Page 43 of Angel Lost (Fates Academy #3)

Chapter Forty-three: Lorelei

“In and out,” Farrell says, taking control. “We get in and out quickly, quietly. I want no evidence Lorelei was ever there.”

Kai coughs, raising one eyebrow.

“Okay, no evidence any of us were ever there. The only evidence will be the missing prisoners. We’ll take three of my officers from the rebellion. Proven fighters.”

Chano pulls out his phone, firing off a message. “Two of mine. Raff and Alairik will sort the tech. I’ve never met a surveillance system they couldn’t hack. They’ll loop the hour before our visit over the top of our visit, confuse anyone looking at the feeds.”

Farrell nods. “I want one of your tech nerds in Davina’s office near the portal and one with the team going in.”

Chano grunts in agreement. “We’ve got Zephyr for his visions. He can see if the alarm’s been raised before it happens.”

Zephyr’s arm around me tenses.

“Zephyr—” I study him. “—if you’re too tired, if you’re not able after the fight, it’s okay.”

His smile is taut, barely there. “My visions don’t always work like Chano’s suggesting. I’m not some kind of early warning system. But I’ll do my best.”

I wrap my arms around him and give him a quick hug before moving toward Farrell. “You’re up for the illusions. And I want to be a guy, please. ”

Kai cackles in the background. “No luck, buttercup, you’ll not be needing spelled.” He turns to Farrell. “You said in and out quietly. Well, the only ones who should even be there are me and Lorelei. No one will bother if they see one of us wandering around campus.”

Farrell nods slowly.

“And, since Chano’s men will wipe the footage, there will be no evidence anyway,” Kai continues. “We go in teams of one Kai and one Lorelei.”

I shrug, trying to hide my disappointment. A teeny tiny part of me really, really wanted to have a dick for a day.

Hiding behind the portal, only twenty yards from where Davina will hopefully appear, feels like the riskiest part of our plan. If anyone looks hard enough, they’ll see five of me and five of Kai. I yank Zephyr’s hands out from inside his shirt, again. My shirt. He’s touching his—my—boobs. He winks and I can’t help grinning. It should be creepy, dammit.

I send my senses out, checking my ley line tangle again. I’ve created a maze. A maze that would contain a minotaur. On my signal Hewie starts wailing. Jess and Val add to the general chaos with their shrieks.

Dean Emrick will buy that I got myself stuck inside the ley lines, but will Davina? And I’m just assuming he’ll panic, and that with his star pupil in danger, he’ll call on Davina for help. What if he’s too proud?

A crowd gathers quickly. The dean rushes from the academic buildings toward the wailing, and I hold my breath. His long cloak flaps behind him as he struts around the edge of the mess of ley lines, rubbing his hands together. After listening to Hewie he practically runs back to his office.

We wait. And wait .

My nails are bitten to the quick by the time Davina’s floaty white robes come into view. Behind her trails my combat professor. Stage one complete.

We stay only just long enough to see the professor roll up her sleeves. I feel her tug the first ley line back into place while Davina taps her foot impatiently. Good luck, bitch. That thing is worse than one of Naeve’s balls of yarn.

Hewie’s wailing cranks up a notch and we slip, two by two, through the portal and into the Gifted Academy.

The last Lorelei and Kai pair slinks into my Gifted dorm room and I shut the door firmly. Hairy hell, and I thought this room was spacious. Within seconds, someone knocks on my door. I remove Farrell’s elbow from my stomach—or is it Chano’s?—and position myself at the door.

“Who is it?”

“Poppy.”

“Who?”

There’s a loud sigh. “Fine, Nyx.”

Without further warning the door opens, hitting me smack in the nose. I screw my eyes shut, seeing stars, opening them to find Nyx, wide-eyed.

“Do you like my, uh, illusion?” I scramble for an excuse. “It’s for a project at Fates—”

“The hell it is,” Nyx spits. She turns on a dime and sprints away.

Ah, shit.

“Hunt her down.” Farrell’s voice bursts out of a carbon copy of me. “Non-lethal force unless absolutely necessary.”

One of the rebels, a Kai copy, peels off down the corridor. I gape after him, before rounding on Farrell. “What the hell? She’s my friend.”

He scowls. “She took off. Right now, she’s the enemy. Doesn’t matter if you’ve had a cozy spa day together.”

“That is not what I’ve been doing here. ”

Farrell looks around my room, taking in the plush robe, the slippers, the yoga mat. He gazes out the window across the tennis courts and swimming pool to the jetty, lit up by thousands of fairy lights, decorated with rare ferns and palms. Somehow, I don’t think I made my point.

