“Lady Thana, please rise; you’re our brother Raphael’s mate. No need for the old tributes.” Uriel offers his hand to me, and I look to Michael then to Raphael. Both men nod at me, and I take the offered hand to stand up.
“I have but one request Lady Thana. Please show us your wings. I hear they are quite unique.” Uriel says, smiling sweetly at me.
I move away from everyone just far enough so I can safely unfurl my wings. Slowly I roll my head back, allowing my wings to spread wide, stretching them then draw them back in and let them hang, resting half open. I reach round and run my fingers over my smoke-gray feathers making sure they are lying properly. Uriel and Michael walk around my wings, examining them closely. Michael and Uriel each take a wing in hand and manually extend them as they look over my flight feathers.
“Raphael, did you notice the vein of your mate's feathers are white?” Michael says as he stretches my left-wing out, pointing to my primary flight feathers. The three archangels look at my feathers curiously. I arch my right brow, I’m worried what their findings may mean for me.
“Thana, don’t worry, the white means you’re more light nephilim than fallen. It’s a good thing,” Gage says to me through the bond. I just nod, listening to him as the archangels continue to examine my wings.
Someone clears their throat behind me, and I turn just enough to see it’s Cyrus. “If the archangels allow it, I would like to take my mate to dance.” Cyrus to the rescue, hopefully. He winks at me and cocks his head to the left waiting impatiently for the archangels to answer him.
“Would that please you, Lady Thana?” Uriel asks me as his eyes start to shine golden. He examines Cyrus curiously before looking back at me.
“I would like to get to know my mate, Uriel. If you don’t need me anymore, I would like to be released into his care.” I state everything truthfully with no deception or hidden agendas. Uriel releases my wing then kisses both of my cheeks before sending me on my way with Cyrus.
Cyrus extends his right arm out to me, and I accept it gratefully. He leads me off and away from the scrutiny of the archangels.
Never in a million years would I have ever thought that Cyrus the hospital's terror would become my knight in black armor. “Thank you for saving me back there. I was starting to feel like a lab rat,” I say, as he leads me out onto the dance floor. Reflexively I grip his bicep a bit harder to punctuate my unease.
“I couldn’t stand watching them treat you like a prize to be passed around.” His eyes blacken for a moment, then revert to chocolate brown. Blackened tendrils snake out from his hair denoting how stressed he was earlier.
A beautiful slow song comes on and Cyrus places a warm hand upon my lower back and offers me his left hand. Blushing, I take his hand and move in close enough that we are almost chest to chest.
We spin around the floor in time with the music, and I sigh softly. “Can I see your wings, Cy?” I whisper into his ear. I draw my head back to look into his eyes—this close I get to really examine his olive skin and his broad square jaw. He’s rather handsome and could easily be labeled a bad boy.
“If it would please you, then yes.” He smirks then unfurls his jet-black wings.
I stare at his wings in wonder; they are so black they don’t appear to be real. Reaching over his shoulder I stroke his feathers. They feel cool to the touch and the veins feel hard as steel, and I run my fingertips over the parts of his wing that I can reach. Cyrus watches me closely as I gently touch his feathers. Hushed whispers filter through the hall as soon as the others notice his wings. Hesitantly I reach out and feel his obsidian feathers, they’re just as soft as mine but silky in texture.
“Miss, you should come with me.” A strange man in a fancy beige suit offers me his hand, apparently afraid for my wellbeing.
“Why?” I tilt my head to the side as I press myself closer to Cy.
Through the bond, I reach out to Raphael and Gage, warning them about what's happening. I can feel Cyrus’s muscles tensing under his fancy tux. I’m more afraid for him that of him at the moment.
“He’s a dark nephilim Miss, you’re not safe with him,” the man states, bolder this time, and attempts to reach for me.
“Cyrus is my mate!” I say with a growl to my voice as I shove Cyrus behind me. My left hand immediately lands on Fenrir’s head. “Please leave us alone …” I say calmly as I sense my other mates closing in on us. I unfurl my wings and keep Cyrus behind me and back us towards the balcony. If need be, he can fly off and be safe.
