Tethered Wings (Hidden Wings Series) (11 page)

But outwardly, he was a far cry from the depictions given by mortal beings. I’d always assumed them to be horrifying, monstrous creatures - beasts with horns and pitchforks. Much to my surprise, it was to the contrary.

The Fallen were beautiful.

Even Bane and Azzah, behind their permanent scowls, outgrown beards, and hardened hearts, weren’t unattractive. Cleaned up and clean-cut, I could see how they would be attractive.

“You don’t ever have to be afraid of me. I may come from a dark and evil place, but that’s not who I am. I’m not my father, and I have no intention of following in his footsteps.”

I made the mistake of looking into his eyes a little too long, and was instantly bewitched, like a moth to flame.

“Shouldn’t you be watching what’s ahead of you?” I said, breathless.

“I have total peripheral vision, and sight comparable to a hawk. Besides, how could I look away from the perfection in my arms,” he whispered.

“Ethon,” I exhaled. My body was becoming weak, melting into his. Electricity buzzed around us. 

“You do something to me, Emma. Everything aches when you’re distant. I crave you… and right now, I’m going to kiss you.”

“My father is right in front of us.”

“I can lose them in seconds if I wanted to,” he said.

“Don’t give him a reason to hate you,” I said.

His eyes narrowed and a grin formed on his porcelain face. “So, you
do
like me?”

“I-I never said I didn’t,” I stuttered. I felt vulnerable under the weight of his gaze.

His fingers gently caressed my back, and then he slowed our flight. Glancing up quickly, he checked his positioning between Samuel and Bane.

Slowly and carefully, his hand traveled up my spine and rested on the back of my neck. His eyes fixed back on mine and started to burn a bright reddish-orange. The alluring power of the bond was growing, becoming overwhelmingly intense. It was seductive, and inevitable…we were going to kiss.

The wind whipped around us, but all I felt was the warmth generated from our mutual passion. I was trapped by his magnetism.

I closed my eyes, but my body was fully aware of what was happening. Heart racing, my breath was quick and ragged. A pulse of energy surged through my body as his lips softly pressed against mine, his fingers threading through my hair. A moan escaped my lips as his velvety tongue found entrance.

A sudden euphoria blanketed us. Flying made it even more exhilarating.

The bond was magical, and at this moment, I could feel his emotions - how much he wanted to love and protect me.

The bond with Ethon was so raw and intense.

Bam!

We were suddenly struck from the side and our lips unlocked. I screamed as I almost fell from his grip, feeling the weightless drop in my stomach. Ethon captured me, pulling me closer and tried to regain his balance.

His eyes snapped up and burned with a dark, fiery flame. Rage.

Bane had hit us. His face was hard and his eyes had gone completely black. I knew he was disapproving. He snarled, making a head gesture to let us know he had seen, and if we kept it up, Samuel would too.

“Emma, are you alright?” Samuel asked, quickly glancing back.

“Yes,” I answered. “We almost hit a bird.” I had to think of something quick, and that was the most logical thing I could think of.

“Be careful with my daughter, Ethon,” he said.

“If anything tries to harm her, I will kill it,” Ethon answered flatly, his eyes still locked onto Bane. His breath and heartbeat had increased. I also heard
and felt
a deep growl rumbling from within. It scared me. He looked like he would rip Bane apart.

I gently placed my hand on the side of his face, and as I did, his focus turned back to me. As soon as his eyes fixed on mine, they slowly returned to their normal, more subdued color.

“It’s okay,” I whispered.   

“If I dropped you, I would have killed him.” His face became hard again, and the edges of his eyes flickered with the dark red flame.

“Ethon, he’s just looking out for you, per his orders. If my father saw us, believe me, it could have been much worse than just a bump.”

His brow furrowed. Taking in a deep breath, he exhaled. The flames in his eyes slowly diminished. “I thought you didn’t care for my goons,” he finally said.

I gasped. “What? How did you?” I didn’t remember mentioning, to anyone, that I referred to his companions as
goons
. I swear I only used that term in my mind.

Ethon looked amused. “You didn’t think I’d give away all my secrets, did you?” 

“Secrets? What secrets?” I narrowed my eyes. 

“Every secret embedded in me will be unlocked and revealed
only
if
you choose me.”

“Oh. So you’re using bribery now?” I challenged.

“If it helps…then yes,” he said flatly.

