by Susan Illene
“The fools can’t leave well enough alone,” Lucas said, annoyed.
We might not agree on much, but we did on this. “I’m going to find Grant and put a stop to him and his cult.”
“Of that, I have no doubt, sensor.” He spoke with complete confidence in me. There was something particularly satisfying about having his support in this, though I wished it could always be that way.
“Where is everyone else?” I asked, moving closer to him.
Lucas pulled me into his lap and brushed his lips against mine. A shiver ran through my body as his heat enveloped me. Though I was tired from my first full day at work, I decided tonight would be the night we finally got more intimate. He’d kept his distance so far, insisting I had to get stronger and healthier first, but I’d waited long enough. Lucas would just have to stop treating me like a china doll who might break at the slightest touch.
It was a small miracle he’d let me fight Sabelle, though I’d made a point of ending it fast so that he wouldn’t interfere. Even then, he’d made me take it easy the rest of the evening due to the damage she’d caused me internally—which had healed during the night. I had to keep putting myself in his shoes and remember that my age and strength must seem weak in comparison to his. After Lucas’ horrible stays in Purgatory, which were far worse than mine, he probably couldn’t imagine how I might recover anytime in the near future.
“Cori picked Emily up after her classes,” he said, his voice coming out husky. He must have been feeling the effects of our nearness, too. “When she arrived at the school, she mentioned something about taking Emily shopping for girl items that I chose not to question. Micah and Kerbasi should have finished their shift at the training facility early in the afternoon, but they haven’t come home yet.”
Cori hadn’t said anything to me about taking Emily, but she’d probably figured telling Lucas was enough. What held Micah and Kerbasi up, I couldn’t imagine. It was almost six in the evening now, and they usually came home in time for dinner.
“Has Bartol left his cave today?” I couldn’t sense any emotions coming from the nephilim at the moment, but I didn’t know if that meant he slept or just sat there meditating like he did a lot.
Lucas glanced at the closed office door across the room. “He came out once this morning to eat breakfast and take a brief walk outside. I have not seen him since.”
It drove me nuts to leave Bartol alone, but we had to at least give him some time to adjust before trying to break that shield he’d put around himself. A part of me was still amazed Bartol had performed the summoning spell with Remiel, though he’d hardly talked to us since then.
I nodded at Patrick, who entered the room. “We picked up pizza.”
“Got it right here.” The sensor set four boxes down on the coffee table, filling the den with their rich aroma.
The door to the office cracked open a moment later, and Bartol cautiously poked his head out. Food was one of the few things I’d found that could draw him away from seclusion, which was partly why we’d decided to eat in the den. Patrick had been the one to suggest the plan—to my surprise. You knew it had to be bad when even he offered suggestions for how to help a nephilim with major PTSD.
“Don’t worry, it’s safe. We’re the only ones here,” I said, giving Bartol an encouraging smile.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out he was trying to determine if Kerbasi was home. Everyone in the house made an effort to keep them separated and so far we’d been successful. I could only hope we managed to keep it up until Bartol was ready to move into his own place.
We might have come to terms with the guardian and his ugly past, but we also didn’t have permanent scars on our faces to remind us of the things he’d done. For his part, Kerbasi didn’t resist when we made him stay away. He seemed to understand our reasoning and chose not to argue about it. Of course, I had threatened to shoot him if he didn’t comply, but that didn’t always work.
Bartol took one last nervous glance around the room, then headed for the table and lifted the lid on the top pizza box. He studied the food, nostrils flaring as he worked to identify the numerous ingredients. This was the first time since returning from Purgatory that we’d had pizza. I didn’t know if Bartol had eaten it before or not. I’d ordered several different kinds, heavy on the meat, plus an extra for Emily with cheese only. He took a piece and bit into it. About twenty seconds later, it was gone and he grabbed another one.
I looked at Patrick. “Can you grab some napkins, utensils, and paper plates since you’re up?”
“Sure.” He headed for the kitchen.
Lucas took hold of a lock of my hair and played with it. “How was your first day back at the office?”
“Not horrible.” I shrugged and told him about the line of people filing complaints on alleged supernaturals. “Patrick helped a lot, which O’Connell appreciated.”
Lucas snorted. “I’m certain he did. Has the agent discovered anything useful about the cult?”
“Not much, other than they might have a lead on Grant’s second-in-command.” I heaved a sigh. “The head agency isn’t providing many details on that yet, but they’re supposed to let us know when they find something more concrete.”
Lucas worked his jaw. “If I was not confined to this state, I’d conduct the search myself.”
I laced my fingers with his. “If they take too long, we might have to do something ourselves. I can’t stand sitting around watching people get killed while they twiddle their thumbs gathering intelligence at a snail’s pace.”
“That is the drawback to large government agencies with too many rules to follow. They cannot always act swiftly.” His expression turned grim.
“To be fair, Grant isn’t making it easy to find him or those close to him,” I said. It took us a long time to track down my father’s group because sensors were quite good at covering their tracks. My so-called brother would no doubt excel at being elusive, too.
“Here you go,” Patrick said, returning with the plates and utensils.
