The Chosen Knights (Read Prequel--The Angel Knights first) (The Angel Knights Series Book 2) (16 page)

He didn’t respond, but his eyes were glued to the picture. Did he know her?

The bigger man, Vince, grinned menacingly. “So you’ve come back in time. Are you following me, Ikelia?”

Ignoring his question, she retorted, “What do you think you’re doing? I told you I would protect this family. My job is done. Go away, Vince. Crawl back to Cyrus. See what happens when you tell him you’ve lost to a woman.” She flipped her long braided hair back and gazed at her fingernails as if she were bored.

Vince’s fingers curled into a fist. “You might have saved this family, but there are others.”

“It’s the only family that needed to be saved.”

Vince stepped closer. “What makes you think we’re done here? I’m still alive.” He drew up his sword. “After you’re dead, I’m going to take the sons, and then I’m going after all of them.”

“You are delusional and a psychopath. What a great combination. You’re really screwed in the head. I’m so glad we’re not on the same team anymore.”

“Then this time I won’t fail to rip out your heart.”

“You’re all talk, Vince. You might as well rip out your own heart.” Ikelia ducked when a dagger from Vince came flying toward her and landed in the wooden plank wall behind her. She threw her own tiny dagger smack in the middle of the soldier’s neck who held the father captive. As blood gushed from his neck, he dropped to the floor. Ikelia brought up a longer sword and blocked a blow from Vince. The sound of metal upon metal echoed fiercely and loudly due to their incredible strength and speed. By flicking her finger, Ikelia flung objects at Vince. When Vince blocked them with his sword, she managed to get a good swipe across his arm. But that seemed to do him no harm. He only laughed.

“This is all you’ve got?” Vince moved from one space to another with incredible speed. Ikelia had a difficult time keeping up.

Eli stood up with his hands on the window when the woman fell. Vince’s sword was pointed at her neck. “Don’t ever underestimate me, Ikelia.”

Even when hope seemed lost, she curled her lips wickedly. “I’m afraid my fall was no accident, and you’re about to meet your maker.” With her free hand, she pulled out a crystal necklace. Then bright light burst so fast, it blinded my view. Black mist punched through the roof shrieking and disappearing into the air.

Before I had a chance to ask Eli about it, his body collided with mine.

Chapter 19

Darkness engulfed me as my body floated off the ground. I opened my eyes to see Eli’s face next to mine, staring intently.

“Hi,” he said tenderly, surprising me. He’d never used that tone with me before. “Are you okay?”

“I...are we back?” I glanced around to see we were in the middle of a cloud and at a standstill. My hands were around his neck and his hands were around my waist as if we were dancing. In a way we were, gliding across the mist of the clouds without the music. It would have been romantic if we were lovers, but we were far from that. In fact, I had no idea if I could trust him after he’d made me fall like that.

“Yes,” he answered, looking relieved.

“Why did you let me fall?” I seethed. “Why didn’t you warn me before you astral traveled?”

“Then you wouldn’t have let me.”

“How do you know?”

He shrugged. “I guess I will never know. It’s been done.”

“You think?” I sighed. When I opened my wings, it forced him to move away from me. “I can find my way back home from here. Who is Ikelia, by the way? You got pretty intense when she showed up.”

“No, I didn’t. It’s none of your concern.” He looked away.

I raised a brow. “Yes, you did.”

“I don’t remember. Maybe I was worried for her. I didn’t want Vince to kill her.” He paused and then changed the subject, “Did you enjoy your little adventure? Did you like probing into people’s pasts?”

My muscles tensed. “If you’re asking me if I liked watching people get hurt or killed, the answer is no. You know very well the reason why we have to astral travel. Don’t make this into something else. You’re hiding something from us because you’re afraid we’ll judge you, aren’t you?”

“You’re full of questions. And I’m past worrying about what people think of me. Why don’t you just fly away?” He motioned his hand the way my wings flapped.

I frowned and kept my irritation at bay. “We need you. Will you be there at the meeting? Will you join us on this crusade?”

He arched his eyebrows as if I’d asked a stupid question. “Don’t count on it.”

