“Who can say that you haven’t been radicalized?”
“I’m here, guarding the Black Chalice,” Nate said through gritted teeth. The air around us seemed to condense as his anger spilled over. His dark eyes turned black, and I could see the fire reflected in them. “I’m standing between you and Eve, just in case you would try and harm her,” Nate growled. “I put her safety above mine, above Alex’s, even. I love her, and I will guard her with my life.”
Nate’s words sent a shockwave through me. “As a friend,” I chipped in.
“That’s right,” he added hastily. “As a friend.”
Zel’s eyes bulged; his mouth dropped open.
We all froze. The tension rose like a tide.
Then, a little smirk appeared on Zel’s face. “Ooooh,” he cooed. “Have I missed something here?”
“No,” I said shortly.
“Nothing at all,” Nate crossed his arms over his chest.
Zel pointed at Nate. “Did you-”
“No.”
He swung his index finger to point at me. “And you-”
“Zel, no. Stop it,” I said firmly.
His grin almost split his face in two. “Ohhh,” he sighed, and he closed his eyes in ecstasy. “Oh, you liars! I can smell the tension from here. What happened?”
“Nothing.” I crossed my arms over my chest, but quickly unfolded them when I realized I was mirroring Nate.
Zel grinned, and put his hands in his pockets. “Awww, come on. I live for this stuff. Please tell me.”
“No.” Nate raised his chin. “It’s none of your business, Demon.”
Zel shrugged. “I guess I’ll just ask Alex.”
“Zel! Come on,” I pleaded. “Drop it.”
“You know, I always suspected you and Alex were more than friends,” Zel said, waggling his finger at Nate. “You were always so close. Always together.”
“We are brothers,” Nate replied gruffly. “We’re more alike than any other of our kind. We have more in common.”
“Yes, yes, I know. But I always thought you were too close for it just to be a platonic relationship. No woman could come between you, not even your sister, Nathaniel. To be honest, I always expected that at some point, you would come out as lovers.”
I mashed my lips together, trying not to smile.
“Now, instead of bonding with each other, you’ve just added to your little polycule,” his smile was broader than ever. “I approve.” He nodded, emphasizing his point.
“Okay, that’s enough,” I snapped. “Zel, stop it. Nothing has happened between Nate and Alex and I. And, as you very well know, it can’t, because that might mean the end of the world. And even if something has happened, it’s absolutely none of your business.” I glared at him. “Even if you have declared yourself the patron saint of naughty night-time shenanigans,” I added.
He threw back his head and roared with laughter. The windows rattled slightly with his bellows, and he squeezed his eyes shut. “Oh, that’s a good one,” he chuckled, slapping his knee. “Patron Saint of … ha ha haaaa…” He trailed off, giggling again. “I should be so lucky to have dominion over sexual relations,” he said, once his laughter subsided. He rolled his vowels and deepened his voice seductively, waggling his eyebrows. “At best, I’m just wholly appreciative, and enthusiastically encouraging of sensual pleasures.”
I wasn’t in the mood.
“Stay out of my private life,” I told him sternly. “We don’t need some sort of pansexual kink-genie coming in here and juicing up on our love life.”
He snorted, and dissolved back into laughter. “Pansexual kink genie,” he gasped. “Oh, my God.”
Nate and I stood grimly by the desk, watching the big demon hold his sides and chuckle with laughter for a few minutes. But his mirth was far more bearable than his asking about my personal life.
I just hoped that he wouldn’t take up the line of questioning with Alex. He’d only just forgiven us. And everything was getting back to normal.
Although, there was Nate and his incredibly unexpected declaration of love for me. It had to be hyperbole, just for Zel’s sake, so he would know how serious Nate was about guarding me. I couldn’t overthink it. I couldn’t.
Suddenly, the reception door snapped open. My pulse accelerated.
It just ended up being Dale, coming back to the desk with a small pile of folded-up sheets in his hands.
Dale!
