She could see familiar faces edging closer to her. For some reason, Noah Thompson stood out to her. She couldn’t understand why.
And that’s when Avery saw the gun hanging in his hand.
He wasn’t the only one. It had all happened so fast, and she wasn’t even sure if she really understood exactly what had gone down. She just remembered this feeling of sudden dread and realizing that she wasn’t the one experiencing it; that was Cam. Suddenly, she was spinning, his wings folding around her, and then the shots rang out.
Noah had a gun. That’s right. She… she knew that already. At Donna’s warning shout, Avery saw that gun and then—
Was he the one who shot at her? If Cam hadn’t spun her in mid-air when he had, the bullet would’ve plowed through her instead of him.
What was Noah thinking? What was Cam thinking? Avery knew there was a cadre of hunters who prided themselves on being Spring Valley’s first response. When did Noah join their ranks? Why did he aim at her?
What was any of them thinking?
“Don’t you fucking come near us!”
To her surprise, it worked. It wouldn’t last, she knew it wouldn’t, but the rawness in her shout had the humans hesitating. Good.
“Avery?”
Forgetting all about the threat at her back, she whirled on Cam.
His eyes flickered open.
She gasped. “Cam! Oh my God, Cam! Please, tell me you’re okay!”
“I wish I could.” He shifted against the ground, groaning. “They got me pretty good.”
“You’re gonna be okay, though, right? I’ll bring you to the hospital or… or a healer. Something. Anything. You’re gonna be fine.”
He had to be fine.
“I just… I should’ve been more honest with you.”
“Be honest later,” she commanded.
A short laugh that had his body tightening up in obvious agony. “Don’t know if there’s gonna be a later. Gotta tell you now. Listen, I was never supposed to fall in love, but you made it too easy to.”
She grabbed his land, a tether to keep her with him. “That’s just ‘cause I asked you to have sex with me.”
He laughed again, which had been her intent with the soft tease. But then he said, “And I said yes because I loved you, Avery,” and she felt like her heart was breaking. He groaned again, but he pushed on. “Even if we could only have that one night, it was better than all the decades that came before it. So, do me a favor, yeah?”
He could’ve asked her anything and it would be his. “Always.”
“I have no regrets. Even if I’m gone, my soul is yours. Take it, and don’t have any regrets, either.”
Then, before she could reply, his eyes shuddered closed—and Avery was sure her heart was shattering now.
Her mouth snapped open, prepared to scream his name again, but her voice strangled when the strangest thing happened.
It started at the holes riddling his body. Without a shirt, she couldn’t miss the bullet wounds, the blood smeared over his skin, the extent of his injuries—no matter how much she wanted to. She could see three from the front, and at least one more near his side. When the black holes seemed to fill with a brilliant golden light, she found another one right before the light burst out of him, so shockingly bright, she clamped her eyes shut in a bid to save her vision.
She couldn’t stay blinded forever. Blinking rapidly, getting her sight back, when Avery could see again, she discovered that the golden beams shooting out of Cam had formed a circle around the two of them. About fifteen feet wide and ten feet high, the light shimmered like golden glitter. Cam himself still glowed faintly, too, but it was nothing compared to this new barrier surrounding them.
As Avery gaped at it, the noise behind her rose in volume, a sudden reminder that they weren’t alone.
She spun around again, glaring when she saw that there were at least ten of her neighbors inching toward the golden light. They’d taken advantage of her distraction to sneak closer, only to have been pushed back by whatever Cam had just done.
The men hesitated, eyeing the barrier with suspicion. Only one person stepped closer, her dark green eyes locking with Avery’s.
Donna.
“Avery.” Her hands flew up to cover her mouth. “Oh, Avery.”
Noah strode forward, gripping Donna by her arm, shoving her behind him.
“Stay back,” he ordered, brandishing his gun.
Before Avery really understood what Noah was about to do, she jumped, throwing herself over Cam as if she could shield his body with her own. At the same time, Noah must’ve fired his gun because another gunshot splintered the air.
