Page 31 of Wicked Angel
Keeran opened a portal that would take us to the outskirts of Pinewood Valley.
Before stepping through, I turned to Almae. “Thank you for offering to help Abbie and Lacey. Even if we find these angels and convince them to help us, we'll still need the elixir as a backup plan.”
“Of course,” she said. “And Ariella? Trust your instincts. If something feels wrong…”
“We'll get out,” I assured her. “I'm not looking to add more problems to our list.”
The portal shimmered before us, a window into a world of muted greens and browns. I took a deep breath, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on my shoulders once more. Three days until Rhodes made his move. Three days to find these exiled angels, convince them to join our cause, and somehow formulate a plan to stop a war before it began.
Levi reached over and clasped his hand around mine. Together, we stepped through the portal, leaving behind the safety of the warehouse and venturing into the unknown once more.
The air on the other side was crisp, heavy with the scent of pine and damp earth. Birds called to each other in the canopy overhead, and somewhere in the distance, a stream gurgled over rocks.
“Quaint,” Levi remarked, surveying the dense forest surrounding us. “You think the angels have the good sense to stay somewhere with actual civilization?”
I rolled my eyes, but couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips. “They're angels, not party animals. The isolation probably appeals to them.”
We set off down a narrow dirt path that wound through the trees, heading in the direction of Pinewood Valley. According to Keeran's map, the town was about half a mile east of our position.
“So, what's the plan?” Levi asked as we walked. “Wander into town and ask the locals where we can find the secret angel hideout?”
“I was thinking we'd be a bit more subtle than that,” I said. “We start at the diner where the witch mentioned the 'winged ones.' See if we can get any more information.”
“And if that doesn't work? Can I torture some witches?”
The teasing was heavy on his tone, but I still gave him a reprimanding look. “I thought you had left your evil days behind.”
He shrugged. “Bad habits die hard, sweetheart.”
I glanced up at the sky, visible in patches through the dense canopy of trees. “If that doesn’t work,” I said, going back to his question, “then we do what we can. We fly, we look, we find.”
“So no torturing. Got it.”
A smile tugged at my lips. Leave it to Levi to be joking at a time like this.
A few minutes later, the trees thinned ahead of us, revealing the first outlying buildings of Pinewood Valley. The town was exactly as I'd imagined it—small, picturesque, with wooden buildings lining a main street that couldn't have been more than a quarter mile long.
“Looks like something out of a postcard,” I murmured. “Hard to believe there are supernaturals hiding here.”
“That's the point,” Levi said. “The best place to hide is somewhere no one would think to look.”
As we approached the town, I felt a strange prickling along my skin—a subtle shift in the air that wasn't quite natural. I slowed my steps, scanning our surroundings with new awareness.
“Do you feel that?” I asked, keeping my voice low.
Levi nodded, his expression suddenly alert. “Wards. Strong ones. We're being watched.”
I reached out with my senses. I didn’t have the gift of sixth sense or magical detection, but if this was done by an angel, perhaps I could tell the difference? I felt a faint but complex weave of magic that surrounded the town. It wasn't hostile, exactly, but definitely protective—a barrier designed to alert rather than repel.
“They already know we're coming,” I realized.
Levi's hand moved to rest on the small of my back. “Good. Saves us the trouble of introducing ourselves.”
Together, we continued toward Pinewood Valley, our steps more cautious now. Somewhere in this unassuming town, angels were hiding—angels who might hold the key to saving Elysium, if only we could find them and convince them to help.
The hunt for the Lost Legion had begun.
14
