by D. F. Jones
Caiojezeal looked at the ground, then reached over and squeezed her hand. “It will be as you wish.”
Chapter 13
Invisible Touch
The illusion of the cabin retreat returned to her chamber, thanks to Caiojezeal. Sandy walked across the cabin’s great room through the bedroom and into the lavish bathroom. She took off her borrowed clothes and folded them into a neat pile. Old habits died hard.
Sandy had turned on the water faucet before she stepped into the shower. The double shower heads pulsed steaming water onto her skin. She poured shampoo into her hands and lathered her hair. After rinsing the shampoo and conditioner, she reached for the soap, and a washcloth from the bronze metal stand sitting on the fresco tile. Sandy scrubbed her skin nearly raw and still felt dirty living among Luc and his demon angels.
Horrific images flashed brilliantly into Sandy’s mind. Pain seared her temples as she focused on bits and pieces of information from the other captives held in the caverns under Arrington Estate. She could see one female and two males humans held captive on the floor beneath her chamber.
The female human ward succumbed to Luc’s charms. Luc wouldn’t touch her, and his rejection drove the female insane. Flashes of Luc flirting with the woman filled Sandy’s mind with images that she wished she could erase. Luc crooned a headful of compliments in his velvety voice to pump the woman for information.
Sandy couldn’t quite grasp her name. The woman constantly begged Luc to touch her, kiss her, and sleep with her. Sandy cringed and cranked the water hotter. She couldn’t decipher if the thoughts were plants from Luc or the woman. Her cords were a little fuzzy and frayed at the edges of light.
Down a few stone steps, two male wards with nerves of steel tried to hold their ground until Luc began to torture them. Sandy reeled with nausea and grabbed for the stainless steel shower bar so she wouldn’t fall to her knees. She threw up from her visions when she entered the cold chamber. Like a page out of an ancient history book, the stone room was windowless with wet rock and earth for a floor. Next to the door, only one torch dimly lit the area and secured to the wall with metal brackets. The grim depiction of Sandy’s fellow captives plunged her into dark despair.
One male chained against the wall was a victim of a recent beating or flogging. The man’s face was unrecognizable, and feces and urine ran down his legs. His name was Jason. He was conscious, and for a second, Sandy thought he tried to lift his head. Jason was near death. She tried to make contact with the man’s light, but it was too dim. His cords of light were fading. Locked in her room, she felt hopeless.
The other man in the cell with Jason lay strapped to an ancient rack, ropes fastened around the man’s arms and ankles. The handle of the rack cranked to the point where the man’s bones dislocated, and he lay unconscious from the pain. Sandy tried to find his name on the cords of light, but nothing came to her mind.
Sandy teetered under the showerhead until the water ran cold. The cold, hard water pelleted her until she came to her senses. Were her visions real? Sandy was going into battle with the devil tonight, and the last thing she needed was to be off her game.
Stepping out of the shower onto plush bathroom rugs, Sandy dried off with a white, soft, fluffy towel and then wrapped the towel around her dripping shoulders. She reached out for another luxurious towel and wrapped her hair up, turban style.
Had the other captives been given the royal treatment before being cast into the pit of pain? Was this phase one? Would she be strong enough to stand up to The Dragon? Would Baldric save her before she fell? She punched the mirror hard. It didn’t break, but her knuckles bled profusely. Sandy looked at the back of her right hand. The injuries healed before her eyes.
Staring at her reflection in the mirror, Sandy looked at her hourglass body, a body women coveted and men desired. Her gentle, rounded shoulders were in perfect proportion to her hips. She turned to catch her rump in the mirror. Yeah, that too was well rounded. Sandy looked inside the bathroom sink drawers. Caiojezeal had filled the drawers with every conceivable amenity and cosmetic. Could she play Luc like she’d played so many men in her life?
Sandy reached for a hairbrush, the kind with teeth, and unrolled the towel, allowing her hair to tumble over her shoulders. Starting from the bottom, just the way her mom taught her, she brushed the tangles out and blow-dried the strands. Sandy didn’t need big hair curlers for extra body. It was funny how so many women she knew strived for perfection. No woman was ever perfect. She had the physical attributes but struggled with why she was born with them, always trying to prove to people she had brains, instead of just beauty.