“You may have tricks up your sleeve, but I still hold the key.”

“Oh, Emma,” Ethon breathed. “You have no idea of the trickery I possess.” His eyes smile widened.

I’d like to find out.

Ethon suddenly laughed, he leaned in, tickling my ear as he whispered, “Are you sure? Because I’d be more willing to you.”

I covered my mouth with my hand, looking into his mischievous eyes.

Was he reading my mind? Was that even possible? If he could, that would be rude. Reading minds was a total invasion of privacy. I treasured my private thoughts, and random conversations with myself. Having someone else swimming around in my mind…well, that was totally not cool.

“You can read my mind, can’t you?” I questioned. I figured I’d come straight out and ask, instead of wondering.

His eyes showed no emotion, and gave me nothing. He grinned at me and shrugged.

“You’re evil,” I huffed.

“Inherently.” 

Dammit.
Now I’d have to keep my mind blank around him. However…if he could read minds, he would already know what I was planning.

Good Lord. This completely sucked.

Blank. White. Nothingness. I needed to clear my mind.

How do monks do this? Okay, come on Emma. We’ve got this.

I closed my eyes, and thought of white clouds floating in the sky.

“What are you doing?” Ethon laughed.

“Focusing,” I answered.

“On what?”

“Keeping you out of my mind.” I opened one eye to peek at him, and saw him shaking his head. A smile was plastered on his face. “What?”

“In time you’ll see,” he said.

“See what?”

“That you’ll choose me.”

“You don’t know that, and besides, my time is very fragile these days. I may not even make it to my transformation.”

“Like I said before, you don’t have to worry about Lucian while I’m around. He will die by my hand if he tries to hurt you. That is a promise.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“For what?”

“For wanting to protect me.”

“It’s an unwilled impulse,” he answered.

I hugged him. “Well, thank you anyway.”

He pressed his lips to my cheek, and then focused forward.  “Let’s get you home safely.”

We encountered no additional problems the rest of the flight home. It was serene. The darkening sky was the most beautiful blue, and the puffs of cirrocumulus clouds were painted in a sorbet of pink, orange, and lavender.

Ethon never loosened his grip around me, and I felt comfortable in his arms, gliding just above the tree lines.

When I glanced down, everything was a blur and I became dizzy, so I kept most of my focus on either the sky above, or Ethon. A few times during flight, he’d leaned down and pressed his lips to my forehead.

For a devil boy, he seemed to be quite the gentleman, and I wondered where he’d picked up those traits. On the other hand, I’d caught a glimpse of fire in his eyes, and had seen the potential for what he could do. There weren’t many who could match him.

He was very complicated, and yet, intriguing. When I directed my gaze to his face, I’d hoped to read his expressions - see what he was thinking. But he was like a closed book, only offering a pretty cover.

Snap out of it, Emma.

There were more important things to worry about right now. I had to come up with some kind of story to tell Jeremy and Lia. When they woke up, they would have so many questions.

I knew Lia would be pissed. I glanced at their limp bodies being carried by Samuel and Bane. At least they were peaceful at the moment.

When we arrived at the house, Alaine panicked at first, but then focused on getting them settled on beds in their own rooms. Lia was in the room next to me, and Jeremy was a floor down, on the opposite side, in a room next to Kade. I left a note on their nightstands to come to my room when they woke up. It would be the one with a pink ribbon tied to the doorknob.

I knew it would be a few more hours before they woke, so I took a shower and readied myself for the onslaught of questions. I was a little apprehensive about trying to explain things to Jeremy. I didn’t know if he’d believe anything.

I needed help. Maybe I could bring Courtney and Caleb into the mix. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a great plan. They were normal humans like Jeremy and Lia, and I had a feeling they would get along really well.

I exited my room and knocked on Courtney’s door. In a few seconds, it swung open.

“Emma!” she smiled, sticking her head out looking down the hall. “I thought your friends were here?”

“They are,” I dragged, “but we ran into some Fallen on our way here.”

“Oh my God. Are they alright?” She gasped, throwing her hand over her mouth.

“Yes, they’re fine. They’re actually sleeping.”

“Both of them? Sleeping? After being attacked?” He eyes widened even more.

“Yes, they were freaking out, so we had to use the sleeper on them.” I explained.

“Oh my goodness. Caleb told me about the sleeper,” her eyes furrowed. “Okay, so what do you want me to do?”