“She’s been corrupted by him. Call for the archangels,” the man shouts, staring at Cy and me as I back up faster. The other angels and nephilim whisper between themselves—we’re gravely outnumbered and I’m beginning to get concerned.
Smirking, I rest my hand on the raven on my forearm. “Raphael, Azrael, I need you!” I scream at the top of my lungs, summoning my guardians to me immediately. Raphael appears in a shimmer of gold, followed by Uriel and Michael, and Azrael’s blackened wisps pulse with rage.
Both of my guardians look me over quickly, and Azrael sees his son behind my wings, knowing full well why I placed him behind me. Raphael is the first to address me. “My love, why did you summon me so quickly?” Raphael raises my hand to his lips and kisses my knuckles.
“This gentleman,” I motion to the man that was harassing me. “Thinks your bond-mate has corrupted me, and I need to be rescued.” I look at Raphael as innocently as possible.
Raphael and Uriel turn on the man, questioning his intentions. Part of it is honestly he’s concerned for my safety; the other part is he clearly hates dark nephilim. Azrael has heard enough and gently herds Cyrus and me out onto the balcony. “You make me proud, Thana. I know it hasn’t been easy for you, given who I am.”
Azrael smirks then roughs up Cyrus’s hair. “My son is a chip off the old block, he can be a royal asshole at times, but his heart is in the right place.” Azrael reaches out and takes my hand, kissing my knuckles. “I will always come when you call daughter. Don’t ever forget it.” As soon as the last syllable leaves his lips, he morphs into a raven and flies off into the night.
“Dad can be intense at times,” Cyrus says as he wraps me up in his arms. It's now that the gravity of the situation we were in hits me. Tears roll freely down my cheeks as I curl tightly into Cyrus’s side, seeking comfort. His strong arms band tighter around me as his wings lower to wrap around me. I retract my wings, making myself smaller as I have my mini breakdown. The hushed whispers of my other mates filter through the feathers of Cyrus’s wings. He catches them up on everything that happened. Eventually, he relents and lets the others see me.
“Are you okay, Thana?” Raphael asks. I look from him to my other two mates and then to the two archangels with him.
I nod slowly, then turn in Cyrus’s arms to face everyone. “He scared me. I thought he was going to hurt Cyrus because of his wing color.” I lightly rub my raven, then look up again. “I was initially going to summon my new familiar. After careful consideration, summoning my guardians was a much better idea.” Sniffling, I blot my eyes, trying to rein in my emotions. My chest hurts thinking that I may have lost Cyrus tonight if the others didn’t arrive so quickly.
“Wise decision indeed, Thana. Summoning Raphael, knowing he was with us was a brilliant idea.” Michael says proudly. “We handled the man and will be addressing the masses yet again about tolerance and acceptance.” Michael lightly bows his head then departs quickly to handle crowd control.
“There’s darkness in that man's heart; you did what any worthy mate would do. You shielded your mate from potential harm and summoned the authorities. Enjoy the rest of your night Lady Thana,” Uriel states before turning on his heel to assist Michael.
I stand there dumbfounded, looking at the backs of the two archangels as they walk away. My gaze drifts to Raphael. “I’m sorry I ruined the night. I just didn’t want Cy hurt.” I look down at my hands resting on top of Cy’s.
“Thana. You didn’t r
uin anything. You or Cyrus getting hurt would have ruined the night. Your wolf getting loose would have ruined the night.” Raphael gently cups my cheek and kisses my lips softly, trying to comfort me. Slowly he withdraws.
“Take our mate home. I have to help wrangle the crowd.” Raphael departs, leaving us standing on the balcony watching him.
Cyrus releases me quickly then stares off into the night sky. “Let’s get Thana home the fastest way possible.” He doesn’t bother to turn to face us when he speaks. I watch the expressions of my other two mates morph at his abruptness.
“Are you ready to fly Kichōna mono?” Christian says as he climbs up onto the railing. His white wings spread wide as he leaps backward and starts to hover in place. My eyes dart quickly between Cyrus and Gage then back out to Christian.
“Yes?” I say, wincing at how small and weak my voice sounds. Hesitantly, I stretch my wings and give them a tentative flap.
