Prophecy Girl (Angel Academy) (26 page)

“Lisa—” Matt began.

“No, Mattie, she’s right. You need to go. Who knows what Alec’s been telling Katie. You have to set it straight. Besides,” Lisa looped her free hand through mine, “Ami and I have been on missions tougher than this. If I stay, we have twice the chance of getting out. That’s what we want, right? A happy ending?”

Matt looked stricken. I could see the conflict inside him—his affection for me, his political loyalties, his love for Lisa. We all knew he would have died for her in an instant, but
leaving
her? I didn’t know if he could.

She must have seen the same conflict, because she smiled, tiptoed up to him, and kissed him tenderly on the mouth. “Pookie, trust me,” she murmured, her cheek against his. “Have I ever steered you wrong?”

I decided it was a bad time to bring up the mullet she made him get in fifth grade, during her “Gone Country” phase.

“Can’t you talk her out of this?” Matt asked me over her shoulder.

I shrugged. “Doubtful.”

The truth was, I didn’t want her here any more than he did. But I also knew the more time we wasted arguing, the more time Thibault had to change his mind, and the more likely both of them would end up dead. Besides, I’d never been able to talk Lisa out of anything before.
Why should now be any different?

Matt was close to tears as he kissed Lisa on the forehead and whispered a soft, “I’ll be back. I love you,” and hurried out. The door gave a final-sounding thud behind him.

Silence settled through the air and I tightened my hand around Lisa’s. In all the times I’d imagined us fighting together, I’d never really thought of us dying together. It seemed unreal.

“Okay, here’s the plan,” I whispered, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice. “In a few seconds, we’re going to meet someone. She’s a Graymason…don’t ask. Once she lowers the perceptual vortex around Jack, I’ll distract her. You open a portal, grab Jack, and jump him to someplace safe. I’ll shield you from here as best I can. Then I’ll do the closure and see you back home, okay?”

It was a lie. I knew I wouldn’t see her back home. I also had no idea if I could shield her and fight off my sister at the same time, but it seemed like the only chance we had. Luc’s hands would be full with Alec, and I still had no clue what to do about the explosives. If Lisa could just get out safe with Jack—

“I’m sorry, sweetie,” she said, her eyes sad. “I can’t do that.”

“Yes, you can. You’ve always been stronger than me—”

“No, you don’t understand. I can’t leave you.” Her small hand plucked Jack’s sword out of mine and let it fall to the ground with a clang. She kicked it toward the middle of the room. “I’ve told you a thousand times, Ami, you’re my sister. I’ll always take care of you. That’s what we do, right? We look out for each other.”

For the first time since Matt left, I let my gaze wander around the room. Alec had lowered his crossbow. Thibault stood against the wall, a look of infuriating triumph on his face. Lisa hovered by my side, her hand interlaced with mine, a soft smile at her lips. Small shifts of orb-light leaped at the stones of her dress, reflecting the clips in her hair—like a thousand tiny flames come to life.

And my heart dropped.

Because I knew who she was. The person standing next to me, the girl who had been with me through every anguished moment of childhood, every horror of adolescence, every heartbreaking loss I’d suffered. My best friend. My sister.

With hair of fire.

Chapter Twenty-two:

Dead Man’s Party

I squinted into her baby blue eyes. It reminded me of one of those weird 3-D art prints where you have to wait for the art to pop out at you. Only, I didn’t know what I was waiting for. Maybe for something dark and ruthless to climb out of her mouth and rip the silicone mask off, revealing her true identity—like a macabre
Scooby Doo
episode. At least that’d make sense. Because this sure as heck didn’t.

How could Lisa be the killer? Wasn’t she the one who told me about this whole Graymason business in the first place?

Because she wanted you to stay out of it
, my inner voice reminded me.

But she’d helped me escape, hadn’t she?

After she got you convicted
.

Well, what about the phone call? When she lent me her password and told me how to do that info search on Mom?
So you’d come after Bud, nitwit. How else would Alec have known where to find you?

