“You son-of-a—” Kolbein charged Adam and Tori made no move to stop him.
Warrior laughed. “Tori, your brother will kill Adam for calling you a bitch.”
She grinned. “I know.”
“Tori,” he said, his voice stern. “Stop Kolbein or I’ll have Oracle do it. You know how much pain he’ll be in if she’s forced to intervene.”
“Fine. Kolbein!” she shouted, causing him to stop in mid-motion. “Leave him alone. He can call me whatever he wants.”
“It’s not all right by me for him to speak to you that way.” Her brother’s chest heaved and his hands clenched by his side. “You’re the most caring woman I know. You put everyone’s wellbeing before your own.”
Adira sighed. “Tori, my brother is a moron. I’m sorry he said what he did.”
She tried to glance toward Adam but found herself on the verge of tears. Instead, she looked up at Warrior. “Is he going to be punished for what he did?”
“Do you want him to be?” he asked, sounding as if he was itching to get the chance to have at Adam.
She shook her head. “No. I just want him to go away and I never want to have to deal with him again.”
It was Oracle who spoke next. “I can’t blame you.”
Warrior seemed a little taken aback by her response.
Adam took a deep breath and attempted to come toward her. “Shit, I’m sorry, Tori. I didn’t mean what I said.”
She ignored him, going to Adira instead. “I have to go now and return the sword to its rightful place. Can we meet up again? Soon?”
Adira hugged her. “Of course. Be careful.”
“You too.”
“Tori, please.”
She ignored Adam’s plea as she touched her brother’s arm. “I’m ready.”
He drew upon his power and flashed them away from the club.
Chapter Four
Tori knocked on the large, red door and waited, excited to see her friend again. The early afternoon air had grown warm and the sun shone brightly through the canopy of willow trees that lined the entrance of the property. The house was beautiful, at least what she’d seen thus far.
A tiny breeze swept past, blowing the short skirt she wore. It was a summer dress she’d taken a liking to at the store. It was very different from her work attire and she liked how feminine it made her feel.
As the door opened, she found Adira standing there with a blank expression on her face.
“Adira?” Tori wasn’t sure what the problem was. They’d planned the meeting. “Did something come up? I can go if this is a bad time.”
Adira bit her lower lip. “No. Don’t go! It’s fine. Umm, come on in.”
Tori did and glanced around the house. It seemed a little sterile for Adira’s tastes, coming off more as a home belonging to a bachelor. One with extremely good taste and a liking for industrial-like design. “I take it your husband’s tastes are totally opposite yours.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “Pike is doing his best to get used to my need to have floral fabrics throughout the place.”
Tori lifted a brow as she stared around. There were no signs of floral anything from what she could see.
Adira put her hand up. “Before you get mad, this isn’t my house. I live next door.”
“So, why ask me to meet you here?” Tori drew in a sharp breath. “You don’t want your husband to know about what happened at school?”
“He already knows about the attack on me. Not yours, though.”
Tori exhaled deeply. “I see. Thank you for sparing him the details of mine. It’s a spot of my life I don’t like dwelling on.”
Adira motioned for them to have a seat at the dining room table. A tea set was there, and Tori smiled, having fond memories of them doing something similar when in school together. Their drink of choice back then had been sports drinks. It seemed odd to pour them into teacups but back then, they did it all the same, not having acquired a taste for teas and coffees just yet.
“You have a strange look on your face,” Adira said.
“I’m thinking of all the times we did this.”
She touched her teacup and smiled, showing teeth. “I missed you horribly. The things we did and the fun we had…” She teared up.
“You know, you were my first friend, Adira.”
“You were my first girlfriend too, Tori.” Adira poured her a cup of tea and was quiet for a few minutes before crossing one leg. “You told me in the club that the attack on you, back in school, wasn’t because of me. Did you mean it?”
It was easy to pick up on the guilt Adira carried. Tori touched her friend’s hand. “I meant it. They’d come for me. They sensed who I was and what I’d been desperately trying to hide.” She let out a long breath. “I’d gone home to visit with my mom and my brother and while I was gone your brother came to visit, remember?”
Adira suddenly looked pale. “Yeah, about my brother. I never did get a chance to introduce you to him.”
Tori smiled. “It doesn’t matter. It would have just been awkward anyway.”
A question formed on her friend’s face. “What makes you say that?”
“I don’t know. Something the men who attacked me said is all. They kept sniffing our room, talking about how my mate had just been there. The only man who had ever been in our room was your brother, so it would have been hard to look at him and not think about what they’d said.”
Adira pushed stray strands of her dark hair behind her ear. “Do you think they sensed your mate’s power, erm, I mean, my brother’s power near you so they found you faster?”
“Not exactly.” Tori took a sip of her tea. She didn’t really want to discuss what had happened but the air between she and Adira needed cleared. “Around the time we met, I started having problems masking what I really am. Before that, I could block anyone, human or supernatural, from sensing anything out of the ordinary with me. When I met you that changed. I’m not sure why but I fought hard to keep myself from letting my guard down.”
“Did you feel compelled to unmask for someone in particular to find you?” Adira asked, as if she already knew the answer.
