“There’s no option there. You have no idea what the usual conversation is. You need to let him talk, but monitor everything he says and stop him from saying anything you don’t want him too. He gave you the timetable for the sacrifices when you interrogated him, so you can have Hakin keep reporting in. Carrick won’t know the sacrifices aren’t happening until their big plan falls apart on the day of reckoning.” Raphael actually smiled.
“I can’t wait to personally piss on this so-called leader’s big day. Tearing him into sawdust will be the highlight of my year.”
“That reminds me, Luc. Have you finished the research? I need an answer. Your loyal Trinity deserve an answer.”
His satisfied smile vanished. They deserved an answer, but they weren’t going to like it. He threw back the rest of his drink, closing his eyes as the alcohol burned his throat. He sighed with genuine regret because he owed them so much, and now couldn’t give them the one thing they wanted. “I tore my archives apart, Raphael. I dug through every ancient scroll, cave painting, and chunk of pottery, but I can’t find a single ritual or spell. It’s irreversible.”
“They can’t ever come back to Hell?”
“Not as demons. No.”
Brooklyn:
Christmas Day. It was the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Christians all over the world celebrated the big event. Since he wasn’t a Christian, nor in the mood for celebrating, Koivu took Ramses for a walk around the neighborhood. The afternoon sun was warmer today than it had been and the sidewalks were clear of snow. Ramses trotted along sniffing, and then pissing on, any yellow snow. The dog was dressed in a knitted red scarf courtesy of Lainey’s mother. Koivu absolutely refused to wear the sweater she knitted for him, but agreed to wear the red beanie to keep his ears from falling off. His hair had grown out some, but it was too short to keep his ears warm.
It wasn’t intentional at all, but somehow his feet took them a few blocks out of the way to the corner where the new shelter was. Dal Pals was locked up tight. The bright sign with its cartoon Dalmatians frolicking from one end to the other made him smile. It wasn’t hard to picture the crazy antics of the puppies, or the goofy brothers, Luke and Leo. He’d heard that Leo found a family last week. He hoped he was being taken care of. His hand automatically dropped to rub Ramses’ chilly ears. He didn’t know what he’d do without this dog. He chilled Koivu out when his emotions ran too high. Vanek and Dylan were going to adopt him when Koivu went back to Hell.
Ramses barked once and stared at the shelter’s front door. Koivu glanced over without thinking and stopped cold. A woman stood with her back to them. She had her hands on her hips talking to someone. His fingers tightened on the leash. He knew that ponytail of red hair. He knew that saucy pose. Damn. He knew that curvy ass. His mouth went dry.
Tugging madly on the leash, Ramses barked again. Koivu knew he should keep walking. He should turn away—pretend not to see her—pretend he was just passing by. He should leave before she spotted him, but damned if he could make his feet move. She turned around with a smile on her face. Her eyes landed on him and the enchanting smile vanished. Their eyes met and held. In that single instant he felt her pull him into her world. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed her. Now that he saw her again, he wanted to drag her into his arms and kiss her until she forgot every vicious thing he’d said. He wanted to hold her against him and tell her he didn’t mean any of it.
The goddess rapped hard on the glass and flipped him off—with both hands.
Perfect. She was still mad. That’s exactly what he wanted, right? The earlier warmth vanished when the afternoon sun disappeared behind a line of thick gray clouds. It was beginning to smell like snow again. Of course it was.
“Come on, Ramses. Let’s go. It’s too cold out here.”
The rest of the afternoon dragged ass. Back at Expat, he prowled the length of the buildings, unsettled and edgy. He cleaned his room. He spent an hour punching the shit out of the bag, and even then he wasn’t tired. Each and every one of his punches landed with a satisfying thud, but no matter how many times he hit the bag, he couldn’t get his mind right.
By the time the sun went down and the streetlights came on, he was in a vicious mood. The walls were closing in on him. He scowled at the ceiling above his bed, eyes focused on an ever-expanding watermark. Eventually the whole damn ceiling would probably fall on his head. It wouldn’t surprise him. That was his life, wasn’t it?
