by Alicia Rades
“Well, let’s see them,” Kyle insisted.
I bit my lip and glanced between my friends. I didn’t want to make a fool out of myself.
“We’ll all do it together,” Allie suggested. She flexed her shoulders, and her wings returned.
“Okay,” I agreed.
Beside me, Marek stripped down to expose his toned torso.
Note to self: Keep your eyes off Hot Stuff while airborne—unless you plan to crash and burn. He’s too damn distracting.
“Ready?” Marek asked.
I noticed his fingers twitch in my direction like he was about to take my hand. At the last second, he pulled away.
I nodded and then took a deep breath, flexing my back. I felt the afternoon air brush across my feathers. This time, it was easier to let them out now that I knew what it felt like. I stretched them as wide as I could.
I’d never felt more refreshed than I did in that moment… like something had been missing my whole life, and for the first time, I’d embraced it.
I turned my attention back to my friends. Allie stared, Kyle rose his eyebrows, and Marek smiled.
“What?” I pulled my wings closer to me.
Allie blinked several times. “There’s just something… magical about seeing you discover your wings. You look so happy.”
I realized I was smiling. “I never knew what I was missing.”
“Ready to give it a try?” Kyle asked.
I nodded.
“Start by trying to flap your wings,” Marek suggested. “Don’t try to take off. Just move them to get a feel for it.”
I did as I was instructed. It felt like I’d grown another set of arms, but strangely, the movement came naturally.
“How does it feel?” Allie asked enthusiastically.
I glanced behind my shoulder to watch my wings move up and down. If it wasn’t for the tightening and relaxing of my muscles with every motion, I’d never believe they were my own.
“It feels great,” I told her.
“You ready to try flying?” Marek asked.
I took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”
“We’ll fly alongside you,” Marek explained. “One on either side and one in the back. That way, if you feel you might fall, we can catch you.”
I nodded.
“It helps to get a running start,” he continued. “Once you do, take a big leap and spread your wings out to glide. Flap to gain height, and tilt your body to change direction. It’s not too hard to get once you’re in the air. The trouble is finding the courage to get off the ground.” He smiled at his last comment. “Remember, this is the easy part of being a Davina.”
“Ugh. Don’t remind me,” I complained. “That means I have a lot more to learn.”
Marek laughed. “Yeah, but you’ll catch on quickly. Let’s do this together.”
Marek stood to my right while Allie situated herself on my left. Kyle took the spot behind me.
“Run, jump, and spread your wings,” Marek reminded me. “Don’t forget to flap them once you start losing height.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not a child. I’ve got this.”
Though my voice came out strong and commanding, I wasn’t sure. Frankly, I was afraid I might break a leg, but I couldn’t sit back without at least giving it a shot.
“Okay,” Marek agreed. “On the count of three?”
I took off toward the hill before he finished the countdown. I saw Marek and Allie racing alongside me in my peripheral vision. Just as the hill dropped to a sharp decline, I dug my feet into the dirt and launched my body forward, spreading my wings out at the peak of my jump.
The ground dropped away from me. And so did my stomach.
My tummy tickled in the same way it felt to drive too fast over a hill. It was like someone flipped off the switch to gravity and my insides remained suspended high within my abdomen.
“Flap your wings!” Marek reminded me.
I immediately followed his instruction after realizing how quickly I was losing height. Wind rushed through my hair, tangling it into a wild mess. But I didn’t care. I welcomed the air beneath my wings as it pressed against me and kept me afloat.
I dared to steal a glance below me. The base of the valley seemed miles away.
My heart slammed against my rib cage in exhilaration, and a satisfying tingle spread across my skin. It was the kind of rush that came with riding a rollercoaster. Only better.
I flapped my wings harder, daring to press the limits.
“Don’t go above the tree line!” Allie warned. She had to shout for me to hear her.
I did as I was told. Instead of focusing on gaining height, I turned my attention to pressing forward.
I didn’t fly as gracefully as the rest of them. Each flap of my wings seemed to shoot me into the air. The next moment, I’d fall several feet before counteracting gravity with another flap of my wings. At the very least, I managed to stay airborne, and my fear of breaking a bone slowly eased.
Once we reached the opposite end of the valley, Marek called to me. “We’re going to circle around and try landing. Follow my lead. We’ll glide and land at the bottom of the valley.”
“Okay,” I called back.
Marek leaned his body to the left.
I followed him. Where he made turning look effortless, I had to flap my wings double time to maintain my height.
As soon as he was headed in the right direction, he spread his wings wide and began to glide through the air.
I copied him and found myself descending toward the ground slowly. I actually felt for a moment like I might look graceful while doing it.
“Bend your knees when you land,” Marek shouted my way. “It’ll help absorb the impact.”
As the ground grew closer, I feared we may be coming in too fast.
Allie charged ahead to demonstrate the landing. At the last second, she pulled her body back and swooped her wings up, landing perfectly on two feet.
I braced myself for impact. Though I did my best to mimic her motions, I stumbled and fell face-first into the grass. The inside of my right arm skidded along the ground. I pulled my wings back in and flipped over to examine my arm. Dirt had embedded itself into my raw skin.
