Chapter 10
“Iceland?” Mau blinked, her long lashes fluttering. “Really?”
“Yep.” I held up my phone. The pale lighthouse on the screen was an exact replica of the one that had been revealed in the swirling mist of the Pearl. “This is where I was in the vision—where the war took place. Where I need to go.”
The wrinkled scrap of paper I’d found in my dad’s files earlier that summer, covered with the scribbled coordinates for the other watchtowers—well, fragments of the numbers, at least—slipped out of my grasp, drifting to the floor. Mau bent from the edge of my bed to pick it up.
Shanley ran a hand through her ashy blonde hair, pinning the strands. “I don’t know, Riv. Why not try the lighthouse on West Cliff? We can head there right now.”
“Because we’ve already tried that one.” Literally all summer. Snatching my duffel from the closet, I groaned at the thought of attempting—and failing—to unlock the tower on the point again. “It won’t open.”
“And what makes you think this one will?” Mau handed me the torn paper. “River, I love you, but this feels—”
“Impulsive,” Shanley cut in, tapping her fingers on the plush arms of my corner chair.
“It’s not, I promise.” Smiling, I unzipped my bag, but I wasn’t fooling anyone. “I’ve thought a lot about it.”
“Oh yeah?” Shanley crossed her tattooed arms, her pale skin flushed against her t-shirt’s crisp, white sleeves. “You got home from your little adventure at five this morning. It’s ten AM. You’re telling me you’ve had time to sleep and think on it before jumping to this decision?”
I pulled open a drawer, catching a glimpse of my reflection in the vanity’s mirror. No amount of concealer could hide the bags under my eyes. No amount of sleep could clear my mind of the death I’d seen in the Pearl.
Tossing the duffel onto the bed and filling it with a thick stack of leggings, I continued, “When I was in that sea cave, I found symbols for the other three Watchers carved onto the wall. Earth, air, and fire. They were all glowing, except for water.”
Mau shifted her shoulders. Shanley spun the silver ring on her pointer finger. I didn’t miss the way their eyes quickly met.
“And of course it wasn’t lit. Of course the lighthouse won’t open.
It’s the watchtower for the Angel of Water, who’s dead, and I—” I still didn’t know what I was.
Something between angel and human; heiress and cursed; powerful and powerless.
I shook my head, not wanting to dive into all that, so I settled on: “I’m like a cheap knockoff of the real thing.
When I was in that cave though, and I had that vision, I felt something.
Fate, a purpose, a presence, a higher power—I don’t know. Something.”
Shanley leaned forward. “Remind me how you discovered that cave again?”
“I was…” Exploring? Surfing? Playing roulette with my life? Ugh. I’d left that part out for a reason. If they found out I’d worked with the supernatural mob they blamed the werewolf attack on—even if it was a last resort, even if I’d already quit—they might never forgive me.
But this was exactly what I’d done with Javi. Underestimated our friendship, assumed he wouldn’t understand. Kept secrets. And look where that got him—got us.
I chewed the inside of my cheek. This was going to blow. But I couldn’t keep any more secrets. I took a seat next to Mau, the mattress dipping beneath me.
“I haven’t been completely honest with you.” My hands twisted in my lap. “When I was at the Night Stalker compound I… took a contract with them.”
“What?!” they said, the word half a mortal shout, half a wolf’s snarl.
“I wanted to tell you on the way to the hospital, but I couldn’t bring myself to. Not after what happened at Crescent Rock, not when you hadn’t had time to process everything.”
Mau stayed silent, her mouth gaping.
“So, did you mean to go there?” Shanley leapt up, her footfalls thudding across the floor. “Did you think they would help you more than us?” Hands digging into her hips, she nodded at Mau. “Your friends?”
“No!” I shot back, my palm hovering over my heart. “I promise you, there was no other way. It was a last resort.”
“Five people died. Dozens of others were injured.” Shanley’s eyes lingered on my wrist. Her lip curled with the start of a growl. “And now you’ve bound yourself to our sworn enemy?”
“They were going to hand deliver me to Chthonia if I didn’t do something drastic. Please. I’ve lost—” My voice cracked, and I took a quick gasp of air, my chest caving. “Everything. I can’t lose you, too.”
