My eyes opened reluctantly as my phone vibrated. The lights in my dorm room were off, and Bella slept soundly across from me. She grumbled, pulling the blanket over her head to drown out the noise, but I could tell she was still—mostly—asleep. I glanced over at the screen, trying to decide if I would answer or not, even though my heart was already set on not answering. An unknown number greeted me, and I was ready to roll over and finish my nap. It had been a few days since I had gotten decent sleep, and dressed in my favorite pajamas, the lights off, blinds closed, and the air on, I had slept soundly.
Wait.
I looked back at the phone on its fourth ring. The area code. Athena. I swiped over to answer it. "Hello?" For some reason, I was surprised she had called me, even though I asked. It wasn't like I thought she was still upset, but Athena had always seemed to have something else going on, as if the rest of the world didn't quite matter if it didn't have anything to do with her directly.
"Hey, Clare. It's Athena."
With the exception of a more mature mature pitch, she sounded like she had when she was younger—sure of herself, a little bossy. She all but barked the greeting at me, like she was in a rush to get off the phone. I didn't blame her. "Hold on a second," I murmured, swinging my legs off my bed and sliding my feet in my slippers. Bella would think I was crazy if I had this conversation in front of her. If she didn't throw a shoe at me for talking during her nap.
"Alright." She yawned.
I shuffled out of my room, closing the door behind me quietly. I made my way to an empty study room at the end of the hall, locking the door behind me. "Okay, I'm back." I took a deep breath, trying to wake myself up. This was an important conversation, and I needed to make sure I didn't skip a single detail. "How are you?"
"I'm good. You?"
"Yeah, fine." I shook my legs out. "I mean, besides this Mother stuff. So I guess I'm not fine at all."
She laughed, but she didn't sound amused. "Same. So… what's up?"
I didn't know what to start, and I couldn't remember the exact way Honor had told me. So I took the Athena approach and just laid it out there. "We have superpowers. We're also Guardians, which means we're supposed to protect humans from demons, and our ancestors were disgraced, so the line of Guardians ended with them—until us."
Athena didn't say anything for a few seconds. I hoped she didn't have many questions because I didn't have many answers. I picked at a loose thread on the sleeve of my shirt. I was kind of like that loose thread, and Mother was me. She was unraveling me quickly. Just before I could freak out, though, Athena spoke again. "What's a Guardian?" She sounded tired, but not sleepy tired like before; she sounded more soul-tired as if the answer was just another burden she had to carry.
I felt that.
"Basically, a few hundred years ago, I guess, the seven archangels blessed humans to help take out demons. It gave them powers, magical weapons, and more. I think." I paused, trying to think of something else to add, anything that Honor had told me. My brain hadn't yet caught up to the rest of me, though. "Oh, and there's like one in every generation per angel or whatever, except there's always been two in our generation. Twins."
I could see her worrying her lip, how she looked now—an older version of her almond eyes and full lips, button nose and high cheekbones, full wide smile now with adult teeth instead of her baby-toothed gap. She would look just like her mom, my Aunt Lynn, just a smaller, more compact version. Athena had always been small, much like our grandmother. "Well, there are no twins for our generation," she murmured. The last set of twins in our family were our fathers.
"Because, a few generations back, they disappeared off the face of the Earth apparently," I explained. "There hasn���t been one since, which sucks because they're supposed to teach the next generation how to be Guardians."
Athena sighed. "So what you're telling me is that we've been given all these great things, yet we have no one to teach us how to use them?"
I shrugged. "Yeah, that about sums it up." There was so much I was leaving out, though, I just couldn't remember exactly what. My recollection skills were failing me at the moment, due to the abruptness of waking up. "Did you notice you have superpowers?"
She was quiet.
I wanted her to say 'yes,' so I didn't have to explain to her that she was The Destroyer. Finding out this information was hard enough, and throwing in you had an ominous nickname, too? I also wanted her to say 'yes' because maybe then I could find out what my power was.
"No," she answered finally, sounding as disappointed as I felt when she uttered the word, "unless you count me being a super-genius."
"That's a suck ass power." I added, "Unless you have like telekinesis."
Athena gave me a genuine laugh. "Nope, no telekinesis. I can't even physically move most things."