As the wind shifted, he became translucent before my eyes and then turned into a black mist. And with a blink of an eye, he was gone.

I went to school the next day, hoping to avoid Eli. As I observed humans around me, I began to wonder what it would be like to be one, never needing to worry about demons and fallen angels. Their smiles were frequent and their laughter rang blissful in the air as they mingled with friends. Their only worries were homework, what to wear, boy or girl troubles, and gossip. Of course there were exceptions: kids who came from abusive families or were neglected. Come to think of it, when viewing the overall picture, I would rather be me.

“Lucia. Zach.”

I turned to see Jack behind us.

“Hi, Jack.” I waved. “What’s up, dude?” I shrieked, trying to sound human, but his confused expression told me it had sounded awkward. Yup, that backfired.

“Jack,” Zach said stoically with a nod. I guessed that was the tone guys used to sound cool.

“So, did you find out anything from the book?” Jack asked.

Zach and I exchanged glances. We didn’t know what to say. Were we supposed to hide our findings from Jack? Not that we’d found much.

I leaned closer to Jack to whisper, “We did. But we can’t discuss this here. Stop by later.” I only said it to get him off our backs. Maybe I had chosen the wrong words.

“Okay. I will. I can’t wait.” He sounded excited.

When the bell rang, we headed to our lockers. I waved to some friends that greeted us. They even waved to Jack, who waved back hesitantly. As I turned to my locker, I honed in on the conversation at the next set of lockers, keeping my eyes rooted to my lock. Their voices were soft so no one else could hear, but I could.

“Where’s Eli?” Abel asked Brody and Milani.

“None of your business,” Milani huffed. “Why? You want to be best friends again, vampire boy?” The word “vampire” puffed out of her mouth like it was a disease. She tried to sound so tough.

“Don’t call me that. I don’t drink blood,” Abel sneered. “Unless you want me to start with you.”

“Hey, back off,” Brody warned.

I heard a slam.

“What do you want?”

My breath hitched and my heartbeat escalated. I only felt like this when I heard Eli’s voice.

“We need you to be there tomorrow night. Will you come?” Abel asked. He sounded sincere; I didn’t understand the hostility between them.

The second bell rang. I didn’t want them to see me when everyone scattered, so I followed the flow of the crowd and waved for Zach to go on ahead. I was glad I didn’t have to explain and he’d agreed. Hiding behind the wall, I listened.

“I don’t work with traitors,” Eli stated.

“It wasn’t my fault. I told you he tricked me.”

I heard another slam of the locker. “That mistake cost my mother her life, Abel. So yeah, you’re the traitor.”

“I feel horrible about it. I can’t bring your mother back but—”

“Save it.” He snapped. “Wouldn’t you rather not have me there so you can have Lucia all to yourself?”

I flinched, hearing my name.

Abel chuckled humorlessly when Eli didn’t respond. “You like her, don’t you?”

My muscles tightened. I didn’t want to know. So why was I still listening?

“She’s annoying. And you already know I don’t like angels. They think they’re high and mighty, above everyone else, especially our kind. You don’t need to worry about me. However, if I wanted her, you would’ve already lost.”

My teeth clenched so tight from anger, my jaw hurt. Uncle Davin had gotten their names wrong. Eli should be called Jerk instead of Jack.

Abel snorted. “Yeah, you’ve got it bad for her. I bet it’s killing you that I’m taking her to the homecoming dance and not you. But then again, you’re too good to go to functions like that. She’s too good for someone like you. You hide in your hole with two friends. You’ve got a great life, Eli. Milani could try to astral travel, but you know how that would turn out, so if you care about Lucia, you’ll be there. I’m late for class.”

Not knowing how I felt about the conversation, I sprinted, hoping not to be too late. I’d only moved a few feet when I ran into something hard.

Arms wrapped around me, preventing me from falling. I peered up with embarrassment, hoping it wasn’t a teacher or Principal Harris. Blood drained out of my face when I ran into the person I’d least expected. Eli.

“Ummm,” I stalled.

He frowned. “How much did you hear?”

I adjusted my backpack, trying to come up with a clever response, but I couldn’t think when he was staring at me. “I...I didn’t. How could you know?”

