I shut down my emotions, sending out a silent thanks that Phoenix’s essence had mutated in this way, rather than amplifying emotion as it did for him. ‘You need to leave,’ I said. ‘I’m tired and we have a big day tomorrow.’
He stepped in dangerously close and his words were like a growl. ‘I walked away that night in London. I was wrong. I should never have given up. I think of all that time we denied our feelings for one another – all of that lost time – and I think of the past year, lost too. And now, to know that you live every breathing moment in intolerable pain on top of the heartache of us not being together …’ He shook his head, breathing in deeply. ‘I’ll walk out of here and let you get some sleep, but hear me clearly when I tell you, no. In no uncertain terms, under no circumstances, Violet, will I ever leave you again.’
CHaPteR SeveNteeN
‘You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.’
Daniel 5:27
the next morning Gray and I arrived at the Academy bright and early to find Steph, Sal and Zoe in the main cafeteria having breakfast. I made a beeline for the coffee, grabbed a latte and a tea – yes, tea – for Gray and joined them. It would be the first of several coffees this morning. After the events of last night, topped off by another series of odd dragon-filled dreams, I needed all the help I could get to stay on my game today.
Steph had a number of books open in front of her.
‘You don’t look like you got much sleep,’ I said.
She looked me up and down. ‘Well, when you throw around things like the weighing of souls, it makes a girl restless.’
I sat beside her. ‘What did you find out?’
‘Nothing cheery, that’s for sure. The weighing of souls is a Judgement Day thing in the Bible. The day we will all have our souls weighed and each and every one of us will be judged. If it’s as simple as Heaven and Hell after all of this, well, the weighing of souls is kind of like green light, red light, if you get my drift. Here,’ she said, opening a book and reading. ‘This is the Roman Catholic version – That you will gather the souls of the righteous and the wicked, place us on your great scales and weigh our deeds. That if we have been loving and kind, you will take the key from around our neck and open the gates of Paradise, inviting us to live there forever. And that if we have been selfish and cruel, it is you who will banish us.’
My brow crinkled. ‘And this is all connected to the tournaments and Sammael how?’
She shrugged. ‘Beats me, but this stuff is major. And it’s not just the Christians.’ Steph flipped through pages. ‘It turns up everywhere, dating back to ancient Egyptian mythology, and the concept of final judgement is shared by almost all religions. If this all has something to do with what’s going on now …’ Steph paled and clasped Salvatore’s hand.
‘Steph, breathe. It will all be okay,’ Salvatore assured her calmly.
I nodded, taking a gulp of my coffee, leaving my hands wrapped around the mug. ‘If the world was scheduled to end later today, Phoenix would’ve found a way to tell me. So, whatever it is, there’s still a way for us to prevent it from happening.’
‘Yes,’ Zoe said, dryly. ‘Because in Phoenix we know and trust.’
I stiffened. ‘Things have changed. He’s an angel now.’
‘Which, by the way, does anyone else find just a touch hard to stomach?’ Zoe asked casually.
‘He gave his eternity to stop Lilith. Redemption is not for us to determine,’ Gray said levelly from across the table where he’d been listening silently.
Zoe rolled her eyes. ‘Jesus, it’s just like having Griffin at the table.’
But I also noted the longing there. She missed Griffin and I understood; being around the old crew highlighted just how much I did, too.
Gray’s eyes went wide with dismay and I almost lost a mouthful of coffee as I laughed. Griffin was not the kind of person Gray considered himself to be anything like. It was funnier still, because Zoe was right.
Steph nodded vigorously, oblivious to Zoe and Gray’s conversation as she stared into space. ‘Because,’ she said, her voice high-pitched, ‘we have a wedding coming up, you know. The world can’t end before I get married. That would just be … Vi? You have to save the world. You can do that, right?’
I put a hand on her shoulder and fought to keep my expression serious as I looked into her glassy eyes. ‘Steph, your wedding day will be perfect. Nothing and no one will ruin it. Got it?’
She exhaled. ‘Got it.’
Everyone went back to eating their breakfast, chewing on this latest information as much as their cereal – the big question being: where did Sammael fit in to all of this? Max stopped by the table to let us know Josephine had scheduled a meeting for later in the morning.
Steph shuffled her chair closer to me and lowered her voice. ‘That’s the fifth time you’ve looked at the door in the past thirty seconds. Expecting someone?’