I laughed back, although nothing was actually funny. It was an awkwardly polite laugh, two strangers having a conversation in passing. "Well, that's honestly it," I told her, wanting to get back to my nap. Another part of me wanted to ask her other questions, though—about her, Sebastian, this Hillary, if she had met anyone else. What did she think of Griffin? Did she know Luca? "Unless you have questions."
"A few. More like clarifications." She yawned, and I heard rustling like she was flipping through a notebook this time. "Gabriel is our angel, right?"
I made a noise of agreement.
"Do our powers have anything to do with our angels' abilities?"
My eyebrows creased as I tried to remember what Honor had told me. "I think so—Honor told me that her power is being able to send demons to Hell, which is what her angel does. Kick people to hell and all that. So maybe? Why do you ask?" I nibbled on my fingertips. That sounded right. I couldn't remember exactly what Honor said, or who her angel was.
"Who is Honor? Another Guardian?"
"Yeah. She has a dagger that directs her to demons." It was a pretty cool fact, if not completely unimportant.
Athena answered my prior question as if I hadn't even spoken. "Okay, so since our powers are in relation to our angel, what we can do has to deal with Gabriel. What do you know about him?" She didn't give me time to answer, even if I had known the answer. "In one story, Gabriel was sent to protect Islam. In another, he destroyed Jerusalem. He was sent by God multiple times to reveal things to prophets and announced the birth of John the Baptist as well as Jesus."
The Protector. The Destroyer.
Did I tell her? Could I tell her?
"Athena , I, uh—" I stopped. How did I break it to her easily? It had to be said, though. "Well, Mother visits me in my dreams, and—"
"Still?" She sounded equal parts surprised and impressed, although I couldn't figure out why for the life in me. "That's crazy."
I rolled my eyes at her interruption, glad she couldn't see me. Nothing had changed with her. "Why so?" I demanded. Did she think I wasn't 'cool' enough for Mother to want me? Because I wasn't smart? Because I was late to the game in realizing everything?
She sighed. "You sound defensive, so I probably offended you." It was as close to an apology as I was going to get from her. She had never been big on those, even when we were children. "I didn't mean to. It's just that I'm surprised she didn't give up yet. You aren't the type to go off the beaten path of goodness."
Oh. "And you are?" I smarted, still a little upset at her. She had a way of making me feel inferior, although it wasn't done purposely. Mom had always bragged on how smart Athena was, and she had always been our grandmother's favorite.
She snorted, unaware I was still a little irritated with her. Maybe I needed sleep. My tolerance wasn't this short usually. Or, I thought, childhood feelings of petty jealousy is roaring its ugly head. Sometimes, when I was younger, I used to pretend Athena was worse than what she was. I wanted a reason to despise her, but I never could. She was funny, the perfect adventure buddy, and always managed to talk us into free food and toys. I couldn't hate her then, and even now, I knew I wouldn't be able to.
"Hopefully, not, but Mama always kept me in church," she answered. "She wanted me to be more like you—a good kid, always making the moral decision and not the logical one."
Aunt Lynn had always taken to me. She would sneak me extra stuff when no one was looking. I had had plenty of talks with her in the early mornings, while she sipped a coffee and I had hot chocolate (in the winter) and orange juice (in the summer). I lived for our talks, especially since my own mom worked way more back then, and I only saw her at nights.
"Anyway," Athena continued, sounded like she was closer to falling asleep than she was before, "what were you saying about Mother?"
It took me a second to pull myself from thoughts of overlooking the horses in the backyard at Athena 's house, the sun rising through the window and her mom smiling over at me, braiding my hair while we talk, nothing but the sound of farm animals awakening. "Oh, just that she visited me—"
"Did she show you where she lived? What does she look like?" Athena demanded, sounding alert all of a sudden.
I huffed. "Athena , stop interrupting me!"
"Sorry. It's just—I have nothing to work with down here but two boneheaded boys, one of which admitted he loved me, and the other is….." She didn't finish, but I heard the frustration at the end. The other was definitely Sebastian; I didn't need to know them to know she wouldn't sound so put out if he had been the one to admit his feelings.