Tori nodded. “Strange. Huh?”
Adira glanced at something behind Tori before centering her gaze on the teapot. “No. Not really that strange.”
Tori chuckled. “I’ll never forget the day that guy who lived on the floor above us, you know the one I’m talking about…”
“The one who spent more time asking you out than he did going to class?”
“Yeah, him. Anyway, I gave in and agreed to go on a date with him. While I was out with him, your brother stopped by to check on you. I remember getting back to our room and having the strongest urge to shift forms and cry.” She bent her head. “So I did. You were asleep and I sat on our window ledge, shifted and staring out at the night sky, bawling my eyes out, but I didn’t know why.”
“Did you give your virginity to him?” Adira asked, her voice low.
“What? No. I would have told you something like that, Adira. I told you everything.”
Adira sipped her tea slowly. “Not everything. You didn’t tell me you were an angel.”
“I didn’t think I could. How was I to know you were related to a League member? That you too had gifts?”
“I am a League member,” Adira said. “Happened about a year ago. The same time Pike and I mated.”
“You’re a… Umm… Wow, I didn’t think they had females on the teams.”
“Change of policy, I guess.” Adira glanced at something behind Tori again.
Tori let out a soft laugh. “I can’t believe you thought I’d give my virginity to a guy whose name I can’t even remember.”
Adira snorted. “It was a valid question. It would have explained the guilt you felt after being on a date.”
“Guilt?” Tori hadn’t viewed as that at the time. The more she thought about it, the more it made sense. She laughed softly. “I guess that explains why things wit
h Berg didn’t work out as I thought I wanted them to.”
“Berg?” Adira leaned forward in her chair. “As in Berg the League member? The one stationed out of Houston?”
Tori forgot Adira was now a member of the League as well. “Yep. One and the same.”
Adira covered her mouth. “Are you telling me you went out with another team’s lead Magik?”
“I did more than that. I lived with him until a year ago.”
She gulped. “When did you meet him?”
“He was one of the League members who came and watched over me while I recovered from the attack at school. There was something about him that I couldn’t put my finger on. Something that left me drawn to him. I gave in to the pull just as he found out his girlfriend was screwing some League member from these parts. Guess she had a few one-night stands with the guy. He was a Magik too so it cut even deeper, if you know what I mean. It ticked Berg off enough that he broke things off with her. When he did, I kind of let him know I liked him.”
Adira’s eyes widened. “What did you do?”
“I pinned him to a wall and had my way with him.” Tori covered her eyes, slightly embarrassed to be saying it all out loud. “It was my first time with a man and I was nervous but felt empowered. It’s hard to explain.”
Adira seemed fixated on something behind Tori once more before reaching out and touching Tori’s hand. “You’re here now, so I take it the relationship ended?”
“It did. I loved him. Hell, I still love him but it wasn’t enough. Something was missing. It felt wrong but I don’t know why. Berg tried to talk me into staying with him but I had to go. I felt like I had to be here. I can’t tell you why because I don’t know. All I do know is that when Berg asked me to marry him, I lost it, crying so hard and consumed with so much guilt that I packed and left him.” She ran her fingers over the rim of her teacup. “We still talk several times a week and we’re friends. We always will be. I think we’ve come to an understanding that we can’t go back to that place, regardless how we feel about each other. He tells me he’s dating again and I’m happy for him. It’s been a little over a year. He has the right to be happy.”
“What about you, Tori?” Adira covered Tori’s hand, stopping her from rimming the cup anymore. “Do you have a right to be happy?”
“Yes. I guess.”
“You guess? What about Adam? He called you his mate at the club the other night. If he’s right, he could make you happy. And your brother confessed to blocking Adam’s ability to sense you.”
Tori pursed her lips. “I didn’t come to talk about one of your League member friends, Adira. I came to see you.”
“Tori.”
She put up her hand. “No. I don’t want to talk about him. He hit the nail on the head with me. I care more about justice than I do about anything else around me. I’m the bitch he claimed I am. I have nothing in common with him and barely know him.”
“You have me in common with him.” Adira leaned back in her chair.
Tori felt sick to her stomach. “Tell me you’re not one in his long line of conquests.”
Adira groaned and covered her mouth. “Oh gods, no!”
Tori relaxed.
“I’m his sister.”
Freezing in place, Tori soaked in what Adira had just said. She glanced toward the living room, noting again the absence of a woman’s touch in the décor. “This is his house, isn’t it?”
She didn’t need to hear her friend’s answer. She already knew it. Outraged, Tori stood and stormed towards the front door. A flash of light shot forth and the next thing she knew, she was staring at her brother.
“Kolbein?”
“Talk to Adam, Tori.”
She blinked, unable to believe her ears. “What? You spent my life blocking him from sensing me. Why the hell do you want me to talk to him now?”
Another flash of light occurred, this time, a tall, muscular man with a head of sandy blond hair and a set of full lips appeared. His green eyes locked on her. “Because when I sensed your pain the other night, I came looking for you, Victoria, needing to know you were safe. I found Lars and Adam at the club. Pike and Adira were there too. I demanded to know what happened. Lars was the only one willing to tell me and he waited until they’d all left.”
