Angel Seduced

by Jaime Rush

  “Kye? What are you doing here…with them?” Then he saw Silva’s grip on her wrist, must have seen the fear in her own eyes.

  “You know this boy?” Treylon asked.

  “From Harbor,” she said simply. She pulled away from Silva and approached Lyle, taking his hands in hers. “How did you get here?”

  “They took our bus.”

  The trip to the Everglades. So many kids at once. Lyle had mentioned it during their ride to the Bend. She really thought she would be sick, but she held back the nausea. “Jonathan’s here,” she whispered. “He’s all right.” For now.

  Lyle’s eyes filled with emotion. “Where?” he whispered.

  “Bond him and the Dragon over there,” Treylon said, pulling the girl over. “There will be no time for resting in between.”

  Kye could feel a difference in the air. The storm’s effects had arrived. But there was something else going on, too. Through the window, she could see the vessel, not quite full enough.

  Treylon told the kids how the bonding worked and that the Caidos would draw their essence to send to the angels above. He clasped his hands together and smiled. “You will help free them. They will be very grateful.”

  The children would never understand his way of thinking. She took Lyle’s hand and that of the girl. She needed to protect them, all of them, as fast as she could.

  Kasabian and the others gathered outside the gate. “We incapacitate when we can, kill only when necessary,” Kasabian reminded them. “Some of these minions could have been taken the same way I was, against their will. One of them helped a boy escape. At least that’s what I suspect.”

  “But there’s only one way to get inside the barrier,” Hayden reminded him.

  “We kill one to get in and play the rest by ear.”

  Their plan was simple. Disable as many minions as possible. Kill Treylon and Silva. “We gather all the kids together and Leap them to Harbor. We’ll get them all home from there. No one gets left behind.”

  Hayden looked at the buildings in the distance, his expression tense with worry. “And we find Cecily.”

  “She’ll be with the kids,” Kasabian said, but his mind kept chanting, Kye, Kye, Kye. Finding her, laying eyes on her, pounded through his head.

  He led them around to the right, where he’d been caught before. They stripped off their shirts and Invoked. He spotted one of the minions in the distance and made a sound to draw his attention. The guy headed over on full alert. The three were hidden, leaving only Kasabian visible. He ducked behind a bush just as the Caido headed over.

  The Caido passed through the barrier to investigate the shape he saw in hiding. The Caido who would die to allow him passage inside. Kasabian didn’t recognize the man whose own wings were out, his Light ready to annihilate. Kasabian released his Wraithlord, lunging at the Caido and whipping black vines all around him. One slapped over his mouth just as the man was about to scream.

  Kasabian leaned close. “Where is the woman Treylon brought here?” He loosened the cord.

  “Another demon freak,” he spat out. “Go to hell where you belong.”

  “You first.” Kasabian drew the vines so tight that the man’s flesh bulged between them. Something popped inside him, and he fell still. Kasabian released him and turned to the three who stood in silence watching.

  Hayden cleared his throat. “Glad you’re on our side.”

  Mallory stepped closer to Hayden, her eyes wide. Great. Kasabian had lost both his friends.

  The power of his Wraithlord pulsed through him. He hoisted the body over his shoulder and held out his hand to Mallory, who was the closest. “We have to link together to get through.”

  She stared at his hand for a second, then clasped it. Hayden took hers, and they passed through.

  Mallory pointed up. “What is that?”

  They all turned to a formation of clouds moving in unnatural ways above the compound. No, not clouds but forms that were stretching, pulling. Angels, he realized, their enormous wings smashed against one another’s as they crammed into this one space.

  “It’s happening,” Kasabian whispered. “They’re freeing the angels.” Kye would be with the kids. “I’ll take the building in the center. Mallory, go right. Hayden, left.” He shot toward the pathway, staying close to the lush foliage. Another Caido patrolled the path, approaching from the right.

  Kill.

