True Angel: a Fallen Angel romance (Curse of the Othersiders Book 1)

by Jessica Lynch

  So was Avery.

  Thanks to his… his halo, there was a barrier of their own protecting them from the gawking humans. Unlike what shielded the town limits from Para visitors, the golden light was visible and pretty damn intimidating. It hadn’t gone anywhere when Cam lost consciousness again. Avery hoped that was a good sign. Dina told her it was before she stretched out alongside Cam and, well, she was still so shocked that the cat could talk, she couldn’t find it in her to argue.

  So, yeah, it probably wasn’t necessary, but it made her feel like she was doing something as they waited for Shea to arrive. And since leaving the barrier to confront the hunters and bash them over the head with their own guns wasn’t an option, Avery held tightly to him, absolutely certain that she’d go rabid if any of her neighbors approached them again.

  One had. Through the golden haze, she recognized Pat Walker, one of the members of the town council. He also owned the Mugs franchise, a chain of coffee shops in the tri-state area. She’d worked at one when she was in her early twenties and barely made it six months before his heavy-handed hints on how to get raise by going to her knees had Avery throwing her apron at him and walking out.

  Now, a friendly smile unable to mask the lecherous leer in his gaze, Pat called her name, trying to get her to come to him.

  No way in hell.

  “Let me save you, Avery. Come on, sweetheart. I’ll get you away from that monster.”

  She almost threw up on the spot.

  Taking a deep breath, trying to settle her nerves and her growing anger, Avery was just about to tell him to get lost when a crack of thunder split the sky. The air crackled with electricity. Inside of the barrier, Cam’s body took on a golden hue, glowing from the top of his head to his boots. He twitched just the once and then, with a flash that nearly blinded Avery, a lightning strike hit the ground about three feet away from Pat Walker.

  It didn’t hit him, but it was close enough to rip a scream out of the big man’s throat. He jolted away from the smoldering cinders in front of him, falling backward, landing on his ass with a thud.

  Cam’s eyes were still closed. After that, though? No one else came near them. Not for a while. And Avery sighed in relief. Sure, she could’ve handled Walker herself, but there was something about her unconscious lover sending a bolt of lightning at him as an obvious warning to back off.

  He was okay. He had to be.

  Right?

  Apart from having some kind of confirmation that Cam was still with her, knocking Walker on his ass had another bonus effect. Within seconds of that display, the crowd shrunk down to a third of its size as most of them grabbed their shit and ran. Even though Cam was down and still out, her neighbors could feel his power; the lightning strike just proved it. Humans or not, they were scared.

  As they should be, Avery thought mercilessly.

  Unfortunately, Noah was still there. He was prowling outside of the circle, gesturing angrily with empty hands. Someone had finally taken his gun off of him. A second glance revealed that Donna was nowhere to be found. Avery wondered if he was angrier over that or losing his gun.

  Avery still couldn’t believe it. She’d known Noah since they were kids. Never in a million years would she have thought he’d take a shot at her.

  Worse, he wasn’t the only one. The first shot that hit Cam might have belonged to Noah’s gun, but at least a couple of other local hunters had to have joined in on shooting down Cam. Worse, she couldn’t tell who because so many had guns—and so many shots had been fired.

  And there was nothing wrong with what they did.

  Avery hated that. She hated knowing that the Spring Valley hunters were in the right, that as a Para trying to subvert the perimeter spell—a Para who seemed to be flying off with one of their own—Cam could legally be shot down if they thought they were saving Avery from him.

  It was her fault. If she hadn’t insisted on following him, if she hadn’t bullied him into taking her with him… if she hadn’t distracted Cam while they were flying, would anyone have turned their guns on her? No doubt in her mind that the hunters had been prepared to go after the hellhounds, but they’d found Cam and Avery during their flight instead.

  So what if the hellhounds had run off? The humans who chased after them proved to be just as dangerous. And if it wasn’t for Cam coming home with her and how she refused to let him leave without her…

  “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “This is all my fault.”

  Cam’s voice came out hoarse, like his throat had been scratched with sandpaper. “No.”