My eyes flew wide. Quickly, I shot a look at Zel, he looked relatively human. He was still big, very muscular and overwhelmingly handsome. But he was dressed normally, and his bright-blue hair wouldn’t stand out here at Revelations. My heart rate returned to normal, and I gave Dale a smile as he walked back towards the reception desk.
Because Dale was well trained, he greeted the guest first. “Hello there,” he said politely, as he slipped behind the reception desk. “You must be Mr. Dewar?”
Zel was still giggling at me, his eyes squeezed shut. At Dale’s greeting, he opened his eyes and turned to face him.
The demon’s grin dropped straight off his face. His mouth fell open.
He looked like he was in shock.
Oh God, what now?
Beside me, Nate’s shoulders tightened and his arms tensed. He, too, looked for the threat. Zel’s reaction to Dale was extreme; it screamed of danger.
But I couldn’t see anything wrong. Nate glanced at me for a second, confused.
Zel gazed at Dale – mouth open, his eyes wide, taking in every inch of Dale’s gently smiling face. He didn’t say a word.
The silence in the reception hall was deafening.
I took a breath. “Are you okay, Zel- I mean Mr Dewar?” I said in a little voice.
Something was happening, I could feel it. It was as if all the atoms in the air around us had been electrified. I could even feel the hair on the back of my neck stand up. It wasn’t fear or anger. It was something else.
I felt a touch on my hand, fingers slipped into my grasp. Nate had slid his hand into mine, ready to whisk me away from the danger.
Yet there was none that I could see.
A look of intense wonder came over Zel’s face as he stared into Dale’s eyes. “I’m… I’m fine,” he murmured softly.
I exchanged another glance with Nate. “Are you sure?”
“Uh-huh,” Zel nodded dreamily, eyes still glued onto Dale.
A little crease appeared between Dale’s eyebrows. He was slightly confused too. But he smiled genially at Zel, his need to make him feel comfortable overcoming everything else. “Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Dewar?”
“Yes,” Zel replied firmly, nodding his head. “Yes, you can.”
Dale checked the computer. “Has Eve got you all checked in?”
“Yes. But I… uh…” Zel cast around wildly. “I don’t know where my bungalow is,” he finally mumbled.
“I can walk you there if you like,” Dale said with a beautiful, banana-split smile.
“YES PLEASE,” Zel shouted too loudly. I stuck my finger in my ear and wiggled it around to get rid of the ringing.
Dale wasn’t even the littlest bit perturbed. He smiled at Zel warmly again. “Just let me put these sheets in the laundry out the back, and I’ll be with you in a moment.”
Zel nodded, his eyes dreamy. The second Dale’s back turned, I waved my arms, glared and mouthed at him: What the fuck?
Dale disappeared out the service door, and Zel sighed dramatically, slumping as if he was a puppet whose strings had been cut. “Ohhhhhhhh,” he breathed out. “Who is that?”
“That’s Dale. He’s my coworker and friend.” I squinted my eyes at the big demon. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Honey, I’m not in Hell, and that’s what’s right with me,” he said sassily. “Who is this Dale? Where did he come from?” Zel put his hand on his heart and groaned. “What is he doing to my insides?”
“What?”
“Where did he come from?” Zel re
peated, his eyes bulging. “He’s an otherworldly creature, isn’t he? Which plane is he from? I don’t think I’ve ever encountered anyone like him before. Is he a Lioreness? Or an Issianor? They tend to be more rainbow-colored, but they have the same glow.”
“Um, no,” I shook my head. “He’s a regular human, just like me.”
“He can’t be. Not that I don’t love humans, mind,” Zel wagged his finger at me. “But that boy has an aura I’ve never seen before. Like rainbows. Like the gleam of precious gems. He’s perfection,” he sighed heavily again.
“Perfection?” I cocked an eyebrow. “Zel. Are you... “I leaned in a little closer. “Are you crushing on my co-worker?”
“No!” Zel boomed loudly, looking affronted. “Of course not. I would never crush him. He is as glorious as moonlight on the ocean.” He glared at me. “How dare you suggest such a thing.”
“No, I mean you’re crushing on him. As in you like-like him.”
Zel furrowed his brow for a second, then shook his head firmly at me. “No. I do not merely like him.”
