Page 24 of Angel Lost (Fates Academy #3)

Chapter Twenty-four: Lorelei

I pick my first victim carefully. A first-year with an ethereal look. I’ve noticed her before, thought she might be like me: an outsider. Her wide eyes take in everything, but she’s quiet, staying on the fringes. She moves lightly, always on the cusp of disappearing, of slipping into shadows.

“I’m Lorelei.” I thrust my hand toward her. She shifts almost imperceptibly away, ignoring my outstretched fingers.

“I know who you are,” she says. She turns as if to leave and I grab her by the wrist. She startles. It’s not done here, not ladylike, to invade another’s space.

“And you are?” I ask.

She stares at my hand on her. “Poppy,” she says slowly. “Aether Poppy.”

“You don’t look like a Poppy.”

She snarls, showing her teeth, the incisors slightly sharper than is natural. “No one here could pronounce my name. The dean chose Poppy. So now I’m Poppy.”

“Try me.”

She ducks her head, and for half a second, I think she’s going to pull away. “Nhyxchirael,” she mutters, the consonants blurring into each other.

“Not going to lie, I might butcher that. So, can you teach me? Or do you have a nickname?”

She shoots me a grin. “Nyx is fine. But not where the rest can hear.”

I nod, releasing her wrist.

“Why are you here, Nyx? You clearly don’t like it. ”

She blanches. “My mother—”

“They’re blackmailing you over your mother?”

She pulls a face, backing away. I came on too strong.

“Didn’t say that,” she mutters. Nyx melts away, vanishing when I next blink.

Dammit.

I target the powerful shifter next. Those two are the only ones I’m certain don’t want to be here. The rest are harder to read.

The common room hums with low conversation, the soft clink of crystal glasses against marble-topped tables. Plush armchairs and velvet lounges are arranged in perfect symmetry, the whole place exuding a high-end luxury more suited to a five-star retreat than an academy. Not that it matters—none of it makes the stares any less sharp or the muttered insults any quieter. I feel them, pressing in like the weight of the perfumed air.

The wolf shifter is a tall, bulky lad—no, a man. The kind who turns heads when he walks into a room. He radiates raw masculinity, all confidence and cocky grins, but I’ve seen the flicker of doubt beneath it. When he’s called to use his aether in class, his eyes darken with something that looks suspiciously like fear.

I sidle up to him, batting my eyelashes. He doesn’t hesitate, resting a strong hand on my arm and leaning in, his presence as overwhelming as the spice-and-wood scent clinging to his skin. Typical touchy-feely shifter. I swallow my discomfort and inch closer. Chano, Farrell, forgive me.

The thought blindsides me. Farrell?

The shifter’s other hand lands on my thigh.

“How about introductions first?” I ask, linking my fingers with his, stopping the slow creep up my leg.

The shifter flashes me a smile. “Didn’t think I needed an introduction, little lady.” He stands and gives me a half bow. “Thorne, at your service. Ready to service. ”

I let him lead me away from the common room, ignoring the knowing glances coming our way.

“Uh, Thorne. You’re an alpha, right?”

He rattles his key impatiently in his door. “Sure am. I’ll show you.”

“So, where’s your pack?”

He freezes just as the lock clicks open.

“I mean…at Fates Academy…all the shifters have a pack. Why do you come here if you can’t have any pack with you?”

Thorne yanks me inside and slams the door behind us. He pins me against the wall, breathing heavily.

“You know nothing about me. But let me make you my pack, for tonight.”

His breath is hot on my neck.

“Don’t you miss them? Is…is the dean threatening them somehow?”

With a snarl he pulls away, staring down at me.

“Get out,” he says. When I don’t move, he unceremoniously throws me out of his dorm room, sending me sprawling into the corridor and slamming the door.

I’m still on my hands and knees when his key turns, locking me out. Fuck. A pair of sandalled feet march into view.

“Aether Lorelei.” The voice is icy.

I look up, taking in the gray of the professor’s robes as I stand slowly, dusting myself down. He raises an eyebrow.

“Lover’s tiff?” I offer.

