27

Not dead yet. Just asleep. I think.

I wasn’t sure for how long, though. Wherever my body ended up, it was cozy. I vaguely remembered the sensation of being wrapped in someone’s arms. The arms I felt now were an illusion; just a wool blanket.

When I shifted my position, the platform beneath me creaked.

A bed. Not mine from the dorms, though. Something about it felt wrong. Too stiff. My brows came together after I felt an awful headache split my brain open. “Ow…”

I groaned. Hot tears clouded my eyes. The memories of what I’d done came rushing back. Swirling blackness roared like an ocean in my skull. I was reminded of the pain from my body wanting to break apart. My muscles continued to ache but were back in their rightful places.

The vortex of clashing energies left me with uneasiness and awe. There was nothing uniform about it. It had been grander, more beautiful and terrible, than what I thought a demon’s power should be.

Oh, gods… My stomach twisted in uncomfortable knots.

I kissed Max.

That woke me more than the headache. I sat upright in my mystery bed. A mix of fear and nausea washed over me. Max was a werewolf and stronger than humans. Yeah. He’s fine. Guy even said so.

Max…

My involuntary shudder alerted me to the wires in my arm.

Where the hell was I?

I had a monitor beside me, along with a tray and cup of water. The awkward gown I wore was more like an oversized t-shirt that didn’t quite reach my knees. If I’d been taken to an infirmary of sorts, that would make the most sense, but I seemed to be the only patient in a very large room.

The machine beeped. Faster. Faster. I felt my insides squirm again, this time in awareness of my situation. There was only one door that appeared too dense and fortified to be a simple passageway. No windows either. The only window that let me see out of that room was a rectangle cut out of the white walls. I imagined the glass was just as difficult to break through.

Oh, GODS.

Had I been quarantined?

My breathing came out in pathetic whimpers. No, not my most impressive moment. But I was scared. Hurt. I felt betrayed, somehow. Were they keeping me there temporarily? Who had decided to put me there?

“Jess. Don’t panic.”

I gasped when a voice over a loud intercom introduced itself. It was Zak’s voice. There was movement behind the glass barrier and I spotted the angel. His peacekeeper uniform hugged his body like a darkly clad executioner.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

His sigh made the intercom go fuzzy. “Sorry for the shock. We haven’t experienced your power like that before. We just want to make sure everything is under control.”

The incident must’ve been worse than I thought, and I’d had pretty negative thoughts about it. At least it didn’t sound like he wanted to keep me there forever. Could the walls truly stop something like light or dark matter from breaking through?

“It’ll hold. For now,” Zak said after catching my examination of the room, “I’m really sorry, Jess. I made promises and haven’t been good at keeping them, but I’ll make it up to you.”

“It’s okay…” What else was there to say, really? I was dangerous and they had to protect themselves. Hell, I thought I was going to accidentally destroy myself too. “No one got hurt, did they?” I asked.

“No one’s dead. The gym might be closed for a while,” he said, “You healed nicely. That’s good.”

“But someone was hurt?”

Zak paused. “Barrett, but he’s already wrapped up and back at the dorms.”

Not that I wanted anyone to have been a victim in the crossfire, but it just had to be Barrett? One of the only people, aside from Tori, who had been nice to me, no questions asked.

Zak placed a hand on the glass. “I should’ve been there sooner.”

Someone I couldn’t hear walked into the same room he was in. A peacekeeper. Zak responded to them with a head turn. He covered the mic he used to speak with me while answering the new person.

His beautiful eyes flickered with alarm.

“What’s going on?” I asked, feeling useless in my hamster cage.

Zak spoke back into the mic. “I have to leave. He’s on the move. We’re going to catch him this time.”

My heart gave me a jolt. I was supposed to tell him about Clay. About my dreams!

More peacekeepers beckoned silently to Zak. Their faces furrowed, not showing humor while waiting around. I tried leaving my bed but accidentally yanked the IV out of my vein. “W— Ow. Wait, Zak!”

It was a bad idea to start running while dizzy but I reached the glass without falling over. Zak ignored the voices behind him and gave me a sad smile. His eyes went straight to my arm. “Careful. You’ve been asleep a while. Clove’s gonna be pissed you messed with your cords.”

“He’s been—” I stopped. “Wait, how long?”

“Days. Under Clove’s watch.”

Days? His eyes remained on me while his body fidgeted, responding to the peacekeepers stirring behind him. Telling him about my dreams would only waste more time. They were going to capture him right then. I would only slow him down.

Zak searched my face for the rest of my thoughts, but I let him go.

“It can wait,” I said, “I can wait.”

He gave me half a nod. “I’ll come back. I promise.”

Before I could say anything more, he set the mic on its desk and left. I was alone in my box. An hour went by, maybe two. I didn’t expect Zak back for many hours but wasn’t sure what to do in the meantime.

