Heaven's Loss (Hell Yeah!)

by Sable Hunter

  “Fasten your seat belt, cherub.” Bull directed as he started the engine and put the truck in gear.

  Seren did as she was told, talking as she pulled the belt over her chest. “The world has the wrong idea about cherubs, they’re actually warrior beings. Big. Fierce. Very intimidating.”

  Bull nodded. “Good to know, I’ll remember that when Valentine’s Day rolls around.”

  From the backseat, Canyon wrestled with his predicament. “Okay, let’s put the fun and games behind us, lady.” Meeting Bull’s gaze in the rearview mirror, he gave him a pointed look, even as he was addressing their alleged stowaway. “Where did you come from? We need to know which way to head out.”

  Seren let out a long breathy sigh. “I told you, I came with you. I’ve been accompanying you everywhere for years. To your job. On trips.” She giggled cutely. “To the bathroom.”

  “Hey!” Canyon reacted to the revelation. “Is nothing private?” He placed his palm over his package – which was growing at the idea he’d been observed.

  “You know how clumsy you are. What was it? A week ago, you stepped on a bar of soap in the shower and careened against the wall. Why, if I hadn’t been there to catch you, you’d have cracked your skull wide open.”

  “Grace!” Bull chuckled as they traveled down the narrow dirt road cutting through the heavily wooded landscape. “I can see it now.”

  An odd tingling feeling came over Canyon. He remembered slipping, he also remembered righting himself in some strange fashion. Had that been her? No! Impossible! Still…something was vastly odd about this whole thing. “Okay, let’s settle this here and now. I have a…mark…on my lower back.” Actually, it was so low, it sat just above his butt crack, but he was being polite. “Can you describe it to me?”

  “You got a tramp stamp, Brady?” Bull thought it was funny.

  Without missing a beat, Seren chimed in, “Actually, it’s a birthmark, right in the center of your lower back. Reminds me of Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir. A mark given to identify your strength. You’ve been a blacksmith each time you’ve lived.”

  “Is she right about the birthmark?” Bull asked, intrigued.

  “Yes.” Ye, gods. She was right about the placement and shape. As soon as he arrived home, Canyon intended to check his whole house for surveillance equipment. This whole fiasco was getting downright spooky. “Each time I’ve lived?”

  “Yep,” she answered with a popping noise of her lips. “You’re an old soul.”

  Hell, he felt old. “This is crazy.” Despite the mounting bizarre evidence, Canyon was determined to regain control. “Time’s up,” he announced as they neared the paved road. “Where do you want to be dropped?” He watched Seren bow her head as if in defeat. Good…although it didn’t feel good. Maybe she was coming to her senses.

  “I don’t have a choice,” she said softly. “Just drop me off anywhere. I assume whatever caused me to be visible will reverse itself soon. When it does, I’ll return to you. I won’t bother you so much if you can’t see me.”

  Trying to ignore most of her confusing jargon, he centered on the first bit of information. “Why don’t you have a choice?”

  He could see her shrug. “I don’t have anywhere else to go. You’re my sole reason for existing.”

  “Hell.” Canyon started to ask her where she’d been before now, but he was beginning to realize she had a story and she was sticking to it.

  “Brady…” Bull said his name in a way that Canyon understood his meaning. He was telling him to man up and do what was right.

  What the fuck. He lived alone. He liked it that way.

  Or he thought he lived alone, now he wasn’t so sure.

  Either way, even though he had the room, having someone in his home would be odd. He’d lived alone since before his divorce. He didn’t have company often and women never. In fact, there’d only been a few dates and three meaningless one-night stands since his wife walked out.

  Since his son…

  When Canyon didn’t respond, Bull Redford did. “We have an extra room at our house, little lady. You can stay with us until you figure out what to do.”

  Seren fidgeted in her seat. “I don’t know, that’s highly irregular. I can’t do my job long distance.”

  After Canyon’s eyes clashed with Bull’s in the rearview mirror, he threw a hand of surrender up in the air. “Shit, she’s going to be a major distraction,” he muttered lowly.

