by Lola StVil
He nods again. “Yes. If I have to choose you or her, I choose her. She’s a thief, Lucas. This is karma. Don’t feel too bad about it. Think of it as a punishment for everything she’s done and didn’t get caught doing.”
I stare at him, shocked, as he goes back to writing the letter in front of him.
“I’m finishing up my recommendation that she be moved to Bliss right away. They have expanded. It’s not just a prison for angels anymore—it houses Quo and Sellers as well as a high-ranking human now and then. I’m also recommending she be kept there for a very long time.”
Nix stiffens beside me.
“Are you kidding me?” I snap. “You know this is wrong.”
He puts the pen down and looks at me.
“So what would you have me do? Say it was your idea and she just helped?”
“No,” I say.
“So tell me what you would have me do then,” he says again.
Nix gives me a pleading look. I can’t help the guilt that begins to fill me up. She didn’t even want to help me at first. I got her into this, now I need to get her out.
“I don’t like this any more than you do, Lucas, and if either of you have a solution that would satisfy the Whitehalls, I’m all ears.”
I think for a moment.
“Okay,” I say after a moment.
Nix starts to get nervous. He shifts his weight from one foot to the other. I clear my throat.
“How about this. Say that you were all set to go ahead with her punishment, when she started talking. She told you that someone high up in the Shadow and Serpent put her up to stealing the box. Lay it on thick, tell them she feared for her life or whatever.
“Tell them you can’t say anything more because it is highly sensitive information, but that you will be acting on it. Tell them that you are releasing Fish to show the Shadow and Serpent they can’t control us, that they can’t make us turn on each other. And maybe add a part in that she’s willing to help us in any way she can in exchange for her freedom.”
“I don’t know, Lucas,” my father says.
“When we reached the vault, Fish knew a way of getting through the lasers. You know what she said to me? If she did something wrong and ended up dead, I was to tell the guards who came who she was and that I followed her down there because I thought she was up to no good. She was literally willing to die for me in that moment. How can you do this knowing that?”
“Fine,” he concedes with a sigh.
Nix lets out a dramatic sigh right along with him.
“But they won’t just let her walk. She has to be punished.”
“Give her an ankle bracelet that keeps her from leaving the country,” Nix cuts in. “Everyone knows that a Seller needs the freedom to travel, so it’s a good punishment.”
I glance sideways at him. He really wants Fish around.
“Give me some time to arrange everything. Go down to the dungeons at ten tonight,” my father says. “I want that girl escorted off my property, and who better to do it than her knights in shining armor. And if your mother catches you outside of this house, you did not just get my permission. Understood?”
“Thank you, Dad,” I say with a nod.
“Thanks, Dad,” Nix says with a smirk.
Maybe my father’s not so bad after all.
***
At exactly ten o’clock, Nix and I meet a very angry Fish at the gates to the dungeon.
“Well, that’s my career over,” she rants as we walk.
Nix and I share a smile over the top of her head. And I thought she might actually be grateful to us for freeing her. We leave the grounds of the castle and keep going.
“With this thing on me, I might as well be locked away forever. What the hell am I supposed to do now?”
I think it’s a rhetorical question but I answer anyway.
“I’m sure you’ll find somewhere to cause trouble around here.”
She glares at me.
“I knew I shouldn’t have got involved with you.”
Nix and I smirk at her ranting.
“Whose bright idea was the bracelet anyway?” she demands.
She glares at me again.
“It was yours, wasn’t it? So I have to hang around in case you need me again.”
“Well, we did make a great team,” I say.
“Not the point,” she retorts.
“It was my idea,” Nix says bashfully.
He’s been unusually quiet up until this point.
“Oh,” Fish says, caught off guard.
He looks at her with an intense gaze, and she stares back at him. In this moment I feel like I am intruding, so I clear my throat, breaking the tension.
Fish speaks up. “Well, it’s done now. I guess I better get used to it.”
My eyes widen in surprise. She can claim she hates being made to stick around all she wants to, but as soon as she heard it was Nix’s idea to keep her close, her icy exterior thawed a little.
Suddenly an idea hits me. One that can help both me and Nix with our love lives.
“Listen,” I say to Nix. “Can you take care of this? I need to go and talk to Summit.”
Nix nods. “Sure.”
“Meet me back here in an hour,” I say.
“I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone,” I tease.
Nix punches me in the arm, but he doesn’t deny it.
I launch into the air and fly straight to Emmy’s. I know which room is Summit’s, and I tap gently on the window.
The curtain pulls back and Summit appears. The look of shock on her face at seeing me floating outside of her window should be funny, but I’m struck again by the fact that I can’t have her, and instead of laughing, I just want to scream with rage.
Summit nods towards the balcony. I fly over and land. Within seconds the door opens and closes and Summit stands before me in her pajamas.
“What are you doing here?” she asks. “Is everything okay?”
“Not exactly,” I say.
I motion for her to sit down at the table and I sit beside her. I quickly tell her everything that really happened at the ball.
