Hunter walks toward Benjamin and stands in front of him. “We just had this discussion! Kayla and I will be protecting Stephaine.”
“Yes, but you didn’t tell me they were leaving! I assumed that they weren’t going to directly protect her, but that they would be around just in case.”
“You should know better than to make assumptions,” says Hunter. “Stephaine will be protected. Our part of the deal is being met just as yours was.”
“Ben, let them go,” begs Stephaine. “Kayla is strong enough to protect us. We’ll be okay.”
He grins and moves out of the way and then, in a way, I wish he took a little longer to give in, because this means it’s time to say goodbye.
I kneel down and look at Trent. I want to apologize. I want to tell him that I’m sorry for all the messed up things he lived so far, but I know he is too little to understand. All I can do is hope that he will eventually forget most of it and live a happy and normal life with Ethan and Jennifer.
My mind takes me back to memories that I didn’t even know I had, of my dad saying goodbye to me.
All I can do is reach over and hug him.
“Sam says thank you for taking care of me,” he whispers.
I smile and give him another hug before Jennifer scoops him up and Ethan portals them out of there and to a place where only they will know where it is.
***
As soon as they are gone, Hunter asks if I’m okay.
I take a deep breath. “I’ll be okay. Besides, Sam is with them.”
I didn’t mean to say the part about Sam and the hurt look in Hunter’s eyes say more than a thousand words.
“I’m sorry,” I say.
“No, it’s okay. Whether I like it or not, you were forced to have a past with him.”
I look away from him and my gaze falls on Stephaine who is facing Benjamin and talking to him.
I gasp. “Your wings! Trent didn’t get to heal you before—”
Stephaine puts her hand up. “I wouldn’t have allowed him to heal me even if we had the time. The colors of my wings don’t dictate who I know I am. I feel like I’ve done more good as a fallen than I ever did before and as long as I know that, I’m okay with who I am.”
I can’t help but to smile at her, and I’m glad that she’s happy, even if Benjamin is the one responsible for such happiness.
“So, what now?” asks Benjamin.
“I really have no clue. But the house is warded and I’m going to go back to sleep, and hopefully sleep well for the first time in years and when I wake up, I’ll figure out what is next. Well, besides seeing my parents.”
Before Benjamin can complain that we don’t have a plan to protect Stephaine other than the wards, I reach for Hunter’s hand and pull him toward the room with me.
TWENTY-NINE
With nothing to worry about other than Stephaine’s protection, I let everything go and fell in a deep sleep. I remember waking up sometime during the day and finding Hunter sound asleep next to me. I put my arm over him, my head on his chest, and fell asleep again.
“Kayla.”
I look over at Samael. “Shouldn’t you be with Trent?” I ask.
“Don’t worry. He is safe. I have come to warn you.”
I roll my eyes at him. “What are you anyway?”
He grins. “You know that little race of forsaken angels you created?”
I nod.
“I’m their leader.”
“What? How?”
He shrugs. “It was necessary, and soon, you will have an important job yourself, but for now, you need to get your ass up.”
“Don’t tell me what to do. You’re their leader. Not mine.”
“Still just as stubborn… I’m serious, Kayla. Ezra is coming. You need to get up and be ready.”
I sit up, fast. I then stand up and subconsciously start to search for my dagger, remembering that I no longer have it.
I turn around and find Hunter sitting up and watching me. Then we both turn to face the sound of heavy metal hitting the hardwood floor and my dagger falls out of thin air.
“What the—” says Hunter.
“No time. Ezra is coming.”
“How do you know? Can you sense him?”
I shake my head. “Samael warned me… in my dream.”
He lets out a growl.
“It’s okay. The wards are up, right?” he asks.
I nod. “Yes, but I’m bringing it down.”
Hunter’s eyes widen in shock as he stands up.
“What? Why?”
“Because I’m not running forever. And I’m definitely not getting stuck with Benjamin forever. This ends right here. Right now.”
He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “Why do you insist on being reckless? Why can’t you grasp the fact that you are mortal? I don’t have forever with you, Kayla! I would like to take whatever time we do have and make the most out of it.”
I sigh. “So do I, and that is why I have to do this. I can’t make the most out of our time together if we are running, or worried about wards and demons.”
Hunter takes a deep breath and then, surprises the hell out of me. “What do you need me to do?” he asks.
I look startled for a few seconds.
Not knowing how long we have until Ezra gets here, I say, “I want you to guard the wards I put up to keep Benjamin trapped inside this house. If he manages to get out, I want you to try and stop him. Otherwise, he will never let me hurt his dad.”
“Kayla, I—”
“I’m keeping him warded in the living room and you in here. I don’t want him to get to you just to get to me.”
He shakes his head. “No. I stay out there and him here. I need to be able to watch you so that I can come to you if you need help. This is nonnegotiable.”
“Okay.”
We go into the living room before Benjamin can sense his dad coming. Once there, I ask Stephaine if she can take Benjamin to the room while I have a word with Hunter. Once they step into the room, I ward it and just as soon as I can sense Ezra, I run outside, keeping Hunter in the house.
I stand there, with my dagger in my hand and ready to attack him.
