by Diem, J. C.
Nathan reached out to touch one of the scratches that marred my face. As always, he was so gentle that he made my heart ache. “Did you receive any serious injuries during the bird attack?”
I could read the longing in his eyes and felt the same way. He was secretly hoping that he’d have a chance to heal me again. I shook my head. “Nope. I only have a few shallow scratches.”
He had the ability to heal me with his kiss, but it was dangerous for him to use his grace that way. Each time he infused me with his power, we both became a little more addicted to the sensation. Ever since I’d learned about the dangers of being healed by him, I’d done my best to avoid being hurt. I’d even gone as far as hiding some of my wounds that I’d received during our skirmishes with demons from him. As a consequence, I had a few more scars now. I’d never planned on a career as a bikini model, so it didn’t really matter that my skin wasn’t flawless.
Sam pointedly cleared his throat when we’d been staring at each other for a bit too long. Nathan dropped his eyes, breaking me from his spell. With his chin length black hair, sharp cheekbones and sensual lips, he was stunning. I wasn’t alone in being drawn to him. Other women were just as susceptible to his good looks. I’d caught more than a few of them staring at him whenever we went out on patrol together. Some had to be at least twice his vessel’s age, which was around nineteen.
“I should go and check on Briathos,” he said and was gone before we could say anything. He could find her as long as she was wearing her bracelet. He had a talent for tracking spells that other angels didn’t seem to possess.
Leo and Sophia exchanged a glance then they both turned to me. I held up my hand before they could verbalize their warnings. “I know. Nathan is off limits. You don’t have to remind me about it.” One thing I couldn’t stand was being lectured to as if I was an ignorant child. It was one of the reasons I’d never gotten along with any of my teachers.
Sophia poured herself some tea and I offered my cup for a refill. She chose her words carefully before speaking. “I am afraid it will not be easy for you two to resist your feelings for each other,” she said as delicately as possible.
“We’ve managed to resist them so far,” I said with a frown.
“Sophia and I think you were right about something that you said recently,” Leo said.
“You mean you guys actually listen to me?” I said in a mutter that they heard just fine.
“We always listen to you,” Sophia replied primly.
“What did I say that you think I’m right about?”
Leo leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table. “You said that the longer we stay inside our vessels, the more attuned we become to them. Brie and I have a habit of being childish from time to time, exactly as if we were real teenagers.”
I remembered saying something along those lines. “What does that have to do with Nathan and me?”
“Nathanael is possessing the body of a young man,” the clairvoyant said. “His vessel has all of the usual needs and desires of any human male.”
My mouth dropped open at her implication. “He wouldn’t let his vessel take control and do anything stupid.” Kissing me to heal me was one thing. What she was talking about went way beyond just making out.
Leo smiled, but it wasn’t joyful. “If he were a normal angel, you would be right about that. Unfortunately, I fear he is not the same as we are anymore.”
Sophia’s expression turned wistful as he included her. She’d lost her grace and wasn’t technically an angel at all anymore.
“What aren’t you telling me?” I asked suspiciously. I knew Nathan was from a different order of the angelic hierarchy than Brie and Leo, but I hadn’t learned anything more than that so far. I wasn’t quite brave enough to ask him outright.
“That is Nathan’s tale to tell you,” Sophia said firmly. “We just feel that you should try not to allow yourself to become too close to him.”
That ship had already sailed, but I nodded to appease them. I’d read a book about what happened when male angels used their vessels to mate with human women. The females had fallen pregnant and had given birth to a race of giants called the Nephilim. After reading the horrors that the unnatural offspring had unleashed on the world, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake that those poor women had. I was pretty sure I was in love with my guardian, but I wouldn’t allow myself to act on my feelings. For both of our sakes, it was best for us to keep our distance as much as possible.
Sam had his mind on other matters and voiced them. “I cannot believe what Brie did to you.” His expression was as dark as his tone.
“She didn’t exactly make the raven and its feathered friends attack me,” I said grudgingly. Defending her was the last thing I wanted to do, but she wasn’t really to blame here. Sure, her actions were questionable, but the undead bird was at fault.
Sitting stiffly in the seat next to me, he stubbornly refused to cut her any slack. “She could have found another way to teach you the lesson that she believed you needed to learn so badly. She did not have to allow you to suffer such torment.”
Leo came to his twin’s defense. “Brie did not know about Violet’s claustrophobia.” He sent me a hurt look that I’d kept them in the dark. “None of us did.”
Holding my cup, I shrugged carefully so I didn’t spill my tea. “It isn’t exactly something I wanted everyone to know about.”
“You do not trust us?” Sam asked hesitantly.
“Of course I trust you.” The only one I didn’t trust now was Brie. I bumped my shoulder against his affectionately. “I guess I just don’t want you to know that I’m weak.”
Leo frowned at that. “Having a phobia does not mean you are weak. It simply means that you are human.”
“I suppose angels don’t have any fears,” I said with a sigh.
“We have fears,” he refuted. “Brie named one of them before she disappeared to sulk in private.”
“You’re afraid I’m going to lose this war and that mankind will be doomed,” I said softly.
