Few Are Angels (26 page)

“Um, is everything okay?” I stuttered, trying to tamp down my worry. Kale had never looked at me like that, not even when we kissed, and it scared me.

His face was beautiful, but as the moon cast a glow on his skin, I saw Kale was interested in more than just a kiss. Another icy breeze wafted past us, ruffling my hair and sending a shiver down my spine as I realized Kale could smell my hair. The wind blew my fragrance to him, branding his senses with my scent. Quickly, I reached for the elastic band on my wrist and went to control my freed locks. Kale groaned low in his throat, stopping midway through the action.

“Ah, but you smell so…” He took another deep breath and stared at me with his obsidian eyes.

I quickly pulled my hair up into a messy ponytail and pulled my hat over my head. I hoped it was enough, but it seemed all it took was one scent to release the predator in Kale. It was odd; Kale had never before cared about my scent. What was so different tonight?

“See, all better. Right?” I asked, with still a trace of fear.

He hadn’t stopped his lazy gait toward me, but I stopped as my back hit a tree.

“Kale, are you okay? I have never seen you like this.”

Kale smiled wider, revealing what he had spent so long hiding from me. His teeth were mesmerizingly white, and his fangs were revealed. They peeked at me, scaring me with the promise of pain. Kale’s smile shined brighter and made me want to walk toward him, but I didn't. I knew better.

Kale cocked his head to the side and asked, “You have never seen me like what?” His voice was like music to my ears, causing my heart to speed up. I could feel each and every beat as my heart pumped blood throughout my body.

“Like you want to eat her for dinner,” Jace said, out of nowhere, answering Kale’s question for me.

Immediately Kale’s vision cleared, and he shook his head. He looked at me, confused. Jace appeared in my line of sight just behind Kale with a silver stick in his hand. At first glance the stick looked harmless, but as my vision focused, I realized what Jace was holding.

“Jeez, no!” I ran between Kale and Jace. “What are you doing, and what is that?” I asked, unable to take my eyes off of that damned shiny stick.

“He means to kill me with it.” When Kale finally spoke, his voice was no longer like a Siren’s call, but its normal, warm timbre.

I sighed in relief and spared a glance back at him, examining his eyes. They were still dark, but nothing like before. Jace moved forward, and his footsteps on the fresh snow were eerily quiet. I watched his feet as they moved toward me, finally meeting their destination. He stopped and looked at me.

“I mean to protect you,” Jace said, giving me a hard, appraising look. “When was the last time you fed, diseased one?” Not once did he release me from his ice blue stare.

I flinched at the words that came from Jace’s mouth. Even though Kale had scared me, I wasn’t about to let Jace use that against him.

“Kale, his name is Kale,” I said.

Jace inclined his head, acknowledging my correction, but didn't modify his words. He waited for Kale to answer him.

I turned to Kale, torn between wanting to know the answer and waiting to respect his privacy. Kale stood still as a bronze statue, keeping his body taut and his eyes trained on the silver stake.

“It’s none of your concern,” Kale answered.

I pushed aside my disappointment. I thought I at least deserved the answer because I was the one who got the “hungry eyes” stare down. “Put the stake away,” I quietly commanded Jace. “Everything is okay now.”

Jace placed the stake on his belt under his coat without protest.

My worry slightly dissipated. I assumed if Jace thought Kale was a threat, he wouldn’t have put away his weapon so readily.

“So,
Princezná
, what’s the plan?”

Kale seemed distant and angry, and I wondered if he was hungry or something.

“Would you like to finally know some truths, or will
Kale’s lies
hold you over until tomorrow?” Jace asked.

Kale scoffed.

I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the truth tonight. I was tired and my brain felt like mush. It probably couldn't handle much more, and I wasn’t about to stand out in the cold with Kale and Jace and listen to them bicker. “Not tonight, Jace. I think I just want to go home and sleep.” I headed toward the trail that would lead me there. “Can you two do me a favor and hang back? I need some alone time.”

“No,” Jace and Kale said in tandem.

