RiskingEternity

by Voirey Linger

  He sent a reflexive plea for help to Renatus, his friend, his battlemate, as another demon launched a ball of flames at him.

  “Stupid Dom.” Meela gave a patronizing laugh as the unholy heat washed over him. “Do you really think Ren will come to help you now, after you chose a puny human over him?”

  She shoved the creatures from between her thighs and moved to crouch over Maggie.

  “No!” Dom lunged forward, only to be knocked back by more flames. Two lesser demons pounced on him. One bit his shoulder while another tore at his arm. Their batlike wings fluttered with excitement as they feasted on the power in his blood. He knocked them away, only to have more replace them. Demon after demon bit at him, nibbling away at him and draining his strength.

  Through their frenzied assault, he could see Maggie, her eyes begging him for help as that Hellbitch, Meela, straddled her. Dragging one of her thick claws over thin human skin, the demoness drew blood. It welled in the long scratch that stretched from collarbone to navel.

  With a roar of rage, Dominicus tossed the smaller creatures off and surged to his feet, but before he could take a step in her direction, Meela threw up a hand. With the power only a high level minion held, she pinned him against the wall. He hung there, too weakened to fight his way free, too drained to call to the angels again.

  “Poor Dom,” she said with a taunting smile. “Too weak to fight and you wasted your one call for help on the angel least likely to show up. Do you really think Renatus will help save her? He knows she’s the key to stopping this little battle, and it’s no sacrifice for him to have her out of the way either, is it, lover?”

  Dom struggled to move but quickly realized he’d lost too much of his strength. Sagging, he hung limp and tried to figure out what to do next. As soon as he stopped fighting, he felt a subtle surge. The power Meela was throwing at him seeped into his veins, replacing what the minor demons had taken. Dark and dirty, it flowed through him in an oily sludge, but it was still power. If he didn’t fight too much, he might be able to gather enough to break free.

  “You know,” Meela went on, apparently unaware he was leeching strength, “Ren was finally seduced. He was ready to take you as a lover, to go down on those perfect golden knees and take your cock in his mouth. Think of it. He was there, ready for you, ready to give up everything he’d ever thought about himself as a seraph and take a male lover. And what did you do? You threw him over for a human woman.”

  Ah, Ren.

  Demons had a talent for exploiting one’s weak point, and his former lover could see into his soul like no other.

  “Ren knows I care for him,” he protested.

  “Ren knows you used him. He was the only being you had contact with and you toyed with him, didn’t you? You took out your frustration on him, forced your body on his when you needed relief, forced your anger on him when he endured sanction for his efforts to care for you. You took everything he gave without any regard for the sacrifices he made.”

  A wave of guilt washed over him. Even knowing it came from Meela, knowing she twisted facts, he couldn’t fight the pain her words caused, because there was a kernel of truth. Ren was biased against the love between men, feared the censure such a pairing would draw in the Heavens. Dominicus knew this and yet, in his loneliness, he pushed his friend for a physical relationship. His hunger for affection had driven a wedge between them.

  “Ren even warned you about this luscious little morsel and you ignored him, didn’t you?” Meela looked back down at Maggie and dragged another sharp claw over her skin, flicking it over her sensitive pink nipple and drawing blood while Maggie whimpered in pain. “I can see why she has so attracted you, though. She has a delicious soul.”

  Meela bent forward, her mouth hovering over Maggie’s bleeding nipple and rage whipped through him. He drew on the power holding him in place and it wavered. The demoness froze. He’d taken too much. Struggling slightly against her, he tried to mask the pull and she increased the stream to compensate. Oh yes, perfect.

  The jump in power meant he could take more, not just replace what the demons stole. He pushed against her again and felt a surge as his strength was replenished. He had to keep it flowing, had to regain his strength and get to Maggie. He pushed again and soaked in the energy the demoness unwittingly provided.

  Apparently satisfied he was still safely contained, Meela dipped her head again and lapped at the blood now dripping down the full curve of Maggie’s breast, laughing as her victim tried to wiggle free. The fear and struggle forced more of her delicate human power into her veins, turning her blood into a feast for Meela.

