30. The highest form of treachery
Nevaeh
“Angel, wake up!” I’ve been shaking this sleepyhead for ten minutes, and he still refuses to budge.
I woke up earlier than usual because my anxiety about today refused to let me rest. Without disturbing Angel, I slid off the bed to freshen up and came back an hour long scalding hot shower later to find him still in dreamland, now hugging my pillow to his chest.
Changing into black cargo pants and a full-sleeved t-shirt, I give my mate five more minutes of being a lazy bum like me. When I go to wake him up, Angel swiftly yanks me down and rolls until I'm under him.
“Ugh, wake up, you stubborn man. I need you to do something very important.” I gently coax him.
“And here I thought I tired you enough last night.” Angel draws me in with the pretense of cuddling, but I know all too well he just wants more space to grope me.
My cheeks heat up at his mention of our late-night activities. Tracing the markings on his shoulders, I shudder remembering how I passed out after he made me come for the fourth time last night.
Things have naturally progressed in the bedroom since the night we confessed our love for one another.
These days, our nights and stolen moments during the day are filled with mind-numbing orgasms and memorizing every dip and curve of each other’s body.
“We still have a couple of hours, sweetheart,” Angel mumbles in his husky morning voice, which sends tingles to my nether region. Nuzzling his face into my neck, he breathes me in.
“Yes, but I need you to braid my hair a little differently today. Do you know the one where two braids start from the top of your head and then go down?” I try to explain what I saw in a magazine the other day, only for the sleepyhead to blink at me strangely.
“You mean French braids?”
“I don’t care where they invented it! Will you please make them for me?” I scratch his scalp to butter him up. When I think he is finally melting, Angel drops his head in the crook of my neck and snakes his hands under my top to cup my boobs.
“Give me half hour of cuddling, and we have a deal.” Angel doesn’t wait for an answer and falls right back to sleep. Running my fingers through his hair and down his back, I recall our last council meeting.
Angel was very clear about how we’d have no room for error or messes, and I didn’t appreciate how he kept glancing at me during that speech.
I mean, why would he single me out when Seiji is the one bringing all kinds of snacks and drinks with him like he's going on a picnic.
But of course, when I mentioned that, Seiji, my dramatic princess, acted all offended and even shed a few crocodile tears. He wept how it wasn’t about his milkshakes but about respect .
And then he sang, ‘his milkshakes bring all the boys to the yard’. Loudly. While fake crying.
I don’t think the man knows he is tone-deaf . My ears are still ringing from the horrific performance.
Harvey was so close to tears that he begged Seiji to stop singing— if you could even call it that . Hazel almost threw her dagger at Seiji's head, which Grace snatched away at the last second.
I don’t usually condone violence, but maybe a warning stab wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world .
Using a silent moment to myself, I let it sink in that going to The Forgotten Realm to capture Micah takes me one step closer to my revenge.
I know Angel understands my need to seek justice, but it doesn’t stop him from worrying about how a personal encounter with my tormentor could affect me. The fact that he has witnessed all my emotional breakdowns, makes him all the more wary and protective of me.
A little less than an hour later, I wake Angel with kisses all over his face. The soft smile aimed at me convinces me to only ever wake him up like this after today.
As promised, Angel quickly freshens up while I wait for him to braid my hair. I don’t have to wait long because he is quick and careful, like a professional at this point.
“Promise me you won’t let your emotions cloud your judgment today and you'll be vigilant at all times,” Angel says, putting an elastic on the end of my braid.
“Hey, when am I not careful?”
Fuck. I immediately regret the slip-up. I’ve handed Angel the perfect ammo to shoot my ego down to Hell.
“You had stitches from trying to make a sandwich , sweetheart.”
I knew he was going to bring that up again!
“It was the knife’s fault!”
Of course, it was my fault. I’m an idiot in the kitchen.
Angel thinks my constant denial is funny and laughs it up before kissing my head and ushering me out of the room. I knew he only kissed my head like that to stop himself from calling me an idiot.
Everyone is already waiting for us, everyone except August, who is staying with Seiji’s parents for the day. The only thing I have to worry about leaving him with his pseudo-grandparents is how he will be in a food coma from authentic Japanese food by the time we come back.
