armor of magic 02 - rising light (13 page)

“You killed him?!” Lilith yelled.

“He didn’t leave me much of a choice,” I said. “Cagliostro was going to take him down either way. His power is getting stronger
and
he has moles all over the place.”

“Well, Fiona, now that Cagliostro probably has access to everything—including Diamond Escorts—you’ll have to protect Charlotte and me.”

“Hold up,” Rocco said. “I ain’t protectin’ no succubus.”

Charlotte’s eyes bugged out. “You can’t just leave her here. Cagliostro won’t kill her. He’ll torture her the rest of her life. Can you live with that?”

Rocco shrugged. “Sure.”

Charlotte flipped around toward me, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Can you, Fiona? Can you live knowing that your best friend’s sister is being tortured every day? Maybe there’s hope for Lilith. She saved me. Where’s her redemption? If you don’t bring Lilith, then I’m staying.”

I started pacing around the room, organizing the hundreds of thoughts shooting through my brain. I couldn’t leave Charlotte behind for Cagliostro. He’d torture her just to spite Lilith. But could I bring along the succubus? She wasn’t to be trusted. In the past, she had tricked me and turned me over to the very evil she’s running from now. However, Charlotte had faith in her twin sister, so maybe there
was
hope for Lilith?

“Okay, she can come on one condition,” I said.

Rocco yanked my arm. “Whoa, what are you doing, Farrow?”

“We were taught that the Light binds the Darkness. Shouldn’t we be able to bind the Darkness in Lilith’s heart? What if she renounces her powers?”

The room was so quiet I could hear the water dripping from the bathroom sink. Each drop echoed. The seconds dragged. Were they considering my proposition or did I sound crazy? I had to believe in the power of redemption. Wasn’t Asher standing trial with the Monarchy that very moment? I wanted him to be forgiven for going rogue. Wasn’t it only fair that I extend the same principle to my best friend’s sister? If I didn’t believe that hearts could change, then there’d really be no reason to protect the Light.

“Well?” I asked Lilith.

She glanced up, her eyes brimming with tears and humility. “Yeah, sure. I’ll renounce everything. Every power and whatever else. It’s not like I ever really enjoyed being a succubus. It felt good at first, all that attention and power, but then things got out of control. And I turned into a monster just wanting more and more. But I couldn’t stop. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” She cried softly into her hands.

I have to say, I was shocked to actually hear the words coming from her mouth. But she sounded sincere. I could sense it in my heart. She wanted the Light.

“I knew you had it in you!” Charlotte hugged her sister.

“Rocco, should we call Ezra to do some sort of official renouncing?”

The tough guy quickly tried to brush away a tear I had caught leaking from his eye. Big guy, big heart. “Yeah, let’s get him down here.”

“Who’s Ezra?” Lilith asked.

“He’s my Guide. Works for the Monarchy. He’ll know if you’re full of shit or not,” I told her.

twenty-three

After a few minutes, Ezra showed up in a burst of violet light. He scanned the scene and looked right at me.

“One, what’ve you gotten yourself into this time? Two, what are you doing inside a vampire’s lair?” He glanced around the room. “Three, where’s Julian?”

“It’s way too long of a story, but suffice to say, the head of the AOV is dead, Cagliostro has the Scroll and is now trying to win over the East Coast vampires, Julian has been captured by Cagliostro, and Lilith here wants to renounce her dark powers. Especially that nasty succubus side.” I smiled.

Ezra shook his head. He was so over me. But deep down, I think he enjoyed the challenge. Maybe
enjoy
is too strong of a word. His violet eyes glowed as he studied Lilith, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed with bathroom towels wrapped securely around her ankle and wrist. Charlotte had stopped the blood, but she hadn’t been able to regenerate or reattach the appendages.

“Her intentions are pure,” Ezra finally said.

He was able to discern that just by looking at her. Pretty cool.

“I know my sister. She means it,” Charlotte said.

The love pouring from her heart made me really grateful for my decision not to lop off Lilith’s head earlier. There was something special about their bond. I preferred not to get between it.

Lilith looked around at us. “I do mean it. I don’t want to be a part of this anymore. I want to be released from the Darkness. Can you do that?”

Ezra nodded.

The whole room released a sigh and the dense energy immediately lifted. I was especially relieved because if someone as evil as the succubus could be forgiven, Asher had a decent chance. His worst offense was going rogue and becoming a bounty hunter. That wasn’t so bad, right? A butterfly of hope fluttered in my chest.

