Salvation (The Guardian Angel Series Book 3) (12 page)

Mila, Lyric, Aaron, and I made our way across the open field. The security team let us pass without interruption since Mr. Aleksandrov was expecting us. No one said a word. I don’t know if we didn’t speak because there was nothing to say, or because Aaron was one scary guardian. He was wide and tall, he even towered over Eli, but that wasn’t his scariest feature. A thick, long scar carved its way down the left side of his face. Shivers rolled down my spine as I thought of Scar-face, the vampire Lucian had ordered to bite me. He’d almost succeeded.

“Are you nervous?” Mila asked me.

I laughed. “You’re asking me if
I’m
nervous?”

Lyric snickered. Mila hooked her arm around mine and shrugged.

“No, I’m not nervous.” And I wasn’t.

“Good, because I can totally back out of this if you want me to—Lyric would step in as my guardian angel, wouldn’t you, Lyric?”

“Of course,” he replied.

I glanced sideways at Aaron, who appeared oblivious to our conversation, his eyes always scanning ahead.

“Or you could have Aaron, he isn’t much of a talker, but he seems to be a good listener.” I had to say it and I couldn’t help the laugh that exploded from me a moment later.

I thought I was funny. Aaron hardly spoke, which meant he listened—or at least appeared to listen. Aaron laughed, too, surprisingly, his scar creasing with his face. Mila stared at him in amazement. I assumed she’d never heard him make a sound. Everyone is known for something—Neil Armstrong, the first to walk on the moon. Tom Whittaker, the first disabled man to conquer Mount Everest, and then there’s me—Ruby Moore, the girl who made Aaron laugh. Now there’s something that should be put in the history books. I know they aren’t on the same levels of greatness, but either way, I’ll wear my accomplishment with extreme pride.

“I’m sure both Lyric and Aaron are fantastic guardians, but Eli has saved my life countless times. If I trust anyone with your life, it’d be him.”

“I agree,” Aaron added. “Eli is a great guardian angel. He never puts himself first. He’s loyal, kind and determined. If there’s anyone I look up to—it’s him.”

I wanted to crack a joke about how Aaron doesn’t have to look up to anyone, but I didn’t want to push my luck.

“Things change,” I added. “I don’t need Eli as my guardian angel anymore. You’re the higher power’s niece. You need him more than I do.”

“Yeah, but you have the ex-higher power-vampire wanting to kill you… nobody is targeting me.”

I wanted to say ‘not yet’ out loud, but I didn’t want to scare her. She might not be a target yet, but as soon as Mr. Aleksandrov made a bad decision, who knew what would happen to her.

“It’s better to be safe,” Lyric said, taking Mila’s attention off me. “Besides, Ruby has her Heelian power, she’s safer than any of us.”

Subtly, I tugged at the damn bracelet. In defeat, I blew out the air I’d been holding in my cheeks. I was screwed.

Bonds

W
hen we reached Mr Aleksandrov’s house, we were ushered into an elegant sitting room. I’d never been in it before. It was immaculate. I felt like I was in the house of a king rather than a wizard. The walls were panelled in a mahogany colored wood. In the corner of the room, a small fire burned. Near the fire, a small stool and a flimsy wooden table were set up—obviously for the tattoos. Mila and I shared a dark leather armchair, she comfortably ensconced in the seat and I balanced precariously on the arm. Lyric and Aaron stood against the wall, waiting professionally—they were on duty, after all. I looked down at the beautiful red and black Persian rugs. I’d always wanted a Persian rug. They seemed so elegant. I bet it feels good on bare feet, too.

The door opened and Eli stepped in. Our eyes met and my whole body lit up as if he were lying right next to me, caressing me. My heart raced and I felt my cheeks flare white hot. I dropped my gaze back down to the Persian rug, hoping my cheeks cooled off fast. Eli kept his cool. I thought once you had sex, the desire was gone and it became a normal thing. Why wasn’t that happening to me? Why did I want him even
more
than I did before?