  “Yes, human. Keep fighting me. Let your blood flow so I may feed.” She bit down with her row of razor-like teeth and Maggie cried out through the gag.

  “It’s a lovely sound, is it not, Dom? All of her little whimpers make such sweet music. Just think. You could have had Ren like this. Under you, crying out as you took him. What a beautiful sight it would have been.”

  He caught a glimpse of a golden shimmer in one corner of the room. Without hesitation, he took hold of the stream of energy from Meela and pulled. Absorbing a glut of power, he broke free, rushing at Meela just as Renatus appeared, sword in hand. Lesser demons pounced, covering Dominicus’ body, slowing him down, but he shook them off, focusing on the one being in the room who mattered. The one who held his heart.

  Maggie.

  Renatus reached her a split second ahead of him. Swinging his blade, he drove it through Meela’s side, knocking her away from Maggie and driving her to the ground. With the demoness out of the way, Dominicus plucked Maggie from the floor without hesitation. It only took him a moment to release her bonds and tuck her behind him, under the shelter of his wing. Something dark flew toward his face and he swung, knocking the ghoul from the air barehanded.

  “Take this!” Ren shouted, pressing the hilt of a bloody sword into his hand.

  “I cannot take your weapon”

  “Take it. Protect the human.”

  Another demon came at him and he swung. With a yelp of pain it scurried out the door, no doubt looking for the first gateway to the safety of Hell. He tightened his wing, holding Maggie against him, shielding her. Her fingers tangled in the feathers at the base of his wing, gripped the hard muscles there and her face pressed against the bare skin of his back. Her hot breath fell against him in shuddering gasps as she clung desperately to him.

  Moments later there was another form pressed to him as Renatus returned to stand back-to-back with him. White wings enfolded black as the seraph lent his body to protect the woman he’d sworn to see to Hell.

  More vile, black bodies pummeled Dom, their nipping bites quickly draining the small bit of power stolen from Meela. One flew in from the side, catching him off guard, and sank its teeth into his throat. He wavered as it fed on him, his knees weakening as the beast gorged. Struggling, he managed to raise his sword again, but missed his target. The ghoul dug into his shoulder, tearing his flesh and sucking his strength.

  “Oh God, oh God, please help us,” Maggie whimpered into his back as her tears ran down his skin to mingle with his feathers. “Please, please make them go away. Oh God, please.” Dizzy and nauseated, he added his own plea for deliverance.

  A golden stream of light burst through the window, blinding in its suddenness and intensity. It sent the lesser demons scrambling for safety, escaping the Heavenly beam with yelps of pain and fear.

  Dominicus sent his thanks to Heaven. Their prayers had been heard.

  The room stood quiet. Sunlight flooded through the window and open doorway and birds chirped happily, as if the battle had never happened.

  Dominicus swayed. His weapon dropped from numb fingers and exhaustion darkened his vision. Maggie’s weight was gone from his back and he groped behind him, searching for her.

  “Dom, they are gone.” Ren’s strong arms surrounded him, held him upright as he stumbled to the couch.

  “Maggie?”

  Ren stif
fened. “I have placed her beside you. She has fainted, but is otherwise well.”

  “And you, Ren?”

  There was a heartbeat of a pause. “My injuries are minor.”

  Dom blinked to clear his vision. “Ren…”

  “No, do not say it.” Renatus’s pain was a palpable thing, hovering in the air between the two seraphim. The fragile emotions which had taken root between them had been irreparably damaged, the love which might have been withered before it could bloom.

  He pushed Dom’s sword into his hand before turning to find his own. “You have done what you needed to do, Dom. Nothing else need be said.” He strode across the small room and bent to retrieve his weapon, his golden form casting an inky shadow on the wall.

  The shadow moved, swelling to hover over Renatus. Claws rose from the wall, poised over Ren’s unprotected back. Dominicus fist tightened in the sword hilt.