He tilted his head sideways as his eyes roamed my body. “I like the way you smell, remember?”

Heat rushed to my face. “No, I don’t,” I lied. I took a step back when Eli placed his arms down.

“Whatever you heard, don’t take it to heart. You shouldn’t be listening to other people’s conversations anyway. Weren’t you taught any manners in angel school?”

“I only have manners with those who deserve them. And you only deserve”—I held up my thumb and index finger making a small gap between them—“maybe this much. No, no, wait.” I made it even smaller until the gap closed. “None.”

Eli’s lips twisted to one side. Was he trying not to laugh? “I see.”

“Since I annoy you that much, I’ll be on my way. You’re not worthy of my presence.”

“Lucia.” He blocked my way with his arm. “Don’t go. I didn’t mean it.”

I could have walked away, but I didn’t. His body close to mine was a euphoric drug. I savored it way too much. His soft, tender voice when he called my name hinted that he desired me. He’d brought me so close, his breath brushed against my ear. Blazing heat flushed through me, making my heart hammer uncontrollably. I closed my eyes and felt the serenity of his words. Part of me wanted to hold him and part of me hated the way I reacted to him. So I did what I thought was best.

“It’s too bad, you can’t take words back.” I shoved his arm and ran.

Chapter 20

The next day, Uncle Davin laid the book on the coffee table when it was close to the meeting time. I watched the clouds out the window, wondering if Eli would come. The day was going to be a bit more humid and hot, according to the weatherman. I wondered what that felt like.

It had been several weeks since our arrival. Never having been apart from my parents for this long, I missed them. However, I was beyond grateful Uncle Davin was there to guide us. Sometimes, I had no idea if what I was doing was right.

Uncle Davin said as long as we went with our instincts, then we were doing the right thing. So lying to my uncle to find out more information about Eli, was that right? Something horrible could have happened to me. He wouldn’t have known where I was, especially since I had gone back in time. Guilt rippled through me, and I hoped he couldn’t see the remorse on my face.

One by one, the gang came. Everyone seemed tense and worried as they sat on the sofa. Even Uncle Davin, usually the most humorous one, lacked that characteristic today. Everyone was there, except for Eli.

“So Eli isn’t coming?” Uncle Davin directed his question to Milani and Brody. “I was told he was the one who could astral travel.”

“I can too, sort of. I could try.” Milani covered her face with her long black hair. She’d changed the pink strands to blue. Her outfit was always the same color. Whether she wore pants, a skirt, or a dress, it was always black. I wondered if that was a statement she wanted to make. “I’ve done it before.”

Brody tapped her shoulder and shook his head. “It wasn’t successful. We ended up in the middle of a battlefield and Eli had to get us out. So no, thank you.”

Milani shrugged. “At least I can try.” Her lips dipped into a frown and she focused on the fireplace.

“And if you can’t get us out of the possible disaster you might place us in, then what?” Abel glared, staring straight ahead to our plain white walls. “Sorry, but I won’t be a part of this crusade if I need to put my trust in Milani.”

The sound of loud footsteps broke the conversation. Everyone’s eyes flashed to the door at a knock. My heart skipped a beat, thinking it was Eli, but it wasn’t him.

“It’s Jack.” Zach got out of his seat and opened the door.

“Who invited him?” Uncle Davin looked at me and scowled.

Jack grinned nervously, showing all of his teeth. He made me laugh when he smiled like that. It was dorky, but in a cute way.

“Hi,” Jack greeted, gazing at everyone on the sofa. “I thought maybe someone forgot to invite me. With so many cars parked on the curb, I thought you were having a party. And Lucia told me to stop by yesterday, but I couldn’t so here I am.”

Uncle Davin glared at me, again.

“There are only two cars, Jack,” Zach pointed out. “But it’s cool.”

Jack stood motionless, most likely wondering what to do. Our straight faces must have seemed intense and unwelcoming. “Uhhh, sure.” Jack sounded apprehensive.

“Come in.” Zach closed the door behind him.

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

Jack’s tennis shoes rubbed against the hardwood floor. He stopped after several steps when he realized we were watching him. With embarrassment he tiptoed to find his seat. Poor Jack.

