Beauty Awakened aotd-2

by Gena Showalter

  “How long?” he croaked.

  “The bill’s only one, maybe eight, pages long, you have my word. The good doctor said—”

  “No. How long have I been here?”

  “Oh. Three days.”

  Three days? Nicola had been on her own for three days. After he’d promised to spend at least an hour a day with her. But now he could spend far more than an hour, couldn’t he? Zacharel had placed her in Koldo’s constant care.

  He might have failed her on day one.

  He threw his legs over the side of the dais, and despite the return of the dizziness, stood. He waited until his vision cleared, then looked down at himself. He wore a long white robe, the material as clean as he was. In fact, he was as clean as if he’d just taken a couple hundred showers.

  “Don’t worry,” Axel said, holding out the stick, closing one eye and zeroing in on one of the ends of the weapon. “I checked on your girl. She’s fine. And I mean that in every sense of the word.”

  He left that last part alone. “The serps stayed away from her?”

  “Of course. They were too dead to move. But she does have two minions hanging around.”

  Two minions were hanging around Nicola? Had Lefty and Righty returned? If so, they would have to be dealt with—permanently. “And the other girl? The blonde?”

  “Wait.” Frowning, Axel set the weapon aside and peered over at him. “You mean the redhead is yours?”

  “Yes. Why? Did something happen? Did she see you?” Want him?

  Rage blossomed...

  “Uh, no. Nope. Not at all. She’s fine, too.”

  ...receded. “You’re sure?” he asked, watching for any sign of a lie. The smacking of his lips. The wrinkling of his nose. A deeper frown. Axel displayed none of those.

  “I am.” Easily stated. Expression relaxed.

  Very well. The demons were hanging around Laila, then, and he’d already known that. “Thank you,” he said, only slightly grudging.

  “I’ll be collecting, don’t worry.”

  Koldo would have said the same, and couldn’t blame him. “Collect from me. Not her.” He’d promised to pay her bills, not to add to her tab.

  Axel rolled his eyes. “As if there was ever any doubt. She’s got nothing I want.” He wiped his hands on the towel draped over his thigh before digging a piece of melon out of the bowl beside him. “Here. Eat.”

  Koldo caught the fruit and bit into the juicy center. Sweet flavors exploded on his tongue, and his body purred gratefully. Sent Ones could die in a number of ways, and starvation was a big one.

  Thank the Most High, Koldo had had the foresight to stock Nicola’s cabinets before leaving her. She had been well fed during his absence. And thank the Most High forevermore, Axel had been willing to see to her defense.

  But Koldo wanted to do more than rely on another Sent One for such a thing. If anything like this ever happened again—not that it would, Koldo never made the same mistake twice—Axel might be too busy to check on Nicola. He might lose interest, or decide Koldo had nothing of value to offer in trade.

  I’ll have to mark her, Koldo thought. Not just with the essentia, but with ink. He would code her.

  The Most High had made a blood-covenant promise to the Sent Ones. In exchange for obeying His laws, they were given protection. Koldo hadn’t been kicked from the heavens, therefore the promise still applied to him, and the code was still etched into his heart. And because Nicola was his charge, his responsibility, the promise now extended to her. But he would have to give her an outward sign of it.

  He would etch the code into her flesh, and that code would be able to create a barrier between her and any demons that dared approach her. All she would have to do was concentrate on the numbered sequences during an attack. The more she stared at her tattoos, the stronger the power of the code would become, until finally expanding, covering her entire body and shielding her.

  But if a demon managed to distract her...

  Not going to happen, Koldo assured himself. He would train her for that, too.

  “So why were the serps after you?” Axel asked.

  “I’d like to know the answer to that, as well.” Was his father still out there or not?

  Koldo hadn’t seen Nox’s body, had only watched as grenade after grenade soared toward him, the unsuspecting male not knowing to flash away. There’d been multiple booms and an intense wave of heat, flames drenching the ground and bouncing into the sky.

