Two silver spher ical metal objects twirled in Austin ’s hand. I had never seen them before, but I did recall Austin telling me he was making interesting new weapons. As the demons regrouped, Austin rolled one of the silver metal balls right in the middle of them. Bewildered by the sight of the strange object, the demons stood still and watched the ball open up, shooting the same silver flames that shot out from the venator ’s bow s . The d emons screeched in pain while flames blasted out from their bodies.
“Cool. I need one of those.” Davin looked a t Austin.
“As Claudia would say…in y our dreams, ” Austin smirked and ducked a blow.
Davin hurled a demon across the ground , lifting the dirt and knock ing over the demons in its path like bowling pins. “Strike,” Davin bellowed.
It was a strange sight to see the three of them together , especially since Michael kept telling me not to tell anyone about him . Regardless, their presence gave me comfort , especially since I didn ’t know if I could trust Callum ; but a nger still lingered knowing that people I trusted lied to me.
Keeping one eye on my targets, the other eye followed Michael. I couldn ’t help myself . A ll I could do was watch him move in swift , fluid motions. He looked so hot that my mind started to w ander back to our las t encounter, his lustrous unforgettable kiss , and how he made me feel. A t the same time , I couldn ’t help being angry at him , for I was certain that he had also lied to me.
Claudia, look out! Duck! I heard a voice loud and cl ear , as if he ’d said it standing right next to me. Trusting the voice and without a second to lose, I ducked just in time as a flame headed straight for me, missing me by a hair s breadth . Fueling my energy from rage, I could feel myself burning inside. Heat rushed through , and I could see myself lighting up.
“No, Claudia!” I heard Austin, but he wasn ’t telling me to stop , h e was warning me. Austin had rolled one of the silver sphere weapons, only this time a demon picked it up and tossed it toward me.
The next thing I knew the boulder I was standing on blew up. Countless pieces broke apart, darting in every direction. Smoke spiraled, con fusing everyone as it clouded their vision. My body was in midair , doing a backward dive , but I didn ’t land. Instead, Michael caught my fall and I was safe in his arms. We were floating and his wings were marvelously expanded . I was in utter awe. Our eyes locked . No words were spoken as everything and everyone ceased to exist. I forgot where I was and the danger I was in a second ago. My heart hammered faster, not from fear, but from him.
My feet touched the ground as he gently placed me down. I snapped out of my thoughts and paced away quickly , as if he were the enemy. Instead of running into Austin ’s arm s , I jump ed on a boulder away from everyone . Contemplating my next move, I look ed for the demons, but they had all vanished.
“Claudia, come with me, ” Callum insisted. “These morons can ’t keep you safe.”
“Hey…who you calling moron s ? You mean a moron.” Davin raised his brows and pointed his finger at Austin.
Austin rolled his eyes . “No more games, Claudia .” Austin ’s tone was stern. “You could have gotten killed. Come with me. I ’m not asking. I ’m demanding.”
I gave him my “I don ’t think so ” look . How dare he use that tone on me, like he was scolding a child ? Just for that, I was more determined not to go with him.
“You ’ll be safe with me, Claudia. All they ever d id was lie to you, ” Callum interject ed .
Callum’s word s stabbed through my heart. He was right. All they ever did was lie to me. I o nly ha d a couple of options—one, try to escape all of them or two, go with one.
I crossed my arms, glared at Austin and shook my head. Michael attempted , too. “If you don ’t want to go with that moron then come with me, but don ’t go with Callum.”
I shook my head. “I don ’t know you any better than Callum and I thought you had gone rogue, but that was a lie . How do you expect me to ever trust you again?” I said to Michael , piercing my eyes at him without care. At that moment I saw sadness in his eyes I had never seen before. I wasn ’t going to feel bad. It was the truth , even if I was starting to remember things. Right now he was nobody to me , even though he made me feel like I ’d gone to Heaven.
Austin took several steps. “Please, Claudia , y our friends are worried. Let ’s go home.”
