Wings of Darkness: Book 1 of The Immortal Sorrows Series

by Sherri A. Wingler

  “My dad…”

  “He is not at home. He will never know I was ever here.” I followed him into the kitchen. I walked ahead of him and sat numbly in the hard kitchen chair he pulled out for me. I watched as he went into the laundry room and came out with a blanket I’d just washed earlier that afternoon. Fuzzy, and lavender colored, it was my favorite. He draped it carefully over my shoulders. I could feel my eyebrows creeping towards my hairline. If I survived the night without a mental breakdown, some type of medication might be in order. Strong medication.

  Asher ran a hand through his blonde hair and looked everywhere but at me. He seemed to be at a loss for where to start, once he had me settled in. Nervous, much? Well, that ruled out him killing and cooking me. I couldn’t imagine a serial killer being nervous around his intended victim, but he’d obviously been inside my house before, without anyone the wiser. Creepy thought. Hell, the guy could sprout wings at will, and I was worried about a little breaking and entering? Technically, it was just entering since he knew where the key was. Oh yeah, cracking up was a real possibility for me.

  I watched as he got the Swiss Miss out of the cabinet along with some milk from the fridge and a mug from the dishwasher. He was making hot chocolate? I cleared my throat. “Seriously?”

  He quirked an eyebrow in my direction. “I thought you might be in light shock. The hot chocolate will help to warm you up.” Now that he mentioned it, I realized that I was still about half-frozen. I would have chalked it up to nerves, but I think I was still frozen from being miles above anything, earlier. On the other hand, he may have been right; shock wasn’t completely out of the question.

  I stood up with my blanket still wrapped around me and went into the laundry room. I rooted around in the dryer till I found one of my dad’s old t-shirts. It was soft and grey and still smelled of fabric softener. Much better than the shredded shirt that barely clung to him. He flashed too much skin for me to concentrate on a normal conversation, and this conversation was bound to be anything but normal.

  The microwave dinged as I went back into the kitchen. He pulled the mug out and set it on the table for me. I noticed as I handed him the shirt that I only came up to his chin. Ok, collar bones. Either way, if he wanted to kill me it shouldn’t be much of a problem for him. “Here, this is gonna be small on you, but it’s better than what you have, now.”

  “Thank you.” He very carefully avoided touching my hand as he took it. He turned around as he pulled the tattered shirt over his head. I started to turn around too, but I couldn’t help it; I peeked. Smooth muscles rippled along his back as he moved, but I couldn’t see any sign of the wings anywhere, just two long scars that followed the contours of his back. My cheeks were flaming hot by the time he pulled my dad’s t-shirt on. It was way too tight on him. It left nothing to the imagination. Damn I needed to focus. Or a cold shower. Gwen would be laughing her ass off at me, if she were here. She would also probably proposition him. Good thing Gwen wasn’t around.

  “Ok, so first things first. What, was the guy trying to catch us? Why was he trying to catch us? And is he going to bust down the door at any minute?” Well, that was tactful. I gripped the mug of cocoa in a still trembling hand and sat back down in the hard kitchen chair as I watched him toss the remains of his shirt in our trash can.

  Asher started to pace. Our little kitchen was barely able to contain him. He started to speak a few times, but didn’t seem to know how to start. I was almost afraid to hear whatever he might say, but in the back of my mind I was still hoping this was some kind of weird, lucid dream that I was having.

  He stopped suddenly, and leaned up against the kitchen sink. “I apologize to you. The fault lies with me.” Hunh? What was that supposed to mean?

  “How is any of this your fault? And back to my original question about the nut-job; will he come here?” My throat tightened, imagining what might have happened if he hadn’t found me in time. Found me; probably stalked me, if I were being more accurate. Ah, who cared? He’d saved me from certain death.

  He shook his head, the highlights in his hair glinted under the overhead lights. Good lord, but he was just so pretty, in a thoroughly manly sort of way. His hair was an awesome shade of pale gold that you hardly ever see, and his eyes were deep and dark; they seemed to change shades of grey, depending on his mood. I really needed to get my head out of my own ass, and focus. I could be murdered at any moment, and all I could think about was the exact color of grey his eyes were? I sighed, thoroughly disgusted with myself.

