Frosted Torment (Marked Mortals Saga #1)

Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

L ex released me as Nakoma emerged from around the corner, carrying another duffle bag full of weapons. He had the long silver bow he used against Jax earlier draped over his shoulder.

“You’re pretty good with that thing,” I admitted as he stopped in front of me to hand Jossy the duffel bag.

“This is Lulu.” Nakoma swung the bow around to the front and caressed its sleek silver limb. “You were informed about angel wings. This beauty here allows me to pin them down.”

He brought the bow to his soft brown lips, placing a kiss on her, then winked at me. I watched his fingers glide over the bow with precision as he adjusted the grip and tested its pull.

“Pin the wings.” I repeated his words back to him, my face painted in horror. “Then do you bury them once they die?”

Nakoma closed his eyes and sighed before staring right into mine. “The dark angels are different, Noa. Some of them get buried, but most of them aren’t. ”

My brows pinched together. “What do you do with them?” I asked.

Jossy passed a cylinder-shaped quiver to Nakoma, their eyes meeting in a silent exchange. Nakoma nodded, pulling out a single arrow before handing back the container.

“They’re used for the betterment of science,” Nakoma admitted as he inspected the arrow’s shaft.

A jolt of recognition ran through me. My gaze found Father O’Neil, remembering Ena’s words about a priest. He now highlighted different parts of the map, then went back to scribbling in his journal. I’d never known of such a combination for career choices; then again, I wasn’t sure how many priests knew about the angels.

Nakoma continued, “O’Neil and I created the arrows from the ground-up bones of the dark angels.”

Jossy patted my arm and lightly touched the tip of the arrow Nakoma held. “It’s a good thing to grind up their bones. Trust me. Because the darker we go, the stronger the bones become.”

“Gross,” I muttered with a shiver that ran across my skin.

My body tensed with unsettling thoughts as Nakoma handed Jossy the arrow. Instinctively, I shoved my hands into my pockets for comfort. What would keep a fallen angel from going completely dark?

Maybe finding someone to spend their life with, like Jossy had with Nakoma. Was it all about hope, or was it something else? Jossy pressed a minuscule lever at the base of the arrowhead. My eyes grew wider as three more blades sprang forth from its center, adding to the already daunting display of torture tactics.

“We still have our powers, and those can’t be taken away,” Jossy pointed out. “So if one of us turns dark, things become amplified.”

He handed the arrow to me, and I carefully removed my hands from my pockets to hold it. I inspected each side with its unusual etchings adorning every inch of the shaft’s surface. They reminded me of the ones on my bracelet.

I handed Jossy the arrow, asking, “Are the dark angels stronger than regular fallen ones?”

Jossy and Nakoma glanced at one another, then Nakoma turned to me with a sigh.

“Somewhat,” Nakoma stated. “The black magic of demons enhances their powers.”

“Which makes their bones great arrows,” Jossy added as he filled Nakoma’s quiver with more arrows.

“And what about Lulu? What is she made out of?” I inquired further.

“She,” Nakoma lifted Lulu, lining his fingers on the grip, “was crafted from an ancient Kauri tree long before the Church gifted her to me.”

Then, in one swift motion, he drew back the string with his right hand and anchored it against his cheek. Setting his middle finger at the corner of his mouth, he closed his left eye and pretended to shoot at a target.

I imagined him shooting arrows into Vincent and Vallen. And the moment he did, I’d have them both. I’d cut out their fake angel hearts and torch them while I sawed off their wings. Then I’d mount and display them on the walls of my living room like works of art.

I shut my eyes, imagining my plan when Jossy walked by and grasped my wrist. “Why haven’t I seen this before?” he questioned while twirling my bracelet between his fingers.

“O’Neil!” Jossy yelled. “Come over here and take a look at this.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked as my heartbeat grew in my ears. “It was my mom’s. Besides, Lex saw it, and he didn’t think anything of it.”

O’Neil gave a weary rub of his eyes before pushing his glasses back into place on the bridge of his nose, leaning in for a closer look at the bracelet. “Ah, yes. I don’t know where he got it, but Vincent gave it to Sasha after your mother was born.”

“It looks like someone made this in a kindergarten pottery class,” I remarked, eyeing the bracelet with cynicism.

