Dream Angel (Angel #1)

by Jane West

  My head spun in circles like a merry-go-round. I stammered over my words. “What-what-what-did-did-you-you do?” Immediately, my stomach roiled. Lickety–split, I ran to the nearest bush.

  Acting like a caring boyfriend, Bane stood by my side, gently rubbing my back. Instinctively, I came up, swinging. “Don’t touch me!” I screeched, knocking his hand away. “You’ve been hiding my father’s murderer from me all this time!” Hurt, anger, and disbelief left me reeling.

  “Stevie!” his face appeared torn. “Please, let me explain.”

  I threw my arms up, angrily. “Why waste your breath? You have me penciled in for a beheading. My compliments to you and your precious uncle.”

  “Will you please come and have a seat with me?” His soft velvety voice sent quivers down my spine.

  I opened my mouth to protest, but all at once, an eerie feeling hastened me to stop. I peeled my eyes away from Bane and combed over the trees. Something was odd, unlike last time, as if I were in a picture, copied and pasted into a scene. Even the forest appeared simulated, not real.

  In silence, I watched the tiny glow balls drift through the black shadows of the pines. I recalled the display was spectacular and weirdly very much like our last visit. Frozen, I observed.

  Aimlessly the fireflies descended from the trees. The tiny glow-balls gathered in a line, gracefully making their way to us. How strange, I thought. Why weren't they under the trees, protected from the storm?

  Of course, I gasped, it wasn’t raining. Did the storm pass? My eyes dropped to my feet. The soil was dry as a bone. I peered up at the cloudless sky at the glistening stars.

  My gaze returned to Bane. “Where are we?”

  Bane’s jaw tightened. “We are in another dimension.”

  “Dimension?” my eyes widened.

  “It is an altered reality, parallel to ours.”

  “This isn’t the same fireflies’ nest?”

  He shrugged. “No. This forest is simulated. I thought,” he smiled tightly. “It would be the safest place for us to talk.” He gently took my hand and guided me to a soft patch of grass where a plaid, red and white blanket, spread out over a patch of green. A picnic basket filled with assorted crackers and cheese laid on the side. Right away, my eyes gravitated to a long neck bottle. It looked tasty, some sort of drink, a rich cherry red with two long stem glasses sitting on a tray next to it.

  We seated ourselves on the blanket. Bane snatched up the bottle of wine from its sheath of ice and uncorked it. A loud pop wafted in the still air. Very skillfully, he held the bubbled glass in his fingers and poured it half full. He handed the glass to me. I hesitated, thinking that this felt more like a dream. Then I forced a faint smile and accepted the drink. I sniffed its dark rich aroma and lifted the fine glass to my lips, taking a small sip. Its taste lingered a moment on my lips, a tartness that I didn’t recognize. I peeked above the rim and caught Bane watching. I flushed slightly and said. “It’s nice. Thank you.”

  He smiled back as if he’d given me his approval. After he’d poured his, a long sigh followed. “Where shall I begin?” His blues looked straight through me as if he were searching for my soul.

  “You could start with how we got here?”

  “I suppose you might as well know.” His grave expression made me edgy. “We orbed.”

  “Orbed?”

  “Yes. You know now you see me, now you don’t.”

  “How is that even possible?”

  “It’s an art I have mastered for centuries.” He took a sip of his wine.

  “Jesus! Centuries?” I gulped.

  One corner of his lip quirked, suggesting a smile. “I’m a Druid and immortal. I… hmm, don’t age.”

  “You’ve been drinking too much Kool-aide.” I half laughed.

  “You think I'm making this up?” he challenged. “Then you tell me how we got here?” A gratifying glint lingered behind his eyes.

  “Druids are wizards, right?” Skepticism rode hard on my back.

  “You are correct.”

  “Did you work your magick that day I nearly became the deer in the headlights?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you use magick on me that day I nearly whooped Gina’s ass?”

  “Yes. I used a small smidgen of angel dust to slate your mind, momentarily.” His face remained solemn.

  “The night we encountered Francis ”

  Bane interjected my midsentence. “I was merely protecting you.”

