Bloodline Diplomacy: A Young Adult Urban Fantasy Academy Novel (Bloodline Academy Book 3), Lan Chan [best way to read an ebook .TXT] 📗

longer there. It had been replaced by an outcrop of rocks that jutted from the surrounding water. I tried to take a huge gulp of air as something latched onto my ankle and pulled me under the surface of the water. My hands sat plastered to the side of my body. Unable to either kick or flail, I opened my mouth to scream. When I did, the water filled my lungs. It burned like no water on earth should have. Turning, I tried to get a glimpse of whatever had stolen me but all I could see was a shadow.

Once more the darkened depths of the ocean were pierced with a ray of resplendent light. Lucifer shot through the water like a golden harpoon, appearing before me unruffled by the sea. He reached out his hand to me. I shook my head frantically. A sardonic smile lifted at his lips. His head turned to regard the thing that had caught me. I was stuck between two ways to die. Lucifer’s eyes crinkled.

No, Alessia, he spoke in my mind. You are death.

His arm whipped out and snatched me around the bicep. He yanked me at the same time the thing that had me caught twined around me foot. I screamed once more.

Something pinned me by the shoulders. It was solid in the way everything else wasn’t. Someone shook me.

“Alessia!” Rachel’s voice was sharp.

I blinked awake. Rachel stood over me, her hands on either side of my shoulders. Groaning, I looked about. “What happened?”

“You were sputtering in your sleep!” she said. Her eyes were two hard shards. “I thought you’d swallowed your tongue or something. You were making noises like you couldn’t breathe.” It was a close enough assessment. “What the hell were you dreaming about? It sounded like somebody was harvesting your soul.”

“I thought I was drowning,” I said. “But then he –”

That’s when the locking mechanism stole my voice. I clutched at my throat. Rachel had pushed upright but now she narrowed her eyes at me. “He did what? Which he are you referring to?”

My tongue felt like it had swollen in my mouth. I couldn’t get my jaw to unlock. The look of suspicion in Rachel’s eyes flared. “Is it that Nephilim?”

Alarm hit me. “No, of course not.”

“Then tell me what ‘he’ you were referring to.”

“I…” Nope. It wasn’t happening. My body refused to comply. She huffed at my continued lack of response.

“This is messed up,” she said.

“I told you it’s not Kai!”

The scathing look she gave me said she didn’t believe me. She marched over to her side of the room and started pulling on some sweats. The first golden light of dawn streamed through the window. My eyes were grainy. How could it be morning already? I felt as though I’d barely closed my eyes. My arms were weighted down like I was still pushing against the resistance of the water.

“How much do you know about hexes?” I asked her. Maybe I could get around the problem if I could be vague.

“The usual,” she huffed. I bit my bottom lip. Maybe this wasn’t a topic I should bring up with her. She had a prejudice against the supernaturals as it was. If I tried to pry it from her, she would just think Kai was doing something to me. I only noticed she was in running gear when she was about to open the door.

“Hang on,” I said. “Are you going running?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Can I tag along?”

I could see her trying to think up an excuse to say no. Trust me to second wheel it. “Never mind,” I said. “I think I might try to go back to sleep.”

She was out the door so fast I could still feel the breeze from it closing. Rubbing at my eyes, I didn’t dare go back to bed. Exercise did sound like the perfect way to exorcise the nightmare from my thoughts. Surely the place was big enough for the two of us. I got up and dressed. The sunlight was just breaking over the clouds when I reached Phoenix’s enclosure.

I reached for his leash but he lowered himself to the ground and growled. “Right,” I said. “Dunno what I was thinking.”

It was a Saturday which meant I was technically allowed to do whatever I wanted. I channelled all of the frustration into stamina as Phoenix and I stepped through the back gate behind the parking lot. It was a little risky to run along the road, but I figured Phoenix wasn’t the kind of dingo to cross the road without looking.

In less than two seconds, he was way in front of me. Every once in a while he’d turn his head back to make sure I was still there. I forced myself to concentrate on my breathing and the rhythm of my body as the exercise helped to purge the dream from my mind. We ran until I thought my lungs would burst. I wasn’t one for hitting the gym, but as a former street kid, cardio was important to me.

The number of times I’d had to haul ass out of a place was unmentionable. I tried to avoid any side streets that would lead me out onto the beach. But it was impossible here. Phoenix sprinted up the rise of a small hill and stopped. When I caught up to him, I saw why. The street turned into a busy intersection. What caught my eye weren’t the stores that stood up on either side. It was the section of beach where the Evil Three had taken me. I could tell where we were because I’d seen the arched sign on top of the gas station from the beach.

There wasn’t a single bit of sand out of place. You would never know that anything had gone. The supernaturals were obviously well-practiced in covering their tracks. Or in this case, my tracks.

Goosebumps pricked my skin as I took in the sea air. “Let’s go back,” I said. Phoenix barked his agreement.