When Silver Moons Rise (Lost Immortals Saga #2) (23 page)

I nod. My nerves steal my voice. I didn’t think I’d be facing Zeke. And to know he’s the leader of a gang set on wiping out my kind doesn’t make me feel any better. A few months ago, I wouldn’t have blinked twice at hearing Jade’s news. With the Grace sleeping inside or gone or whatever has happened to it, I face using my angelic strength as the only weapon to defend myself.

“Do you still wish to challenge my decision?” she asks.

“Yes. I’m sorry,” I whisper.

Her shoulders slump, and she lowers her head a moment. “You’re so much like my daughter. Beautiful, headstrong, and so ready to believe there’s good in some of the worst people who ever lived. I don’t want to see the same thing happen to you, Chela. I’ve only known you a short while. From what I’ve seen, you’re a wonderful girl with a bright future. Please be ready to make some hard decisions. Think of the people who are counting on you.” Sympathy swims in her eyes.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be ready.” I turn and walk out the front door.

When I reach the bottom of the stairs, someone grabs me by the arm and pulls me into the space beside Jade’s house. Lilith. Her brother Lionel waits behind the bushes toward the back of the structure.

“I can help you, fancy girl. ‘Cause you’re going to need it. Do you realize that you just challenged Zeke?” Lilith asks, her wide green eyes studying my face. Her stealth skills rival Jalen’s tracking abilities. “Zeke has two other friends here with him. Jade took all three troublemakers in after we found Zeke wandering along the roads during a raid on an Outcast camp. The other two showed up the next day, claiming they were looking for their friend. He’s up to something. I also know he’s a piece of scum. Be careful with him.”

Lionel’s large glasses, something that no one in the Boroughs needs to wear at all, makes him look less than threatening. It still amazes me how well the Tribunal has managed to separate the Nation’s people. Seeing other humans who live this way while I’ve been provided with every luxury you can imagine, makes me feel guilty.

“We can help you free your boyfriend,” Lionel begins.

“It’s not like that between Seth and me,” I say for what feels like the hundredth time since I arrived in this place.

“If that’s what you want to believe,” Lilith teases, a smug grin on her dark red lips.

“No, it’s not what I want to believe. It’s the truth. He’s not connected to me in that way,” I say firmly. Lilith shrugs and stares at me with her strange eyes.

“It’s like this, runt,” Lionel begins, “we help you out, if you get us out of this hell hole of a life.”

“What do you mean?” I ask, even though he has already validated my theory about their help coming with a price.

“Don’t play dumb,” Lionel’s dark eyes stretch wider, and I hold back a laugh in spite of this crazy situation. No two siblings have ever looked so different. “We want out of this nasty life. Jade’s cool and everything, but she’s too gullible. She keeps on letting people like Zeke into our community. Not a good idea.”

“Putting it bluntly, we want a pass into your city,” Lilith says. “I love Jade. She took us in after our parents and sister were killed by a gang of fallen boys. But she’s kind of weak. I hate to say it. Look how easy it was for us to doctor your blood tests.”

“That was your doing?” I ask, unsurprised. “How did you know we were angel-bloods?”

“You think everyone in the Dim Cities is dim? Pun intended, by the way. I saw your necklace. Plus, both you and creepy guy have some serious beauty going on. Too perfect to be normal,” Lilith says, turning her nose up at me. “Since Lionel already read your history on the reader you were smart enough to bring along, we pegged you as our meal ticket. An angel-blood disguised as a government kid. So impressive.”

I disagree with Lilith and Lionel. Jade’s rule comes with fairness and mercy, yes. But I have no doubt she would hold her ground against an attack on her people without blinking an eye. Especially now that I know who her daughter is and what supernatural group they both belong to.

“Listen, I can’t even help myself, right now. What makes you think I can get you a pass into one of the Boroughs? I’m a wanted fugitive. I may never see my own family again.” This admission pulls at my chest, and I swallow against the knot in my throat.

“I have reason to believe something’s going down soon.” Lionel inches toward me. “I’m not just talking about your fight with, Zeke, either. We plan to cause a distraction just before the two of you start rumbling.”

