by Bonnie Vanak
She went still as an impossible thought surfaced. There was only one way to tell if it was true.
“Michael,” she called out softly into the darkness. “Please, come here a minute.”
He materialized before her. Silvery blue eyes glowed in the night.
Sabrina grabbed him by the lapels of his leather jacket, pulled him forward and kissed him.
Electrical shock zinged through her. They gasped at the powerful contact. Then Michael wove his fingers through her hair and tilted her head back.
He deepened the kiss. Sabrina moaned beneath the subtle movement of his mouth. He thrust his tongue past her parted lips. She drank in his taste, his scent. Awareness, sorrow and joy filled her as her ears buzzed.
Oh Michael…
Sabrina’s throat closed with tears as he released her.
“Did you feel it?” She hugged him, needing his touch, needing him. “Don’t you know what’s happening between us? Can’t you feel what we are to each other, feel it in your heart? Why didn’t you tell me we share this special connection?”
A frown dented his brow as he eased out of her grip. “There’s nothing happening between us. I’m forbidden from physical contact with you. You shouldn’t have done that.”
She searched his confused expression, the immortal Phoenix looking flustered for the first time since she’d known him. Hope died in her heart.
A lump lodged in her throat. Even now, he couldn’t feel the same for her as she felt for him.
It didn’t matter. She had to summon all her energy for Ambrosis. Sabrina’s resolve returned.
A warm thought brushed against her mind. I’ll always be with you, Brie. Always. I wish I could offer you more…
The thought trailed off, but she felt a desperate longing beneath it, as if he struggled to say what she had felt.
Then the Phoenix vanished. Sabrina steeled her spine. I can do this.
Sabrina raised her hands and spoke in a trembling voice, “Ambrosis, I summon you forth!”
Nothing.
She tried again, this time motioning with her hands. “Ambrosis, Hellfire demon whom I challenged one year ago, I summon you forth!”
Tree frogs continued their noisy song. Sabrina stared at her surroundings in frank astonishment. A heavy silence draped the swamp.
She did her part. But Ambrosis had failed to show himself. Did it mean Nathan and Martha were safe? But Michael said only her actions could save them. She had to summon the demon. Yet he refused to show his face.
Maybe that was part of Ambrosis’ plan. The loophole in the demon summoning thing. Anger began to build up as she imagined her cheerful grandparents facing the demon, unable to fight back. It wasn’t fair. Sabrina fisted her hands and yelled.
“Sheesh, Ambrosis, you must be deaf. I mean, how loud do I have to speak and how much hand-waving is involved here? If there’s an Official Demon Request form I failed to fill out in triplicate, then tell me. Or do you want me to deliver it on a silver platter, then forget it because I don’t touch silver and I think you’re just an ugly gray, hairy…”
A loud roar reverberated through the stillness. It sent icy shivers down her spine.
“Wuss,” she finished on a whisper.
Rising from the murky water surrounding the tree island was a fleshy shape. The shape took form.
From a crouching position, the demon raised himself up on spindly legs. The backbone was a protrusion of knobby bone. Mottled gray flesh covered his sunken frame. Twisted pale green lips sneered at her, displaying rows of jagged, pointed teeth. Two gray membranous wings crawling with spiders grew from his back, fanning the air with the stench of burning sulfur. Yellow phlegm dripped from his eyes.
Ambrosis.
Filled with false bravado, she faced her nightmare. “Didn’t recognize you at first, but I sure smelled you coming. You look pretty stressed. The year’s sure aged you, demon. All those wrinkles…maybe you should consider Botox or a day at the spa?”
Michael’s amused chuckle echoed in her mind.
Encouraged, she faced the demon. “Like the wings, but the accessories, hate to tell you, they need to go. Arachnids are so last year.”
The demon snarled at her. Shock immobilized her as his body began to shimmer. He shifted into a much more familiar, endearing form.
“Dad?” she whispered.
“Hello, daughter. Why did you let me die?”
