“DT!”
Carter’s skin grayed, shredding into ashes. The death was instant but the decay of his body dragged out for several minutes. The disintegration of body quickly spread to his clothes until he was nothing but a gray smudge across the cobblestone path. Stunned, I stared down at it. A frightened scream lodged into my throat, choking the life from me. DT stood over him, his long fingers posed like a ballet dancer awaiting applause.
He was gone. Dead. Taken away by the death touch, and as a gift to me no less. My heart raced like I’d already begun to flee, but I was frozen. Terrified that I’d be next, I willed myself to run, but fear overtook me. DT watched me with curious eyes.
What the fuck? I wasn’t sure what I thought a death touch would be like, but that wasn’t it. It wasn’t how DT had described. In his story, there was at least a body. What I had just witnessed was horrific. Did that mean that if I’d tossed my daggers at him they’d disintegrate when they touched his skin? Internally, I wanted to curl up into a ball and cry myself dry. Each nerve in my body screamed to distance myself from the most threatening presence on earth, and yet, as ever, he brimmed with serious concern. He was serious alright. Seriously dangerous, seriously calm, and seriously magnetic—and, above all, seriously insane. He was the devil, and I... Shit, I’m the devil’s closest friend.
I felt vomit threaten to surge. It was at that moment that out of the corner of my eye I spotted a faint purple glow. Reina? For fuck’s sake. I had no choice. Steeling my nerves, I smiled at DT. “Thanks, man,” I said. “I know he was kind of important for your missions. You’re a good friend,” I added. My stomach lurched, but I suppressed the bile, this time by grinding my teeth. My eyes watered but I hoped I could sell it as gratitude.
He clapped his hands together. “I knew you’d get it,” he said. He sighed dreamily. “I’m getting a little chilly. Wanna port back?” he asked, gesturing to his friend.
“Actually, I think I’m going to take the long way home.”
He froze. Oh shit. He’s onto me.
“Is… everything okay?”
I shoved him. “Yeah, Cal. Stop overthinking.” It was the last thing on earth I wanted to do, but also my only chance of keeping him from discovering what was hidden a few yards away. I held out my hand.
He shook it, and I pulled him in for a hug. The contact immediately put him at ease, and his posture relaxed. “Text me when you’re back.”
I nodded. “Sure thing.”
He touched hands with the gemini and, in an instant, they were both gone.
I was almost delirious as I trudged through the slushed leftover snow toward the purple glow. I wanted to run to her, to tell her everything, but knowing Reina she’d try to save me, and I knew that would end with a death touch for each of us. I couldn’t be saved, but she could. My only option was to make sure she believed I was who I appeared to be and hope that the deaths of the Fae would stop the school from sending students off campus.
As I walked through the more densely wooded portion of the park, the glow grew brighter. Reina stepped out from behind a tree. I stopped, my emotions reeling so intensely that they began to numb. Her eyes were bloodshot, her cheeks streaked with tears as some of her curls stuck to the side of her wet face. Even with the sadness in her eyes she looked strong, and just looking at her I felt barely capable of staying on my feet. Holy shit, she’s beautiful. I was so distracted with making sure DT went back to the tower away from Reina that I hadn’t considered her gift. Truth. I could probably still convince her to let me go, and give her enough of an explanation that she wouldn’t go looking for answers, but if she asked the right question things could get complicated.
“Kai.”
With one word, my resolve weakened, so I leaned against a tree as a crutch, hoping to pass it off as casual and unbothered.
“It’s dangerous out here. Go back to your school,” I said.
The wind pushed the coconut scent of her hair to me, and I took a deep breath to keep from walking closer.
“Did that guy kill Carter?”
Nausea clamored at me, but I stiffened my expression and nodded.
“And you… you thanked him,” she said, her voice breaking.
“That’s right. So you understand why you need to leave.”
She stepped closer, her power swirling purple around her, her gaze lit with anger.
I sighed. “You’re going to make yourself an easier target with that damn purple shit everywhere.”
“What do they have on you, Kai? Did you know about Quan?”