“We’re not going anywhere.” A firm grip wrapped around my trembling hand.
Mau. She shot a look at Shanley, who had started unpacking the clothes I’d put in my duffel.
Which, fine, it wasn’t even a big enough bag anyway.
“It’s all just very fresh,” she continued.
“The packs haven’t even been able to mourn.
And now that we know who sent you to that cave… ”
I pulled a stray string on my comforter.
“How do we know the Wizard didn’t set this up?” Mau leaned back on her palms. “It’d be convenient to get you to a remote place, in a foreign country, all alone.”
“He’s not powerful enough to influence an object like the Pearl.” I gnawed my lip.
“But he is resourceful enough.” Shanley’s low growl rumbled the ice in our drinks. “It could’ve been someone in his arsenal of crooks.”
“They wouldn’t set up another Night Stalker. That’s why I took the contract in the first place: for protection. I know it’s hard to believe, but they actually have a code of ethics.”
“‘Thou shall not kill each other, just everyone else’?” Shanley muttered under her breath.
Despite the heaviness in the air, the corners of my mouth quirked. “Something like that.”
“I just can’t believe Elder Ivan, dude.” Blowing air past her lips, Shanley fell back into the chair. “What would possess him to betray his own kin?”
As if Finis were right behind me, hissing her mission to bridge the realms and rule the Earth and unleash demons in my ear, I dug my cheek into my shoulder. “I think I know.”
Both my friends fell lethally silent. If their claws were out, I was sure they could cut the tension with an audible tear.
“This… fringe group.” Slowly, I stood. “The one the Wizard told me about, the one you mentioned had made it onto the Pack’s radar but wasn’t considered a real threat. It is.” I eased the ruffled clothes into a neat pile. “They want you blaming the Night Stalkers. They want us all fighting.”
Shanley’s forehead crinkled. “Why?”
“Because it’s easier to cast their influence,” Mau said, her tone distant.
“Exactly.” I opened my closest, dug through a tight row of jackets, and pulled out my thickest wool sweater. “Their ideals are extreme.”
“Fanatical,” Shanley chirped.
“But radical,” Mau added. “Realm-changing. And in a world that’s been abandoned and left to govern itself—when the angels created it by rebelling against their own laws and mating with humans to create the Nephilim in the first place…”
“It could attract the right person.” Even with the heat from the summer day stuffing up my room, a chill crawled up my spine. “A person tired of being second to mortals, of being the so-called lesser species.’”
“A person tired of being collateral,” Mau finished.
“Ivan.” Shanley winced, and it pained me to see the hurt flash over her face. “I guess there were signs.”
“A superiority complex is not a sign of treason.” Mau flipped her jet-black bob, the tiny amethysts on her nails sparkling in the light. “He was the patriarch of the wolves. An alpha we could trust. And he played us for fools.”
“Even the strongest leaders can be led astray,” Shanley muttered.
“Even archangels.” I dipped my chin.
They looked at me expectantly.
“Akosua.” I placed the sweater next to my duffel.
“River…” Shanley started. “How do you know the others aren’t in on it, too?”
“Gaia and Fei?” My throat tightened on their names. “I know this sounds weird… but I could hear them when I was struggling outside of the cave, and I could almost feel them when I was inside.”
Mau’s dark stare softened. “Even though Akosua cut off your connection?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, pulling out the paper with the coordinates once more. “I hadn’t heard their voices for over six weeks—not since Grad Night, or around then.” The paper shook in my hand. “Telepathy aside, there were plenty of other ways to reach me.”
Shanley pursed her lips. “Do they have cell service in Empyrea?”
“We don’t even get service in the redwoods!” Mau threw up her hands.
“I was thinking more along the lines of a portal disguised as a lighthouse?” I shook my head, a ghost of a smile on my lips.
“Oh, yeah, that would work, too.” Shanley grinned. Mau rolled her eyes playfully.
“These structures connect Mortal Earth with Empyrea. I assumed it was a me thing, but with the growing threat of Chthonia, what if the western watchtower is inaccessible to all of us?”
“Locked as a safety precaution?” Mau said.
