by Kailin Gow
Shaking his head in disbelief, he kept his eyes on me. “Strange, but I had a feeling you’d be here, even though I knew that was impossible. I’d missed you so much these past days and my desire to see you was so great, it began playing tricks on my mind. But they weren’t tricks. You really are here. But, how?”
I grabbed the cuff of his jacket sleeve and pulled him in, slamming the door behind him.
Breathlessly, he leaned back against the door and stared at me. Love shined bright in his eyes while lust clung to the luscious lips he licked so thoughtfully.
“You look good,” I said, my body automatically reacting to him with warmth and desire.
He gave me a quick once over. “So do you. You look terrific.” Once again he licked his lips. “Damn, Lux. You have no idea how difficult these past days have been. I’d lost you.”
Wistfully, he held his hand out to me and I put my hand in his.
“I thought I’d lost you forever.” He squeezed my hand. “I never knew anything could hurt so bad.”
“Well, I’m here now.”
He pulled me into his arms. “Yeah, and I don’t think I’m going to let you out of my sight.”
I chuckled, the sound rumbling against his chest.
“I’ve been a wreck. The guilt of not being there for you gnawed at me and just about drove me nuts.”
I pulled back to look at him. “You have nothing to feel guilty about, Asher.”
“Yeah, well, I’m just happy you're back.” He cupped my cheeks and leaned in to kiss me. Tender and innocent at first, his kisses pecked across my cheeks, up my temple and over my eyes, but an intense heat suddenly came to his kisses as his lips met mine. His arms slithered around my waist, and his hands dipping just over the edge of my low rider jeans.
Our breaths mingled together and our bodies pressed closer.
“I’m sorry,” he finally said as he pulled back, his voice husky and leaden with passion. “You’ve just been through an unbelievable experience and here I am ready to devour you.”
“I have to admit, for a minute there, all I wanted was for you to devour me.” I smiled.
He looked so good. His hair was wind blown and his eyes still held a gleam of lust. His leather jacket hung open, showing off the tight black t-shirt underneath. He was such a beautiful specimen of a man.
“Thing is, though,” I went on, “I’m on a mission and I don’t have much time. Are you with me?”
“Yeah, sure. You know I am.”
“This could be dangerous.”
“I didn’t exactly think you were asking me to help weed your flower bed, Lux. I know what you're all about. Dangerous is pretty much your middle name. Besides, I know you wouldn’t ask me to help if it wasn’t important to you.”
“It is.” I was still reluctant to come straight out and tell him what I had in mind.
“Look, you know I’ll do whatever you want me to do, go anywhere you want me to go. If anything, losing you made me realize just how important you are to me, and I want to prove to you just how much you mean to me.”
“Great. I don’t think I’d be able to do this without you.”
He pinched my chin. “I didn’t have the guts to admit this before, but now I know I have to come out and say what I feel. I love you, Lux.”
I stared blankly on him. His declaration came out of left field and blew me away.
“Sorry. I know that came out of nowhere and it’s probably not what you want to hear right now, but…”
“No,” I said with a snort. “It’s okay. I’m just a little surprised. I mean, I know we’ve gotten close and…”
“Look, I’m not looking to hear the same from you, not that I wouldn’t love that. With everything that’s happened lately, I just wanted to let you know… you know…”
“In case something happens to me again?”
He smiled and planted a sweet kiss on my brow. “So,” he said with a clap of his hands. “What is it you need me to do?”
“We need to go to Hades.”
“Seriously?” he said as he took a step back. Raking his strong fingers through his thick hair, he shot me a skeptical gaze. “Hades, huh? Wow. That’s quite a journey.”
“Are you up to it?”
He gazed down at our feet. For a fearful moment I thought he’d back out.
“You want to go there because of Brax and Moore, don’t you?”
“I promised,” I said with a slight nod. “I was supposed to keep them safe. I was supposed to look out for them and now…. I have to do what I can to make it right. I have to at least try.”
Asher was silent for a long moment.
“Are you still with me?”
“Right beside you,” he said as he reached out and took a firm hold of my hand.
Chapter 2
With a sense of urgency, but feeling more confused than ever, I walked back into the kitchen. While I knew what I had to do and knew that I had to do it, I didn’t know where to start. I’d heard of the ritual regarding angel markings, but had never witnessed one, much less taken part in one.
“What’s the matter, honey?” Mom said as I shuffled in and sat on a stool at the breakfast counter.
Absent-mindedly, I reached for the toast she’d left on her breakfast plate, peeled off the crust and chewed on it.
“Who was that at the door?” She nudged a glass of grapefruit juice my way.
“Asher.” I took a sip of juice.
“Oh, how wonderful.” She looked more closely at me as she sat on the stool facing me. “You don’t look too happy about it. I thought you liked Asher.”
“I do, Mom. It has nothing to do with Asher. I just… I have to help Moore and Brax and I don’t know where to begin. I mean, I know I have to go…” I didn’t want to tell her too much. I knew she’d just worry more about me if she knew the extent of what I intended to do.
