“That is completely stupid,” Liam butts in. “I am not going in there! That’s just begging to be killed.”
“True, but I know that place like the back of my hand. There are certain halls and corridors that Hellions aren’t allowed to go through because it’s protected by an Angel’s touch. All we have to do is go through those halls until we find our way to the north gates.” Felix’s tone lowers as he turns to look at Jules again. His eyes soften and just by that gesture, I know he’s going to say something that none of us like. “But I will need Alexandria with me,” he murmurs.
“Hell no,” Jules barks in a snap.
“Jules, you don’t understand. Without her—without her as some kind of bait or negotiation—I won’t be able to get to Braxton or my father. I need her for this if we want it to work out.”
My heart lodges in my throat. “Is there no other way?” I ask.
“No—Braxton has every exit and escape guarded by Hellions. The only way out is in . . . and that’s exactly what he wants.”
“Damn it,” Jules spits, pushing his hand through his hair and staring at the ground. There is a brief silence and everyone waits for Jules to speak—including me, which is weird but I really don’t know what else there is to do anymore. This time I want him to make the decision for me. “Alright, alright,” he sighs, glancing into Felix’s eyes regretfully. “How do we go about it?”
****
After Jules and Liam had shut the heater off, grabbed the flashlight that Felix said might be of assistance to Liam, we were on our way out. I still had Jules’ sweater on but I had changed into a thinner pair of sweat pants and a pair of Jules’ bedroom shoes. The clothes were baggy on me but not too baggy to hold anyone back.
The night air had grown harsher, colder. The chill froze me as soon as I climbed up the ladder. Jules was waiting for me, pulling me up and into him with a forced smile.
“Will you try to be safe?” he asks.
“I’ll try,” I whisper as he presses his lips against my forehead. He inhales then exhales, trying to keep his hope but even he knows that things can get very ugly once we go in there—and he’s usually the one with his head held high. I won’t like it and I know that he already hates this plan but it is the only one that will work.
“I love you, Alexandria,” he whispers in my hair. I nod as my chest tightens. And now that I think about it, after all that we’ve been through—after all that I’ve seen, just by being introduced to him—maybe I love him, too. I’ve never had a feeling of emotion hit me so hard. Every time that he says he loves me, I look at him, wide-eyed and confused as to why he does. But not this time. No. I love Jules Maddox, and I’ve loved him before and now I see why I have. He’s risked his life for me in so many ways that I can’t even imagine. I am risking myself and my life for him as well, just by doing this crazy stunt. It sucks that I’ve realized it now, a few minutes before facing death.
“I love you too, Jules,” I whisper back, glancing up into his moonlit brown eyes. His eyes widen and I can’t tell if he’s shocked or confused. I can see the happiness—that part in his eyes is very clear—but he is confused about my words.
“You do?” He raises an eyebrow as if I’ve stated the unbelievable.
I nod and just as he is about to say something else, Liam climbs out with Felix trailing behind him. Jules pulls away, but not too much because the heat of his body is still near.
“Are we ready?” Felix asks, glancing from me to Jules as if he was just standing behind, watching us say “I love you” the entire time. It’s so weird having both of them around, looking at me with envious eyes when I give attention to the other. They hate each other but they’re dealing with the hate . . . for me. It kills me to know that they would go through hell just to keep me safe and it kills me to look at Felix and act like I don’t care about him.
The night that I’d told him that I couldn’t be with him, he still has those eyes on display at this very moment. He tries to cover them up but I see it every time he looks at me. And every time that Jules’ touches me, he looks away and pretends that we aren’t there. I don’t like to pull away from Jules, but at times I feel like I have to when I’m around Felix—just because I have that much respect for him. I love Felix as well—but not in the way that I love Jules. Actually, I’m in love with Jules. That’s the difference and that’s the problem. I love Felix on a level that only we can understand but I’ve fallen for Jules and I have been under his wing (literally) since day one of speaking to him.
Oh, stop it, Alexandria. Right now is not the time to be thinking about this. You are facing a life-or-death situation! My conscious screams at me. She’s annoyed that I have this odd vibe of feelings buzzing around but I decide to listen because she’s right. She’s always right.