As much as I was happy to see him, I had been hoping it was Eli at the door. I told myself it was only because we needed Eli to astral travel, but secretly I wanted to see him. His presence alone spun my world into bliss, even when we were arguing.

Uncle Davin clapped his hands twice to get our attention. “Where were we?”

“Oh, you’re showing everyone my book.” Jack sounded excited, squeezing himself between Abel and me. “My grandfather told me in order to find the missing pages, you would have to astro—no, astral travel back in time. Oh, and he said only supernatural beings could read the poems that tell you what I just said.”

We all gawked at him as our jaws dropped. I guessed we could have asked him, but who knew?

“What else did your grandfather tell you?” Uncle Davin’s voice warmed. “Did he tell you what we need to find when we travel back in time? Or to where we should travel? Because presently, we have no clue.”

“He did.” Jack beamed a proud smile. “And I’ll tell you under one condition.”

“What?” My uncle sounded like he was growing impatient.

“You have to take me with you.”

“No way,” everyone spat in accord.

“You’ll get in the way,” Milani muttered.

“It’s too dangerous,” Abel threw in.

“I’m afraid Abel is right, Jack,” my brother agreed. “We might encounter demons. It’s no place for humans.”

Jack’s lips protruded. Was he pouting? “It’s my way or no way.”

“Did anyone in this room do the research I asked you to?” Uncle Davin asked.

Silence.

“Great. Even supernaturals are typical senior students.” He shook his head in disappointment. “I did, but found nothing. So I guess Jack comes with us and everyone is responsible for him. Got it?”

After everyone agreed, Jack got ready to do his speech. “My grandfather told me we needed to find the three missing pages. Each page has a clue that leads to the next page. And the last page will reveal what we are searching for.”

Uncle Davin’s brows pinched together as he leaned. “I already knew that. Tell me what I don’t know. Tell me where we need to go.”

“Oh,” Jack continued. “So this is how it works: First, you must find a descendant of the Knights Templar. Not just any descendant. The descendant must be from Jacques de Molay’s blood. Lucky for you, I’m it. So the hard part is done. Aren’t you glad I came?”

When no one answered, he cleared his throat and began again, “You turn to the page where the three pieces are missing. Between what’s left of those pages, you place a strand of my hair and then a drop of my blood on the hair. It will open a small portal to the location we must go. However, we need to go through it by astral travel. So let me explain what that means. Your body will be here, where you are sitting, as if you were asleep. A part of you will be where we travel. Fair warning—and this is the horrible part—if you die there, you don’t come back. So we’re back to square one. Where is Eli?”

There was dead silence for what seemed longer than it probably was.

“Right behind you.” I heard his voice, but I couldn’t see him.

A black mist transformed into Eli. We locked eyes, but only for a brief second. The room suddenly brightened. For some odd reason, a small smile spread across my face. And for reasons only my heart knew, electrifying tingles awakened every nerve ending in my body.

“I knew you wouldn’t let us down.” Milani’s lips spread from ear to ear. She looked like she wanted to hug him, edging off the sofa, but then changed her mind.

“Were you here the whole time?” Brody asked with wide eyes and a half-smile. He spread his legs, noticeably more relaxed, compared to when Eli hadn’t been there.

“Just long enough to hear Jack explain. He’s right though.” Eli started pacing around us, keeping his eyes on the book. “If you die there, you don’t come back. You also must keep in mind when you astral travel, the people can’t see you, but the demons can. Don’t be alarmed when their body goes right through you like a spirit, but try to stay out of their way. You must do whatever you can to not alter what is already the past. Some humans have the capability to astral travel, but only when they are sleeping. However, I can take you there any time of the day since I have that kind of power.

“This isn’t going to be easy,” Eli resumed. “We don’t know what’s lurking on the other side. If Cyrus needs me, then he’s up to something. That book is the only thing he doesn’t have, besides me. That means he’s found another of Molay’s descendants, or not. I don’t know. Since our bodies will be lifeless, and we can’t protect the book or our bodies while we’re elsewhere, Milani will cast a spell to hide us. We will be able to sense any trouble if the demons come near the shield. Does everyone agree?”

