by Sadie Hobbes
I was hoping to get it down to five minutes flat, but that would take a little more training than what I was currently capable of, at least for a long run. I could do a four-minute mile for a single mile, but for ten miles like this morning, I was lucky if I managed a 5:45 mile.
By the time I reached the apartment building, my breathing was back to its regular rhythm. I let myself in. The Sanchezes’ door opened almost immediately. Lisa stepped into the hall, closing the door behind her.
“Morning, Lisa.”
“I didn’t get to tell you last night how much we appreciate you going after Cecelia like that. If Manny had gone by himself…” Lisa’s eyes filled with tears.
“I was happy to help. How’s his shoulder this morning?”
“It’s good. Graham’s doctor came by about an hour ago. She put some medicine on it and gave us more medicine that we’re supposed to use for the next few days. She said he should be fine by the end of the week.”
Graham had sent his doctor. A warm feeling again filled my chest. He’d kept his word.
“I’m glad he’s okay. How’s Cecelia?”
“Scared. She didn’t even really like those kids. They asked her to go, and she was mad at us, and so…” Lisa’s voice dwindled off again. “Luckily they’re all home safe, thanks to you. And I think Cecilia’s learned a pretty important lesson from all of this.”
“That she has.”
Lisa wrapped me in a hug, her body trembling. “Thank you, Addie. You’re an angel.”
She gave me a quick smile before disappearing back into her apartment. I climbed the stairs, feeling a little happier than I had earlier. She’d called me an angel.
While I might not agree with the sentiment, it was nice to know that somebody thought so.
Chapter 23
Graham
Graham shifted the baskets from his right hand to his left. They weren’t heavy, but he was feeling antsy, unsettled.
Nervous.
He huffed out a breath. He rarely got nervous. When he was a kid, his father and brother had beaten and insulted that out of him. He’d learned not to show fear. But today there was no denying it—he was feeling nervous.
Graham had filled the baskets with an assortment of foods, including fruit, for Addie and her family. The second basket was for the Sanchezes on the first floor. He felt a little silly walking around carrying two baskets like he was Dorothy, but there was really no other way to get the food over to them.
He spied the apartment building down the street. There were only a few people out, and for a moment he thought maybe it was too early, that he should circle the block or something. But then he got a hold of himself.
I am Graham Michael, the Commander of the Seraph Force. I do not circle the block. He needed answers to Addie’s abilities and not just to satiate his own curiosity. Her skills were incredible and could be incredibly valuable to the Seraph Force. He also needed to see what she knew about demons.
Graham crossed the street, and after letting himself into the apartment building, he knocked quietly on the door downstairs. A sleepy-looking Cecilia opened the door, her dark hair falling into her face. She hastily pushed it back. “Commander Graham.”
Dark circles were under her eyes, and there was a pale cast to her skin. It looked like it had been a bad night, probably for all of them. Graham handed over the basket. She took it by rote as she stared at it in confusion.
“Just some food and extra bandages. The doctor said it’s important for your dad to eat well to regain his strength.”
Tears shone in her eyes. “You’ve already done so much.”
Guilt hit him in the chest. He hadn’t done much at all. And a basket of food shouldn’t reduce someone to tears. But if you’ve been struggling, he supposed it would. Lisa appeared and added her thanks to Cecilia’s.
Graham managed to extricate himself from the profusion of thanks and escape up the stairs. Once again, Graham knocked softly, wondering if maybe it was too early. He’d told Addie that he would be over this morning, but they’d had a late night. Maybe they wanted to sleep in.
He growled at the indecision racing through his mind. What the hell was wrong with him?
And the minute the door opened, he knew. Addie stood in her bare feet, her hair still wet from a shower. She once again wore a simple T-shirt and jeans. And Graham knew for a fact he’d never seen a more beautiful woman in his life.
Donovan was right: he was in trouble.
He realized with a start that he had been simply staring at her, not saying a word. But neither had she. It was as if they were both afflicted by sudden mutism.
“Hey, Graham. How’s it going?” Micah ran up behind Addie. His eyes and smile were bright. He looked like he’d had a good night sleep. Maybe Addie hadn’t told them all the gory details of the fight.
He tore his gaze away from Addie and smiled at Micah as he hefted the basket up. “Morning, Micah. I brought breakfast.”
Noel called from further in the apartment. “Then what are you doing out there? Come on in.”
Addie stepped aside. “Yes, of course. Please come in.” She gave Graham a tentative smile.
And he smiled in return, finally looking forward to the morning.
Chapter 24
Addie
I stepped back into the apartment to let Graham in, and once again I felt like every cell in my body was singing. Being near him was not good for my mental health. He was all-consuming.
And too off-limits.
“Let me take that,” I said, reaching for the basket.
“Careful, it’s—”
I took the basket, carrying it easily.
“Heavy,” he mumbled.
“She’s really strong. Cool, right?” Micah asked.
“Very cool,” Graham said.
I placed the basket on the table and started pulling out wrapped packages. It smelled wonderful. There was fruit, jam, and croissants that were still warm. There was even some fresh squeezed orange juice. The kids were drawn to the table like moths to a flame.