  “Why have you kept this from me?” I shook my head, frustrated.

  “I carried doubt that you were ready to hear the truth.”

  “Did you cast this forest and the picnic?” My eyes washed over the blanket and goodies.

  “Yes.” A mischievous grin taunted his lips.

  Slowly I drew in a deep breath and then eased it out. I might’ve looked calmed on the outside but on the inside; I felt like an erupting volcano. “How old are you?” I recalled him boasting to his uncle about his age.

  “I’m three hundred years. Give or take.” The corner of his lip tipped upward, pushing a smile.

  “That explains your weird speech,” I mumbled to myself, letting my eyes wander over the soft glow of the fireflies. My gaze slid back to Bane. “I want to know who killed my father?” I narrowed my eyes at him.

  “I know you want to know about your dad’s death and rightfully so. However, I’d like to know what you heard while listening in on my conversation.” Bane grabbed an apple from the basket and started tossing it back and forth, from hand to hand, his blues fixed on me.

  “Oh, that!” I swallowed. “I didn’t set out to snoop.”

  His brow arched, irritably. “Oh really?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Okay, yes. I did go snooping, but I didn’t set out to listen in on your private conversation.”

  Bane’s blues sparkled under the soft glow of the light, a shine of suspicion. “And?” he urged.

  I looked down pulling up a blade of grass, strange how it felt real under my fingers. “I know your uncle is the principal, Dr. Van. His real last name is Van Dunn. You both talked about an Order and the Family.”

  He changed his seating position, resting his arm on his leg. “Go on. Tell me everything.” He encouraged with a stern tone.

  “I heard you both refer to me as a hybrid.” I snatched up my glass of wine and hurriedly took several sips. I gently wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. “You and Van discussed my abilities.” I tugged on another blade of grass, hiding my eyes under my lashes. “You claimed your urges were growing stronger and didn’t know how much longer you could refrain yourself.” Coming clean with that little hot fact pretty much torched my face. Funny thing, I craved him too. Of course, who wouldn’t want him? He was perfect, tall, handsome, with a beautifully proportioned body. His full black hair flowed from his face like a crest.

  I got the impression Bane was hiding a wide grin as he dropped his chin, slightly nodding complacently. All I could do was sit there and gawk. I didn’t exactly see what was so funny about forcing two people to have sex like dogs in heat. Although, he wasn’t a dog, well the K-9 kind anyway, but I certainly didn’t appreciate the connotation behind it. “I overheard you say it was me who blew up the girl’s restroom,” I recalled how we landed unharmed in the football stadium. “I know your uncle wants you to dispose of my mom. Van called her a vessel. Whatever that means.” I grabbed my glass and polished off the drink. “It seems death knocks at my door a lot. Not in the natural sense. First my father’s death, then Charles, a boyfriend of Sara’s and last but not least, Francis.” I looked at him full of skepticism. “I suspect it might’ve been someone in the Family.” I paused a minute to watch Bane’s response.

  He cocked his head to the side as if surprised. “Why do you think it’s someone from the Family?”

  “Because I remember the MIB!” I shot green bullets at him.

  His brows knitted. “MIB?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Man in black. He’d
been stalking me. He was tailing me at the fair that night I ran into you.”

  “That explains your jumpiness. Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I didn’t trust you and obvious I was right not to.” I looked away at the stand of trees. “I recall the attacked. I thought he was going to kill me.” I rubbed my temples trying to prevent an oncoming headache. “Your uncle ordered him to stalk me!” I stared him in the eye. “I heard that too!” My voice rose. “You knew I was in danger, and you allowed it!” I turned my back to him. I couldn’t look him in the eye. It shocked me to know that the man I cared so deeply about was part of a conspiracy to kill me. But protecting my father’s murderer for the last ten years, shattered my world.

  An insufferable silence enshrouded us. The intensity was so thick you could slice it with a butter knife. Finally, I couldn’t stand the quiet any longer. I tilted my chin to the side, keeping my back to him as I began an arsenal of accusations. “Will I die by your hand or some executioner from the dark ages?” To my ears, I sounded full of piss and vinegar, but if the truth told, the way I saw it, I was already dead.

