Four down, six to go.
He reappeared on the second floor in front of two Malums. Each one lunged at him, knives drawn. He disarmed them, then caught each one by the throat, tightened his hold, cracking bones. They slumped to the floor slowly. He then quickly released their souls.
Six down, four to go.
Third floor, two Malums. His mind drifted… This is taking too long. Hold on, Ashley.
A blitz attack. Two Malums rushed him, swords drawn. He used telekinesis to disarm them, then used it again to draw the swords toward their hearts, piercing them and turning them to dust.
Eight down, two to go.
He materialized on the fourth floor, only one there. Almost there, Ash. Finding him, he killed him swiftly.
Nine down, one to go.
He appeared on the fifth floor. Her scent was strongest there, her aura shining brightly. The blue was no longer rimmed with muddied red. His throat constricted, chest tightened until he appeared in the doorway of the room where she was held.
Her face was streaked with dust, her clothes dirtied and a lone streak of blood ran down her neck.
Alive. She was alive.
His soul immediately soothed, his rage forgotten.
He appeared before her. “Angel,” he whispered and he placed his hands on her cheeks. “Are…you…” His voice cracked. He breathed deeply. For the first time since she’d been taken, he reveled in the fresh air tinted with her scent.
Her eyes shined brightly, a smile tugging at her lips. “I knew you’d come.”
“Ash, baby, I’m… Are you okay?”
“Yes…I killed him.”
He glanced around their surroundings noticing the dust that covered her face also littered the room.
“Asher?”
She nodded. “He wanted to mate me. He was going to…”
Drink her blood, bonding them forever, his mind finished her thought. And it had been a close call. His eyes fixated on the single droplet of blood dripping down her neck. Once again, he was filled with rage. Fallen bastard…
“I couldn’t let him take me away from you.”
Her words drew his eyes away from the streak of blood and to her face. No, he wouldn’t have allowed it either. The reason why he’d killed nine Malums without thought, without fear for himself, with only dread for her.
“Are you okay?” she asked, softly.
He hadn’t been. He’d been a wreck. But he was more than okay now, holding her beautiful face in his hands, knowing she was alive and well.
“Yes, angel,” he replied, pressing her body against his and kissing her hard on the lips.
His Ashley was safe in his arms. For moments, nothing existed but her, her lips on his mouth, her body pressed against his soothing the panic and anger that had consumed him minutes before.
“God, I was so worried. I…”
She silenced him with another kiss parting his mouth with her tongue. He wanted to continue kissing her, enjoying their reunion, but her safety came first.
He pulled away slightly. “We should go.”
Tucking her against him, they materialized in the lobby of Lucas’s home.
Jenna, Jocelyn, their mates and Jacob appeared seconds later. He released his hold on Ashley.
“Oh!” Jenna exclaimed, running toward Ashley and embraced her. Jocelyn followed closely behind. Ashley’s worry from moments before must have reached them from miles away.
“Thank God you’re okay,” Jocelyn said.
Jenna then turned to look in his direction. “What happened?”
“A mortal was attacked. We intervened.” Clyde summoned the courage to relive just how close he’d come to losing her. “Asher showed up and took her.”
“Clyde, you shouldn’t have been out knowing every Malum was looking for her,” Jenna said then released a breath.
Guilt flooded through him. She was right. He should’ve never taken Ashley out.
“I wanted to go out, Jenna.” Ashley rose to his defense.
“Why didn’t you call us?” Jocelyn asked him.
“I found her.” Barely, he thought.
“You better thank your lucky stars for that!” Jocelyn snapped.
“I am her guardian. I—”
“We are her sisters!” Jocelyn screamed. “You should have called us on your way to her. Where did you… What if you’d gotten killed in the process? Where would we have begun to search—”
Angels couldn’t be killed, unless they fell. He was on the verge of being, so he supposed she had a point, but he’d been too consumed with panic to think straight. Advising her sisters and the Guardians would have wasted precious time. Time, he didn’t have.
“That’s enough.” Ashley silenced everyone. She reached for his hand, clasping it in hers. “I’m safe, and so is Clyde. He didn’t need your help. The mortal needs assistance though.”
Lucas turned toward Jacob. “Take care of the mortal.” He then turned to Clyde. “How many Malums?”
“Three attacking the mortal. Ten, where Ashley was held.”
“You killed all of them?” Landon asked.
“Ashley killed one in the alley, and Asher.”
“So you killed nine in one building, alone?” Jocelyn questioned.
He gazed at Ashley, her eyes had gone wide with panic. Forcing himself to look away from her, he turned toward the Guardians. “We can discuss this later,” he replied. “What’s important is Asher is no longer a problem. Ashley took care of him, and twelve others were eliminated.”
“You killed nine to save me?” Ashley asked barely a whisper.
Reluctantly, he turned toward the sound of her voice. Horror marred her expression. Because of what he’d done or because the danger involved? He didn’t know, but it mattered. What she thought of him mattered much to him.
“Yes, I killed for you, to save you—”
“You should have called them. You shouldn’t have put yourself in danger like that. Why… How could you—”
Relief swelled. Yes, scared for me, not of me.
