“Don't worry dad, my guard is up so high, not even a bird could fly over it.” I grin at him and he smiles back.
“That's my girl. Ana wants to speak to you.” He barely finishes the sentence before Ana's blonde head appears in the screen. She looks tanned and her hair is blonder than usual. I didn't realise how much I missed her until now.
“Cally! I miss you so bad! Auntie Kim bought me a cat. It's so cute! Wanna see?” Before I can reply, she is shoving a tiny grey kitten into the screen. “I named her Ash because she looks like ashes. She sleeps in my room every night next to my face but her poos stink!” I laugh and mums body shakes with laughter too. “I make daddy clean it up because I don't like it, it makes me sick.” She puffs out her cheeks and scrunches up her little nose. I smile into the camera at her. “Oh I have to go, Auntie Kim wants to make cupcakes. Love you both!!” Then she is gone before both mum and I can say goodbye.
“She is clearly insane.” Dad says shaking his head. “I had better go help Kim out since Ana is on a mental one today. Love you girls. So much.”
“Love you too dad.”
“Love you Simon.” He clicks off and mum takes a ragged breath. “Be careful around Edward, Calissa. I couldn't bare it if something were to happen to you.”
“Mum I will be careful. I am not going in blind. I don't trust Edward myself and besides Tessa will be with me so can lock in on his every move and thought as well as Jaxon's if they think something bad. Not that I actually think they will. If she picks something up we will bolt. I swear.” Mum nods and takes my hand in hers. “I know I don't tell you this a lot. I love you Calissa. So very much. Remember that.” She gives my hand a squeeze and leaves the room and me, with my thoughts.
Am I doing the right thing by going with Jaxon and Edward? Even though Jaxon told me he loves me last night, does that mean he won't harm me?
I seriously need to watch my back. I don't want to disappoint my mum. Or Aeron for not bringing back his mum.
TWENTY-THREE
Tessa and I spend most of the next couple of days training. The rest of the household offer to be dummies for us to practice on whilst Lorraine is on standby in case something goes wrong. Mum hasn't showed her face since we were on Skype with dad and Ana. I think she is still upset, even if she won't admit it.
I practice the take off without a jump start that Raphael taught me and get it right every time. Tessa conjures up a few fireballs and manages to purposely set Harris on fire and put him out without any damage being made. She uses her mind control to force Lara to fall asleep after a phone call to I am guessing to some friends. I over heard Lara explaining about a healer being here in a reassuring manner and then tell her friends she misses them. I feel so bad for her. She is stuck here because of me.
I don't how, but Tessa comes up with some kind of magical forcefield when Rhys went to playfully rugby tackle her. He bounced right off the shield and we all stood, mouths wide open and in awe at her newly discovered power.
All my abilities seem boring compared to hers. Super strength, speed, hearing, sight and jumping. Flying, electrical lightning bolts (that come and go when they please), my bone crusher thing, healing and manifestation/teleportation. I want something new too. Yes I am pouting right now. Well, crap. Don't I sound like a spoilt brat. Ha!
I continue training on Dimi with my bone crusher and then when she is down to the floor, I focus as hard as I can and try to shoot her with the electrical bolts. It works, twice out of nine times. SIGH! I heal her afterwards obviously, however, she calls it quits after the second bolt hits her. Whoopee.
I practice with the witch Ali for a bit. He is actually a nice guy, a bit quiet and grumpy and it reminds me of someone else I know. Ali tries to tell me that he knows how to do a 'push force' kind of power that all supernatural beings can learn and offers to teach me. He said his dad taught my mum this particular power thirty years ago.
Obviously I am going to take advantage of this and accept his offer. Anything for a new power. I am so selfish haha. Yeah but you are a demon so it's okay.
Sometimes I wonder if I am like those cartoons where the main person has a small angel and devil on either shoulder acting as a conscience and my brain is the devil side. Maybe because I am half angel half demon that both parts of me clash. Ooh that would be interesting.
Ali and I practice for a good two hours the day we are due to leave and I decide to give up when I haven't even managed to use the push force a single time. He told me that I should give it time but I don't care anymore. I honestly want an alcoholic cocktail and to chill out under the sun for a while.
