Found and Forged

by Ivy Asher

  “Get. The. Fuck. Off. Me,” I snarl, ignoring the clanging of weapons now sounding off all around me.

  “Vinna, think it through! How did Adriel survive?”

  “I don’t know!” I scream at him, panic and anger bleeding out of my tone.

  “You watched him die, Vinna. He turned to ash right in front of you. What else would make more sense here?” Siah demands, his eyes pleading with me to get something, but I have no fucking clue what it is.

  “Siah, if you love me, you will get the fuck off of me right now!” I shout into his face, my demand cracking with frenzied emotion. It’s like everything I’ve been feeling and battling inside is leaking out of me in this moment.

  “It is because I love you that I can’t let you up, not until you understand, my mate,” he whispers softly into my ear, and I can hear the grief in his voice. “That is not Adriel.”

  Siah’s declaration and the hurt that I know he’s feeling by doing what he’s doing to me right now smash through my need to kill. I blink, stunned, as I try to wrap my brain around what he’s saying.

  Adriel’s voice fills my head as I think back on the things he told me while holding me prisoner.

  “He shouldn’t have been Chosen; it should have been me!”

  “Who shouldn’t have been Chosen?” my voice demands as the memory echoes in my mind.

  “Sauriel, my brother.”

  Adriel’s voice fades away, and I make the connection that Siah is so desperate for me to make.

  Fuck.

  I stare up into Siah’s light blue eyes and shake my head, instantly pissed off at myself. I fucked up.

  “How bad is it?” I ask, knowing shit is hitting the fan all around us based off the noise I hear going on. I can’t bring myself to look yet. I need another minute to let the truth soak in. Adriel is dead. I killed him.

  “Eh,” Siah states casually, punctuating it with a shrug. “Pretty sure Adriel’s brother just shit his pants. All of your mates are guarding you and your Shields. Your Shields are trying to get Becket to see what you now see. It’s a battle, but I think we can take ’em.” Siah gives me a playful wink, and I can’t help the tired chuckle it evokes in me. “You good, mate?” he asks sweetly. “Sorry about the biting.”

  “No, it was good thinking,” I tell him as I push up. He rocks back onto his feet and offers me a hand to help me up.

  Sure enough, Enoch, Kallan, and Nash are furiously arguing with Becket. My Chosen surround us, each of them engaged in a fight. We’re surrounded by armed and angry Sentinels. The Quorum—which apparently includes Adriel’s brother Sauriel—are all standing in front of their thrones, exuding outrage over what just happened.

  Shit, shit, shit.

  Wasn’t I just fucking vowing to keep everyone safe? But I go and lose my shit, pretty much guaranteeing that no one is safe now. I try to think through what I can do to stop all of this. I’m pretty sure me raising my hand and announcing my bad isn’t going to cut it. Where’s a damn white flag when you need one?

  Someone hurls magic at Ryker, but his shield flares up to protect him. Another orb is lobbed our way, but I’m distracted by the Sovereign as she sits in her throne, an annoyed look on her face. “I want them cut to pieces!” she declares with a bored tone, like it’s already a foregone conclusion for her.

  The guards press in against us, and we all respond. I get kicked in the gut and shoved back inside the circle that my Chosen and Shields have inadvertently created while they defend against the attacking Sentinels. Instead of immediately rushing back in, swords up, I call on my Offensive magic and start hurling orbs filled with a whole lot of fuck off at the guards.

  I’m surprised, even though I really shouldn’t be, when some of them have shields that pop up and protect them just like I do. My orbs still knock them over like bowling pins but don’t do more than that. I keep at my bowling for Sentinels plan, throwing barriers around the ones I knock down so they can’t get up.

  I fling another barrier out, and then my heart stops when a pain filled cry reaches out and grips my soul in a stranglehold. Terror seizes me as I turn to see a raised sword arcing down toward Sabin. He’s fighting another guard, and there’s no way he can stop the other sword’s progression. Moments with Sabin flash in my mind. His smile. The wrinkle he gets between his eyebrows when he’s concerned or perplexed. His lips against mine, and the way it feels to be loved by him, treasured by him.