  “How?” she asked from the front.

  He frowned, as if her question was absurd. Had she looked into the mirror? “What? Do you have supersonic hearing too?”

  “Yes,” was her soft answer.

  Canyon wondered at her demeanor. “Why are you acting like I hurt your feelings?”

  She still hadn’t lifted her head. “Because you did hurt my feelings. I take care of you. I’ve saved you more times than I like to remember. You’re my responsibility…” Her voice quavered. “And you don’t want me.”

  “Awww, Canyon…” Bull put in his two cents in a way Canyon couldn’t deny.

  “Fine.” He clutched the blanket, wondering what the hell he’d just gotten himself into. “We’ll play this your way until you decide to tell me the real truth. Deal?”

  “I’ve told you the truth,” she insisted. Thinking about what was at stake, she chose to pick her battles. “But…deal!”

  CHAPTER TWO

  On the way to Canyon’s house, Seren let herself think about what was happening. She felt different. Uneasy. Not bad, just restless. If she closed her eyes, she could almost feel things happening inside of her. Processes. Changes. Glancing at Canyon’s friend, she sought his attention. “Mr. Bull?”

  His face crinkled in amusement. “Just plain old Bull will be fine, cutie.”

  “Is there a mirror in this shade device?” She pointed to the visor in front of her.

  “That’s a visor, and yes.”

  “May I look into it?”

  “Sure.”

  From the backseat, Canyon watched her closely as she flipped open the cover of the mirror. What was she doing? He knew girls liked to look at their reflections, but the frown on her face told him she didn’t like what she was seeing.

  “Did you forget to bring your lipstick with you?” he asked a little sarcastically. Not that she needed it, but he wasn’t feeling very charitable at the moment. He felt like someone was trying to put something over on him and he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why.

  “No, I don’t have any lipstick,” Seren answered, clearly thinking about something else.

  When Canyon saw the pretty woman stick her tongue out at what she saw reflected back at her, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t like what you see?”

  “Not really. I thought I’d be taller. I think I shrunk in transition.” She bared her teeth, licked her lips, then wrinkled her nose.

  “Trying out some bunny moves to match the ears?”

  Bull adjusted his rearview mirror, so he could see Canyon clearly.

  “Watch the road, buddy,” he told Bull. “Nothing going on back here you need to supervise.”

  “Just observing. I always enjoy a good show.”

  Canyon would’ve shot him the finger, but the presence of the girl in the front seat dissuaded him. Turning his attention back to Seren, he smiled to see she was pulling on the front of her shirt, making her breasts more obvious. “What are you doing now?”

  Seren shot him a glance over her shoulder. “I think they’re bigger.”

  Canyon couldn’t help it, he laughed out loud. “A problem any girl should have.”

  She didn’t respond to his amusement, not seeming to get the joke. Instead, she turned her attention to the road, watching the oncoming traffic, and checking behind them in the side mirrors.

  “I’m a good driver, you know,” Bull assured her.

  “Yea, you are. I don’t trust the rest of them out there, though. Something can happen just like that.” She snapped her fingers.


  “And what would you do…exactly?” Canyon questioned her, curious as to what she’d say.

  “I’d save you,” Seren stated matter-of-factly. “I’d save Bull too, of course, if there was time.”

  “If there’s time?” Bull seemed alarmed. “Well, you’d better hurry, unless I have a fairy godmother of my own. I don’t want to fall by the wayside. I want to be rescued.”

  Bull was fully engaged in the idea, but Canyon wasn’t buying it. “Don’t encourage her, Redford.”

  “Don’t talk about me like I’m bat-shit, Brady.”

  This came from Seren, causing both men to laugh and Canyon to quip, “I don’t think that’s proper angel talk, Miss Rabbit Ears. Do you have a fuzzy tail?”

  All he saw from the back were those floppy ears turning from facing straight ahead, to facing left as she leaned over to glare at him over the seat. “I don’t think that’s proper gentleman talk, Mr. Smarty-pants. My tail is not up for discussion.”