She braced herself for the hit.
It never came.
The glimmering light over her head grew darker, denser, swallowing the bullet, spitting it out gently right next to her hand.
What the—
“Thompson, stand down,” ordered a stern male voice. “Hunters, hold your fire. It won’t penetrate the circle.”
“What about Avery?” called someone else.
What about Avery? she thought, panic and fury and fear making her almost hysterical as she stared at the bullet. Were they thinking about Avery as they shot them out of the sky? Or when Noah just tried to hit her again?
Now that she knew they were safe beyond this golden light—for now—Avery shot a middle finger over her head before completely ignoring the neighbors at her back. Every last bit of her attention belonged to Cam.
She woke him up once. She could do it again, then he could tell her how to get him help.
Right?
Right?
“Cam?” He didn’t even twitch. “Camiel!”
He exhaled a breath, but stayed unconscious.
Avery wasn’t done. Panicked tears glossed over her eyes. Swiping at them angrily with the back of her hand, she struggled to come up with another idea—
—and that’s when she heard the yowling meow and, though it didn’t make any sense at all, relief crashed into her.
She had no idea where the black-and-white cat came from. Was she there all along? Avery had no fucking clue. For all she knew, Cam’s cat popped in from out of nowhere, but it didn’t matter. Dina dashed forward, the strange golden light washing over her, welcoming her like an old friend.
That was something. It kept bullets out, but let Cam’s pet in.
What was she doing there? He was dying. Could the cat tell?
Maybe she could. He was an Othersider and he told her that Dina was more than she seemed. A magic cat? Sure. Why not? Maybe she was a shifter or… or a familiar. There was something supernatural about a cat that enjoyed chocolate frosted donuts and always seemed to appear out of thin air.
Maybe she could help.
Dina didn’t stop until she’d made it next to Cam’s head. A pair of wide eyes ran over his prone body, lingering on the holes in his chest, the kinks in his wings, his half-dressed state, his shuttered eyes.
And then she turned to look at Avery. In a voice that sounded like it should belong to the freaking Queen of England, Dina opened her tiny pink mouth and demanded, “What happened to Camiel?”
If Avery hadn’t already been on her knees, the shock that raced through her would’ve sent her there. She blinked. Once. Twice. Three times. “You can… you can talk?”
“Yes. And you can understand me. There’s only one reason you would be able to. You laid with Camiel, didn’t you?”
“What? I—”
A frustrated huff. “You slept with him. Copulated.” A growl. “Mated him. And now look at him.”
Normally, Avery wasn’t the type to kiss and tell. But, normally, she wasn’t shaken up from being shot at while the man she’d been with was lying on the ground, bleeding out. “Yes, I fucked him. I didn’t know, okay? I didn’t know that it would sic hellhounds on him.”
“Hellhounds?” Dina shook her head, triangle-shaped ears flicking back and forth in open agitation. “That’s not even the worst of
the curse. Any of Camiel’s kind who break their laws, who bring the curse of the Nephilim down on them, might be targeted by the down below, eager to add to their ranks. But it’s more than that. He could end up mortal, and with these bullets in his body—”
“He’ll die.”
“He won’t.”
“You just said—”
“I said he could end up mortal. But that’s only if he succumbs to the curse.”
He looked like he was succumbing to something all right.
Dina stroked Cam’s head, her claws leaving a trail in his thick black hair. “Camiel is my Fallen. The Othersider I’ve been responsible for since they assigned him to me. I’m his auditor. I keep track of his points.”
There was a melancholy note to her accented voice that hit Avery dead in the chest. Torn between worry and fear, as Dina looked down at Cam, she had to work hard to keep from interrupting.
Something warned her against opening her trap.
