Redeeming Angel

by JL Weil

  The demon hissed.

  “Boys. Boys. Boys! Cut the shit, before you piss me off,” Kira warned, sounding more than a bit miffed. She strutted between us, putting a palm on either side of our chests, separating us. “I’m in no mood to clean house.” Kira’s frown grew into a menacing scowl. “You were leaving if I’m not mistaken.”

  My head snapped up, eyes narrowing. “I was, but I’ll be back. Every. Damn. Day. Until I get what I want. This isn’t the last you’ll see of me.”

  She angled her head, a glint in her red eyes. “Oh, I’m counting on it.”

  {Angel}

  Huddled into a corner on the bed, I stared at the crisp apple, ignoring the hunger pains. I’m not going to eat that apple, I repeated like I was Snow White and Emma was the evil Queen. Huh. In reality, Emma was kind of an evil bitch.

  As long as they kept me prisoner, I was going to do every tactic my devious mind could come up with, including starvation.

  It was a lot harder than it sounded.

  Travis paced back and forth on the cold, splotchy gray floors, his cell phone pressed to his ear. I was really hoping the darker stains weren’t blood. As dark as it was, probably demon blood. Ew. The thought of hunters torturing demons down here started a campfire of rage in my belly.

  “She’s not eating,” Travis said to Chase on the other end of the phone. He’d called to check up on me. How sweet. It made me want to barf. “And I doubt she’s even sleeping,” he added.

  Give that half-demon a gold star. What had started out as an experiment, turned into another way to manipulate my newly assigned babysitters. I discovered my body no longer needed as much rest. A few hours here and there were just enough to function.

  While Travis was busy discussing my eating habits with Chase, I figured this was an excellent opportunity I shouldn’t waste. “Hey, Legolas. If I throw a stick, will you leave?”

  Silence.

  There was nothing more grating than someone not participating when you were trying to provoke them. And provoke her I wanted. Emma was quick-tempered, and I needed that hot head of hers to make a mistake—one that would get me out of here. “Cat got your tongue?”

  Her emerald eyes turned to slits. “No. I’m just visualizing duct taping your mouth.”

  I gave her credit. She was creative. “Shockingly, you aren’t the first person to say that to me, but what a good idea. Why don’t you open this cage?”

  “Why don’t you go fly a kite? Oh wait. You can’t.”

  I grabbed the bars with both hands, closing the distance between us, intending to get in her face and forgetting the bars were not my friends. I hissed as the metal seared my fingers. The air permeated with the fowl scent of melting flesh. I growled in frustration. Control was not one of my stronger character traits it seemed.

  Emma laughed.

  It sounded like acid to my ears. “When I get out of here, your little sister and mom are chop suey,” I said between clenched teeth.

  Emma shook her strawberry blonde ponytail. I wanted to yank it through the bars and play tug of war. “Ah. That never gets old,” she said with too much enjoyment for my liking.

  “You wouldn’t be so full of yourself and righteous if I wasn’t locked up like an animal. I would love to see your bravado face-to-face, hunter,” I spat.

  She pressed her face to the titanium. “Those demon eyes don’t scare me. Threaten my family again and this little hideout is going to be nothing compared to what I will do to you. Is that clear she-devil?”

  “You’re not going to harm Angel,” Chase’s voice snarled through the speakerphone. “Not one hair on her head. Do you understand me?”

  My lips twitched. “If I’m still here,” I muttered, knowing damn well he could hear me.

  Emma shot me with a legion of dirty looks. “Jeesh. We know you love her, but Earth’s—”

  “You don’t know shit,” Chase cut in. “If you did, then you would know the lengths I’m willing to take to protect her, including taking you out.”

  “Oh, I know you’re absolutely insane and extremely dangerous. I just didn’t know you where stupid as shit too!” Emma ranted like the lunatic she was.

  Travis frowned at the phone, his fingers squeezing. A small crack splintered across the screen. “Chase,” he warned, his sea-green eyes being overrun by glowing amber.