  Should have killed him up close and personal. But Koldo had had a choice. Destroy Nox face-to-face—or destroy the man and everything he’d worked for in one swoop. Koldo had chosen the latter.

  When the fires eventually died, he’d dug through the rubble and found too many bones to count.

  If Nox had survived, why was he making himself known now? How had he tracked Koldo to Nicola’s home?

  “So, what do you plan to do with the redhead?” Axel asked.

  “Why do you live in a place like this?” Koldo retorted. “You clearly thrive on what you probably consider adoration from your peers, and yet you seclude yourself.”

  A pause.

  “So we agree not to question each other,” the warrior finally replied.

  “We do.” They both had their secrets. Koldo finished off the fruit. “And now I must go.”

  “Okay, but uh, hey,” Axel said, standing. “You might want to hunt down your girl and give her a stern talking-to. Normally I wouldn’t tattle, even on a human, but if I keep quiet this could really come back to haunt me. Meaning, you’ll want to punch my pretty face.”

  Rambling? Now? “Just tell me!”

  “She’s planning to go on a date with another guy.”

  * * *

  FUMING, KOLDO FLASHED to Nicola’s home. He wasn’t sure what he’d do when the two of them were face-to-face. He only knew he had to see her. But she wasn’t there, and another flash proved she wasn’t in her office. Jamila and another girl, the blonde with the mysterious origins, were in her office, and the two were hurtling curses at each other—while the girl had a male pinned to Nicola’s desk, her fingers curled around his neck, his pants and underwear pooled at his ankles.

  “Sleeping with every guy here?” Jamila spat. “Really? That’s your master plan?”

  “Part of it,” the blonde smirked. At least her clothing was in place. “So why don’t you do me a solid and get lost? And next time knock before you enter an office.”

  “Sure, I’ll go. By the way, your plan is stupid.”

  “Yeah, well, your hair is stupid.”

  Females.

  Jamila bared her teeth in a scowl. “What does this accomplish?” she asked, waving a hand in the male’s direction. “I mean, really.”

  “When the girlfriend finds out what he’s done, she’ll be hurt, want to cry.”

  “He doesn’t have a girlfriend.”

  “Fine. He has a love interest.”

  “And you want to hurt her, why?”

  The blonde grinned evilly.

  The male’s cheeks were bright red as he struggled to sit up, but the girl was obviously stronger and managed to hold him down without any effort.

  Koldo stepped into the natural world. “Where’s Nicola?” he demanded.

  All three gazes swung to him.

  The blonde paused for a moment, momentarily rendered speechless. Then she shook her head, blinked and smiled slowly, wickedly, an invitation and a declaration. “Well, hello, handsome. What can I do to help you?”

  The male increased the fervency of his struggles. He would have spoken, but his tie was stuffed into his mouth.

  Jamila scowled at Koldo, as if her predicament was his fault. “You! Even though Little Miss Human is your responsibly, Zacharel told me to stay here.”

  A detail he didn’t care about. “I’ll ask again. Where is she?”

  “Her sister showed up and they went to lunch. They mentioned a park.”

  “Forget about her,” the blonde said. “You’ll be b
etter off with me. I’ll take care of you in a way she never will. Just give me a chance.”

  A park. Very well, he would search every one nearby.

  Without a word, he stomped from the office. The human had been too distracted during his arrival to notice his sudden appearance, but he certainly wouldn’t miss Koldo’s departure.

  The blonde called out a protest, and she actually sounded angry. Not that he cared about that, either.

  Once he cleared the reception area, and knew no prying eyes were locked on him, he flashed to the park closest to the office. Searched. Found no sign of her. Next, he tried the one closest to her house. Searched. And—

  Spotted her.

  Laila was beside her, the two walking along a cobbled path, talking and laughing and eating chocolates. The pair of demons perched on Laila’s shoulders spotted him, hopped to the ground and darted away.

  Some of the tension faded from Koldo’s shoulders. This kind of interaction was good for both of the females. They were relaxing, enjoying themselves, purging the poison. He would leave them to it, he decided. Without yelling at Nicola for making a date with another man.

