Dragon's Storm (Legion Of Angels #4)(76)

“What do you think of her?” I asked Taron.

“She’s undisciplined and has no magic. We’re here for her brother, not her.”

But I couldn’t shake this feeling that there was something…different about her. For one, I’d never met anyone with hair that glowed like that, even if it was only an intermittent glow. It seemed to react to her mood. Strong emotions were the trigger.

The vampire stood over her, his boot pressed against her head. He stopped, then stumbled back, clutching his head, crying out in pain. The woman’s companion stood behind him, chanting furiously.

“He’s a telepath,” I said. “We came here to snatch a telepath.”

“Yes.”

Of course they hadn’t told me. I wasn’t one of them yet, not even after all these years. Not until I took the final sip of Life. That’s what they called the silver liquid that balanced your magic, giving you control over the full spectrum of light and dark magic. It took a long time to balance an angel, especially an angel with predominantly light magic. At the Legion, my light magic had been a blessing that helped me survive the gods’ Nectar; with the Guardians, it was a hindrance.

“You knew he would expose his powers,” I said. “That’s what Evelina saw in her visions.”

He said nothing. He didn’t have to. I knew I was right. The telepath had exposed himself just as Evelina had foreseen, and now we had to take him with us. If we didn’t, the Legion or the Dark Force would. And neither army was kind to its telepathic guests. Guests. That’s what we’d called them at the Legion. In truth, they were treated like slaves.

Down on the street, the telepath fell under the vampire’s wild rampage. The woman sprang to her feet to save him. She tore the shutter off a nearby house and thrust it through the vampire’s stomach.

I looked at Taron. “Still not interested in saving her?”

He blinked in surprise. “I don’t believe she requires saving.” His face grew serious, recovering from his temporary shock. “We’ll move in when he’s alone. Or at least not with his sister.”

I nodded. If we tried to take him when she was around, I had no doubt she’d fight us. She didn’t stand a chance against two angels, of course, but she’d fight just the same. And she’d die. That would be a real waste.





22





Sanctuary





Cadence’s memories flashed through my head like fireworks. As the last one faded, I found myself in a familiar field. Sunflowers and roses blossomed in front of cozy huts. Streams of butterflies danced across the blue sky, their iridescent wings sparkling in the sunlight. This was the peaceful sanctuary where the Guardians had brought Cadence. But she wasn’t the only one they’d brought here.

“Leda.”

I turned at the sound of my brother’s voice, not even trying to contain the silly smile on my face. “Zane!” I tackled him into a big hug.

“Ow.” He rubbed his arms. “You’ve gotten strong.”

“Or you’ve gone soft.” I smirked at him. “How can you even get hurt in a dream?”

“Only you are dreaming. I’m using my magic to connect to your mind.”

I hugged him again, more gently this time. “I’m so glad to see you. I’ve missed you so much.”

He shot me a sheepish, charming grin. His trademark smile. “I’ve missed you too.”

“So you’re hanging out with the Guardians.”

“Yeah.” He ruffled up his hair. “They’re helping me, Leda. I’m growing my magic, balancing it. It’s like a whole new world.”

“I was worried about you. We all were.”

“I’m sorry. I wanted to contact you before, but I wasn’t strong enough. And neither were you. Your magic has grown so much. That’s how I could connect to you.”

“You,” I realized. “You were the voice in the Fire Mountains that showed me Leila Starborn.”

“I might have given your dreams a little nudge before that too.”

“All those drowning-in-lava dreams were because of you?” I frowned at him. “You had me totally freaked out. I was sure the gods’ fourth gift was going to kill me.”

He winced. “Sorry. I was trying to send you to the Fire Mountains. It took me a while to figure out how to communicate with you.”

“The phantom voice in the Fire Mountains was very ominous.”

“Thanks. I’m quite proud of it. That and when I gave Nero a cameo in your dreams.”

“That was you too? I thought it was just my subconscious playing tricks on me. Instead, it was you playing tricks on me. Or were you playing matchmaker?”

“Not me. Cadence.”

“Nero’s mother was trying to get us together?” I gasped.

“She says you have spirit.”

“Did she say it with a straight face?”

He snorted. “She likes you, Leda. She asked me to connect to you, to show you what happened to Leila. And she asked me to show you her memories of how we each got here.” He lowered his voice, as though afraid to be overheard. “She said you and Nero deserved to know.”

“The Guardians don’t want us to know,” I guessed.