  Very little, if anything at all, intimidated Chase Winters. “And if that means killing those who get in my way, I won’t hesitate,” he roared.

  I had to admit I kind of enjoyed listening to them go at each other. The angst of it all invigorated the darkness spreading inside me.

  Emma and Travis shared a look, right before Travis exhaled roughly. “Honestly man, I think you’re what’s keeping her alive—your connection. Without it, I think she would be worse.” Travis’s eyes wandered toward me. “Way worse,” he added woefully.

  I glared, knowing what he said was probably true, and I sharpened my listening skills.

  “I know, dammit,” Chase swore. “I need another day. Two at the most.” I could hear the urgency in his voice, along with heavy doses of frustration—seemed to be a theme. That’s what the occasional shooting pangs in my chest were—his extreme frustration.

  Travis stared down at me, expression pinched. “She might only have a few more days before we lose her for good. She needs you, Chase. You’re the only one who can get through to her. If Angel is in there, I haven’t gotten a glimpse.”

  I smirked, leaning a shoulder against the back wall.

  A tormented sigh came through the other end of the phone. “You have no idea how much I hate being away from her while she is suffering. It’s tearing me up.”

  “Suffering?” I choked. How could they be so dimwitted? I was alive for the first time. I had power. I had purpose.

  Shortly after that, the conversation ended and I knew it wasn’t long before I was left alone again. Just me. The voices. My thoughts. And the mice. “He’s not telling you something,” I blurted.

  “What did you say?” Emma asked, eyes narrowing.

  “Chase. He has a secret.”

  “How would you know?”

  I gave the hunter the stink eye.

  “Right. Dumb question. Of course you of all people would know. So what is it?”

  “You really aren’t the brightest bulb in the shed. The bond doesn’t work that way. I can tell he is hiding something, but I’m just as clueless as you are. If he wanted me to know, he’d share.”

  “Can’t you…I don’t know…make him tell you? Use your bond?”

  “I could…if my abilities weren’t being snuffed by this prison.”

  She eyed me for a moment. Girl to girl, we both knew what I was doing, taking an opportunity to gain my freedom, including using every situation to my advantage.

  Travis ruined it. “Nice try, Angel. If Chase isn’t telling us something, then he has his reasons.”

  “So trusting. Do you really believe he is going to be so forthcoming?”

  Silence.

  “Let’s cut the bull. We all know he would let the world burn if that was what it took to save his precious Angel,” I prattled.

  Travis’s mouth opened and I saw him form words, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. My palm sprung out, flattening on the cold wall. Black dots circled behind my eyes, and I knew what was about to happen next. I was going to hit the floor. I heard a gasp as I went down, and I wasn’t sure if it was Emma’s or mine.

  Thump. My head hit the side of the bedframe, and that was it—lights out.

  Chapter 7

  {Chase}

  I strolled into the small square bathroom with only one thought on my mind. Shower. Checking out the bathroom, there were neatly folded towels and travel-sized soaps, shampoos, toothbrush, and toothpaste. A good thing, as I realized my dumbass forgot to bring anything, except the change of clothes I kept in my car for emergencies, and this definitely was what I called an emergency.

  The hiss of the shower drenche
d my face, beating down on my body. I thought about Kira and Angel. My mind spun, trying to come up with ways to get Kira to give me privileged information. I hadn’t been bluffing when I said I wasn’t giving up. Of course, time wasn’t on my side. Not only because Angel was falling deeper and deeper into the darkness, but one of the demons who’d been at the bar probably was already squealing like a bitch. I figured I had less than twenty-four hours before Alastair and his goons showed up to take me out.

  Let them come.

  My heart did a funny thing in my chest. Speeding up just as the demon inside came clawing to the surface. I dipped my head back under the stream, hands placed on the tiled wall. Something was building in my chest, a rising darkness I managed to keep at bay, but there was no denying him now.

  Panic squeezed me, my hands curling into fists.

  Shit.

