Broken Knights: A Paranormal High School Bully Romance (Gifted Academy Book 4)

by Michelle Hercules

  The vision I had of Daisy and Bryce linked to some mysterious people from the past comes to the forefront of my mind, and with it, the certainty that Bryce is a descendant of the Idol Magia loved.

  “Bryce Kent is related to that Idol,” I say.

  “Yes. He is.” Eris lets out a loaded sigh. “Chaos’s meddling cost their relationship. He loves to see his family suffer. That’s why he killed Magia’s father too.”

  I narrow my eyes. “Let me guess: that’s why you’re hell-bent on getting in his way.”

  She smiles in a chilling manner. “Naturally. I’m Strife; I wouldn’t be helping to bring peace to the world if it wasn’t to hurt that son of a bitch.”

  “So, gods can fall for mortals,” I mutter.

  She tilts her head to the side. “Of course we can. Where do you think all those demigods and Idols come from? It isn’t always about lust, you know?”

  “Hmm.” I gaze into the distance.

  “You’re still in love with Daisy, even if you’re a little numb to the feeling. You’re adjusting to your powers, and they’ve taken over completely. Once you get used to them, you’ll be back by her side in the blink of an eye.”

  I should feel relief, but the only emotion churning in my chest is the all-consuming desire for retaliation.

  “Right now, all I care about is destroying every source of lightning-glass in the world, starting with the one below us.”

  “Why would you want to destroy them? Magia created them so Norms and Fringes could protect themselves from Idols.”

  “Her intentions were good, but unfortunately, once Norms and Fringes have a taste of power, they want everything for themselves. Humanity is rotten regardless of which side they’re on.”

  “Chaos’s prison is weakening. If the war keeps raging, he’ll be set free, and then there won’t be a world for any of the races.”

  “It’s why I have to destroy him first.”

  “He’s a god, Morpheus. Even bound to the island, he’s still more powerful than you. Our father couldn’t take him down, and he tried several times.”

  “But Magia’s sacrifice weakened him, didn’t it? It’s what tethered him to the island.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “A hunch.” I shrug, not wanting to get into details about the bits of information Chaos let slip during our interactions. “Why else would he be obsessed with killing Daisy?”

  “Good hunch.”

  “What about the prophecy that Daisy and Bryce can create a God-killer? Is that true?”

  Eris grimaces and then tries to hide it, but too late. “The prophecy was a mistake.”

  “I don’t follow.”

  “Do you want to destroy shit or what?” she tries to change the subject.

  “I want you to tell me the truth, Eris. Can Daisy and Bryce create the God-killer?”

  “Yes.” She crosses her arms. “Yes, they can. But the Fates didn’t tell me how.”

  I frown. “The Fates?”

  “Shortly after Magia’s mortal life ended, I made a mistake and went to see them. All gods know not to mess with those psychos, but I was grieving and not thinking straight.”

  “What happened?”

  “What do you think happened? They sealed Daisy and Bryce’s fate with this insane destiny by creating the prophecy of the God-killer.”

  “According to the lore, whatever destiny the Fates give to someone can’t be altered, but it usually has terrible consequences for the bearer. What’s going to happen to Daisy and Bryce?” My voice rises, sounding like thunder.

  “I don’t know. No one does.”

  The shadows manifest, circling around me like a dark tornado. The rage in my core expands at the speed of light. I want to wreak havoc in the world, destroy everything in sight. And I’ll start right now. I zap downward, piercing through the miasma with ease. I sense Eris is following me, which means Chaos could have done the same if he hadn’t been stuck on that island of horrors.

  It’s the middle of the day, so the miners are working at full speed in the cave. I come by the camp’s administration building first, and the first person I recognize is Artex, giving orders to men dressed in dark uniforms to load a truck with several wooden crates. I know exactly what is in those boxes. More lightning-glass weapons. I also notice there are way more people in the camp than before. The parking lot is full, and there are several tents near the bungalows.

