FORBIDDEN

by Curd, Megan

  We got out of the car and I put my hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “Who’s the lovely lady?”

  They both turned, and I was completely shocked to find I knew the girl.

  I didn’t have to even voice her name. Reina shrieked it at the top of her lungs. “Angie? What in the world are you doing, bringing her to the dance? Do you want the entire school massacred?”

  Ethan smiled broadly and put his arm around Angie. “Don’t listen to the nutter, Ang. She’s just jealous she’s not the most beautiful one at the ball now.”

  Reina tossed her hair back in a huff, coming closer to Ethan. If I were to guess, I’d say Reina was about to take a swing at Angie. Reina turned her rage full on Ethan instead. “Ethan, you’re an idiot. She will try to kill everyone in the entire school before the end of the night.”

  Angie, who had been silent up until now, locked her eyes on Reina. “Actually, I just have one person I’m trying to get rid of tonight.”

  “Who, Hannah?” Reina said spitefully. “Levi won’t let you do that, and you’ll cause more of a headache for everyone by making us need to babysit you.”

  “No, actually,” Angie said, as she shrugged out of Ethan’s embrace. “You.”

  Reina laughed spastically, an edge of hysteria to her voice. “Now why would you do that, and how would you even manage to? You’re even more foolish than I thought.”

  Reina made a lunge for Angie, but I grabbed her just in time. Ethan did nothing to stop Angie. He just stood there, seemingly enjoying the catfight unfolding. I yelled at him, hoping he’d stop this stupidity before it got out of hand. People were starting to watch. “Reina, chill out! Ethan, would you mind explaining what’s going on?”

  “Seems like there’s a traitor in our midst,” he said casually. “I did some digging, found some things out. Looks like someone’s not playing for the home team anymore.”

  Reina screamed in defiance and tried to claw her way out of my grasp. Her nails were biting into my skin, causing me to bleed. My hold on her wavered for a moment, but I managed to keep her under control. I looked at Ethan, confused. “E, can you just leave? We don’t have time for this.”

  “You’re right, we don’t,” he said. “Angie, would you care to do what you came for?”

  She grinned. It wasn’t the sweet smile I’d grown accustomed to over the past year, though. This was something completely different. Her skin began to take on the steely look of a Hunter, and her lean muscles began to tense underneath her sheer dress. Her face took on a wild, feline look, as though she were on the hunt. “I’d love to.”

  Without any other warning, she lunged at me. There was no time to respond. She was on top of both Reina and I, her teeth inches away from Reina’s throat. She was unnaturally strong. My strength was no match for her. I tried to keep Reina under my body and away from Angie. Out of nowhere, I felt myself lifted off the ground.

  It was Ethan.

  I screamed at him. “What the hell are you doing, man?!”

  “Something I should have done a long time ago,” he grunted, “Taking care of you.”

  With that, he threw me against a minivan in the aisle next to us, and I felt my body imprint into the side before I crumpled to the pavement.

  Stars floated before my eyes, and I tried to find Reina. The world swam in my blurred vision, but I heard the screams that began to erupt all around us. It only caused my head to hurt worse.

  Reina screamed somewhere nearby. I forced my legs to function, the muscles struggling to cooperate. My vision cleared just in time for me to wish it hadn’t.

  The scene unfolding in the parking lot was pandemonium. People were running in all directions. In the middle of the fray, Reina and Angie were crouched, each attempting to get the better of the other. Ethan leaned lazily against the Harley. He seemed to be amused by the whole thing.

  It pissed me off.

  The minivan was already a mess and our cover was blown, so it might as well go to good use. Not even thinking, I picked it up and hurled it at Reina and Angie.

  The crunch of metal drowned out the screams of the people running away. I sprinted over to stop Reina from tearing Angie apart while they were distracted.

  Ethan caught me before I could make it all the way to the center of the carnage. “Stay out of it!” he hissed in my ear.

  “Why would I want to do that?” I yelled over the din.

  “Because Reina isn’t with us! She’s with Owen!”