Ezra grins as soon as he sees me. “If it isn’t my lucky day… I get you and the fallen who damaged my son all at once.”
I laugh. “You got this all wrong, demon. You damaged your son. She made him better.”
“Huh. Out of everyone, I never thought you’d be the one to defend your brother.”
I don’t give him the satisfaction of a response. I launch forward and manage to cut his arm with my dagger.
He growls and then shrieks. It’s a piercing sound so powerful that I can’t help but to drop the dagger so that I can use my hands to shield my ears. As the sound gets more and more intense, I crouch to the ground, and then, it suddenly stops. There is no sound, except for the ringing in my ears. I let go of my ears and stand up. I didn’t realize how disoriented that sound made me. Not until I can feel Ezra’s hand on my shoulder and his very own dagger, piercing my skin and being driven into my stomach.
I drop to the floor and drop the wards.
I can see Hunter run toward me. I move my hand against the dirt and grass until I can reach the dagger.
Still looking in his direction, I see that Ezra doesn’t even bother with Hunter. He keeps walking toward the house… toward Benjamin and Stephaine.
Hunter drops to the ground, a look of desperation in his eyes.
I’m weak, but I manage to grab the dagger and lift it up to him.
“G-Get him, p-please.”
Shocked, he grabs the dagger. There is so much confusion in his eyes… so much love… so much rage. He looks up at Ezra who is being blocked at the door by Benjamin. Hunter stands up and turns around. I can’t move my body, but I manage to move my head to the side so I can see him. He runs toward the demon with such speed and determination that surprises me. Benjamin seems to be distracting the demon and once Hunter is inches
away from him, my heart skips a beat. Hunter moves quickly and drives my dagger into his back. Ezra turns to face it Hunter and his eyes are now yellow. Hunter takes a few steps back. The demon slowly walks toward him, his skin, slowly turning into a black shell-like skin as he does. I hear the sound of thunder as he continues to move toward Hunter, until Benjamin approaches the demon. “Stop,” Benjamin orders him. “The dagger is killing you.”
The demon stops. And Hunter keeps walking away from him and away from me. I know what he’s doing. He hopes I’ll be healed and he’s protecting me to make sure I have that chance. He’s luring the demon as far away from me as he can. Benjamin quickly follows them. He stands behind his father, puts one hand on his shoulder and uses the other to remove my dagger. The demon turns around to thank Benjamin and I know that my dagger barely did any damage at all. At this moment, I know we are all done. This is it… the end of it all, and we lost the battle. I feel like I should just close my eyes right now and give in, but Benjamin’s fast movement catches my attention. He throws my dagger toward Hunter, who catches it in the air. The demon’s eyes show nothing but fury, and even though he is furious at Benjamin, he wastes no time with him. He turns toward Hunter and moves faster than he was moving when the dagger was in his back. Hunter launches at the demon with my dagger, but the demon grabs him by his neck with one hand and lifts him off the ground. Hunter tries to move the dagger toward his chest, but he can’t reach the demon’s body. Unable to breathe and fearing for Hunter, I put pressure on my stomach and try to get up, but the pain is unbearable and the bleeding gets worse. Benjamin rushes toward me once I cry out in pain.
“No! Help Hunter!” I manage to say.
Benjamin freezes. “I—I can’t. He’s still my father. He can’t die by my hands. I gave Hunter the weapon to kill him. That is all I can do.”
“Please,” I beg him.
He looks from me back to Hunter and his father, and I can see the confusion in his eyes.
With tears running down my face, I look at Hunter and the demon. The demon moves his free hand toward Hunter, scratching his chest with his long nails. Once Hunter looks over the demon’s shoulders and his eyes meet mine, I think that he is about to give up, but then, he quickly moves the dagger up and cuts off the demon’s hand, the one that is holding him by his neck. Hunter falls to the ground and before the demon can react, Hunter quickly gets back up and launches forward, driving my dagger into the demon’s chest. The demon drops to the floor immediately and his body bursts into flames. It’s not until Benjamin thanks Hunter and goes back inside that I can breathe again, but I know it won’t be for long.
Hunter rushes to my side and drops to the ground. He is crying and that alone, nearly destroys me.
I put my hand up to his face.
“Stephaine is coming. She’ll heal you. Please stay with me.”
“There is no time, Hunter.”
“Don’t you dare let go. You’re the strongest person I know. Just stay with me—”
“Hunter, this is our chance. If I become one of them, I can come back to you.”
He doesn’t even take the time to think about what I just said. “No. Absolutely not. You’re not giving up. There are not even any guarantees. No… just no…”
He hears a sound and looks up at Stephaine, who is standing next to him. I also look up at her and shake my head, because I know that it’s too late.
“PLEASE HEAL HER!” he begs.
“I’ll come back to you, Hunter.” Those are my last words before I close my eyes.
THIRTY
“Not you again! Please tell me I won’t be stuck with you forever.”
“Words hurt, you know. They hurt before and they hurt now,” says Samael, grinning.
“So what? Now I died and I’m here with you? Is this what you were talking about when you said that something important was coming my way? Am I now supposed to lead the forsaken with you?”
