by G. Bailey
The door swings open, hitting the wall, and two angels I have never seen before step in. They both are dark angels with matching uniforms that are pure white in colour. Thick armour covers their chest and shoulders, and white helmets cover all of their faces except for their eyes. Both of their dark wings are tucked behind them, a harsh contrast to the white uniforms.
“You are being moved for the trial tomorrow afternoon,” the guard on the right informs me, his accent thick and Welsh, if I’m correct. Hearing another person’s voice after so long is relaxing, and I find myself speechless. “Walk ahead, and make one move, you will be handcuffed and placed back in your room until tomorrow instead of the waiting area. This is a kindness to you.”
The guard shivers as the headless ghost walks through his body and out into the corridor.
“Got it,” I reply, nodding my head once and stepping forward. As I walk past them, the angel that hasn’t talked yet tightly grabs my elbow, digging his meaty fingers into my skin. That’s going to bruise.
“Vampire bitch. Don’t bite anyone, that’s against the rules too,” he warns with so much distaste and hate coating his words.
“Wow, anyone might think you hate vampires. What did we do to you?” I sarcastically reply with a sweet tone. He narrows his eyes at me before he lifts his hand and smacks me hard across the face. I would fall to the floor, but his tight grip on my arm stops me from falling. I cover my cheek with my hand, wishing it was worth it to kill this nasty bully.
“Bert, let her go,” the other guard warns his friend, and immediately he drops my elbow. I grit my teeth as I walk forward out into the corridor, which is just more grey stone wall and ceiling lights that match the ones in my room. My cheek throbs, but I drop my hand from it and beg my eyes not to water. Reacting would give them a good reason to put me back in that room. My need to escape this room is far larger than my desire to punch the angel guard. Glancing back at the ghost, my only friend for a whole month, I mentally pray he finds some kind of peace. Being stuck in that room is a fate worse than death. Seeing as there is only a flat concrete wall on the other end of the corridor, I head the other way and move quickly towards the metal door with a tiny window. I vaguely notice there isn’t a single other door down here, like they don’t trust me to be around anyone. It doesn’t stand well for my supposed trial tomorrow.
What the hell am I meant to do next?
I stop in front of the door, crossing my arms as the asshole Bert grabs a key off his belt and unlocks the door. Immediately a fresh breeze blows over me, and I suck in the air like I’ve never breathed before. Bert shoves me between my wings, making me stumble into the grass clearing, and I turn back, glaring at him as his guard friend shuts the door behind us. The first thing I notice are all the people—after a month of no one, I’m so relieved to see other people. They’re standing in a clearing, which is one large space with at least fifty doors in a half-circle on the other side, and I can vaguely see beds in the rooms through the glass doors. Grey slate walls stretch high, at least two floors, and in every corner of the space are watchtowers with angels looking down on me. The grass feels strange against my socks, but it’s better than the cold stone floors I have gotten used to. The sun shines down on me up here, and bells constantly ring in the distance. The city of the angels lies just outside these walls, so close but so far, it seems.
“Blessed be the angels,” the nice guard kindly says, nodding his head at me, but I don’t reply to him as he drags Bert away, and I spin around to find out who else is trapped in this place. There must be thirty people scattered around the clearing, and I recognise at least eight of them as vampires from the academy, but the rest are strangers. One of the vampires, with her bright red hair, catches my full attention as she smiles at me. I remember her from the academy...and she is only eight. Possibly nine. And oh god, the angels are never going to let her leave here. A blonde vampire woman wraps her arm around the girl’s shoulders and draws her away, but it doesn’t stop me blaming myself for getting her stuck in here. If I could have stopped Riley, if I could have convinced Ren to stop the war sooner. If, if, if. I have to save her somehow, and myself, and that is all that is important right now. I can plan everything else out later.
“Kaitlyn!” Vesnia shouts, and I pause as I see my best friend step around a group of vampires and come to a halt. Her red hair is cut much shorter, falling to her shoulders, and several parts are braided. Her clothes match mine—so does everyone else here—and she looks thinner than I’ve ever seen her. I run to her as she steps towards me, and someone else comes to her side.
“Did you say Kaitlyn?” Thallon’s deep voice washes over me as he follows Vesnia’s stare to me, and we lock eyes. I get to them both, and we all crash into each other, holding on tightly as I breathe them in.
Hell on a cracker, I missed them so much. Tears stream down my face as I back away a little, only for Thallon to kiss me, tugging me closer to him. A loud warning bell rings once in the distance, and Thallon lets me go, stepping back and holding his hands up. “We aren’t allowed to touch like that, but it was worth it.”
I laugh as Thallon gently touches my cheek, leaning my head to the side to see the no doubt redness on my cheek.
“The angels suck; that was a romantic moment they just interrupted,” Vesnia huffs, and I chuckle as Thallon lowers his hands, anger burning in them, but I shake my head. It isn’t worth it. Eventually he smirks at us both and runs his hands through his hair.
