by Susan Illene
“And that’s another thing,” Kerbasi continued, waving his arms around. “You freed the nerou. I woke up to Micah and one of them in the kitchen making dinner. Do you have any idea how much more trouble you’re going to be in for that? None of this better come back to me. I will not take more punishment for something I had no participation in.”
“I’m sure they won’t blame you.” I lifted the blanket and got out of the bed.
“How could you do this?” The guardian put his hands on his hips.
“Easier than you think, actually.” I turned to Emily. “Do you need anything, hon? I was thinking I’d go pick us up some food.”
“Did he say Micah is at home?” She sat up.
“Yeah, he’s back.” I glanced at Kerbasi and decided now wasn’t the time to explain. “That’s a long story I’ll tell you later, but I should tell you he has a daughter we freed while in Purgatory. She’s nice. I think you’ll like her.”
“Oh, wow.” Her eyes widened. “I had no idea.”
At least the latest news was keeping her depression at bay.
“So do you want anything in particular?” I asked.
“Are you just going to ignore me?” Kerbasi’s eyes swirled angrily.
“Um, actually.” Emily brushed some of her hair behind her ear. “Could you get Hunter’s sweater? It’s in my room on my bed. And maybe bring some of whatever Micah is making. I miss his cooking.”
“Sure.” It was a longer drive than expected, but if it made her happy I’d do it.
“I’m going with you,” Kerbasi announced.
Even without the cuffs tying us together I couldn’t get rid of him. “You don’t have to. You’re free now and can go wherever you want.”
“Oh, no. Our punishment was to stay together and I’m not going to be the one to break that. And anyway, Micah was making stew when I left. I expect it will be ready by the time we get there.”
“Fine. Come with me if you insist.” I leaned down and gave Emily a kiss on the forehead. “Be back soon.”
She gripped me in a hug. “Be careful, Mel. He’s right…they could punish you for this.”
“Maybe, but they’re too busy at the moment to bother with it. I’ll be fine.” I pulled away and gave her a confident smile.
“Love you,” she said.
Those weren’t words she spoke very often to me. It was hard to say whether it was a good or bad thing she said them now.
“Love you, too, Em.”
I left the room. After Kerbasi and I sterilized ourselves and changed back to regular clothes, we made our way down the hallway. I sensed Lucas ahead. He was with Paula and half a dozen nerou in one of the private rooms along the hallway. The door was open. I stopped next to it and listened to Ivan talking.
“Once the patient is submerged in water up to their neck you can begin the healing process,” he explained. “Use your alternate vision to watch me locate the antibodies the patient has already formed. After you’ve identified them once it is easier to find them again. ”
Everyone gathered closer to the patient and I caught the glazed look in their eyes. I angled my head around one of the guys to get a better view. Ivan was hovering over a nude troll who was resting in a large metal tub of Dead Sea water.
“How can you be sure they’re already there?” Lucas asked.
“Because all supernatural immune systems react quickly to…” He looked to Paula.
“Antigens,” she said. The doctor must have coached him on the proper terminology before the class started.
“Antigens, thank you.” He nodded at her. “The trouble is demon magic is aiding the plague, allowing it to spread faster than the body can keep up. Our job is to replicate the antibodies in greater numbers until there are enough to fight the bacteria off.”
“What is the Dead Sea water for?” a nerou asked.
“It weakens the demon magic so that the bacteria will not spread as quickly.”
“But how do we replicate the antibodies?” A female nerou came out of her vision, shaking her head.
“You must memorize its shape and exact dimensions.” Ivan pulled out of his vision as well to look at her. “Then you must focus on doubling and tripling it. Have you ever watched a cell divide and become two—both exactly the same?”
“Yes,” she answered, then realization dawned on her face. “It’s similar to the way we heal wounds. As we remove the damaged parts we replace them with new…cells that look the same as the ones before the injury occurred.”
“Exactly. You must make certain each replication is exactly the same as the original.”
She moved closer. “Can you show us again?”
I gestured at Lucas and got him to come out into the hallway.
“Are you going somewhere, sensor?” he asked.
“Yes. Emily wants something from the house and word has it…” I inclined my head toward the guardian. “That your brother is cooking stew.”
Lucas’ lips thinned. “I see your shadow has returned.”
“It’s my curse.” I sighed.
He handed me the Jeep keys. “I brought your vehicle here. You’ll find it in the parking lot.”
I’d hoped he’d brought it for me.
“Thanks.” I gave him a kiss. “I’ll be back soon.”
He caressed my cheek. “Be careful. I saw humans riding around with guns on the drive here. They appeared ready for battle.”
“I will. You have fun with this.” I gestured at the room where Ivan was doing his demonstration.
Lucas grunted. “He makes it look easier than it is.”
“How so?”
His brows knitted. “There are many types of antibodies. Finding the one you want—if you haven’t seen it before—is time-consuming. He seems to have a knack for locating the right one. I spent many hours searching and couldn’t narrow the right one down.”
“Well, now you know what it looks like, right?”
“You’ve distracted me.” He looked me up and down. “Now I must watch again.”
