by Zoey Derrick
“Girl scream?” Vivienne repeats. Now the same puzzled look on Rebecca’s features is displayed on Vivienne’s.
“Yes, and there was a lot of noise – fighting or arguing – then a loud crack and a door slamming shut.” She pauses, thinking harder about what she remembers. “There was a man. He was pushing her around, but I couldn’t see him. I was sitting on a couch. After the door slammed shut, I heard scraping noises and then pounding.”
Vivienne begins to shake uncontrollably. As her knees give out, Mikah is quick to catch her. Her heart is beating harder and faster than anything she’s felt in a long time. Her breathing becomes quick and shallow.
“The man comes to me. He’s dressed in blue jeans. He’s taking off—”
“Enough,” Mikah snaps, and Rebecca falls silent. “Vivienne, look at me. You’re safe, no one can hurt you.” He brushes a few stray strands of hair out of her face. She’s clearly petrified, scared out of her mind, but Mikah can’t even begin to understand where this is coming from.
Vivienne’s heart rate is slowing, little by little. With each passing beat the memory begins to fade away and she can feel her strength returning.
“Vivienne,” says a sweet, soft voice a little distance away. Vivienne recognizes it as Zirah’s, but she can’t turn away from Mikah to look at her. The sadness in his heart can be seen through his eyes.
“That wasn’t a memory of what happened to her tonight,” Vivienne whispers to Mikah.
“What is she talking about then?” he says back to her, wishing he knew how to comfort Vivienne in this moment.
Vivienne moves to sit up, stand up, and Mikah doesn’t hold her back. She gets back to her feet, wobbling a bit, but Mikah is there to support her.
“She’s talking about a night that happened nearly seven years ago.”
Rebecca is trying to understand what Vivienne is saying, but she can’t seem to remember anything.
“She’s talking,” Vivienne says, “about what happened the night she had her stroke. When I was locked in the closet for three days.” She turns to her mother, eyes flashing. “Three days until the police showed up,” Vivienne says, glaring at Rebecca. “The last night that you stood by while your pimp—” The word drips with anger and pain. “—beat me and locked me away so that he could do whatever it was he wanted to do.”
No one in the room says a word, unsure of what to say, including Mikah. He knows that she needs to say what she needs to say and he can’t stop her.
“Vivienne, I—” Rebecca says. The look on her face says more than her words can; she is scared and unsure.
“Don’t,” Vivienne snaps. “You have no idea what you’ve put me through, nothing you say now will change that.” Everyone can see how her words cut into Rebecca, but Vivienne doesn’t want to hear her apologies. “I need to know if you remember anything at all from last night.”
Rebecca tries to think, tries to remember, but she’s so confused. She comes up empty. “I don’t remember.”
EIGHT
“What are we supposed to do now?” Mikah says after Seraphina and Zirah have escorted Rebecca out and come back to stand with the group once again.
Surprisingly, it is Red who steps forward. “You were about to receive a call from the rehab center. We believe the phone call was meant to be a trap to lure Vivienne to whoever killed her mother.”
“Okay, so we don’t go to the funeral home. Got it. Now what?” The irritation in Mikah’s voice is heard by all. The secrets and the vague descriptions and explanations are really starting to piss him off.
“Do not take that tone.”
“What do you expect me to do, Mother? You’ve thrown all of this at us at lightning speed. I will not sit here idly as everything Vivienne’s ever known begins to crumble.” His statement would’ve been more effectively delivered if he’d been standing, but the second he started speaking, Vivienne’s arms had wrapped harder and tighter around him, reminding him that she was there with him. “I need to know what I need to do to stop that madman from—”
The look on Elizabeth’s face forces him to stop talking.
“If it was that madman, as you call him, then you need to know that he has become the left hand of the devil himself. He was brought out of whatever circle of hell he was in to come after her. Though it is not truly Vivienne that he is after. It is her child.”
Mikah’s heart pounds hard against his ribs, and Vivienne’s head jerks off his chest. They both stare at Elizabeth.