  “Samael will not come here. You are safe.” He watched the spot above my head instead of looking me in the eyes. Withholding information, maybe? It was just as well. I felt myself blushing to the roots of my hair. I would have died on the spot if he’d caught me staring at his mouth.

  “Samael? Who is he?”

  That brought serious, steel grey eyes to bear on mine. He looked almost pained. “Samael is the Grim Reaper.” Either he was crazy or convinced, but he wasn’t joking. Just my luck; he was absolutely gorgeous and bat-shit crazy.

  Oh, shit, I burned my tongue on the cocoa and came up coughing. He was at my side in an instant, rubbing my back, trying to soothe me. The cough turned to giggles, then to a full-blown fit of laughter. My guest looked horrified. “Why are you laughing?” Clearly he thought I’d gone mental.

  “Cause that’s just funny as hell. If you’ve got to have someone wanting to kill you, it should be a professional.” I think I even snorted a little bit. My nose was running, but I wasn’t sure if it was from laughing so hard, or because I’d burned the roof of my mouth along with my tongue, and everything else. “Sorry, I’m ok, just having a hard time getting my head around this. Continue, please. Any idea why the Grim Reaper wants to kill me? Of course, it’s his job to kill everybody I guess, so that actually makes perfect sense.” I caught myself rambling. Ahem. I drew a steadying breath, and put the dangerous mug of cocoa down before I hurt myself again. “You might want to start from the very beginning. I’m not up for mental gymnastics right now, so speak slowly and use small words.”

  Asher looked like he wanted to back slowly out the door and run like hell. So I worried the big, scary dude with the ginormous dark wings? I promised myself I’d keep my mouth shut, and let him explain; for as long as I could stand it.

  He pulled a chair out across from me, and sat. It groaned under his weight, so chances were pretty good he wasn’t a hallucination. “I was there at your wreck.” I nodded for him to go on. I remembered him there, although I’d been thinking this whole time that he was a figment of my overactive imagination. “You were dying, but it was not your time.” That sent a cold chill down my spine. I’d known it was close, but I didn’t know it was that close. Hearing him say it out loud like that gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

  Again I nodded, tried to smile for encouragement. He ran his hand through his hair; a nervous tell, if ever I’d seen one. Whatever he was about to say, he didn’t want to tell me. “I did something to you, to stop your passing.” Earnest grey eyes met mine, and I felt myself forgiving him instantly for whatever it was. How bad could it be? He’d saved my life.

  He drew a deep breath, looked down at his hands. “What I did, it changed you.” He looked up, straight into my eyes, and pinned me to the spot. “It is still changing you.” Well, that didn’t sound too promising.

  Cold fear washed through me. “Asher, what did you do?” It came out as a whisper, barely above a breath.

  “I gave you blood, Isabel. My blood.” I sat back in my chair a little, because I found that I’d been leaning toward him that whole time. Blood. That didn’t sound too bad. Maybe I was overreacting. People get blood at hospitals all of the time. Seemed reasonable enough…

  Then the voice of reason in the back of my mind started shouting at the top of her lungs. Did I really believe any of this? The Grim Reaper? Seriously? I’d never claimed to be religious. I always thought of myself as unaffiliated. I had a nodding acqua
intance with the Bible, but my dad and I never went to church. I sure never thought of Death as being embodied by an actual person, or angel, or whatever. I wasn’t even sure I believed in Heaven or Hell. Now, here I was, with a really big problem; and he wasn’t going away anytime soon, from the looks of it.

  Yet, the healing I couldn’t explain? The increased speed I’d experienced? The extra strength? “So you’re what? My guardian angel?” Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. I was crazier than a bedbug, if I believed this. Maybe even crazier than he was.

  He looked relieved, like I’d given him something to hang onto. “Something like that. I am a type of angel, yes.” A living, breathing angel in my kitchen. A hot one, no less. Color me surprised. My grandma, rest her soul, would have been having a fit of the vapors right about now. Grandma loved to be right. About everything. And here I had proof that she’d been right about at least some part of the Bible. I had an angel in my kitchen. Ok, focus, Izzy. Worry about that nervous breakdown later.

