Page 83 of Angel Lost

Chapter Twenty-eight: Zephyr

I clench my fists so hard it hurts. She thinks I’m just some hippy fuck boi. A joke. Zephyr and his addictive nature. Zephyr and his man-whoring. She said it like it was fact, like it was obvious. Like I’m addicted to sex. Damn the runes, Iwillprove her wrong.

I shove into my room, the silks draped from the walls billowing against me, suffocating instead of soothing. The dim, cozy lighting doesn’t warm me. The multicolored fabrics don’t calm me. The patchouli and sandalwood incense clings to my throat like a bad decision.

You know how the last one ended.

Of course I do. I should’ve never broken my own rules, never tried the whole one-woman thing with the professor. By the Fates, I knew better.

I drop into my favorite chair, fingers drifting over the tarot cards scattered across the carved wooden table. My record player hums, looping some ethereal angelic techno—harmonic, eerie, too much like a sermon.

I nudge the warm bodies tangled on my futon. They stir, stretching beneath mismatched throws.

“Out.”

Bleary-eyed, the twins scramble for their clothes, tossing kisses from too-red lips as they slip away, eager to please. Twin angels. If Lorelei knew…

I snort.

I’ll show her. I’ll show her there’s more to me.

By the time I reach the professor’s door, my perfect plan feels more like a six-year-old’s tantrum in disguise. I hover, finger inches from the brass bell. Do I really want to disturb Professor Lumis? He may have taken over Divination, but compared to old Pythias, he’s a damn dragon.

Pulling back, I step away—

The door swings open, flooding the hallway with golden light. Lumis stands there, sharp and watchful, his robes settling around him like liquid shadow. Unlike the standard academy garb, his are sleek, black with a gold sheen, mesmerizing in their subtle shimmer. Even now, this late, he’s impossibly refined—white hair pristine, beard smooth as polished ivory.

“Zephyr, I saw you were coming,” Lumis says, smiling wide as he steps back. “Not a surprise, but pleasant nonetheless.”

“I know it’s late, but I was hoping to talk to you.”

He inclines his head. “Of course. Anything for our most valued angelic student.”

I stumble on his stairs. “Um, what?”

Lumis ushers me inside, guiding me into an opulent sitting room. “Oh, come now. You don’t think we overlook your talents, do you? I’m surprised you’re not the most popular student in the school now that Farrell’s father is disgraced.”

I sink into the high-backed leather chair he offers. “I’m not sure everyone sees it that way, sir.”

“Hm, yes. I did mean to discuss your allegiance with you. They’re not very…supportive of your talents, are they? Do we need to do something about it?”

“No, they are.” The words leave my mouth before I can stop them—instinctive, automatic. But as soon as I say it, something twists in my gut.

Are they?

The professor bustles over with a silver tray, setting a decanter and glasses on a small ivory stool. “Of course, of course. Perspective changes everything. I’m sure they encourage you in private.”

Ioffer him a tight smile. Eternal stars, do I ever wish they did.

He pours a generous measure of whiskey into each glass, then hands me one, pausing just a fraction too long before releasing it. “I have something to discuss with you, Zephyr, but you marched in here with purpose. Tell me, what was it?”

I take a slow sip, feeling the smooth burn all the way down. It doesn’t take me long to outline Lorelei’s concern about the hada. About them being modern-day slaves.

Professor Lumis’s eyebrows meet his hair. “Hardly that, dear boy.” He hums to himself. “I tell you what. Let’s use your powers to see why they are in the position they’re in.”

I cock my head to one side. “I can do that?”

The professor grins, pleased. “Of course, with the right guidance.” He rings a tiny brass bell, summoning an old hada. Smaller than the ones at the academy, she’s nearly bent double with age.

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