Content Warning and Possible Triggers

     A Born Angel is rated PG-13 for graphic violence, flashes of torture, familial abuse, depictions of death, and vulgar language. Talk of Past Traumas including imprisonment, death of a loved one, and separation from a parent.

    “And the last order of business, Lashdanôke[1] is complete,” Ashton announced to the six members that were still on the Council of Fire and speaking to him. We all looked up at him in shared confusion, except for Beelzebub, who was the grand architect of the Hidden City.

    We’d been talking about it and preparing for nearly two thousand years waiting for the prophesied ‘Threat to all Preternaturals and their descendants.’ That threat had reared its ugly head in the form of the Greeks, but that wasn’t the biggest news.

    “Beelzebub and I have drawn up a ward that will be placed on the gates of the city. When the last preter is inside and the gates shut, it will hide the city and slow down time for all inside. Two hundred years will pass here on Earth while one passes in the city and that will put us back on the proper timeline,” Ashton explained. The crackling fire from the hearth was the only sound in the room as we stared at him like he was insane. I immediately saw the drawbacks to this new development and knew that his heart wasn’t in the right place.

    Cannon paced the floor at the opposite end of the table as he’d done in the last several meetings. His pacing had the rest of us on edge as he was the levelheaded voice of reason in this equation. We’d all tried to dissuade Ashton from this foolhardy course of action, but we never thought he’d figure out a way to do it. Cannon stopped pacing and turned to the table.

    “The prophecies won’t change if we don’t do this,” Cannon said. Alkyone sat forward and met his eyes.

    “Maybe this is the reason they are set the way they are,” she countered him. Being an heir to an Angel of Prophecy, she would know better than any of us. Other than Atropos, who spoke the prophecy and was once again absent.

    “My mother has said that she agrees with Ashton. This is the course we should take,” Beelzebub, the youngest of our members said. I dipped my head to him, and all six pairs of eyes turned to me.

    “Dinari for your thoughts, Beryx,” Ashton said. As she assured me last time she visited, he could no longer read me. It was both a blessing and a curse. Whatever she’d done, it worked, and I was grateful for it now.

    “There are good reasons for and against it. It would keep the city from becoming overpopulated. It preserves the timeline—” I began.

    “And it seems selfish to keep the children stuck so young for so long. It will not end well,” Findibar interrupted. I looked at him across the table and dipped my head.

    “It won’t end well for some, but why not put it to a vote. Without Atropos present, we have seven members to decide,” I said. They looked at each other for a few moments and Findibar nodded, seconding my proposal.

    “I vote against,” he said, and Ashton stood.

    “All against,” he said, waiting. Alkyone, Findibar, and Cannon sounded off. I couldn’t. Findibar made a good point, but because it was a set moment in time, I would vote for it. It would happen so I wouldn’t buck fate.

    “All for.” The others responded, and I nodded. Findibar glared across the table as he stood to object.

    “That’s the vote then. Four to three. We will ward the City Gate, and it will be sealed the moment everyone is inside. You are all to be there. This meeting is adjourned,” Ashton said, not letting his brother get in a word edgewise. Findibar’s face contorted but Alkyone set her hand on his arm, and he relaxed. Findibar straightened the front of his tunic and bowed to the head of the Council.

    “For your sake, Lucifer,” Findibar said, calling Ashton by his first earthbound name. “I hope this doesn’t end in hellfire for you.”

    With that, the other members left, and I felt the familiar tug on the back of my mind that said she was back.

[1] Demoki: the Hidden City

    “Let’s get out of here. She’s as good as dead,” one of my attackers urged the others as he pulled at the hulking arm of his Bull Demon friend. My entire body ached, and blood oozed from my open wounds. I watched them through half-closed eyelids as my entire body screamed in pain. One of them grabbed my wrists, while another grabbed my ankles, and they flung me across the alley. I landed half in a pile of garbage bags and half on the red bricks.

    I moaned as their footsteps echoed into the distance. I lay there, still as the dead, until the last echo died away, and I tried to crawl from the refuse. My bruised and broken limbs throbbed, my crushed vocal cords pulsated against my bruised throat, and my eyes burned with tears. I moaned as my muscles screamed in protest, but I refused to acknowledge any of it.

    I had to get free, had to survive. I moved an inch before my eyes drifted closed without warning, and I lay still against the cool bricks, fighting for every painful breath that passed my broken ribs.

    I’m not sure how long I lay there before a single set of footsteps echoed down the alley. I forced my eyes open, and the world tilted to the left. I tried to push myself up and fell forward. The rough brick dug into the cuts of the skin they’d exposed as they sliced through my heavy leather corset and pants. The pain was enough for my vision to tunnel, and I cursed the demon spawn under my breath. 

    If I lived through this, I needed to learn to defend myself against Bull Demons. The world tilted to the right as a figure in a scarlet cloak stopped in the opening of the alley, and I breathed easier. Scarlet cloaks were only worn by the members of the Council of Spirit, the head of the Preternatural judicial system. The Council members patrolled the streets regularly with the City Guardians who wore cloaks in shades of grey.

    Thank the Maker, help had arrived, but why was there only one of them? They always traveled in pairs while on patrol. Pain drove the thought away and a new one emerged. No one was supposed to travel this sector alone. I lifted my head and tried to speak, but my vocal cords wouldn’t vibrate. The being turned to leave and my hope flickered.

     I laid my head on the brick and blood trickled from my scalp. The thought of possibly dying like this in an unknown alley on the wrong side of Lashdanôke flitted through my mind. It sent a rush of pure adrenaline into my system.

    I took a deep breath, ignored my screaming muscles, and lifted my head again. My vision swam with black spots, but I managed to call out. I tried to say, “help me,” but the only sound to escape my lips was a low moan. They stopped again as the world leveled out and my vision cleared enough for me to see that the figure was male.

    As my healing fire burned through the pain, I was able to make out some of his features. He was tan with a muscular build from hours of manual labor and had dark brown hair, neatly cut just above his ears. I couldn’t make out the rest of his features from so far away, but I felt his metaphysical presence as some of my powers returned. He was my stepfather, Justin Tragedy.

    He looked around the alley but didn’t see me until I laid my head down. He ran to me. His footsteps sounded like thunder to my ruptured eardrums and aching head. He knelt by my head and brushed some of the matted ebony brown curls from my face.

    “Maker’s sake, what happened to you?”

     I focused on his dark, deep-set, amber brown eyes and couldn’t muster up a sarcastic remark. That was highly unlike me, but I’d never been in this much pain before. He pulled me into his arms, and I moaned as the pain tripled.

    The thought of him being alone passed through my mind again, but I was too grateful to dwell on it. I opened my mouth to voice my gratitude but all that came out were more moans. He glanced down at me as he walked toward the Court Sector that was in the middle of the city and concern creased his brow.

    “Shh, save your words for when you can speak properly,” he instructed, and I laid my head against his chest. Right now, I didn’t care where he took me or what happened. I was safe, and I could heal in peace.

⁂

     When I opened my eyes again, he was walking toward the Courthouse. I cleared my throat and lifted my head from his chest as panic set in. The Courthouse was the last place I ever wanted to go.

     “Where are you taking me?” I asked, voice like sandpaper on a rough board. He looked down at me, and his eyes were darker than before.

     Am I seeing things? What happened while my eyes were closed?

    “I’m taking you to my office. Last I knew, Larock was still at the Courthouse finishing his paperwork for the day. He’ll look you over, and we can sort this out,” he replied voice cold, implying my guilt. What had I done to deserve this? I struggled, but he held me tighter.

    “Calm down, Kalista.” He held me a little tighter while trying not to hurt me. I continued to squirm, trying to get free. He stopped and pinned me against his body.

    “Do you want me to drop you?” he asked, and I stopped. I glared at him through swollen eyes and wished I hadn’t followed my sister and her friends when they left the Academy of Fire and Spirit this afternoon. He walked up the steps and inside the Courthouse without another word. Goosebumps danced across my skin as the strange sensation of dread I always felt in the Courthouse set in.

     “I have nothing to apologize for. You didn’t see anyone else almost dead in the alley. Why am I in trouble? I didn’t do anything wrong,” I rasped. My sore throat made my voice gravelly. He sat me on the stiff couch in his office, and I leaned back, trying to soothe the pain in my ribs. I thought about running but my left leg throbbed and would’ve given out, so I stayed sitting. I was healing, but it was a slower process than normal, and I hated that. Just when I needed my powers most, they fizzled out on me.

     I didn’t need to be here. I needed to be at home where Makumae[1] could heal me. I’d been here a handful of times and each time I was in deep trouble for some reason or another. This time was no different. I was the victim. Yet here I was, again.

     “Now that you have your voice back, tell me how it is that you ended up in the Blood Demon Sector,” he paused for an answer, but I kept my mouth shut. “The Council has restricted travel to that sector. Your mother and I told you kids to avoid it. Why were you there?” he stood in front of his desk with his hands in the pockets of his pressed slacks. I slouched into the couch, limbs still impossibly heavy, and tried to understand the question.

     The Blood Demon sector… If the map I memorized our first year here was correct, I was five blocks from there when I lost sight of Allistasia and her friends. Why would she go there? I pushed that thought away and decided the truth was the best option. If I lied, someone would drag the truth out of me sooner or later.

     “I was spying on Alli. Makumae wanted to know where she and her friends went after school. Allistasia wouldn’t tell her,” I croaked, trying not to sound pathetic or whiny. His eyebrows rose in question, and he stared me down. I held his gaze as he leaned on the front of his desk and crossed his arms over his chest.

     If I weren’t so used to it, it would have been intimidating. After ten years, I’d grown numb to his intimidation. Ten years and still they treated me like a child. I tried not to roll my eyes, but I don’t think it worked.

     When we entered the Hidden City, I was three years old and only a year passed here for every two hundred that passed on Earth. I would celebrate my thirteenth birthday this year. It is humiliating to have the body of a teenager and a mind that would rival Earth’s best philosophers. Yet they still treated me like a child.

     Justin turned his head to the door, which disturbed my thoughts, and I tried to turn my head, but it wouldn’t move. I sighed and moved my eyes but still couldn’t see what or who he was staring at.

     “Is spying for your mother the best you can come up with?” The familiar tenor voice of my uncle asked from the doorway. Larock Healer, Makumae’s older brother, strode into the office holding an ice pack in one hand.

     His red hair was pulled back into a short ponytail, which showed off his warm amber eyes that matched his hair, and the freckles on his youthful face, which was half covered by a thickening growth of red beard. He slipped the ice pack into a fabric sleeve and held it out to me. I took it and gave a small painful nod of gratitude. I leaned back further and closed my eyes as I gingerly placed the cold pack over the bruised and swollen left side of my face.

     “It’s not a story.” They stared, waiting for more. “Ask Aiden. He refused to follow them.” When they didn’t move, I groaned and tried to sit up. My muscles screamed at me to stop, and this time I listened.

     “If you don’t believe me, let me tell Makrana[2] Stella. She’ll know if I’m lying,” I stated, slipping into a monotone rhythm. My eyes wanted to close again as Uncle Larock’s eyes wandered over me. Anyone else would have found it creepy, but I felt his Therakinesis[3] like a warm blanket as he searched for broken bones and internal injuries.

     I opened my right eye so that I could watch them. Uncle Larock shook his head in feigned exasperation and his eyes darkened with wisdom. I knew that look all too well. I was in for a lecture, but I didn’t need another verbal lashing. Not after the one I’d gotten last week. Uncle Larock straightened his gray buttoned-down shirt and rolled up his sleeves.

