Unchained (Nephilim Rising 1)

“You’re slowing me down,” Luke said, then turned and strode off through the overgrown grass.

He flipped him off and followed. It took Michael a bit longer to make his way over the fence. He jogged to catch up to him. “So you think she went here to find Julian?”

They rounded the building and stopped in front of the same window Luke had pried the boards off over a month ago. Michael started to climb through first but stilled. The ice was spreading through his body, forming icicles in his stomach. A shiver ran up his spine. “I feel…something,” he said.

“What do you feel?” Luke said from behind him.

Michael peered over the ledge of the window, pieces of wood and brick crumbling under his fingers. “I feel another…Nephilim, but…”

“But what?”

There was something else in that reform school—several things, or something really powerful. It reminded him of the feeling he got when he’d seen Baal, but much…much worse.

“You know what I don’t get?” Luke said, his breath bouncing off the back of his neck. “How you’ve survived this long when you’re really this stupid.”

“Shit.” Michael drew in a shallow breath and started to turn. The back of his skull exploded in pain, and then there was nothing.

…

Lily couldn’t stop staring at William. He shouldn’t be standing there. “You’re supposed to be dead.”

William glanced down at himself, smoothing a hand over his pressed polo and smiling in a smug way. “Nah.”

Just the sight of him caught Lily off guard. His sudden reappearance was something she couldn’t comprehend. Luke had killed…he had said so. It was only a moment she hesitated. That split second was enough time to give William the upper hand. She saw him move and raised her arm to block him, but it was too late. His fist connected with the side of her face. There was the sickening sound of bones crunching that seemed far away, and then fierce pain burst through her body as she staggered to her knees.

She lifted her head, spitting out a mouthful of blood. A rush of air served as a warning, but Lily couldn’t move quickly enough. William’s steel-toed boot connected, flipping her onto her back. She felt her cheek split open, then the warm cascade of blood that followed.

“Lily…Lily, I’ve always thought you would be smarter than this,” taunted William. He reached down, grasping a handful of her hair. “You thought I was dead? Why?” He yanked her to her feet. “Ah, that’s right. Luke told you so.”

She swung the blade at his chest, but he caught it, snapping one of the daggers off her cuff. Shit. This wasn’t going well.

William tossed the dagger over the railing. “Good old crazy-off-his-ass Luke.” He swept her legs out from underneath her, sending her spilling to the dirty alley. “Do you know how truly fucked-up your BFF is?”

She couldn’t afford to listen to him. Not when he had her on the ground. It was the first lesson every hunter was taught. Never let them get you on the ground. But his words were distracting her. She rolled onto her back, narrowly avoiding another boot to the face. Over the pounding of her heart, she heard the distinctive thump of something large being dropped.

“He killed that little Nephilim whore you call Anna. He’s the one…” William jerked, his words cut off. He made a strangled sound, and they both stared down at his chest. A Sanctuary dagger pierced his heart clean through. Then William was gone, really dead this time.

Lily rolled to her side, staring up at Luke. It was hard to see through the blood pouring down her face, and her words came out slurred. “I thought you said…you killed William?”

He helped her to her feet. “I did say that.”

She pulled away, nearly toppling over. She grasped the banister for support. “I don’t…you…killed Anna?”

“I did kill Anna,” he answered simply.

She stared at Luke, horrified. The walls tilted. “No, Luke, please no. You didn’t. You know what…that means.”

“It’s okay now, Lily. Don’t be afraid of me.”

She staggered along the railing. A lump on the floor moaned. “Michael? Luke, what…what did you do?”

Luke grabbed her arm, spinning her away from Michael. “Don’t worry about him. He’s not going to be our problem. Not for much longer, anyway.”

This had to be a nightmare. “I don’t understand. Luke, you…loved Anna.”

“I did love her, but she loved a Fallen!” he roared, his grip tightening on her arm. “I would have done anything for her, and she betrayed me!”

Lily pulled her arm free. The pain from the broken bones in her face was making her dizzy. She was having a hard time processing what he was saying. “Why didn’t you come to me? Why didn’t you tell me you needed help?”

Luke stared at her, confused. “I don’t need help. I want to see the Sanctuary crumble upon itself. You were turning out just like Anna.” He licked his lips, reaching for her again. “You went out and screwed a Fallen and messed everything up.”

“Oh my God.”

The sound of wood splintering somewhere on the ground floor turned into footfalls. It sounded like a herd of elephants running through the halls, and within seconds, the doors below busted open. Glancing over the banister, Lily felt her heart stutter.

Deadheads—deadheads way past their expiration date—rushed across the floor. Their bodies were twisted, hardened, and crusted over. The air then turned heavy, signaling the arrival of minions—lots of them.

