by Anny Cook
And she morphed into a tiger.
With a strangled shriek, Seb froze. She weighed a ton. Struggling for breath, he stared with terrified fascination into her glittering golden eyes and firmly reminded himself, It’s Zip. Zip is the tiger. Really. I don’t have to piss my pants ’cause this is really Zip.
A deep rumbling purr vibrated in her chest as though she was satisfied that she had his undivided attention. Before he could freak out too badly, she morphed into a small gray tabby kitten, purring and kneading his chest so enthusiastically he could feel the sharp little claws poking through his shirt. He took a deep breath and gently pried the claws loose. “So. What else do you have in your repertoire?”
She hopped down to the rug and in rapid succession, morphed into a striped chipmunk, a shaggy brown pony, a baby elephant—lightly brushing his face with her damp trunk—before shifting into a guinea pig. She whistled and wriggled her little body and then morphed back into her human form. Naked, she sat down cross-legged on the rug next to him and waited for him to speak.
He lay there with his eyes closed, his mind a complete, total blank. He knew that she was waiting for him to say something but what was there to say? He couldn’t even think of a question to ask. The soft rustle of skin brushing against fabric had his eyes flashing open. Zip stood up and went to her dresser.
When she turned away, he noticed a long cut trailing down the back of her thigh. She rummaged in the drawers until she found a long flannel nightgown and slipped it over her head. After tugging her heavy robe on over the gown, she padded out to the kitchen and fixed a cup of tea. All that time, as he intently watched her move around, his brain refused to process what she’d shown him.
She gingerly sat down at the table and sipped her tea, wondering whether she should call on her father for help. She’d been prepared for all sorts of scenarios but Seb had her worried. He wasn’t reacting at all like she thought he would. He might just be thinking things over but his lack of movement was a little scary.
“Can you change anytime you want to?” he finally asked.
“Uh-hmm.”
“And you always have to take all your clothes off?”
Zip couldn’t suppress her chuckle. “We-ll. I don’t have to but my clothing budget is limited. I would rather strip than constantly replace my clothes.” Seb sat up then and she began to breathe a bit easier.
“What happened to your leg?”
She shrugged. “Brian had a knife. He got in a good nick on Rack’s chest too.”
“So the other two dogs were Rack and Tate?” he guessed.
“Yeah. Rack’s still queasy. He’s never killed anyone before.”
“When did you plan to tell me about this shit? Or did you not plan to tell me at all?” he asked as he climbed to his feet and joined her at the table.
“Oh I planned to tell you,” she assured him. “That was my plan for this afternoon. Of course I wasn’t counting on Cyrus Chamfers screwing that up. And I thought I might sort of gently get around to mentioning the shifting part…”
That surprised a bark of laughter from him. “Tell me, Zipporah. How do you gently bring up the subject of shifting?”
“I can tell you that it wouldn’t have been in the middle of a delicate operation!” She crossed her arms over her breasts and scowled. “I was angry and worried about Unity and Penny so I wasn’t thinking straight!”
With reluctant delight, he made a new discovery about his woman. “You lost your professional distance because you were acting girly!”
“What? I was not!”
“Yeah, you were.” He stared at her as he struggled to rekindle his anger. He wasn’t ready to forgive her just yet. But somehow, her cranky confession of her loss of control deflected his rage. All he felt now was weary—too weary to continue the discussion, too weary to even think about all the shocks of the day. All he wanted to do was go to sleep.
“I was distracted,” she said. “Just distracted.”
“Yeah? Well, I’ve had enough weird input for today. I’m going to bed. Maybe in the morning it won’t seem so strange. I’m supposed to meet your father at six o’clock. Who knows? Maybe he’ll be able to help me wrap my mind around angels and shifting.”