     “Kalista, you have five broken ribs, a severely fractured leg, a mended collarbone, and a perfectly healed nose, along with a clean break in your wrist that healed almost a week ago. Would you like to change your story?” I shook my head, and he pressed on. “You can’t expect your twin to lie for you all the time. Did any of the girls see you?”

     Uncle Larock sat next to Justin, and I tried not to roll my eyes. Was he being thick or was this just not my day? After being physically beaten by a gang of bloodthirsty demons, now I was going to be verbally beaten by my uncle, and Stepfather. This day could not get any worse.

     I wasn’t at fault. I was simply following Makumae’s instructions. It was a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. My head throbbed and spun as I tried to focus my good eye on them. My anger threatened to rise like an ocean of fire in my chest, but I pushed it down. My eye tried to close again, but I forced it open. If I was going to defend myself, I needed to stay calm and fight through the sleep that wanted to pull me under.

     “No, they didn’t see me. What kind of a spy would I be if they saw me?” I sank further into the couch and heaved a sigh as they exchanged worried looks. “I was instructed to follow and keep to the shadows,” I clarified. Voice low and thick with sleep. I rested my spinning head on the top of the cushion behind me and took a deep breath. The pain in my head doubled, but I couldn’t summon enough strength to lift it again.

     Uncle Larock’s left eyebrow rose, and Justin’s eyebrows knit before they looked at each other. I let my eye close and cursed my bad luck.

     “And the truth falls on deaf ears,” I muttered under my breath and tried to focus. If I could project to Makumae, she could set them straight and heal me at the same time. The house was only two miles down the road but, with the pain distracting me, I didn’t know if I could project at all.

     “You found her in the Blood Demon Sector. I’m surprised she survived a beating from them,” Uncle Larock quipped, now focused on Justin. Had he said something, and I not heard it? That was ominous. One of those blows to my head must have caused permanent damage. I focused on raising my head and listened carefully.

     “Not exactly. I found her in a back alley just outside of the sector. I don’t know who beat her up, but it looks like their handiwork,” he noted, crossing his arms over his chest and staring over Uncle Larock’s shoulder as if seeing the scene again. “When I found her, she couldn’t talk or move, and she was barely breathing. She looked dead. I have to hand it to Ash. He must heal fast,” Justin joked. My ears perked up. No one talked about my father and hearing Justin refer to him warmly sent up a dozen red flags.

     “She is still here,” I dryly commented, and they turned to me with a start. A sad smile crossed Uncle Larock’s lips before he shook his head again. I let the ice numb my face as I waited for one of them to move or speak again and loathed the pounding in my skull.

     It was so loud, and I wished it would hurry up and heal. My head always took the longest to mend. Any other minor injury healed in minutes, broken bones took days or hours depending on how bad the break was, but my head took a week at least to be back to perfect working order.

     I watched them, trying to decide if I should jump up and hobble to the house to get her myself, or yell at them for standing around debating when I obviously needed healing. It would be interesting to see if I could make it home before they noticed I was gone.

     A small voice in the back of my head warned me not to move, but I wasn’t so sure. I wasn’t in trouble, so I didn’t need to run, but I always seemed to be punished when I wasn’t in trouble. Irony was not my friend.

     They stood, and I eyed them warily. I wasn’t ready to defend myself or fight anyone. I needed rest not scrutinizing glares.

    “Kalista, you zoned out again. I can see some bruising on your cranium, but I don’t see a fracture from this angle,” Uncle Larock informed me, as he stepped to the couch. “I need you to lift your head again.” I obeyed and he set one hand to my forehead, supporting my head as I leaned my whole body forward. “Did one of them kick you, or were you tackled by a Bull Demon?” Uncle Larock joked as a smirk pulled the corner of his lips up.

     I didn’t laugh. It was too close to the truth. Bull Demons were huge beast-like monstrosities made wholly of muscles. Their biceps were bigger than my waist, their legs were twice that size, and the runts were ten feet tall. I rested against his hand and pain coursed through my body like it was the only thing pumping my blood.

     “Both,” I cringed, and he set his free hand on the back of my neck. “I didn’t see everyone that attacked me, but a Bull Demon charged me. It cornered me in the alley where Justin found me. Its friends joined it, before the real beating began,” I croaked. I shuddered remembering the crunching of my bones. That shudder caused pain to rack my body. I cried out, and they sprang into action. While I writhed on the couch, Justin jumped to my side and helped Uncle Larock hold me still.

     “You need to lie down. We don’t want you hurting yourself more,” Uncle Larock offered in his doctor voice. It was usually all cold and professional, but this time it was tainted with concern, and it told me what he wasn’t saying. I was very lucky to be alive.

     They helped me turn, and Justin picked my legs up and set them on the couch. When I started to set my head down, Uncle Larock stopped me with his hand to my neck.

     “Kali, you’re bleeding.” His surprised whisper didn’t startle me. It was a gross understatement. I had multiple wounds that were still bleeding, along with more bruises than I could count, and my broken bones throbbed. Of course, I was bleeding. Makumae would throw a fit when she saw me.

     “No shit, Sherlock. I thought my head was spinning because the world found a merry-go-round,” I sassed without thinking. I didn’t enjoy being fragile and being wounded made me cranky. Both were at the top of my “use sarcasm if” list. The other things on that list were being attacked, someone dying, and being forcibly admitted to an asylum.

     “This isn’t the time to be a smart ass, Kalista,” Justin reprimanded me, barely keeping his voice down. I stared up into his brown eyes and blinked for a few minutes.

     Justin didn’t swear unless something was horribly wrong, and he couldn’t fix it. Judging by the ashen hue of his face, the situation had just gone to Valkarah[4] in a handbasket. Worry lines creased his forehead, a frown thinned his lips, and the tick in his jaw flared to life.

     “Justin, either calm down or get out,” Uncle Larock shot at him while grabbing a towel from his med kit. “She didn’t mean anything by it. Sarcasm is as natural as breathing to her. It means her brain is still functioning properly.”

     Justin’s anger turned to concern as Uncle Larock turned my head toward the wall.

     “She gets that from her— Run home and send Anna, quickly!” He ordered unable to finish the thought. Justin didn’t think to argue, he ran out without so much as a reply. Uncle Larock turned my head back to his and switched hands. I kept my eyes on his as fear gripped me.

     “Kalista, Esca’Troikas[5], you need to stay awake and calm,” he soothed my nerves. I gingerly nodded as I tried to remain calm.

     Was the injury that bad? Did Uncle Larock just call me sweetheart in Demoki? I didn’t know that he remembered the Angelic language let alone spoke it casually. He just said that I didn’t have a cranial fracture… Or did I dream that? He slowly let me lay back, and I watched his face, but his aura was so filled with white fear that it blurred his features.

     “Kalista Iliana, talk to me while we wait. I need to know you’re still conscious.” His voice was steady, but his fear confirmed my suspicions. I lived through yet another near-death experience.

     “What do you want me to say? Not five minutes ago you said that I didn’t have a fractured skull. I assumed I was fine, and the dizziness was due to blood loss,” I rushed in a panic. My hands shook, my heartbeat thrummed in my ears, and my words came out too fast for even me to understand them, or maybe that was because my ears were ringing. I despised the physical cues that reminded me just how injured I was. My entire body tensed at the thought, and I refused to relax as black spots speckled my vision.

     “Try to stay calm, Kalista. Breathe deeply, in through your nose and out through your mouth,” he instructed, and I shifted then winced. “But don’t move more than that. Anna’s coming. She’ll heal you, and then we can all go home. Just stay still for a few minutes,” he continued. His voice shook but his words were precise and far too careful. It was easy for him to bark orders, but calm was impossible.

     If I was too calm, I was likely to fall asleep. If I fell asleep, I might not wake up in the land of the living. If I was too tense, I’d pass out, which led to not waking up again. Wasn’t there supposed to be a happy medium?

     “I’d calm down if I knew why you’re so worried.” I glanced at his face without turning my head, and his eyes were on the back of my head. I rested my torso against the couch and whimpered at the pain it caused. Everything hurt.

     “Please, tell me what’s wrong. You’ve been a doctor for longer than I’ve been alive. Haven’t you seen it all?” I wanted to know just how bad they’d kicked my skull in.

     Information was power, and I needed some. I needed to concentrate on something to keep the black spots away. I glanced at him again, but more black spots appeared. I stared at the ceiling and focused on a particularly strange looking blackspot. I could almost make out a face, but when I blinked, it was gone. Uncle Larock shifted, and I refused to look at him again.

     “I was wrong earlier. It isn’t cranial bruising. Your skull is fractured, and you’re bleeding out. I’m holding a rag to the back of your head. Can’t you feel it?” he asked without taking a breath. My eyes widened, and adrenaline dumped into my system, banishing the black spots.

     “I thought I was resting against the couch.” Those idiots had cracked my head open. No wonder they left in such a hurry. Valhalla[6] and Vale[7], I couldn’t feel a cursed thing and my pain was dissipating. If I lost that much blood, I might be out cold when Makumae arrived. That was a problem. I clenched my hands around one of the pillows as an army of black spots ate the edges of my vision and tears burned my eyes. No, I would not pass out.

     “I can’t feel anything. Uncle Rock, I-I’m seeing spots,” I confessed, voice shaking as shock set in, and the tips of my fingers tingled. My mind refused to function, and I couldn’t think of anything more to say. He set his free hand on my shoulder, and I slowly shifted my eyes to see his face. His amber eyes were wide with fear that mirrored my own, and he pushed some stray strands of his shoulder-length ginger red hair behind his ear.

     “How about you finish laying down? Roll onto your side,” he instructed, and I fought to stay conscious. ‘Where is Anna? She should have been here by now.’ His thoughts echoed through my mind. His instincts urged him to run into the hall and see how far away they were, but his fear forced him to stay and help me remain conscious.

     I ran his words over in my head before I understood them. Of course, I needed to lay on my side. I didn’t want to get blood all over the couch. On second thought, it was probably a moot point since I set the back of my head on it earlier.

     I laid down on my side and faced the back of the couch so that he could see the wound. I grabbed onto the cushion, and I cringed as he gasped.

     “Keep talking to me,” he instructed. I bit my lip to keep from screaming at him. I took a deep breath, then another before I could think clearly.

     “You didn’t answer my first question. What do you want me to talk about? I can’t think let alone carry on a logical conversation,” I debated and tried to keep my eyes open. When Justin found me, I was minutes away from a coma, and apparently that hadn’t changed.

     “I don’t care what you talk about. Just keep talking,” he clarified in a serious, concerned, and yet slightly frustrated tone. That was the wrong answer. There were so many things I could say that he wouldn’t want to hear, and they were the only things that came to mind. My brain-to-mouth filter disengaged, and my carefully placed barriers dropped.

     “Fine. Let’s talk.” I took another deep breath and let years of frustration boil over. “Everyone seems to think that I get into trouble for the fun of it. They think I’m some no-good Dakata[8] that will never amount to anything,” I stated my innermost thoughts as tears sprang from my eyes. The tension in the air was thick enough to choke me, but I refused to stop.

     “I don’t see why everyone hates me. It can’t just be because I’m Packana’s[9] daughter.” I paused only to breathe, and he didn’t stop me. “He is a good man. He’s never cross with me, and I never saw him mistreat anyone. Sure, he can be brutal, but the punishment fits the crime. The Council does the same thing on a regular basis,” I switched topics. A warm presence entered the room, but I was too emotionally invested in the conversation to keep my mouth shut.