Boy problems weren't important, but they were interesting. Apart of me wanted to ask her about it, even though it didn't sound like she actually wanted to talk about it. It was more of a small vent, a minor frustration she had to get off her chest. "Luca told me he loved me. Still hasn't asked me to be his girlfriend," I admitted, snorting.
It was really bothering me.
"It's like the older they get, the more incompetent they become with their feelings," she mumbled. "Okay, no interruptions this time—what did Mother say?"
She had a point. Dating when I was younger was so much easier.
Mother had actually said a lot, and I'd fill her in eventually, but there was only one thing I needed to tell her at the moment. "She told me that she killed two of our ancestors for one." I paused. Just rip the bandaid off, Clare. "She also told me that each Guardian has a role: The Protector, and the Destroyer. I'm the Protector."
She blew out a deep breath. "Well, there's nothing we can do about that, can we?" I couldn't tell how she felt. Her voice was neutral as if we were discussing someone else. "Did she tell you what we can do?"
I shook my head as I answered aloud. "Nah. She was pretty pissed at me because I won't join her side and sacrifice you." She was genuinely hurt I didn't want to be on her side, which was very surprising. She had thousands of followers, if not millions. Why she worried about little old me was confusing. She could have anybody she wanted.
Athena chuckled. "Thanks for that. For the record, I was totally ready to sacrifice you to preserve my life. At first anyway."
I winced. Her brutal honest was always just that—brutal. I thought I'd be angry, but I really wasn't. Self-preservation was one hell of a thing, and I didn't blame her for choosing to keep herself alive over a cousin she hadn't spoken to in a decade and some change. It also wasn't surprising. Athena had always, when it came to protecting either or, chosen herself. If there was a chance to protect us both, though, she would do it in a heartbeat. I didn't ask her what changed, though. I didn't think I wanted to know the answer.
"Well, I'm glad you changed your mind," I half-joked. I wholeheartedly believe that if she hadn't, I'd be dead right now. "Do you have a First Blade? One with an opal stone in the middle of the handle?"
"That part of the sabers called a 'hilt,'" she corrected, unable to help herself. "And, yes, I have the matching one to yours. Mine has an onyx, though."
I ignored her correction. "Our sabers are called Truth-Seeker and Trespasser. Mine, Truth Seeker, it forces anyone to tell the truth when I hold it," I explained. "Yours allows you to get into anything you want. It unlocks everything."
"That'd be great if I was a thief."
A smile flitted across my lip as I smothered my giggle. "Also, the ancestors speak to you. If you hold it and talk to it, they'll probably have better answers to your questions than me." I held in the yawn that was threatening to overtake the end of my sentence. I had another two hours to nap before I had to wake up. "I'm really tired, though, so we can catch up later?"
"Of course." I could hear the smile in her voice. "Be safe, Clare."
"Same to you."
I hung up the phone and closed my eyes. That wasn't as painful as I thought it would've been. She was still herself, just older, and that I could deal with. We had been best friends after all.
There was so much we still needed to discuss. I needed to catch her up on my dreams. On Luca. She had to tell me everything she knew. Together we could figure this out, I knew we could. When we were younger, my dad would affectionally refer to us as the "Dream Team" because there was no problem we couldn't solve together. This one was no different, especially considering we had superpowers.
Yawning, I opened my eyes and unlocked the door, shuffling back down the hall. It was a nice talk, but it hadn't distracted me from the fact that I needed another two hours of sleep.
Bella looked back at me, eyebrow pencil in hand. "So let me get this straight—he let you take the Corvette?" she questioned.
I pulled my blanket around my shoulders, laptop in my lap. She had some pop music blasting, and I had, before that, my headphones in, but she had looked out the window, saw the Corvette parked there, and demanded my attention. Who do you think has a Corvette? I had casually mentioned I was borrowing it before putting my headphones back on—my talk with Athena had received some of the pressure off my chest, so I felt like writing—but Bella wasn't having that. She had tugged them off of me.
"Yes," I answered. "I have to bring it back tonight, though."
Technically, I didn't have to. Luca hadn't even mentioned me bringing me back. Actually, I was pretty sure he was still asleep since he hadn't even texted me. Still, I wanted to return his flashy, expensive sports car before something happened to it.