“What does he want with my baby?” Her voice cracks with a strength of emotion unlike anything Mikah’s ever heard from her before. It’s that deep-seated level of emotion only a mother could express. Mikah has heard it many times from his own mother.
“Riley’s initial attack on you, when you told him you were pregnant, was driven by vengeance. But when he did that, the devil saw in him something he could use: a weapon of hatred that could be used to destroy that which could destroy the devil himself.” Elizabeth looks at both of them with worry and sadness in her eyes, but lying underneath is something else, something that Mikah doesn’t quite understand.
“Go ahead, explain all of this,” Mikah says sternly.
“Vivienne is the sole remaining descendant of Dia.”
“What? How?” he whispers.
Vivienne looks to him in confusion.
“Those stories are long and better told by a scéalaí,” Elizabeth says, “though they are very hard to find. Alexandria, the matron who preceded me, was dethroned because she refused to relinquish the location of Dia’s heir. She believed that if no one knew of Vivienne’s existence then Vivienne would always remain safe. But Dia knew that in order to protect his heir, we all needed to know where she was.”
Mikah and Vivienne’s eyes meet. But Elizabeth doesn’t pause for questions.
“For thousands of years we’ve believed that a full-blooded angel could only be male, as there were no records of females of full-blooded ancestry.”
“What about you?” Mikah asks. “Given your position within Elysium.”
“One would assume, but no. I am only half angel. Your father, on the other hand, is full-blooded.” She pauses momentarily, but Mikah doesn’t feel it’s appropriate to take the opportunity to ask about his birth father. Elizabeth continues, “Vivienne’s mother is the closest thing to a full-blooded female that Alexandria knew of. When Rebecca met Vivienne’s father—” A strange look crosses Elizabeth’s face and there is some uncomfortable shifting around the room. Vivienne shifts in her seat and starts to play with her fingers. “—Red, who is also full-blooded, and they conceived Vivienne, she became the next closest pureblood. Even so, Vivienne is only about fifteen-sixteenths angel.”
Vivienne’s hand gently caresses the swell of her stomach, finally understanding the importance of her baby.
“Yes, my child. Your daughter is of the purest angelic blood that we know of, and possibly the closest we will ever come to a full-blooded female.”
Vivienne opens her mouth to say something, but words fail her, and Elizabeth drives home what Vivienne already knows.
“Riley too is a full-blood. He, however, is of the demonic bloodline.”
“SHIT!” Mikah exclaims.
NINE
Seraphina is quick to speak. “Calm down, Mikah, this doesn’t mean anything is wrong. We have several angels here in Elysium that have more demonic blood than angelic. Just because demon blood runs in their veins does not make them a demon.”
Mikah looks to Vivienne, who has a wary look in her eyes.
Though Vivienne’s heart rate spikes at the confirmation that Riley is of demonic descent, it is also something she’s suspected since all of this angel stuff was brought into her life.
“Vivienne.” Zirah is vying for her attention. Vivienne pulls her eyes away from Mikah to look at her. “Your daughter will be full-blooded angel. There is nothing in this world that could pull her away from that path.”
“How can you be so certai
n?” Vivienne breathes.
This time Elizabeth is the one to speak. “Why, child, would she be anything but? She will be taught our ways, live amongst the purest of angels. She will know no different. Take a look at your life, Vivienne. You’ve dealt with far more than any one person should have to endure in a normal lifetime, and look at yourself, what you’ve turned into. You’ve never followed the path of evil, why would your daughter?”
Though Elizabeth sounds confident, it is hard for Vivienne or Mikah to be certain of the path her daughter will take.
“Some of the devil’s demons are full-blooded angel, as well,” Zirah says. “The path we choose dictates where we will spend our lives. Those who choose the path of evil stay evil, and those who choose the path of good stay good. Their goodness or evil is heightened by their blood, but their blood does not dictate their path.”
Vivienne is trying to process Zirah’s words.
