Ascend (Celestial Academy Book 1) Read online

  "It's late. Let's get back to campus. We can meet tomorrow about what we're going to do," I suggested.

  "You two go ahead, Toby and I will contact Michael and fill him in."

  Danica stood from the chair, keeping her eyes on the ground, and walked to the door leading into Asher's house. I looked back at Asher and I swear he winked at me.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Danica

  I woke up to the sound of my alarm and a grunt in my ear from Olly. Damn, last night had sucked. I hated confrontation and put myself right smack dab in the middle of one with Tobias. Tobias, who was fairly non-confrontational, at least until I started spending more time with him. That was a tough pill to swallow.

  I hit the button on my phone and wiggled out of Olly's arms, looking down just as a small smile spread across his lips. He was a beautiful man and if he was a human he would break hearts all over the Los Angeles area.

  "Good morning, beautiful," he said, slowly opening his sparkling blue eyes and staring up at me. I could stare into their sparkling depths all day if we didn't have more important things to do like go to class. Oh, and saving Brooklyn and the other angels held captive with her.

  He reached for my face and brushed his thumb over my lips. I sighed and stood, adjusting my clothes that had gotten twisted during the night. After driving back last night and crying all over again, I hadn't even bothered changing before falling asleep against Olly's chest.

  Olly said nothing as I made my way into the bathroom and shut the door. At least one of us had the ability to stop ourselves from saying or doing something stupid. That's exactly what had happened last night, I was stupid and almost got us caught. Tobias didn't have to yell at me though. I felt bad enough without the raised voice and the looks of irritation.

  I looked at myself in the mirror and touched under my eyes. The skin was slightly swollen from not being able to hold anything back anymore. Olly had glued the pieces back together.

  I showered quickly and walked back into my room with a towel wrapped around me. Olly was gone, so I dropped my towel and got dressed in my dreaded uniform. I wanted to curl back up in bed and come up with a plan to rescue Brooklyn and the others. That was a pipe dream though. I was not equipped to take on a large group of Fallen. I didn't have immortality on my side.

  How was I going to face Cora and Ethan, knowing I had Brooklyn within sight but couldn't rescue her? She had looked really bad when they had rolled her into that room. Not as bad as the angel they had wheeled out before her, but after they drained her she would have looked worse.

  I didn't know what I was going to do when I saw Levi. If I had it my way, I would kill him with my bare hands. Except angels were already dead so how to kill one was a mystery to me. Maybe they could be killed the same way as a vampire; heart removal or decapitation. I needed to ask Olly. I would not be asking Tobias. He'd scold me again like I was a child.

  Tobias. My chest hurt thinking about last night.

  I grabbed my phone and checked my messages. The only one was a group text from Asher telling Olly and I to stay away from Levi and to tell no one what we saw since we didn't know who else was involved.

  There was a soft knock on my door as I grabbed my bag. My heart rate increased and I took a deep breath. I wasn't ready to see Tobias, but at least if it happened now, I could rip the Band-Aid off before class and it would be over and done with.

  I looked out the peephole and sighed with relief as Olly smiled on the other side. That angel always seemed to be happy. I opened the door and he stepped in the doorway and gave me a hug. I could get lost in his hugs; they felt like a warm blanket fresh out of the dryer.

  "How do you already smell like cookies?" I craned my neck to look up at him. "Don't tell me you bought cookie scented cologne."

  "I had cookies for breakfast. Decided to mix it up a little today. Ready to go?"

  After trekking across campus together, him holding my hand as we walked, we sat together in class. Today there weren't even any stares or hushed voices discussing what that meant.

  I looked at the time on my phone; class should have started five minutes ago, but still no Tobias. A few students had already left, mumbling about him never being late and that they hoped he was okay.

  Olly and I were just about to put our stuff away when Dean Whittaker walked in. My favorite person.

