INTEGRATION (Bonfire Academy Book Two) (Bonfire Chronicles) (25 page)

I parked the car and hugged her. “Happy birthday, Faustine, my very favorite demon princess. Yes, you’re right. I am up to something. Let’s go inside, and you’ll find out.”

She jumped out of the car and raced to jump into Jagger’s outstretched arms. He laughed as he twirled her around before carrying her inside. I followed them in, closing the door behind me.

“Excited much?” Jagger smiled. “Nice boots, Faustine, but you’re going to have to take them off.”

“Are we going skiing now?” she asked, her eyes hopeful.

“We sure are. Get changed. I’ll wait for you both here.” Jagger was already snuggled into his new snazzy white ski outfit.

Unfortunately, I had to get into my Academy suit, since I was still on probation. However, I didn’t sweat that. The Academy uniform was pretty awesome, and mine was well worn and comfortable. We were ready in record time, with Faustine almost jumping headfirst into hers and then whining for me to hurry.

“Are you even feeling well enough to ski?” she asked, suddenly turning serious.

“No, I’m not, but then I wasn’t planning to right from the start. I’m just changing to stay warm. I want to come and watch and try to get some pictures.”

“If you’re sure. I don’t mind heading off with Jagger.”

“I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Come on. Let’s go.”

“Ready, ladies? I’ve already taken our skis across, so let’s run back to the car and head out.”

“What do you mean?” Faustine wrinkled up her nose. “Aren’t we just going to take the lifts from here?”

“Nope,” Jagger replied. “But no more questions, just come.”

Faustine tugged on my sleeve as we walked back to Jagger’s car. “I’m so excited. Where are we going? Don’t tell me you’re taking me to Whistler!”

“Not quite!” I laughed. “But you won’t be disappointed. And no more questions.”

She climbed into the backseat while I slid in next to Jagger. He pulled out of the parking lot, and we headed over to the new skydiving facility, about ten minutes away.

Faustine gasped as we approached. “O-M-G! Where are we?”

“This is the new skydiving unit where Quinn works,” I said. “I’ve never been here. I hadn’t imagined it to be so big and so…metallic.” The whole place seemed to be made out of silver metal—the two dome-shaped buildings, the three towers, even the landing strip and surrounding hangars.

“What are we doi—Daddy!” Faustine yelled. She flung her door wide, then jumped out and into King Sebastian’s arms. “You came!”

“Of course I came! It’s your birthday. When have I ever missed one?”

“Never,” Faustine said with pride. “Is Mom here?” She looked around.

“She’s right here.” King Sebastian switched on his tablet, and Faustine’s mother appeared on the screen.

“Happy birthday, honey!”

“Mom!”

“It’s just a recording, hon,” King Sebastian said.

I decided to give her some privacy and grabbed Jagger’s hand, pulling him inside the hangar for a private moment. No such luck. The hangar was full with everyone fully outfitted, ready to go skiing—extreme skiing.

I recognized everyone; I had written them all personal invitations to Faustine’s celebration. I just hadn’t been privy to this latest addition to her surprise, which had been overseen by Jagger. Everyone in the hangar was super quiet, waiting to surprise Faustine when she walked in. I waved at Martha, Chun, and Kabir, and was almost knocked over by Harrison as he yanked free from McKenzie and launched himself at me.

“Hey, buddy! Ready to yell
surprise
?”

He nodded, his big eyes shining in anticipation.

“I think I hear them c—”

“Surprise!” everyone yelled, almost knocking the ceiling off with the noise. Harrison covered his ears as he ran over to Faustine and jumped up on her, planting a kiss on her nose.

“He’s not skiing, is he?” I whispered to Jagger.

“Nope, no way. I was hoping you’d babysit?”

“Yes, no problem.” I looked over at the six planes that would take them up to the mountains where they would then jump out and onto the slopes. I felt sick with worry, not being able to get my head around doing something like that without getting myself killed. The whole idea seemed beyond insane. I instinctively grabbed Jagger’s hand.

