Broken Butterflies (30 page)

“Okay, stand with feet apart, arms out.”

Ilisha stood making the Vitruvian Man pose.

Giovanni wrote as he measured. “Okay, that’s twenty-nine waist, thirty-seven chest.” He stretched the tape the length of her leg. “You hold.” Ilisha held it up to her inner thigh and he wrote it down. He ran it around her butt. “Thirty-two.” He hurried to write it down.

“Okay, you change now.”

She was glad to get out of the cat suit.

“Do you want something specific?” Giovanni asked.

“I’ll leave it up to you.”

“Very good choice. I will make you the most beautiful creations, but very versatile. You will look gorgeous, but you can fight at the same time.”

“What about my wings?” Ilisha asked not wanting to ruin the clothes.

Giovanni turned. “See here.”

She ran her hand over his back. There were slits in his shirt, but you would never notice them.

“Good,” she said smiling.

Giovanni kissed both her cheeks before he left.

Ilisha sat on the foot stool in front of Damon. “If you’re in the mood for spending more money I think we need to rebuild that old church for John.”

“I’m way ahead of you, but it will have to wait until this war is over.”

“I guess the demons would just destroy it again,” she theorized.

“Exactly.”

Ilisha curled up next to Damon. The night was quiet, and she was eventually able sleep.

She was in a sea of fighting demons and angels. Thousands of them were in hand-to-hand combat. Trees in the forest fell with bodies being slammed against them. She jumped on a demon’s back and snapped his neck. When he fell she rode him like a snowboard, as gravity pulled his body down a slight hill.

Out of the chaos Bram walked toward her. He didn’t have the horse legs like the other demons. He looked exactly the same except for the black skin and yellow eyes. A glare that could melt ice came from his eyes.

He pounced on her, knocking her to the ground. As his hands circled her neck she began to gasp. He said nothing, there was only that glare.

In her hand Damon’s dagger appeared. Bringing it between them, she shoved it through Bram’s chest. Gagging a few times, blood ran from the corners of his mouth and nose and he fell atop her.

In the darkness she sat up in bed clutching her chest. She took in a couple deep breaths to get hold of herself. Looking down at Damon she saw the dagger hilt sticking out from under his pillow. He never slept without it.

She walked down to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Leaving all the lights off, she walked by the moonlight. When she opened the cabinet and reached for a glass, movement in the backyard caught her eye. She focused in on it. Standing beside the hammock was Bram with that glare.

The shock of seeing him wore off and she walked to the door. Before she could get her hand on the knob Damon was at her side, dagger in his hand. He flung open the door, but Bram was gone.

“Why were you down here?” Damon asked shutting the back door.

“I had a bad dream, so I came down to get some water.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Actually it was about Bram, he was going to kill me.”

Anger filled Damon’s face. “He was summoning you.”

“Wait, that dream was real?”

“Very.”

“The bond,” Ilisha said to herself.

“What?” Damon asked in a cautionary tone.

“He broke the marriage bond, but said he didn’t break the other one so he could look out for me.”

Damon closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “That would have been nice to know before I cast him out.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think about it. What can we do?”

“Nothing, that bond can only be broken by him. You need to be very aware and you also need a refresher in fighting.” He took her in his arms. “I’ll protect you no matter what.”

“I don’t like the sound of that.”

“If I have to die to protect you, I will.”

Damon told her to get dressed. He drove them to a mountain clearing. As he began sparing with her she dove into her memories and it came back fast. She had been a very strong fighter before she came to earth. Ilisha knew her strengths; it pulsed through her mind and muscles. She was ready to show him that she hadn’t forgotten.

Damon threw jabs at blinding speed. She blocked each one with her arms and hands. As he kicked and lunged, she rolled and dodged.

His wings spread and he took flight. Ilisha was quick to follow. She was glad she decided to wear the shirt Damon had already ripped for wing holes.

Ilisha searched the sky. She spotted him below her and took a nosedive. When she collided with his back he took hold of her shirt and yanked her around. They spun in circles, plummeting to the earth. They hit the ground at an angle and rolled over each other. Both were still throwing punches.

Their bodies separated. Ilisha tumbled once and landed on her knees facing him. Standing slightly she sprinted toward him. They crashed together. Their arms locked as both bodies went horizontal, twirling at sonic speed. Ilisha disengaged her arms from his and whipped her body around and perched herself on his back before he could blink. Her hands locked on his head and she knew she had him.

Covered in mud, Ilisha retracted her wings. She jumped down and rested her hands on her knees. As she caught her breath Damon stared at her.

“What?” she asked.

“You’re beautiful and formidable. Quite frankly I’m in awe.”

Cold rain started to fall and steam exited their mouths as they spoke.

“Please always remember Bram can get into your mind. He can anticipate every move you make.”

“That’s not comforting.”

“You can fight him. Start to recognize when I’m in your head. You will be able to tell who it is. I will feel different.”

