by Larissa Ione
The monster-thing leaped into the air. One of Suzanne’s blades caught it in the mouth as it spun into her, knocking her thirty feet away into a telephone pole. She slid to the ground in a heap, but before Dec could take a single step toward her, she threw her hand out, and a fireball—an actual fireball—shot from her fingertips.
The beast easily stepped aside, and the ball of fire shrieked through the air before plummeting into a nearby mansion. Time seemed to stand still as the roof caved in and then blew out in an explosion that shook the entire block. Debris rained down and smoke choked the air.
Before that moment, Declan had actually thought that maybe, just maybe, he was being punked. Or that they’d inadvertently driven onto the set of a Hollywood movie.
But no, this was all too real. Unbelievable as it was, it was real, and he knew it.
The monster snapped its arm in an arc and launched some sort of round weapon at Suzanne. Blinded by a veil of black smoke, she didn’t see the sphere, and Declan didn’t have time to warn her before it struck her in the head, knocking her to the ground. The monster charged at her, jaws snapping, its massive, serrated teeth clacking together like demonic thunder.
A sense of déjà vu washed over him. As if he were divorced from his mind, a feeling of calm took over, and he leaped into action. Taking a knee, he used the Jag as cover and fired at the horned creature. It roared and rounded on Declan, its gaping maw dripping saliva and blood.
He fired again, and the thing charged, the bullets bouncing off its hide as if they were nothing more than BBs hitting the hull of a tank.
Hawkyn materialized on the monster’s left flank and attacked it with bolts of lightning, slowing it. And then Sexy was there, and three other people he’d never seen.
Suddenly, skull-shattering pain knocked him to the ground, and his body convulsed so hard that he heard the crack of bone. Hellish agony ripped him apart for what seemed like hours, until finally everything went dark.
Chapter Fifteen
Declan woke to the sound of Suzanne’s hushed voice. Opening his eyes, he found himself on her couch. She was standing a few feet away, speaking quietly with some big dark-haired, leather-clad dude he’d never seen.
Why? And why had he been sleeping?
Suzanne turned to him, her face smeared with blood and soot, and it all came back. He jackknifed up so fast his head spun.
“Hey,” she said, rushing over to him. “Be careful. Sexy loaded you up with some healing waves, but she’s not very skilled at that, and you probably still have a concussion.”
Did she say healing waves?
“And maybe some fractured bones,” the guy added. “We really should have called Darien.”
Suzanne rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t trust Darien to heal a paper cut. Look what he did to Hawkyn.”
Leather dude tugged at the plug in one of his ears. “All he did was make him fertile.”
“By accident,” she said. “Which is even worse.”
“Excuse me,” Declan said, his voice rough, like he hadn’t used it in years. “But what the fuck is going on?”
Before Suzanne could say anything, the guy put a hand on her shoulder. The silver skull ring on his middle finger glinted in a ray of sunlight streaming through the window, and Declan swore one of the ruby eyes winked at him. “You sure you want to do this?”
“There’s no other choice, Journey. Declan’s seen too much. He needs to know the truth. Besides, he’s the only person we know who can tell us how to defeat Morroc.”
“Aaaand I say again, what the hell is going on? I’m losing my patience here. Morroc? The truth? Yeah, that would be good. Because what the hell was that thing that attacked us?” Declan glared at Journey. “Also, get your fucking hand off her.”
Suzanne and Journey exchanged glances. The guy shook his head, clearly not wanting her to say anything, but she shrugged and turned back to Declan.
Journey removed his hand and casually picked up the overhead fan remote as if that had been his plan all along.
“It was a demon,” she said, sounding dead serious. “A nasty one.”
“Are there non-nasty ones?” Journey toyed with the remote, turning it off and on. “Seriously?”
“You know there are.” She snatched the remote away. “Now, will you please go tell Idess what’s going on? We need help.”
Journey scowled. “I thought Ciph was handling Idess.”