  “I am the wrong bitch!” I bellow as I flare purple.

  I open the source of my magic completely and demand everything it’s got. The pressure builds inside of me in a flash, and I grit my teeth against the pain as I watch the blade inch closer to Sabin like it’s in slow motion. I wait until my magic intensifies to an I can’t take this level, and then I shove it out of me. The pulse passes through my guys and doesn’t even make them sway—which is exactly what I wanted—but as soon as it slams into the other Sentinels, it flattens them. They slam to the ground with such force that the sound reverberates around the room.

  My purple magic rages like a tsunami toward the Sovereign. It smashes against a barrier and shatters it like glass. My magic slams into the leaders of this city. It blows the royals back into their thrones and then flips those thrones on their backs. I’m pretty sure my magic just made it clear what it thinks of their monarchy.

  I stand there, a little shocked by what I just did. I’ve used this ability before, both on purpose and on accident, but never on this level. The room goes from a battlefield to eerily quiet. We stand there, trying to take in what just happened and catch our breath. I run my gaze over all of them but don’t see anything I should be concerned about.

  “Should we run?” Bastien asks after a minute as his eyes skate over all the people on the ground in the room.

  “I don’t even know if we can,” I admit. “Will we make it out of the city?”

  “You’d have to leave us behind. They might be able to track us through that chick’s Chosen marks,” Kallan announces, and once again I have no clue if they can, or even would, come after us. I know I can alert my Chosen as to where I am and that I need them; can it work the other way around?

  “Fuck,” I shout out and run my fingers through my matted and tangled hair. “I’ve fucked this all up.”

  “No, they fucked this all up when they attacked us in the forest,” Valen states calmly.

  “Definitely not the most welcoming lot,” Sorik agrees.

  I look around the room at the unmoving figures. I can still see that the guards are breathing, so they’re not dead, but at this point, I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I trace a path toward the thrones and move off in that direction.

  “What’re you up to, Killer?”

  “I’m going to fix the thrones and put the royal assholes back in them. Maybe if they come to upright instead of ass-up, they’ll be more understanding.”

  “Oh...oh...better idea,” Knox announces, raising his hand like an eager student. “What if they wake up and find us sitting on their thrones? You know, let ’em know they fucked with the wrong coven from the get go.”

  I chuckle and then start fixing chairs like I’m cleaning up from an epic party.

  “You good, Becket?” I ask as he eyes Sauriel warily.

  “Yeah, talk about a mindfuck though. Think I can kick the asshole a couple times before he wakes up? You just know this fucker knew his brother was operating with a few screws loose.”

  “I won’t tell if you don’t,” I offer on a grunt as I get the big black royal with the almost white eyes settled in his now upright throne.

  Snickers bounce around the room.

  “I love when she goes all ruthless,” Bastien sighs dreamily.

  I roll my eyes at him and hide my smile.

  “Yeah, she had my heart from the minute I saw her beating the shit out of you,” Valen agrees, giving his brother a cheeky grin.

  “Anyone need healing?” Ryker asks.

  The guys all answer
no or shake their heads. I look down at my stomach, just now remembering that I got stabbed earlier.

  What the fuck does that say about this day that I forgot about taking a dagger to the gut?

  I run my hands over where the wound should be. Dried blood and dirt flake off, but it doesn’t hurt, and I can’t for the life of me find a wound.

  That’s fucking weird.

  I twist and try to look at my back, like somehow the stab wound is going to show up there when it’s not showing up on my abdomen, but there’s nothing aside from proof that I could really use a shower.

  “What’s wrong, Vinna?” Sabin asks me when I start turning around like a dog chasing its tail.

  “I got stabbed earlier,” I tell him as I make another revolution.

  “What?” multiple voices demand all at once, and the next thing I know, I’m surrounded by worried and upset Chosen and Shields. Hands search my body for a wound that’s no longer there, while Ryker and Nash both start firing out instructions and questions.

