Crimson Ties

by V L Moon

  Jesus! The memories were still so fucking raw; they stung like a weeping wound lying open to the elements. He could virtually smell the sulfur and feel the enticing thrill that touch used to bring. So close—too close. Arial could hardly breathe. Each gasp of air scalded his lungs and stoked the hunger of his mother’s mocking curse.

  Arial gasped. His eyes widened in disbelief when the scent of a demonic presence tickled his taste buds. The loathsome flavor coated his tongue as a chill worked its way along the tattered remnants of Arial’s wings. It wormed its way beneath his skin. Arial was lost for words when not one but two horned demons rose up from the ground and took sentinel on either side of the house. Did Darklon have any clue of the dangerous waters he played with? If the crazed Elder had sold his soul to the devil for the want of power, Arial feared worse days were to come.

  The two horned demons were young. Their flesh had yet to take on the full hue of their breeding, and their power was no match for a Fallen of Arial’s experience. He drank in their fear on his approach and rejoiced in the ease of such obliging meals. Yet, his skin still itched; something wasn’t right. However, with the threat of more demons turning up, Arial couldn’t afford to linger until he figured out what was wrong. He attacked.

  With his hunger sated and his mind back in the game, Arial brushed off the residue left from his meal before placing a shoulder to the well-worn door. The lock didn’t stand a chance against Arial’s weight. It gave easily as did the door, which sprang from its hinges and fell beneath Arial’s feet. The contaminated air hit him as soon as he entered. It reeked of blood, both stale and fresh. Arial stumbled, caught himself and cursed.

  “Fuck, Laziel. Thank the Creator you’re here.” The permeating bouquet of celestial scent was so overpowering it wove though the other smells dampening their effect. He pushed on into the room. If Laziel was present, Loz would be safe. The angel could protect her from the sun.

  Hope fuelled Arial’s determination to press forward. He battered his way through the one remaining door that bore a lock. Wood splintered as Arial ploughed his thick meaty fist through the rotting wood and pushed his bulk into the room that looked more like a shrine.

  He balked at the overpowering scent of Seraphim blood. If the demons or Darklon had somehow found a way to harm Laziel, Arial would spend an eternity showing them the torturous delights of his mother’s blessed curse before bringing them back from the brink and starting all over again. He stalked further into the dwelling and took a small flight of steps down to a dimly lit room.

  Each step sent Arial’s pulse racing as fear for Laziel and Lorenza reared its ugly head. The silence bugged him. Surely, if Laziel was here, the angel’s smart mouth would be doing its own version of an Olympic fucking sprint at how long it had taken them to track Miss Loz down. His heart sank. Even though Laziel’s scent stained every crevice of the blood soaked room, Arial could tell just from the silence that the mighty Seraphim had long since gone.

  “Fucker never could keep his smart mouth shut,” Arial snarled as he pulled a picture covered board from a narrow window across the back wall. Light poured into the room, and the room that greeted the Fallen giant of an angel brought a rush of black tar like tears to eyes that had been, a long time dry.

  Sweet scented blood lay pooled on the floor. It dripped from the chains hanging from the ceiling and streaked across the walls. It smeared the hundreds of pictures of a nameless face that covered every solitary inch of the cold damp room. The visual evidence combined with the smell could only mean one thing. Darklon had done as promised and taken the life of the vampire king’s female mate.

  No one, neither mortal nor preternatural held within them the energy or the strength to withstand such horrific abuse. As hard as he tried to pry his eyes away from the bloodshed, Arial stood rooted to the spot, unable to move. He felt sick to his stomach and knew for a fact, if he hadn’t been an angel, Fallen or otherwise, he would have been hurling his guts out like weak assed girl.

  The silence made him uneasy. The place resembled a crypt or a tomb. He needed to leave. Maybe Darklon knew Roman would seek reinforcements and had moved what remained of Loz’s body to another location. He was just about to make the first step toward the door when the darkness permeating the far end of the room seemed to reach out and grab his attention. And, Creator help him, Arial swore the darkness actually moved.