Sandy went through the motions of getting ready. She brushed her teeth and then applied a little brown eyeshadow and black mascara. On the bed, Caiojezeal had laid an outfit she wouldn’t have been caught dead in. A tomato-red maxi dress made out of jersey fabric that would cling to her curves and shout, “Take me, Dragon.” The dress straps tied at the shoulders, and it was unlined. Sandy cringed when Caiojezeal suggested she shouldn’t wear undergarments. They had argued, and she’d won. She wasn’t going into battle without a strapless bra and underwear.
Caiojezeal chuckled and said, “You’re trying to slay a dragon.”
Ha, ha, hilarious. Sandy slid the dress over her head and felt the silky fabric glide against her skin. She opened the small purse and found a tube of red lipstick and a note. May love light the way. Caiojezeal risked more torture and the Eternal Blackness if Luc knew he was helping her. Sandy walked over to the fireplace and threw the note into the fire.
On the floor, next to her bed, was a pair of red sandals with tiny encrusted diamonds in the center. Sandy slipped them on and waited on the sofa for her date. She closed her eyes and allowed her mind to travel along the cords of light. Her first stop down memory lane was her wedding night. Sandy needed Baldric foremost in her mind. She replayed Baldric appearing in the church sanctuary. It had been the happiest moment of her life. Sandy wanted to imprint every detail of the evening to take on her journey with Luc.
The second stop of her cords of light trip was Luc’s Testament. Sandy mentally flipped to the section on spells and turned the pages while she read incantations of protection. She tweaked one into a prayer and began to chant mentally:
Great Creator of day and night, protect me with all your might. In my dire hour of need, send Baldric to me with great speed, bind my heart and close my mind. I bind Luc from my soul. I pray, oh, Creator, please keep me whole.
Sandy repeated the prayer as many times as she could until the adjoining door to Luc’s chamber opened. Luc had come to play. Sandy held her breath as he walked over to the sofa, dripping sex appeal. He wore tight, black leather pants and a white, long-sleeved silk tunic accenting his metallic golden skin. Luc’s shiny jet-black hair was pulled back into a long braid held together by a black leather strap. Luc was a living, breathing sex god, and cockiness rolled off him like water on a duck’s back. Sandy held in a laugh. She thought of Ruby and her colorful Southern language. Sandy missed her friends.
Sandy tried to appear aloof, uninterested, making Luc laugh out loud. She mentally worked harder to weave and thicken the color bands of light and visualized a two-inch braided rope she’d seen in the red barn the night Baldric taught her to fence. Her heart began to pound as she lifted her chin in defiance.
Luc bowed in front of Sandy. “Ms. Cothran, you’re a true vision of loveliness. Shall we go?” He extended his hand, and she took a deep breath and placed her hand on his.
Sandy stood and said, “Where are we going? Do I need a coat?”
Luc’s eyes roamed over her body from head to toe, and the upturn of his lips revealed a dimple in his right cheek. She needed sunglasses from his blinding white teeth. “I promise to keep you warm.” Luc’s chuckle made her want to scream. Two points for the visiting team.
Sandy flipped her hair off her shoulders. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk, my sweet and sexy mi
ss. Tonight’s adventure will be heaven’s bliss, and I count the seconds to taste your kiss.”
Sandy narrowed her eyes at Luc and placed her hand on her right hip. “So how long have you been at my door?”
“Long enough to catch you casting a spell.” He laughed again and said, “You can’t bind me in my own home. That’s the number one rule of spell casting. Number two, every time you cast a spell you slide closer into the darkness and closer to me. By all means, cast away. Oh, and I assure you Baldric will come for you. But by the time the AAF allows him the freedom to pursue his quest of rescue, will you want to go? We shall see.” He squeezed her hand and circled her waist with his other arm.
A thick mist filled the room, and Sandy realized they were traveling on the ethereal plane. Her journey had begun. Would she return as the person her family and friends loved? Or would she return as a despicable human like Cole?