  He flashed to her house and began to box up her things. He wanted her installed in one of his homes by the end of the day. There would be no discussion, no debate. And this had nothing to do with her decision to turn to another man for her joy.

  Nothing at all.

  Nicola would probably cry because of Koldo’s actions. He would have to calm her down, do something to make her happy—but he would also have to harden his heart. The move was for the best. He would be able to protect her better.

  But he would have to bring her back for the date, wouldn’t he? Because...what if the male did indeed bring her joy? What then? She would need him. He would help her purge even more of the demon toxin.

  Flickers of rage danced through Koldo, and he found himself breathing far more heavily, battling the urge to punch the walls.

  If he gave in to his temper, Nicola’s home would topple.

  He was a little rough with the boxes in the back of her closet, the things inside clinking together. He checked to make sure he hadn’t broken anything and found a box of photos. The more he flipped through the prints, the more his actions gentled. There were shots of Nicola and her sister, and the two of them with their parents, as well as a redheaded little boy. He looked just like them, had to be a relative, but...who was he? A brother? Nicola had never mentioned him, and he had never come around. In all the information Koldo had uncovered, nothing had been mentioned.

  Intrigued, Koldo dug deeper into the box. He found articles about her parents’ death and learned a drunk driver had slammed into their car, killing the couple as well as their young son, Robby, and that the driver had been released from prison last year.

  Nicola had lost more than Koldo had ever realized. She had lost a healthy six-year-old brother with a bright future, a boy who had most likely owned prime real estate in her heart.

  She must despise the man who had ruined her life. She had to dream of his painful demise. She had to crave revenge. She just hadn’t been well enough and hadn’t had the time or resources to do anything about it.

  Perhaps Koldo would hurt the male on her behalf. Punishment or not. Perhaps then she would like him more than this other—

  He shook his head violently, stopping the thought before it could fully form. Koldo wasn’t interested in earning anyone’s affection. He’d tried that before, and he’d failed miserably. He’d vowed never to do it again, and it was a vow he would keep. And paying Nicola’s bills wasn’t an attempt to earn anything, he told himself. He needed Nicola relaxed, that was all.

  Finish this.

  Yes. He would keep her in...Panama’s Chiriqui Province, he decided, and flashed most of her things to one of his more opulent homes. There were lush green mountains in every direction, and a blue sky filled with puffy white clouds. The weather was springlike and constant all year round. The food was fresh, organic and homegrown, and would nourish both Nicola and her sister in the best of ways. They would thrive here—whether they liked it or not.

  Unpacking her belongings took very little time. She owned so little. Well, he would buy her and her sister a new wardrobe. And the clothes wouldn’t be an attempt to win their affections, either, but a simple gesture of kindness. A welcome-to-your-new-home gift.

  But what did he know of human fashion? Nothing.

  He knew someone who did, however.

  Koldo flashed into the foyer of Zacharel’s home and called out a greeting. A few seconds later, the mist thinned and Annabelle stepped into view, wearing a T-shirt and jeans. Her blue-black hair was swept into a ponytail, reminding him of Nicola, and her golden-brown eyes gleamed merrily.

  She smiled when she spotted him. “Hey, Koldo. Zacharel’s not here.”

  “I’m not here to see him.”

  Her smile fell into a frown of confusion, and she glanced behind her. When she refocused on him, she tapped at her chest. “Me, then?”

  “Yes. I need a favor.”

  “A favor?”

  Would she question everything he said?

  “But we’re out of Water,” she added.

  “I know that. I need...” Ugh. Was he really going to do this? he wondered, then pictured Nicola in a lacy pink top and a pair of tiny shorts he’d once seen a human female wear. A strange burning ran from his nose to navel. Yes, he was really going to do this. “I need to take you shopping.”

  Annabelle rubbed at her ears. “Wait. Did you just say mopping? Is your home dirty and you want a maid? Because I know a warrior like you would never say my favorite S word.”