She smiled as she poured a fresh cup of coffee into her older brown ceramic mug with the big coffee bean on it. “I appreciate you trying to keep me from worrying about you, but it’s my job. No matter what you have to go out there and do, I will worry.”
“I know, Mom, but I think it’s best you know as little as possible.”
“Okay, maybe you're right, but if you’re really uncertain what to do now, maybe you could call your father.” Averting her gaze, she took a small sip of her hot brew.
“Dad?” It was a strange suggestion, to say the least.
“Oh, no. Not him. He wouldn’t be of any help at all. I meant your biological father, John.”
I looked at her and smiled. “You always have the answer, don’t you? Of course… John. Why didn’t I think of that?”
“It’s part of your stubborn streak. You always want to figure out how to do things yourself; always so reluctant to ask for help from anyone.”
“I guess.” I finished the crust and tore off another piece.
“He’s probably the best person to help you… that is once he gets over the shock of learning that you're still alive.”
“You’re right. He’ll never believe me.” I stared blankly into the glass of juice. “How will I convince him it’s really me? I mean, I’m here face to face with you and you had a hard time believe me. What can I say to convince him over the phone?”
“Set up a meeting with him.”
“Yeah, that sounds easy, but…”
Mom held her iPhone out to me. “Just call him, honey.”
I took her phone, but realized I didn’t remember his number. Mom just looked at me and quickly jumped in. She took back her phone scrolled through her contacts and shoved the phone back in my face. I stared at the ringing phone.
“You have John in your contacts?”
“Of course. He’s your father. You never know when I might need his help with something.”
“Hello,” John said through the phone. “Hello.”
I grabbed the phone from her hand. “John? Hello, John. Are you sitting down?”
“Who is this
?”
“Um.”
“I don’t have all day.”
“John,” I said gently. “It’s Lux.”
“If this is your idea of a joke, it’s not at all funny.”
“John,” I said in a calm, serious tone. “I know this doesn’t make sense, but it really is me. It’s not a joke. And I need you, John. I need your help. Could we meet somewhere… have a cup of coffee or something? I’m in a bind and I really need to talk to you.”
“Even if I believed you, and I don’t, meeting you, whoever you are, won’t be possible.”
“Why not?”
“I’m not in town. Why don’t you try telling me what you need?”
“I need to see you. Please, John. Once you see me in person, you’ll see I’m telling the truth.”
He sighed heavily into the phone. “Lux, if that is really who you are, I’m in Italy at the moment. Grabbing a cup of coffee is not possible. Now, tell me what you need help with,” he said, clearly not convinced.
Tears suddenly burned my eyes. What if he refused to help me? What if he simply get past the fact that I’d come back from the dead. And Italy! What was he doing all the way out in Italy? I needed him. More than ever I needed him. “Brax and Moore,” I finally said, feeling so lost. “I promised to keep them safe, but… Oh, damn it. They’re gone, John. They’re gone and I have to go get them back.” I swallowed my fear for them as my heart raced and my palms filled with nervous sweat. “I have to go to Hades, but I don’t know…”
“Hades?” He chuckled sardonically. “Right. And I need to get a ball gown for my meeting with the queen. Nice try.”
“John, please. I need your advice. That’s all I ask of you. I don’t know how to go about getting to Brax and Moore, and I don’t have much time.”
“You want my advice? Fine. Start by getting an angel to mark you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Get an angel to transfer some of his or her strength and power to you. This way you’ll have the abilities of an angel warrior. You’ll need it if you’re to go to Hades.”
“How am I supposed to find this angel warrior?” But just as the words come from my mouth, it dawns on me. “You mean someone like Lothario?”
“Actually, I was thinking more of Asher. He’s certainly showed what a fighter he is. That battle with the demons; he was instrumental in helping the gatekeepers fight off those demons and close the portal.”
I nodded. “You’re right. He’s become quite a fighter.”
“But I need to warn you,” John went on, still with his grave voice. “Whoever accepts to mark you, to transfer his power to you will be left weaker. Some are left so weak they can no longer perform their duties. Demons sense this, seek it; nothing like a weak and vulnerable angel to tempt an ambitious demon. Slaying a weakened angel is like child’s play.”
“Oh.” I hated the thought of leaving Asher so disabled.
“There’s more.”
More? What he’d said was bad enough.
“The ritual involves removing his wings and wrapping them around you. This is how his powers will be transferred. You’ll absorb his powers spiritually and literally. It is this power that will protect you.” He was silent for a moment. “And this ritual could kill him. He wouldn’t be the first to die in this manner.”
I gasped. “I had no idea. But, if it could kill him…” I knew I couldn’t go through with it if Asher’s death was the result. “Damn. Isn’t there any other way?”
“I’m afraid not.”
“John, please. I can’t allow Asher to take such a risk.” I turned to see Asher standing in the kitchen doorway.
“What risk?” Asher said, his gaze determined.
I shook my head. I didn’t even want to discuss it with him. It was crazy, but Asher took the phone from my hand.
“What’s going on here? John? What’s this about?” He nodded, looked at me, nodded again then looked to the floor. “I see. Yes. Oh, it’s really her, sir. There’s no doubt about it. It’s Lux all right.”
I tried to grab the phone back, but Asher refused to let go.