  The urge to take him out rushed through him, fed from his last kill. Kasabian crouched like a predator, waiting for the Caido to come near. He was barely out of childhood himself, brainwashed into loyalty. And he would kill Kasabian if given the chance. But Kasabian would not kill him if he could help it. He waited until the young man was nearly even with him and then sent out the vines to snag him around the ankles and jerk him off his feet.

  The Caido sent a jolt of Light at him as he fell, his expression angry and determined. Kasabian shifted out of the bolt’s way and Leaped to the Caido just as he hit the ground, gagging him with more magick. His Wraithlord strained to eviscerate the terrified Caido. Kasabian stuffed the urge back and sent a benign blast of Light into his head, putting him into a deep sleep. He pulled the young man into the bushes and continued toward the building.

  The windows had bars on them. So not a resort. He dashed toward the blind corner and peered around the edge of one of those windows. Children were sprawled on the beds like rag dolls. One boy was curled up in a chair crying. They were too late.

  No.

  The boy looked up. A Caido who had been spared by Kye’s magick. Kasabian pressed his finger to his mouth. He would be back. His wings brushed against the bushes as he moved on. The next room held more children, all asleep. He had to believe they were asleep and not…

  The memory of that girl dying in his arms rose like a treacherous swell, threatening to suck him under.

  A rattling sound came from the next window, and the sound of labored breathing. Kasabian inched over slowly, stopping when a bloody hand thrust out through the broken glass and curled around the bars. A child’s hand. Kasabian stepped into view, his finger over his mouth. He came face-to-face with Lyle.

  Relief suffused the kid’s face. “You’re here! I have to get to Jonathan. Kye said he’s here.”

  Kye, alive. Close by. “You saw her?”

  “She did some kind of magick to help us, but it only helped me. Not her.” He nodded toward the girl lying on the bed.

  Kasabian’s chest squeezed so tight he could hardly breathe. “Is she dead?”

  “No, but she’s dying. And I can’t help her.”

  “Back away from the bars.” Kasabian sent power surging through his hands. Black tendrils coiled around the bars, bending and melting them.

  Lyle just stared. “Dude, that’s sick.”

  Kasabian didn’t get some of the kids’ lingo these days, but he thought that was a good thing. The bars sagged to allow space enough for Kasabian to climb inside. He pressed his fingers against the girl’s forehead, sending her a dose of healing Light.

  Her eyes fluttered, and she tried in vain to open them. It wasn’t enough. She needed her essence back. He went to the door and listened for sound in the hallway. “How long ago was Kye here?”

  “A while. She looked tired. And really sad.”

  She would use up all her magick, her life force, to save the kids. Because that’s who she was.

  Kasabian heard nothing in the hallway. They’d come and gone, at least from this floor. “I know you’re desperate to find Jonathan.” As desperate as he was to find Kye. “And we will find him and bring him to Harbor. But you running all over the place is only going to alert the scumbags that something’s going on. So I need you to be cool and logical. Can you do that?”

  “I think so. Yes. I can do it.”

  “I’m going to open all the doors on this floor. I need you to corral the kids in here, close the door, and wait for me, Hayden, or a female Caido named Mallory. One of us will come and get you.” He gripped th
e kid’s shoulders. “I need to be able to count on you, Lyle.”

  The kid was shaking with fear and adrenaline. “You can.”

  “I’m going upstairs. I’ll call for you if it’s clear. Then you can bring any kids who are up there down to this room. Got it?”

  Lyle nodded.

  He rubbed the kid’s head and worked on the doorknob. The metal bubbled and melted away, dripping down to the floor.

  He stepped into the hallway, Lyle right behind. One of the minions stood just outside the building’s glass door, his back to Kasabian. He Leaped, landing right behind him. The Caido turned just as he materialized. Kasabian had to silence him immediately. He tried to shoot him with the same sleep jolt, but the minion took him by surprise and shot Kasabian in the legs with searing Light. The minion started to open his mouth to scream, forcing Kasabian to slice Light across his throat. He collapsed into Kasabian’s arms, and he pulled him into the foliage by the building. At least this one wasn’t young.