“I have no friends. The only friend I remember is Patty.” I wasn ’t sure what I said was true, but I wanted to see their reaction s . Austin and Davin looked shock ed , but Michael showed no expression.
“So you ’re remembering things. That ’s great. Let us help you sort it out, ” Austin suggested, moving even closer.
“You take one more step, Austin , and I swear, I will disappear, ” I said , feeling furious. “You all have a lot to explain to me.”
“You ’re right. Let ’s go home and I ’ll explain everything.”
“So he can tell you more lie s , ” Callum scoffed.
I flashed my eyes at Callum. “How well did you know Gamma?”
“You mean Lucy Reed? Very well. She t old me all about you. She loved—”
“Claudia, ” Michael interrupted. “Those are just words , easily said. Anyone could say them to you. Don ’t believe him.”
“Look me in the eye and tell me you didn ’t lie to me too.” I waited a few seconds, but he couldn ’t , and for some reason, my heart sank. I had hope d with all my heart that he was not i nvolved in this tunnel of lies.
“Callum, take me with you, ” I said, looking straight at Michael, Dav in and Austin, feeling satisfie d that I ’d made my own decision, and there was nothing they could do about it.
Michael grabbed Austin just as he was about to spr i ng toward me. I leaped in front of Callum and focus ed my eyes on the ground , wondering if I was making a grave mistake. I was acting out from anger and not with a clear mind. Would I regret it?
Unexpectedly, I heard Michael ’s voice inside my head. Claudia, please don ’t go. But if you must, know that I will find you. Be careful. Don ’t trust anything he says. I ’ll always be there.
Startled that he could do such a thing, I looked at him to let him know I heard. I hated that his voice alone could make my heart flutter even when I was extremely mad at him . He gave me a short smile and glared at Callum. “I will find you. Mark my words. You hurt her and I swear I will kill you , even if I have to spend my eternity hunting you down.”
“Yeah…me too, ” Davin stepped forward , acting brave all of sudden. He was so cute. I almost smiled, but didn ’t.
As they became translucent, fading away from my vision, a shot of icy cold chills ran down my spine.
Chapter 18
“Did you tell her?” Davin accused Austin.
“What? No! Are you out of your mind? Did you?”
“No , o f course not. But how did she find out about Patty?”
“Maybe the lover boy told her. He was always around, ” Austin huffed, looping his finger up in the air. “Speaking of which, where did he go?” Austin scanned the perimeter but there w as no sign of Michael.
“He ’s following their track. He ’ll let me know where he is, but I ’m not going to tell you, ” Davin teased, giving him a wicked smile.
“Yeah, you alkins think you ’re some hot stuff. Let me tell you one thing, venators always find a way. You can ’t hide from me. I ’ll find you.”
“Oh yeah? What ’s that demon doing over there?” Davin pointed behind Austin.
When Austin turned to look, Davin took off. His hum orous laughter rang through Specus. “Got yah.”
“Where are w e?” Claudia asked as Callum released her from his grasp.
“Parad isus .”
Claudia blinked her eyes with a look of surprise. “What did you say?” She quickly gazed at her surroundings.
“Paradisus was once a sanctuary for Earth angels. Now we live in your world. Come with me. I have something to show you .”
Where? Claudia thou
ght, but she followed him since she had nowhere else to go. As they followed a flowing stream, she could hear the sound of a waterfall . Sure enough, one appeared right in front of her.
“Last time you were here, you were on the other side of the hills, ” he said , poin ting as he moved forward, gliding from one solid rock to another, heading behind the waterfall. Claudia followed every step as they entered through.
Magnificent, Claudia thought. It was like a world within a world as it materialized in front of her. The beauty inside was a replicate of Paradi sus—rich and vibrant . “Wow….” Claudia gazed, feeling amazed such beauty could exist inside the waterfall.
“What do you think?” Callum asked to get her attention , even though he already knew how mesmerized Claudia was.
