Dex let his head hang low. Damn. Damn. Damn.
No matter how unintentionally, he’d foisted her into a role she didn’t ask for. One she was internally struggling with. All because of his impulsive, reckless nature. And no matter how good she was turning out to be, he hadn’t exactly given her a choice.
“I was wrong to do this to her, Titus. I should have insisted I tell her and we take her to Frank right away to confess.”
Titus slapped him on the back. “But you’d never get your permies if we did that, bud. You’re too good at this not to be a guardian. We need you. I need you. When you start to think about why you didn’t tell her, think about all the good you’ve done instead. You’ve saved a lot of lives.”
He shook his head in disgust, brushing the snow from his face. “But does that mean I have the right to alter someone’s fate, T? I could have appealed my first sentence. I could have done a lot of things, but this wasn’t right. It’s the second time I screwed up. I deserve whatever I get.”
“But first, let me find a place we can squeeze her in on the roster up there, Dex. No one ever has to know how it happened if we never tell.”
“You’re willing to lie for me to what end, Titus? At the risk of losing the job you love? I can’t let you do that. I won’t. I won’t let George lie for me either.”
“Well, it’s too late now, pal. We’re all in, and besides, I wouldn’t stick my neck out if I didn’t think it was for a good cause, and you’re a good cause, Dex. Yes, you should tell George you messed up, but you shouldn’t fall on your sword. I think George will agree—in fact, I’m sure she’s not going to be mad. She wouldn’t want to see you punished. You have to know that. Besides which, I need you in the field, friend.”
Dex swallowed hard. He needed to be in the field, too, for reasons he hadn’t told anyone. In fact, he couldn’t believe no one had found him out by now. Upstairs knew everything.
So far, his cover hadn’t been blown, but if he was shipped back, there’d be no goodbyes, no chance to tell people what to do, how to run the Furry Gates and help the kids who needed him. He’d simply be gone without a trace.
So he kept his mouth shut, caught between a rock and a hard place.
Throwing his hands up in defeat, he gave in. “Okay, okay. But I’m going to tell her soon, so hurry up. I can’t stand how it makes me feel so dirty. Especially now that I know she was meant to live. I didn’t give her a choice about being an angel, and no matter how good she is at the job, she wasn’t supposed to be one yet. I owe her that.”
Titus draped a big arm over Dex’s shoulder and gave him a side hug. “Wait until I find her a place up there. It’ll help soften the blow if someone finds out or she decides she wants to snitch. I don’t believe she will, but it’s only fair she have the option. Though, you did promise you’d wait. Can you at least do that for me?”
The whole thing made him feel like a total shit, but he’d made a promise. “I can, but hurry up. I don’t know if I can wait much longer. It feels like an albatross around my neck, and I can’t believe you’re encouraging me to keep this ruse going—not to mention, sticking your neck out.”
“It’s for the greater good, my friend. I’m delegating duties, and right now, another investigation into you isn’t part of the plan. It’ll only leave me a man down while they snoop around. Needing you here on the ground wasn’t just empty words.”
Dex rolled his eyes at Titus’s snow job. “Okay, okay.”
“Good man. And the wing thief? Stick close to the ladies. They’re chaotic at best, but the smartest decision you’ve made so far was bringing George to them. They’re special. Everyone upstairs loves ’em. Best of all, they can help keep her safe. Maybe even better than you.”
At least he’d done one thing right. “They’re all on board, so that’s not a problem.”
“Good. Be safe, my friend. Now, I gotta blow. I’ll try and figure this out ASAP. Promise.” With a smile, and one more sip of his flask, he nodded before disappearing, leaving Dex standing at the end of Marty’s driveway in another snowstorm, more worried than ever.
And what kind of question was that?
Love?
Did he love George…
He scoffed.
But…
Did he?
“Thank…sss,” Carl said, holding up the book they’d just read before pressing a soft kiss to her cheek.