  My demon pretty much took advantage of my tiredness and all the crap being drudged up. There was nothing I could do to stop it. Had I known my defenses would weaken coming here? Yes. Was it probably one of the craziest things I’d ever done? No doubt. Was I going to give up? Hell no.

  I could only hope he didn’t shred the room to pieces.

  Fifteen minutes had gone by since I’d been in the shower. I turned the faucets, shutting off the water, thinking losing my cool naked in the shower was not a good idea. My hands trembled a little, but I managed to make it out of the shower and tug on a pair of sweats without tearing the sink off the wall.

  Who was I kidding?

  This place was going to look like a cyclone came through if I wasn’t able to get a grip. Just as I entered the bedroom to grab a bottle of water, there was a knock on the door.

  Son of a bitch.

  Now was not the time for room service.

  I put a fist to the wall and yelled, “Go away.”

  Another knock sounded, louder and harder. The door shook under impact. Whoever was on the other side had a death wish. I growled, eyes going all glow-in-the-dark, and threw open the door. “Did you not hear what—?”

  “Oh, I heard you. The whole motel heard you, but I figured you’d want to see me.” She pushed the door wide open and strutted her high-heeled mighty self into the center of my room.

  I had to say as meatsuits went, this one was top of the line. “I thought you weren’t going to help me?” I snapped.

  Her brows knitted. “Ah, that. Didn’t anyone tell you demons are liars?”

  I frowned. “I also thought demons didn’t have hearts. What’s your deal? Why are you here?” I was hanging on by a thread. Her timing couldn’t have been any worse, but I needed to find a way to rein him in. This was the whole reason I’d come here—to find a demon with intel.

  Making herself right at home, she sat on the edge of the neatly made bed. “Because just as you’re not like most halflings, I’m not like most demons.”

  Swinging the door shut, I turned with a frown. “Meaning what?”

  She crossed her long legs, the denim shirt she wore hiking up her thighs. “Are you to going to at least offer me a refreshment?”

  “Sorry. The minibar’s been ransacked.”

  “Pity. You look like you could use something to calm the beast. Are you feeling okay, or is the Nevada heat getting to you?”

  My scowl only darkened. “How about we cut the crap and you tell me what I want to know and save us both the trouble of dealing with my not-so-friendly side?”

  Her lips thinned. “Well, for starters, I’ve been banished to this realm for over a century.”

  My mouth dropped. “You’re stuck here? I thought demons weren’t capable of living on Earth for that amount of time. Maybe a year at most, if they were lucky enough to inhabit a host and find an ample supply of life to steal.”

  “All true. I told you I was different.”

  I leaned my back against the wall. “What else?” I didn’t like surprises, and Kira was becoming a mystery to me.

  She gave me a meaningful look. “If I told you all my secrets, I’d have to kill you.”

  I opened the door. “Then we’re done here.” I was seventy percent positive she wanted something from me as well. We were using each other. So I hoped, otherwise I was making a huge mistake.

  “I’ve already said more than I should,” she huffed.

  I thought back to last night, recalling our conversation. It was hard to draw up the memories when my demon was knocking at the door, but there was one question that stuck with me. “What did you mean when you implied we have something in common?”

  She sighed, tapping her foot in the air. “Our bloodlines have crossed.”

  Swinging the door shut for a second time, I crossed my arms as the wheels in my head started turning, and the conclusion I came to dropped my heart. “You’re talking about Travis and Lexi, aren’t you?”

  She got a far-off look in her red-rimmed eyes, and her lips turned down in what I didn’t think demons could show. Emotion. Sadness if I was correct. “How is Devin?”

  Holy shit.

  This was…the demon who had seduced Dev not once but twice. She was Travis and Lexi’s…I refused to say mother, because she had never come to being anything close to resembling a mom. Egg donor?

  What did I say to the demon who birthed my two cousins? Nice to meet you, Auntie?

  I didn’t think so.

  My first instinct was to go for the throat.

  I choked on my own breath. “What do you want?”

  “A chance,” she responded.

  I shook my head. “No. Hell no. I’m not letting you anywhere near them.” My fingers dug into my palms.

