Dust of My Wings

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  This was the hard part. How could she break this to them? What eloquent way could she put everything so they would understand?

  “Uh…well…I’m a brownie.”

  And the award for lamest remark goes to… Lily.

  The kitchen fell into silence and the girls blinked as one.

  “A brownie,” Becca said.

  “Yes. Last night I turned gold after I woke up, and it turns out I’m a brownie.”

  “A brownie,” Amara repeated.

  “Like the dessert?” Faith asked, a twitch on her lips.

  “No, not like that. Like a gold woman.”

  Nadie blinked rapidly and tilted her head. “How much did you have to drink last night?”

  “Nothing, I promise. It’s true, guys.”

  Jamie stood and walked over to kneel in front of Lily’s chair. “Lily,” she spoke softly, holding her friend’s hand. “It will be okay. We can get you help.”

  Lily pulled her hand back and blew her bangs from her face. “Fine. Don’t believe me.”

  “It’s not that we don’t believe you, dear,” Eliana said. “It’s just that, I mean, come on, Lily. A brownie?”

  Lily shook her head. “I understand.” She stood and closed her eyes. Shade had told her to relax and envision herself as a human to become one, so it should work in reverse. Right?

  She calmed, ignored the worried mumbles around her and shifted. Her body tingling and rolling with energy—like home.

  The girls gasped, and Lily opened her eyes.

  She looked at her hand. Her skin was covered in gold dust, and an energy thrummed through her.

  She let out a deep breath. “It worked.”

  “Oh, my God,” Faith said.

  “Holy shit,” Becca exclaimed.

  “How did this happen?” Amara asked.

  Lily smiled and wrung her hands together. “I don’t know. I fell asleep after Shade and I made love, and when I woke up, I was like this.” She didn’t want to scare them and tell them that she’d had a seizure and felt like her whole body was on fire. No, that part didn’t need to come out.

  “How did you know you were a brownie?” Jaime asked.

  “Shade told me.”

  “He just knew what that was?” Eliana asked.

  “Yes, actually.”

  “Odd, don’t you think?” Faith asked and gave Amara a look that Lily didn’t understand.

  “Yes, it is. I really didn’t have time to think about what all of that meant, ya know. I was a little more preoccupied with being a freaking gold woman. Plus, he said he’d tell me more about it when he got back. He left to go talk to a friend who may know more about what happened.”

  “Well, we want to know what happened as well, hon,” Nadie said.

  “I know. We’ll figure this out. We have to,” Lily said.

  “Can you…ya know….” Faith waved her hands in front of her. “I mean, can you turn back?”

  “What?” Lily looked down at herself. “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot.” She closed her eyes, focused on being human, and the energy eventually ebbed away.

  “That is so cool,” Jamie said.

  “Maybe.” Lily nodded. “I’m a little too freaked out right now to think about it.”

  “Understandable,” Amara agreed.

  “So what does Shade think happened?” Nadie asked, and nibbled on a doughnut.

  Shit. How could Lily have forgotten the most important part about all of this?

  “Well, we think it was because of the lightning.”

  “Fuck.” Faith chugged her coffee and paced around the small kitchen.

  “I was afraid you’d say that,” Jamie said.

  “Does that mean this could happen to all of us?” Nadie voiced the question no one had wanted to ask.

  Lily looked around the room at her best friends, each unique and special in her own way. What would happen to them if they turned into something they weren’t before? Would it change their relationship forever?

  “I just don’t know,” Lily finally answered. “Shade will be here, and we can ask him.”

  The girls played with their food, not really looking at one another.

  “Whatever happens, we’ll stick together. No matter what,” Amara finally said.

  “We’ll kick its ass and find a way to work with it,” Faith agreed.

  God, Lily loved her friends, but she knew this was only the beginning. What else was coming for them?

  Chapter 13

  Shade walked through the door and threw his keys in the dish in the hallway.

  “Ambrose!”