She nodded. Their clothes were getting soaked through and Ilisha began to shiver. They ran for the car and Damon turned the heater on full blast.

Once inside the house they got in the shower to warm up. Damon massaged her shoulders. His thumbs dug into her muscles and she closed her eyes.

Her thoughts became mixed with his and she knew Damon’s mind entered hers. This was a test and she hoped she would recognize the sensation at all times. All he said was
love you,
silently. Her body became very relaxed as he continued to massage her muscles.

His fingers traced her clavicle and he brought his head to rest on her shoulder.

“I love you too,” she replied.

He smiled. “See how powerful that was?”

She nodded.

“Bram’s bond is not that strong because you didn’t have his blood.”

Ilisha turned to face him. “Is he really going to kill me?”

“
Try
is the appropriate word. Yes he is, partly to get back at me.”

“What’s the other part?”

“He’s very angry he can’t have you. I cast him out and little by little his mind will become more evil.”

As the sun rose, Damon decided it was time to act. Not wanting to leave Ilisha, he gave John permission to cross to the other side and summon his army.

Ilisha was making lunch when a very large angel knocked on the back door. He bowed to her. “I am here on behalf of his Majesty’s summoning.”

Damon walked in the kitchen and threw open the door. “Eric, thank you for coming.”

He stood aside so the angel could come in. Eric ducked quite low to get in the door. Damon was six foot four, so Ilisha assumed Eric was at least seven foot.

Eric sat at the table and his size gave the appearance the table was made for elves. He was hundreds of pounds of pure muscle. As he put his elbows on the table Ilisha was sure it would break under the weight.

“What is your plan?” Eric asked.

“I need Caligula. She’s the best spy I have.”

“Of course.”

“As you know we have traitors among us. I need her to hunt down Azriel and Bram and those who harbor them.”

“And when she does?”

“She will inform me of their location. We will invade at that point.”

“What do you want me to do with the facility?” Eric asked eagerly.

“Destroy it and everyone inside.”

Ilisha sat down beside Damon. “There are innocent people inside.”

“As soon as they realize they are under attack they will destroy the captives to get rid of evidence. I need to take down this organization to prevent this from happening again.” Damon took her hand and kissed it.

“Eric, you have your orders, don’t let me down.” Damon’s look was stern. The large angel’s eyes held tons of respect for Damon.

The angel stood, towering over them. He gave a bow and said, “Majesty.” He walked out the back door and then disappeared.

“Do you really think taking out that facility will stop them? I mean if they have illegal dealings they will find a way.”

“Sadly, I’ve known about them for a while. Now that I’m here I’ll deal with them. They have single handedly caused more trouble for angels than any other defector group.”

“I guess the steroid users of the world will be sad,” Ilisha said smiling.

“That’s very, very true.” Damon slid her chair closer. “Ilisha this game has changed since I cast Bram out. Azriel will certainly use this to his advantage. I have to assume they have already teamed up.”

“I guess the blows just keep coming from Bram.” Anger and sadness filled her eyes.

“Caligula will find him.”

“It will be good to see her again,” Ilisha missed the company of Damon’s sister.

Ilisha could picture Damon’s stunning redheaded sister. She was thin and tall. Her long hair drifted down her back, perfectly straight. Her pale complexion made her look like a doll. They had been very close in her other life.

As day turned to night Ilisha crossed her fingers that she wouldn’t dream of Bram. To her horror the wish didn’t come true.

Bram, black as night, walked completely camouflaged into the barn. He walked right to the closet and pulled the string attached to the light bulb. His yellow eyes squinted against the light as his hand searched the shelf for the box. When he came up empty he flexed his arm muscles and hands, screaming like a child who didn’t get their way.

His anger forced him to punch a hole in the wall. As his hand punched through the wall and into the bathroom, his lips curled over his teeth. He walked out and his hand flew up and broke the light bulb.

Ilisha took in a gulp of air and her eyes flew open. This time she had no intention of leaving the bed.

Damon woke beside her. She was instantly in his arms.

“Was it Bram?” he asked.

“Yes, he was at the barn looking for the box of pictures.”

“We can only assume he would use them to have other demons identify you.”

“I’ve gotten to the point where I’m just sick of this and I want to ring his neck.” Ilisha gripped the blanket in her hand.

In the early morning hours the house shook.

“Are we having an earthquake?” Ilisha asked as she held onto the kitchen doorframe.

Pictures flapped back and forth against the wall; some falling to the floor. Canned food in the pantry vibrated and tipped off the shelves. They rolled across the floor back and forth with the sway of the house.

Ilisha looked above her. A crack formed in the ceiling and small dust particles came down. She closed her eyes and ducked her head.

She looked across the kitchen to Damon who was sitting calmly at the table. It slid away from him and he grabbed the edge to steady it.

“Why are you so calm?” Ilisha asked.

Damon smiled triumphantly.

As soon as the shaking stopped Damon said, “The facility has been destroyed.”