I watch as her face softens. She looks down into her lap.
“You could have been killed,” she whispers softly.
“I know. But not being able to be with you is killing me too.”
“And it would have been all my fault…again.”
Her head flies up and she looks straight at me. I see the tears forming in her eyes.
“Please don’t cry. It’s not your fault,” I say, reaching out to touch her cheek.
As my hand makes contact, I’m struck by the velvety softness of her skin and the sharp pain that runs through my head like a bolt is being screwed into my brain.
“The Drin is still affecting you, isn’t it?” she says as she gently peels my hand away from her face.
I don’t have to say anything. The pained look in my eyes is enough to tell her what she already knows.
“I’m so sorry, Summit. I’ve tried everything, but I’m out of ideas. The Drin is too strong.”
“I know,” she says, sitting quietly with her arms in her lap.
Has she given up?
The thought of her giving up on me, on us, hurts more than any headache ever could.
“You have no idea how much I want to feel you in my arms. How much I want to kiss you.”
I can feel myself moving closer to her as I speak. She responds, and our lips are only inches apart.
I force myself to pull back. I have to show her I’m strong enough to stay away from her romantically because she still needs me on the team.
“Pulling away from you is the hardest thing I have to do. But I will, Summit, because I know I have to. And because you need me on the team. If I can’t have you, I’ll have to find a way to accept that, I have to. I’ll force myself to keep away from you, but the team is all I have left. Please don’t take my family away from me.”
She gives me a sad smile.
>
“I doubt we’ll be able to stay away from each other. It’s funny ya know? I finally fall in love, and we can’t even be together,” she says, unable to meet my eyes.
I return her sad smile with one of my own.
Summit loves me, she really is in love with me.
“I don’t think we will be able to stay away from one another. Our feelings are too strong, and I can’t imagine not giving in.”
She’s going to reject me. I don’t think I can take this again. I go to stand up, but she puts her hand on my arm and I stay seated.
“But I know you’re right. We have to try,” she finishes.
“So I’m back on the team?”
She nods. “Truthfully, in my heart, I don’t think you were ever off it. I need you on the team.”
My relief at her words is short lived as the door to the balcony opens again and Emmy comes out, a look of dread on her face.
“I’m afraid you’re right: you will need Lucas—you’ll need everyone on the team,” she says.
“Why, what happened?” I ask.
“We know the location of the first piece of the Morcon pendant. Your team is headed for their first mission,” she says gravely.
It’s begun.
“Where’s the first piece located?” Summit asks.
I watch as Emmy’s face pales. This isn’t going to be good. I dread hearing her next words, but I know we have to.
Her voice comes out shaky as she delivers the news.
“The Cavern of Shattered Souls. Your team is about to meet the Winter Queen.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN: DO SOMETHING WRONG
The news has just about sunk in. We’re going to the Cavern of Shattered Souls. The place of nightmares and death. My palms are sweating, my knees shake under my body, and my mind races with a million horrors.
I’m just glad that I managed to convince Summit to let me back on the team. I don’t know what lies ahead or which of those horrors we will face, but I know this—I would never let her face this alone.
Emmy made a few quick calls after she dropped her bombshell on us. The rest of the team will be arriving any minute, along with The Face.
Apparently, we need a history lesson too.
I know that’s not fair. Any information we can gather on what’s about to happen will be good.
I am surprised to see Milo enter the room. Summit stands up and goes to him. He wraps his arms around her and she hugs him back.
“I’m sorry to drag you here this late,” she tells him.
“Sunny, you know I am always here for you,” he informs her.
“I just wanted to say goodbye. You know, in case we don’t come back.”
“There’s no need for goodbyes, Summit. I’ve been by your side your whole life, and now, if you’ll let me, I’ll be by your side through this as well. Let me join the team, Sunny.”
Dylann and I exchange looks. Milo could be an asset to the team, or he could get us all killed… Either way, I don’t think he is giving up without a fight.
Summit glances at me and I shrug. It’s her call.
Milo sees Summit’s indecision.
“You need all the help you can get.” He points out exactly what I was thinking.
I raise my eyebrow in anticipation.
“And I can be useful.”
Summit nods her head.
“Okay. But promise me you won’t do anything stupid.”
“I promise,” he agrees.
That might not be a promise he can keep, and we all know it.
We sit in anxious silence, broken only by Emmy trying to reassure us that we’ll be okay. Even her usual positive outlook isn’t enough to actually convince me that all of us are coming through this alive.
If it were anywhere else, I’d be pretty confident. We have a good team and we work well together, but we’re heading into an unknown place to take on an unknown enemy. An unknown enemy that’s been the center of our self-created hell for years and years.
There’s noise from the hallway and the door opens. The Face walks in, looking grim and more stern than usual. She is closely followed by Rage and the others, who all take a seat. We all look to Emmy for more information.
Instead, The Face starts to talk. Rage walks over and hugs Emmy, whispering to her that we are strong, and like our parents before us, we will conquer this.