  My first act as avenging demigod is to strike every single soldier down below with mind-shattering fear. They drop the boxes they were carrying and then collapse to the ground. Their hearts will give out in a minute or so. I save Artex for last. He aims a shotgun in my direction and fires, but in my dark smoke form, the lightning-glass bullet simply goes through me without causing any damage.

  But before he has the chance to reload, I become corporeal again and hammer into him, sending him backward. He loses the gun, crashing against a tree nearby. I leap forward, landing right in front of him.

  "Hello, Artex. Miss me?"

  “Get away from me, you freak.”

  “I warned you if you tried to harm Daisy, you would feel my wrath. Well, I’m here keeping my word.”

  “I’m not afraid of death.”

  “Oh, you will be.”

  I get into his head, knowing exactly what he fears the most. It seems the hippie fanatic is afraid of dogs. Shadows slither from my wrists, taking the shape of two hellhounds by my side. Artex’s eyes turn round as he attempts to get back up, but he can’t get traction on the ground to lift his body. My creations growl, ready to attack, which results in Artex soiling himself.

  “No, no. Stay away from me,” he begs.

  My lips split into a grin. “Sic, boys.”

  Snarling, they pounce, disappearing inside the man. But to Artex, those monsters are tearing him apart for real. He thrashes on the ground, trying to protect his body from the vicious attack that’s only happening in his mind.

  “That was absolutely brilliant, brother. Very creative.” Eris stops next to me.

  “Come on. We have a mountain to blow up.”

  “And how do you plan to do that? As far as I can tell, you’ve only inherited the shadows from Daddy, not his ability to control storms or fire.”

  “I can make those fanatics do it themselves. They must have explosives around.”

  She rubs her chin as if in deep thought. “That would take too long, and honestly, I bore easily. I can help you speed up the process.”

  “In exchange for what?”

  She shrugs. “I don’t know yet. I’ll think of something.”

  “Yeah, like I’m going to fall for that BS. You either help me without asking for anything in return or you can simply leave. I don’t care either way.”

  “You’re feistier than I expected.”

  “Don’t tell me you never spied on me.”

  She waves her hand dismissively. “Yeah, a few times, only to see if you had finally figured out you were a demigod.”

  Artex’s shrieks cease, and then he goes utterly still. I had already forgotten about him. His eyes remain wide open but are now unseeing. Good riddance.

  I head to the forest, and it’s only when I’m halfway down the path that I remember I could have zapped to the mountain. I suppose it’ll take a while to get used to my new reality. Eris seems fine to tag along in this manner. Damn. This whole situation is surreal. Not too long ago, I thought I was a freak, a weakling because I needed magical bracelets to contain my powers. And now I’m strolling through the woods with a god next to me.

  The moment of self-awareness lasts just a minute before I hear commotion ahead. By the tone and words used, my guess is that more hired soldiers are coming up ahead.

  “How did you end up here?” Eris asks.

  “Well, we had to go somewhere to hide from Chaos. This was the only option presented to us at the time. You have the uncanny ability to simply disappear at the worst times.”

  “I had no choice. Chaos wa
s on my case, trying to suck me back to his island. That’s something you have to be careful about. If he pulls you there, it’s a bitch to get out.”

  “He already did that once,” I grumble.

  The forest is thinning out, so I mask my presence simply because I want to observe those motherfuckers first before I nuke them all. There is a group of mercenaries armed with assault weapons overseeing the mine workers, who are mostly members of the church. A woman comes out of the cave, pushing a barrow filled to the top with lightning-glass rough stones. She looks familiar. It takes me a second to recognize her as the person who was in charge of getting our accommodations more comfortable. Ophelia Sparks was her name. She doesn’t look happy now.

  “You’re too slow,” the mercenary says. “Our team is expecting a delivery by the end of the day.”

  “We’re doing the best we can, but most of these people aren’t strong enough to work for countless hours. We didn’t sign up to be slaves, especially for the likes of you.”

  He backhands her on the face so hard it sends the woman to the ground.

