Page 111 of Wings of Betrayal

I pick up my pace and dive through the portal, but a watcher grabs hold of my ankle and hauls me back into the realm. I scream and furiously kick at him.

“Let go of me!”

I manage to land a kick to his face and he releases his hold on me. Scrambling through the portal, I roll onto my back on the other side and hold my hands up as I attempt to close it. Focusing all the energy I have, I dig for the cooling sensation and channel it into closing the portal. Just as the watchers reach it, I close it.

I lie back on the ground while I catch my breath. That was dangerous. I’m lucky I made it out at all.

I immediately sense Kyle through our bond and relax. He’s okay, and our bond is okay. I sense him back in Zarquon andleap to my feet, releasing my wings as I shoot up into the sky. I pass through the barrier into Zarquon, where Kyle, Apollon, Zeta, Em, and even Atticus are waiting for me in the field near the forest.

Em narrows her eyes in a suspicious glare as I land, and I do my best to ignore her. She’s the last person I want to see right now. Why is she even here?

Apollon stands with his arm around Zeta’s waist, and Atticus shuffles from one foot to the other, his enormous frame in stark contrast to the others. After seeing him at the battle on Earth, it seems he has decided that I am his daughter, after all.

Kyle rushes over and picks me up. “You’re all right. I couldn’t sense you at all, and I thought I’d lost you. I was about to go looking for you in Galespo.”

I tuck my face into his neck and breathe in his familiar cinnamon scent that’s easily becoming one of my favourite smells in all the Kingdoms. “I’m sorry I caused you to worry.”

He takes my chin in his fingers, tilting my head back so I look up at him. “Don’t be sorry, my mate. It wasn’t your fault. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

He slips his arms around my waist, and I cuddle into him again, so safe in his arms. He’s my home. Forever and always.

“Where did you go?” Apollon asks. “Tell us everything that happened.”

Kyle releases me and curls his hand around mine.

I scan their curious faces, and my focus lands on Atticus, who watches me intently. “The Realm of Lost Souls.”

They all stare at me with wide eyes. All except Atticus. He isn’t shocked because he’s the one who instructed me to open the portal there.

“How is that possible?” Zeta asks.

I tuck my hair behind my ears. “It was an ability my mother had that I apparently have, too.”

Zeta’s brows furrow as she stares at me.

“Zarla can travel between the realms,” Kyle explains, and I’m thankful he’s helping me out because this situation is strange and confusing to me as well.

Em scoffs and folds her arms over her chest, and Atticus gives her the side-eye.

“How does that work exactly?” Apollon asks.

“I’m still figuring it out, but I can somehow open portals and travel between the realms.”

How will they react to this newfound ability of mine? Will they judge me? I don’t trust Em at all, and her knowing these things about me concerns me.

“So what, then?” Em questions, her tone harsh. “While we were battling lost ones, you opened a portal and tried to save yourself, leaving us to fight?”

Kyle tenses beside me, and I run circles over the back of his hand with my thumb to calm him.

“No,” I say. “I opened a portal to suck the lost ones back into their realm, but something went wrong, and it sucked me through it.”

Em throws her arms in the air. “Great. So you risked all our lives with an ability you can’t even control.”

“That’s enough, Em,” Apollon bites out. “Zarla saved you, from what I have been told. If she hadn’t opened that portal and sucked those lost ones back through it, who knows what the outcome could have been?”

Atticus’s jaw tenses, his breathing heavy, and his fists ball at his sides like he’s fighting an inner battle with himself to control his anger. He narrows his eyes at Em, and she gulps and looks down.

Kyle rubs my back. “What was it like there?”

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