Chapter 12

Levi and I were the last ones to make it to the dining room for supper, and it was entirely his fault.

Well, sort of.

After we had sex for the second time in the gym, we went to my bedroom, where we had sex a third time! The man was almost insatiable and his stamina incomparable. I bet he could keep that up for a couple more rounds, and by the Light, my traitor body wanted it, but I didn't want to give a reason for the witches to come looking for us.

We took our usual places across the table from each other, but Lacey kept staring at us, her eyes knowing. Heat spread over my cheeks and Levi winked at her.

Oh, Light, I wanted to hide under the table.

Tonight, Belinda was tired and Magnus was his usual pleasant self. But other than that, everything was the same. The sisters talked about their lessons, Trent talked about his hide-and-seek game with the animals, and then Maggie explained about our discovery that could potentially bring my magic back.

"And the best part of it all," she said, "is that if this Kaz guy agrees to it, Ariella will see dragons!"

"Let's hope Kaz agrees," Abbie said. "He can't be the only obstacle for this."

"Right," I muttered. I hadn't spent much time with Kaz, but from the get-go, he had kept to himself. I was a little worried about his answer. If there would be one at all. He might never call or text me back. What if he had changed numbers like I did? He seemed keen on going into hiding with the dragons again.

"Ariella already saw a dragon," Levi said.

I looked at him and the shine in his eyes told me he had felt my sudden spiraling feelings and he had come to my rescue.

My heart squeezed and the damn bond tugged.

By the light, I was torturing myself here.

"Really?" Trent's voice pitched high.

Despite the fact that I had lost my magic, it had been a pretty fantastic sight.

I told them about our quest and how we had to fight demons who were chasing the dragon. Trent leaned closer, almost coming over Gwen and Britt, who were between us, his mouth agape, his eyes wide in wonder.

However, I lost Trent for the chocolate brownie with salted caramel that was served for dessert.

"It seems you have a new fan," Levi said, his voice low.

"New fan? You mean my only fan."

His eyes narrowed slightly, but I tried not reading much into it.

"Let me enjoy it while it lasts." I glanced at the little boy, who devoured his dessert in huge spoonfuls. "Well, I think it's already over."

Levi offered me that lopsided grin and my heart skipped a beat. I focused on my dessert and almost moaned when I took a bite.

"Okay, I agree with him. This is much better."

I glanced around the table, suddenly feeling a lot lighter, a lot happier. Everyone looked happy and well. Trent smiled with his teeth covered in chocolate, Abbie chided him, though she couldn't contain her laughter, and the other sisters laughed too. Like me, Belinda observed the others with a smile on her lips. After two glasses of wine, even Magnus seemed to have relaxed a little, though he didn't say much.

Lacey smiled a lot, and Levi seemed less like a menacing demon and more like sweet temptation. Whatever Levi and I had, it was fun and I would enjoy it while it lasted.

Seeing everyone like this brought a certain longing to my chest. I missed my friends—Farrah, Wyatt, Kayden, Lavinia, Killian, Raika, Shane … there were so many. And I had left them all behind.

Maybe it was time to stop being stubborn and let them know I was okay, things were looking up, and I would have my magic back.

I looked at Levi and a strange force tugged at my heart at the thought of leaving him.

His eyes met mine.

I inhaled deeply, at peace, at least for tonight.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?"

I nodded. "The only thing better than this, would be if I got my sword back too."

"Oh, you lost your Celestial Sword too?" Maggie asked. Everyone's attention turned to me again.

"Yeah, a higher demon destroyed it," I said, feeling Levi's and Lacey's eyes on me. It had been Molraz, their father.

"We have a Celestial Sword here," Britt said, sounding bored.

I sat straighter. "You do?"

Everyone nodded.

"Yeah, it's on display in the Light Gallery," Gwen said.

"Do you want to see it?" Trent asked, his mouth still dirty from the brownie.

"Of course!"

The sisters and Trent led Levi, Lacey, and me to the Light Gallery, while Magnus took Belinda back to her chambers.

Once we arrived in the gallery, I understood the name. The ceiling was glass, not stained, letting pure light come in, and all the items in this gallery were about pure and light magic.

The sword was on a pedestal at the end of the large room, and I froze upon seeing it. It was a little rusty, but still so beautiful with its long silver blade and white hilt and silver details.

"The sword is old and dull, and I believe it's magicless," Abbie said.

It didn't make sense. Celestial Swords were tied to the guardians. They were made from our power, and once we died, they crumbled into ashes.

Unless they were destroyed by higher demons, something that only happened a handful of times in our long history.

"How do you have it?" I asked, my fingers itching to reach out and touch it.

"It belonged to an angel, friend of the family, several hundred years ago," Maggie said. "He asked our ancestors to enchant it right before he died, so the sword would live on forever."

"From what we read, he hated the idea of the sword disappearing," Gwen said. "He didn't like that it would be sitting here, but wanted it to survive his death."

"Can't you take it?" Trent asked, amused.

My eyes widened for a moment. "I probably can't. I mean, it was another angel's. It's tied to his essence and I'm sure it wouldn't work."

Abbie's brows curled down. "Maybe we can make it work."

My breath hitched. "What?"

"I can't guarantee anything, if it'll even be possible," she continued. "But maybe we can enchant it. Make it answer your call. It won't be exactly like a Celestial Sword, but it can be yours."

"This sounds like a challenge," Britt said, sounding interested.

"I like this idea," Lacey said. "Can I help?"

"Of course," Gwen answered. "But first, we need to clean it.

The sisters laughed.

Abbie looked at me. "It's your call."

My chest tightened. "Are you sure?"

"Of course." She jerked her chin to the sword. "Take it."

With trembling hands, I stepped closer and reached for the sword. It was heavier than mine had been, a little longer too, it was a little dirty and rusty, but by the light, it was a freaking Celestial Sword and it could be mine.

"How does it feel, sweetheart?" Levi asked. His eyes were brilliant as if he was enjoying this. Perhaps he was because he couldn't help but feel what I felt.

I held on tight to it. "Amazing."

"Come on." Abbie beckoned us to the door. "Let's get started."