“Alright. As soon as we reach the south gates, there will be a fork. You both take the furthest one on the right. As you walk down the hall, don’t make any turns, just keep straight. That is the Angelic hall—the hall that the Hellions cannot place foot on because it shields evil hearts.” Felix looks from Jules to Liam. “Liam, stick with Jules. Don’t be nosey. Just keep your eyes ahead,” he scolds.
Liam holds his hands up, as if surrendering. “Oh, trust me, the sooner I can get the hell out of this place, the better.”
“As soon as the Angelic hall comes to an end, you will have a choice of going left, right, or straight. Just keep straight. Now, there may be a few Hellions at the north gate but I know you can handle them. Just plan it right. Kill them and get Liam out. As soon as you know he’s safe and far away from the castle, come back. I will need you to get Alexandria out of there.”
Jules frowns. “What if I don’t make it in time?”
“You have no choice, Jules. This plan is all about timing. You will feel us when you come back. Just be careful of the Hellions that may be patrolling and as soon as you come through the north gates, keep straight ahead. We won’t be hard to miss.” Jules nods but it isn’t a reassuring one. It actually makes me doubt this whole plan because I’ve never seen him so worried or uneasy. “Alright, let’s move,” Felix says then turns around quickly. Jules grips my hand and Liam catches up with Felix before he can get too far ahead.
We begin to walk quickly, nothing being heard but our slightly heavy breathing. The only other sound is the crunch of the twigs beneath our feet and the rustling as we push through the bundles of leaves and branches. “Are you okay?” I ask softly.
I look up to glance at Jules but his jaw is tight and his mouth is clamped shut, as if he doesn’t want to speak. His grip tightens around my hand but he doesn’t eye me. “I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“It won’t if you come as soon as you can.”
“That’s the problem, Alexandria. I don’t know how soon that will be. It can take me seconds or minutes and—like he said—this plan is all about timing. Time isn’t going to wait for us. It waits for no one.” He looks down at me with agitated eyes. “I just want to say that I’m sorry ahead of time if we don’t get through this.”
My eyebrows knit together as he lifts his hand to push a cluster of leaves out of our way. “Don’t speak like that. We can do this. I know you’re scared and worried but you can’t be as scared or as worried as I am right now. I don’t know what’s going to happen in there, Jules, but I’m keeping my head up and you should do the same . . . for me. Please,” I beg in a whisper.
He presses his lips together into an invisible line. He shakes his head a few times as he looks ahead at Felix and Liam who are now reaching the end of the line of trees. “You’re right.” His features lift somewhat positively. “We will get through this.”
I nod as we finally reach the end of the line of trees. Felix continues to march ahead, knowing this place like the palm of his hand. We pass by the lake that I had dove into and looking at it makes me shudder and freeze again. That water was piercing. I’m surprised that I’m still alive right now. Only an idiot would take a swim dur
ing the winter.
As we round a brick corner, my heart begins to beat slower with each step. The pounding of my heart throbs in my ears as we get closer and closer to the gates. These must be the south gates. The gates where we will be splitting up and where I will be forced to face Braxton once again. As we get closer, the gates tower menacingly. They’re tall, made of thick black metal and large black handles, barricaded with large brick walls. They’re rusty at the edges and hinges and I know that if we dare to open it, it will let out a loud creak that will be heard from over a mile away. Felix stops a few feet ahead to turn and face us.
“We have to fly over,” he says and, almost immediately, his large silver wings spring out of his back. He flaps them and Liam practically shrieks as he stumbles back but luckily Jules catches him before he falls.
“Don’t be a baby,” Jules mumbles as he helps Liam to his feet.
“I wasn’t expecting it. That’s all,” Liam counters, his eyes still wide.
“Come on,” Felix demands, reaching for Liam. He wraps his arm around Liam’s shoulders and immediately lifts from the ground. They land on the other side and Jules repeats by letting his wings shoot out, grabbing me by the waist, and flapping his way over the gates. We land softly and Felix and Jules’ wings swoop to tuck back in within a second. “As I’ve said, you both go right, Alexandria and I will go straight ahead,” Felix says to Jules.