* * *
Baldric’s left forearm rested on the mantel in the large great room at Everglade Farms as he gazed into the blazing flames of the fireplace. The place was officially deemed by the AAF as the central command center until the completion of the SEU (Special Exfil Unit). Tonight, all of the guardians and wards of Campbell Ridge were in attendance, and the conversation was beginning to get on Baldric’s last nerve. He didn’t want to hear about the what-if scenarios. He wanted the green light to haul ass to Arrington and rescue his wife.
Last night, traveling on the cords of light, he had found Sandy. She was being held in an underground cavern chamber next to Luc’s bedroom at Arrington Estates. Baldric was a powder keg of dynamite waiting for someone to light the damn fuse.
“Baldric, hey, Baldric, anyone home?” Michael, the commander of the AAF, had popped into the meeting to go over the last-minute details before the dawn invasion.
Baldric lifted his head and turned around slowly. “I’ve heard everything at least twice. Why do we have to wait? We have the numbers. We have the equipment and the element of surprise. Waiting until morning could mean the difference between life and death. Don’t tie my hands. Let me go.”
Lee walked over and wrapped her arms around Baldric’s waist and leaned against his bulky bicep. “We love Sandy, too. The waiting is brutal, but I agree with Erinelle. Dawn is the best time to attack. The fog will roll in from the river, which will give us cover.”
Reed and Ruby sat on the couch while Anna and Jerry lounged on the loveseat. Ruby and Anna were both writing feverishly in their diaries. The Ditch Lane Diaries had originated over ten years ago when the girls were in college. It had been the first night the girls realized they were chosen to fight in the angelic war over the earth and the human species. The girls, now women, were Sandy’s lifelong friends. Each loved Sandy as a blood sister—sometimes friends were closer than blood relations.
George looked around the room and locked eyes with Baldric. He nodded toward Baldric as a sign of respect. Southerners were known for their genteel hospitality and manners, not always found in other parts of the country.
George’s Southern accent was drawn out, but the man was sharp as any human he’d ever met. George said, “I placed bugs in every receptacle on the first floor. I didn’t get clearance to go upstairs. I tweaked the security panel and disengaged the alarms to allow us access to the northern border of the property. I went down the hall to search for the opening to the caverns when Estevo caught me. Scared me half to death. From a security standpoint, the team can attack now or in the morning.” George hadn’t been given clearance to fight in the battle. But his moral support was with Baldric. He folded his arms over his chest and winked at Baldric. Baldric smiled and nodded in reply.
Erinelle began to walk about the room. “Excellent job, George. The intel that’s coming in from the plants seems reliable. We found out two of our wards passed away, and three of the captives remain Luc’s prisoners. After lunch, we learned from Carson that Luc was going out of town. It’s good news for us. Our special forces will overtake the compound and rescue with fewer injuries and casualties if Luc is away.”
Baldric’s nerves were shot, and he needed fuel. He strode over to the bar laden with food and drink. He piled on a plateful of carbs and grabbed a glass of Lee’s sweet tea. He glanced out the window and noticed several of the AAF guards flying to the end of the driveway. Baldric left the plate on the bar, made a mad dash out the front door, and ported to the end of the road.
Surrounded by six well-trained AAF guards, Caiojezeal stood dressed in a dark brown habit tied at the waist with a leather belt. Caiojezeal’s hands were in the air when Baldric broke through the guardian circle.
“What are you doing here?” Baldric’s chest tightened, and he swallowed hard. “Is she dead?”
Caiojezeal asked, “May I put my hands down? We need to talk, alone.”
Baldric addressed the guards and tossed a glance over his shoulder at the warm golden light coming from the windows of the house. “Leave us.”
An AAF warrior guard, Troy, released a guttural growl and said, “This is one of the demon angels who tied me up at Sandy’s parents. Are you sure you want us to leave?”
“I fight my own battles, Troy. I’ll be along soon. Take the others and return to your post.” Baldric turned to Caiojezeal and said, “Speak the truth, demon. My patience is running thin, and I don’t need mind games.”