  “No!” He charged across the room and drove his sword through the shadow, until over half of its four foot length was embedded in the wall.

  The dark form took shape and Meela’s stunned features appeared, his sword piercing her chest.

  “Well, lover,” she gasped, “it seems I was wrong. You have bested me after all.”

  With that she melted away, her power drained. She was nothing more than a black puddle of evil, sinking through the floor and oozing her way back to Hell.

  Chapter Ten

  Maggie woke in her bed. For a moment, she kept her eyes shut tight and let herself believe the past few days had all been a dream. There were no demons trying to kill her, and no angel trying to help them.

  No Dominicus.

  The pain of that alone was enough to change her thinking. She could deal with the idea of demons if it meant she had her guardian angel.

  A hand brushed over her head, pushing the hair away from her face.

  “You are awake, little one.”

  Her eyes flew open and her breath caught as the sight of a golden angel leaning over her. “Ren.” She scrambled upright and backed against the headboard. “Where is Dominicus?”

  “There, sleeping beside you.”

  His dark head was on the pillow next to her. His whisker-rough cheeks looked gaunt and dark circles marred the skin under his sunken eyes.

  “Is he…”

  “He is fine,” Ren quickly assured her. “His power is low, but it will return with rest. Soon he will be fully restored. How are you feeling?”

  She eyed him warily. “Since when do you care? The last I heard you were ready to haul my ass to Hell. Feeding time at the demon zoo, remember?”

  He dropped his gaze to his lap and a muscle in his jaw clenched. “I offer my deepest apology for that, Maggie. I believed… Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter what I believed. I was wrong. And I was jealous.”

  Silence stretched out for a heartbeat too long.

  “I never meant to take him from you. I didn’t even know…” She trailed off, uncertain just what to say to Dom’s almost-lover.

  “There was no us to come between,” he said stiffly. “I’m one for the cherubs, so do not let it concern you.”

  “Right.” The flush of color on his face said otherwise, but she wasn’t going to call him on it. Not when his dignity was all he had left.

  She shifted in the awkward silence, hugging the blanket to her naked breasts. They brushed the wicked scratches left by the demoness and she cringed as a blaze of pain swept over her.

  “How did Philomela get in?” Ren asked, his tone brisk, all business.

  Heat flooded Maggie’s face and she looked out the glass balcony door. “I let her in.”

  “That much is obvious,” Ren snorted. “Evil cannot enter without invitation.”

  “I thought she was a puppy. There’s been a cute little stray hanging around for a few days, and I was worried about it being out in the storm. I got the puppy inside, where it was safe and it turned into that thing.” She hugged the blanket tighter at the memory.

  Ren cupped her face and forced her to look at him. His golden eyes glowed with compassion. “This is what demons do, Maggie. They make themselves look appealing, seduce you. Once you are deceived, once they are invited in, they can do anything, and you can’t stop them.” His hand brushed over her head, gently pushing the hair from her face before dropping to his lap.

  “Am I safe now?”

  “In this apartment? No. Dominicus can show you how to make it safer, but as long as this location is your residence, your protection is compromised. You need to move.”

  “What about the people who move in here?”

  “Once you have no claim on this place, the invitation is broken. The new residents will be safe.”

  She hissed as the blankets rubbed her ravaged nipple, sending another jolt of pain through her.

  “You are hurting.”

  “Yeah. That thing’s claws were pretty nasty.”

  She squeaked in surprise when Renatus jerked the blankets from her and traced one careful fingertip over her breast to the throbbing tip. Pain gave way to something more pleasant and she shifted, unsure if she should feel guilty or not. Was she being unfaithful if she let her lover’s almost-lover touch her?

  “Demon claws excrete a mild poison. It’s not deadly, but the pain it causes sends more power into the bloodstream. The demon can drink the blood to consume the power.” He studied her face and held his arms out to her. “Come, let me heal it for you.”

