Kiss of Fate

by Heather Long

  It was a human woman with her mate, a man on the edge of tipping into true darkness. He was already emotionally manipulative and flirted with physical abuse. His temper had cost him some contract at work, and he was in the process of blaming his…girlfriend?

  No. Wife.

  The shadows coalescing around her promised death was coming. Even Bish noticed, and he gave the woman a sad look before turning away. Behind her, Karmen rose with a look of disgust, and she flounced out of the bar. But Punishment couldn’t look away.

  If they did nothing, that woman was going to die just like Dahlia.

  If they interfered?

  If they gave into their grace?

  She’d probably die anyway.

  But she was a lot like Dahlia, dark-haired, dark-eyed, but where Dahlia was a tall, warrior of a woman with her long legs and bigger than life personality, this one was demure with a pixie look. The darkness would crush her.

  There would be no light for Bish to escort away.

  Justice let out an almost pained sound in a range too low to be heard by humans, but every Keeper jerked their attention to him.

  Next to him, Dahlia stared up at Justice with a stunned expression. Punishment’s brother wielded his sword, blazing with his grace.

  There were only a handful of humans in the bar, but it didn’t matter. Unless one was close to death, they would not be able to see any Keeper in their true form. Not unless they willed it so.

  Dahlia covered her mouth as Zhan stretched his wings before tucking them tight against his back, then wove through the small crowd toward the couple. Judgment pushed away from the bar as he also took his true form, his wings of sunset flaring into existence as well as his own fiery sword.

  Tarus rushed to Dahlia as Judgment made his way toward the corner to meet Justice. Every Keeper in Sinner’s had their shocked gazes locked on the brothers. It was common knowledge amongst them that Tarus and Zhan had fallen. And clearly, word of their newly formed relationship had not made the circulation.

  Ushering an anxious and trembling Dahlia over to Bish, he gritted his teeth over what he was about to do. But out of all the Keepers present, he trusted Bish the most to keep her safe. Karmen was floating around somewhere, but he damn sure wouldn’t trust her with his Beauty.

  “What are they doing?” Dahlia whispered under the hand that still covered her mouth. Her eyes were wide, and she was riveted by the impending show that no one could see, outside of the Keepers and Dahlia.

  “We’re doing what we should have done for you.” Tarus kissed her on top of her head as he lifted her up onto a stool. “She doesn’t leave your sight, understand me?” He leveled Bish with a solemn glare.

  His brows shooting to his hairline, Bish nodded slowly like he was unable to form words.

  Then Tarus straightened up, rolling his shoulders as he faced the corner where his brothers now hovered over the unsuspecting couple. His beast strained against the chains, pushing almost as hard as when he needed to be close to their Beauty. Only this time, the compulsion was a scorching need to rain down punishment on the one who’d allowed too much darkness into his bitter soul.

  For the first time since he’d fallen, he broke the thick chains that had trapped his beast, allowing his true form to shine through in all its glory. His own sword appeared in his hand as he stalked after his brothers. Thousands of years since he’d held his own sword, but it felt right in his hand.

  As if the humans could feel their rising grace, they naturally gravitated toward the opposite end of the establishment. The Keepers knew to keep their distance until this had played out.

  Judgment stood in between Justice and Punishment as they took their positions behind the man. The darkness staining his soul was putrid and rapidly eating away at any remaining scrap of light left. This one was too far gone to be redeemed.

  Holding his sword up, sliding it through the man’s aura, just short of touching his skin, Judgment made his ruling for all to hear. “Human of darkness, you are hereby found guilty in crimes against your wife. Tonight, you will find both your punishment and the justice due you.” His voice boomed throughout the bar. The blade of his sword blazed with his grace, crimson reds, rich oranges to deep, dusky purples. Light from Seth’s grace infiltrated the man’s aura, marking him for what was to come next.

  The human’s head shot backward as if he could feel the weight of judgment on his shoulders, while his wife stared into her drink, completely oblivious to the importance of this moment.

  Lifting his sword, Judgment pulled back and allowed Punishment to take his place.

