by Lynn Rush
“Nala didn’t have much time to make it exact. She used Durk as the model, but had to guess where to make the slits for the wings.”
“This is a shirt like yours?”
“Indeed. Can’t have you walking around bareback forever. I will not stand for the other women gawking at your beauty. That is for me alone to do.” She winked. “And you will do fine as king.”
We let our wings unfold and took to the sky. A refreshing bath, the love of my wife, and a fresh set of clothes made me feel back to normal, if I knew what normal was, because from today forward, I was a Guardian King.
Until four days ago, I knew only the life of a demon. Now I was a husband, an Angel, and a king.
The campfire came into view. People scurried from tent to tent. My heart slammed into my chest, fearing demons had attacked in our absence. I dove toward the camp.
“Russell?”
He appeared between two tall Guardians. “What’s wrong?”
“Why is everyone scurrying around? I feared a demon had come.”
Beka landed beside me with a slight breeze. Her wing grazed mine, and she winked, not worried in the slightest.
“Nothing’s wrong. We just prepare for your arrival. Nala alerted us that you were to clean up and return for introductions.”
I glanced at Beka, and she dipped her head.
My heart slowed a notch, and I tucked my wings close to me but left them out. “Oh. I’m sorry. I thought…”
“That’s okay. You have every right to be jumpy after all that you’ve been through the last few days.” Russell gripped my shoulders. “I’m glad you are well, majesty.”
I huffed.
“David. Sorry.”
I faced Beka. “I think that will be the first rule to change. No more calling me King or Majesty.”
“That might be a hard one to change for the old ones like Russell and Durk,” Beka said.
A tall, husky man with a scar running down the center of his face stepped forward. “Your majesty. I am Durk, at your service.”
“Of the seven here, Durk is the oldest, besides me of course,” Russell said. “Behind him are Saul, Isreal, and Abarim.” He motioned them near. “Come, meet your King.”
A short man, with hair as bleached as Beka’s feathers, stepped forward and bowed. “Majesty. I am Saul. At your service.”
“I am Isreal.” A thick-necked, bald man clutched my hand.
“Nice to meet you, Israel.”
He moved aside, revealing a meek, timid guy. “I am Abarim, Majesty.”
How would I ever remember these names?
Russell pointed to the right. “And lurking near Jessica’s tent are Joshua and Andrew. Joshua is the redhead and the short guy is Andrew. I think he stopped growing when he was twelve.”
A chuckle resonated from my mouth. It surprised me, because I hadn’t felt any reason to laugh in so long. I’d almost forgotten how.
Russell smirked, pointed to the female, and beckoned her to us.
“Nala,” Beka said with a smile.
“Your majesty.” Long, charcoal hair spilled over her shoulders. Her ice-blue gaze bounced from me to Beka. “I am the Queen’s Lady’s Maid, but will assist you both should you need anything.”
“Thank you, Nala.” Beka twined her fingers with mine. “I couldn’t have gotten through the years without you had it not been for her.”
I bowed. “Then I am most grateful to you, Nala.”
A ring of darkness formed on Nala’s pale cheeks, and she backed away, to the fire where the rest of the Guardians gathered.
I eyed each Guardian as Beka stood by my side. “Nice to meet you all.”
“David?” A squeaky, but muffled voice, shouted from behind the wall of people staring. “David?”
The click of a zipper filled the air.
“Let me through,” a high-pitched voice I recognized as Jessica’s said. “David.”
I released Beka’s hand and moved around the fire. The last time I’d seen her, Jessica was a frail pile of bones, hidden beneath a thick blanket, withering away by the hour.
Durk and Saul moved aside, and Jessica burst through them, right into my embrace. Her dainty arms linked around my neck. I hugged her close enough to feel her heart thudding against my chest. A subtle scent of peaches and vanilla wafted from her shiny hair.
“I was so worried for you.” She burrowed her face to my neck. “I couldn’t see what would become of you after the fight with Locien.”
“No need to worry. I am here. You are okay?” I petted her hair.
She eased down from me and stood next to Durk’s towering frame. “Yeah, I’m fine. Slow to heal, but getting there.”
“You look much better than the last time I saw you.” I offered her my hand. “Come, sit with us.”
I led her to Beka, and we sat on the gravel surrounding the fire pit. Russell handed me a bowl of food, then one to Beka. “Are you hungry, Jessica?”
“Starved.”
“I’ll be back with another bowl. Eat up majesties. We leave at sunrise,” Russell said.
“You killed Locien.” A grin filled Jessica’s face.
“With Beka’s help.”
“I knew you would, but I was scared.”
“Scared he would die?” Beka asked.
Russell approached with another bowl. He settled near Jessica and completed our half circle around the fire.
“Taste good?” Russell asked.
I took a bite of the hearty stew. “Thank you. I am famished.”