  Heat flooded her face as she remembered Dom healing her back, his lips brushing the wounds. The golden wave of healing he’d sent over her aroused as it repaired. Would Ren’s power do the same? “Dom…”

  “Is resting and healing himself. He won’t have the strength to take care of you until at least tomorrow, but he will try. Let me heal you so he may heal himself.”

  She looked uncertainly at the masculine beauty of her sleeping angel. He was so tired, so beaten down. Renatus grazed a fingertip over her injured nipple and her breath caught on the pain. She couldn’t live with this fire in her skin, and she didn’t want Dom to put her healing before his. She let go of the covers and eased toward Renatus.

  Ren curled his fingers into her hair and pulled her forward. Pulling her hair, he forced her to arch her back, to offer her wounds to him.

  He placed his lips against her pulse, where a scratch began, and a smooth heat rippled down the length of the injury. A sigh of relief escaped her as the pain ebbed. With firm hands, he lifted her, dragging her into his lap so she straddled him. He licked the freckles dusting the swells of her breasts before taking her nipple in an open-mouthed kiss. He sucked her deep, flicking the tip of his tongue across the injured flesh. His power flowed over her injuries and sent a low hum of awareness through her. It wasn’t as powerful as the arousal she felt with Dom, but the angelic power still sent her nerve endings thrumming.

  He released her healing breast and took her mouth with his. His tongue plunged past her teeth and he sucked hard, hollowing her cheeks. The faint tingling burn of the demon marks throbbed and a bitter taste coated her tongue. A sizzling heat filled her mouth and she could taste the poison burning as Renatus purged it from her body. The kiss eased, becoming sensual. He continued to tease long after the smoky flavor was gone, not stopping until she pulled away.

  “I think it’s all better now,” she whispered breathlessly.

  “Yes, it is.”

  She got the feeling Renatus wasn’t talking about the marks the demons left on her.

  “You sleep now, let your body rest. I’ll keep guard until Dominicus wakes.”

  There must have been some kind of suggestion planted in his words, because when he spoke, she became too tired to keep her eyes open. Renatus lifted her, placing her back into the bed and tucking her in as carefully as Gram used to, back when Maggie was still a child.

  “Ren?” she called, her voice thick with exhaustion.

  “Yes, Maggie?”

  “Thank you.” For everything.

  *
* * * *

  Dominicus waited while Renatus tucked the blankets around Maggie. Ren crossed to the balcony door to slip into the night and Dominicus rose to follow. Leaning heavily on the doorframe, he watched the other angel as he stood by the railing. The muscles of Ren’s arms quivered and his hands braced on the painted wood. His golden head hung and Dom thought he saw his shoulders shaking.

  “Ren?” he called quietly.

  “You should be resting with your woman.”

  “But I’m with my friend instead.” He moved behind Ren and cupped his shoulders and Ren tuned into his arms. Tears clung to his golden lashes, catching the moonlight, and a heavy ache settled in Dom’s chest.

  “You were right, Dom.”

  “About what?”

  “About Maggie. She was never intended for Hell.”

  Dominicus sucked in a sharp breath. All the fighting, all of the battle and she had never been in true danger to begin with. “Then why was I sent to her?”

  Renatus’s Adam’s apple bobbed hard before he answered. “Why didn’t you take her? What was different about this one?”

  “Her soul glowed with purity. It was the only one in two hundred years which had that light. I understand now. The Most High was not sacrificing souls to the demons, He was simply allowing them to take those who had already chosen evil.”

  “The lesson has been learned. Your punishment is over. There will be no more souls for you to take. You are free to return to Heaven with me, but you won’t, will you?”

  “Ah, Ren.” He brushed his lips against Renatus’s once, light as a feather, and for the first time, Renatus responded without fighting, letting his mouth cling. His hands moved to Dom’s waist and he held him, kissing tentatively before Dominicus pulled away. He pressed his forehead against Ren’s and hurt for what would never be.

  “I’ve lost you, haven’t I?” Renatus asked, his voice full of pain. “Even without a Fall, I’ve lost you.”