  “Did someone say the S word?” a female called out. “Because I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation as I was eavesdropping.”

  Excited twittering echoed. Footsteps followed. Then four of the women in Zacharel’s army stepped through the mist. Charlotte, Elandra, Malak and Ronen.

  He would rather have battled a horde of demons than face these women. They were trained soldiers, monsters on the battlefield, cold, callous killers, and yet they liked to twitter incessantly about nothing.

  “What are you shopping for?” asked Charlotte, a lovely brunette with bold features and dusky skin. “A new sword? Well, good news. I’ve got one I know you’ll love, and with my friends with benefits package, it’ll only cost you a portion of your soul.”

  “I told you guys to stay back and stay quiet,” Annabelle scolded.

  “You mean that wasn’t just a suggestion?” said Ronen, a black-haired vixen with an addiction to popcorn.

  Elandra was the shy one of the group, and she looked down at the floor, where the hem of her robe swirled. She was, by far, the most beautiful female Koldo had ever seen. Or had been, until he’d met Nicola. From the top of her head to the soles of her feet, Elandra reminded him of a living diamond. Her long white hair sparkled. Her silver eyes sparkled. Her pale skin sparkled.

  Malak was the only one in the group with a flaw, though she hid it well. There was a large round scar in the center of her forehead, probably from an injury she’d received when she had been too young to regenerate. Her hair, which had been dyed a bright green, sported thick bangs to hide it.

  “Give the man a chance to explain,” Annabelle said.

  The females stared at him, expectant.

  Koldo had no idea what they’d done to land in Zacharel’s Army of Disgrace. Unless their irritating personalities had been the deciding factor.

  He looked to Annabelle, saying, “My...woman—” Wait. Was that what Nicola was to him? He wasn’t sure, considering she would soon be going on a date with another man. And were his teeth elongating like his father’s when the man was enraged?

  He would have to be more careful.

  “I have a friend,” he added a little more harshly than he’d intended, and stopped himself from going on. She wasn’t that, either. “I have a human, a female, and she’s in need of new clothing.”

&n
bsp; The Sent Ones exclaimed excitedly. Ronen even jumped up and down and clapped. “Juiciest gossip ever,” she said. “Koldo has a gurl-friend.”

  “I bet she’s ten feet tall and six hundred pounds of muscle,” Charlotte exclaimed.

  “Get. Give us some privacy,” Annabelle told them, shooing them away.

  Though they frowned and pouted, they obeyed.

  “Okay, so let me get this straight,” Annabelle said. “You want to take me, rather than your woman, friend, human, female, to pick and buy these clothes?”

  Yes. He would hurt her feelings right now. He might ruin her newfound happiness. “I don’t wish to wait,” he said through gritted teeth. Truth. He wanted this done, out of the way. “And...I don’t know what females prefer.”

  Her hand fluttered over her heart, and she grinned. “Zacharel once had the same problem with me. So why don’t you buy her what you would prefer to see her wear?”

  “I will buy her what I like, yes—” because he wouldn’t be able to help himself “—but I would like her to have choices.” He had to get this right. That way, she would have no reason to refuse the gift.

  “Do you even know her sizes?”

  He held up his hands. “She’s tiny, like this. Delicate.”

  Annabelle laughed, the sound carefree. “Oh, you are in so much trouble, buddy. But yeah, okay. I’ll help you.”

  Relief was as potent as a drug. “For a price, of course.”

  “Nope. Not at all. I know that’s how you guys like to operate, but this one’s free of charge. Just invite me to the wedding, and we’ll call it good.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “YOU’VE GOT TO TRY THIS.” Laila shoveled a piece of chocolate into Nicola’s mouth before she had time to form a reply.

  Chocolate contained caffeine, so very rarely did she allow herself to indulge. But when she did... The gooey goodness delighted her, and she closed her eyes to savor. A mistake. She and her sister were in the process of strolling along the cobbled path winding through the park, and she bumped into a trash can.