Free The Weight of a Wing (The Stolen Wings Book 1) by Ioana Visan

nodded,
she did as she was told.
    There was a long silence in the kitchen, then Alise frowned,
asking, “How did it get in?”
    Rafe shook his head. “I have no idea.”
    “Not as monster-proof as you’d think, is it?” She made a
grimace. They were nowhere near safe.
    When they heard a muffled sound like an unfolding paper bag,
Rafe narrowed his eyes and eyed the top row of cupboards, trying to identify
the source.
    “Third from the right,” Alise said quietly. She didn’t know
how she knew it, but she did.
    Rafe pulled the door open and stabbed the growing thing
right before it dropped on him.
    Unfortunately, it wasn’t the only one. The second cupboard
was full, too. Then the first from the left. And the second. And the fourth and
fifth. Why did this kitchen have so many cupboards? It wasn’t like anyone used
them, other than the monsters nesting inside. They were popping out like
popcorn.
    Alise pointed them out, and Rafe killed them one by one. It
was creepy how she could feel their presence. She didn’t remember anything like
that happening before. First wave . She didn’t know how, but she knew it
was only the first wave. Rafe managed to keep up with the attack … barely. Like
the previous day, it wasn’t a simple attack. It was an invasion, and it didn’t
stop. She retreated towards the door. The kitchen was compromised.
    Her foot slipped on the tiles, and something bubbled by her
feet, so she jumped back. The monster wasn’t as dead as they had thought
because it had slowly migrated towards her. Its edges had turned purple and
started to scintillate. This couldn’t be a good sign. “Rafe! The floor!”
    Rafe spun around. One look was all it took for him to forget
about the cupboards and slide on his knees across the floor. With one hand, he
slammed his blade against the ground with such force, a tile cracked. So did
the monster. It turned into a solid mass that broke in several pieces. When
Rafe pulled out the blade, the monster turned into sand, finally dead. As if
commanded, the cupboard monsters did the same. Tiny dust particles rained over
them.
    “Well, this is new,” Rafe said, frowning at the monster
residue, brushing it off his clothes. “I think they were connected.” He looked
up at Alise.
    “I don’t feel any others,” she said. “Do you?”
    “No. But I’ll check again to make sure. You go.” He nodded
towards the dining room.
    She swallowed hard. If he had been taken by surprise, they
were in way over their heads. Gorem was pulling out the big guns. In his
determination to get to her, he was not going to let any Guardian stop him.
“Don’t be long,” Alise murmured and left the kitchen. There was nothing else
they could do.

Chapter Eleven
     
    “We’re going to have an early night, eh, honey?” Rafe said.
    It was close to midnight and with no other monsters making
an appearance, the men had bonded over drinks—much to Alise’s dismay. The more
time passed, the less annoying Mark became to all of them. It wasn’t because of
the drinking, alcohol hardly affected the Guardians, but since it gave them a
reason to retire for the night, and after having exchanged a glance with Cassie
to make sure she was going to be all right, Alise nodded submissively.
    “I have to study some more for my exam,” Cassie said and
looked at Vale. “You don’t mind, do you?”
    “No problem,” he said.
    “Oh, right. How’s school?” Mark asked.
    School was not a subject to be concerned about. His niece
did well and got good grades more often than not. If there had been a problem,
her mother would have been on it. Cassie deserved some time off from her family
during the school year.
    “School’s fine.” Cassie hid a yawn behind her hand.
Everything else was a mess.
    They got up from their seats and said goodnight.
    “Goodnight, kids!” Mark said as he poured himself one last
drink. “I think I’m going to call Sarah…”
    “He’s hopeless,” Cassie said while they walked