Bella shook her head, returning to the mirror to finish her eyebrows. "How? Why?"
I shrugged, my fingers paused over the keyboard. I really wanted to get back to this chapter. Talking and writing wasn't a talent of mine. "Because he wanted to sleep, and I needed to come back here." Well, I hadn't needed it, Luca just didn't have another place to sleep beside his bed, and I wasn't sure if he was comfortable with that; I knew kicking him off the sofa wasn't an option because he would never let me sleep on the sofa.
She shook her head again, in utter disbelief. "He just, like, gave you the keys?"
Not so much, but I didn't explain that to her. "Yep." I waited a few seconds, and when it seemed she was engrossed in her make-up, I went back to typing. The words flowed effortlessly, as they sometimes had a habit of doing. Other times, though, it was like the words and I were engaged in a battle I was losing.
"I take back what I said—he does love you," she announced. "Guys don't just give girls their cars to drive."
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. That was how she knew? Not because he had said it? I didn't respond back to her. In the past twenty minutes, I had managed to write a full page, which was a big step up from the usual three paragraphs I was able to type. After this, I might write a book about supernatural things.
Bella wasn't done talking, though. "I still don't understand why you two aren't official yet, though. Unless he's one of those 'what's understood doesn't need to be explained' guys." She put the eyebrow pencil down and inspected her eyebrows. Pleased with the results, she grabbed her eyeshadow kit. "He doesn't seem like it. He seems so much more… refined. Older, more mature. How old did you say he was again?"
"Twenty-four." Give or take one hundred and seventy years.
She whistled. "You really don't get that kind of maturity in guys that age. Trust me, I would know." She laughed at herself, scanning her palettes. "What color should I wear? We're going out to a nice restaurant but not too nice."
I looked over at the dress she had chosen. It was a burgundy dress, form-fitting if I knew her, but not too flashy or showy. Underneath it, she had a pair of strappy gold heels. "Gold, but a light shade so it's more natural-looking," I advised, knowing she would choose what she wanted to choose anyway.
"Really?" She frowned. "I'm honestly feeling burgundy with this look."
"Then go with burgundy."
She nodded her head. "You're right." She started prepping her eyelids, and I thought we were finally at the end of our conversation so I could get these next few pages off—after I dropped the car off, Luca and I were going on a movie date to see some new horror movie. He wanted to laugh; I wanted to bury my face into his chest. "So what's Luca's deal?"
I sighed. "What do you mean?" My voice was flat. I was trying not to be irritated. I really wanted to write, and this wasn't the first time Bella had taken my writing time up to talk to me about nonsense.
I was also annoyed by her tone. It was like she was purposefully poking at me, trying to get answers. I didn't even know what she wanted to know. Nothing I could tell her anyway.
She paused, eyeshadow brush held in the air. She side-eyed me. "I'm sorry, Clare, am I annoying you?" She sounded annoyed with me.
It was typical Bella, and I blamed myself for dealing with it this long, but I knew why she acted the way she was—my uncle wasn't really her father, and he didn't know but her mom did. In addition, my uncle didn't really pay her attention, and her mother preferred her other lover—Bella's real dad, some man in Florida who she still saw under the guise of visiting someone—over Bella. She had grown up with tons of attention, but the older she got, the more her parents tossed her to the side. She didn't know how to handle not having their full attention.
"I'm trying to write, Bells, that's all." I didn't feel like arguing with her. Anger didn't fuel my writing skills. It took me a lot to get to that point, and when I got there, it took me a long time to think of something else besides the reason I was pissed.
She huffed. "Fine. Say that then, don't talk at me like I'm bothering you."
But you are, I thought. I kept my mouth shut, though, despite the rising temper. I just wanted to finish another page or two before getting dressed. I had another three hours before I had to leave, though.
"You know, ever since Luca came into your life, you've been different," Bella continued, her voice too light and casual. She wanted an argument. "It's like you're too good to hang with me anymore."
I was different. I had to be. I couldn't explain to her I was fighting for my life and to save the world, dealing with demons and superpowers, and things she wouldn't understand. Bella would look at me crazy and tell my parents, thinking she was helping; especially since she thought I had was losing my mind after the whole thing with the memory loss and headaches.
