Angelbound (24 page)

A familiar blonde head waves to me from the end of the row. “Hi, Myla!” I shoot a friendly wave at Avery. She bounces a bit in her seat. “Isn’t it great how
Gianna and Adair are friends now? Typically, Acca and Striga hate each other.”

The other Great Ladies share a knowing look while Adair grits her teeth, a muscle twitching along her jaw-line. “Quiet, Avery! I’ll get to you in a second.” The Scala Heir inhales a deep breath, and then gestures to the girl seated next to Gianna.

“This is Lady Keisha from the House of Horus.” Adair points to a girl in a bronze gown with ebony skin, large mismatched eyes, and dreadlocks down to her waist. Keisha sends me a smile that’s somehow warm and icy at the same time.

Adair nods to the next girl in line, who wears a blue gown. “Here we have Lady Nita from the House of Kamal.” She has creamy cocoa skin, striking bone structure, long brown hair, and nasty sneer on her face. Adair doesn’t bother to point to the girl at the end of the row. “I guess you already met Avery. She’s from the House of Acca, like me.”

Avery waves again. “Hello, Myla! So nice to see you again.”

I force on my best smile. “Hello, everyone.”

Adair turns her attention to my gown. She eyes me from head to toe. Twice.

I bite my bottom lip.
Here it comes.

“You look very festive, Miss Lewis.” The rest of the Great Ladies snicker.

I’m about to cause another inter-realm incident when an older, plump man with receding red hair steps onto the tournament green, a crossbow in his hand. His barrel chest almost bursts out of his black-and-yellow tunic. Avery claps her hands and points. “Look, there’s father!”

The Scala Heir shares a snide glance with Gianna. “We can all see him, Avery.”

The Earl of Acca raises his thick arms high. “Welcome to the autumn tournament and exhibition! This display of fighting skill prepares us for the
real
event, the winter tournament, where the greatest warrior in Antrum will be named!” The crowd breaks out into wild applause. “Of course, I’m hoping it will be Acca’s honor this year.” The applause dies down.

The Earl lifts his crossbow. “I’ll begin today’s exhibition with a display of my own fighting skill against a dreaded Limus demon!”

I grimace. I sure hope it’s not Sheila.

The fence on one end of the tournament grounds swings open. A Limus demon floats through, its body a towering mass of green goo. I scan the face. Not Sheila, whew.

The Earl of Acca loads a metal bolt into his crossbow and starts firing. The missiles fly harmlessly through the goopy demon and thud into the wooden wall around the field.

I nudge the Scala Heir with my elbow. “He’s not really using a crossbow against a Limus, is he?”

“What’s a Limus?” She frowns. “Oh, that green thing. Father knows what he’s doing. He’s a
thrax
, Miss Lewis.”

The Limus speeds toward its victim. The Earl of Acca firms up his stance, shooting bolt after bolt through the demon’s body. I glance around me. A lantern hangs from one of the posts that hold up the pavilion’s fabric ceiling.

Yeah, that would do it.

The Limus slams into the Earl. Green goo encases the man whole. Inside the demon, the Earl of Acca flails, trying to whack his way out with the crossbow. Next to me, the Scala Heir and Gianna continue chatting. I nudge her in the ribs again.

“Your father’s in big trouble.”

She looks at me and arches her eyebrow. “No, he’s not. And if you keep interrupting me, Gianna’ll put a hex on you.” She turns to face her friend, showing me as much back as possible.

On the tournament grounds, the Earl of Acca feebly kicks and punches from inside the Limus demon. Some thrax stand up in their pavilion seats, their faces twisted with worry. The Earl stops moving altogether.

That’s it.

I rip the lantern off the post and hurl it with all my strength. The fire slams into the demon’s skin. The Limus bursts into emerald flames. The thrax in the pavilions gasp. The fire dies down, leaving the Earl standing alone, wheezing and covered in green goop.

He points at me, slime dripping from his finger. “YOU! How dare you!”

For a few long minutes, there’s a lot of confusion, gasping, and cries of ‘how dare you’ from the Earl. It’s all a big blur until a familiar hand grips mine. I turn to see Cissy standing beside me. She tugs on my arm. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

She pulls me past the tournament field, stopping behind one of the tents. Her
eyes grow large with alarm. “What happened back there, Myla?”

“I saved that guy’s life.”

“Everyone said he was doing fine.”