     “And another thing, this whole arrangement where we all live in one place and have everything provided for us is shit. It breeds contempt and fighting because everyone wants bigger and better than what their neighbors have even though they can’t get it,” I continued my rant, hoping that the other person in the room would speak, but no one spoke. My anger burned, which kept me awake as I dug my nails into the cushion.

     “What’s with the silent treatment? You wanted me to talk. Conversation is a two-way street,” I quoted Makrana Stella’s usual riot act. I was being ignored, and I would not let that slide, not today. I started to roll over, but a soft female hand touched my ribcage through one of the holes in my shirt and corset.

     I stopped and breathed a sigh of relief when Makumae’s bright, healing fire wrapped around me. A green hue covered everything, and my muscles relaxed in the warmth of her fire. I let it comfort me like a warm blanket.

     “Keætæ[10], don’t move,” Makumae instructed. I obeyed, unsure how much longer I could keep my eyes open. Her very presence relaxed my mind and sleep beckoned. Then without warning, I snapped back to the reason I was here.

     “Did you ask her?” I asked. I needed to know I was cleared of guilt. I didn’t want to be punished for doing what she asked. I was already beaten half to death by a gang of demons and needed outside healing, though I hadn’t before. I’d managed to heal the few broken bones I’d received without anyone’s help.

     I recalled what Uncle Larock said about an already healed broken arm and kicked myself for forgetting about my fall last week. I’d broken both bones in my arm after being accidentally pushed out a second-story window at school. I hadn’t reported it, and I wasn’t aware that the break was bad. I simply healed it and moved on, like I did every other time I was bullied.

     “Yes, he did ask me, and I set him straight,” Makumae reassured me because he was speechless. “I’m almost done, Keætæ. When you’re healed, we’re going straight home, and I’m going to have a long talk with your sister.”

     My face paled at the thought, and I was glad that I was facing the wall. I didn’t need them to panic again.

     “Please, you can’t do that. She’ll hurt me worse than those demons did,” I begged. I did not want to be on the receiving end of Allistasia’s anger. Makumae’s fire receded, and I sat bolt upright. There was no pain, but my head spun, and everything went black.

[1] Demoki: Beloved Mother

[2] Demoki: Grandmother

[3] Therakinesis is the ability to see under the skin to bones, muscle, and internal organs. Usually, comes with healing fire.

[4] Demoki: Hell

[5] Demoki: Sweetheart

[6] Demoki: Heaven, literally in the Maker’s presence

[7] Demoki: Earth, or the present time.

[8] Demoki: Devil’s Spawn

[9] Demoki: Beloved Father

[10] Demoki: Princess

     I reached between my feet and grabbed the arm of the couch, grounding me to the moment. Someone touched my shoulder and my mind stopped. Was this the end?

     “Kalista, I give you my strength. Stay conscious,” Packana’s voice whispered. My vision cleared. I looked back over my shoulders, but no one was there. I slowly turned to the window behind Justin’s desk, and it was dark outside.

     Had I passed out? That was absurd. I hadn’t moved so I couldn’t have lost consciousness. I set my feet on the floor and listened to hushed voices in the hall. I crept to the door and slowly poked my head out. I hoped I wasn’t still in trouble for being near the Quarantined Blood Demon Sector.

     “Please, Maker, let me be dreaming,” I telepathically prayed. There were five people in scarlet cloaks talking in the hallway. The light above glinted off the golden chimera that held an olive branch that was emblazoned on their backs. It was a symbol of peace, but to me, it was a symbol of injustice.

     “Are you sure we can go through with this? We all voted against it,” Uncle Larock said, but the others shook their heads. “Why is he making us do it?”

     What were they doing that nagged at his conscience? I waited for a hint, but I didn’t get it from them. There was a scream from the front doors, and I whipped my head around. My jaw dropped as an older version of me fought my stepfather who pushed her through the doors.

     “You can’t do this! Dad, please, don’t do this!” Her voice was hoarse as if she’d been screaming at him or he’d choked her. My throat tightened as he wrapped one large hand around her bicep. I felt him squeeze as if he had grabbed me.

     “Justin, I thought you were going to give her some Euphoria before you brought her,” A chilling voice called from the opposite end of the hall. I shivered at the deep tone and my blood froze in my veins. That was a voice I never thought I’d hear again, not in the Courthouse. He wasn’t supposed to be involved in Council politics.

     “She wouldn’t drink it,” Justin said before the older me stomped on his foot. He doubled over, and she elbowed him in the solar plexus, then twirled out of his grasp and slammed his head on her knee. He fell to his knees as she ran outside. A tall man in a green cloak followed, and I pursued. No one stopped me which I assumed meant no one saw me.

     “Kalista Iliana Angelic!” the man called as I pushed through the doors. He stood at the top of the Courthouse steps, and she was already on the street, two flights of stairs ahead of us. She didn’t look back as she ran down the street. She tripped over what looked like air. She dug her fingers in between the paving stones, and tried to hang on as something dragged her backward. My face burned, and I bit back a scream.

     “No, I won’t go! I won’t let you do that to me,” she protested before she kicked whatever it was. She rolled over, onto her back, and glared at the air as if she saw something I didn’t. Her face was bleeding from the fall, and there were scratches where the stones cut into her cheeks and forehead.

     The invisible force materialized. A woman with long dark hair braided down her back stood in front of her grinning wickedly. She wore a sleeveless dress that was skintight and cut to the hip on both sides, which showed off her toned legs. She set her hands on her voluptuous hips and the older me crawled away from her as if she was the worst monster in the world.

     “B’aktana[1] Akramatha[2],” she spat in Demoki. My present body fused with my future body, and I was suddenly staring up at her cold, golden eyes that glowed. A smile that was too wide for her slender face chilled my bones.

     “You know who I am,” she tilted her head to one side. “Good. Let me get straight to the point,” she monologued as she sashayed toward me until she towered over me. “You’re the perfect specimen for the ritual. Your powers matured too early, and your memories need to be altered. You need to stay hidden Li’ Charka Aknobas[3].”

     Little Broken Redeemer… What did that even mean? Whatever it meant, she made it sound like a good thing, but a thousand alarms went off in my head. She crossed her arms over her chest, and I clambered to my feet as I fought the weight of her metaphysical hand that pressed in on me from all sides.

     “No, you can’t take them from me. They will return and, when they do, I will hunt you down and I will make sure you pay for this with your lives,” I promised with a fire I didn’t feel. She blew a sparkling white powder into my face, and I swayed. My limbs grew impossibly heavy, my eyes refused to stay open, and I crumpled to the ground. “Wha-what’s happening?”

     “That would be Salventra. The body ingests it through the airways just as well as the digestive tract. You won’t remember a thing about this Kalista, or anything else, for that matter,” she chuckled. My head swam as the man in the green cloak picked me up. I tried to fight him, but my muscles were too weak to do any good. She disappeared again, and I telepathically called out for help.

     “Makumae… Packana… Lilith… Anyone, please! Please save me!” It was a last resort, but no one answered. My eyes closed but I refused to give up. I called once more but all that greeted me was silence.

⁂

     When I opened my eyes, I was sitting on the Courthouse steps. Sunshine warmed my skin and Makumae’s concerned eyes watched me from where she sat on the step beside me. I turned and wrapped my arms around her as tears streamed down my face. I shivered in her arms, and she hugged me close.

     “Kalista, what did you see?” The familiar voice of Makrana Stella, Makumae’s adopted mother, asked from behind us. I shook my head and buried it in Makumae’s hair. I would’ve told her, but I felt the man in the green cloak’s metaphysical presence.

     “I can’t talk about it. I don’t want him to hear,” I projected to her. His presence loomed just out of reach, and I wasn’t sure if he could hear me or not. “What are the rituals?” I telepathically asked. When she didn’t reply, I pulled back from Makumae’s shoulder, but Makrana was gone.

     “Keætæ, are you ok?” Makumae asked. I shrugged and she pushed some of my hair from my face. “I’m sorry for sending you alone. Aiden felt your distress and sent Justin to find you without telling him why you were there.”

     I wiped my tears away, but a lump in my throat kept me from replying. I needed to find out what was going on. I hated that the Council’s idiotic decisions were what decided my fate, again. They’d never chosen right where I was concerned, not until it was too late.

     “Ma-Makumae, ca-can we go ho-home?” I stuttered rather pathetically, but that didn’t matter. I wanted to get as far away from this building as possible. I didn’t want that thing to take place. The way Makrana ran off said I didn’t have a choice. It was a vision. I shouldn’t have visions. I wasn’t a member of the Prophecy family. I blinked as I thought about that and heaved a sigh. I was now, but only by chance.

     “Yes. I don’t care what they say. I’m taking you home.” Makumae said. She didn’t trust them either. It was refreshing to hear that not everyone blindly followed them. She helped me stand and my legs shook. She wrapped one of her arms around my waist and held me up.

     “Anna, you shouldn’t disrespect the Council,” The deep voice of the man from my vision warned her. My face paled, and I tripped on the last step, but she held me up. She glared at him over her shoulder before we walked away.

     “I respect them. I don’t respect you, Ephraim,” she whispered knowing he wouldn’t hear her. She hated him, she always had. I assumed it had something to do with Packana but maybe it was more. He followed us and anger burned in my chest and renewed my depleted strength.

     “Anna, you can’t run from it forever,” he said, now directly behind us. I stepped away from her and turned to glare at him. He stopped inches from me, glared down at me, and a smug grin twisted his lips. I disliked being short because it made B’aktano’s[4] like him feel superior.

     “I’m not running from anything. I need to get Kalista home. She needs to rest,” She countered his accusation. He didn’t look at her, because he’d have to look away from me and admit my dominance. He wouldn’t do that. I held his gaze. I wouldn’t admit his dominance either. The blackness of his heart felt like the swell of a tsunami’s dark wave looming overhead. He craved destruction and didn’t care what anyone else thought about his actions.

     “She looks fine to me,” he jabbed. That was the last straw. I grabbed the front of his shirt, and he laughed at me. “She’s a little spitfire, but her anger mirrors her father’s.”

     I growled into his face then kicked him in the groin. I let go of him as he doubled over losing our staring contest. He reached for me, but I backed away inhumanly fast, utilizing my angelic speed. He set his hands on his knees and breathed deeply. I victoriously grinned before I grabbed Makumae’s hand.

     “We’re going home,” I said as she blinked back her surprise. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and I pulled her down the block toward the house. He wouldn’t be moving any time soon. I’d literally wounded his pride. He was angry, but he would never underestimate me again.

     Was that why he sent that woman after me? Who was she? Did she live in the City? Makumae squeezed my hand and I turned to her. She was standing in front of our door. I stopped and stared at the stone face of the house that looked just like all the others on the block. I’d lost time. That concussion was worse than I thought.

     “Kalista, you should go rest. I’ll send Aiden up in an hour to check on you,” she instructed. I nodded as I walked upstairs without a word. I was too busy thinking about what I saw. I opened the door to my room and stopped short. On my bed sat a parcel wrapped in brown paper. Someone was here while we were gone.

     I gingerly stepped into the room, pushed my powers through the room like a solid wall of energy. I made sure nothing was taken, or moved, while I searched for any trace of the being who left the parcel. There was nothing except the rectangular parcel. I slowly approached my bed and picked the parcel up surprised at how heavy it was. I sat down and untied the twine bow, while my mind ran down a list of what it could be as I slowly peeled back the paper.