Mum doesn't allow this though. She decides to make a grand appearance the second I sit down on a sun lounger.
“Calissa Rose Bond! Get up off your arse and spar with me.” I look at her though my sunglasses. “We are going to fight.” I jump up in anticipation and follow her to a large patch of grass. I chuck my glasses on the floor. “I am fully aware that your wrist isn't fully healed yet so I am going to go easy on you. Kind of.” She stands in front of me and makes me make a fist with both hands.
One hand is near her chin and the other hovering stiffly in front of her. I copy her stance. She nods and I watch as she picks up some training mitts and slides them onto her hands. “Now hit me. With your good hand of course.” I hesitate at first and then give her my best shot, it sends her to the floor. She looks up at me in astonishment and I give her my signature cheeky smile. She jumps up onto her feet and takes a swing at me. It hits the side of my face and I am almost certain I head a quiet crack. My eyes widen at the fact my mother just frickin' hit me! She throws another punch but this time, I see it coming. I grab her fist and twist her arm, causing her to flip over in the air before falling flat on her back when I release her. She laughs. “Well done. You are a natural. No need for me to show you anything really. You knocked me down easier than I would be able to knock down a high level demon.” I give a gloat filled smile and she rolls her eyes. “Okay, now drop and give me twenty.”
“What?!”
“I'm joking. Let's see how your reflexes are.” She barely finishes talking before lunging for me. I squeal and jump out of the way. She does it again. I get out of the way again. “Good, so far. Come on, let's get a drink.” Music to my ears. I go to turn around and walk but she jumps, of course, I was too focused of the dream of having a sweet drink so I don't see or hear her. She lands on my back and out of reflex, my wings spring open and mum drops off my back and lands on her arse. “Not the reaction I was hoping for but it is nice to see that you have control of your wings.”
I don't tell her that she scared the living shit out of me to the point of them opening on their own accord. I do need to work on that.
“How is your strength?” I raise an eyebrow at her question. “How many of us can you fly with?” I look around us and see that we now have an audience. Mum ushers to Lara and Tessa and they come over. “We will start with two. The lightest girls here.” I gulp but open my arms for Tessa and Lara to come over to me. They both latch on around my waist and neck. I close my arms around them and flap my wings like I had learned with Raphael. I start to lift up but my God it is a struggle. The extra weight makes it so hard for me to rise up from the floor. It is like when I first started flying without a jump. Slow, jittery and barely there. I push a lot of strength into my wings and flap as hard as I can. We start flying. Yes! I am doing it!! I manage to steadily fly around without dropping either girl. I daren't do a loop like I usually would but I sour through the sky and then descend back to the ground and place the girls back with the rest of our group. Aeron waddles over to me and raises his arms.
“Aero fly. Aero fly.” I smile and gather him in my arms. I look at my mum for permission considering I am meant to be training and when she gives it, I slowly take off with the little toddler in my arms. He laughs and screeches and claps his hands while I fly up around in a small circle, keeping to a slow pace because he is a baby after all. I land again and
smile down at Aeron who is shockingly asleep. Brilliant.
“That was really amazing little angel.” I spin around and face Edward. He has an impressed smile on his face which drops as soon as he sees who is in my arms. “Aeron.” He whispers. Oh that's right. He doesn't go near his youngest son. Me being the bitch I am, I walk up to Edward and hand him the innocent toddler. Edward swallows hard but takes the boy anyway. If Aeron wasn't asleep, I have a feeling his father would be holding him at arms length but luckily he is asleep so Edward has no choice but to cradle him against his body.
Jaxon wanders out into the garden and sees what his father is doing. He looks at me in shock and I wink at him. He doesn't look impressed with me though he doesn't say anything. A lot of members of the group have already decided to disperse now that the two incubi are here, leaving mum and Lorraine with us.
“Father, are you okay? Would you like me to take him?” Jaxon asks. Edward shakes his head and gazes down at his child.
“He is so young. So innocent. Does he even know who I am?” He whispers.