I never saw it coming. Not one iota. I trusted her completely. She’d been able to orchestrate everything because I, genius girl-detective, had
told
her everything. Because betrayal was not covered in any of my
Nancy Drew
books.

“But you don’t even look like me,” I argued. “You’re way—”

“Prettier, I know.”

“I was going to say shorter.”

“I take after Mom.” Lisa scrunched up her nose.
“I’m
so sorry I couldn’t tell you. I almost did the first day of school. But then at assembly, with
him
there,” she gestured to Jack, “and that stupid bond. I figured the best thing would just be to kill him ASAP, so I opened the rift. It was a long shot but, well…nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?”

I couldn’t speak. Words flooded my brain, but there seemed to be some communication breakdown between my head and my mouth.

God must hate me. It was the only explanation.

Seriously. All I’d ever wanted was to be a Guardian. I wanted to kill demons, protect humankind, do all the things I was made to do. But, in the space of a week, I’d been reduced to a blood-tainted, broken-souled, half-bonded, fully-doomed fashion victim with a ruthless serial killer for a sister.

What was next, a plague of frogs?

“Oh, Ami, don’t look at me like that. If you’d taken my advice and stayed away from him, we wouldn’t be in this mess. And we’ve still got to find you a proper Watcher before the real fighting starts. That’ll be fun, right?” Lisa gave my hand another squeeze, then trotted across the hall to Alec.

She didn’t even get within twenty feet of him when I saw it. Silvery strands of light stretched between them, calling out to each other. Holy cow,
that
was how she’d known what my bond with Jack was—because she had one herself. With
Alec.
That must have been what I saw the first day. The silver glow that had bugged me so much.

“Ew.” I muffled a groan as she flung herself into his arms, their heat flaring like gunpowder. I swear, watching her kiss him would have made my stomach turn anyway. But the rest of it—how their bodies seemed to melt together, how breath flowed into her more freely. It was worse than watching
The Notebook
for the fiftieth time. How had I never noticed that sap-fest before?

“What about Matt?” I sputtered.

Lisa frowned. “Ami, I love Matt. I always will. But it’s not enough.” She shook her head, “He could train for a thousand years and he’d never be strong enough. I tried to tell him that. Alec and I are a better match.”

“I…but…you… How long? How did you hide it?” I pointed at the swirly silver threads, unable to think straight.

“Five spectacular years. And, trust me, hiding our bond was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Of course, Mattie was a useful distraction, but do you have any idea how difficult it was
not
to think about Alec?
Not
to let myself want him, even when he was right there next to me. Impossible!” She proudly tiptoed up to give Alec a peck on the cheek. He blushed.

Ugh, vomit!
That
was how the bond glow got triggered? By
hormones
? Jeez, no wonder Lisa kept trying to hook me up with other guys. “This is twisted. You know that, right?”

“Amelie, you mustn’t blame your sister.” Chancellor Thibault had kept mostly quiet, but now he hobbled forward, the remote detonator (thankfully) forgotten on Uriel’s statue alcove. “Once Charlotte made her allegiance to the Inferni publicly known, there was no going back. It was traitorous what she did, saving an Immortal child over her own bondmate—even the Elders knew it. Child or no, it shouldn’t have happened. I’d have been a fool not to see the writing on the wall.”

“What are you talking about? What wall?”

Lisa rolled her eyes. “It’s a metaphor, Amelie.”

“You see, dear, Paranormal Convergence had already been formed. It was just a matter of time before the Peace Tenets were proposed.” Thibault slid a gloved hand along the shaft of his cane, fingers coming away red. “I was with Charlotte when she learned the news of your bloodline, even before your father did. That’s when my plan began to take shape. Of course, I had no idea you were to be twins. It was lucky I got the right one.”

“Well, I
was
the firstborn,” Lisa added indignantly.

“True enough, darling.” Thibault patted her hand. “Jonathan and Carol Anselmo had agreed to hide the child. After all, it wouldn’t do for me to show up with a daughter the same month Bud and Charlotte lost one,” he reasoned. “I should have killed your mother then, but Bud was paranoid. He had that bastard Horowitz watching us.”