     My eyes went wide as I recognized the book, A History of the Council of Fire: The Complete Work by Cannon Tragedy. No wonder it was so heavy. I’d learned about the Council of Fire in school but that was only a tiny piece to a vastly intricate puzzle. I was intrigued by the former Council and what brought them together in the first place. It was a part of my heritage and I wanted to know more about it. I hadn’t told anyone though. I opened the front cover, but there was no notation and no note. I set the book on my nightstand and laid down, hoping to ease the throbbing in my head.

     A moment later someone touched my arm. My eyes fluttered open, and my twin brother stood over me, staring at my eyes. I smiled, and he sighed in relief as his shoulders relaxed.

     “You know, having to wake someone who might be in a coma is nerve-racking,” he joked, and combed his shaggy, honey blonde hair away from his face. I nodded but wanted to go back to sleep. My eyes drifted to the window as the sun rose over the buildings. That wasn’t a good sign.

     “Did you wake me up before now?” I asked. He nodded as concern tainted his aura white. I slowly sat up and cupped my forehead. I didn’t remember waking up. My head throbbed worse than it had yesterday, which made it impossible to think.

     “Kali, your eyes just changed color!” he informed me as an all too familiar excitement glittered in his deep brown eyes.

     My powers fascinated him as much as they scared me, but it was a good thing, because I had someone to practice on. When a new power popped up, he volunteered to be my guinea pig, no matter the danger. Telepathy was his favorite. Telekinesis was his least favorite since it was harder to control.      When I first tried to lift him off the ground, I’d thrown him across the room a few times. I’d also swept his feet out from under him while trying to close a door.

     “What color did they turn?” I lackadaisically asked. I didn’t enjoy these new powers popping up out of the blue. Most of the time I could hide them. I’d never be able to keep this hidden, not without sunglasses, and we weren’t allowed to wear them in class.

     “They turned a weird gray. It looked kind of like clouds before a storm.” That wasn’t comforting. Now, on top of hiding my growing power, like I momentarily forgot to yesterday, I had to avert my eyes. This was frustrating.

     “They just turned green!” he exclaimed. I grabbed his shoulders and looked into his eyes, forcing him to focus.

     “Aiden, I need you to forget about it,” I suggested, but his mind instantly blanked. Oh, Shit! Yet another power I had to watch out for.

     “What were we talking about?” he asked. He remembered coming in and waking me, but not our conversation. That was both good and bad.

     “School! We need to go to school,” I changed the subject, and he shook his head. He was sure that wasn’t it. I climbed out of bed, grabbed my leather messenger bag from the chair that sat at my desk, and started for the door.

     “Kal, might I suggest changing?” I shifted into a new outfit as I grabbed the door handle. Another pair of leather pants, a red satin shirt with my spare corset underneath, and black gladiator sandals. All the clothes I’d been wearing would now be down in the washroom. The only difference was this outfit wasn’t torn, tattered, or bloody.

     “I’m still not used to that,” he confessed with a boyish grin. He’d been stuck to my side ever since Packana dropped me off, and I was shocked when he refused to go with me yesterday. He must have known where they went and was sworn to secrecy.

     When I stepped out into the hall, Allistasia pushed passed me and humphed instead of apologizing. Great, that meant Makumae grounded her, and she figured out it was my fault. Just great.

     “Aiden, did you wake Kalista?” Makumae called up the stairs, but Aiden didn’t get to answer.

     “Yeah, she’s up,” Allistasia shot as she grabbed her school bag from a hook at the bottom of the stairs. Aiden and I walked downstairs as Makumae set two plates of breakfast on the table.

     “Don’t give me that attitude, young lady. You need to learn that your actions have consequences. Kalista could have been killed,” Makumae lectured her. I cringed and wished I could disappear like the woman in my vision. I felt the heat of Allistasia’s glare from across the room as I sat at the table. She’d make me regret spying on her more than I already did.

     “Serves her right for going into the Blood Gang territory without a guide and protector. It’s not my fault she was there. It’s yours,” Allistasia shot back. That was a low blow. Makumae’s aura turned red with anger, and I pushed my plate away. I hated arguing especially when it involved me.

     “Allistasia Grace! That is uncalled for. You were sneaking around, partying with criminals, and disobeying Council Edict. You should have known it would catch up to you. That self-righteous attitude isn’t going to shorten your punishment,” Makumae reprimanded her. I stuck one piece of toast in my mouth, grabbed my bag from the floor, and kissed Makumae’s cheek as I started for the door.

     I always went to school before anyone else. I didn’t want to travel with anyone, and I helped our history teacher set up his classroom most every day.

     “Kalista, don’t overdo it. Larock wants you to come home right away if you get a headache,” Makumae called, and I cringed. I already had one, but I wasn’t going to stay here all day. “Tell one of your teachers if you feel lightheaded.”

     I nodded but kept walking. I didn’t want to hear what Allistasia had to say about me. She hadn’t liked me for the last couple of years, and I wasn’t sure why.

     I walked down the red cobblestone street in the orange glow of sunrise with dragons of all sizes braying melodically overhead. I smiled as I watched their scales glitter in the sunlight. The city was supposed to be perfect, but evil had slowly seeped in and corrupted it. It was the nature of evil to corrupt the purest of things.

     “What are you thinking about, Tawna[5] Kalista?” a deep voice called to me. I stopped and looked around. I smiled when I saw Cedrick Shyfter the oldest Chimera demon sitting on his front porch. He was in his human form smoking a pipe as he did every morning. His white eyes glowed attentively, and his tan skin looked as vibrant as ever.

     “I’m contemplating evil and the corruption it brings.” I jogged to his side of the road, and he met me on the front steps. He gazed down into my eyes eagerly waiting for more. He saw me as more than a child and that fact helped me open up to one of my father’s former warriors. When I didn’t continue, he countered my cynicism.  

     “Why is a young mind contemplating so dark a subject? Why not think of love, beauty, and all that is good?” His wizened voice would’ve mesmerized anyone. I was grateful that we were alone. The things he asked were hard to answer, and I didn’t want to make a fool of myself.

     “Because I’m not blind to evil, or suffering. The one who sees corruption and turns a blind eye is a fool. I am no fool. Love and beauty will eventually fade, but evil remains,” I philosophized unsure why I was thinking about it. He nodded but his eyes dimmed.

     Things in the city had taken a turn for the worst last month when the Blood Gang first attacked. It had only gotten worse when the Council declared the Blood Demon’s Sector off-limits to anyone who wasn’t on the Council’s payroll. None of the kids listened to them. The Blood Demon Sector was where the popular hangouts were. I hoped we didn’t have to stay here too much longer.

     “You’re quite adept for one so young. You have a solid head on your shoulders, but don’t forget to admire the beauty around you, or you’ll find yourself in a deep pit of depression and cynicism that you’ll never climb out of.” His answer hit too close to home today, and his eyes said that he’d been there for a long time. “I shouldn’t keep you. Caleb is waiting for you.” I nodded but something in his eyes told me there was more, so I waited. “Your father would want me to tell you how beautiful you are and that you look like your mother,” he tucked a stray curl behind my ear. “But I don’t like to lie. You look more like your father.” His hand trailed from my ear under my chin as he lifted it higher. “I can see his knowledge, attitude, and integrity shining in your violet eyes. His power radiates from you, and it grows every day. Don’t forget your heritage.”

     I nodded awkwardly as tears dimmed my eyes. I hadn’t heard anything about Packana in years, outside of Justin’s comment yesterday. Hearing what he would say both encouraged me and caused my chest to ache, but the fact that Cedrick recognized my power as inherited gave me hope. Everything might turn out okay after all.

     “Thank you, Cedrick. You don’t know how much that means to me,” I acknowledged as he pulled me close, which hid my tears from a passerby. I hugged him tight and enjoyed the familiar sensation of our powers brushing each other. It brought back memories of my Father’s Fortress. When the person was gone, his hold loosened ever so slightly.

     “Be on your guard. That was Ephraim’s little spy. She’s watching you closely,” he warned. I stiffened and pulled back with wide eyes. Who was Ephraim’s spy, and why was she watching me?

[1] Demoki: Demoness, used like Bitch in English

[2] Demoki: Vile Betrayer

[3] Demoki: (li) little (Charka) Broken (Aknobas) Redeemer

[4] Demoki: Bastard

[5] Demoki: Dear

     I walked down the main hall of the Academy and heard humming in one of the empty classrooms. I peered inside but didn’t see anyone from the top of the amphitheater-style room. I lowered the shield that kept my powers hidden and reached with my telekinetic hand. The presence of an old preternatural, one that was unfamiliar to me, reached out in return, and I pulled back slamming my shield down again.

     The humming stopped, the sound of expensive shoes click-clacked on the linoleum floor, and my heart race. Was there a new teacher? We were halfway through a semester. It didn’t make sense to bring in someone new now.

     “Ashton? I thought you were forbidden to enter the city,” a male voice called, and all thought stopped. His voice was unfamiliar, distinct, gravelly, yet soft. Was he a substitute? Did someone get sick? My mind tried to make sense of it, but I didn’t have an answer.

     “You’re not Ashton. You must be Kalista, his youngest daughter,” He retracted his earlier statement. I looked up into cool ice blue eyes that were set deep in a long, oval-shaped, olive-skinned face that was tainted by concern. His nose was long with a crooked ridge, which gave a bit of character to his face. I respectfully nodded, offered a small smile, and kept my eyes away from his.

     “Yes, sir.” He lifted his hand and set it under my chin as Cedric had. My brows furrowed but I stayed perfectly still, unsure why he was looking at my face like there was something wrong, or something missing.

     “Caleb was right. You look like your father, but your eyes remind me of another…” his words trailed off before he could say who. My eyes snapped to his, and I saw a pair of bright lilac eyes in his memories. I tried to see the woman’s face, but he shoved me from his mind and dropped his hand.

     “You have your father’s mentakinesis[1] as well, but you shouldn’t invade people’s minds without their permission,” he paused for a moment as footsteps echoed in his classroom. “I’m being rude.” He cleared his throat and bowed his head. “Let’s start over. My name is Mister Korah Eclipse. Starting today, I’m teaching those twelve years and older Social Science.” He swept his hand out toward the new presence and my eyes followed. “This is my daughter Kalistasia. She’s your age, but this is her first time attending the Academy,” he transitioned almost seamlessly. A girl with long red hair stood in the doorway and slipped her hands into the pockets of her dress slacks. Her bright silver eyes gleamed with an innocence that I’d lost.

     “It’s nice to finally meet the girl everyone’s talking about. You don’t look like they said you would,” she paused and raked me with a scrutinizing gaze before a smile curved her full lips. “I’m glad. You’d look frightening with red eyes and massive black wings,” she mused, and watched my face. I paled and my eyes widened. Someone saw me fall from the window of the library. Why hadn’t anyone told me?

     “Esca’Troikas, you look faint. Maybe you should sit down,” Mister Eclipse advised, as he reached for my shoulder. I jumped back and shook my head.

     “I’m fine. I have to go help Mister Anthony set up,” I quickly excused myself. I ran out of his classroom, up two flights of stairs to the third floor, and focused on my breathing. When I entered the upper hall, I slowed. I didn’t need to worry Mister Anthony.

     Mister Anthony was a tall Angel with a serious face, set with a sprinkling of wrinkles that hinted at his age, but his blue-gray eyes sparkled with life. His smile was the only way to know that he was pleased with you and his frowning glare was enough to make any naysayer wilt. Only those who were naïve would continue to speak when he shot them his evil eye. I walked into his classroom, and he turned to me with a different frown, and furrowed brow, concerned.