  Unexpectedly, Bane swept me, weightless, into his embrace. At first, I fought him, twisting in his arms and arching my body, I sought to get free. He was the last person I wanted touching me.

  Yet when I lifted my eyes to his beautiful face, there was an unspoken anguish churning in his blues, and I stilled.

  “Please stop saying that.” He rested his forehead against mine. His breath was warm as he spoke. “I didn’t know that my uncle had you tailed. The thought of that goddamn Crypt touching you made my blood boil. I won’t apologized for ending his life. I’d do it again, a hundred times.” He bent his head back, catching my eyes to his. “I’m not taking your life.” He gathered my chin in his palm. “Since the moment I laid eyes on you, I’ve been trying to protect you. To keep you from ” His voice broke.

  “How can you be protecting me when you’re embarrassed to be seen with me!”

  He was speechless in his surprise. “I’m not ashamed of you.”

  “You’re not? Then did you have Jeffery drive me to school and all through school, totally blew me off as if I didn’t exist?”

  “I didn’t want Van coming after you. If he suspected that I had any interest in you, I feared he would’ve hurt you. That’s why I kept my distance.”

  “You don’t mind being seen with me?” Could my assumption have been wrong?

  “Are you kidding? I can’t imagine having anyone else by my side than you.” His voice drifted into a whisper. “Only you.”

  Shock flew through me. “You said you didn’t like my company and that you are an unwanted participate and, and…”

  “Yes, at first I didn’t want to like you but then,” he paused. “Then I found myself caring more for you than myself.”

  I bit my bottom lip and then I remembered. “If what you're telling me is true, then why are you hiding my father’s killer?" I paused studying his expression. "I see it two ways A: either you single-handedly committed the murder yourself or B: you’re protecting the murderer. Which one is it, Bane?”

  “Once you know who committed the crime, it will change your life forever. There won’t be going back, and I refuse to dust you again. So you better be damn sure this is what you want.”

  I hesitated as I gazed into Bane’s stark blues. Was I willing to step off a cliff? I inhaled and exhaled pointedly. Out of respect for my dad and the turmoil that his death caused my family, I had to know. I whispered the only answer I could. “Yes, I am sure.”

  “The answer has been right under your nose all along, Love.” His voice was soft and tender. I wanted to melt into his arms and pretend the world was a happy place, and my life filled with joy. No matter how I wanted to look through rose-colored glasses, the reality was a bitch. I didn’t need a fortune teller to tell me that.

  “I don’t understand.” I shook my head, confused.

  “Think about it.” Bane’s gaze searched deep into mine.

  All at once, like a house dropping from the sky. I knew. Bane was right! The answer had been right under my nose all this time. I barely whispered the two words. “My mother?” I looked to Bane searching for a plausible explanation. “Why didn’t I see it?” I leaped to my feet.

  Tears blasted through me worse than any hurricane. I was utterly shattered. Slowly, I turned my attention back to Bane. “How long have you known?” I asked through gritted teeth. An unexpected surge of rage ripped through me.

  Bane reached for my wrist. His fingers were warm and strong as he grasped mine. “Come back to the blanket and sit with me.” His brows drew together in an agonized expression.

  “All right.” I snapped. I was going into shock, my brain function, body movements were locking up. If I could hold on a little longer, I needed to understand. “Why did Sara kill my father? If she’d been so unhappy, why didn't she leave?”

  “I will explain everything. No stone will go unturned. You have my word. Please, join me.”

  I nodded as I joined him on the blanket.

  Bane blew out a disquieting sigh before he started. “Your father, Jon, once belonged to the same secret society as I, known as the Illuminati. We have many names and assume secrecy at all cost.

  “But you’re telling me.”

  “Yes, you are one of us. Your true last name is Collins.”

  “Huh! No, it’s not. Ray is my last name.”

  “Stevie, until a few hours ago, you thought my surname was Bane. It is our custom to hide our true identity to outsiders. However, your father didn’t take his last name for other reasons.”

  “What other reasons?”