No one came. If they did, they were watching from some where I couldn’t see. Something wasn’t sitting well with me. A gnawing feeling in my gut kept telling me to be cautious. The isolated space hadn’t helped.

Zak said he’d come back.

After what felt like half a day, I lay back on the bed since the only other option was the floor. Why hadn’t Clove come by? It was like I’d been left there to rot. The longer it took to hear from another person, the worse my worries became.

Maybe they didn’t know what to do with me and were too afraid to let me out.

How many other criminals with unruly powers had been held in the same box? I wondered what Zak and Jarmiel had talked about since the incident. Raguel likely had some choice words on the matter, if he was involved in any of those conversations. Which I knew he would’ve been.

I tried shutting my brain up. No use going crazy after one day of quarantine. I needed more willpower than that if I was ever going to control my power.

“ Jess . Jess, it’s me.”

Spectacular.

Already hearing voices.

I rolled over and pretended not to have noticed anything. That worked for a whole second. My blanket lifted slightly be fore falling again. I must’ve broken a record on how quickly someone could go insane.

“Stop moping around and listen to me.” The whispering voice practically screamed. That time I heard exactly who it was. Tori was completely invisible but her shrill tone was much clearer that time, as she yelled in my ear.

“Tori? How?”

“ Shh .” I could sense her aura moving about but saw nothing. Impressive, I thought. She hadn’t come as herself or in her bear replacement. That meant she could travel in and out of walls freely like a true ghost.

“What are you doing here?” I pressed again.

“Make it look like you aren’t talking to anyone. Their sensors pick up fluctuations of energy, but luckily, they’ll just assume it’s you. I hope.” Tori let out a trembling breath. “We need to get you out of here! I’m still surprised you didn’t leave after my message.”

“Your message?” I used my best ventriloquist impression, which I’d never attempted before. When that flopped, I resorted to covering my lips with my hand instead.

“Yeah. In your room. I thought it’d at least spook you like in horror movies.” she said.

It clicked.

“ You seasoned my carpet?”

“I was going to tell you the other night but Guy stayed by your door all night. I thought he’d hear us talking. Having a room close to yours helped keep him off my scent, just barely.”

“Why are you avoiding Guy?” I asked. If she had wanted to relay a message like that, why would she hide it from him?

There was a long pause. I couldn’t see what face she made so I just sat there.

“I heard them talking. About you.” Tori’s softening voice haunted me. “You’re not who you think you are.”

“What does that mean?”

“I know you’re part demon but it’s more than that, it’s—” she paused, making a questionable huffing sound mixed with a sob, “They think your father is a demon lord .”

The words hit me like a punch in the gut. They played again and again, smacking the back wall of my brain until it finally cracked. Demon lords. Rulers of all kingdoms in Hell. Ultimately responsible for the suffering of humans, and even other demons.

I continued to stare at the air, pretending it was her face. “I don’t understand.”

“I don’t either, but they aren’t letting you out of here.”

The world tilted on its axis. That couldn’t be right. Or could it? What information did the angels find that I hadn’t?

“Guy was almost certain I was something else,” I said.

“You have to stay away from him,” she said, “He was the one who told them. We need to go .”

My head shifted back and forth on its own. If Guy had any thoughts of gutting my soul, why hadn’t he? He brought me dinner. Cake, even. Had that been my last meal?

I recalled the chocolate frosting now with spite.

“We don’t have tons of time,” Tori’s voice reminded me. “I spied on Faris while everyone was questioned. He’s the obvious person to come after you. Anyway, he was talking to his friends, saying that the angels… well…”

I was impressed yet again by her ghostly sneaking about.

“Was it him?”

She hesitated. “Who shot the bolt? I don’t know but probably. He claims Raguel wants you gone. It sounds ridiculous since Zak is so nice, but after what I heard Guy say I’m not sure of anything.”

“Did Guy actually say my dad’s a demon lord?” I asked, waiting for her to continue with a throbbing heart.

“He met with Zak, Jarmiel, Lisha, and Raguel. I was only able to hear Guy confirm what he discovered, and Raguel say, ‘She doesn’t leave this facility. We’re putting a stop to this, now,’ before I got caught.” Tori huffed and I imagined her pouting face. “Guy senses me too easily, but I don’t think anyone suspected me.”

Tori had a lot to say but spoke rapidly to condense the time. I replayed her message, desperately inventing scenarios in which I wasn’t a demon lord’s daughter. That they didn’t need to “put an end” to me.

“Jess?” Tori sounded sad but I couldn’t see what expression she made. “I know what I’m saying isn’t nice but I’m really scared for you.”