“Unique as it is,” Lex acknowledged as he walked back toward us with a slice of bannock bread slathered in jelly, “I don’t put things under a microscope like Joss.”

With a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of long-held regrets, O’Neil shook his head. “Vincent wasn’t one to explain himself,” he remarked.

“He lied to us,” Lex stated, then swallowed his last bite of bread. “About everything.”

“And the symbols,” I interjected. “What do they signify?”

I rubbed my wrist and realized the bracelet was one of the things Vincent would return to claim. The other was me.

“They’re angel runes,” Jossy explained. “But, with any language, their order means something different for everything, like hieroglyphics.”

“What if they’re protection runes?” I posed as I tapped each one.

Baz grumbled with skepticism as he settled onto the floor in the living room. He crossed his paws, then laid his head down while we tried to decipher the runes.

“Can I take a better look at it?” Jossy asked me.

“Sure.” I gestured with a casual flick of my hand as I moved to remove the bracelet from my wrist. “It has to mean something to Vincent if he needed to lie about where Sasha got it.”

Jossy extended his hand, waiting for me to place it in his palm. “You and Baz need to get going, Noa. Come on.”

“I’m trying,” I chuckled, feeling a flutter of anxiety as I met his ocean gaze. “It slid on easily the other day, but it’s like my hand is too big now or something. It won’t come off.”

“I guess that’s a good thing. Later then,” he commented.

I watched as Jossy walked over to Nakoma, planting a light kiss on his lips. Nakoma closed his eyes and relaxed as Jossy pulled his forehead to his. “Are you ready to canvass the area, babe?” asked Jossy.

“Let’s do it,” Nakoma answered. He pushed Jossy’s fiery hair behind his ear, then kissed him back. This time with more force.

My eyes lingered on their tender moment, and a wave of happiness washed over me. Jossy deserved this love, this companionship that seemed to fit him like a glove. And the way Nakoma held Jossy, it was clear he cherished him. As they parted, Nevaeh cleared her throat behind me and brought me back to my reality.

The front door opened, and Ena walked in with a backpack and a snow jacket. She held the door open for Jossy and Nakoma, and once they left, she placed the backpack at my feet. I took the jacket with a forced smile.

Stepping toward Lex, he placed a hand on her lower back, and she breathed, “I still can’t believe Vincent and Ivy did this. ”

“I can,” said Dawson as he loaded bullets into a magazine. “Always walkin’ around irritated with her nose in the air.”

“I don’t think it was that, honey,” Nevaeh countered and holstered another gun at her side. She looked at me with a soft smile.

“Oh yeah? What then?” Dawson asked, and, placing his hands on his hips, waited for a response, but he added, “The nonsense about Noa being unable to love Ivy is ridiculous.”

It stung me to my core to think I was the reason for Ivy’s betrayal. It also pissed me off that she chose to fall here to help, then went off and joined Maros because she couldn’t have a human.

She couldn’t have me .

Bullshit!

“Let that anger fuel you because you’re going to need it,” Baz interjected as his warm gaze met mine.

“Not right now, Baz,” I snapped in frustration. “Besides, I thought you couldn’t read my thoughts?”

“You said that out loud in your head to me.” He stood and tipped his head back. A gesture for me to come stand with him by the garage opening.

I groaned, but hoisted the backpack over my shoulders and joined him anyway.

“I’ll enlighten you on how to shield your thoughts so they don’t come out as a spoken voice in your head,” he offered.

I laid the jacket on a small end table next to him.

“Can we do that?” I asked, trying not to sound too eager. I didn’t want to reveal all my vulnerabilities to him.

As I crossed my arms over my chest, I observed the group getting ready for battle. I had no experience or training in fighting. With any luck, Baz and my friends would be able to defend me.

“For brief periods of time, yes,” Baz confirmed as I fidgeted in place before finally resting my head on his leg. “Remember, the purpose of my fall was to help restore your soul, so our connection should stay open as much as possible.”

Nevaeh continued talking to Dawson behind us. I tried to ignore it, but it was impossible as I reeled from the loss of my best friend.

“Ivy lost faith after waiting so long, Dawson,” I heard Nevaeh say. “Vincent preyed on her for it.”

