Lilith fell back on top of Christian, her body going slack, as if she’d expended all of her energy in one go. It reminded him of those short bursts of adrenaline that he felt during combat, the ones that gave him an exceedingly powerful burst of energy, but left him utterly spent afterward.
“I’m sure it’s not that bad.”
Lilith shook her head at Christian’s words. “No, it is that bad. You mean everything to me Christian. I… I know that sounds strange, and I can’t even explain why, but you are so important to me. I feel… no, I know that if you were to die, then there’s no way that I could continue living.”
“I see.” He really didn’t, but if that’s how she felt, then maybe it would be better to simply agree. “I’m sorry, I had no idea I meant that much to you.”
“Well, you do,” she sniffled. “Which is why I don’t want you ever doing something that stupid again, okay?”
“Okay.”
Silence settled the room for several seconds. Christian held Lilith to his chest, enjoying the feel of her warm body conforming to his. There was something sublimely beautiful about this moment, being able to hold this woman in his arms. Soon, he would have to let go, but for this now, he allowed himself to experience the absolute peace that came from holding the woman he loved.
“How do you feel?” Lilith asked.
“A lot better than I expected to,” Christian admitted. “Those doctors did a good job.”
“They didn’t do anything. All they did was try sticking stuff in you. They also said that you wouldn’t wake up for another two days.”
“Really?”
Lilith nodded.
“Huh, that’s odd,” he said. “I guess those nanomachines are still working. I thought they would have dissolved by now.”
The room became still once more. Unlike some of the other times they abstained from speech, this silence wasn’t awkward or strained. It was tranquil. Lilith’s soft breathing calmed Christian’s heart and mind, even as the hot breath hitting his neck made his skin prickle pleasantly.
Christian knew that he should have felt like there was something wrong with this situation. He was an Executioner. Romance, love—these words were not supposed to be in his vocabulary. Yet all he could feel as he lay on that bed, with Lilith in his arms, was a sense of peace and contentment.
And he had already made his choice anyway. This was going to be his last mission. He was proud of being an Executioner, proud to have played a part, however insignificant, in the constant defense of humanity. But now he had something else, something more. He’d found a partner in Lilith, a young woman with a troubled past, who still lived her life to the best of her abilities. A woman who shared his passion for reading light novels and manga and, more importantly, the woman that he felt could very well be his other half.
He was positive of this now: he loved Lilith. She was the Eve to his Adam (a fact that he found amusing considering her original name), and just like those two had gone on to create a life together—however screwed up that life may have been—Christian found himself wanting to create a life with her.
Once Lilith and he decided to move from their comfortable position, Christian would call up Samantha and ask for a discharge. She would be displeased by his decision, but he was sure she would grant it to him in light of his service. The Executioners would still assign him a minder, but that was a small price to pay to be with Lilith.
“Lilith.” The young woman in question raised her head and looked at him. “I love you.”
The smile that she gave him was like rays of light breaking through storm clouds.
“I love you, too.”
Epilogue
“And that concludes the report given to us by Catherine Siegal,” Tristin finished giving an after action report (AAR) to his boss. As per the usual, Samantha sat behind her ornate desk, elbows resting on walnut top, her hands clasped together in front of her face as she listened to him. She took in everything that he had told her with furrowed brows and a small frown. It was clear to Tristin that the woman was contemplating all of the information that he’d just given her.
At long last, Samantha spoke, but it was clear from her tone that she was displeased with something that he'd said, “So, the creature that's been killing humans and monsters across the country was a No Life King, one that we had no prior knowledge of until now. This monster also almost killed one of our best operatives, and probably would have succeeded were it not for the actions of that… that girl. Is that what you are telling me?”
Tristin managed to withhold a wince. Just barely.
“Yes.”
“And how is it that we didn’t know about this creature before now?” asked Samantha. “What is the Intelligence Division doing? This thing has been killing humans for who knows how long, and we’re just now finding out about it?!” As she continued speaking, Samantha’s voice grew louder and louder, as her anger at the situation increased. By the end of it, she was practically shouting.
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Tristin shook his head, trying not to let his nervousness show. Being around Samantha was nerve-wracking on its own—he didn’t know how Christian dealt with it—dealing with an angry Samantha was downright terrifying. “The killings first started happening in New Shoreham, Rhode Island. That region is inside the jurisdiction of the New York Executioners division, not ours, and I don’t have permission to access their files.”
“Damn them!” Samantha slammed her fist onto the desk, cracking it and causing Tristin to jump. He’d never seen the woman this angry before. Actually, he didn’t think he’d seen her angry before period. This issue must be really eating at her.
Visibly shivering in rage, Samantha took several deep breaths to calm down.
“And what about the assassin that Christian killed? Did we uncover her identity?”
Just like Catherine had promised Christian, the assassins body had been transported to Executioners HQ. The Science Division had immediately taken it and performed several autopsies. Tristin had already reviewed the information they had sent him.
“We did, and it looks like the assassin was Michelle Oria. My guess is that the No Life King found her attractive and, rather than turn her into a ghoul, decided to make her his slave.”
“I see,” Samantha closed her eyes for all of one second, before fixing Tristin with another look, “What of Christian? How is he doing?”
“His wounds have fully healed,” Tristin informed her, looking down at the report, “There isn’t even a scar. That nanotech the Science Division has is pretty amazing. I’m surprised they were able to make something so useful, given their propensity for creating things that explode in their face.”
“It isn’t hard to force them into creating something useful. You just have to give them the right motivation.”
Tristin took that to mean that Samantha had threatened them into creating it.
“And what of that… girl?” Samantha asked.
“She hasn’t left Christian’s side except to take showers. From what I’ve gathered in Catherine’s report, not only has she been refusing to leave his side, but she actually attacked several people who tried to make her leave. She even attacked a doctor when he tried attaching an IV drip to Christian’s arm.”
Samantha scowled for a moment, but then dismissed the knowledge.
“She will be dealt with accordingly soon enough, once Christian wakes up.” The attractive woman with dark hair narrowed her eyes at Tristin. “You will tell him when he wakes up, right?”
Tristin shifted uncomfortably.
“Do we really have to do this? I mean, she did save his life, you know? And it’s obvious that she really cares for him. Couldn’t we let this slide just once?”
“You know the rules, Tristin,” Samantha’s voice was stern and unyielding, “You will tell him the moment he wakes up. That’s an order.”
Clenching his hands into a tight pair of fists was the only thing that kept him from gritting his
teeth. After taking several slow breaths, he unclenched his hands, placed his right hand up by his heart, and bowed to the woman.
“It shall be as you command.”
Succubus Page 33
