“Honey,” Mira whispered and held out her hand to him, her expression pleading.
Kagan sucked in a deep breath and released his grip on Xander. Their commander sagged against the wall, rubbing his throat.
“I must make it up to him now,” Kagan said. “I can’t let you take Thana.”
Luther started when said woman brushed against him in the doorway, her dark eyes sleepy and full of confusion. Her gaze narrowed when she saw Xander. Luther moved in front of her to block Xan’s path. He doubted Kagan would back down without another fight, and that should be enough to drive Xan away, but he wasn’t going to take any chances. He wouldn’t allow anyone to take Thana from him. She’d been through enough.
“Don’t take this fight,” Kagan said, moving back another step. “You won’t win.”
Xan remained pressed against the wall. “I’m sorry, I really am, but I must obey. Divinity is watching.” Xan looked up at the ceiling then back at Kagan, then at Luther. “It doesn’t matter what you want. I can’t go without her. If you won’t hand her over, then I’ll have to fight, and I won’t be alone.”
Three archangels appeared in the room, crowding around Kagan.
Luther drew one of his blades while keeping Thana behind him.
“I don’t care how many angels you bring to this fight or whether my actions go against Divinity’s commands, I won’t let you take Thana from me. I’m her Scion and I will die to protect her.” Luther extended the handle of his blade into a staff with a flick of his wrist. The silver engravings flashed under the lights and Xan looked past Kagan to him.
Kagan withdrew his twin curved golden blades as well.
Sloane unholstered his pistols and handed one to Wyck. Lin unsheathed his katana and shifted into a fighting stance. The Scion would stand or fall as one.
Thana lightly touched Luther’s arm, warming him to the bone with the soft caress, and moved out from behind him. He tried to stop her, but she turned to him with the cold detached expression from the night before, then walked out into the space between the couches.
Everyone watched her in silence.
“I’ll go with you,” she said. Fear quivered in her voice.
Luther grabbed his second blade and handed it to her, silently begging her to take it.
“I will go,” she said again, this time with more conviction.
“No,” Luther growled. “I can’t… won’t let you go.”
She turned away and lowered her head.
“Too much blood has already been spilled on my behalf,” she whispered.
Xan straightened and walked to her side.
“No.” Luther hadn’t meant to make her feel as though she had to leave last night when he’d said those awful things to her. It had been a moment of weakness. He wasn’t ready for her to go. Not yet. Not ever.
He kept his hand outstretched, imploring her to come back to him.
Xander took hold of her arm and summoned a vortex.
Light burst forth into the room.
The archangels disappeared, leaving Xan and Thana behind.
As rainbow light swirled around her, she raised her chin and met Luther’s gaze. He saw her as she’d been as a mortal—saw the same love, the same recognition. She smiled faintly. “I’m sorry, Luther… for everything.”
They were gone before he could react, the vortex fading. He stared at the spot for a small eternity, trying to comprehend it all. He rushed out onto the rooftop and clutched the black iron railing, staring up at the sky.
“Thana!” Luther yelled at the heavens, distraught and enraged, the bitter taste of fury coating his throat. The sky blackened, and the wind gusted, whipping into a howling rage, tearing leaves off the trees in the park down the street.
He dug his fingers into the railing, bending the metal.
“You remembered me… why… why leave?”
Lightning crashed down into the street below, filling the air with the scent of burnt asphalt. He gritted his teeth, fighting to regain command of his emotions. Liquid fire blazed in his veins, burning him from the inside out, consuming him. He bit back his desire to scream and glared at the tempestuous sky.
His Scion mark on his lower abdomen blazed bright and a new order came through. Divinity was putting on leave pending further investigation into the events of the past forty-eight hours and his part in them. He was to remain on Earth until summoned, then he could see Thana again. Divinity guaranteed her safety.
Luther’s knees gave out and fell to the rough cement, his fingers still clutching the buckled railing. Sobs racked him as he struggled with his desire to tear Heaven apart in his search for Thana. He couldn’t let her go, Divinity’s protection or not.
As soon as he could, he’d return to Heaven and find her. She remembered him.
He’d never felt so alive and relieved, yet so dead and cold.
A heavy hand on his shoulder jarred him back to reality. Kagan crouched beside him and Luther let go of the railing. His fingertips were bleeding.
“I’ll pay to replace that,” he whispered. “She remembered me… why did she go?”
“Because she thought it was the right thing to do.” Kagan patted his shoulder. “She didn’t want you to fight and saw a chance to stop it.”
“Why?”
“Perhaps she remembered more than just your name.” They sat side by side on the rooftop, Kagan leaned back against the cement wall attached to the railing. “You must’ve triggered the return of some of her memories.”
“I doubt it… I told her to stay away from me last night… that I wanted to die.”
“You wanted to forget her. Perhaps that is why she remembered you.” Kagan smiled but it didn’t reach his golden eyes. He swept a hand through his short sandy brown hair then grabbed Luther’s shoulder again. “We won’t allow anything to happen to her. We’re Scion, remember?”