“I’ll free Seth, while my brother’s doing his thing. All four of us will break the camp together,” Lilith says, her face beaming with excitement. Once again, I experience the desperation in the people who live outside of Castle Hayne.

“What about Jade? She relies on the two of you.” I stare back and forth between them. Lilith flinches, but Lionel’s face stays the same.

“She has her advisors, and her patrolmen. She’ll be fine,” Lionel says. But I hear a quiver of doubt in his voice and I see the regret in Lilith’s eyes.

“I’ll do what I can to help. I promise,” I say, sighing.

Part Three:
To Choose or Be Destroyed

Choice, imagination’s most powerful weapon, can either free your mind or destroy your soul.

̴ Faris Toulan

Chapter  Twenty Seven

Between Two Points (Chela)

“You’re more of an airhead than I originally thought if you think there’s a chance for you to beat this guy,” Seth says, crossing his arms with the cuffs on his wrist and the long chains attached to them rattling each time he moves.

His statement boils me up. I’m the champion, an angel-blood, and not just some girl with mutated genes. Wasn’t he the one who told me that on my first day of training at the detention camp? “You’ll need a mental weapon. Something that will serve you well even after you have left this depressing place. The bond we share is all you need.”

I shake my head and say, “How is that possible? There was never a bond in the first place. I stopped it, remember?” A million thoughts rush through my head, and my chest swells with a bit of anger. “There’s no bond. You told me so.” I repeat the words to ease my fears. Deep inside, I know he speaks the truth. There’s something connecting us; or I would never have been able to use his octopus weapon.

“Instead of denying what you feel, why don’t you give in to it for a change? Allow me to finish what I started back in Oceania. A full connection can benefit both of us. Come closer,” he orders and rolls his eyes when I don’t move.

I cross my arms and purse my lips. “I’m not going to try anything. I told you before not to flatter yourself in that way.” I think of Asa’s words.
If Seth dies, then Faris and I perish too.
The choice isn’t all that difficult. I do the only logical thing there is to do and move toward him.

I swallow hard and say, “How can you create a bond when your hands are bound by metal made of galena?”

“Not all things require the use of one’s hands. Sometimes a kiss can get even better results.” He gives me the crooked smile he uses to disarm me.

“Try it, and I’ll slice your lips off,” I warn. Heat rushes over my face. I can feel the blush coloring my cheeks.

Seth rolls his eyes and sighs. “Get over yourself, Lotus. It’s not the kind of kiss you’re probably thinking about; although, that can be saved for later on, if you like.”

“Um, no thanks.” I refocus on my goal, the real reason I mentioned this deal in the first place—saving Faris and Asa.

“Tell me what I need to do,” I say quickly.

“I will. One question, though. Are you ready to unlock the fire element that sleeps inside you?” He almost whispers, and his dark eyes are filled with unspoken words and secrets.

“I—I, what do you mean?” I stutter.

“Don’t play dumb right now, Chela. I’m giving you a gift you’ll need. Remember what I told you before. Equilibrium, the lovely point between good and evil, is something your mind has to be ready to accept. Answer me,” he urges.

“Wait. I have a question of my own,” I begin. He sighs deeply. “Why does it take the touch of a Tainted to unlock something inside of a seraph’s ancestor?” My words quiver. A war is being fought inside my head. His answer can push me over the fine line I walk between the two places I seem to exist inside right now.

“Because seraphs were never meant to leave the confines of the heavens. Once they did and created your race, the Epiclesium, the luxury of having free will came along with that power. To both survive and be able to keep check on the Sons of Gabriel and Bernael’s fallen souls, the seraph’s ancestors needed extraordinary powers, the ability to control both the good and the bad in our world. For a long while, this power was hidden from all of you. Centuries passed. No one questioned the other side of a seraph’s power. And then, a couple of your ancestors were shown a way to use the Grace to unlock both sides of your gift—the light and the dark.”

“Leezra Konkrin,” I whisper, thinking about the scroll that explained how she first learned about the fire in the Grace.

“And Helena,” he mutters, his penetrating gaze boring deep into me after he mentions my mother. “No Son of Gabriel would risk staining his precious royal blooded seraph.”