Cyrus growls as he looks between Gage and Christian. “Can’t you pair of goodie two-shoes tell she’s never flown before! Fuck guys, pay attention!” Cyrus shakes his head at my other two mates. Obviously, they both forgot that unmated females can’t expose their wings, therefore, can’t learn to fly.
Christian falters in the air for a moment as he realizes his folly. Cyrus is so pissed off he just leaps off the balcony and takes off, disappearing into the night sky. Gage comes up alongside me and runs his hands over my wings. “Put them away for now. Let me get you airborne before you unfurl them again,” he says with a smile as he unfurls his own wings.
“Chris, Gage is going to help me learn to fly. Catch me if I fall?” I look to him, hoping that he wouldn’t be upset that Gage wants to take point on teaching me to fly.
“I’ll always be there to catch you!” Christian launches up higher into the air and starts to circle, waiting for us.
Gage stands behind me, placing his chest to my back. His thick muscular arms band around me tightly just before he launches us into the air. “Stretch your arms out, feel the wind,” Gage says softly to me.
I spread my arms out and flatten my hands, letting the wind flow over my hands. Gage grabs one arm and changes the angle, letting me feel the resistance of the wind on my hand. “Think of your hands like your wings; however, you turn them, the wind will catch them differently.” He accentuates his point by moving my hands several more times.
“I think I understand,” I say quietly, still unsure of how this is going to turn out. I know they would never let me get hurt, but the fear of falling is a natural reaction.
“Then try to fly. We’ll catch you,” Christian says, moving closer to us, just in case. Gage slows down to gliding on the thermals to give me a chance to unfurl my wings.
Drawing in a fortifying breath, I unfurl my wings. Instantly the wind's drag catches me and almost rips me out of Gage’s grip. I barely have a hold on Gage’s hand as I try to right myself by adjusting my wings angles. Eventually, flapping my wings furiously, I straighten out and don’t feel like I’m struggling to stay level.
“Thana, you’re flying!” Christian screams as he swoops around Gage and me. It's now that I notice I am no longer holding onto Gage.
“I’m flying!! This is flipping awesome!!” I scream as I flap my wings several more times, testing them out. We play in the clouds on the way home, dart in and out of them and giggling the entire time.
“Thana, come here and retract your wings. Landing on a balcony takes a lot of practice,” Gage says to me.
Reluctantly I fly closer to him and curl my wings in just as I grip his hands. He pulls me flush to his chest as we get closer to Raphael’s house. We come in for an expert landing on Raphael’s balcony. Watching what Gage did to land, I realize that he made a great judgment call, not letting me attempt to land independently.
Gage and Christian kiss me gently, then decide to go get cleaned up before bed. I watch them leave before getting changed. Tomorrow is another day; hopefully, Raphael and Cyrus are safe. I pull out one of Raphael’s tee-shirts from out of his dresser and put it on before I climb into his bed to go to sleep.
The warmth from the sun caresses my cheek and slowly convinces me to wake up. Rolling over, I end up on my right side facing the balcony doors and the warmth from the morning sun. As my eyes adjust, I notice Cyrus lying on the bed near me but not touching me. I take this time to study his features closely. His skin is a beautiful caramel color set off by his dark brown, almost black hair. A single faded scar cuts through his left eyebrow, disappearing up into his hairline.
His tee-shirt struggles to contain the muscles of his broad back and thick shoulders. He’s lying on his stomach facing me, for once his face seems relaxed, and my eyes drift over his features memorizing every curve right down to how he has his beard trimmed and faded. Up until now I didn’t realize that he had an undercut, he apparently sleeps with his hair in a ponytail. “It's creepy knowing you're studying me like a science project,” Cyrus’s voice is gravely from sleep and does funny things to my insides. A smirk plays upon his full lips as he stares right back at me.
A soft laugh escapes my lips as I continue to stare at him. “Almost as creepy as it is discovering a man in your bed that you didn’t invite to join you?” I say playfully as I reach out and grab the rogue tendril of black hair that has escaped from his ponytail. Gently and cautiously, I reach out further pressing my luck and tuck the loose strand behind his ear. I can’t help but smile at the miniscule progress I’ve managed to make.