“Every Fallen has to reach a certain amount of points before they’re called home again. Camiel’s been inching toward his total for decades, trying to become the first of his kind to ascend before his first century. He’s young. Impulsive. One of my favorite assignments,” she added, a touch of indulgence replacing the melancholy. “And, just now, he’s finally done it. For the first time in his existence, Camiel did something good without calculating what the action was worth. Sacrificing himself for you when he believed the curse had left him mortal… by saving your life, he earned his halo.”
A lump lodged in Avery’s throat. She swallowed roughly past it, but not enough. “That’s all he ever wanted,” she croaked out.
The cat nodded. “It was, until he met you.”
“I don’t want him to die because of me.”
“That wasn’t your choice to make, child,” Dina bit out. “But have no worries. He won’t die. He’s a true angel now. The bullets don’t tickle, I’m sure, but the wounds aren’t fatal.”
It finally sunk in what Dina was telling her.
“So he won’t die? The light… he’s ascended? For real?” Call her selfish, especially since two seconds ago she was sure he was dying, but her only thought was, “He’ll be leaving me then, won’t he?”
“Yes.”
Avery sank back on her heels.
There you go. Cam would survive the gunshots, but she’d lose him anyway. He’d told her about true angels, about how all he ever wanted was to do good, get his points, earn his halo, and ascend to Heaven. Oops. The up above. Avery was mortal. Even if she lived a good life and she believed in an afterlife, she would never see her angel again.
Two weeks ago, she didn’t even know he existed. Now? She couldn’t imagine life without him.
But she’d have to. Because if it meant that Cam was happy? She’d take the time they spent together gladly, treasure the memories, hold onto the feeling that they belonged together… then walk away so that he could attain everything he’d worked so hard for.
And that’s when Dina dropped the bomb.
“For now, I should say.”
Avery’s head jerked toward the cat. “What do you mean, for now?”
“Didn’t Camiel tell you? True angels belong in the up above. The celestial plane is their home. But it’s not impossible for them to travel between planes. Azrael does it all of the time because of his calling. Camiel… you want him to stay with you? Give him a reason to.”
“What? I don’t know how!”
The cat sighed. “Must I do everything?”
“Are you sure he’s going to make it? Look!” She showed Dina her hand. “There’s blood everywhere!”
Dina’s luminescent eyes glowed almost as brightly as the circle around Cam. “Listen to me, mortal. Do you love him?”
Simple enough question. But with Cam’s pearlescent blood on her hands, the golden light pouring out of him almost blinding, Avery couldn’t answer it. “What does— I don’t know. I don’t know, okay?”
Can a cat roll her eyes? Because Dina totally did. “You do. You know. So tell me. Do you love Camiel?”
She looked down at Cam. Was it her or, beneath the glow, did he look paler than before?
Do you love him?
She couldn’t avoid the question. What if he disappeared while she stalled? No. It was gut check time. Madame Serena’s promise suddenly cut through the worry, the fear, the wonder, and the fog—
Your sister has already made her choice. When it’s time to make yours, you’ll understand.
Avery had thought she made her choice when she impulsively invited Cam home with her. But maybe that’s not what the psychic’s cryptic prediction had meant.
Maybe—
Make your choice, Avery.
“Yes,” she breathed out. Was it too soon? Or was it fate? Didn’t matter. She made her choice. “Yes. I love him.”
The cat huffed something that sounded suspiciously like, “Finally,” under her breath before padding over to Avery. The golden light bathed Dina’s black and white fur in the color, catching on her paw as she nudged something toward Avery’s knee.
A feather. One of Cam’s feathers.
“Take this,” Dina commanded. “This is what you’re going to do. Press this feather against Camiel’s palm. No matter what, don’t let go until you say this.” She said a series of foreign words that meant nothing to Avery, but sounded strangely like what Cam had said to her at the height of passion last night. “Repeat it.”
Was she really being ordered about by a cat?
Yes, and she didn’t give a shit. She grabbed the feather, shoved it against Cam’s palm, and stumbled through the words.
Dina was a cat, but damn if she didn’t bark at Avery. “Try again.”