“Yes, sir. I completely understand.” He looked at me and grinned. “That won’t be a problem, sir. I’ll convince her. Yes, sir. I look forward to seeing you.” Asher ended the call and looked at me. “Good thing I walked in when I did. Weren’t you even going to bother discussing this with me?”
“No.”
“Do you have so little faith in me?”
“That has nothing to do with this.”
“Doesn’t it?”
“Asher.”
“Lux.”
“I won’t let you do it, Asher. I don’t care what you do. I won’t let you take such an incredible risk. Did he even tell you what you’d be risking?”
“He didn’t have to.”
I turned my back to him and set my fists on my hips as I stared at the tiled floor. He was so damned bull-headed sometimes. “My decision is final, Asher. The answer is no. I will not let you do this.”
“Turn around and face me, Lux.”
I remained staring at the floor.
“Lux. At least look at me.”
I reluctantly turned around and he instantly pinned me to the wall, his hand at my throat and his knee between my legs. My mother let out a small cry of surprise, but didn’t move.
“What are you doing?” I cried out, angry and confused by the sudden violent reaction.
Though his grip around my throat was firm, it was utterly painless. In fact, it was almost sensual.
“What are you doing, Asher?” I said more gently, tears coming to my eyes.
“If you can fight me off, get me off your back, figuratively and literally, I’ll let you do things your way. But if I can hold onto you, hold you down, you do things my way, and that means going through with this ritual.”
“You're talking nonsense.”
“Are we on or aren’t we?”
“Fine,” I shouted. With all the force I had, I pushed into him, kicked his leg aside and spun him around to pin him to the wall, but he didn’t remain there for long. In an instant, he lifted me off my feet and set me down hard on the kitchen table, drawing another astonished cry from my mother who grabbed her coffee and hurried around to the other side of the counter.
“Give up?” Asher hissed.
“Not on your life.” I reached out to grab his wrist and yanked him forward while I sat up and hopped off the table. Still holding onto his wrist, I pulled it behind his back and pushed him head first into the wall. The resulting thud made me think I’d gone too far. I’d really hurt him.
“Nice move,” he said with an amused chuckle as he quickly recovered from the blow. In a flash, he spun around and twisted my arm behind my back. With strong, confident steps, he pushed me to the counter and made me face my mother. “Tell your daughter how ridiculous she’s being.”
“Lux,” Mom said. “Maybe you should listen to…”
“Argh,” I cried out as I pushed back as hard as I could on Asher. The more I pushed, the harder he held on. I tried to shrug him off me, but he refused to let go.
“Ready to give up now?” he said.
I hated the thought of letting him win, and hated the thought of him risking his life even more. “Asher,” I said gently. “Please be reasonable. You’d be risking your life.”
“I know exactly what I’m risking.” He wrapped his arms around me and whispered in my ear, “Let me do this for you.”
“I can’t, Asher,” I said as tears came to my eyes. “I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you.”
With one hand, he pulled his shirt up over his shoulders. Then I heard the distinct sound of his wings being deployed, heard my mother gasp, heard the rush of feathers sweep up and when I looked up, we were both enveloped in his wings.
“It’s not as simple as that, Asher,” I said, determined to make him understand. “You can’t just wrap your wings around me and make everything all right. Your wi
ngs must be severed from your body. Don’t you understand?”
“I understand perfectly.”
Chapter 3
“Well,” Mom said as she finished her cup of coffee and grabbed her purse. “I hope you two figure it out. I have to go to work.”
I gently pried myself out of Asher’s arm and went to her. “I’ll let you know what we decide.”
“Whatever you decide, it’s going to do little to calm my nerves, honey. I’ll worry about you either way.” She caressed my cheek with the back of her fingers. “I know you’ll be careful, but I still feel compelled to tell you; be careful, honey.”
“I will.”
“I love you. Whatever you do, I want you to know that.”
“I know, Mom. I love you, too. And try not to worry too much. I’ll be back before you know it.”
Pressing her lips into a tight line, she looked at me a moment longer then abruptly turned around and left the room.
“Now what?” I said as I let out a long, tired sigh and turned back to Asher.
Before he could answer, the air shifted. It warmed and cooled, and was suddenly laden with the scent of fresh cut grass. Behind Asher, within a blinding flash of light, Lothario appeared. His smile was mischievous and his hands were clasped angelically in front of him.
“I thought you’d abandoned me,” I said. “You promised me you’d…”
“I know,” he said. “I know. I promised I’d help you find your way. I'm here, aren’t I?”
“You didn’t tell me he would be involved,” Asher said.
I glared at him and looked back to Lothario. “I’m glad you decided to give us a hand. I have no idea what we have to do.”
Lothario clapped his hands together. “So, are we ready to start the ritual? I don’t have all day.” He turned to Asher. “Mighty big of you to offer Lux a portion of your powers to help her out.” He patted him amicably on the shoulder. “I do hope you survive the ceremony. Many angels, even warrior angels, don’t make it.”
I grimaced. Did he have to be so blunt?
“I understand the implications,” Asher said without batting an eye. “Lux has made it abundantly clear, as has John.”