“Danjal,” she bucked her hips against his, but he shifted his leg and his thigh pressed snugly up against her pussy. Fiery arcs of pleasure fanned through her abdomen and her hips flexed involuntarily against him. She heard his sharp intake of breath and felt the ridge in his pants harden against her hip. Fuck, what was going on between them?
“Are these the scars he left on you, Reba?”
The tip of his tongue found the pinprick blemishes, and she shivered beneath the heat of his mouth.
“Speak to me Reba.”
His lips were against her ear, his breath harsh, his voice urgent and demanding.
“Tell me how you fried that vamp?”
His tongue against her skin ignited a blaze between her legs. Rockets of pleasure blasted along her nerve endings and she bit her lip to stop the moan that rose in her throat. Her breasts heaved and she ached to rock her hips against the muscle that flexed in his rock-hard thigh. Danjal buried his face in her hair, his chest rising as he drew her scent deep into his lungs.
“I can see the soul when it leaves the body.” The words tumbled from her mouth in a rush. “I can hold it, talk to it and put it back into its host. I can only do it if the body is warm and the aura still present,” she whispered. “I don’t know how I do it, it just happens.”
Danjal reared back releasing her, he swung away, and Reba steadied herself against the door, every inch of her body mourning the loss of his.
He kept his back to her, his hands sat on his hips.
“Just start from the beginning,” he said, still not looking at her.
“There is nothing more to tell.” Reba watched for the play of muscle beneath the slim fit uniform shirt. He was as affected as she was by their encounter.
“I started seeing souls leaving the bodies of my patients when I was working in America, and then I realized I could speak to them.” She tugged at the jumper’s hem.
“And this stuff about auras?” He turned back around to face her.
“I’ve always been able to see the colors around people,” she admitted. “I can gauge their moods.” She shrugged. “Sometimes I see stuff happening before it does, but I was born that way. The nuns at the boarding school didn’t like me talking about it, so I learned to keep it to myself.”
“Tell me what happened with Bludon?”
He faced her, two black orbs stared from his pale strained face, and he slid his hands into his pockets, bringing the bulge in his pants to her attention.
She bit her lip and forced herself to focus on his question and not his crotch. “He was severely injured; I knew he was going to die. I just waited until his soul tried to leave his body and caught it. I put it back and I tried to start his heart. Most times I can, but it only buys them a few hours, long enough to get them medical help.”
“And that’s all there is to it?”
“I don’t know how I do it, I just do it.” She wiped the drying tears from her cheeks.
“So that’s it? You’re some sort of soul catcher?”
“I’ve never given what I do a name. I’m a paramedic and my job is saving lives.”
Leaving her standing at the door, Danjal strode towards his desk. He pulled the arrow from a side pocket of his pants and threw it onto his desk. He seemed to take a few moments to think before he turned back around to face her.
“You will stay here in David's Town, Reba, where you will be assessed by our people. You cannot be set out on the world until we know exactly who and what you are.”
Reba opened her mouth to protest.
“Every foreigner who ends up in this city is here for a reason. David's Town calls to you and if you ignore the call, you are often brought back by force. The circumstances under which you arrived here are suspicious. But as you were candid with only a little coercion about your, shall we call them talents?” He smiled but there was no humor. “I’ll let it rest for now.”
Reba exhaled, and her shoulders slumped, it felt she’d been holding her breath for hours.
“I’m sure you’re exhausted,” he continued. “I’ll get Raguel to escort you back to my quarters. Tomorrow night you will have your own room and decent clothes to wear. Until then you will need to make do with what we have.”
Danjal
“Have you forgotten who she is?” Roharn questioned his brother. “Isiah would have your guts for garters, not to mention what Blue would do to you for abusing her.” His lips twisted in disapproval.
Danjal rolled his eyes. “I hardly abused her.” He was unrepentant of his actions towards Reba.
“I don’t play games and she’d do well to learn that.” He leaned against the window behind his desk, his fingers tracing the sharp head of the same arrow he’d tormented her with.
