Typical.
I sat up, rubbing my fingers through my hair, and walked over to where I kept my toothbrush, toothpaste, and a bottle of water.
If Gage was still alive, then what the heck was he doing still chilling in Avalon?
It hit me then: maybe when I’d broken the portal, Cael couldn’t fix it and Gage was trapped there?
No. Cael was an archangel. If anyone could fix a portal, it would be him. Right?
Unless by “Gage isn’t dead,” Skye meant he was barely alive. What if he was getting angel surgery or something?
The anxiety over this entire situation was tying me into knots. I opened the front door of the sanctuary, stepped out into the oversized stone staircase, and spat my toothpaste onto the grass. The sun was up but it was still early. A sleeping bag on the floor for over two weeks didn’t lend to sleeping in. The two guards who normally protected the portal were off duty since there was currently no portal to protect.
“Our dorm room is lonely without you.” Drea’s voice startled me, and I swiveled to see her approaching with a plate full of food. Cinnamon rolls, eggs, and bacon were piled high. My mouth salivated as she handed me the food.
“Thanks,” I told her and started to dig in, shoving a piece of bacon in my mouth.
“Is Skye here?” Drea looked around the empty landing in anticipation and I shook my head.
“No sign of Gage either?” she asked.
I swallowed a chunk of cinnamon roll. “Nope.”
“That’s so like Skye to just drop the bomb on you that Gage is still alive and then go,” Drea chuckled.
“I know. She’s even annoying in death,” I admitted jokingly.
We both had a snicker at that.
My mind went back to how quickly the level ten had snapped Skye’s neck and I gulped. “Drea, what if she comes back… the level ten? I don’t want anyone else—”
Drea nodded, a serious look pulling at her features. “I told my mom. We’re not going to let anyone else get hurt.” She tipped her head up to the roof and I followed her line of sight.
Hunters crouched at the edge of the roofline, wings extended as they stared out into the courtyard and beyond. They were so still they looked like statues.
Angel sniper statues.
Guilt wormed through my gut. “But maybe I should just go.”
Drea reached out and smacked my arm. “Go to the Netherworld and do Apollyon’s bidding? Are you crazy?”
I shrugged. Probably.
“Well, if that chick comes back and threatens to kill someone else, I’m going. I can’t have anyone else go ghosty on me.”
If I hadn’t gone nuclear and blown her back into a portal, she would have killed Dash. I wished I could control my powers better and feel confident that I could do that every single time.
“My mom set up some new wards with the healers. They are anchored with angel stones. As long as we stay on campus, we are totally safe,” Drea assured me.
Angel stones? Sounded fancy.
I nodded. Stay on campus. Easy peasy.
Drea stood. “Come on. Class in thirty. We can get some studying in before if we head to the library now. I can’t have a novice hunter on my team.”
I grinned. “You want me on your team?”
Drea gave me a look that said duh. “Even before Skye… I had plans to add you, but now we’ll definitely need another warrior.”