  “He chose to use his middle name to break free from the Family.”

  “My last name is Collins?”

  “Yes. As I once explained, the Family is a collective of thirteen families, all different bloodlines. The chosen, thirteen each, brings a particular talent or skill to the table. Jon was a master at law. He graduated with honors, at the top of his class at Yale. He was a member of the Skull and Cross Bone fraternity. Quite an impressive resume. A genius, in fact.”

  “Wow! I’m beginning to wonder if I knew my dad at all.”

  “You knew the parts that counted the most, Princess. He had a big heart, and it showed. Jon was a stand-up man. He voiced his opinions rather boldly. He didn’t hide the fact that he didn’t approve of the Family’s unique traditions. Jon had different ideas for a New World Order. One set apart from what the Family envisions. Realizing he couldn’t persuade the councilmen, he decided to break his ties. It wasn’t a hard decision.

  He had fallen in love with Sara. The Family became enraged with Jon. It is forbidden to become unevenly yoked with unbelievers of the Order. The Family demanded that he discard his involvement at once. That was the deciding factor for Jon defecting.”

  “What did he do?”

  “Jon eloped with Sara and moved to a small town in Oklahoma.”

  “Eufaula! That’s my childhood town.”

  “Yes, however, as the story unfolds, Sara was very displeased with her circumstances. Blind to Jon’s decision of breaking free from the Family, she had much bigger plans. Of course, why would she think otherwise? Snatching a Collins boy, she’d hoped it would’ve put her on the map among the elite’s social circles.

  “Sara in her moment of weakness mentioned that Dad disowned his family.”

  “Yes, once Sara discovered the truth that your father no longer possessed wealth, she became enraged, although she didn't leave him. As an alternative, she found another avenue to the Family’s fortune.

  “Sara is a resourceful person.”

  “I think that’s an understatement. As I was saying, after a year of marriage, Jon and Sara started trying to get pregnant. Or at least that’s what Jon wanted. Sara was on an entirely different page.”

  “Yeah," I scoffed. "Sara's on Sara's page. That's the only page I've ever known.” I swallowed the knot in my throat.

&n
bsp; “Sadly, I agree.”

  I felt a sudden rise if anger.

  “Anyhow, the Family kept a careful watch over Jon. They were cognizant of his extensive knowledge of the law. They didn’t want any surprises.

  However, they did discover something of value to them Sara’s penchant for money. Shortly after that discovery, they soon unveiled a dark secret that Sara was secretly causing herself to miscarry. It was her sick way of getting back at Jon for denouncing his family’s fortune.”

  I wrapped my arms around my waist shaking over the lack of humanity Sara’s heart held. “She admitted to me about the miscarriages.”

  Bane stopped and drew my hand into his palm. His blues filled with tenderness. “Do I need to give you a break?”

  “No!” I waved my hand in protest. “I’m fine. I just need to hear this.” I smiled, though my bottom lip quivered.

  He exhaled. “Let me get through this appalling story so I can stop torturing you. As I was saying, the Family seized the opportunity by approaching Sara with an irresistible offer. The Family presented a blood contract to Sara.”

  “What did she agree to?”

  “Hmm, circumstances became complicated. Through the unscrupulous persuasion of The Family, Sara pressured Jon to seek a specialist for her answers an in-vitro fertilization specialist. Since Sara was a master at lying, she was more than convincing. As everything went accordingly, Jon agreed. What Jon didn’t realize is that Sara had brought him to the Family’s appointed doctor. An influential member of the ninth members of the councilmen. Dr. Astor is renowned for his advance science, top in his field. He is beyond light years ahead in alien technology and advanced pre-implantation genetic cloning.

  I gaped. “Cloning?”

  “Yes. The Order has connections that far exceed any of mankind’s primitive technology. The Order’s scientists are renowned for their evolutionary research in genetic engineering alien engineering.”

  “Alien! Like big ugly bugs?”

  Bane cuffed his hand over his mouth. “What is it with you and bugs?" he laughed. "Not exactly. It’s more like celestial.”

  My brows dipped into a perplexed vee. “You mean Angel stuff?”