“Two days you were out of it. Rebeka wouldn’t leave your side,” Russell said. “She refused to give up on you.”
I winked at my wife, then focused on Jessica. “Did you know he was my father?”
Russell gasped. A murmur rolled through those surrounding us. Besides Durk, I didn’t remember any of the names. That would take time, and I didn’t even know how many others there were at home.
“Yeah. I guess I did.” Jessica studied her untouched food.
“Your father? Who? What?” Russell asked.
“Why did you not tell me?” I asked Jessica.
“Would that have made a difference?”
“No.”
“You say that now. But had I told you up front he was your father, things might have turned out differently.” She picked at her bowl of stew.
“How is he your father?” Russell asked. “That’s impossible.”
I studied my fork. Images of Locien raping my mother flashed before my eyes. I’d never seen her before, but the thought of someone violating my Beka in such a manner made my blood pulse with rage.
“His mother made the deal with Lucifer, then Locien raped her. It was one big, dirty, disgusting plan,” Jessica said. “From day one.”
“Plan?” Russell set his empty bowl on the sand.
Amber flecks deep within Jessica’s chestnut eyes flickered. “Lucifer knew all along your mother was to give birth to the prophesied angel destined to unite with Rebeka. He tricked your mother, she sold your soul, and hers, then she died while giving birth to you. Locien figured that if his blood flowed through you, you’d give in to darkness immediately and embrace your demon nature. He tried to take your right to choose away.”
“But you remained strong and resisted.” Beka teased her hand up my spine, sucking the breath from my lungs. “For me.”
“Locien thought it would bring favor for him in Lucifer’s eyes to have fathered the angel, and to sway him to darkness. He didn’t know about the Archangel clause.” Jessica smiled. “And when you kept resisting, and he couldn’t kill you, it drove him nuts.”
“Nuts?” Russell asked.
I set my empty bowl on the sandy gravel in front of me. Within seconds, Durk retrieved it and replaced it with a full one. He bowed his head and resumed his place behind Jessica.
Having my every need met so readily would take getting used to. Centuries of deprivation of one sort or another left me used to being in want.
“Locien found out about the plan for David’s ascension to King of the Underworld, so he needed David either human or demon, then he could kill him. No contract meant no protection over the wrists and neck.” Jessica slurped up the rest of her stew but kept the bowl in her lap.
“I can’t believe all of this.” Beka twined her fingers with mine. “You told me about Locien being your father, your mother and your visit with Michael, but not all this other planning that has gone on for centuries.”
“Wait. Michael?” Russell asked.
I glanced at Beka, then faced Russell and Jessica. “Michael told me some things.”
“How?” Jessica asked.
“While I was dead. I banished myself to a wasteland. He came and talked me out of it.” I scooped stew into my mouth. Its savory essence coated my tongue, and the warmth enveloped my stomach.
Jessica tilted toward me. “You feel you’re not worthy to be King.”
I nodded.
“That’s why you sent yourself to the wasteland. Not sure where you fit in because of your demon heritage.” She slapped my shoulder. “I see how that can happen.”
It was so strange to talk of things centuries old with a girl who appeared no older than seventeen. She spoke with such slang I was sure she was human. Yet ancient words sprinkled her modern language.
“I felt your pain.” Jessica grabbed her neck. “I was scared you were lost to us.” She shivered. “We need you.”
I bowed my head. Such wise talk from a young person. I would learn much from her.
“You met Michael, huh? What’d you think of him?” Jessica turned on her charm like a flick of a switch.
“Have you met him as well?” I asked.
“How do you think I get my knowledge?” Jessica chuckled. “But I don’t meet him in a wasteland.”
“You see the Archangel?” Beka asked. “How?”
“Visions, dreams, mostly while I was unconscious those few days before my conversion. We talked a lot.” The campfire shimmered in her eyes. “He downloaded a bunch of information into my brain. That’s why I stumble with speech sometimes. I mean, I have my way of talking, then his weird, old words kick in sometimes. Makes my head hurt.”
“Amazing,” Beka said.
“Sometimes I feel like my brain is about to melt. But he hasn’t visited me in a while, not since that darn dagger stuck me.” She pinned me with a stare. “But I knew you’d save me. Never doubted you for a minute.”
“I think you did. You almost didn’t tell me who cursed the dagger,” I said.
She put up her hands in surrender. “My one moment of weakness. But after that, I never doubted. I knew, once I saw that flicker of determination in your eyes, that you’d kill him for me.” She smiled. “I’m just glad you didn’t go after him by yourself.”
“Trust me, he thought about it,” Beka said. “But we’re strongest together, aren’t we, King?” She leaned toward me.
“Yes. I was tempted.” I rested my hand on her knee and inched closer to her warmth.
“What did Michael look like to you?” Jessica asked.
“Pardon?”
