by KD Jones
Another problem came up. “Um—I don’t have a home anymore. My apartment kind of blew up.”
Chapter 18
“You can stay at my place, there’s plenty of room,” Ari offered immediately.
She bit her lip, tempted to say yes. Images of them in Ari’s bed, naked and going at it, humping like bunnies, weren’t helping matters. He gave her a look that told her that he was thinking the same thing.
“I thought you would be staying in the church’s apartment.” Father Raphael looked at Ari with distrust.
“I don’t know…”
“It’s on holy ground, so it will be demon-free,” Raphael added.
“What better protection from a demon than a demi-demon?” Ari asked, glaring at the priest.
Really, was she going to have to choose? “Look, I’m tired and I just really want to rest. I’ll stay at the church for now until I can find my own place.”
She could tell that Ari wasn’t happy about that and Michael’s smirk wasn’t making things any better.
Father Raphael was thrilled. “I’ll pull the car around.”
“Actually, I’d like Ari to take me on his bike. I’ll meet you there.”
Ari winked at Michael before taking her by the hand and leading her to his motorcycle. He reached for the helmet and put it on her head.
“Ari?”
“What is it, beautiful?”
“It’s my fault, what’s happened to Jerry and Leeza. It’s not safe for me to stay here. I need to leave.”
He shook his head. “It’s not true, you didn’t cause any of this. Don’t talk about leaving—ever.”
“But—”
“I mean it, Cass. This crap wasn’t your doing, but you have a purpose here if you choose it. This city needs you. If you stay I’ll be here to help you, but know this: if you leave, I’ll follow you.”
She was stunned when he leaned down and kissed her. She expected him to grab her and pull her closer, but he didn’t. He kept the kiss simple and sweet. She wanted more, but he pulled back from her.
“Come on, I bet you would love a shower before you go to bed.”
She smiled, “Absolutely. A nice long, hot shower.” She swung her legs over the seat and settled in behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his back. She kept her hands off his skin; she didn’t want to see any more of his memories at that moment. She just wanted to feel his warmth.
“You know, if you came home with me I would help you shower,” he said right before he cranked the motorcycle up.
She closed her eyes, picturing them in the shower together, wet and naked rubbing soap all over each other. She would use her hands to spread those bubbles everywhere. These weren’t Ari’s thoughts, these were her own naughty thoughts.
That was why she couldn’t go home with him right now. She wanted Ari more than anything but she couldn’t let herself be with him right now. Her life was in turmoil and she was so confused.
First she had to figure out a way to help Leeza. Then she needed to train to be better able to handle herself. Ari was right, the city and the people living here needed her help. She didn’t ask for any of this, but she was born with powers to fight demons. She needed to hone those skills so that she could really make a difference. Maybe after all that, she could pursue this thing between her and Ari.
*****
A sound woke Cass up from her dreams. She looked around the room for the source, and thought she saw a man standing in the corner by the window.
“Who’s there?”
She sat up, but the man disappeared. She ran her hands through her long hair. She was seeing things now. She must really be exhausted. She looked at the clock on the nightstand next to her and noted it was four in the morning. Visiting hours started at seven, and she wanted to be there first thing to talk to the doctors about Leeza’s condition.
Unfortunately, she would have to wait for Father Raphael to wake up and drive her there, unless she took the bus or a taxi. She stood up, walked over to the window and peered out. Her body was tired but her mind was active making it hard to sleep.
She looked down and noticed a small teddy bear sitting on the windowsill. She hadn’t noticed it there before, but to be honest she couldn’t remember everything about the room. It was a full apartment with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a small sitting area. The second bedroom was locked and when she asked Father Raphael what was in the room, he said he used it for storage. She would’ve believed that was it, but he wouldn’t look her in the eyes. Something was in there he didn’t want her to know about.
She picked up the teddy bear. It was older but still had a newness to it. It was so soft she couldn’t stop herself from hugging it. She’d never had a toy that she could remember. When she was in the foster homes, none of the toys belonged to anyone; everyone was expected to share or not get to play with them at all.
She took the bear with her back to the bed. She laid back down and snuggled with it. For some reason she felt...comforted. She soon fell asleep.
*****
Later that morning, she woke with a start. “Shit!” She’d overslept. It was eight-thirty in the morning. She got up and frowned at her clothes, or lack of them. Father Raphael had given her a shirt to sleep in after she took her shower. He was throwing her dirty clothes in the washing machine. All her things had been destroyed in the explosion. She had nothing else to wear. Maybe there was a pair of pants or shorts or something she could put on.
She quickly made the bed and placed the teddy bear in the center of the pillows. She rushed down the stairs barefoot and found Father Raphael and Michael in the kitchen eating breakfast. She blushed when Michael stared at her bare legs a little too long.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning, dear. Would you like breakfast? I put a plate for you in the oven to keep it warm.”
“Yes, thank you. Do you think my clothes are dry by now?”