“I’ve been watching you, Aether Lorelei,” the professor says. “You don’t have the right to disrupt my students just because you don’t like us creating stronger aethers. And yet, here you are, stirring up trouble, again.”

I gulp, registering the cut on his forehead, the scuff on his chin. This is one of the professors I attacked. He grips my arm so tightly there’s no way it won’t leave a bruise.

“You have forced me to appeal to the dean for your expulsion.” The asshat draws himself up tall, peering down his aquiline nose.

“Sorry, sir,” I mutter.

Holy Hecate. I’m supposed to be looking out for me. For number one. Past Lorelei would be appalled.

I’m deposited in the plain meeting room again and through the glass door I can see the professor and the dean talking. The professor gestures angrily in my direction. He’s so enraged he’s glowing. I pick at a loose thread on my uniform.

This time, when Dean Davina storms into the meeting room, robe billowing and eyes alight with anger, she doesn’t offer me coffee or fae wine. She towers over me, leaning down to speak very, very quietly into my face.

“I strongly suggest if you wish to remain here that you stay in your own lane.”

I start to protest, but she holds up a single finger and suddenly I can’t move my tongue.

“You are far behind, and not so special that I won’t kick you out if you are a disruption to my other students. This is a small community. We support one another and our decisions, not pick at self-confidence, nor make others question their choices. Do you understand me, aether?”

I nod dumbly.

“Goodness, even Kai makes this choice every month. He’s so comfortable in that choice he didn’t tell you. Not everything revolves around your sheltered idea of right and wrong, Lorelei Bal.”

So Kai does go through that? My mind races. She snaps her fingers and my tongue loosens, instantly too big for my mouth. I clasp my hands over the drool on my lap, angry.

I wasn’t trying to make those students doubt themselves. I was trying to find out if they were being forced into their decisions. Given their reactions, I’m far more sure of the answer. They were scared. Those kids were scared of my questions. This woman in front of me might be an angel, but she is far from good.

I relax the muscles in my face, widening my eyes.

“It won’t happen again, Dean. As you said, Kai didn’t tell me.” I don’t have to pretend to be upset by that. “I guess I’m just used to seeing things in a certain way.”

She shakes her head. “I will allow you to remain here, for now. However, one more transgression and you will be expelled.”

“The king wants me trained, ascended,” I protest.

“My brother will support my decision. He wouldn’t want the work here disrupted. One more complaint and you’ll be out.” She taps her fingernail on the center of my forehead. “And if that happens, I will make a strong suggestion to the dean of Fates that he also expel you.”

Cross-legged on the cool ground, I mindlessly trace patterns in the sand as I stare out over the lake. The water glimmers, a shimmering silver that should be enchanting, but somehow it really isn’t. A soft breeze carries the faint scent of flowers that seem too perfect, too sweet. The dean has tried too hard with this place, too hard to plaster a beautiful, serene mask over the crap that happens here.

I’m on thin ice with the dean. With the professors. Hell, with my fellow students. Literally no one is on team Lorelei here. I wriggle my bare toes. And it’s my fault. I’ve even put my place at Fates on the line. I’m not learning fast enough for her to see my potential, to be more reticent to throw me out over minor misdemeanors. I can’t improve quickly enough. Coordinating my practice sessions with when the boys can pull power from me is almost impossible. And practicing while constantly looking over my shoulder clearly isn’t working .

It’s time to do something about it. I get up and start walking. It’s a long, slow trek along the sand, ducking under branches where the shrubbery is down as far as the water, paddling through rock pools. Finally, I find a small inlet. Giant eucalyptus trees shields it from view, unless you’re perched on the rock in the middle of the lake. Perfect.

The sun is setting on the horizon, sending a glow across the surface of the water, throwing shadows down the beach. I settle into the sand, my hands extended, fingers twitching as I call on my aether. It rushes into me, eager, ready, and I rock from the force of it. I messaged the boys earlier. Told them not to pull it back, just for the next hour. The air around me thickens with unseen energy vibrating just beyond my vision. I take a deep breath in, then out, grounding myself.