He squeezed. “Don’t worry. Only the most experienced of us are going up to jump. The rest are just getting a sightseeing flight over the mountains.”

“Can Harrison and I get a ride in one of the planes?”

“Yes, that’s the plan. You’ll be on a plane following Faustine’s so you can get some pictures when she jumps.”

King Sebastian clapped his hands. “Everyone ready?”

We nodded.

“I’ve grouped us into six teams, color coordinated to match the stripes on the six planes. You’ll find your color assignments in your pockets. Teams red, orange, and purple are the jump teams. The rest of you will be treated to a relaxing flight with onboard entertainment. You’ll be able to ski once we get back to the lodge.”

Faustine’s eyes widened as she started to realize what was going to happen. She grabbed her father’s sleeve in excitement.

He smiled down at her. “Every jump skier will be required to transform before they get on the plane and stay in your paranormal form for the entire session until you are safely back here. Trucks are standing by at designated end points. Each team leader has already made the jump and laid out a route. The team leader will jump first and then the rest will follow. There are parachutes on board for those who need them, but be aware that they may be more of a hindrance than a help. Get rid of them before you hit the ground. Your team leaders will answer any further questions. Go ahead and check your team color and find your leaders now.”

I was still hanging on to Jagger’s hand when he gently kissed my forehead and freed himself from my grip. “I’m the team leader for Faustine’s group, so I’ve got to go. You’re with Creeden over there.” He pointed at the plane with the silver stripes.

“Wait! Why can’t I ride in your plane? That was the plan when I organized this stuff.” He shook his head. “It’s safer for you to be on the other one.”

“Safer? As the most likely plane to be targeted is Faustine’s?”

He nodded.

“Then I should be on it, helping to protect her.”

He clenched his jaw. “I need you to be safe. Just go. I’ll take care of Faustine. I promise. Plus, you promised to look after Harrison.”

“The last time I checked, he has a mother who’s supposed to do that.” I transformed. Not giving him any opportunity to stop me, I marched ahead of him to get into Faustine’s plane.

As soon as I was onboard, I giggled at the sight of demon Faustine sitting next to her father, who had not yet transformed. She was about four times his size. Jagger transformed into his faery form as soon as he climbed in and sat down silently, not meeting my eyes, obviously angry with me.

Since Jagger wasn’t being chatty, I decided to talk to King Sebastian to lighten the mood. The king looked cheery and excited with his camera in hand.

“Are you planning to take pictures as you free fall?” I asked.

“Oh, no. I’m not jumping, I’ll leave that to the young ones. Besides, my position forbids it.”

“Yes, I’m not surprised. This seems a bit insane any way you think about it. Faustine, are you okay with this?”

She nodded enthusiastically, rubbing her palms together.

“You needn’t worry about her safety,” King Sebastian reassured me. “I have taken
every
precaution.”

I hoped he meant Ryker when he said that. If Ryker was watching over her, I really didn’t feel the need to worry, not about Faustine anyway. But what about Jagger? Who’d look out for him? “Jagger, did you already do this jump?”

He nodded, still looking sullen.

“What’s it like? Did you use a parachute?”

He closed his eyes and smiled, as if he was reliving his last jump. “It’s exhilarating.” He sighed. “I didn’t use a parachute. I have my wings, but I let myself free fall for as long as possible.”

“What did the point of impact feel like? Was it hard? Did it hurt?”

“Not at all. I slid parallel to the mountainside, so the impact was smooth, almost unnoticeable, until the mountain sloped slightly, then the speed made me jump off and do a few somersaults. It’s hard to describe. I was functioning on instinct alone. That’s the only way to do it.”

“And you think Faustine is ready for this?”

“More than. I’d never let her risk it otherwise.”

“I guess.”

“I’d never let you jump it,” he said. “Good as you are, this is way beyond your skill set.”

As if I wasn’t aware of that. “Don’t worry. I won’t let a mad rush overtake me and jump out.”

