Celestra Forever After (6 page)

I glance over at the gaping hole in the harbor. The ferry has long since faded from sight.

There they go. Gage and Skyla are embarking on a new adventure without me—the first of many. The thought has my stomach feeling as if it’s been scraped with a razor. If it wasn’t for Liam and his decades-in-the making hard-on, I would have been long gone by now. But something tells me neither Skyla nor Gage would approve of that.

Just the thought of seeing them together kills me. This is going to be harder than I ever imagined.

A pain, with no beginning and no end, settles in my chest. It feels familiar, as if I’ve owned it all along, for as far back as losing my parents. Losing the ones I love seems to be a theme in my life.

The dark fog of depression rolls in, crashing right over my head.

Watching Gage with Skyla is going to be a fate worse than death. It was one thing in high school when he was there to protect her—to keep her safe until she could be with me again. But now, I’m nothing more than a ghost, some phantom from the past, haunting them until the day Gage leaves this planet. And if I’m right, Skyla is going to move heaven and earth to make sure that doesn’t happen anytime soon. She loves Gage, and so do I. Hell, I’ll work with her to make sure he sticks around for a good, long while.

“You okay?” Liam lands a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Let’s head over to Barron’s, I think I still owe him a wedgie. People still do that?” He gets that sarcastic look on his face that I remember all too well. “Maybe you’d like a demonstration.”

“Touch my boxers and you’ll have very little left to impress the ladies with.”

He holds up his hands. “Let’s get out of here.” He walks us over to the woods. “It’s going to get easier. I promise, man. I’ll be here for you every step of the way.”

Easier. I wonder how easy it’ll be for me to congratulate them on their wedding day. Or to look either one of them in the eye each day after that because I know for a fact how they’ll keep warm on those cold, Paragon nights. I wonder how easy it’s going to be to restrain from ripping off Gage’s gloating balls. Not that he’s the gloating type, but she’ll put a grin on his face, and I’ll want to take it right back off.

“It’s going to be hard as shit,” I lament.

“It’s going to be fine.” He drapes his arm over my shoulder.

“It’s going to be hell.”

“You always such a ball of sunshine?”

“Only on days that end in Y.” I hook my hand over his arm.

“I’m glad to be back, man.” Liam gives a quick sniff. “Thanks for thinking of me. I plan on making the most of it.”

“It’s good to have you.” I glance over at the long, lonely highway up ahead—the thicket of evergreens to our left, the fog settling over the island, heavy as wool. “It’s good to be back on Paragon.”

It’s going to be hell, but it’s good to be back.

2

A Dragon’s Tale

Skyla

A veil of clouds glimmer above Host University in shades of navy, in shades of guttural charcoal as the wind gives a somber moan. If there’s anything good about the constant storm that sits above these islands, it’s the fact they act as the perfect backdrop to accentuate Gage in all his glory. They exclaim Gage Oliver as an exquisite alien being in the most magnificent way—a god of heavenly descent.

We stand outside our first class of the day, U.S. History, holding onto the dregs of summer and perhaps that of our scholastic youth. Once we cross the threshold into class, it all becomes official, we’re college freshman, and there’s no turning back.

I drink Gage down with his dark hair, those flame-blue eyes.

“You’re hot, you know that?” I steal a kiss off his tender lips and linger. Gage has the softest lips on the planet, and I could stay up all night doing just this.

“You’re hot.” He tweaks my ribs. “And all twenty of those guys checking you out on the way over can testify to that.” His dimples press in, and my panties beg to melt right off my body. Gage and I worked each other up pretty good in the back of his truck before we boarded that ferry. If it weren’t the first day of class, I would have insisted we blow this off and let our bodies take us where they want to go.

“Oh, yeah?” I ride my finger down his chest like a snake ready to disappear in the forest, only his forest is off limits right now seeing that every coed in a fifty-foot vicinity can’t take her eyes off him. “I think I’m going to be sick to my stomach if I have to deal with all these girls drooling over you for the next four years.” True story. The only girl I really had to fight off at West was Chloe Bishop. Although Chloe probably equals a hundred girls at Host. She was tenacious to put it mildly.

