by J. E. Taylor
I tilted my chin toward my chest and raised an eyebrow. “Then where?”
She bit her lip. “Have you ever been to...” She paused and glanced up at the stars. “... Maine?”
I followed her gaze. “It’s still too close.”
“Have you ever been there?”
I shook my head. That was one state I hadn’t been to and the idea of still being in New England didn’t sit well with me. Being on this half of the world didn’t sit well, but I knew I’d never get Naomi to agree to raise children on a deserted island in the South Pacific.
Hell, Lilith found us in the mountains of Colorado, so really, there wasn’t any place safe on Earth and we damn well couldn’t populate the moon.
I sighed. “Okay.”
“Really?”
I dropped my gaze to hers. “Really. But I have to make it look like we are leaving the country.” I planted a kiss on her forehead and led us back inside.
“I’m booking us on as many flights to Greece as I can from airports around here and in Michigan.”
“Why Michigan?”
“I own one of the top automobile museums in the country. I’ll send the majority of the car collection to them so they don’t rot here.”
“I didn’t realize you had more than what’s in the garage?”
“There are a lot of things you still don’t know about me.” I sent a grin her way and refocused. “I’m also going to book one flight out of Louisiana.”
“Louisiana?”
“It’s part of the shell game and he’ll assume that’s where we settled.”
“New Orleans?”
I grinned and nodded.
“Isn’t that a bit... cliché?”
“Absolutely, but he won’t get it,” I said and slid onto the couch. It took me close to an hour to book ten separate flights ranging from as early as the following week out of Boston to the latest from Louisiana next month. The only flights that didn’t have connections in the U.S. originated out of Boston, the rest of the flights had connections in O’Hare, Dulles or Atlanta.
When I finished, I cracked my knuckles and stretched my fingers before switching gears. I sent a note to the museum curator informing him that I had a dozen more vehicles coming the following week, including pieces from ancient Greece and Rome. The response came in less than five minutes after I hit send, and I swear the man must have been close to a fucking orgasm with how much he gushed.
I sent a note back saying the vehicles needed some engine work because they had been sitting for the majority of the last five years, and he assured me that they would be attended to when they arrived.
Next, I arranged for transportation of everything except my Aston-Martin; that would go wherever we went. The next couple of days would be busy loading vehicles and when I was done with the arrangements, I turned the computer to Naomi.
“Your turn. You need to start looking for a place for us to stay,” I said and stood up. “I’m going to make sure I have everything I need to finish up the Aston Martin and hide it from view.”
“Do I have a budget?” she asked as she pulled the computer onto her lap.
“Find a lease for now.”
Disappointment transitioned her mouth into a pouty frown and I turned, leaving her to the task. I found my way through the underground tunnel and stood in the center of the garage looking at the contents. The dozen vehicles, including the ornate chariots would be gone by the end of the following day and the rest of the things needed to be cleared out before we left. The Aston-Martin didn’t have a great deal of storage space, so anything I wanted to come with us had to be compact.
I slid into the seat and turned the ignition key. The car jumped to life, purring like she should. All the work I had done over the past month had gotten her into shape and there wasn’t anything I could think of that she needed. Even the tires had been replaced. I shut the car off and popped the trunk. I packed a toolbox with the wrench set and all the custom sockets I had for the different engine parts. When I had everything I needed for future servicing, I closed the lid and placed the toolbox in the trunk along with the extra oil filters and spark plugs for the car.
I cleared a space in the far right corner, and pulled the car as close to the wall as I dared before putting a fitted cover over the vehicle. Then I moved boxes, old tires and a couple of the rolling tool chests I had around the car, hiding it from view and giving us the room to maneuver the rest of the vehicles.
I stepped back, scanning the area. It needed more and I glanced at the ruined truck. Once I found the key, I yanked on the driver’s door, but it didn’t budge, so I climbed up on the bent foot rail and hauled myself through the empty window.
Despite my skepticism, the truck started and I moved it so it blocked the box barricade. I exited the way I entered and walked around to the belly of the garage. The mangled form did a better job blocking the Aston Martin than the boxes and tool chests. Now it just looked like a normal garage storage space along with a truck that needed serious bodywork.
Satisfied, I wiped my hands on my jeans and headed back to the house.
“York,” Naomi said when I entered the living room.
I raised an eyebrow. “I told you New York is not an option.”
“No, York, Maine. It’s a beach community and I found a couple of rentals that would be perfect and they aren’t outrageous.”
She spun the computer toward me and I scanned the list of available year-round rentals. They weren’t bad and a few of the home rentals were downright beautiful. “Where is York?” I asked, hoping she’d say as far north as possible.
“It’s like fifteen minutes from Portsmouth, New Hampshire.”
I met her gaze and she wet her lips with her tongue and flashed that pleading smile that made it impossible to say no. Fuck it. I tapped the more expensive of the two condo rentals. “See if that’s still available.”
She picked up the phone and I crossed into the kitchen to figure out something for dinner. We hadn’t had much today and I was starting to get that lightheaded feeling that comes with forgetting to eat. Instead of opting for some heavy Greek dish, I went simple and opened a can of tomato soup.