“I just need you and Caleb to hang out with us tonight. The thing is…my friends can’t find out about the Angels or Fallen. They can’t know about any of it. As far as they are concerned, we’re all normal humans. So, I need your help to keep them busy, and to hopefully divert their attention when they begin asking too many questions.”

“I can definitely do that. Do you want me to get Caleb?” She questioned.

“Yes, please. Just meet me in my room, and bring your board games.”

“You got it.” Giving a thumbs-up, she then bounded down the hall toward Caleb’s room.

I wondered when Kade and the others would return. Probably soon.

Ethon and Bane were already in the tower, and Samuel had returned to the cottage after talking to Alaine. 

I went back into my room and waited. About ten minutes later, there was a knock at the door. When I opened it, Caleb and Courtney were standing with their arms filled with board games and snacks.

I gave Caleb a quick rundown of the situation, and he was completely onboard. They were thrilled to be a part of a secret mission, and were also excited to meet my best friends from LA. To pass the time, the three of us ended up sitting on the floor, playing cards.  We were right in the middle of our fifth game when we heard a soft knock at the door.

“Emma?”

“Come in,” I yelled. 

The knob twisted, and Lia peeked inside. Her eyes were swollen with sleep and she looked completely confused.

“Come in, Lia!”

She opened the door and walked in. Her normally stick-straight, black hair was sticking up on one side, and her glasses were a bit crooked.

“How did we get here? What happened?” she asked, her almond shaped eyes were barely slits as she squinted behind her glasses.

“In the Hummer. You and Jeremy knocked out. You must have been exhausted from flying.”

“I guess,” she said. I knew she was completely boggled. She looked over to Courtney and Caleb and didn’t say anything else.

I jumped up and ran to her, and threw my arms around her. “Lia, I want you to meet my sort-of-siblings, Courtney and Caleb. They were adopted by Alaine when they were younger.” I led her toward them.

“Hi,” she said, pushing a polite smile.

“Hi,” they echoed.

“Emma, seriously, what the hell happened? All I remember was being surrounded by hot guys, well…mostly hot guys. No offense to Jeremy. Then, I remembered these huge black birds outside the car window…before everything went blank. The next thing I know, I’m waking up in an unfamiliar room, on an unfamiliar bed. I thought I was in some kind of crazy nightmare, until I saw your note.”

“You just knocked out. I’m not sure what else to tell you. One minute you were talking, and the next you were sleeping. You must have been exhausted. Did you even get any sleep before you came here?”

“No. We stayed up the whole night because we were too excited. But that was so strange. I hope we weren’t exposed to carbon monoxide poisoning. I’ve heard of people knocking out, and it could be deadly.”

“I don’t know, but at least you’re fine now,” I noted. “You are fine, right?”

“Yes, just still a little tired,” she said.

“Emma?” Jeremy said, entering behind us yawning.

“Hey, Jeremy!” I said, heading up to him. 

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. You both just completely knocked out.”

“How in the heck could we both fall asleep, at the exact same time?” Jeremy questioned.

“Were you up late?”

“Well, we didn’t sleep. We stayed up all night eating candy and drinking soda,” Lia said.

“Then that’s it,” Caleb jumped in. “You both had a sugar crash. It happens if you eat too much sugar. But combine it with lack of sleep and…
bam!
You’re out cold.”

“I guess that’s possible,” Jeremy agreed, with another yawn. 

Phew.
Maybe the fifth degree would end soon.

Caleb and Courtney really hit it off with Jeremy and Lia, so much in fact, I felt like – and was – a fifth wheel.

Lia and Caleb flirted with each other all night, and Jeremy and Courtney even hit it off. They weren’t flirting, but Courtney kept him busy with her many questions about LA. Jeremy was more than happy to give his detailed answers.

It was great to have help, and I started to believe we could actually pull this off. I really wanted them to have fun. Courtney and Caleb were my lifesavers.

It was nearly 2am when everyone said goodnight, and walked back to their rooms. I turned off my light and snuggled into bed, exhausted. It had been a long day, full of stress.

Exhaling loud and long, I closed my eyes, hoping to fall into darkness.

I awoke suddenly in a cold, dark room. A spotlight landed on a figure standing about a hundred feet in front of me. It was a boy with his back to me, and he was shirtless. His arms were listless and dropped to his sides. His head was facing downward.

“Hello?” I called softly. There was no answer. He didn’t even move.

