His face softened. “Mira. I won’t hurt you.”
I nodded and let him lean back in. His lips were a little wetter than I would have liked, but the kiss made me feel loved. “If you need anything…”
“Thank you.”
Daxton walked over to me. “That goes for me too. If Zane isn’t around and you need something, let me know.”
“I will. Thanks Daxton, for loving her. You made her very happy these past months.”
His eyes filled with tears, but he smiled anyway. “I hope so.”
They left, walking towards their dorm. Noe, Auralee, and I walked into our dorm and up the stairs. Taking out my key, I unlocked and opened the door to our room and then I froze. It was just as we had left it. I half expected to see Kassia sitting on the window seat she loved so much.
Auralee put her arm around me. “Why don’t you sleep in our room tonight?”
“No thanks.” I shook my head. “I want to be close to her.”
“Okay. If you change your mind…”
“Thanks.
Noe reached over and hugged me. “We’ll be right here.”
I walked into my room and closed the door behind me. There was a picture of Kassia and me on our dresser. I grabbed it and collapsed on Kassia’s bed, tears flowing down my face.
Chapter Fourteen
Kassia
I had been on my perfect white sand beach when the darkness had taken over. I heard chanting in a foreign language. I struggled to open my eyes, and when I finally did, it was hard to focus. After blinking a few times, I could see someone sitting next to me.
“Is this Heaven?” I asked. My eyes wandered around. It sure didn’t look like Heaven.
“No.” She shook her head.
“Aren’t I dead?” I asked confused.
“No, you are very much alive.”
“What?” I started thinking back. I remembered shoving that dagger into my heart. I remembered the pain, the warmth, and the beach. “I died.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Then…”
“Relax child. I’ll explain. First, you need to drink this.” The woman came into focus now. It was Vala, and I was in her house. She put a mug in front of me and lifted my head. I sipped the warm, unpleasant drink.
“What happened?” I asked.
“So impatient.” She pushed the mug at me again. After I drank all of it, she laid my head back down on the bed. I glanced down at my body and easily found the hole in my shirt that the dagger had made. Dried blood covered my clothes. I had definitely stabbed myself. The proof was right here. I pulled up my shirt to look at my skin. There was no hole or mark. It was like the dagger never went into my body. “Why don’t you tell me what you remember,” Vala said.
I tried to push myself up. Vala helped me to sit on the bed. My body felt weak, but I was determined to tell her everything. I began to tell her what happened. I started with how they captured me. “I was unconscious when they brought me there, so I have no idea where ‘there’ is. I woke up blindfolded, gagged, and tied up. I don’t know how long it was, but they finally came and got me. I was brought to meet Kern. He unleashed a demon bull for me to take down. He wanted a demonstration. Then he showed himself.” I took a deep breath. “He gave me two choices. To join him voluntarily and be his bride or he’d have to force me. Obviously, I chose my own way.”
“Go on,” she encouraged.
“He said he wants to rule the world. Unleash demons until he has control.” I shuddered remembering the look in his eyes. “He wants to play God. He wanted me by his side to make things easier. Said after training, I’d be able to kill thousands at a time, and he’d send me out to do this because people would trust me.” Vala handed me a drink of water, and I took a few sips.
I continued, “He said he had heard about me a long time ago, but I was untouchable because I was special. I was supposed to save the world. Apparently, when I killed those humans, that changed. He said I wasn’t pure anymore, and I could be his.” Tears fell down my cheeks.
“I threatened to kill him, but he just laughed and said it wasn’t possible. So, I turned the dagger on myself. He thought I was joking. And then…I…I stabbed it in my heart. That’s all I remember.” I looked at Vala. “Is it true that he’s protected?”
“Somewhat,” she responded.
“What does that mean?”
“It means it will be very difficult to kill him.”
“How am I…alive?”
