Edge of Light (Armor of Magic Book 3) Page 14

  I glanced at Kaila, who looked partially lobotomized.

  “And you’re okay with us going after the Scrolls first?” I asked her.

  “I agree. The Scrolls are the priority,” she said half-heartedly.

  Her once wired eyes had lost their luster and she appeared resigned. She was shutting down. I knew all about that. After my parents went missing, I had shut my feelings down for years. Sometimes it’s just easier not being vulnerable. Shutting off the emotions and focusing with laser sharp skills on something you can control. That’s how I got through college. And that’s how I was dealing with Asher’s sudden disappearance. Probably not the healthiest approach, I’m sure, but there wasn’t time for feelings. Not when you’re hunting demon mages who are trying to destroy everything good in the world.

  Saul’s voice interrupted my thoughts. “We also overheard how the tower works. How Cagliostro is able to transport his army to the other dimensions.”

  A familiar jab of suspicion in my gut. “How’s that?”

  “There are various factions dispersed throughout every floor in the tower,” Soraya explained. “He’s using the six Scrolls to hack into the network. So far, they’ve been able to send a bunch of troops to headquarters. Cagliostro is trying to figure out how to reach the Monarchy without your Scroll, Fiona.”

  I started pacing because that jab of suspicion started morphing into a boulder of doubt. Saul and Soraya seemed to have gleaned a lot of key information while Kaila and I were holed up in the safe house. That was either entirely too convenient or coincidental. And as I had learned, there are no coincidences in the supernatural realm. Somewhere deep inside my soul a whisper called out to me. I couldn’t make out the words, but resistance tugged. Something didn’t feel right.

  “No,” I stated, turning around and facing the others boldly.

  Soraya locked eyes with me. “What do you mean? Are you insane?”

  “The jury is still out on that, but I’ll tell you what. I don’t trust any of the information you and your husband overheard.”

  “Are you calling us liars?” Soraya sneered.

  I hadn’t considered that angle, especially since it was in their best interest to go after their daughter first. But now my hackles were raised and I wondered why she would’ve blurted out such an accusation. But I didn’t want to go down that route because getting us to distrust each other could’ve also been an enemy tactic. I wanted to stick together because together we were stronger.

  I softened my jaw and forced a polite smile. “What I’m saying is that those guards spewing out exact details might’ve been purposely planted to intentionally lead us into a trap. Don’t you find it odd that you just happened to get all of that intel while hiding in a basement of the very warehouse where the Protectors are being held prisoner? They want to throw us off.”

  Saul let out a heavy sigh and slumped his shoulders. Looking over at his wife he said, “She has a point, Soraya.”

  Soraya remained quiet as she considered that possibility, her tight face softening up a little.

  “I just don’t think it’s smart to walk into a tower filled to the brim with demons, mages, warlocks, shifters, and who knows what else, without a team of Protectors,” I added.

  “You have your team,” Saul argued, motioning to all of us.

  I glanced at Kaila, lost in a faraway gaze. “It’s not enough. We need all of the Protectors. Together we’re stronger and such.”

  Soraya nodded. “You’re right. We need all seven bloodlines. Together we’re stronger.” She looked at her husband. “You’ll need to disguise us so we can go upstairs and search for the others.”

  I hadn’t expected the unswerving Protector to fold so fast. We had been butting heads and it was a relief when she conceded this one. It wasn’t about being right, it was about doing the right thing. And getting the whole team together was the best way to get the Scrolls.

  thirty-five

  Saul suggested using his gift of replication to disguise the four of us as security guards. I would’ve preferred to use the Armor and cruise through the warehouse at top speed to find the Protectors, but no one else was for that plan. They opted for the more subtle approach. We’d blend in with the other guards and find our way to the prison cell, only using our Armor if absolutely necessary.

  He got to work and managed to shift our appearances pretty fast. All of us were now disguised as guards.

  “We should be okay for a couple hours,” Saul said.