I gulped, feeling the stray wisps of Reina’s magic thrash nearby. “There’s so much more to this than you know. Stay out of it.”
“It doesn’t make sense. I knew you. I was with you last year. There was no way you were planning some kind of rebellion. If everything they say is true, then you really fucking fooled me.” Tears cut down her cheeks.
I clenched my jaw tight to keep my eyes from watering and turned my gaze away so I wouldn’t have to see her cry. The purple light licked at me, the truth coming forward before she even asked. “That night at the dance—”
“Don’t be stupid, Reina,” I barked, desperation screaming at me to shut down her questions. “I’m with The Fallen. You’re in way over your head.” I’d already pushed my luck with answering truthfully, so I turned to walk away when she slung her next words at me.
“Fight me.”
I laughed and turned back. “What good would killing you do?”
“It would prove that I was wrong about you.”
I’d tormented Reina on so many occasions, but things had changed. She was the only thing worth saving in the whole fucked up world. I didn’t expect to have my bluff called. Maybe that she’d use her gift to purge the truth, but not this. I took a sharp breath in. “Reina.” From a safe distance, I scanned her face, hoping to memorize it perfectly this time, because this would be the last. She froze, the glow of her magic dimming. Her lips tensed with fear, but her gaze softened. I knew exactly how she felt as I moved toward her because I felt the same—afraid. I couldn’t do it. All I had in range were my daggers, and if I moved close enough to touch her, I wasn’t certain I’d let go.
“You’re not worth my time,” I spat.
I turned away. A sharp blade sliced into my side before vanishing in a flash of purple. Stunned, I pressed on the wound as warm liquid slid over my fingers, my vision already blurring white.
19
Reina
Enough was enough. My gift surged out of me, some slipping from my grasp and spiraling out of range. That speech he gave at the dance was all part of some sick game, and somehow I’d warped it into something redeemable. All the years that I’d endured his hot and cold bullshit fueled me, and I felt my gift break through a new barrier of potential. It was volatile yet intoxicating, so I held my hands at the ready, waiting for Kai to make the first move. His expression softened to a sad smile, and he stumbled back. A trick? I wasn’t falling for that. I held my ground. “Whatever shit you’re trying to pull, it’s not going to work.”
He dropped to one knee. A splash of red hit a patch of dirty snow. Every ounce of my gift vanished, like the flame of a candle blowing out, and without thinking I sprinted to him. I ripped open his jacket, and blood seeped through his shirt. “Shit. Oh my god, Kai. I’m so sorry.”
“Sorry? You were the one that wanted to fight.”
I pressed my hands over the wound to stop the bleeding, but the cut was deep. Kai’s face was pale and clammy as I pulled him into my lap. Despite my panic, he looked perfectly calm.
“I’m taking you to a hospital. Don’t worry. We’ll get you fixed up.”
He groaned, “I can’t go there.”
Kai’s blood warmed my hands, tears springing to my eyes. “Then tell me what to do. Please! Tell me what to do.”
I reeled as he closed his eyes.
“Kai!” I screamed. “Stay with me!”
“I’m with you, Reina.” But his w
ords slurred. I looked around for help, but we were alone. My old house wasn’t far away. It was the whole reason I came to the park in the first place. I was walking in the park and working up the courage to check on the house, when I spotted Kai, Carter, and his horrifying friend. My old house was only two blocks away, if that. Maybe there was still something gift-infused there to clot it, but that was a hard maybe. Fuck. Fuck. I needed a Plan B, just in case. I pulled out Kai’s cell phone and sent two quick messages, one blank one to myself and the other nothing but my former address to the only person I could think of who might help—Zane. Any of my people might kill Kai on the spot, and I at least got the impression that the two were friends. It was a gamble, but Kai’s life was hanging in the balance and it was all my fault.