Seb went into the bathroom, firmly shutting the door behind him, leaving Zip to wonder how her life had suddenly taken such a turn for the worse. Drearily, she got up from the table, poured the rest of her tea down the sink and rinsed her cup before turning out the kitchen light. After folding back the covers, she slipped off her robe and crawled into bed. As she tugged the covers over her shoulders, she hoped that Seb wasn’t too mad to hold her in the night. If there was ever going to be a night for bad dreams, this would be it.
Seb opened the door and said, “You can’t go to sleep until I check your leg.”
“Tate took care of it,” she grumbled.
“I don’t care if the Angel Gabriel took care of it. I want to check it out.”
“Gabriel doesn’t do wounds. He’s usually the one inflicting them.” She yawned and climbed out of bed. “It’s fine,” she assured him as she ambled into the bathroom.
“Turn around so you’re in the light and hike up your gown.” He squatted down so he could examine the marred skin. “I think it needs some antibiotic cream.”
Unwilling to argue with him, she merely said, “In the medicine cabinet.”
A few minutes later, he spread a light coat of cream on the angry cut, wrapped it with flexible self-sealing gauze and sent her off to bed while he put everything away. He came out of the bathroom, doused all the lights and climbed into bed. Without a word, he reached out for Zip and stripped off the flannel nightgown before tugging her against his chest so that their bodies were spooned together under the heavy blankets. “Go to sleep. Tomorrow is another day,” he whispered.
In the early hours of the morning Zip’s screams jolted him awake. As he fought to subdue her struggles with the heavy covers, his voice rumbled in the darkness. “Zip, it’s all right. Come on. Wake up! Zip!”
From one moment of searing terror to the next of total awareness, she stilled in his arms, adrenaline still pumping, her heart still thumping in the heavy black silence. “I’m going to turn on the light.” Seb reached out and flicked the switch on the bedside lamp before shoving the twisted covers down to the foot of the bed. “Come on, Zip. Sit up,” he urged as he grabbed her robe.
She trembled in the aftermath of the nightmare, shivering and sweating in reaction. Her teeth chattered as she huddled on the side of the bed. “Wh-what?”
“Up. Let me help you put on your robe. Then I’m going to run a hot bath for you.”
“It-it’s the mid-dle of the night.”
“Yep, it is. But we’re both awake and you’ll feel better after a relaxing bath.” He stuffed her arms in the sleeves of her robe and zipped it up. “Come in the bathroom while I run the water.” He nudged her into the bathroom, shut the toilet lid and made sure she sat down. He was counting on the bright light in the bathroom to help dispel some of her residual fear.
When the tub was partially filled, he dumped some bath salts in the warm water, stripped her robe and the bandage on her leg off before steadying her as she stepped in the tub. Once she was settled with a small flinch when the water touched her cut, he climbed in behind her, cradling her against his chest while the warm spray thundered at their feet. The water level neared the top and he twisted the knobs closed with his toes.
They soaked up the warmth of the steaming water in silence. Finally, he said, “This is the second time you’ve had a nightmare—that I know of. I think it’s time for you to tell me about them.”
She shuddered, even in the bright light and shelter of his strong arms. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
His arms tightened as she trembled. “Then tell me this. Does it have something to do with what happened yesterday afternoon?”
She shook her head. “Not exactly. Though I’m sure it triggered the dream.”
>
“Well? What is it?”
“I don’t know. People with fangs chasing me. Black tunnels and scary creatures reaching out to catch me. Claws and teeth gnashing.”
“That would scare the crap outta me,” he rumbled in her ear.
“The sounds are…terrifying. Shrieking and howling and roaring louder than a train. And the scents are sharp, acrid like burning chemicals.” She shivered and burrowed closer to him. “Just hold me for a while.”
He propped his chin on top of her head. “How long have you been having these dreams?”
“I don’t know. Seems like a long time. Since my teens, I think.” She turned to the side so she could bury her nose in the hollow of his neck and delicately inhale, taking in his familiar scent.
“You ever talk to anyone about the dreams?”
She shook her head, rubbing her cheek on his soft skin.
“Why not?” he asked softly.
“Counselors don’t believe that demons are real.”