I looked at them wide-eyed, but I was too tired to fight. I shook my head and turned back to the trail at a pace that underlined my desire to be alone. I didn't hear Kale or Jace’s steps behind me, but I wasn’t naïve enough to think one or both of them wouldn’t follow me.

As if reading my mind, Jace called after me. “You won’t see me, but I will follow you home to ensure you get there without incident.”

I didn't have to look back to tell he was referring not only to Laurent’s men, but also Kale. I didn't stop to defend Kale as I normally would have, and he was silent. I no longer cared what either of them did. I was getting tired of being told what was going to happen. I just wanted to sink into the warm bed at the Carltons’ and forget about everything, if only for a few hours.

Back at the house, Alex’s parking spot was still empty. I hoped that he would at least come home before I passed out for the night. Upstairs, I pulled off my jacket and sat in the computer chair, placing my phone in front of me on the desk. I didn't think Alex would call if he hadn’t already, and there were no missed calls in the call log. I retreated to the bathroom and took a nice, hot shower. I used globs of rosemary mint conditioner in my hair, hoping it would help mask whatever scent that had sent Kale into the little frenzy he’d slipped into. I was still really pissed at him for lying to me. My heart gave a squeeze in my chest, and I remembered telling Alex that I felt as if I could tell Kale anything. I knew Kale believed he had a good reason for lying to me, but it still hurt. Once I was out of the shower, I checked my phone and the time. No missed call from Alex, and it was late. I called his phone, and after three rings, it went to voicemail. I braided my hair and headed to the bed. The day’s events had caught up to me long before I’d even gotten home, and as I laid down and closed my eyes, I stopped fighting and let the fatigue set in. As I fell asleep, I wondered if there was anyone in my life I could completely trust. The list was short and disappointing because everyone on it was dead.

Chapter 26

“We are better suited to face Laurent alone, Hélène. You must have faith in me and only me. I will not fail you.” —Kale

“As you know, I am a member of the Council that was created,” Jace began.

I had learned more in the past two days with Jace about my past than in all my time with Kale. Kale had said it was for my protection. I believed that he thought ignorance would truly protect me, but I was still angry with him for keeping me in the dark.

“Forget his past because to you that means nothing. Yes, he is the man who offered his daughter to the Eternal Ones in exchange for eternal life, but that no longer matters. All that matters now is that you must remain hidden from him until he is stopped. The Council is fast at work looking for a way to do this, and because we are close, it’s important you are not found by his minions.”

Jace and I sat together by the fire he had created. It had been two days since Kale had held him in the mausoleum, two days after I discovered the secrets Kale had kept from me. He’d never told me he followed me to school the day I had my breakdown, then to Ocean Trace, or that he set fire to the records room to stop anyone from knowing I was ever there, risking the lives of the patients. He never told me he had been quietly following me for a year and a half. It excited and scared me all at once, and I wondered what else had happened to me while he sat in the background and watched.

“When the Dark Prince found you last, he used you to find and destroy the Council. Because the Council consists of more humans than Eternals, it was nearly wiped out.”

That made no sense to me because couldn't they make more Eternals? I placed my hands over the fire. The wood crackled and sent soft, billowy smoke plumes into the dark air. It was one a.m. and freezing outside, but Jace’s story kept me glued to my makeshift chair—a surprisingly warm and comfortable tree stump. The fire was dwindling, and Kale had left to go get more wood, but he been gone longer than it should take to pick up some sticks. Things were different between us, and I noticed he no longer stole glances in my direction. Nor did he ever strike up conversation with Jace or me. He just hung around us, stoic, vigilant, and distant. We hadn’t talked about his “bloodlust” incident, but Jace made sure to explain it to me. He said sometimes humans gave off a scent known to send vampires and Chorý into a frenzy. From what I understood, it robbed vampires of reason and twisted their minds.

“Wait, why don’t you turn more people?” I asked, pulling me out of my mind and back to the conversation. If their numbers had been lessened, what was stopping them from creating more?

