Page 46 of The Healing Dragon (The Red Book #2)

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

JESSE

T he abrupt landing throws me off balance as soon as Pedro releases his hold on me. I find myself on my back, observing the sky as it moves for a full minute. I close my eyes and breathe in deeply.

We covered the distance between Fierno and the Black Castle in minutes instead of hours. Angels are speedily fliers.

“I puked after my first fly,” Pedro says and pats me in the back like I did a good job.

I never thought I’d say this.

“Flying via angel is far too personal and my least preferred form of transportation.”

“No hurt feelings,” Pedro says.

Flashes of light thunder down from the sky. Dozens of bright white wings cover kneeling angels as they land one by one. Their presence shocks all, as the fight ceases for a breath. That’s all the time it takes for the angelic creatures to rise to their seven feet. Then they defend the Black Castle.

Swirls of black smoke bleed out of the ground, forming terrifying figures out of nightmares. The demonic creatures join in with the angels and castle guards as they exterminate the enemy in the most gruesome way I’ve ever seen.

The guards are holding their posts well, not being backed into the castle walls. The angels reinforce their lines while the dark creatures pluck out enemy soldiers out of thin air.

I make a quick and count that every single body littering the ground belongs to the enemy lines.

A rain of black mist engulfs two groups of duendes.

Simultaneously, a dozen of them fall to their knees.

The mist slips into their bodies, then quickly to follow are agonizing screams. Their bodies drop like flies seconds later.

Cloaked in dark mist, Brandon lands like a warrior ready for combat.

LeeAnn makes quick work of stepping aside as my brother joins angels and demons alike.

He doesn’t stand back with the line of guards. He lands in front of them and stands there, moving his mist from foe to foe. The screams of agony are the only signal of where he has hit his target.

“There you are!” Roman shouts. The adrenaline-high is clear in his voice.

He is currently battling a giant in formation with a few of his soldiers. Blow after blow, they attack in a coordinated effort until the giant falls. They make quick work of subduing him. No one is being spared. They came here with clear intentions of war and that’s what they’re getting.

A wall of fire off by the clearing shifts in an organized flow, catching my attention. The wall moves further, revealing the fire snake we’ve all seen more than once. It’s as tall and wide as I remember it.

Dexter has been Janelle’s biggest weapon and show of power. She has never openly labeled him, but I’ve caught her speaking to him under her breath more than once. It may not be considered a gift, but since only Duelos can summon a fire creature, it seems fitting to call it that.

“Her magic is back,” Brandon says, then looks around as if in search of someone but gives up quickly after.

As the wall of fire clears, three figures come into view. Mel is standing just behind Janelle. They are both standing in front of the body of Lord Duelo sprawled on the ground.

I look at Janelle but find nothing in her expression but fury. No guilt has had time to slip in, but I know it’s unavoidable. Taking her father’s life is damned to leave a mark on her soul.

Mel is beside her, looking at the body on the ground with growing disinterest. He leans over to her and says something in her ear. Then he crosses the distance to Brandon and me.

“She’s a lost cause,” Mel tells me, then turns to look at her. “What a shame. She would’ve made a wonderful addition to my ranks.”

Dexter lets out a long growl before rushing forward and picking up Lord Duelo.

He tosses the once leader of Ignis into the air and catches him in his mouth.

Dexter’s body is made of flames, making him partly transparent.

We watch the body slowly disintegrate, consumed by the fire until he is nothing but ashes.

Janelle wields air to pick up the ashes and carries them high in the air until they are long out of sight.

“I don’t want your soul.” Mel stares at Janelle with something close to pride. “I want hers.”

“Her soul isn’t for sale,” I say.

“You boys, with your delusional state of thinking you make choices for them. It may not be for sale now but the day might come.” His voice trails off as LeeAnn joins us.

The fight has ended. Angels move around the guards, offering congratulations and checking on all the injured.

Their healing magic will have everyone back to normal in a couple of hours.

However, LeeAnn’s face is filled with worry.

She walks straight to Mel, but once a foot away, she looks down at her hands.

“Where is my brother?” Mel asks with a blank expression.

“He was called away,” LeeAnn says. She pushes her shoulders back and locks eyes with one of the most notorious creatures in the underworld. “Mel, I think he is in trouble.”

“What do you mean?” he asks in a low, hardly contained tone.

“I don’t know much but…”

LeeAnn’s eyes fill with tears. Her hands tremble and her breathing becomes shallow. I take a step back and realize she is having a panic attack.

“LeeAnn, breathe please.” Brandon moves to take her arm, but stops at Mel’s block.

I know my brother doesn’t mean to cause her harm. He likely believes that she requires a sense of stability in order to lower her heart rate. But Mel takes his proximity as a threat.

Mel pulls LeeAnn to his chest as swirls of black smoke from the ground envelops them.

“Hey!” Someone shouts.

A group of angels rush over at Mel. The smoke disappears and with it, has the demon and angel who stood there.

“Where’s he taking her?” Pedro asks me.

“She wasn’t feeling well. He’s taking her back home.” Brandon lies so easily and convincingly I wonder if I missed something for a second.

“She doesn’t fly often since she always stays at Fierno,” Pedro says, more to himself than to us. “She must’ve gotten sick.”

The look he gives me implies I should feel more at ease about falling sick after my first flight. Other angels murmur things about why a demon shouldn’t have been the one to help her home. But no one else asks us anything else. They move to leave as they continue to discuss amongst themselves.

“You lied,” I say.

Brandon steps to my side, looking at the aftermath. “One problem at a time. Regardless, I truly believe he means her no harm. The way he acts around her makes me wonder if he suspects they have something in common.”

“What do you mean?”

Brandon looks around as if to make sure no one is listening. “Mel isn’t supposed to have a soul. He has made remarks about not having one. But when I look at him, I see a color. The same color is there when I look at LeeAnn.”

I stand there in stunned silence.

The idea that a demon from the underworld could’ve the same color soul as an angel is preposterous. However, I believe Brandon when he tells me what he saw. There are too many unknowns.

It seemed as if they just met today in front of us. For all we know, that was the first time they met in this lifetime.