Eli was off duty and therefore he wasn’t wearing his uniform. He still looked amazingly drool-worthy in his loose jeans and plain white t-shirt that clung to his chest and arm muscles.

Mr. Aleksandrov entered the room with a large smile on his face. Gwydion stumbled in behind him. I had forgotten what Gwydion even looked like, but when I saw him in his deep blue robe, it all came flooding back. The short white hair and matching short beard, his chubbiness, and his little knitted bag that hung over his shoulder and across his chest. Behind Gwydion came the tattooed man that had bonded Eli and I together—The Shar. The Shar pushed past everyone without any greetings and set up his tattoo machine on the flimsy table.

“Ruby, you remember Gwydion, don’t you?”

Mr. Aleksandrov pulled my attention to Gwydion. I pushed off the armchair and stood up. I extended my hand to Gwydion. He took it before pulling me into a hug. I held my breath, there was something off about his choice of cologne. It smelled moldy… like wet earth.

“It’s so good to see you!” he exclaimed.

“You too.”

Gwydion was oblivious to my reaction and squeezed me for a few seconds longer. I felt a small twinge of pain on edge of my hair line as my hair got caught on something. I glanced at Eli, his face was completely professional and composed, but I swear I saw something flickering in his eyes, a look of amusement or pleasure. I glowered at him—the strange smell of this man was not amusing. At last, Gwydion released me and stepped toward Eli. There was no hug for Eli, only a handshake. Once Gwydion had exchanged pleasantries with almost everyone in the room, he turned his attention to Mila, who was nervously tapping her finger on her knee.

“Are you ready, dear?” Gwydion asked.

Mila glanced at me and then at Eli, who gave her a reassuring nod. She nodded quickly, her lip snagged between her teeth. She chewed it nervously.

From his knitted bag, Gwydion produced a small scalpel and a vial to catch the blood. As he stepped toward her, she flinched away from the knife. I placed my hand on her shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.

“Mila, it’s okay. He only needs a little blood.”

She swallowed hard, her brown eyes cloudy. “I know, I just didn’t think he’d need a knife to get it.”

Gwydion waited at a distance while Mila gathered her thoughts. Eli sat down on the small stool beside The Shar, presenting his wrist on the table. The big, scary, tattoo-covered Shar tapped his leather boot on the rug impatiently.

Mila’s breathing deepened and I knelt in front of her, forcing her to look at me and not the scalpel Gwydion held in his hand.

“It will only sting for a second, I promise.”

She used her index finger to push her lip against her teeth.

“I’ll hold your hand if you want,” I offered.

She nodded and extended her hand toward Gwydion. Gwydion wasted no time in slicing her hand—afraid that she’d change her mind and we’d have to hold her down. I grasped her hand and she squeezed her eyes shut. She winced as the scalpel came into contact with the palm of her hand. Like I promised, it was over in a second. Quickly, Gwydion pulled a small vial filled with clear liquid. I recalled the smell of it—petrol. He unscrewed the lid and everyone turned up their noses—except Gwydion and The Shar. They seemed accustomed to it. He poured the liquid into the palm of her hand and she gasped at both the stinging of the liquid and how rapidly the cut healed.

Subtly, I glanced down at the faint scarring of my feather. It had been so long, I couldn’t remember the exact feeling of the burning liquid or the tingling burn that came from the tattoo gun. Gwydion took the small vial of blood over to The Shar. The Shar mixed the blood with the ink and the machine buzzed to life. Like last time, Eli’s face remained content as the tiny needles cut his skin. Every now and then, he’d look at me—to make sure I was okay. I was proud of myself. Not once did I swallow hard out of sadness or jealousy, even though I wanted to tear the tattoo gun away from his skin and run away with him.

When it was over, it was Mila’s turn. Nervously, she exchanged places with Eli—dragging me along behind her. I knelt on the floor beside the stool and held her hand. Gwydion gave Eli’s blood to The Shar and once again the machine whirred with life. Mila squeezed my hand and I cringed under the pressure. I had no idea that petite, girly Mila had so much strength. My fingers ached. Once the initial ink entered her skin, her grip slackened.

