The Angel Trials

by Michelle Madow

  “Interesting.” She studied me, nodding slowly. “What you just described is similar to the shifter process of imprinting and mating.”

  Raven

  Care to explain?” I had a feeling she was going to anyway, but I might as well push her along.

  “Shifters can imprint on multiple people,” she said. “It happens after sharing their first kiss, and it’s always felt mutually.”

  “What does it feel like?” I asked.

  “I don’t know.” Sage shrugged. “I’ve never imprinted on anyone.”

  “Really?” I didn’t hide my shock. “Is that typical?”

  “No.” She pulled her legs inward, so she was sitting curled up in a ball. “Most shifters my age have imprinted on a few others by now. No one knows why I haven’t. When I was a little younger than you, I swear I must have kissed every shifter in the state on a quest to find someone to imprint on. But nope—it never happened.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “That must be frustrating.”

  “It is what it is.” She forced a smile, although I could tell it bothered her. “New shifters don’t move to town often—we usually stay with our packs. So when Noah came to LA, I thought maybe we’d imprint on each other. I tried, but nope. No imprint.”

  “So you kissed?” I immediately pictured it in my mind, and jealously surged through my chest. But I pushed it away. Because she’d confirmed they weren’t imprinted.

  So why did just the thought of them kissing make me feel jealous anyway?

  “We did,” she said. “But don’t look so distraught about it. Neither of us felt anything. It was like kissing a sibling.” She shuddered. “It was weird, and trust me, we haven’t kissed since. We both like to pretend it never happened.”

  I didn’t realize I’d looked distraught, so I tried to rearrange my features to appear more neutral. I was always terrible at keeping my emotions from my face.

  “Anyway,” she said. “Imprinting is supposedly pretty intense. Most shifters mate with the first person they imprint on, although it’s not always the case. We’re encouraged to wait until we’re at least eighteen to seal the bond. We have a saying—imprint by nature, mate by choice.”

  “Mating is the equivalent to marriage?” I asked.

  “It’s a much stronger bond,” she said. “Mating connects our minds, bodies, and souls. And shifters only mate once. So once we mate, that’s it. We’ll never imprint or mate with anyone else again for the rest of our lives.”

  “Never?” I couldn’t keep the shock from my voice, because while it was romantic, it was also extreme. “Not even if one of them dies?”

  “Not even then,” she said. “The widowed are highly respected in the packs, mainly because we all feel terribly for those who have lost their mates and will never love again until reuniting in the Beyond.”

  We were both silent for a few seconds, and I took in the incredible commitment it took to make such a bond.

  It would take two people who truly loved each other—a love stronger than anything else in the world. I’d always hoped that someday I’d experience a love that strong.

  “Is that why it seemed like Noah was trying to kiss me back in the pool house?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood. “Was he trying to see if we imprinted on each other?”

  “No way.” She sat back, shocked.

  “Why’s that so crazy?” I asked, although the moment the words were out of my mouth, a possibility hit me. “He’s not widowed, right? Is that why he left his pack? Because he lost his mate?”

  “No!” She stopped me from talking before I could continue. “Noah’s never mated with anyone.”

  “So why’d you react like that?”

  “Because shifters can only imprint on other shifters,” she said. “We’ve never imprinted outside of our species—not even on other supernaturals.”

  “Oh.” I deflated, feeling like I’d just been punched in the gut. “So he was just toying with me back there?”

  I’d suspected as much, but it was a whole different thing to have my suspicions confirmed. And it hurt way more than I’d expected.

  “I wouldn’t say he was toying with you.” Her expression softened, and she twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “Noah’s been through a lot, but he’s a good guy. He would never purposefully hurt you.”

  “Hm,” I said, since he was definitely flirting with me back in the pool house. “Well, I’m not into casual hook ups.” I sat straighter, trying to maintain what little dignity I felt like I had left. “So I’m glad you told me all of this, so I know to keep my guard up.”

  “Yeah,” she agreed. “I mean, I honestly do think he likes you. But no matter how attracted to you he is now, he’ll eventually imprint and mate with another shifter. Once that happens, he’ll be devoted to her completely. Any romantic feelings he had for anyone else in the past will be inconsequential in comparison for the love he’ll feel for his mate. You can’t let yourself forget that.”

  “Right.” I tried to sound stoic, although I hated how my heart hurt now that the possibility of anything real developing between Noah and me had been crushed. “I wish he’d been upfront with me about all of this before getting all flirty, but what’s done is done. At least now I can let him know where I stand and we can focus on what’s important—hunting demons and getting to Avalon.”

  Raven

  Sage and I chatted for a bit longer. Well, mainly she listened as I vented about how worried I was for my mom and how scared I was for everything coming next.

  She did her best to assure me that it would all turn out fine, but I knew the promises were empty. None of us knew how any of this would turn out. All we could do was try our best and hope it was enough.

  I changed into another pair of Sage’s pajamas—this time, into a pair that fit me much better—and headed back to the pool house. I was getting ready to knock when the door opened. Noah must have heard me approaching.