A soft rumble of a laugh echoes from his chest to mine. “Come here.” His hands flex up and down my back, sending a quiver of warmth straight through to my bones. “Then I’d better do a lot of this to let them know where I stand.” His lips find mine and Gage imparts a kiss that puts every being in the universe on notice. I belong to him and nobody else. In every real way I believe it, and my heart sinks just a little for Logan. My mother told me, not long after the faction war, that the universe had ordained Gage for me. It makes sense because this feels right. But I would have been with Gage no matter what the universe decided to dictate. Being with Gage feels beautiful and safe—as if I’ve made my way home.

A sea of bodies drift in through the door, forcing us to step to the side. I gaze out at the Student Union for a moment. The giant effigy of a dragon has been masterfully crafted in a lifelike mural that spans the length and width of the building. Its large, scaly body stretches out as its mouth opens wide with a stream of flames shooting from it. Black feathered wings sprout from its back that stretch to the rooftop. Under its claw sits a rose with its petals scattered around, crushed by the cruel beast. The entire mural is disturbing to look at, and it’s safe to assume the sight could easily scare young children—me included. It’s evident the artist took their time to bring the creature to life, stroke by stroke. A pair of ruby eyes glimmer over campus, bleeding out an eerie spray of sanguine light. Painted just above him reads
Host University, Home of the Dragons.
Below the creature, in an old school gangster block font, reads,
Omen
. It’s nice they’ve named him, but it doesn’t make that fire wrapping around the building any less menacing.

“Creepy.” Gage lands a kiss on my earlobe. “Sort of makes me miss Cerberus.”

I give a wistful smile at the mention of the three-headed dog. Cerberus was our high school mascot.

“I guess I miss Cerberus, too.” There’s a sentiment I thought we’d never share. “We’d better go in. I’d hate for us to be late.”

“No warning bells just a five-minute grace period. We’re not at West anymore, that’s for sure.” He cinches his backpack over his shoulder just the way he did a few short months ago when we were both students at West Paragon High. But we’re not. Nothing is even remotely the same, and I guess you could put us in that category as well.

“I was just thinking how everything has changed.” I tug him in by the belt loop.

“And we’re the same?” He steals a quick kiss off my cheek.

“Nope.” I bite down over my lip playfully and watch as his eyes round out into twin cobalt eggs. “We’re about to get a whole lot better.”

“Damn straight.”  Gage presses out his infectious grin, and we share a simple kiss before he nods into the class behind me. “Let’s do this.”

Gage and I walk in to find a small auditorium with stadium style seating. Almost every seat is taken with the exception of a couple spares here and there, making it impossible for us to sit together.

“Plenty of room up top.” He nods behind me, and I spot a few familiar faces from West, including an obnoxious face from East, Carly Foster.

My stomach turns at the sight of her. She and one of her bitchy friends were responsible for me getting my arm hacked off by Ezrina—and poor Dr. Oliver was forced to switch it out with Chloe’s useless limb. But that’s when Chloe was still safely tucked in her coffin, nothing more than a spare parts conservatory—otherwise known as the good old days. Then, in a series of unfortunate events, the rejuvenating power of my Celestra blood brought her back to life, and Chloe was free to wreak havoc on every last soul in Paragon, beginning with mine. And now she’s… actually I’m not really sure how to classify Chloe anymore other than a constant pain in my ass.

I scan the class once again, and a sandy-haired blonde sitting down front catches my eye.

“Oh, wow.” I feel lightheaded for a moment. “I think that’s Laken Stewart.”

“The girl from the Transfer?” Gage squints into her.

“Yeah, that’s her.” Laken is a Count I once tried to save in the Transfer with some unsuccessful mouth to mouth. Turns out the Countenance have their own twisted resurrection program in place, and Laken was forced to participate. Last I saw her was in the Tenebrous Woods, while her boyfriend, Wes, siphoned blood from my neck. Not all Counts are blood-sucking fools, just the wicked ones. “Do you mind if I head down to sit with her?”