Naomi stepped into the kitchen behind me and wrapped her arms around my waist. Just the feel of her made my heart flutter, despite the day from hell, and I turned my head, catching a quick kiss over my shoulder.
“Do you want grilled cheese with this?”
She glanced at the stove and nodded. “I’ll probably only have grilled cheese.”
“Keeping it light?”
“Yeah, my stomach is still a bit unsettled and not eating today didn’t help.”
I just nodded and continued stirring. Now that I wasn’t actively doing anything, my mind started wondering about what Michael said today.
“Why did Michael give me his grace?” I asked with my back to Naomi. “And what the hell did he mean by now all I need is Lucifer’s?” I didn’t expect an answer and when Naomi didn’t speak, I took a glance over my shoulder. She stood looking out the back window, her profile carved in thought.
I let it go, focusing back on our dinner. When I set our plates on the table, she turned and sighed, taking the seat opposite me. I brought two bowls and spoons along with the soup pot just in case she changed her mind.
The minute I set the soup down, she turned ravenous, like she hadn’t eaten in years. I had the forethought to make her two sandwiches and she decided halfway through the first half to add soup to her meal.
“Maybe he’s setting you up to be a true trinity.” Naomi said around a mouthful of grilled cheese.
“How?”
“Maybe when your father died, you got his grace too.”
I burst out laughing. “I still can’t get over the fact I was the beneficiary of one angel’s grace, I’m certainly not worthy of two.”
Naomi’s brow knit together and she took another bite of her sandwich. “Why do you do that?” Her eyes flared to match the sharpness in her tone
.
“Sweetheart, I killed my fair share of people and some of them did not deserve to die. I’m not worthy of grace.”
Her gaze narrowed. “Worthy or not, it sounds like you have it and you need to figure out how to use it.”
My hands dropped to the table and I stared at her. “What do you mean?”
“I might be wrong, but I have a feeling he could have made you better without granting you his grace.”
This wasn’t an idea I wanted to entertain. I didn’t understand why Michael would be so foolish as to put himself in harm’s way for me. “So he died... for me?” I asked, my voice carrying all the incredulousness that filled my brain.
“Angels don’t die, Damian. They just don’t get to leave heaven anymore.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?” I asked her, leaning back in the chair and crossing my arms.
Her gaze turned to a glare. “That isn’t the point. There was a reason Michael gave you his grace, we just need to figure it out and I think his statement may have been the key.”
“Look, right now, I want to get us as far from this house as I possibly can. I want you and my child to be safe and the last thing I want to do is confront Lucifer. You saw just as much as I did. He’s almost back to full strength, which means if we cross his path, we have nothing to defend ourselves with.”
“There has to be a way to kill that bastard,” she said.
“Okay, I’m curious, now that we’re human, just how in the hell do you suggest we kill an angel?” I countered, leaning forward on the table because I really had no clue and wanted to hear what she had to say. After all, she had nearly done him in when she was a vampire in tiger form.
“You steal his grace,” she said like it was an achievable thing.
I started laughing. “You are out of your fucking mind.”
Naomi huffed and pushed her plate in, crossing her arms in that stubborn manner that made me want to take her over my knee. Anger bloomed and I stood, clearing the table before I said something I’d regret.
“I’m serious.”
I spun from the sink. “You had the strength to kill him when you were a vampire; I never had that kind of power.”
She stood and cut the distance between us to nothing but a fraction of an inch. “You’re the stronger one now.”
Her hand landed on my chest and I stared into her eyes. Into the conviction displayed in her deep chocolate irises and laughed. I looked up at the ceiling cursing my bloodline as well as hers. I turned away from her, finishing the dishes instead of continuing this insane conversation.
“Have you heard anything more about Valerie?”
I wiped my hands on a dishtowel, realizing that I hadn’t told her about the conversation I had with the doctor. “I talked to her doctor before I called Ted. Life Star took Valerie to Hartford Hospital once she stabilized enough to travel. Her doctor said they had to remove her right kidney and they could give us a better idea of her recuperation time in the morning.” I left out the fact her odds weren’t ideal for making it through the night. Naomi didn’t need to know just how close we came to losing her. “And Ted said he’d call me if anything changed.”
Naomi just stared at me, her eyelashes batting like she didn’t quite understand. “They flew her to Hartford?”
“Yes. She needed a trauma one center and that’s the closest one. If they hadn’t, she probably would have died from blood loss.” Instead of taking a seat at the table, I left the kitchen and flopped on the couch, turning the laptop towards me. I hadn’t logged into the day job at all and when I opened my business email account, I exhaled at the flurry of activity.
The last piece of the shell game needed to be addressed and I sent a note to my boss, telling him I needed some personal time in order to relocate. He must have been online because my phone buzzed and I glanced at Naomi.
“What do you mean, you need more time off?” Kevin bellowed in my ear when I answered.
“It’s either that or I’ll have to give notice,” I said and pinched the bridge of my nose to dull the forming headache.