  “Fucking hell, you guys. Back off for a second. I can’t find a wound. Nothing hurts. I’m fine!” I insist.

  Ryker looks at me confused. “What do you mean you can’t find a wound?” he asks at the same time Nash insists, “You are not fine! Getting stabbed does not equal fine!”

  I ignore Nash and answer Ryker. “Just like I said, I don’t have a wound anymore.”

  “Are you sure you were actually cut?” Kallan questions, his gaze tracing my body like he’s double-checking that everything is okay.

  “No, she was bleeding earlier. I remember,” Enoch states.

  “You saw her bleeding earlier and didn’t say anything?” I expect a comment like this to come from Knox or maybe Bastien, so I’m surprised when it’s Becket who rounds on his coven mate.

  “It all happened fast, I only caught a glimpse, and then all that Chosen mark shit happened with the other girl,” Enoch defends, and I step in between them when it’s clear Becket doesn’t think that’s a good enough answer.

  “It’s fine, seriously. We have bigger problems to deal with right now. We can solve the disappearing stab wound later.”

  I throw my hands up silencing any further argument, and everyone gets back to work positioning Sentinels around the room in a way we hope will make them less murdery when they wake up.

  “How long do you think they’ll be out?” Sabin asks as he sits a guard up against a wall. All eyes turn to me.

  “Pshhh, you know I’m just winging this shit, right? I know fuck all about anything.”

  “Maybe we can track an archive room or a library down and see if we can find some answers before everyone wakes up,” Sorik suggests.

  “I’d be game, except so far no one is pounding on the doors, demanding to know what’s going on. I worry the minute we stick our head out unescorted, we won’t get very far,” Sabin tells us, and we all nod in agreement.

  “Where’s an invisibility cloak when you need one?” Knox jokes, and we all laugh.

  “What if she knocked out the whole city?” Becket questions, and once again everyone turns to me.

  “Don’t know fuck all about anything,” I repeat, pointing a finger at myself and repeatedly jabbing it down above my head.

  “By the moon, this sucks,” Ryker states, shaking his head with frustration.

  “Tell me about it, bro. Story of my damn life,” I agree.

  “These fuckers have all the answers,” Enoch points out, toeing the leg of a guard.

  “Yep, and I doubt after all of this they’ll be in a hurry to share any of them with us. Not that they seemed like a helpful bunch before that,” I add.

  A groan fills the room, and we all freeze. I scan the unconscious bodies, looking for one that looks less unconscious.

  “Shit, looks like girlfriend is waking up,” Torrez points out, and I follow his outstretched arm to find Suryn the surly Sentinel trying to sit up.

  Well, this should be fucking fun.

  13

  We all watch her slowly come to, not sure what the fuck else we’re supposed to do. Enoch looks pained, watching her struggle to sit up. Suryn slowly blinks her eyes open, and her confused gaze lands on me. I give her my best if you don’t kill me, we can be friends smile and throw in a little wave to drive the point home. She seems out of it for a couple beats, and then I watch as what happened registers in her gaze and she scrambles to her feet.

  “What the hell did you do?” she demands. She looks frantically around the room and cries out when she finds The Quorum passed out in their thrones.

  A katana appears in her hands again, and she charges toward the thrones. I’m surprised when she doesn’t go straight for the Sovereign, but instead dives to check on Sauriel. We all watch relief flood her pained features when she realizes for herself that he’s still alive, and for a moment, I feel bad. Suryn points her katana at me and glares.

  “I’ll gut you for this,” she growls at me between clenched teeth.

  And just like that, my sympathy evaporates. “He’s asleep, not dead, calm the fuck down. I could have slit everyone’s throats while you were out if I’d wanted to. Fuck it, I still could. But I’m not here to hurt anyone. Keep your threats to yourself unless you want me to start making some of my own.”

  Valen leans over to me. “Ix-nay on the slit everyone’s throats-ay,” he tells me, using the worst pig Latin ever.

  I give him a look that says what? I could have. He smiles and shakes his head.

