Wings of the Wicked - By Courtney Allison Moulton Page 0,6
focusing, I flipped through my book absently as Kate and Chris argued about what to do our project on.
“We could just stick Ellie in a Skinner box,” Chris offered.
That got my attention. I glared at him from over the top of my textbook. “Or not.”
“Just think, Ell,” Kate chimed. “Solve a puzzle, get a cookie? Easy A for sure. Plus, you get cookies.”
“Or not.”
They laughed, but I knew they were serious about locking me inside a box. I’d like to see them try to overpower me, since I could throw them both through a wall with a flick of my wrist. My powers were scary, but at least I didn’t have to worry about anyone hurting me—unless they were winged reapers who ate people and dragged their souls to Hell. Yeah, they were a lot scarier than any human killers I’d ever heard of. Jeffrey Dahmer was a buttercup compared to some of the things I’d faced and defeated.
I needed to use the restroom, so I stood up from our table and asked for permission from the teacher. With the hall pass in hand, I walked toward the classroom door.
“Okay, everybody who’s not cool, leave the room.”
I’d already walked out the door when Chris’s words sank in, and I spun on my heels. Poking my head back in the door, I flipped him off, and pretty much the entire class laughed their asses off. “You are such a jerk,” I growled, and continued on my way.
My friends considered teasing me an Olympic sport, but when it really came down to it, I knew they had my back. Especially Kate. She was my best friend and had defended me on countless occasions.
The hallways were empty. As I passed by the windows on my way to the restroom, a figure standing out in the courtyard made my heart stop dead.
A demonic reaper stood in the sunlight, steaming like dry ice in a bucket of water. I didn’t stop to stare, but I registered that it was a he and a vir reaper. Gray feathered wings sprouted high from his shoulders, as if he’d landed just a moment ago. And then he was gone, disappearing into the Grim before anyone else noticed him. He wanted me to see him. Fear shuddered through me and I bolted. I wasn’t ready to face a vir reaper on my own. Their human guises were clever, but I knew they were the most powerful of all reapers.
“Ellie,” called a careful voice.
The reaper suddenly appeared right in front of me, wings folding and disappearing, and I couldn’t help the cry that escaped my lips. Adrenaline pounded through me, and I could barely hear anything above my own wild pulse. I swung a fist without a thought, but he grabbed my wrist and held my arm tight, away from his face.
“I’m not here to fight,” he said.
“Yeah, right.” I yanked my arm down and shot a knee into his gut. He let out a whoosh of air, and I slammed a palm into his chest, shoving his back into the wall. Tiles cracked and he doubled over.
“Wait,” he pleaded as I curled my hand around his throat and pressed him harder into the wall.
My eyes went wide when I recognized him. My spiked adrenaline hadn’t allowed me to think straight right away, but I’d know that ethereally beautiful face and pale-gold hair anywhere. It was Cadan. He was like the real-life version of an ancient Greek statue—except not totally naked. Thank God … or maybe not. I grimaced and shook my head, trying to banish the thought.
“What are you doing here?” I demanded.
“Nice to see you, too,” he said with a grin, as if reading my mind.
My heart slowed down, but I didn’t release him. “What are you doing here? Isn’t this a little early for you to be up, seeing as how the sun’s out and all? Pretty gutsy of you, if you ask me.”
“I needed to catch you without your Guardian,” he said. “He’d never let me speak to you otherwise.”
“Can you blame him?”
His grin widened, and something dark flickered there. “Not in the slightest.”
“If you came here to speak, then speak,” I said, my voice ice cold.
His smile vanished. “I’ve come here to warn you.”
I almost laughed. “About what?”
“Bastian has the Enshi.”
My blood ran cold and my lips went numb. I stared into his opal eyes, watching the flames flicker there, searching for any sign that told me he was lying.