"Yes, that's about right."
"Uh huh. And this seraph tried to use my body to rape you?"
"Yes."
Jaylen gently set down his teacup before screaming at the top of his lungs. "Get it out! Get it out of me!"
"Calm down." Kato grabbed his shoulders and pushed him down on the bed. "Stop screaming. He's not here. He left. He didn't possess you again. You're okay."
"All right. Let me go. I'll stop screaming." Jaylen sat up and took a few deep breaths to steady himself. "I just don't understand. Who is this Divinus? Why does he want you?"
"Ten years ago, Divinus came to me and saved me from drowning. He claimed to be the answer to my prayers, saying that he was my guardian angel. I was blinded by faith, so I believed him without question. I obeyed everything he said, even when those things turned darker. Eventually, we had a relationship. But Carvael found out. He reported us to Sola. I ran away because I was scared to be with him if it was bad. Years later, Divinus was cast out of Purgatory and he lost a great deal of his power. The fall hurt him. Unlike normal angels, when seraphs fall, they actually fall. He fell from high up in the sky, where Purgatory is between Heaven and the human world, into the ocean. He broke a few bones. I found him and brought him onto my ship where I nursed him back to health, but then I found out that he had told Carvael that I was the one who seduced him. I got angry and yelled at him. He vanished. It has been close to three years since that day. I hoped I had escaped, but then he found me."
"Three years ago?" Jaylen asked. "That's about the time he would have first possessed me, I think."
"He needed a pure soul to harness for energy. I guess you fit the bill."
"What are we going to tell the crew? They all think that I'm some awful person who was hurting you."
Kato grinned then opened the cabinet behind her desk where bottles of various alcohols were stored. "You leave them to me. I will explain things in a way they can understand."
Chapter 6
The thin boy with the bright emerald eyes and messy brown hair sat down next to the bed where a young grey-winged angel was unconscious under the blankets. He held onto the angel's pale hand with one hand as he refilled the crystal vase on the bedside table with the other. The black roses needed water to keep them fresh and alive. He would do anything for Nimiel and the black roses were the angel's favorite.
A black-winged older angel with long white hair entered the room, carrying a tray piled high with various vials and herbs. "How is he doing, Liam?"
"The same. I wish he'd wake up."
"Me too. I'm doing all I can."
Liam played with the velvety petals of the black roses. "Oviel, these black roses aren't dyin'. They're the same ones that have been here for a year since we brought him back from Ka'tayl."
"You're sure?"
Liam nodded his head. "Yep. I think they'll stay alive as long as Nimiel is alive."
"Interesting idea, Liam." Oviel began injecting the colored potions into Nimiel's arms. "I am growing worried about him. As a fledgling angel, Nimiel should be going through his awakening where he experiences the full range of self-awareness and cohesiveness with the world around him. He's fifteen years old and he still has his downy feathers. Some parts of his body are still developed only to the point that they were when he would have been just a cherub. He's not ageing while he is still mentally in that dream world he created to trap Carvael and those other angels in."
"I thought you said Carvael was awake again and back in Heaven."
"He is awake. Only Nimiel didn't wake up when he did. Nimiel remains trapped inside the dream world." Oviel set down the syringe. "So, any word from your dragon?"
Liam sighed as he thought about Karix, the dragon he was mated with. He clutched the part of the red dragon eggshell around his neck. "No. I haven't heard him talkin' to me telepathically again. I hope he's okay."
"You know that Trevor and Gavin have been spying on Stephan, Doran, and Sulstair while searching for any sign of the dragons, but they haven't reported back yet. It's been months. I tried to tell Brinx that the odds of either of them returning were low. Trevor is most likely-" Oviel stopped and smiled as the baby's crying filled the air and the door to the bedroom opened. "Hey, Brinx. How is my favorite little angel baby?"
Brinx smiled and held out the fussy baby with the large brown eyes and flittering tiny fuzzy dark green wings. "He wants you, Oviel."
"Oh, of course." Oviel took the baby in his arms and bounced him up and down on his shoulder. "Cael, it's okay. Stop crying. Oh, you are so adorable even when you're upset."