Snorting with bitter humor, he snatched his cellphone and brought up Micki’s image. He should delete the damn thing, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Deleting her picture felt too final, too permanent. He wasn’t done torturing himself yet. Smiling over a glass of wine, her glorious hair tousled from his fingers, she gazed into the camera with clear, green eyes that swallowed him whole. Her sweet oval face was flushed from orgasm; her red lips swollen from his kisses. Damn. The woman was gorgeous in her honesty. She didn’t ask for anything from him. She took what he gave her and gave him so much more in return. He closed his eyes and told his heart to stop its yearning. She deserved better than anything he could give her.
He let the thought sink into his bones and memorized her face with hungry eyes.
Be happy, Micki baby.
He pressed delete and rolled to his feet. He needed some air. Ramses hopped up when he did. The dog was ready to go too. “Sorry, dude. Not tonight. I might end up in jail and that’s no place for you.” He let Ramses out of the room so he could wander around the building while he was out.
“Hey, where’re you heading?” Derick called as Koivu strode by ops.
“Out.”
“You want company?”
“No.”
The snow was falling steadily by the time he circled back from Shore Park Road. There was little traffic and no distractions. His brain raced on autopilot as his steps ate up the miles. Eventually he wound up in the middle of the Brooklyn Bridge. It was his favorite place to think. What was taking Lucifer so long to stop the Da’vinRa’? Why hadn’t the Trinity been cleared yet? When would this exile be over? He had nothing here. He was nothing here. His soul was still demon, but his body was human. His heart was twisted and torn between what he knew was true and what he wanted for himself. He didn’t dare think too hard on that. Wanting led to madness. There was no point in yearning for things not meant for him.
“Fuck me. I gotta get home. This place is killing me.” He rubbed his battered knuckles into his eyes and laid his forehead on the railing. The frozen metal stung his skin, but he didn’t bother to move. His swirling thoughts were building to a familiar frustrated anger and he welcomed its heat.
“I’m afraid that’s not possible.”
He didn’t look up. He recognized the voice. If he refused to acknowledge him, maybe he would go away. Shit, maybe he was fucking hallucinating right now.
Raphael chuckled deeply and said, “You can tell yourself whatever you want, but I’m not going anywhere. We need to talk. I’ve already spoken with Nash about this, but I feel compelled to talk to you personally. This is going to hit you hard, Koivu.”
He angled his cheek towards the archangel’s voice and cracked open his eye. Standing ramrod straight, Raphael tipped his head back to let the cold air wash over him. Dressed like any other New Yorker, he tried to blend in despite standing in the center of the Brooklyn Bridge in the dark on Christmas night.
Shivering in his thin leather jacket, Koivu straightened to his full height and faced him with lead in his gut. A personal chat with Raphael didn’t bode any kind of good news. “Back up. What do you mean it’s not possible?”
Raphael surprised him by reaching over and clasping his arm. His blue eyes looked completely human as he leveled them on Koivu’s face. A hint of compassion glinted deep inside. Koivu shuddered with apprehension and glanced over the railing at the freezing water below. Ghostly silver in the dim light, the river was covered by shifting rafts of ice that caught and nurtured the falling snow. The
water was fathomless spilled ink flowing around the floating ice.
“Koivu, I’m genuinely sorry to tell you this, but you need to hear it. You need to believe it. There is no way to return you to Hell as a demon.” His grip on Koivu’s arm turned to steel.
A wave of dizziness washed over him as his hope began to splinter. “There has to be a way! Lucifer’s got power! There’s magic . . . spells! I can’t believe Lucifer can’t fix this!”
Raphael gripped him even harder. His voice vibrated inside Koivu’s head, sank into his cells. “Listen to me! Lucifer has searched for a way and there is none. None! You cannot return to Hell. Ever.”
Koivu went numb. Shocked to his soul. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to go home again. They were innocent! He served Lucifer loyally for 300 years! Raphael’s voice faded to a faint buzz in his ear. All around him the world continued to turn. The wind continued to blow. The snow continued to fall. A single hot tear slid over his frozen cheek, clung to his beard, and fell to the river below. He knew what to do.
“Listen to me!” Raphael shook him, urging roughly, “You can make a life here! It’s not the end for you.”