“Yeah Caroline shows him photos all the time.” Jaxon replies quietly. Edward nods and a hint of a smile plays on his lips as he swipes a lock of hair out of Aeron's eyes. We watch in silence as Edward carries Aeron over to the garden swing and rocks his toddler in his arms whilst still watching him intently.
“Well, that was weird. Who wants lunch?” Mum chirps annoyingly cheerfully. She doesn't wait for a reply as her and Lorraine head into the house to 'make lunch'.
“I am sorry. I acted on impulse. I promise I wouldn't have let anything happen to Aeron.”
“It is okay Titch, chill. I think he needed it. It might make him more determined to get Caroline back for Aeron and not just the potion.” I agree with a subtle nod. “What have you been doing today? You look filthy.” I look down at my was clean clothes that now look stained with grass and mud. I have mud all over my legs and elbows and probably my face too.
“Training.” I shrug. His eyes are no longer on me but instead are fixated on something behind me. I look over my shoulder and see that my wings are still visible. “Oh, sorry.” I tuck them away and his eyes bulge before he grabs my shoulders and spins me around to look at my back. I feel this fingers trace the outline of the wing 'tattoos' and goosebumps erupt over my entire body. My throat goes dry and I clench my jaw shut to stop me making a noise.
“I've never seen them before.” He whispers. I peer over my shoulder at him.
“Wanna fly with me?” I grin.
“You can actually fly now?” I nod.
“About ten minutes before you turned up, I was carrying Tessa and Lara around whilst flying. It might be a bit of a struggle but I am sure I can carry you too.” He blinks at me and mutters something under his breath. “What did you say?”
“Not even I have practised carrying someone else whilst flying before.” I frown. He can fly? Before I can blink, Jaxon sprouts out a set of giant bat like wings. I gasp and stagger away from him. It's not that I mind, I mean, I have wings too, I just wasn't expecting him to show me them. I turn around and see mum's gaping face through the kitchen window. Edward is staring over at us too. Though he doesn't look bothered.
“You have wings too?” I splutter.
“Yeah, if you were just a succubus, you'd have similar ones to this. In fact, did your mum not tell you that she has wings too?”
“No I didn't because I no longer have wings.” Mum says as she approaches us again, carrying a tray with some juice and biscuits on. She places the tray on the floor and pulls off her cardigan before turning around showing two scars on her back where wing roots used to be. “Edward ripped them out, didn't you Eddie?” Mum calls over to Edward who is now walking over to us with a still sleeping Aeron.
“Yes I did and I am still glad I did. I am sorry Rini, if I didn't you would have died.” I look between them and have to admit I am lost. Mum hates this guy and yet they have nicknames for each other and everything. I mean, Eddie and Rini? Jaxon and I share a look.
“Well you could have warned me!” She turns to a stunned Jaxon and I. “I was shot with an acid dart and it was melting my wings. Edward had to cut my wings off to save my life because if the acid hit my skin, it would have killed me.” She turns back to Jaxon's father. “I still think you were trying to kill me, just like the last time I saw you.” Edward's mouth gapes open.
“I didn't try to kill you. You bit me! So I simply snapped your neck.” I gasp. “A snapped neck can't kill incubi or succuba. Don't spread that around though.”
“I didn't know of this little sex demon secret and I bit you because I was enjoying-” Mum's eyes widen and she looks straight at me. I wait for her to finish what she is saying but the second she turns a nice shade of pink, it hits me.
“Oh ewwww! You two had sex?!” I scream out in disgust. Aeron stirs in Edwards arms and I freeze, so does Edward. Aeron doesn't wake up though. “That is so gross. When?” Not that I want to know the full details or anything. I just want to make sure that Jaxon and I aren't accidentally related. That is wrong on so many levels.
“Like ninety years ago.” Edward says. I visibly relax as best as I can while finding out your mum had sex with my boyf- crushes dad. Ugh!! (Not sure if we are together or what, nothing has been discussed). I look up at Jaxon who looks just as repulsed as I feel and I close my eyes and shiver away the thought.