  His beast flexed inside him, compelling him to lay down a fit punishment for this man. Dark electric shocks slid up his spine, then raced down his arms to his sword. Only his sword was the softest white lights, incandescent and almost blinding against the shadows of this man’s soul.

  Never one for fanfare, he reached inside to grab the human’s essence and pierced it with his sword. He willed the punishment into this man, relishing the rush from doling out just retribution. Immediately, the human shoved away from the bar, knocking his stool over in the process. Stepping out of his way, Punishment allowed him to pass. Then he watched as the man ran right into the street in front of Sinner’s, only to be tossed over the hood of a car that didn’t see him. The car and driver sustained no damage, but the man broke his neck when he smashed into the road.

  The wife hadn’t even noticed he’d left until the car outside honked, and she spun around on her seat. Gasping, she yelled out his name, but before she left her stool, Justice grabbed the shadows from her soul that were not of her own making and stabbed his sword through the injustices she’d suffered in her life.

  She tensed, and her eyes rolled back in her head for the briefest of moments while Justice zoned out to ensure the ones who had wronged her received their own form of justice.

  Her shoulders sagged, and without a word, she calmly walked out and called 911 for her husband.

  One by one, they took their human form. First Judgment, then Justice, but Punishment had to work a little harder. Now that his beast was sated from completing its duty, it wanted to seek out the Beauty he’d craved so much.

  Gritting his teeth, he forced his grace down until he felt the sword leave his hand and the wings on his back disappeared into the ether.

  “Okay, brother?” Seth murmured close to his ear.

  “Just fine,” he rasped. “Zhan, did you calm her? She’s not near as hysterical as I thought she would be.”

  Zhan turned to survey the street, where the wife was crouched down beside her husband. “I gave her the justice she deserved. She now sees him for who he truly is, or was. She would not have stayed with him. I might also have made the grieving process a little easier.” He shrugged like he was uncomfortable.

  Dahlia appeared with Bish hot on her heels. The wonder and awe on her face was hard to witness, especially when Tarus wasn’t sure they’d made the difference Dahlia apparently thought they had.

  “You saved her? Was she like me?” Would that woman have died by the hands of her husband if they hadn’t intervened?

  Pulling her into his embrace, Zhan rocked her from side to side as he whispered in her ear, “Yes.”

  Her bottom lip trembled as tears filled her eyes, but they didn’t spill over. She was too tough for that. Instead, she buried her face in Zhan’s chest and laughed through a choked sob.

  “I’m glad I got to see you three in action. And it makes me feel pretty good about the deal I made with Seth.” She flicked her gaze to Seth with nothing but pleased acceptance.

  Did she think this was her purpose? To get Zhan and Tarus back on the right side with Seth?

  Unreasonable anger slithered through him. There was nothing worth the cost of her life, and he wished she had been the one he’d saved.

  “Beauty, she may not even survive. We’ve talked about how, more often than not, she may still die tonight, or even within a few weeks. It’s not an automatic save
when we step in.”

  She shook her head as the stubborn, glistening tears that wouldn’t fall stuck to her eyelashes. “But what you did does matter, because you saved her in this moment. Maybe her fate is to leave the Earth soon, maybe not, but you brought that man to justice before he could be the reason she died. Take it from me, that means something.”

  Could she be right? Did it mean something? More than anything, Tarus wanted to believe her, but he couldn’t quite convince himself. Although he could pretend. For now, for her, he could pretend what they did had made a difference.

  Seth glared at Bish, who was watching the four of them with his hands shoved in his pockets. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?”

  A small smile played at the corners of his mouth. “Nope. And I must say, I never would have seen any of this coming. Dahlia.” He waited until she turned her beautiful eyes to him. “I’m always here if you need me, don’t forget.” He pivoted on one heel and strolled back to his spot at the bar.

  “Well, I walked out to avoid disappointment, but I should have stayed to see the show.” Karmen’s sweet voice met their ears before she popped around Zhan’s back, wedging herself into their circle. “Dahlia, darling, how have you been? I still owe you an evening out.”