I stood and slung Kai’s arm over my shoulder, and his hat toppled to the ground. “Please, Kai,” I begged. “If you help a little, I can get you out of here.” I felt the slightest lift of his body weight as his gift took over, but he couldn’t do much. His breaths were even, and I suspected he was saving his energy by not talking. I began to pull him toward my old house, hoping that there was something left there that could save him. How the fuck did I do this? Why did I ever think that I could intentionally kill him? “Kai, I swear to god if you die, I’ll never forgive you.”
He snorted. “If I die, I’ll never forgive you.”
I exhaled a bit of relief; he was still joking. Maybe it looked worse than it was.
“Your hair smells nice.”
Oh fuck, he’s dying.
We made it to my now vacant neighborhood, and it seemed like the entire street had been shut down. Foreclosure and For Sale signs out front of every property, and not a single light was on despite the day giving way to early evening. The scrape of my shoes against the pavement and the heaving of my breath as I dragged Kai along were the only sounds to block out the thudding of my racing heart.
Kai leaned his head on my shoulder. “Did you miss me?”
My breaths grew labored, sweat beading on my forehead as we hobbled into my old driveway. “Yeah. Of course. How was your vacation?” I said, hoping to keep him talking.
“I joined a new club,” Kai said.
“You mean a cult?”
The house looked just the same as I remembered, small but welcoming, set a touch back from the road. There was a Foreclosure sign on a patch of lawn out front that sent a pang of sadness through me. I knew my parents were dead, but something about being back at my childhood home made me feel like they were inside. The sign alone was enough to remind me just how vacant the house was. I wondered if it might’ve been better if someone had moved in. Perhaps we’d have better odds of finding something infused, but that would lead to questions which we couldn’t answer. I pulled Kai up the driveway, my stomach tight with the memory of the last time I’d been here.
“Are you okay?” Kai asked.
I shook my head. “What? No. I just fucking murdered you.”
“No, I mean like, how are things with Oden and stuff.”
I moved the loose brick to the right of the door and pulled out my spare key. “Are you serious with this?” The moment I stepped inside, I bent down and put Kai on the floor. I sprinted to our medicine cabinets, past family photos and furniture laid out exactly as it had been, as if the day I left was frozen in time.
I tore through the cabinets. Gauze, ibuprofen, antibacterial wipes, but nothing gift-infused. Dammit. He was going to die. This wasn’t going to cut it. I grabbed whatever I could carry and raced back to the doorway to grab Kai, but he wasn’t there.
“In here,” he called. I followed his voice to the living room where he lay on the couch with his feet up. “Any clotters?” I shook my head and dumped the contents of my medicine cabinet on the coffee table. I pulled off his jacket and picked up the scissors. Starting at the bottom, I cut off his shirt.
“This shirt belonged to The Fallen.”
“Tell them to bill me,” I said as I started to clean the wound. I wrapped my arms around him to reposition him enough to get to the wound, and felt something cold brush my lip. I lifted my head and my heart came to an abrupt stop. There, lying against his chest, was my missing owl charm necklace.
“Why do you have this?” I asked. “Kai?” I looked up and his eyes had closed again. “Kai!” I felt for his pulse, but my hands were shaking too hard for me to feel one. I leaned in to feel if he was breathing, but he wasn’t. The door slammed open and I nearly leapt from my skin. “He’s dying!” I screamed, tears rushing down my face as the blue-haired boy rushed toward me. There was an older man behind him. “Save him!” I yelled. The bearded man grabbed Kai and, in an instant, they both were gone.
Zane spun to me. “Who did this?”
I sobbed. “I’m so sorry. It was an accident,” I said through tears. “Is he going to be okay?”
“You did this?” He pushed his glasses up his nose and paced. “This is so fucked, Reina. You don’t even know. He’s trying to protect you and you fucking kill him?”
“What?” I breathed, practically tripping over every word he said.
His phone buzzed and he looked at it then exhaled. “We got him in time.” He looked up at me. “I won’t have to kill you this time, but stay the fuck away from us. Go back to campus and don’t leave. I mean it. If you care about him at all, let him go.” He turned and headed back the way he came, my thoughts racing.
Panicked, I called out, “Take me with you.”