  I took a deep breath, let it out calmly. “And you keeping me alive pissed off your friend?” He simply nodded. I stood up and let the fuzzy blanket drop to the floor. Suddenly, I was burning up. Literally, I felt heat creep up my neck into my face. I unzipped my hoodie and draped it over the chair I’d been sitting on. I paced back and forth, like he had done earlier. It was getting hard to breathe; the room was stifling. “Wait, you said you gave me blood. How much blood are we talking?”

  “A small amount. A few drops. My blood is potent. It healed you.” No kidding. I started to get a really bad headache. Then I remembered all the times I’d woken up with the taste of copper in my mouth. He’d been in my room. He’d watched me sleep. He’d fed me blood. More than once.

  I stopped pacing to stare at him. “Exactly how many times did you give me your blood, Asher?”

  He looked away. “A few times. I had to be sure you would be safe.”

  I snorted. “Looks like that didn’t work out for you very well, did it? The freaking Grim Reaper just tried to kill me.” I had a sickening thought. “Wait, if he’s decided to kill me, then why am I still alive? I mean, he’s the Big Bad, right? I should be dead meat by now. Why didn’t you just let me die?”

  Asher shrugged, a seemingly careless gesture, but there was something behind his eyes that I didn’t quite trust. “It was not your time.”

  “Well, now it may never be my time; you freaking drugged me with angel blood! Who does that shit?” My voice had reached a level only dogs could hear, but I was upset. Rightfully so, I thought. It was a delayed reaction, but I still felt entitled to it.

  “Isabel, calm yourself. I can protect you, you will be safe; I promise.”

  “How? How can you protect me from something like that?” I was agitated. “If he wants me dead, I can’t see a way around it.”

  Asher got up from his chair and walked slowly towards me. He put his hands on my shoulders to stop my pacing. “He cannot claim you. My blood has bound you.” Say, what?

  “Bound me to what? I don’t understand.” I grabbed the side of my head as that little headache turned into a full grown migraine. It felt like someone took a fork and stuck it in my eye and gave it a good, slow twist. I had a pulse behind my left eye, with every beat of my heart.

  His hand came up, covering my own and I felt heat rush through me all the way to my toes. Like magic, my headache disappeared. Now, that was a really handy trick to have. “I bound your soul to your body, the day you almost died.” His voice dropped to a whisper I almost didn’t hear, “And later, I bound you to myself. You are not his to claim. You are mine.”

  Chapter 10…Asher

  Isabel swallowed hard, big green eyes glistening. “You aren’t a guardian angel are you?” I simply stared back at her. I was afraid to reveal too much of myself, too quickly. She was doing well; much better than I expected, but then I already knew she was anything, if not special. I just had no idea how she would react to the entire truth. There were a hundred questions in those sparkling, green eyes of hers. I wondered how I would even begin to answer them all.

  Reluctantly, I dropped my hand from hers. I liked the contact; I could feel the bond my blood had forged. It called to me. For the merest instant I saw disappointment in her eyes before she turned away. Did she feel the loss of our connection, too?

  Not for the first time, I cursed myself for what I had done to this girl. She was doomed because of me. Guilt gnawed at me. If I had not tampered with her, she might have moved onto the next level of her journey toward the Divine. I would never know, now. I had made my decision and compounded my sin several times over. Each time I gave her blood, I bound her tighter. Would she understand why I had done this? Would she forgive me? How could she, when I did not fully understand it myself?

  She bit her lip and thought for a moment, taking a little time to process everything that I had told her. She spoke slowly, deliberately. “So you said that I’m changing. What am I changing into?”

  “I am not sure. You are a new thing. I have my theories, but someone like you has never existed before, to my knowledge.”

  “The guy chasing me, he called me an abomination. That can’t be good, right?” She looked perfectly miserable. Small and vulnerable, I only wanted to protect her from what was coming. Yet, I dreaded the way she would look at me once the truth came out.

  “You are no abomination. If anything, you are something special. A hybrid, of sorts.”

