A Candle in the Sun

by L. J. LaBarthe

  It was perhaps two hours before dawn. Gabriel had noticed Angelique leaning into Declan and stifling a yawn every so often, Liam and Baxter cuddled up together by the windows, and Lily and Riley seated near Hiwa and Ahijah. As Uriel shouted out to Raziel, suggesting he tell another story, Gabriel got to his feet and moved to sit a little way from the main group of his choir and the Archdemons.

  He needed to think. With the pleasant dullness of alcohol thrumming through him, Gabriel leaned back against the wall of Ondrass’s rooms and half closed his eyes. He could see the auras of all who were present when he looked at them like this, see the rainbow of colors that identified each angel and their power, the murkiness and shadow of the Archdemons that did the same thing. And the Venatores, their auras a coalescing rainbow of browns for Earth, blue for the sea, and gold for Michael.

  Although the fate of Transom had been something of anticlimax for Gabriel and his companions, he really couldn’t have asked for a better result. Gabriel felt that it was best that humanity took charge of such things, that they acted on their own initiative based on their own powers of logic and deduction rather than relying on the abilities and powers of angelkind and their allies. Oh, Gabriel didn’t deny that having the Venatores was a valuable asset; he was of the opinion that they should be used as liaisons between angelkind and human law enforcement as required, and other humanitarian agencies. He turned his head slightly, looking over at Angelique and her pack, at Liam and Declan, at Hiwa and Ahijah, and he smiled to himself. Even though Hiwa and Ahijah were immortal, they were still young by angel- and demonkind standards.

  Gabriel opened his eyes and blinked a few times, then stood up and stretched. The feeling of being drunk was wearing off—it was rare that he stayed truly drunk for more than an hour—and he felt pleasantly relaxed. He decided he’d go and talk to the young ones and then he’d go to Belle Coeur and find Michael.

  “Hi Gabe,” Angelique said, pushing herself up as he sauntered over.

  “Hey. You look tired,” he said.

  “I am.” She yawned, hiding it behind her hand. “’Scuse me!”

  “You should get to bed,” Declan said.

  “Yeah, yeah. So what’s up?” She looked at him and Gabriel smiled.

  “Nothing. For the first time in a very bloody long time, I can actually say that nothing is up, nothing is down, nothing is sideways or backward. It is, blessedly, calm and quiet. So, I want to tell you kids to go to bed and get some rest. I reckon you’ll be hearing from Mike tomorrow, and I reckon you’ll be getting some R and R.”

  “Yeah? Awesome,” Declan said.

  “Yeah, you kids deserve it. So, can I make a suggestion?”

  “Sure, go ahead.” Angelique and Declan spoke in unison and then laughed. “We’re finishing each other’s sentences now,” Angelique said. “Soon, we’ll be the Declan-Angelique robot and you’ll have to kill us.”

  “No killing,” Gabriel said, waving his right index finger at them in a scolding gesture. “We’ve all had enough of that for a while, yeah? Aye, so, here’s my suggestion. Declan, you and Liam take Angelique here and the pack to Puerto Rico. Go stay with your adopted mom and dad. Relax in a place that you love, with people you love who love you back. Share the joy.”

  Declan had straightened as Gabriel spoke and he was nodding. “Yeah. That’s a damn good plan, Gabe. If Mike gives these crazy kids some time for a vacation, we could totally do that.”

  “I’ve never been to Puerto Rico,” Angelique mused.

  “You’ll love it,” Gabriel said sincerely.

  “I’m sure I will,” she said, just as sincerely.

  “Aye, so go to bed.” Gabriel reached out and touched first Declan’s then Angelique’s shoulders. “You don’t need to listen to Uri and the others telling increasingly ridiculous tales of the past, and they’re just gonna get more and more drunk and the stories are gonna make less and less sense.”

  “You seem pretty sober, considering how much you’ve drunk,” Angelique said.

  “Aye, well, I know my limits.” Gabriel ruffled her hair. “I’m going to see Michael now. Be good, get some sleep. All of you,” he added, raising his voice a little so the rest of the pack, Liam, Hiwa, and Ahijah heard him. “Rest and relax. Our new world of hope and peace is young, aye, but it’ll last and last well.” He brought his hands together in front of him, and bowed. “Go and sleep.”

