Without answering him, she kept moving, but tears ran down her cheeks. Maybe a plan like that would work for him. For her, if she didn't have hope, she wouldn’t be able to keep going.
So, she’d hold onto the belief that her demons could be saved, regardless of the odds against her.
The forest was quiet. With each step she took further from the sanctuary, she prayed for clarity. She prayed she would know what to do when the time came. When she finally felt the prickling as she crossed the protective barrier, she inhaled deeply. She prepared herself for the hospital, and for the truth of what happened to the human woman.
The hairs on the back of her neck prickled.
Turning, she stared into the darkness. There was a terrible feeling deep in her soul, a sense that she was being hunted by a bloodthirsty predator. Every instinct begged her to retreat to the sanctuary, but she was rooted in place.
In the shadows between trees, she saw two eyes staring at her. Dark eyes held death, but also something familiar. The creature moved closer into the light.
Daniel! She gasped when she recognized the crouching form. Daniel’s face was as familiar to her as her own. She knew his dark eyes, his blond hair, and his chiseled good looks that hid the vulnerable man inside. This time, however, his expression sent her blood racing.
“Daniel?” she whispered, inching closer. “Is that you?”
He rose from his crouched position, still mostly in shadows.
She longed to touch him, and the urge to throw herself into his arms was a need that burned through her.
“I thought you’d died. I thought I’d lost you.” Her fingers grew sweaty around the vial clenched between them.
And then, his voice came, familiar and yet strange. “I did die. And I was reborn.”
She froze, heart in her throat.
He stepped forward, his dark angel wings spread behind him. “And now, traitor, I’m here to end your life.”
15
Surcy couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. Daniel was an angel? That was impossible. Why would Caine do such a thing? It was dangerous! Stupid!
Before she could even process what had happened, Daniel leapt at her.
They crashed into the forest floor, and he spun on top of her. She tried to fight against him, but he was too strong, and she was confused, unwilling to hurt him.
He pinned her hands above her head with no effort at all. He looked down at her, his faces inches from hers. “Any last words?”
“I love you,” she whispered.
His brows drew together in confusion. “What? You… you seem familiar.”
“He erased your memories.” Somewhere in the back her mind she’d known it, but it finally came together. “He erased your memories and sent you to kill the woman you love.”
He frowned. “No, Caine sent me to kill a traitor. I could never love someone who rebelled against our Judge.”
She laughed and looked to the heavens. “This has to be some kind of joke, or it's a terrible irony.”
He settled more solidly on top of her. “What do you mean?”
Her gaze met his, and she laughed again. “Caine is an asshole. I was an angel, and you guys convinced me to love you. You convinced me to abandon everything for you and your cause. Then, the asshole captures me and erases my memories. When that doesn’t work, he turns you into an angel and erases your memories too. It’s like a giant joke he’s playing, and I just kind of figure the only thing I can do at this point is laugh about it.”
“I don’t believe any of your bullshit,” he said, glaring.
She made a shrugging motion, even if her shoulders didn't have anywhere to move with him holding her down. “If you don’t think you love me, kiss me.”
His eyes widened.
Where the hell did that idea come from? Maybe it was because of all the fairy tales about a true love’s kiss breaking a spell. Or maybe it was because if she going to die, she wanted one last kiss. Either way, it was all she could think about now.
He regarded her curiously. “So, this story of yours… if I kiss you, and feel nothing, then I’ll know you’re a liar.”
“I guess.” She licked her lips. “Unless you’re scared to.”
He smirked, his expression so familiar it twisted her heart. “All right.”
Without releasing her wrists, he shifted, sliding lower. He was so much larger, he surrounded every inch of her with his huge body. Everything inside of her warmed, aching for his kiss, aching for his closeness.
His mouth moved closer. His head tilted, and he caught her lips.
For one powerful moment, time stood still. Fire blazed between them, and the kiss grew deeper and deeper. His mouth softened over hers as their tongues tangled in the age-old dance.
She moaned and arched against him.
His cock hardened and he settled lower over her, grinding between her thighs.
Her head spun. She tried to get her hands free, to touch him, but his grip only tightened.
In her mind, she wanted this to be like the times he was rough with her. Where he did exactly what he wanted with her body—exactly what she wanted him to do.
Unfortunately, his grip was not that of a lover. This angel might be enjoying her kiss, but he still planned to kill her.
The realization crawled in the back of her mind like a serpent, curling around her thoughts, and spoiling their kiss. He moved her wrists so they were held by only one of his hands.
She tensed, knowing what was to come.
Tossing her head, she broke their kiss. He clenched a flaming sword over her head, ready to take her life.
He was breathing hard. “That was… nice. But it changes nothing.”
She nodded.
The sword came down, and she jerked her body with all her might.
Her hands broke free. His sword plunged into the earth, where her throat had been just seconds before. She rolled him, so that he was beneath her, and called her own soul-blade forth. Instantly, it was in her free-hand, near his throat.
“Do it,” he hissed.
