by Maggie Mundy
“Bring her to me with your child growing inside her and I will be with you every night when I am on Earth. Now go, do not disappoint me again. No one is indispensable, not even you.”
Sayell alighted back beside the pool. He should do as she requested and go and see Gabriel, but there was something else he needed to do first. Retracting his wings in he grabbed his cell phone from his pocket. Going through the list of names he decided on Maria. He needed someone tonight who liked it rough. Liliath’s teasing had taken its toll and he needed relief.
Sayell gazed at the naked blonde in his bed. The sheet was draped across her lower leg but he could already see the bruises coming up on her arms and back. He had come to her apartment knowing he would need to make recompense for his violence. He placed a small box next to the bed. Inside was a diamond bracelet. He couldn’t remember where he had taken it from, but knew it would suffice to keep Maria quiet about her injuries.
Now that he had relieved the tension in his groin, it was time to visit Gabriel. The human was pathetic but useful. If he helped him achieve what he wanted then life was good.
The ranch was as before. Welcoming on the outside but as soon as you passed the threshold it smelt of dust, damp, and death. He was unsure exactly what the housekeeper did because she didn’t clean the place. Sayell was fastidious about presentation and it annoyed him. The windows of this ranch needed to be opened and air blown through. Maybe Gabriel was trying to hold on to the memories of the past with the dust. It didn’t matter, Sayell just needed to convince him to kill someone.
Mrs. Bales came to the door. She scowled as usual and Sayell scowled back. Did she really think she could intimidate him? She showed him through to Gabriel’s study. Though it should still be called his father’s study for Gabriel hadn’t put any individual stamp of his own upon it. Sayell walked over and took Gabriel’s hand with both of his. It would give the impression they were old friends meeting again. To have friends wasn’t practical for Sayell. Friends don’t usually like being used and it was often necessary to do just that.
Gabriel sat down and tapped his fingers on the old oak desk. He stopped occasionally to pick at the leather inlay. Sayell considered how Gabriel’s father would have been reprimanding him at this moment. It was strange how many humans hated their parents and yet when they were gone they seemed to not know what to do.
“I thought you would have been here sooner. Jane will hardly eat anything. She won’t last much longer, and I can’t hear Nicole anymore.”
This man was unraveling and needed direction. He was the perfect human to manipulate. One who would do anything to bring him what he considered happiness.
“I understand your pain. I don’t say this as others might to grandiose their own suffering. We have both offered our lives in service to not only our own kind, but to others. We’ve both felt the disappointment when you realize all your efforts have been in vain.”
Gabriel would not look at him. Sayell wasn’t surprised as most humans found it difficult to confront their faults.
“Things have not gone as expected. It was necessary I return to visit higher forces to get their advice as to how we should progress. Nicole is still without a guardian angel. Unfortunately she’s protected by another like me, one called Ridge. However she would still be the perfect recipient for Jane’s demon.”
Gabriel’s eyes widened and suddenly took an interest. Sayell knew at that moment he had him in the palm of his hand.
“Please, can I get you a drink?”
Sayell nodded and watched how finicky Gabriel was as he chose the bottle and uncorked it. He placed the glass down and Sayell picked it up and swirled the red wine so that it stuck to the edge of the glass. It smelt like California to him, dark and full of promise. The taste did not disappoint as he let the flavor register on his tongue.
“How can we get her away from this, Ridge? If you’re equally matched you won’t be able to defeat him,” Gabriel said.
“This is true, but humans aren’t restricted to the same laws as us. I’m sure you understand it is important that I don’t meddle in the lives of the people of this world.”
Sayell watched with interest as Gabriel stood up and paced back and forth across the room. Fear had been replaced by excitement.
Sayell continued. “She has clients that trusted her who we could use to draw her out. You have their files. I’m sure between us we can contrive some reason you should be visiting one of them. Then we phone Nicole, and tell her if she doesn’t acquiesce to what we want the person will die.” Sayell thought his statement might have been a cause for concern but it appeared to have the opposite effect.
Gabriel strode around the desk and stood in front of him rubbing his hands together.
“I have this ability that enables me to see into people’s minds. I drink small amounts of blood to help me. It was how I found out Nicole could see her guardian angel. Jane has given some of her blood to me, but she’s getting too weak.”
Sayell smiled as he watched the gleam in Gabriel’s eyes at the thought of hurting someone.
Gabriel took Sayell’s hand in his. “I don’t know how to thank you. I thought all was lost with Jane, but then you came into our lives. I always knew there was a reason I had these gifts. It’s all becoming clear. There is a new future ahead for us all and I’m so grateful you have chosen us both to be part of it.”