Moving slowly, he peeled Raphael’s fingers away from his arm, saying vaguely, “I’m okay. I know what to do.”
Before Raphael could interfere, he grasped the railing and swung over the side. Twisting his body in mid-air, he hit the inky water face first. The impact crushed his cheekbones.
Chapter 14: Christmas Miracles
The fire burned low. The tree lights burned brightly. The smell of fresh pine and roast ham filled the air. Burl Ives sang traditional songs from her father’s ancient record player. Another Christmas was in the books. Mother Nature had provided a postcard perfect white Christmas. Her mother had provided the amazing food and God had provided her with a loving family. Unsettled and uncomfortably full, Micki drifted around the living room, absently touching the decorations that were as much a part of the family as the people. Her mother still proudly displayed every construction paper card and painted dough ornament she and her brothers had made. Micki smiled wistfully at the Elf on the Shelf as she twisted the chain on the delicate gold cross her parents had given her this morning. The thin chain slid against her throat reminding her vividly of Koivu’s mouth brushing her skin. She closed her eyes and brought his smile to mind. He had no family to spend the holidays with. What was he doing right now? Was he alone? Lonely?
“Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” her mother whispered against her temple. “I love you so much.” Her arms came around and drew her back against her chest, squeezing hard. She sniffed and pressed her cheek against Micki’s hair.
“Mom, are you crying?” She tried to turn around, but her mother tightened her grasp and cupped her belly with a gentle palm. “Merry Christmas, little one.”
“What?” Micki stilled with her hand over her mother’s. “No, oh no, no!” She twisted away from her mother, stricken with horror, shaking her head in denial. She couldn’t be. Oh, god, no! The past few weeks came flashing back. Dizziness, vomiting, tiredness . . . Terrible understanding dawned bright and clear. She burst into tears. Excessive weepiness, too. She’d blamed that on Koivu. How had this happened? They’d always used condoms! Except for the morning in the shower. Damn it!
“Shh. Everything will be fine. We’ll get through this.” Her mother wrapped her arms around her while she completely fell apart.
When the tears finally let up, she mopped at her face with a tissue. “I didn’t know. How did you?” she asked after she found her voice again. “I haven’t taken a test yet. I might not be. I’ve been under a lot of stress. That could explain the symptoms.” Stress caused by the baby’s father.
“I’m a woman, sweetheart. I’ve been around plenty of pregnant women. I recognize the signs. You’ve been sick for weeks. I hadn’t connected the dots until today. You’ve had your hand over your belly all day and there’s a soft look in your eyes that hasn’t been there before.”
“I did? I didn’t notice that.”
Her mom smiled serenely and nodded. “That’s when I knew. A mother always protects her baby. Is he Koivu’s? Have you told him yet?”
She was tearing up again and choked on her mother’s assumption the baby was a boy. “He?”
“Of course. That man wouldn’t give you a daughter. Trust me, I can tell.”
“I’m so sorry, Mom! I never intended for this to happen. I was going to be married and happy before I started a family and now I don’t even have a boyfriend. I’m such a wreck! You must be terribly disappointed in me.” Tears rolled down her cheeks.
“No she’s not, and neither am I.” Her father slipped up behind them and draped his arm around them both. “We love you and we’ll love this baby too.” He dropped a kiss on her head and said, “We could never be disappointed in you, but I may have to beat the hell out of your baby daddy.”
“What’s going on in here? Sounds serious.” Brody interrupted the emotional moment.
“You might as well tell them now.” Her mother nudged her and cut her eyes to Micki’s brothers hovering in the doorway.
She took a deep breath and broke the news that she still couldn’t quite believe. “I think I’m pregnant.”
Instead of the outraged anger or obnoxious teasing she expected, the three of them traded apprehensive glances. Her stomach clenched with dread. “What?”
Brody shifted uncomfortably. “We were just checking Facebook . . .”
Danny picked up the thread. “There was a jumper on Brooklyn Bridge a few minutes ago.”
Marcus said miserably, “Micki, I’m so sorry.”