  Such a confused look on that pretty face. “A hybrid of what, Asher?” Her eyes narrowed on me with cutting precision. “What aren’t you telling me?”

  I had to tell her, but I did not want to. I wanted to shield her; to let her remain in blissful ignorance, for as long as she possibly could. Also, I wanted to put off the moment when she would look on me with disgust, and turn away. It was not possible, however; I could keep her in the dark no longer. Each day she grew stronger. Her abilities were already draining those around her.

  I sighed, and prayed silently for help from above. “I am not sure, but you are no longer entirely human.” It was not wholly a lie. I braced myself for the hysterical tears. Young women can be so emotional. She was bound to be upset, but I was prepared to comfort her. I would help her manage her strange, new abilities. I would stand beside her and fight those who meant to destroy her. She was mine to guard and I would do it, to the best of my abilities.

  Isabel’s jaw hung open for a moment, then closed with an audible click of her teeth. She pivoted on her heel and took off for the living room. Wait, where were the hysterics? Where were the tears? I caught her halfway up the stairs. “Where are you going? Do you have questions?”

  “Nope.” She shook her head, the mass of dark hair swaying over her shoulders. “I’m going to bed. Good night. Let yourself out.” Her tone was cool, but her eyes were stormy. Suddenly she bristled with anger. Why? What had I done?

  “That is it? That is all you have to say to me?” I was the one left confused. What was going on in that lovely head of hers?

  She rounded on me as she opened her bedroom door. “Just what would you like me to say? Thanks for saving my life. It’s been real, but it’s getting late, and my dad’s going to be home soon. I’ve had a really long day and I’d like some sleep. When you decide to tell me the truth, I’m all ears.” Then she walked into her bedroom and shut the door in my face.

  I was left dumbfounded. What had I said that was so wrong? I heard the phantom laughter coming from the bottom of the stairs. Grim had found me. Wonderful. My night was just going splendidly. I gritted my teeth and considered breaking down the door, but decided against it at the last moment. I was not sure what had just happened, but I did not want to terrorize the girl. I shook my head and heaved a frustrated sigh as I took myself downstairs.

  “So, did you have any luck with your little friend,” Grim asked.

  “Of course I did.” I tapped my fingers against my leg, wondering how long before I could be done with this conversation. “It went well, I thin
k. As well as could be expected.”

  Grim’s grin was maddening. “Brought her right up to speed, did you?” I gave him a hard look. I did not need his input. I could handle one girl. Maybe. Possibly. Of course I could.

  “Shut up, Samael.” I did not know what to do next. Isabel was supposed to see reason. Instead, she had shut me down before I had told her much of anything. The girl was utterly stubborn.

  “Of course, oh Great and Powerful One. Anything for you.” Tears of mirth glimmered in obsidian eyes. “I live, but to obey.”

  “Your sarcasm is noted.” The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to destroy something. This was not supposed to happen; I had been dismissed. Who, in their right mind, would dismiss Death? To be fair, though, she did not know that she had done it. She still did not know what I was.

  “Seriously, Asher, you might want to move things along here. Word has it that Fate has gotten wind of your little friend, and she isn’t happy.” Lovely, another complication. Just what I needed. “Also, you should know that some Lesser Demons have been poking their pointy noses around the neighborhood, lately. My best guess is that they were sent to spy on your little abomination. You should be extremely careful.” Damn.

  “Find something to do with yourself, Samael. I can take care of things, here.” Isabel would listen to me, whether she wanted to or not.

  Grim snorted, “Clearly. You’ve taken care of things so well. That’s why you’re still here with me, instead of up there, with her.” He rolled his eyes towards the top of the stairs.

  He was insufferable, arrogant, and rude. Those were his better qualities. “Look, you have her attention; now let her think about it for a little while. She’s a teenaged girl. You’re not completely hideous, and you have that whole mysterious, brooding thing going on. Girls love those qualities in a man. She’s bound to come around, eventually.” Just as I caught myself growling, he thumped me soundly on the shoulder. “Come hunting with me. You need to get away for a little while. It will do you good, and get your panties out of a knot.”