She stared at the man she’d spent so many years loving. “Berg, I thought we agreed seeing each other is a bad thing right now.”
He cupped her cheek and looked as if he were fighting his emotions. “Lars told me something that changes everything, Tori. He read you, when you were sleeping at the courthouse. He saw something horrific. Something so bad he lied to his best friend to keep Adam from doing something stupid to protect you.”
She shook her head. “What could be so bad? I know who and what I am now and I understand my gifts. I use them on a regular basis and I’m not afraid of—”
Berg kissed her, silencing her. As he pulled back, he kept his hand on her cheeks. “Let me talk, Tori. It’s killing me to force you into another man’s arms and it’s not easy for your brother either but once I told him what Lars told me, Kolbein wasted no time contacting Adam.”
She stared wide-eyed at her brother. “You contacted Adam? You didn’t hurt him, did you?”
Kolbein’s posture remained rigid. “No, Tori. I didn’t hurt him. I went to him with the idea I was going to force him to claim you. Turns out,” he glanced at something behind her, “I wasn’t really needed. He already had the same plan. I agreed to assure it happened.”
“Claim me?” She backed up and shook her head. “You two teamed up to force me to marry Adam?”
Someone cleared their throat and she looked over at Adira to find Pike and Lars standing there. “Actually, we kind of all teamed up. We won’t let what Lars saw come to fruition.”
She locked gazes with Lars. “What, exactly, did you see?”
“Zephaniah coming for you and killing you.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “He can’t hurt me, Lars. For that he’d need power over me and he has none.”
Lars averted his gaze. “He’s the man who tried to rape you.”
She stilled, never wanting anyone to know a rape had almost occurred. She looked toward her brother—his jaw was tight. As she glanced at Berg, she saw the rage in his eyes. Needing to calm him, she went to him and put her hand on his chest. “Lars is wrong. I would have recognized Zephaniah. It wasn’t him. It was a rogue angel. Not Zephaniah.”
Berg exhaled slowly and put his hand out, conjuring an image of Zephaniah. He twisted his hand slightly and the image morphed, going from a man with jet-black hair and dark eyes to a man with white blond hair and icy blue eyes… An angel. One she recognized immediately as the one leading the attack on her long ago.
Gasping, she backed away, bumping into something solid, warm and welcoming. Strong arms wrapped around her, giving her much-needed comfort.
Kolbein sighed. “Zephaniah was once one of our kind, Tori. He fell from grace at the same time he attacked you. He would have succeeded in raping and then killing you had the change not started in him, temporarily crippling him and making his men think he was dying. When an angel falls, they change into what Zephaniah is now. Darker versions of themselves. I didn’t know he was the man who attacked you. No one but Lars did and he only found out because he read you and knew what Zephaniah looked like prior to falling from grace.”
Lars cleared his throat. “I saw him coming for you again, Tori—in my vision. I know he’s locked away but I’m telling you I saw him coming. He’s obsessed with you…with getting back at your father for banning him from the heavenly plane. He blames Kolbein for his fall from grace too. He let us capture him, Tori. He figured out who your mate is and knew Adam would be on the team who came for him. He let us get him so he could assure himself you were put a position to be near your mate enough that one of you was bound to realize who the other was. He wants Adam, Kolbein and your father to know he struck you down moments before you could have been
claimed and loved fully.”
Lars took a deep breath. “He wants them to know you died carrying a child and that he fully took you as he first intended to do all those years ago.” He put his hand up. “Before you protest and say he can’t. When he lost his higher angel powers, he was in the height of passion…at least on his part…with you. When his dark powers took hold, he was also with you as your power tried to fight him off. The two powers merged enough to make you stronger and help you live through his attack but it also gave him the edge he needed to be able to track you, to find you and to destroy you.”
“I won’t let him touch her,” a deep voice said so close to her ear, she jumped. Adam rubbed her arms and held her closer to him. “I’ve got you, Tori. It’s just me.”
She looked at Adira. “He heard our entire conversation from before, didn’t he?”
Adira’s guilty eyes told Tori she was right.
She shook her head. “No. I won’t let anyone else get hurt on account of me. I’ll go somewhere far away and lure Zephaniah to me. He and I can fight it out until one of us is left standing.”
Adam gasped. “Like hell you will!”
There was a boom and then the ceiling in Adam’s house seemed to disappear, being replaced with an image of the Tribunal. They had an additional person with them. This person wasn’t in a cloak and more importantly, they didn’t look to be over the age of one. Oracle held the sleeping child in her arms, managing to keep her identity hidden behind her cloak.
Warrior had his hand on her shoulder protectively and Tori knew why. She remained silent, letting him keep his secrets. He motioned to the baby with his free hand. “Take a good look, everyone. If you do not succeed in keeping Tori safe, this precious little girl will never be born.”
Adira made an odd noise. “Wait? That’s Adam and Tori’s daughter?”
Oracle planted a kiss on the child’s head. “Yes. The Tribunal combined power to bring forth a child of the future so you could each see and understand what is at stake. She is the first in a line of Shafer girls to come. If and only if Adam and Tori mate and Zephaniah is stopped.”
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