“It ’s unbelievable .” She carefully advanced with small steps, afraid that any subtle movement would make this world vanish before she could embrace it to examine it further. To her surprise butterflies and dragonflies that seemed to have come out of nowhere dance d around her. A few fluttered just out of her reach, causing a smile that was just as brilliant as the creatures that enraptured her. What looked like purple mountain s ahead seemed more like a painting in their beauty . It was incredible. If she hadn’t know n any better, she would have thought it was Heaven.
“Yes. And you , my dear, can hide out here with them. No evil souls can enter here unless you grant them permission.”
“How a bout the dark shadow s ? They were—”
“Correction. Last time they were on Paradi s us ground, but here, where you are standing , is different.”
“Oh….” she said , half listening as she bent down to inhale the scent and brushe d the soft petals . “Do the venator s know this place exists?”
“No.”
Claudia froze, frightened for no reason except for the fact that the venators had no knowledge of this place. That mea nt for sure that Austin couldn ’t find her. She suddenly felt alone. Even with Callum ’s presence, she felt unsafe. She didn ’t know him at all. How could she have trust ed him over her friends ? But then she thought how her friends had lied to her. “I guess that ’s good then.”
“After all, they did lie to you, ” he reminded, his tone accusatory.
“How do you know this?”
“I know everything , my dear. Do you think it was right of them to do so?”
Suddenly, she began to feel heat ris ing from the pit of her stomach to her face. Claudia placed her left palm on her cheek , hoping there was no evidence of how she felt—ang ry . “I…I don ’t think it was right. I don ’t know who I am. How could they do this t o me?” Claudia ’s eyes began to well with tears. She didn ’t want him to see her weak ness , but she had no control. Feeling betrayed and with hatred filling her soul, she wanted to cry. She swallowed hard and blinked back the tears , concentrat ing on the butterflies in front of her.
Callum wanted to use Claudia’s weakness to his advantage to win her trust. He took several steps to close the g ap between them. Claudia smoothly took several steps back , trying not to make it obvious she didn ’t want him near. Something about him gave her frightening chills.
For the first time she really examined his face. His eyes were piercing dark. His lips were red, like he applied lipstick . When he reached for her to comfort her, she saw his thin, boney finge rs that he always seemed to hide. Now she knew why. They were gruesome. When Callum saw the look on Claudia ’s face, he jerked them behind his back.
“Maybe I should leave. I ’m only causing too many problem s for everyone ,” Claudia said.
“No!” Callum snapped.
Surprised by his sudden change of tone, Claudia jerked back . Callum saw the fright ened look on her face. “I ’m so sorry. I didn ’t mean to frighten you. Please forgive me. I ’m only trying to look after you. After all, Lucy would want it that way. She would want me to keep you safe.”
“My grandmother already asked Katherine to assign a guardian angel to look after me. Thank you, but I don ’t need you or anyone. I can take care of myself.” Claudia tried to sound brave and strong, wanting him to understand that he w ould not intimidate her. “I have my father ’s soul. I know my strength s . I know I have great powers —”
“Yes, ” Callum said excitedly. “That is the reason why your memories have been taken. You do understand , don ’t you? The Twelve were afraid you may take them down one day. They wanted to control you , just like they want to control everyone and everything in this world.”
Claudia didn’t want to believe his words; she wished he hadn ’t put those thoughts in her mind. “I…I….” She looked away, confused, feeling embarrassed she was taken advantage of .
“I can help you get your memories back.”
Claudia’s eyes snapped to his . “How?”
“Go back to Island of Eden, find the Tree of Knowledge , and bring me a forbidden apple.”
“A forbidden apple? Why?”
“After I bless it, you will eat it and then your memories will be restored. You will remember everything .” Callum excited ly rubbed his hands together.
“But you told me I need to stay here.” Claudia said , questioning his motivation .
“Yes. You need to be here to stay safe, but if you go and come back quickly, then it will be fine.”
“Why can ’t you go and get it for me?”
“Earth angels are not allowed on Island of Eden.”
“Oh .”
“They took away your memories. Do y ou want them back , or do you want to live like this for the rest of your life?”
