The Weight of a Wing (The Stolen Wings Book 1) (22 page)

Due to the absence of parking spaces in the main street and
the packed back alleys, finding a place to park near the construction site
turned out to be more problematic than it should have been at that late hour.
They left the car in the street near one of the entrance gates and snuck in
through a hole cut in between two panels covered in bright, flashy ads. Cassie
and Vale waited for them on the border of the artificial enclosure left for the
lake.

“Witches like open space,” Vale said. “It can’t get more
open than this.” He made a grimace, eyeing the tall, unfinished buildings.

Rafe’s mouth twitched when he followed Vale’s gaze, and he
walked straight to him. “Don’t move.” He took the other Guardian’s hands in
his. Suns flared on the back of both sets of hands.

Vale swayed on his feet as if he were drunk.

Stepping closer to Alise, Cassie whispered, “What’s he
doing?

“Sharing magic,” Alise said. Her shoulders tensed and her
eyes narrowed as she watched the exchange. She only relaxed when Rafe broke
contact.

Vale gasped. “Wow! That stuff is powerful.”

“Yeah, tell me about it,” Rafe muttered, stepping back.
Unlike Vale, who shivered, struggling to adjust to the extra magic, he seemed
to be in control.

“Is there more?” Vale asked.

“Yes, but I have a feeling we’ll need a backup plan, so I’m
holding onto it for now.” Rafe turned his back on them and stared at the
silhouette of the castle illuminated by spotlights on top of the hill.

“What about Alise? She could use more magic, too,” Cassie
said a moment later.

Rafe threw a glance over his shoulder. “Magic will speed up
the process. Hallucinations are the last thing we need right now.”

Relieved to hear him say that, Alise let go of a breath she
hadn’t been aware she was holding. He could have forced the magic on her if he
wanted to, and hallucinations were no fun. While driving, her vision had turned
purple twice, and it had taken her all of her self-control not to crash the car
into a tree. Not fun at all.

Too bad Cassie wasn’t going to let it go that easily.
“She’ll be in danger. She needs to be able to defend herself.”

“We’ll be there,” Rafe said. “We will protect her.”

“Actually…” Vale rested one foot on a pile of neatly stacked
metal pipes. “It might not be such a bad idea. We’ll be taking on Fabian and
Goren and who knows what else. We can’t be everywhere at once.”

Rafe’s eyes flashed at him. “We
will
protect the
innocents.” The reminder of their credo came through gritted teeth.

Vale lowered his head. “Yes, we will.”

Alise lightly ran a hand up Cassie’s arm. “It’s all right. I
prefer it this way.” Not exactly a lie since the magic was bad for her, more so
now, and she wouldn’t have been able to do any extended damage like the
Guardians could anyway.

“So what happens next?” the girl asked.

“We wait.”

There were a couple of hours until dawn. They moved by the
mall entrance where Alise and Cassie sat down on concrete blocks. Vale
patrolled the area while Rafe paced the ground, back straight and fists
clenched tightly, ready to snap. The place appeared to be deserted, and as dawn
was approaching, the air got chillier.

“We’re like sitting ducks here,” Rafe said to no one in
particular.

Cassie shivered. “Is he all right?”

“No.” Alise sighed. “He’s ODing.”

“Is that possible? I thought you people ate and breathed
magic.”

Alise shook her head. “Not that much at once.” Not to
mention the fact that it wasn’t the right kind of magic. Rafe’s system was
working overtime and, by the look of it, failing. He let out a low groan.

“Can’t you do something?” Cassie asked. “If he loses it,
we’re all toast.”

Alise fought back a smile. “Since when do you know so much
about combat?” Cassie never watched war movies and steered clear of war
documentaries. She was one of the most peaceful creatures that ever existed …
or she had been until recently. No one was left unchanged by the recent events
and, for a moment, Alise regretted coming back into her life.

“I saw him blast Fabian,” Cassie said, “and if he was able
to survive the blast, I don’t know what could stop him.
Can
he even be
stopped?”

“I hope so,” Alise said, but she was looking at Rafe. Cassie
had a point. If they wanted to have any chance at all, he had to be fit for
fighting.

Wincing, she unfolded herself from the improvised bench and
walked up to Rafe, who spun around at her approach. “It’s just me.” She held
her hands up.

Rafe frowned, struggling to focus between heavy pants.

“Let me help…” She reached out, but he growled and stepped
back.

“Vale will—”

“He’s not back yet.” Her hand found his.

“No.” Rafe’s voice was weak, and he shook as if fighting
with himself to pull away. “It will hurt you. It will make it worse…”

“I won’t take any of it. I’ll simply act like a filter.
There’s enough junk inside me not to make much difference, and maybe it will
help with the poison.” Wishful thinking, but she smiled anyway. “I’ll be your
personal dialysis machine.”