  That struck a chord. I stopped struggling for a moment, stunned by his comment. “How could you even think something like that? She’s a Guardian!”

  Ethan pointed to where the minivan had landed. Reina’s leg was pinned under it. Angie was on top of the van, about to go in for the kill. “Not for long, she’s not!”

  My stomach turned over. I’d doomed Reina. I punched Ethan. “Why are you doing this? I thought we were friends!”

  “We are!” He yelled as he shoved me. “That’s why I’m doing this! Reina isn’t who she says she is, and if you’d just trust me, I’ll explain it later!”

  There was no time for explanations. Ethan was out of his mind. I shoved him away and ran toward the wreckage. Angie leapt off the car and down onto Reina.

  I had to look away.

  Reina’s screams filled the air. All of a sudden, the minivan spun through the air like a coin being flipped. Who did that?

  The answer was immediate.

  Owen.

  He grinned as he lifted Reina over his shoulder and pushed his hand out to block Angie’s advance. “You were a bad little experiment, Angie. Thankfully, Reina here has a taste for power, unlike you. I don’t have time for you. Be gone.”

  Light exploded out of his bare hand. It was as if a bomb had gone off. A massive crater exploded in the pavement, and instantly Owen and Reina disappeared.

  Ethan yelled behind me. “Angie! No!”

  I was stunned. Ethan ran past me, coming to rest beside Angie’s limp body. “Clay!” he screamed. “Clay! Get here! Clay, don’t leave me hanging! You promised!”

  He turned on me, his eyes wild. “Get to the dance! They’re going for Hannah!”

  The words shot through me, but for some reason, didn’t spur me to move. I was in shock. Clay materialized out of nowhere, his hands on Ethan, pulling him back from Angie. It was as if everything was moving in slow motion. “Ethan, get back from her. You’re going to – ”

  “I don’t care, Clay! Let her take my chance. I can’t be without her!”

  What? What was he talking about? His wings exploded out, shredding the tuxedo he wore. He broke out of Clay’s embrace and wrapped Angie in both his arms and wings. He turned to Clay, his eyes beyond reason. “Do it! Do it now!”

  Clay looked at me, apprehensive, then turned back to Ethan. “Ethan, I never said – ”

  “I don’t care! Do it! I know you can!”

  He closed his eyes, then nodded. Although nothing had been said and no one moved, Ethan looked like he’d been electrocuted. He let go of Angie and fell to the ground, completely still. His wings were gone.

  I ran forward and began to shake him. “Ethan! Ethan, man, get up!” I turned on Clay, angry. “What did you do to him?”

  Clay looked at me with sadness in his eyes. “He gave his wings for her. She has another chance to live.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t have time to explain! Didn’t you hear Ethan earlier? Owen and Reina are going for Hannah. You need to get there before they do. Go! I’ll be right behind you.”

  Things were changing around me so quickly, I had no time to process anything. What just happened? Was Ethan dead? Angie was human? What?

  “Levi, go!” Clay shouted once more, his panic rising.

  If everything was as Clay and Ethan said, then Hannah was in danger. I couldn’t believe what just transpired. I didn’t know what to believe.

  There was no way I was going to chance Hannah’s life. I burst into flight, tearing the tuxedo top to pieces. I was def
initely going to make a splash at the dance.

  THIRTY-ONE

  Instead of barreling in guns loaded, I landed on the rooftop and silently watched for a few minutes as students filed into the gymnasium. Hannah was nowhere to be seen. I started to panic. What if something happened to her? What if Ethan was right? What if Owen had her? My mind was reeling.

  How stupid was I to stay in the parking lot with Clay and Ethan, standing there like an idiot? I leaned further over the roof, searching for Hannah’s scent, listening for her voice. Nothing.

  Maybe she was still out to eat. That was it. She was just arriving late. She was fine. She was having a good time with the human boy. I found that didn’t bother me anymore. I’d let her do whatever she pleased with her borrowed time on earth, provided she was okay.

