by Michelle Lee
“I don’t know if I’m comfortable with the council knowing she is an angel,” Ronnie whispered across Airiella to Smitty.
“Me neither, but maybe they won’t know?” he hoped.
“Maybe,” Ronnie muttered. “We should go.”
“Yeah, we should, but I don’t want to leave,” Smitty softly smiled down at her sleeping form. “I feel amazing right now. She’s incredible.”
Ronnie wholeheartedly agreed. “Think she would be okay if he just stayed like this?”
“Yes, she would be okay with it, but you need to stop talking and go to sleep,” she said her voice thick with sleep as she shifted and then drifted back off.
Smitty laughed quietly repositioned himself to get more comfortable but made sure he still had skin on skin contact with her. Ronnie got up and turned the lights out, then pulled off his shirt and climbed in on the other side. He needed that connection to. He could feel Smitty in that connection, making it more solid, but it was her essence that coated him in a cocoon of safety and love. He wouldn’t ever be able to get enough of this.
Not even thinking twice about how weird it was to be cuddled up in bed with Smitty and a stranger between them. It just felt natural, he turned on his side to face her and molded as much of her to him as he possibly could. Smitty spooning her from behind. Life as he knew it had just changed forever.
Winnie watched them all sleep, happily humming to herself. Things were starting to fall in place. She felt a pang of longing when she looked at Ronnie, but she didn’t hold it against Airy at all. This was how it was supposed to be. And the little piece of her soul that Airy pulled when she took that darkness from her was firmly embedded into her, so she could feel the tingle of the connection Ronnie had with her. And it felt like home.
Winnie blinked out and popped back in on Jax, who was finally sleeping, but in the throes of another nightmare so strong she could feel the darkness in him welcome it. She admitted her feelings about him had changed so drastically since Airy had come into the picture. She still loved him, she always would, he just wasn’t the same person as he had been. He’d need to change to make that connection strong with Airy.
She faded into the veil to rest. She wanted to be there for Airy tomorrow, even if they knew she was there. She knew Airy was strong enough to handle it, there wasn’t much that girl couldn’t handle. Didn’t mean she had to face it all alone though.
Chapter Twelve
Aedan texted Smitty in the morning as Mags was packing their bags. “How’s it looking?”
“She’s fucking amazing,” Smitty texted back.
“Female? Think she can handle Jax?” he wrote back.
“I think you should be more worried that Jax can’t handle her. She’s crazy strong. Testing today.”
“Council?” Aedan typed and hit send.
“Yep.”
“Will she pass?” Aedan worried, Jax’s condition seemed to be getting worse.
“I have zero doubt about that. You’ll see when you meet her.”
“You’ve seen her this morning?” Aedan texted.
“I’m lying in bed next to her,” was the response. Followed by, “Ronnie is on the other side.”
“You both slept with her??” Aedan fired back.
“Not how you think. She asked us to stay, so we did.” Attached came a picture of Smitty and Ronnie lying on either side a woman.
Her hair was fanned out on the pillow behind her, and Aedan thought she was glowing, but could just be the picture. Smitty was grinning in the picture, Ronnie was still asleep.
“Behave,” Aedan cautioned.
Smitty didn’t respond to that, and Aedan went to make sure Jax was ready to go. He knocked on the door, “Fifteen minutes Jax, better be ready.”
The door opened and Jax was there, looking tense and strung out. “I’m ready,” he replied, pushing past Aedan and out the door.
Aedan shook his head and went to grab the bags from Mags, and they headed out.
Waking up between two sexy men was a new thing for me. And I liked it. A lot. I pried open my eye lids to see Smitty grinning down at me, that meant it was Ronnie wrapped around me from behind. Delicious. I wiggled my butt a little bit realizing that he was hard beneath those jeans of his he kept on.
Smitty laughed, seeing what I was doing. I shrugged innocently, then smirked. Not sorry at all, I did it again and felt his arm tighten around me as he growled low in my ear, “Stop that, angel.”