  “The second anything seems off, call on your Armor and make a circular formation,” I said. “Do any of you have the ability to communicate with your kids? Or at least track down their exact location in the warehouse? I can try using my sense of smell, but the fish odor is pretty potent.”

  Saul shot a look toward Kaila, and I remembered her gift of empathy. She might be able to feel out the Protectors through any strong emotions they might be emitting.

  “Do you think you can use your empathy, Kaila? Maybe start with Julian? You must have a strong connection.”

  “I don’t know.” Kaila’s voice was scratchy and hoarse.

  I approached the heartbroken Protector. “I know you’re crushed about Jeff, but there’s still hope to save your son. There will be time to grieve later.”

  Kaila nodded, then closed her eyes to meditate for a few moments. The three of us gave her some space, not wanting our emotions clouding her vision. Especially mine, which were a cauldron of angst, confusion and red-hot anger.

  After some painful silence, Saul tapped Kaila’s shoulder. “Anything?”

  “Nothing,” she said, dismayed. “I’m getting absolutely nothing.”

  “Maybe we should get up to the main level,” I suggested.

  “That might help,” Kaila said.

  Upstairs on the main level of the warehouse, the stench of fish grew stronger, challenging my abilities to sniff out any Protectors or imminent danger. The place had been divided into sectors, separated by a maze of enormous cement walls that reached the ceiling high above. We had no choice but to enter the labyrinth. Kaila stopped every few yards, closed her eyes, and tried to get a read. At one point, her eyes opened wide with hope.

  “I’m getting something. This way,” she whispered.

  We walked deeper into the warehouse, and I caught a whiff of something familiar: coconuts and sand, ocean breezes and salty water.

  “Julian,” I muttered in astonishment.

  Kaila smiled for the first time in a while. “Yes. I can sense his presence. Very faint, but something …”

  I rested my hand on her shoulder. Though she looked like a male security guard, I saw her essence under the disguise.

  “Concentrate, Kaila. He has to be close by.”

  Kaila shut her eyes again and rested her palms against the cinderblocks. I stepped away so that she could get a clean read.

  “I’m getting something, but I’m not sure. I’m being pulled this way,” she said, walking ahead.

  The four of us moved through the narrow walkways with purpose. We came across a few other guards who gave stern nods as they passed. There was a distinct potpourri of supernatural aromas. Some more demonic scents like sulfur and rotting garbage, but I also caught some pleasant fragrances like lavender and fresh pine, which were most likely vampire. I even smelled the musk of humans, of the hulking and muscular variety. Cagliostro wasn’t taking any chances.

  We came to a gray cinderblock wall at the end of a walkway.

  “Behind this wall,” Kaila whispered.

  “We’ll need to break through,” I said.

  “Let’s use your Scroll,” Saul suggested.

  Laughing at the suggestion, I said, “No way. Using that will definitely draw attention to us. It’s the one thing Cagliostro needs. I suggest using our Armor,” I said.

  Soraya shook her head. “I say we turn back and go to the tower.”

  Saul grabbed his wife’s arm. “We’re too close to Hayden to just give up now.”

/>   Kaila agreed; she didn’t want to turn away when she was this close to Julian.

  Soraya stepped back, lifting her hands in surrender.

  “Fine. But I’m going to stand guard just in case anyone comes,” she said.

  “If anyone comes near us, you take them out,” I told her.

  The three of us got to work, using our swords to hack into the thick cinderblocks. Fortunately, we weren’t making much noise, but there was an intense spell over the wall, which made it nearly impossible to make the slightest dent. Our efforts were futile. I motioned for Saul and Kaila to stop.

  “This isn’t working, and we need to think of something fast. We’ve got to be on their radar by now,” I said, gesturing at my sword.

  Then I remembered the time back in New York when Rocco, Julian and I couldn’t get into the offices of IP Montgomery because Lucius Diamond had heavy magic blocking us out.

  “Let’s try the Logos in unison with the Armor,” I told them.

