by Liddie Cain
Mac rushed back into the bedroom with Jason right behind him. They paused, Mac looking at Felix, but Felix waved him toward me. Mac stepped over and scooped me into his lap as he sat down. Jason sat down beside him and got my hand, rubbing his thumb across my knuckles and whispering little sweet words to soothe me.
Felix did reach over and touch my shoulder, his mind closed off from mine. “I must go to Darby. I’ll be back soon.”
He and Ariel disappeared from the room. I turned closer to Mac, wrapping my arm up around his neck while I squeezed Jason’s hand with my other hand. I felt more at peace after a few moments and sat up. Mac stroked his fingers back through my hair.
“I know so much has happened and there are thousands of things going through your head right now, but I am so relieved and happy to have you here with me right now.”
He kissed me sweetly, and my love for him filled me up in that moment. Jason then reached up and tucked my hair behind my ear.
“I let you down.”
“No,” Mac and I said in unison. I shook my head and continued, “Jason, there was no way for any of us to know. I was so scared you were dead.”
“Probably gonna wish I was once everyone starts ribbing me for being the guy that sex with me finishes with kidnapping.”
“Jason.” I reached out and held his face, my mouth splitting into a grin before I continued. “I finished long before the kidnapping.”
He and Mac both chuckled. I gave Jason a swift kiss then got up and finished getting ready so I could get back into a normal routine. Sitting around was only going to keep me upset over what was happening with Felix.
As I was running a straightener through my hair, I said, “Mac, I’m going to go have breakfast with Mom and Dad and sort of tell them what is going on. I don’t want them to be taken by surprise.”
“Want me to go, too?”
“Thank you, but I think I should tell them on my own. It will be emotional. Oh and I am not telling them about Monroe, so keep all that to yourself.”
He nodded, smiling. “Noted.”
Jason walked over to where I was sitting at the vanity mirror. “Can I help you in any way today?”
I studied him in the mirror and realized that he needed to be doing something because he still felt terrible about letting me get taken. I considered it for a moment before saying, “Two things. This is going to be a tough day for Darby. If I order her favorite cake from that bakery down the road from the spa, can you take it to our house? And while you are there, can you get the things that have been boxed up in my old room to bring back here? There are some photo albums and other sentimental things I’ve really been wanting to have back here. I think both of us will need some comfort items close to us tonight.”
He nodded. “Of course. You’ve got my number. Just let me know if you think of anything else. That stuff will only take a few minutes.”
Mac suggested, “She also likes that red velvet cheese-cake the bakery makes.”
“Oh, do you?” Jason grinned down at me before he wrapped his arms around me from behind and kissed my cheek. “Maybe I’ll treat you to some cake too, then.”
He made me smile so easily. Even with everything going on my feelings for him were growing quickly. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
I put my things away and gave them both goodbye kisses. I drove to my parents’ house and crashed their breakfast before I headed to work. There were a lot of things to tell them, but before I did all of that, I wanted to have a normal meal with the two of them. I hadn’t been missing long enough for them to catch on. They had been busy with switching from summer to fall flowers for a couple days and pleasantly chatted about normal things.
My mind drifted only when Dad left the table to get showered and me and Mom started to clean up the kitchen. I had two sets of parents. Remembering my heavenly mom and dad didn’t make it any less real that Evelyn and Ellison Hunt had created me into the human I was. I identified more as that person than I did my angelic past life.
Azrael was strong and quiet. He never spoke without thinking. My relationship with him had been a lot more distant that the one I had with Ellison. Azrael was one of the most prominent archangels; even humans knew of him, prominently as the angel of death. Part of his legend had led to the imagery of the Grim Reaper. But this was not all of him. Azrael was considered a warrior above all else. Eziel had been his friend and training companion. For both of them to have been taken by Felix meant that they sacrificed their freedom to give Ariel time to find me and Darby.
Hanna had been the warmth that was the perfect complement to her stoic warrior husband. She was not the type to call attention to herself but friendly and affectionate to those she knew. I was her whole world, and she was happy to just spend days with her family at home. It had been easier for me to connect with her personality than it had been with Evelyn, but Evelyn had taught me a confidence that made me comfortable in the spotlight when I had to be. Hanna never enjoyed that kind of thing.
My dad came back into the kitchen, and I sat down at the table. “I have some things to tell you.”
Mom dried her hands on a dish towel and turned to face me as Dad sat down beside me.
“I had a past life, as an angel. My name was Alidia. My memory of it has been returned to me in the last couple days. My father was the archangel Azrael, and my mother was a guardian angel named Hanna.”
They were both perfectly still and perfectly silent. This would be the part that they would be worried that I was losing grip on reality here if it wasn’t for all of the supernatural things they had faced recently. They hadn’t met Felix yet, but they had heard about him.
“Darby was also there. Her name was Naomi, and she was my best friend then, too. Felix was her brother, named Cyrus. He and I were about to be engaged.”
“Do you love Felix now?” my mother asked.