  She gasped. Looking down, she could see him peeking up through the slits in his eyelids. “Cam! I—“

  “Said no. Now hush. I’m dreaming that you’re my soulmate and I get to keep you.”

  “Dreaming?” Was he delirious? Hallucinating? “You’re not dreaming. You’re awake. Look, you’re here. I’m here. We’re together.”

  And if what Dina told her before was true, they most definitely were soulmates.

  “Can’t be awake,” he murmured, closing his eyes all of the way.

  She tugged on his hand. “Cam!”

  He quirked a single eye open. “Maybe you’re right. In my dreams, you don’t yell at me.” He paused. “And you’re naked.”

  A sob bubbled up and out of Avery. “I promise you, you’re not dreaming. And as soon as you’re okay again, I’ll prove it.”

  “You’ll get naked?”

  “You recover from this,” she swore, “and I’ll never wear clothes again.”

  A small smile as he struggled to pull himself up into a sitting position. “Gonna hold you to that.”

  As he moved, Dina climbed to her four feet, padding around until she was standing next to Avery. “You might want to hold off on the disrobing. We’re expecting company.”

  Avery was still clutching tightly to Cam’s hand. He rubbed his thumb against her palm while reaching with his other hand, crossing over his bare chest so that he could scratch Dina between her ears. “Hey, Di.”

  “Dina’s right,” Avery said, swallowing the jealousy that rose up inside of her. She was his soulmate—pledged herself to Cam and everything—but the way Cam looked at his cat… now that he knew that Dina was more than that, it was going to take a little bit of getting used to. She’d deal, though. Like how the Hayes sisters were a package deal, she knew that Cam and Dina were a pair. Good thing she’d never outgrown wanting a cat of her own. “Even if we weren’t, we’re still not alone.”

  “Wait a sec… Dina’s right?” Cam blinked, the blissful expression on his face fading into one of confusion. “You can understand her?”

  As Avery offered him a weak nod and a shrug, Dina said, “Well, of course she can, Camiel. Now that your souls have bonded, everything you are is a part of her. Your lifespans match, she’ll be able to sense as much as you could when you were still an Othersider, and though she can’t fly, I’m sure you’ll be happy to share your wings with her. She could speak the language of the angels to make her vow, and you’re surprised she can understand me?”

  While her clipped tone made it seem like Dina came off as scolding him, Cam looked like he couldn’t give a shit. He just turned to stare at Avery as if he still couldn’t believe that she was there.

  “So it wasn’t a dream.” His grin bloomed on his face, making it so strikingly handsome, it almost hurt to look at him. “That really happened. You truly are my soulmate.”

  “Yes, yes,” Dina interrupted again, gesturing with a paw behind Avery, “and you really did get shot. Let the healer attend to you. She’s almost here.” She waited a beat. “She’s not alone, either.”

  “Healer? She? Not Raphael?” Understanding dawned on him. “Hang on. You called Shea.”

  Avery pointed. “Dina told me to.”

  “I guess that means she’s bringing Colton Wolfe with her.” His eyes twinkled as he met Avery’s gaze. “Behave?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?”

  “Camiel. They’re
here.”

  To Avery’s amazement, Cam could turn his halo on and off like a light switch. As soon as the truck pulled up just outside of it, Dina told Cam to get rid of it and he did, just like that.

  Hopping out of the passenger’s seat, Shea Moonshadow appeared, a worried expression on her olive-skinned face. Her purple eyes were wide, searching, and her lips formed a visible ‘o’ when she saw Cam sprawled out on the grass. She yelled something that Avery couldn’t quite make out, then started to hurry toward them.

  Colton Wolfe threw his door open, leaving it that way as he loped after his mate. He had more than a head on her, his long legs eating up the ground. She might’ve had a head start, but he caught up with her in no time.

  Like Shea, Colton’s dark blue eyes took in the scene. An angry look flashed across his too-pretty features, lips curving down as he nodded at Cam, then glared at the handful of locals still lingering nearby.

  As soon as the pair closed in on the rest of them, Cam brought his halo back.

  Colt’s canines punched through. He gestured with a claw-tipped finger, a second visible sign that his wolf was riled up. “Cam. Is this what set Lincoln Shaw off? The barrier in Spring Valley… this is what turned him feral?”