“Some of what he said was spot on. I believe the rumors are true. You are supposed to save the world. Just not single handedly. With Kern after you, the only shot you had was death. It was a risk, and I wasn’t sure it would work. But, I knew they would have searched until they captured you, and then they would have used you. So, dying was your only option,” she paused for a moment.
“But you, Kassia, are more special than you realize. Not only were both your parents gifted as were your grandparents on all sides, one of your mother’s grandmothers had angel blood.”
“Angel blood?” I asked puzzled.
“Yes. Even the smallest amount will be dominant through all generations after that.”
“And you knew this?”
“Yes. I know many things. I have known your family for a long time. The daggers were not only made by faeries, but also sealed by angels. They kill demons, not angels. However, if stabbed directly in the heart, your heart will stop. Your body will seemingly die. Demons cannot remove the dagger, nor can they use it. If the dagger is removed properly, life is restored to the person with angel blood.”
“Amazing,” I whispered. “Why didn’t you tell us? Why didn’t Noe see it?”
Vala smiled. “She couldn’t see the demons clearly. This was good because I needed this plan to work perfectly. I needed you to actually kill yourself, and I needed everyone to believe you were dead. I couldn’t let Kern be tipped off.”
“And what if I had missed my heart? Or what if they brainwashed me first?”
“They were both possibilities. This was your only hope, Kassia.”
I nodded then, completely believing that. “So, where is everybody?” I was excited to see my friends.
“On their way back to school.”
“What? Why?” That didn’t make sense. They wouldn’t have left me.
“They think you’re dead,” she said matter-of-factly.
“We need to call them, tell them!” I raised my voice. “They’ll come back.”
“No. We can’t.” Her cold expression didn’t change.
“Yes! We can! If you don’t have a phone, I’ll just go find a way back to school.”
“Kassia…” she tried taking my hand, but I pulled away. “They can’t know yet.”
A tear slid down my cheek. I didn’t want to sound conceited, but I knew they’d be crushed right now. They didn’t have to be because I was okay. “I don’t understand. Mira’s my best friend and Daxton…I…I’m in love with him.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. I wish this could be different.”
“It can be. We just have to tell them!”
“You want to protect them, right? That’s why you sacrificed yourself.”
“Yes.”
“This isn’t over. It won’t be until Kern is dead. Do you understand? You or your friends won’t be safe until he’s dead.”
“But, you said it would be difficult to kill him.”
“Difficult yes, impossible no,” she was trying to hold back a smile. “His plan is to destroy the world. We can’t let him do that. We have to stop him. Unfortunately, you are not ready yet.” She paced around the room muttering.
“There are a number of things that need to happen. First, I will take care of the spot where they left your body. I will make it look like animals got to you in case they go back to check. Second, you must remain ‘dead’. They cannot know you are alive. Which means there is no going back to your previous life. Third, you need to train. You all need to tr
ain. Last, we need to kill Kern. In order to do that, we will need the help of the faeries and all of the gifted we can recruit.”
“But, if we need the gifted, we need my friends. Why not tell them now?”
“You’re not ready, none of you! The school will train them; I’ve already seen that. They will train them physically and give them weapons training. They will be prepared for battle. But, you need more training, special training and that requires commitment, focus, and dedication. You can’t be thinking about your boyfriend or gossiping with your best friend. I need you to train first.”
I sighed and closed my eyes. I could not believe what I was hearing. I didn’t want any of this. I wanted to go back to how things were. This wasn’t fair. I was only sixteen! I wanted to be gossiping with Mira and making out with Daxton, not training for an epic battle. I wanted to go home.
Then Kern’s face flashed in my head. Those evil eyes and wicked smile made me shudder even now. His words about sending the demons out to kill people echoed in my mind. He had to be stopped. I needed to protect my friends. My mind raced and finally wrapped around what she was saying. They couldn’t know I was alive yet. I had to do this for them.
I opened my eyes. “How long will it take? Are we talking years here?”
She looked away for a minute. “No. I almost wish we had that kind of time to get ready. It will happen before the year is over.”