Laughter screamed through the swamp as the demon with her father’s mouth, her father’s face, her father’s damn white Oxford shirt, advanced toward her.
She could not move, think or speak. Tears wet her cheeks. She forced herself to analyze the situation.
Think, think, look at the hands, remember demons can’t fully mimic others, they have to retain some part of their physical selves.
She glanced downward. Instead of her father’s fingers, she saw silver claws the size of a grizzly bear’s. Ambrosis hissed and raised a hand.
Sabrina screamed. She wanted to shift into the more powerful wolf, but couldn’t remember the process. It was as if someone immobilized her powers. Fogged her brain.
She turned and ran, and tripped over an exposed root. Sabrina rolled over to see Ambrosis in demon form. Small blue horns on the front and back of his head turned into rotating razor blades. He grinned, exposing a set of whirling, pointed teeth.
Her heart hammered violently, her ears clogged. She barely comprehended the buzz saw headed for her.
Forcing her canines to emerge while still in human form, Sabrina dove for the ground and bit the demon’s ankle. Spiders from its wings cascaded over her, sinking fangs into her exposed neck. Sabrina ignored the pain and held onto Ambrosis. Using her Draicon strength, she twisted his ankle hard and heard a snapping sound.
He roared with obvious outrage and limped away.
“Broke it, huh, you ugly bastard,” she said, panting. “How does it feel to have someone hurt you for a change?”
Ambrosis flew forward and slashed her chest with his silver, grizzly-like claws.
Agony burned through her. She felt her magick begin to drain, her body fill with poison.
She was going to die.
Chapter 6
Ambrosis seemed too powerful to defeat. Memories accosted her. Her parents, brothers and sisters, screaming for someone to help them…
Anger fed her strength. She remembered what Michael told her and let all her love rush to the surface. Sabrina rolled away, kicking soft muck into the demon’s eyes.
As he batted at his face, she grabbed a sturdy stick and jabbed it into his right eye. The demon screamed. Good, she thought, staggering to her feet. She ignored the burning pain, concentrated on her surroundings.
As wolf she could defeat him. But her powers were rapidly draining. She couldn’t shift. Now she regretted not having the courage to face him as a wolf.
Blood poured through her fingers as she held them against her chest. The white-hot agony was almost too terrible to bear. She wanted to give in to the grayness pushing at the sides of her vision. Surrender.
Then she saw Michael. The silvery blue brilliance of his eyes faded, leaving them an ordinary brown. Shock filled her. Michael was forbidden from helping her. Now, because he did, his powers vanished.
He faced a Hellfire demon as an ordinary mortal, without even Draicon magick.
“No, Michael, don’t,” she screamed.
With a loud, furious yell, he charged the demon. Ambrosis whirled, laughed and lashed at Michael.
Blood gushed from Michael’s chest. He staggered back.
“You bastard,” she snarled.
Sabrina gathered all her strength. She head-butted the demon. Ambrosis sailed backward, recovered and glared. He advanced toward Michael.
She suddenly knew what it thought. She was a prize, but the now mortal Michael was the brass ring.
Not on her watch. Michael had already suffered enough for her sake.
“You will not hurt him. Take me instead.” Sabr
ina summoned the last of her Draicon magick and waved her hands. A steel dagger appeared in one palm.
She ran forward, protecting the one she loved. Ambrosis screamed and rushed forward, his claws extended for a killing blow.
Sabrina did a dive roll, sprang up and sank the dagger into the demon’s soft underbelly. A shriek like nails on chalkboard echoed through the swamp.
Ambrosis raked his claws across her stomach. Agony burned through her. Sabrina gasped and fell backward onto the soft mud.
With the last bit of her strength, she whispered, “I surrender my life so he can live. Now go to hell.”
Ambrosis roared. Sparks flew from his eyes. There was a brilliant yellow flash and a loud pop. The demon vanished.
She whimpered as warmth gushed between her fingers. Beneath the pulsing burn was a feeling as if everything grew hazy. Distant.
She was dying.
