by Kish Knight
“What?!” Exasperated, Brielle blew out a whoosh of breath. “What in the hell are you talking about?” Obviously, she had screwed up when she’d decided to bounce with him. Maybe taking her chances with the demons would have been better.
“You’ve become EverWitch,” the Angel said simply.
And Brielle simply stared right back at him, silent partially because she still didn’t know what the hell he was blabbing about, but mostly because she had heard that term before. The demon called Katse had used it to describe her to his demon buddies. After which, they’d all fallen back and stayed away. They’d looked frightened, and intrigued.
‘What’s an everwitch?’ she wondered, but had no intentions of asking the irritating guy in front of her. If she did, that might signal that she actually card about all of this magic mumbo-whatever.
Yet somehow, Isarin seemed to have read the question on her face.
“That’s what you are. There’s only one born on the rarest of occasions. If you, Brielle, could even realize how very rare you are, you would understand my insistence. You are the combination of a demon and an Angel’s life force, a creature that shouldn’t exist, but sometimes does. That is what we call an Everwitch.”
“Huh? Look, I just can’t-,” and then her words stopped, stuck in her throat as the Angel’s eyes suddenly blazed, and he rushed toward her, a golden staff suddenly in his hand. Brielle cried out, stumbling backward in surprise, and threw her hands forward in defense. A loud crack of energy sounded as golden flame ripped itself from her fingertips and hurtled toward Isarin, who threw up an arm to block it.
Suddenly alive with flying sparks, the air between them sizzled as her flame hit its mark.
But she hadn’t actually seen it; Brielle had covered her head hoping to ward off Isarin’s attack. When none came, she lifted her head cautiously. The Angel remained a few feet away, his weapon now gone.
Eyes wide, Brielle stared at the forearm he still held up to his chest. From wrist to elbow, a long still-smoking gash ran the length of his arm. It looked as if his arm had been slashed open with a flamethrower, torn and burned at the same time.
She was speechless. ‘I did that?’ It looked like she had; there was that fire that had flung itself from her fingers, not to mention the surge of energy that she had felt right before it had happened. But she wasn’t an imaginary creature, like them….
Brielle’s mind raced.
The Angel continued, ignoring his fresh wound, even as blood dripped freely. “That’s what you are capable of. You would be an incredible tool in this war that is going on. That’s why both sides will try to get you to fight their cause.”
Finally able to speak, Brielle paused at his words, grabbing at what she could. “Stop. War? Both sides? Meaning who, Heaven and Hell, or whatever?”
Isarin nodded. “You got it.”
“Why? You guys seem pretty capable of killing each other already. Trust me, I know.” An involuntary shudder snaked its way across her shoulders as she remembered both of the creatures falling dead at her feet earlier.
His eyes bore into her with a seriousness that burned. “Angels can kill demons, and demons can kill angels, true. But since we are both the closest thing to immortal as possible, it is a great battle to do so.” Lowering his voice just slightly, Isarin continued, “An Everwitch can strike both Angels and demons dead in one blow.”
The enormity of his statement hit Brielle like a sledge. “What?” she asked, incredulous. “You mean, when those demons had me held hostage, I could have killed them with one blow? Or even you right now?”
“Yes.”
“Didn’t feel that way. I felt weak and powerless-….oh, shit! Wait, I know what you’re talking about! I blasted one those bastards earlier, the one that came with Katse. I don’t know how I did it, but he dropped like nobody’s business.”
Isarin just nodded.
She stood and paced across the grass. “Maybe you’re not completely crazy then. Because trust me, that’s not something I knew how to do before. I’m not a freak.” Sure, she had added that last part in to needle him a bit, but who could blame her? She was being asked to believe a million damned impossible things, and none of it was anything that she wanted to hear.
….from a freaking Angel, no less.
Swinging to face him, she strode back over until she stood nose to nose with him. Even with the situation, the sight of him was dizzyingly alluring and from that close, Isaballe felt a flutter in her stomach. “Tell me how,” she demanded. “How can I suddenly do and see these things?”
Never breaking her gaze, he replied without hesitation, “Because you were in the vicinity when an Angel and demon passed from this world. An Everwitch is born when an angel and a demon die on the same day. When all goes as it should, their life energy passes through the ley between the mortal world and the ether. But….if a human is caught in the crosshairs of that ley, he or she is consumed by that energy and thus becomes Eternal. That is what happened to you.”
“And now, because of this, you contain both of their strengths. When an Angel fights, he or she fights with the powers we have given, but in your case, you can fight with the strength and abilities of both species. This makes a trained EverWitch near invincible.”
“And-,” dare she ask, “what powers do I have, other than shooting out fire?”
“Every one of your kind that I have known, gets a mix of powers from both of their donors. Usually clairvoyance and levitation from the angel side, and pyrokinesis and telekinesis from the demon side. There have been some that have inherited additional abilities as well, but those will develop as you get stronger, if so. As for right now, you have the ability to wield those powers, but need training in order to do so at will.”