Without warning, Cyrus launches himself off the bed and paces by the balcony window. Blackened smoke radiates from his flexing wings as his pacing becomes more erratic. He glances at the balcony then back to me several times. A myriad of emotions crosses his normally emotionless face as he looks back and forth between me and the door.
“I fucking hate what you do to me, Thana!” He practically roars at me and roughly pulls at his hair as he paces. In utter shock from how the switch flipped with him. I can’t help but remain frozen on the bed watching his every move. Anxiety creeps up and crushes my chest, making it hard to breathe. Fear and pain radiate through my body as I watch Cyrus. I can’t decide if he’s hurting because of me, or he wants to hurt me to end his suffering.
The vein in his throat throbs in time with the crushing in my chest. I stare at Cyrus and his reaction. My other three mates come bursting into the room, ready to go to war.
“What do you mean what I do? I’m not the one yelling and getting all scary looking!” I scream through the tears, watching him.
Cyrus looks like he could decimate the entire room without a second thought. We are taught when we are little that dark nephilim are to be feared because of the power they hold. The malice radiating from Cyrus is dropping the room’s temperature to near artic conditions.
Admitting the way he’s acting is scaring me, stops him in his tracks. “I hate that you make me feel …” He pulls at the collar of his shirt. “I hate that I feel like I can’t live without you.” He clutches his chest over his heart then slides his hands up to his throat like he’s choking. “I hate being this!” He throws his arms out wide and his wings stretch to their full expansion. Without warning he engulfs himself in darkness, then vanishes from sight.
I sit there in shock. The root of Cyrus’s problems is that he’s not used to feeling anything for anyone. I’m guessing that it scares him to have these feelings. My heart breaks thinking about how lost he must feel right now, and I can’t fix it. I draw my legs up and wrap my arms around them, holding myself.
Lightly I touch Fenrir, and he manifests before me. I turn my gaze to my other mates, right now I don’t feel worthy of their affections or comfort. The massive wolf climbs up onto the mattress and curls himself around me. Eventually, I turn and lie down, placing my head on his ribcage, and fall back to sleep. I feel like part of my heart was ripped out by Cyrus. A broken heart is hard to heal from, mine keeps getting ripped out over and over again. Rest may do me some good; perhaps he’ll com
e back before I wake up.
~Raphael~
Cyrus unintentionally has hurt our mate, and I feel how broken her heart is over his admission. My hand gently rubs my sternum, trying to dull the ache that’s there. That huge wolf guardian of hers engulfs her lithe frame, shielding her from the world.
I tear my eyes away from her reluctantly before heading back down the hall to the kitchen. I wish she would have sought one of us out instead of that beast. I want to pull her into my arms and make her feel safe and loved again. Let her know that she’s enough, and that she’s the light of my life. That I will literally die without her. My own sadness constricts my chest as I stare at the coffee maker waiting impatiently. After all it is said that he-brews.
“What has you so deep in thought, Raphael?” Azrael sits at my dinette as if he belongs here. Coffee cup in hand he tilts his head studying me. For once the angel of death has a look of concern on his face. I wonder what he knows that I don’t?
“I’m guessing you sensed when she summoned her familiar?” My eyes narrow, thinking about how that beast may be a mystical tracker on my mate. The dragging sound of metal on tile echoes in the kitchen as I pull out my favorite chair at the head of the table.
“He draws from the darkness that all dark nephilim call home. Why was he summoned?” Azrael looks from me then back towards the hall leading to my bedroom. His eyes blacken as he stares which makes me wonder exactly how much he can see.
“Cyrus hurt Thana’s feelings. He said he hates how she makes him feel and other things along that line.” I’m trying to remain calm, but the more I think about it, the angrier I’m getting. At the rate Cyrus is going I don’t know if their bond can ever be repaired.
Azrael shakes his head, looking quite pissed off himself. “Stupid whelp. I’ll beat his ass when I find him. A mate is a once-in-a-lifetime chance at being whole.” Azrael says, growling as he stands up, pushing away from the dinette table. “I’ll handle him. Tell Thana that I’m sorry.” With that, Azrael vanishes in a wisp of smoke to points unknown.
Discovered: The Dark Angel Chronicles Page 7