“Take your mother for example, and we’ve already talked about this, but while she never did anything to earn herself a spot in hell, she’s done enough away from the good that she cannot live in Elysium and is considered one of our fallen.”
The reality of her mother’s banishment from Elysium is slowly starting to sink in. Vivienne wipes tears away from her cheeks as Mikah softly rubs his thumb along her back. She wonders if she’ll ever see her mother again.
When you’re ready to see her again, we can bring her back here, Zirah says quietly inside her mind.
Vivienne looks to Zirah. Vivienne’s heart rate spikes, she fights the urge to let the revulsion play out on her face.
Only when you’re ready.
Vivienne realizes she doesn’t know if she’ll ever be ready to face her mother again. Suddenly she feels overwhelmed by everything that’s happened in the last several hours, and exhaustion overtakes her.
Mikah senses a shift in Vivienne. His ability to feel and read her emotions has him sliding closer to her.
“I’m not sure how much more of tonight I can take,” Vivienne whispers, and Mikah wraps his arms around her.
The guardians exchange urgent glances with Elizabeth, silently pleading with her to let them all go for tonight.
“Go and rest. We will have more information soon, and when we do, I’ll bring you back here,” Elizabeth says.
Vivienne leans into Mikah, and the rest of the guardians are quick to lead them to an exit.
When they walk back through the door, they are no longer in Vivienne’s condo, but in Mikah’s.
“Until we know what’s going on, I think it would be best if you both stayed here,” Red says as he turns back toward Vivienne and Mikah.
Vivienne nods, and Mikah holds her a little tighter.
“Thank you,” Mikah says.
Red nods at him, but his eyes fall to Vivienne. She can see the sadness in his eyes.
“Vivienne, I—” But he falters. Red, usually so sure of himself, is at a loss for words.
Vivienne breathes. “It’s a lot to take in. I’m exhausted. Can we talk about this later?”
Red’s lips form a half smile. “Of course. Get some rest. I’ll come if there is news.”
“Please wait until at least tomorrow afternoon, no matter how urgent you think it might be,” Mikah says.
Red nods, and he and the others leave.
TEN
“How are you?” Mikah asks as soon as they are alone.
“Tired, scared, concerned, tired, confused. What about you?” she asks as she leans into him.
He gently kisses the top of her forehead. “All of the above. Let’s go to bed.”
They both start toward the bedroom. “Are you okay with staying here?” he asks her, knowing how she feels about her independence and not wanting to upset her by forcing her to stay.
“I’m happy to be wherever you are.”
Mikah’s heart swells at her words and he stops, gently taking her cheeks in his hand, and kisses her, softly and tenderly.
She returns his kiss, this time without any hesitation. Knowing that tonight they’ve crossed a line that can never be recrossed, she puts everything she feels into their kiss.
Mikah pulls back and looks deep into her eyes. She recognizes that underlying emotion. Similar emotions are running wild through her veins, she takes his hand and he leads her into the bedroom.
As she steps across the threshold, the dream image of her and Mikah in this bed comes back into her mind, and she’s reminded of how ready she is for their relationship to move forward.
“I’m going to use the bathroom,” she says as she heads in that direction.
Once inside, she takes stock of herself in the mirror, runs water over her face and tries to take a deep breath. She doesn’t understand why she’s suddenly so nervous.
When she steps back into the bedroom, Mikah is standing on the opposite side of the bed, pulling back the covers.
He looks up to see her standing in the doorway. A brief moment passes between them, and then he gestures for her to come to him.
He watches her as she walks quietly around the bed. Her hair bounces across her back, and she smiles at him as she comes closer. The desire he felt for her earlier tonight grows deeper within him and he wants her. After all the mess in Elysium, he needs her close to him.
He reaches for her hand and gestures toward the bed, and she takes her cue and climbs in. He bends down and kisses her forehead.
“I’ll be right back,” he whispers as he steps back and goes around the bed toward the bathroom.
