Page 45 of Angel Lost (Fates Academy #3)

Chapter Forty-five: Lorelei

We make it up the stairs, legs screaming in protest, and slam out the doors only a few seconds behind Reye. She casts a quick glance over her shoulder before speeding off down the pristine white paving slabs, weaving between the beautiful ornamental plants, darting under the bowers, and heading straight for the main office.

I duck my head and power after her, using every ounce of my vampire speed to gain ground. She’ll screw everything .

Ahead, Reye skids around the first of the fountains, hands out, splashing water onto the path in her wake. Kai, only feet behind her, slides on the wet surface.

The calming reception music reaches me and I push myself harder.

“Mom,” Reye calls.

The glass front of the building swings into view, vines weaving up the sides. The beauty of the place seems sinister. Too perfect. And stepping menacingly through the arch, pacing down the steps, is the dean. She smooths the front of her tunic, a tiny frown marring her forehead as she watches her daughter charge toward her.

I slew to a halt. Kai’s already backing up, never taking his eyes off his stepmom.

“Mom! They’re going to kill you.” Reye flings herself into her mother’s arms.

The dean peers down at the top of Reye’s head, nostrils flaring. “Decorum, Regina. This is no way to conduct yourself. ”

Behind me, the rest of the group arrives. Davina’s gaze jumps from one of us to the next to the next. She tuts, shoving Reye to the side, lifting her arms.

“ Revela te ipsum ,” she chants. “ Revela! ”

Kai’s tattooed illusions vanish.

Davina’s eyes light up with fury as her gaze lands on Kai. “You,” she spits. “I should have known you would corrupt them all.”

With a thunderous crack, magnificent wings rip from her back and she grows several feet in stature. I squint against the dazzling light emanating from her and spot the tiny flick of her finger nearly too late. A sheet of lightning fires straight for Kai.

I throw my magic into a shield, reinforcing Kai’s own, bracing for impact. He leaps sideways seconds before the bolt hits. It tears through my shield, ripping it apart like paper. I barely delay her magic. Mine is like a child’s toy in comparison. Kai yelps, rolling on the ground, dousing the flames that lick up his arm. I jump in front of him as the others move to surround us.

“You nearly killed him,” Reye gasps. “Stop.”

Dean Davina spares her daughter an exasperated look. “He was going to kill me, you said it yourself. He’s always been a psycho.”

“But he’s your son,” Reye says, her voice plaintive.

The dean snorts. “He’s my stepson, Regina. Grow up. He’s nothing more than an experiment. Him and his vegetable brother. But…do not tell your father I said that.” She shrugs Reye off. “Get behind me. If you’re harmed, the king will never forgive me.”

The dean lets out an ear-piercing wolf whistle at a frequency I swear must transcend the dimensions. I hear a whoop-whoop noise in the distance. What is that?

“Move,” croaks Kai from the ground. “She’s summoned her angels.”

Shit. Wings. I can hear wings. Lots and lots of beating wings .

Farrell yanks Kai up, and we bolt. Nyx bounces around on the rebel’s back as we run. The angels descend from all directions, and we scatter. A bolt of light screams past my ear and I throw myself sideways, heart pounding. Kai pulls me up and onward. The others, where are they?

We charge between the buildings, heading for the dorms. The pale, elegant building rears up next to the edge of the lake, and I shoulder Kai toward it. My feet hit the bottom step when the doors open. I stagger to a halt. Robed students exit, two by two, moving unnaturally, robotically. Shit.

I step back, tripping over Kai, who groans. We have to move fast as the students start to run awkwardly toward us, but I risk a glance at him. He’s pale. Fuck. Really pale, a sheen of sweat across his brow. The arm the dean hit with fire hangs limp at his side and he’s stooped over, protecting that side of his body.

I turn, dragging him in the only direction left: toward the lake, along the waterfront. The students follow, their feet drumming on the white sand behind us, picking up pace, gaining. I don’t dare to look back.

We scramble over logs and rocks, around an outcrop, slipping on the lakeweed. Ahead, the cliff rises, steep, rocky. Unscalable for Kai with only one arm.

“Into the air, Kai. Fly!”

He squeezes my hand. “Lorelei, fae can’t fly until they ascend.”

What? Why am I always the last to learn the really important stuff…

I cast around. Water, cliff, students. Water. Cliff. Students. I rock on the spot, unable to decide.

“Get out, Lorelei. What are you waiting for?”

I round on him. “Are you truly insane? I’m not leaving you.”