“I’ve missed you both. Have you been here the whole time?” I ask them as Vesnia takes my hand, like she needs to touch me for simple contact like I do with her. My eyes stay on Thallon’s, admiring his slight beard he has grown and how his brown hair has lost the sun-kissed highlights and is so much darker now. It makes me wonder how long he has been kept inside, just like me. Wearing only the black T-shirt and thick looking black trousers, I see his arms are bigger as though he has been working out, and his body presses against his shirt.
“Yes. When the academy fell, I was in the greenhouse, and Vesnia was walking with Bryne. He fell off the island, and I caught Vesnia before she did, and then we ran to the gardens, where we got knocked out by falling debris,” Thallon explains, and I meet Vesnia’s eyes.
“Have you seen Bryne where you’ve been?” she desperately asks me. “In fact, where have you been?”
“I’ve seen no one, well, other than a headless ghost,” I reply, and she looks as confused as I feel. “But he couldn’t talk, obviously, so I’ve been alone. It’s so good to see you both and hear you talk…I might have been going a little crazy.”
“Why would they keep you alone only to let you see us now?” Thallon ponders. “Not that I’m complaining, but it doesn’t make sense.”
“The guard told me my trial is tomorrow and this is a kindness to me. They are going to kill me, I know it, and they are letting me say goodbye. It’s the only thing that makes sense,” I say in a panic, feeling fear crawling up my throat and threatening to choke me. Thallon tugs me into his arms, and I snuggle into his neck, trying to relax on his chest.
“That won’t happen,” he swears, but we both know he can’t promise me anything. We are in the city of the angels...and we are playing by their rules now.
Chapter 52
Vesnia stirs on the floor, mumbling something in her sleep before settling down as I rest my head on Thallon’s chest, listening to his heartbeat. Rather quickly after I was taken to the clearing, an alarm went off and we were made to go to our rooms, with the threat of death if we didn’t. Thallon quickly explained he and Vesnia share a room for safety, and the other vampires have done the same thing. Pairing up seemed the logical move. But Vesnia insisted we take the bed, while she took the makeshift bed, which was made on the floor when we came in. Other than having a bigger bathroom and more than one towel, the room is pretty much the same as I had. I’m so happy Thallon has protected Vesnia for me; I couldn’t stand if something happened to either of them. Knowing I might no
t have long left in my life, every second I get to spend with one of the men I love is something I will cherish.
“What do you think is going to happen tomorrow?” I whisper to Thallon, and he tightens his arms around me.
“I don’t know, and I hate that. I’ve always been powerless, and it has never once bothered me until right now. I should have chosen a side and become an angel,” he bitterly states, and I lift my head, watching him through the dim light shining in from outside. “I could save you if I was an angel right now.”
“But you never wanted the light or dark,” I remind him, cupping his cheek. “It’s okay to not choose. You don’t have to be something because the world tells you that you should be.”
“Maybe,” he softly replies, but I get the sense he doesn’t quite believe it. He reaches up and strokes his hand down my wing, and they flutter from the touch.
“You’re half-angel. Half of them, and they can’t kill you for being half-vampire when it wasn’t what you chose,” he suggests, but we both know it isn’t true.
“But I did choose Ren and to be his mate. I did choose the vampires, and the light above knows it,” I whisper back, bringing up another thought. Thallon, Henry, Ren and Myles...I can’t choose between them, but I have no idea how they each feel about this all. Like Thallon can read my thoughts, he tenderly presses his lips to my forehead. “I choose to be at your side, and I want you protected and loved. The others are good men, and I see how they look at you. I’m happy as long as you are, and you wouldn’t be with them if they weren’t good for you.”
“Is it selfish that the idea of you touching another woman makes me feel so angry and jealous?” I ask him, and he shrugs. “Yet I’m asking you to share me with other men.”
“Who cares but us? I just want you; you never have to worry about anyone else,” he softly tells me and kisses me gently before pulling away, both of us well aware we aren’t alone. I rest my head back down on his chest, and he rubs his thumb in circles on my hip as suddenly I hear a distant sound...that sounds like singing. It’s not a song, just a prayer of some kind, and it’s very melodic.
“They sing every night around now. The city of the angels always sings,” Thallon whispers to me. The song mixes in with the sounds of crying nearby, the wails of the vampires hurting my heart with how hopeless they sound. “Even when the vampires weep, Neamh sings of hope.”
I don’t have a response to him, and I know his words will forever haunt my soul.
Morning light flickers into the room as the sun rises, kissing our bodies as we lie on the bed. I sit up, leaning over Thallon as he sleeps peacefully.
“He hasn’t slept this well in a long time,” Vesnia whispers to me, and I turn to see her by the door. “He calls for you every night.”
“If they kill me, you will look after him, right?” I quietly ask, and she meets my eyes.
“They will not kill you, and if they do, this city will burn. We will never stop until we have revenge,” Vesnia says strongly. “The vampires will avenge you because you are Ren’s queen. I’ve spoken to so many of them, and they all feel the same way. They may not understand you, but in their eyes, you are on their side and not the angels’.”
A warning bell rings once just before at least four angels land outside our room. Thallon wakes up with a jolt and quickly wraps his arms around me.