  “Boy, if Grandpa could see this. He’d love it,” Eris pipes up. When I don’t comment, she asks, “You’re not having second thoughts, are you? I mean, some of those miners are innocent.”

  I glance at her. “There are no innocents here. They would have killed us all if we hadn’t escaped.”

  “Okay then. So, what’s your plan?”

  “Can you tell me how many workers are in the mines?”

  “Yes, but so should you. Come on, Morpheus. It’s time to stretch your demigod powers.”

  I close my eyes, blocking out all the noise from the people in front of us. I let my awareness expand, searching for the low humming essence of those Norms. To Idols, they feel like empty shells. But that’s not true. They just don’t shine as bright as the others. I count at least fifteen people in there, which should be easy enough to manipulate. Fear can motivate people into doing the craziest shit.

  I form the thought in my mind, and then I send it to theirs. In an instant, panic takes hold of them. They drop their tools and go in search of something to deter the monster they’ve awakened from the bowels of the cave. They don’t flee, simply because doing so would be worse. Their only hope for survival is blowing up the cave, sealing the monster inside.

  Quickly, they place every single unit of explosives they can find against the walls of raw lightning-glass. The location is perfect, since it’s deep enough in the cave. Once the explosives go off, the entire ceiling will collapse on top of them. I just need to give them a final nudge, but I hesitate.

  “What’s the matter, little brother? Can’t pull the trigger?” Eris asks maliciously.

  I’m a demigod; I shouldn’t be plagued by human morals, but I am. The biggest sin those people have committed was being weak sheep who blindly followed two fanatics. Do they deserve to die for it? And could Daisy forgive me for killing them so cold-bloodedly?

  I ignore Eris and change tactics. I allow those miners to flee the scene. They’re out in less than a minute, and immediately the hired guns begin to bark at them. Those are the ones who don’t have one ounce of innocence in them. I can see their rotten hearts; I can read their amoral thoughts. I capture their conscience in my powers, twisting their reality, giving them no option but to go into the mine and carry out the mission.

  Released from the compulsion that kept them inside the cave, the miners run away as fast as they can.

  “Oh, Morpheus. You took pity on them.” Eris laughs.

  The explosion keeps me from replying. It shakes the ground violently. The blast would have sent us both flying back and debris would have torn us apart if we were mortals. A cloud of dust takes over the clearing, quickly covering us both.

  “Do you know where the other lightning-glass reserves are?” I ask.

  “Yes.”

  “Let’s go, then. I want them all gone by the end of the day.”

  “Are we really doing this?” Eris asks.

  “Yes. At least I am.”

  35

  Daisy

  There’s no hiding what Bryce and I were up to from Xavier considering I’m wearing Bryce’s shirt, and most likely my face is red and my lips are swollen. I find my uncle pacing at the edge of the hospital, alone. I’m relieved that I won’t have to listen to his sermon in front of the others.

  He stops moving and drops his eyes to my feet; then his gaze slowly travels up the length of my body. His shrewd eyes narrow to slits, and his jaw is clenched tight. When he switches his attention to Bryce, his expression doesn’t improve. At least it doesn’t get worse.

  “You were looking for me?” I ask.

  “Yes. I should chastise you for not resting, but I’ll save that for later. I have news about Delta.”

  My heart skips a beat, and then it becomes tight as hell. “Were the Knights able to crack him?”

  “No. And that’s why I came looking for you. We’re running out of time. We have to find the location of their headquarters, and the only person who was able to remove the blockage from Bryce’s mind was you.”

  “I’ll do it. Are we leaving now?”

  “Yes, but I don’t want to make a big deal out of it.”

  “I’ll come with,” Bryce pipes up.

  Xavier shakes his head. “I’m sorry, son. You can’t come.”

  “Why the hell not?”

  “Isn’t Chaos tracking you through the tattoo on your back?”

  Bryce grimaces and then drops his gaze to the floor.

  “Who is coming with me? Only you?” I ask.

