Stephanie’s lips didn’t move, but I still heard her voice in a low whisper. “They’ve got plans for you girls. There’s no way they’ll let Fallen Academy students win.”
Shea raised one eyebrow. “What kind of plans?”
Stephanie shrugged, looking casually out onto the crowd of kids who were starting to run warm-up drills, and seemed to have lost interest in us—for the time being. “Just shady shit, like extra stashed weapons and spells the teachers made.”
Freaking fabulous.
“Well, we’re winning. We’re doing this to get my mom out,” I explained to her.
For the first time, she faced me. I could see Tainted Academy had been hard on her. Her once perfect nose looked like it’d been broken multiple times, and the red crescent moon tattoo on her forehead was a reminder of what she was, and what she would always be.
“I heard. My cousin lives in your mom’s building. If we go up against each other, we’ll make it look real, but we’ll submit,” she told me.
Ben, who stood tall next to her, nodded his agreement. “If it gets someone out of this hellhole, then I’m down. You guys have always been cool,” he stated.
Emotion tightened my throat. I hadn’t been expecting that. “Thanks, guys.” I wanted to hug them, cry, show how much their words meant to me, but I couldn’t. Not there.
She gave a weak smile. “We should go work the room. See ya.”
With her out of sight, I stared at Shea. “Okay, that was seriously cool of them. I was—”
The door popped open behind me, and a firm grip landed on my arm, pulling me backward out of the room, and into a dark hallway.
I went to scream, but a hand clamped around my mouth.
Shea burst into the dark hallway after me, purple magic ready, but when she saw who held me she stopped. “James?”
The hand fell away from my mouth. “Go back inside, Shea. I just need to talk to Brielle alone for a minute, and no one can know I did,” he whispered.
Shea looked at him for another second and I nodded. “It’s okay,” I told her.
Reluctantly, my bestie slipped back into the room.
Once the door closed behind her, I spun around.
I’d known James would be declared a Sighted at his Awakening, but seeing him wearing the white Tainted Academy uniform with the purple third eye emblem on his chest still shocked me. Almost two years at Fallen Academy and I hadn’t met one. They did special classes, and were kept away from the students because it was too much energy or something. Not to mention they were extremely rare and prized individuals.
“James,” I breathed.
He stared at his hands. “My gift is a curse.”
Frowning, I stepped closer. “What? Are you okay?”
He swallowed hard. “Yes. But you aren’t. You won’t be.”
My stomach dropped.
“Am I going to lose tonight?” I really had thought I’d win this fight, and come back with my mom. If he told me otherwise, I would be devastated.
He waved his hand. “I’m not talking about tonight. Brielle, Lucifer wants you.”
That statement sent chills crawling up my back and down my arms.
“I know.” I peeled open my shirt and showed him my chest tattoo.
He shook his head. “No. You know the vision every Sighted at Fallen Academy gets, that you’ll go into the underworld and kill him? It’s not the only vision.”
My eyes widened. He knows about that? “What do you mean?”
James sighed. “Every Sighted here sees something different. I… I saw you training with him. Becoming like him. Living down there with him.” He pointed to the ground, to Hell.
Bile rose in my throat.
No.
“I would never do that!” I whisper-screamed.
He looked sad. “I’ve seen it. He trains you. You… create demons with him. Down there.”
I was going to throw up. It was absolute lies. I crossed my arms. “James, there’s no freaking way. Your vision is wrong!”
He shrugged. “I just wanted to warn you. There is another side, another vision, and that’s the one Lucifer believes in.”
I softened, knowing he was only trying to help. “Thank you. You’re a good friend.”
He looked off into the distance. “Either way, you’ll change the world, Bri. I just haven’t decided if for better or worse.”
Not what I wanted to hear. That sick feeling was back.
Then he turned and started to walk away.
“Wait! Will I get my mom out of here tonight?”