  Lyle continued gaping, even when Kasabian Leaped back to where he stood.

  “I’m sorry you had to see that.”

  “No, I’m glad I saw it. I wish I could do it and kill these bastards.” He mimicked the action.

  Kasabian worked on the doorknob to the room closest to them. “Get the Caidos to help you with the Dragon and Deuce kids. You’ve got some strength left.”

  He disabled all the doors. Gods, so many children. Would his own magick dry up before he could Leap them out of here?

  Chapter 24

  Treylon watched Kye pull the last vestiges of her magick to bond two more children. Demis had told him they were close to having enough power thirty minutes earlier. The angels were beginning to pull free. Victory, finally!

  Only two more rooms of children remained. Demis thought that would be enough. The Dragon and Deuce gods would get any leftover power. As much as Treylon liked the idea of having them indebted to him, or at least grateful, the angels were his first priority.

  He felt the familiar prickle of Demis’s presence. A summons. “I have to talk with Demis,” he told Silva. “Take her to the next room.”

  Kye slid to the floor as though her bones had disintegrated. Tears streamed down her face. “I can’t,” she said on a hoarse voice. “I can’t help anymore. I don’t have anything left.”

  “Make her,” Treylon mouthed to Silva, who eagerly nodded. He seemed to have some personal aversion to the woman. As long as he didn’t kill her before her usefulness was through, Treylon didn’t care.

  Demis usually wanted to see Treylon alone, a request he was glad to honor. The angel did not like to deal with the more diluted versions of his progeny. Treylon went down the stairs and out the front door. Where was the guy who was supposed to be guarding it? A quick glance didn’t find him, but nothing looked out of sorts, so he continued.

  Maybe Demis was going to tell him it was done. Treylon’s chest swelled just imagining it. He searched the sky, seeing the angels pulling against some unseen bond. Not yet then. As the solar storm approached, the angels, and now the gods, had to come close to receive the power.

  “Sir!” A member of his staff ran toward him. “Dragon…girl.” The Caido heaved in deep breaths. “One of the new arrivals turned Dragon and killed a worker. She’s at large.” Another breath. “What do we do with her?”

  One of his people, dead. That was annoying. Silva was supposed to make sure the kids were too young to be Awakened. He called Silva. “A girl Catalyzed to Dragon and is on the loose. I need you to send the wraiths after her. I can’t afford to take any of our people away from their duties.”

  Silva grunted. “That must be the girl Gemini just brought us. I knew she was Awakened, but I didn’t think she’d be a problem, being new and meek. I’ll take care of her.”

  “If she’s newly Awakened, you should be able to get her under control quickly. Kill her only if necessary.”

  He continued heading toward his suite. Demis was already waiting, his ethereal image filling the room. It was translucent, probably because Demis was projecting from his place near the vessel. “Trouble,” he said. “We have intruders.”

  Silva hung up with Treylon. “I have to attend to a matter.”

  Kye didn’t appear to be at risk of running again, but he couldn’t take any chances at this point. He stepped out in the hallway and asked the Caido standing guard to watch her.

  He would no doubt hear about the Awakened Dragon later. Hopefully Treylon would be so happy at his success that he’d forget the incident.

  Silva Leaped to the cafeteria, where a bubble of Light contained two black beasts. They had once been Gren and Beldeen but were now soulless spirits—shorter and looking vaguely like gargoyles.

  “I am your Wraithlord,” he said to the horrid little beasts.

  They scurried to his side of their prison cell, awaiting his orders. Without wills of their own, they drifted aimlessly. If they had no master, they created their own kind of mayhem, sometimes being mistaken for ghosts or demons. Wraithlords could command their will. He had used them before on another pesky female Dragon and her Caido cohort. Hopefully they would succeed this time.

  “There is a Dragon on the property. You will hunt her down and bring her here. If she resists, tear her limb from limb.”

