“When?”
“Tomorrow.”
My emotions were a tangle but happiness is what prevailed. “I’ll be there. I’ll bring pastries.”
“You don’t happen to have a Catholic preacher lying around?”
I turned to stare at Memphis, my smile so huge, it might’ve actually cracked my face. “I know a guy.”
So much love swirled around the small clearing in the Middle-Of-Nowhere, France, that I was tempted to cry again. Rella looked beautiful. Like an angel. Well, maybe not an angel; there was also enough lust in the clearing that I was going to need a cigarette and a gatorade after I took my leave. I looked at Memphis talking to Romanus, the big one. Well, they were all pretty big. Apparently, the Gargoyles and Memphis knew each other, from, uh Hell. Sometimes my life was just the strangest thing.
Maybe Adnan was right, maybe it was us.
“What’s going on with you?” Rella asked, basically inhaling another pastry. I pasted a grin on my face. It wasn’t hard. I was genuinely happy for her.
I locked my thoughts down tight. “Nothing. I’ve got it all under control.” Liar, liar pants on fire. “Actually, we should go. Memphis?” He looked up and smiled, and it was like someone cut off my oxygen every single time. Why did he have to be so pretty? With all the lust up in here, I was seriously rethinking my ‘just friends’ policy.
Rella stood, and I wrapped my arms around her. I hugged her close. I tried to keep a lid on my emotions, just for a little while longer. But I was happy, and scared, and amazed and a little jealous. I stomped on that last emotion. Rella was never going to be my Rella forever. She had a husband, er husbands, now. We were adults with differing lives. She would always be my twin, the other part of my soul. And now, they were connected to me too. I poked at their connections in my mind a few more times. At least the Gargoyles and Naz’s connection. I looked over Rella’s shoulder at Charlie. I had no doubt there would be another thread soon enough.
“Love you, Rella. Be safe.”
She hugged me tighter. “You too, Hope.”
Memphis came and wrapped me in his arms tightly, the look on his face unreadable. “Home?” he whispered. I nodded once, smiling. Home.
The swirling disorientation of my cells being moved half a world away made me want to vomit. It was worth it to see Rella get married, but it was like seasickness times a thousand when you stopped. And doing it twice in one day made it twice as bad on the way back.
I slipped out of Memphis’ arms and bolted for the bathroom, losing the better part of my brunch. Memphis appeared in the door of the bathroom holding a bottle of sparkling water. I took it thankfully. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that. Give me a fifteen hour flight any day,” I grumbled, rinsing my mouth at the sink before taking a sip.
“Your body is not really made for it, though your angelic ancestry allows you to do it without killing you. Otherwise, you would quite literally explode. With some exceptions, of course. Your parents for one. Their stint in hell has made them a little more than human. Raphael can transport humans as long as they are encased in his healing light. Sometimes, there is exceptional wisdom in our creation. Other times, our powers feel more like a curse.”
I remembered what he said, about knowing everyone's darkest secret. It sounded like a terrible burden to bear.
“I don’t know what you’re whining about. Try knowing how everyone is going to die. That's a pain in the ass.”
I whirled around, but I still hadn’t gotten my land legs, so my ankles tangled and I pitched toward the floor. Two strong hands reached out to grab me simultaneously.
“Gus!” I said, unable to help the high-pitched excitement in my voice. I mentally covered my eyes with my hands. Way to play it cool, Hope.
“Hey, Sweetheart. Been to a party?” He looked down at my pretty green tea dress. “Hey, Slugger,” he said, grinning at Memphis. I felt Memphis’ hand tighten on my arm, but he quickly let it go.
“Asshole.” His voice was a scary growl, but it just made Gus grin wider. “Aren’t you meant to be somewhere, doing something else that isn’t hitting on Hope and annoying me?”
He laughed. “What could be more important than that?”
I realized we were all crowded into the bathroom, which was spacious, but not big enough to house two huge angels, their wings and me, without us all being pressed nice and close.