Smitty got up, “I gotta go get cleaned up and changed, baby girl. I’ll drag this ape with me, so you can get ready. Make sure you eat breakfast before going. Remember, you’ll need the energy. We’ll meet you downstairs in thirty minutes.”
I nodded as I felt cold with the absence of them around me, and got up, stretching slowly. I heard Ronnie groan from behind me and I turned around and damn near drooled again. I reached out to trace my fingers down the ink on his chest and he stepped closer to me. “If you keep touching me, you are going to be late for your testing,” he warned, his voice rough.
I looked up into his eyes and was lost. I didn’t care if I ever made it to the damn testing. This was one tasty man in front of me. I felt Smitty come up behind me, his arm wrapped around me under my now very sensitive boobs, and he pulled me away. “Testing,” he reminded me.
I decided to test him and leaned back into him as I looked at Ronnie. Needless to say, I was pretty damn distracted and didn’t care about much else except the man behind me and the one in front of me. I groaned aloud as Ronnie put his shirt back on as he grinned at me.
Of course, Winnie decided to pop in at that moment, once again making me shriek and jump. “Dammit Winnie!” I grumbled. Stalking off to the bathroom. She followed me as the guys left the room.
“How did you sleep?” she asked sweetly smiling.
“Actually, pretty good,” I admitted.
“I bet,” she smirked.
I felt guilty then and sat down heavily on the edge of the tub. “I’m sorry Winnie, I’ll stop flirting with Ronnie.”
“What?! Don’t you dare! How else can I live vicariously through you?” she practically shouted at me. “This is supposed to be like this!”
I threw my hands up in front of me in supplication. “Fine, whatever. You should have told me he was built like Jason Momoa.”
“If I knew who that was, I would have,” she said confused. “Is that a bad thing?”
I laughed, “Oh no, it’s pretty damn wonderful.”
“Wear jeans,” she told me. “You’ll need to be comfortable today.”
Nodding, I got dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast. “How heavy of a breakfast should I eat?”
“Go heavier on the protein than the carbs, maybe grab a few of the fruit to take with you,” Winnie suggested.
I saw the guys in the omelet line, so I decided to go with a three-egg cheese omelet. I placed my order and waited while the chef made it and grabbed a plate and loaded it up with fruit and some extra that I could take with me. I took some toast and grabbed a bottle of water and went and sat down with the guys.
They nodded approvingly at my plate and we all tucked in and just ate. Just as I finished, my phone went off with a text telling me the driver was here. I dropped off my empty plate and grabbed another couple bottles of water and went back to the guys.
“Cars here, I gotta go.” I leaned over and gave them both hugs. “Wish me luck,” I said.
“You’ll blow them out of the water,” Ronnie said, sounding totally sure. “Nice shirt,” he added smiling. Smitty nodded. I looked down realizing I had on the sexy woman one. And off I went. Winnie trailing after me, her soothing cool touch calming me.
I got in the car and smiled bravely at the driver as he carted me off to meet these mysterious people that were going to push my limits. I didn’t know how I felt about that, but I wasn’t nervous in a scared type of way. I was more nervous that I wasn’t enough and would have to leave and never see those guys again. I already mis
sed them. I shook my head to clear it, what was wrong with me? They were just two guys.
I got out as the driver pulled up, and noticed Winnie following me. I looked at her with a question in my eyes and she nodded, “I’m coming with you. I don’t care if they know I’m there, I don’t want you to face this alone. Unless they banish me from wherever you are, I’ll be there,” she told me. Grateful for the support, I smiled at her.
“Thanks,” I whispered. Following the receptionist’s directions, I got on an elevator and went up to the top floor. It was a different room this time, no windows, and solid walls, not glass. I made sure my walls were firmly in place and walked in.
Ten people were sitting around a large wood conference room table, all along one side, the other side barren, which was apparently where I was supposed to sit. I smiled at each person as I walked around and sat, calmly folding my arms in front of me on the table.
“You are a raven,” an elderly man said, possibly a native American.
“That is my name, yes,” I said. “Airiella Raven.”