  “Thanks, Uncle Gabe,” Hiwa said.

  “Any time, Scamp,” Gabriel said, grinning at him. “Right, I’m outta here. Talk to you all tomorrow. Sleep well, when you actually get to sleep.”

  From Liam, Baxter, Declan, and Angelique there was laughter; from the others, there were shy smiles. Gabriel nodded to himself and turned. He caught Ondrass’s eye then, the Archdemon leaning against his bar, and Ondrass raised his glass in silent toast to Gabriel. Gabriel inclined his head in reply, and then he moved, teleporting directly to Belle Coeur.

  Humidity hit him like a hot, wet slap to the face, and Gabriel stumbled, swearing quietly under his breath as he began to sweat. “Bloody stupid humid summer,” he muttered to himself, wiping his forehead with the back of his right hand. He had emerged in the world on the narrow, sandy path that led from the seashore to the main house, and he walked up to the building in long, even strides.

  The doors were all open and the ceiling fans were going, circulating cool air. As Gabriel stepped into the entry hall, he smiled to himself as he heard Michael calling him from the bedroom.

  “Gabriel?”

  “Aye, it’s me.” Gabriel walked down the corridor and into the bedroom, his smile growing as he took in the form of Michael, lying on the bed, rubbing his eyes as he blinked at Gabriel. “You okay?”

  “Yes. I was merely listening to the sounds of the planet and I was deeply engrossed,” Michael said. “Forgive me, I did not hear you arrive.”

  “Naught to forgive, solnyshko.” Gabriel moved to sit on the bed beside his beloved and ran a hand over Michael’s hair, mussed and, in some places, sticking up like a haystack. “You were really deeply engrossed, huh? You’ve got bed hair.”

  “Bed… hair?” Michael looked at him in confusion.

  “You know, when you get out of bed after lying down for hours and your hair’s all messy?” Gabriel stifled the laughter that bubbled up inside him as Michael’s expression cleared. “That’s bed hair.”

  “Oh. Then yes, I was engrossed enough to acquire bed hair.”

  “Also,” Gabriel said, making it sound as innocuous as possible, and privately delighting in the anticipated reaction, “bed hair comes when you spend loads of time in bed having hot sex.”

  Right on cue, Michael blushed crimson and gasped. “Gabriel!”

  Gabriel burst out laughing and he leaned over and hugged Michael. “I love you.”

  “I love you as well, but it is not seemly to….”

  “Hush.” Gabriel cut Michael’s words off by the simple act of kissing him.

  “Gabriel, if it is no trouble, could you please go and brush your teeth? You taste of alcohol.” Michael broke the kiss, looking a little sheepish.

  Gabriel ruffled Michael’s hair and stood up. “No problem, baby. I should’ve done that before.”

  “I did not mean to offend—”

  “And you didn’t. I’ll be right back.” Gabriel gave his lover a grin and then he went into the bathroom. He picked up the tube of toothpaste and his toothbrush, popped the cap and squeezed a generous amount of paste onto the bristles. Then he got down to the serious business of cleaning his teeth. There was something surprisingly relaxing about this simple act, Gabriel thought. He felt pleasantly comfortable in his form as he rinsed out his mouth and the toothbrush, putting it and the tube of toothpaste back on the shelf above the sink.

  Gabriel retraced his steps and returned to sit beside Michael on the bed. “All done.”

  “I am glad.” Michael smiled. “How is everyone in Portland?”

  “Well, I can’t speak for the whole
population, ’cause I didn’t take a survey….”

  “Gabriel,” Michael scolded, “that is not what I meant.”

  “Sorry. I’m in a good mood, I can’t help but tease.”

  “I confess that it is pleasant to be teased by you again. It has been some time since I have seen you so… carefree, I suppose is the word. Yes, carefree. You appear to be far more relaxed and at peace now than I have seen you since before the war.”

  Gabriel leaned back on one arm. “Aye, I guess because I am. I mean, it hit me while we were in Colorado—being preempted by humans was a surprise. But Arthur made a damn good call, even if his reasons were different from how I interpreted them.”

  “What do you mean?” Michael mirrored Gabriel’s posture and Gabriel reached out with his free hand and took Michael’s own, twining their fingers.