“Everyone’s wrong. A Limus demon was about to digest him whole. He was
not
doing fine.” I fold my arms over my chest. “He’s just a pompous blowhard who didn’t want to get showed up by a girl, even if that girl saved his life.”

Cissy grinds her teeth. “The House of Acca is freaking out. I need to do some damage control.” She winces. “This could take a while.” Cissy’s forehead creases with concern, the same expression she wears when feeding stray cats or tending her shoebox of moth cocoons. She doesn’t want this blow-up to cause trouble for Zeke and his family. Which, since I’m associated with them and their house, it very well could.

I won’t let her face this alone.
“I’ll go with you.”

“No, best if you stay scarce. Every Acca flunky within yelling range is screaming how you dishonored them for a second time.”

Dishonored, really? I pause, rubbing my neck with my hand. After hanging out with Adair, it’s not actually all that surprising. That House of Acca is bad news. I chuck Cissy gently on the shoulder. “No worries. I can just head back.”

She tilts her head to one side. “Are you sure?”

“Sure, I’m sure.” If I can ever find my way back to the parking lot and Betsy. That was a hike.

Cissy gives me a peck on the cheek. “Thanks.” She lifts up her skirt a bit, spins about and speeds off. Once she’s gone, I scope out the grounds, trying to
picture the long path back to Betsy. Not really sure how to begin.

That’s when I hear it. Angry Acca voices calling for the ‘foul demon,’ ‘scum fighter,’ and ‘quasi whore’ who humiliated their Earl. I saved the guy’s life, and this is what happens? My throat tightens. Sadness and disappointment wind about my ribs. What have I been trying to prove by fighting these people? Did I think they’d realize a quasi girl has as much value as a thrax warrior? No matter what I do, they’ll never see me as anything but a foul demon.

My eyes sting.
He’ll never see me as anything but a foul demon, either.

A bitter gloom settles into my bones.
I need to head home, now.
I try to slog my way back to the parking lot, but I’m not used to the puffy dress and heels. I slip in the mud, landing on my bum with a thump. Warm tears blur my vision.

Footsteps slosh up behind me. Even in the mud, I can’t miss the military precision of the owner’s walk. Lincoln.

I lift my hands, watching mud drip through my fingers. “Look, buddy. If you’re here to complain, I’ve already heard it. The House of Acca yells much better than they fight.”

Lincoln clears his throat. “On behalf of myself and my people, thank you for saving the Earl’s life.”

I shake my head, not sure if I heard him correctly. Was that actual niceness from the Prince’s mouth? I watch his outline as he walks away.

My head cocks to one side. “You’re welcome.”

I slowly haul myself to my feet. My gown’s so loaded with mud, it now weighs a ton. I frown. It’s going to take me forever to slog back to Betsy, even if I can
figure out where I parked her.

A whinny sounds from a nearby line of trees. I scan the dim forest. Nightshade’s bluish-gray coat gleams in the shadows. I smile.

“Perfect timing, Night. I could sure use a ride.”

Cissy’s chipper voice carries from my front door into my dingy bedroom. “Hello, Momma Lewis. Is Myla home?”

Sitting upright in bed, I slam shut the schoolbook in my hands.

Cissy’s here. Sweet.

I glance at my Darth Vader alarm clock; the thrax autumn tournament ended hours ago. In a feat of super stealthy-ness, I was able to sneak home without Mom seeing me or my muddy dress, thanks in large part to the world’s biggest bathroom-window-slash-emergency-entrance. Since then, I’ve been waiting on pins and needles for some news from Cissy.

Mom speaks next. “I thought you and Myla were at
your
house.”

Leaping to my feet, I rush through my bedroom door. “Hi, Mom! Hey, Cissy!” I find both of them standing in the opened doorway. Cissy’s in sweats and a t-shirt; Mom wears a look that says ‘you two are up to something.’

Mom’s chocolate eyes narrow. “What are you doing home, Myla?”

I sidle up to the front door and try to act cool. “Oh, I came back here a while
ago to do some homework. Didn’t you hear me come in?”

“Ah, no.” Her Mom-radar is now scanning the situation, full throttle. I’m sure she suspects something’s off here, but hopefully she won’t guess what it is.

I grab my best friend’s hand. “Cissy’s here to help with the rest of my homework.” I drag her toward my room. “See you later, Mom!” We rush through the bedroom doorway, closing it quickly behind us.

I’m bursting with curiosity. “So, what happened after I left?”