“Not your name, you,” he said cryptically.
I had no idea what he was talking about, but I didn’t ask any questions. I just looked around. Two women were looking at the man, one of them quietly asking, “Are you sure?” and he nodded in answer.
“Interesting,” the woman who had asked looked back at me, looking with a critical eye this time.
I didn’t know what to do, so I just sat there quietly as they all stared at me, and I focused on the calm feeling inside me that was residual from my night with the guys. I refused to let this group ruffle my feathers, which were apparently raven feathers, whatever that meant. I wasn’t knowledgeable about native American legends.
After a few minutes of silence, a silver fox gentleman cleared his throat. Seriously? Did all the men I encountered have to be good looking? “Hello Airiella, my name is Dr. Trevor Stone, and I am the psychiatrist for the council here today, and I will be evaluating your mental state, before and after the testing by the individuals you see in front of you.”
I smiled and nodded my understanding, waiting for him to continue. I knew how to get around the test’s psychiatrists used to evaluate people. Though I did wonder if being a part of this group his tests were different than others. I wasn’t worried. Dr. Stone isn’t the one who continued though. A voice from the end of the table spoke up.
“My name is Degataga, welcome Airiella,” he bowed his head in respect. “I am a medicine man from the Cherokee tribe.” I was fascinated already.
Next, the elderly man who called me a raven spoke. “My name is Taklishim,” he said to me. “I am part of the Zuni nation, an Apache warrior.” He tipped his head to me as well, and I returned the gesture.
A woman next to him came next, “Hi Airiella, my name is Dr. Sarah Fields, I’m the resident parapsychologist.” She smiled at me gently. “I notice you have a guest with you,” she said referring to Winnie. I simply nodded in return, not acknowledging the statement. I wasn’t going to give anything away.
Next came two identical women, obviously twins, one of which had asked Taklishim if he was sure. “My name is Onida,” the sister to the one who asked about me said. “My sister is Tama, we are from the Chinook tribe,” she said as they both bowed their heads to me. I bowed back.
A handsome man came next, looking British in his proper attire. “My name is Asher Vance,” he spoke, like I was supposed to know who that was. I was right on the British point though. “I’m a medium,” he explained when it was clear I didn’t know his name, looking a bit put out. I immediately wondered if he felt Winnie too.
Next, we came to a woman with dark ebony skin, and a face so beautiful I wanted to cry. When she spoke, her voice had a musical lilt to it due to an accent I couldn’t place. “Airiella,” she started, “my name is Kalisha. I am a priestess of hoodoo.” Well I can’t say I was expecting that. I was intrigued though.
“Hello,” said the man next to the priestess, and he had an Irish accent. It was one of my favorites, and I didn’t care what he said as long as he kept talking. “My name is Father Patrick Roarke. I am a Catholic priest, specializing in demonology and exorcism, trained by the Vatican.” Man, they were covering a lot of bases here in this council.
The last lady spoke. Her skin a mocha color, and her eyes were a soft gray color, absolutely mesmerizing. “My name is Aminda,” she said in another musical accent. “I am a priestess of Santeria.” I struggled to place that one, when she said with a smile, “Voodoo.” Got it.
Dr. Stone spoke back up. “For the next couple of days, you will be spending time with each person, learning about what they represent and being tested by them in whichever way they deem necessary to help us learn about you. Most all these tests will be at an offsite location away from the city,” he explained. “A couple will be here, but outside of the building. Do you have any questions?”
I shook my head. “No. I’m eager to proceed,” I answered calmly.
“I myself will be observing you before the ones that will take place here in the city, and afterwards. I will also have you wear this fitness watch that is linked to my phone so I can record heartrate and stress levels,” he handed me a watch like the one I wore. I put it on my other wrist, so now I was the weirdo with two watches on.
Dr. Fields spoke, “My test will be here in the city, and I will go first with you. When we are done, I’ll bring you back here. We are going to go for a little walk,” she said standing up. Dr. Stone and she fielded me to the door, nodding at the rest.
