Essence of the Angels (The Starlight Chronicles #2)

Chapter Seven

Lucy's POV

Andrew let out a cry as the black marks spread through his body, turning his skin pale and draining the glow from him.

"Oh my God," I whispered, staring in horror.

Irma took the opportunity to grab Chrissy, but the damage was already done.

I was anticipating a full transformation into something truly horrendous, just as we'd seen with Neo, but after a minute of Andrew struggling and withering, he regained his bearings. His hands were claw like, black and ghastly, and his eyes were sullen, but apart from that . . . he was okay.

But for how long?

"We need to get him to a healer. Now," Irma prompted, handling a struggling Chrissy. Kyra got to her feet steadily, looking at her glowing skin in shock.

"Kyra," Irma said, and she immediately snapped to attention. "I need you to go find Ivan. Get him to bring guards with him."

Kyra nodded, her eyes wide, and took off running back through the tunnel. She moved so fast. My stomach was turning to lead as I realized Kyra—my sister—suddenly had angelic abilities.

Irma turned to us. "The rest of you will have to wait at the entrance to the Sanctuary until we can transfer DNA to you. I'll send someone."

She then gestured at Andrew. "You need to come with me."

He nodded as he staggered to his feet. He followed Irma, who led a restrained Chrissy through the tunnel.

"Wait, why is she coming with us?" Jason asked, as we followed pursuit.

"She knows too much. It's not safe to leave her behind," Irma explained. "I'll deal with her. The rest of you, just follow the instructions you're given until we can reunite."

I nodded very slowly, barely registering anything. I felt numb, and my stomach was twisting with panic and worry.

Kyra couldn't be an angel.

She couldn't be.

This life was too dangerous. I needed her to be safe with my parents—not running off with the other angels. If anything happened to me, my parents would be devastated. But if they lost both of us . . .

When we reached the final gateway to the Angel Sanctuary, Andrew, Chrissy and Irma continued through the rippling, golden door and into the world beyond. We were left waiting, gazing through the doorway as if it were made of jelly and everything on the other side were foggy and far away. I could barely make out the buildings and streets awaiting us.

Jason slumped down against the wall. Sticky, dark blood coated his jeans.

"Are you okay?" I asked nervously, kneeling next to him. He gave me a strained smile.

"Fine," he grunted, hoisting his leg into a more comfortable position. "It's just a cut."

I grimaced, studying the wound. It wasn't just a cut— he was bleeding too much, and he needed to be treated. I grabbed my dagger from my pocket and tore the bottom half of my shirt away. Jason watched as I wrapped it around the wound carefully. He winced as I applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

"That hurts," he muttered, and I couldn't help but smirk as I remembered the time he had treated my broken nose. Now he knew how it felt!

"Why are you even bothering? You know a healer angel will be able to treat me in a couple of minutes," he added, raising an eyebrow at me.