“Make this easy, or they will be hurt. Come out, it is time,” a guard demands, and they make space for me to stand in the middle of them, but their hands rest on their swords. I lean up and kiss Thallon, pouring everything unsaid between us into the kiss, knowing he will understand.
“I love you,” I tell him, hoping how scared I am doesn’t sink into my words. This might possibly be the last time we see each other, and I don’t want for him to see me scared. Gods, give me the strength to be brave. He rests his forehead against mine and takes a deep breath.
“They will not kill you, and I love you too,” he whispers. “I will love you forever, Kaitlyn Lightson.”
Letting him go is harder than I ever thought possible, and it hurts in my chest when I step back and hold my head high as I walk over to the angels. They surround me as two hands grip my upper arms, and they fly us up out of the prisons and above the city. Holy angels…Neamh is beautiful. We are in a castle, a huge castle right in the centre, and the walls look like they are made of pearls, the bright white reflecting across the white buildings spread across the city. Angels and winged horses fly around the city made of pure white, everything from the trees to the pebbled streets and cottages on the outskirts of the city, before they hit the deep forests. White blossom blows around the city in the warm air, and it almost brings a tear to my eyes, taking in how beautiful it is. I notice the sun seems so close, so warm as it shines down on the city, and it doesn’t look like there is a single barrier around the city like there was on the academy. We land on a flat roof branded with five circles made of burn marks, and the angels shove me into one.
“Stand still and don’t move,” the guard next to me demands and lets me go before stepping back. I do as they ask, mainly because I don’t see a way out of this, and suddenly white light blasts around me, making a circle surrounding my feet. As quickly as it appears, it’s gone, and I’m no longer on the roof but in a room full of floating black seats that look like goddamn thrones. Sitting in them are angels who look like fossils. Quite literally. I gulp as I look at each of them and how they all look about the same age as Gabriel, with grey hair cut in the same way as each other, short and tidy, and they each have cloaks covering them. The cloaks are a dark green colour, with collars made of white wings with black tips fanning out from their necks, making their heads look like they are resting on crowns.
“Is your name Kaitlyn Lightson, and do you swear to tell the whole truth to the Rights of Angels?” the angel in the middle asks me, his voice echoing around the room. I notice how none of them are dark angels, all of them are light, but their wings aren’t like mine. They are falling apart with barely any feathers on them. “Do answer us!”
“Y-yes,” I shudder out, and silence rings out around the room. A throat clears behind me, and I turn around to see I’m not alone. The room is full of guards, at least thirty of them, and I recognise one of them straight away: Riley. He stands in the middle of the guards at the front, and his uniform has two silver pins on the breast pocket, and the weapons on his belt look expensive, dipped in gold. The once pale, skinny guy he turned into under the vampires’ control is long gone now. His eyes meet mine, and for a moment, I think back to the two kids who used to sneak into my mum’s kitchen and steal the cookies she just got out of the oven before running across the garden to eat them. We were once so innocent of the world around us, and it never had a chance to corrupt us both. I see the reality of the world, the cruelty of the angels, and the mistakes of the vampires, but I know Riley will only ever love the angels. The vampires are his enemy, and they are my home.
Things have changed for us both, and there isn’t a way back from this anymore. I could never forgive him for the actions he took, and he could never forgive me for loving the vampires.
“We find you guilty of betraying the angels; how do you plead?” the angel asks me, and I turn back to him.
If I’m going to go down, I might as well go in flames. They will never, ever let me be free after what I did, and this might be the only chance I have to tell the angels what I really think.
“I find every single angel here guilty of killing their children,” I shout, clasping my hands together behind my back and lifting my head high. “Vampires were born from angel blood, they are your children, and you kill them like they are nothing to you. How could you kill an entire race who are related to you? What gives you the right to kill them all? How can you live with yourselves?”
Of course, no one answers me, but I do hear the guards whispering behind me. “Three goddesses came to earth. One of them bore an angel’s child, and that’s how the vampires were created. Why i
s this not in your history books? Why do you care so little for the child of an angel and a goddess?”
“You speak lies, and they will not save you from your sentence,” the middle angel plainly states, though I see a little wobble in his eyes. Seems my words have hit a nerve somewhere.
My hands shake as I meet the angel eyes who spoke. “I’m a light angel, and it’s hard for me to lie. It’s impossible for me to lie so easily, and you know that.”
“The vampire blood in your system means you do not follow the rules of most light angels,” he effortlessly responds. “Now answer us. How do you plead?”
“If believing the vampires should be saved means I am guilty, then I plead guilty,” I answer, and like a vise is wrapped around my throat, I suddenly can’t breathe. Light blasts around my eyes, and my feet leave the ground as I scratch at my throat, but there is nothing there. Air slowly leaves me as I hear Riley shouting something, and suddenly the vise around my neck disappears, and I slam onto the cold ground. I look up to see Riley in front of me, his back to me and his hands in the air.
“The light above should see her first.” I catch the end of his sentence as he lowers his hands, and I cough, sucking in much-needed air. “She is important to him, and I don’t believe he wants her dead. He told me as much.”
“Fine,” one of the angels responds, and light burns a circle around me once more. Riley looks down at me and steps closer to the light as I gasp for air, trying to breathe in what I can.