     “You’re late,” he paused, noting that it wasn’t time for class. “Later than usual. Did you meet your newest teacher and his daughter?” he asked as his eyes wandered over me like Kalistasia’s had, but his stare made me want to squirm or flee. I held my breath as his eyes met mine and wondered if he’d tell me to go home. Had he heard about yesterday’s incident with the Blood Demon Gang?

     “You look pale. Sit,” he instructed as he turned back to the blackboard at the front of the classroom. I obeyed. He wrote a sentence onto the board from the book he was holding, and I held my bag on my lap. He turned around, set the book on his desk, and placed a small weight on the edge of the page. He looked up at me as I pulled out my own book and opened it to where the worn leather marker was without looking at it.

     “A week ago, you were pushed from the window seat in the library’s loft.” My stomach dropped into my feet at the second mention of that day. Someone really had seen me fall. “I only found out yesterday, or I would have talked to you sooner.” He strolled up the aisle toward me, taking his time. He was trying to make me squirm, or admit guilt. I was used to it, so I pushed my hair behind my ears and waited for the rest. “Your Aunt Josephine had Grayson and I over for dinner last night. Larock and I were talking about your latest near death experience. He mentioned that your arm had been previously broken...” He prattled on. So, he did know, and he would get to it, but he wanted to talk about this first. “Grayson told us about your fall, and it all made sense. You broke your arm when you landed wrong. The only thing I don’t understand is, from that height you should have broken more than that.”

     My heart raced, my palms began to sweat, and I fought the urge to run. I hadn’t told anyone about the fall. I thought that Seth and Dominic were the only two in the library, which meant Grayson was outside. There hadn’t been anyone around when I looked up. Mister Anthony stopped in front of my desk and stared down his long nose at me. His aura buzzed with overwhelming energy that left my head spinning. This was new. I’d never felt his aura before. He was usually guarded and tame.

     “Kalista, why didn’t you tell anyone that you were pushed? Why were you even sitting in the window of the library’s loft anyhow? The only books that are up there aren’t meant for your age group. Tell me what happened?” he urged as concern colored his aura, but his voice and face remained neutral.

     They were all valid questions, but I didn’t want to answer them. He wouldn’t let it go. When he wanted to know something, he’d gnaw at it like a dog with a bone until it was gone. I wiped my palms on my pants and cleared my throat. His eyes were glued to my face and he searched it for a hint of what I would say.

     “I was researching a pet project. I wasn’t watching the time or paying attention to my surroundings. Seth Highest and Dominic Ground…” my voice trailed off as I sensed someone else. I didn’t need anyone eavesdropping. No one needed to know what the pair had been doing.

     “Can we talk about this later? Maybe after school? We can meet in the loft.” I projected, and he nodded once. He returned to the front of the classroom, greeting the rest of his students as they filed in. All I could think about was what Seth had said and done.

     Seth was in my sister’s class along with her friend Charlotte, his sister Claire, and my friend Zeldya. He was a grade behind me. Dominic, who was his best friend, was in my class. Neither one was very studious. Every year they had a competition to see who could get the most demerits. They played practical jokes on anyone and everyone from the younger children to the faculty. They disobeyed Academy rules, took leisurely strolls through “demon only” areas, and, as I found out last week, did drugs in the library.

     They were under the influence when they pushed me out the window. I couldn’t tell anyone that. They would be instantly suspended, pending an investigation. If illicit drugs were found, they’d be expelled for the rest of the year and they’d know I told.

     “Miss Angelic, what was the reason that the Council of Fire was established?” Mister Anthony asked. It successfully pulled me from my thoughts. I turned the question over in my mind, thankful that I’d read ahead this quarter, and quickly spat out an answer.

     “To properly answer that question, we need to backtrack a few thousand years,” I prefaced, and half the class turned to me. “Lucifer, Angel of Light, amassed his demon armies, then mysteriously vanished. It left a massive power vacuum. Cue the Council of Fire.”

     All my classmates were gawking at me. I royally hated this part of class. All eyes were on me, and their thoughts bombarded me. My mind reeled, my lungs burned, and I fought to breathe past the weight of them.

     “What you’re saying is that it took fourteen other powerful preternatural beings to fill the vacuum created by one Demokæ[2]?” Mister Anthony clarified. All their thoughts stopped, and I took a deep breath with ease. Was I the only studious one here?

     “In short, yes. Each of the fourteen members assumed one of Lucifer’s roles. It allowed everything to function smoothly because each member served a specific purpose,” I said, volunteering more information than was necessary. His thoughts confirmed that I was right, but where my thought was a reflecting pool, his were an ocean.

     I gripped my book and tried not to drown as he soaked it in. Faces passed through his mind too fast to see clearly before they stopped on a woman with purple eyes that matched mine. The same woman Korah saw when he looked at me.

     Then, without warning, his mind snapped shut, like a book someone closed when they realized you were reading over their shoulder. My mind couldn’t handle the rush of my own power being shoved in on itself. My head exploded with pain, my vision blurred then darkened, my limbs became heavy, and I slipped into unconsciousness.

⁂

     I floated, surrounded by warmth.

     Safe.

     Untouchable.

     It was a lie.

     The life inside me slowly drained away and my eyes flew open, darting from one dark spot to another. I kicked my legs out and connected with something solid.

     I turned towards it and saw a baby’s face. Its features were identical to my twin brother’s, but blue eyes stared at me. Aiden’s eyes were brown. He waved the tiny fingers of one hand before he disappeared into the darkness. Something pulled me into the spot he’d been, and I tried to fight it, but my body wouldn’t obey.

     My lungs screamed, my eyes burned, and I wanted to cry out, but when I opened my mouth, it filled with liquid. I closed my eyes and braced for death as I was shoved into the tight opening. Seconds felt like hours as I was squeezed from all sides before I burst free. I opened my eyes to a bright world, but I still couldn’t get enough air to scream past the liquid I swallowed, so I used the only thing that had always worked.

     “I can’t breathe!” I projected, and hoped someone would hear me. A kind, tan face loomed above me, and I was mesmerized by his glowing, ice blue eyes that looked almost white. I’d seen those eyes in Mister Anthony’s memories. This was a member of the Council of Fire, but that didn’t make sense.

What was I seeing? Who was this man? My vision blurred with tears and black spots before going completely dark. I listened to my own heartbeat slow until it stopped entirely, and I panicked.

     No. Who was he?! I couldn’t die here. I dug deep and grabbed ahold of the minuscule power that I found, refusing to die.

     “Kalista, you need to live,” a deep voice whispered ever so softly, and my entire body thrummed with power. “Be strong for me and for the World. We need you, Esca Simakti[3].”

Power coursed through me like the electric currents of a defibrillator. My heart pounded against my ribs with a fervor unrivaled, and I gasped like I’d broken the surface of the water after being under for too long.

     Who was this man? My eyes fluttered open, and he passed me to Packana. My heartbeat slowed and my lungs burned again before Packana’s power washed over and through my tiny body. I looked at his deep crimson eyes from his bare chest for a brief moment before I returned to the present.

⁂

     I stared up at the faces of my classmates all huddled around me, yet just out of arms reach, like I had some horrible disease that would spread on contact. They stared back at me as Mister Anthony pushed through them and knelt beside my head.

     “Everyone, take two steps back. Give her room to breathe,” he instructed as he slipped his balled-up suit coat under my head. He looked up and locked eyes with Solomon Fire, one of my friends and the only one brave enough to sit next to me on our very first day of school and every day since. “Run to the office and get the nurse on call. I believe it’s Doctor Josephine Healer,” he barked the order like a military general. Solomon started to leave, and I reached for him

     “Don’t... I’m fi-fine now,” I croaked but he was already gone. Mister Anthony turned to me and shook his head at my obvious stupidity. He held up one hand, and I stared at it unsure what he was doing.

     “How many fingers do you see?” I squinted for a minute and blinked a few times. I saw more than one hand. I laid there in silence until I could decide which one was real.

     “Two thumbs and a finger.” When he didn’t immediately answer I added, “Do I pass?”

     He rolled his eyes and held out his hand palm up. I grabbed onto his arm, and he slowly lifted me. He set me in my seat so that I faced the aisle, and my vision gradually steadied as I combed my unruly waves from my face with shaking hands.

     “Yes, you pass. Everyone, return to your seats and read the chapter we just discussed.” Several students groaned, but they all obeyed. He took a penlight from his pocket and shined it in my eyes. I batted it away and rubbed them. I hated when doctors did that. It multiplied the dizziness and amplified any vision problems, which I didn’t want to return. I just wanted to get back to class.

     “Caleb, explain why I’m coming to your class in the middle of first—” Aunt Josephine’s voice trailed off when she saw him kneeling in front of me. She jogged up the steps with the speed of a practiced athlete.

     “I’m sorry, Josephine. I thought you’d prefer her to remain seated,” he stated, and my eyebrows furrowed. Was that an attempt at humor, or a jab at her?

     “She passed out for a minute or two. Her pupils aren’t dilating normally, and she took five minutes to tell me how many fingers I was holding up,” he said as she knelt beside him.

     I was only out for a minute or two? It seemed longer than that. He stood, and she nodded as I set one hand on my desk, ready to stand on my own. She stood and quickly wrapped her arm around my back, and draped one of my arms over her muscular shoulders before I was all the way up.

     “You shouldn’t be standing on your own,” she reprimanded, and I rolled my eyes. If she weren’t my aunt, I’d have refused her help. If I refused her, Makumae would have a long talk with me later, and I didn’t need another of those. Aunt Josephine helped me out of the classroom before she spoke.

     “Let’s go sit in my office, and we can talk about…” she stopped but her thoughts finished for her: ‘What happened and how to prevent it.’ I gave a slight nod as we walked down the stairs. After a few moments of silence, she couldn’t take it anymore. She glanced at me.

     “Kalista, why did you even come to school today? You have a severe concussion. Yes, you heal quicker than most, but it’ll take a few days, or even a week, for you to heal this. Concentrating on schoolwork may have caused your brain to overload,” she concluded, and I didn’t comment.

     I pulled my arm from her shoulders as we walked through her secretary’s adjoining office, and the woman didn’t comment, or greet us. I walked into the nurse’s office that Aunt Josephine shared with the other doctors, who all traded off duties as school nurse. I dropped into the chair closest to the open window and breathed in the fresh air before I sighed.

     “Why shouldn’t I be allowed to learn like everyone else? My head is healing just fine. It wasn’t the lesson that overloaded my circuits.” It came out harsher than I’d intended. She sat in the chair on the opposite side of the desk and leaned forward. Her serious, doctor’s blank face in place. I’d woken the beast and was about to get the riot act. Three in as many days. It was a record.

     “We need to talk about everything that happened. In here, no one will eavesdrop, and it’s strictly confidential,” she reassured me. I doubted that until I saw the honesty that painted her aura a bright yellow. I leaned back and tried not to think about it, which made it impossible to think of anything else.

     What did she need to ask me that was confidential? The Council had eyes and ears everywhere. How could she make such a claim? She pulled out a sheet of paper from the middle drawer of the desk, set it down, and grabbed a pen from the cup next to the boxy computer. Her thoughts swirled as if she’d been listening to me. Had I projected without meaning to? I looked at her face and her thoughts that had been muted sounded clear and loud.

     “What Is she thinking? It’s only a week and more information will only make things worse,” she thought, which confused me. Information was a constant balance of power that I had to keep. Would more information tip the scales too far?

