Sins of the Immortal

by Jamie McGuire

  Their feelings were making me uncomfortable. Mom had told me that story dozens of times, and I knew there was some intimacy going on that night, but it was as if they’d forgotten I was in the house.

  “Please stop,” I yelled. The sudden loudness caught Levi off-guard.

  The talking turned to whispers, and although I could’ve kept listening, I tuned them out.

  Levi touched his temple to mine. “That’ll be us one day, and that’s the closest to Heaven I’ll ever get. Free to be in love with you, to hold you, to share memories with you. I can’t imagine anything more perfect.”

  “It’s not perfect. Mom misses her old life. She misses not knowing about the politics of Heaven and Hell.”

  “She wouldn’t trade her life with your dad for ignorance.”

  “No, she wouldn’t,” I said. “Not in a million lifetimes. It can be hard to watch.”

  “We won’t miss it, Eden. It’s all we know.”

  I looked up at him. “True. We’ve been at this for a few eons now. It’s so strange to have memories of both. I remember what it was like not to know you, and to have known you all along.”

  “You’re lucky. I’ve ached for you my entire life.”

  I touched his cheek and then my lips to his. Despite everything his half-human body had been through, his lips were still soft, and he held me close, pulling my shirt into both of his fists. A quiet, sweet sound resounded in his throat.

  When I pulled away, his eyes were still closed, his brows pulled in. He cupped the back of my hair and touched his forehead to mine. His breath faltered before he spoke. “I love you. I love you so much. Please don’t ever leave me again.”

  I nodded once. “I promise.”

  I helped him lay on my bed, stacking pillows for him to elevate his head. He leaned back, complaining at the many pains in his body. I could feel them, not as pain, just awareness, and it helped me to support him where needed to make him comfortable.

  I sat next to him, brushing back his dark hair.

  His eyes closed as he sighed. “This bed smells like you,” he whispered.

  I smiled. “Rest.”

  Eventually, we would have to discuss how to get Bex out of the mess he’d gotten himself into. He’d disturbed The Balance when he threatened Cassia, and for a human who wasn’t even his Taleh. Then again when he told Allison the truth. The punishment was death, but he was Levi’s protector. The Balance was anything but stable, and it was my job to fix it. I couldn’t kill my uncle even if he wasn’t biologically connected to my boyfriend, and Hell was going to cry foul either way.

  “What are you thinking about?” Levi asked, touching my lips.

  I held his hand in my lap. “I don’t know how I’m going to fix this.”

  “We’ll figure it out together.”

  “How’s that worked for us so far?” I teased.

  Levi grimaced.

  “I was kidding,” I said.

  “You’re not wrong. We need a new point of view, logical and without emotion.”

  I shook my head. “Love is how I was sent to be with my parents, how I escaped Hell, why you came to save me, and how we found each other again. Love is not the problem.”

  He blinked slowly, struggling to stay awake. “I’m a lucky man.”

  I kissed him once more, letting my lips linger. “Sleep,” I said.

  His muscles relaxed, his head fell a centimeter to the side, his breath grew deeper, and he escaped our reality for a new one. I hoped it was full of thoughts of me, too full to hold even ribbons of the nightmare we’d just endured.

  Chapter Eight

  Levi

  Eden was the last thing I saw when I fell from consciousness, and the first thing when my lids opened and eyes focused. The most beautiful creature to exist was above me, grinning and excited. If I didn’t know better, I would’ve been sure we had already won and made it to Heaven together.

  “You must’ve slept well. The vibes I’m getting from you are like pure light,” she said.

  I stretched, feeling the newly formed scar tissue tug. “That can’t be. I’m the bad guy, remember?”

  “Don’t hurt yourself,” she said. She helped me to a sitting position, making sure the pillows supported me appropriately. “If you’re the bad guy, why does everything in Hell want you dead?”

  “Because I refused to carry out my orders.”

  “Which makes you,” she pecked my lips, “the good guy.”

  I pulled her in for another kiss, unable to stop myself, but then a thought popped into my head. “Emotion,” I said, pulling away from Eden to meet her gaze.