“It’s not as bad as I thought,” she confessed.

I squeezed her hand to let her know she was doing well.

Twenty minuted into Mila’s tattoo, Mr. Aleksandrov announced that he needed to discuss business with Aaron, Lyric and Eli. As they stepped out of the room, my phone vibrated. I pulled my phone form my pocket. I had a text message from an unknown number. I opened it.

Ruby. They’re planning to evacuate the school today. That’s all I could find out. —X

“What’s wrong?” Mila asked. I realized I was staring at the door after Mr. Aleksandrov and the others.

If
the school gets evacuated, where do we go? I couldn’t imagine there were too many charmed places that could protect us. I rose to my feet.

“Where are you going? What’s wrong?” Mila asked urgently.

“I need to talk to your uncle, I’ll be back.”

I jogged from the room. I was Mr. Aleksandrov’s head guardian. They couldn’t keep things from me. I burst through the doors of the tea room with my ‘I’m a head guardian, include me’ speech ready to go. They were scattered about the room and all eyes were focused on me and my hasty entry.

“Good, you’re here,” Mr. Aleksandrov said.

My speech caught in my throat and I became confused.

“You wanted me here? I was about to give a speech about not being included.”

They all laughed and I was pretty sure it was at me and not with me.

“Yes, I wanted you here, but I couldn’t ask in front of Mila. There are things I don’t want her to know,” Mr. Aleksandrov replied. “First things first, Ruby, how are you feeling? Last night would have been difficult for anyone.”

I flushed, irritated by being called out. “I’m fine.” My response was abrupt, but I didn’t want to appear weak in front of the others. Mr. Aleksandrov nodded.

“Okay, let’s move on, then.” Aleksandrov straightened his robe and stroked his long white beard. “As we speak, the school is being evacuated. Sage Sanctum is no longer a safe place for our students or staff. They’ll be sent home or placed in other schools until we can guarantee their safety. Luckily, the council left before the intrusion last night. I’d like them to remain in the dark about this situation. The security teams have been informed and they have assured me they won’t say a word.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. Aleksandrov continued. “I want this school to be prepared by nightfall. Hunter told Eli that Lucian is coming on Wednesday, but who knows what the vampire’s real plans are?”

“We have Ruby, so this should be an easy fight,” Lyric interrupted.

“Our greatest asset in this fight is gone,” Eli responded, folding his arms across his chest. “Ruby has a bracelet on her arm that blocks her from using her Heelian powers.”

“I can still fight,” I interjected.

“Absolutely not,” both Mr. Aleksandrov and Eli said at the same time.

I placed my hands on my hips. “Why not?”

“That’s something we should discuss in private,” Mr. Aleksandrov answered. “Right now, your survival is top priority.”

Eli’s face hardened and curiosity flashed in the depths of his eyes.

“When the bonding is done, you will all go back to the school and help evacuate the students—Ruby, you can help. Your uniform will be in your house when you return. Now, we have a bonding session to get back to.”

I sat cross-legged on the floor with my arms folded across my chest, watching as Eli and Mila held hands while The Shar bound them together. I was frustrated… not because of the binding, but because of my sudden irrelevance in protecting Mr. Aleksandrov. Yes, I’d lost my Heelian powers. Yes, I was a nineteen-year-old girl, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t kick ass. I rose to my feet as The Shar hummed his chant. Slowly, I strolled over to Mr. Aleksandrov, who was sitting in a deep leather arm chair. I knelt beside him.

“What if I can prove to you I’m more than capable of handling my own?”

I glanced at Eli, who regarded me curiously. My lips twitched, he knew I was up to something.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t risk it,” he mumbled back to me. “There was a vampire in your house last night and he managed to clip a bracelet to your wrist
and
escape with his life. With all due respect, I don’t think you’re as prepared for this as you think you are.”

“He is— was—my friend.”