He fell silent, but I read the confirmation in his bleak expression.
₪₪₪
Chapter Five
Sam headed upstairs to watch one of his beloved TV shows and I tagged along behind him. His addiction to television had increased. He was glued to the couch night and day, unless he was training.
At my insistence, he managed to tear himself away to practice combat for a couple of hours a day. His skills had improved, but he was far from being a warrior. Whatever fighting ability he’d had as a pirate had been forgotten long ago. He’d learned a different set of skills during his imprisonment in hell. His ability to become almost invisible had saved us both many times. Brie was wrong to say it had been a mistake to drag him out of the shadowlands. Rescuing Sam was the best decision I’d ever made.
He plonked down on the comfortable brown sofa and I stepped across the hall into my bedroom. Checking that no one was watching me, I dug my cell phone out of my pocket and checked for messages. I felt a small glow of happiness when I saw a text from Zach. He was back in town and he wanted to see me tomorrow at one in the afternoon.
It was Sam’s turn to escort me on patrol tomorrow, which would make it easier for me to meet my boyfriend. I texted back that I could make it and asked him where he wanted to meet me. His response was a surprise. He told me to meet him around the corner from his apartment building. I sent an agreement to the plan, wondering why he hadn’t arranged to meet at our usual spot. We tended to use a café that was popular enough for us to become lost in the crowd.
Meeting with Zach was always a risk now. My relationship with him wasn’t quite as secret as I would have liked. After one of my dates with him, I’d been kidnapped by a couple of angels by the name of Hagith and Orifiel. I’d nicknamed them Hag and Orifice just to piss them off. They’d warned me to keep my mind on the job and had threatened to do something to either me or to Zach if I allowed myself to become too distracted by him
. For all I knew, they were hiding somewhere nearby so they could follow me every time I left Sophia’s store.
Even with their threat hanging over me, I couldn’t bring myself to end things with Zach. He was the only thing that I had left from my old life. I’d lost everything when the demons had killed my mother and I’d been forced to flee from Denver. I wasn’t going to let them take him away from me as well. The few times I managed to sneak away to see him were the only instances when I had any normalcy these days.
Sam glanced at me when I entered the living room. “You look happy,” he said slyly as I took a seat on the armchair.
I pretended to be nonchalant. “Do I?”
“Does this mean your beau has finally returned?”
I made a face at his archaic wording, but I knew he was only teasing me. Nathan had used the same term to refer to Zach when he’d first joined our team. I was doing my best to bring both the imp and the angels into the twenty-first century. Sadly, they all still spoke as if they were living in another era. “Zach is back in town,” I confirmed quietly.
“When have you arranged to meet with him?”
“Tomorrow at one.”
“That is fortunate,” he mused. “This means we will not have to resort to subterfuge this time.”
“Are you sure you’ll be able to tear yourself away from the TV for a few hours?” I teased him.
His expression became conflicted as he realized he’d be gone from the store for so long. “Your safety is more important than watching my favorite shows,” he said and sounded as if he was trying to convince himself of that.
Fortunately, my boyfriend was on board with the idea of keeping our relationship a secret. I was still a wanted felon. His father had posted a bodyguard to watch Zach just in case I tried to make contact with him. Giles, his creepy chauffeur slash stalker, followed him everywhere. Zach had to sneak away every time we met, which restricted how often we could see each other.
When I fell asleep later that night, I tried to visit the shadowlands that I’d created for the legion. They remained stubbornly absent. I had little control over my dreams, but I usually ended up there sooner or later. It happened more frequently when I was in some kind of trouble. With things being eerily quiet the way they were at the moment, my brain tended to rest while I was asleep.
It was hard to act normal during breakfast the next morning. I gave Brie a nasty glare when I took a seat at the table. More because it was expected than out of any real anger. I was too excited at the prospect of seeing Zach to dwell on how much she disliked me. Frankly, the feeling was mutual by now. She felt superior to humans and had never pretended to think of me as anything less than a mere tool. Now that she’d all-but admitted that out loud, there was no more need for me to act friendly towards her.
After breakfast, I spent two hours training with Leo. It was hard to stay focused, but it helped to pass the time. When we were done, he called Sam down for his turn. We used sticks that had once been a broom handle to attack each other with. Injuries weren’t completely eliminated, but they were greatly reduced.
Poor Sam was almost as inept as I had been when I’d first started learning how to defend myself. Without the demonic dwellers inside me, I was fairly sure I’d still be just as hopeless as I’d first been. It took years of training to gain the skill to battle demons. Thanks to my strange quirk of being able to absorb souls, I could call on their strength and experience whenever I was in need. As Brie had pointed out, their abilities were muted while I was on Earth. It was a different story when I was in the shadowlands and in hell. They could take control of my limbs and use them directly once we were in their dimension, as long as I gave them permission to.
Brie stood to one side with her arms crossed, glaring at the wall. Clearly, she was in a bad mood. Nathan sat at the table, watching the action without really seeing it. Every now and then, his gaze would slide across to me. I resisted the temptation to look straight at him. Sophia watched us both with a small frown that she probably wasn’t even aware of. She knew we had feelings for each other and was understandably concerned that we’d make a horrible mistake and take things too far.