  Lincoln— Link. That had to be who Colton meant. So he knew, didn’t he? Knew about Link, about how he followed Heather into Spring Valley, got zapped, and had his brains fried by the town’s paid-for magic.

  Well, that explained how Link could keep a home in Wolf’s Creek under the Alpha’s nose, and how the two were able to stay hidden until Heather finally called home and let Avery know she was all right. Plus Cam’s cryptic behave comment…

  He knew. The Beta of the Eastern Pack knew all along who had taken Heather. Probably could’ve saved her close to two weeks of searching if he had told her the truth.

  Funny, though, Avery couldn’t work up the energy to be angry. Like Heather explained, some things were just Para things. Colton’s loyalty might belong to his mate first and foremost, but his pack was next. Since Heather was never in any danger, the Beta left her with her mate—where she would never ever have to be afraid again.

  Maybe yesterday she would’ve needed his warning to behave. Shifter or no shifter, wolf or no wolf, Avery might’ve gone for Colt’s pretty blue eyes for how he jerked her around. It would’ve been fine. Shea could heal him. But after experiencing what it was like to feel tied to another soul…

  She’d never begrudge Heather that.

  After throwing her a curious look, almost as if he could sense her emotions—which, to her surprise, Avery realized he probably could—Cam shook his head. “This is something else. Something to protect us. The perimeter spell is a little bit further that way. By the entrance sign.”

  Shea frowned. “I can kind of sense something. Like… a ward, but not. Definitely witch magic, though I’m not sure it has the mark of Coventry.” She shared a look with Colton. “It’s got lone witch magic woven into it.”

  Colton sucked in a breath. “Cilla?”

  “I don’t know. It’s not strong enough. To scramble that poor guy’s brain the way it did, the spell should be stronger—and as strong as Cilla is, I don’t know if she’d have enough diamonds for a spell like this. At least a small coven would have to pool their magic to affect a shifter like it did.”

  So Shea knew, too? Avery struggled to keep her expression neutral. She had to remind herself that if Shea had told her about Link and Heather, she’d probably still be without her sister, but she would never have met Cam, either.

  For that alone, the witch deserved her gratitude.

  “That’s ‘cause something’s wrong with it,” Avery explained. “Cam knocked it out when we fell out of the sky.”

  “It’s coming back,” murmured Shea. “Whatever Cam did was like an electrical short. It blew out the system, but someone’s rebooted it. It won’t be long until it’s back online.”

  Colton bared his long canine fangs. “In that case, I better hurry up and talk to the townsfolk before they try to shut me out.”

  “Colton.”

  “What?” His pretty face did little to hide just how dangerous he was—and it wasn’t just the fangs that made Avery think that. “Ant Farms are one thing. I get it. We live in a Bumptown. But using a couple of lone witches to ward off an entire town? I know the Claws Clause back and forth, my mate. Pretty sure it’s illegal to do that.”

  Avery thought Colton was just the Beta of the Eastern Pack. But that sounded like—

  “Is he a cop?” she asked. She didn’t think there were any Para cops in this area.

  Shea rolled her eyes. “He’s an architect.”

  Colton pointed a finger at her. “Technically, I’m still working for the Grayson PD.”

  “You worked on a task force two Christmases ago with Adam. He quit the force last March.”

  “Hey. Not my fault they forgot to tell me they don’t need me anymore. Take care of the angel, Shea. I’ll take care of this.”

  “Just be careful. The magic’s not completely down. I don’t want to risk you going feral on me, okay?”

  “I won’t have to. That big shot over there’s gonna come to me. You watch.” He rubbed his hands together. Avery did a double-take when she saw that, at the end of his fingertips, a set of lethal looking claws were peeking through each one. Before her eyes, they grew thicker, sharper. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

  “They’re humans, Colton. Not prey.”

  “Sorry, Shea. Too far. Can’t hear you.”

  A tiny smile tugged on the witch’s lips. “He says that as if I don’t know how good his shifter hearing is. Silly wolf.”

  Even from where they were, Avery could hear the bark of a laugh Colton let out as he strode toward the suddenly apprehensive group of bystanders.