Sayell wanted to remove Gabriel’s clammy hand from his own but smiled instead. When Liliath was here she would deal with this annoying little man. He would enjoy watching her put him in his place.
The house was pleasant to Sayell, and yet he knew to every other person who resided in this city it was one of those glorious painted creations on Nob Hill. He thought they had no class at all but hid the look of boredom on his face. This was not the time to be discontent. It was time to create change by making Gabriel threaten to kill someone. It irritated him that Gabriel was plain, with a face so drab and meaningless. The only relevant thing about him was the evil you could see lurking behind his eyes.
A well-dressed woman in her forties answered the door. Sayell assumed it was who they were looking for. Not so wealthy to have a housekeeper to answer the door, or maybe she had been let go with the marriage problems.
“Yes, can I help you?”
“I’m from the Flynn Detective Agency. I called you earlier about information we have that could be advantageous to your divorce settlement,” Gabriel said.
Sayell noted the change in the woman’s eyes from wide-open anxiety to slits like avarice. He stayed beside the car like a good chauffer. He would be able sense when things had changed and she had been persuaded to help.
“Do come in. Ms. Flynn didn’t mention she had someone else working with her apart from her brother-in-law. That was why I went there. They are more discreet than others. Is she all right? I was concerned when I heard about the gas explosion at her apartment. I wasn’t surprised when she said she would let the case go. My lawyer has all the information.”
“Nicole, is fine, and is also extremely thorough and wanted you to have every advantage in your upcoming court case,” Gabriel said.
Sayell watched them walk inside and waited. He sat back in the car and listened to Mozart. It was one of the rare times in his life he truly felt alive. With his eyes closed the sound reverberated through his body. As the music reached a crescendo he heard a buzzing and was about to swipe away a fly when he realized it was coming from inside the house. He didn’t want to know the particulars but considered Gabriel had probably gone too far. It was enough that it would annoy Ridge. He grinned. Life was good and if everything went to plan it was going to get better.
Chapter 17
Training
Nicole stretched out in the bed. As much as she hated the fact her apartment had been blown up, she loved the sheets on the beds
here. She dreaded to think what thread count they were. They made her regret years of buying cheap sheets. Ben tried once to convince her, but she said you’re sleeping most of the time you’re lying on them, so what’s the point? She regretted never having sex with Ben on expensive sheets. The door to the bedroom opened and Ridge walked in with a tray.
“Breakfast in bed. Why do I get the feeling you’re after something? This still won’t get me to sleep with you.”
“You’ve already slept with me. It’s the sex we haven’t had yet, but I’m a patient man. I’ll still get you a guardian then I promise you a great time.” He put the tray down.
“Even if you could get me one, which seems unlikely at the moment, I haven’t said I would have sex with you.” The smell of the pancakes and maple syrup made her stomach grumble. She coughed to hide the noise.
“It was you who brought that up. I sensed your thoughts when I came in the room.”
Nicole smirked. “I was thinking about sex, but I was thinking about Ben.”
“Well that put me in my place. Eat up. I’ll be back in a minute to take you across to the gym. We need to get those powers of yours workin’ when you want them to and not just any old how.”
Nicole watched him go and shoved another piece of pancake in her mouth. So they were going to do some training. A part of her was disappointed he hadn’t wanted more. She would find it extremely difficult to resist him at the moment. In just one week she was feeling drawn to him in a way she had never felt before, even with Ben.
She decided if Ridge couldn’t get her a new guardian then she would have one night of reckless sex with him before she died. She gulped down her coffee and got dressed. She was glad he had suggested she should learn how to use her powers. It meant at least she would go out fighting when the end came. She hated the thought of giving in and accepting death. The main thing was no one else should die.
Ridge came back and darn it but he appeared as handsome as ever. She should focus, and not on his disarming smile and muscles, and how good his ass looked in his leather pants.
“Let’s get goin’.”
They walked through the club and out the back corridor. She had been told the rooms back here were kept for the high stakes players. They didn’t come in through the front door but could discreetly enter via the side door from an alleyway next to the club. There was a large yard behind the club and on the far side of it was another building. It was four stories high and at least the length of the club.
“This building is where the rest of my group live. There’re ten of us who call this place home. If Midworlders wanna join us from another enclave it’s allowed. It helps if we move around so the humans we’re dealin’ with don’t get suspicious of our longevity.”
They entered the building and turned right through double doors into a huge gymnasium. Every type of exercise machine you could imagine was there. Plus a large exercise mat in one corner. She could guess it was where they fought each other
“You mean you guys have to work out. I assumed you were all naturally well-toned.”