“Wow, I am so going to be sick. Thank you ever so much for that visual mother.” I give a tight lipped fake as hell grin and turn away. I do a run and jump and open my wings, taking myself as far away from my mum and Edward as I can. I know I am being dramatic and immature but I really do not care. No-one wants to hear about their mother's sex life. No matter how old I am, I will never be okay with knowing about who she has had sex with. Her and her succubus ways can be kept to herself for all I care.
I fly to the roof of the house and sit on a bit of flat-roof above a window and perch myself on the edge like a gargoyle. Just not an ugly one.
I hear rather than see Jaxon when he lands beside me. His wings make a loud WHOOOSH sound when he flies.
“Ever wish you were normal?” I ask, still not looking at him.
“Sometimes. Mainly when I met you and didn't know what you were.” Aww. Sweet. I think.
“All the information I have to take in and that I have managed to take in this past month or so has been dyer. I don't know how much more I can take. Plus all this crap with Caroline and Levi and your dad and-” I shiver, “my mum. I just don't think I can possibly handle anymore.” I stare out into the distance where I can vaguely see the sea. I miss swimming, I make a mental note to go to the beach soon or convince mum to buy a pool.
“I know it is hard Titch, you are doing so well though. If you didn't become this, you and I would still be neighbours that pretended to hate one another.” I wasn't pretending. I don't say that though.
“You know, you and I never finished our conversation last night.” He places an arm around my shoulders and pulls me close to him, his leathery wings feel weird against my feathered ones as they brush against each other. I look up at his face.
“Oh I know and I hit Tessa for interrupting us.” I giggle and he smirks.
“Let us finish what we started.”
He lowers his mouth to mine and fireworks fly off in the back of my head. My heart is singing whilst the butterflies in my stomach are dancing the tango. He cups my face with one hand while the other pulls me closer. The bare skin on my legs brush against his and I mentally thank Mother Nature for letting it be warm enough for my sun dress today. My body is on fire and tingling all over. I wrap an arm around his neck and try to get him as close to me as I can. He starts to lower me to the flat-roof and I take that as my cue to tuck my wings away, the second they are away, he practically slams me to the floor. His lips devour mine and I cannot get enough. I need more even when his tongue brushes against mine.
I tugged at his top and he lifts slightly to pull it off, o
ur lips coming apart only briefly when he pulls the top over his head. One of his hands rest on my bare thigh and travel slowly upwards, my skin on fire underneath his touch. He removes his lips from mine causing me to whimper but only to place his lips to my neck, causing me to groan and my eyes to flutter closed. His kisses up the sensitive part of my flesh and moves lower to kiss my collar bone, earning him yet another moan from my mouth. I feel him smile against my hot skin. My breaths come out shallow and when his mouth moves down to my chest, my eyes spring open. His hand on my thigh slides upwards and his hand finally reaches the top of my leg near my underwear.
This is escalating way too fast, I should stop him before we get ahead of ourselves but I think I am in way too deep. He shifts his body so that he is completely over me as his mouth moves back up my chest and comes back to my waiting lips. I open my mouth, allowing him access again and he takes it. Oh God. I have never felt this feeling before. I am losing control. My body is tingling in places I didn't even know could tingle. Fire ignites my entire body. I can't even think right now. I just feel like I need more. I graze my nails over the smooth skin of his back and he freezes. What did I do? He pulls away and scrambles away from me. I am panting when I look over at him. He looks pained. Distraught. Confused.
“Our- our powers work on each other.” He rasps out. Then he gets to his feet and dives off the roof leaving me reeling on what just happened.
TWENTY-FOUR
Jaxon avoids me like the plague for the rest of the day. When I emerge back from the roof, he is nowhere in sight and neither is Edward or Aeron. Tessa told me that they went back to Jaxon's house and would be back this evening when we are due to leave.
I am kind of relieved yet hurt that Jaxon left so abruptly without so much as a goodbye or full explanation. He said our powers work on each other. How is that possible? I didn't even notice if it did happen. I wasn't feeling drained or weak or hazy. Yes I was tingling all over, but isn't that how you are supposed to feel when you are in an intimate situation? I suppose it was a good thing he stopped us considering I am a virgin and all.
Demonic Angel (A Touch Of Magic) Page 17