I nodded. “The Watchers’ Source is strongest when there are four. Four elements, four angels, four watchtowers, four cardinal points.”
The carpeted floor creaked beneath my pacing feet. A drying wetsuit hung on the back of my open bathroom door. I snatched it off the hanger and rolled it up.
“There’s no Angel of Water,” I continued, “The Angel of Fire has dipped and joined the enemy, and so the wards are hardly stable as it is. It’s not safe for Earth or Air, which is why I need to go to them.
The tower in the vision, the one still pulled up on my maps”—I gestured to my phone, sitting unlocked on top of the bed—“is the northernmost one. Gaia’s. ”
Mau steepled her fingers. “First of all, I think we need to work on this negative self-talk. You are the Angel of Water.” A flush heated my cheeks, but she didn’t bat an eye, pressing on. “Secondly, it can’t be safe for you, either. After what we’ve seen, nowhere is.”
“Then it looks like I’m a target anywhere I am. Here.” I rolled my neck. “Iceland. Might as well go somewhere I can find help.”
Reaching under my bed, I pulled out an old backpack I’d used on camping trips with my dad. Dust particles danced in the light.
Mau asked, “What about summer school?”
“I’m going to fail anyways.”
“Again?” The tiniest hint of pity shone in her face. I tried not to let it faze me.
“Okay, just admit it.” I held the crushed pack to my chest. “You don’t think I’m cut out for this.”
“Of course we do, Riv.” Mau gave me a sympathetic pat on my arm and glanced at her girlfriend. “You have our support. But it doesn’t mean we fully agree. How do you know Gaia will help? If your watchtower is locked, wouldn’t hers be, too?”
“Look. I couldn’t stop the attack at Crescent Rock; I can’t bring those werewolves back to life.” My voice cracked. “I can’t fix what I’ve ruined. I can’t alter the past. But what if I can change what happens next?”
“Alright.” Shanley spoke softly. “How can we help while you’re gone?”
I exhaled shakily. “Who’s in charge in place of Ivan?”
“Elder Jesalynn.”
“And no one’s seen Chet?” I asked as I dumped the pile of clothes into my backpack.
They both shook their heads.
Damn. I’d been seriously hoping he’d be part of the body count. “For now, I’d station some extra lookouts. Especially in your district, Shanley. Anyone who’s friends with me, is an enemy to Chthonia. They’ll do whatever they can to get to me—to get to my Source—as we’ve seen…”
Shanley stood from her chair and cracked a window. A rush of air circulated through the room. “Got it.”
“Other than that,” I swallowed against the dryness in my throat, “tend to your pack. I know they’re hurting. I know you’re hurting.”
Mau gave me a tight smile. “We will.”
“What about your dad?” Shanley raised a brow. “He cannot possibly know that you’re doing this.”
With gritted teeth, I flashed her a smile. “Can you help with that? He likes you.”
She buried her face in her hands. “Yeeeaaahhh, he’s going to hate me after this.” Peeking through her fingers, she asked, “when do you leave?”
“Tomorrow. There’s a flight at noon.” Snatching a corduroy hat off my dresser, I popped it on my head. “Then I’ll find a hostel, go to the lighthouse, track down Gaia… and stop a war?”
“You make it sound so easy,” Mau teased.
“I think the closest pack to Iceland is in Finland, right, babe?” Shanley paused—waiting for Mau’s silent confirmation, I assumed. “Maybe they can give us a report on any weird activity or beings you should stay away from—like elves. I’ve heard a thing or two…”
“Perfect,” I said, hardly hearing her as I smushed another wetsuit into the bag. “Alright. I think I’m done packing. Now I just need to spend my life savings on this plane ticket.”
Mau delicately sorted through the top layers of fabric. “Girlie, have you even looked at the weather?”
Shanley leaned over. “Two wetsuits? What is this, an excuse for a surf trip?!”
“I can’t help it, I’m a water angel.” I laughed, playfully tossing the words right at Mau. “Surfing is in my blood. Iceland has swell! Now get!” I swatted them away with a smile.
As I buckled my backpack, my stomach twisted in a chaotic tumble of butterflies and nerves.
I was going to Iceland. I was going to find Gaia.
And nothing, no one, could stop me.