Despite his reluctance, Rafe’s hand painfully gripped hers,
and his eyes burned into hers. “Mine.”

“So let me help you now, and you will help me later.”

His lips barely moved. “Always.”

Deciding to ignore the faint whisper, Alise took hold of his
other hand and closed the circle. Her starving body was reluctant to accept the
unnatural magic. She had to force herself to let it pass through, purifying it
on the way. Black vines squeezed her wrists, feeding on the entrance points,
and remained permanently branded into her skin. She didn’t see them as she only
had eyes for him, but she felt them, burning and poisoning her in a different
way.

The world trembled, and the image doubled, then tripled,
moving in slow motion. Her peripheral vision acquired a faint purple tinge that
increased in intensity. Too much? Perhaps, but she kept the flux going. As
Rafe’s quicksilver eyes cleared, they helped to keep her grounded. It didn’t
matter if the world danced and changed colors around them. She had a focus
point to hold onto. He shone brighter than any star, and there wasn’t any hint
of purple in his aura.

“Enough.” Rafe’s voice turned into a low plea.

Alise shook her head. “Not yet.”

As her body got used to it, it wanted more and it didn’t
want to stop. Darkening vines stretched over her body, marring her skin, but
her body was too intoxicated to care. Alise winced, feeling the presence of a
pair of wings shimmering behind her. They were visible for a second, and then
they were gone. For once, she didn’t want them.

The clock from the palace tower announced 5 AM, breaking the
spell. Alise and Rafe let go of each other. In the eerie light that took over
the world, chasing away the shadows just before dawn, her skin tingled where
faded vines crept up her neck and headed for her face, which was still clear.
Her wrists were black.

After regarding her with a searching gaze, Rafe cupped her
face in his hands and kissed her hard and desperate, as if the end of the world
was coming. And, in a way, it was.

Just then, Vale appeared from around the corner of the
building. “It’s time. She’s here.”

“I see you’re all gathered here,” Lya said with a quick
glance around and put on a superior look. She had changed into a faded gray
dress. Only her frosted hair still sparkled, catching any rays of light. “What
is she doing here?” She pointed her small chin at the human girl.

“Fabian is keeping Sarah prisoner,” Cassie said.

“So?”

“She’s my … uhh…” Cassie rolled her eyes. “Uncle’s
girlfriend, I guess.”

“And I should care because…?”

“We need to set her free!”

“No, dear,
you
want to set her free. I’m here to do a
transgression spell,” the Witch said.

“She won’t get in the way,” Rafe said.

“Hmm. Indeed.” Lya narrowed her eyes at Cassie, watching her
closely. “All right.” She discarded the girl’s presence with a wave of her
hand. “Let’s get to work. The sun is almost up.”

“Would that place do?” Vale pointed in the direction of the
dry lakebed.

Without a word, Lya started that way. She only stopped when
they got to it and all of them were standing on the layer of concrete. “Fine,
but everyone would expect this.” She smiled wickedly. “I’ve got a better idea.”
She poked Cassie with her index finger, sending her falling to the ground like
a broken doll.

Alise stifled an outraged gasp, but kept still. She was in
no condition to antagonize a Witch, especially one they needed.

“What’s wrong with you?” Rafe glared at her while Vale knelt
by Cassie’s side to check her pulse.

“Relax. She’s fine,” Lya said. “But she
was
in the
way. She was leverage.” Vale motioned to pick the girl up, but Lya raised her
hand to stop him. “Leave her there. He’ll see her and think someone else got to
her first. It’s perfect.”

Alise disagreed. Leaving Cassie unattended like that was a
bad idea. She’d played bait before and ended up being bitten by a Mermaid,
despite having two Guardians around to protect her. Who knew what could happen
to the poor girl?

The Guardians still hesitated, so Lya rolled her eyes and
tapped her foot on the ground. “She’ll be fine. Come on. We need to move.” She
eyed a fourteen-story office building that was finished up to the twelfth
floor, where it was still missing windows.

“Up there?” Rafe asked.

The Witch nodded.

“How on earth are we supposed to get up there?”

The elevators weren’t working since the building wasn’t open
for business, and the power was cut at night.

Lya headed to the entrance of the building, and they
followed, curious to see what she planned to do. Alise glanced back at Cassie’s
body on the ground, and a shiver ran through her. The girl looked anything but
safe.

