Fallen Academy: Year Two (Fallen Academy #2)(55)

She wiped the tears and patted my hand. “Nothing. I’m just… happy. I haven’t been happy in a long time.”

Silence descended upon the kitchen. I knew she’d had it hard in Demon City after I’d left, then doubly hard when Mikey was having his issues. Now I could see the stress it had caused her. Close up, she looked tired with bags under her eyes, hair limp and dull.

“Lots more happy days ahead, Mom,” I assured her.

Lincoln stepped in front of us. “Absolutely, but only if I get one of those waffles right now.”

My mother’s laughter filled the space around us, and my chest felt lighter and lighter as each person joined in.

This, our little family moment right here, was one of the happiest days of my life.





Chapter Twenty-One





The nightmares didn’t stop.

Six weeks of never-ending nightmares. Hell. Demons. Lucifer.

It was awful, and I’d turned into an insomniac because of it. I did anything to avoid sleep now—coffee, energy drinks, going for late-night walks. I just didn’t want to be sucked back into that place. It was making me scared to close my eyes. It all felt so real.

And to top off that shit storm, my mom couldn’t find a job. Apparently there was no room for a Necromancer in Angel City—other than tending to dead flowers and decorating cakes, but those jobs were given to Necros who grew up in the city, and graduated from the academy. My mom having been a raiser of the dead in Demon City was akin to having a criminal record.

The one good thing going on in my life at the moment was Bernie. He was thriving. He’d put on some weight, looked clean and happy with his daily showers and shave. Raphael had even given him a small job folding sheets and towels. After the school maids washed them, they’d drop them off at Bernie’s trailer, and he’d fold them. He said it gave him a purpose, but the only drawback was trying to keep Maximus off the clean folded sheets.

Now, I was being called to Raphael’s office between lunch and battle class. I didn’t know what it was about, but I hoped I wasn’t in trouble.

After knocking on the door, Raphael called out for me to enter. Pulling the big heavy door back, I stepped inside to see him standing at his desk.

I smiled. “Hey.”

Please don’t be in trouble for something.

“Hello, Brielle. How are you healing?” Raphael asked kindly.

Okay, that didn’t seem like something you’d ask someone in trouble.

I rolled out my shoulder, which had healed weeks ago. “Great, sir. Thank you.”

He chuckled. “Oh, come on. It’s coming on two years now that we’ve been friends. You can call me Raph or Raphael. All the other students do.”

I sighed in relief. “So, I’m not in trouble?”

He frowned. “Of course not. Why would you…? Oh, right.”

He seemed to just now realize he’d called me to his office in the middle of the day.

“I wanted you to come by because the Fallen Army is giving Lincoln a promotion, and it’s a surprise. I know he’d like you there when it’s announced. It’s this Saturday. He thinks he’s going to be giving a fellow comrade an award, but really I’ll be promoting him to captain.”

My heart nearly burst with pride. Lincoln was one of the most deserving people I knew. He took his job seriously, and was completely dedicated to the war beyond the city’s walls.

“Of course I’ll be there.” I smiled so wide, that I thought my face might crack.

Raphael beamed, and his wings glowed a honey color as his mood seemingly lifted.

“Perfect! You’ll need to be there at six sharp. I’ll have a table for you and his friends, Noah, Darren, and Blake. Lincoln’s been through a trying few years, and having you all there to cheer him on will mean the world to him.”

He had been through a trying few years, and the fact that Raphael had asked me to be at his table meant the world to me.

“It’ll be amazing,” I assured him and eyed the door. I needed to get to battle class.

“Before you go…” Raphael took in a deep breath and stood, crossing the room in elegant strides that would make a cheetah look clumsy. “Lincoln told me about the nightmares.”

Great. Lecture time.

The nightmares were absolutely horrible, and now when I drifted off, I was so full of fear that I’d jerk awake mere seconds later, heart pumping with adrenaline. Maybe Lincoln was right to tell Raphael.

“Sit down. I’ll give you a note to excuse you from class,” Raphael offered.

I sighed and dropped my bag, collapsing onto the couch.

“Why do you think you’re having the nightmares?” he quizzed, sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of me, wings outstretched behind him. He was so casual, it felt like we were just two old friends having a little chat.

I didn’t keep many things from Raphael. Mostly, he knew about my dark magic whip and everything that had happened with Sera in Hell. He was easy to talk to, and never judgmental.

I fingered the pendant around my neck. It was a new one Mr. Claymore had made for me to replace the cracked one, but it didn’t work as well as the first one did. I hadn’t been able to produce anything even close to a Celestial orb.

“I think when I took the necklace off to get Sera… my dark magic took hold and… I dunno, I guess it’s in control now.” I needed to talk to someone about this, and Raphael was the best person to share my true feelings with.