The most mind-baffling thing to happen yesterday was Kiara, Angel’s so-called mother, ordering me to leave August in her care while we were away.
Before I could tell her where to shove her idea of being in the general vicinity of my son, Angel denied her and quickly dragged me away from the cunning woman.
I don’t know what she wants with August, but I’ve warned the Nakayas about her visit, and they promise not to let Kiara or her husband anywhere near my boy.
Brushing Diamond's back, I admire the way his wings flap against the wind, making tiny particles of ash gather near his feet. Diamond’s one wing is the size of my whole body. Imagine someone getting smacked by them. It would be like those cartoons; one smack and boom, they slide down like thin paper.
I’ve got to stop watching cartoons with August.
Everyone suits up in armor before grabbing their weapons. Grace straps a crossbow on her back and caps the quiver. I watch Seiji's whips disassemble and wrap around his arms, acting as extra armor.
Hazel is hiding yet another one of her daggers in her armor when Angel grabs it and hands it over to a warrior walking by. I already know that’s not going to go over well with her. Hazel has a crazy obsession with having as many weapons on her as possible.
“But now I only have nine daggers. I can’t leave with an odd number of weapons.”
“You need more ?” I utter in disbelief. “Where the fuck are you even stashing them?”
“I’ll give you a full tutorial if you ask your Angel to give it back.”
I see my mate’s stern gaze and don’t bother convincing him. I’m not motivated anyway. Nine daggers are more than enough.
When Angel doesn’t budge because I don’t ask, Hazel hisses, “You need to work on your seduction. He’s not whipped enough.”
Angel catches her trying to sneak in another dagger and does his breathing technique before his non-existent temper gets the best of him.
Walking to my horse, I falter. Sure, I'm armored up too, but Hazel has nine daggers. Angel and Grace have their bows. Seiji has his whips, and Harvey has the shiny new sword Uncle Elijah gifted him for his coronation/wedding. But before doubts can slip in, I snap out of it.
I don’t need a weapon. I am the weapon.
Harvey hoists Grace on his mighty red horse, who neighs when she rubs his stomach gently. It’s no surprise the horse is just as taken with my sister as his rider.
Seiji whispers in his horse’s ear before climbing on. Apparently, the Prince of Famine chose a horse that demands his rider to ask permission before every ride.
Just as dramatic as his rider.
A warrior circles the horse Hazel is taking with her to make sure he is saddled properly. The distracted demon almost bumps into Hazel but thankfully she avoids it by stumbling back at the last second.
Then the strangest thing happens. Hazel taking that step back should’ve meant coming in contact with Diamond's fire and flinching from the burn... but nothing happens. I watch her tell off the warrior for not being more attentive before mounting her horse.
Scratchless. No burn marks.
Diamond whines in a way that demands attention but I’m not the one he wants it from. Why would he neigh for Hazel?
The horse stays distracted until Angel announces it’s time to leave. With a kick, the horse starts to steadily climb the air. The cool air nips at me, forcing me to think over that strange incident at a later time.
A hollow feeling creeps in on my first flight. It feels incomplete without Papa cheering me on and warning Diamond about the consequences of dropping me.
Papa never learned to trust anyone else in the world to look after me. It took a long time to stop hovering over me every time I went out to play with Harvey or walked around the kingdom.
Eventually, he eased out and immediately regretted it when his precious stuff started to go missing, and I was terrorizing folks like he once did at my age. With every step I took, he wasn’t too far behind me.
And now I have to live in our world without him.
It’s not a home without the people who make it home.
Like Diamond can sense my inner turmoil, he neighs loudly, running zig-zag patterns among the clouds to distract me. Bending down, I hug the not-so-grumpy horse.
After crossing the portal, the journey is supposed to be an hour from the kingdom. Right on the edge of the human realm and Heaven is an abandoned cliff-side—also known as the only way into The Forgotten Realm .
The worst part is that one must dive off the cliff and into the ocean to transport there.
If I don’t make it out, I want everyone to know I absolutely hate this idea, and my death is on Angel. He brought me here so I could have my revenge like a good mate, so it’s his fault.
Every ancient lore we studied lacked any vital information on the realm except the one saying ‘Even with it being a whisper away, not everyone with darkness within can handle the light’.
What is it with ancient people and encrypted messages?