“So…just so I know if I’m understanding this right. Are you saying that I’ll see my friends before the end of the year.”
“Yes.”
Relief flew through me. There were only a few months left in the year. As I thought about that, worry replaced the relief. “I’m supposed to be trained by then?”
“Yes.”
“How is that going to happen?”
“As soon as I know your body is healed, we are going to go to the only person I trust — a warlock. Together, he and I will train you properly. It will be grueling. The days will be long and you will want to give up,” she warned me. “But, it will be worth it.”
“Vala, you say you know things?”
“Yes.”
“Everything?”
“Not everything.”
“Most things?”
“What are you getting at?”
“I know this sounds petty, but will you be able to tell if they’re okay…my friends? I hate the thought of them hurting.”
Her face softened. “You are very kind, Kassia.” She smiled. “I can…check on them for you.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“I want you to sleep now. I have to go deal with that first thing we talked about.”
“Okay.”
She handed me a clean shirt. “Change your shirt. I need to bring it with me.”
“Okay.” I took off the bloody one and put on the clean one. It was a little big, but it would work.
“I’m trusting you not to leave.”
As much as I wanted to, I knew this was too important. “I won’t.”
I lay back down on the bed. My mind was going a mile a minute. I thought of how Mira and Daxton must be feeling right now. Tears ran down my face again. I felt horrible for not being able to tell them. I wondered if they’d be able to forgive me. Then I wondered if they’d replace me. What if Daxton starts dating Arian? What if Mira gets a new roommate?
Mira...Mira wouldn’t forget. She wouldn’t replace me. We had never been apart for longer than a few hours in years. What was I going to do without her? I knew it was stupid to be thinking about such trivial things, but I was going to miss her teasing me about everything. I already missed her voice and her hugs. How was I supposed to get through months without her?
I cried until the tears wouldn’t come anymore. Then, I yawned and soon succumbed to sleep.
* * *
I woke to humming in the morning. Turning over, I saw Vala cooking on her small stove. It smelled liked eggs. “Good morning, Kassia. How do you feel?”
“I think I’m okay.” I managed to sit up on my own.
“Very good. Come sit down and have some breakfast.”
Carefully, I slid off the bed. I wobbled for a second, but caught myself and walked to the table. My legs felt a little weak, but overall I felt okay. Weird, considering I was dead the day before.
After breakfast, she showed me to a bathroom I hadn’t seen before. “You can get cleaned up in here.”
“Thanks,” I said, stepping into the bathroom. I looked around and wondered how in the world this bathroom got into a cave on a mountain. I wasn’t complaining, just curious. Looking into a mirror, I was startled to see my reflection. I was paler than usual, my hair was tangled, and I was dirty.
I stepped into the small shower and let the cool water fall on my body. It wasn’t hot the way I liked it, not even warm, but it wasn’t freezing either. I watched as the dirt and blood rinsed off my body and went down the drain. I shampooed my hair and scrubbed my body. I examined my chest again while in the shower. There was still no evidence of the dagger. None at all. I was amazed.
Once I dried off and brushed my hair, I looked back in the mirror. I was still on the pale side, but I looked a lot better. Much more like me. I found a new toothbrush lying out on the sink; I opened it and brushed my teeth. It felt good to be clean. I dressed in some clean clothes she had laid out for me and exited the bathroom.
“Feel better?” Vala asked.
“Yes, thank you.”
“Good. I think you’ll be healed enough to travel tomorrow.”
“Where are we going?”
“North,” was all she said.
I stayed inside all day, sleeping, resting, and eating. I couldn’t stop thinking about Daxton and Mira; it was excruciating being away from them. I thought about going home and climbing into my bed with my satin sheets and my big, warm comforter. I hoped someday I’d be able to go home. But, I wasn’t sure about anything anymore.