Seb had to think about that for a few minutes before he accepted the inherent, unpalatable truth behind that statement. If he was willing to acknowledge the existence of angels, then surely there would also be demons to balance out the spectrum of good and evil. He shuddered when he considered the new realities in his life. Just for a few moments he longed for the bliss of ignorance and blind innocence. Then in a rush of shame and horror, he recognized the true scope of his responsibilities if he chose to share life with Zipporah and he broke out in a cold sweat, uncertain of his adequacy to meet the tasks in front of him.
She sat up on her knees, facing him. “What’s wrong?”
“I just realized what a future with you would really entail and it scares the shit out of me. How the hell can I protect you from demons? It’s bad enough worrying about muggers and rapists. I was concerned about you living in my neighborhood but shit! The punks in my neighborhood are nothing!”
She leaned forward and cupped his jaw in her hands. “No one expects you to protect me from demons or muggers or anything else. Certainly I don’t have that expectation. Your sole responsibility is to love me. Everything else will fall in place. If you can’t love me because of the shifting and the angel stuff…well, that would grieve me but I could understand that it’s difficult to accept.”
His hands curled around her wrists, tugging her hands down so that he could gently kiss each palm. “I don’t think there’s anything—known or unknown—that could keep me from loving you. That doesn’t mean that I feel adequate to the task of being your husband and protector. I just need to think about things and talk to your dad. Maybe I won’t feel so shaky about the future then.” He kissed her palms once more. “Now I think it’s time for us to try to get some more sleep. Are you ready to go back to bed?”
“If you’ll hold me while we sleep.”
“Try to stop me.”
He pulled the plug to empty the tub and they got out, soberly drying each other before they went back to bed. Zip curled up in his arms under the covers and slid into sleep almost before her head nestled on his shoulder. But Seb lay awake, speculating about a life married to an angel.
When the first faint gray light showed in the small window above the kitchen sink, he eased Zip off his shoulder and slid from the bed. After shaving, he dressed, put on his boots and coat and went outside on the porch. Consulting his watch, he decided he had time to walk so he could leave the car for Zip.
As he walked through the woods to the Jericho cabin he struggled to organize his thoughts and questions for Pentecost. Memories nudged him, memories of odd incidents with Quill or Zipporah’s other siblings. And with the memories was the realization that Harry, his boss, must obviously know about the Jericho family. They were involved in too many operations for it to be otherwise. He frowned as he thought of Zip’s insertion in his home as the little Yorkie, Beauty. What was her purpose there?
Before he knew it, he was walking into the clearing behind Jericho Hollow. Taking a deep breath, he crossed over to the back porch and went up the stairs, knocking the snow from his boots.
The back door opened before he touched the knob and Delilah smiled in welcome. “Come in, Sebastian! I’ve been waiting for you.”
Uncertainly, he halted on the porch and frowned in confusion. “I thought I was meeting Mr. Jericho this morning?”
“Well, we decided that I might be the better person to talk to you. After all, Pentecost can’t really relate to the true adjustments when you’re a human marrying an angel,” she pointed out wryly. “I can.” She motioned for him to enter the warm cheerful kitchen.
With a nod, he went in, toed off his wet boots and padded over to the table where two mugs of coffee and a plate of fresh yeasty cinnamon rolls waited. He pulled out Delilah’s chair and waited until she was seated before slipping into his own place.
“I suppose you have a ton of questions,” she said, helping herself to a roll.
Seb snorted under his breath. “Yeah. You could say that.”
“Why don’t I give you a quick rundown of the basics and then you can ask me the questions you have left?” She shot him a quick grin and confided, “I’m using you for practice, you know. I’ll need to have the talk with Unity sometime before Christmas.”
He ripped open a sweetener packet and poured it in his coffee. “All right. I’m willing to be your guinea pig.” Seb winced as he remembered Zip, whistling and wriggling in her guinea pig form the night before.