Luther nodded then looked skyward. “Divinity ordered me to stay away. They are investigating my actions and won’t allow me to see Thana until they’re done. Why would they do such a thing?”
“Who knows? One thing is certain though. Lucifer had a reason for making me do this wicked thing and we must find out what his plan it. Come inside and discuss it with the others.”
Kagan stood and offered Luther his hand. He took it and hauled himself onto his feet then rubbed his eyes. They walked back into the living room and Mira cast a fearful glance his way. Sloane didn’t bother to look at him at all, busy talking with Lin and Chago and Wyck. He and Kagan joined them on the sofa.
“What do we do now?” Chago looked ready to fight a hard edge to his dark brown gaze.
“Neilar said he witnessed it all. We need to find him,” Luther said.
“I can ask around at some the clubs he frequents,” Sloane said, giving him a reassuring smile. “I’ll find him and find out what he knows.”
“I still need to return to Hell then. There’s a chance the pool might show details of the event too and what is yet to happen in your mission. Chago, can you remain her and look after Mira for me? You can bring Irena from Montana to stay as well.”
Chago looked irritated but nodded. “I’ll have to see if she can close the diner.”
“No. I’m fine on my own. I can take care of myself,” Mira said. “Take Chago with you to the pools, you’ve both been there before, and he can help if any trouble arises. I don’t like the idea of you going back there alone so soon after what they did to you.”
“If Chago’s going to Hell, then I’m coming too,” Wyck said. “No fair for you guys to have all the fun.”
“Do I have a choice?” Kagan didn’t sound pleased at the prospect.
Wyck grinned. “Nope. Lin, you want to come too?”
Kagan’s expression soured further. “This isn’t a party.”
Lin snorted. “Much as the offer appeals, I believe I will assist Sloane with finding Neilar.”
Luther looked through the still open back door to the world outside. It was settled. As so
on as they were ready, they’d depart for Hades. He’d uncover the truth about Thana and why Lucifer wanted her dead, then he would go after her.
He fisted his hands.
Thana.
She’d remembered him, remembered them, and still she’d gone with Xander to protect him and his friends.
He prayed she’d wait for him.
He prayed he’d find her.
He prayed he wouldn’t fail her again.
19
The swirling colored light receded, and Thana found herself surrounded by a large marble entrance hall. Elaborate twin staircases swept upward, hugging the curved walls. A wide arch filled the space below the balcony, leading to a long gold-gilt corridor beyond.
Xander took her arm and the brightness dulled to a more reasonable level and her impending headache dissipated. Then another memory of Luther popped into her head and replayed, revealing a moment with him that made her cheeks burn.
Perhaps it was the remembering that gave her the headache. Since the previous night on the rooftop, she’d recalled at least six more memories of being with him. There’d been a fight against two grayish creatures who’d been intent on doing her harm. Then there’d been a moment when she’d been soaring high above the city in Luther’s arms. And more images of them on the deserted beach. Finally, there’s been the fight in the apartment. In fact, that last one had been the one that had woken her today.
Luther had stood before her bloodied and torn, and his strength failing. He’d been in so much pain and it had ripped her up inside as well. She hadn’t been able to bear his suffering at the hands of a man he’d called friend. She hadn’t wanted him to die and when the power blasting against him had shredded his flesh, she’d acted on pure instinct and found the courage to face her destiny.
She’d sacrificed herself.
Memories of her death had jolted her awake and she’d panicked when Luther hadn’t been there with her and there’d been raised voices in the other room. She’d sat in the middle of the bed, clutching the covers and struggling with the two sides of her soul. The one Luther had loved had returned, bringing a flood of emotions that had threatened her sanity. It had been difficult to find balance again, to assimilate them into herself.
At times when she still felt like two people in one body.
It wasn’t just memories of her previous life as Thana that were returning. She’d seen things in her slumber she knew were flickers of her previous life. She’d been through this before. The scenario was becoming familiar and a sense of foreboding grew inside her. She couldn’t shake the feeling that Lucifer and his hoard were coming after her, even in Heaven.
“This way,” Xander said, jolting her back to reality.
Leaving with the Scion commander had spared Luther, but it had hurt him too. Part of her wanted to go back and change the past. If she could do it again, she would have left without letting him know she’d remembered him. He’d suffered enough because of her. It was time that she bore the weight of her own fate. It was time that she faced Lucifer and found out why he’d had her killed.
The growing sliver of fear in her heart questioned her every move and escalated her doubts, threatening to steal her newfound strength and courage. The longer she spent in these sacred halls, the stronger her instincts warned that something was wrong, that all was not safe.
Thana walked forward with Xander and looked around, taking in the hallways leading off the long columned corridor and disappearing into the distance, their ends impossible to see. Opened doors led off those corridors, some of them revealing yet another hallway. The place was like a maze. She couldn’t keep track. Xander turned down one hallway then onto another, then then took her up several flights of white marble steps, the stone cold beneath her bare feet.
She glanced at her escort. His dark beauty seemed so out of place in this sterile environment. His midnight black hair gleamed blue beneath the illumination and his tanned skin highlighted the icy purity of his pale blue eyes. He looked at her too, giving her a side glance rife with wariness. He faced forward again. Thana did too.