I moved over to my own couch cushion and grabbed a couple of pizza slices. It didn’t bother me to hold them in my hand the way Bartol had done, but Lucas had a strange quirk about eating. He didn’t like to touch his food with his fingers. After spending too much time in Purgatory, I could only guess it had something to do with the barbaric conditions there. He hated to mimic anything from his time in that place.
Now, I had a better understanding of his reasoning, but it still amused me to watch him cut his pizza into bite size pieces and use a fork to pick them up. The man insisted on complete control, which left me wondering how he managed to put up with someone like me.
We were just finishing our meal when a bright flash of light appeared next to the couch. After I blinked my eyes a few times, I found Remiel standing there. The archangel still appeared as haggard in the face as when I’d summoned him the other day, but he’d put on a fresh robe. This one didn’t have any wrinkles or stains at the edges. I couldn’t decide if it was a good or bad sign that he’d attempted to clean himself up.
“Oh, look. Remiel showed up without needing a smoke signal,” I said, wiping my hands with a napkin.
Patrick gasped, eyes widening in wonder. Archangels were even more difficult to behold if you saw them indoors. Bartol tossed a few pizza slices onto a plate and hurried to his office hideout, shutting the door with a soft click. I didn’t sense fear emanating from him, more like nervousness. He’d done his part in my grand plan and wanted nothing to do with the rest. I couldn’t blame him for that, especially now that he knew the full extent of where things might lead.
Remiel frowned at the office door, then turned his attention to me. “The council has agreed to meet with you on one condition.”
Cue the doomsday music. “What do they want?”
“They cannot continue to ignore that you and Lucas are cohabitating outside the bonds of marriage. If you wish for them to see you, then you must agree to an offici
al ceremony while you are there.”
Lucas’ fork clattered to the table. “Excuse me?”
“But we’ve bonded,” I argued. “That’s always been good enough for you all before.”
This was absolutely the last thing I’d expected from the council. What did they care if we fornicated to our hearts’ content without sanctifying it in some official ceremony? Now they worried about our souls? At this point, I half-wondered if we’d be welcome anywhere after we died. Maybe we’d have to start our own netherworld.
Remiel honed his gaze on Lucas. “Do not pretend you have not considered it already.”
I jerked my gaze to my mate. “What is he talking about?”
“Melena has barely returned from Purgatory. It is too soon to ask her to make this kind of decision,” he said to the archangel, avoiding my gaze.
He was right about that, but I was still stuck on the idea he’d considered marriage while I was away. I’d been perfectly happy with the bond we shared and hadn’t planned on asking him for more. Despite our love for each other, it felt like a massive step to take right now.
“If she wishes to meet with the council, she must agree to the ceremony. We will not conduct it until after hearing Melena’s appeal, though,” Remiel said, as if that somehow made it seem less scary.
“Why after?” I asked.
He folded his hands in front of him. “There is some concern that seeing you two marry might sway their decision one way or another.”
“You mean the archangels might get sentimental?” I was trying very hard to imagine that and failing miserably.
Patrick let out a low whistle. “A marriage in Heaven. Now that would be interesting. Do you two ever do anything like normal people?”
I pointed at the half-eaten food on the coffee table. “We eat pizza.”
“What is your decision, Melena?” Remiel asked impatiently.
“You’re serious? I can’t have my petition heard without agreeing to get married?” Even though I knew he spoke the truth, that didn’t make it any easier to believe.
The archangel dipped his chin. “I am.”
“If you are not comfortable with this,” Lucas said, cupping my cheek and gazing deeply into my eyes. “Do not agree to it. While you were away, I did consider the prospect of marriage, but only because I thought the human ceremony might mean something to you once you were ready.”
I searched his face, blown away that he’d actually considered something so human as a marriage ceremony for my benefit. We’d never even talked about it. “I don’t need anything more to prove our relationship to the world, but if it doesn’t bother you to do it…”
“Melena, do not sacrifice yourself over this,” he warned.
The doorbell rang. I’d invited Lorna over in case Remiel showed up this evening. She wanted to make her own arguments to the archangel council, considering it was her mate we were trying to save. It felt wrong to leave her out of the petition. If I didn’t agree to get married, though, she’d lose her chance. Regardless of my misgivings on the matter, discovering Lucas was amenable to the ceremony made the decision a lot easier.
“I’m not sacrificing myself. If they want us to get married up in Heaven, then at least no one will be able to top that.” I smiled and turned to the archangel. “Can we bring cameras?”
“No.”
“You insist on a ceremony, but refuse to let us record any evidence of it?” Good grief the archangels hadn’t thought this one through very well.
“We will file official records at the Fairbanks courthouse. It will be legal in the eyes of the humans, if that is what you’re concerned about,” he replied.
“Lucas and I will need a few copies.” It was almost worth getting married to see how the archangels drafted the marriage license and who signed it.
“You will get them.”
“Great, then let’s do this. Let me go get Lorna since she’s going, too.” I started to rise from my seat, but Lucas grabbed my arm.
“Are you certain about this?” He was genuinely worried that I would only marry him to get my petition heard by the council.
