Her eyes glossed.
“You have to hurry, they’re coming.”
If Sadoc was right, then that made Leilani a traitor, a traitor of Bellatorm. She lost Isaiah as an alley, she lost Amir, and now she’d have to lose Leilani.
For Isaiah, she couldn’t care less that he was no longer a part of her life. Her only regret had been allowing him to be in her life for so long. It had been the longest months of her life.
But Leilani, her best friend. The first Bellatorman who accepted her. Her first true friend, or so she had thought. This couldn’t be real. She wouldn’t. She wasn’t an envious person, she was kind, friendly, and funny. No.
But then, if it was true what he said… Leilani was the best at everything and she loved that about herself. Leilani loved that she was beautiful, competent, and fierce.
There was nothing she could do now, she had to go back to the islands. “Where is Raven headed?”
“She’s in Basalt, planning to meet Leilani at your house.”
The Predators were near, Sadoc stepped closer to Davina. She took a step back, his hands wrapped around her shoulders as he looked deeply into her brown eyes.
“Do what I was too afraid to do, stop her,” he whispered before pushing her off the precipice.
FORTY
Davina landed on Mistral Island, her legs wobbling from the harsh landing.
“Beacon! Ron!” Davina shouted through the commotion of people rushing for the Bridge. Davina padded through the mob, in search of the only two Island Protectors who could help her at the moment. “Beacon! Ron!”
After continuously pushing through the crowds, Davina was able to notice Beacon’s bearded face. Beacon’s eyes widened before instantly running to her and holding onto her. “Davina! You’re okay!”
Davina immediately wrapped her arms around his torso with a thundering heart beating in her chest.
“I wouldn’t know what to do with my brother if something happened to you,” Beacon sighed before ruffling her hair again. She would have found the moment endearing had she not been carrying the news of Leilani’s betrayal.
“Beacon, I think Lani has betrayed us,” Davina said hurriedly. She wasn’t sure whether she truly believed it because she didn’t want to admit the changes in Leilani’s behavior.
“What?”
“She’s betrayed us.”
“No, that’s not possible. It’s Lani,” Beacon argued.
“I know,” she whispered. “Raven is going to move the shields closer to the islands. You saw what happened to Amir when he touched the walls. I need you to go to the other islands and leave a message to the other Protectors.”
“What is it?”
“Ask them to leave ten Soldiers in charge of helping everyone safely get to Castellum. When they’re done, head over to Basalt. That’s where we are ending this war once and for all.”
Beacon nodded.
“What of my troops here?” he asked.
“I’ll take care of your troops here, now go.”
He nodded as wind currents began to grow immensely around him; his hands were directed to the floor, his feet lifted into the air, and his battered Soldier uniform began to be replaced with his brown armor. It shined despite the darkness that consumed the morning sun, Beacon rushed out of Mistral.
Davina hurried to find the nearest Soldiers on the island, scanning the crowds of rushing Mistrans for a nearby Leader. She’d need their help as well.
As blurred faces and silhouettes passed by her peripheral, she searched to find the special Mistran Leader robes. That was when she spotted the silky flow of a Mistran Leader’s robes.
“Leader Kaden!” Davina yelled through the commotion. Davina stumbled between passing Bellatormans.