“We can’t because we have taken a vow not to change anyone ever again. Of the original three men who set this all in motion, there is only one remaining, and he will not condemn another soul.” Jace must have seen the confusion on my face. He searched for a better way to explain the situation to me, but it still seemed so strange that the Council would let themselves die out before creating another immortal. Jace continued to speak as I mulled over his explanation.

“Ella, you must understand. For some, eternal life is nothing but an eternal prison. It is not what you think. The longer you live, the more you stop blending in with those around you; you are forever frozen in your current state.”

I looked at Jace. I saw a twenty-three year old man instead of the two hundred fifty years he really was. It had to be difficult to be considered a young adult by people who were only a fraction of your true age.

“Your priorities change, and your outlook on life become different. The things you once lived for mean less and less until your very humanity becomes a distraction. There are only a few people in this world that will live until the sun no longer burns. Trust me, those immortals see eternal life as a burden, not a gift.”

I couldn't help but feel sorry for Jace. He had spent his entire life making sacrifices to fix the mistakes I had made with my powers. Footsteps behind me pulled my attention from Jace and to the dark figure standing in the woods. Kale stood with thick branches in his hands. He walked over and placed them onto the fire.

“Hélène sacrificed herself so the Council would have enough time to regroup. She didn't reveal to the Dark One where the next Arc would be born, and that gave us time. While he searched for you, we doubled our numbers and searched for ways to kill him and his minions.”

After he’d unloaded the wood, Kale stood a few feet away from the fire and scanned the area constantly. We’d found out the two girls that had been murdered were thought to be me. When it turned out Laurent’s men had captured the wrong girls, they were given to Laurent’s men. Jace had calmed down a little since his and Kale’s last interaction, but they still seemed on edge around each other. I moved away from the fire and checked my watch. I needed to be getting back soon because I had to work the next day, and it was getting late. I decided I would stay for one more hour to learn more about my past. It was Kale’s turn to guard me tonight, so we could walk home together and talk. I knew the only person I would get answers from was Jace, so I went for it.

“Okay, so I understand I can see the past, but what else am I good for?” I asked.

Jace had told me I was used to recall secret events like where the Council had met and plotted against Laurent, which is what I was calling him, because the Dark Prince seemed too scary.

“Well, all Arcs have the ability to see the birth of the next Arc with uncanny accuracy. You will know the date, time, place, and the name the new Arc will have. It is said there will be an Arc born that will be able to see the future, and this Arc will be able to see the fall of the Dark One. And therein lies the problem. I fear the Dark One will want only to kill you because you are the only true threat to him.”

“You don’t know if I can even see the future.” I was close to pleading with Jace to take back his words, but from the look on his face, I could see this was hard for him too. The fact I was putting the people I cared about in danger worried me so much I was shaking from fear and cold.

Jace suddenly went still as Kale put his arms around me, pulling me close to him and the sharp scent of spicy winter that was so familiar to me. His grasp was so tight it seemed to hold me still, not allowing the shivers to course through me.

“Let’s get you home. It’s getting late, and you’re freezing,” Kale whispered. He turned me around to walk away, ignoring Jace completely.

I looked over my shoulder and said goodbye to Jace. I would see him again next week when it was his turn to guard me. As Kale and I walked back through the woods, his grip on me loosened. I was happy we were so close, but I still felt betrayed, and I wasn’t sure how to deal with it yet. While on one hand keeping me in the dark kept the visions at bay, it also put me in danger.

“I hate that he tells you things. It worries you unnecessarily, and I am sure you have enough on your mind as of late.” Kale stared straight ahead. He still held me close.

I thought Kale was talking about me and school. But I wasn’t missing any assignments, and my grades were fine. I knew he didn't know about my problems with Alex because I hadn’t told him.

“I’m okay, I guess. I mean, we haven’t seen any of Laurent’s men even though they have been here, and I have you and Jace, so it—”

“No, I mean with the way things are between us now because of my actions. I am truly sorry I kept things from you, but I feel as though I should be the one to worry about Laurent for you. I wanted to protect you from the dark and never reveal myself to you, so you could have a normal life after Laurent had been handled, but it seems that will never happen for you.”