Endless (14 page)

But he was already shutting down – the honey from his power encircling me as he rebuilt the walls between us – and I knew I had to do the same.

‘Linc,’ I whispered, trying to put myself back together.

He rested his forehead against mine. ‘It’s okay. We’re okay.’

He took a few deep breaths. Acting as a conduit for the senses always took a hefty toll on him.

I wrapped my arms around him. ‘I know.’

We stayed like that for only a few seconds before he pulled away, regaining the control we both fought so hard to maintain.

I wish I had his strength.

‘Let’s
get inside,’ he said, his voice hoarse.

It was only then that I looked around and saw both carloads, including Dad and Evelyn, were staring at us. Zoe was fanning herself.

‘Exiles,’ I blurted out. ‘They’re … they’re everywhere. The senses were suffocating me!’

‘We’re in New York, Violet,’ Griffin said, a smirk on his lips. ‘There are over one and a half million people on the eighty-seven square kilometres of Manhattan alone. And this is the home to the largest population of exiles in the world. You
should
be bombarded by your senses.’

‘How am I supposed to stay here then?’ I asked, my panic levels rising.

Lincoln, who’d put a few feet between us, answered. ‘You’ll adjust. And inside the Academy it will be easier.’

‘Why?’

He smiled grimly, still recovering from the power-drain, and pointed to the top of the skyscraper we were standing in front of. ‘Because they have strong shields and occupy the top floor. You can be certain there are no exiles in any of their buildings.’

Did he just say buildings, plural?

The black-suited Grigori who had collected us from the airport held open the large glass doors of the building.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, concentrating on the senses, letting them come to me, but on my terms. I had to master this. If I was bombarded by another attack of the senses and it was during a fight, I needed to be able to control them.

I felt the senses come to me. There were so many exiles and all so close by. It took the concept of fear to another level altogether.

The
senses built inside me and started to become unbearable but, breathing deeply and steadily, this time I managed to push them down and move them to the background. They were still distracting, but for now, it was going to have to do.

I looked at Linc, who was waiting, and nodded. He smiled, the type of smile he gave me when I’d done well in training.

As we walked through the doors I ignored the stern looks coming from Dad, who didn’t realise Lincoln had just saved my ass, and moved ahead – now was not the time for explanations. I was fairly certain Evelyn understood exactly what had happened since she had a tight grip on Dad’s arm and was steering him away from us.

I nodded to her in thanks.

She ignored me in that annoying way of hers.

As soon as the lift doors opened on the top floor I was washed with another bout of senses, but they were different – subtle and comforting – signalling the presence of my own people.

‘How many Grigori are here?’ I whispered to Griffin.

‘Around a hundred students plus up to another hundred senior Grigori are based here at any given time.’

‘Wow.’ That explained the sensory influx.

Eight silent and heavily armed Grigori dressed entirely in black appeared to take Evelyn to their holding rooms. Griffin had prepared us for this, but Dad struggled to keep his cool as she was led away in restraints.

The waiting room – where the rest of us had been deposited – was massive, and ultra-modern. The walls of the building were
glass, offering magnificent views over Manhattan. It was astoundingly beautiful, and a touch like being in a fishbowl.

‘Come with me,’ Lincoln said quietly, moving to the side of the room. I followed him to the windows.

‘What?’ I asked.

He pointed outside and then I saw it.

Nothing could have prepared me for the sight before me. And when his extended arm panned to the right, I gasped.

‘How … how? That’s not … Are they
flying
?’ My eyes could not make sense of what I was seeing. People were walking around in mid-air, literally. Nothing below them, nothing above them, and yet they looked like it was the most natural thing in the world. I looked down to the street – there was a wind blowing, trees swaying – but when I looked back at the people wandering around in the sky no one seemed affected.

Lincoln grinned. ‘The Academy owns a number of buildings. There are walkways between them.’

I couldn’t take my eyes off the sky-folk. ‘There are
people
wandering around in the
sky
, Linc. Explain this to me.’

He laughed one of his low, secretive laughs. One that echoed through my entire body. One that told me he adored me. One that somehow I knew, out of everyone in the world, was reserved for me. The laugh that broke my heart.

Breathe.

‘I’m glad you find me amusing. Less laughing, more telling!’

He laughed again and I was about a second away from either throwing a punch or throwing myself at him, when a woman’s voice caught our attention.

‘I
see we have all made it,’ Josephine said, her tone of superiority cutting through all the other noise.

She stood tall and prim, dressed in a navy suit that was cinched at the waist, her dark hair held back in a bun. She was attractive, in a very severe way. Appraising us one by one, Josephine may just as well have called us riff-raff to our faces.

She nodded to Zoe and Spence. ‘Welcome home. You will have the same rooms as before you left. I assume you remember where they are. Zoe, unless you have any objection,’ she actually rolled her eyes, ‘which I’m sure you won’t, Violet will be sharing your room.’

‘That’s fine,’ Zoe said, trying to suppress her smile.

‘Spence, you will be expected to sit in a disciplinary meeting this afternoon before recommencing classes,’ she said, with a look that dared him to challenge her.

Jesus. She really is scary.