She did.
“Again.”
Halfway through, she stumbled as heat shot through her. Heat, and sudden pain.
“It’s… it’s hot. It— ah, it hurts.” His hand was burning her, but that wasn’t the source of pain. Her arm… her forearm… that strange mark on her skin. It felt like it was on fire.
“That means it’s working. Now tell him one more time. And mean it!”
Avery thought about her time with Cam. From the first day she met him when she assumed he was poisoning his cat, then thought the worst of his “no cash payment” policy, to his dedication to his work, his dedication to her, and the tether stretching between them that she’d been helpless to refuse.
Mean it? She did.
The words ripped out of her.
In her mind, she heard a faint voice whisper and she knew without knowing how exactly what she was saying to him.
I give my soul to you.
His eyes stayed closed, but his lips murmured a reply in that same strange language.
And she understood that, too.
You already have mine.
The feather vanished. It just disappeared. One second it was pressed between their palms. The next? Flesh met flesh with nothing between it.
The pain subsided as quickly as it came, but it didn’t matter to Avery. She wouldn’t have dropped his hand for anything, and the answering squeeze she received the second before his eyes slowly opened had her almost sobbing.
He was okay. She had no idea what just happened, but Cam was okay.
Cam smiled up at her, but it was short-lived. His hand tightened as he propped himself up on his elbows. “Where are the hellhounds?”
Hellhounds? Avery blinked. She hadn’t even realized they were gone.
Oops.
With a haughty air, Dina laid down next to Cam, placing her chin on her front paws. “The mutts are gone. You don’t have to worry about them, Camiel.”
“Dina. You’re here.” Cam collapsed again. Though he seemed too drained to keep himself up, he harnessed some energy to turn toward the cat. “They’ll be back,” he told her. “I think I took out the perimeter spell. I need you to take Avery home before it goes back up. If I can get in the air again, I’ll lead them away from you b
oth.”
Avery squeezed his hand. She didn’t know what was worse: how he was still trying to protect her or just how tired he sounded. “What do you mean, get in the air again? You were shot in the heart, Cam! You crashed! You glowed!”
“But I’m okay now.”
He had to be fucking kidding! His attitude was more like he stubbed his toe than being seconds away from death. If he hadn’t ascended…
Her stomach sank. But he didn’t know that, did he? His attention going from Avery to Dina and back, he hadn’t even noticed the golden light surrounding them just yet.
And what about the vows they just exchanged? Did he remember that?
Avery was just about to ask when Dina shot her a look, then cleared her throat. “You’re only all right, Camiel, because you’re an angel.” Dina waited for a beat. “A true angel.”
She could sense the shock that slammed into him. Even his hand in hers went slack right as his face screwed up. “What? No. It’s not possible.”
With her tail, she gestured to the golden circle that stretched around them. “Tell that to your halo.”
“My… my what?”
Cam’s head swiveled toward Avery. When she gave him a hesitant nod and gestured helplessly at the golden circle around them, Cam’s eyes followed the motion of her hand. He blinked. He stared.
And then his eyes rolled back in his head as he passed out a second time.
20
Lightning strikes
At Dina’s instruction, Avery took out her cell phone and made a call. By then, it seemed natural to take the cat’s orders. Mainly because, of the three of them, Dina was the only one who seemed to know what was going on.
She got extremely lucky. Not only did Shea Moonshadow answer right away, but the witch was still in Grayson. If she’d been in the local Bumptown, it would’ve been at least an hour and a half before she could arrive at Spring Valley, two depending on traffic. After Avery hurriedly explained why she was calling, Shea promised she’d be there in less than thirty minutes.
Time dragged. She sat next to Cam, squeezing his hand, willing him to open his eyes. Dina stretched out on the other side, curling into Cam as she rested her paw on his upper arm. The cat was protecting him.
True Angel: a Fallen Angel romance (Curse of the Othersiders Book 1) Page 18