  A smug smile curved on her bold cherry lips. “I think we both know you’ll give me what I want. What other choice do you have?”

  I dropped my shoulder, slumping against the wall. Dread blossomed. This was not what I pictured when I made the decision to dance with demons. I hated being cornered, but like she’d said, what choice did I have? I knew I would have to make tough decisions in order to save Angel; I just hadn’t realized how much it would reflect back onto my family.

  My vision started to turn red, a humming ricocheting between my ears.

  “Chase, focus. This is what you want.” Her voice had a hypnotic texture, smooth and bewitching. It was a technique I knew well. Compulsion.

  “I am focused… On ripping your head off.” Full possession was right around the corner. Everything was seen through an enflamed haze, and it clicked. Kira was causing this little unbridled outburst inside of me. She was doing something to pull my demon forth, and I had walked right into it like a good, obedient puppy.

  “Well, I can see this is going nowhere.” She stood up and flashed in front of me, nothing more than a quick blink. Her eyes bathed the room in a reddish glow.

  A flare of rage rose up and snatched me. “You made an epic mistake,” I managed to mumble. Kicking Kira’s ass wasn’t part of the plan. But plans changed. I was a flexible kind of guy.

  “I don’t make mistakes. Humans do.” Then the bitch hit me. Not a girly kind of hit either. She punched like Muhammad Ali.

  My head snapped back; a hammering thundered and rattled my brain. As stars danced behind my eyes all I could think was this was bad, but my brain never really caught up with the precarious situation I was in. At the mercy of a demon was no place I ever thought I would find myself.

  Damn. I really hate demons.

  It all went black.

  {Angel}

  The room wafted with Channel perfume and Kors leather. A pair of snakeskin print Jimmy Choo’s came into view and stopped just outside my cell. “I wondered when you would show your face, blondie,” I said, not bothering to get up.

  “Angel?” Lexi hesitated, tiptoeing closer.

  I rolled to my side, looking at her for the first time. “What took you so long? I thought we were BFFs and shit.” I was getting tired of pretending to be the “good” Angel, and I was seriously sick of these four walls.

  “They wouldn’t let me see you
.” So much emotion in that tiny voice.

  “What a pathetic excuse. I thought you cared about me.”

  “I do care. You know I do.” Tears clogged her aqua eyes like a turbulent sea. “You’re the only real friend I’ve ever had.”

  Ah. Break my heart. I thought I was going to barf something rancid. “Then help me. I can’t stay here another night. Lexi, look at me. That awesome tan I used to have. Gone. Now my skin looks like Dumbo’s.”

  Her eyes ran over my pathetic appearance. “You really do need a facial and some vitamin B. Don’t get me started on your hair. If I knew what wretched conditions they were keeping you in, I would have…”

  “What? Brought in a team of stylists?”

  The small dingy space did nothing to dull her sparkle. “I can see your love for clothes and beauty hasn’t changed. That’s encouraging.”

  Whatever helped her sleep at night. She was clinging onto hope her friend was still in this body. It was false hope, but I didn’t want to crush her poor little spirits. “God, you make me sound like a monster.”

  She wrinkled her button nose. “Well, you kind of went crazy.”

  “Disappointed? Don’t care. If you came to see your BFF, she’s gone out for the evening.” Sitting up, I swung my legs over the side of the bed, my bare feet hitting the chilly concrete. “But maybe we could be friends.”

  She shook her pretty blonde hair, so perfect, not a hair out of place. “I didn’t want to believe them. Chase is totally stressed out. I’ve never seen him like that. He’s out there, putting himself in harm to try to find a way to cure the darkness.”

  The little wheels in my corrupted mind started to turn. What was he up to? “And if there is no cure?”

  She angled her neck to the side, analyzing my face. “I don’t think I will ever get used to your eyes.”

  I blinked.

  A glare of sadness crossed her face. “You of all people should know Chase isn’t about to take no for an answer.”

  I would have to have the world’s most determined boyfriend on the planet. “Right,” I said, tapping a finger on my dry bottom lip.