He’d debriefed Roharn on the information he’d gotten from Reba about her abilities, and his brother wasn’t impressed with how he’d gotten her to talk.
“Why does she bring the worst out in you?”
Danjal turned away from Roharn and gazed through the window. The sun was setting over the Churchlands and millions of fairy lights twinkled between the leaves of the trees and bushes. Solar statues of angels glowed white in the semidarkness of the gardens. He stood in silence, his mind in turmoil.
His encounter with Reba lingered, the memory of the feel of her butter-soft skin beneath his tongue made him hard. He found her sexy as fuck. He’d wanted nothing more than to turn her around, flip up that damned tantalizing shirt, push her up against the door and fuck the truth out of her.
“We can’t let our guard down around her Roharn.” He turned back to face his brother. “I know she’s Isiah’s daughter, but if she is a threat to our city, then she will be treated as such. It’s not me who makes these laws. I want her to be a worthy citizen, but she has to work with me, or I can’t save her from the Diocese.”
“She was tested as a toddler by our institution; they said she took on her mother’s human traits,” Roharn said.
“Well, I think it’s pretty clear that she isn’t human,” Danjal replied. “I’ve sent word to Noah about my findings and the Diocese have contacted Malakai.”
“Malakai, the Shadow Seeker?” Roharn’s voice cracked. “Christ Danjal, he’ll kill her without a second thought.” Roharn stomped a foot on the floor. “He even makes my skin crawl.”
“If it is the wish of the Diocese, yes, he will.” Danjal nodded, his expression stoic as he breathed through the sudden pain in his chest. He didn’t want her dead either.
“He is a heartless prick!”
“You forget that for the past ten years I too was a Shadow Seeker, and therefore a heartless prick too.” Danjal strode towards the fireplace where Roharn sat with a glass of brandy in his hand. “We can’t all be saints like you, brother.” He tossed the arrow onto the coffee table and sat down.
“Why can’t you use your skills to sniff her out, and decide what kind of demon she is?” Roharn frowned into the golden liquid in his glass.
“I’ve tried, but the perplexing thing is all I sense is her humanity, but I know she isn’t human, because they can’t do the shit she can.” Danjal chewed his bottom lip. “I think Isiah discovered the truth about her, and that’s why he wanted her here in David's Town. It’s just too much of a coincidence she catches souls and somewhere out there is a demon stealing them.”
“Then that may be her redemption, she can help us catch this demon.” Rohan shifted to face Danjal.
“We can only hope,” Danjal replied.
“Have you told her about Isiah and Blue yet?”
Danjal looked at his watch. “She’ll be down in a few minutes. I thought as she’s taken a shine to you, we could break it to her together?”
Roharn snickered. “So that’s why you’re sharing your prized brandy with me. There’s always a catch with you, brother.”
“It should have been Blue’s job.” Danjal moved his head from side to side to meet his shoulder, groaning in pleasure at the loud crack his joints made as
he released the tension in his aching muscles. “I don’t do mushy stuff.”
The brothers chatted for several minutes until a light tap at the door heralded Reba’s arrival. It was Roharn who opened the door and ushered her in.
“Wow!” He wolf whistled as Reba crossed the threshold. “What happened to all that hair you had yesterday?”
Reba touched the glossy spiral curls that tumbled around her head and jawline. “Sophie happened.” She smiled shyly. “It was too knotted and to comb it would have been too painful. It was due for a chop anyway.”
“Ahh, of course, she cuts all our hair too.” Roharn closed the door behind her. “Come on over. He pointed to the chairs around the fire. “Join us for a brandy?”
Danjal rose as she approached. Her white shirt hung off one shoulder exposing her long swanlike neck and prominent collar bones. A slim black belt cinched the oversized shirt at her waist. Her black tights were footless exposing her petite, attractive, brown feet.
She glanced at Danjal and the air crackled around them. It was becoming harder to deny the chemistry stirring between them.