“Grab plates,” I said to Noel. She quickly pulled some out of the cabinet. I lathered strawberry jam on two croissants and gave one to each. “Eat them while they’re warm.”
The kids each took a bite, and the looks on their faces sent a bolt of pure contentment through me.
I looked up at Graham, who smiled back at me. And something kindled in the air between us.
There was a knock on the door, interrupting the moment. I frowned, flicking a glance at the fire escape. Torr wasn’t there. Maybe it was one of the Sanchezes?
“I got it.” Graham moved to the door, his gait predatory. And I wasn’t afraid to admit, I liked watching him move. And I couldn’t help but wonder how well he moved in other situations. I pictured him moving on top of me, and my breath came out in a little gasp.
“You okay, Addie?” Micah asked, jam smeared at the corners of his mouth.
I tore my gaze from Graham’s back. “Yup, just anticipating a croissant.”
I quickly grabbed one, keeping my eye on the door as Graham called out. “Who’s there?”
“Donovan.”
Shaking his head, Graham opened the door. The Viking walked into the apartment and grinned at a surprised Micah as he held up a wooden box. “I heard Graham was coming over for breakfast, and I thought I’d bring this over so that you could get a jump-start on practicing.”
Micah’s eyes widened as he walked over. Donovan handed him the box.
Micah opened it slowly, as if wanting to prolong the moment. The box was lined with red velvet, and nestled inside were chess pieces made of the darkest, sleekest mahogany.
“The board’s underneath,” Donovan said as Micah just stared at the pieces.
His hands reached for a knight, his fingers running over its smooth finish. His eyes wide, he smiled up at Donovan. “Thank you.”
Donovan shrugged, but I could tell that Micah’s appreciation of the gift really touched him. “N
o problem. And no excuses when we play and I kick your butt. Do you have time for a game now?” He raised an eyebrow.
Hope splashed across Micah’s face as he looked at me.
I shook my head. “No. You have school. In fact, you two need to eat quickly or you’ll be late.”
Micah grumbled but walked over to the table with the mahogany chess set tucked under his arm. He laid it reverently on the table and kept one hand on it while he finished breakfast. I smiled, watching him. That was a nice thing of Donovan to do, and Micah was going to relive this moment for a while. He and Noel played chess with an old set that was missing the pawns. They substituted with a saltshaker and an old toy soldier.
“Oh, that reminds me.” Graham walked over to the basket and rifled through. He pulled out two large tomes. He handed them to Noel. “Marcus thought you might like these.”
Noel let out a little gasp, grasping the books. I didn’t recognize the titles. One seemed to be a history of the Angel War, and the other was a biography of the archangels. She clutched them to her chest. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
She smiled at me before joining Micah at the table. She kept her books within hand’s reach.
My throat tightened as I watched them. They were both over the moon with their gifts. I was glad that they appreciated getting things, but I also knew that part of that appreciation was because gifts were so sparse in our life. And usually when we gave gifts to each other, it was something practical, like fresh fruit or a secondhand pair of shoes that was in better condition than our current pair.
For a moment, I felt bad about what I couldn’t provide for them. Then Noel looked up at me, her eyes shining, sharing her joy with me.
In that moment, I knew that these gifts, while incredible and greatly appreciated were not the most important thing. Together, Noel, Micah, Torr—who now sat outside on fire escape—and I had made a family. That was the most important thing.
The kids ate quickly, and each grabbed a pear to eat on the way as I ushered them out the door. Donovan elected to walk them to school. I could see that Micah was thrilled at the idea. Torr was less than thrilled, but he walked alongside them nevertheless. And for once I was glad that Torr hadn’t revealed himself. I wasn’t sure how Graham and Donovan would respond to his existence.
I closed the door and turned around to face Graham. I felt awkward now that it was just the two of us. The air felt charged.
Graham nodded toward the kitchen. “Do you mind if I get some more coffee? I didn’t sleep well last night.”
The mention of sleep caused me to yawn. “Only if you pour me a cup as well.”
“Deal.”
Only a few minutes later, the two of us were settled on the couch, mugs set on the table in front of us.
“So,” Graham started. “You killed five demons last night. Is that an unusual number for you?”
“Actually, it was only four.’’
“Four, then. Is that normal for you?”
I studied his face. There was no accusation there, just open curiosity. “I’ve never come across a group like that before. I’ve occasionally faced two, but never more. I’m glad you two came along. I don’t know what we would’ve done if you hadn’t.”
Graham raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I think you would have figured it out. That move where you took off that last demon’s head, I’ve never seen anyone do that before. You must have some serious training.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
He frowned. “What you mean you don’t know?”
I took a deep breath, watching him. Did I trust him with this? Was it safe to tell him about my history? At the same time, I couldn’t imagine what he could do with my history that would cause me difficulty. So I released my breath and told him. “I don’t remember anything before two years ago. I woke up down on the beach, and I ran into Noel and Micah. As far as I know, that’s where my life began.”
Graham leaned forward. “You have no memories from before that point?”