Paranoid with good reason, you freak
, I couldn’t help thinking. “What about Alec?”

“What about me?” Alec cast a fond look at Lisa, his heart encircled with wisps of silver light. As long as they didn’t start kissing again, I could probably hang onto my dinner.

“I knew Lisa would need a Watcher someday,” Thibault explained, “so when Alec’s parents were killed in battle, I adopted him and started administering greater demon blood infusions. His body acclimated brilliantly.”

Oh, snap! Greater demon blood. Like Meeks’s stupid potted plant! “
That’s
how you followed Jack and me through the portal at my test!”

Alec smiled.

“It was perfect,” Lisa noted happily. “By the time the Peace Tenets got signed into probationary law, I had my full powers and Alec was strong enough to bond. We had a list of the Guardians who needed to die and half a decade to get the job done.”

“But y’all were like twelve years old! That’s—”

“Efficient?” Lisa asked.

“Repugnant!” I shouted.

My eyes drifted back to Jack, still imprisoned in his cozy, silent nightmare. I envied him. As horrid as it must’ve been, locked in a sensory prison, at least he didn’t have to deal with
this
. It was…sickening. Horrifying. They were like some twisted little Stepford family. The whole thing made me want to throw myself in the vortex with Jack.

“Well, it’s almost over,” Lisa said with a disapproving glare. “Seriously, how many times did I warn you not to get involved with him? I should just kill him now.”

As soon as she said it, my heart stopped. She was my
best friend
! I’d spent my whole life next to her, letting her tell me what to wear, how to act, who to date. I trusted her. And now she was going to rip my heart out like it was nothing?

“However,” she continued, “because I love you, I’m willing to be nice.”

“You’ll let him go?” Hope crept into my voice.

She laughed, a sweet tinkling sound that should have belonged to a woodland fairy. “Don’t be an idiot. If I let him go, it’s the end of the Guardians. No, he has to die. But I’ll let you say goodbye to him. Think of it as my partial-bonding gift to you two.” Her finger leveled at the vortex, she added, “And if I catch you trying to open a portal, he’s a dead man.
Dilué!
”

It shimmered for an instant under the command, then dissolved in splintered lines of light. At the same time, I felt the wards around the room weaken, tiny quakes of power coursing into me.

The moment the force field fell, Jack’s head jerked up. He looked stunned and groggy, like a prince awakened from an enchanted sleep.

“Jack!” As fast as my feet would carry me, I hurled myself at him.

“Ow,” Jack muttered around my kisses. “I thought being dead’s not supposed to hurt.”

“You’re such a moron,” I breathed. “I told you I wouldn’t let you die without me.”

“Amelie.” He groaned, but he didn’t stop kissing me. “You can’t be here. It’s too dangerous.”

“Oh, you have no idea what danger is, mister!” I pulled back just enough to frown at him. “I’m so mad at you right now. You
drugged
me?”

“I-I had to,” he stammered. “I couldn’t let you die.”

“Dumbass,” I breathed. “You think I want to live without you?”

Jack nudged his nose against mine as I tightened my grip on him.

We held each other for a few more seconds before Jack struggled to his feet, his eyes focused on Lisa. He knew what she was, I could tell. He’d probably known since the moment Bud said the word “sister.” Not that he would tell
me
. Noooo. Heaven forbid anyone actually
share
such useful info.

“You swore you wouldn’t let anyone hurt her,” Jack said to Lisa.

“And I won’t,” she promised. “She’ll come with us. Matt and Katie are our witnesses. They’ll spread the word we’ve been taken prisoner. In a few years, when the Inferni have been depleted, we’ll be back as heroes to lead the Guardian resistance as it
should
be led—without stupid Crossworld politics. Trust me, demonkind won’t stand a chance.”

I couldn’t hold back the scowl. The heroes-to-the-resistance thing sounded like a huge hassle. I’d far prefer to sit on a beach with Jack until it was over.

