Darkness Wanes (49 page)

“You claimed I went too far, but you are worse,” Kerbasi said, still yelling at the archangel. “How could you have done this to one of your own?”

Remiel’s shoulders slumped. “I had no choice.”

I stopped in front of him with Lucas flanking me. My hands shook from the effort it took not to punch the archangel in the face. “There is always a choice, and you know it. That woman in there has suffered things no decent person should ever suffer because you didn’t have the balls to stand up for her.”

Remiel’s gaze met mine. “How is she?”

“Ariel is thankful to have real friends, but she’s in horrible shape,” I replied scathingly. “If you think you’re going to take her away from us, you’ll have to kill me first.”

“And me, too,” Emily said, joining us with Micah and Patrick on either side of her.

“And I as well,” the others chorused.

“I am not here for Ariel,” Remiel replied, though the sorrow in his gaze and the way he looked at the house belied that statement. “She is off limits to us now.”

“Then what are you here for?” Lucas growled.

Three ankle cuffs appeared in the archangel’s hands. “It is time to put these back on you.”

I’d forgotten all about them. Between caring for Ariel and checking with O’Connell on the search for Aniya—for which there’d been no progress—I’d been rather distracted.

Lucas grunted and stepped forward. “Very well, do it. The sooner you have completed your task, the sooner you can leave.”

Remiel was silent as he fitted the ankle cuffs to Lucas, Micah, and Kerbasi. I sensed their annoyance, but none of them fought it. We all knew there would be little point in arguing, considering the archangel could just freeze them in place if they didn’t cooperate.

As he was finishing, an idea formed in my head. Remiel had said Ariel was off-limits to him, which was good. He couldn’t take her away, but I did want him to talk to her for a minute. The archangel needed to see for himself what he’d done and give Ariel some closure.

“You should come inside,” I said, gesturing toward the house.

Remiel worked his jaw. “It would be better if I didn’t.”

He said it, but he didn’t mean it. A big part of him wanted to go in there. Every time he glanced at the house, he almost took a step forward. I could sense the restraint it took for him not to come closer.

I glared at him. “I expect better of you, archangel. You should at least see the damage you’ve done—unless you’re too much of a coward.”

“Sensor, leave it be,” Lucas said, taking my arm.

“No. He doesn’t get to hide from this.” I shrugged out of his hold.

Lucas sighed.

“Melena’s right. He should go in there,” Micah backed me up. I met his gaze and saw the understanding in his eyes. He understood my real purpose behind this.

Remiel worked his jaw. “It is forbidden.”

“Who cares?” I threw my hands up. “Do you really think you’ll be punished for spending five minutes with Ariel? We risked our lives to get her back so I think you can go in there and tell her you’re sorry—which I sense that you are.”

“Perhaps…” Remiel glanced up at the house, the anguish on his face clear for everyone to see. “Perhaps you are right. I should see her one last time.”

“Then let’s go.” I nudged him forward, not wanting to risk him changing his mind.

Everyone else followed close behind. When we reached the foyer, I waved the others off except Micah. He needed to be there to monitor Ariel’s health and assist her if necessary—plus she seemed the most at ease with him. I would go up there as well to make certain the archangel behaved himself, though I was fairly certain he would.

“Sensor,” Lucas said, stopping me from following Micah and Remiel up. “Ariel may not want to see him.”

“It’s closure, Lucas. She needs to hear it straight from an archangel on where she stands. How can we expect her ever to relax if she doesn’t know?” I asked.

His lips thinned. “This may be too early for that.”

“I don’t think so. Right now, she’s up there waiting for her safety to be ripped away again. Until she knows this is over for sure, and that she never has to go back to Hell again, she’s not going to believe it. Not from us, anyway.” I pointed up the stairs where Remiel had disappeared. “It has to come from him.”

Lucas nodded. “Very well, but do not allow him to linger. I do not like him in our house.”

“Me, either.”

Remiel might have done a good thing with our wedding, but he’d lost a lot of points when we found Ariel. He must have had some idea of her suffering and yet he’d allowed it to continue for months. It didn’t matter if he and the other archangels made it possible for us to rescue her. That didn’t make up for what they’d done or that they’d left it up to us to fix their mistake.

I hurried up the stairs and stopped in the doorway. Remiel was kneeling next to Ariel’s bed, holding her hand. It surprised me to see tears running down his face. Waves of grief poured out of him, and his breaths were ragged.

“I am sorry for my part in this,” he said, gazing into her eyes when Ariel opened them. “It will always be my greatest regret that I have played a role in your suffering.”