I didn’t really want to get into the betrayal and complications that existed now, so I replied, “Yes. Things are complicated because of what happened when we were living as angels, but I do love him.”
Dad reached over and took my hand before I continued. “The angel Brinna, she was here in disguise. She is actually named Ariel, and she is the mother of Naomi and Cyrus. A demon, named Devina, exploited a mistake that Cyrus made and got all of us to make deals with her in which we fell as angels into her dominion. Cyrus, now Felix, took the last deal and arranged for me and Darby to be reborn as mortals. Ariel couldn’t find us until she released our souls to be reborn and Darby was already assigned to her mom.”
I squeezed Dad’s hand and held out my hand to Mom. She walked over and sat down at the table with us and took my hand. Tears had started to slide down my cheeks as I looked back and forth between them.
“Ariel found you two. She was able to make sure that I was born as your child. She chose you because she knew how happy you would make me and how you would always be there for Darby.” My voice broke with emotion because a tear rolled down my father’s cheek.
“You made a home for her baby just as much as you did for me, your own baby.”
My mom was openly crying as she reached over to take my dad’s other hand. She asked him, “How many times did you tell me that she was a blessing from above?”
He smiled, more tears falling from his loving eyes. “When I’m right, I’m right.”
We all laughed through those tears. Then I took a steadying breath. “I’m not sure Darby knows yet so don’t say anything.”
“Roz, dear, what about Mac?” Mom asked.
“I also love him. I am with both of them.”
They were surprised. I squeezed their hands before continuing, “And another vampire named Jason has also become someone that means a lot to me.” I didn’t tell them about Darby and Sylvia because that was her news to tell.
“You are with three men at the same time?” Dad asked.
“Yes. I’m sorry, I know this will be weird for you. But I will probably keep m
ultiple partners now.”
Mom smiled. “It is uncommon, but it isn’t weird.”
“Sweetheart,” Dad added. “We lived through the sixties and the seventies. Free love isn’t a new concept to us.”
“We also know what marijuana is, dear.”
“Okay, that's enough sharing time for one morning,” I said quickly, making them chuckle.
“What happens now?” Dad asked.
“Now they are going to tell Darby, or they already have. Beyond that, the only thing I’m sure of is that I will still be here with you.”
“Can I meet Ariel?” Mom asked.
“I’m sure she would love to talk to you.”
“Good. I want to tell her how thankful I am that she blessed me with two little angels to love.”
The spa was running smoothly. Other than being relieved to see me, Darby was acting normal, so I guessed that Felix and Ariel had not spoken to her yet. She, Rose and Sylvia all met me at the door for hugs. They thankfully did not ask specific questions about what happened since we weren’t at home. I spent a couple of hours getting my work caught up in the office.
The spa’s business accounts were listed under the same login with the bank as my personal accounts. This was how I realized that I suddenly had a very large increase in my personal balance. I immediately called Mac.
“Oh, that. A large percentage of Monroe’s wealth was transferred to Felix for executing the warrant. He sent some to me and you.”
“He hasn’t spoken to Darby yet.”
“No, pretty soon after he left, he had to go to his office in Atlanta so he could turn in the completed warrant and arrange all the bank transfers. One of Devina’s nobles had contacted him already.”
“Okay, but I am not keeping this much money in my account. What am I supposed to do with it?”
Mac chuckled. “It’s your money, Dove. Donate to some charities. Hugh, the new resident vampire coming today, is coming to be the treasurer for this district. I’ll ask if he will handle our personal accounts, too.”
“Yeah, that would work.” The vampires pledged to Mac as their magistrate wouldn’t be able to hide much with Mac being able to sense their emotions.
“Doing okay?”
“Yes, I know Felix is struggling, but he is keeping me blocked off from his mind. Seeing my mom and dad made me feel a lot better. I told them the bare basics of everything that has happened. They really want to meet Ariel now.”
“Good. I’m sure she will be happy to talk to them. I’ll see you at home. Love you, Dove.”
“Love you, too.”
As I hung up the phone, Sylvia knocked then poked her head in the door. “Delivery for you.”
She walked in carrying a vase filled with tall stalks of cobalt blue delphiniums. It was a striking arrangement and an unusual choice of flower.
“That’s gorgeous.” I took the vase from her.
“From Felix?”
I picked up the card and opened it.
To Rozalyn--
Hearing of your safe return brought me joy.
I hope this gift brightens your day as this news did mine.
--Conall, King of the Unseelie Court
“No. The Unseelie King.” I handed the card to her so she could read it. The surprise on her face matched mine.
“Well, he is definitely trying to impress you.”
“Working so far,” I said pleasantly then looked at her more seriously. “Sylvia? Darby is going to learn some big news later today, and she will need you.”
“Of course. Can you tell me what it’s about?”
“It’s a lot to get into, and I’m afraid someone will hear.”
“Gotcha. Thanks for letting me know. I was going to let her go to the gym while I did some shopping, but I will definitely change our plans and make sure I stick with her.”
“Thanks, Sylvia,” I said with a smile.