  We began whispering the ancient language, while plunging our swords into the dense cement. But we couldn’t make any headway. Cagliostro had used his best magical defenses, making it impossible to break through. I still didn’t want to draw out the powers of the Sacred Scroll; it was safe under my Armor and taking it out was too dangerous. But I did have one last trick up my sleeve.

  I hoped my brief nap at the safe house had been sufficient to recharge my batteries enough to unleash my roar. Even though I knew we’d draw attention to us, the evil factions wouldn’t be able to handle the decibel of my shout. The sound repelled them. We’d be safe for a few minutes. At least until my energy was depleted.

  “Stand back,” I instructed the others.

  “What are you going to do?” Saul asked, fear darting from his eyes.

  “I’m going to blow this wall down.”

  “No, Fiona,” Soraya said. “We’re running out of time, just use your Scroll.”

  “I’m not using my Scroll. It stays under my Armor.”

  I shoved them behind me, then opened my mouth and released the roar. The noise exploded through the air and smacked against the cinderblocks. The ground shook and the walls trembled as though an earthquake were rolling under the warehouse.

  A small fissure crept up the cinderblocks and splintered outward. I moved closer to the wall, lifting my boot, and drop kicked the fault line. The large bricks began to shake, as did the magical shield protecting the wall. Saul and Kaila joined me, kicking away at the wall until chunks of cement toppled to the ground. With one final blow, I slammed my foot against the weakest spot and busted through to the other side. We quickly crawled through the hole, but when we got into the prison cell, something was terribly wrong.

  The Protectors were gone.

  thirty-six

  We stood in the empty cell in silence as the icy air clamped down around us. Shivering from the cold and defeat, I scanned the room looking for any leads. I cringed seeing the meathooks hanging from the ceiling and the dark pools of blood on the cement. The variety of scents lingering in the freezing room—Julian’s beachy-surfer scent, Rocco’s signature spice and leather, and a myriad of other aromas—told me they had recently been present. Kaila collapsed to the floor and began sobbing. I consoled her, rubbing her back.

  “They were just here. That means they’re still alive,” I told her.

  Saul bent down and dipped his finger into one of the pools of blood.

  “This is fresh. They haven’t been gone long,” he said.

  Soraya stepped forward, giving me a brazen look of I-told-you-so. “Now that we’ve wasted even more time, can we please go to The Spire? I’m sure that’s where they took them.”

  We had tried my approach and failed. Now it was time to go after the Scrolls. Maybe the other Protectors would be at The Spire. Or maybe they wouldn’t. Either way, we were going after the Scrolls and doing whatever we could to stop Cagliostro from reaching the Monarchy.

  “Let’s go,” I said, hoisting Kaila up.

  “I can’t,” she whimpered into my shoulder.

  “You can and you will. Julian needs you.”

  She pulled away, shaking her head vehemently. “It’s hopeless. We don’t stand a chance.”

  “Nothing is hopeless. Not while there is still Light. Their Darkness has no authority over us. Even if it looks to be that way, they haven’t won yet, and we must do everything in our power to fight against this evil. We are Protectors of Light. It’s our responsibility—our duty—to protect the Scrolls. To protect humanity.”

  “We’ll never get into that tower,” Kaila said, refusing to buy into my pep talk.

  Honestly, I’m not sure I was buying into it myself. But I wasn’t going to simply roll over and submit to Cagliostro. I planned to make things exceptionally difficult for the demon mage.

  I clasped Kaila’s hands, forcing her to look at me. “We have our Armor and we’re disguised. So sack up and let’s do this.”

  She stared at me, a small twinkle brightening her watery eyes. “Julian used to say sack up.”

  “Probably where I learned it.”

  “We gotta hurry! I hear them coming for us,” Saul yelled, shoving us.

  Blasting through the side of the warehouse, we hurtled toward the monolithic tower looming in the center of Neo-Babylon. I hoped it would be the last time I had to see the eyesore.