  “Huh?”

  “Before I fell asleep, you said emotion could be the answer instead of logic.”

  “Yeah?”

  I let my head relax back. “I have an idea. But we have to be careful of who’s listening. It’s risky.”

  She shrugged. “If your plan isn’t impossible, it’s just boring.”

  I chuckled and leaned forward slowly, finishing the kiss I’d started.

  “Are you up for a shower?” she whispered against my lips.

  My muscles twinged each time I moved. I felt ten years older, maybe more. “Why hasn’t this healed?” I growled, irritated.

  Eden blinked, looking back over her shoulder. I waited to feel something too, but I could only feel love—maybe a bit of worry.

  “You’ll heal. I can sense it.”

  “What else do you sense?” I asked.

  Her gaze met mine. “You caught that, huh?”

  “Yes. It’s not Hell. What’s going on?”

  She bit her lip, clearly worried. “You should hurry. You have a visitor.”

  “A visitor?”

  She hooked my arm around her neck, helping me to stand and walking with me to the bathroom. I didn’t know I was dizzy until the third step, but she must have.

  Eden stood outside while I undressed and stepped under the steaming hot water. Once I scrubbed off soot and blood, all I could think about was asking her to join me. Just before I opened my mouth to call for her, Agatha’s voice drifted under the door.

  From their conversation, she was collecting the sheets I’d slept on and replaced them with clean linens.

  “Yes, he’s aware. Thank you,” Eden called to her as Agatha closed the door behind her.

  I turned the lever and stepped out, tying the towel around my waist. My wet hair was wavy and still dripping down my shoulders and chest, but it was the pink line across my torso that caught my eye. “You removed the sutures?” I asked.

  Eden smiled, the sunlight from the window making her platinum hair seem to glow. “Before you woke.”

  I reached out to her, and she took my hand. “I’m a light sleeper. That’s talent.”

  She shrugged, then shifted her weight away from me. Anyone else would’ve missed it, but her body language told me loud and clear. “Does me in a towel make you uncomfortable?”

  “You’re just … beautiful,” she said, making me forget all about whoever was downstairs. Her fingers traced a stream of water that had made its way down my chest, and soon all four fingertips were grazing the highs and lows of my skin, making goose bumps rise in the millions.

  I pulled her closer, wrapping her in one arm and tugging at the towel with my free hand.

  She stopped me from pulling the soft cotton away, but I planted a kiss on her mouth anyway, parting her lips and sliding my tongue inside. She grabbed my middle and pulled me closer. My body reacted violently. The bed was just feet away…

  “Levi,” she said between kisses. “You… you have a visitor.”

  “I know,” I said, unable to stop. “But I need you.”

  “Levi,” she said, enjoying my hands and lips for a few seconds more before backing away, breathless. “She’s downstairs.”

  “She?” I asked.

  After taking a few seconds to collect herself, Eden handed me a dark blue T-shirt an
d jeans. “They’re Bex’s, so the pants might be an inch too long. Agatha managed to clean your shoes, but your clothes weren’t so lucky.”

  “Whoever she is, it can wait,” I said, reaching for her again.

  “You don’t feel her?” she asked. Eden put her hand on my chest, looking up at me with her ocean eyes. “It’s your mother.”

  My hands fell away. “My mother?”

  Eden nodded slowly. “Downstairs. And she insists on seeing you now. She doesn’t trust us, not that I blame her, but she thinks it’s a trap. You should go, calm her down. She’s armed.”

  “Of course she is,” I said, yanking on my shirt.

  Once dressed, I rushed downstairs, Eden right behind me. My mother stood in a corner of the foyer, holding a very old, very sharp knife against Agatha’s throat. She seemed annoyed.

  “Mamá?”

  She turned to look at me, nearly relieved, but still alert.

  “Put the knife down, Mamá. Agatha is a friend.”

  “She touched me,” Petra said.

  Agatha frowned. “I was trying to take her sweater, sir.”