Eventually, the baby stopping crying and instead made little cooing noises as his wings flapped happily on his back. He grabbed Oviel's hair in his fists then giggled as he pulled.
Brinx yawned and absentmindedly smoothed her black feathers. "I'm so tired, Oviel. I'm not used to having to sleep now that I'm Fallen. Amari has been a great help, even though we are both exhausted. But Cael is worth it. Do you know when his daddy is coming home?"
"Trevor and Gavin will likely be gone for a while. They can't make it back here to the hideout until the Inquisition settles down a bit. We can't take any chances leading those werewolves here. You know what they would do to a half angel, half human baby like Cael. I used to be like them, thinking that any offspring of a human and an angel would be an abomination, but as soon as I held Cael in my arms, I knew there wasn't anything evil about him."
"I needed to talk to you about my brother."
"No." Oviel cradled the baby angel in his arms and started pacing around the room. "We're not talking about Zeriel. I have other, more pressing things to attend to."
"But he's dying."
"Let him. He brought this on himself. If he hadn't been so selfish and actually treated Jaylen with some respect, then he wouldn't have left. Jaylen running off was Zeriel's fault. You know that."
Brinx tied her long brown hair behind her shoulders. "But he's stopped eating. He doesn't sleep. All he does is stay there on the floor mumbling about Jaylen and missing him. It's scary. He's been screaming at night and leaving scratch marks on the walls. I don't go in there anymore. He's not Zeriel anymore. This morning, I found one of his feathers that had slipped out from under the door. It was bloody from where he plucked it out of one of his wings. He's hurting himself. On top of that, he had lost so much weight that he was able to wear one of Jaylen's tunics and hasn't taken it off. It's all he wears."
"Ovi?" Liam asked.
"What, Liam?"
"You can't let Zeriel die. Help him."
"What do you expect me to do?" Oviel asked. "He won't listen to me. The only person he will listen to is Jaylen, but Jaylen isn't here. And Jaylen isn't coming back. It's been a year. As awful as this sounds, I'm surprised that Zeriel has survived this long. You know how close those two were."
Liam stood up and stomped his feet. "But Ovi!"
"Enough, Liam." Oviel pointed towards the door. "Go to your room and finish your lessons for today."
"But-"
"Now. Go or I will make you go. You're still a boy, so you will obey like one."
Liam bowed his head as he sulked and shuffled out of the room. "Yes, sir."
* * *
"Ah! Stop it! Too fast, Kato. Too fast!" Jaylen giggled as he held hands with Kato and they spun around in a circle to the music being played by the sailor with the tin whistle up on deck. Everyone was dancing and drinking copious amounts of wine, rum, and ale. The world spun around Jaylen as he let go and fell backwards onto the deck in a fit of laughter. He had been drinking so much rum that he didn't feel a thing. "Again! Do it again."
Kato laughed as well as she helped Jaylen to his feet. "Hold on, hold on. You were nobility, right? Upper class? You know how to dance. So dance."
"Wait, what?"
"Dance! Show us how the nobles dance at their fancy-shmancy parties." Kato pushed Jaylen into the middle of the circle. "Everyone, don't you want to see Mr. Fancy Noble dance?"
; They all held their glasses and bottles into the air and cheered.
"Play us something lively, Regan."
Regan held up the tin whistle. "Yes, Captain."
Jaylen looked around, almost mortified if not for the alcohol in his blood. "Are you serious? You want me to dance all by myself?"
"Yes. Show us your dancing skills!"
He unlaced his boots then tossed them towards the cabin. "Okay. If that's an order, Master."
Kato giggled and took another long drink of spiced rum. "That's an order, Jaylen!"
"Fine, fine." Jaylen closed his eyes and listened to the lively music. He imagined himself back in the royal castle or the numerous different palaces he would be invited to where every noble was expected to dance. And he had been the Duke of Ilyan. Everyone wanted him to dance. He was never the best dancer, but he would try if Kato truly wanted him to do so. He held one arm in the air then rose to his tiptoes. Once he was calmed enough to start, he began the intricate fast footwork of the traditional Vilyron dance. Jaylen spun in a pattern of flowing circles as his feet barely stayed on the deck for more than a moment. The muscles in his legs ached from not being used like that in a long time, but they still remembered the movements.