  "Class is canceled today. Mr. Armstrong is stuck in a meeting. He did want me to tell you that tomorrow there will be a quiz on dream demons and it would behoof you to stay anyway and familiarize yourself with them in your book. You might also use it as an opportunity to ask your classmate about them." She nodded in my direction and then left the room.

  I turned to Olly who was running his hand over the cover of the book. "What are you doing?" My question was answered when he moved his hand and the book flopped open to dream demons, my eyes going wide. "Since when did you get all these abilities?"

  "I've always had them. Just haven't had a reason to use them until recently. I don't want to be a show off since the Class IIs and IIIs only have a few things they can do." He looked over at me and gave me a tight smile before his eyes went back to his book. "Sometimes I don't even know that I have an ability until it just happens..."

  "What?" I could tell he wanted to say something else.

  "Nothing," he said reaching up and touching his hair. "Just learned a little about myself yesterday is all."

  "Tell me about it." I opened my book and skimmed the introduction information on dream demons.

  Dream demons, also known as night mares, are a highly prevalent psychological demon of hell. The mare is said to be humanoid in form and terrorizes the mind when it enters each REM cycle. It has been rumored, but not confirmed, that these demons walk the Earth unbeknownst to both humans and angels due to its ability to stay hidden.

  "Does your dad really have demons here on Earth?" Olly spoke so no one could hear him except me. After yesterday's conversation with him, I'm sure he wasn't the only one that had more questions and probably a plethora of concerns.

  "He wouldn't have just made it up. This is probably one of them. He doesn't tell me about which demons he has hanging around here."

  Olly shuddered and closed his book, putting it in his bag. Most of the other students had already left. I guess they didn't want my expertise, not that I was an expert. I only knew what my father offered.

  After hanging out for a while, Olly walked me to PE. Ah, yes, my favorite class. After the snake debacle, Brooklyn's disappearance, and Levi being in the class, I considered going to the library and studying. Most instructors would notice I was missing, since they always seemed to keep an eye on me, so I sucked it up and changed.

  Walking into the gym, I scanned and easily found Coach Ferguson talking with Levi. I squared my shoulders and walked towards them. Coach Ferguson had an extreme dislike for me, and Levi, well, I would have said he was working for the devil, but that wasn't true.

  "Deville. Wright has offered to work with you today." Before I could protest, he turned and walked away. I clenched my hands, digging my nails into my palms to keep from popping off some comment.

  I could do this. I could get through an hour with a monster. Or not. I started making my way back towards the locker room but he grabbed my arm and steered me towards the training room. I yanked my arm away and rubbed where he grabbed. It hadn't exactly been a loving touch.

  "Don't touch me again," I warned as we entered the room.

  I suddenly felt very vulnerable being somewhat alone with him. We could still see the rest of the class, but there were also several spots in the room where the rest of the gym was out of sight. I'd avoid those like the plague.

  "Or what, Dee? You'll sic your angel boyfriends on me?" he taunted, walking to a cabinet and pulling out two focus mitts and slipping them onto his hands. "Now let's see what you got before I kick your ass."

  I scoffed and crossed my arms. "Don't call me Dee, and if you think I'm going to fight with you then
-" In a quick jab, he knocked me over the side of the head with his mitt. "You fucking asshole."

  I could have just turned around and left the room, but the opportunity was too great to let it slip through my fingers. I had half expected him not to show his face on campus again, yet here he was, acting as if he wasn't a traitor.

  "My beef isn't with you, Dee." He hit me again, this time hard enough to make me stumble back.

  I positioned my body to strike back and he held up the mitts with a satisfied smirk on his face. I took several punches and dodged several of his swipes.

  "Who is your beef with then?" Punch, punch, duck.

  "Angels." He kicked out with his foot and tripped me. I grunted as my ass hit the mat. "Get up."

  "You’re an angel. Why?" Punch, punch, duck, jump back.

  We ran through several more combinations before he answered. "Do you know how I died?"

  I stopped mid-punch and his mitt slammed into my face. It stung and I rubbed my nose. "How?"

  "I was texting and speeding." He swept out and knocked me down again. "Two lane road."