  Lily was a brownie. Holy shit. It didn’t make any sense. Someone’s genetics didn’t just change on a whim. How did a strike of lightning do this? There had to be something else going on. A higher power? He might be an angel, but he wasn’t one of God’s cherubs, if they even existed. He didn’t know what else to think. Ambrose would know what to do; or at least help clear Shade’s mind from the night before, because, hell, he couldn’t quit thinking of that strawberry scent. Damn, that wasn’t as important as why she’d changed. Fuck.

  “Ambrose?” Shade walked to his mentor’s room, but it lay empty. Where was he?

  A pull in Shade’s chest made him draw up short. A summons from the council again? Damn it. Did they know he hadn’t fixed it yet?

  Shade cursed. Of course they knew. They seemed to know everything. He froze. What if this wasn’t about the dust? What if this was about what had happened to Lily?

  The angels had no legal jurisdiction over the brownies. Every species had their own council. They could still use his dust as a catalyst to harm her. He clenched his fists. No, that couldn’t happen. He wouldn’t let that happen.

  The council pulled on him again, and Shade locked his jaw. He would go to them and bow like a good little soldier. But, he wouldn't allow them to harm his Lily; not while he still had breath in his lungs. He looked around the house once more, grabbed his keys, and walked out to the backyard. His back arched, and his wings unfolded from their hiding place in the pouch in his back. With one last look round him, he shot up into the sky, his rage barely in check.

  When he was high enough above the clouds, he closed his eyes and thought of the enclave. His people’s world survived in a pocket of space that kept it hidden. An angel only needed to fly high enough and think about it to find themselves there, almost like a transport to their side of the realm.

  Shade opened his eyes and flew toward the council chambers. He wanted to get this over with so he could find Ambrose and talk about Lily. He didn’t have any time to wait. As it was, he was going to be later than he’d planned in getting back to her. He hadn’t called because he didn’t want to worry her. Plus, he couldn’t tell her about the council meeting.

  He cursed and set his feet on the ledge of the cliff heading toward the chambers. What did they want with him? He flexed his wings and walked inside the building, tension coiling through him with each step.

  Striker sat on the center seat, his brown wings drooping around him, a smirk on his face. He tapped his fingers against the armrest and rolled his eyes.

  Bastard.

  Shade looked around the room and came up short. It was just him and Striker. A discreet cough made him turn around to see who was there. Ambrose stood behind him, his arms crossed and a glare on his face.

  Odd. What the hell was happening? Striker didn’t have the authority to call him in for a meeting like this. It took the whole council, not just one annoying angel, to demand a council presence. Ambrose let out a growl, and Shade arched a brow. Okay…something was going on here.

  He moved in position for a fight. If Ambrose was this ticked off, something was wrong.

  “Settle down,” Striker teased and looked at Shade. “You’ve failed. She knows. They all know. The girl will have to die.”

  Shade’s pulse quickened. “No, she doesn’t know. I still have more time.” He clenched his fists.

  Must. Not. Punch. Angel.

&
nbsp; “Ah, but you don’t. You’ve already contaminated your mission. You’ve slept with the whore.”

  How had Striker known this? Had the bastard been watching him this whole time? Without taking a breath, Shade expanded his wings, flew toward Striker, took his sword from its invisible cache—the place all warrior angels had that they could hide their weapons to their body if needed—and held it to the council member’s neck. The brown-winged weasel gulped, a bead of sweat running down his oily face.

  “Never call her that again. Or I will kill you. Slowly.” Shade growled, twisting the blade ever so slightly with each sentence.

  The bastard tsked. Fucking tsked. “I am the council. You have no right to threaten me. I could have your wings for this.”

  Shade merely moved the blade closer to his carotid artery and raised a brow. “Actually, you are only part of the council. Not the whole of it. If you call her that again, the entire world of angels cannot protect you.”

  Striker swallowed hard, the movement causing Shade’s blade to nick the skin. The angel whimpered, and Shade pulled back. Fucking limp dick.