The realm's magnetic pull slowly erases your will to leave the longer you stay, and without a known exit, it’s no surprise not many get out. That place literally eats away all the light one might bring in and manipulates them into becoming a part of its never-ending darkness.
Good thing we have someone who knows everything.
Grace whips out her trusty journal to see if everything is on track. I remember her telling me Papa gifted her this enchanted journal when he noticed she was having a hard time organizing the abundance of information in her head. The book’s enchantment helps her visualize her thoughts in writing and illustrations.
Her only warning before we jump is to make sure we don’t stay longer than six hours, no matter what.
“Okay, we get in, find the sick moron, send his soul to purgatory, and get out. Understood?”
After Angel repeats the same thing for the fifth time, everyone collectively takes deep breaths standing on the edge, and get ready to jump.
But before they can I startle everyone at the last moment. “Wait a minute.” Turning to Hazel, my eyes trail to her legs.
“No, I’m not going to grow a fucking tail!”
“How am I supposed to know that when you never tell me anything?!”
She grumbles, tightening the strap of the black duffle bag on her shoulder and turning away from me.
Sighing in defeat I decide to poke her some other day.
I can’t even turn to Grace for answers because my own sister, my same surname person, made a pact to keep the siren’s precious secrets to herself years before I came into the picture. Family betrayals sting the worst.
Taking another deep breath, everyone turns to me, and only when it’s clear I won't interrupt again, do we jump at the count of three.
Well, they jump. I don’t have any plans on willingly jumping off a fucking cliff and into a deep-water body.
As I'm contemplating whether to wait here or go sit beside Diamond, I’m suddenly pushed from behind. Screaming all the way down, I use every curse word in my vocabulary at whoever committed the highest form of treachery by pushing me.
How did I not realize one of them stayed behind to make sure I jumped? I get my answer about who when Harvey jumps a second after me, swimming deeper into the water.
Wait till I get my hands on the piece of shit I call my best friend.
When I open my eyes again, I’m standing on solid ground and bone dry, except I can’t see anything because of a thick fog surrounding me.
Sensing Harvey a step away, I jump on his back and choke him with my arms, cursing the traitorous cliff-pushing bastard. Angel struggles to drag me away from my hysterical best friend, who doesn’t even attempt to get out of the chokehold since he’s too busy laughing like a constipated cow.
Like I said, Family betrayals sting the worst.
Angel tightly holds me against his chest, whispering soothing words in my ear, hoping I will forget about knocking out Harvey’s teeth. My mate is smart enough to not let me loose as he asks Seiji to clear the fog.
“Uh, I totally would only there’s a tiny problem.”
Hazel stalks through the fog and grabs Seiji by his collar. “Do not tell me your Divine isn’t working.”
“I wish I could.” He clicks his fingers several times, but nothing happens.
“This is happening because of Anxo!”
“Wait, what—What did I do?”
“You didn’t let me take my tenth dagger. I told you it’s bad luck to carry odd number of weapons.”
“And you couldn't just... I don't know... toss one out?”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Conquer. Why in the sweet hell would I do that?”
Without his powers, Seiji can't clear the fog. So Angel forms a human chain and starts leading us through the temporary blinds in hopes that the fog will clear out soon.
“Nothing has changed. We still have to find him in a limited time frame, so stay sharp and depend on your senses. It’ll be fine. Remember, we've trained for something like this.” Angel encourages us as we start moving, and I sense his relief when it gets thinner the longer we walk to the potential end of it.
Once the fog ultimately elevates, I take in the mysterious realm. Looking at it now, I can’t believe how anyone can convince you to stay in this place for eternity.
Everything is black.
The sky? Black. The soil? Black. Guess the color of the trees? Surprise-surprise, it’s black. The entire realm is empty except for the far-off hill, where we spot a couple of sheds. One of those is where our target is hiding.
This realm is straight out of a horror movie, where things behind you disappear into the dark abyss of nothing at every turn.
The only color I see is where people live in bright, colorful houses with small parks. The magic pulsing in this realm is so strong that it has made them forget their actual home.
On our trek up the mountain, Angel counts heads every three seconds to ensure we don’t get separated. Good thing because I have the utmost faith in myself that I’d be the person running in circles trying to find the people I came with if he didn’t hold my hand.
No one understands the struggles of being directionally challenged.