“Yeah, only a Tainted would enjoy doing something like that,” I say, staring him down so he gets the full meaning of my words.

In return, I get something that sounds an awful lot like a growl. “Let me repeat myself, which I don’t enjoy doing. Are you prepared to accept the full power of the fire inside you, or not?”

“Yes! I’m ready.” I answer, my palms sweaty and my heart thrashing inside me from all of the tension and anxiety in the air around us. Most of all I just want to get this over with so I can move on to finding a way to reach Faris. These trials and tests I’ve experienced over the past few weeks have finally worn me down. I want to rest for a change, to feel the arms of the boy I truly love wrapped around me as we make up for so much stolen time. For now, I must deal with the situation at hand.

“Understand what you are agreeing to, Lotus, and what all of this means. Let me explain. I will have the ability to speak in your mind, to make you see some of the things I see...and feel. I’ll enjoy every single moment, too.” He gives me a wicked Seth style grin.

I frown because a statement like that one deserves a witty response, and I can’t think of a single thing to knock Seth’s ego down by a notch or two. All I can think of is the truth. “I have goals. So do you. I get it. Thanks for the warning. Now stop talking and get this over with.”

He sighs and glances at me with a strange look on his face. If this wasn’t Seth, then I might think the expression was admiration. “You’d do anything for him, wouldn’t you?”

“Yes. I would. That’s what people do when they love each other,” I say and wait for his response to my declaration for his brother. When he doesn’t say anything, I keep going. Seth needs to understand that every move I make, each struggle I overtake gives me the strength I need to keep fighting for a way to return to Faris. “People who love one another are willing to sacrifice anything and everything to see their partner happy.”

“Yes, well, I’m certain the praying mantis feels the same way just before his loving mate rips his head off,” he answers.

I shake my head. “You’re so bitter. It’s going to eat you alive someday.”

“Too late for that advice, Lotus,” he says. “Now move closer to me and wrap your arms around my waist.”

“What’s the point in that?” I ask, feeling uneasy about being so close to Seth.

“A full bond with me isn’t some cutesy white light in a dream. It’ll be painful. Are you sure you’re ready? Perhaps you want to reconsider.”

I move toward his spot and turn my back to him. No way am I going to do as he says. What we’re getting ready to do is already enough of a reason to be wary. I don’t want to encourage any other wild thoughts flying through his twisted mind. Slowly, he lifts his arms and wraps them around my chest, securing me against his body. The chains holding him clang loudly in my ears. The battle inside my mind rages on, and I’m pretty sure the loser will probably be my sanity.

Getting a tighter hold around me, he moves the hair away from the left side of my neck, and says, “Close your eyes. Think of the Grace inside you.”

“Why do I need to do that?”

“You’ll need it as your protection until we’re done.” He tilts my head over to the right and places his lips on my jugular vein. A strange sensation rushes through my body as his hot breath tickles my neck.

Then there are no more words. Only pain. Waves of it surge through my body. I dig my nails into the fleshy part of Seth’s arm that’s holding me, and my toes curl inside my shoes. I want to scream, but I’ll alert the camp to what we’re doing. I want to let go of Seth, but some invisible thing holds me to him.

Finally, I want to shout out to the world about the stupid thing I’ve just done. My reactions don’t seem to surprise Seth. It’s almost as though this is what he suspected would happen.

Uncontrollable feelings of rage rush through me. Visions of people screaming and running through fields of burning bushes flash before my eyes. A group of armored soldiers chase them through forests, across the seas, through the skies: these people are my ancestors. I’m watching a history of what happened to them ages ago.

I’m experiencing the reason behind our low numbers. I see what the Tainted have done, and I burn with anger, a rage so strong I’m not sure if I’ll survive. I promise to make all of Bernael’s men pay and anyone else who stands in my way. The heat increases. I must be burning alive. I growl through my teeth, and my eyes roll back in my head.

Have I made a mistake?

Yes, of course you’ve made a mistake.

I can’t defeat Rabia without knowing the other side of my power. I can’t help to save Faris and Asa or even Seth without this ability. The images are only the beginning.