Page 130 of Wings of Lies
“I mean it, Lucille. You are not to ever go there. Ever. Promise me.”
“I promise,” I whispered, noticing fear and agony behind the demand in his flaming eyes. The emotions were so powerful it was almost like I could feel them.
His jaw pulsed for a second before he answered. “Elora.”
Stay here, stay put, stay safe.He never meant the house we lived in. He meant on Earth. Stay here and safe on Earth.
Oh, he shouldnothave said that. Currently, hiding under my bed were four bobby pin-unlocked books about Elora—the angelic world I was forbidden from. Just knowing the name nearly gave my mom a heart attack.
Fathers.I had two fathers.How was that possible?What else was I missing from my memories?
I feared that answer—and the lingering ache I had for Aspen.
In my dream-walk, he was everything to me. I adored the way he brushed my hair back, his tingly touch, and the cliche nickname he gave me because of my obsession with chocolate. He made me feel seen, bringing life to my isolation. Every time he left, my chest ached to follow him or make him stay.Why couldn’t I have met that male when I came to Elora?
Uncurling from my ball, I glanced around. The Celestrus from the forest glowed with warm light.Weren’t we too far away for them to glow?
I grabbed Oliver’s long leg and shook.
Nothing.
“Oliver,” I said.
“What?” he groaned, rolling over.
“Weren’t the flowers normal when we went to sleep?” I continued to stare, muscles tense. But underneath the fear, my worry felt foreign and overwhelming.
“Yeah, why?” he mumbled, stretching out before glancing toward the forest. “Shit.” He sat up, grabbed my hand, and pulled me up with him.
“But what if it’s not him?” I asked, knowing I sounded foolish.
“You really want to risk it? Say it wasn’t the evil prince. If the queen knows about you, then there’s a good chance others do, too.”
He was right. “Earlier, we ran into a blonde Dominion and a redheaded Power. They were after me. Do you think those were the ones you scared off when we were still on earth?”
Oliver nodded. “Sounds like it. And before I touched them with my power, they mumbled about a reward for finding you. That somehewould be pleased. They were so focused on you that they didn’t stand a chance against me.”
“Who do you thinkheis?”
Oliver stared at the glowing Celestrus. “The king?”
I shook my head. “Unless he’s playing a bigger game than I’ve realized. He’s not working with them.”
“I wouldn’t put it past him. But we don’t have time to mull over why everyone wants you. We gotta run.”
“I can’t. My cuffs!”
He glared at my ankles. “I really hate those jangling bastards.” He swooped down and picked me up. “I’m not risking my neck because of your stupid cuffs. Hold on.”
Squeezing my eyes shut from the wind, he luscelered us away from the pond. We ran over flat grassy lands and continued into another forest. A typical, average-looking, non-glowing forest. Squirrels and all.
He stopped when we reached a golden field and put me down, breathing unevenly.
“Why’d we stop?” We couldn’t possibly be far enough away. But if they never saw us leave, they would never know what direction we went.
He gestured in front of him. “Because we need to walk through that, and I figured I’d tell you what to expect first.”
I stared at what he pointed at. Near us, metallic golden strands swayed, but halfway out, a shimmery haze split the field, changing the gold to silver.