Kato ran up to him, gathered her skirt in her hand, and started dancing around him. She was light on her feet and kept up with Jaylen's fancy footwork as if she had done this for her entire life. They locked eyes as Jaylen took her arm in his and they continued covering the deck with their flashy dance. The crew clapped their hands to the beat of the music.
Jaylen's heart was racing, his skin feeling alive and warm even in the cold night air. He held onto Kato's smooth arm as he moved around her, watching every fluid motion of her hips, her bare legs, and her bouncing hair. Even through the fog of alcohol, he couldn't take his eyes off of her. It was in that moment that Jaylen was certain of one thing, possibly the only truth he could believe in one hundred percent. He loved her. He wanted her. And the most terrifying . . . he wanted her to have his children.
But those were dangerous thoughts that he had to suppress. Instead of letting those urges plague his mind, Jaylen instead focused all of that energy into the dance. The faster he danced, the freer he became. With sweat and a racing heart, Jaylen released all the stress into the universe where it couldn't harm him anymore. Once the music reached a crescendo, Jaylen pulled Kato close to his chest then leaned her backwards, dipping her low towards the deck. He kissed her more passionately than he had ever kissed anyone in his life. The crew whistled and applauded.
Kato's eyes flashed open as she was breathing heavily, staring up into Jaylen's bright eyes. "Jaylen . . . don't stop."
The world stood still. Jaylen's heart was pounding, echoing loudly in his ears. Nothing else existed besides the warmness of Kato's brown eyes and the sweetness of her warm breath on his neck. She didn't look away, even when the icy wind picked up and billowed in the sails overhead. There was an intimate connection that bound the two of them for a few seconds. They had each other and they both knew that nothing else mattered. The mutual trust, belonging, and understanding spread an inner warmth over them.
Jaylen kissed her again then stood her back up and ran his fingers through her curly hair. He pulled her face close to his, their cold noses touching beneath the starry sky and the pale flickering mage-glow that hovered along the masts and the sails. The sea breeze blew between them, scattering a few snow flurries in circles around their close blushing bodies. Jaylen could feel the clarity coursing through his veins. There was something he needed to do. He had to do it. Now was the time, the only perfect time to do it. He was ready. This was the time to take that final step, the initial leap into a life without being bound to an unseen force that may or may not exist. He was ready to leave his past behind and begin again with a new life and a new purpose.
Jaylen took Kato's hand as he knelt down in front of her. "You mean more than life itself to me. I know without a doubt that I would be completely lost without you. That is why I must ask you a question. Kato Vallen, will you do your lowly slave the honor of becoming his beautiful wife?"
* * *
"You're getting married?"
Kato sighed then rubbed her eyes in the haze of the bright morning mage-glow. It had been an extremely confusing and rum-filled night. She looked at the black raven that was perched on the railing of her ship. "Maybe. I don't know. Was this a mistake?"
"Uh, yes. What were you thinking?" The raven asked.
"Oh, Xair . . . I really don't have an answer for you. We were dancing and drinking and-"
"Wait. You were drinking? You both were drinking? Jaylen doesn't drink. That's against his vows."
"Jaylen isn't the same boy you knew a year ago, Xair. He has broken every vow he took, except for remaining chaste. He's still a virgin, but I think that is about over. Not that I would make him do that, but he is changing."
The raven ruffled its sleek black feathers. "You're eight years older than him."
"So? He's over fifteen. He's a man and can think for himself."
"Just because Wolfekin law says he's a man at fifteen doesn't mean he actually is. Jaylen is a boy, a young, naive, overly trusting boy."
"Don't tell me what he's like. I've been living with him in my cabin and in my bed for a year. If anyone knows who Jaylen truly is, it's me. I know he's fragile. I get that. But he has started to stand up for himself and redefine who he is. It's a beautiful thing to watch."