  He nods. “It’s better this way.”

  “No. I’m coming too,” Rufio declares from behind Xavier.

  “If you were eavesdropping, you know why you can’t come.”

  “I’m no longer marked.” He pulls up his T-shirt and turns around. “Go ahead, Daisy. Touch my back.”

  I glance briefly at Bryce, and then I press my fingers between Rufio’s shoulder blades. Nothing happens. “How is that possible?”

  He pulls his T-shirt down and faces me. “You probably removed his mark when you unmade me.”

  I swallow the sudden lump that forms in my throat. If I was looking for a silver lining in this situation, I found it. But I can’t voice my thoughts out loud.

  “Fine. You’re no longer a human tracking device for Chaos, but I still don’t think you should come. It’s not safe out in the streets,” Xavier retorts.

  Rufio flares his nostrils, glowering at him. “You think that just because I’m a Norm, I can’t defend myself?”

  “He’s not saying that at all,” I butt in. “And I do think you should come.”

  “Daisy—” Xavier starts.

  “No buts. Facing that monster won’t be easy for me. I want Rufio there.”

  “You should bring Toby too,” Bryce suggests. “It’s always handy to have a mind reader when you want to get information from someone.”

  “He wouldn’t be able to read Delta’s thoughts if he has a block in his mind,” Rufio points out.

  “Maybe not, but it won’t hurt to learn what goes on in the heads of those Knight agents.”

  I get exactly what Bryce is implying. If the Knights were breached, who knows how many traitors they still have in their midst?

  Xavier pinches the bridge of his nose, sighing heavily. “And how do you propose we get Toby without waking your sister in the process?”

  We all glance in our sleeping camp’s direction. Rosie and Toby are still entwined. Her head is resting on his chest, and he has his arm around her shoulder.

  “I can separate them by levitation,” Bryce says.

  “Ugh. Fine. Do it. But if Rosie wakes up, under no circumstance is she coming with us.”

  “You don’t need to say that twice,” I reply. “I doubt she’s given up on getting revenge.”

  Bryce lifts his arm, furrowing his eyebrows in concentration. There’s a visible strain around his mouth. His nostrils flare, foll
owed by a grunt. A few seconds pass, and when Toby doesn’t budge, he lowers his arm. “Fuck!”

  “You still haven’t recovered. Don’t push yourself,” I tell him.

  “This is maddening.” He yanks his long bangs back with a jerky movement.

  “I can try, but I might fuck this up,” Xavier says. “I haven’t gotten the hang of telekinesis yet.”

  “What are you doing?” Jodie finds us.

  Fucking great.

  There’s a moment of silence. Naturally, no one wants to include Jodie in anything.

  “We need to talk to Toby but without disturbing Rosie,” I say.

  “What do you want to talk to him about?” She eyes me suspiciously.

  With a sigh, Xavier replies, “We’re going to meet some Knight agents, and we want Toby to come with us.”

  Her cunning eyes become wider. “You’re going to see Delta, aren’t you?”

  “I’m not telling you anything, Jodie. Now, if you’re done interrogating us, I have a job to do.”

  “You’re going to mess up. Allow me.” She twirls her fingers, and a soft breeze stirs. It travels toward Toby and Rosie to gently move them apart. Controlling the air, Jodie brings Toby to us. He curls into a ball, which disrupts the bed of air keeping him hovering above the ground and causes a premature fall. Or maybe Jodie just dropped him on purpose.

  “What the—” He jerks to a sitting position, searching his perimeter for danger.

  “Shhh. Keep your voice down,” I say.

  “How did I get from there to here?” He rubs the arm that took the brunt of the fall.

  “We didn’t want to disturb Rosie.” I offer him my hand.

  He glances at our small gathering, leery. “What’s going on, guys? Why the cloak-and-dagger attitude?”

  “We’re going on a secret mission, and we need your special skills,” Xavier replies.

  His eyebrows shoot to the heavens. “You want me to mind read? You know I can’t do it properly if they’re Idols.”