  “All right, I hear you.” Canyon stretched his legs out to the side opposite from where he was sitting. There just wasn’t a lot of room in these back seats. “Okay, let’s say all this is true. If you looked up and saw an eighteen-wheeler in our lane, coming at us head-on – what would you do?”

  Seren locked eyes with Canyon. “I’d do what needed to be done. I’d remove you from the situation or cause the truck to go safely in the ditch – just like I did last time.” She glanced over her shoulder, wondering if he remembered the near miss he’d experienced a few days ago – the one where her ‘safely in the ditch’ scenario hadn’t gone exactly as planned. Canyon didn’t know it, of course, he’d just thanked his lucky stars and kept driving. She, on the other hand, had been severely reprimanded for causing injury to the other driver, even though he recovered nicely. Thank goodness.

  “Uh-huh.” Canyon’s ‘sure’ went unsaid but was clearly implied. “You seem uniquely qualified to do those heroic deeds.”

  Bull didn’t say anything and Seren shrugged. “They’re no more heroic than what you do. I’m just doing my job.”

  For the next several minutes, they were silent. Canyon was trying to decide what to do about Seren. She couldn’t stay with him indefinitely. Today was Sunday and he had to go to work tomorrow. Hopefully she could entertain herself. If she didn’t come to her right mind in a day or two, he’d have to figure out how to get her some help.

  As the wheels on the truck rolled toward Kerrville, he grew pensive. They’d been making light of the situation, but this was serious. He stared at the beautiful girl who was convinced she existed to take care of him. Canyon struggled with the implications. There were only a few possibilities he could come up with to explain what was going on. One – she was mentally ill and really believed what she was saying was true. Two – she was playing them like a fiddle for some reason, money most likely. Or three – and the least likely of all, she was his guardian angel.

  Rubbing his chin, he considered the matter. He wasn’t a superstitious person, or even moderately religious. Since Matty died, he hadn’t given God much thought. Why should he spend time thinking about a deity who gave no thought to helping him in his hour of need? Thinking how his little boy had suffered, he still felt overwhelmed by the unfairness of it all. Before he could weigh the wisdom of his words, he just blurted out the question, “Where the hell was Matty’s guardian angel when he needed one?”

  Seren heard the anguish in Canyon’s voice and every protective instinct in her being welled to the forefront. Without hesitation, she unbuckled her seat belt and slid over the backseat, head first.

  Canyon put out a hand to catch her, but she slipped into the seat next to him gracefully. “What do you think you’re doing, button?”

  “Coming to you.” She sat back on her knees in the seat beside him, facing him. With love on her face, she took his hands in hers. A jolt of pure electricity passed between them and she gasped. “I’ve touched you many times, but I’ve never felt you before.”

  Canyon swallowed hard. The strangeness of her comment was lost on him. All he felt was the indescribable pleasure shooting through him at the touch of her hands. Closing his eyes, Canyon warred with the feeling, questioning it, resenting the hell out of it.

  How could he enjoy something, no matter how simple and natural, when his little boy would never enjoy anything ever again?

  With an abrupt movement, he jerked his hands from her grasp. “If you’re so smart, if you have all the answers, tell me why no one helped my son. Why did he have to die?”

  Seren wanted to enfold him in her arms and hold him forever. Her heart swelled with love for this man. “I don’t have all the answers. What I can tell you is that there are reasons beyond our understanding. Your son’s purpose will be revealed, his life was not wasted, and it isn’t over. You will see him again, then you’ll both know why you remained while he moved on.” She shook her head. “No one did anything wrong. Neither of you were being punished. Even now, Matty is experiencing joy of which you can only dream.”

  Canyon wanted to believe. God in heaven, he wanted to believe. “How do you know? Have you experienced this joy?”

  She hesitated. “Such things aren’t meant for me.”

  He shook his head, not knowing what she meant, and too sick at heart to ask. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. I can’t believe any of it, anyway.” With a huff, he raked his hand through his hair. “Look, you can stay with me just until you work something else out. And it can’t be but a day or two. You’ll need to move on ASAP, there’s just no room in my life for anyone else.”