How Lya managed to get the elevator working was a mystery,
but no one asked when the doors opened in answer to her summoning. It was
enough that they were there when the first rays of sunshine emerged from the
east to greet the new day. Still half-asleep, the city was slowly waking

On the roof, Lya opened her arms wide and looked at the
clear sky. Her melodic chanting included words too old for Alise to remember.
Out of nowhere, heavy clouds gathered above them, and lighting and thunder made
their presence known. It didn’t rain, but the strong wind rattled the windows
below them.

“He’s here,” Lya said, her lips barely moving.

“Gorem?” Rafe held onto both of his blades. “Where?”

“No. His Wizard.” Lya rubbed her hands with a satisfied
smile. “Okay. My job is done.”

“Not so fast.” Rafe extended an arm to stop her.

The Witch arched her eyebrows. “You dare to get in my way,
boy? That’s not wise.”

“We had a deal,” he said. “You were supposed to bring Gorem
here.”

“Kill the monster and he’ll follow.”

“What monster?” Vale asked.

Lya pointed at the sky. The clouds had turned into a huge
mass the same color as Lya’s dress. It seemed to breathe in and out as it got
closer and closer to the roof. It was coming down steadily like a death
sentence, giving everyone a claustrophobic feeling. About a half-dozen meters
still separated them from it.

“Oh,
that
monster…,” Rafe said with a hollow voice.

 “You can’t kill it the usual way,” Lya told them. “No
slashing, piercing, or blasting will harm it. You need to break it from within.
And you better hurry. If it touches the ground, it’s over.” She turned to the
roof exit.

“Leaving so soon?” Rafe asked, his voice going up a notch.
“You’re not going to help us?”

“I told you I won’t fight against my kind.”

“Are you sure?” His eyes narrowed.

“Positive.”

“Fine.”

Rafe slammed his empty hand against Lya’s chest. The blast
went through the Witch, opening a small vortex right behind her and sucking her
into it. She had no time to react, or maybe she was too stunned to do it.

“
Now
we have to hurry,” he said. “She’ll be pissed
when she comes back, and there’s no way to tell when that will be.”

“How much did you use?” Vale asked.

“A lot, but…” Rafe shrugged. “She’s powerful. Good thing
they never check their own future, eh?”

No one answered. Their attention was caught by the cloud
monster that was getting closer and looking more menacing by the second.

“Do we trust her?” A corner of Vale’s mouth arched up.

“I say we try blasting it since we’re so close,” Rafe said.

They exchanged a look then turned to Alise. “Ready?”

Alise nodded. They needed her help, so whatever magic she
had left was theirs.

They bent their knees and, at Rafe’s signal, they jumped.
The blades went through the monster like it was made of gas. Other than causing
some stirring deep inside, the double blast left it unharmed. To her surprise,
her hand slammed into a surface that solidified at the contact with her palm
and pushed her back, sending her to the ground.

“Damn. We should have listened to her.” Vale grimaced,
shaking his burnt hand.

Alise pulled herself up to her feet. Aside from the pain
that shot through her ankle, she was fine. Her hands had left marks on the portion
of the cloud above her head. Soon, they weren’t going to be able to stand up
without touching it.

“Retreat!” Rafe ordered.

They stopped to catch their breath five floors below. With
Lya gone, the elevator had stopped working, and their blades had failed to
start it. At the end of a corridor, they paused on an open terrace to watch the
cloud monster steadily advance towards them. Vale used the pause to heal his
hand.

“What did you do?” Rafe asked Alise. “I saw your handprint
on the monster. How did you do it?”

“I don’t know.” She gasped, fighting to fill her lungs with
air. The black vines constricted her chest, making breathing difficult. “I did
the same thing I did before. It would have worked on a smaller monster, but
this one is too big, and I don’t have enough power left. I can’t destroy it.
It’s up to you now…”

Rafe nodded pensively. “But how do you
do
it?” He
turned to Vale. “Could she have a different approach, or is it something in her
nature that allows her to do that?”

“Both?” Vale said.

“Both… Could be.” Rafe narrowed his eyes at her. “But that
doesn’t help me. I still don’t know how to kill that thing.”

“We can try blasting it again,” Vale said. “Aim in the same
spot perhaps?”

“No.” Rafe shook his head. “We tried it once, and it failed.
But what she did worked. We need a repeat of that, but on a bigger scale…” His
voice trailed off.

“You heard her. She can’t do it,” Vale said. “You
know
she
can’t.”

“Yes, but maybe if I can figure out how she does it, we can
replicate the effect.” Rafe took Alise by the arm. “Come. You’ll have to show
me again.” He led her towards the stairs.

“Rafe, it’s too dangerous!” Vale yelled after them. “We need
to go down, not up.”

“We’ll be careful. You stay there and fix that hand. You
might need it later!”