"So, are you going to be Lady Corrifus?" Xair asked.
"I don't know. I think he was just drunk. Sola's rays . . . I hope he was just drunk."
"How is he now?"
Kato smiled as she thought about him. "Asleep. I gave him some pain medicine in his sleep to help with the hangover that I know he's going to have. Poor kid. He was vomiting over the side of the ship last night for about an hour straight before I had to carry him to bed. He cannot hold his liquor."
"Well, he's about half your weight, so it's to be expected."
"He is tiny. But there's a fire burning inside him that is beyond any passion I've seen. I love him, Xair. I really do love him."
"Enough to be his wife?" Xair asked.
"I gave him an answer last night. What that answer was is between me and him. If he remembers what it was, then we will move on with whatever that turns out to be. Until then, we need to carry on like nothing happened last night. So, where's the report?"
"I don't have a report, Kato."
"What? Why not?" Kato asked.
"Whether you choose to see it or not, my life does not revolve around you. I haven't seen my wife in a year except for when I am able to land on the windowsill in the middle of the night and watch her sleep. I'm so ashamed and embarrassed that none of them know I'm even alive. I would rather them believe that I'm dead than to be trapped like this. I'm dealing with a lot of emotional stress at this point in my life. So do not push me. I'm not enjoying my sentence, okay? There. Are you happy? I'm struggling with my penance."
"Oh, I see. Your punishment for killing off your entire race of people was to be trapped in your animal form, wasn't it?"
Xair scratched the wooden railing a few times with his talons. "Yes. That's what the Arcanas demanded. So, for an undetermined amount of time, I am stuck as a raven. I can't use my magic, I can't move things, and I can't call the demons I've leashed. Until I get my human body back, I don't have access to my runes or my staff. I'm basically useless. I have spent an entire year as this feathered beast and there is no end in sight."
"I thought you loved being in your raven form."
"I did love it . . . when I knew I could change back. I don't have thumbs. Do you know what it's like to live a year eating seeds and bugs and not have thumbs? I'm losing my mind. I'm certain that I will go insane before I have fully atoned."
"This seems hard on you."
"Of course it's hard on me!" Xair screamed. "In my one thousand, seven hundred and fifty-two years on this planet, I have never su
ffered this much. I can't even drown my pain in wine. Have you ever seen a drunken raven? No. So, before you ask me one more time if I have your report, think about what I am having to deal with."
"I'm sorry, Xair. I wasn't aware. You could have told me sooner."
"And admitted that I can't handle the punishment for all of my crimes?" Xair asked, still sounding extremely angry. "No. I tried to be strong. I tried to be that stoic wall of courage and determination that I used to be as a human, but I . . . I just can't do it. I've been freezing and I'm starving because even as a bird, I hate the taste of worms. I'm a wreck. My mind is turning into jelly. I don't sleep until I've flown miles and miles then I drop out of the sky and wake up in some field under a layer of snow after I had been unconscious for days. The other birds know I'm not like them. I tried communicating with them, but they either can't understand me or they purposely ignore me. Oh, why did I pick a raven to be my animal form? No, I couldn't pick a snow leopard or a wolf. That would have been too convenient and too warm."
"Do you want to come stay with me in my cabin for a while?" Kato offered. "It's warm. Jaylen won't know who you are if you don't talk. You can stay on my windowsill so you can come and go as you please."
Xair shook his wings, brushing the snow from them. "No. I can't. I do have a list of things I have to accomplish as further penance for my crimes. Maybe after I finish the very long, long, long list of orders, I might be able to be human again. I have to get going. I will have your report in the next week."
"Thank you, Xair. You're the only one who can keep delivering me news from land."
"I know. I'm sorry for showing you my weakness. I will do better. You should get back to Jaylen. Oh, and one more thing. If you do decide to accept his proposal, let me know. You're my friend and you have been since I helped you escape from Divinus, even though I didn't know who he was at the time. Tell me if you are going to marry Jaylen. Please."
Angel of Darkness Books 6-10 Page 5