Jules nods then makes his way to Liam. “Just give us a minute head start,” Jules insists.
“Sure,” Felix groans impatiently. I can tell he’s ready to get this over with.
“I love you, Zandy,” Liam says, reaching in to hug me. I grip onto him as tears prick at my eyes. Oh, no. Not right now. I don’t need the tears blinding me. But I love my brother and I know that this is a lot for him to take in. Even if I do make it out alive, I know things will be different between us and I’m not sure if it will be in a good or bad way. I know that I wouldn’t want to be involved in any of this and I would try my hardest to stay clear of that person. I squeeze him for a few more seconds until he pulls away and plants a kiss on the tip of my nose. I giggle then swipe at my eyes before placing one on his as well.
“I love you too, Lemon.” He groans playfully, smiling, then makes his way to Jules’ side.
“Alexandria,” Jules murmurs with soft eyes. I bite on my lower lip as I watch him make his way towards the hall. “Be safe,” he whispers.
“I will,” I whisper back. He nods and before I know it, they are out of sight and quickly enveloped in the darkness of the Angelic hall.
Both Felix and I sigh as we watch them disappear. “Are you ready, Alexandria?”
“I’m trying my hardest to be.” I turn to face him.
“Before we go, I’m sorry . . . about all of this. I know you must be blaming me in that mind of yours but I promise that I had no clue. If I had, Braxton wouldn’t have even gotten this far with it.”
“I know,” I nod sadly. “He was just so tricky, so clever. I was fooled completely.”
“We all were,” he says, chuckling lightly. “I took the cross back. It still has energy that can control you. I’m sorry for that, too. I shouldn’t have tried to trap you like that.”
I tear my gaze away from his to glance at the dirty marble floor that seems to have been around for ages. “Oh,” I mumble. I didn’t even realize that the cross was gone. How did he even get it? I had it stored in a box beneath my bed. Did it really have that much energy? I sigh, shaking my head lightly. “I don’t want to talk about this right now. Let’s just focus,” I say softly.
“Yes, let’s. But if we get out of this alive and well, I want to talk about everything, Alexandria.” He raises an eyebrow.
“We will. I promise.”
He nods then sighs as he turns around to glance down the dark hall that is straight ahead of us. He glances over his shoulder, reaches for my hand, and I take it quickly. He grips it tightly, comfortingly, and I force a smile that covers up for my frantic heart and troubled mind.
“It’s been well past a minute. Are you ready?” he asks.
“Yeah.” I nod but my voice is shaky and my hands are now trembling.
“I won’t let them hurt you, Alexandria,” he murmurs. He turns to face me, reaches to cup my cheek with one hand while his other hand is still holding mine tightly, and then collects me into his arms for a kiss. But it isn’t a hard kiss, a passionate kiss, or a long, drawn out kiss. It’s simple, wholesome, and somewhat reassuring.
But the kiss kind of bothers me because it isn’t a kiss that I would have expected at a time like this. This kiss—it’s an entirely different kind of embrace, especially coming from Felix. My lips tingle as he pulls away, faces forward again, and then marches down the dark, eerie hall without saying another word. The darkness swarms and tunnels around us and now I realize what was wrong with that kiss.
It was a farewell kiss; a kiss that you would give when you feel unsure about something but you are still willing to remain strong. He doubts himself so much that he can’t even say anything else to me about what is going on. He’s risking it all for me. And he knows that even if we are to get out of this deadly situation, we won’t be together in the end. He won’t be the one that I’ve chosen. His kiss was a statement, a sign of holding on but letting go at the same time. He’s holding on to the fight within him—the fight to save and protect me—but he’s letting go of what we had and what we’d shared. He knows that he’s lost the battle for my heart and he’s not going to say anything about us anymore, either.
And the thing about it all is that he doesn’t have to.
His lips have already said enough.