“You think I’m well-toned? Well you’ve seen me naked, so I guess you’d know. Some things you can’t work on though, they’re naturally big or not.”
Nicole saw the grin on Ridge’s face and wanted to come back with a clever remark but the fact was true. She had seen him flaccid and felt him hard and neither of those times had she thought he could possibly be considered lacking in size. She had a feeling his technique would be excellent as well due to his years of practice.
“Can we concentrate on what you said we came here for?” Nicole asked, with her hands on hips.
“This gym’s where we work out, but it’s also where we practice fighting. Havin’ scripsits or using our energy as you saw with our flames can be drainin’. Majority of the time it basically comes down to us fightin’ with hand to hand combat as you saw when Sayell last paid us a visit.”
“I’ve watched you two fight. I’m good at self-defense but I can’t compete against you. You’re too fast, as much as I hate to admit it.”
“It’s not speed that’ll help you beat me. Try and use your power on me.” Ridge spread his arms wide leaving himself open to attack.
“I don’t think so. I saw the damage I did last time. It wasn’t a pretty sight. At least then I didn’t know I’d done it. You’re asking me to do it on purpose.” Nicole shoved her hands in the pockets of her track pants.
“My mind’s connected to Carrick. If he senses I’m hurt, he’ll come over.”
“Until I hurt him as well.”
“He’s a big boy, and can take care of himself. Stop worryin’. Do what you need to and we’ll go from there.”
Nicole raised her hands and aimed them at Ridge. She screwed her eyes up and tried to imagine she had sent him flying across the room until he hit the far wall. Nothing happened. Ridge crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow as he stared at her.
“Was that it? I didn’t feel a thing, not even an ache in my little finger here? If you can’t call up the power with your mind without a trigger then I’m gonna have to give you somethin’ to make you angry.”
Nicole didn’t have time to think as he charged towards her. Her immediate reaction was to defend herself. He threw punches at her and she blocked them. He turned and tried to kick her in the head, but she bent and maneuvered herself away from him. He was toying with her and she knew it. He could take her out anytime he wanted, but he kept egging her on instead. His arm was so hard each time it connected with her. His body was like a solid wall, and she would be black and blue after this.
His fist came at her head and she put her hand up to defend herself but he jabbed her from below in the ribs with lightning speed. Her breath caught in her chest as she fell to her knees. She couldn’t stay in this position or she would be beaten. She wouldn’t let him get the better of her if she could help it. She would fight back.
Before she had a chance he shoved her shoulders so she flew back across the floor. Pain ripped through her body as she tried to focus.
“That’s gotta hurt. You gonna lie there or do I make you wanna hurt me?”
So far Nicole had witnessed lasciviousness in Ridges eyes along with pain and anger and frustration. Now she saw contempt. He was goading her, but he didn’t know what he was playing with. Not the power she couldn’t contain, but her past. She should stop this before it went any further.
“Ridge, leave this alone. We need to find some other way to...” She didn’t get to finish the sentence before he pushed her back to the floor and straddled her.
“What’s wrong? Can’t take it when it gets a bit rough. I thought they bred people strong in Australia.” He tapped the top of her head with his hand.
She gritted her teeth.
“Come on, fight me. If you don’t I’ll hurt you more until you do.”
She aimed her fist at his head but it met with his forearm and bruised her knuckles. She bucked her hips but he wasn’t moving. He slapped her face. It wasn’t a hard slap but it didn’t matter. It brought it all back.
Nicole remembered seeing a sign saying Emergency Room and her Mom holding her hand. It hurt, Mom was squeezing too tight. Nicole wanted her to let her go but she wouldn’t.
“You’re going to be fine. He’s sorry, he didn’t mean to.”
The nurse drew the cubicle curtain around and undressed her. Nicole watched her mother’s face as she saw the blood and the word bitch her stepfather had carved into her lower abdomen. Mom’s hand went to her mouth as she ran from the cubicle.
She had done what she needed to get by; she would do the same now. A man with long hair was smiling at her. His hand came towards her face and she wasn’t going to wait and find out if another slap was coming.
He was no longer on top of her but pinned against the bars on the si
de wall of the gym. She was standing but couldn’t remember getting up. Her hand was outstretched before her and she could see the white power pouring out. The man was going blue and she was glad. Someone else was here. He was going to fight her. If that was what he wanted she would take him down as well.
The man was huge. He stood before her taking the beam of energy for the other man.
“Nicole. We’re not going to harm you. Trust me,” the big man yelled.
“I don’t know you or him.” A woman was there. She had dreadlocks. For a second Nicole retracted her fingers. There was something familiar about her face. The man with the long hair moved away from the wall. Nicole prepared herself to fight again.