     “Are you really okay, Kal?” she asked, and my eyebrows lifted at the question. Brutal honesty was one thing I wasn’t used to with anyone lately. Sneaking around, covering up mistakes, and lying was the usual order of business. No one was exempt from it. No one.

     “If no more powers surface, I’ll be right as rain,” I said. She watched me too closely and tried to see passed my smartassery, but she found nothing. I set one arm on the windowsill and waited for her next question.

     “Tell me what you remember before you passed out,” she instructed. I wondered if I should tell her the truth. She was a Council Member’s wife and, last time I checked, she shared everything with Uncle Larock and he, in turn, blabbed it during council meetings when he was stressed. Did I want to risk everything I said finding its way back to them?

     “I said before that this is strictly confidential. I don’t discuss work with Larock unless we’re working together with a patient. Family members aren’t excluded from Doctor-Patient confidentiality,” she reminded me. I turned back to her, and the warmth and truth in her amber eyes reassured me more than her words ever could. I looked at her pen poised to write, and she set it down. “If you’re that worried, I won’t document what you say. I’ll write that you passed out due to the concussion, and you’ll skip your next two classes to recoup.”

     Something about this felt wrong. I stared her down for a minute, but in the end I nodded. I didn’t want to be here fore longer than I had to be. She filled out the form, and I sat in silence. I wasn’t usually this jaded. My conversation with Cedrick was making me paranoid. I slowly relaxed into the chair, and a dragon flew by the window. Aunt Josephine set her pen back in the cup before she slipped the form into the empty top shelf of file holder that sat opposite the computer.

     “Now that the paperwork is taken care of. What really happened?” she rephrased and leaned forward again. She was genuinely curious to hear it in my own words. This was foreign to me. I looked out the window and pushed her thoughts from my head so I could concentrate.

     “I… I was overwhelmed by everyone’s thoughts. Usually, they don’t bother me, or I can easily tune them out, but Mister Anthony put me on the spot, and everyone was thinking at me. There were too many thoughts for me to process,” I explained not giving her all of the details. She nodded once and believed every word. As of last week, most everyone believed my partial truths and didn’t question it. Only three people were wise enough to ask pointed and intrusive questions so that I couldn’t do that. Aunt Josephine wasn’t one of them.

     “I tried to fight their thoughts, but I couldn’t and passed out.” That was a blatant lie. She squinted and locked eyes with me. I didn’t look away. The bell rang, and she jumped losing our little staring contest. My skin crawled and all my powers seemed to activate at once. My ears rang with noises that would be unnoticed, the hair on my neck rose, and a buzz started in the back of my skull. Something was wrong. Goosebumps rose along my arms and traveled up to my neck.

     The sensation of cashmere dragged over my skin, and I shivered. The only person I knew that was powerful enough to pull off a trick like that was Packana and only if he were close by. He was forbidden to join us in the Hidden City, so it wasn’t him. Who else was that powerful?

     “Kalista, what do you feel? You’re shaking.” Aunt Josephine stood, and I blinked at her. Shaking was an understatement. I shivered so hard that I almost fell out of the chair. I grabbed the windowsill, and the power abruptly stopped like someone had thrown a switch. All my powers calmed, and I tried to breathe normally, but shallow was all I could manage.

     “Someone was use-using their pow-powers on me,” I stuttered as the shaking subsided. A lingering tension loomed in the room. It left the air heavy enough to suffocate me even with the window open. When had I opened the window? A knock rattled the door and both of us jump as the tension vanished.

[1] The ability to see into someone’s mind, erase memories, and or control someone. The power can be different from person to person, or grow over time.

[2] Demoki: Fallen Angel, not corrupted, but toeing the line between.

[3] Demoki: Sweet baby girl

     “Who is it?” Aunt Josephine asked. The door creaked open ever so slightly before it slammed shut. Whoever it was left as quickly as they’d come. She stood and walked to the door. Her high heels clicked a frustrated beat, and a determined scowl masked her beautiful face. She detested being spooked, and that knock was highly unexpected. She opened the door enough to stick her head out and glare at her secretary.

     “Yes, Doctor Healer, what can I do for you?” the woman asked, and her voice shook with fear. I leaned forward, set my chin in one hand and my elbow on my knee so I could watch inconspicuously. Aunt Josephine’s frown lines deepened as determination turned to anger.

     The Secretary was supposed to make sure no one approached the door when Aunt Josephine was with a patient. If anyone overheard us talking, it violated the confidentiality that she zealously fought for. She looked angry enough to dismiss the poor girl over the break in protocol, and my heart went out to her. Aunt Josephine didn’t normally get this angry but, when she did, no one was exempt from her wrath.

     “Who knocked on my door?” Authority rolled off her in waves. That was enough to make me sit back and act as if I wasn’t listening. It was impossible not to, but I would fake it.

     “It was Miss Morgana Spiriter. She wanted to speak with you about Feminine issues. I told her that you were busy a few times, but she acted as if she didn’t hear me. I’m sorry Doctor Healer but short of physically restraining her, I couldn’t have stopped her,” the woman nervously rambled. Not many people genuinely feared Aunt Josephine. She was usually poised, diplomatic, and gracious. I didn’t fear her, but her secretary did.

     “When Kalista leaves, you and I are going to have a chat. She’ll be out shortly.” With that, Aunt Josephine shut the door and focused that rage on me again. I turned to her and noted that the warmth in her eyes had been replaced with a stone-cold professionalism that turned them a deep chestnut brown.

     “I’m sorry about that. As per our agreement, you will skip the next two classes. That’s Geometry and Sociology, correct?” she sauntered back to her desk and shoved her ginger wrath down, for now, but it only kindled. She picked up a pink piece of paper and scribbled on it. I was barely able to stand and nod before she continued, “Take this slip and go to the library. Stay there and relax until lunch.”

She held out the slip to me, and I grabbed it with a nod, but she didn’t let go. She glared up at me, and I stared her down. She watched my eyes for a moment, and I nodded again hoping she’d let me get out of earshot before she loosed her wrath.

     “Do not read anything complex or involved. That means everything in the loft is off-limits. I don’t want to run to the library because you passed out again,” she stipulated. Part of me wanted to argue, but there would be no students in the library to watch me, so I could do what I wanted when I got there, which was go straight to the loft and open my gift.

     “Yes, ma’am,” I replied, and she let go. I started to open the door and stopped short as her anger burned bright again.

     “Send Catherine in.” Her voice chilled the blood in my veins. I nodded and shut the door behind me. I let out the breath I was holding, and Catherine looked up at me from her small desk. Her green eyes were wide with fear, and her body was rigid like the cat she could change into. I didn’t blame her. The center of Aunt Josephine’s wrath was not a place anyone wanted to be.

     “Good luck,” I whispered and walked out. I stepped into the hall, merging with the heavy traffic of students with practiced ease. I headed for Mister Anthony’s classroom in a daze. I needed to get my bag from my desk before I hid in the library.

     “Kal… Kali… Kalista! Slow down! I have your bag,” a familiar voice shouted above the crowd. I moved to the side of the landing and turned toward the crowd of older students that were headed for Mister Anthony’s classroom. I watched Zeldya strut to the railing beside me. Her midnight black hair fell in a velvety soft curtain to her hips and contrasted her pale skin that almost matched the alabaster hue of mine. She climbed up and sat on the railing not caring that she was wearing a short skirt. She held my bag out to me with a teasing smile. Where had she come from?

     “Gods, you make a quick getaway when doctors are involved,” she quipped. I chuckled, taking the bag from her. I slipped the long strap over my head and smiled up at her purple eyes that shined like amethyst gems. She was exactly what I wished my oldest sister, and the only one here in the city, was like. That wasn’t the case. Allistasia would never be like Zeldya.

     “Thanks. I have a pass to skip the next two periods. Wanna take it so I can go to Geometry and Sociology?” I asked. She usually jumped at the chance. She grinned then pushed the note back into my palm.

     “There is no way I’m getting on Doctor Healer’s bad side. I just saw Cat run from her office in tears,” she refused, and my eyes widened. That was both interesting and scary. She hopped down from the railing as Headmaster Jericho Misery walked past. He glared at her as he did, and she rolled her eyes.

     “What’s got his boxers in a bunch?” she grumbled as we hurried up the stairs.

     “You’re not going to your next class, are you?” I asked. She shot me her usual flirtatious grin, and it was my turn to roll my eyes. She constantly skipped class. I was surprised that she hadn’t failed any yet.

     “You need someone to sit with you and make sure you don’t think too hard,” she offered, and I glared at her. She was the most caring person I knew, but there was one guy that always distracted her.

     “You and I both know that if Bakura magically appeared between here and the library, which is highly probable, that you’d sneak off with him. You and he would go into the far back corner of the loft behind the History of Fallen Angels and do the unspeakable,” I jested, and she covered my mouth with one hand. She looked both ways before she pushed me into the library and stared at my eyes.

     “Don’t say that out loud! No one knows that Bakura and I sneak off. Wait! How did you know that?” she projected. I rolled my eyes before I stared at her blissfully ignorant confusion. She had no idea just how much time I spent in the library working on pet projects.

     “Zeldya, I’m here most every day for free period, study hall, and after school too. It’s the one place I can go and stay out of trouble,” I paused, and she raised her eyebrows. She’d been the only one I told about the incident with Dominic and Seth, so I added, “Most of the time.”

She dropped her hand, and I turned to the desk. I came face-to-face with the woman from my vision. Her golden eyes stared at me intently, and I used every ounce of control to keep myself out of her head.

     “Do you have study hall or free period?” she asked her alto voice quiet enough not to echo through the nearly empty library. I set my slip on the counter, and she stared at Zeldya over my shoulder. I turned to Zeldya, and her loving eyes pleaded with me to lie for her.

     “She’s supposed to sit with me. Doctor Healer wanted to make sure I didn’t do any heavy thinking. Zee here is going to make sure I listen,” I smoothly stated. The woman nodded and flipped her long brown ponytail over her shoulder. She wrote that on the note and passed it back to me.

     “Alright, you two girls have a nice time. Don’t talk too loud,” she added as I quickly shoved the note in my bag. I grabbed Zeldya’s hand and pulled her to the spiral staircase that led to the loft. She was eerily silent until I sat down on the window seat and opened my bag to grab my new book. If the blue-eyed man from my vision in history class was a member of the Council of Fire, he’d be in it.

     “Um, were you ever going to tell me about that new ability?” Zeldya asked. When I stared at her in utter confusion, she sat on the seat opposite me with a tease sparkling in her eyes. “You just lied to the new librarian, and she totally believed you. Gods, I’m jealous,” she gushed with a newfound glee. She watched me carefully, and grinned like a mischievous child who saw an opportunity that was too good to pass up.

     “Chill out. I’m not going to abuse my powers. I only lied to get away from her. She creeps me out,” I shrugged off the silky sensation that slid over my skin again. Was the librarian doing it?

     I looked back at her as she stamped some books for one of the seniors, who I assumed was grabbing a book for his next class. The boy stopped and looked around nervously as if he felt me watching him. The librarian slid his book back to him and I read her lips.

     “You have a free period right now Michael. Why not stick around? Most of the other students in your position would jump at the chance to stay here. Why are you so nervous?” she asked as she pushed her hair behind her ear. She touched his hand as he grabbed the book from the counter, and he jumped back dropping it. It hit the floor with a loud thwack, and the four other students, who just entered stare at him. He muttered something as he picked it up, but he wasn’t facing me, so I couldn’t see, or hear, what it was. Zeldya waved a hand in front of my face, and I shook my head of the thought.

