Page 41 of Fortune Academy: Year Two
“I summoned Edwin earlier and he told us to meet him at purgatory.” She brushed her fingers through her hair. “Why he wants to meet there, I have no idea.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat as I followed my mother down golden streets. We walked away from the massive pillars that speared into the sky and towards a darker part of the horizon that I hadn’t noticed before. It reminded me of the horizon when a storm was on the way.
“Purgatory?” I finally asked once we’d entered into a dark mist that blocked out the worst of the brilliant rays. “As in, the place where the dead go before going to Heaven?”
Silvia shrugged one graceful shoulder. “Something like that. It’s a place where supernaturals tend to go who need sanctuary, or for angels who have recently fallen.” She puckered out her lower lip in a frown. “I hope that Devon creature isn’t joining us. That could be why he wants us to meet there.”
“Who’s Devon?” Olivia chimed in, catching up to me and threading her fingers through mine.
“He’s also one of Renee’s mates,” Silvia offered, as if there was nothing strange about that.
“How many mates does she have?” I asked as I side-stepped a shard in the street. The golden tiles had morphed into dark, splintered remains and it was getting harder not to impale myself on the jagged edges.
“Three. An angel of Heaven,” she began with an upswing to her voice, then it promptly fell into a sneer when she added, “as well as an angel of Hell and a vampire.” She shivered, her feathers rustling with the movement. “But I’ll let them explain it to you, especially if you choose to fight your fate.” She peered at me over an arch of her wing. “As I hear you will have multiple mates as well, should fate have its way.”
And there it was. Confirmation that the universe, Heaven and Hell had picked my Virtues for me.
And I was just about to hear what happened when I messed with the order of the cosmos.
Chapter 16
Purgatory was not at all as I had imagined it to be. Black silk drapes strung up on every wall that surrounded lavish furniture and an abode of the most insanely attractive men and women I’d ever seen. They lounged together, some stroking and others who had moved on to kissing, and some were even biting. I did a double-take when I realized some had very pronounced fangs. Were these… vampires?
My gaze was immediately drawn to an angel with massive white wings. He oversaw the gathering from a throne atop a platform with a sour expression on his face. He was the epitome of angelic holiness—and hotness. Short hair, the body of a warrior, and muscles that bulged as he leaned over his knees and watched us with those incredible crystal blue eyes.
Behind him was another angel, but this one had a mischievous glint to his gaze that contrasted against his angelic appearance. He sat on his chair sideways with his legs hanging off the edge. He wore a leather jacket that revealed his spectacular body, ripped jeans, and boots to top off the look.
Now I’ve seen everything.
Silvia perused the situation before walking confidently to the platform. “Didn’t realize you were having a vamp party,” she said, sounding extremely unaMused. “You do realize I’ve brought my daughter.”
“Blame him,” the black-haired angel said, thrusting a thumb behind him.
He lowered one of his wings so I could see past him, revealing a vampire with his teeth sunken into a female’s wrist. I stared for a long time, watching her blood drip to the satin sheets they sat on, only to realize I recognized this woman.
How could I not? Her statue watched over every corner of Fortune Academy.
This was Renee, Fate Witch and Keymaster of the three gates—Heaven, Hell, and Earth.
Now I understood why she had three mates. They were her keys to each realm and she seemed to thoroughly enjoy her vampire’s attentions. I would have assumed that the key to Earth would be a human, but vampires had once been human, and were near-immortal just as a Fate Witch like Renee would be, so it made sense in that regard why the universe would choose a vampire.
Her hooded gaze flickered with recognition when Silvia entered the den where Renee lounged with her vampire. The angel’s heavenly glow brought light to the room and Renee blinked away the spell she’d been under.
“Oh, Silvia! What a nice surprise.” She patted her mate’s shoulder, who growled and unlatched from her wrist. He watched us with an irritated stare as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“Yes, a nice surprise,” he said sarcastically, then his emerald gaze fell on me. One of the only vampires I had ever seen had been at the Monster Arena, but had obviously been a poor representation of the race. This guy was just as drop-dead gorgeous as the angels. His shirtless body rippled with muscle as he stood and his arms looked like they were made for wrapping around Renee’s body, his bloodied fangs accentuating all the dangerous intimacy they shared.
Wow, I don’t think I could ever be with a vampire.
Or could I?
Olivia squeezed my hand and brought me back to my senses. “You can stop staring,” she whispered with a chuckle.
“I was just admiring him,” I shot back. “I’m not blind.”
Renee chuckled as she cleaned her wrist with a towel, wiping away blood and revealing that her wound had already healed. Her eyes glimmered with excitement as she honed in on me. “You’re Lilith, aren’t you?”
“Lily,” I corrected. I wasn’t comfortable with my demonspawn name.