George smiled at him, her heart clenching at how easy this sweet boy was to love. “Anytime, my friend.”
Seeing as she didn’t need to sleep anymore, she’d hunkered down on the couch after everyone else had gone to bed, except for Nina, who was upstairs in one of the many rooms guest rooms, binge watching Bridgerton on George’s recommendation.
Carl had drifted downstairs, unable to sleep. So over a plate of broccoli, they’d chatted about books and movies, and his life with Nina and her baby Charlie and husband Greg.
Then he’d invited her to read with him because it helped him sleep, and she’d done so willingly, cuddling with Gladys and Sauerkraut while Calamity sat by the fire. Reading a book beat worrying about how she was supposed to help Effie or if Joe-Joe was settled and comfortable.
It also gave her the opportunity to stop reflecting on her past and the worry she’d have to deal with it if she wanted to heal.
Carl patted her hand. “I like…I…like…you. You’re ssso…ssso nice and prett…y…pretty.”
Cupping his cheek, she stroked it with her thumb. “Thank you. I like you, too, Carl. It’s been nice having someone to spend the wee hours of the morning with. Do you think you’ll be able to sleep now?”
He grinned at her, his pale green face beaming as he tucked the book under his arm. “Yesss. G…G’night, George.”
She stood up and gave him a quick hug. “Night, buddy. Glad I could help. See you tomorrow.”
As Carl headed up the stairs, she plopped back down on the couch and sighed, dreading being left alone with her thoughts.
The mere mention of her father and the ladies knowing what he’d done, what she’d done, made her a nervous wreck. Not that she could keep them from finding out. They probably already had. A few years back, he’d been all over the news. There was plenty on the Internet for them to find, and all of it made her want to crawl under a rock and never come out.
The dogs stirred slightly, forcing her to stop dwelling on her plight, and making her pause.
Then a sinister voice whispered in her ear with so much delighted glee, her stomach jolted, while slipping a hand over her mouth and pressing firmly. “Don’t make a sound or I’ll snap your worthless neck, and then I’ll kill the kid just because I know it’ll keep you up at night,”
Her heart began to crash against her chest, throbbing so hard, she was sure Nina’s vampire ears would hear it. In fact, she prayed Nina would. Though oddly, the dogs remained quiet, leaving her stunned at how ironic it was that Gladys, a barker, was suddenly mute.
“Who…” She tried to ask who this monster was, but she did nothing more than expend excess energy, trying to talk with a hand over her mouth.
Yet the voice, which she assumed belonged to a male, knew exactly what she wanted to know. “Don’t you worry about who I am, little girl. Now, where are they?” the voice, raspy and hollow, asked.
Forcing herself not to struggle or pull at his hand, George breathed through her nose and shook her head. “Huh?” she played dumb, fully aware of what he wanted.
“The wings, you dimwit! Where are your wings?” he asked, his voice slithering into the dimly lit living room like a sharp knife cutting through the darkness.
She shook her head again, or shook it as much as his tight hold on her would allow, her hands growing clammy as she fought to stay calm. He loosened his grip enough to allow her to speak, but his other hand, cold and oily, remained at the front of her neck, his grip so strong, she was having trouble breathing.
“I have to…I have to summon them,” she managed with a dry throat and a s
trained voice. “And I’m not very good at it. I’m… I’m just learning.”
His hold on her tightened, but it wasn’t only a physical restraint; George felt it in her core. This person felt evil, slimy, like a black cloud had floated up behind her, its grip, metaphorically speaking, swarmed her, making her skin crawl.
“Get them here now,” he ordered in a tone that could only be described as demonic.
His demand sent chills along her spine, so she closed her eyes and forced herself to try to summon her wings, all while his evil seeped into her pores and swirled about her like an aura of doom.
“Hurry up, for Christ’s sake!” he hissed in her ear, his impatience leaving her anxious as he yanked her chin up, straining the skin on her neck and pulling it so tight, she thought surely her head was going to pop off.