  His hair was wet, and he was only wearing a towel tied around his waist—he’d apparently just gotten out of the shower. My cheeks flushed as I gaped at his perfectly defined body, unable to keep myself from checking him out.

  “Like what you see?” He smirked and leaned against the doorframe.

  Did he even have to ask? I was sure my expression was answer enough.

  But I needed to get control of myself. It was difficult when he was tempting me so much, but this just reminded me that I had to be upfront with him about where I stood sooner rather than later.

  “Save it.” I rolled my eyes, forcing my way past him. I couldn’t even look at him, not trusting myself to resist checking him out again until he put some clothes on.

  “Whoa.” He shut the door behind him, sounding genuinely surprised. “Why the sudden ice princess attitude?”

  I spun around to face him, making sure to breathe steadily and stay in control. I couldn’t let him see how much he was affecting me. “Sage told me about the imprinting and mating thing that shifters do,” I said. “Since I’m a human and nothing serious can ever happen between us, I’d like for whatever flirtation that’s going on between us to end here. So if you could put on some clothes, that would be great.”

  His eyes dimmed. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was let down.

  But he just walked back to his room, presumably to respect my wishes and get dressed.

  I curled up on the big armchair, disappointment crushing my chest. The feeling made no sense. I should have been glad that Noah was respecting my wishes—not disappointed.

  He came back out less than a minute later dressed in pajamas nearly identical to the ones he wore last night. With his wet hair pressed to his forehead, he looked younger and more vulnerable than ever. “I’m sorry.” He stared down at me, looking like he genuinely meant it. “I planned on telling you.”

  “When?” I reached for the lapis crystal on my neck, as if it could give me strength. “Because before Sage interrupted us earlier, you seemed a lot closer to kissin
g me than to telling me.”

  His eyes hardened, and I felt more of a wall between us than ever before. “It won’t happen again,” he said. “I promise.”

  “Good.” I wished I felt as content with his response as I sounded.

  Silence descended upon us. I couldn’t help wondering if he’d ever imprinted before, and if so, why he hadn’t mated with her. But it was a deeply personal question, so I stopped myself from asking. Instead, I continued playing with the crystal, wishing I could figure out something else to say to break the tension.

  I couldn’t shut up before, but now that I needed to speak? I was coming up with nothing.

  “You shouldn’t wear your mom’s necklace while we’re demon hunting,” he said suddenly.

  “Why not?” I whipped up my head to look at him, gripping the crystal protectively.

  “Because the demons want it.”

  “They didn’t want the necklace,” I said. “They wanted my mom. Otherwise, why would Azazel have left it at the witches’ mansion?”

  “Hm.” He paused. “Good point.”

  “Did you just admit I was right?” I raised an eyebrow, unable to keep from smiling.

  “I said you made a good point,” he repeated.

  “Meaning I was right.”

  “Perhaps.” Amusement flickered in his eyes.

  Heat rose in my stomach at the way he was looking at me. It was similar to the way he’d looked at me earlier, when he’d corrected me about the difference between werewolves and shifters. Earlier… when he’d pressed me against the wall and had been about to kiss me.

  But I needed to squelch the feeling immediately. Because no matter how Noah was looking at me now, it was irrelevant.

  If I fell for him, I’d end up heartbroken once he imprinted and mated with someone else.

  “Anyway,” I continued in as business-like of a manner as possible, determined to break whatever connection had just flared between us. “If the demons wanted the necklace, wouldn’t that be a reason for us to keep the necklace with us? We could use it to bait them.”

  “It would be.” Pride shined in his eyes. “Maybe you won’t be so bad at demon hunting after all.”

  “Maybe not.” My heart thudded in my chest, and I couldn’t look away from him. Every inch of my body wanted to resume what had started between us earlier.

  But I couldn’t give into temptation. My life was already falling apart enough as it was. I refused to add heartbreak to my growing list of problems.

  “It’s getting late.” I stood, and my eyes darted around the room, trying desperately to look anywhere but at Noah. “I should go to bed. Like you said, it’s important to get as much sleep as possible when we have time to grab it…” I was babbling now, so I placed my hands on the back of the chair and gave him a single nod. “Goodnight.”

  “This early?” He sounded surprised. “I thought for sure that your inquisition about the supernatural world was only just getting started.”

  “We’ve got a long road trip ahead of us,” I said. “Don’t worry—I’ll come prepared with questions.”

  “You better.” Challenge glinted in his gaze.

  I hurried into his room, not breathing until I’d closed the door behind me. Then I leaned back against it, frustration mounting in my veins. Because he was right—I did have a lot of questions.

  I just didn’t trust myself to stay in the room with him looking at me like that and remain focused on those questions.

  Plus, on the road trip I’d be in the car with both him and Sage. It would be better that way. Because the less time I spent alone with Noah, the less likely I’d be to fall for him.

  Then once we got to Avalon, we could go our separate ways and never have to see each other again.