Vivienne snuggles into bed, turning to face the other side, where she expects Mikah to lie down when he returns.
While she waits for him, her mind begins to go over everything that has happened in the last twenty-four hours: the shifter in her apartment; learning about who and what Red, Connor, Andrew and Celeste are; the news of her mother’s passing; the new information about Riley. She has no doubt that he is behind her mother’s death, and she wonders how much more destruction he will create in his haste to get to her. And then her confrontation with her mother and the discovery of who her father is.
What is she supposed to do about Red? Is she capable, after all this time, of embracing that relationship? What will Red think if she doesn’t know what to do?
“Easy,” she whispers to herself. “You can deal with that tomorrow.”
Just then Mikah steps out of the bathroom. He’s wearing the same pants, but he’s shed his shirt. Seeing Mikah standing there shirtless, his inky black hair falling onto his face and those liquid eyes vibrant and blue, has her desire for him growing hot and fast throughout her veins.
Vivienne’s beautiful. Her soft cheeks are flushed, and a hint of a smile plays on her lips. Seeing her in his bed brings back the memory of seeing her with his other self in that dream so many weeks ago.
He’d wanted to stop earlier, unsure of what she was really feeling for him, but seeing her now leaves no doubt in his mind that they are both on the same page, both wanting and needing each other in a way he’s never felt before.
But he won’t push it. She needs to come to him when she’s ready.
Resolving to be patient, he walks the ten steps to the bed. As he does, she pulls the covers back to receive him. Excitement spreads like wildfire through his veins. Just the idea of sleeping in the same bed as her is enough to send his heart racing.
But his mind is running wild with what happened earlier tonight and everything that’s happened between them in just the last few hours. He needs a chance to collect himself and bring his overwhelming need for her under control.
She watches as he turns to sit down on the edge of the bed. He puts his elbows on his knees and rubs his face. She reaches over and lightly runs her fingers down his back along his wings.
He shivers with pleasure at her touch, and he can feel his wings unlocking themselves. Closing his eyes, he hopes to keep them in check. She does it again and he turns toward her.
She’s so beautiful, unlike anything he’s ev
er seen before. He can no longer resist; he climbs into bed facing her.
“Hi, beautiful,” he whispers.
She slides closer to him, brushing his hair out of his eyes. He kisses her palm and she shivers.
He wraps his arms around her, holding her close, trying to understand her mood, or her need. Having her close to him, knowing that she’s safe in his arms, helps to bring his racing heart back to normal.
Relief washes through Vivienne as she settles into his embrace and feels his heartbeat slow. While being with Mikah is what she wants more than anything, she’s too tired.
Before they can even consider anything further, exhaustion claims them and they both fall sound asleep.
ELEVEN
“Your plan isn’t working. We have to get out of here before we get caught.”
“No. We wait for her.”
“Why, she’s not showing up here. You said it yourself, you never even knew she had a mother until Link told you. If her mother didn’t mean enough to her to tell you, what makes you think she will show up here?”
Riley turns away from the window in Rebecca Callahan’s old room. He looks the same as he did before the devil killed him in that cave, but he’s far more powerful now. “I just know,” he snaps. He runs his hand across his buzz cut hair and looks back to the window
Derek, the idiot Link made him bring along, has been pacing the floor on the other side of the bed since they got here. Riley’s six-foot-one frame is big enough, but Derek dwarfs him. His military-short hair is jet black, and his features are hard. His eyes are a solid black, something Riley guesses he’s gained from all his years of service to Link. Derek is also someone Link trusts, otherwise he wouldn’t be here now. Link had made Riley fight Derek before he left hell, and the idiot had somehow managed to kick his ass. The last thing Riley wants to do is admit Derek might be right, that Vivienne might not come after all.
He’d succeeded in taking care of Rebecca so that no one would think she’d died of anything other than natural causes. Then he’d read her chart. Vivienne, no doubt, drove her to the madness she suffered from. Vivienne isn’t good for anything other than pissing everyone off.