Why did he want her wings? How did she get them here—and fast? Suddenly, everything Dex had taught her flew out the window.
As she forced herself to concentrate, as his hand on her chin sickened her and the room closed in around her, all she heard was a roar of rage—rage that rattled her bones.
Rage so loud, it made the room quake and the floor beneath her feet tremble.
Chapter 13
“Who the fuck are you?” Nina growled, before a body flew across the room and sailed right out one of the floor-to-ceiling windows.
George’s head jerked as far back as it would go when the hands at her mouth and throat were ripped away, leaving her neck to snap back with a grunt.
The dogs began to bark, Sauerkraut up and on her haunches, growling for all she was worth, while Gladys bravely followed suit.
George scrambled off the couch to see the blur of Nina, all limbs and hair, fly out the window and go after whoever had held her captive. She reached for the dogs, stroking their backs and hoping to settle them.
“It’s okay, guys. Sit,” she whispered, hearing the tremble of her raspy voice in her ears, unable to process what was going on around her.
The sound of feet pounding down the stairs and raised voices rang in her ears, as she reached for the edge of the couch to right herself, the muscles in her neck burning.
“George!” Marty yelled, rushing to her side, her silky bathrobe wafting around her frame. “Honey, are you okay?” She brushed her hair from her eyes with gentle hands and examined her neck. “What happened?”
Wanda ran toward the window, her fuzzy lavender bathrobe flying behind her. She stuck her head around the frame and took a deep whiff of the frigid air. “I’ve got this one, Marty! You stay with George.”
Then, without a word, she hopped out and took off into the curtain of white snow.
“George? Tell me what happened?” Marty demanded, gripping her hand. “Are you okay?”
Was she okay? Were you ever okay when someone was willing to choke you to death to get their hands on something you had?
Yet, George only shrugged, minimizing her fear in front of this mighty woman who didn’t appear to be afraid of anything. “I’m fine. My neck’s a little sore, but I’m okay.” Then she nodded at the broken window. “We’d better board that up until we can get someone to fix it.”
Marty rolled her eyes. “Okay, talk and walk, but I’m not going to let you off the hook. Something happened and it was scary, and it’s okay to say so.”
The burden she’d turned into with this wing business weighed heavy on her. As George explained what had occurred, she followed Marty on shaky legs into her enormous basement, where the pretty werewolf grabbed a piece of plywood, a hammer and some nails from the dusty room.
As they made their way back up the stairs, George took deep breaths, refusing to give in to her fear, but that voice, that sinister voice, kept playing over and over in her head, his hot breath fanning over her neck only a recollection away.
As they reached the top of the landing, Dex was there, his face a mask of concern. “George?”
He held out his arms, and as Marty stepped out of the way, she stepped into them, pressing her cheek to his warm sweater to inhale the scent of laundry detergent and man.
A tear slipped from the corner of her eye, but she swiped it away, furious that smarmy asshole had brought her to tears.
“Marty texted me. What happened?” Dex asked, resting his chin on top of her head, the rumble of his voice soothing her.
“How did you get here so fast?” she asked tearfully.
“Remember I told you being an angel has its perks and you would learn all about them and how to use them in due time?”
“Is one of the perks teleportation? I don’t think I’m ready for that just yet,” she joked on a sniffle.
“Then just tell me what happened instead.”
She explained to him what had gone down and what the man, whoever he was, said he wanted. “Have we figured out what the deal is with my wings? Because he was strong as an ox, Dex. I thought he was going to rip my head off, and since we’ve decided we don’t know for sure if I’m impervious to death, I don’t want to take chances. In other words, I felt a little defenseless. I’m assuming super-strength doesn’t go hand in hand with angeling like it does with lycanthropy and vampirism, does it?”
Dex tightened his embrace and rasped a sigh. “There will be things you’ll be able to do to protect yourself, but it’s needed so rarely. I promise you, this is an anomaly, George. Angels go about their day to day with hardly anything but emotional dilemmas.”