“Cipher is handling damage control at the house I blew up. Humans have to think it was a gas leak.” She glanced over at Declan. “No one was hurt, and it doesn’t look like there were any witnesses.”
Humans have to think it was a gas leak. Why was Suzanne talking like she wasn’t one of them? Declan was fucking lost.
He tried to corral his thoughts as Journey grumbled under his breath and walked out of the room, but once they were alone, all he could do was blurt, “A demon? Are you fucking kidding me?”
Suzanne walked over to a table where someone had placed a pitcher of ice water. “I’m serious.” She poured water into one of the glasses on the tray, all cool and calm. Like a house didn’t blow up, lighting hadn’t come out of Hawkyn’s hands, and a man hadn’t turned into a twelve-foot horned beast right in front of the mansion. “Do you have a better explanation?”
“The military is always experimenting with crazy shit...”
“You really think the military created that thing?”
No, he didn’t. Hell, he was starting to question his sanity. “Maybe we’re under the influence of some kind of drug.”
“Yeah, whatever.” She put the glass of water on the coffee table in front of him. “Or it was a Siecher demon.”
“Right, right...” He reached for the water, forcing himself to stay calm. “And you know this, how, Suzanne D’Angelo, rich heiress with a cooking show? Do you put on a superhero suit and slay demons by night?”
“Something like that.” She inhaled deeply. “You’re gonna want to sit down.”
“I am sitting down.”
“Well...lean back.” When he glared, she held up her hands. “All right, geez. Okay, so, maybe you’ve guessed by now that I’m not who I say I am.”
“I’m starting to figure that out. So I’ll bite. Who are you?”
“I’m an angel.”
“I see.” Jesus. He always got the loony ones. Then again, he was having a hard time explaining the things he’d seen, like how she’d disappeared and then materialized someplace else. Or how she’d thrown a fireball that took out an entire house. “I don’t suppose you can show me your wings?”
She averted her gaze. “I don’t have them yet.”
Of course not. “Then how are you going to prove your story?”
“I’m going to tell you the truth, and hopefully you’ll remember all of it.”
He wasn’t sure what to even say as she moved over to the window and pulled the curtain back. Out on the street, fire engines and police cars had gathered to attend to the burning house nearby.
“A few years ago,” she said as she turned back to him, “we nearly lost the human realm to an apocalypse. Demons emerged from Hell, and humans fought them alongside angels, three of the Four Horsemen, and even other demons. Evil was defeated, and for a few months, humans tried to rebuild and cope. But you humans are fearful and power hungry, and when religious wars threatened to break out and politicians seized on the idea of using the threat of demons to control their populations, angels decided to step in and once again to repair a lot of the damage and make humanity forget.”
Once again make humanity forget? She was crazy. Certifiable. A virus was responsible for the violence and destruction that had spread across the planet a few years back.
“You want me to believe that demons not only exist, but they attacked humans, we fought back, and then had our memories erased by angels?”
“Erased and replaced with an explanation your primitive human minds could understand,” she said. “Well, most of you. Angels kept som
e humans in the loop because the existence of an otherworld can’t be kept secret much longer. Human technology is exposing more and more every day, and restlessness in all the realms is causing instability and frequent incursions by demons. Angels are hoping that a more gradual introduction to the Otherworld will keep humans from freaking the hell out.”
“Uh-huh.” He took a drink of his water and wished it was vodka. “So you’re saying that the viral outbreak that caused mayhem didn’t happen. It was demons. My primitive mind just doesn’t remember that.”
“Yes. And can I just say that you’re taking this really well?”
That was because it was always best to stay calm when dealing with a crazy person. But Jesus... How was he supposed to handle this?
“Look,” he said softly. “Maybe you could explain why that thing attacked you.” He paused, remembering her fighting skills. Assuming all of this was real—and that was still up in the air—she could take care of herself. “And also, why the fuck did you hire me to be your bodyguard if you can fight like that?”
