My heart stops, seizing with indecision. It’s not sure if it wants to go on without him, and I can’t blame it. But we’ve got to, because his still beats.
I lock onto the faint, irregular thumps, and stumble forward. Choking his name, I search for a place to touch him that won’t cause him more pain and come up empty. There’s no part of Malach that isn’t covered in wounds.
Riven reaches for him, and I snarl. “No one touches him but me.” With gritted teeth, I wrap my arms around his hips and lift, unhooking the shackles around his wrists from the silver hook embedded in the ceiling.
He groans but doesn’t wake. I’m grateful for that.
Hoisting Malach over my shoulders, I keep him facedown so the wounds on his back won’t rub against me. It’s the best I can do for him right now.
I glance at Lyklan. Beads of sweat dot his forehead, and there’sa green pallor to his skin. “Take us to the gateway,” I say. He doesn’t react. He’s too busy staring at Malach’s severed wings. “Snap out of it, Lyklan. He’s still alive, and you’re wasting time.”
This time, he hears me. Tearing his eyes away from the wings, he blinks rapidly like he’s trying to wake up from a bad dream. “S’lach keeps a personal portal in his study,” he says. “It’s the fastest way.”
I nod and call to Riven. “Get his wings.” My voice cracks. “We can’t leave them here.”
Riven’s face flickers, but he bends without a word, gathering Malach’s wings with agonizing gentleness. My eyes burn. I refuse to let tears fall.
As I climb the stairs, I make myself a promise: S’lach will die for this. My life won’t know peace until his ends, and it’s a truth I’ve avoided for far too long.
Our walk through the house is a blur. All I can think about is ending Malach’s pain.
Lyklan forces the study door open and retrieves a small orb from my father’s drawer.
“Send us back to Earth,” I say. “Help is waiting there.”
Fiddling with the device, Lyklan nods, then tosses a pained look at Malach from the corner of his eye. The urge to order him to focus on the task at hand is hard to ignore, but I bite my tongue. Arguing will only slow him down further.
The orb hums and splits. Light shoots from the crack, forming a swirling vortex of light.Finally.Malach’s pulse is thready, his skin clammy and feverish. My gut tells me we’re running out of time.
I step toward the portal.
Lyklan twists, removing it from my path, and I stiffen. “How dare you! He’s dying!” I’m shaking now, a horrible combination of terror and fury swirling in my gut.
“I’m not trying to stop you.” He shoots a wary lookat Riven. “I only wanted to remind you of what will happen if you abandon the staff?—”
“I’m not abandoning anyone,” I snap. “I’ll be back before S’lach returns. He will pay for this, Lyklan. I vowed on my magic to help them, and I will.”
His grip on the orb tightens. “What are you going to do?”
I sneer at the white walls, void of life and steeped in cruelty, then meet his wide eyes. “I’m going to take my fucking house back. He wanted a war. He’s going to get one.”
Lyklan gulps and nods, returning the portal to its original position.
I step into the light with a stone-faced Riven at my side.
THIRTY-FOUR
Excerpt from the Veydran Code of Conduct:
Mimicry without flaw is the only calling.
RIVEN
The portal spits us out near the gateway.
I reach out to steady Celine, but she lands without flinching, feet planted wide even while balancing Malach’s limp body over her shoulders.
Eyes hard and strangely blank, she marches straight for the SUV we left behind.
