Page 73 of Light Magic

“Wait, where are you staying?”

“Hm.” I glanced around, but only saw more of the park. No inns or hotels or anything like that that I could see from here. “Nowhere at the moment.”

“Then come to the castle. Are you near?”

“I’m in Boston.”

“Oh, that’s an easy two-hour drive. Get a car. Borrow it if you have to. Come here.”

“But … if I go to you, the angels will see it as you choosing a side.”

“Which was chosen long ago when we befriended you. Ariella, you want to train with Zad. Where else will you do it? Just come here.”

It did make sense. Instead of holing up in a hotel waiting, I could go to somewhere I knew, where I felt safe, where my friends were.

“All right,” I said, feeling suddenly lighter. “I’ll borrow a car.”

“Great! I have a class at my school soon, but I’ll make sure everyone knows you’re coming. If you’re arriving here in two hours, then you’ll arrive before dinner. You can have dinner with us!”

“Sounds good. See you soon.”

I turned off the call and let out a long breath. Then I called Zadkiel. Like Thea guessed, he didn’t answer, but I left a voice message, and I sent him a text.

My plan was to hopefully train with him for a day or two, enough to get a handle on my magic again, and then I would be able to go to Elysium.

Excitement bubbled in my veins as I stood from the bench and walked toward the street. I needed to find a quiet parking lot, choose a car, and borrow it.

If Levi was here, he would rent one for me with his endless fortune?—

I halted those thoughts before they went further. I wouldn’t think about Levi, even if the bond was faintly tugging at my chest for me to go back and check on him.

I had a mission to focus on.

I didn’t have to walk far to find a three-story parking garage. With a trick of magic light, I slipped through the main entrance without drawing attention. I hid behind a pillar, pointed my finger at the lights overhead and the only security camera there, and blasted them with magic. It was a little stronger than I wanted, and instead of flickering lights, the bulbs exploded.

It got the attention of the two guys in the main office. When they went to check on the exploding lights, I grabbed a handful of keys, and moved to the back of the garage, where there were no security cameras.

Hoping the guys couldn’t hear it, I pressed the keys and listened for the beep. After about five tries, a car near me beeped—a black, compact crossover. More than enough for me.

I dropped the other keys beside a pillar and reached for the car’s door.

A tingling sensation traveled up my spine and I froze.

Slowly, I turned.

Five supernaturals stood several yards from me, spread out in the open space, blocking the exit.

Shit.

I inhaled deeply and allowed my magic to do its thing. The two women were vampires, one of the men was half fae, and the other two were demons, or half demons.

“We found her,” one of the women said.

“You’re the angel they are looking for, right?” the half fae asked. “What’s your name? Adrienne? Andressa?”

“No, Chris, it’s Ariella,” the other vampire said.

Chris, the half fae, nodded. “Right, that. Ariella.”

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