“Yeah… yeah… I know you had other plans… to become a fallen for love. Really Kayla? Come on, you’re a freaking nephilim warrior and you were willing to become a fallen angel for love?”
I stand there, furious, and cross my arms, and he bursts into laughter.
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it.” He sighs. “You’re not really dead, just a bit unconscious. Relax. You will heal.”
“I will?” I ask confused. “Nah, you’re lying.”
“Seriously, I’m not.” He does look serious now. “I’m here to tell you what some of the fallen refuse to because according to their rules they would be interfering.”
“Well, what is it?”
“Do you remember when you got stabbed by that succubi?”
“Of course I do! It was your fault.”
“Not the point. Anyway, you needed a blood transfusion and the only blood they could use was Hunter’s.”
“Yeah, so?”
“Oh, come on… do I really have to spell it out?”
I just look at him.
“He has immortal blood… which means that…”
I freeze in place as it all hits me.
“Yeah, you’re a kick ass nephilim warrior who also happens to be immortal.”
“So this whole time that Hunter was trying to find a way to become mortal—”
“Yeah, it would be pretty messed up if he had found it, huh?”
“What about Trent?”
“What do you mean?”
“He has my blood, which apparently is also Hunter’s.”
Samael shrugs. “Trent is now mortal and human, you know that. Besides, Trent is all you and me. Don’t try to bring Hunter into this.”
“So what now?” I ask.
He stands and quietly watches me.
“You’re not going to tell me, are you?”
He disappears and my eyes open.
I’m in Hunter’s arms. My head is lying on his lap and his eyes are closed, his tears dripping down my face.
“Hunter—”
He opens his eyes and I can’t even explain his reaction—shocked wouldn’t even cover it.
I expect him to ask a million questions, but instead, he pulls me up and brings his lips to mine.
“Ouch,” I say.
He looks confused. “Stephaine healed you. Are you still in pain?”
I look down and notice I stopped bleeding and my skin is slowly healing.
“I’m still hurt, but it wasn’t Stephaine’s healing that kept me here.”
“But how are you here then?” he asks.
I look into his eyes and say, “I’m still here because of my protector. I’m here because of you.”
THIRTY-ONE
Stephaine finishes healing me. She then heals Hunter’s chest. Before we go back inside, we see a bright light and a portal opens. Out of the portal, I see Irene and Daniels.
I can’t say that I’m not shocked when Benjamin steps in between them and the rest of us.
“Leave!” he orders them.
“We’re here to help,” says Daniels.
“Too little, too late,” Benjamin snaps back. “We don’t need you.”
Looking over Irene, I can see pride and I wonder what she is seeing in this mess that could possibly cause that.
Daniels looks past Benjamin and over at me. “Are you okay?” he asks.
Once I say that I am, he asks if we can talk. Before Benjamin can even open his mouth, Stephaine is dragging him inside the house.
Hunter helps me stand and we go to a picnic table out front and sit down. It’s strange seeing both of my biological parents here… together.
“Ezra is gone,” I say.
They nod. “We know.”
We fall into an awkward silence and Irene looks distant, then, she finally says, “Benjamin has changed. I always knew there was good in him.”
No one says anything, because really, we had to literally go through hell and back for him to change.
Irene looks back at me and I fight the urge to tell them I forgive th
em for everything, including them giving me up.
“You’re probably wondering why we are really here,” says Daniels.
I nod.
“We know about the Forsaken.”
“Oh.” I look away wondering if I’m in trouble for curing them.
“It’s a good thing,” says Daniels. “They restored the balance in ways that you couldn’t even imagine, but the reason we’re here is because some of them found their way into the Academy. We know there are more of them, but those are not within our reach at this moment. We’re here because they have specifically requested you as their leader. You can even have the old Academy, the one we rebuilt. It’s all yours, if you choose to accept it.”
I don’t know what to say, not until I feel the warmth of Hunter’s hand on mine and then, I know what I have to do and I’m not doing this just because I promised him, but because he stood by my side through this whole thing and he deserves better. He deserves a life without having to deal with the constant struggles between Heaven and Hell, even though a normal life will also contain a certain level of good versus evil.
I intertwine my fingers with his and look to my side. I smile at him before I look back to Daniels and Irene.
“I’m honored, but I’m afraid I will have to refuse your offer,” I say. I look at Daniels. “There is something I need to say. I—I learned to appreciate what you tried to do for me when you gave me up. I understand it now and although I know that my life will never be the same, I want to have a shot at a normal life. I want to try the life that you wanted for me. I need to be home. Please tell the Forsaken that I feel honored at their request, and that I asked them to trust Xavier to be their leader.”
I leave out the part about my being immortal, which they probably already know, and also about Trent. I wonder at some point if I’m being selfish wanting to live a normal life, when I have an eternity, but looking at Hunter, I know we need at least one lifetime of normal… just the two of us. When I look at him and see the happiness and relief in his eyes, I know I’ve made the right decision.
I look back at Daniels. “How are the others responding to the Forsaken?” I ask, concerned.
“Not well, which is the reason we’re separating them from the others.”
Forsaken (Academy of the Fallen #4) Page 11