  They clawed the side of their cell, eager to do his bidding. He opened the door of the bubble, and they loped off. He watched them disappear around the corner. Then he looked up to the mass of angels hovering above the grounds. They had made themselves visible, and Silva could see the ties that bound them to their progeny. His life—all Caidos’ lives—would be different once the curse was lifted.

  Even if it worked, Silva would still be in pain. A pain that had nothing to do with the curse and everything to do with Kasabian.

  Silva returned to Kye and dragged her to the next room; dragged because she could barely stand, much less walk. He wasn’t brutal, just impatient. She couldn’t stand the feel of his hands around her waist as he guided her to the door. There was something she’d wanted to say to him, but she couldn’t seem to remember.

  A quick blast of an alarm shook her. “What was that?”

  “One of the kids went Dragon on us. They’ll find her.”

  Fear squeezed Kye’s throat. “What will they do to her?”

  “She’ll be killed,” he told her in a flat tone. He opened the door and led her inside the next room. He gave the children his standard speech.

  Kye could barely focus on the two children holding each other in the far corner. Choked sobs erupted from her throat as she sank to the side of the bed. “I can’t do it.”

  Silva sat on the bed beside her. He waved his hands, and a warmth stole over her. That took away a little of her fatigue. In a low voice, he said, “We have to use them one way or the other. In five minutes, I must start them channeling.”

  Kye managed to push herself up. She wiped at her face, not wanting the kids to see her like this. Poor things were already terrified.

  Silva tilted his head, studying her as though she were some curiosity. “You would sacrifice yourself to save one more child.”

  “They’re innocent, and it’s our responsibility, as a race, to protect. To cherish and love them.”

  Silva’s face twisted in a grimace of pain. “No one protected me for most of my so-called childhood.” He removed the emotion from his expression. “Just as you would sacrifice your soul for them, I would do the same for my father. He was the only one who protected me.”

  “He kidnapped you.”

  “He took me out of my own personal hell.”

  “Treylon used you, just like he used his own son. The same as he uses all of these children.”

  “No, it’s different with me. He…” Silva couldn’t say the word.

  “Loves you? Is that what you believe?”

  The muscles in his jaw twitched. “Love is a silly concept that belongs on greeting cards and in empty promises. What matters is loyalty. Dedicat
ion. But I don’t understand what drives you to squeeze out the last of your magick to save people you don’t even know.” His dark blue eyes implored hers. “Can you explain that to me?” His gaze flicked to his watch. “In two minutes or less.”

  She nearly laughed, despite the tricky conversation. “I’m not sure I could explain it in a day. Love is not some concept. It’s real. First you have to love yourself, despite your faults and the shadows you harbor. Like my Cobra, love is about giving away part of yourself and accepting a part of someone else. It’s never about giving away all of yourself. Or taking all of someone.”

  She forced herself to place her hand over his. “You’re in love with Kasabian because he’s a Wraithlord like you, and you think that alone should bond you. You want to possess him, to force him into submission and salve those old wounds of betrayal. But he never betrayed you, Silva. You placed your need for acceptance by Treylon above everything else. Kasabian placed the safety of a group of children above all. You know him. Could he have done anything else?”

  Her heart swelled with affection and admiration for Kasabian. She knew he was doing everything in his power to find this place. “You’ve placed your affection, hopes, and fantasies on two very different men. One as a father figure and one as a love interest. Think about who they are and what they’ve done in their lives.” She gestured to the kids. “What kind of father subjects children to torture?”

  “But it’s for the good of all Caidos.”

  “That’s what Hitler said. Not the Caidos part, of course, but he believed that killing all those innocent people was for the good of mankind. Do you believe that, or are you just repeating what you’ve been told for so long?”

  Silva slowly blinked as her words seemed to register, saying nothing.

  “But isn’t he really after the gratitude of the angels?” she continued. “Even he admitted that motivates him. You’ve no doubt suspected that his real cause is self-serving.”