  “Might want to lead with more of an apology when the others wake up,” he teases me.

  “You think the leaders of the strongest magical race in existence are going to thank you for not slitting their throats after you attacked them?” Suryn asks incredulously, pulling my attention back to her.

  A couple more moans fill the room. One is coming from Sauriel and the other from the ebony skinned royal with the freaky eyes.

  “Well, I guess we’re about to find out,” Torrez observes.

  I cringe, wound tight as fuck with tension.

  I start chanting a positive mantra to myself of please don’t execute us as I watch the Quorum males come too.

  “Dad, are you okay?” Suryn asks Sauriel, and my mouth flies open in shock.

  “Damn, my money was on lover, not father,” Siah quips, and Bastien grunts in agreement and fist bumps him.

  “What happened?” Sauriel croaks out, sitting up straighter.

  “You were attacked,” Suryn accuses, and they both look over at me.

  I plaster that same I didn’t kill you, so let’s be cool smile on my face and once again wave, because apparently I can’t fucking help myself.

  Like daughter like father, he glares at me.

  “Now before you go and decree something you’ll regret, like ‘Off with their heads,’ allow me to explain,” I tell him.

  Sauriel doesn’t say anything, and I’m not sure if this means yes, please explain or maybe he’s imagining all the ways to make us suffer for my insolence. I jerk in surprise when the creepy eyed male rasps, “Go on.” I totally forgot he was waking up too after the whole father bomb was dropped.

  “I had a run in with your brother Adriel that’s going to leave some intense scars on my soul. I thought you were him. I didn’t realize he was a twin. Your face threw me off.”

  I internally facepalm. Your face threw me off? Really, Vinna?

  “Um...I know it looks like I’m here to start some shit, but I swear that couldn’t be further from the truth. I was just hoping for some answers, that’s all.”

  “Where is my brother now?” Sauriel demands, and from the looks of things, he looks like he’s ready to fly out of his throne and hunt his twin down himself.

  “He was in the Belarus area when I found him,” I offer vaguely, my eyes darting over to Becket and back again.

  I don’t know if telling Sauriel that I ashed his twin is going to work for us or against us. Right now, I’m oh for one in the hey, by the way, I killed someone in your
family department, and this could go either way.

  “Was?” Sauriel demands. “As in he’s gone underground again?” Sauriel bashes his fist on the arm of his throne and shouts something that sounds like a curse but in a language I don’t know.

  “No...I killed him,” I state casually, hoping the fist bashing is a sign that he might be open to his brother’s death being a good thing.

  Sauriel’s shocked gaze flicks up to me.

  “That’s why it was such a shock to see you waltz through those doors. I’m sorry for that whole trying to kill you thing, but I promise it was just a case of mistaken identity.”

  I cross my toes in my boots, hoping somehow Sauriel and the creepy eyed guy will be somewhat understanding. It’s not lost on me that neither of them have checked on the Sovereign. I’m not sure why Suryn and these two are awake when no one else seems to be coming to, but by the stars, I hope they’re in a forgiving mood.

  “You killed Adriel?” Sauriel asks, his voice a disbelieving whisper.

  “I did.”

  “You said you breached our protections to get some answers, what did you mean by that?” Creepy Eyes asks me, his features contemplative.

  I debate for a moment where to begin with my story. “I’ve been told that I’m a Sentinel, but no one seems to know exactly what that means...including me. I thought for the longest time that somehow I was the last to exist, and then I found out that I wasn’t. I’m trying to figure out what all of this means. Who I am, and why I can do what I can do.”

  I pause for a moment, not sure what else to say.

  “We’ve all been making the best of a difficult and confusing situation, but I’d hoped in coming here, that we could stop navigating in the dark. If I had known you would just try to kill us, I wouldn’t have come.”

  Another groan pulls everyone’s attention away, and Ory’s wings flex slightly as he fights to regain consciousness.

  “The dispatch for death was not unanimous. In fact, it was only supposed to be executed if you posed a threat,” Creepy Eyes states, and then he turns his weighted gaze to Suryn.