Page 45 of Wings of Strife
Breathe, firefly,he says through our bond, and I do my best to follow his request.
“We didn’t mishear,” Mira says, then Dina and Castiel nod in agreement.
Zeke’s frown deepens. “Fuck. In that case, this is bad. And if he knew about the angel blade, it’s not hard to assume where he got that information.”
Raphael’s eyes grow wide, and I’m still trying to figure out why when he says, “You think he’s working with the mole at the guild?”
Mira sucks in a sharp breath.
Shit. He’s right. Very few angels know I survived that day. The guild members who showed up to help, and us. I doubt anyone in this cave said anything, so that only leaves the damn guild.
“It makes sense,” Raph continues, looking thoughtful. “Principal Cael thought a student was involved in the attack on SCU, but what if it wasn’t a student? What if it was a professor?”
Silence falls as we consider his words. Just how far does the web of lies and treachery reach? Angels and demons working together. Professors allowing an attack on school property and directing students to bully others. This can’t be the world we live in.
“If what you’re saying is true—and I believe it is—things are far worse than we realized. Uriel would have had the means to drop the school’s protective shields and let demons just waltz in,” Castiel says, looking mortified. “As hard as it’s going to be, we can’t let on to Uriel or anyone else that we know what’s going on. Our only leverage right now is that they don’t know that we know. We can use this to our advantage.”
I nod. As much as I hate it, he’s right. “Uriel ordered the students to get to me when I was alone. I hate to be more of a burden, but maybe that’s something we can use in our favor.”
“You’re never a burden, sunshine. We’ll all happily stay at your side forever.”
My cheeks flame, knowing that Castiel is witnessing this, but it doesn’t stop the growing hunger in my core. When he says things like that, I can’t help but melt into a puddle of goo.
“Then it’s settled. I’ll see if I can uncover anything that could help us understand what it is he needs you distracted from. For now, lie low and be careful.” Castiel turns to me, his eyes softening. “Keep your wits about you.”
He turns to leave but I stop him, needing to ask one last question. “Wait. Back at Uriel’s classroom, he alluded to the fact that I was a demon. Do you think he truly hasn’t figured it out yet and still believes I’m spawned from demons?”
Castiel looks from me to my friends, before his eyes settle back on mine. “It’s possible. Miss Hayliel,” he says, sighing. Then he adds, “But it’s also possible that he knows what you truly are and would rather spread fear instead.”
He exits the cave, leaving us with that dreadful thought.
When I finally learned the truth and found out I was a Seraphim, it felt like things were finally settling into place.
Now it just feels like they’re crumbling all around me once again.
20
Istand outside Hayliel’s dorm with a storm cloud of emotion hanging over my head.
Ever since learning about Uriel’s devious plan, an anger like none I’ve ever felt before has taken hold of me and hasn’t left. It sits in my gut, simmering until it feels like I’ll lose my mind if I don’t do anything. But since I can’t, not without royally screwing things up, I arranged for something less destructive.
There’s not a doubt in my mind that what’s happened over the past few weeks has really fucked with Hayliel’s head. She tries to hide it behind her mask of happiness and joy, and while I think some of that is real, I see through to the worried, hurt angel beneath.
It’s why I invited her to my dad’s place where hopefully we can try working on imbuing her sunfire. A nice distraction. Well,that, and because the cave isn’t really the safest place for her to practice. Sure, we’ve warded it and put as many protections in place there as we can, but it’s not foolproof.
With dad at work, it’ll just be the two of us. No one will barge in, and we’re not in a carved out rock on the side of a cliff that might crumble down around us if her power is too strong. Dad’s workshop was built for weapon forging and tinkering.
I expected her to put up a fight when I brought it up last night at the cave, or that she’d want Raphael and Theo to come with her, but she agreed without a second thought. As much as I want to assume it’s all about me, I’m smart enough to realize that it’s likely more about the sunfire and being close enough to visit her parents than anything else.
She opens the door and the breath catches in my throat. Wearing a pair of loose-fitting, high-waisted pants and a cropped tank top, she looks delectable. Her wing jacket hangs just off her shoulders, so I give it the last pull to get it properly in place, though I’d rather she be wearing something else.
As if sensing where my thoughts are going, she smiles and says, “If we weren’t flying, I would have worn your jacket.”
“In that case, it’s not too late to change our minds. We can just practice in the cave.”
She laughs, and the sound brings a smile to my lips.
“Hell no. You invited me to your house, Zeke. No take backs. Are you ready?”