He stopped in the doorway, head down and fingers to the bridge of his nose, just beneath where his glasses rested, but after a moment he shook his head. “He’d never forgive me,” he said, then slammed the door behind him, leaving me alone. I looked around the ghost of my childhood home, my limbs still shaking and drenched in Kai’s blood.
20
Kaito
I awoke in a panic, my mind locked onto the memory of Carter’s face as it crumbled away. It was a horrible nightmare, that’s all. I sat up, tension easing as I looked around my apartment, but a sharp twinge in my side froze me with a torrent of fear. It was all real. Carter was gone. I pulled my blankets off to inspect my wound, but approaching footsteps drew my attention. Zane walked to my bedside, his face pale and his eyes rimmed with discoloration. The window next to my bed was open, but no light poured in.
I eyed him, stating, “You look like shit.”
“So do you,” he said, taking a seat at the edge of the bed. “You almost died.”
“How did you know where I was?”
His brow furrowed. “You texted me the address.”
“Reina,” I breathed.
He leaned forward, his blue eyes dulled behind his glasses. “What do you mean? No, never mind. Just tell me, what happened?”
“Carter...” I swallowed a lump in my throat. I could feel my heart start racing again.
“Carter did this to you?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I was at the park with DT—”
A knock sounded, and we both turned to see DT hurry in. I shot Zane a warning not to say anything. DT sat on the opposite side of the bed, and flipped his white hair out of his eyes before he turned to Zane. “Can I have a minute with him?”
Zane’s jaw clenched, but he stood and left without a word.
“Kai,” DT said, “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there.” His crystal eyes began to tear.
I wasn’t sure how long I was out or how much Zane had reported. The last thing I needed was for DT to do me another “favor” and go after Reina. Her ability didn’t require touch and it was obviously much harder to control. She might’ve wanted to fight me, but I doubt it would have come to something like this. Even if it did, didn’t I deserve it? “What did Zane tell you?”
“He said you were attacked on your way back but managed to send him your location. We ported you back here and used our stock of infused clotters, but we were minutes away from losing you.” He reached a sympathetic hand out to grab my arm. I shuddered, my mind instantly returning to
Carter.
I pulled my arm away. “DT… really, it’s okay.”
His eyes widened. “You mean Cal?”
I paused.
His gaze shifted between my eyes like I was a book he was reading. “You’re angry that I wasn’t there. I’m so sorry.”
“No, it’s not that. We’re fine, honest. I’m just tired, and a little disoriented from the shock, I guess. I meant Cal.”
“I promise you I will find whoever did this to you, and I will kill them.” He was practically snarling, his white canines gleaming like a rabid dog.
“No. I want to do it. Put me out in the field.”
He sat back, his shoulders relaxing. “I’m glad to see this incident hasn’t scared you off. Who am I to deny a man his revenge?” He looked out my window. “I’m sending Ensley in to administer your next treatment, so you can put in your food order with her.”
“Thanks, Cal.”
He flashed me a smile and stood. “Get some rest. We need you in good shape if you’re going out in the field. Can’t have our leader looking…” his gaze trailed up my body to my face, “battered.”
After he left, my thoughts moved to Reina. My injury had made me drop my guard. I didn’t fully remember what I said to her, but I doubt it was anything cruel enough to keep her away. She was going to come for me, and if I didn’t go out there to fight with The Fallen, I wouldn’t be able to protect her when their paths crossed. The door opened again and I expected to see Ensley, but Zane came instead.
“What did he want to talk about?” he asked, once again taking a seat at the end of my bed.
“Zane, I saw it. The death touch.” The way he grimaced told me he’d seen it before too. “He killed Carter.”
He stood as his mouth dropped open. “W-why?”
I looked down at my hands. “I think it’s my fault. I told DT I didn’t like Carter. It all happened so fast. I tried to stop him but—”
The door swung open, and Ensley pushed a cart with rattling bottles and a squeaky wheel across my apartment. Zane’s posture stiffened, and his already pale face turned pure white.
The Brave & The Broken: Gifted Fae Academy - Year Two Page 7