“You okay?” Marek asked, landing beside me.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I bit back a cry as I tried to dust off the dirt. It stung.
“It was a good first flight,” he said. “A few months at it and you could be the best flyer at Galen High.”
I rolled my eyes, knowing he was just saying that to encourage me. “Don’t use up all your compliments at once.”
Marek smirked. “I’m sure I can come up with a few more.”
Allie knelt beside me to take a look at my arm. “Doesn’t look too bad. By tomorrow, there won’t be any evidence of your landing.”
“Ha ha,” I said dryly.
“Uh,” Kyle said to get our attention. “I wouldn’t be so sure of that. We have witnesses.”
We followed his gaze to find Blonde Bitch and her two body guards staring down at us from the top of the hill.
20
Casey wasted no time making her way down to us. Her wings spread out behind her as she glided our way. She landed gracefully at my feet. She plastered a fake smile on her face and clapped her hands in a condescending manner.
Troy and Trenton landed behind her.
“Impressive.” Casey dragged out the word, clearly not meaning it. She turned her attention to Allie. “So this is the talent you were talking about. You guys really have a shot at beating us this year.”
Marek helped me to my feet.
“Bite me, Barbie.” The words came out before I could think to stop them.
Casey blinked rapidly. “Excuse me?”
I glanced at Allie. Her eyebrows were raised in surprise.
I dusted the dirt off my jeans while I spoke. “I’m sure you weren’t that great the first time you flew, either.”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “I was
, like, five.”
“And?” I challenged, finally standing upright.
Casey opened her mouth once then closed it without saying anything. She rolled her eyes so heavily I thought they might fall out of her skull. “Whatever. Clearly they’ve already turned you against me.” She shot both Allie and Kyle a disgusted look.
I crossed my arms. “Believe it or not, we don’t sit around talking about you. We have more important things to do.”
“Right. I heard there was a demon hanging around town. Word is he wants you. What’d you do to upset a demon?” Casey looked positively pleased with herself.
How did she know?
“That’s none of your business,” Allie snarled. She took a step forward, but Kyle placed a hand on her shoulder to hold her back.
Casey eyed her with loathing. “It’s my dad out there hunting this thing. To protect you.”
“To protect everyone,” Allie pointed out.
“He’s not the only one out there,” Kyle said.
I realized Casey’s dad must’ve been one of the Davina Fletcher had said he’d recruited to help.
“I still don’t think he should be risking himself,” Casey said.
Marek stepped forward. “Everyone relax.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “If your dad’s out there, why hasn’t he found him yet?”
Casey pursed her lips but didn’t answer.
“Calm down, Casey,” Marek insisted. “We’re all Davina. We’re on the same side.”
Casey raised her blond eyebrows like she couldn’t believe he’d suggest such a thing. “Competition is a good thing. It makes us stronger.”
“But it doesn’t make us enemies,” Marek stated.
A muscle in Casey’s jaw popped. “No, James, it doesn’t. That one’s on you.”
An uncomfortable silence filled the air.
I glanced to Allie like she might have an answer.
“This is a waste of time,” Casey finally said. “Enjoy your training session, but don’t expect to have the place to yourself forever. We’ll be back later. Come on, guys. Let’s go.”
She pushed past Troy and Trenton, knocking one of them in the shoulder—I couldn’t remember which was which. Then she spread her wings to fly back to the top of the valley. The group disappeared through the trees.
It seemed to take a lifetime as we watched them go. The uncomfortable silence still hung in the air where we stood. I wasn’t about to be the first to speak.
“What a bitch,” Allie muttered under her breath.
“Don’t call her that,” Marek countered.
Kyle scoffed. “Why not? It’s true.”
Marek shook his head and ran his fingers through his brown hair. “It’s rude.”
“You don’t have to be so bossy all the time,” Allie said, raising her voice. “You don’t still have feelings for her, do you?”
My jaw dropped.
“Of course not! I never had feelings for her,” Marek argued.
“Sure you didn’t,” Allie said like she didn’t believe him.
I looked to Kyle, hoping he might be able to explain. He shook his head, suggesting I shouldn’t even ask.
“It’s true.” Irritation entered Marek’s tone. “Can we just forget about it?”
Marek turned to me. “Ryn, I think we should move on to something else. You did really well with the flying, but it’s not going to help you much in combat. Remember that demons can fly, too. We’ve got to get you comfortable using your magic, and you should know some hand-to-hand stuff in case you need it.”
I started to agree with him, but Allie grabbed my arm and cut me off.
“Excuse us a moment.” She dragged me several paces away.
“What?” I hissed.
“Would you rather Kyle and I leave?” she whispered.
I looked at her in confusion. “Why would I want that?”
“If Marek’s really forgotten about Casey, you have a chance with him. It’ll give you two a chance to get to know each other better.” Allie wiggled her eyebrows. She was playing matchmaker again.
A blush rose to my cheeks. “You think I have a chance with him?”