  “Well, I reckon his reasons had to do with getting those bastards into custody so they could answer for their crimes and be held accountable, give the families of the victims the satisfaction of seeing justice done. And I completely agree with that motivation, it’s the right reason. But for me, there was more to it. Like, I think it’s important that humanity as a whole deal with criminals of its own species. I don’t think they should ever get complacent and think that Archangels and Archdemons will take care of it. Aye, they know we exist. They can’t help but know we exist thanks to the media coverage of the war. Which is what it is, really. But things like this, justice and law and human rights and stuff? They should take the lead on these things and we should be assistants to them, not the other way round.”

  Michael nodded slowly, his expression thoughtful. As Gabriel finished, he let out a quiet sigh. “I agree,” he said. “I confess that I was growing concerned that humanity would come to depend on us more and more. I did not wish to speak of it, for I thought that I was alone in these concerns. But I see that I was not, and I am both glad and sad—glad, because I always take comfort in sharing these things with you, but sad because I did not wish to be right in this instance.”

  “I get it.” Gabriel gave Michael’s fingers a gentle squeeze.

  “You do?”

  “Aye. We’re supposed to protect and to guide, right? That mandate doesn’t include things like delivering justice on the living and superseding human courts and laws. We judge a soul after death, not before.”

  “Yes, that is exactly what I was thinking. I am glad that we agree.”

  “We agree on loads of things,” Gabriel said.

  “It appears so. Did anything of interest occur while you remained with the others at Ondrass’s tower?”

  “No—oh! I said you’d call Angelique tomorrow. I said that it was my opinion that they should take some R and R, and that Declan and Liam should take the pack to Puerto Rico.”

  Michael pursed his lips. “Hm. To visit with Selana and Jake, yes?”

  “Aye.”

  “I see. Yes, all right, I will approve that. They do need some rest, and spending it with the good people of Puerto Rico will be good for all of them. Very well, I will telephone her in the morning.”

  “Awesome.” Gabriel shuffled closer and rested his forehead against Michael’s. “It’s been a very busy century.”

  “Indeed.” The vehemence with which Michael said the word made Gabriel grin. “It nears its end, however.”

  “Aye. I hope the next one’s a bit quieter.”

  “As do I.” Michael let go of Gabriel’s hand and reached up to touch Gabriel’s cheek. “I wish to spend many days in your company. I wish to walk through the lands of this beautiful planet with you and commune with nature. I wish to stand beside you as we assist people with rebuilding their homes and communities. I wish to spend my evenings enjoying music and dancing with you.”

  “And after the dancing, coming back here and lying on the beach, looking at the stars,” Gabriel said.

  Michael’s smile was wide and bright. “I would like that a very great deal.”

  “Then we’ll do it. We ain’t gone dancing for years.”

  “I have missed it, in truth.”

  “Then that’s the first thing we’ll do.”

  “As you say.” Michael hesitated a moment. “Do you think we will be required to assist much with these trials?”

  “I don’t know. Tzad’ll let us know about that. I think the kids will have to appear in court to testify about Yaak, and they’ll probably call Danny too, so we should be there for Lily and the rest of the pack when he’s there.”

  Michael’s expression darkened briefly and then cleared. “I agree.”

  “Apart from that, I think the bulk of it will fall onto Tzad and Raz. And Uri won’t let Raz overwork himself, and Brieus and Sophiel will take care of Tzad.”

  “As you say.”

  “So, would you do something for me?”

  “Anything,” Michael said without a moment’s pause.

  Gabriel smiled at that. He couldn’t help it. Michael’s instant and unquestioning response to him filled his heart with an emotion he couldn’t quite identify. It wasn’t just love—it was stronger than that, and it filled him with warmth. “Kiss me,” he said.

  “Always,” Michael replied. He closed the distance between them and kissed Gabriel.

  Gabriel fell back onto the bed, wrapping both of his arms around Michael and pulling him on top of him. The kiss quickly deepened, becoming full of passion and desire, and Gabriel let out a soft moan as he felt one of Michael’s hands slip beneath his clothes and touch his chest.

  “Michael,” he murmured as the kiss broke.

  “I desire you,” Michael whispered.

  “Aye, want you too,” Gabriel said.