My aether swirls, a chaotic sphere pulsing between my hands. At its core a brilliant light crackles. Around the light, dark tendrils spiral in a restless whirlpool, inky and deep, dragging in every shadow around. Sucking in more and more darkness. The light and dark dance in perfect unison—opposing, inseparable. Once I’m quite sure it’s stable, I throw my arms out, sending my aether over the lake, straight at a rock poking out of the water.

It explodes in a shower of shadowy lightning bolts. My breath catches in my throat. What the hell? It’s a firework show, but with darkness instead of light. Stunning and very, very destructive. Birds burst from their roosts in the canopy behind me, swirling in circles. As the waves calm, I peer into the dusk. The rock is gone. Entirely destroyed.

The birds settle back into the trees, but the rustling high up in the branches doesn’t stop. I step light footed into the forest. There. A flash of gray. A robe. Without thinking, I grab the tree, throwing my weight into shaking it. Handfuls of autumn leaves float slowly to the ground, and there’s a startled shriek from above. I throw myself into shaking the tree until I hear it. Hysterical sobbing.

Stepping back, I fold my arms over my chest. “Get down this instant.”

“No way,” a trembling voice squeaks back .

“Aether Reye, get your ass down this tree.” I pause. “It is not ladylike to be climbing trees. Get down before I report you.”

That does it. Frenetic scrabbling ensues, and the ghostly gray robe that is Reye descends slowly toward me. I tap my foot on the ground. Satyr shit, she’s not even that far up. Has she never climbed a tree before?

Reye drops the last few feet to the ground, her back to me. The moment her feet touch the ground, wings pop out of her back and she emits an ethereal white glow. Slowly, like she’s having to force herself to move, she turns to face me, her wings fluttering anxiously at her back.

“You were spying,” I accuse her.

She shakes her head violently. “I-I-I only wanted to apologize. None of the students are being very fair. The…the death. It wasn’t your fault. And then I got you in trouble with the dean too.”

“No shit,” I say, stepping toward her. She shrinks back, wings wrapping in front of her defensively.

“By the goddesses, Reye, I’m not that terrifying.” She doesn’t move. “I…was practicing channeling the magic of my allegiance.”

The feathers in her wings rustle and she peeks out at me.

“Dean Davina wants me to focus on my aether, and I’m in enough trouble as it is. But I still have work to do for Fates, so I snuck off.” I hold my breath hoping she buys it.

“S-s-so that…” A shaky hand points across the water. “Destroying that rock. The one the size of an elephant. That was all your allegiance magic combined?”

I nod, cursing myself. Lying is shitty, especially when she’s trying to be nice. But she can't know my strength.

“Oh, I see,” she says. Her wings retract, folding away neatly, but she’s still trembling. Sweat blooms under her arms, and she tugs on her hair, gaze darting everywhere.

“Reye.” I wave my hand in front of her face, and she backs up until her butt hits the tree. “Reye, what’s going on? ”

She takes a deep breath in through her nose, shutting her eyes, then releases it. “I didn’t meditate enough today.”

I stare at her.

“And, maybe I forgot my meds,” she says, her voice cracking.

“You’re on medication?” I ask. “What the hell for?”

She opens her eyes, glaring. “That’s not a polite question.”

“Reye, you were up a tree, shaking so much the canopy was moving. You’re sweating like you’re in a sauna and—Would you stop that!” I smack her hand to stop her from pulling out her hair.

She stares down at the hair in her fist, lip trembling. “I have an anxiety disorder,” she finally says. “With the rip, the hellions, the loss of a student, it’s too much. Then today I forgot my meds. Maybe yesterday too.”

“Okay.” I slip my hand into hers and start to walk us both back to campus, relieved when she doesn’t put up any resistance.

“Okay? I…don’t disgust you?” she asks. “I’m weak. I shouldn’t be weak. He won’t want a weak wife.”

In the darkness I roll my eyes. “Look, I don’t care what he wants. But you need to look after yourself, for you. If that’s meds…doesn’t matter. You are the most put-together student at the academy, everyone looks up to you. You are not weak. Whatever you do, it works. And when it doesn’t? When you have a blip? That’s okay too.”

We walk in silence back to our dorms.