Dawson huffed, then grabbed a trucker hat from a rack by the back door. After placing it on his head, he holstered his pistol on the side of his jeans, then strapped a tactical knife to his leg.

“Whatever the reason, she sure as shit mucked it all up,” he sniped.

I still felt a sense of loyalty to Ivy no matter her issues, and I made sure to let the others know.

“Ivy was collateral damage and, like Nevaeh said, they used her.” I scowled at them, then turned my attention back to Baz. “Can we go now?”

In that moment, an ear-piercing blast outside rattled the walls of the house, causing everyone to scatter in a desperate attempt for cover. Baz shielded me with his body as another thud echoed through the room, this time near the front door.

We lifted our heads and saw Dawson slouching against the wall next to the fireplace. He wrapped his hand around his ear while crinkling his brows in discomfort.

“I’m all right!” Dawson called out, then took a finger and jiggled the inside of his ear.

He stood up, then stumbled into the kitchen. The sound of running water filled the air as he washed his face with agitation. A fist slammed down on the counter, and I jumped.

“We prepared for this, old man!” Nevaeh called out to him.

“Yeah, yeah,” Dawson groaned.

He walked back out to the living room when another tremor shook the ground beneath us. I jumped up and met Baz’s fierce gaze, a silent exchange of understanding passing between us. He nudged me with a feather touch and bowed down for me to climb up his leg and secure myself to his back.

As I climbed up for the first time, I realized there was enough room for two people, and I prayed I’d stay on.

“What do I hold onto?” I asked, flashing my black eyes at him.

Lex grabbed a thick leather belt from a hat organizer attached to the wall by the back door. He passed it around Baz’s neck and buckled it.

“Grab onto the strap, Noa. You can hook your arms through it and lie down,” he advised.

As I tried to steady my racing heart, Ena tossed me the jacket, which I promptly slipped my arms into backward as O’Neil secured a dagger holster around one of my thighs. He shoved two daggers into it - their wolf-head pommels glinting in the dim light. He placed the other dagger I had left on the table in my palm.

“Hang onto him, Noa,” O’Neil ordered.

As the threat of demons capturing me began to set in, my bones rattled. “I’ll try,” I said, tucking the sheathed dagger into my bra .

“You will do more than try, Noa,” Baz countered with a seriousness that sounded as if he were scolding me.

Lex turned and met Ena’s gaze, his eyes scanning her disheveled hair and stained shirt before asking, “Are you okay?”

Ena nodded, then Lex placed her hand in his, and they stepped through the garage door into the backyard. A sharp, sulfuric stench hit my nose, nearly making me gag. In the distance, Jossy fought fiercely with fallen angels who had once been his family. Nakoma and Lulu turned them to ash from the ground.

As Ena put on her gloves that acted like a talisman to hide her energy, a tremor shook the house. My stomach twisted, a knot of fear threatening to choke me. As I reached for the leather strap around Baz’s neck, my grip tightened with such force that I thought I felt fur ripping out from between my fingers.

“I’m so sorry!” I winced, then loosened my hands to check my palms.

“Hardly felt it. Put your head down, and do not let go,” Baz directed, and stepped one paw onto the patio.

He crouched down, ready to run. I peered into the darkness, then glanced back into the living room one last time.

Nevaeh patted my leg. “You’re all right. Don’t do anything stupid, and stay alive.”

A laugh caught in my throat as she stepped back. “You got it,” I promised her.

Lex stood close to me and Baz and said, “It’s Vincent’s crew, so keep your head on a swivel, Baz.”

“Ready?” Ena asked, and I shook my head, indicating I was not ready for any of this. She raised her hands, then looked up at me. “I’m going to create a diversion. Whatever you do, don’t look back.”

She closed her eyes and began to hum with her arms stretched out, palms up like she was offering something. The wind picked up and the windows rattled. A chill ran through me as her hands began to dance in front of her. A tree to the left shook, and the roots began to break free from the ground.

“Hold on tight, Noa,” Baz instructed as his body readied beneath me.

Grasping onto Baz with all my strength, I buried my face in the hood of the jacket. The wind felt like a hurricane force as he took off into the night. His powerful strides covered ground faster than I ever thought possible. Baz snarled as I heard a Baneful one lunge for us, but with the shrill it unleashed, I knew Baz had killed it.