Michael took her into his arms. Gone was the terrible wound on his chest. She sensed the return of his powers, saw it in his blazing silver blue eyes.
“Did I do it?” she whispered. “Is he back in hell?”
“For a long time. You sent him there because you sacrificed yourself to save me.” He brushed away the hair from her face.
She hated his anguished look. A memory, buried and forgotten, flashed to the surface. She lifted her hand to touch his neck where the mark of the Phoenix had been burned into him when he was reborn. Had there been a wound there, too terrible to heal?
“Ambrosis hurt you.”
“I can’t die. I’m immortal. My powers only deserted me. He couldn’t kill me,” he said fiercely.
“Couldn’t bear to see you hurt.” She frowned. It was getting difficult to think. “Not like before. Had to save you.”
Michael let out a hiss. He placed his palms over her wounds. A blazing warmth spread through her body. She cried out in shock and relief.
The agony slowed and then slowly dissipated. As her strength returned, she glanced down.
“You healed me. But you’re not permitted to interfere.”
He muttered a curse word that made her eyes go wide. Michael rocked her in his arms.
“It’s all right now, Brie,” he soothed. “I only bought you a little time and kept the pain at bay. That’s the extent of my powers. I can’t do anything else. At dawn, it will all vanish.”
“I don’t understand.”
Torment flashed in his eyes. “I can’t change your destiny now any more than I could a year ago, sweetheart. A year ago when you last fought Ambrosis and you died. You have until morning, Brie. And then you will die again.”
Chapter 7
Sabrina closed her eyes, unwilling to comprehend the horrible truth. Air brushed past her shivering body. Sabrina no longer scented damp earth. She smelled the salt of Michael’s tears.
Opening her eyes, she saw they were in his penthouse condominium on a leather sofa on Florida’s west coast. Never had she seen him look more despondent.
“I returned your grandparents and their pack to their hotel room, and erased their memories to ease their distress.” Michael shoved a hand through his hair.
“I can’t have died. I’m here, breathing and talking.”
Sorrow etched his expression. “You were given a year’s lease on life. You died in my arms, sweetheart. You died trying to save your family, just as I died trying to save you.”
Shock made her speechless. It all made sense now. The constant chill she felt, the taste of her favorite foods being all wrong. The feeling of doom hovering over her.
Sabrina forced herself to speak as he gathered her into his arms and laid his head atop hers. “Tell me how you died, Michael. Remind me and maybe then I can understand what happened to me.”
“I had a family I loved as much as you loved yours. When I lost them, I moved to the country, next to your parents' farm. They accepted me, even though I was alone. But you were the one who coaxed me out of misery.”
“I was ten when we met,” she remembered.
“A stubborn, independent, courageous child who insisted on my joining her family each night for dinner, who wouldn’t leave me alone and made me laugh. Your spirit kept me from sliding into despair. But you worried me because you had the same strength that had caused demons to kill my family.”
His voice broke. Sabrina placed her arms around his neck, leaning into him, loaning him her inner strength. She felt him tremble beneath the soothing strokes of her palms.
“I’ve always been able to sense demons, but was too inexperienced to save my family,” he continued. “I made a promise to myself to never let demons get you or your family, but your strong spirit attracted the demon Icktys. When you were eighteen, I scented him in your house one night. He’d materialized to steal your strength and kill you. I fought the demon, made the Demon Challenge. I had a full year to live and summon Icktys and then I died and was reborn.”
His voice dropped. “When you give your life to save someone, you have the choice to move onto the next plane of existence, or become an immortal to watch over them. I made my decision so I could always be there to protect you.”
A bolt of pain speared her heart. “You’ve done so much for me, and I did nothing for you.”
“You have. All those years you lived was solace to me, Brie. Your spirit was still alive and no demon could break it. It gave me a purpose I’d lost after my family was gone.”
Michael’s gaze was brilliant as he raised his head. “As your mentor, I must inform you it’s your time to make the decision. When dawn breaks your time is up. You can either pass on to the next Realm, or remain on earth and be reborn as a Justice Guardian. But you cannot go on living as you had.”
