Frosted Torment (Marked Mortals Saga #1)

Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18

“ L et’s move on,” she said, urging me forward with an outstretched hand.

I took a deep breath and followed her along the worn dirt road. Its once-distinct tire ruts were now obscured beneath lush grass and tangled underbrush. Demons could be anywhere, and even if the wards had returned, they had failed before, meaning it could happen again.

Not to mention real wolves that could jump out at any moment. Even with angel essence, how could Ena, another human, protect us?

“So, the essence helps you perform ceremonies,” I stated for confirmation. “Does it let you do anything else?”

“A few rules,” Ena declared, ignoring my questions and treading ahead.

My pace now matched hers, and she removed her work gloves and shoved them into her back pocket. I threw my head back and groaned when I realized I had left mine back at the gate. She produced another pair of gloves from the inside lining of her coat.

These were different and made of a thin rubber-like material to match the russet hue of her flawless skin. A group of three small bumps gathered on the tip of each finger. She pulled them on, then peered over at me.

“What in the world are these?” I asked, taking her hands without asking, flipping them over to inspect them.

“Silicone gloves.” A coy smile spread across her face, and she continued forward.

“If you’re going to wear them, at least tell me why,” I implored her.

“You asked if I could do anything else by having angel essence, so I’m going to show you.” She stopped and faced me, taking a moment to study my reaction. “Many people think we are magical. We’re not.” Her lips pursed as she eyed me like she was making sure I was willing to listen. “We are spiritual, and we have a deep appreciation for the universe and all beings.”

I acknowledged with a nod. “Yes. Of course.”

“What we do and how we celebrate our existence is important to our heritage. It keeps our ways and culture alive.” Her eyes glinted as she stared at me.

“Absolutely.” I beamed. “We should admire and respect it all.”

“Nakoma and I are both medicine people. But I can’t perform the ceremonies for the angels without their essence,” she continued, worry crossing her face.

“What is it that you do for the angels?” I asked with a flutter of excitement in my stomach.

Her eyes lit up with pride. “With guidance from the spirits and the angels, I created a ceremonial bundle to use during the wolf ceremony.”

“I’ve heard about sacred bundles for Native celebrations.”

Ena shook her head. “Sacred bundles are for my people. The one I put together is not the same, but it is similar and sacred for the angels.”

I swallowed hard, my throat felt dry, and I blinked as my eyes stung. “You helped save Baz.”

Ena’s big smile illuminated her face. “It’s beautiful to watch the transformation every time it’s done.” She raised her gloved hands, allowing the thin material to catch the light. “And these keep me hidden,” she said.

My eyes narrowed as I ran my fingers across the thin material. “These are what, silicone?”

“There’s an old priest who has lived on the ranch for decades,” Ena explained. “He’s also a scientist. And since my abilities produce an energy that’s like runway lights for demons, he and Nakoma made these gloves to mute that energy.”

As she spoke, I couldn’t help but reflect on the energy in me and how it sent out a locator signal to both angels and demons. I let go of her hands and took a few steps back. “What other powers do you have, Ena?”

She grinned with infectious enthusiasm. “I can manipulate the air for one. I call them enhancements.”

I laughed softly, a sound that danced through the air. “So that’s why we didn’t need the gun.”

“To some extent, yeah.” She walked down the path to Nevaeh and Dawson’s house. I watched her go as she rattled on about the wards and the cover that the trees provided.

A moment of envy flooded my chest. Her beauty and her intelligence were captivating, a stark contrast to my own sense of purposelessness. Ena embodied her heritage and powers with ease, whereas I still struggled to find my place in the world.

I was a curse from a petulant angel who was hell-bent on destroying humans. He, or the demons, were going to use me as ammunition to end us all if I didn’t find a way out of this. Once I caught up to her, we walked in silence for a few minutes and I began to think about how much of a family Ena and my friends had become.

My relationship with Jossy, Ivy, and Lex wasn’t genuine like I’d thought. They befriended me to see if I had divine secrets tucked away inside, and now, what was I to them? Not only Vincent, but Jossy and Lex made it clear that my safety was a priority so the world wouldn’t go boom.

“It must be nice to have a connection to who you are and where you come from,” I said, wanting to delve deeper into what she knew about this world.

“Sure, but learning that I could manipulate air wasn’t easy,” she mentioned with a whisper. “But aren’t you here to figure out those things for yourself, too?”

“I’m not sure how far I’ll get if I don’t get my soul back, especially with demons after me. Not to mention this guy in my head?—”

She stopped walking and pivoted with her palm up. “What guy is in your head, Noa? Nobody said anything about that.”

Realization hit me straight in the chest because I got too comfortable with her. “Forget I mentioned it, Ena. Please.” I walked ahead, but she caught up and grabbed my arm.

“I need details,” she pressed. “With Maros and his demons attacking us, I need to know who’s in your head. ”

Frustrated, I grabbed at my hair and let out a groan. “I don’t know. And I haven’t told the others, so you can’t say anything.”

