Fallen Kings

8

Until then, all we can do is wait.

At least Jonah is in school with me. My first class of the day is Ishim Training, and I can’t help but grin when I see him already in the class when I arrive. I searched for Jonah for two years, and I found him when no one else could. Granted, he wasn’t locked up in Faerie like I presumed, or dead like everyone else thought. He stayed in Faerie of his own choice to protect the Staff, mainly to keep me safe.

Turns out, we’ve both been trying to save the other one for the last two years. Jonah and I might not have grown up together, but we would do anything for each other. Including going to Hell—or in our case, Faerie—and back. That’s family for you, I guess.

Professor Rosangela looks like someone’s favorite aunt, with soft curves, super curly brown hair, and laugh lines around her eyes. “Welcome to Ishim Training. I’m Rosie. Please don’t feel like you have to call me professor, and for the love of apple pie, don’t call me Rosangela. That’s what my grandmother calls me before she starts yelling.”

The class chuckles along with her, and I find myself smiling too. She’s so damn likeable, it’s impossible to resist.

“You may be wondering why I’m qualified to teach this course. I’ve worked for Gabriel for six hundred years. I’ve been a spy, a scout, and a guardian angel to kings, presidents, and even a few celebrities.” She gives us a kind smile, and I bet her appearance makes her perfect for any of those roles. I already want to invite her over to bake cookies in my kitchen while I spill all my secrets to her. “Now that I have grandkids I’m taking a break from that life, and this seemed like the perfect position for me.”

I wonder if Gabriel recommended her for the job. I wonder what she thinks of Azrael, who tried to take over as leader of the Ishim for years, until he got a better job as leader of all angels. I wonder who will take my father’s place now that he’s been kicked off the Archangel council.

Yeah, I’m wondering a lot of things these days.

“By now, you’ve probably learned most of the advanced Ishim moves, so this year we’re going to focus on preparing you for life after graduation,” Rosie continues. “As an Ishim, you’ll be expected to serve the angelic community as a spy, scout, messenger, guardian, or even assassin. There are plenty of skills you’ll need for any of those roles, and that’s what I’ll be teaching you. How to observe your surroundings and take in all the details. How to move silently. How to sneak into places. How to protect from the shadows…or kill.”

I share a wide-eyed glance with Jonah. I’m starting to rethink inviting Rosie over for cookies. It’s hard to imagine her sneaking around or killing anyone, but maybe that’s why she was so good at her job.

It’s also hard for me to imagine what I’ll be doing after graduation. None of those jobs sounds right to me. I’m already good at sneaking around, and a master at breaking and entering, but I’m not sure I want to be a spy. Definitely not an assassin either. Guardian angel? No thanks. I have enough on my plate already.

“Once we see what you’re good at, we can help you decide your career path, and whether you’d like to work for the Archangels, for Aerie Industries, or do something else entirely.” Rosie smiles at the class. “Think of me as your career counselor.”

She lets us leave class ten minutes early, and says we’ll be starting our training tomorrow. Jonah and I head out of class together, but neither of us are in a hurry, so we sit in the grass and soak up some sunlight.

Jonah stretches out his long legs and looks up at the bright sky. “It’s so weird being back here,” he says as he glances at the students walking by. “I don’t know any of the other students. All my classmates graduated last year, and I was gone before any of these people came here.”

“Well, you’ve got me,” I point out. “And Araceli.”

“True.” He gives me one of his easy-going smiles that make him look just like Dad. “Being in school with you for the first time is the only thing making this tolerable.”

“Do you miss Faerie?” I worked so hard to rescue him, but over the break I caught him staring off into the distance or poring through some of my books on the fae, and sometimes I wonder if he wished I hadn’t brought him back.

He idly rips up pieces of grass. “Sometimes. It’s so different there.”

I bite my lip and look away. “Maybe you can go back sometime. Do you have any idea what you’ll do when you graduate?”

He shakes his head. “Not a clue. You?”

“Nope.”

Time’s up. We get to our feet, and he slings an arm around me. “We’ll figure it out together. With Rosie’s help, I guess. Can you believe our new professor?”

I lean against him as we head to our next classes. “She’s very different from Nariel, that’s for sure.”

“No kidding. I bet she’s a mean assassin.”

“Seriously. No one would ever suspect her. You and Dad have the same thing though.”

“What thing?” he asks.

“That thing that makes people immediately trust you. You’re like the quintessential boy next door, and Dad is like that friendly neighbor who throws BBQs for the entire block.” I shrug. “Whatever it is, I don’t have it.”

Jonah shoves me a little. “No, you look like trouble.”

I grin at him. “Damn right I do.”

Yeah, it’s good to have my brother back.

Chapter Six

Olivia

N

ext up, Combat Training. I’ve been working with Tanwen all winter to improve my skills and I was looking forward to showing them off, until I learned Callan is going to be there. When is he going to get it through his thick skull that I don’t need or want his constant protection?