“Hi,” she murmured and tucked a stray curl behind her ear.
He knew she felt it too. A wave of pink highlighted the natural bronze of her cheeks. Her jaw jutted forward, and her nostrils flared. She was ready for battle and the expectation of it set his loins afire.
“Good evening.” He smiled, relishing the spark of defiance that burned in her gray gaze.
“Would you care for a glass of brandy, Reba? Or there is a great vintage Merlot here too,” Roharn offered from the bar.
His question intruded on their moment, and Reba looked away.
“The Merlot would be great thank you.” She sat down on one of the couches, smoothing her shirt over her knees. Roharn brought the wine from the minibar and poured her a generous glass of the fragrant burgundy liquid, which she accepted with a quiet “thank you.”
“Kathleen tells me your room will be ready this evening, and that a consignment of clothing is on its way from Basildon. I’m sorry about the delay, but things tend to be slow over the weekend.” Danjal reclaimed his seat opposite her.
“I’m sure you’re looking forward to some decent clothes and not having to wear Danjal’s cast-offs.” Roharn raised his glass to Reba. “Cheers.”
Reba’s lips twitched as she brought the glass to her lips. “Cheers.” She took a mouthful and closed her eyes as the wine hit her tongue.
Danjal savored her expression as she inhaled, savoring the flavors, tilting her head back slightly, exposing the bare column of her throat as she swallowed.
She knew he watched her, and when she licked the drops from her full lips, he had to cross his legs to tame the rampant blood flow to his cock.
“Good drop, isn’t it?” Roharn chuckled at her response to the ancient wine.
She wrinkled her nose and sent Roharn a thumb’s up. “I’ve never drunk anything this good before, I’m betting it’s pretty old.”
“More than you can imagine.” Danjal placed his glass on the coffee table, she’d had her fun for now. “Following on from our conversation yesterday.” He kept his tone neutral, knowing he trod on perilous ground.
Reba visibly stiffened in her chair and clasped the wine glass between two hands. She looked directly at him before dropping her gaze someplace to the side of his shoulder.
Danjal caught the encouraging nod Roharn sent him and cleared his throat. “There is a lot more to your story with David's Town than you realize.”
That caught her interest and she leaned forward putting her elbows on her knees. Danjal noted the gleam of something gold in amongst her curls and he frowned, losing track of his thoughts for a second, as a memory fleeting and old, flashed through his mind, too fast for him to capture.
“You were saying.” Roharn brought him back.
“Erm, yes…” He cleared his throat. “There is no easy way to tell you this.” He rubbed his hands down his jean-clad thighs. “But you are related to Bludon, the warrior whose life you saved.” He paused and watched as her face changed from vibrant to closed and pale. “You both share the same father, Isiah Benshax.”
Reba reared back in her seat, the wine almost tipping from her glass. She slapped a hand over her chest as her mouth formed a silent O.
“Yesterday I told you that David's Town has a way of calling its children home when it needs them, and as you are a child of this city, it would explain why you are here.”
“No!” Reba shot up from the couch and set her glass down. “There is no bloody way I could ever be a child of one of your warriors. Where did you dream this shit up?”
“Reba,” Roharn cut in. “Just hear, my brother out, please?”
“No!” she snarled, and marched towards the door. “There is no way that I am related to people like you. First you lock me up, threaten me and accuse me of unspeakable crimes, now this!”
“What do you mean people like us?” Danjal was on his feet in an instant and would have gone after her had Roharn not held up a hand to stop him.
“Weird folk.” She spun around at the door. “That live in this miserable dank, archaic city and spend their lives chasing after vampires and demons.” She waved her hands in the air. “No thank you, I prefer the real world!” She reached for the door handle.
“There would be no real world without us weird folk who stop the sewerage of Hell from pouring out into your world!” Danjal snarled at the insolent way she dismissed the City and the work the warriors did. “Besides you’re not exactly the sort of normal that lives in the real world anyway.”
Reba froze, her fists shaking at his cruel words.