When Leo finally called a halt to their training session, I waited for Sam to glance at me and surreptitiously nodded towards the door. He nodded back and headed upstairs to change. When he returned, he was wearing a long black coat that was nearly identical to mine. Sophia supplied us with our clothing, so I couldn’t really complain that we looked so similar. Speaking of my coat, it was hanging on the front door. Either Leo or Nathan must have cleaned off the crap that it had been covered with. Not even a washing machine would have been able to get rid of all of the gunk that had been splattered on me when I’d been attacked by the birds.
“Do we have to go out today?” I whined. I hoped I wasn’t overacting my reluctance.
“Yes,” Sam said firmly. “You need your exercise and you also need to practice making sure you are not being followed. After all, you would not want to have to be taught another lesson.” He sent a poisonous glare at Brie.
Her back immediately stiffened, but Sophia sent her a warning look before she could explode into an angry tirade. The teen hated the imp even more than she despised me, if that was even possible.
“Make sure you keep her safe,” Nathan instructed him.
We all heard the unspoken threat behind his words. I wasn’t sure what he’d do to Sam if I came to any harm. I’d have to do my best to make sure that I returned in one piece. “We’ll be fine,” I said and headed for the door. “We’re going to check out the Upper East Side. We haven’t been there for a while.”
Leo looked disturbed with good reason. “Stay away from Central Park. That is where the raven seems to have made its nest.”
I nodded then stepped outside. Sam was right behind me. I’d told them the truth about where we were heading just in case they decided to check up on us. After seeing what happened to souls who lied, I preferred to stick to the truth as much as possible these days.
Brie’s lesson yesterday had been harsh, but it had had the effect that she’d wanted. I scanned the sky, buildings, street signs, lamp posts and anywhere else a bird could use as a perch. So far, the raven hadn’t managed to follow us back to our lair, but that might not even be necessary for it to find out where our base was. It had scratched me with its talons a few weeks ago, which had forged a connection between us. Its master had been able to infiltrate Sophia’s store just enough to give me a fright.
Seeing the face of the current leader of hell on a tarot-like card had been a shock that I wouldn’t soon forget. Brie had cleansed the store to banish the evil and it hadn’t returned so far. Sophia hadn’t told her the exact reason why she’d wanted the spell to be cast. She’d just given her the excuse that it might strengthen the wards that only angels could see.
Sam searched the sky as diligently as I did. We both pulled our hoods up to keep the light snow out of our faces. We did our best not to be too obvious about searching for anyone or anything that might be watching us.
Our clothing was generic enough to help us blend in with the few pedestrians that were on the sidewalks. I kept my long blond hair tucked beneath my hood. It stood out too much to allow anyone to see it. The stone bracelets we both wore would keep us hidden from demons, but it didn’t work against angels. Hag and Orifice could be following us right now and we’d never even know it.
“Do you feel like someone is watching us?” I asked my companion.
Sam’s face was hidden deep inside his hood. He glanced around again. “No. Do you?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.”
“You have a good reason to be. You have many enemies and they all want you dead.”
“They don’t all want me dead,” I reminded him as we made our way towards Fifth Ave. “The Hellmaster seems to want me alive.”
His coat rustled when he shuddered in fear. “I do not understand why he has instructed his minions to brin
g you to him unharmed.”
That made two of us. It was a pity the Hellmaster’s lackeys no longer seemed to want to follow his orders when it came to me. I’d been named Hellscourge for a very good reason. When I was in their domain, I could end their existence. Now that they were aware that they were no longer immortal, they were terrified. I’d killed the prince of the eighth realm and desperation had spread throughout demonkind. Most of them were determined to kill me before I could kill them.
₪₪₪
Chapter Six
Fifth Avenue was great for window shopping, but it tended to wreak havoc on the bank account. I’d only ever been inside one of the stores along this prestigious street. My attention had been drawn to the only ring that had a sparkling ruby in it. Zach had caught me staring at it and had insisted on buying it for me.
I touched my coat pocket where I’d slipped the present that I’d bought for him. I felt nervous at the thought of handing it over. My mother was the only person I’d ever bought gifts for in the past. I was horribly lonely without her, but at least I had some friends now. They helped fill the void that had been left inside me with her death.
Having friends was still a relatively new experience for me. Zach had been the only one who had befriended me at my school in Denver. I’d always been a loner who’d been ostracized by the other kids. I knew why now. My soul had been stripped away, leaving only an empty shell behind. Humans sensed that something was wrong with me and tended to avoid me like the plague.
At least, I assumed my soul had been stolen. Perhaps I’d been born without one. Maybe that was why I’d been chosen to be Hellscourge. Fate had told me that I was different from everyone else, but she hadn’t specified how or why. As far as I knew, every other being on the planet had a soul.
Taking Leo’s advice to avoid Central Park, we swung eastward just before we reached the stone fence that ran around the perimeter of the grounds. We cut across to Maddison Ave and headed north again. Zach’s apartment building was on the corner of Park Ave and one of the side streets.