Of course Spence rose right to the challenge. ‘Actually, I’ve just graduated high school. I’ve brought a copy of my records with me. I’d be very happy to attend combat training and additional physical education, though, since I’m sure I’ve missed some while I’ve been gone.’

I had to give it to him, he didn’t even break out in a smile. He delivered the whole speech of crap with the most sincere look on his face that Josephine was left with nowhere to go.

Wonder how long he’s been practising that!

‘We can discuss it later,’ Josephine snapped. ‘You can both take your bags to your rooms and get settled.’ She waved her hand at them, dismissing him and Zoe.

She’s awfully keen to get rid of Zoe and Spence.

I
gave Lincoln a sideways glance but he shook his head, discreetly asking me to let it go. I did.

Josephine took her time to show her clear disdain for me before she turned to Griffin and Lincoln, showering them with false kisses. Her theatrics reminded me of Onyx’s.

Same drama. Different channel.

‘So you’re the human …’ she said, finally turning her attention to Dad. She didn’t bother to hide her dislike. It struck me as oddly similar to the kind of disgust exiles show us.

Dad nodded. ‘James Eden,’ he said holding out his hand. Josephine ignored it.

‘James, excuse me if I don’t pretend to be happy to have you in my Academy. Certain rights are afforded us within these walls and by insisting on coming here you have breached those rights of ours. Out on the street, I tolerate humans – I dedicate my life to your survival – but I have been Grigori for so long now that unless it is a matter of the greater good, I prefer to keep the company of my own kind.’

‘And I’m only human,’ Dad responded.

‘Correct,’ Josephine stated with no shame.

‘He’s my father, Josephine,’ I said, stepping forward, but Dad put his hand up to stop me.

‘It’s fine. I’d prefer not to suffer pretences either. I believe it has been made clear to you, Josephine, that I am here to escort Evelyn, and I expect to be with her at all times.’

Josephine laughed. ‘And what gave you the impression that I would allow that?’

Dad bristled. ‘I will be taken to Evelyn now. If she is locked up, then I give you my permission to lock me up with her, under the condition that my daughter is given access to me …’

He
glanced at me. ‘If she would like to see me at any time. And you will provide this for the exact same reason that you let me inside your precious Academy to begin with. You want Evelyn, you need Violet, and without me you cannot be sure you will get either.’

Josephine’s eyes went wide and she cleared her throat.

Score one for the human.

Finally, she gestured to a guard standing silently by the entry doors. ‘Take him down to the holding cells.’

‘Dad?’ I started when they moved in to cuff him.

He shook his head. ‘Sweetheart, it’s fine. You do what you have to do and come and see me … when you’re ready.’ Then his eyes settled on Lincoln. ‘I’m trusting you to look out for her.’

Lincoln nodded. ‘I will.’ He said it as if he was giving an oath and it made me nervous.

When the guards had led Dad away Josephine turned back to us. ‘And then there were three,’ she said and, at seeing my stance – hands on hips and head down as if I was about to charge her – she chuckled lightly. ‘Save the demonstrations for a proper audience. I’d hate for you to be exhausted before the main event.’ She held her perfectly manicured hand out. ‘The Assembly are waiting for you.’

‘The
entire
Assembly?’ Griffin asked.

Josephine smiled knowingly and replied slowly. ‘Every last one of them.’

Griffin paled. Lincoln looked away.

Oh, that can’t mean anything good.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

‘Beware of dark and secret things.’

Sir John Clerk

J
osephine
led us into a large oval room. Again, the outer wall was entirely glass but this time it was opaque so there was no view. The space was largely bare, apart from a semi-circle of chairs which sat on a slightly raised stage at the far end of the room that looked like they’d been carved out of incredibly large trees – each one a different shade of natural wood. All were taken but one.

Lincoln stayed close to me as we were led to the centre of the room. There were no seats for us. I was desperate to talk to Griffin and find out why he was so freaked out that the entire Assembly was present.

We’d talked incessantly before and during our travels, Griffin briefing me on each of the Assembly members. But he’d told me that there would only be four of them at the Academy itself, at most. It seemed this was one of the rare occasions where Griffin had been mistaken.

I made sure my supernatural guards were in place. Before getting on the plane both Griffin and Evelyn had made me swear that I would keep my shields up as much as possible when
in the Assembly’s presence and not tell them anything I didn’t need to – especially about my ability of Sight and, secondly, about my angelic ranking. I wasn’t to allow for any flashy displays of power. Overall, their suggestion was to do everything I could to look weaker than I really was – a concept that went against my nature. But I could try.

A man sat in the middle of the chairs on the podium. Four people sat to his right, another three to his left and there was a single vacant chair beside him. Obviously Josephine’s.

Griffin had explained to me that her position on the Assembly was one of the reasons she chose to remain partnerless. According to Grigori law, if one partner is elevated to a seat on the Assembly, then so too is their partner. As a result, they had an equal vote. Apparently, Josephine deemed no one worthy of a seat beside her. Partners generally voted in the same way, which often left Josephine wielding the deciding vote – a privilege she had no intention of sharing with an undeserving partner.