I let the silence hang heavy in the air for a second. “So… does that mean…”
“I love him,” Zel replied firmly.
I mashed my lips together so I wouldn’t smile. “You just met him,” I mumbled out of the corner of my mouth. Next to me, Nate let out a little snort; he was trying hard to contain his laughter.
Unfortunately, Zel noticed. His shoulders broadened, he stretched out, growing much bigger than a human man. “Do not mock me, young Armanduccio,” he rumbled, and the floor beneath us shook. “Love is not mocked. The connection of like souls, the beauty and majesty of spirit connection, it is sacrosanct-”
The door behind me swung open, and Dale came back out.
Zel froze, morphing instantly back to human-size.
“What were you saying, Mr. Dewar?” I sang sweetly.
“Uh, nothing,” he mumbled back.
“Are you ready to go?” Dale dusted off his hands and flashed Zel another smile, walking around the desk. Zel nodded dumbly and watched Dale’s approach, his mouth hanging open. “I’ll be back shortly,” Dale said to me, and gestured to Zel to follow him. Awkwardly, Zel fell into step beside him. They walked towards the doors. I saw Zel swing his hand out tentatively, aiming a bit wider than normal, clearly trying to hold Dale’s hand as they walked. I coughed loudly as it almost connected: Zel clenched his fist and pulled his hand back. They reached the doors and disappeared into the jungle outside.
I turned to Nate, who leaned comfortably against the desk. “Can you believe that?”
He shrugged. “From what I know of Zel, it’s not out of character for him to lust after someone.”
“He was smitten,” I sighed. “Absolutely bowled over. Not that I blame him. Dale is probably the loveliest person I know.”
“He does have a nice aura,” Nate admitted. “He seems like a good guy.”
“Zel obviously thinks so,” I said. “I thought that reaction was a little over the top.”
“I wouldn’t know.”
I peered at Nate closely. “Are you okay?”
His eyes flicked to me. I thought I sensed some turbulence in the darkness of his iris. “Yes,” he finally replied. “Of course I am.”
“Because… I started awkwardly. “...About before..”
“A slip of the tongue,” he cut me off with a sharp wave of his hand. He paused, a little crinkle forming in between his eyebrows. “I mean, it’s not that I don’t love you, Eve. I do love you, as a friend. You were right to correct me in front of Zel when he made that assumption.”
“Well… thanks. I guess I was just checking.”
“You don’t have to worry about me,” Nate said. He finally met my gaze, and the dark storminess in his eyes eased a little, back to their usual warm brown. “I’m good,” he reassured me. “I’m worried about you, and Alex, of course. But you don’t have to worry about my feelings.”
A sweet-spicy scent drifted over me, and I smiled. Alex appeared beside me, as if out of nowhere. “What are you worried about now, brother?”
As usual, I felt the tension in my chest ease when he was with me. I smiled up at him. He slipped his arm around my waist and pulled me close. Alex smiled down at me before he looked back up at Nate. “What is it, Nate? What are you not worried about?”
“Nice to see you back on this side of reality,” I drawled, poking him in the ribs playfully. “Not in any hurry to get back from the old Astral Highways, were you?”
Alex’s expression faltered. “I felt Nate’s call, and I came as soon as I could,” he said. “Travel works differently on the Astral Plane. Your emotions are different.” He stopped, and frowned. “It’s hard to explain.”
“What he means is, you don’t care as much about some things on the Astral Plane,” Nate chipped in. “Things on Earth have less meaning. There’s no urgency. It’s hard to pull yourself away.”
I frowned back. “So, what does that mean? You heard Nate call you, but it was hard to care?”
“It’s not like that,” Alex said, running his hands through his hair in a gesture of frustration. He shot Nate a quick glare, before returning his cool blue eyes back to me. The sincerity in his gaze was comforting, but he was unsettled. “When you’re traveling on the Astral Plane, you’re pure spirit,” he explained. “You are energy and intuition. You’re just feeling your way around. You don’t have regular thoughts as you do in your earthly body, so it’s hard to stay focused. While I was there, I felt Nate call, and I wanted to come to you, but at the same time, I was comforted by the innate knowledge that you would be fine. Besides you are, aren't you?”