“I’m sorry, I checked this morning and they aren’t quite dry. Our church has older appliances. I do have a clothing collections bin in the basement where our parishioners donate clothing to give to the homeless shelters. Feel free to sort through and take whatever you need.”
She leaned down to open the oven and pulled the plate out. “Thanks.”
Looking over her shoulder, she caught Michael licking his lips and checking out her ass. She turned around and raised her eyebrow at him. He straightened in his seat and turned to concentrate on his own plate. His cheeks were bright red. Nice to see Michael could actually be a little human, and definitely all male.
“Michael, you will hopefully be able to find clothes for yourself as well. You can’t wear the same thing every day.”
Michael nodded. “I will see what there is.”
She sat down across from him, next to Father Raphael. She took a bite of her scrambled eggs and moaned out loud. “These are really good.”
“Thank you dear. I’m trying to teach Michael how to cook. It’s been a while since he’s been on the Earthly plane.”
“How did your cooking lesson go?”
“I made toast.” Michael held up a plate of burnt toast, leaning forward so she would have to take a piece.
She took a bite of the toast, trying to not cringe at the dryness and the charcoal flavor. “Maybe pull the toast a little earlier?”
Michael sighed. “I knew the black coloring was not right.”
She reached out and touched his hand. “It’s fine. I burn toast all the time at the diner. Jerry banned me from the kitchen.”
“Really?”
“Yep. I’m a horrible cook. Maybe Father Raphael should be giving us both lessons.” Michael turned his hand around so that their palms were touching, and she felt a current between them. It wasn’t painful, but it was awkward because she had feelings for Ari. She pulled her hand back and continued to eat her breakfast.
“What time would you like me to take you to the hospital?” Father Raphael stood up to ta
ke his plate to the sink.
“As soon as I get dressed. I wanted to get there earlier to talk to Leeza’s doctor but I had a restless night and overslept.”
“I’m sorry you didn’t sleep well. Did you have bad dreams?”
“I can’t remember what I was dreaming about, but I woke up about four. I thought I saw someone in my room, but it must have been the shadows playing tricks on me.”
Father Raphael and Michael looked at each other. “Did you recognize the person you thought you saw?”
She shook her head. “No, but it was a man. That’s all I could see, but he wasn’t really there. I got up and went to the window where I thought I saw him but nothing was there.”
“I’ll check it out while you and Michael look for fresh clothes.”
“Do you think a demon got in somehow?”
“No, no. The church property is on sacred ground. No full demon could step foot in the church.”
“What about a demi-demon?”
Michael narrowed his eyes. “They can come on the property. Do you think your friend Ari came to check on you?”
“I don’t think it was him. Truthfully, I think I just imagined it. I was so tired last night.” She could tell that Michael and Father Raphael didn’t believe that. She stood up and took her empty plate over to the sink. There wasn’t a dishwasher, so she ran the water and poured the dishwashing liquid in when she plugged the drain.
“You don’t have to wash the dishes,” Father Raphael told her.
“It’s okay, this is the one thing Jerry did let me do in the kitchen. You cooked so it’s only fair that I wash the dishes.”
“I can wash my own,” Michael offered, bringing his empty plate to her.
She cringed, thinking that if Michael washed dishes like he toasted the bread, Father Raphael would need new plates. “I’ve got it. You go ahead downstairs and look for your clothes.”
“Thank you.” He placed the plate into the sudsy water.
Something about him standing so close to her and leaning over her was sexy and wrong in so many ways. She didn’t realize she was holding her breath until he left the kitchen. She took her time washing everything. It was kind of therapeutic. She hoped Michael would be done in the basement, because she really didn’t want to be alone with him right then.
She left the kitchen and paused in the hallway. A golden glow was coming from the church sanctuary. She walked there slowly and looked inside. Raphael was kneeling at the large silver cross. His hand was on the base, and the cross was glowing bright. A warmth filled the room that wasn’t usually there. Weird.
She backed away and turned to go to the basement. There were so many things she didn’t understand, especially about herself. She knew her mother’s name, but she still didn’t know who her father was. Did he even know that she was alive? Did he care?
She hoped he would, but she was used to disappointment. Like the kids in the orphanage used to tell her all the time, “If your real parents don’t want you, no one else is going to.”
Cass knew only two things for sure: One, her life was created for a purpose. She’d felt that when Father Raphael forgave her sins. Two, she could only count on herself. That was true when she was a child, and it was still true. She just couldn’t trust others easily.
She planned to make another trip to the library and see what she could find out about the Arkangels and demons. No way would she take their word for all this without verifying it.
Chapter 19
She walked up to the front desk in the lobby of the hospital. “Hi, I’m here to see Leeza Maine. I’m a…cousin.” She thought telling them she was related would help get her into the psych ward.
“Miss Maine has been released.”
“I’m sorry, what? Last night she was admitted to the psych ward. What happened?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t discuss the patient’s record, even if you are related. All I can say is that she has been released.”