  There, in a throng of squealing girls, I found her. Five or six friends surrounded her, all decked out in their dresses. Her smile was perfect. She didn’t need the makeup she put on for the occasion, but she was beautiful, anyway. What was I doing? There was no time to check her out. I scanned the line and area for any sign of Owen and Reina. I didn’t sense them anywhere.

  Good.

  I sighed a breath of relief, and went to sit down on the edge of the rooftop. I preferred to stay up here for as long as possible. Keeping out of Hannah’s way was best. Sure, I’d planned on ditching Reina for Hannah tonight, but at this point my only goal was to keep her alive. Who knew if and when Owen might show up.

  Where was the human boy? Why was he not with Hannah? There’s no way I’d have let Hannah go off by herself if I took her to the dance. The more I thought about it, the less sense it made to leave Hannah down there by herself, even while she was flocked by a gaggle of girls. Really, what were they going to do if crap hit the fan? Nothing. I dropped to the ground and attempted to be as blasé about walking up to Hannah shirtless as I could muster.

  “Uh, excuse me, ladies. Can I borrow Hannah for just a minute?”

  They all stared like they’d never seen a guy before. I’d put my wings away, but all the same, they acted like I was an escaped zoo animal. The whole half-naked thing probably put them off. Hannah didn’t look at me. I put out my hand, praying she’d take it willingly and not cause a scene.

  Hannah was Hannah, of course, and didn’t come quietly. “I’m here with someone else, Levi. Sorry.”

  “Then where is he? I just need you for a second. I need to tell you something.”

  “Not right now.”

  I let out an exasperated sigh, knowing that we were running on borrowed time. “Look, Hannah, I wouldn’t have come if I didn’t really need to talk to you. Let’s just go over here for a second before – ”

  That’s the moment Owen decided to crash the party, literally. He bolted out of the sky, completely out of control. When he landed, it was on a car at the edge of the parking lot closest to us. The roof of it caved in. Metal crunched and contorted from his weight. People started screaming.

  It seemed like people were screaming wherever I went a lot today, and it was never in a good way.

  “Now can we go?” I begged.

  I didn’t wait for a response. She didn’t have a choice. I grabbed her in my arms and ran as fast as I could from the scene, hoping Clay would cut Owen off before he could trail us. Hannah’s mouth was wide open, obviously confused as to what just happened. Then an idea struck me.

  “Do you trust me, Hannah?”

  She looked at me wearily. “I don’t really have a choice, do I?”

  I laughed darkly. “Not particularly, no.”

  Since Owen was here, I knew the Italian restaurant was safe. On the off chance that Clay, Ethan, and Angie were still there, I leaped into the air and took off in that direction. I started to pray for the first time in a long time. My only hope was that I could head them off and tell them my idea before Owen and Reina found us again.

  We landed on the other side of the restaurant, and I hoped Hannah didn’t notice the carnage. It was going to be fun trying to explain that Angie caused a good portion of it, and it was for a good reason.

  Hannah spun around in a circle and took in her surroundings. We were standing behind the dumpster. With the heat of the day having baked the trash for a few hours, it was pretty ripe. Her eyes were watering, and she held her hand to cover her mouth and nose. “What are we doing here?”

  “I need to find Ethan, Clay, and Angie.”

  Hannah’s eyes widened when she heard Angie’s name. “Is Angie ok?”

  “I think so, but that’s not the biggest of my concerns right now. Your safety is the only thing I’m worried about.”

  She started to speak again, but I held my hand up to cut her off. I felt bad, but right now I needed to think. Clay was a Guardian. Ethan was able to just call to him, and he showed up. Would that work for me, too? Would he come? I had to try. “Clay, are you out there?” God, this felt stupid. “Clay, if you can hear me, come back to the restaurant!”

  Within seconds, I could feel the air around me begin to ripple with energy. I felt another Presence emerge. Relief flooded through me; Clay had come.

  Or so I thought.

  “Clay, look, we need to figure out what we’re gonna do with –”

  “You’re going to hand her over to me, since I was her date in the first place,” said the figure of the human boy I’d come to despise.

  “Excuse me?”

  He held out his hand, as though he thought I’d just drop her in his lap. “I said give her to me.”