  We stormed into the tower like authority figures on a mission, whisking right past security. One of the guards ran after us, demanding we stop for clearance. The same guy who had gawked at my skimpy leather skirt earlier. He rounded the corner, spiking a glowing orb in our direction. Soraya lifted her shield, deflecting the ball of electricity. The orb careened into the guard’s chest and he combusted.

  We waited in an alcove for one of the ten elevators to arrive. When one of the doors finally opened, the four of us sprinted down the hall and dived inside. Saul stood at the opening, guarding it with his shield. Soraya repeatedly pressed the button to the top floor.

  “Hurry!” she shouted at the panel as if that would help.

  The doors sealed shut, and we shot upwards at dizzying levels. Speed wasn’t the problem, it was the sudden lack of oxygen. After a few seconds, fresh molecules filtered into the elevator and we could breathe again.

  By the time we reached the top floor, my senses were firing on all pistons and I didn’t want to get out of the elevator. Something was wrong. It had been entirely too easy getting to Cagliostro’s main base of operations.

  “Something’s off,” I warned.

  Soraya shook her head. “Too late to back out now.”

  “I’m not backing out,” I snapped. “I’m saying, let’s chill out a second. We can’t just go into the control center of this tower and start making demands.”

  “I have a plan,” Soraya said.

  “I’d like to hear it before we make another move,” I told her.

  Saul stepped around me. “We need to get out of the elevator.”

  Kaila stood behind me, her eyes darting all over the place.

  “He’s here,” she whispered, shoving me out of the way and running into the hallway.

  Saul followed behind, murmuring Hayden’s name.

  Soraya moved out of the elevator and stood facing me. “Are you going to stand there and let Kaila and Saul run off like that? They’re liable to get killed.”

  I stepped out of the elevator and followed Soraya down the hall after the others.

  thirty-seven

  Before Kaila and Saul got too far around the curve of the hallway, Soraya caught up and slammed them to the ground, knocking them out cold in the middle of the hall. Their disguises immediately vanished, leaving behind their robed bodies.

  An immediate chill sliced through my middle, and I raced over to Soraya.

  “What are you doing? We need them,” I whispered, fighting to keep my voice low.

  Her eyes danced around as she ignored me, then dragged both Protectors away and flung them into a nearby s
torage room.

  I yanked her arm. “What are you doing?”

  “They weren’t thinking straight. Too many emotions,” she said.

  I cringed, balling my hands into tight fists, ready to throw her down. We were down two Protectors and to make matters worse, my guard’s uniform suddenly disappeared. I stood in front of Soraya wearing that ridiculous black leather skirt and matching tank. Not the attire I was hoping to take down Cagliostro in. I wondered if the stress was too much, or worse yet: had she been compromised? I didn’t want to believe that she was working for the enemy, but I also didn’t want to stick around to find out. I was going to get to the dome and find the Scrolls—even if I had to do it alone.

  “I don’t know what’s up, but you know what … fuck you, Soraya.”

  I sprinted down the hallway, searching for the entrance to the core of the tower. A swift breeze brushed up against my back. Soraya was chasing after me, nipping at my heels. I pushed harder, running faster and faster along the bend of the corridor. Soraya’s fingers grazed my collar, but I batted her hand away. As we looped around again, she caught up and yanked me down. I rolled hard and then smashed up against a wall. Jumping up, I called on my sword and warded her back.

  “Don’t you want to save your daughter?”

  “You’ll never stop him.”

  “You have no idea what I’m capable of!”

  “He has all the leverage. You’re one Protector up against an army of factions.”

  I refused to let her plant any seeds of doubt. I knew going up against Cagliostro would be excruciatingly grueling and maybe even impossible, but I wasn’t going to give up and succumb to the evil bastard. Not like she had.

  “You’re weak, Soraya. You let his fear magic destroy you. You forgot about the Light.”

  Soraya grabbed my sword, cutting a deep gash into her palm. What the hell was she doing? I kicked her hard in the chest, slamming her to the ground.

  “You can’t win,” she muttered. “He knows you’re here. He’s waiting for you.”

  Standing over her body, I pressed my sword into her throat. “What have you done?”