I grinned at him, letting him off the hook. “Well, you’re lucky that I am.”
Nate tapped his fingers on the desk. “And to be fair, everyone has that innate knowledge that everything will be okay when they’re on the plane.”
“Nate, shut it,” Alex hissed.
I cocked an eyebrow at Nate. He smiled back at me. “Because even if you had been murdered,” he grinned at Alex, “You’d be fine eventually. As in, you’d die, and you’d journey through Hell for a few millennia, but you’d come out of it and be okay. Eventually.”
I turned back to Alex and raised my eyebrows.
“It’s not like that,” he said.
“Well, it’s lucky that your best friend was here to look after me.”
“Yes,” Alex said shortly, staring at Nate. “It is lucky.” The tone of his voice sounded surprisingly icy.
I didn’t like the way this mood had turned, so I squeezed Alex’s hand. “Zel is here,” I told him. “That’s what caused the disturbance. He’s come to give us some information about our Percuitait friends. And he’s fallen in love with Dale.”
Alex tilted his head. “He what?”
“He fell in love with Dale,” I told him. “He checked in, took one look at my lovely best friend, and lost his heart.”
“I’m not sure I follow. Where has Zel taken Dale?”
“No, Dale has taken him. He’s walking him to his bungalow. Zel is following him like a little puppy.”
“Are you sure that it was Zel?” Alex asked. “Because the demon I know would have seduced your friend within two seconds of meeting him, had his way with him, and already dumped him.”
“Nope,” I sang. “Zel’s in love. He was actually behaving really weird, for a sex-crazed demon. He was trying to hold Dale’s hand as they walked away.”
“Are you sure he wasn’t aiming for his penis?”
I giggled. “I’m pretty sure.”
“So there’s no danger, then.”
“Oh, there’s still danger,” Nate interrupted. “The human threat to Eve still hasn’t been identified. Did you find out anything on the Astral Plane?”
Alex frowned. “I spoke to a couple of entities that have seen… ripples. Energy fields attempting to be opened. But only through the plane; not to Heaven or Hell. Just to Earth.”
“Okay
,” I frowned. “What does that mean?”
“If my theory is correct, they’re not calling an angel or demon. They’re just tapping into the plane itself.”
“Where from?” Nate asked. He obviously following the conversation better than I was.
“From the Earthly Plane,” Alex replied.
Nate frowned. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“No, it doesn’t. And the entities didn’t see who was being called.”
“Well,” I sighed, trying to make it sound like I understood. I leaned my head into Alex’s chest, breathing in his seductive scent. “No leads, then, I take it.”
“None,” he admitted. “But we do know that whatever they’re doing, it’s creating some sort of disturbance on the Astral Plane. So if they get the combination right, whoever they’re trying to call just might come through.”
“I thought a human didn’t have the energy to call anyone?”
“Technically, no. But if that entity were strong enough, and they were already on the Astral Plane, and they really, really wanted to come through…”
I huffed out a breath and leaned back into Alex. “This sucks. I guess we can get more information out of Zel.”
Alex nodded. “We’ll go to him now.”
“Uh, I can’t,” I tilted my head up to look at him. “I don’t get off for another four hours.”
“You’re tired,” Alex said bluntly. “You should finish early.”
“I am,” I said honestly. “I can't finish my shift yet.
He glared down at me. “Eve, I don’t want to make you feel like your life is not important. But this little part of your life is not important. Your job is the last thing you should be worried about.”
“I just can’t leave my job, Alex,” I replied. “It’s important to me. People are relying on me. I can’t leave Dale and Clover and Martin in the lurch like this.”
Alex’s eyes sharpened. “The world is on the precipice,” he said softly, a low growl to his tone. “There are enemies all around us. But you’re too loyal to leave your job.”
Loyal? Maybe. I was also feeling guilty. I wasn’t sure if either of them would understand.
Revelations: The Fallen Page 9