She leaned back in Dex’s arms, finding it odd how totally comfortable she felt. “Okay, so have you talked to Titus and asked? Or is he still unavailable for comment?”
Taking her by the hand, he led her back into the living room where Darnell was talking to Marty, both of them sniffing the air as they worked together to cover the broken window.
His chiseled face went hard. “I did talk to Titus, just after I left, and here’s the scoop.”
She swallowed hard and closed her eyes. Dex’s tone said maybe the scoop wasn’t going to be like a scoop of ice cream. “Go ahead. I can take it.”
His jaw tightened, a slight tic pulsing. “I’m not going to candy coat this, George. I’m just going to be honest and say it. If whoever this is gets his hands on your wings, he can expunge your existence forever by stealing your soul. Not only that, but he can gain access to upstairs. I don’t think I have to tell you how detrimental to everything—and I do mean everything—that could be.”
“So I guess I’m not so immortal after all, huh?” she asked glibly, suddenly quite terrified.
Pushing the stray hair from her face, he ran his fingers over her sore neck, the ache easing in slow increments with his special healing powers, his face sympathetic. “Apparently not. And I want to add, I had no idea this was a thing. I mean, there are a couple of legends, but this? Stealing wings? No.”
“Legends? Like what legends?”
Dex shrugged as though it were all nothing more than some ridiculous gossip. “There’s one about some kind of special knife that can kill an angel. According to the rumors, they’re almost impossible to come by. No one’s seen one in hundreds of years.”
Her eyes narrowed. “And you didn’t think this was important enough to share? A knife that kills angels?”
“I don’t even know if it still exists, George. In fact, I forgot all about it until Titus mentioned it.”
She rasped a sigh. “Any other legends and myths and ways to kill me I should know about? Even if you think it’s just gossip?”
He shook his dark head. “No. And I want to add, not in all the years I’ve been a guardian has something even a little like wing stealing ever come up.”
How many years was that, and was now the time to ask? “Okay, so we have trouble. But why me? I don’t understand why they—he’d choose me, of all the guardians to pick from?”
“You’re a newb, George.” Darnell rumbled the answer, his cheerful face grim as he planted a large hand on her shoulder. “No doubt that was demon. No doubt at all now. A demon can smell a newb
angel. You’re unskilled, vulnerable. They like that in their prey.”
Prey. Now she was someone’s prey. But okay. She’d been someone’s prey before…
“Which means we have to double up on fucking babysitting her,” Nina said as she strode in the front door covered in wet snow, her fuzzy onesie soaked from stem to stern.
Wanda flew in behind her, her bathrobe matted and wet, her usually elegant updo mussed and flying about her face. “Yes. Yes, it does. You go nowhere without one of us—maybe all of us, if we need strength in numbers,” she said, gasping for air and gripping the back of the chair. “Promise me you won’t go anywhere without one of us, George. Not ever.”
A shiver ran along her arms, a cold, foreboding chill she wasn’t supposed to feel, but she felt nonetheless. “I promise.”
Nina slapped Wanda on the back. “You okay, old lady?” she asked with a chuckle.
Wanda narrowed her eyes at Nina, waving her off. “You hush, Batwing Barbie. I had to run double time to catch up on the head start you had on me. I’m not twenty anymore.”
“And still we didn’t catch the motherfucker,” Nina groused, crossing her arms over her chest. “That weasel runs like the damn Flash, for shit’s sake. I can’t think of too many people who can outrun me, but he damn sure did.”
“Did either of you get a glimpse of him? Do we even know it’s a him?” Dex asked, driving his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
The vampire shook her head, then she eyeballed George. “Did you?”
She shook her head, running her damp palms over her jeans. “No. And yes, it sure sounded like a male. He grabbed me from behind and threatened to… He told me to keep my mouth shut, so I didn’t see him, but his voice was definitely masculine and very right out of a Stephen King movie.”
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