I met his gaze and let him see the truth. “Yes, I’m sure. I really want this and not just because of the appeal, but also because I love you. If they doubt the seriousness of our relationship, we’ll just have to prove it to them.”
“Very well.” He dipped his chin. “Then I will support you in this.”
“Thank you.” I smiled.
Remiel held out a piece of fancy parchment. “This is the location of the portal where I will meet you. I thought it best if you drove there.”
“Good idea.” I took it from him and studied his tidy handwriting. His penmanship could have passed for a human’s. I’d expected him to write in Old English lettering or something.
“What about me?” Patrick asked.
The archangel put a hand on his shoulder. “You have no part in this. Be glad of it.”
***
We walked toward the portal destination, which had relocated itself to about a mile from Ski Land off of Steese Highway. Lucas had pulled his SUV onto one of the narrow dirt roads, parking as close as possible, so we didn’t have to travel for long on foot. It only took a few minutes before Remiel and two lesser angels—one male and one female—came into sight. All three of them stood waiting for us in their white robes. Their faces were expressionless, making me wonder if they ever chatted or laughed when no one was around to catch them.
As soon as Remiel saw us, he reached out a hand and sent tendrils of magic to open the portal. I gulped, watching it flare to life. It had been less than a week since I’d left Purgatory, and the thought of traveling through there again filled me with dread. I had to remind myself I was doing this for a good cause and couldn’t back out because of a little discomfort. Okay, a lot of discomfort. If I could figure out a way to erase the place from my memory, I would do it.
Then a worse problem occurred to me. “How will Lorna survive? She’s not immortal.”
“You need not worry,” Remiel replied, reaching down to free Lucas of his ankle bracelet. I’d nearly forgotten about that little issue. “We will only be in Purgatory for a few minutes. The blood you provided her will allow her to survive the atmosphere for a short period with minimal effects.”
Lorna’s brows drew together. “What sort of effects?”
“I expect you’ll feel some disorientation, dizziness, and possibly acquire a mild sunburn. We will be unable to heal you due to your nature, but your enhanced immune system should allow you to recover swiftly.” Remiel sounded confident enough that we could only hope he was right. I doubted they performed this kind of operation very often. Everyone except sensors could just be flashed directly to Heaven, so they were going through a lot of extra trouble for us.
“For my Yerik, I will do it,” Lorna said, straightening her shoulders.
I still couldn’t get over how my blood had changed her from an aging woman in her seventies to one who appeared no older than fifty. Her shoulder-length brown hair was shiny with just a hint of gray, and the closest thing she had to wrinkles were the creases at the corners of her eyes. Though her body seemed firmer and healthier than before, she was still rather diminutive in size and several inches shorter than my 5’6” height. As I recalled, Yerik dwarfed her when they stood next to each other. I had to hope this trip through Purgatory didn’t do any lasting harm.
“I assumed you’d be willing,” Remiel replied to Lorna, then gestured at the portal.
Lucas and I exchanged looks of commiseration. Neither of us wanted to go willingly into Purgatory again, and now we each had bad memories to make us hesitate. He reached out and squeezed my hand. Somehow, the connection fueled us both and gave us strength.
He let go and entered first with the male angel following behind him. Taking a deep breath, I stepped through next. Lorna needed to go last so that she’d be exposed to the harsh environment for the shortest time possible. Sort of like ripping off a
band-aid, we needed to make this happen quickly.
The same sensation of interstellar travel bombarded me as I passed through the portal. This time, I couldn’t enjoy it as much, considering my destination. It popped me out the other side, and I landed in the warm ocean water. My shoes and slacks were immediately soaked. One day, I would find out which jackass put the portal in such a ridiculous location.
Lucas reached out and helped guide me up to the beach. A couple of guards stood a few hundred meters away, their postures less than welcoming. It occurred to me that this time I had an archangel with me and he would take me up to Heaven. Something about that helped alleviate my anxiety. I smiled and waved at the guards, who responded by widening their stances and gripping the swords at their sides. It was good to know they remained as friendly as ever.
As soon as Lorna came through the portal, the female angel who’d come with us took hold of her and lifted off in flight. I braced myself as Remiel wrapped his arms around me and beat his wings, taking us skyward. Lucas and the male angel weren’t far behind. We flew upward until the island below shrunk into the size of a quarter surrounded by a vast ocean. I was glad I used to jump out of planes or the high altitude would have probably scared me to death.
The angel holding a limp Lorna opened the portal in the sky. I couldn’t help thinking there would be no way—if I ever had such an inclination—to break into Heaven. They’d chosen this entry location well.
We flew into the opening and zoomed through another tunnel, except this one was filled with light so glaring that it had me clenching my eyes shut. It only lasted a few seconds before we reached the other side. Remiel set me down, and I cautiously lifted my lids.
Holy crap, we were standing on an endless landscape of clouds. I took a few steps and felt the ground squish underneath my shoes—and not because they’d gotten soaked. A sense of peace bombarded my senses, unlike anything I’d ever felt before. It relieved my tension and gave me hope that everything would work out. It wasn’t magic. More like something built into the very structure of the place, which made it difficult to think clearly.