For once, I was glad that I was the only one who could sense emotions, because I was lusting, hard. I was one heated look away from throwing myself on the bed and saying ‘Come get me!’
“Let’s, uh, go sit in the living room, hey? It's a pretty tight squeeze in here.”
Gus looked me up and down. “I’m okay with a tight squeeze. How about you, Memphis?”
Memphis mumbled something incoherent, and his finger slid down my spine. “We should move to the living space. It would be more comfortable for everyone,” he sighed begrudgingly.
Gus raised both eyebrows so high they nearly touched his glorious hairline. “Well, that’s interesting. You guys been playing Seven Minutes in Heaven without me?”
“Seven minutes is all the heaven your conquests get, Gusion, not mine. Don’t insult me.”
I turned to stare. Did Memphis just make a joke? By the way Gusion was bent over laughing, I guessed he had.
Gus backed out of the bathroom, still laughing, and I followed him out.
“So seriously, why the fancy clothes? You guys been to a ball or something?”
“A wedding, actually.”
He reached out and hugged me close, ignoring Memphis’ growl. “You got married to the grumpy old bastard? Congratulations.” I knew he was teasing me and Memphis, but I paused at the thought. Memphis would look great in a tux. Could angels even get married? Why would they?
Memphis rolled his eyes, but his lips curled upwards. “This calls for a drink. Champagne?” Gus asked, clapping his hands together decisively.
My stomach revolted at the idea of more champagne. “I'm good thanks. I might just head to bed.”
Gusion sighed heavily. “Well, I usually demand to be wined and dined first, but if you insist…” he pulled off his shirt and headed toward my bedroom.
I was momentarily stunned by his perfection. Right down to the two little dimples either side his spine, just above his ass.
“Very humorous. She means alone. Shouldn’t you be watching Uriel?”
The Archangel Uriel?
“Ace is watching him.”
The comical horror on Memphis’ normally stoic face had me sucking my teeth to keep from laughing. “Luc trusts she won’t just kill him in his sleep?”
Gusion shrugged. “I guess so. She’s too smart to go after Uriel by herself.” He didn't sound as confident as his words would suggest.
I sat there silently, on the off chance they would forget I was there and spill all their secrets. Maybe talk about their feelings. Have a bro hug at the end. Wouldn’t that be nice?
“Weren’t you heading to bed, Hope? I bid you a goodnight,” Memphis said as he shot me a knowing look. Busted.
Gusion blew me a kiss. “Are you sure you don’t want me to come? I can promise you a good night.”
Memphis’ death stare bounced straight off the golden Fallen Angel. I shook my head, because I did not trust my mouth to say what my brain said it should. I waved and walked into my bedroom. As I stripped off my dress, I headed straight to my ensuite. I needed a cold shower.
Chapter Thirteen
Deep breaths. In. Out. In. Out. I stood in front of the modern glass and steel building that housed the corporate offices of the NRH Foundation. My first day back at work was not off to a good start. I couldn’t force my feet across the threshold.
I knew Sam and Tolli were upstairs. They’d taken over again while I’d be recuperating. But as soon as I walked in there, I’d have to field a million questions, weather a million pitying looks, steel myself against the bombardment of emotions that ranged from curiosity to downri
ght hatred. Any one of them could have a gun. Any one of them could finish what Geneva had started. The call from Rella in the middle of last night replayed over and over in my head.
“Maximoff Richards was the person who organized your abduction. He’s part of a bigger, evil organization, but it was Richard's that wanted you dead and gone.”
It had rocked me to my very core. I’d kept the nightmares under control by assuring myself that the bad guys weren't here in Manhattan. They were on the other side of the globe.
I’d been so wrong.
Maximoff Richards hated me, I’d always known that. When the NRH Pharmaceutical wing decided to produce and essentially give away life saving medicines to impoverished countries, we knew we were going to get resistance from the other Pharma companies. We were taking a huge chunk out of their profits. It would put pressure on the execs; from disgruntled stockholders to the public pressure to follow our trend. We’d been prepared for that kind of hostility. No one had been prepared for murder plots.