She stared down at him. Could she really kill him?
No. I can’t.
So what could she do?
Her hand squeezed around the little vial in her hand, and she froze. The Immortal had said it could heal. Could it heal Daniel? And could she really use it for the man she loved instead of his wife?
I can always get more.
It was a struggle to pull the cork with one hand, but she never took her gaze from his. She had no idea what this water would do. If it didn’t work, she had no idea what her next step would be.
She couldn’t kill Daniel, but she couldn’t let him kill her.
When the cork popped free, she took a deep breath, and moved it to his lips. “Drink.”
He frowned as she poured the water into his mouth, and then, he spit it out. The liquid dripped over his face, and over her.
“You idiot!” she said. “You fucking idiot!”
That was her only plan to bring him back, to restore his memories, and he’d just destroyed their only chance.
“Kill me!” he growled.
She sent her soul-blade away. “No, I love you.”
In an instant, she was tossed back. She turned, trying to crawl away from him. She just needed enough space to clear her thoughts enough to teleport, but he was on her in an instant, pinning her to the ground.
It was hard to breathe beneath him. He pinned her arms above her head, yet again, and his weight kept her belly firmly on the ground.
“What now?” she asked.
He said nothing. She felt him shivering and jerking behind her. But he had her pinned so heavily that she couldn’t even turn to see what he planned.
And then, he moved both of her wrists into one of his hands once again. She knew this time he wouldn’t fail. He’d kill her, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.
Closing her eyes, she was surprised when she felt his hand move onto her hip and slide betw
een her belly and the ground. He shifted slightly so that he wasn’t pinning her as flatly, and then his hand dipped into the front of her pants.
Every muscle in her body tensed. “Daniel.”
“Oh fuck, Surcy,” he whispered. “I died. I thought I lost you.”
She was breathing hard. His hand moved into her underwear, and his fingers slid into her folds, stroking her slowly. “You—remember.”
“Everything,” he groaned. “And now, I need to bury myself inside of you.”
To feel close again. To forget everything but this moment.
“Yes,” she moaned, grinding against his hand.
The silence of the woods seemed to wrap around them, to protect them from the world, if only for a short time.
His thumb brushed her clit, and she gasped. He continued to slide slowly inside her, deepening her arousal, making her ready for him. And it felt…unreal, yet perfect. Exactly what she needed. Not just sex, but to connect with him again.
Her nerves cried out in pleasure as he touched her faster. And then, one of his fingers slid deep into her channel.
She couldn’t breathe. Oh god, she couldn’t think. She’d never wanted anyone inside her more than she wanted him that moment.
It made it so easy to forget. So easy to live for just that moment.
And then, he slid his hand out of her pants.
“No,” she murmured. “Daniel, I want—“
“I know,” he said, biting her shoulder blade gently.
He fumbled with the button and zipper on her pants, then drew her pants and underwear down. A second later, she heard him taking off his own pants. She tried to move, but his hand still held her wrists down. It was strangely… erotic. Being taken in the forest like this, being fucked on grass and leaves.
Suddenly, his hard erection was sliding along her folds from behind.
She felt the shudder move through his body.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered. “So wet and ready.”
She opened her mouth to speak, to say what she didn’t know, but he plunged deeply inside her. A strangled sound escaped her lips, and then he was fucking her like a wild animal. The sounds of their flesh slapping against each other filled the silence. His cock was massive, almost too big, from behind, but it also felt so good her body was screaming for it to never stop.
It was all so overwhelming. So hot. The way he pinned her hands down. The way he slammed into her with such abandon, swearing softly through gritted teeth as he plunged in and out.
When a shudder moved through her body, and her inner-muscles tightened around him, his grip on her hip tightened too. “You coming, sweet Surcy?”
“Yes,” she moaned.
“Then come,” he ordered her, and his shaft swelled within her.
Her orgasm came, like a wave. She wished she had something to hold on to as she crashed over the edge, screaming his name. He rocked inside of her, his seed exploding and a guttural roar squeezing from his lips.
When she at last felt her muscles relax, and her body and mind connected once more, she lay panting on the ground, not moving. He lay quietly on top of her, only for a minute, before he pulled his cock free.
Without releasing her wrists, he wedged his tip into her from behind.
She tensed. “You ready for my ass?”
He slid deeper, even as her muscles squeezed around him in protest. “Always.”
His hand moved from her hip to her slick folds. He began to work her again, causing the sensitive nerves to fire off in a sensation that bordered on painful. But with each movement he made, his shaft slid deeper and deeper into her, until he could go no further.
And then, he took her, slower than before. He stroked and touched her with each thrust until the sensation deep within her was a need to explode once more.
This time when her orgasm hit, it was deeper and louder, shuddering through her body like an earthquake. When she felt him come inside her, she was still shaking from the aftermath of her orgasm.
16
For a long minute, neither of them moved. Finally, he released her hands and they redressed. Before she could stand, he pulled her into his lap.