“You’re a part of David's Town, Reba.” Roharn’s calm tone must have reached her because she turned around. “Please listen to what Danjal has to say.”
Reba stood obstinately beside the door for several long seconds. “He,” she glared at Danjal, “held an arrow to my head; he shot me with a tranquilizer dart. Yesterday he threw that at my head.” She showed him the arrow laying on the table. “Why the hell should I believe anything he has to say when he acts like he doesn’t even remember me from before?”
Danjal picked up his drink and downed the glass. The fiery liquid burned his throat, but he swallowed it and turned towards the fire so he couldn’t look at the pain he’d caused etched on her face.
“You two have to learn to communicate, and not fly into rages every time the other opens their mouth. The bottom line is, Danjal suffered a head injury and now has memory deficits. Judging by your reaction to him, something more went down between the two of you other than your professional help as a paramedic.” Rohan said.
Reba huffed a defiant, “Humph.”
“I don’t need you to fight my battles, brother.” Danjal turned around and leaned against the mantle.
“But someone needs to be the voice of reason,” Roharn countered. “So, Reba, have I ever given you any reason to distrust me?”
“No.” She shook her head.
“Then can we place the personal matters aside for now, and deal with the issue at hand?”
She nodded.
“Great.” Roharn smiled broadly. “Let’s begin again?” He waited until she was seated before he began speaking.
“You are connected to this city, whether you like it or not.”
Reba sniffed, but Roharn continued. “Bludon is your brother, and Isiah Benshax is your father.”
She opened her mouth, but he shushed her with a wave of his finger. “It’s a shock I can understand, and Danjal and I will give you all the time you need to work through this news.”
“I don’t have a father.” Reba glowered at him. “I’ve never had a father, and I certainly don’t want one now!”
“Everyone has a father, Reba,” Roharn sounded so reasonable that Danjal couldn’t help but admire his brother’s patience. “Unfortunately, yours is recently deceased.”
“How did my mother ever meet a David’s Town ange
l?” she scoffed. “She was in Africa as far as I know.”
“Isiah was visiting Johannesburg when they met,” Roharn explained.
“Well, she’s dead too. So, I guess I won’t get the true story, will I?” Reba shrugged indifferently.
“This is the true story,” Roharn insisted.
“Benshax, is that what you called him?” Reba asked.
“Yes, Isiah Benshax.” Roharn replied.
“Do you mean the commander of David’s Town, the one who stood back ten years ago and let the vampires kill the humans was my father?” Her lip curled into an ugly sneer as she looked between the two men.
Silence hung thick in the air. As much as Danjal wanted to wipe the ugly expression from her face, with some biting sarcasm, he tempered his words and kept his voice low and his expression grave. “That was a dark time in our history,” he admitted, “And I take full responsibility for what happened then.”
There was an urgent rap on the door and Danjal called, “Come in.” He knew Kathleen’s knock.
She popped her head around the door. “Someone is here to see you, Commander. I have put him in the sunroom.”
“Of course, thank you, Kathleen.” He nodded. “I’ll let you know when to show him to my study.”
“I’ll take Reba to the library,” Roharn offered. “She may find the books and paintings informative. I think it’s time she gets to know her kindred.”
At the sound of Kathleen’s knock, Danjal opened the door.
“Commander,” she smiled brightly, “may I present Elijah Hawke, warlock, and leader of the Fenugreek coven of David's Town.”
Danjal dipped his head to acknowledge her introduction. “Why would a witch darken my doorway this fine evening?” His brow wrinkled as he leaned a shoulder against the doorframe and appraised the swarthy young warlock. He’d been trying for months to start communications with the communities, but none had responded to his overtures.
“Well, hello to you too, Danjal,” the warlock drawled. “I’m pleased to find you’re alive and well despite my former belief of your untimely and rather unpleasant demise.”
Run Angel Run: A Steamy Dark Fantasy Romance (The Angels of David's Town Book 1) Page 8