BROTHERLY BATTLE
With every step that Felix and I take, I feel like every one of them is leading me closer and closer to my death. The hall is exceedingly long and dark. There is no other sound but our footsteps. Mine can hardly be heard but Felix’s are pretty heavy. I’m trying my hardest to be as quiet as I can but it’s impossible for me to breathe regularly. The airway to my lungs is closing in, clamping shut and causing me to make a wheezing noise that Felix isn’t too fond of.
“Be calm, Alexandria,” he whispers, still rushing forward without eyeing me.
I ignore him. I can’t remain calm during a time like this. Not when I know that at the end of this hall, a cluster of Hellions may be there—specifically waiting for me. I cringe as a spill of gold light appears ahead of us. The sound of chairs moving and someone shouting causes my breath to hitch and all of the blood to escape from my face and spill on the floor. The shouting is familiar. It’s Braxton, and he’s most likely yelling at the Hellions. Felix comes to a halt and stops just about a yard away from the end of the hall.
“Okay. They’re in the library,” he pants, turning to face me. “He can’t feel us here, we’re too far away. I want you to wait here while I go find the power valve and shut it off.”
“No, Felix, are you crazy?!” I shriek in a whisper. “You can’t leave me here alone. No,” I shake my head.
“Alexandria, it’s right around the corner. I can get there and back within less than a minute.”
“And I can be snatched away within less than a minute just like the other night,” I argue.
He sighs heavily as his head shakes. His eyes remain glued on me and they are hard, scolding. He wraps his hands around my upper arms with a light grip. He’s bringing out the intimidating side in him again—the side that I am always forced to listen to. “Listen to me, Alexandria. Trust me. Stay right here and don’t move an inch. I’ll be right back,” he demands then releases his hold from around me. He dashes down the hall and I watch until I can no longer see him. I begin to panic, clutching at the sleeves of Jules’ sweater and already wanting him to come back.
The slam of a door comes from down the hall where Braxton was once yelling and as I turn to look, a Hellion with a slick black pony-tail and huge, muscular arms storms out. His feet clomp against the ground but before he can get too
far away, another Hellion barges out with aggravated eyes. I gasp lightly and take a few steps back because the farther away I am, I know that they won’t be able to feel me.
“I am so tired of his shit! Why don’t we just kill him and do this ourselves?” the Hellion with the ponytail asks furiously.
“Because we can’t, Leo. Now shut the hell up and get back in there! He’s our only way of finding her. You know that without him, we won’t succeed,” the other Hellion grumbles, marching forward to face Leo.
“Kril, he’s bossing us around. The girl is powerful and all but she isn’t worth the shit that we are taking from him. He’s treating us like his slaves! All we need is Xavier.”
“Just keep it together,” Kril hisses through his teeth, pointing a long, stern finger at Leo. “As soon as he leads us to the girl, we will get rid of him.”
Leo huffs heavily while muttering something beneath his breath before marching around Kril to get to the door of the library again. Kril immediately follows behind him and I let out a sigh of relief but that doesn’t last long because a pair of arms wrap around my waist and pull me back. I begin to scream (out of automatic instinct) but before I can, they cup a soft hand around my mouth.
“Alexandria, quiet!” the airy accent whispers in a hiss.
My eyes widen as the person spins me around to face them. The beats of my heart pick up gleefully as Stacy stares at me with bright, fuchsia-pink eyes. I let out an elated sigh as I hook my arms around her neck and squeeze her against me.
“Oh, Stacy! Oh my gosh,” I breathe then pull away to look at her again. “I thought you were in London. I thought he sent you away.” I grip her hands tightly.
“Yah, well I got as far as the airport. He was acting too weird and I had to figure out what was going on with him. But now . . . I’m afraid that I’d even bothered. He had all of my clothes packed when I had arrived home from work. He told me that he needed a break and that I deserved better than him. He bought me tickets to leave to London that same night, dropped me off at the airport, and he had even given me money to get a hotel but I never boarded the plane. I couldn’t. I love Braxton, and to see this . . .” Her voice weakens into a depressed sob. “To see him like this—I never would have thought. I feel so terrible. Things were getting weird with Braxton and I didn’t know who to tell. I thought I could handle it but I had no clue that he was—”
OBTAINED (Book One) Page 25