  Michael kissed him again, harder this time, hungrier, biting at Gabriel’s lower lip, and Gabriel groaned again, louder than before. He used his power to get them both naked, not wanting to release Michael, not wanting to remove his hands from Michael’s body for any reason. As he ran his hands down Michael’s back then up again to his wing joints, Michael let out a low growl and started rocking into Gabriel, his cock rubbing against Gabriel’s own.

  “Michael,” Gabriel panted, breaking the kiss and arching into his lover.

  “Yes?”

  “Fuck me,” Gabriel managed to pant out.

  For once, Michael didn’t scold his choice of language, and Gabriel felt a soft brush of power as Michael slicked himself. He was eager and willing as Michael shifted, raising his legs as Michael’s hands moved to his knees. He groaned loudly as Michael moved his hands down his thighs to his pelvis, fingers teasing Gabriel’s pubic hair and around the base of his cock.

  “Michael,” Gabriel said, unable to keep the whine of desire out of his voice.

  “Patience,” Michael said. He moved his hands lower, to the hot skin between Gabriel’s thighs, and with teasing touches soon had Gabriel writhing and whimpering. Gabriel cried out when he felt a finger at his entrance, the tip of the finger teasing just inside, and as he felt another whisper of Michael’s power, he felt Michael slip the finger oh so slowly inside him.

  The first finger was soon joined by a second and then a third, and Gabriel moaned louder and wantonly, lowering his legs so he could brace his feet on the bed, keeping his thighs as wide apart as he could. Michael hummed and added a fourth finger and Gabriel cried out, bucking helplessly into it as Michael fucked him with all four fingers.

  “More?” Michael purred, and Gabriel fuzzily wondered when Michael had become so good at this, driving him wild with need and lust, making it near impossible for him to think, let alone form coherent words.

  “Uh-huh! Yes!” Gabriel gasped out and then all thought vanished as he felt Michael slowly push his thumb and the top of his hand into him. He gave voice to a loud yell even as he took hold of his cock and stroked himself with a clumsy hand.

  “Mm, Gabriel,” Michael said, leaning forward to plant a kiss on the come-slicked head of Gabriel’s cock. “I have wished for you for so long.”

  “I’m yours,” G
abriel said. “All yours, only yours, always yours.”

  Michael gave him a sweet, loving smile, and then lowered his eyes to gaze at Gabriel’s cock. He licked the head once, and then teased the slit with the very tip of his tongue, and Gabriel, in response, found himself unable to say anything more than soft wordless cries of pleasure and desire.

  A moment later, Michael withdrew his fist from Gabriel’s body, and Gabriel, trembling, gazing at his beloved with lust-love-hazy eyes, whimpered as Michael shifted again, both of his hands going to Gabriel’s hips as he repositioned himself and pressed his cock all the way into Gabriel in one hard, fast thrust. Gabriel lifted his legs and rested them on Michael’s shoulders as Michael’s hands gripped his hips hard enough to bruise, and as Michael began to move, hard and fast, setting an almost brutal pace, Gabriel raised his own arms above his head and gripped the edge of the bed.

  “Mine,” Michael said, his voice rough. “My love, my bondmate, my Gabriel.”

  “Always,” Gabriel said.

  Michael let go with one hand and wrapped it around Gabriel’s straining cock, stroking him in time with his thrusts, panting as he fucked Gabriel, the sounds quickly becoming groans. Each time Michael was balls deep inside him, Gabriel clenched down hard around Michael’s cock, flexing his muscles and using every trick he knew to bring Michael the most pleasure. It didn’t hurt that he was feeling very, very good, either, but Gabriel was so intent on Michael that his own pleasure was secondary in his hazy thoughts.

  Michael’s strokes of Gabriel’s cock grew quicker and he rubbed the head of Gabriel’s cock with his thumb, teasing over the slit. Gabriel watched Michael touch him, fuck him, and it was that sight, just as much as his lust and his pleasure, that sent him over the edge, and Gabriel soon came with a hoarse shout that was Michael’s name.

  A low growl came from Michael as Gabriel orgasmed over his hand. He drove his hips forward hard and fast, and several moments later, he stilled. Gabriel watched as Michael’s entire body went taut, muscles stiffening, as Michael came, a wordless cry coming from him. As soon as Michael relaxed, Gabriel, feeling pleasantly full and almost boneless, used his power to flip them so that he was on top and sitting on Michael’s lap, his lover’s cock still buried inside him.