  Shade flew back to the ground, and Ambrose moved to stand behind him. The other angel hadn’t said a word during the whole altercation. He hadn’t needed to. Shade knew that Ambrose had his back no matter what.

  “I’ll get the job done. Don’t worry. Your precious secrets will be hidden.” Shade gave his back to Striker and stormed out of the room.

  “I’d watch your little human if I were you, Shade. You never know what could happen. They are so frail as it is,” Striker called out behind him, and Shade fought back the urge to kill him. That wouldn’t do any good. Not yet anyway.

  “You are lucky, Shade, that you did not kill him,” Ambrose rumbled.

  Shade stopped and looked at his friend. “Excuse me?”

  “You can’t kill him. Not yet anyway. He’s a council member. Plus, there’s something going on that concerns him, I believe. Come. These cliffs have ears.”

  Shade nodded. “Good, I need to talk to you.” The nervous energy flowing through him made him bite off the words.

  Ambrose furrowed his brow and nodded. They both lifted off the cliff, their contrasting wings catching a wind draft, and they started home.

  As soon as they touched down in their backyard, they tucked their wings away and walked inside the house. Ambrose sat on the ottoman and held out his hand.

  “Give me your sword. You got that swine’s blood on it. I don’t want the damn thing to rust.” An avid weapons connoisseur, Ambrose knew all there was to know about swords and other sharp pointy things. It was as much a pleasure for him as it was a necessity.

  Shade took his sword out of his cache and held it out. Ambrose shook his head and began cleaning the blade. Shade smiled at the familiarity of the action and went to the fridge to get them each a Coke.

  He popped open the top and took a drink, the sweet taste giving him the jolt he needed. How was he supposed to approach this subject with Ambrose? Yes, he could talk about sex with him; they were past that for God’s sake. How did he tell Ambrose that Lily was a brownie? Would he believe him? What would he do with Lily?

  Shade shook off that thought. No, no matter what, Ambrose wouldn’t hurt Lily; not if he knew Shade’s feelings. Right? A sick feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to do this, but he had to complete the assignment.

  “Shade?” Ambrose called out from the other room. “What is it you wanted to speak of?”

  Shade took another sip of his Coke, grabbed Ambrose’s, and walked back to meet him. Ambrose accepted his drink, and he handed Shade back his spotless sword. The blade gleamed like new. Damn, he did good work. Shade could have cleaned it himself, but he was no Ambrose.

  Shade sat down and played with the tab on his drink.

  “What is it, Shade? Is it about Lily? What does she know?”

  Shade shook his head. “Yes, it’s about Lily. It’s not about the dust. Well, that might play into it later, but no, not yet.”

  “Okay, then tell me.”

  “Lily is a brownie. Her skin turned gold, and her body lit up. Her energy is completely different. She’s not human anymore.”

  Ambrose’s eyebrows rose. “That’s a new one.”

  “Shit. You’ve never heard of this?”

  Ambrose shook his head. “No, I haven’t, but that doesn’t mean it’s a unique case. All humans are part supernatural, after all. Their genetics are just so diluted down they’ve lost all magic. Something must have sparked the change, and whatever supernatural chromosomes she had in the most abundance took over. In Lily’s case, it was a brownie.”

  “That’s sort of along the lines of what I thought.”

  “What do you think sparked it then?”

  “The storm.”

  “I knew that night felt off.” Ambrose stood and paced. It was the way his friend dealt with deep thoughts.

  “Well, she was struck by lightning.”

  Ambrose stopped. “And she lived?”

  Shade nodded. “Yes, and her friends, as well. I don’t know why her friends aren’t turning right now. Though, I haven’t met them all, so who knows. They could be a new type of shifter for all I know. Dante was also hit, but as he’s a dragon, I don’t think he would be affected.”

  “The dragon should be fine. But what of the others?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. Lily has them over now, I believe.”

  “They’ll have to be told.”

  “I think Lily is doing that.”

