed by a sour air of alcohol.
“Fine. I’m fine. No problemo.” I rocked on my heels, and clasped my hands behind my back. Man, it was hard to ignore the tickle of Aym’s breath at the back of my neck.
Hiding under my hair? What a brilliant idea. Not! It’s not like anyone can see him, anyway.
“Are you sure?”
“She said she was fine. Let’s go.”
“Yupp. I’m fine. Thanks.”
Witchy’s sneer and the way she flexed her fingers reminded me of a cat flashing its claws. Like she had to remind me Cas was hers. Geez.
Cas’ brows dipped over bloodshot eyes, but he didn’t ask again, instead he let himself be hauled off by an obviously annoyed Witch. I waved when he glanced back at me before disappearing into the lounge.
“You can’t do that.” I ripped the phone from my pocket and pressed it to my ear. “Now talk. What are you doing here?”
“After what you said. You know, about the vision, and the soldiers. I did some digging.”
“Okay?” I smiled at Paola jogging past me. A sting of pity shot through my chest at the sight of her smeared mascara. Another fight with her boyfriend, I guessed.
“If I can find your mom, I can bring her to the portal in the woods, and we can get her out.”
I stopped dead in my tracks. “What!”
“Schhh.” Aym slapped me across the cheek with his tail. “Not so loud.”
“What frickin portal?” I hissed.
“The one in the woods. You didn’t know about that?”
“Of course I did. I always act completely shocked about things I already know. Are you stupid?”
Aym rapped me over the nose with his tail. “Don’t be rude. I’ll show you where it is.”
I pocketed the phone, and headed for the doors. Heart thumping in my chest.
“Where are you off to? Yalla. We’re late for class.”
Head drooped in disappointment at Salma’s voice. I motioned for Aym to leave, spun on my heels and gave Salma an upbeat, but fake, smile. “I’m ready to go. What’s on the schedule? Biology, math, chemistry?”
Chapter 12
"PE? Again?" I grumbled to Salma as she laced up her sneakers, her tights and long-sleeved sweater looked like it was gonna be hella hot to work out in.
"Three times a week." She pulled her hair back into a bun, and padded over to the mirror.
"Hey. If I survive this, you owe me a cupcake."
She lowered her chin, hiding a smile. "That might work on Kaito, but you need to get good grades to get anything like that from me." She laced the hijab around her face and secured it under her chin.
I twisted the cap of my water bottle, and took a sip. "Okay, mom."
She smiled at me through the reflection of the mirror, then lifted her gaze to Witchy who was in the middle of changing to gym clothes.
“It must be really hard.”
I followed her gaze, and snarled when it landed on Witchy. “What? Being evil?”
“No.” She rolled her eyes. “Being that beautiful. It’s all people see.”
She wasn’t wrong. Witchy was beautiful, the heart shaped face, and sun kissed skin. Too bad her personality ruined it. I rose to my feet, and offered Salma my hand. “Come on, Mary Sue. Before I throw up from all your squeaky-clean goodness.”
"Stop it. You make me sound like I’m boring." She slapped me in the stomach with the back of her hand.
I flinched. "Well? If the shoe fits." I bit the inside of my lip to keep from laughing at her shocked expression.
"It does not. I am not." The indignation rolled off her all the way into the gym. The locker room door swung shut behind us, the gym filled with students. “You take that back.” Salma finished, when I stopped a few feet away from the massive group gathered in the gym.
“Why didn’t they tell us they’d merge the classes today?”
“They did.” Now it was Salma’s turn to hide a smile. The smug look didn’t suit her. I opened my mouth to tell her that, when the words lodged at the back of my tongue. Lux walked through the doors, his head bowed over a piece of paper. I cursed the feral reaction in my body at the sight of him. The grey t-shirt snug around his chest, and shoulders. His ash blonde hair pushed back revealing the buzz cut sides.
"My brother’s out sick today, so I'm filling in. Do all of you know your sets?" My heart collapsed into a pit of fire. Images of his naked body swarmed my mind, and made me weak in the knees. If I ever had the chance, I’d cladly sacrifice myself at the altar of his mercy. For the love of... What’s wrong with me? Wait? Did he say brother? And sick? Hungover, would be my guess.
"I'll do a quick attendance, and you can get started." His eyes rose from the paper, and fell on me. I inhaled as the heat in my groin overflowed and spilled down my legs. The muscles on the inside of my thighs twitched. Lux cleared his throat and shifted his attention.
"Allender, Bjorg. Track."
Bjorg squeaked a yes from her spot right next to him. Her pale freckled covered face was overtaken by huge tawny colored eyes. She reminded me of a scared anime character, long legs, and skinny, but with a rack sculpted by an over enthusiastic teenage boy. I looked down at my own puny B cups, and sighed. It sucked being average. Lux nodded not sparing her a second glance, and scribbled on the paper.
"Boyd, Daniel. Weights."
Daniel smiled, and pointed two fingers in the air. He winked at me when he caught my glance. He seriously winked? Has he been drinking?
Bjorg hovered, not ready to head out running just yet. Lux’ eyes narrowed when she got a bit too close, and she hastily backed off.
"Brown, Martin. Weights."
The biggest guy in class, well, until Aris joined us, gave a deep, "Yo."
"Ceti, Mira."
I choked on air,
coughing out my answer. Salma patted me on the back, and a light snicker tumbled from the people around us. Kaito wiggled his brows from behind Lux, giving me a thumb’s up.
Lux waited for my coughing to subside, a brow raised in amusement. Great, Mira. You can die now.
I was thankful the coughing drove heat to my face, hiding the crimson crawling up my neck. Get a grip, you’re acting like an idiot.
"Are you okay, Miss Ceti?" Lux nailed me with his dark pools of blue.
My toes curled at the ‘Miss Ceti’. It sounded even better than Mira when it slid over his lips. “You’re with the other girl.” He hitched his head to Bjorg, who shrank at the lack of interest from him.
I nodded, heart twirled at the opportunity to call Aym. Lux moved on, after one last questioning raise of a brow. He turned his back to me, calling names. I relished the movement of muscles under his sweats, gulped down some water, sucking air from the bottle, making it crackle.
Damn he's hot. Ah, well. Nothing I could do about that, unless I wanted to cross the line, and try to seduce a teacher.
I tightened the cap back on the bottle, and headed out for my run.
Chapter 13
The chirping of birds filled the air, carrying along the tickle of wet moss. I stretched my legs to put some distance between me and Bjorg. Luckily, she stayed behind, probably to admire Lux. I didn’t blame her.
I breathed in the humid air, lungs rejoicing. The sunlight struggled to reach the ground from behind heavy clouds. I focused on Aym, calling his name in my mind. Dry twigs snapped under my feet. It was a lovely day to be running out here, compared to the stuffy gym. No one around, no one at all.
The muscles in my back tensed, blood rushed to my legs.
So, Mira, this seems like a good time to let your brain start imagining the worst possible things that can happen to a girl, alone, in the woods. Let's see. Hmm... Ripped to shreds by dangerous animals maybe? Or caught in a bear trap and having to gnaw off your own foot. Yeah, that's a good one.
I twitched at the sound of birds taking to the sky. Oh, come on. They're more afraid of you, than you are of them.
Before Limbo (After Life Book 1) Page 5