“You’ve all heard of the Cavern of Shattered Souls, so you all know this isn’t going to be easy. But I know you all can do this. I’ve watched you grow from children into the fine young adults I see before me today. Yes, Winnie, that means you too, and if anyone can pull this off, it’s you guys.
“It’s not going to be easy though. The Cavern of Shattered Souls is made up of two parts. The Suicide Forest in Japan, and the ice cave below it.”
I feel a shiver go down my spine at the name of the forest.
“The Suicide Forest, as the name suggests, is a desolate place. Its dark atmosphere is so strong that it can affect humans who are in the general vicinity of it.
“It pulls its victims in, and once it has them in its clutches, it makes them feel so alone, so empty, that they take their own lives. You must fight against the darkness that will try to consume you as you enter. Humans have a hard time fighting off their grief and guilt. As angels, it will take the darkness longer to consume your souls.
“Focus on each other and on your task. Don’t let yourself be caught up in the emotion of that wretched place.”
She pauses and hands Parker a locket.
“This locket is the Locket of Aserai. It is an ancient relic that has the power to transport the person wearing it, and anyone they are making physical contact with, in and out of the Suicide Forest.
“The forest is a no-fly zone, which means this is literally your only way to get in and out quickly. If you attempt to walk out of the forest, you’ll be pulled into your deepest grief. Once that has hold of you, you will no longer be able resist the pull of the Winter Queen.”
“Why me?” Parker asks, confused.
“Because only the touch of a healer can activate the magic of the locket,” The Face explains.
Parker nods and puts the chain over her head.
“Whatever happens, don’t lose it,” The Face tells her.
“I won’t,” Parker promises.
A part of me wonders if it is true what The Face said about the healer’s touch, or if she just knows Parker is the most responsible out of us. It hardly matters.
“The locket will get you in range of the entrance to the ice cave where the piece of the pendant is located. Once there you will have to find the entrance. It’s hidden at the base of a tree in the center of the forest, and it’s guarded by a large nest of Raja.”
“What’s a Raja?” Summit interrupts her.
“You’ll see,” RJ says, an expression of dread on his face.
I’m pretty sure I’m wearing an identical expression.
The Face carries on as though no one spoke.
“It’s imperative that none of you touch the floor of the ice cave. It’s enchanted, and a single step on it will crack the surface and free the Winter Queen.”
She hands me a small white disc about the size of a playing card.
“Use this as soon as you enter the ice cave. Not a moment before. It’s called a floating stair.”
“What does it do?” Dylann asks, beating me to it.
“It will allow you to cross the ice cave safely. It’s your only chance.”
I put the disc in my pocket, aware of the huge responsibility I have. I won’t fail. I won’t let my team down.
“That’s everything I know about your mission,” The Face says. “I suggest you all get some rest. I wish you all the very best of luck. I expect each and every one of you to return because you have important exams coming up at the end of the week; the mission does not excuse any of you from schoolwork.”
With that, she turns around and leaves. I can’t help but smile. Only The Face wou
ld be worried about our exams at a time like this.
Emmy speaks up.
“She’s right. You should all get some rest. I’ve made up the spare rooms so you can all stay here tonight. Dylann, Summit, we’d like to talk to you both for a moment please.”
I stand up and follow the others out of the room. As I turn the corner, I hear Death speak first.
“I want you girls to look out for each other.”
“We will, Grandma,” Dylann reassures her
“Ducky, I am so proud of you. And Winnie, my sweet Winnie, I finally get you back and then all this.”
“Emmy, they will be fine,” Rage pipes up.
“They are not only Cane women who take after the strongest, most stubborn pain in the ass I know, but they have Case blood running through their veins too, making them unstoppable.”
As I walk towards the rooms Emmy has made up and claim the last one, I can’t help but smile at Rage having to be “Mr. Positive” all of a sudden.. Nix and RJ are sharing a room, leaving Ryder and me in our own rooms. Parker and Dylann take her room, and Summit is sleeping in Pry’s old room. After Summit’s parents left, Death gave it to her so she could feel closer to her mom.
I haven’t been in bed long when I hear the door open a crack.
“Are you awake?” Summit whispers.
“Yeah,” I say.
I push myself up on my elbows as she comes in and sits beside me on the bed.
“My grandmother and grandfather just said their goodbyes,” Summit tells me. “Did you know they call Dylann Ducky?”
I shake my head.
“They do. She told her she loves her little Ducky and she expects her to return in one piece. And then she told me that when she completed her first mission, she didn’t even have any powers, but she said she had Marcus and he was better than any power out there.
“I didn’t really know what she meant, but as I lay in bed, it hit me. She thinks Marcus is watching over me, but I took something else from her story. I think you’re my Marcus.”
I can’t help but grin. If Summit and I ever share a love half as strong as the love between Marcus and Emmy, I’ll be happy.
“I’ve been called worse,” I joke.
Summit laughs and puts her hand over her mouth to stifle the sound. She gets herself back under control.