They came to another junction in the labyrinth of corridors. There were no windows and she hadn’t seen another soul except the man beside her. Even the archangels who’d appeared in the apartment were gone. Cold air shivered over her skin, causing goosebumps as they stepped out into another corridor.
A double row of arches lined the wall opposite her, revealing a large pale courtyard. Tall white trees rose in the middle to tower beyond the reach of her vision. None of it seemed real. Trees had green leaves, not the silver-white ones had, glittering in the golden sunlight flooding the courtyard. Their brilliant white trunks and the grass surrounding the roots twinkled like diamonds as light filtered through the branches. It was beautiful, yet it filled her with sadness.
Xander guided her onward. There appeared to be a few other souls wandering on the far side of the courtyard. Angels from the looks of it, given their wings. There were probably thousands of them here. It was Heaven after all. But there were only seven Scion.
Luther.
A new memory glimmered just out of reach, and she struggled to bring it into focus. Bright light faded into deep red as blood filled her vision. Pain rushed through her, blazing in her chest, burning through her veins, causing her to tremble.
She knew Luther.
Not in this life.
But in her last one.
Reincarnation wasn’t a new concept for her, but remembering those past lives was.
Xander tugged her down another corridor and she lost sight of the other angels. She looked back, hoping to catch a glimpse, but no one was there. Time lost meaning as they walked. She wasn’t sure where they were heading but her feet were freezing, and her legs grew tired.
Thana searched her mind, trying to find the source of the familiarity she felt for Luther, for his Scion brothers, for this place. Her head felt fuzzy and heavy. Every time she attempted to focus, her thoughts became tangled. Perhaps she didn’t know them or this place at all. Perhaps she was mixed up or mistaken. It was hard to assimilate two sets of memories.
At the end of the hallway a doorway stood open to reveal the bright room beyond. Her heart pounded. Her palms sweated. Apprehension swept through her. Her footsteps faltered. Fear crawled through her veins.
She knew this place.
Her gaze tracked up the tall thick white and gold columns rising into the bright heavens. Sunlight streamed down, warming her skin, but panic chilled her blood.
This place was familiar.
It pained her.
She stumbled forward, heading toward the wide aisle between the gargantuan columns that speared the dazzling sky.
Her heart missed a beat and fear pinned her feet to the floor. A deep sharp ache throbbed in her chest and every fiber of her being wanted to turn back.
“Come along,” Xander said.
Thana shook her head.
He tugged on her arm, but she didn’t move.
She couldn’t.
Whatever memories she had of this place, they were full of pain.
She’d made a terrible mistake.
Backing away from Xander, Thana cast a fearful glance around her. She shouldn’t have come here. She should’ve stayed with Luther or asked him to come along. Xander might have allowed that. She wanted to go back to her Scion.
“What’s wrong?” He looked genuinely concerned, his icy blue eyes bright.
“Where are you taking me?” She swallowed hard, the sense they weren’t alone creeping down her spine. The nape of her neck tingled. They were being watched.
“I want to know where we’re going and what’s going to happen to me.”
He stepped toward her and she backed away again. With a glance she judged the distance to the door through which they’d entered. If she was quick, she might reach it before Xander caught her. But then she couldn’t remember how to get out of this maze and even if she did, she had no idea how to get back to Earth.
/> Her shoulder blades itched, and the first feathers broke the surface of her skin. Her stomach churned. Xander moved closer and her silver wings burst from her back in response. Sharp throbbing pain spread over her skin, but quickly faded.
“There’s no need to panic,” Xander said, his tone soothing. He held up his hands, palms facing her, and paused, cocking his head as if hearing something inside his head. Beneath the front of his black turtleneck she saw the faint outlines of light near his lower abdomen. It formed a pattern, the same symbol that marked Luther’s skin. “We only need to keep you here for a short while.”
“Why? How long?” The door looked like a better option. This place made her skin crawl. Her instincts screamed she should take flight and escape.
“Until Luther comes.”
The mention of his name lessened her anxiety. “Luther’s is coming?”
Maybe she was overreacting and being here without him was causing her fear rather than any memory she might have of the place.
Xander nodded. “Eventually. Until then, we’ll make you comfortable.”
Thana glanced at the door again. The unsettled feeling at the sight of the endless columns stretching into the distance wasn’t going away, and neither was the sense something bad lurked her. No matter what she told herself, no matter what she wanted, she could no longer deny the sense of familiarity with this location, not could she deny she’d known Luther in her past life.
The Scion commander held his hand out to her.
Hesitantly, Thana stepped forward.
There was no turning back now. She’d come of her own free will, out of desire to discover what was happening to her and to spare Luther more pain.
Except he was coming here too.
Which meant she hadn’t spared him at all.
She told herself that it was only her surroundings unsettling her and forced herself to continue on the path she had chosen to walk. She’d go with Xander and await Luther’s arrival. Once he was here, she’d feel safe again, stronger, and they’d face whatever hunted her together and uncover the truth behind her existence.
Scion's Redemption Page 14