I pointed at my temple. “Concentrate.”
Lucas gave me a sardonic look and went back into the room.
Kerbasi and I made our way to the lobby and found the rest of the nerou waiting for their turn to study the healing process. Aniya was giving them a basic class on medical terminology using a laptop screen with pictures. They might have a handle on healing, but they hadn’t learned all the proper words for what to call things.
“How do the nerou know any English?” That had been bugging me. It made sense for heaven’s servants to be multi-lingual, but I hadn’t expected it with the nerou.
Kerbasi followed me outside. “We don’t only make them mine the tunnels. They also get a basic education and are taught whichever are three most common languages of the time. It was expected that one day they’d return to Earth, but only once the need for them was great enough.”
“They shouldn’t have been kept in Purgatory at all,” I said.
“Within them they have many of the advantages of sensors and nephilim combined. It makes them particularly dangerous adversaries—or useful allies. We needed to ensure they were not corrupted by their parents and that they were taught proper moral values.
“For too long.” I located my Jeep and unplugged it from the electrical line. “They aren’t immortal and I heard some have died over the centuries.”
Kerbasi opened the passenger door. “It was unfortunate, but we’ve done our best to protect them after learning their weaknesses.”
“Too late.” I started the vehicle. “Those were people’s children and the archangels took them away from the ones who would have protected and cared for them the best.”
He kept his gaze forward and didn’t reply.
It was getting dark as we made our way through the city. At first I didn’t see any suspicious activity, but on the outskirts of town there was a mob of people in the middle of the road. They were attacking an angel of all things. I slowed the vehicle
and pulled it over about a hundred feet from the scene.
“Are you seeing this?” I asked Kerbasi.
“I fear I am,” he answered. He had a disturbed expression on his face.
“Why isn’t the angel fighting back?”
Kerbasi’s fist clenched. “He may be restricted from doing so, as I am.”
“Can’t he just flash away then?”
The guardian leaned forward in his seat. “Apparently not.”
My senses told me this angel was about ten thousand years old. Young by their standards, but certainly stronger than any Earth-born supernatural I’d met—or guardians from Purgatory for that matter. I could feel intense pain emanating from him, but he used no magic. Nothing to fight back.
I grabbed the door handle. “I’m not going to sit here and watch this.”
“Take care, sensor. These people appear to be dangerous.”
“We’ll see.” I got out and raced toward the mob.
Grabbing the nearest guys, I flung them onto a nearby bank of snow about thirty feet away. Then I grabbed a couple more, knocked their heads together, and tossed them as well. A woman turned toward me and splashed a vial of liquid on me. Very strong stuff and it explained a lot. The witch who’d concocted the freezing spell was super powerful.
“Nice try,” I said, punching her in the face.
I caught her as she slid to the ground and tossed her to the side of the road. A man to my left splashed another vial at me. I rolled my eyes and kicked him in the face. A sharp pain dug into my side. I looked over and found an older woman had stuck a knife in me. I pulled it out and flung it far away, then knocked her out. There were still six humans left. Pushing through the pain, I knocked heads together until they were all unconscious.
The angel lay on the ground, face frozen in horror. I touched my wound and coated my fingers with blood. Leaning down, I pressed it to his lips. A moment later he blinked. Then he slowly sat up and looked around.
“I did not expect them to do that. They should not have even seen me,” he said.
I gave him my hand and helped him up. “There’s a witch out there brewing spells for humans to use on supernaturals. I’m afraid it worked against you, too.”
“You are a sensor,” he observed. “And immortal.”
He nodded toward all the humans I’d tossed into snow banks. Even though we’d never met that show of strength gave me away.
“Yeah. One of a kind, apparently.”
“Thank you for intervening.” He gave me a respectful nod. “I will not forget.”
The angel flashed away.
Something caught on the periphery of my senses. I walked to the side of the road and followed the magical trail toward a line of trees. There was a small section of disturbed snow. I dug through and found a crystal rock there. It pulsed with life and had a “keep away” spell to prevent others from tampering with it, but the stone’s heavier magic remained dormant. I touched the surface and got the smallest hint of peace and tranquility.
This was what the angels had been chanting over on the news. What were they up to? I decided it was best to leave the stone alone and buried it in the snow again. If the stone was part of their plan to restore order, I didn’t want to mess with it.
A moan came from nearby. One of the people I’d knocked out was starting to stir on his snow bank. I hurried back to the vehicle and climbed into the seat. Kerbasi was giving me one of his speculative looks.
“The daimoun was right. You defend whoever is the innocent party—no matter which race they are.”
I started the Jeep. “Is that a compliment?”
“I’m not certain,” he admitted. “What were you doing on the side of the road?”
“I found one of those angel rocks they’ve been chanting over. Still not sure what it does, though.”
His expression turned disturbed. “I’ve no idea, either.”
Chapter Thirty-seven
I cradled the container of soup I’d brought for Emily. Micah, Olivia, and Kerbasi trailed behind me as we made our way through the clinic. We’d already changed into scrubs.
“This is one of the nicer treatment facilities I’ve seen,” Micah said, looking around.