With a grunt, I grab him under the arms, and using my forward momentum I launch us both into the air. My wings flap slowly, his added weight dragging us down .

One flap, two. I’m gaining height. The students rush us. I flap harder, faster. Our feet trail their heads, and a hand reaches up to grab my ankle. I kick myself loose and flap for the sky. It’s working. It’s fucking working.

I heave us higher and higher, Kai now a dead weight in my arms. His head lolls.

“Fine time for a nap,” I grumble, aiming us low over the trees, keeping as much out of sight of the buildings as I can manage.

In the background, the slow whoop-whoop of wings starts up again, and my gut clenches.

There. I spot the others huddling on the ground, fighting off the angels. I tuck my wings and point us head down, aiming straight for them.

I need help. I can’t fight and fly. I need…An angel swoops directly into my line of flight, and I pull up hard. I’m panting, the effort of keeping us both airborne starting to tell. Slowly I bank, pulling us around, another angel behind us now. And another. I flap slowly out over the lake. Surrounded. Surrounded and over water. Great work, Lorelei. Groaning, I heave us up higher and higher, but the angels follow, slowly closing in, their circle tightening.

From behind me, a bolt of lightning crashes past my ear, another between my legs. Thank fuck for shit aim…

My right wing explodes in a burst of pain. So much for their poor aim. Feathers fly into the air. Blood. I can’t think, can’t breathe. The pain burns, twists. An angel leans in, her face inches from mine, conveying serenity and pleasure. Davina. She lifts one hand and blasts another lightning bolt into my side. As the pain takes over, obliterating everything else, I watch her smile, and the bitch waves.

We’re spiraling. Down and down. I flap frantically, but our weight drags us, plummeting, toward the lake. Above me, the sky roils with magic. The dean’s angels send spears of fire after us. I weave the aether as we fall, tucking their evil magic away into pockets, blocking it from reaching us. Below, the dark surface of the water winks. Hell, it’s close. Panic tightens my chest. I squeeze my eyes shut. Thank the goddesses Kai is already unconscious.

A roar shakes the air, and I open my eyes. Above the gleaming angels, a giant form emerges, huge dark wings obliterating the sky. A stream of fire rakes the angels, setting feathers ablaze, blasting them out of the sky. I catch sight of dark metallic scales and slitted eyes blazing with fury.

Farrell’s dragon.

The beast lunges, ripping the dean from the air. His jaws snap shut, crushing a wing, while his tail lashes another angel downward in a plume of fire and smoke. Feathers rain like falling stars. The dean drops from his grasp, falling toward us, her face a mask of rage.

Suddenly my feet hit cold, cold water, and we plunge deep into the lake. The lighter hues of the surface rapidly vanish as the speed of the fall takes us deep. The cold shock blasts my chest, my lungs screaming to take a breath. Beside us, another body plunges in. Fingers outstretched, Davina sinks toward us. Her talons grip me, wrenching Kai from my grasp. She blasts magic into him, giant bubbles of air escaping her mouth with the effort. He twitches, once, twice, then his body stills, drifting away from her toward the bottom. She watches…a grim pleasure on her face.

Oh Hecate, no. Suppressing my desperate need for air, I palm Naeve’s knife. Just a few more seconds. I infuse the blade with my aether, then slam it into her chest, hilt deep, and she screams. The last of her air escapes, bubbling toward the surface as a thin trail of red pulses out, mingling with the water…dissipating. Her limp body drifts down to join Kai’s.

Slimy weed tangles around my ankles as, finally, my feet hit the bottom. Forcing my eyes open, I reach for his slippery, cold skin. Purple hair mingles with the weeds. Kai twitches. I kick for the surface, pulling us both up toward the light. Flashes ripple across the surface of the water and I burst out, heaving in a long breath of blessed air.

I flail, one arm hooked under Kai, with the other trying desperately to keep us afloat. My one good wing is waterlogged and dragging us backward, back under. Water splashes in my face, in my eyes, my mouth. Spluttering, I spit out lake water, tilting my head back, keeping my mouth above the surface, fighting to keep Kai’s head up.

Head wrenched back, I see him. Farrell’s massive form eclipses the magic-lit sky. With a roar of fire he lights up the final angel. White feathers, still burning, scatter on the wind as the dragon tucks his wings and dives.

Giant talons outstretched, he races toward us. I thrash, my heavy limbs fighting to stay on the surface. Claws like bands of iron scoop me out of the water, Kai still dangling in my grip, the metallic scales surprisingly warm against my skin.

Safe.