She held her breath. “No. No. It can’t be. Koivu came to see me today.” She’d flipped him off. The desperation on his face had cut her in two. Surely he wouldn’t . . . She couldn’t finish the thought. Her icy fingers clutched at her father’s arm as the room tilted.
“Someone posted an image of the guy.” Danny’s words sounded far away as blood roared in her ears.
Blinking furiously, she cried, “Is it him? Tell me it’s not him!”
Brody shook his head, whispering, “I’m so sorry, Micki.”
Raphael swore as Koivu skillfully twisted his body to allow him to hit the river headfirst. There was barely a splash and absolutely no sound. LUCIFER! Get up here!
He didn’t think twice. Just dove straight in. The water was unspeakably cold. Thank God he wasn’t human. The cold would’ve stolen his breath. Frantically searching for Koivu’s body, he used every angelic tool he had. There! A pale hand moved a few feet away. Koivu! Bubbles floated from his open mouth. He wasn’t dead? That was no small miracle. If he was going to keep him alive, he’d have to move quickly. It took a priceless second to secure the idiot in his arms, but even less time to teleport to the only place he could think of.
“What the fuck?” Nash yelped and dove out of the way as Raphael materialized right in the middle of the ops center, with Koivu slung over his shoulder.
“What happened?” Sid asked after picking himself up from the floor.
Ignoring their questions, he dumped Koivu like a sack of potatoes.
Derick came straight over. “Talk to me, Raphael. What do you need?”
Raphael knew the clock was ticking. He barked, “Just get back! Let me work.”
Koivu was clinging to life, but only barely. Raphael fell to his knees and got busy. He turned Koivu to his side, pressing water from his lungs. He rolled him onto his back and ran his hands over the idiot’s chest. Clavicle . . . three ribs . . . dislocated shoulder. Easy enough. His head was the real concern. Brain damage? Cracked skull? His cheekbones were shattered. Nose too. Copious amounts of blood mixed with the river water creating a pink puddle around them. Koivu moaned and curled his fingers. His eyelids fluttered, closed, fluttered again. His irises were filled with an eerie glow. “That’s interesting,” Raphael muttered as he flipped a lid up to check his pupils. “No wonder he wants to go home so badly.”
He sighed and replied, “It’s his demon soul shining through. It’s stronger than a human soul. The light’s a dead giveaway, though why it’s so obvious is a mystery to me.”
“I’m afraid that might be my fault,” Lucifer said from the doorway. “My intention was to bolster their strength as a reward for their loyalty. I hoped it would give them some comfort, but my touch may have re-awoken certain instincts.”
“Of course it did! Do you ever think before you act?” He leveled his brother a furious stare, and snapped, “We can argue later. He’s going to die if I don’t heal him now.”
Lucifer strode across the room, scattering Nash, Sid, and Derick to the corners with a wave of his hand. Squatting on the other side of Raphael, he asked with definite sarcasm, “Which end of Humpty Dumpty do you want? Heads or tails?”
“Just watch me. Maybe you’ll learn something.” Starting with the most critical injuries, he placed his hands gently on Koivu’s head and closed his eyes. A miniscule amount of healing energy hummed through his fingers and began knitting the damaged brain tissue and bone back together. Once the energy was flowing deep into Koivu’s body, he whispered for Luc’s ears only, “Let the energy come from your peripheral not your core. That’s where your power is. You don’t want to share that with those you heal. That’s where you went wrong.”
Luc grimaced and nodded. He was leaning so close Raphael could feel his body heat against the side of his arm. Good. He was paying attention. What possessed him to try healing after all this time? He must be feeling the strain of this particular conspiracy if he’d go to such lengths to bolster his supporters.
A delicate vibration thrummed against his fingertips. His patient’s health was returning. He was out of the woods now. Almost finished. He purposefully drew his fingers across the broken bones in Koivu’s face and then his chest. With one final short pulse of healing energy, the idiot was fully healed. He would be conscious in a minute or two. Raphael’s audience had gradually crept closer until all of them were hovered over him. Gesturing them back, he gave them a grim look and said, “He’s healed, but I want him to rest for a bit. His injuries were very traumatic. He’ll need some time to process what happened to him.”
Koivu (Demons After Dark Book Three) Page 20