Page 6 of Alastair

“You just ate,” Lazarus said. “I suggest you eat slower next time. One must never overindulge. It is a lesson you must learn.” He then turned and left the way we’d come.

Raiden pouted at his words.

The boys stared at me, some with curiosity, others with suspicion. One boy with green eyes and bronzed skin glowered. A golden-haired boy sat beside him in the grass, their shoulders touching. I waited until the angel was out of hearing range before focusing on the largest of the boys—who I’d pinned as the leader of their little group.

“What are your names?”

“I am called Galen,” he responded.

The rest told me their names. Castor. Daman. Bellamy. My gaze lingered on Raiden. He not only resembled his father, but he appeared to share his gentle nature as well. Gradyn was the smallest of us, with curly blond hair and brown eyes nearly too big for his face. Then there was Kallias, raven black hair and eyes such a dark brown they almost matched.

“I’ve come to bring all of you home,” I said.

“Home?” Galen glared. “My mother despised me. She is better without me around. I have no home to return to.”

“Our king will welcome you. Lucifer will allow all of you to stay in the castle.”

“You know Lucifer?” Castor asked.

“Yes. I’ve lived with him my whole life.”

“My father fights in his army.” Castor nodded to himself. “As much as I wish to return home, you are wasting your breath. There is no escaping this place. Believe me. I’ve tried. Lazarus is the only one who controls who enters and exits the barrier.”

“Then we’ll kill him,” I said. “Any barrier he built will be destroyed upon his death, and we’ll be free to leave.”

The golden-haired boy—Bellamy—stood from the grass. “Why would I wish to kill the person who saved me?”

Though subtle, Daman nodded. “My home was being attacked by Roman legionaries when Lazarus came for me. Do I trust him? No. Am I angry with him? Yes. He allowed my closest companion, Lycus, to die. Yet, without his interference, I would probably be dead as well. For that reason alone, I’ll allow him to continue breathing.”

Castor shrugged. “I’d be more than happy to help you kill him. But you have no chance of actually succeeding.”

A growl worked its way up my throat. “You dare tell me what I can and cannot do? You know nothing about me.”

“I know you’re afraid.”

“I fear nothing,” I responded.

“Liar. We all fear something.”

I feared failure. It was a thing worse than death in my eyes. I opened my mouth but then closed it. I had just met these boys. Confessing anything to them was foolish.

“Here,” said a soft voice.

I glanced down. Gradyn stood beside me, the top of his head barely reaching my bicep. He held out a white flower.

“Pretty, huh?” He placed it on my palm. “Pretty things make me happier when I’m sad.”

“I’m not sad,” I denied. “I’m confident in my ability to free us from this place.”

“You wish to be free?”

My spine stiffened at the angel’s voice. It had come from behind me. Not many people had the skill to sneak up on me without my knowing. I looked at Lazarus over my shoulder. “We will not be birds in your cage. We are not pretty little things for you to admire, then break.”

“Sometimes a thing must be broken for it to truly shine, for it to understand its true strength.” Lazarus placed a platter on a tree stump. Despite the angel’s earlier remark, he’d brought food anyway. Raiden was lured by it and began to eat the fruits and nuts. “I only wish to make you stronger.”

“Strong enough to fight in your army?”

“Strong enough to kill Lucifer,” he said.