Fallen Academy: Year Two (Fallen Academy #2)(26)

Oh my God.

Shaking my head, I opened the door. “Come on. We’re late.”

I was going to need an energy drink if this fatigue kept up. I was seriously exhausted. The sheer act of walking was tiring, so when I saw there was no elevator, and remembered Lincoln was on the third floor, I groaned.

My legs were heavy sacks of Jell-O by the time we made it up there. Before we even got to the door, it flew open.

“A celestial Orb!” Lincoln shouted at me.

I guess privacy isn’t something I’m going to be allowed in this lifetime. “Who told you?” I demanded.

He raised one eyebrow as Shea slipped past him and went inside.

“Why didn’t you tell me is the bigger question here.” His words were laced with hurt.

I rolled my eyes. “I was going to once we walked inside. You beat me to it. I’ve been passed out for the past three hours trying to regain my energy.”

His tough guy routine immediately fell. “What do you mean? Are you hurt?”

“Nah, just tired as all hell.” I waved him off. “That… thing zapped all my energy.”

Lincoln reached out and stroked the pendant at my neck.

“So… who told you?” I asked again.

Lincoln sighed. “Raphael said he needed to go break down a Celestial orb on campus. Since Michael, Gabriel, and Uriel were out of town, I asked him who made it. Then I asked to see it. Holy Crap, Brielle. You…” He grinned. “You made a freaking Celestial orb.”

My lips curved into a smile too. I couldn’t help it; his dimples made the happiness come out of me. “I know. It was awesome, and scary, and pretty much awesome.”

Lincoln’s fingers reached out, stroking my cheek. “But you’re tired?” he asked, concern filling his voice.

My hand waved in nonchalance. “Mr. Rincor said it’s normal after releasing so much light.”

His brow furrowed, but then he nodded. “Come on. I have a little surprise for you.”

A surprise? I had a love-hate relationship with surprises. On one hand, I loved them and the spontaneity of it all, while on the other hand, my inner control freak wanted to know everything.

Lincoln stepped into the apartment and waved me in. As I gingerly crossed the threshold, I noticed that Chloe and her brother Donnie were there, which Luke was totally freaking out about, I was sure. The Beast Shifter was lingering in the corner of the dining room, staring at Donnie wistfully.

Everyone was standing around Noah and Darren, who were sitting at the dining table gesturing to something.

The apartment was nice from what I’d seen so far. Blandly furnished with tans and grays, but clean and updated. Lincoln’s hand wrapped around mine, as he led me over to the table.

“Where’s Blake?” I asked, noticing one member was missing from the usual foursome. Just then, he emerged from the bathroom.

“The gang’s all here!” Lincoln declared, clapping Blake on the back. “Let’s get started.”

I frowned. “I thought this was a house warming party. What’s going on?” Lincoln was most definitely acting shady.

The crowd parted, and I finally saw what was on the table—a bunch of maps and papers.

My boyfriend gestured to the crowd. “We can’t imagine what’s it’s like to be without your infinity weapon, so we’ve gathered tonight to make a plan to help you get Sera back.”

Hope burst inside my chest as my throat tightened. “For real? You think we can get her back?”

Donnie stepped forward. “I spoke to a friend, another Nightblood, who once lost his infinity weapon in a portal. He’s a commander in the Fallen Army now.”

My heart was jackknifing in my chest. “Okay.”

Donnie gave me a handsome grin, and I swear Luke melted into a puddle in the corner.

“So, what he did was to go back to the same spot he lost it in, and open a new portal. Then he had a Light Mage amplify his connection with the weapon, and use a powerful retrieving spell to get it back for him.”

“Oh my God! Can we do that?” I asked Lincoln. If he said no, I was doing it anyway. I needed Sera back no matter what.

He gave a hesitant nod. “We can, but there’s more to it.”

“While they were retrieving the weapon, a few demons got through and… someone died,” Donnie continued, ending on a barely audible whisper.

A dark storm cloud floated over my rainbows of bliss.

“Oh.”

Lincoln’s fingers threaded through mine. “You lost Sera in Inferno, so it’s not exactly the best location, but we’re going to make a plan and give it a try.”

I nodded, knowing that was all I could really hope for.

“Because we all know you can’t pass Fight Night without her,” Noah teased.

I pinned my healing teacher with a glare. “Says the guy who spends forty-five minutes on his hair every morning.”

The group erupted into a collective “Ohhh.” The shit-talking had commenced.

“Open some beers. It’s going to be a long night.” Lincoln instructed.

We settled into the plan. Of course, Shea was going to be my Light Mage helper, since she was a master at opening and closing portals now. She’d been working with Mr. Claymore in her free time, and was fully confident she could do this for me.