“Stand up,” Ezra instructed Lilith.

Charlotte helped her up, letting Lilith use her shoulder for balance.

“Can you do anything about her foot and hand?” Charlotte asked.

“I could, but I won’t. Let it serve as a reminder for when evil comes back around to tempt you. And it will,” Ezra said.

Surprisingly, Lilith didn’t argue. Instead, she gave a humble nod. Ezra placed his hands on top of her head and began speaking in an ancient tongue that reminded me of the Logos. Violet light bathed Lilith from head to toe, well, at least the toes on her remaining foot. He asked her a few questions and requested she repeat some words, but I couldn’t hear the specifics because a gale-force wind swept through the room, engulfing their voices.

When Ezra had finished, Lilith fell back onto the bed and passed out.

“She’ll be fine in a bit,” Ezra said.

“That’s great, Ez,” I said. “But she’s the only one who knows where the exit portal is.”

Ezra chuckled, rubbing his shaved head. “I’m a Guide, Fiona. I can get you all out of here.”

Rocco hoisted Lilith over his shoulder, and the three of us held onto Ezra as he glimmered us out of Diamond Escorts and back to the suite at The Plaza.

Rocco set Lilith down on Julian’s bed and came back to the living room. “Thanks for the lift, Ezra, but Fiona and I got some work to take care of.”

“I want you both to get some rest,” Ezra said.

“We got a Scroll to retrieve and a Protector to find,” Rocco argued.

“You won’t be able to do anything if you don’t mentally, physically and spiritually recharge. Now that Cagliostro has the Scroll, you’ll need to be fully alert.”

“Okay, sure, boss. I could use a little shut-eye.” Rocco headed toward my bedroom.

“I’m going back out there,” I said, but Rocco ignored me.

“Fiona, I need to talk to you,” Ezra said.

I headed toward the door. I needed to go find Cagliostro and fast. “Can we talk later?”

“You need to calm down and listen to me.”

I stopped. My stomach knotted up. Was he going to punish me for losing Julian and the Scroll, and inadvertently helping Cagliostro take over the AOV? Would he put me before the Monarchy? Fire me as a Protector of Light and take away my Armor? Ironically, I didn’t want that to happen. I was finally starting to enjoy my destiny … Well, maybe
enjoy
is too strong of a word.

“Are you taking me back to headquarters?” I tried to sound casual.

“Why would I do that?” he asked.

“Because I made a bit of a mess down here.”

He shook his head. “No you didn’t. You’re dealing with some of the most evil forces in this entire dimension. And I’ve been getting good reports from Rocco.”

“You’re spying on me?”

Ezra laughed. “Not spying, more like spot checking. But his reports prove that you’re really coming along. Look, if Cagliostro fooled Rocco—a seasoned professional—you’re a piece of cake. Don’t feel too bad. It’s a learning process.”

I let out a huge sigh. “Well, that’s a relief. As much as I like Glimmer City, there’s only so much pink and violet I can take.” I paused and took Ezra’s hand. “We’re going to get Julian and the Scroll. I can promise you that.”

“Scroll first, Julian second. Remember your priorities, Fiona.”

“Yes, sir.” I looked to the ground, shame rising up my throat. “You should probably know, I sent a story outline to Somer Barrett implicating Diamond and IP Montgomery. I’m not working for her full-time or anything, but I didn’t see the harm in letting her know that IP Montgomery has been screwing a lot of innocent people out of their pensions. While I’m kicking ass in the supernatural world, why not expose the evil operating on a human level as well? I’m sorry I kept it from you.”

He took a deep breath and grinned slightly. “I understand. Just as long as it’s not getting in the way of your Protector responsibilities. You’re still letting your earthly desires cloud your vision. But you’re improving. And that’s all I care about.”

I blushed a little. I really did care about being a Protector of Light.

Ezra’s eyes lit up as he smiled. “I have a surprise for you. Wait here.”

He glimmered away before I could say anything, but returned a few moments later in a burst of light. Standing next to him was Asher Wells, my angel-gone-rogue ex-bounty hunter boyfriend.

twenty-four

I flew across the room and collapsed against Asher, wrapping my arms around him. He held my waist and lifted me slightly so our lips could meet. Warmth tingled through my body as he kissed me. I mean
really
kissed me. My heart pounded against my ribs and I felt dizzy. How long had it been? A month or two? Asher rested his hands on my shoulders, peering at me with his gorgeous deep blue eyes, and smiled. “I’ve been cleared by the Monarchy.”