“When I see him, he has long blond hair, down to his butt, sparkling green eyes and wears skinny jeans and a long sleeved shirt.” The skin at the corner of her eyes crinkled with her smile.
“That is not how he looked to me, why is that?”
“He gets into our head, helps us see him in a form we’d appreciate. Some of the thoughts he puts in us are a little tough to handle. This way just makes it easier for us to see him. Hear what he has to say.” She toed the sand. “That’s my theory anyway. I’ll have to ask him next time.”
I turned to Beka. “Have you seen him?”
“No. I hear his whisperings, but never see him.”
“So now what?” Russell said. “Locien’s dead, the demons retreated.”
“For now,” I said.
Jessica sat straight and giggled.
“What?”
“Already thinking like a King.” She punched my shoulder. “Go on, what were you going to say, King?”
I glanced at Beka. “I think I would like to see this new home of ours.”
EPILOGUE
“No moat?” I said as we flew toward our home.
Beka laughed.
“It is chilly up here.” The cool air whipped past me as I coasted toward the massive, brick house. Clouds hovered high in the bright, blue sky, but the sun didn’t warm me as I would have thought.
“Come on, I’m tired, it’s been a long few days. I just want to sink into a toasty, comfortable bed with you.” She winked. “I promised you a real honeymoon. No more making love in caves or on rocky riverbeds.”
“Those places were nice, but I should like to try the comfort of a soft mattress to learn more about your body.” I darted out in front of her, my body tensing in anticipation. “Hurry.”
She chased after me. I banked left and came in above her. She led me toward the rooftop. It wasn’t quite a castle, but close. Massive lawns surrounded the sprawling estate. Six pools of water, lakes maybe, spotted the property.
People milled around equal distance between them. Standing post. I assumed they were on guard the way they kept a careful eye on us, probably unsure of me and my dark wings. Such a contrast to Beka’s fair feathers flapping gracefully next to me.
“So, you said thirty Guardians live here?”
“Not at all times. There are thirty Guardians housed here. But, they go to different cities, wherever the need arises.”
“And how do you know where to send them?”
“Hold that thought.” She pointed and slowed.
I veered right, watching her land on a sprawling roof patio that led to a set of ashen French doors. I folded my wings close to me and descended. The cold, tile patio sent a chill up my legs through my bare feet. The sun was definitely less potent here in Utah than in Arizona.
“We know where to send the Guardians the same way I knew how to locate Jessica. A gentle whisper, from the Archangel, only my connection to Michael is not like what he has with Jessica.” She paused, regarding me while her hand rested on the door handle. “Although, I wonder if you might have an even closer connection. He did appear to you in the wastelands. You’re at your rightful position as king now. Direction might come through you.”
“I guess we will find out. But it felt like his appearance was a one-time thing, to get me out of that place I banished myself to and back to you.”
Her hands found a home on my chest. “I know you doubt your ability to be a good leader for these Guardians, but I don’t. All you’ve been through, all that you’ve endured, has made you into something very powerful, very good, and very desirable.”
I smiled and combed my fingers through her silky hair.
“And the seven who were with us in Arizona immediately accepted you. Pledged their fealty to you.” She brushed her lips against my cheek. “Just remember that, okay?”
“Do we have to meet everyone right away? Or might you have time to show me that bed you spoke of.”
“See, we’ll have no problem ruling the Guardians. We already think so much alike.” She flashed her bright eyes at me. “I landed on the balcony connected to our bedroom, because that’s the only place we will be for the next couple of days.”
“I think I will enjoy being King.” I pulled the door open. “Lead the way, my Queen.”
LYNN RUSH
Lynn Rush began her writing career in 2008 and is actively involved with Romance Writers of America (RWA) and its special interest chapter Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal (FF&P).
Lynn has both an undergraduate and graduate degree in the mental health field and has enjoyed applying that unique knowledge to developing interesting characters.
When Lynn’s not writing, she spends time enjoying the Arizona sunshine by road biking with her husband of fifteen years and going on five-mile jogs with her loveable Shetland Sheep dogs.
She always makes time to
read a good speculative fiction novel, her favorites being Frank Peretti, Vicki Pettersson, Charlaine Harris and Stephanie Meyer.
Catch the Rush online:
Website: www.LynnRush.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/LynnRushWrites
Twitter: www.twitter.com/LynnRush
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
CHAPTER 26
CHAPTER 27
CHAPTER 28
CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 30
CHAPTER 31
CHAPTER 32
CHAPTER 33
CHAPTER 34
CHAPTER 35
CHAPTER 36
CHAPTER 37
CHAPTER 38
CHAPTER 39
CHAPTER 40
CHAPTER 41
CHAPTER 42
CHAPTER 43
CHAPTER 44
CHAPTER 45
CHAPTER 46
CHAPTER 47
CHAPTER 48
EPILOGUE
LYNN RUSH