As I walked closer, I noticed his hands were balled into tight fists, and his back was badly scarred and covered in blood.

My heart began to race, and I could hear the sound of my breath quicken.

I stepped even closer to the figure, and quickly covered my mouth to try and keep down the rising vomit.

Two gaping holes oozed slowly, but heavily, from either side of his shoulder blades. I could see bone peeking from beneath the open flesh. White feathers, stained with crimson, were strewn about the floor. Some were caught within the thick blood.

It looked as if he once had wings, but they had been ripped from his back.

“Can I help you?” I breathed, reaching out to his arm. When I touched it, his head whipped sideways.

No! 

“Kade! What the hell happened?” I cried frantically. I reached out to grab his arm, and as soon as I touched him, his skin felt ice cold and he was unresponsive. His eyes glazed over, looking bewildered.

“How did you get here? Kade, we need to get out of here!” I yelled, tugging his arm. “Kade!”

Why would he be in this dark place? And why did he have gaping holes in his back? He was a Guardian, and Guardians didn’t have wings.  

His body suddenly fell limp into my arms, and I dropped under his weight. I used every bit of strength I had to turn him on his side, and then carefully rested his head in my lap. I brushed dampened hair from his forehead.

“Kade. Please answer me. What happened? Why are you here? Where are we?” There was still no response, and his eyes remained closed. “Please, baby. Open your eyes. I need you,” I sobbed, pleading. I felt completely lost. Holding him in my arms, there was nothing I could do to help him. 

Kade’s eyes flickered and slowly opened. The once hazel eyes I’d become familiar with had been tainted. Bright red veins snaked throughout them, making him look almost alien.

“For you,” he whispered. “I did it for you.”

“What? What did you do for me?” 

His arm lifted and his weak fingers traced the side of my face, and then dropped, limp. His eyes went blank, and the corners started to change color. Slowly creeping inward, a white fog covered his eyes, until they were icy, dead white.

“Kade!” I screamed. “Kade!” I shook him, but he didn’t move or respond. 

“No. You can’t die. You can’t leave me. Please. Come back,” I sobbed, rocking his limp body in my arms.

A boisterous, wicked laugh echoed through the cavernous room. I looked around, but could only see pitch black. The evil laughter made my skin crawl. I turned and looked behind me, and there, burning in the darkness were two bright crimson eyes.

“I hate you!” I screamed. “I hate you!”

I shot up, my breath hitched in my throat. Sweat trickled down my brow, and my face was soaked with tears. I glanced at the clock. 3:17am.

“Kade,” I whispered.

I had to see him. I had to make sure he was okay.

I pushed the blankets off me, and jumped out of bed. I made my way to the door, quietly opening and then shutting it behind me. The hallway was eerily dark and quiet, but I continued, attempting to be soundless. My pulse was still racing, and I still had the lingering ache in my chest seeing Kade’s dead body in my arms.

I went down the flight of stairs and made my way to his door.

I knew if I knocked, I’d wake everyone up, so I decided to just enter. I hoped he wouldn’t think I was an intruder, and attack me.

I sucked in a deep breath and slowly turned the knob.

The latch was unlocked, so I opened it. The hinges squeaked a bit, but the room inside was dark. I pushed in.

“Kade?” I whispered. I hoped he would hear me. “Kade?”

A light clicked on.

“Emma?” Kade sat up shirtless, his hair in its perfect disheveled form. 

“Yes. It’s me. I’m sorry. I – I just had a bad dream, and I had to see you.” When I heard myself say the words, I realized I sounded like an idiot.

He jumped out of bed and walked over to me, stopping inches away. His sweet, spicy scent filled the space around me, making me dizzy. He lifted his arm and quietly snapped the door shut.

“Come here,” he said, wrapping me in the warmth of his arms. “Is everything okay?”

“It is now,” I breathed into his chest, hugging him back. My heart was still trying to settle, after realizing he was here and alive. 

He led me over to the bed and we sat. “Do you want to tell me what happened?”

I paused. The nightmare was evil and horrifying, and I certainly didn’t want to give him the details or relive them.

“I just - I thought I’d lost you,” I whispered. “And, I felt so lost and alone.”

His beautiful eyes twinkled as they looked at me, and then he smiled, making my heart patter.

“So you came to make sure I was still alive?” His eyes studied mine.

“Yes. You didn’t let me know you made it home safely. I was really worried.”