“Sorry. There was nothing in my mind—of you, of Tristan, or of Mark. Suddenly, someone pulled back the shades, and I could see all of it. I was scared, scared that if I let go of you for one minute, I’d forget it all.”
She rested her head against his chest. “It’s okay. I’m just glad to have you back.”
More than glad. More than anything I can describe.
He kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair. Neither of them spoke for a long time. The sounds of the woods returned. The insects and birds. The whistling of the wind. It was like the world had begun to turn once more.
“I’m an angel,” he whispered.
She tried to keep her words even. “How does it feel?”
His hand stilled in her hair. “Too natural. And yet, like I’ve been collared.”
She nodded. “As long as Caine’s in charge, he has far too much power over us.”
He continued to stroke her hair. “So what do we do?”
What can we do? “Are Mark and Tristan angels too?”
Daniel stiffened. “I don’t think so. I never saw them or sensed them.”
Something she hadn’t known was there began to ache, and she realized something terrible. When she’d seen Daniel, she’d naturally assumed they’d all been turned into angels. It was twisted and awful, but at least it meant they weren’t beyond her grasp.
But what if it was only Daniel who had been spared?
“We have to accept they might be gone,” he said. A shiver rocked violently through Daniel’s body. “He shattered Tristan. And he burnt me alive.”
“Who?” she whispered.
“The archangel. He’s more powerful than any being I’ve faced except Caine.”
“So, we’ll have to be prepared for him tomorrow too.”
Daniel stiffened. “Don’t tell me anything. Caine can get inside my mind. He can order me back at any time.”
“So what do we do?”
He was quiet for too long. “I go back. And I pretend that I don’t remember anything. You do whatever you have planned. And when the time comes, I help.”
Tears choked her throat. “I don’t want you to leave. I don’t want to send you back there, or do this alone.”
He kissed her hair. “Me neither, but we have to.”
The dark night slid into the slightest shade of grey. She stared at it, knowing it meant their time together was slipping away. With all their powers, neither one of them had the one they really needed. To stop time.
“I have to go, or he’ll know something went wrong.”
She clenched the fabric of his shirt in her hand. “What will you say?”
He laughed, the sound so familiar it spoke to her very soul. “I’ll think of something. Lying isn’t exactly a weakness of mine.”
They rose, and he held her in a tight hug for one more painful moment. When she pulled back, he had the saddest smile. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she whispered, and then he teleported away.
Heart in her throat, she stared at where he’d been for one long moment, before she too teleported away. Just inside the hospital, she watched an old man stiffen as his gaze fell upon her.
At the front desk, when Surcy asked about the Immortal’s wife, no one knew. Surcy moved from one room to the next until she met an ICU doctor. He immediately knew the nameless stabbing victim, and just as quickly informed her that the woman had died.
She left feeling as if she’d swallowed a rock. The news would not be easy to tell the Immortal, or his children.
When she teleported back outside the sanctuary, she froze in shock. Where the woods had once been, the ground was leveled… leaving nothing behind but ash. For acres upon acres, stretching on for miles, nothing remained of the sacred grounds.
In shock, she took a step forwa
rd, stepping onto the ash that still smoldered. This was impossible. She’d only been gone for what? An hour? Two?
And then, she looked at the ash.
Kneeling down, she picked up the hot substance. Flakes of blue shone back at her.
The archangel.
17
“Did you really think they’d be safe here forever?”
Surcy whirled to stare at the most massive angel she’d ever seen. He had large red wings, corded arms, and a cruel face. Power hummed from him, power and something she couldn’t quite place.
“Kneel,” he ordered, and the word vibrated through her.
She collapsed onto her knees, even as she fought his control.
He moved closer until he stood just above her. “It's such a strange thing. I could order you to do anything. To suck my dick. To cut your own head off. And you’d do it. You’d have to do it.”
Her muscles jerked as she fought his control over her. But no matter how hard she tried, her body remained under his control. Sweat slid down her forehead, and her breathing was rapid.
“Why are you doing this?”
The angel smirked. “I could pretend it was because Caine ordered me to. But it’s not. I, in fact, have my own agenda that has nothing to do with Caine or those damn arrogant Immortals.”
“What is it then?” she asked, almost afraid to know the answer.
He knelt down until his face was level with hers. “What do you know about the Soul Destroyer?”
“Nothing,” she hissed, but it was painful to speak the lie.
“Such a pointless game.” He reached forward and trailed a fingertip down her cheek.
She jerked away from his touch. “Just leave. You’ve gotten what you wanted. You’ve destroyed this place.”
“Tell me what you know of the Soul Destroyer.”
This time, she felt his power like a hand around her heart, and the words bubbled up. “It’s just another realm, a place where the worst creatures imaginable are thrown.”
A smile touched his lips. “I always suspected as much.” His gaze grew distant, and he stood fully once more. “But Caine will never let me near it.”
Lover's Wrath: A Paranormal Reverse Harem Romance (An Angel and Her Demons Book 3) Page 7