“How?”

He glanced at Ezra and grinned. “Ezra helped.”

“Really, Ez? I thought you hated Asher.”

He chuckled lightly. “Not exactly. It’s a long story. But he hadn’t harmed your dimension or the Monarchy, so I advocated for him. I was planning to wait until your mission here was accomplished, but now that you’re down a Protector I figured you could use the extra help.”

I began to sway and my legs grew weak. The lack of sleep, the exhaustion of slaying vampires and the excitement of Asher being released was overwhelming.

“You need to get some rest, Fiona,” Ezra said.

“I’m fine,” I protested, but then my knees buckled.

Asher took my arm and brought me over to the couch and forced me to relax. I was too groggy to argue and the words got stuck in my mouth. Asher gently tossed a blanket over me and settled into one of the armchairs.

I glanced up to Ezra, my eyelids pulling closed, and pressed out what felt like my last words for the night. “Do you have any clue where Cags is hiding out?”

“Sorry, Fiona. That’ll be up to you guys to figure out. But I trust you will. You have quite the team.”

I remembered laughing as I slipped into the cozy warmth of sleep. Quite the team … two Protectors, a healer, a retired succubus and an angel gone rogue.

***

The sound of dishes chattering shot me upright. As my eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight coming into the suite, the delicious scent of eggs and toast wafted over to me. Rocco signed the credit slip for the room service attendant and plunked down at the table, scooping mounds of eggs and potatoes into his mouth. I tripped over the blanket, rushing to get off the couch and over to the table before he polished off all the food. I was famished. Like my insides had been hollowed out.

I removed the silver lid off one of the plates to find a fluffy stack of pancakes with pads of butter melting and oozing over the edges. I dumped a cup of maple syrup onto the stack and began wedging huge bites into my mouth, moaning with each one. Rocco and I didn’t say a word as we gobbled our way through all four breakfast orders.

Leaning back in his chair, Rocco took out a wooden matchstick and bit down. “Who’s your pal?” He jerked his head over to the armchair where Asher was sitting.

I wiped my face off with a cloth napkin and grinned. “That’s my um … boyfriend?”

Asher stood and joined us at the table. He reached out to shake Rocco’s hand. “Asher Wells.” Then he looked at me, pointing to his cheek to indicate a spot I had missed when wiping my face. “I’m Fiona’s boyfriend.”

Rocco poured himself another cup of steaming hot coffee. “So, you’re the bounty hunter?”

“Ex-bounty hunter,” Asher said.

“He’s going to help us find Cagliostro,” I blurted.

Rocco squinted his eyes, looking Asher up and down. “Is he, now?”

Suddenly, I felt incredibly defensive. Like I needed to campaign to have Asher help us find the Scroll. I was so worried that I’d lose him again. I didn’t want to risk it. At that moment, I felt like things were looking up. We had found Charlotte and Asher had been returned. I didn’t want any more trouble.

“He’s a good guy, Rocco,” I said.

“He ain’t no Protector.”

“But he’s an ex-bounty hunter, which means he has skills to track things down. Like demon mages and Scrolls.”

“Listen, Rocco—is that your name? I’m not here to cause any trouble. I’m here to help. And I was good at what I did, so I can find Cagliostro much faster than either of you.”

“You don’t need to track him down.” A voice came from across the room.

The three of us turned around. Lilith hopped her way across the living room and sat on the couch. Charlotte followed behind.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rocco asked.

“I know where he’s going to be this weekend,” Lilith said.

“This weekend? That’s two days away. We need to get to him faster than that,” I said.

“You won’t find him. Your hot friend won’t be able to track him.”

“Boyfriend,” I sternly corrected Lilith.

“And how the hell do you know where he’ll be?” Rocco asked.

“Yesterday, before you all jacked up Diamond Escorts, an invite went out to the entire AOV. There’s a huge gathering at Rhapsody Grove. Saturday evening. I had no idea that Cagliostro was behind it, until all this happened.”

“Where’s Rhapsody Grove?” I asked.

“Connecticut. Somewhere deep within Mattatuck State Forest. It’s not on any maps. It’s more of a clandestine place where the AOV has been meeting for the last few centuries. I’ve been to one of the events,” Lilith explained.