“Not a thing. It’s all a complete blank. It was as if I just poofed into existence at that very moment.”
“But you’ve had flashes of memories or a sense of déjà vu when you went somewhere or did something, right?”
“Never. I have absolutely no inkling of who I was before I woke up on that beach. I could have trained for years or not trained at all. I just know that when it comes to fighting demons, I know what to do. I know how to hurt them.”
Graham studied me for a long moment. “And you’ve been fighting demons ever since. Going around town at night and defending people.”
Now there was a trace of accusation in his voice.
I speared him with a look, some of my anger rising. “Somebody has to. All of you Angel Blessed keep security over the bridge, leaving us to fend for ourselves. And how are the people down here supposed to protect themselves against demons without any help?”
Graham looked taken aback by the vehemence in my tone, but I didn’t apologize. I wasn’t sorry for what I’d said at all.
“We defend ourselves just as you can defend yourselves.”
I snorted. “Just as we can defend ourselves? You have the latest weapons and training. Here, everybody works themselves hard from dawn to dusk and sometimes later. And then what? We’re supposed to train after a full day of work being run off our feet by those in Sterling Peak?”
My anger spiraled. I knew I needed to reel it in, but I couldn’t. Words poured out of my mouth before I could stop them.
“What do you do all day, Graham? Are you busy running after your master? Or do you sleep in when you’ve had a rough night? Do you take it easy? Do you get to spend hours thinking about strategy and how to attack a demon? We don’t have that luxury down here. We work for our living. It’s not just handed to us.”
I slammed my mouth shut. Where had all of that come from? I stood up from the couch and put some space between myself and Graham. I don’t know what about him made me so angry right now, but I realized that anger had been simmering under the surface these last two years. Sterling Peak had left all of us in Blue Forks at the mercy of the demons without even a care. He acted as if our ability to defend ourselves was equal, but our lives were anything but equal.
“I never really thought about it that way.”
“Of course you didn’t. Angel Blessed don’t think about the Demon Cursed. Demon Cursed.” I scoffed. “We all know we’re not Demon Cursed. It’s just a convenient title to make you feel better about treating us like crap.”
“Where is all this anger coming from?”
I stared at the concern on his face and knew he didn’t deserve me yelling at him like this. The anger had come over me out of nowhere. I took a step back, shaking my head. “Sorry, I just … I think I need some air.”
I walked over to the window and opened it, climbing out onto the fire escape. A light breeze blew, cooling some of my anger. I gripped the railing, staring down into Blue Forks. There were only two people in view. Everyone else was either sleeping, in preparation for working tonight, or already at work. What I’d said was true. The Angel Blessed had created the ridiculous notion that we were Demon Cursed to justify the imbalance of power. Even so, Graham had been nothing but kind to me and my family. And for that, I had yelled at him and blamed him for all the ills of society. That wasn’t fair either.
Metal creaked as Graham stepped out onto the fire escape behind me. “I’m sorry, Addie. I should have done more. I should’ve thought more about what people down here were going through.”
“It’s okay. I mean, it’s just your life, right? We all go along just kind of accepting it without really thinking too hard about it.”
“That’s not an excuse. That’s not acceptable. I should go. Thank you for talking to me this morning. And for helping Marcus out. If you ever need anything …”
I shook my head, feeling a catch in my throat. Why did this feel so final? How could I have messed everything up so badly? But pride woul
dn’t let me show him my hurt. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
I felt him staring at me, but I kept my gaze on the street below. The creak of metal was the only indication that he’d left. I turned to watch him go. I kept my gaze on his broad shoulders as they walked through my apartment for what I knew was the last time and let himself out the door.
This was for the best. Nothing good could come from the Angel Blessed being in our lives. The kids’ hopes would get raised, and then when they left, they would be devastated. So this was good. This was how it should be.
And yet more than anything else, all I wanted to do was cry.
Chapter 25
Addie
I spent the rest of the day moping around the apartment. I knew I needed to kick myself out of this funk that I’d put myself in, but I wasn’t sure how to do it because I’d come to a realization: I had a massive crush on Graham Michael. Even though I told myself that I wasn’t one of those girls, apparently I was.
But I was also smart enough to realize that a crush on him was completely and totally pointless. He was never meant to be a part of my life. He was an Angel Blessed for God’s sake, and the leader of the Seraph Force. I cleaned an Angel Blessed home for a living. There was no future for us.
And besides, there was no indication that my crush was anything but one-sided. Graham Michael had his choice of pretty much any girl. I was not going to be a choice for longer than a night.
At the same time, I had to admit, his reputation wasn’t like the other Angel Blessed. I'd heard of him with a few women but it wasn’t one night stands. He didn't go through women like it was his right. An image of D’Angelo's smug face wafted through my mind. Now he lived up to the Angel Blessed bad reputation.
But still I’d never heard of Graham being involved with a Demon Cursed. Angel Blessed didn't get involved with Demon Cursed, at least not emotionally. And from how much he consumed my thoughts and the way my body reacted to him, I knew just a physical relationship wouldn't be possible, at least on my side. So I'd gotten angry and shoved him away.