“You didn’t tell Baz?” she asked, giving me a curious look.

“I haven’t had a chance. Two days ago I was going to my birthday party and now I’m in the middle of fucking Oz.” A sharp jolt of pain shot through my skull, and I doubled over. With wide eyes, I turned to Ena and choked out, “We need to run.”

She stood tall, and her expression turned grim. “Why, Noa?”

“He’s coming,” I admitted as shakes ran through my body.

“Who’s coming?” Ena looked around with her palms out in front of her. She began circling me, darting her eyes in every direction.

My scar throbbed, and my mouth twisted as I strained. “The man in my head, and unless you want me to pass out right here, we need to move now.”

I took off running at breakneck speed through the forest, Ena struggling to keep up behind me. The memories of a cherry blossom tree and a raging waterfall flashed before my eyes like a warning sign, igniting sparks of fear in my mind. With every stride, I pushed myself harder, determined to outrun this terror. But as we approached a fallen tree and tangled brush blocking our path, the fear set in.

“On it!” Ena called out and thrust her hands forward, launching the tree deep into the woods.

She’d somehow summoned a gust of wind so strong that it picked up scattered underbrush, giving us a cleaner path out of there. We rounded a small curve as I continued to blink through images flooding my mind. As soon as I stepped into a wide-open clearing, mowed into a perfect circle encased in a line of trees, the images stopped.

The pain in my scar subsided. Uncertain of what it meant, I continued to run out into the field until I finally slowed down to a jog.

“What gives, Noa?” Ena ran up next to me, then stopped to lean over. She hugged her stomach while taking short, deep breaths.

“Not sure.” I shook my head as I scanned the clearing. “I don’t feel anything now.”

Bent over, she planted her hands above her knees. “You,” she panted, “don’t?”

I shook my head as I looked over at an old, weathered totem pole standing tall in the middle of the clearing. Each part was hard to make out from where we stood. From what I gathered when I examined it, there was a bear paw and a fish carved into it.

Three rows of wooden benches and rocks fanned out in a half-circle with an aisle down the middle. To my left stood a white house remodeled from a two-story barn. It had a red metal roof and a bricked silo that remained attached to the front right side. The front had floor-to-ceiling glass-paned windows and a red-stained, oversized wooden door that matched the roof.

A loud crack echoed through the forest, and I turned to scan my surroundings. Dark shadows emerged from behind the trees, followed by another. My heart seemed to stop as two intense pairs of piercing lavender eyes fixed on me with predatory focus.

As they stepped out from the cover of the trees, their silver fur shimmered with each slow and calculated move. I tumbled backward into Ena, uncertain of their intentions, but this time I fell into a pile of gravel. My hands broke my fall, and I rolled over, spitting dirt from my mouth.

“Dawson!” Ena cupped her hands around her mouth and called out toward the house. “We’re going to need an ice pack!”

“You okay, Noa?” Baz called out to me, his breathing becoming faster with each quickening step.

“I’m fine,” I grumbled, feeling more humiliated than anything else. “Your friends scared me.”

“Holy night, girl. What the heck is goin’ on?” An aged hand appeared in front of my face to help me up.

I looked up at the sun and squinted, not quite able to make out the figure of an elderly man. He wore denim overalls over a white t-shirt, and mud covered his work boots, showing signs of wear and tear.

“On top of freakin’ demons and oversized wolves jumping out at me like I’m in a never-ending haunted house? And my best friend fighting for her life,” I snapped, grabbing his rough, calloused hand. “I damn near peed my pants in those woods.”

“The name’s Dawson,” he offered, helping me back onto my feet unaffected by my outburst. Then, he gave a curious glance at Ena. “That true about the woods?”

Ena shrugged one shoulder, and her eyes begged me. “Kind of, but you should tell them, Noa.”

I looked away, ignoring her intentions and saw the truck we left back at the gate parked next to the house. The front door slammed, and Jossy and Lex came running across the path. Nakoma trailed behind them, offering a wave to the other wolves. My heart was in my throat as worry for Ivy took over any other fears I had .

Baz darted out from between the house and a row of stables to the right.

“What happened to you?” asked Jossy.

“Nothing,” I insisted. “How’s Ivy?”

Ena shook her head, then blurted, “Yes and no, right, Noa?”

My eyes widened and I chewed my bottom lip. It was a situation I wasn’t ready to explain. “Damn, Ena.”

“What is she talking about?” Baz asked with a questioning look as he sat down next to me. His head towered at least a foot above mine, and I shrank back into myself.

The other two wolves joined us, and I felt the world closing in on me. I couldn’t breathe. Now, I had no choice but to tell them about the man infiltrating my mind since Ena had outed me.

“The pain in my head,” I said, annoyance boiling up inside me. “My scar is bothering me and the headaches. There’s a reason, and it’s?—”

“Maros,” Lex interrupted me before I even started. I shook my head in disagreement as he pointed to the sky. “Everybody, inside!”