Wings of the Wicked - By Courtney Allison Moulton Page 0,143
the Preliator reaper killer side bleed into the Ellie side. I don’t want the Preliator to be all that I am.”
“No,” he mused. “You’re always Ellie, but you’re also always the Preliator. The two mix more seamlessly than you think.”
“So there really is no escape.” I sighed. “I’m stuck with you winged boys forever.”
“I’m sorry. I won’t bother you anymore after this.” He gave me a sad look that made me instantly want to take back what I’d just said.
“No,” I said quickly. “I meant that as a joke. I’m glad to see you.”
“Right back at you. I didn’t just come to see you, though.”
My brow lifted. “Oh?”
“I heard something,” he said, the gleam in his eyes going out like candle flames. “Before my father … died. About something he was very afraid of, something he didn’t want you to find. The hallowed glaive. It sounds very important.”
“The hallowed glaive?” I repeated, putting the puzzle pieces together in my head. “A glaive is a type of blade, so it may be a weapon of some kind.”
He nodded. “Yes. I think it’s perhaps one that can destroy Sammael and even Lilith. I think you should look into it.”
“It could even be a relic.”
“Maybe,” he said. “But maybe not. Information on something like this would be in the grimoire, but Sammael still has it, and there’s no way I would be able to infiltrate and get it back. They know me as a traitor now.”
My lips tightened. “You’re right. It would be too dangerous for you to go back.”
“For you, as well.”
“I know,” I said. “But I don’t have a choice. We need that book.” But as soon as I said it, I remembered there may be another hope. “Then again, Nathaniel said he had a copy of the grimoire. It’s missing from his collection, but we’ve got to find it. This book is our only hope. I can’t face Sammael again without a real chance at beating him. We need the big guns for this one.”
His face brightened with hope. “Any idea who could have taken it?”
I shook my head, and an invisible force tightened around my heart. “No. Nathaniel is dead. He’s the only one who knew anything about that book.” I slumped against the tree beside Cadan. He pushed himself off the trunk and faced me, looking down serenely.
“There’s always a chance,” he said. “I’ll help you find it.”
That put a smile on my face. I knew he’d keep that promise as well as he could. He’d given up all that he knew because he believed in me. I needed to believe in him, too. “Thank you, Cadan.”
“Of course.”
I bit on my lip and stared at the ground, battling inwardly with myself. I wanted to tell him what I’d learned about Will, but I wasn’t sure if I ought to, especially since Will didn’t know yet.
“Whatever you want to say must be important if you’re making that little face.”
“Oh!” I jumped, embarrassed, and felt heat rushing into my cheeks. “Yeah, it’s important.”
“Are you going to tell me?” he pressed.
“It’s about Bastian,” I admitted, unable to hold it in any longer. “Back in that creepy basement, he was talking to Will, asking him to join him, and he said … that Will was his son.”
Cadan’s eyes widened in surprise, and his lips parted. He didn’t move or blink for what felt like minutes.
I continued, speaking slowly and carefully. “If what he said is true, then Will is your half-brother. His mother is an angelic reaper. Yours, I assume, is demonic.”
At last there was life on his face. He swallowed painfully hard. “Are you sure?”
“That’s what Bastian claimed.” I didn’t tell him that Bastian had also said he had loved Madeleine. That somehow seemed private, even though Bastian had thrown it into Will’s face in front of everyone in that room. Cadan also probably didn’t want to hear that part. I knew nothing of his mother and how Bastian may have treated her. I didn’t get the impression that Bastian had ever been kind to Cadan, so why would he have been kind to his mother?
Cadan stared through me at nothing, his eyes unfocused and dazed. I could see him calculating in his mind, lost in thought.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
He blinked. “I’m just … very surprised. No wonder we never liked each other. Innate brotherly rivalry, I suppose, besides loving the same girl. Anyway, Will has every right to hate me.”