  Raven

  Sage’s car—Margo—was a shiny white Range Rover. It had by far enough room for us to pack up all of our stuff for the trip, along with the weapons and potions that Sage and Noah brought. They had an entire bag full of potions, the vials inside different sizes and full of a variety of colored liquids. Some of the potions were even in little pods, like laundry detergent. They looked perfect for throwing.

  “What’re all the potions for?” I asked as Noah placed the bag on the floor of the backseat. I assumed he put it there so the contents inside wouldn’t break.

  “Truth potions, memory potions, invisibility potions… we’ve got a bit of everything we might need,” he said. “That’s another rule of demon hunting—always be prepared for anything.”

  “Memory potions?” I blinked, not liking the sound of that. It made my brain itch, and I scratched at my forehead, although it did nothing to help. “What do those do?”

  “They can erase and replace a person’s memory.” Sage grinned. “Most of the time humans will come up with logical explanations for the supernatural, so we don’t have to worry about erasing their memories if they see something they shouldn’t. But if they don’t, memory potion can come in handy.”

  I froze in place, not liking the sound of that. “How much does it erase?” I asked.

  “It can erase and replace a day or two, maybe a few days, tops,” she said. “Like any potion, it’s much more potent if it’s injected or ingested than thrown, but the pods will do the trick if we only need to erase a bit.”

  “Is it possible to erase more than that?” I wasn’t sure why I was so interested, but I was. Something inside of me—something I didn’t recognize—compelled me to ask. “Can it erase weeks?”

  “Not any that I’ve seen on the market,” she said. “That would take more magic than even Amber and her circle could do. Plus, a potion like that would be beyond expensive.”

  “But it exists?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe.”

  “Why so many questions about the memory potion?” Noah asked.

  “I don’t know.” I shrugged. The answer felt like it was on the tip of my tongue, but it disappeared a second later. “Something about it makes me feel… eerie. It’s hard to explain. I just don’t like the sound of it.”

  “If you’re worried we’ll use it on you, don’t be.” His eyes turned serious. “You’re part of our team now. You can trust us.”

  Sage watched us with a knowing smirk and twirled the keys around her fingers, hopping into the driver’s seat.

  “I know I can,” I said it instinctively, since it was true—I did trust them. “I was just curious. And you told me to bring questions, didn’t you?” I added a bit of teasing into my tone, not liking that he’d even considered that I might not trust them.

  I didn’t trust easily, but after everything they’d done for me, they’d earned my trust and more.

  “That I did,” he said. “I just didn’t realize the inquisition would start before even leaving the compound.” He walked to the passenger side and opened the door, motioning for me to get in. “Now, are you coming or what?”

  “You’re letting me sit in the front?” I balked, especially when he nodded in confirmation. “No way. Your legs are longer than mine. I’m fine in the back. You take the front.”

  “I’m terrible at navigating,” he said. “Sage will be relieved to have you as a co-pilot.”

  “It’s true,” Sage piped in. “Get in the front. As the driver, I insist.”

  “If you both say so.” I felt bad taking the front away from Noah, but they were being so pushy about it that it seemed silly to argue further.

  Once Noah and I were situated in our seats, Sage pulled out of the compound. She stopped the moment we were past the gates.

  “Why’d you stop?” I asked. “Did you forget something?”

  “No,” she said. “It’s just time for you to give me my ring back.”

  “Oh, right.” I pulled the black tourmaline ring off my finger and handed it to her. “Why’d I need to wear it there, anyway? It’s not like your pack didn’t know I was there.”

  She placed the ring back on her finger, purposefully not looking at me as she pressed
down on the gas and drove us away from the compound.

  “Guys?” I twisted around to face Noah, hoping he’d answer my question. “What are you not telling me?”

  Darkness crept over Noah’s eyes. He turned away to look out the window, his brow crinkled as if he couldn’t face my question.

  “Why did I have to wear a ring that concealed my scent at the compound?” I repeated, glancing back and forth between Noah and Sage. “Do shifters have a… problem with humans?”

  “Not a problem, exactly.” Noah finally turned to face me again, his expression full of resolve. “But there’s one big question you haven’t asked yet that’s pretty important.”

  “There are a lot of questions I haven’t asked yet that are important,” I said. “But which one did you have in mind?”

  “The most important one in regards to a predator.” He tilted his head, his eyes taking on a hungry glint as he gazed at me. “The question about our diet.”

  Raven

  I’ve shared a few meals with you by now,” I said. “I’ve seen what you eat. You eat meat. A lot of meat.”

  “Yes,” Noah said. “And what, exactly, do you think you are?”

  “I’m a human,” I said. But then I froze in place, my eyes widening in horror as the possibility of what he was saying dawned on me. “You’re not saying… you don’t eat humans. Do you?”

  “Those of us in control of our humanity don’t,” he said. “But do you remember what I told you yesterday, about how we only shift when necessary to make sure we maintain control over our humanity?”