  My mother’s grip loosened, her relief at the sight of me making the severity on her face soften. “Levi,” she said, but she didn’t move. “Is it you?” She took a step away from the wall, allowing the morning sunshine to touch her black hair. The strands fell just below her shoulders in thick, shiny waves, past her prominent cheek bones. She looked the same as I remembered from my childhood: maybe a bit older, but stunningly beautiful, and not to be trifled with.

  “It’s me,” I said, pulling her to me. She was stiff, still unsure. “Ileso,” I whispered in her ear. The word was Spanish for safe, our word to let the other know all was well.

  She held me tight, my shirt already damp with her tears.

  “How did you get here?” I looked around as I held her, overwhelmed. “Who told you I was here?”

  She put away her weapon and then dried her cheeks, taking a step back. “Someone who risked everything to warn me. To warn you.”

  “About what?” Eden asked, standing behind me.

  “Is this… is this her?” My mother asked.

  I nodded, taking Eden’s left hand and in mine, cradling it and her arm against my middle. “This is Eden. Eden, this is my mother, Petra.”

  Eden held out her hand. “I’ve heard so much about you, even before I met your son. You’re legendary.”

  Mamá didn’t extend her hand, unmoved by Eden’s flattery. “You’re lucky I can’t kill you.”

  “Mamá!” I said, unintentionally laughing.

  She looked to me and spoke as if that exchange hadn’t just happened. “She has an uncle. Bex.”

  “Yes?” Eden said, her brows pulling together.

  “He’s your protector?” Mamá asked me. When I nodded, she closed her eyes. “Good. You’ll need one. You’re in danger, son.”

  I smiled. “I’m always in danger.”

  Mamá shook her head. “No. You have to listen. You’ve stolen Eden from your father. He’s disowned you. You no longer have his protection.”

  “Is that what it was called?” I asked.

  Mamá held both of my shoulders. “Bex threatened Cassia. A line has been crossed.”

  “She tried to kill the woman he loves,” Eden said, defensive.

  “Mamá, stop,” I said. She was giving me information that would most definitely get her killed.

  Mamá jerked her head to Eden, her dagger eyes sizing up my girlfriend in a way that would’ve made any other girl nervous. “Cassia led armies to kill hundreds of thousands in Lucifer’s name. She’s precious to him, and Bex didn’t just threaten to send her back to Hell, half breed. The blade he holds offers permanent death. You’ve all offended Lucifer’s pride in so many ways he’ll have no other choice but to kill you, and there is nothing more important to the Devil than pride.”

  “Hey,” I said, shaking my head. Whatever beef my mother had with Eden, she needed to control herself. “Mamá, enough. Show respect.”

  “Levi,” Mamá said, holding my chin in her hands.

  I pulled away, frowning.

  “You’re not listening.”

  “I am listening. Don’t say anything else. You’re putting yourself in danger.”

  She smiled, surprised at my answer. “You’re my son.”

  “Mamá, it’s not the first time he’s been angered, or that he’s lost. He’s always on the losing side. That’s why we need her,” I said, pointing at Eden.

  Mamá shook her head, touching me tenderly. “After all that’s been taken from Lucifer lately… it’s not a game to him anymore.” Her expression softened; her eyes filled with worry. “You have humiliated him for the last time, Levi, and killing you will kill the man who threatened Cassia.” She said her name as if were poison in her mouth. “You’re both expendable, both targets, and both at the top of Hell’s list. They’re planning it now.”

  “Who is?” Eden asked.

  “Your brothers,” Mamá said, still looking at me. She didn’t seem to want to acknowledge Eden, but I would have to figure that out later. “They’re all coming for you,” she said, her eyes glossing over. “Never have they come together to destroy. Not even in the Last War. One always stayed behind, because just two of them wreaked enough havoc to decimate an entire hemisphere. They’re all three coming, Levi.”

  “God won’t allow it,” I said. “They’ll wreak havoc on this plane. They’ll be seen.”

  Mamá shook her head. “Like Israel?”

  I paused. She was right. They weren’t punished for that, and Hell’s minions had caused a huge scene when they came for Nina and her unborn child. “This is different, though. They shelled. It was explained away as a civil war. They can’t explain the appearance of enormous demons in Providence, Rhode Island.”

