I thought of Gage and whatever guilt he was carrying that kept Cael from being able to give him powers and squeezed Indigo’s shoulder. “He will. And you will make a great Lumen.”
Gage’s story wasn’t Indigo’s, and I didn’t want to put that stress on her. I wanted to be happy for her.
With that, we all settled into another game of cards to pass the time. The problem was, too much time had passed. We’d had pizza brought to us by Dash and Jacob, who joined the game, and even Aurelia had been by twice.
The girls had gotten so bored that they even gave Harley a tour of the school while I kept watch.
Hoursticked by, and Drea glanced at her phone for the tenth time.
“What time is it?” I asked her.
The moon was high in the sky. It had to be near midnight. I was exhausted and racked with nervousness.
Drea frowned. “It’s definitely been over twenty-four hours.”
“Maybe he’s just…?” Jacob said then clearly couldn’t find a good excuse.
“Dead?” I croaked.
“Or just mildly injured,” Drea interjected.
“Or Apollyon is keeping him there,” Harley said from where she leaned against the brick wall of the armory holding out a fan of five cards.
I stilled. “You think?”
She shrugged. “You tell me. Didn’t you say Psycho Daddy has full control over him?”
“Don’t scare her,” Drea growled.
“No. She’s right.” I put out a hand to calm Drea. “He could be alive and well but stuck in the Netherworld.”
Harley nodded and I stared at my sister, wondering what was going on inside her head. “Can you call him to you?”
She went still and Dash snort-laughed, very unlike him.
No one said anything, and Dash regained his composure. “You think she can call a hellhound out of the Netherworld?”
Harley tossed her cards on the grass and stood, facing Dash down. “You bet your ass I could—if I had the Diadem of Avalon,” she added, her eyes daring Dash to contradict her.
Drea and I froze, sharing a look.
“How do you know about that?” Drea asked as she got to her feet, casting Harley an untrusting glance.
I decided to get up as well, because things had clearly taken a turn.
Harley rolled her eyes. “I’m a master Shade. I know all about the little relics you have here. I’ve heard of the Diadem of Avalon, and I think I can use my magic to merge with lover boy’s mind and call him home.”
I hated that she called himlover boy, but she could call him whatever she wanted so long as she could bring him home.
Drea barked out a laugh. “You think we’re going to fall for that? You come in here spitting venom from a cell and ditching Tatum after she showed you your mom and details of your past. Now you’re back and we’re supposed to trust you with a Lumen relic that is so powerful only my mom has been able to wear it?” She laughed again for good measure. “Nice try.”
Whoa.I’d never seen Drea so… mean.
I saw the hurt flicker across Harley’s face, there for a split second and then gone, replaced with a cold angry stare.
“Listen, you little princess, I don’t care what you think, I’m not here to steal that thing. I was offering to help, but if you want to sit around for a week and wait until Apollyon releases him, be my guest.” She blasted past Drea and me and took off toward the academy.
“Harley, wait!” I yelled and ran after her.