“And if I choose to be a Guardian?”
“The way is not easy. You will never live in a pack again or know deep and lasting familial ties. You will always rove the earth, never to settle, never to raise a family.” His voice grew strained. “You will always work alone, for a Phoenix never teams with another. You will always face adversity, for that is what we do. We see the exposed underbelly of life. You will never be blissfully innocent again of the cruelties others can impose.”
“If I pass on, my family will be waiting,” she mused.
“Yes. You will be reunited with them.” He cupped her cheek, his expression filled with anguish. “The decision must be yours. I cannot impose my will on you.”
“I suppose you can’t change my destiny.”
Michael’s gaze was steady. “I already did, Brie. You see, the full year had passed by already. You needed convincing to gather your courage to summon Ambrosis. I knew you’d get it if you saw your grandparents again. So I delayed Ambrosis’ release by twenty-four hours, giving you a day with them. All you needed was a reminder of how strong and powerful love can be.”
Overcome, she stared at him. “You did that all for me? They let you?”
His jaw tightened. “No, they didn’t. There will be…consequences.”
When she asked what kind, he gave a dismissive hand wave.
She hugged her stomach, remembering Ambrosis hurting her the first time when she’d died to save her family. “I need space,” she whispered.
He let her go. She fled into the bathroom, turned on the shower and stripped out of her mud-soaked clothing. Beneath the hot spray, she scrubbed at her body. The sobs came out in choking gasps.
After regaining her lost composure, she stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself.
She had tonight. Wasting it was stupid.
Michael waited for her in the living room, standing against one of the potted palms. His gaze uncertain, he studied her approach.
“I have until morning. I’m not wasting a minute more of my life. And since you’ve already broken the rules, I figure you can stand to break one more,” she told him.
Sabrina kissed him.
Chapter 8
They kissed each other with fervent hunger, tongues tangling, their moans mingling as
they held each other tight.
When Michael let her go, he looked dangerous as his gaze became brilliant with passion. His jaw was clenched tight as if it were made of stone.
“I have to get inside you. Now,” he said thickly.
Sabrina felt wet and aching, swollen with need. Shivering with anticipation, she kissed him again, wrapping her arms around his neck. He was hard, steely muscle as he kissed her back in a desperation equaling her own. Michael reached beneath the towel, skimming the soft flesh of her thigh. She cried out in shock as he delved between her wet folds. He slid a long finger back and forth, creating more dampness. She opened her thighs wide, feeling vulnerable and shaky with need. With his other hand, he ripped off the towel, and then backed her up against the wall.
His hands cupped her naked breasts, thumbing the hardening nipples. Michael took one into his mouth, his tongue flicking over the cresting bud. As he suckled her, she threw back her head on a moan.
He dropped his hand to the zipper on his jeans, the rasping of metal mingling with his panting breath.
His palms were warm and calloused as he cupped her bare bottom, lifted her against the cold, hard wall. She felt the thickness of his cock push at her wet, swollen center. Shocked by the unaccustomed pressure of him stretching her, Sabrina whimpered. Michael grunted and adjusted himself and began working himself inside her.
With a determined relentlessness, he thrust, penetrating her fully.
They went still for a moment. Sabrina trembled, struck mute, feeling impaled by male hardness and strength. He nuzzled her neck, murmuring soothing reassurances.
She could do nothing but wrap her arms around his neck and writhe against him in an attempt to draw even closer. Michael shoved into her, hard and fast and urgent. Sabrina lifted her legs and locked her trembling thighs around his pumping hips.
Grunting, he thrust higher and deeper. She moaned as his thick penis pushed into her with relentless urgency. Her back slammed against the wall, erotic pleasure building where they were intimately joined. The whisper of a climax danced outside of reach. Sobbing, she dug her nails into the thick muscles of his shoulders. Needing this, needing his closeness, feeling the bonding of their flesh.