She was shocked. “What about Jerry Mitchell? Is he still here?”
“He’s in room 310.”
“Thank you.” She turned and looked at Father Raphael and Michael. “Leeza was released.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. I’m going to go up and talk to Jerry. Maybe you two should stay here or go back to the car. I don’t want to cause more questions.”
“Very well, we’ll wait for you here in the lobby.”
*****
Raphael watched as Cassandra went to the elevator. He turned to Michael. “You can’t let her spend more time alone with the half-demon. She doesn’t fully trust us, and she never will if he convinces her not to.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Be her friend.”
Michael ran a hand through his hair. “I know nothing about her.”
“She’s a beautiful woman—treat her that way.”
“She has demon blood. I have a problem with that,” Michael admitted.
“Get over it. She has just as much angel blood in her as she does demon. If you can’t do this, perhaps Gabriel sent the wrong Arkangel.”
“I’ve been taught to believe a certain way about demons, so it’s not going to be easy to overcome my learned reaction to them.”
“She’s not a demon.”
“I know that.”
“She won’t trust you if you can’t get over your prejudice. Is the idea of you getting close to her so repugnant?”
“I… No, it’s not. I find her smart, funny, and beautiful.”
“Then start treating her that way. If you do, we may have a chance at getting that half-demon out of her life.”
*****
Cass walked to the elevator and hit the button for the third floor. She got off the elevator a minute later and walked down the hallway to the room she’d visited last night. She heard voices inside: one was Jerry, and the other was…Leeza?
She entered the room, surprising them.
“Cass!” Leeza got up and ran to hug her. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“They released you?” She let Leeza go and went over to hug Jerry.
“Yes, it’s amazing. Yesterday I thought I was going insane, spouting all kinds of crazy shit. I had a peaceful sleep and when I woke up this morning, everything that had been confusing me made sense.”
“What do you remember about yesterday?”
“I was preparing to open the diner with Jerry when this guy came in demanding to know where you were. Jerry tried to take him on so I could run, but I wasn’t about to leave Jerry there knowing this was probably the killer. He stabbed Jerry and then reached for me. He must have knocked me unconscious or something. That’s the last I remember before waking up in the hospital.”
Cass was shocked. “You don’t remember anything else? What about what you said last night?”
“Last night? I don’t remember last night. Did you come during visiting hours? I don’t remember much because they gave me a sedative.”
A sedative? She seemed pretty alert to Cass last night. Something strange was going on. “I came by to check on both you and Jerry. Jerry was sleeping, but you were awake. You said something about…angels.”
Leeza covered her face with her hands. “Oh man, I am so embarrassed. I really went off the deep end, rambling about demons and angels. I’m surprised they didn’t put me in a straightjacket.”
For some reason Leeza thought she’d just imagined Drey and Michael. Maybe that was for the best. “Well, I’m glad you’re doing better and that they let you out. Now we’ve just got to get Jerry here on the mend.”
“They’re releasing me tomorrow, but I can’t run the diner for another three days. I can’t lose that kind of money.”
“I can run the kitchen if Cass waits tables.”
“Absolutely, Leeza’s a great cook.”
“I don’t want either of you going back until this murderer is caught.”
“The police came by this morning to get my statement. The mur
derer was shot and fell into the river. They believe he’s dead but they haven’t found the body,” Leeza told them.
What the hell was going on? She knew Drey was dead, because she killed him. There was no shooting, and how did the cops know about anything?
“So, we can open the diner and keep it running for you until you’re back on your feet.”
“I still don’t feel it safe with the two of you there without a male presence.”
Leeza rolled her eyes. “That is so sexist.”
“I have a friend who can help out. He’s not a cook but I could teach him how to wait tables.”
“A guy? Do I know him? It’s not that biker, is it? He’ll scare the patrons away.”
She giggled at the thought of Ari waiting tables. “No, his name is Michael and he’s visiting from out of state.”
“Michael what?” Jerry was suspicious by nature.
She bit her bottom lip trying to come up with a good last name. “Michael… Angelo.”
“Is he Italian?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Well, I can’t pay him extra. I pay you under the table, but we both know most of your income comes from your tips.”
“He’ll work for tips only.”
“Okay. You guys have the keys to the place and know how to make the bank deposit.”
Both women kissed him on the cheek before leaving. “We’ll check on you later, Jerry.”
Cass walked with Leeza out into the hallway. “Do you have a class today?”
“No. I called my professors and told them what happened. They gave me work I can do from my computer and a few days off so I can be at the diner for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.” They got into the elevator and went down to the lobby.
“That’s a really long day for you. What if I could find someone to cook the dinner shift?”
“That would be awesome, but who are you going to get?”
“I know a guy. We’ll skip opening for breakfast and lunch, but I’ll introduce you to the guys then.” She motioned for Father Raphael and Michael to stay seated where they were while she exited the hospital with Leeza.