  Slow at first as though the shadows in the room breathed and pulsed, it reached out and drew in a long and pain filled shuddering breath. Arial paused, wishing he could for just one minute use his wings or turn vamp and port to the other end of the room. His ribcage heaved as the celestial heart that beat inside him threatened to break through the wall of his chest. He was scared but elated as he finally caught a glimpse of the emaciated form of the vampire king’s female. Bruised, beaten and shaking from the fear of Darklon’s return, Loz shrank back into the darkness where she’d crawled.

  Arial followed, talking low. For once, he wished he wasn’t so big. “Loz, it’s me, Arial. You met me with the King. Please take my hand, and I’ll get you out of here before he returns. You need to feed. Please let me help you.” Arial whispered. Large swollen eyes, pupils blown and severely bruised, regarded Arial. His heart lurched when Loz held out a fragile hand. Shaking with anger over Darklon’s treatment of the female, Arial gently took her fingers within his palm. With his free hand, he snapped the manacles and chains attached to her wrists, waist and her cut and dirty, blistered feet.

  “He’ll pay for this, mark my words. When Malachi sees what that bastard’s done, he’ll strip the flesh from Darklon’s bones and hang his carcass from the highest point in Rome for the vultures to feast.”

  With as much care as possible, Arial lifted Loz from the dirt and gore of the blood soaked floor. She weighed next to nothing as he carried her from the darkest part of the room. Loz didn’t move, and Arial feared Darklon’s abuse had taken its toll. “It’s ok, Loz,” Arial’s deep voice rumbled. “I’ll keep you out of the sun until its safe, and then I’m taking you back to Rome.”

  Loz stirred and pressed her face against his chest. Soft sobs broke through the silence; the first visible sign Loz was still in there, still with him. Arial hugged her closer, offering her some semblance of comfort until she was home. His heart hurt for Laziel, yet he could not see the female left in pain.

  “Not Rome. Not Lachi. Have. To. Stay. Away. Keep. Them. Safe.” Loz’s pain filled words were clipped and so hushed even Arial strained to hear. He dropped his head, causing his large hand to slip lower on her waist. He froze immediately when the frantic rhythm of a second heartbeat sang out in rejoice of a celestial’s touch. Arial’s whole body shook with such tremendous force he sank to his knees. Reverently, he laid Loz against the bare floorboards and placed his hand over the growing life form inside her. It was then the female opened her mouth and sent Arial’s brain into a complete and utter tailspin.

  “He can’t know. Not yet.” Arial landed with a bump onto the cold hard floor; dazed, dumfounded and totally mystified at the voice he swore he’d just heard. Broken it may have been, but female it wasn’t. He stared down at where his hand rested and alternated his attention between the rounded, swollen belly and the all too familiar sound of that cock- sure potty mouth.

  “Tinkerbelle, please tell me I’m fucking dreaming. I If it’s really you, I never thought I'd say it, but you sure as hell have a damned fine ass in a tight fitting dress.” Arial joked, with a trembling voice. The gravity of the situation facing him had just rocketed into orbit.

  “I told you before, sunshine; Tinkerbelle I’ll grant you, but a fairy I fuckin’ ain’t. Now get me the fuck out of this shit hole before I bust a lung kicking your ass.” Laziel’s voice chimed through those dry cracked lips, and sure as fuck, the cocksucker grinned. He actually grinned. And, for a moment, within one breath and the next, Arial recognized the mischievous glint that always played in the depths of Laziel’s beautiful eyes. Eyes that had always changed c
olor to suit his mood. Mayhap his body saw fit to play that same game.

  Male or female, Arial didn’t care. Laziel was there, and all of the questions he’d been busting his balls to answer over the last couple of weeks had been answered in a matter of minutes. Arial’s lips trembled, and Laziel reached up with a feminine hand and took the first of his fallen tears and pressed it against his parched split lips.

  Seconds passed. Arial knew Laziel held fast to his faith. True to the Seraphim’s earlier words, Arial’s celestial warmth still held some e angelic grace. The lips smiling up at him healed in a heartbeat and brought a ghost of a smile to the corners of Arial’s mouth. Blackened tears of laughter streamed from his eyes. He held Lorenza tight to his chest as if the Seraphim angel was made of the most delicate and fragile glass.