Part of me wanted to stay in my apartment, the part of me that remembered the immense pain. The more stubborn part of me, the part that got a dash of Ace’s craziness, and Mom’s sense of right and wrong, decided I wouldn’t be held prisoner in my own home anymore. My boogeyman had a name, and now I had some of the power back.
I hadn’t told the guys. The last twenty-four hours had been almost like bliss. Their emotions were blocked, and it was like being disconnected from the world for a day or two. We watched more boring TV, I listened to the guys talk about the past. And when they talked about the forties, they meant the 40’s B.C. I wanted to get out my notebooks and just mine their brains for stories. I loved every minute of it.
Yeah, they knew where Atlantis was.
They knew what lay at the bottom of the Bermuda Triangle.
The depths of their knowledge defied description. And they were happy to share it with me. They gave me as much knowledge as I could humanly take in, and when I was at capacity, we’d watch mindless daytime T.V. in comfortable silence. They respected my boundaries, even Gus. Well, to a degree. He flirted outrageously, though I think he just enjoyed getting emotion out of Memphis.
I didn’t know if I was happy or frustrated that they took me at my word. The two of them, wandering around my apartment without shirts on was torture. The best kind of torture. Sometimes, when I lay awake in bed, I’d imagine what it would be like to have both of their hands on me at once.
“Are you ready, Hope?” Gus whispered in my ear, shaking me from my dirty thoughts. At least my breathing was normal again.
Both Gus and Memphis were with me today. I mightn’t have told them about Maximoff Richards, but they were still intuitive enough to know that I was petrified. Especially Memphis, who’d been privy to my little anxiety attack/meltdown last week.
I nodded, wrapping their presence around me like a shield. I stepped over the threshold and stopped in front of security.
The slightly pudgy security officer behind the counter jumped to his feet. “Miss Jones. It is good to see you back.” He looked at Memphis and Gus, and blanched. “I was sorry to hear…”
“Thanks, Mike,” I interrupted. He was genuinely sorry. I gave him a sad smile. I missed JJ too. “This is my, uh, security. Memorize their faces. They can come and go as they please, okay?”
“Yes, Miss.”
I walked through to the elevator, and felt every set of eyes in the building glued to my back. I felt like a moving target. Memphis and Gus closed ranks around me as we stood at the bank of elevators.
“Okay?” Memphis’ smooth voice slid over me, steeling my spine. I nodded. I was always on public exhibition, this was no different. Smile for the cameras, Hope.
The elevator doors slid open and the car was thankfully empty. As we stepped in and the doors closed behind us, I let out the breath I’d been holding. That was just the lobby. The worst was still to come.
Gus leaned forward, and kissed me hard. Bruisingly hard. He swallowed my little yelp of surprise, and soon I was kissing him back. I moved my lips against his, trying to give back as good as I got. The man could kiss. He kissed better than I breathed.
Finally tearing my lips away, I stared. “What was that for?”
“You looked pale. You needed a little color in your cheeks,” Gusion said, grinning unapologetically. I slid a look at Memphis, but he seemed more exasperated than angry.
“You know, I have blush in my purse for just that reason,” I huffed out, but I wasn’t really annoyed. No red-blooded woman could be angry after a kiss like that.
“My way was more fun.”
Well, touché.
The elevator dinged at the top floor and I straightened. Shoulders back, chin up. I was fierce. I was kind. I could do this.
I stepped into the marble tiled reception area, and breathed a sigh of relief. I’d spent so much time here, it was as familiar as my apartment.
The receptionist looked up, and then nearly dropped her coffee mug. “Miss Jones. You’re back! We weren’t expecting you. Let me call Mr Mateo. Mr Sigursson is out of the office at the moment, he’s across town at an early meeting, but I could call?”