Her mind was still going over the list that he had called. ‘Levitation-,’
“Me?” she squeaked in disbelief.
“Yes.” His eyes were serious. Though her incredulousness, Brielle didn’t miss his appraising glance, or the gaze that flickered over her body just once.
Suddenly struck by the reality of the night’s events, she swayed on her feet. Isarin steadied her, taking her shoulder in his hand, with a firm gentleness. Drawn to him in the moment, she leaned toward him, and her lips parted. It was the moment, she knew, but she couldn’t help herself. He too, seemed to be struck by the moment. His head bowed toward her, and it skittered through her brain that his kiss would be-
An annoying buzz cut through the air. Brielle jumped, startled. Isarin also seemed to be caught off-guard, intense look returning to his face after a second of raw emotion.
“My cell phone,” she murmured, having forgotten that she had a real life outside of whatever all of this was. After a pointed look from her, Isarin handed it over without a word. Quickly checking the display, Brielle sighed. 25 missed calls, 10 text messages, and 30 WhatsApp messages….
A couple of the messages were from the detective saying that he was leaving the diner and she could call him with any questions. One was from her off-again, on-again boyfriend, who she’d sworn off of for good. The rest were from her bestie, asking where the hell she was. Mutely, Brielle released her pent-up breath. It wasn’t time to make-out with hot guys who saved her life; she had left her friend waiting in a car for possibly hours.
‘Actually not,’ she realized, as she read the last message from her friend.
Going home. BTW, count me OUT for the hospital tomorrow.
Inwardly, she groaned. How could she have forgotten that tomorrow was the big day with her nephew and sister? Brielle closed her eyes briefly, trying to focus. But when she opened them slowly, all she saw was him.
He stood there before her, strong, masculine, powerful, and …. an Angel. One that was proposing a lifestyle that she didn’t want nor could afford. It was weird of her to even think that there was something she couldn’t have because she couldn’t ‘afford’ it, but this was that scenario. This. She couldn’t have ‘this’, what he was offering. Ev
en though a small part of her was excited by the power wafting off of his hard body, and a tendril of that same power seemed to be slivering its way through her core, enhancing her.
Changing her….
‘Family.’
“Listen,” Brielle frowned, tired of the entire awful situation, “I have a nephew. He’s sick. I can’t do this mission to save Heaven or defeat Hell or whatever. I need to get to my nephew and see if I’m a match for a kidney in order to save his life. Sorry, if that’s not what you needed to hear, but it is what it is.”
Isarin shook his head. The look on his face was almost pitying. “You’re a supernatural creature. You can’t give a kidney, blood, or any other thing to mortals. It doesn’t work like that.”
“Hell no. If that’s the case, then I quit. This Everwitch crap or whatever. I’m out. You can take back the powers and everything. Don’t need it, don’t want it.” She huffed out a deep breath laced with frustration and impatience. “Now get me the Hell out of here. I’ve got a kid to save.” Even so, she didn’t budge from where she stood; instead continuing to remain inches away from the Angel’s tempting skin.
Golden eyes studied her seriously. It was the type of gaze that saw too much, but gave nothing. Cautiously, Brielle drew in a deep breath, one filled with the warm, sensual scent of him. ‘What kind of Angel,’ she wondered, ‘exuded this much sensual energy?’
“You heard me,” she added, more to break her own current thought process than the need to drive home her point. “My main goal is to stay safe, for my- ….family.” It still felt odd saying it.”
“Then,” he said ominously, “you need to accompany us to Hell. I offer you what the demons won’t: free will.”
“Right now, it doesn’t seem like it. Now take me the Hell home.”
With a look that she couldn’t define, he took her left hand in his. “As you wish, Everwitch. But in case you change your mind, I will leave you a way to contact me.” Before she realized what he was doing, he swiped one finger down the inside of her forearm, leaving a three-inch long scratch.
In that moment, her heart stuttered and stopped, only to resume its beat louder as if two hearts were pounding in sync. It was only as she lifted her eyes from the wound to lock with his, that she realized she could hear his heartbeat along with her own. They matched, beat for beat, perfectly in rhythm.
Heat rolled along the scrape and then was gone, leaving her confused as the sound of their beating hearts silenced as well.
But there was no explanation from the Angel. “Let’s go,” was all he said.
CHAPTER 3
Surprisingly, as they left the park, he led her to a sleek, black BMW parked curbside. Admittedly, Brielle had thought that his mode of transportation would have been teleportation and said so.
“I can teleport, yes,” he agreed as they slid into the expensive car.
“But you didn’t because you drove here, right?” she finished for him.
Isarin shook his head as he pulled onto the street. Without warning, he gunned the engine and raced up the street, sliding through an amber light before answering. “No, didn’t drive.”
“So, this car-,”
“Is borrowed,” he replied, and Brielle’s jaw dropped.