“That Earl is a piece of nastiness. All he did was whine about how you humiliated him.” Cissy rolls her eyes. “He wanted to file an official diplomatic complaint.”

“That douchebag! I saved his freaking life!” My eyes flicker red with anger. An official complaint could cause me, Mom, and the Ryders a whole lot of trouble.

She rubs her chin thoughtfully. “Everyone in the House of Acca was screaming for it.”

“I heard them.” My voice hitches. “Someone should wash their mouths out with soap.” The memory of their cries echoes through my mind. My chest tightens with humiliation and rage.

Cissy shoots me a sly grin. “Don’t take that part too seriously. They were complaining, but
not complaining
, if you know what I mean.”

Huh.
“That’s clear as mud.”

Cissy looks around the room, as if searching for the words. “It’s like the Earl’s people don’t respect him, but they’re too afraid of him to push back when he’s being a loser.” She frowns. “The Earl is not very
thrax
, if you know what I mean.”

I snap my fingers. “Now
that
I understand. For a leader of demon hunters, he acts like a total wuss. Plus, he doesn’t know dick about fighting demons. A crossbow with a Limus?”

Cissy chuckles. “I don’t think a lot of them knew that.”

I raise my pointer finger. “A lot of them aren’t an Earl.”

“True.” She eyes me carefully. “Anyway, you won’t have to worry about an official complaint. Lincoln stuck up for you.”

My heart beats so wildly, I think it could break free from my chest. “Oh, he did?” I decide that now’s a really good time to straighten everything on my dresser. “What did he say?”

“You saved the Earl’s life and they owe you thanks, not a complaint. He shut down the discussion like
that
.” She snaps her fingers.

Suddenly, I feel like doing a happy dance around the bedroom. “Did he say anything else?”

“He said it’s not the thrax way to repay your kindness with cruelty, even if…” Her hand pops over her mouth.

My heart beats even more excitedly, if that’s possible. “Come on. Even if
what
?”

“Even if you
are
a demon.” Cissy winces.

There’s that word again: demon.

“Oh.” I plunk down at the edge of my bed and fold my hands into my lap. Sadness wraps about me like a heavy blanket.

Cissy sits down beside me. “Don’t let him get you down. You’re from totally
different worlds, that’s all.” She wraps her arm about my shoulder. “Look, I’m glad you’re interested in someone, but really? It shouldn’t be him.”

Ouch. That hurt.

“I didn’t say I was interested.” My eyes start to sting.
Whatever you do, don’t cry, Myla.

“Come on, sweetie.” She gives my shoulder a gentle squeeze. “A ton of guys would give anything to date you. The fact is, you’re a quasi, not a thrax. There’s nothing wrong with that.” Her voice takes on a joking tone. “It’s not like you’re part ghoul or something.”

And then I lose it: a full on, snot-strings-out-of-my-nose festival of balling my eyes out. It takes Cissy a while to calm me down enough so I can explain why I’m so upset.

“Here’s the thing. I think my dad’s a ghoul.”

Cissy gasps. “I’m sorry, Myla.”

My face flushes with embarrassment and pain. “For so long, I wanted to know two things: what Mom did before the war and who my father was. Now, I wish I’d never asked.”

Cissy twists so she can see me face-to-face. “If it makes any difference, it doesn’t change how I feel about you or our friendship. Not one bit.”

My mouth rounds into a shaky smile. “Thanks, Cissy. That does make a difference.”

***

I stand on a rolling dune of the Gray Sea, the warm grains of sand heating the
tender soles of my bare feet. Wind whips my long cotton nightgown about my legs. Although I’m deep asleep, I’m awake and alert inside this dreamscape. It’s my first since the thrax autumn tournament took place one week ago.

One week ago? That disaster is as fresh as if it were yesterday.

I set my hands onto the dark ground, creating a circle of white flame. My mother’s form rises from the earth, her body made from granules of sand. The ring of fire flashes higher, then vanishes. Mom now appears in flesh and blood. She wears her purple robes and stands before the speaker podium in the Senate chamber.

“I stand before you today to address an issue that many of you will find hard to accept.” Mom clears her throat. “Many believe that the differences between ghouls and demons run so deep, there could never be an alliance between them.” She scans the chamber floor. Most Senators whisper in small groups. A handful watch her with mild interest. Xavier leans against the back wall in his gray suit, his face creased with worry. Tim stands in the doorway, his eyes large with fear.