  “I know.” She folded her hands and held them to her breast. “I’ve felt your pain for so long it has become a part of me.”

  Needing some distance after his outburst, he put a cocky grin on his face. “If you’re going to hang around me, we need to get you something else to wear. You look absurd in that get-up.” She didn’t. Not really. She was as cute as hell. “Why are you dressed like that anyway?”

  Siren pressed her arms to her sides, holding her knees close together. He realized she was trying to make herself smaller.

  “No one could see me. It made me happy.” Being seen wasn’t so much fun. Seren wished she were invisible again. The thought brought to mind how she still had no idea why she’d suddenly materialized. The reason probably wasn’t good. She guessed she’d learn soon enough.

  “Yea, right.” Canyon felt unsettled. In the past few years, he’d prided himself on forging a fairly balanced existence out of the former chaos of his life. He didn’t aim for the highs, thereby avoiding the lows. Now, his applecart of stability had been upset by a crazy talking piece of arm candy who set his blood on fire. If he were to maintain his equilibrium, this had to stop. Jerking himself straighter in the seat, he crowded the door, putting another couple of inches between them. “Look, I’m getting pretty tired of playing your games. Why don’t you go back where you came from?”

  She returned to the front seat and Canyon noticed Bull was eyeing him in the mirror. Canyon didn’t know why he was lashing out at someone who’d saved his life only hours before. In fact, it hit him he hadn’t thanked her for what she did for him. From the moment she’d appeared out of nowhere, everything seemed to have gone crazy. As she settled back in the front seat, her movements slightly jerky, he cleared his throat. “Look, I’m sorry. I don’t think I thanked you for saving my life earlier.”

  “She saved your life?” Bull asked, seeming to try and keep up with the weird goings-on.

  Canyon eyed the passing rugged, hill country landscape. They were fast approaching the turnoff to his house. “Yes, she did,” he admitted. “I climbed down from the deer stand, propped my gun against the tree and it fell, almost shooting me.”

  “Well, there you go,” Bull said, putting on his blinker to turn off the highway toward their neck of the woods. “Sounds like she was doing just what she claimed to be doing.”

  “Thanks for your insight,” Canyon mumbled, then gl
ared at his friend. “You can’t seriously believe any of this.”

  “I don’t know, two and two are beginning to add up to four, seems like to me.”

  “Ahem,” Seren spoke out of nowhere. “I think you were going to thank me.”

  About to fire a retort at Bull, Canyon closed his mouth. She was right. “Yes, I was. Thank you. However, I’d like to point out that the only reason my gun misfired was because I came down out of the deer stand to stop you from chasing off the big buck I was about to shoot.”

  “You saw a buck? And you missed him?” Bull shook his head. “Dang-it. How many points?”

  “Eight.”

  “So, this is my fault?” Seren asked. “You weren’t hunting because you were hungry, you hunt for sport.”

  Canyon pursed his lips and blinked his eyes. “Well…yes,” he said as if the idea made all the sense in the world to him – which it did.

  “When you take unnecessary risks, you make it harder on the ones who care for you.”

  Her advice was so sensible, Canyon kept opening and shutting his mouth trying to formulate a reply – unsuccessfully.

  “We’re here,” Bull stated as he came to a full stop next to Canyon’s welding shop. “Do you have time to show me what you’ve been working on?”

  “Oh, sure. Come on out and I’ll unveil him for you.”

  “He’s calling this one Majestic, and he is,” Seren told Bull, seemingly as proud as a peacock over Canyon’s creation. He cut her a glance, not even bothering to ask how she came by the information.

  As the two men unloaded the truck, Seren joined them. “Here, I’ll put these on the porch for you.” She grinned at Canyon. “I can do this now that you know I’m here.” Shouldering his backpack and picking up his jacket, she started toward his two-story log house. “If I would’ve done it before, you’d have had a heart attack seeing your stuff levitate and move around by itself.”