  “No!” the three brothers shouted in unison.

  A cute pout spread over her face. “Don’t be such wet blankets. Kindle just walked in, and I know she’d like to catch up with you. Come with me.” With more strength than Karmen had a right to have, she pulled a slightly shocked Dahlia out of Zhan’s arms and led her to a table where Kindle sat.

  Tarus started to grab Dahlia, but Seth stopped him with an arm across his chest.

  “Wait. We all know Karmen is a wild card, but Kindle’s here. Let’s see how this plays out,” Seth said absently as he followed Dahlia with his gaze as she made her way through the bar.

  Sure, Tarus thought to himself, let’s see how Dahlia fares against the fickle bitch and someone who’s more liable to crush their hopes than help them.

  There were rules after all.

  21

  Have you ever heard about how ‘Karma is a fickle bitch’? Wow, did they get that one right. But she’s also wildly entertaining. Kind of wish all my girlfriends had been like this. - Dahlia

  Dahlia

  Walking arm and arm, Karmen led me over to the small high top where Kindle waited, smiling at her phone. I wanted to be suspicious as hell about Karmen since our last outing just happened to be Sinner’s where Seth and Tarus appeared.

  When Seth and Kindle had appeared.

  But I wasn’t going to focus on that. She seemed like a nice girl…angel. Keeper. Whatever.

  Karmen slipped her arm from mine and hopped up on a stool. “Look, bitch. Dahlia came to join us.” She giggled as she caught the straw to her girly drink with her tongue.

  Kindle laughed, dropping her head over her phone. “Nice to see you again, Dahlia.” Then she started into a new round of rolling laughter.

  “What are you watching?” I was curious. Whatever it was, the sound was so low, I could barely make out some quirky music.

  “Cat TikToks.” She turned the volume up and dropped her phone, immediately starting to slowly rotate on her stool, touching her fingers together. When she’d made it halfway around the stool, she rotated back, holding up peace signs and wearing a fixed smile.

  Karmen snorted and tossed a balled up straw wrapper her way. “So lame.”

  “I must really be behind the times. I don’t have the slightest clue what you just did.” I shook my head as one of my angels pressed against my back. Tilting my head back, I met Zhan’s dark-eyed gaze. He winked at me as he set his strong hands on my shoulders.

  “Oh! Sorry, I thought everyone in the human world kept up with TikTok nowadays. It’s a trend that means innocent or shy. So if you ever see their fingers touching like that as TikTokers spin, it means their content is innocent.” Kindle shrugged before her gaze snagged on her screen once again. “Hi guys,” she waved distractedly at the brothers.

  Wow. And I thought Zhan was the one who loved humans the most. Although I was pretty sure he didn't invest himself so much in the current trends.

  And now I was really curious. Karmen and Kindle were both angels. That was so evident, I wasn’t even sure why I needed to remind myself. But if their grace was anything like their personalities, Kindle’s couldn’t have been threatening. Karmen’s on the other hand, she was a wild card.

  “Now, boys, I know you aren’t so overbearing that you have to literally be Dahlia’s shadow. Look…” She gestured to the table behind us. “That table behind you is free. You can be close enough that if anything happens you can slide right in and save us, and far enough away we can pretend we’re having a girls’ night.” The sweet grin she bestowed on them wouldn't melt butter in her mouth.

  “My sweet, is this what you want?” Seth slid two fingers along my jaw, gently turning my head to meet his stare. His beautiful sky-blue stare.

  I coughed and looked at his nose instead, because I knew myself. A second longer, and I would have fallen down a path that would demand I march him to the back room. Granted, they’d taken me out dancing, and I’d definitely danced. With Zhan. A lot. Meanwhile, Seth and Tarus had sat at the bar like a pair of moody bastards until now. I loved that they’d embraced their graces. I loved even more that they’d worked together. Leaning back against Zhan, I reveled in the fact they had found each other. It would take almost no effort to fall into the deep end of that sensuous pool of pleasure I found in Seth’s eyes.