He cut her off. “I wasn’t thinking clearly. One moment you were there, the next you were gone. I panicked. And it would have wasted time. Who knows what could have happened.”
Tears welled in her eyes, seconds from being unleashed. “You could have died. You put yourself in… No, I did. I wanted to save…” she croaked, looking away as tears slid down her face.
He tugged her hand, drawing her toward him then he cupped her face, forcing her to meet his eyes. “No, this isn’t your fault. I made the choice. The only thing I regret is in haste to get to you, I didn’t have time to make their deaths painful, and I didn’t kill Asher myself.”
“This isn’t your fight,” she whispered.
“If it’s yours, it’s mine,” he said, firmly then added, “and it’s impossible to kill an angel unless he’s fallen.” He rubbed her tears away then kissed her lips softly.
“But you could have…”
He pulled her closer, until her body was plastered against the length of his. Buried his face in her neck, he whispered against her ear, “A man can do the unthinkable when his woman is in danger, angel.”
When he pulled away to look into her eyes, she smiled.
****
Finally, showered and clean, Ashley tried not to think of the unavoidable—everything that could have gone wrong. Clyde had recklessly put himself in danger for her. She found herself wondering if he still believed he wasn’t hers.
He was. There was no denying it to her, but she so desperately wanted him to believe it as well. He’d said when the time came, when he was called, he’d come back for her, but the anxiety of it all, the possibility he could change his mind thinking as he did that she wasn’t his, plagued her.
Didn’t you want him to reconsider for his own sake? her conscience sneered. Yes, she’d asked him to reconsider. She didn’t want him to lose his wings, but the thought of losing him terrified her.
Asher made one thing cle
ar tonight. Clyde may be hers, but she wasn’t tied to him, yet. There had been no blood exchange between them, which meant if another Malum found her, they’d attempt what Asher had, to drink her blood and mate her.
“Ash?”
She turned at the sound of his voice. Clyde stood in the doorway leading to her bathroom, shirtless with a towel wrapped around his waist, beads of water across his broad chiseled chest.
She would never tire of the sight.
“You okay?” he asked.
Her gaze went to his face, then she nodded.
“You sure?”
He closed the distance between them just as she nodded.
“Did he…” He paused. “Did he hurt you?”
“No, he didn’t,” she said calmly, trying her best to assure him.
He breathed deeply, then reached for her hand, squeezing it lightly. Her eyes searched his expression, relief now overshadowing his worry.
“Do you want to talk about anything?”
She wanted to ask why he hadn’t tied himself to her, why he hadn’t tied her to him, but there was no reason to. She knew the answer.
“No,” she lied. “Do you?”
He ran his fingers down the side of her face then said, “I just want to hold you while I sleep next to you.”
She couldn’t agree more. What he wanted was what she needed.
Chapter 19
Clyde woke in the middle of the night with Ashley draped across his chest. He smiled then inhaled deeply, enjoying her scent and her skin pressed against his. He hated to move even for an instant away from her, but his throat was dry.
Slowly, he shifted her to his side, then moved her hair from her face, pausing millimeters from her lips to admire her.
Mine, he thought with conviction then shook his head attempting to erase the thought.
He treaded toward the kitchen, poured himself a glass of water, then quickly drank its contents and placed the glass in the sink.
The scent of lavender infiltrated his scenes. Every muscle in his body tensed, then white light surrounded him. The Lords were calling him home.
His mind reeled at the thought of leaving Ashley, leaving his angel in the middle of the night alone, a searing ache sliced through his heart. No! I can’t leave her. He shook his head, fighting the pull inside him, fighting the light.
A futile attempt.
The white light brightened around him until it consumed him. He shut his eyes. I’ll be back. I’ll come back for Ashley. I vow it.
The white light that had once been a haven no longer felt as it once had: soothing, comforting or peaceful. His peace, his home, his heaven was with Ashley, his angel.
As the light receded, his eyes opened. He glared at the five Angel Lords, whom he’d proved his allegiance to for more than two thousand years.
His gaze landed on Gabriel first. “I pick her,” he said adamantly and without thought. “I want her. I’m keeping her. She’s mine. Rip my wings off. Ban me from heaven. I don’t care what you do to punish me. Torture me for all I care, but I’m going back to her. She’s mine.”
“Warrior,” Gabriel said.
“You are an angel warrior. Why else have you come when we called?” Uriel asked.
Bull shit, he thought, rage flaring inside him. He loved Ashley. He would never leave her willingly. He had chosen her. The Lords forced him to leave her, to come to the heavens where her presence was no more, and his heart ached in protest. They sent for him, and he had no option but to come.
“Send me back,” he said, his voice steeped in rage. “I need her. Send me back now.”
“Warrior, your behavior is unacceptable,” Raphael advised.
“Perhaps, we should explain,” Gabriel said. “You are a warrior angel, Clyde. Nothing can change it unless you make the conscious decision to cross into the dark and abandon our beliefs.”
“I have. I chose Ashley.”
“This isn’t about the Elemental. This is about right and wrong. Inside you are good, your spirit white. Nothing has changed it. We cannot ban you from heaven. When we call you, you will continue to come unless you cross into the dark only then will your spirit darken and sever your tie with us, with heaven.”