I was too. My aunt had been right about the angels. I’d let my guard down with Zak. Although, I also had a hard time believ ing Tori would suddenly oppose Guy. “Why are you helping me?”

“Well, geez . I thought we were friends.”

Her palms must’ve smacked the bed because it shook from impact. “I think it’s stupid for you to be killed for no reason. Even angels shouldn’t have a say in that. You’re healthy and you’re kind. Sure, you scared the pants off everyone when you took the building down, but—”

“I did what ?”

“It wasn’t a big one, just the gym.”

We both shut up when someone else appeared behind the glass. Tori hitched a breath and I suddenly felt her absence, like a warm body had been next to me the whole time.

She couldn’t leave. Not after all she’d just said!

What was I supposed to do? I turned my attention to the new visitor. Clove walked in wearing her white lab coat and delicate wings pinched behind her back. Her straight frown didn’t reveal if I was about to be executed or not.

“I apologize for not coming sooner,” she said, using the same mic that Zak had, “I see you’ve taken the liberty of removing your IVs.”

“Sorry.” That sounded more curt than I intended.

Clove’s lips parted like she had planned to continue promptly, but my response seemed to slow her down. “I realize this situation isn’t ideal. You have to understand the position we’re in.”

“I’m not sure, actually. Am I being quarantined?” I’d only met her the one other time but I remembered her being direct. Unless she’d been instructed to stay secretive.

“This is for everyone’s protection, including yours,” Clove said, “Please, trust me on that.”

“How long do I have to stay?” I asked.

“As long as it takes. Can you describe your current state? Any dizziness, anxiousness, or pain?”

I told her about the initial pain after waking up. Most of my symptoms, aside from a slight buzzing in my nerves, had gone. In fact, I felt empty , like a lemon peel trying to recover after being squeezed. That usually happened right before the headaches and blackouts.

“You need to eat,” Clove said, and I don’t think she meant a sandwich, “I wanted to wait until Zakiel returned but in the meantime, I can provide you with some protein.”

Her behavior confused me. Why feed the animal before its slaughter? Unless she didn’t know what the angels wanted me for either. “Can I ask you something?”

Clove’s demeanor was an impenetrable fortress. She didn’t blink but I did catch one of her antennas shivering. I thought she was going to evade my questions with a professional-sounding excuse.

Instead, she said, “Sure.”

“What tests were you running while I was asleep?”

She took a moment to lift the glasses from her face and fold them up into her coat pocket. “This is unusual, even for me. Any information I have has been heavily restricted. I’m afraid we’ll have to wait for Zakiel’s return before speaking further.”

“Why? It’s my body.” Wasn’t there a patient and doctor confidentiality rule or something? Did Zak have a say in everything I did? I felt a fire in my chest and not the good kind.

Her eyes flickered with something other than complacency. A dark aura filled the room. The shadows from the corners crept closer to me. When I looked down at my hands, the backs of my fingernails had become purple.

I took several breaths. Nothing else was in there with me. Not even Tori.

I’m doing this.

“I understand your frustrations,” Clove spoke more carefully, “but in order to figure out exactly what’s going on we have to be patient, and not let our emotions get the better of us.”

I would have silently agreed before but Tori’s voice in my head kept telling me to run. Would Zak really let them kill me, or do the deed himself? Criminal executions were only performed by angels but those were rare and for the lowest of the low.

“This isn’t right,” I said.

She sighed and her slender shoulders bobbed. “I’ll be back with a meal for you. Please, be patient with us, Jess.”

I wasn’t. Waiting around was worse the second time, but I kept myself in check so the darkness wouldn’t act creepy again. I walked each corner of the walls so many times, I’d lost count. Where had Tori gone?

Really, I just needed clarification on whether I was awaiting my own death or not. It seemed unfair. Would I even be allowed to speak for myself? Even if my dad was somehow a demon lord, it wasn’t like I knew about it or planned to act accordingly.

Which one, though…?

The Lord of Lust? Had Jarmiel been trying to tell me that all along with his haunted texts? Maybe he’d been trying to figure it out and hoped the answers would expose themselves if he let me search for them.

What if I truly was an unholy and dangerous thing? Was it right for me to fight back? I didn’t want to die. That part of me was too selfish.

After roughly forty minutes, Clove hadn’t returned, but a certain ghost had.

“Jess…”

Her voice was music to my ears. “Tori, thank the gods.”

“Faris is coming,” she said.

My body turned to stone. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that. “Faris? I thought Clove—”

“Yeah, I sort of locked her in her office and stole her keycard.”

Before I could comprehend what she’d just said, the door to my room made a loud clunk as it unbolted itself. It propped open just an inch, tempting me to flee.

Tori manifested her girlish, physical body and waited for me on the other side. Her sparkly eyes dimmed as she waved to me in earnest. “Come on.”