  “I meant what I said, my brother. I can’t go back, not like this. I have to keep Lachi safe. If he knows about me and the baby, nothing on the Creator’s holy Earth will stop him from wreaking havoc on the hands of fate.” Lorenza paused to catch her breath. “Lachi’s future needs to take its chosen path. Hell, I don’t even know what he’s going to say when he learns about this. After all of this time—Creator help me, Arial, I never knew. I didn’t think it was possible.”

  A soft hand rubbed over her distended abdomen. “Now that it’s happened, what can I do? I’m trapped inside the female part of myself, and there’s no telling how long it will take to give birth. I can’t risk putting this child in jeopardy by going back to Rome and rubbing the conception in Darklon’s ugly face. However much the thought appeals to me, the overwhelming need to control and protect would drive Lachi insane.”

  She stopped again and glanced up at him through her lashes. “How is he? I had to close the ties that bind us to keep the child a secret. I’ve tried to keep watch over him, but it weakens me too much. The child thrives, but takes all of my energy. I’m weak my brother, please tell me Lachi is well so I can finally sleep.”

  Arial hesitated. Technically, Denali was in good health and managing to hang on to his savage temper. Truthfully, the King was spiraling into a chasm of violence that threatened to swallow him whole. Lorenza didn’t need the added burden of worry for Denali. The King was strong enough to fend for himself. Lorenza and Laziel needed to focus on the babe. A sudden thought curdled the demon blood in his gullet.

  “Oh, Laziel,” he groaned, addressing the male he knew much better than the female he held. “What have you done? You’ll be like me, a Fallen. The Creator will never accept a child born of one as savage as Denali.” Heartbreak echoed in his voice.

  Lorenza continued to caress her stomach, a secret smile on her face. “Remember what I told you, Arial. I created Lachi. Who else can give him what I can? Who's to say I haven't done what was prophesied?”

  “The Creator,” Arial spat. “He doesn’t tolerate any form of evil.”

  Laziel’s eyes flashed to black, a sure sign of intense anger. “He is not evil, Arial Nathanial. Don’t ever make the mistake of calling him that again in my presence.” Arial shivered at the threat in the Seraphim’s voice. Lorenza took a calming breath. “Forgive me; I am not usually so quick to anger.”

  She plucked at the threadbare tee shirt. “I am the last of my race; he is the only one of his that is pure. The prophecy is not clear that he is to save his own race. Maybe he is supposed to save my race...our race. His and mine. If I go back, I’m putting the child at risk. I can protect it better if they don’t know about it.”

  As much as Arial understood the reasoning behind Laziel’s refusal to go back to Rome, he wasn’t looking forward to revealing that little tidbit of information to the vampire’s king. He’d be lucky if Malachi didn’t fucking castrate him.

  “Fuck Tink, you don’t ask for much, huh? He’ll have my balls for this, I swear.” He made a quick decision. One he refused to budge on. “Ok listen up before you go getting all comfy. I’ll agree to this on one condition. You let me hide you and look after you, ok?” Lorenza narrowed her eyes, but nodded. “Right,” Arial agreed. “Now, let’s get moving before Darklon decides he wants your useless ass.”

  Whether it was fear or the instinctual habit of the female, the angel in Arial’s arms burrowed deeper into Arial’s embrace and shook. ”He’s crazier than you think. I’ve seen what happens inside his mind. Not pretty my Fallen friend, not pretty at all. He’s sick; sick, twisted and bitter with grief. Don’t let him near my Lachi.” Lorenza grasped his shirt in her bloodstained hand. “Please brother, vow to me you’ll keep him safe.” Arial hushed Lorenza and stroked along the angel’s face.

  “I vow to you, Laziel…Lorenza; I will do everything within my power to keep your vampire safe. I might lose my head for it, but I’ll do my damned best. Now sleep, don’t worry about anything else I’ll make sure you’re safe, too.” Arial’s words halted as he took the stairs leading out from the basement of the house. He couldn’t believe what he held. The mighty Seraphim slept in his arms; battered beaten, abused and with child.

  Yup, Malachi was going to kill him for sure. But, what could he do? Laziel was right. Darklon was far too dangerous for him to go back to Rome. Lachi had to see the sense in that—didn’t he? Arial held Loz close and stepped outside into the noon day sun. He needed help.