“You stole this car? But you’re an Angel! Or at least, that’s what you’ve been trying to sell me all afternoon.”
“Brielle,” he stated plainly, “you know that I am what I say, simply because you’ve seen the proof with your own eyes. As for the car, I can use the gift of Sight if needed.”
She frowned. “And that means what exactly?”
“It means that a car like this parked on a street like that wasn’t going to last much longer before being stolen by someone else, about thirteen minutes more, to be exact.”
“So, because the car was going to be stolen anyway, you decide that it’s ok for you to take it?” her voice was incredulous.
“Yes.”
She didn’t have a clue how to answer that, so she just rolled her eyes and enjoyed the soft leather seats. They reminded her of home.
As good as his word, Isarin took her to her hotel without incident or another word about joining his cause.
Back in her hotel room, Brielle quickly stripped, eager to toss the clothes with the day’s grime. Dropping her blouse and slacks onto the floor of the closet, she found her favorite cotton robe and slipped it on. Good thing she had unpacked her things after arriving in town. It was such a small thing, but feeling her comfy robe slide along her skin was the closest thing to heaven at the moment.
Waiting for her, the bed probably looked more inviting than it was, but Brielle could care less at the moment. Just then, the modest hotel bed looked like the Four Seasons and she was only too grateful. Sliding into the covers made her sigh in contentment.
However, sleep came slowly to her. For a few moments, Brielle tossed and turned unhappily. Despite being buried beneath the bed’s plush duvet and cool, sleek sheets, she couldn’t rest. Her body was comfortable, but her mind raced. For some reason, she couldn’t stop thinking of the Angel that she had met earlier. Of everything that had happened to her, it was astounding that he was what her mind chose to linger over.
Finally abandoning sleep, she got up and walked over to the sliding door of the balcony, then drew the curtains aside. The night sky beyond was beautiful. It was a quiet night and stars twinkled gently in the distance above, and far below her, in the street, streetlights shone. A full moon was high in the sky, bathing everything in a silver glow. Gazing at the small patches of darkness on the balcony, Brielle had the faintest feeling that she was being studied. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling, more a feeling of being appraised.
Then, a gentle wisp of air encircled her, grazing her skin like a gentle whisper, almost as if a lover’s arms had just barely smoothed their way over hers. She felt the tension in her shoulders ebbing away, leaving her relaxed….even sensual.
Lightly placing one palm on the glass, she leaned forward, forehead against the cool surface. He was out there, she knew, and though it shouldn’t matter to her, it did. It had been a long time since any man had pricked her interest even slightly. In her world of fast money and endless celebrities, men were always there, tiresome in their showing off. But Isarin had drawn her, intriguing in his mysterious, brooding ways….sending her into musings about his unique scarlet-colored eyes.
But why was she thinking of him? They would never see each other again. It had been a chance encounter that Brielle had even found herself in that diner, and she had made it clear in no uncertain terms that she wanted nothing to do with that world. The odd magic that she had felt in his presence was not something that she would ever feel again. Especially not after she went home to her penthouse apartment and her manufactured life.
She remained at the glass door for a while longer, just looking out, until fatigue finally claimed her with a yawn that threatened to split her in two. Padding lightly back to bed, she slipped under the covers once more. This time, a few seconds after her head hit the pillow, Brielle was fast asleep.
***
Waking up was bittersweet after the day before. Brielle stretched daintily, and wondered what social events were on her schedule. A massive yawn split her face, and she lay back down groggily, only a second before remembering that she had a full day ahead of her.
‘Asmordin!’
The word reverberated around in her head with the force of a shout. Brielle flinched, diving under the covers, startled. It had sounded as if someone had screamed at her, but no one else was in the room. Cautiously, she lifted the covers and looked around the room to make sure.
No one.
‘Rek, ite sou rek! Asmordin siana pou.’ Then the voice continued in verbal assault, most of which sounded like a castigation, in a language which she couldn’t understand.
Brielle leapt from the bed. In vain, she rapidly searched the room. But as she thought, no one was there. Just her. With her hands trembling, Brielle
grabbed a tiny bottle from her bathroom cabinet and shook out one, then two pills. She swallowed them dry and then followed them with a swig of vodka. Her mornings had a reputation of being shaky, and the vodka came in handy for such occasions.
Now, the voice was silent. She sighed. “That’s better.” Slipping her pill bottle back into the cabinet, she shut the cabinet door and immediately screamed. One of the horrifying demons glared back at her from the mirrored door. Its mouth was also open in a terrifying screech, and the sound of their screams merged and blended in the glossy white bathroom.
Grabbing a marble soap dish, she flung it at the mirror, flinching as the mirror exploded into jagged shards. The miserable creature disappeared as the shards fell.
What was happening to her? A sinking feeling entered her stomach as Brielle thought back to the events of the day before. Whatever was going on, clearly had everything to do with the powers or whatever that she had inherited from Enya and that nasty demon.