“Go for it. I see one of the guys from the team. I’ll be holding up the rear.” He seals it with a kiss, and my bones melt with lust for him. I watch as Gage climbs the stairs, and my eyes can’t seem to peel away from his Levi’s. Gage Oliver is the perfect package. And I’m pretty darn sure it’s time for me to do some unwrapping.

I trot down the stairs and cut off a blonde with beach balls for boobs, dropping down into the seat next to Laken before she can.

“Sorry,” I whisper, but the girl doesn’t waver from her resting bitch face. She simply moves on down the row. Her eyes linger on Laken’s a moment too long.

“Don’t apologize to her.” Laken pulls out a notebook before turning to me. “There’s nothing Grayson Evans likes more than giving me hell.” Laken is beautiful, high cheeks, stormy blue eyes, and the kind of pouty lips that girls the world over pay good money for. Laken does a double take before her mouth rounds out with surprise. “Skyla, is that you?” Her face turns ashen as if she were in shock.

“
Yes
.” I land my hand over hers to calm her. Poor Laken has never seen me outside of a light drive or the bowels of the Celestra tunnels—and I doubt she has any memory of the time she logged some serious hours in one of Ezrina’s overgrown test tubes. It’s kind of creepy thinking I’m the one who peeled off Laken’s clothes and landed her in the blue goo to begin with. That’s how Ezrina stored the dead Counts—in blue keeping solution, each in their own overgrown glass vial. My heart sinks because that’s exactly where Logan’s body is now, in one of those overgrown vials.

“This is so exciting!” Laken whisper-shouts as she leans in. “Coop and I thought about finding you.” She averts her eyes, clearly enthused. “I mean we
were
going to find you, and now you’re here. I can’t wait to tell him.”

“Coop? I love Coop!” A part of me wants to ask what the hell happened to Wes. I haven’t been to the tunnels in months, and he’s my usual caller. The Counts have a thirst for Celestra blood because it enables them to tap into our powers for a time. But it’s not Wes I’m eager to see—it’s Logan, my forever escort in that madhouse—my Elysian.

The room settles down, and Laken nods just past my shoulder as the Professor strides to the front. There’s something alarmingly familiar about that tall, sturdy frame, that dark blond hair. He spins around and—holy shit.

I sink in my seat as a small choir of
Dudley
breaks out around the room.

“Oh, God.” I give a little moan. “I had him in high school,” I whisper just as all of those erotic dreams swim through my mind like a carnal inferno. “Not like that”— I correct—“he was my teacher.”

Laken gives a soft laugh. “Of course, not like that. Your Elysian is your boyfriend.”

Right. I sink a little further. I can’t wait to share all the sordid details of my shattered love life with Laken. That’s one way to break the ice, trying to explain how my heart splintered in three, and that Logan’s time with me is still decades away—forever if I have any say because there’s no way I can lose Gage. I’ll do anything I can to keep him. Logan’s death was like a black hole that swallowed me. When Chloe took his life it was as if she cut out my beating heart at the exact same moment. I can’t bear that pain again. I can never go back there.

I turn to look at Gage just as a loud explosion goes off toward the front. I spin quickly to find a small stack of books at Marshall’s feet.

“Eyes on me.” Marshall calls court with his attention fully settled in my direction. A strangled silence takes over as every student in the oversized room sits at attention. Marshall Dudley is a force of nature that should be feared—
worshiped
—preferably naked with the female form. I give a wry smile. I should have figured he wouldn’t let me out of his sight. I can just imagine Gage writhing with hatred right about now. Marshall isn’t too high up on Gage’s list of favorite people. In fact, if there is a list, he’s nowhere near it. Marshall is notorious for making Gage miserable, but if there’s one thing I won’t let Marshall get away with this year, it’s tormenting Gage.