  “You’ll have to help and make sure they know the rules of their new society,” Ambrose warned.

  “I know. I wanted to talk to you first. It was scary as well. I mean, she lit up, Ambrose.”

  “When?”

  “When did she light up?” Shade blinked. “When we were making love.”

  Ambrose gave a small smile and looked off in the distance. “I think I know the trigger. Not the reason she was struck by lightning, but I have an idea of why she lit up.”

  “Why?” Shade crushed the can in his hand and sat on the edge of his seat.

  “Lily may be your true half, Shade.”

  His ears rang, and he felt light headed. “Wh…What?”

  “Your true half. The one person who is connected to you for eternity. Though I don’t know why they call it half because there are triads known in existence.” Ambrose looked out the window again, and Shade struggled to breathe.

  “But, I thought I had that with Cora.”

  Ambrose shook his head. “No, neither of us had our true halves. Believe me, we have known.”

  Shade looked at his mentor as sadness washed through him. So Ambrose’s wife, Shade’s sister, hadn’t been his true half either?

  “Why didn’t I know about this?”

  “Because it was an age-old custom that hasn’t been seen in a millennia. From what you are describing, I’m pretty sure that is the case. Congratulations, Shade.”

  “But she’s a brownie, and I’m an angel.”

  “So? How do you think the lines got diluted in the first place? Angels don’t have to mate with only angels. You know this.”

  He nodded slowly. His true half? Lily was his for eternity. What about the lies he told? Could she get over that? Should she have to get over a betrayal? Fuck. This whole thing was a mess.

  “What are we going to do?” Shade asked.

  “You need to talk with Lily. Not to mention these women have a lot to learn. Even if they don’t turn, because of their connection to your Lily, they’ll have to know. You will have to help them.”

  “I have no idea how I’m going to do that. I’ll figure it out. I have to.”

  “Yes, you do. While you do that, I need to figure out what is going on with Striker. You do your job and protect the supernatural secret. This whole thing is going to implode. We’re going to have to figure out how to teach them and protect them at the same time. Some are not going to be happy that humans can turn.
These women are in danger, Shade.”

  Concern for Lily raced through him. “I’m on it, Ambrose. I won’t let them get hurt.”

  Ambrose sighed. “You are but one angel, Shade.”

  “And you’re another. We need at least to start. Once we do, we can find others to help.”

  “Good. I need to leave. Go to Lily, Shade. Somehow…”Ambrose squeezed his shoulder. “Lily needs to know the truth. Lies will only harm any relationship you build.”

  His body tensed, but he nodded. “I know. I’ll think of something.”

  “Grovel if you have to. Don’t lose something so precious.”

  Shade nodded, unable to find the words. Ambrose left the house, and Shade leaned back in his seat. How was he going to break the news to Lily that she was his true half and that he was a lying ass that had to put his world before her? Well, not anymore. She was his world now, and he’d do what he could to protect it. No matter the cost.

  Chapter 14

  Lily paced in her kitchen, her nerves like pinpricks along her skin. It was later that afternoon, and she was pretty sure she was about to crawl out of her skin; at least that’s what it felt like to her. Where was Shade? He hadn’t said when he’d be back, but worry had taken over his mind. Was he hurt? What if he’d found out something that would make him stay away? What if he just stayed away because she was a brownie?

  Nausea crept through her, and she gripped the back of a chair to steady herself. No. She couldn’t think like that. It didn’t help the situation. Shade would be back, and he’d have answers. Well, at least he’d be back.

  The other women were in her kitchen cooking turkey spaghetti, baking homemade bread, salad, and some kind of dessert. Well, at least most of them. Faith and Eliana were on their laptops researching something at her kitchen table. No matter what happened in her life, those two were not allowed near her stove. Even if they survived the blast, they made more messes than two-year-olds with a box of Sharpies. The other women at least cleaned up after themselves. Lily noticed they were being extra careful today since she was on edge. Oh, she loved these women.