  I stood up again and backed up as he took another swipe at me. He had a determined glint in his eyes, like he wanted to take out all of his anger on me.

  "How do you know that? I thought they just told you in general how you died, like a car crash." I backed up, avoiding his increasingly aggressive kicks and jabs. I took a deep breath as he stopped in front of me.

  "I'm not an idiot. I used Google." I flinched as he punched the wall at the side of my head. That would have hurt.

  "And what did Google tell you?" I whispered.

  "I was going over a hundred. What do you think it told me?" he asked through clenched teeth. He punched the wall on the other side of my head, with a lot less force, but now I was trapped between his arms.

  I shut my eyes for a brief moment before opening them and searching his tormented green eyes. "Did you crash into another car?"

  Nod.

  "Were there people inside?"

  Nod.

  "Did they survive?"

  Shake.

  The only sounds in the room were his deep breathing, my heartbeat, and Mr. Miller's booming voice shouting directions.

  "I deserve to be in hell." He backed away from me and threw the mitts off to the side. "And now I'll get what I deserve. And with what I've done, they won't even bother making me a Fallen. They will send me straight to hell like they should have done in the first place."

  My heart was thudding wildly in my chest. I felt a twinge of sympathy, but also a whole lot of anger that he would betray angels just to give himself a punishment. "How did you even get involved with them?"

  "A few months ago, they took me when I was at the arcade. They offer all the angels they take the opportunity to work with them or be drained daily." He shrugged, like it was no big deal. "It was a win-win. They'd get their insider and eventually I'd get a one-way ticket to hell."

  "Do you know what they’re planning on doing with all the blood?" As soon as the words left my mouth, he laughed. It wasn't a normal laugh, but the laugh of a crazy person; a broken person. Maybe at some point he had been sane, but now he had gotten himself in too deep, let his past eat away at his future.

  "Danica." Tobias's voice came from the doorway and I turned to see him, the dean, and Michael standing there. He stared at me for a moment, not showing an ounce of emotion and then turned and walked towards Levi. "Levi, you need to come with us."

  "Nice talk, Dee. Tell Oliver I'm sorry for leading him on," he said, following Tobias with his head hanging.

  I stood in the doorway and watched them exit out of the gym.

  By the time school was done, I was mentally exhausted. It was hard keeping it together on a normal day, but trying to focus and have everything else in my life going on? Impossible.

  A group text came shortly after dinner from Tobias. Meet us at Asher's. Oliver, fly with her.

  Butterflies filled my stomach at the thought of having to face Tobias. He had consumed my thoughts all day. Maybe he'd be over it by now and we could just move on. I had fucked up and he had acted like a dickwad about it.

  We landed on the roof to find Asher and Tobias roasting marshmallows over the fire pit like they were boy scouts on a camping trip. I smiled to myself. They had the whole bromance vibe going on and I hoped they would start including Olly more. He needed it.

  I flopped down in one of the empty chairs next to Tobias and stared into the fire. It was the perfect night for sitting around a fire outside. Not too cold, but just cold enough to need something other than a jacket.

  "Angel baby, have you ever had a s'more?" Asher asked, turning the metal rod he had speared through a marshmallow in the flames. He pulled the marshmallow out and blew out the flame, the white covered in bumpy brown and black.

  "Can't say I have," he responded, his eyes lighting up as he watched Asher with curiosity.

  "Well, first you take the graham, stick the chocolate on the graham." Asher already had the marshmallow cooked so he smooshed it all together and handed to Olly. "Tada, a s'more."

  We watched as Olly took a bite and a grin lit up his face. It would be nice to feel that kind of wonder again, like every moment of the day was a new gift being unwrapped. I bet he'd never been to Disneyland and my list of fun places to go and things to do was slowly growing inside my head. We needed an Olly bucket list.

  "Drinks?" Asher asked, standing and wiping his hands on his jeans, leaving graham cracker crumbs behind.

  "I'll take a water," I said, staring back into the fire, getting lost in the mesmerizing flicker of colors.