Even though Claudia wasn’t sure if she could trust Callum , she was desperate to remember her past. She would do just about anything . Bringing back a forbidden apple and eating it didn ’t seem like it would do any harm. After all, she ’d eaten one with Austin . “Okay. Take me back home.”
“I can only take you back to Specus. You ’ll have to find your way back.”
“No problem. I can do that.”
“And one more thing…don ’t let anyone know you are taking an apple . They will try to stop you.”
Claudia wondered if she was doing the right thing. What did she have to lose? It was just an apple , and she ’d at least get her memory back. “I ’ll try my best. Take me back please.”
Satisfied, Callum gr inned. His eyes spark l ed like shiny black marble s in the light.
Chapter 19
Going back to Island of Eden was a piece of cake, but retrieving a forbidden apple was almost impossible , especially since Claudia didn ’t know if she could part the tall grass. Even if she could, how would she get through it without feeling lightheaded like the last time ? She guess ed she would have to try to trick Austin into getting h er one. First she had to worry about how Austin would react when he saw her. Would he be upset , or would he welcome her back with open arms?
Under normal circumstances , Island of Eden was so quiet that the sound of the waves crashing along the shore was all that could be heard. The weather was always perfect as the day or night illuminated it s beauty upon the land. Dur ing the day, the heavenly sky would bless the living, providing warmth and giving feeling s of tranquility. During the evening, no matter what phase of the moon orbited, it glisten ed across the ocean with a gentle reflection th at dazzled like diamonds . But this time when she arrived, music blasted through the house .
Claudia entered her room. Everything looked neat and intact the way she ’d left it. Ignoring the noise, s he quickly showered and changed into black skinny jeans, a black T-shirt and a pair of black boots she ’d bought when shopping with her friends. Since t he music continu ed to explode accompanied by sounds of laughter , she tiptoed out of her room, h e ading to Austin ’s room. With one hand barely pressed on the door , she thought about what she should do , open or walk away?
As these thoughts ran through her mind, the door opened as if Holly knew she was there, and she pulled her in. “Just in time for some fun, ” she bellowed over the music
. “Hey…we bought that together. Looks nice.”
Austin looked comfortable sitting on the edge of his bed while Delilah and Gracie sat on each side of him. He glanced sharply at Claudia for a split second and turned away without a care. Not even a smile or a hello departed from his lips. The only emotion spread across his face was a luring smile to the girls sitting adjacent to him.
Holly tugged Claudia to where Michelle was swaying to the music by herself, tossing her hair and having the time of her life. Michelle picked up an apple that was inside a crystal bowl and she move d seductively toward Austin.
“The forbidden fruit,” Michelle said. After she took a bit e , she offered it to him and he graciously took one. If anyone could make eating an apple sexy, it was Austin.
Claudia felt uncomfortable by the displays of affection that she had never seen before and f ocused her eyes elsewhere. She couldn ’t help the sudden jealousy and sadness that ripped through her heart. She would have at least expected him to run to her and express his happiness that she was home and safe, but he didn ’t even acknowledge her presence. In fact, he was flirting heavily , and perhaps even more so when Claudia gazed toward them.
“Hey, where ’ve you been?” Holly asked, bumping into Claudia, giggling. “We should go out. You know…do the girls ’ night out thing.”
Claudia faked a smile. “Yeah…sure.” At least Holly was happy to see her.
Holly stopped, looking around as if she was looking for something or someone. “Hey, where ’s Avalon? She was here a minute ago .” When no one replied or seemed to care, Holly continued. “I love this song. Come on and move a little, girl.”
Claudia ignored Holly. Her eyes were focu s ed on the for bidden apples . She wondered if she was doing the right thing, but the more she saw Austin ’s flirtatious side and the more he continued to ignore her, the more she wanted to leave.
How dare all of them pretend not to know that her memories were taken? It suddenly felt hot , and if steam could have rise n out of her head, they would have seen it. She didn ’t want to be rude, but she felt she had no choice. No t knowing what to do and too afraid of what she would do, she grabbed an apple and ran out the door.