I wasn't, however, different in the way she thought like I had gotten too good for her now that I had Luca. In fact, I wanted nothing more than to spend time with her. "Bella, you're always busy, but it's only an issue when you want to spend time with me," I explained patiently. I closed my laptop, giving up on the idea of writing. Tomorrow I would skip my first class and write. I was way behind on the deadline I had set for myself anyway.
She whirled around. "No. I'm busy because my best friend doesn't make time for me anymore. You even make time for Chloe."
My eye twitched. "That's because she's my sister."
"You never cared before."
"Oh my God." I tossed my blanket off of me. I hadn't really cared or tried before, it was true, but for her to be upset that I cared about my sister was infuriating. "Am I supposed to apologize for wanting to spend time with my family, Bella?"
She glared at me. "But why now? You didn't care until Luca! You were always available—"
"—for you," I finished, giving her a dark look as I shoved my feet into my shoes. "That's the problem, isn't it? I've always been there when you called, but now that I actually have something of my own, it's a problem."
She put the brush down. "Wow, Clare. How selfish do you think I am?"
"Very," I answered, shoving my laptop into my backpack. To home, I went since I couldn't get any peace here. "You've always had an issue when I did anything other than stand in your shadow."
She sputtered, not saying anything. Her face was turning red, and I didn't know whether she was going to cry or yell some more. Either way, all I needed was the key to my room and jacket, and I'd be gone. "This thing with Luca won't last long, and you know it, Clare—you know it makes no sense that he's into you."
And not me. She didn't have to finish it, but I knew it.
A second later, her mouth closed and the color drained from her face. "Clare, I—"
I put my jacket on, my face heating. I had never had issues getting guys, but she wouldn't know that because the only person she noticed was herself. Guys had flocked to me as often as her, but I usually spent the time making sure she was safe and not doing anything stupid because Bella was still a child that needed to be watched in public.
Of course, she would be pissed I had found the perfect guy while she continuously dated losers. She had eyed Luca all night at the club, and when she realized he had eyes for me, she had done her best to pretend it didn't bother her. I had picked up on it, but I had ignored it. I didn't know it would last this damn long.
I tried to control the rush of emotion running through me. Bella didn't mean that. She was selfish, yeah, but never mean. "Bella, what's going on? I know you��re not upset about me not making time for you."
She took a deep, shaky breath.
I threw my hair into a ponytail as I waited for her explanation. I could've gotten angry and stomped out. I could've left Bella a long time ago, found other friends, but she understood me better than anybody else, better than my parents sometimes. Bella just had a funny way of trying to protect me.
Or, she's a selfish bitch.
Yes, she was. But never with me. Not like this.
"I didn't mean to imply he had no reason to like you." She closed her eyes for a second, a sign a freak out was on its way. Still smarting, I had to remind myself to fix my face and not look as upset with her as I wanted to. "I just—I want you to be careful."
Careful. That was a cute word that meant nothing to me anymore. Careful had been thrown out the window long ago. The only person I didn't have to be careful with was Luca. "I will. Thanks for your concern," I responded, giving her a grateful but tight smile. "See you later. Be safe tonight."
She watched me go, worrying her bottom lip as if she wanted to say more. I didn't want to hear more, so I slammed the door shut behind me, my final say on the conversation.
Chloe looked out the window of the Corvette, a big grin on her face. After giving Luca some time to finish his nap, I had decided to make life easier for Dad and pick up Chloe from gym practice. Everyone in her class had turned their head, and I had played into it. I had leaned against the side of the car, shades on, waving at my little sister, who, as soon as practice ended, ran directly to the car with an 'I told you he loved you' smile.
"How fast can this go?" she asked, reaching over and filling with the radio. She had been able to connect my phone to the Bluetooth in mere seconds, where I hadn't been able to figure it out all day. She turned it to some pop song, then turned the volume up.
I glanced over at her. "Fast." Admittedly, I had taken it off down an empty street before picking Chloe up, somewhere nothing could hurt the car except a fence. "How was practice?"
She shrugged. "Practice. I messed up a few times, though. My mind was elsewhere."
