Page 12 of Wings of Betrayal

Nilo heads to the gym and snatches us both a sweat towel, tossing one at me. I catch it at the last second, and he laughs.

“You ready? I won’t go easy on you,” he says with a cheeky glint in his eyes.

“I’d expect nothing less,” I reply.

We both focus on upper-body strength today, and I let Nilo take the lead, putting me through an intensive session. My muscles are aching by the end. I find my bottle in my bag and take a long sip, and Nilo has a drink from the fountain that I didn’t even know was there.

“So what’s this new guard role, then?” I ask, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.

He dabs his towel over his face, removing some of the sweat beads from his forehead. “Mikel actually requested it on my behalf. It’s guarding your father.”

Guilt tugs at my heart. I want to tell Nilo the truth, but I can’t. This secret is too big, and if it gets out, the repercussions could be detrimental. So for now, I have to keep up the lie. A lie I didn’t even create.

“That’s amazing. I’m sure you’ll get it. He would be lucky to have you. We could use some trustworthy angels around here.” I slip my bottle back into my bag and wipe my face with my sweat towel.

Nilo narrows his eyes at me for a moment, and my heart stalls. Shoot, he knows. Maybe it was just a test?

I stare at him, waiting for him to say something.

“You’re stronger than I expected,” he says finally. “You’d make a great guard yourself.”

I laugh. There’s no way I, a female, could be a guard. A guardian, sure, but not a guard. The rules in our Kingdom are so outdated it’s ridiculous. We have never had a female guard before.

“I’m serious,” he says, folding his arms across his chest as he leans up against the wall. “And I’ve heard how you can fight. You’d give most of the males in our Kingdom a good run for their money, I reckon.”

The edge of my lip curls up. “I don’t disagree with you there.”

I throw my bag over my shoulder before heading toward the exit.

“Hey,” he calls out, and I spin around. “If you ever need to talk, I’m here. As a friend.”

I open my mouth to thank him when a scream echoes outside. We both look at one another before sprinting for the door. When we make it outside, it’s chaos. There’s a bunch of angels grouped around something, panic etched across their faces. Some are gasping, others covering their mouths.

I hurry forward, pushing through the crowds to find a Zelon lying on the field near the forest edge. Blue blood oozes from a deep gash in his hind leg and from another large gash across his side. He grunts, and I realise it’s Keva. I gasp and drop to his side, and Nilo instructs the other angels to back up and give us some space.

“Keva!” I rush my hands over his dark-purple skin.

I know Keva has his own rapid healing abilities, but I want to try mine. Healing an animal isn’t something I’ve done before though, and I can’t do it with everyone watching, either. I glance up at Nilo, and he somehow understands what I need. He doesn’t know about my unique healing abilities, but he’s about to find out.

“Okay, that’s enough. Everyone move on,” he says, gesturing for them to leave.

A few males back up and hang around, but Nilo’s not having it.

He strides up to them, towering over them with his almost seven-foot frame. “Time to leave. Now.”

This time they listen and give him a nod before they walk away toward the academy. He’s back at my side in an instant, and Keva growls at his proximity.

“Easy, boy. He’s a friend,” I tell him.

Without hesitation, I place my hands over his leg, which has already started to heal on its own, and close my eyes. Feeling for my power, I will it to the surface and allow it to seep into Keva. I hear Nilo’s surprised gasp and open my eyes to find Keva’s leg is healed, but the mark remains. I frown, confused at how that’s possible. Whenever I’ve healed myself in the past, or anyone else, there’s never a mark left.

“He’s been marked…” Nilo whispers.

His tone chills me to the core, and even though I voice my next words, I already know the answer. “By what?”

He scratches his head, his eyes focused on Keva. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

I gently grab his arm. “Nilo, by what?”

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