Caiojezeal leaned toward Baldric and whispered, “I come with information, but I need cover. Demon angels run the lines of the faze looking for a weak link to break the barrier into Everglade Farms. In another minute, they’ll know I’ve crossed enemy lines.”
Baldric grabbed Caiojezeal’s arm, and they ported into the red barn. The AAF military maps and coordinates had been moved into the big house, leaving only combat training equipment in the barn. Baldric shouted, “Tell me about my wife. Is she well?”
Caiojezeal pushed the hood off his head. “Luc took Sandy on a trip tonight. They left before dusk, traveling to his penthouse suite in Manhattan. I came as soon as I could get away. Luc knew you were in her room last night. Sandy lied to him, and he nearly flogged her, but I pleaded The Treatment of the Angel Prisoner Act in regards to pairing partners. I took the flogging in her place.”
Baldric reached for one of the training spears and forcefully threw it into the neck of a scarecrow. Shaking his head, Baldric ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “The son of a bitch. Damn the AAF rules of engagement. I should’ve tried to get Sandy out. I shouldn’t have left her there. She begged me to take her.” Breathing heavy and near to his breaking point, Baldric said, “I’m grateful for your sacrifice. But I’ve seen the look in your eyes. You love Sandy, don’t you? Tell me why you’re here, and speak true.”
Caiojezeal crossed his arms over his chest and stared straight into Baldric’s eyes. “And what’s not to love? Sandy is most infuriating, but she struck a tender chord within me I haven’t felt since I was cast out of heaven. Besides, Luc would’ve sent you to the Eternal Blackness. Luc kidnapped her to get you. Or, well, at least in the beginning that was his plan. He wanted retribution for you kicking his ass eons ago.”
Caiojezeal’s hand motions moved simultaneously with his words. “Luc’s plans have changed. He’s intrigued by Sandy’s feisty spirit. Previous ward captives, he took their power or turned them to fight for the dark side. Luc seeks not only her divine power and beauty but also the light of the Campbell Ridge wards which burns bright. Dark creatures are drawn to the light of love. His failed attempts to take Anna last summer have made him erratic in behavior. Failure isn’t an option with Sandy.”
Caiojezeal shifted his feet and clasped his hands behind his back. He looked to the ground and then back up to Baldric. “And I’m sick and tired of the war. In less than a hundred years, the earth as we know it will change. Luc has instigated civil unrest and rebellion across the globe. His goal is to incite another World War. One that will annihilate civilization as we know it. Luc uses human faith and religion. He uses wealth, povert
y, greed, and the destruction of natural resources to pit not only nation against nation but brother against brother. He’s taken Sandy to New York to persuade her to join his army. I believe he intends on mating her.”
Baldric rubbed his fingers down his jawline, his face reddened, and he lowered his voice. “Luc only mates with purebred angels. To my knowledge, he’s never taken a human female.”
Caiojezeal let out an exhale of breath and said, “True. But Luc will bed her to avenge himself from the humiliation you brought upon him. I had told Sandy before she left with Luc tonight I would help her escape. I told her I would come and find you. I can’t get her out of the compound without help. I need the AAF and the AAF needs me.”
Baldric trembled with anger but held his sharp tongue in check. He said, “I need to know if you’re willing to renounce Lucifer and work as an operative for the AAF. I can’t promise The Creator will offer leniency, but if you help me get Sandy away from Luc, I’ll do everything in my power to initiate negotiations to place you in the AAF reconditioning program.”
Caiojezeal clasped Baldric’s forearm. “May love light the way.”
Chapter 14
True Colors
Luc stopped at a ranger’s station on Mount Mitchell’s lookout tower over the Appalachian Mountains. The snow-covered mountains at dusk were one of Luc’s favorite spots on earth. In the hills, away from most humans, the earth seemed peaceful. He held onto Sandy’s waist and inhaled the sweet smell of her shampoo. He hated humans. Why had he brought this person to one of his most sacred places? Luc glanced at Sandy out of his peripheral vision. She was awestruck by the majestic mountains. He held his tongue from making witty quips and took in the scenery.
