Page 106 of Wings of Death

She chuckles. “What? It’s the truth.”

Kyle pins her with a hard glare, then grabs me by the arms, spinning me to face him. “That’s enough, Em.”

I push him away. “Is that true? You’re a descendant of the gods?”

Pain twists his features, and he shoots Em a death stare. “Yes, it’s true. But I wanted to tell you myself. I just wasn’t sure how.”

So it’s true. Apollonisa god.

I wave my hand toward Em. “But you toldher?”

“She’s just a friend, that’s all.”

Em snickers at his words and rolls her eyes.

“Leave, Em. Now.” Kyle’s demand booms through the still night air.

She opens her mouth to protest, but he shoots her a look I’ve never seen before. She storms off back into the castle.

“I’m sorry,” he says, reaching up to touch my face. “I love you more than anything, and I want to tell you all there is to know about me. I’m still learning of it myself.”

I back up. “But instead of telling me, you tell her,” I say, and when he doesn’t reply, I add, “I have to go. My family needs me.”

He grabs my wrist. “Don’t go. It’s a trap. You’re not safe in Silanthia. Your sister tried to kill you!”

I glance down at his hand on my wrist, and even now, as angry as I am, I enjoy his touch.

“I have no choice,” I whisper.

He pulls me into his chest, wrapping his arms around me as if he never wants to let me go. “Please don’t leave, not in anger. I can’t lose you again, Zarla. I love you. Do you believe me?”

Something inside is screaming at me to say that yes, I believe him, but the stubborn part of me refuses to speak the words. He hurt me. Whether it’s his fault or not, he hurt me. He kissed Em.

And you also kissed someone else, too,my inner voice reminds me.

I pull back from his grasp. “I have to go. It’s my father, Kyle. I can’t just ignore it. I’ve been summoned. What if it’s serious?”

He grabs my hand, and I tug myself free.

“At least you’ll have Em.” I take off into the air, unable to look back.

Why did I just say that? He doesn’t care about Em. I know he doesn’t. Why am I trying to push him into her arms?

I fly through the darkness toward the edge of the Kingdom feeling more alone than ever. I spot a clearing below and land, unable to see through the tears any longer. A sob escapes my lips, and I sink down to my knees. My heart feels like it’s tearing in two. How did things get so bad in such a short time? Everything was great with Kyle. How could he betray me like that? And withher.

You betrayed him too, with Amaros,my inner voice annoyingly chimes in, and I mentally tell it to shut up.

I remind myself that Em means nothing to him, but I’m unsure whether that’s even the truth anymore. They have been together here in their Kingdom since she saved his life after thewatcher attack and brought him back here. Gods know how close they could have grown in my absence.

Pain lurches in my heart, and I let out a scream as my power builds. It surges from my fingers, and I blast it across the clearing, snapping a nearby tree in two.

I decide then that I have to end this. I have to tell my father what I know about Hethenos. Only then do I have a chance of getting to the bottom of what’s been going on with the watchers, and maybe even save Finlay from his sentence and restore his wings, too. Hethenos needs to be punished for what she has done, and I know once my father knows of it, he will want the same. If my mother is as important to him as he says, he will want to avenge her death.

I take in a deep breath and wipe the tears from my cheeks.You’ve got this,I tell myself.

The messenger angel is waiting for me just as he said he would, and I fly down to meet him at the edge of the Kingdom.

“Zarla,” he greets me with a nod. “I have several guards waiting for us. For obvious reasons, they aren’t allowed into Zarquon. Are you ready?”

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