  Hiding Laziel wouldn’t be easy, especially since they had no clue as to when the child was due. Struggling with his precious burden, Arial dug out his cell and flipped it open. He tucked the handset between his shoulder and neck and waited in the sunlight as the call connected

  “Hello, Gregori, this is Arial. I beg of your mercy, and trust in your silence in a time of great need. I need your help hiding Laziel.”

  ~*~*~*~

  Much later, Arial sprawled in a chair across the room from where Lorenza slept. Had the female awakened, the fierce scowl on his face would have been cause for alarm. Arial’s temper spiked somewhere near the boiling point.

  Together, he and Gregori had cleansed the wounds the Seraphim had been unable to heal with celestial light. They’d bathed and clothed her in the softest silk. She’d been settled for maybe an hour when she’d sat bolt upright in the bed clutching her head. Malachi’s name fell in rapid succession from her lips interspersed with moans and whimpers. He’d held her through convulsions and cursed the vampire who caused her such agony. He’d occupied the same chair for the past half hour waiting to see if the nightmare returned.

  The broken and weak figure lying in the bed in no way resembled the powerful warrior who had decimated Hell and carried his brethren home to their resting place in Heaven. Laziel’s fragility angered him. Despite his depraved lunacy, Darklon did not possess the power to injure a Seraphim so drastically. And still, Laziel’s pain shone as brightly as his love. It wasn’t Darklon’s sadistic physical torture that had weakened the angel. It was Malachi. Lorenza confirmed as much with her mumblings in her sleep.

  Laziel and Lorenza yearned for Malachi’s love. At first, Arial had been confused. There was little doubt, in his mind at least, that the vampire loved the angel. He’d been a fucked up mess since Lorenza’s disappearance, and after finding the female, Arial understood why. But, why did the angel question the vampire’s feelings?

  Every groan, every whimper added to the fire pit of his anger. Didn’t the vampire understand what he had? Did he have any idea how special Laziel was? How revered by his people?

  He would know, Arial vowed. He’d promised Laziel to take care of the vampire, but first, he was going to give the King a piece of his mind.

  ~*~*~*~

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  ~*~*~*~

  Brazil

  A restless energy pounded through Malachi’s veins. He paced the ballroom, waiting impatiently for the gala to wind down. The wolves were in fine form, enjoying the hospitality of the vampire enclave. Across the room, Kimberly and Saul eyed him warily. They had good reason. After Roman, Darklon and Arial ditched the party; he’d been hard pressed to remember his duties as King. The longer the ni
ght wore on, the more frustrated he became.

  For the tenth time, he yanked his cell from his trouser pocket and punched in Arial’s number. He growled when it once again went straight to voice mail. It wasn’t like the male to remain incommunicado when sent on a mission for him. Something was brewing, and he’d bet his fangs it involved his angel.

  A large male moved into his line of vision, cutting off his thoughts. His black gaze fastened on Jorn Chamberlin’s face. “Magnificent party, Your Grace, but I must offer my apologies. My mate is not used to staying up so late. I think we are going to turn in for the night.”

  “No apologies necessary,” he said, forcing a cordial smile that didn’t expose his fangs. “I hope that you and your beautiful mate rest well. Roman has made provisions for staff to assist you in the morning should you need it. As I’m sure you know, your hosts will be lost to the Sole Dormire during the sun’s presence.”

  Jorn nodded; his expression grave. “They are showing a lot of trust allowing us to stay here when they are at their most vulnerable, especially after the attack that took Mendeeto.” A look of sadness flitted through the wolf’s eyes. “My pack has been instructed to stay well away from their resting places and any who dare disobey will be punished immediately. On that, you have my word.”

  Malachi offered a hand to the wolf, but instead of shaking it, the male leaned in and embraced him. He stiffened for a moment, and then returned the one armed hug. Roman had warned him about the wolves and their need to touch. The male moved back, offered a slight bow and departed. He joined his wife at the alcove leading to the sleeping chambers. As soon as they disappeared through the door, Malachi reached for his tie and yanked it loose. He was so fucking done with the party.