“We have to go now. Everyone,” Farrell commands.

This was not the plan. This was not the plan.

My heart beats erratically. Of all the times Nyx could have chosen…It’s a risk to move like this, but Farrell’s right. Who the fuck knows what Nyx is telling and to whom, right now? Raff and a rebel peel off to guard the portal and start on the cameras. After what feels like forever we finally split again. Kai works his magic on the entry system and Chano, myself, and a rebel wearing my face slip inside.

Opposite ends of the building and work toward the center, I remind myself, quashing my worry as Zephyr, Kai, and Farrell move away, towing Alairik behind them, his head buried in some bit of tech that’s meant to be suppressing all coms except our own.

Please let it work.

The floor squeaks as we walk, the noise working its way right inside my head. Squeak squeak squeak, pause. I peer around the corner—no one. I pad down the next corridor. Let them still be here. Please. I saw Lottie here.

The windows give us a view of sterile rooms set up and ready for use. I stride on, hearing the now familiar hum and click of machines from the rooms at the end. Behind me the footsteps falter. We pass the first occupied room, and I keep us moving. Not Lottie. Not a Maverik. I swallow my nausea. We can’t save everyone. Not everyone wants saving.

At the next window I pause, tapping the glass, jerking my chin. Chano rushes past me, staring inside. It’s not Lottie, but it is one of the kids, and he doesn’t look good. His face is white, far too white, that waxy kind of pale that accompanies death. And he’s skinny, ankles and wrists skeletal where they poke out of the thin hospital gown .

Chano blasts the door off its hinges and storms inside. I cringe, holding my breath, waiting. But…nothing. No alarm. Thank Hecate for Alairik’s tech.

The kid is rousable, just. Biting my cheek, I swallow the lump in my throat. This is not the time. Think practically, Lorelei. If they’re all like this, we’re screwed. Chano heaves the kid up onto his shoulder like he weighs nothing.

We can’t carry them all.

We move on, past an empty room, then another. Disappointment flashes in Chano’s eyes as we reach the end of the corridor. She’s not here. I feel nauseous. What if I had the only chance to save Lottie, and I left her here? What if she’s dead?

We round the corner. These aren’t treatment rooms. A small viewing hatch sits high on the wall next to a huge metal door. Cautiously, I slide the metal back, a horrid scraping sound echoing down the corridor. Chano crowds behind me. The room is bigger than the treatment rooms, dilapidated. And it stinks. A small bucket sits in a corner, clearly full of feces and urine. I strain to see the rest of the room. Huddled against the back wall are the Maverik runaways, and right in the center of them…Lottie.

Chano thrusts the nearly dead kid at me and, magic and fists flailing, bursts the door open. In three short strides he’s across the room, scattering the kids. His fingers close around Lottie’s upper arms and he shakes her, hard. Her head jerks back and forward, eyes wide, panicked.

“You stupid, stupid little girl,” Chano growls.

She flinches, and her eyes brim with tears. She swipes a dirty hospital sleeve across her face, and her gaze locks onto mine. For the first time ever, Lottie Maverik looks pleased to see me.

She flings her arms around me, hiccuping sobs racking her body. Rubbing circles on her back I whisper in her ear, “You’re okay. We got you. That’s Chano, disguised. We’re here for you, Lottie.”

“Ch-ch-chano?” Lottie gasps, dragging him into the hug .

There’s another poorly kid with the group. He’s in even worse shape, reeking of the rancid air in an abattoir. Or a morgue.

“Let’s get them home,” Chano says.

“You can’t,” I reply, ignoring his warning look. “Maverik turf is the first place they’ll look, Chano. Take them to the rebels. Hide them in the pockets I made at Farrell’s. Get them treated by the medics there.”

Chano cocks his head at the rebel, who nods. They start to gather the kids together, rounding them up.

I force my next words out. “I’m not coming.” His head snaps toward me. “There are still two more kids, and Reye. I’ll stay, you get this lot out. Get Lottie out.”

“I…don’t want to leave you here.”

I grab his face between my hands, ignoring how weird it is to be looking at the image of Kai. “I’m not a child, Chano. You have to trust I can look after myself.”

He leans in, pressing a kiss to my lips, leaving the taste of woodsmoke behind.

Then he’s moving, ushering the kids along, lugging a sick teenager in one arm while the rebel carries the other.

I watch them until they’re out of sight.