I glanced back at him. “What are they doing elsewhere?”
In Juneau, Lucas made use of Aeson’s mansion since it had plenty of room, but I hadn’t heard what any of the other cities had done.
“It varies.” Micah shrugged. “I’ve seen them use warehouses, storage facilities, and even old factories. Nothing this clean and organized.”
“Paula takes pride in her work and Derrick is big on taking care of his people.” If nothing else, I could give the alpha that.
“Speaking of the doctor.” He paused. “I need to see her. Can you take Olivia with you?”
“Sure.”
“Thank you.” Micah turned on his heels and headed toward the other end of the clinic.
The rest of us reached the antechamber to Emily’s room and went through the motions of suiting up. It was a good thing none of us were mortal because all the scrubbing, washing and changing would have chafed our skin—especially during such cold weather. I explained to Olivia the extra steps involved in preparing for the isolation chamber. She followed my example, taking it all very seriously.
I sensed Yerik’s son in there with Emily, which hurried me along. He didn’t even know her. Why would he visit? I asked Kerbasi to help Olivia with her gloves, booties, and hair cap while I went ahead into the room.
Stepping inside, I found him sitting on a chair. He had it perched on two legs with his feet up on the wall. He didn’t look a day over twenty, though he was really closer to fifty. His skin was pale and his eyes were a striking shade of purple. Emily didn’t appear upset that he was there, but she didn’t look excited, either. She just lay on her bed, using an arm to prop up her head up as she spoke to him.
“How can you not have a name?” She frowned at him.
He ran a hand through his shaggy brown hair. “No one ever gave me one.”
Like all nerou, he was heavily muscled, but he had a fascinating way of making himself appear smaller and less intimidating. I couldn’t put my finger on how he was doing it.
Her forehead wrinkled. “So what did they call you in Purgatory if you didn’t have a name?”
“Whatever fitting term came to their minds.” He grinned.
I walked over to the bed and handed Emily the sweater she’d requested and the soup. She put the food on a side table and pressed the knit sweater to her nose. Her eyes closed as she inhaled deeply. For a minute, she did nothing but breathe in Hunter’s scent until she finally lowered it and pressed it to her chest.
“God, I miss him.”
I sat on the bed and pulled her into the crook of my arm. “I do, too.”
Yerik’s son put the chair back down on four legs. “You loved him a lot, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.” Emily nodded. “He was always there for me.”
I wanted to tell her she was young and would meet lots of boys in her life, but a first love was the hardest to get over—whether you lost them through a break-up or death. She’d have to figure out those things on her own. Some lessons couldn’t be taught through well-meaning speeches.
“I’m here, Em, if you need anything.”
She looked up at me. “I know. Thanks.”
Yerik’s son leaned forward. “Would it cheer you up if I let you choose my name?”
“You’re a braver soul than I if you let her do that,” Kerbasi said, entering the room with Olivia.
“Hasn’t your mother suggested anything yet?” I asked.
The nerou leaned back in his chair again. “Yeah, she wants to call me either Tormod or Gus. I don’t even know if those would fit me.”
Emily studied him. “I don’t see you as a Gus, but maybe Tormod.”
“Thorn would be more appropriate.” Olivia came to stand next to him. “Because he’s a thorn in everyone’s side. The baby
of our group.”
He gave her a cocky look. “Are you still mad about your hair?”
“What did you do to her hair?” Emily glanced between the two nerou.
“I just trimmed it a little. She let it grow too long and it was getting caught all the time.” He gave a careless shrug. “I did her a favor.”
Olivia smacked him on the side of his head. “It’s taken me half a year to get it this long again.”
Her hair was a few inches past her shoulders now. How short had he cut it?
“Anyway.” He turned back to Emily. “If you like Tormod, we’ll go with that.”
She tapped her chin. “I don’t know. Thorn is starting to sound more like you.”
“You wouldn’t.” His eyes widened.
Kerbasi stirred. “That’s exactly what she’ll do if she’s so inclined.”
Emily gave the guardian a defiant look. “No, I’ll go with Tormod because his mother likes it. Family is important. If she cares about him the way Mel cares about me he’ll figure out he never wants to lose that.”
I pulled her into a hug. Sometimes it was easy to forget how important you were to someone until a crisis happened to remind you. I would have done anything to make Emily happy. If there’d been a way to save Hunter in time, I would have done it.
Micah entered the room. “Do you have a hug for me, too?”
Emily leaped out of my arms and ran to the nephilim. “Micah!”
He lifted her off her feet and hugged her tightly. I’d known he cared about her, but with him purposely staying away I hadn’t realized how much it bothered him. It was easy to assume he didn’t really miss us. His expression of relief at seeing her told me otherwise. He’d done whatever it took to rescue his daughter, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t made painful sacrifices.
“I missed you, little sensor.” He set her down. “When I got the news of your illness I can’t tell you how hard it was to stay away.”
A hurt expression crossed Emily’s face. “Then why did you?”
“It was necessary if I wanted to get my daughter back.” He glanced at the guardian and frowned. “The plan to free her and the other nerou required the utmost secrecy, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t want to see you.”