Dark Descent: The Arondight Codex - Book One by R Nicole (best books to read all time TXT) 📗

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It was past lunchtime when I finally made it back to the gym.

Wilder had locked himself in the private room we usually trained in and was pumping iron. I edged through the door, my gaze fixed on his flexing biceps as the dumbbell went up and down.

“Wilder?”

He glanced up and glared at me. “You took your time,” he snapped.

My fingers tightened around my mass-produced copy of the Codex and I closed the door behind me.

“Something strange is going on,” I muttered.

“Something strange is always going on,” Wilder shot back.

I rolled my eyes. “I mean with Greer and the demons.”

Wilder snorted and promptly turned his back on me. He was still in a rotten mood which wasn’t going to help what I was about to say go down any better. Maybe I should skim over the part where I spied on Greer mere hours after I’d been put on probation.

“I think that Infernal was sent out to possess people to alter their DNA on purpose,” I said. “It attacked Jackson because it knew who I was and where I’d end up.”

Wilder glanced over his shoulder and frowned. “You think it was trying to send a message?”

“They think I know where Arondight is. Attacking someone close to me is more than a show of power. Ramona stopped the mutation, but no one knows what would’ve happened if they hadn’t. What if the demons were trying to turn him? When I suggested it to Greer…” I trailed off, biting my tongue.

“Greer what?”

“She brushed me off.”

“So?” Wilder scowled and shook his head. “Greer has always had her own agenda, but she wouldn’t allow—”

“And you call me blind!” I exclaimed. “She’s hiding something, Wilder, and I don’t think it’s nice.”

He grunted, his brow creasing, and he put down the dumbbell.

“That’s it? That’s all you’ve got to say? Humph.” I crossed my arms over my chest and did my best Wilder impersonation.

“You know what?” he exclaimed. “I don’t jump to conclusions. There’s a difference between suspecting and outright accusations, Scarlett.”

“Oh no, you wouldn’t dare suspect the woman you want to bang,” I drawled. “She couldn’t be dealing with demons behind all our backs. She’s far too pretty to be bad outside of bed. That’s the only place she likes to inflict pain. Smack my arse, Greer. That’s it, baby. Harder. Harder!”

“Shut up,” Wilder snapped. “You sound like a child.”

“Ever since last night, you’ve been pouting like one!”

He began to grind his teeth together.

“Listen to me,” I gritted through my teeth, “something’s going on with Greer. I overheard her talking to the Infernal Romy caught last night.”

“You overheard her?” Wilder’s eyes widened. “You’re unbelievable, Scarlett. I gather you’re on probation?”

“Yeah, but—”

“But nothing!” he exclaimed. “If you want to see out the day, you better start listening.”

It was my turn to grind my teeth together. I better start listening? The irony was outrageous.

“Greer is the protector of the Codex for a reason. It’s impossible for her to be anything else,” he went on. My hands tightened around my copy of the Codex in an attempt to control my rising anger. “There’s no way she could be working with the demons. It’s impossible. The Codex would burn it out of her the moment she touched its pages.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means Greer has to be pure of heart to even touch the Codex,” he shot back.

“I don’t believe you,” I whispered.

“You’ll have to speak up. I might have heightened senses, but I can’t hear you through your temper tantrum, Purples.”

“I said…” I gritted my teeth as my Light flared, “I don’t believe you.”

Purple light shot through my hand, burning a hole into the gym mat between us. Wilder stared at the smoking hole, his mouth hanging open. If I’d been aiming, I would’ve seared his chest until Light burst out the other side.

“I think you better leave,” he said darkly. “Now.”

“Wilder, I…” My heart twisted and I glanced at the hole in shock. “I didn’t mean—”

“Now, Scarlett,” he barked.

Spinning on my heel, I fled the room. Rushing blindly through the Sanctum, I wasn’t sure where I was going until cold air buffeted my burning cheeks.

The roof was empty, apart from one extremely anguished Natural in training.

Above, it was abnormally clear. Winter was finally mellowing into spring, but that only meant rain was coming. I wasn’t sure which one I preferred—the constant chill or the constant drizzle England was famous for.

Sitting on the edge of the roof, I watched the sun go down, the orange orb disappearing behind the cloud bank on the horizon. It seemed like hours passed as I shivered, stewing in the juices of my own shame. I’d ruined everything. Could this day get any worse?

If Greer really was out to cause trouble, how could I prove it? The way Wilder had shot me down made me doubt the conversation I’d overheard. Maybe it was my ignorance forcing me to jump to conclusions. This world was still new.

What was Human Convergence? It sounded rather… ominous.

A screeching sound pierced the air and I slapped my hands over my ears, screwing up my face. What the hell was that? The alarms?

Scrambling away from the edge of the building, I stood, forgetting my Codex on the ground. Looking up, my mouth fell open as an enormous pillar of red light shot towards the sky, clouds billowing around it like they were circling a drain, before the beam disappeared into the upper atmosphere.

I didn’t have to be a genius to know what was happening. The Infernal was downstairs, Greer may or may not be crooked, and the demons were obsessed with finding Arondight through me. Now, it appeared they had a way in, and it was sitting in a fancy jar in the vaults. It was a perfect storm, really.

The Sanctum had been breached… big time.

The alarms wailed again and the pillar of light flared. A split-second was all it took for the dome above the library to shatter, shards of glass flying into