     “Kal, have you heard anything I’ve said in the last couple minutes?” she asked, and I just blinked at her. “You really did have a run-in with the Blood Demon gang, didn’t you?” she asked as she sat back against one of the pillows. I nodded as blush burned up my neck and settled across my cheeks. Her lips curled up on one side, she pulled her legs up onto the seat, and left her high heels on the floor.

     “You were checking Michael out, weren’t you? Wait until Freedom hears you were checking him out. I hope she freaks,” Zeldya teased me as she name dropped our other friend, who was one of his quadruplet sisters. Her half-smile turned into a full-blown grin, and I dropped my book onto the cushion between us. Freedom would no doubt flip, or obsess, if Zeldya even mentioned it.

     “No… No! I was not ‘checking him out.’ I was merely observing the new girl. Does she seem odd to you? When did they decide to hire someone full-time?” I hoped that Zeldya had heard the latest gossip. She was usually good for it but this time, she only shrugged. “When did she start? I wasn’t here yesterday after school—”

     “Because you were too busy being a nark for your mum,” she snidely interjected. I shoved my book back into my bag. I wouldn’t get to read it now. Then what she said sank in, and I stared at her with wide eyes. 

     Where was this disdain coming from? Yes, I expected Allistasia to throw a fit and possibly disown me but why would Zeldya suddenly hate me? She lived near the Blood Demon’s sector. It didn’t matter if she went there or not.

     “What…?” I started to ask, but she turned haunted amethyst eyes to me. She shook her head and looked out the window.

     “You don’t want me to answer that, Kal. Allistasia thought you were following us, so she had us lose you. When I found out you got hurt, I told your mum, Missus Cloud, and Missus Highest where we were going.”   

     I stared at her with my eyebrows raised. It wasn’t like her to nark on her friends. That’s when it hit me. The rest of their little posse didn’t know she was the one that told. Now her outburst made sense. She was covering her butt.

     A familiar presence drifted into the library, and I turned hoping that my powers were wrong. One look at the familiar tall, tan, dark-haired man at the desk confirmed my suspicion. It was my stepdad. If Aunt Josephine called him, I couldn’t let him see me, or he’d want me to come home with him. I slid off the seat, dropped behind the railing, and motioned for Zeldya to do the same.

     “Kal, what are you—?” she started to ask but I pulled her down beside me and covered her mouth. I pointed toward the stacks where some of the older students usually hung out. She nodded, and we both grabbed our bags. We silently crawled toward the stacks of books, and I was grateful that she didn’t say anything else until we were back in the stacks.

     “Kal, explain,” she said in as few words as possible. I rolled my eyes and continued to crawl as I thought about what would happen if they found us.

     “It’s Justin. Someone must have called him. I can’t believe this,” I angrily whispered as I stood up behind one of the densely packed shelves. The loft was like a maze lined with dusty old books that few people ever read. The only ones who ever read them were teachers and me, but the teachers just used it during our month off between semesters.

     “Justin is here? Why are you hiding fro—? Oh,” she trailed off as she remembered my lie. I shook my head at her thoughts. She didn’t understand the severity of the situation.

     “Zee, this isn’t about lying. I could probably convince Aunt Jo to lie about sending you with me. This is something so much bigger. I’m in way over my head,” I grumbled trying to figure out an escape route that didn’t lead back to the front desk. She grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the far back row.

     “Zee, what are you doing? That’s right over the teacher’s lounge,” I concluded, and she nodded. She stopped in front of the bookcase and ran her fingers along the unfamiliar titles.

     “Kalista, Zeldya, Are you two back here?” Justin’s voice carried through the shelves and my heart skipped a beat.

     “Shit! Zee, hurry up!” I projected as she pulled a book off the shelf. A small section of the bookcase turned into a hidden room. My mouth dropped open, and she pulled me inside before it shut again.

     “What is this place?” I asked. She snapped her fingers and an overhead light flickered to life. There were books, pillows, candles, and blankets scattered haphazardly around the room and a mattress was propped against one wall. I paled as I realized where we were.

“Welcome to the Unspeakable Room. You’re still innocent. I thought Freedom was the only one. The way your sister talks, I thought your naivety was an act,” she joked while I hugged myself.

     I purposefully kept myself innocent by staying away from the kids that used this room on a regular basis. The Unspeakable Room was like a secret club and only members knew how to gain access. I quickly jumped to another conclusion but didn’t want to assume anything.

     “Zee, have you and Bakura… You haven’t actually done the unspeakable, have you?” I hated the way I tripped over my words. She and her twin brother Lucifer were in my class. They were only a few months younger than I was and I knew older kids were doing it, but I kept away from kids with that sort of reputation.

     “Kal, you’re not going to tell anyone, right?” she asked as she dropped onto one of the floor pillows. I shook my head unable to form words. I paced along the empty piece of rug and tried not to think. This was too personal to share. I wouldn’t repeat it to anyone. She continued to stare at me, and I stopped halfway back for the seventh time.

     “I’m not a nark. Me being in this room is just between the two of us. Anything said here, stays here,” I reassured her even though she didn’t need to hear it. She was always the strong one. She did what she wanted, when she wanted, with who she wanted, and didn’t worry about what anyone else thought or said about her. I was proud to be her friend, and I’d always have her back just like she had mine.

     “Thank you, Kal. We should be safe here until the bell rings for the next period. I’m excited for our new class. We’ll see how long that lasts,” she commented before I could.

     We chuckled and she proceeded to tell me about all the latest gossip to help pass the time, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the reason Justin was here.

     “Kal, you’re distracted again. Are you still thinking about your stepdad?” It was a rhetorical question. She knew I was, and she also knew that I didn’t feel safe around him. He was always uptight and seemed untrustworthy. I’d spent the last ten years sharing the least amount of time I could with him because something was odd about him. It was as if he was hiding a secret and was worried that everyone would find out.

     “You can’t keep thinking about him. He’s a creep. He sat in the library talking to Ramah and Calhan for a half-hour yesterday when we left school. Then He stuck around for an hour after they left,” she rambled before she saw my scrunched eyebrows. “No hard thinking.”

     “That isn’t what he said yesterday. Makumae said he went home, and Aiden told him where I went. It was barely five o’clock when Justin found me. He couldn’t have been here for the whole two hours. Wait, you were with Allistasia yesterday. How do you know when he left?” I needed more information than that. She stared at me as if I were new and shook her head.  

     “I was with them. Bakura was studying with one of the guys,” she explained, and I scowled. She knew I didn’t like him. I put up with him because he was her current boyfriend, but I didn’t trust him.

     “Then how do you know he was here the whole time?” I asked. She stood from her spot on the floor and tapped the molding of one wall with the toe of her high heels. It clicked into place and opened the door as the bell rang.

     “I have a friend who watches Bakura any time he’s here without me. My watcher said that Justin was here until ten minutes to five when someone came to get him. He called Ramah and left to find you,” she divulged as my mind tried to piece the timeline together. He hadn’t gone home. Aiden had sent someone to get him. It was only a slight deviation.

     Why would he lie about that? Was he here alone or with—? I turned to see the librarian sitting at her desk. She looked around then adjusted the top button of her shirt back into place when she thought that no one was looking. Had Justin come for me or her?

     Zeldya set her hand on my shoulder, and we hugged before she headed off to Sociology class.

     “Thank you for hiding out with me. I’ll talk to you at Lunch,” I called after her. She waved back and left me to myself.

     I flipped through the pictures and paused on the one that matched the librarian. Her name wasn’t noted under her picture, but it referenced another section of the book and a piece of prophecy: ‘The torture master and the executioner have been misplaced. The one above was removed from the Council, and both titles fell to one being. See the Executioner, or the Prophecy of the Charka Aknobas.’

     “The Broken Redeemer,” I whispered the last two words in English. Demoki was my first language, Greek was my second, and American English was worse than either of them. I walked down the back staircase into the prophecy section set on finding it, so I could study her further. I looked high and low but didn’t see any specific book that mentioned it.

     “Can I help you find something? Doctor Healer’s note said that you shouldn’t be reading anything too difficult. The books of prophecy are a bunch of riddles from ages passed,” the alto voice of the librarian caught me off guard. I jumped and quickly placed the book I was skimming through back on the shelf. No one usually snuck up on me. I hadn’t even felt her presence behind me. There was no way that she could be the being from earlier.

     “You look pale, maybe I should call Doctor Healer,” she stated with a sly glint in her eyes. She walked to the desk, and I followed. I pressed the button that hung up the phone before she had time to dial.

     “No, don’t call her. I’m perfectly fine. You just startled me, that’s all. What, were you a cat in another life? You can’t just sneak up on people and expect them to remain calm,” I ranted and hoped it would divert her attention. She stared into my eyes and begged me to stare back but I refused to meet her golden gaze.

     Staring into anyone’s eyes enhanced my power so I focused on her necklace instead. It was gold and complimented her skin tone, but the crest was silver. It was a stark contrast to the chain and confused me until I really looked at the crest itself. Emblazoned on the silver strawberry-sized shield was the Highest family crest.

     Who was she? Was she Ephraim’s little spy? She touched my hand and a small spark of metaphysical energy coursed up my arm. I quickly pulled it back and rubbed my hand.

     “Who are you?” I hissed through the pain. She smiled politely but that smile hid sinister intentions. The hair on the back of my neck rose before she even opened her mouth.

     “I’m Anya Highest, Ephraim’s daughter,” she said, and I tasted the lie. The thick, metallic taste of blood coated my mouth. It felt as if she’d physically hit me. I hated the taste, and now I knew why some preternaturals hated liars.

     “Liar,” I shot before I dashed from the library into the empty hall. Where am I supposed to go? Aunt Josephine told me to stay put… She also told me to relax, and that was not going to happen when Anya was nearby.

     “Kalista, are you free this period?” Mister Anthony called to me as he exited his classroom. When I nodded a small smile tugged at his thin lips. “How about you and I have that talk in the library now?” The final warning bell rang for the start of the next period, and I pushed the hair back from my face.

     “Sure,” I said, and he reached for the door I’d just exited. “Just not in the library. What about the Teacher’s lounge?” I grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the lounge. When we stopped, he put his hand on the door, and it opened without a key.

     He held it for me, and I stepped inside. The main room was large with couches, tables, chairs, a couple counters, and a fridge in the corner. There were rooms off the larger room where teachers could take students who were emotionally upset or causing trouble. They were the safest rooms in the school, but they had security cameras. I didn’t want this conversation to be taped or overheard.

     “Kalista?” I jumped and spun around toward the voice. I held onto the strap of my bag and forced down the thrum of my pulse against my throat. My panic eased when I saw Miss Serena Teach, our Demonology teacher. She sat in a far corner at a round table. “Is everything alright? Caleb, how was the board meeting?” she asked, a bit flustered. Her long, dark brown hair was tied back in its usual bun and her bright brown eyes seemed to sparkle even though there was no sunlight in the room.

     “The students are abuzz with gossip, especially about their new teacher. Kalista has a free period, due to a concussion she suffered yesterday,” Mister Anthony explained as Miss Teach slid the stack of books she’d been reading into her bag. She nodded and gestured for us to sit with her. We did, and she smiled kindly.

     “They’ll calm down after lunch. That’s the joy of having the first and last class of the day. They’re too tired to gossip the first hour, and by the last one they’ve usually talked it all out,” she joked with him before she turned to me. “I’m sorry about your concussion. They are nasty injuries that inhibit learning. I could assist if you like. I do have strong healing abilities, you know,” she offered, sitting straighter. I smiled gratefully and nodded my consent.