“I made sure Micah was assigned to follow you. I knew eventually he would catch you with Julian, and with him being Micah, he would run straight to whoever would listen. Lily, you really should sit down. You look terrible.” He pried her hands off the banister. “Don’t worry about them down there. Did you know you can control deadheads?”

“Luke…what have you done?” she whispered.

“I wouldn’t have done anything if it hadn’t been for Nate’s complete lack of control. If he had put his foot down once with Anna—just once—all of this could have been avoided.” He wrapped an arm around her waist. “That son of a bitch did a number on your face. Shit. He wasn’t supposed to touch you.”

Lily’s head fell forward. “You’ve…been working with the Fallen. It’s been you…” Her stomach heaved. She thought back to the night they’d gone to Michael’s apartment. “You…said someone…who hates the Sanctuary…hates Nathaniel.”

He sighed, the same sound he made so many times when she would pester him about one thing or another. “It was Nathaniel’s fault—the Sanctuary’s fault. They made me kill Anna, Lily. If they had forbid her once, watched her just once, they would have seen what she was doing.”

“No,” she whimpered.

“Yes! I hate Nate for what he has made me do. This was the only way to really get him back. There was nothing else I could do but bring down the Sanctuary. It didn’t take long to find a Fallen that was interested—really interested—especially in Michael.”

Oh God… Oh God, it was him. Lily pushed against him, but he held on. “Luke…how could you?” Below the deadheads were turning their attention to the doors. Someone was coming. She forced her attention on Luke. “You…you hurt Micah, didn’t you? My God, you did that?”

“Come on, lighten up. You don’t even like Micah,” Luke pointed out. “He was the perfect setup. I knew if I told you it was Julian, you would believe me. You knew Julian was capable of doing something like that. You just needed a push. Micah became that push, and it doesn’t matter if he ever wakes up and tells the world that it was I who attacked him.”

The image of Micah’s battered and torn body flashed before her. How quickly she had believed Luke. She hadn’t even given Julian the chance to tell her the truth. It had only been a few hours ago, but it felt like a lifetime.

Her heart shattered once more. Luke looked like he always did. He had that playful smile on his face, the mischievous twinkle in his eyes. It was like he was two people. And somewhere inside him was the Luke she couldn’t let go of. “Luke, you have to explain…everything you have done. We can fix this. We can…make this better.”

“There’s nothing to fix.”

“No. We’ve got…to get out of here and…find Nate and get…Michael help.”

“You don’t understand, Lily. We can’t take Michael. Asmodeus wants him. And when Nathaniel comes, if he does, I will kill him.”

She stared. “You’re…crazy.”

His face hardened. “Don’t make me choose for you, Lily.”

“Choose what?” she cried. The pain was clouding everything. It hurt to talk, to breathe.

“You’re either with me on this or you’re against me. I won’t let you go back to the Sanctuary, back to Nate, and back to Julian. I will not allow you to do that to yourself.” He jerked her forward.

She staggered. “Luke, don’t…do this. It’s not you.”

“Don’t make me hurt you, Lily!” Fury contorted his face. “Don’t make me do this to you, too!”

“I’m not,” she whispered.

“Then you would be with me on this!” he screamed. “You would understand why the Sanctuary has to be destroyed. Killing Anna wasn’t my fault. I wouldn’t have hurt her if Nate had done his job. He let her leave that night, even after I told him what she was doing. I saw her, Lily. I saw her leaving the Fallen, and I knew what she had been doing.” His grip tightened. “I lost it! I…stabbed her with our blade.”

“I don’t…I can’t.” She was crying. Tears mixed with blood, stinging the raw abrasions on her cheeks. “I’m not going to choose your side.”

“Then you leave me no choice.”

She watched as the Luke she had loved since she was five disappeared in front of her. In his place was someone she didn’t recognize. His eyes turned flat and lifeless. The pale blue now seemed milky in the dim light. Had he turned? He had to have, from the moment he killed Anna. Luke had just hid it well.

“I’m sorry, Lily. I love you. I always will. I’m sorry you are making me do this.”

Her eyes widened as he pulled out his blade. Her stomach dropped. She held up one hand. “Luke…what are you doing?”

He advanced on her. “I will make this quick. I did so for Anna. I will for you, too.”

She stumbled back against the banister. Her gaze fell below. She could make the jump, but the deadheads would be on her in a second, and she was in no shape to fight them. There were too many. They would rip her to shreds in a heartbeat. She turned back to Luke. She didn’t even release her blades. Much like with Julian, she would never be able to kill him.

And he knew it.

Luke sighed. “I taught you better than this, Lily. Never hesitate. Never let your feelings get involved.”