He nodded and scrambled over to sit beside me.

The plane took off, climbing steeply while we looked out the windows. Faustine’s father busied himself with his camera, clicking away, both through the windows and inside, getting plenty of pictures of his demon princess.

As I spied a flock of birds, the chilling words came flooding back to me.
A princess must die
. I had almost died. Jenny, in fact, was dead. Did that count, or was there another attack to come? Even if it did count, the second line—
a lover must pay in blood
—had not been fulfilled. I looked at Jagger, fearful for him yet again.

I peered out the window at the birds, but saw no sign of Mason. “Jagger, I meant to ask Professor Bern to cast a confinement spell over the planes so that no one could get close to them in the air. Did you get a chance—”

“Yes, all in hand. You have nothing to worry about. I asked her to do the whole mountain, but she couldn’t since it’s outside school grounds. You’ll be safe as long as you stay in the plane.”

“You won’t, though, once you jump.”

“You have nothing to worry about. Just enjoy the show.”

He spoke into his microphone and then looked up at Faustine. “Ready?”

She nodded, her demon face smiling widely.

“I’m not going to give you many instructions. We’ve been skiing together long enough for me to trust you to be able to follow your gut. As usual, jump after me and try to follow my path. I’ll see you at the truck.”

King Sebastian opened the hatch and kissed his daughter. “Have fun!”

I held my breath, watching Jagger through the lens of my camera as he stepped out of the hatch into the cold mountain air. As Jagger went into free fall and disappeared from view, I quickly changed positions and tried to find him through the window. He plummeted down the side of the mountain, his skies skidding parallel to the icy face until he hit a gentle slope and launched himself into multiple somersaults before he disappeared.

As Jagger vanished, Faustine came into view, following exactly the same course, her leaps and somersaults even more elaborate. She was having one hell of a time.

When she disappeared from view, I looked at King Sebastian, who beamed with happiness. I had never seen him quite so ecstatic.

“Wow,” he said. “That was quite something. Wow.” He sat down, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

“She had the best time doing that. She’s going to want to go again.”

“I know, but she can’t. Frau Schmelder gave me clearance for the one run only. We can take her back to the regular run and let her ski before the party.”

“Sounds good. Then the rest of us can join in, as well.”

The plane turned to head back to the landing strip. I kept watching through the window, spotting jumpers exiting some of the other planes. I saw Martha leaping out, her arms up in the air. I smiled as she started to free fall.

My grin vanished when I noticed a giant vulture heading her way. I screamed, waving my arms furiously, but of course, I couldn’t get her attention. She didn’t even notice the big bird flying toward her, seeming totally oblivious to everything other than her free fall. I buried my head into King Sebastian’s chest in utter helplessness as the bird smashed into her.

A princess must die
.

B
its of Martha were found scattered all over the mountainside. There was no way to put her back together. King Sebastian summoned the most powerful healers from around the globe, including Cassandra and Edith, but they could do nothing with the shredded pieces of flesh and bone. They gathered and placed them in a coffin for King Sebastian to deliver to her mother, the sovereign demon of Dallas.

I wanted to go with King Sebastian, but Frau Schmelder ordered a lockdown with no students or staff allowed to leave the Academy premises until further notice. And Faustine needed me. She lay in the academy’s infirmary, staring up at the ceiling, her eyes glazed over from the heavy sedatives. No one had managed to get a single word out of her since the incident. Unfortunately, she’d witnessed the whole horrific episode from the ground, having reached Jagger at his truck after their ski down the mountain.

I only heard Jagger’s account. They’d heard a terrible screeching cry and looked up into the sky. He spotted Martha just as the vulture tore her in two, grabbing each half with a claw. The bird had then flown around, shaking off bits of Martha. Jagger had watched Faustine turn from her demon red into a ghostly white before collapsing. Jagger struggled to get her into the truck, her demon size and weight overpowering him. However, with Ryker’s help, he’d managed to drag her and then hoist her into the backseat.