“And you’ll keep her safe?” he persisted.

Lisa smiled. “Haven’t I always?”

Thibault let out a deep sigh from the edge of the room. “Your family loyalty is touching, dear, but can we please get on with this? Mercy is not what I trained you for.” He gestured to Jack. “That boy is a traitor, and it’s time for him to die.”

Lisa caught my gaze. “Ami, I’m sorry about this. We should have finished it years ago. If I’d known how complicated things would turn out—”

“Each prophecy in its own time, dear,” Thibault lectured.

I’m not sure, but I think she rolled her eyes. “You ready, Jackson?”

Jack’s eyes filled with sadness as he turned to me. “Ami, I’m sorry.”

“You can’t be serious.” I looked at him, panicked. “You’re just going to go with her?”

“I have to. I’m the last Gabrielite. It’s prophesied.”

“No!” I shook my head. “What about the Peace Tenets? The Crossworld will go to war! Luc says the Immortals—”

“Will have to find another way to survive,” Jack finished. “Omelet, I don’t like this any more than you do, but your sister’s right. Too many Guardians have died already.”

“So, you’re going to let her start a
war
?”

“The war is already started. We’re just choosing sides,” Lisa said. “Don’t you get it? Katie was right! We’ve crippled ourselves trying to uphold the Peace Tenets. If they pass, we’ll all die.”

“So, make Jack promise not to sign,” I suggested, desperate. “Hold him prisoner.”

She looked at me like I was an idiot. “If he refuses to sign, prisoner or not, it’ll be seen as an act of aggression. The Inferni will turn on us and—stop me if you’ve heard this before—
we’ll all die
. The only way out is if all the signatories are dead. It’s prophesied. There’s no way they can blame us.”

“But there has to be another way—”

“What do you suggest? Should we put everyone to sleep for a hundred years?” Lisa sounded annoyed. “Amelie, this isn’t a school prank. You can’t just magic it away with fairy dust and wishes.”

“Nobody said fairy dust.”

“Yeah, well nobody promised you a happy ending, either!”

“Amelie, please,” Jack begged. “You know I love you. I’d do anything for you. But you can’t keep looking for a solution that doesn’t exist. Maybe this is how it’s supposed to end. Maybe we’re not supposed to be together.”

I stared at him, horrified. “Excuse me?”

He let go of my hand and turned to Lisa. “Do it. I’m ready.”

Okay, I was getting pretty pissed myself at this point.
Not supposed to be together
? Seriously, if we got out of this alive, I was going to kill him!

Subtle as a breeze, I tested another shred of power between my fingers. Yup, all systems go. I hadn’t forgotten about Luc, still waiting for my signal in the ceiling vent. If we were going to do this, it had to be now.

“Stop!” I shouted as her hand touched his chest.

“What now?” Lisa demanded.

My eyes darted to the grate. Luc and I hadn’t agreed on a specific signal, but if it was too subtle for him, then his species probably deserved to die. “I just wonder what the vampires have to say about all this.”

“Huh?” Lisa asked.

Jack frowned in confusion. “Ami, what are you talking about?”

“I said,” my voice rose, “what would the
vampires—
”

All at once, Luc swung out of the metal grate, his body catapulting toward Alec as if shot from a string. He hit Alec in the chest with his feet, knocking the crossbow in a spiral toward the wall. I barely processed the scuffle before Thibault was in it. He limped out of the smoke, a deformed nightmare. With an ugly sneer at his lips, he twisted the top of his cane and detached it, revealing a long, slim blade that could have run through any demon.

“Behind you!” I screamed.

In a movement too fast to track, Luc turned, scooped up a chunk of plaster, and hurled it at Thibault’s head. The Chancellor crumpled, a thin trickle of blood at his temple. Luc dove for the crossbow at the same time as Alec, their bodies colliding with a hellish crack.

“Luc!” I’d just taken a step to help him when I felt it.

Lisa’s channel.