     “Lean forward so I can set my hands on your temples. My ability works best when I have direct contact,” Miss Teach instructed. I obeyed, because I knew she wouldn’t hurt me. She was one of the few teachers I trusted besides Mister Anthony.

     She set her fingertips to my temples and goosebumps rose on my skin as her power filled my head. It flowed to the spot where the demons had kicked me and gently washed over it. It healed even the slight dent before she sat back with a grin.

     “That should do it. How do you feel?” she asked, perky as ever. It was a routine question. I gave her my best grin and ran my hand through my hair to test the pain that negged the back of my head all day. It didn’t hurt at all. My grin widened.

     “It’s perfect. Thank you, Miss Teach,” I replied as she leaned back with a smile of her own. That smile lit up her entire face and her high cheekbones shimmered with light. We turned back to Mister Anthony, and he was distracted by the book he’d been carrying.

     I tilted my head to the side to read the title from the spine: Myths and Spells of the Ancient World by A. Angelic. Angelic was the last name of several Council of Fire Members. Three of them had a first name that started with A, including my father.

     “Caleb, what’s this little meeting about? You seemed determined earlier, but now you’re distracted,” she observed, and he snapped the book closed. He looked up at her and slid the book on top of the small stack on the table in front of him.

     “There was an incident on campus last week that was recently brought to my attention. I’m not sure Headmaster Misery was informed. I wanted to learn more before involving him. Have you heard anything from your students?” he asked her. She sat back, thoughtfully, and set one hand to her chin.

     “You mean the incident with the three students in the library? That’s why they hired her to be the librarian. They wanted someone to keep the peace and stop incidents from happening.”

     I shivered at the nonchalant way she referenced Anya. Sure, she could stop things, but keeping the peace was not her priority. It was only a thought, but they turned to stare at me like I’d said it aloud.

     “What was that? I swear you just spoke, but your lips never moved,” Mister Anthony removed his glasses, pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, and cleaned them before he placed them on the bridge of his nose.

     I didn’t know what to say. Usually, I had to concentrate to project, and I’d never projected to two people at once. I slouched, ran a hand through my hair, and pulled the length out from between my back and the chair.

     “I’m sorry. I can telepathically project thoughts, though doing it without trying is new. I’ll try to keep my thoughts to myself from now on,” I apologized. They sat forward with mirrored, wide-eyed curiosity. The way their expressions reflected each other was uncanny.

     Are they related? I hadn’t connected them before, but that was too similar a look. I’d never really seen them together except at school functions, and I was too busy staying out of trouble to notice any resemblance.

     “Well, we need to work on that. Kalista, before class you were explaining what Dominic Junior and Seth were up to in the library,” he reminded me, which brought us back to the incident. I nodded but didn’t want to talk about it anymore. I wished that the bell would ring and save me from having to explain, but I wasn’t that lucky.

     “I’m not sure I can fully explain. I mean I wasn’t paying attention when they snuck up on me. I was reading. I did smell something strange on them when I grabbed Dominic’s coat,” I began not sure exactly why I was talking. I didn’t want to say anything. I surely didn’t want to get Seth or Dominic suspended.

     “That’s odd. If you had time to grab his coat, why didn’t you have time to slip away from them? Start from the beginning and tell me what happened step by step,” he instructed. I had to hand it to him, he was good at this, or else I was bad at it. I slid my mental shields closed and replayed the incident. I hadn’t thought about it much since I got home and scurried into my room that night without supper.

     “I was working on a pet project in the lofts bay window. It was a rather large book, and I’d lost myself in it. I never heard them coming, even though they were talking back and forth subtly trying to get my attention,” I began. It was as if I were back in the library listening to them again. I remembered hearing them talk, but not anything they said exactly.

     “I assumed that they would leave me alone. No one usually disturbs me while I’m studying,” I offered, and Mister Anthony nodded. I hoped to distract him, but it hadn’t worked. I was in too deep… again. “I stopped reading because I felt them staring at me. I let the book drop enough to see Seth’s face before he ripped it from my hands.

     “‘What is this, teacher’s pet? The Council of Fire: Facts and Legends,’ he read the spine before throwing it to the floor. I knelt to pick it up, and Dom pushed me back onto the seat with one hand. ‘Sit down, Tragedy. You can get your book later, Nerd.’ Dom insulted me, but I remained calm. They both smelled of sweet smoke. It was different than any smoke I’d ever smelled, and their eyes were wild. I knew I had to keep them calm or fight them and I didn’t want to do that,” I recalled as Miss Teach took notes. I waited until she finished writing before I plotted on.

     “‘What do you two want?’ I asked. At that moment, it seemed like a logical question, but it made Dom mad. ‘We want you to forget what you heard and saw.’ He demanded. I was completely clueless as to what he thought I’d witnessed. ‘I didn’t see anything. I was reading,’ I tried to reason with them, but Seth scoffed. I gazed into his brown eyes and noticed a strange amber tint to them. His pupils were dilated too. ‘We can’t risk that. You must have heard something when you got here. We weren’t being quiet back there,’ Seth argued as Dom sat down on the seat beside me. I tried to get away, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me against him.

     “‘I think she’s lying, Seth. She knows too much.’ At this point, I realized I needed to escape as soon as possible. Dom’s breath smelled… strange and his grip on my arm tightened enough to bruise,” I stopped talking as my bicep throbbed. Mister Anthony watched my eyes as if to catch when I’d lie, but so far, everything I said was true.

     “‘She had to hear us moaning,’ Seth said, and I stiffened. I’d seen them walk by when they came in. They were holding hands. They assumed I’d come in while they were busy, and I knew they wouldn’t believe me. I didn’t want to think about what they’d been doing back there, but I also needed a distraction.

     “Honest, I didn’t see anything. You know me, Dom. I don’t lie,’ I said, and it seemed to work for a second. He let me go and I stood to leave but Judge Highest called Seth’s name. Seth instinctively shoved me intending for me to sit back down so his father couldn’t see me. It knocked me off balance and I tumbled out the open window,” I ended while I stared into Mister Anthony’s eyes. They were glazed as if he wasn’t paying attention. Miss Teach looked up then nodded before she noticed it too.

     “Caleb, is there anything else you need to know?” she asked, and he snapped out of it. He shook his head, removed his glasses, and looked beyond me. A dominating presence loomed behind me, and its eyes bore a hole in the back of my skull like if it stared hard enough it could make me disappear.

     “Kalista, may I speak with you in my office?” Headmaster Misery’s deep voice vibrated down my spine. I cringed at the disappointed undertones in his usually warm voice before I stood. I turned, and he held the door open for me to exit the lounge. He gestured for me to walk beside him, and our footsteps echoed in the too silent hallway.

     “Kalista, don’t worry. You aren’t in trouble,” he said as we started down the stairs. That was a bit of a relief but made sense. I looked up his tall form and realized he looked almost lanky in the suit that was a bit big for his thinning frame. His white hair had been slicked back showing a slight widow’s peak, and his blue eyes were curious rather than stern. What good thing had I done now to earn that look?

     “I was informed that you might be just the person I’m looking for,” he purred. I tripped on the last step down, and he gently caught my arm to keep me from falling. I righted myself and offered a small smile.

     “Sorry, Makumae says I’m going through another growth spurt,” I apologized. He chuckled and offered me a knowing grin. He had three children of his own, so he understood it even if I didn’t.

     “Anya told me that you went into the library at nine this morning and were surprisingly absent, without leaving the library, from nine-fifteen until the bell rang at ten o’clock,” he began. I paled at the implications.

     “He wants to know about the Unspeakable room,” a voice in my head warned me, but I kept it to myself. I wasn’t going to jump to conclusions just yet.

     “You’re a studious girl with a bright future ahead of you. I’d hate to see you fall in with the wrong crowd,” he prefaced as we entered his secretary’s office. She didn’t make a peep as we walked by. She barely even acknowledged our presence.

     “I like to stay as far away from the wrong crowd as I can, sir,” I agreed. He nodded and closed the door behind us as I sat. He walked around his desk but didn’t sit. He looked out the window at something. I couldn’t be sure what exactly, since I was too short to see out the window while sitting. 

     “And for the most part, you’ve done a good job. In your social circle, the only person with a less than spotless reputation is Zeldya Ptah. She seems like a loner, but she scores well on tests. If she’d sit down for class, she’d be an A-plus student,” he paused and turned around again. “But that’s not the point. I believe you know about the secret room here on campus,” he said, and I shrugged. He watched me and waited for an answer. I decided half-truth was best.

     “Everyone knows about the Unspeakable room, sir. Not many will admit to it, or that they hold a membership to the secret club, but I’m not one of them,” I explained. One of his bushy white eyebrows rose at the confession and the wheels in his head began to turn.

     “Then where did you hide from your stepfather? He knows that library better than anyone,” he questioned as he sat in his leather chair. He leaned forward and folded his hands on the desk. His blue eyes scrutinized my body language for some clue that I was lying, but I knew better than that.

     “I’m very good at hiding in plain sight and I know that library better than he does. I’ve read half the books in it and am prepared to read the other half before ‘the time appointed for our return’,” I quoted the prophecy. He nodded, his guard still in place. He wanted to drop it around me like so many others did. Professionalism meant never letting a student see a teacher, or Headmaster, unhinged inside the school walls.

     “Sir, by all means, I’m no fool. You can speak to me about anything you wish. As a student, I am obligated to answer honestly or at least respond,” I mused. He leaned back, and his eyes gleamed as if he had just come to life. He wasn’t as cold as everyone perceived. I was one of the only students who ever saw his open, childlike persona because I’d known him before he became Headmaster. He’d been one of the many preters that I’d met while I lived with my father, the first three years of my life.  

     “You really were there then. It’s not a myth?” he inquired. I nodded once. He’d been looking for the room for years, and it’d been as elusive as the Holy Grail. His grin widened, and his eyes warmed, ripe with a fresh tease.

     “You weren’t there with a boy, were you? Your Packana would have my head,” he mocked and placed a hand over his heart. I shook my head and scrunched my nose.

     “No, this innocent flower is still uncut,” I metaphorically replied. He nodded once, and his wife Kalia Misery, our biology teacher, walked in from a door to the right of his desk. She set her hands on his shoulders and looked at me. Her long, oval face perfectly matched her sinewy, tall frame and graceful curves.

     “I advise you to keep it that way. Too many of the girls in this school have already been cut and some by the same boy. You’re in the minority for your age, if not for the whole school. It’s an impossible burden for those who don’t understand the implications. Your friend Zeldya is one of them. She is barely fourteen human years. She doesn’t understand where she could be in five years,” she warned me. I sat back as her eyes bore through me and read between the lines. Because Zeldya had done the unspeakable with Bakura, she could be pregnant. I hoped they were preventing it, but Zeldya liked to live life on the edge of danger, which probably meant she wasn’t using any kind of protection.

     “I understand. I’ll talk with her,” I said. When they didn’t say anything, I grabbed my bag from the floor and cleared my throat. “May I go now? I have to find Solomon or Lucifer and get the notes from our last two classes.”

     He put one hand on top of hers where it sat on his shoulder, and I noticed a connection between them. There was a blue line of color that connected their auras. It was something I hadn’t seen before and now I was curious as to what it was.

     “You are right, and you’re free to go. If you hear anything, you know where to find me,” he dismissed me. I dipped my head in respect and quickly left before he could change his mind.

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