“I’m not leaving her.” His voice was thick with emotion.
“We know, warrior. We are aware you will never leave her for she is your soul mate,” Gabriel advised.
He tensed. Gabriel’s words replayed in his mind over and over. She’s mine? My soul mate? The perfect words to describe it. She was the other half not only to the immortal he was, but to his soul.
His deep-seated denial reared its head. “She can’t—”
“She is, warrior. This is exactly what you wanted to hear. This is exactly what you prayed for,” Ariel confirmed.
“But it can’t be, I’m an—”
“Angel,” Ariel finished for him. “But it is true.”
“You knew from the moment you met, did you not?” Gabriel asked.
“No. I didn’t because I’m an angel.”
“You are an angel—” Gabriel’s words were cut off.
“I’ve cared before. I cared for Jenna. How would I know the difference?”
“You knew when you met her, and still know the difference now. You are just unwilling to accept it for it means you forsake her,” Gabriel said.
“You never prevented Jenna from putting herself in danger. Did Jenna not go with the Guardians to rescue Jocelyn from a Malum holding her prisoner? Did you even attempt to prevent her from going? But with Ashley…” Ariel pointed out.
“Furthermore, you cannot read Ashley, and she is the only woman you have desired carnally,” Uriel said.
Bittersweet salvation. She was his, yet he’d lived denying his soul mate. In the end, he’d been as imprudent as Landon, denying his gift, his one and only, his angel. Everyone had warned him, yet he’d been blind, living in denial but no more.
“But—”
“Did you believe you would never care for another? Many of us do. We grow fond of mortals and immortals alike. It is in our nature.”
His brows drew together. “But we are taught—” he started.
“You are instructed not to grow attached for we cannot alter the future. Mortals and immortals die. The more powerfully you care, the worse the loss is. We are caring creatures, naturally. After much, we, too, can succumb to the power of loss that can lead us astray and turn our spirits black. Loss can do that to anyone, mortal and immortal alike,” Gabriel informed.
“It is the reason we discourage it,” Ariel finished.
He shook his head, unable to believe. A lie? The highest ranking angels lied?
At Clyde’s disbelieving expression, he continued, “It is a white lie. Can you not understand our need to protect our own? It hurts us as much as it hurts a parent to see one of their offspring fail.”
“But you instill in us to be immune to emotion.”
“We discourage it. There is a difference,” Raphael said firmly.
“No, but—”
“We do not punish any of our own for emotion; otherwise, you would have been punished long ago,” Raphael said.
“We discourage it for just as there is only so much suffering a mortal can endure, there is only so much suffering an angel can behold in mankind,” Uriel advised.
Clyde opened his mouth to speak but no words escaped him.
“This isn’t the first time,” Gabriel informed. “How do you believe Elementals came to be? The sisters are the first of their kind in this millennium. Their mother was an angel.”
His eyes widened, then in barely a whisper he asked, “What?”
“Your soul mate and her sisters are Elementals because their mother, an angel, found her soul mate in another immortal. How else would you explain their powers—their abilities to control the elements of the earth? Only angels have abilities as encompassing.”
He shook his head in denial. His mate and her sisters were in fact part angel? He’d lived two th
ousand years. How was it possible he’d never known?
“No. No, this can’t be,” he whispered.
“It is fact.”
Still he couldn’t comprehend, so he pointed out, “But demons were part of the first created angels and they were banned and punished because they wanted to feel, to create life. How is it different now?”
“We cannot deny everything you have said is true. Demons were part of the first created angels who chose to love, hate and create life. As punishment, they were banished from the heavens. Their wings and angelic powers removed. Furthermore, as punishment they were given the ability to feel rage and wrath more intensely. It’s the anger that turns them into demons—”
“But—”
“But nothing. She is yours,” Raphael said, his voice clipped.
Clyde’s anger resurfaced, knowing the Lords had known all long. If they’d told him, he wouldn’t have hurt Ashley. He wouldn’t have denied her.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” His accusing gaze snaring each of the Lords’ eyes. “I’ve made her suffer. I’ve denied her. I’ve lied to her.”
“We requested you not leave her. Those instructions should have been enough,” Uriel said.
“You accepted her in the end. Did you not come to us demanding you stay with her?” Gabriel questioned.
He shook his head. “That doesn’t make a difference.”
“But it does, warrior. We gave you instructions. You disobeyed. Had you not, you would have realized she was yours sooner. Furthermore, we told you, you would have to make a decision in the end of your journey,” Raphael said.
“I…disobeyed because I fought my destiny, my need for her. You should have told me.”
“You needed it to be this way,” Gabriel advised.
“Bullshit.”
“You needed to be willing to give up heaven for her. Otherwise, you would not have been deserving of her. Any angel can give in to temptation, lust and wonder at any time, but to consciously, willingly, give up heaven and your wings, it means she is yours because God, Himself, willed it,” Gabriel said. “Demons…part of the first angels created were different in that respect as well. They chose, not because they found their true mates, but because they wanted to feel like humans and other immortals, which is why they were punished.”
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