* * *
Vala woke me up at dawn the next morning. “Time to go.” I got up and dressed. She handed me my dagger, the one I had used to kill myself. It was hard to believe it was the same one. It was clean now — all the blood had been wiped off. I stared at it for a minute, tracing the infinity sign with my finger before strapping it to my lower leg. After she fed me some breakfast, we left the cave. It was bright on the mountain, and the air was crisp. We started walking a different way than we came. “Tell me if you get tired,” she said, handing me a walking stick.
We walked and walked and walked some more. The sun was now high in the sky; we had been walking for hours. “How long will we be traveling?” I asked, starting to worry.
“Couple of days,” she responded.
“Great.” I sighed.
“It will build up some endurance.”
I was sure it would. My body was aching. I was cold, yet sweaty, and getting hungry. But, my mind kept thinking about what had happened and what was going to happen. I wondered what Mira was doing right now. Were Noe and Auralee helping her? Was Zane keeping his promise? Was he looking out for her? Mira deserved someone like him, as geeky as he was; he had shown devotion and intelligence these past couple weeks. He would be good for her. I hoped she would let him take care of her. Knowing Mira, she’d fight it for a while.
Poor Daxton was too new to the school to have developed a lot of friendships. He had Zane though; I hoped Zane would be a good friend to him. I wondered if he could use his gift on himself. Maybe he could dream of a place where I was. I sighed. I shouldn’t think like that. Selfishly. I was still alive, and I didn’t want to think of him with anyone else.
Vala didn’t respond to any of my thoughts, which was good because it helped me forget that she could read minds. Finally, she slowed down. “We’ll rest up ahead.” A few minutes later, we entered a meadow. Vala sat on a rock and closed her eyes. I wasn’t sure if she was just resting or having a vision. I took off the backpack she had given me, grabbed out a sandwich I had made for lunch, and ate
it in record time. Then I pulled out a canteen of water and took a few sips.
When she opened her eyes, I asked, “Is everything okay?”
She nodded. “Yes. Are you done eating?”
“Yes.”
“We should continue on.” She stood up.
Right. No resting here. Endurance is what I needed. I pushed myself up and followed her across the meadow and onwards.
Chapter Fifteen
Mira
“You have to come out of this room some time!” Auralee yelled, pounding on the door. “You have to eat!”
I turned over and covered my head with a pillow, trying to ignore her. She only pounded harder. “Mira! It’s been a week.” I heard some voices outside the door. “Okay, Mira, if you don’t answer the door right now, we’re going to go to Eaton and have someone open it for us!”
“UGH!” I jumped up and threw the door open. “What do you want?”
She shoved a sandwich at me. “Eat!”
It was a hot meatball sub, one of my favorites. The scent of the sub flowed into the room and made my mouth water. My stomach let out a low rumble. I had eaten in the past week, but it was just snacks I found around the room. I sighed, giving in, and took the food. Famished, I tore into it. “Happy?” I asked, my mouth full.
“Yes, thank you.”
“Was there something else?” I asked, when she didn’t leave.
“I want to see how you are.”
“How do you think I am?” I glanced at her shirt. My eyes filled with tears as I read it, ‘Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave, and impossible to forget.’
“I know it’s been rough. We’re all hurting.” She picked up the picture I had on the bed of Kassia and me. “I know you guys were best friends, but I miss her too.”
I felt a sliver of guilt. Her sympathetic eyes met mine. I knew how both Auralee and Noe felt about Kassia. “I know. She loved you guys too.” I hated — absolutely hated — talking about her in past tense.
“Everybody’s asking about you. You know she wouldn’t want you to be alone. She would want you to live your life. Do that for yourself or do it for her. Whatever you need to tell yourself, but live, Mira, live your life.”
I thought about what Kassia would want. I imagined her teasing me about moving on. She’d tell me that a week wasn’t enough time to grieve for her. She’d see me with some other girl, and say how easy it was for me to replace her. But, deep down, Kassia would know that wasn’t true. She would want me to live and move on. I just wasn’t sure I wanted to.