We answered, “Yes.”

“Milani, start preparing,” Eli ordered, talking like the great leader I knew he could be. I’d thought that about him the first time we met.

Milani stood up and raised her hands, overlapping them in circular motions. “Air we breathe. Air we need. Light as air we seek to keep. Conceal us. Protect us. Let it be as crystal clear.” When she placed her arms down, a soft breeze whirled throughout the room. “Done.” She sat back down.

“Good job,” Eli complimented her and continued, “I’m going to need Milani’s help. There’re too many of us. I’ve never done it with a group. With one, yes.” His eyes fell on me then back to the book. “But not with this many people. I don’t even know if it will work.”

“Let’s try.” Uncle Davin got up and went around the sofa. He pulled several strands of hair from Jack’s head.

“Ouch.” Jack rubbed the back of his head. “You could have asked. I would have given you more than one.” He frowned.

“That’s good to know.” Uncle Davin sat back in his spot. “Eli, by the way, next time use the door. There’s a reason why the door was invented.”

“Oh, I know. But I don’t need it,” he said matter-of-factly and then squeezed between Jack and me. I could sense Jack wasn’t happy about that. My uncle scowled at Eli’s comment.

“I thought you weren’t coming,” Abel said. “You’ve come to your senses.”

“Don’t make me change my mind,” Eli grumbled.

I didn’t know why Eli had changed his mind, but a part of me wished he’d come for me. I recalled Abel’s words to Eli, telling him he should be there for me.

“And for the record, I’m not a traitor,” Abel blurted out of the blue.

“Not now, Abel,” Eli growled.

Uncle Davin placed strands of Jack’s hair between each of the shreds of paper near the spine of the book. He then willed his sword and grabbed Jack’s hand.

Jack yanked his hand back. “Whoa. Wait a minute. Don’t you have anything smaller? You could kill me with that.”

“Here.” Abel took Jack’s hand and brought it to his mouth.

Jack pulled back, watching Abel’s eyes turn amber. At the same time, his canines dropped lower, transforming to razor-sharp fangs.

“You’ve never seen that happen, have you?” Brody asked. You could tell he found it amusing as he kicked back and crossed his legs.

“Holy...awesome.” Jack leaned in closer, observing how Abel’s teeth sank into the tip of his index finger. “Ouch!” He jumped.

“Don’t waste it or I’ll bite you harder next time.” Abel guided Jack’s finger to the book and then flipped it over so the pearl drop of blood fell precisely on Jack’s hair. I flinched when it sizzled and then disappeared as if it were never there. Then something glowed brightly. “You’ve got some potent blood there, my friend.”

“It’s time.” Eli grabbed my hand. Even though every ounce of me wanted to yank it out of his tight grip, I conceded. “Everyone stand up and hold hands,” he ordered. “Milani, on the count of three.”

“Wait,” Jack said urgently.

“What is it?” Eli was irate.

“Do we have seven?”

“Does it matter?” my uncle snapped. “Let’s get on with this.”

“Yes, it does. We need at least seven. One, two, three...” Jack counted, “...seven, and I make eight. Uncle Davin doesn’t count ‘cause he’s old. So we’re good to go.”

Uncle Davin gave him the evil eye.

Eli inhaled a deep breath and counted, “One—”

I held Jack’s hand with my free hand.

“Wait,” Jack said sheepishly.

“What is it?” Eli spat through gritted teeth.

“I can’t believe this is happening. I wish my grandfather could see this.” His lips quivered and my heart melted for him. I understood his pain of longing for someone he loved. “Being one of the descendants, as we go forth on this crusade together, I dub thee knights. We are the chosen knights.”

“Here, here.” Brody raised his hands, causing Milani’s hand to be raised and then it rippled around the circle of hands like a wave.

“Here, here,” everyone groaned unenthusiastically.

Eli sighed. “Let’s try this again, shall we? One—”

Jack smiled at me and squeezed my hand.

“Two—”

The wind blew, but only within our circle, and a light appeared. The portal opened, and Eli and Milani closed their eyes. Already knowing how this was going to feel, I closed mine too and prepared for what was to come.