  A girl had needs. Especially this girl.

  “Sure. Just a little while before we call it a night.” I smiled up at him. I wanted to see Karmen, I did still owe her some, and yes, I could admit it, I was very curious about Kindle.

  Very.

  His gaze briefly flicked to Kindle, who was still absorbed in her phone, before nodding and swiping his thumb along my cheek. “We’ll be over here waiting for you.”

  Zhan squeezed my shoulders, and Tarus cupped the back of my neck. Then the three of them took up residence at a table about five feet away. So we could only pretend a tiny bit that they weren’t there, because really, I could probably hear everything they said because they were that close. And I had regular human hearing.

  And what was his look about?

  I was under the impression that Seth and Kindle had never been a thing, but now I was rethinking everything. Glancing at her from under my lashes, probably not at all inconspicuous because Karmen was watching with a devilish smirk, Kindle seemed so deliriously happy and soft.

  Now I’d have to try and figure out what her grace was, because watching cute cat videos did not make a fierce grace. Right?

  “So, Dahlia, how have those brutes been treating you?” Karmen leaned on her elbows to get closer. “Tell me you’re at least getting a cock to ride, if not three?” Her eyebrows raised in a suggestive expression.

  I grinned, because you know what, I was getting it good. I had too little time left to be ashamed of it. “They’re taking care of me just fine.” Even if Tarus held back some.

  Kindle turned her phone off and turned it over, as if now that her video was over, she was ready to join the conversation. She smiled kindly while folding her hands in her lap. Both women looked at me expectantly, as if they were waiting for more details.

  “So how do you two know the guys?” This was what I really wanted to know. They lived forever, so they probably had pretty heavy history with most all the Keepers. I mean, how many could there be?

  Surprisingly, Kindle was the first to answer. “Oh, our graces never intertwined so much, but I make a point to be out among the humans when I can. So I’ve run into them from time to time. Back when they used to travel together, they were actually quite fun.”

  “Yes, they’re all mostly idiots now. Even Bish,” Karmen deadpanned like this was the most boring conversation ever. Which was an odd tone for her, considering she was literal
ly the cutest woman I’d ever seen. Even her nose was small and slightly upturned, like Cindy Lou Who.

  “You can fill her in on how you met them while I run to the restroom really quick.” Kindle grinned at us before stepping down and walking toward the hallway where the brothers always liked to pop in.

  Just as I was about to open my mouth, a shadow passed over the table. It was Seth making a beeline toward the restroom.

  Well, fuck. That wasn’t suspicious at all.

  “So what have you done?” Karmen asked abruptly, and I glanced at her. Trailing my finger around the rim of the purple drink sitting in front of me, I gathered the sticky glaze and then tested it against my tongue. Salty-sweetness burst in my mouth, and I sucked on my finger for a moment.

  “What is this?” I asked before lifting it to sniff cautiously. I hadn’t exactly ordered a drink before, and it had a fruity bouquet along with a little lemon and lime. The deep purple color reminded me a little of Zhan’s wings when he was in flight and the sun hit him just right.

  “It’s called a Party in Your Mouth,” Karmen teased with a playful smile. I swore my eyes widened at the name.

  That was even better than Afternoon Delight.

  Without hesitation, I glanced over my shoulder and locked gazes with Tarus as I took a sip. The Pop Rock glazing on the rim exploded with sweetness as the sharpness of the lemon, lime, and oh my god, pomegranate juice flooded my mouth. My eyes teared a moment. It was a collision of flavors that absolutely delighted me.

  Karmen’s laughter turned almost effervescent. Though Tarus’ mouth had formed a little o and his dark eyes went hot, I still managed to look back to the adorable pixie sitting across from me. “I bet you like that, don’t you?”

  “You have no idea,” I admitted. Though I hadn’t had that pleasure yet. It was definitely high on my list of things Dahlia must do before she was done in. A giggle burst free from me, and Karmen grinned wider. “Though, you still haven’t told me how you met the guys.”

  “You haven’t told me what you’ve done yet,” she countered.