  “Like hell I’m giving her to you. Who are you?”

  His smile grew, and his very essence shimmered like an old TV. “Levi, we’re old friends, remember?”

  I watched as his figure rippled and shook like a bad image on the television set. A few seconds later, Jude stood before me. Jude? How did he get here? Since when was he involved? Sure, he was in Rome when all these things had started, but that was his stomping ground. What was this? Things were getting complicated fast, and there was no one to help me out of this one. I stalled for time. “Jude, just go back to where you came from.”

  “Your run here with the human is done. Her time has been up. Give her to me, and you might get a lighter sentence.”

  “I don’t belong there anymore. Haven’t you heard?”

  Jude’s smile faltered for a split second, but he regained his composure quickly. “You’re not transitioned completely. You belong nowhere. I will squash you like the bug you are if you don’t hand her over.”

  I could feel Hannah moving in my arms, but I never imagined she could be as incredibly dumb as her next move made me think she was. She pushed away from me, and wiggled out of my arms. She strode over to Jude and simply smiled for a moment.

  That’s when she apparently decided she’d had enough of the supernatural that consumed her life in the past few weeks. If the situation hadn’t been so dire, I would have laughed my butt off.

  Without warning, she spat in his face, then kicked him in the shins. “Go back to hell, you undead creep!”

  Before Jude could get over the fact that he’d just been kicked and spit on by a human, I scooped Hannah in my arms and ran like crazy. She laughed a little shakily, and I guessed it was probably to hide her sheer terror. She looked at me expectantly. “How was that?”

  I laughed as I darted under the nearby overpass and made a beeline back to the school. “If we weren’t in a life or death situation, I’d give you a high five right now.”

  Hannah looked around to get her bearings. As she realized where we were heading, she began to squirm. “What are you thinking, going back to the school? Isn’t that where they’ll look for us?”

  “No,” I said, as I adjusted her in my arms. “That’s the beauty of it. Why would they think we’d go back to the scene? We can blend you in with the crowd.”

  “And what about you, Shirtless Wonder?”

  “I haven’t gotten that far yet.”

  Truth was, I wasn’t sure about anything anymore. What wa
s I keeping her from? Death? Eventually she would have to die. Clay said she was a catalyst, someone to protect. Well how in the world was I supposed to protect her from every demon in hell? There was no way I could do this for very long. She was just on too long of a hit list.

  But why? I wish I knew more. She’d only been in my life for three years. That was like a drop in the bucket for me. We’d only been talking for a few weeks. It was never in my plans to have grown attached to a human or guard one that was so important to… something. My mind reeled as I tried to figure out what to do.

  Where was Clay? Why did he not come for me, but he came for Ethan? Oh geeze – Ethan. What was going on with him? There was too much. I scrunched my face, deep in thought. There had to be something I could do.

  Clay’s voice materialized beside me. Both Hannah and I jumped at the intrusion. “You’re going to give yourself a stroke, thinking that hard.”

  I rolled my eyes at him and slowed to a walk. “Way to show up a little late. You missed Jude.”

  Clay sucked in a breath, and his face showed his surprise. “Jude came?”

  “Heck yeah he did, and I spit in his nasty face,” Hannah said smugly. The girl was such a live wire when she wanted to be. I loved it.

  Clay just laughed at Hannah’s declaration. “Alright, little one, you’ve got spunk. Now we have to figure out what to do about Owen and Reina.”

  “They’ll come looking for her as long as they’re around,” I said. It wasn’t a question, but a statement of fact.

  “I know,” sighed Clay. He watched Hannah with a curious look in his eye. “What you did to be so special…” he trailed off and shook his head. “Never mind. Let’s just get you safely through the day.”

  Hannah pushed away from my chest, her way of telling me to put her down. She glanced between the two of us. “What’s your idea?”

  Clay rubbed his white goatee. “Well, Levi has a good idea, taking you back to the school. There’s enough going on that it will be hard to take you quietly. Of course, that means there will be a scene.”

  “When isn’t there a scene?” I mumbled under my breath.