"What's going on?" I asked, merging into the left lane carefully with another look. Chloe had a wrinkle in her eyebrow, and I hoped it was simple boy problems. "Is it boys?"
"I wish," she sighed, shoulders lifting and falling. Her smile had fallen, and now she looked out the window, fidgeting with her bracelet. It was a charm bracelet Grandma had sent her years ago, one with little soccer balls on it, back when Chloe played soccer. She had received the bracelet before she even learned to kick a soccer ball, and it had inspired her, or so she said. Now she did gymnastics, though. "Promise not to tell Mom and Dad?"
There was a slight increase in my heart rate. We didn't keep secrets from our parents. "Yes." I would keep it, though, and do everything to help her without their interference. Eventually, though, I would either go to them or convince her to tell them herself.
She worked her hair around her finger. "There's this girl in my class, and she took this picture of me in the locker room the other day." Chloe's voice broke. "I'm not naked, but I didn't have a shirt on. I'm not—I'm really skinny, right? And you can see that my boobs are little. She sent the picture out. To everybody, including Holden."
I felt a little tremble in my hands. "Who did it?"
She ignored my question. "He didn't say anything to me, and he hasn't treated me any differently, but everybody else keeps calling me a 'little boy.'" She turned to me. "They just keep—Clare!"
Her voice forced my eyes on the road. Coming up in front of me, quickly, was a black truck. Nothing was spectacular about it except that it was on the wrong side of the road and speeding. On instinct, I swerved, hitting the brakes and sliding off the shoulder of the road. The sides of the streets—mostly homes—zipped past me. I kept my hands tightened on the wheel, trying to keep the car from spinning out of the control.
The truck was hellbent on getting to me, though. "Chloe—" My sentence was cut short as the truck made a sharp left, veering off the road and into the side of the car. I shrieked as the metal on metal squealed. The force lifted the car.
My sister screamed.
I reached for Chloe, grabbing her shirt out of desperation as I slid sideways. The world tipped over, and while the car fell backward, I tried to get some hold of the situation. Something hot poured through my veins from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet. It left my fingertips, grounding me.
The car didn't stop just flip once, though—it flipped again. And again. And again. Each time the world turned, I heard nothing, saw nothing, felt nothing. I was in a bubble, the only sound and feeling my heartbeat.
"No, no," I mumbled, fumbling to open the door when it finally stopped.
"Clare," Chloe moaned, looking over at me nervously. "Don't… leave…me…"
"I'm not, Chloe." At least, I hoped not. I wished I had Truth Seeker with me, but I had left it at Luca's house. I didn't even really know how to use it, and it would've caused more harm and questions than usefulness. "The cops." I didn't finish my sentence, didn't need to. It was a horrible lie, and it was obvious they weren't around.
She whimpered, but either she didn't want to argue or she didn't have the energy to.
I jumped out of the car, needing to get between the demon and my sister. It was me they wanted.
The guy rushed at me. I prepared myself to die.
He never made it to me, though. He went flying forward, face down into the ground. I watched him hit the ground. I looked up, saw Elias and Honor standing there, Elias with a grim expression, Honor with anger blazing in her eyes. "Luca sent us," she said, looking down at the body, her electric whip crackling along her wrist. "Elias can teleport, but Sebastian wouldn't have made it in time."
I nodded, for lack of something else to say. "Chloe—"
I could hear sirens now. Your sister will live, Elias said, his voice in my mind like a gentle whisper. With it a sense of peace.
Honor flicked her wrist, and the whip hit the demon, sending him bursting into a pile of ash. "Piece of shit," she growled, wrapping it back along her arm with another flick of her wrist. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and there was a cut on her cheek. She had been doing something before this, probably taking out more demons.
Inside the car, Chloe moaned again, this time weaker.
I wanted to take her pain away.
If it wasn't for you, she'd be alive. I had wanted to show off, take her for a ride in Luca's car. Now she was seriously injured. Or worse, she would die from internal bleeding, which apparently happened a lot in car accidents.
I should've been hurt, but I wasn't.
The Protector.
Mother's voice whispered through my mind, a cackle underneath it. I felt a tear slip down my cheek as the police and an ambulance pulled up next to us.
What kind of Protector could only protect herself?