I waved a hand at the secretary. “It’s fine, Annalise. Just call Dad and tell him I’m here. I know my way to his office,” I said, giving her a warm smile, which she returned. Then her eyes swung up, and hit the wall of angelicness behind me. I was pretty flattered that she’d been so glad to see me she momentarily overlooked the men behind me.
This time she did drop her mug. I grinned. Yeah, that was a fair response.
I had ears. I heard how the women in the office spoke about Tolliver and Sam. Silver foxes was a term that was whispered around the water cooler more often than I found comfortable. And when we had Gala’s and all my parents came, well, it was a bit crazy. But Gusion and Memphis, especially Gusion, had an otherworldly beauty that shocked your system.
“I’ll just go this way, yeah? Come on, you two.”
“I’m not sure I’m ready to meet the parents, Sweetheart,” Gusion teased. I rolled my eyes.
I strode down the halls of NRH like I owned them, halls I’d walked as soon as I could toddle on two chubby little legs. The huge corner office at the end of the corridor overlooked the city on both sides, and both Sam and Tolliver had their desks in the space. I’d often wondered if they ever got sick of each other, living together, working together, being committed to the same woman, but they showed no signs of discord.
I knocked, and a muffled voice told me to enter. I poked my head around the door jamb. As expected, Tolliver was in front of his computer, not even looking up as I entered.
“Hey Dad.”
His head snapped up at the sound of my voice and a smile bloomed on his face. “Hope!” He stood and moved around the desk, coming over to wrap me in his arms. He smelled of the exact same cologne he’d worn since I was a child and it soothed my frazzled nerves.
“You are looking so much better,” he said as he stepped back, appraising me for any residual injuries. When he met my eyes, his almond shaped ones narrowed. “How are you feeling?”
He’d always been the canniest of my parents; not as instinctual as Lux, or as naturally brilliant as Eli. But he could always, and I mean always, tell when I was lying. He could read me like every word I thought was written across my forehead. When I was a teenager, I was almost convinced that perhaps he was psychic too. But he’d helped raise me, and could read my body language like the keen businessman and attentive father he was.
“Physically, I’m great.”
A single dark eyebrow rose. He didn’t even ask.
“Emotionally, it's going to take a little while to stop seeing bogeyman wherever I go. I’ve got an appointment to see a professional about…it.”
Tolliver looked over my shoulder. “I wouldn’t worry too much about monsters under your bed with the company you seem to be keeping. Gusion. Mephistopheles. Interesting to see you here, with my daughter.”
Even now, I didn’t know if I’d emerged from my teens fully sane.
“Luc…” Gusion said as Memphis said, “Hope-”
Tolliver raised a hand. “Stop.”
I’d never seen either of them even a little bit flustered. But right now, they seemed at a loss.
“Hurt her, and Ace’s wrath will seem like nothing in comparison to the pain that we will rain down.”
These were Fallen Angels, who spent their time poking people with pitchforks and torturing wrongdoers. The idea of Tolliver threatening them should have been ludicrous. But both of them nodded solemnly.
I raised a hand in the air. “Uh, hi? This isn’t the 7th century. You don’t get to make decisions for me like I’m not here. Besides, I’m pretty sure Rella, Mom and Ace together and out for blood is legitimately the scariest thing in or out of Hell.” There was a small chorus of agreement. I turned back to my father. “I just wanted to know how the Foundation was getting on without me. I’m sorry that I have been so absent. I hope the soft support from Geneva didn’t fall through?”
“Quite the contrary. We’ve had even more support than you initially projected…”
My heart stopped.
Tolliver’s lips were still moving, but there was no sound. A high pitch whine rang in my ears and darkness clouded my vision. Until my heart thudded back online, but it was uneven. Wrong.
Rella.
Rella.
Then half my soul was ripped away and I screamed. I screamed and screamed until I could feel it burning in my chest where my heart used to be. I fell to my knees, pain spearing through my head like a hot poker. Or a bullet.
Hell's Redemption- The Complete Series Boxset Page 68