Alise let Rafe drag her away and whatever Vale muttered
behind them got lost in the wind. At the top of the stairs, they had to wait.
The cloud monster needed to infiltrate the walls first and, therefore, advanced
slower on the inside of the building.

“Okay. Do your thing and then run back to Vale,” Rafe told
her, holding her hand up, ready to meet the monster. “Do you understand?”

She nodded. Her hand itched where his skin touched her.
“What are you going to do?”

“I want to see if I can do any damage to the portion you
touched.”

It sounded reasonable enough, so Alise gave him another
small nod. Her hand trembled in anticipation, but Rafe kept it steady. When the
cloud was only millimeters away, he pressed her palm against it. An instant
later, he released her, and she ran away as instructed. She heard the hiss of
the blast, and saw a flash of light but nothing else.

She had barely reached the floor Vale was on when Rafe’s
victorious shout caught up with her. “It cracked! There’s a hole big enough put
your fist through.” He grimaced and smirked in answer to the looks he received
when he returned to them, apparently unaware that his hands were bleeding. “No,
I didn’t put my fist through it. I’m not an idiot.”

Alise rolled a shoulder. “I didn’t say anything.” Her hand
was bleeding, too.

“Let’s go!” Rafe urged them. “I saw an open hall a few
stories below. We’ll regroup there. Move!” The excitement in his voice had a
hint of hope that hadn’t been there before.

The floor he had mentioned was indeed at the bottom of an
opening three-stories high. When they got there, Rafe hurried to scan all
corners, checking for points of entrance. The cloud monster hadn’t caught up
with them yet, but the windows were darkening. It would get in any moment now.

Alise leaned against a pillar, her vision blurring more and
more. She closed her eyes for a second and inhaled deeply. The air rasped along
her throat and felt as if it was filled with dust. Her lungs rebelled, and she
coughed. The black vines squeezed her wrists tighter.

“Don’t give up on me yet,” Rafe said, resting a hand on her
shoulder.

The grip of the vines relaxed some.

“Did you find out how she does it?” Vale asked.

“Yes. Sort of.” He sighed. “I can recognize it, but I can’t
replicate it. It must be species specific. It can’t be learned.”

“Then there’s no use.”

“Unless…,” Rafe said and looked pointedly at Vale. “It can’t
be learned, but the ability can be transferred. It can be done.”

“You can’t be serious.” Vale stared at him, eyes wide open.

“What—what are you talking about?” Alise stammered, rubbing
her forehead, trying to focus. None of the conversation made sense to her, and
the shortness of breath and overall dizziness were not helping with her
fuzziness.

Vale hesitated before answering, his gaze stuck on Rafe.
“He’s talking about a heart transplant.”

“You want my heart?” She was more curious than horrified.
Everyone seemed to want a piece of her lately.

“No.” Rafe’s voice softened. “I’m talking about
switching
our hearts.”

Alise blinked, finding herself speechless. The idea was too
contrived for words.

“If we switch our hearts, I’ll be able to kill the monster.
We can fight it together. There’ll be enough magic in my heart to keep you
grounded and able to use it. Then we’ll all have a chance.” A sea of emotions
passed over Rafe’s face. “But it’s your call. I won’t force you.”

Alise gazed at him like she couldn’t understand the words
coming out of his mouth. She shook her head and waited for her vision to clear.
“A switch? Really? Will it work?”

“It’s a myth!” Vale opened both arms wide and leaned his
head forward as if talking to idiots.

“So is the one that says Fairies can’t survive without
wings, and Mermaid’s bites are supposed to be deadly,” Rafe said in a calm
voice. “Look at her…” He gestured in Alise’s direction.

She was still alive … for the moment.

“Yes, look at her,” Vale said. “She might not survive the
procedure.”

“You told me I should have put her down long ago,” Rafe
replied. “You said I was cruel and selfish. I’m not now…”

“No, you’re being foolish,” Vale muttered, but Rafe ignored
the comment.

“If she doesn’t make it, she’ll be spared the ordeal, but if
she survives…” He paused, but didn’t elaborate. “My heart’s stronger. It will
help her get through the worst.”

“Her heart is full of poison,” Vale said. “It will
kill
you
.”

“And if the poison hasn’t reached the heart yet? Will you
help me then?” Rafe asked. “I can’t do it alone. I can cut both of us and
possibly switch the hearts, but I won’t have enough strength left to heal us
both, and that has to be done fast if we want to survive. So, will you help
me?”

Vale’s lips turned into a bitter straight line, devoid of
color.

“Stop. Both of you,” Alise said, tired of their bickering.
“You said it was my decision.” She stared at them, and they gazed back. She
made an effort to find her words and explain what she felt. “I can’t be a Fairy
without my wings, and you won’t let me be human… Whatever happens, happens.
Just do it.”