“I hired you and moved into this angel-owned house to keep you near.” She came closer, her expression uncharacteristically grim. “Because that demon wasn’t after me, Declan. It was after you.”
Whoa. He put down his glass with a shaking hand. “Me? What the fuck did I do?”
“You don’t remember, but you killed a lot of demons. I didn’t even know until Hawkyn told me after the battle. Apparently you were a fucking badass. And you killed the patriarch of a powerful demon family. That family now wants you dead.”
Angry at this incomprehensible freak show, he slammed his fist into the table. “Stop it! Stop with this psycho-ass bullshit!”
“Whoa.” Hawkyn’s voice, booming from behind Declan, made him jump to his feet like a twitchy cat. “Suzanne, you told him?”
“I had to. He knows already, Hawk. He saw everything, and deep down, he knows.”
Naturally, her lunatic assistant was in on this insanity. Maybe they’d broken out of the same asylum.
“Just...prove it to him,” she said. “Show him your wings.”
“I thought you don’t have wings,” Declan snarked.
“I don’t. But Hawkyn does.”
“Uh-huh.” He came to his feet to face Hawkyn. “So let’s see these wings of—”
Glowing, glittery wings erupted from Hawkyn’s shoulders, filling the space and brushing the ceiling. Declan sucked air, rocking back a step before catching his balance. It was a trick. There was no way the dude was an angel.
Suzanne sighed. “I don’t have wings, but...” She held out her hand, and in the time it took him to blink, she was holding a scythe, its graceful, curved blade glinting in the light. Then it was gone, and she was holding a sword. In moves almost too fast for him to track, she performed a series of battle stances and sword strikes that would have killed a dozen people before they even saw her move. Then she made the weapon disappear in a ball of light.
Very slowly, Declan sank onto the couch. It was real. Everything she’d told him was real.
And somehow, he’d known all along.
* * * *
Suzanne watched as Declan attempted to process everything he’d just learned. She couldn’t even imagine what he was going through. Well, she could imagine—her life had been turned upside down when she was torn from her happy college life and plopped down in a new world with a new reality. But she hadn’t felt any shock. The moment she met her first sibling, reality had washed over her and she’d felt as if she’d always known the truth. Unlike most of her siblings, she hadn’t necessarily been ecstatic. She’d had a good life and was happy.
Being forced to leave that life had been a little traumatic.
While Declan drained his glass of water as if it were whisky, Hawkyn put away his wings. “I’m going to make sure Journey caught up with Idess. We’re definitely going to need her demon in-law for this.”
“Demon in-law?” Declan croaked. “God, this is going to take a minute to sink in.”
“Don’t worry,” she said. “We’re going to help you out with that. We think we can restore your memory.” She tapped Hawkyn on the shoulder. “Isn’t that right?”
“Right,” he said. “I’m outta here.” With no reason to hide anything from Declan anymore, he flashed out.
“Holy shit.” Declan stared at the empty space where Hawkyn had just been standing. “This is crazy.” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “Why me? How did I get mixed up in all of this?”
She took a seat on the opposite end of the couch, not wanting to crowd him. “You are what we call Primori. Primori are people whose lives are important to the future of the earthly realm. I belong to a class of angel called Memitim. We are the official guardians of all Primori. Keeping you safe is how we earn our wings and entry into Heaven. Like Hawkyn. He’s special, though, because usually once we Ascend we no longer have contact with other un-Ascended Memitim.”
Hawkyn also didn’t have complete access to Heaven, but his was a complicated situation that she could explain to Declan after he’d absorbed the more urgent information.
He blinked at her from where he sat, his legs spread, forearms resting on his knees, his gorgeous eyes a little glazed. “You’re saying you’ve been my guardian? For what, my entire life?”
“I’ve only been your guardian for a year,” she explained. “Before that, you were assigned to one of my brothers.”