Dr. Stone asked me a few generic questions about how I slept last night, my general mood right now, my overall happiness. Trite questions, but he studied me intently as I answered. I fought my impulse to roll my eyes, he struck me as pompous, even though for an older man he was pretty good looking. Silvery hair, of course styled with not a hair out of place. Silver stubble over his chin, and his eyes a sky-blue color. Narrow face, he was tall, and of slight build. Not bad. He wore the suit he had on well, which was a gray that complimented his hair.
I switched my gaze over to Dr. Fields. I guessed her to be somewhere in her forties, her hair was pulled back into a tight bun that sat low on the back of her head. She had a few streaks of gray in the mix of the light brown color. She was fair skinned, hazel eyes. Sharp cheek bones and full lips, she was striking. Maybe only an inch taller than me, but very slender. Her hair contrasted with her clothes which were bright colors and fabric that flowed with her movements. A simple skirt and blouse, but she pulled off the look.
“Airiella, I have skills in precognition, clairvoyance, telepathy and I can see apparitions,” Dr. Fields told me. “Are you familiar with all those?”
“To a degree of knowing what they are yes, I am. I don’t have any of those skills myself,” I replied, my voice controlled.
“You can’t see apparitions?” she asked me, surprised. “You have one with you.”
I nodded carefully. “The one that is with me is the only one I’ve ever seen. While I can sometimes pick up the energy of a spirit near me, I am not always sure that it’s the energy of a spirit, it could be residual energy left behind from someone experiencing strong emotions,” I explained.
We had walked into a cemetery not far from the building we had just left. “Can you feel anything here?” she asked, watching me.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Winnie move in front of me into my line of vision and she made a motion of zipping her lips. She didn’t want me to say anything. Even though I didn’t feel anything or see anything. I looked at Dr. Fields and just shrugged. “It’s a cemetery, so I just feel sadness,” I said vaguely.
Dr. Fields narrowed her eyes at me, “You are hiding something.”
Shocked, I looked at her. “Excuse me?”
“What are you hiding?” she demanded, getting in my face, hers all red and blotchy now.
“Sarah,” Dr. Stone warned. This wasn’t part of the test? What was happening?
“I’m fine Trevor,” she replied, instantly back to normal. “I have a feeling Airiella’s little ghost friend is giving her tips.”
Dr. Stone looked at me. “She hasn’t said anything to me at all,” I said honestly. She hadn’t, she just made motions, but he didn’t need to know that.
“Why is she here?” Dr. Fields asked me.
I shrugged again, “She follows me around. Sometimes she speaks, most often though she follows me. I don’t know who she is. I’m certain I didn’t know her in life.”
“Why are you certain of that?” she started walking again.
“Because she doesn’t feel familiar to me,” I answered her, my tone even.
“She is someone who had power to her,” came the next response.
Double checking my walls, I played ignorant, “What do you mean?” I got the feeling she saw through the ignorance ploy. “Can you see her?”
Dr. Fields leveled a glare at me. “Surprisingly, no I can’t. I can see where she is at, but I can’t see her, which is odd to me, since I can see all the other spirits here flocking to you,” she snarled like I was purposely hiding Winnie. Her admission kinda stumped me.
“Spirits are flocking to me?” I repeated.
“Yes, there are about fifteen of them behind you right now,” she retorted smugly. She was getting on my nerves.
“Well ask them what they want then,” I shot back at her.
“That’s what I find so odd about this,” she said, her eyes focused behind me, “they all say that they want you to give them admission.”
Winnie was frantically shaking her head no. Now, if this was the test, I was sure I was failing. I had no damn clue what she was talking about. I wrinkled my eyebrows in confusion. “I don’t get it. That makes no sense to me.”
“Me neither, but that is telling in itself,” she expressed. Dr. Fields suddenly went stiff as a board mid-step and started to fall forward. Directly in front of her was a headstone that she’d surely crack her head on. Without thinking, I dove in front of her and jammed my arms out in front of me as a brace to stop her fall.