“You’re the best damn programmer I have and we need you,” he pushed. “The project will not get done in time if you leave.”
“Kevin, I’m not in a position to give you a whole hell of a lot of time right now. If you can live with what I can give, when I can give it, then we’re good. Otherwise...” I trailed off, trying not to get aggravated with him. I knew I was putting him in a difficult spot, but I just couldn’t see a way around it. Juggling everything I had in the air right now needed my concentration, otherwise I’d screw up.
As trite as it sounded, lives were at stake and failing was not an option.
A project timeline put in jeopardy just seemed so ridiculously unimportant in comparison, but I didn’t want to burn any bridges.
A huff came over the line and I could just imagine him chewing on his lip while overlooking some concrete landscape out the window. He exhaled. “What can you give me?”
I closed my eyes and dropped my chin to my chest. Whatever I promised, I’d have to follow through on, no matter what, and right now that was a nearly impossible commitment. Instead of saying I couldn’t give him anything, I said, “I can commit to five hours a week for the next month.”
“An hour a day? Are you fucking kidding me?”
“It’s what I can commit to. If I find I can give you more, I will.”
“Does this have anything to do with the accident?”
My eyes opened and I met Naomi’s gaze. That was the excuse she gave when I was in a coma. A car accident. I wish it had been that instead of Lucifer playing tic-tac-toe on my chest with a razor, or beating me to a pulp with his fist. An accident would have been cleaner and easier to deal with. Instead, I had nightmares every night and now I had to face that bastard again.
“Damian?”
“Yes, there have been some complications that need to be addressed,” I answered and just left it at that.
“Are you... okay?” he asked in a voice softened with concern.
“I’m not dying if that’s what you’re worried about,” I said.
“Oh, okay, that’s good,” Kevin said, stumbling before he recovered his authoritative boom. “I guess we can work around your schedule,” he added.
“Thank you.”
“Can you take a look at the issue the testers found?”
“Yeah, I’ll take a look now and shoot over my findings in a few,” I said and disconnected the call. “Shit.” The last thing I wanted to do was work.
Naomi stretched out on the couch next to me, using my thigh as a pillow. She flipped on the television while I shuffled through the email chain.
After a few minutes, the irony of the situation hit me and I started to chuckle.
Naomi glanced up at me with her brow scrunched in her what-the-fuck look.
“For someone who’s supposed to save the world, being stuck troubleshooting code is completely fucked up.”
Dimples appeared even before her giggle and she rolled her eyes, settling back down on my lap to catch the rest of the show.
I had the problem figured out and fixed before the half-hour sitcom ended and sent a note to my boss. I folded the laptop, set it on the table, and stretched.
“Are we all set with that condo?” I asked and Naomi rolled onto her back, looking straight up at me.
“They weren’t there when I called and they haven’t called back yet.”
“If it doesn’t pan out, we can always stay at a hotel until we find something.” I cupped her cheek and ran my thumb over her lips, enjoying the silkiness of her skin.
“When are we leaving?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.” I shifted and brushed her hair away from her face, tucking the stray hairs behind her ear. “It won’t be until after all the cars are on their way to Michigan and we may have to stay downstairs for a few days. Just until I think it’s clear to go.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“Besides, I have to reprogram the access to the rooms downstairs. I need to make a failsafe that will freeze the lock if someone attempts to override the commands I put in place. I don’t want anyone getting in, or out of there after we go. I want to make it so they’d have to blast the door off with dynamite to gain access.”
“Why?”
“I’m not worried about Ted and Valerie using the place. I’m more concerned with someone finding their way in from the garage.” I shrugged, leaving the possibilities open and she slowly nodded. “Demon’s can’t get past the entry pipe—but anything else can.”
“If you lock it up...” she started and I raised my eyebrows at her, silently telling her to rethink the statement before she continued. Naomi inhaled and nodded, getting my point.
“I want to leave the garage open. That way they’ll know it’s empty and that we’ve left for good. But before we go, not only do I have to do the reprogramming magic, I also need to solder the door at the bottom of the stairs and do the same to the hatchway so nothing can get through. And, just for good measure, I’ll move the truck over the hatch to make it less obvious. Once we’re in Maine, I’ll make sure the ownership of both the property and the garage is transferred to Valerie and she can do whatever she wants with it.”
Leaving unnoticed wasn’t going to be easy, but if I could pull it off, it would give us time. How much time was the question, and I broke eye contact with Naomi, looking out at the dark settling over the back yard.
If I didn’t succeed at this, God only knew what hell we’d unleash.
Naomi yawned and stretched, pulling my attention away from the outside world and I smiled down at her. I wish I knew what she was thinking. I missed the mind reading abilities we shared as vampires and I sighed, running my fingertips over her sexy lips.
She grabbed my wrist and pulled my index finger into her mouth. Heat stirred inside me and I closed my eyes for a moment as she slowly released it. When she teased me like this, I could feel the fire between us burn bright. I opened my eyes and allowed the slow grin she adored to form.
It had the desired effect, she propped herself up to meet my hungry lips.