“Where did he go? Did he...God, I can’t believe I’m saying this...did he earn his wings?”
“He was killed while protecting another Primori.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, sounding a little numb. Or shell-shocked.
“It’s okay.” It really was. It was always sad when a sibling died, but she’d never even met the brother who had watched over Declan for three years before she’d inherited him. “I didn’t know him. I don’t know most of my brothers and sisters.”
“How many do you have?” He straightened, perking up as if a subject as normal as siblings was a welcome break from the bizarre reality that had just been thrust upon him.
“Thousands. Most of them have already Ascended, so I won’t meet them until I earn my own wings.”
“Thousands?” Declan sounded a bit strangled.
“Well, most of them are half-siblings. We all have the same dad. I’ve only met four others with the same mom, too. Hawkyn is one of them.”
“Hawkyn is your brother?” He groaned. “Now shit makes sense. Crazy motherfucker.”
“He can be a little overbearing,” she admitted.
“Yeah. A little.” He rubbed his throat absently. “So he’s your full brother, right? Who’s your mom?”
“An angel named Ulnara. I’ve never met her, but Hawkyn has.” At his quizzical look, she explained. “Our parents don’t raise us like most angels. We grow up with human families.”
“And I’m assuming your dad is...God?”
She laughed. “Sorry. It’s just funny because angels have always treated us like lessers, and for thousands of years they told us that they were created by the hand of God, while we were sinned into existence.”
“Sinned?”
“You know. Sex. My parents had sex. But so did theirs. Bunch of liars.”
“Damn.” Declan flopped back on the couch and looked up at the ceiling fan as it spun like a helicopter rotor thanks to Journey’s fascination with the remote. The thing could fly off its base and decapitate them all, and it still wouldn’t be the weirdest thing that happened today. “You know what’s crazy? I spent my entire childhood reading about fictional worlds and the supernatural, and I always thought I’d be cool if I ever found out any of it was real.”
“I think you’re being pretty cool about it.”
He barked out a laugh. “I’m so freaked out right now.” And then, shocking the crap out of her, he held out his hand. “Come here.”
It didn’t occur to her to say no, even though the last time he’d commanded her to
come to him, he’d cuffed her to sex furniture.
She’d totally let him do that again.
Pulse fluttering madly, she took his hand and let him pull her down on his lap. “I can’t believe you’re an angel. I’m not sure my mind has processed all of this yet, but I’m glad you’re here.” He frowned. “Wait. You’re an angel. Holy shit. Are there rules about us? Humans and angels?”
Damn it. She hadn’t wanted to address this. Not yet. There was so much going on all around them that they didn’t need any more complications.
Which didn’t mean that she was going to let the subject of their relationship go. No, she was in it for as long as he was. That, she now realized, had been decided from the moment she’d first laid eyes on him.
“There are definitely rules.” Reluctantly, she pushed away from him. “We can’t let anyone see us. We definitely can’t let anyone know we had sex.”
“Oh, Jesus.” The blood drained from his face. “I had sex with an angel.”
Now was probably not the time to tell him she’d been a virgin. No, definitely not.
The doorbell rang, and a heartbeat later, her sister Idess was in the doorway to the living room, looking gorgeous as usual in low-slung jeans and a jade tank top, her thick brown braid draped over one shoulder. A blond guy stood next to her, a sleeve of tats extending from the tips of his fingers to where they disappeared beneath his green Heineken T-shirt, only to reappear on his neck, entangled with a double ring around his throat.
“More siblings?” Declan asked.
“One of them is. Declan, this is my sister Idess. We also have the same mother, but she’s a few thousand years older than I am. And she’s not an angel anymore.” She gestured to the male next to her. “And this, I’m assuming, is one of her demon in-laws.”
Declan surged to his feet. “Demon?”
“It’s okay,” the demon said. “I’m one of the good guys.” He stuck out his hand.