Delilah chuckled. “Yes, we are more conscious of all the expressions using animals, aren’t we? Don’t worry about that. Angels don’t get upset about that sort of thing. They’re too busy worrying about more important stuff.”
He helped himself to a roll. “Exactly why are they here?”
“Intervention. I think that’s the best word to describe their mission. Primarily, they serve as guardians for the peacemakers in the world. There aren’t enough of them,” she added sadly. “And there is such a great need.”
“Wait a minute. Are you telling me that Zipporah is my guardian?” Seb pointed his fork at Delilah. “I don’t want her in danger just to save my ass.”
Delilah bit her lip, obviously trying not to laugh. “Hmm. Well, as far as I can tell your ass is just fine. I’m sure that Zip will keep close tabs on that particular portion of your anatomy.” She watched in fascination as his face flushed a deep cocoa brown. To give him time to recover, she asked, “Would you like me to tell you how I met Pentecost?”
He ducked his head in embarrassment. “I bet that’s an interesting story.”
“I was at the zoo with a church group, wandering through the primate section. Pentecost was entertaining several gawkers by leaping around in the enclosure. He was a baboon,” she added casually. “There were two men—representatives of the main organized crime groups in the area—who were standing nearby. I, of course, was young and oblivious to all the undercurrents. I was just there, enjoying a rare day off from work.”
“A baboon?”
“A screaming, leaping, howling baboon.”
Seb tried to imagine it, then grinned at the picture she painted. “Then what?”
“Suddenly there was a lot of police activity. Most of the bystanders were quietly steered away from the area. I didn’t pay much attention, except to be happy that I was safely away. But Pentecost followed me home. Later he told me he shifted to a gull and rode on top of the bus.”
“A gull. Naturally. Eventually you had to get off the bus. I can’t wait to hear the rest of this.” Flavors exploded in his mouth when he bit into his cinnamon roll and he moaned in appreciation.
“I’m glad you’re enjoying the cinnamon buns.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Where was I?”
“Getting off the bus.”
“Oh yes. Well I went on home. It was warm in my apartment so I opened the windows—even the tiny window in my bathroom though it didn’t have a screen. And I wandered around in the apartment picking up and folding laundry. After a while it
was so warm I decided to take a bath. I was relaxing in the tub when I looked over at the toilet and realized a cat was sitting on the closed seat on top of my robe.”
“Uh-huh. That must have been a surprise.” Seb chuckled and lifted his cup for another sip of his coffee. “Let me guess. He shifted and suddenly you had a naked man in your bathroom.”
“You’re right.” She nodded as they shared a companionable smile. “Before I could let out a scream, he leaned over and kissed me. Me! In the tub naked!”
Seb snorted his coffee. Delilah jumped up and fetched him some paper towels. “Sorry!” His voice was muffled behind the wad of towels.
She laughed. “I should have warned you,” she admitted as she cleaned up the coffee from the table.
He finished mopping up and got up to go into the bathroom to wash his face. “I would suppose that Mr. Jericho found a way to convince you that he wasn’t dangerous,” he said as he walked around the table.
“Don’t you think it’s about time you called him Pa?” she asked. “Are you going to marry our Zipporah?”
He stopped in the doorway and turned to face her. “What if I can’t protect her from the bad guys? She already has nightmares, you know? Brian cut her leg yesterday in that fight. I don’t want her to be hurt anymore.”
Delilah dumped the paper towels in the trash and moved to wrap her arms around Seb in a motherly hug. “Seb, Seb. You can’t prevent bad things from happening any more than you could if she was human. All you can do is love her. That’s what she needs.” She patted him on the back. “If you love and support her that will be enough.”
“I couldn’t bear it if something happened to her,” he mumbled against her shoulder.
She leaned back and soberly stared him in the eyes. “All of us go home eventually. All of us. In the meantime, spend every minute you have loving each other.” She patted his shoulder again and released him. “Now I think it’s time you cleaned up and went home and asked her to marry you. Properly.”
“Yes ma’am.”