Allie scoffed. “Girl, I’ve never seen him look at someone the way he looks at you.”
I glanced over at Marek. He spoke to Kyle but kept his gaze on me. My heart flipped inside my chest like I was flying again.
I let my hair hide my face from him as I turned back to Allie. “He looks at me in a special way?”
Allie nodded like she couldn’t believe I hadn’t noticed. “If you want to spend some time alone with him, we’ll give you space.”
“I—uh—” I didn’t know what to say. Of course I wanted to get to know him more, but was now the right time?
“You can do whatever you want,” I told her.
She smiled wide. “Great. I’ll see you later tonight. We can paint our nails and read through gossip magazines while you dish the juicy details.”
I wasn’t actually sure if she was kidding or not.
Allie turned back to Marek and Kyle. “Kyle, we have to go.”
He looked at her in confusion. “Why?”
“I just realized…” She didn’t finish her lie. She simply took his hand and led him away toward the stairs.
As soon as they were out of earshot, I turned back to Marek. “So, about Casey… I feel like I’m totally missing something.”
He sighed heavily and shoved his hands in his pockets. “It’s kind of a long story.”
“I have time.”
He gazed down at his feet, avoiding my gaze. “Okay… When I was new at Galen, Casey and I trained together. Long story short, I thought we were friends. She thought we were more.”
The idea of Marek and Casey together made me want to puke.
Marek raked his fingers through his hair. “After I turned her down, she became pretty difficult to work with. She’s been trying to prove how much better she is since then.”
“So, you two weren’t a thing?” Hope entered my tone.
Marek shrugged. “I guess I can see where I might’ve led her on, but I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Does she still like you?”
Say no.
“God, no. I don’t think she even realizes why she hates me so much. She’s not good at letting things go, but half the time, she doesn’t know what she’s holding onto. I just—” Marek shifted his weight between his feet.
“What is it?”
He didn’t look at me. “I don’t have an easy time opening up to people. I think Casey took that personally.”
I stared into his face sympathetically and spoke softly. “I’m sorry.”
Marek continued to avoid my gaze. “For what? You didn’t do anything.”
“I did. I was a jerk to you.”
I shouldn’t have tried to push him into telling me about his scars. Involuntarily, I reached out to him, hoping it would get him to look at me.
He didn’t pull away like I was afraid he might. Instead, he let me run my hand down his arm until our fingers entwined. He took a breath and gazed down at me. Our bodies inched closer together.
“Believe me,” he said, “you’re anything but a jerk. I was impossible to work with when I first came here.”
I quieted, hoping he would elaborate. Instead, silence settled over the valley once again as he stared down into my eyes. His gaze flickered to my lips for a moment, and I swallowed hard. I was sure he could feel my fingers quivering in his.
This was it. He was going to kiss me.
Marek closed the distance between us in what felt like slow motion. Our eyes connected, and my breathing grew shallow. The sound of my own heartbeat echoed in my ears.
The kiss I’d been expecting never came. Marek let out a breath of shock, and then he crumbled to the ground, unconscious.
21
Instinct overcame me, and I dropped to my knees next to Marek. A moment later, I was on full alert, glancing around the valley
frantically in search of an explanation.
The answer stood at the top of the hill with his feet spread apart in a confident stance. Another dark fireball was already forming in his fist.
Dorian.
Anger flared through my body, and my skin heated. What felt like an electric current ran down my right arm. The white essence I’d conjured last Friday night had returned. My anger subsided for only a moment, replaced instead by a wave of pride and victory.
The sound of flapping wings snapped my attention back to Dorian. I’d let myself be distracted for too long.
Two feathery midnight-black wings rose out from somewhere in the tangle of robes he wore. He landed just yards away from me.
I didn’t know what to do next. With Marek on the ground, I felt so alone.
I knew exactly what Marek would tell me to do, though. Kill him.
I can’t, I told myself.
The electricity in my palm fizzled away.
Shit. Dorian wouldn’t care if I was unarmed and defenseless. He’d probably have more fun this way.
I gave one last glance down at my hand, but no matter how badly I wanted it, my essence didn’t return.
“Why don’t you lower your hood?” I challenged. I knew words were the only weapon I had at the moment. “Face me like a man.”
Dorian took a step toward me, sending my heart racing.
“I’m not a man.” He laughed. “You know that.”
Keep him talking. Keep him talking. I didn’t know what to say, but I had to come up with something. And fast.
“And you know what I am,” I stated.
I could tell I piqued his interest by the way his hand twitched.
“So what if I do?” he asked.
“You saw what I did to your friend. Are you really sure you want your revenge like this? You know what I’m capable of.”
I tried to sound confident, but I wasn’t. Dorian sustained a fireball in his hand. It would take only a second for him to knock me out and strangle me to death.
He let out a bone-chilling laugh. “You think I’m doing this for revenge?”
I accidentally let my voice falter. “If not revenge, then what?”
“I know you have the power of an Original. No other angel I’ve seen has magic like yours.” Dorian relaxed his hand, and the magic in it disappeared. “I’m not here to hurt you.”