She smiled as she headed back out to the reception desk. I pulled some applications and arranged some interviews for a new receptionist before I gathered my things, including my flowers, and headed back to Mac’s house.
I knew that at some point this evening, Ariel and Felix would speak to Darby. I was anxious about her reaction and whether or not she would choose to have her memories restored. So I stayed busy, getting my laptop out in the upstairs sitting room to do research on some changes I had been wanting to make both to the spa and the house here.
The new vampire Hugh found me and walked up to introduce himself. He was a very normal-looking short and stocky man with brown hair and a button-down shirt on.
“Mac told me about you, and I thought I would say hello. I’m Hugh.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Roz.”
“Is there anything I can help you out with right now?”
“Actually, yes. The donation program here has ended up being bigger than was expected. A lot of the donors end up staying the night, and sometimes there just isn’t room for everyone. I’ve been looking into some options and think a guest house on the other side of the pool verandah would be the best option. What do you think?”
“Well, I only just got here, but a new guest house would be more cost effective than expanding this house, I think. It’s within my title to get the plans drawn up and get the estimates done. I can go ahead and get all of that together for you to show Mac in a few days.”
“That sounds great, Hugh.”
“Yeah, no problem. I can already tell that the kitchen is a little undersized for the amount that it is used here, so we could probably fix that adding a kitchen to the guest house that is easily accessible from the verandah.”
I smiled because this was also an excellent idea.
He went on into some small talk before he kindly said that he would let me get back to what I was working on and walked back downstairs. He was pleasant, and I decided I liked him as I looked back at my computer screen. I strayed off from researching into online shopping.
My nerves were still getting pretty high though even as I tried to distract myself with new shoes. I wanted to be with Darby so much when they told her, but I knew that this was something she needed to do with her family. It was difficult to take a step back when I had spent two lifetimes feeling like Naomi was a sister to me.
When I felt Ariel’s presence in the house I snapped the laptop shut and rushed downstairs. She walked in with both Felix and Darby. One look at Darby’s face let me know that she knew all of it now. We were in each other’s arms a heart beat later. She started crying and I couldn’t let her cry alone. Ariel guided us to sit down on the closest loveseat as we comforted each other.
Mac walked in and sat down with us, rubbing his hand on my back. Felix and Ariel also sat down across from us. Sylvia followed shortly after and sat on the other side of Darby, comforting her as Mac was doing for me.
Still hugging Darby, I spoke into her hair. “I wasn’t going to agree to the deal Devina gave me.”
She sat back and rolled her eyes at me as she wiped away tears. “I knew that. I didn’t make the deal to keep you from making one. I just couldn’t stand knowing you were in so much pain and it was my dumb idea to sneak up on him.”
“And then I made my deal to save you. I was wrecked over the idea that you would spend eternity serving Devina and knowing Cyrus had died.”
“So we fell from grace to save each other,” Darby said.
“Then Felix saved you both,” Ariel added.
I looked at Felix, but his expression was still dark. He didn’t feel like he had saved anyone that day. He was only feeling guilt about what he had done to us and to our parents. My heart was torn in two with wanting to be angry with him but also hold him.
After Darby and I had gotten a little more control of our emotions, Sylvia turned to look at Ariel and Felix.
“Why doesn’t drinking Darby’s blood affect me like drinking Roz’s does?”
Ariel answered, “I think because Alidia asked Devina to show her what Naomi would be as a m
ortal. Devina went ahead and transformed her in that moment and then didn’t transform her back when she put her soul in stasis. It was a smart question for Alidia to ask because it made Devina show proof that she would follow through on her promise at some point in the future. When Alidia was placed in stasis, she was held in a metaphysical bubble by Cyrus that froze her in time. Devina brought that demonic essence with the soul when she collected it.”
Mac had tucked me up against him with an arm over my shoulder as she explained. I still held Darby’s hand as she leaned back into Sylvia.
“Did it take you long to know what happened?” I asked her.
“Devina was able to conceal her taking you and Naomi, but her power was not great enough to cover up the fall of an archangel. We knew then. The four of us spent a while trying to come up with a plan to get all of you back. It took us going to the lower realm to learn exactly what had happened to you and Naomi. Devina had planned ahead for this, though, and already had Felix ready for us.”
Felix spoke, his voice harsher than usual. “She had me believing that they were trying to block her battle to the throne because they were secretly friends with the current overlord. She gave me an enchanted spear that she said would bind them into deeper realms where they could not bother us but it wouldn’t count as their deaths to be held against her. My father was clever enough to save my mother from this fate, but I was successful with the other three. They are still there.”
Darby spoke up. “I just want to say that although I now clearly remember my life as Naomi and am thrilled that my mother and brother are here with me, I still think of myself as Darby, and I would prefer you call me that.”
I nodded, “It is something I’ve been thinking about a lot, too, and I think I prefer to be called Rozalyn.”
Ariel looked at Felix. “And you, son?”
“I will wear the name of Felix to remind me what my arrogance can cost me.”