  Tobias’s eyes darted over to me with a questioning look. It seemed like every time I was drinking something, it was Diet Dr. Pepper. It was a problem, but everyone seemed to have their vice.

  "I was doing some research online about natural remedies to my inattentive impulsivity issue. Drinking a six pack of diet soda a day is probably not helping any." I propped my chin up on my fist and looked at Tobias. "Right?"

  "I'll join you to get the drinks," Olly said, standing and following Asher inside. I just hoped they didn't kill each other in there without supervision.

  Tobias took a drink of his beer before leaning forward to assemble a s'more and offering it to me without a word. I shook my head.

  "So... the silent treatment? Never took you for the silent treatment type. Seems below you." I grabbed a marshmallow and stabbed it with the metal roasting fork.

  "I think I said enough last night." Tobias bit into his s'more, getting some marshmallow on his beard. I wanted to reach over and wipe it off but refrained. The last thing I wanted was for him to pull away from my touch.

  I nodded and slowly turned the marshmallow just out of reach of the flames. I liked my marshmallows golden brown, not burned to a crisp. Despite my less-than-traditional upbringing, my dad did still teach me a thing or two. Like how to not burn a marshmallow.

  "You yelled at me like I was your child instead of your girlfriend."

  I brought the marshmallow to my lips and blew on it, the sweetness filling my nose and making my mouth water. I could feel him watching me as I bit into it and then had to use my fingers to break the sticky strings holding onto the other half. I licked my fingers and sighed.

  "I know you were pissed and scared, and I respect that was how you felt, but yelling at me? I couldn't just stand there and watch them hurt my friend, or anyone for that matter. I know it was stupid, and reckless, and horribly impulsive. I already feel like enough of a fuck up. I don't need you to remind me of it by yelling at me or giving me the silent treatment." I popped the other half of the marshmallow in my mouth.

  "You aren't a fuck up." He moved his chair closer to me, the sound of the metal legs scraping on the roof. He grabbed my wrist and brought my sticky fingers to his lips. "I just really like you and you could have been hurt or killed."

  I shut my eyes as he put my fingers in his mouth and swirled his tongue around them. He pull
ed them out with a pop and yanked my arm towards him, pulling me onto his lap. I laced my fingers behind his neck and put my forehead against his.

  "If you ever yell at me again, I will spank you." He made a noise in his throat and slid his hand under my shirt to rest on my side.

  "The only one that will be doing any spanking is me." I shivered as his cold hand moved up my stomach and traced the band of my bra. "What color is it?"

  "Black." He made a satisfied noise in his throat at my answer and kissed my neck.

  We heard the door to the roof open and Olly and Asher sat back down. I looked over at them and sighed as Tobias continued to pepper my neck with kisses. I pulled away, but stayed in his lap. I wasn't sure what the etiquette was for PDA in front of your other boyfriends.

  "So, what are our next steps with the Fallen?"

  "For you two?" Asher pointed at me and Olly with his beer. "Nothing. We went with a few of the archangels and Michael's soldiers last night back to St. Luke and they had already moved their entire operation. They must have an older angel working with them because no one could get a read on them."

  I went to move off Tobias's lap, but he held me in place, his fingers digging into my waist.

  "They've been recruiting on the streets. Now that Levi isn't going to be interfering and none of them saw Asher, he's going to go undercover and find out where they are. We don't know how long it's going to take for him to infiltrate. They’re probably going to be very cautious now."

  "What about your business?" What I really wanted to say was, ‘what about me.?’ It was a selfish thing to think, but the idea of him joining them made me sick to my stomach.

  "I have foremen who will run things while I'm gone. I won't be able to come back here until this is all over. I won't risk them ruining this part of my life." Asher swirled the beer that was left in his bottle and drank it down. "Let's go inside. I'm getting cold."

  I should have known when we all sat on the couch that things were going to take an interesting turn. Especially when Asher turned off the lights, the only light coming from a lamp by the bed and the television.