“The demon deflected the dagger’s death rays, Bran. What are we dealing with?”
“I don’t know. Let’s finish with Mrs. Watts and go home.”
But Mrs. Watts had her doors and windows locked tight and lights turned off. Our knocks went unanswered. Or maybe we didn’t try hard enough. We were more concerned about the demon that could block the rays from the Kris Dagger.
- 2 -
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
“I hate not knowing what we’re dealing with,” Izzy griped.
“Me, too,” I added.
A week had gone by since we killed the crackling-cloud demon. We each told the senior Cardinals our version of the events leading to that confrontation then we’d gotten our new orders—no more leaving the valley. No more canceling the remaining contracts.
Luckily, we weren’t too worried about them. We only had fifteen more to go, and all of them were Runners. The Security Team was trying to track them down. I recalled Grampa’s earnest expression when he’d said it. It was the lamest excuse in the book for putting us on a weeklong lockdown. Of course, no one had yet to admit that the senior Cardinals were busy trying to find the den of this new demon on their own. Even Bran wasn’t allowed to hunt with them anymore.
“The senior Cardinals have started a record of all the new demons we’ve encountered since Coronis got her one-way ticket to Tartarus,” Izzy said. “I saw it yesterday at the library. It’s growing fast.”
“Did they add ours?”
“Ours?” Kim asked scathingly. “You two are pathetic. We’ve been forced to hide in the valley for an entire week while the senior Cardinals chase their tails hoping to meet another crackling-cloud demon, and now that they’ve concluded the fiend was a lone hybrid and we can finally leave the valley, you sit here and yap about the same, stupid demon.”
“You’ve got to admit it spooked everyone,” I said.
“Whatever. Look at the guys,” Kim continued. “They don’t seem to care. They’re having fun.”
The sweaty, shirtless Guardians were slamming a ball over the volleyball net. We had decided to celebrate our freedom by joining the students from the Guardian Academy on their first vacation. The island crawled with excited teens sunbathing, swimming, or watching the game, their teachers and the Security Guardians from Xenith, but it was private and away from prying human eyes. The security shield and glamour covering it were impenetrable, and reached far into space. Located at the center of churning dark-blue waters of what humans called the Bermuda Triangle, Pearls Island was the last stop for Guardians teleporting home to Xenith. The portal was in the middle of the forest inside a lake.
My gaze swung back to Bran just as he looked my way. I smiled when he winked, dimples flashing. At six- foot-three, with massive raven-black wings and matching hair which had grown longer over the summer, he stood out even among the gorgeous Guardians.
“Stupid game,” Izzy continued. “It’s nothing but a chance for them to show off their powers to the students.” She lowered her sunglasses to glare at her boyfriend Rastiel, who was home for the holidays. “He’s neglected me since we got here. Maybe I should make out with someone else.”
“Maybe you should give him a reason to ditch volleyball. You too, Lil. Get up, walk right past them, and take a dip in the ocean. There’s something to be said about the power of a wet swimsuit. Just remember to keep your chins up and push your chests out. Especially you, Lil. You slouch.”
Not bothered by the criticism, I giggled, visualizing myself waddling like a goose with my butt sticking out and my modest chest straining against the bright-blue bikini top. My usual one-piece swimsuit had finally been traded for a skimpy bikini in the name of looking hot for my boyfriend. Bran didn’t care what I wore. He never had, but I was beginning to learn the meaning of peer pressure.
Izzy had pushed and scolded me until I gave in to a makeover. The manicure and pedicure were nice enough. The electric-blue nail polish matched my bikini. But I’d hated the hours at the salon while a stylist washed, trimmed, and tried to tame my unruly red hair—until I looked in the mirror. The partial French braids held back half of my hair and the rest tumbled down my shoulders in glorious curls, making me look exotic.
A collective gasp drew my attention back to the game. Bran was up in the air, chasing the ball. He turned and sent the ball flying with one giant sweep of his wings. The ball jetted downward to the other side of the net. A crack filled the air as a teacher tried to block the ball and ended up with a broken arm. A collective “ooh” came from the spectators. He disappeared in mid-air and someone else took his place. He wasn’t the first player to get hurt. Guardian volleyball was brutal. One of the Civilians had set up a healing room inside the resort’s main building to take care of injuries.
Guardian beach volleyball was crazy and weird. The net was five times as wide and high as the ones used by humans, the play area huge, and bets were off on the use of powers. Good thing the island was private, its location unknown to humans.
Bran looked at me and grinned when they scored.
“Rastiel’s team sucks. The only students cheering for them were Celeste and her friends,” Izzy mumbled.
Celeste, Bran’s sister, would cheer for the underdogs just to be contrary. It was what made her so interesting. Rastiel, Izzy’s boyfriend since her early teens, had the ability to control air. He might not have had enough power to become a Cardinal Air Guardian like Kim, but he had enough for a mean game of beach volleyball. Rumor had it that he planned to teach at the Academy when he finished college.
“They didn’t stand a chance to begin with,” Kim said with indifference then she raised the brim of her beach hat and lowered her sunglasses to peer at the shirtless guys. “But who knew the Academy had such hot teachers?”
“You wouldn’t,” I said, knowing how often she changed boyfriends.
Kim shrugged. “Why not? I’m single.”
“Not for long,” Izzy said in a sing-song tone.
“Shut up.” Kim imitated her tone.
“You’ll have to tell them some time,” Izzy added in a serious tone.
“I don’t have to do anything,” Kim said firmly.
Izzy made a face then raised her hand. A frozen pink and yellow drink with a tiny umbrella, courtesy of the Civilian cabana boy behind us in the beach snack bar, floated into her hand.
I wondered what the stilted conversation between Izzy and Kim meant. The two were pretty tight, so being in the dark wasn’t something new to me. As the youngest in our team of junior Cardinals, I’d been reduced to little sister status, privy to only what they chose to share.
“I think you should tell them to back off,” Izzy insisted. “Their attitude is archaic and so last millennium.”
“They’re my parents, and I don’t want to discuss this anymore,” Kim snapped.
“Suit yourself. I’m going for a swim.” Izzy plucked her wide brim hat and her sunglasses, and threw them on top of her bag, her attention shifting to her boyfriend. “Maybe I’ll turn into a siren, lure Rastiel into the water and drown him.”
She crossed the sand with a gentle roll of her hips, drawing the attention of the players. Rastiel almost got bludgeoned by the volleyball when he continued to watch Izzy until she dove under a wave.
“Idiot,” Kim murmured.
“Rastiel?” I asked.
Kim hesitated, then she removed her hat, finger-combed her long blonde tresses and sighed. “Izzy. They had a fight, but it means nothing. Rastiel is nuts about her, and their families approve of their relationship.”