  “We’ll be ready,” Eden said.

  “I knew one day we’d face them. I just didn’t…” she pulled at my shirt. “He won’t let you come back home. He’ll put you in the Oubliette for what you’ve done. I can’t see you suffer like that again.”

  “So you remember that I escaped—with Eden’s help. We can do it again.”

  She tightened her grip on my shirt, her irises dancing from my right eye to left and back again. “Levi, please hear me. This. Is. Different.”

  “I won’t let anything happen to him,” Eden said. “I won’t. I promise.”

  Mamá finally looked over to Eden, seeming tired. “You aren’t strong enough.”

  “I might surprise you,” Eden said, hopeful for some semblance of approval.

  Mamá didn’t give it to her.

  “Mamá,” I said. “Soy fuerte como mi mamá. Somos Fuertes,” I assured her.

  My words calmed her, and she nodded. Her shoulders relaxed.

  Agatha stood next to Eden. “You must be tired, Ms. …”

  My mother shook her head. “Petra,” she insisted. “It’s always been Petra.”

  “Ms. Petra, I can show you to your room. May I?” She gestured to Mamá’s single suitcase.

  Mamá nodded once to Agatha, then kissed me one more time on the cheek. “They’re coming, and they’re going to kill us all.”

  I shook my head. “The Ryels are protected. Eden is divine.”

  Mamá sighed. “That’s what I’m trying to explain to you. I don’t know what or how, but they’ve figured out a way around it. Please, my son… please be ready.”

  Agatha turned to Eden as if none of that conversation had taken place. “Breakfast in half an hour, Miss.”

  “Thank you, Agatha,” Eden said, watching as she guided Petra down the hall.

  Eden grabbed my hand and pulled me outside, closing the door behind us. “What is she?”

  “Mamá? She’s human.”

  “No,” Eden said simply.

  “No? What do you mean no?”

  “How can you not know?”

  “Eden, just
tell me what you sense.”

  “She’s… there’s something about her. I can’t quite put my finger on it. She’s alive, and she’s dead, and she’s a stranger and familiar all at the same time. She’s Hell and Earth and strength and weakness. What is that?” she said, frustrated. Her eyes were distant as she struggled to organize her feelings. “It’s not human.” She sighed. “Sorry. Sorry, that’s not what I meant. She’s not human.”

  I smiled. I knew exactly why Eden was having such a hard time. “She’s a Queen of Hell. She’s been with my father since the first war, and she gave birth to me, in Hell, and was allowed to live. When I was sent to Earth, she defied Lucifer, convinced the Prince of Darkness to allow her to keep me on this plane, and she has fought for me my entire Cambion life. She is supernaturally courageous, yes. But for now, she’s just human.”

  “No.” She shook her head, thinking. “No, it’s something else.” She stopped in her tracks. “Morgan,” she whispered.

  “Morgan? Where did that come from?”

  My words snapped her back, and she seemed even more agitated. “Something’s wrong.”

  “Wait. What are you sensing about my mother?”

  Eden scanned my face. “How did she live after you were born again? It was mentioned that she’s the only human to survive birthing a Cambion child.”

  “She didn’t. Her pelvis was broken in seven places. She hemorrhaged. She died. They tried to bring her back, but ultimately had to call a time of death. When they swaddled me and took me away, Mamá opened her eyes and reached for me. Screamed for me. They said it was a miracle. Is that what you’re feeling?”

  Eden shook her head and then snapped her eyes tight. “Morgan,” she said, upset. “Levi, I have to…” She took a step backward, but I stopped her. “Levi, something is very wrong. I have to go.”

  “Eden, wait!” I said, rushing around her. “It can wait.”

  She shook her head. “It can’t wait. And your mother’s return from Hell? It wasn’t a miracle. She brought something back with her. She’s tagged, Levi. She can’t stay here.”

  Eden opened the door and took a step outside, but she allowed me to stop her.

  “I would be able to sense a tag. There’s nothing attached to her. No demons, no entities, nothing,” I said.