  Except for Noah. With a nasty look on his face and a chip on his shoulder, Noah stepped forward.

  He wouldn’t know who Colton Wolfe was. From the outside, he looked like a clean-cut guy, with features too pretty to be real. The blue eyes would only make the human feel safe—until Colton revealed the beast lurking within their depths. He was smiling, too. A beaming grin highlighted by the dimple popping in his left cheek. He wasn’t kidding, was he? Going nose to nose with Noah… oh, yeah. Colton was going to enjoy this.

  From her place at Cam’s side, Shea struggled to contain her own smile. Honest affection splayed across her face as she looked at her mate, knew just how dangerous he was, and sent him off to face the humans lingering just beyond the last vestiges of the town’s barrier anyway. She didn’t seem concerned that Spring Valley was an anti-Para community or that Cam was still sprawled on the ground, recovering from being shot. From the way Colt stalked purposely toward the crowd, gaze singling out Noah, he moved as if he knew he was the biggest, baddest threat around—and that he was ready to eat Noah for lunch.

  If Avery could, she’d toss him a fork.

  21

  Oh? Oh…

  Instead, she turned to look at Shea as the witch said, “While Colton has his fun, let’s see how you’re doing, Cam. Where does it hurt the most?”

  “I’d like to be the tough guy and say nowhere, but yeah.” He waved his hand over his chest, gesturing to the holes still leaking a combination of shimmering blood and the golden light that made up his halo. “Take your pick.”

  “Figured,” admitted Shea, “but I thought I’d ask. Sometimes the worst hurts are buried a little deeper.” Her purple eyes flickered toward her mate’s back for just a second before she lifted up her hand. Avery had seen this happen before, but she was still amazed as Shea’s whole hand took on a magenta glow. “Okay, then. Let’s get started.”

  As Avery watched, the hole in the middle of Cam’s chest closed up. It didn’t completely erase—there was a raised edge around the circle, a jagged scar surrounding a patch of raw skin—but it looked like he’d had a skin graft and been recuperating for weeks instead of minutes.

  One by one, Shea laid
her glowing hand over each bullet wound. Less than five minutes later, she had sealed up all of them.

  She extinguished the magenta glow that hadn’t even begun to dim. “Wow. You could come in handy, Cam, you know that? That golden light of yours… you gotta tell me your secret. I barely had to tap into my healing well to close you up. The light had already plugged up most of the wounds, so we could’ve left you like that and you’d have been fine. Look like swiss cheese, but no worse for the wear.”

  “I’m still glad you fixed me up, though. Thanks, Shea.”

  She waved him off. “Honestly, I should thank you. Ever since Colton found out about the perimeter spell in Spring Valley, he’s been itching to check it out but Maddox gave him orders to stay away. With Cilla…” Shea exhaled, then shook her head. “He’s got a pup now, cutest thing ever. He wants to forget about Cilla. My Colton can’t. But Alpha’s orders… you guys gave him a way around that. He’s not here to check out the spell. He’s helping his mate—and I’m sure that’s exactly how he’s gonna explain himself to Maddox.”

  Cam laughed. It lifted Avery’s heavy heart to hear it. “Glad to help. You know me, I live for good deeds. Getting shot a couple times to help a pal? No problem.”

  Avery knew he was teasing, but she couldn’t help it. Her gaze dropped to his chest and though the pale pink circles were much easier to look at than the holes were earlier, she figured it would be a long, long time before she got over today.

  And that’s if she ever did.

  Almost as one, Shea, Cam, and Dina all turned to look at her. Shea’s forehead furrowed, one of her springy, raven-colored curls falling in her face as she looked Avery up and down.

  For some reason, when Shea did that, Avery felt like she was being x-rayed. And maybe she was. As an empathic healer, Shea could look at anyone and know if they hurt, where they hurt, and, usually, why.

  But when she finished assessing Avery, she frowned. “Avery. Your turn.”

  “Me? Nah, I’m fine. It’s Cam I’m worried about. Dina had me call you because he kept falling unconscious. Maybe you should check his head. I don’t know if he smacked it when we crashed.”