That’s the third time this year. How many times are they going to hurt you?
Damien sprawled on the couch, kicked his shoes off, and closed his eyes. An instant later, he floated in a star-filled night sky. Lizzy flew beside him, black-feathered wings spread, tail lashing behind her, and naked as a newborn.
Damien smiled. She liked to try to shock him by appearing nude, but she’d done it so many times, he hardly twitched. Not that Lizzy wasn’t worthy of a great reaction. She had a perfect, voluptuous figure, smooth pale skin, bright red lips and smoldering red eyes. She was easily the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. The fact that she was a mental projection didn’t bother him in the least. When she brought his consciousness into her psychic world, they were both real.
“I get one more chance to pass the test of endurance. If I fail it again, I can’t advance to fourth-year studies and will have to repeat the third year. I can’t see much point. If I haven’t accessed my power by now, what are the chances another year will make any difference?”
“None, I’m afraid.” She had a husky, sultry voice that oozed sex. Centuries ago, before her first lover bound her soul to the sword rather than let it return to Hell, Lizzy had been a lust demon, her purpose to seduce and corrupt mortal sorcerers. He suspected she was really good at it. “What will you do?” she asked.
Damien shrugged. In this world, his shoulder caused him no pain. “What can I do? I’ll train hard and hope something jars my power loose. If I fail, I’ll be back in three months with another broken collarbone.”
The air around Lizzy shimmered and she cloaked herself in sheer black silks. She stuck out her bottom lip. “Don’t say that. It kills me a little every time you come home hurt. Maybe if you spoke to Fredric, you could convince him this isn’t the right path for you.”
Damien laughed. “Dad decided this was the right path for me ten seconds after I was born and Mom died. I have to become a great warrior to make her death mean something. If I fail or quit, then she died for nothing. If I tried to walk away, I think Dad might kill me.”
Lizzy flew over and hugged him, her wings wrapped around him. She felt so warm and soft and real. He closed his eyes and breathed in the spicy, cinnamon scent of her hair. “I wish I could stay in this world with you.”
She drifted back. “You know you can’t. Human souls can’t be bound to objects like demons. Your place is out in the real world. But you can visit me as often as you like.”
She lashed her wings and raced through the infinite night sky. With a thought, Damien flew after her. In this place, anything he imagined became possible. He chased her and they played tag through the sky. For a few minutes, he forgot about the test, his father, and everything else beyond Lizzy’s mental world. He loved her for that gift, among many others.
Lizzy stopped and hovered in the sky, her head cocked slightly as if listening to something beyond his hearing. Damien stopped beside her. “What is it?”
“Your sister’s coming. I’m afraid our play time is over.” She sounded as disappointed as he felt.
Damien kissed her, savoring the softness of her lips. “I love you.”
He blinked, and found himself back in his physical body, lying on the couch, shoulder aching, and wishing he could go back to the only place he was ever really happy.
He shook that depressing thought out of his head a moment before the door opened and a tall, stunning girl with long, flowing blond hair, a slim build and a uniform just like his, rushed through. His sister Jennifer kicked her shoes off next to his and sat on the couch beside his feet.
“I heard about the test. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, nothing I haven’t dealt with before. Dad’s going to be pissed when he finds out.”
Jen grinned. “Also something you’ve dealt with before. What happened?”
“Nothing, that’s the problem. No matter what I try I just can’t get the power to respond.” He ground his teeth. “What’s wrong with me?”
She squeezed his knee. “Nothing. You’ll make it work eventually.”
The door slammed open. Damien didn’t have to look to know his father stood there, scowling. “Another failure, boy.”
Damien sat up and peaked over the back of the couch. Sure enough, Dad stood in the doorway glowering, shaved head red with anger, his uniform flawless, his commandant’s gold shield gleaming. If he got any madder steam would probably shoot out his ears. “Yes, sir.”
“You’re a disgrace.” He stepped into the room and slammed the door closed. “A disgrace to me, your sister, your mother’s memory, and the name St. Cloud.”
Damien winced at the barrage, but held his peace. What could he say? If Dad measured his worth by his ability as a warlord, he certainly was a disgrace.
“On your feet when I’m speaking to you!”
Damien jumped up and clasped his hands behind his back at parade rest. “Sir?”
“I’ve had enough of you embarrassing me. One more failure and you’re done. The Citadel is a school for warlords. Weaklings have no place here.”
Damien blinked. Was his father threatening to expel him? For another student that would be bad enough, but he could always go back home to a normal life. But Damien didn’t just study at The Citadel, it was his home. Maybe it wasn’t much of one, but he had nowhere else to go.
Chapter 2
Damien leaned on the table in the little kitchen in their quarters and nibbled on a slice of bread covered with blueberry jam. The normally sweet jam seemed bitter this morning. He hadn’t slept much last night. After his father’s pronouncement Damien had thought of little else. Jen and Lizzy both tried to convince him