Ariel lifted a hand and touched his face. “You were always one to obey orders. I do not blame you.”

“You should.” He bowed his head.

The former archangel’s voice came out barely above a whisper. “I knew the risks when I chose to help the supernaturals. If anyone is to blame, it is me for putting you in this position.”

Remiel looked up at her, astonishment in his expression. “You are far too compassionate for one who has spent months in Hell.”

She stiffened. “Will you be taking me back there?”

“No.” He shook his head. “You are truly free of that place. We will interfere in your life no more.”

Ariel’s head relaxed against the pillows. “That is more than I could have hoped.”

“It is the best we can do.” Remiel kissed her hand and stood. “Be well.”

She gazed up at him, studying his face for what she must have known would be the last time. “And you as well.”

Chapter Thirty-nine

Lucas

Lucas pulled Melena against his chest. They were both hot and sweaty after a rough bout of morning sex, but he wasn’t ready to let her go just yet. A new day had dawned, and they’d become distracted by the outside world soon enough. He needed to enjoy every moment with his wife that he could grasp.

He stared down at her face and admired the way her hair billowed out around her head. It was a complete mess, but he was proud of the fact he’d been the one to do most of the damage. Lucas also enjoyed the way her fingers grazed along the skin of his hip, as if she wasn’t ready to stop touching him, either.

Then she pulled away, her expression falling.

“What is it?” he asked.

Melena was quiet for a moment. “It’s just that…here I am with you, enjoying myself when I should be out there every waking moment searching for Aniya. Who knows what they’re doing to her right now and they took her because of me.”

“You can’t control the actions of others,” Lucas said, taking her hand.

“No.” She worried her lip. “But I should have warned her, protected her—something!”

He wished he could wipe all her problems away. If anyone deserved a moment of true peace, it was Melena.

“We’ll find her,” he promised.

Her cell phone rang, and she let out a heavy sigh. “And our day has officially begun.”

Melena rolled over toward the nightstand, picking the phone up to check the screen.

“Who is it?” Lucas asked.

Her breath hitched. “It’s Yvonne.”

He listened as she answered the phone. The mystic on the other end didn’t waste time with pleasantries. Lucas overheard her tell Melena she’d managed to narrow Aniya’s location to Marina, California. The spell was abruptly cut off before she could get any more details.

“That’s close enough. Thank you so much,” Melena said, hanging up.

Lucas swung his legs off the bed, facing the fact his time with his wife was over and he might as well prepare himself for what would come next. “I assume you’ll wish to travel there immediately.”

She tucked her hair behind her ears. “Yeah. It’s too much of a coincidence that Grant took Aniya to the town where we used to live. That has to mean something.”

“Perhaps, but it is also likely a trap. Your brother must know you have friends who would be helping you locate Aniya. This may be his way of drawing you to him,” Lucas warned. He wanted to find Melena’s friend almost as much as she did, but he did not feel comfortable with this setup. “And I will not be able to go with you, which he may know if he’s questioned Aniya.”

She looked up at the ceiling, thinking. “I could bring Cori. I can use her to scout the area once I’ve narrowed down the location since Grant won’t be able to sense her.”

“That is a start,” Lucas agreed, “But one human is not enough to engage him.”

“Maybe…” Melena’s eyes widened, and she fumbled to pick up her phone again. “I have to check on Lisette!”

Lucas listened to her phone call until he heard the pixie’s voice come over the line. Lisette answered calmly enough that he didn’t think her in any danger. Of course, her tone changed as soon as Melena gave her the news. Lucas decided he’d heard enough and wandered into the bathroom, taking his own cell phone with him. After shutting the door, he placed a call.

“Fallon, are you still in New Orleans?” Lucas asked. He’d given his vampire servant some time off to spend with his girlfriend who lived in Louisiana. With Sayer taking care of business in Juneau, Lucas hadn’t needed Fallon’s services for a while.

“Yes, master, I am still here,” the vampire answered.

“I need you to fly to California as soon as night falls.” Lucas was grateful that sunset came much earlier down there than it did in Alaska. “I’ll arrange for the master vampire of New Orleans to lend you his plane for the trip. You will meet with my wife and her friend Cori after you arrive. They will need your assistance to rescue another one of Melena’s friends.”

“Of course, master. Anything you need,” Fallon said without hesitation.

Lucas gave him further instructions before hanging up and calling Theirn next.

The master vampire answered on the first ring. “Lucas, it is good to hear from you.”

“My servant, Fallon, will need your plane this evening. Can you have it ready to fly by sundown?”

“What is this about?” the vampire asked, curious.

Lucas almost growled. Theirn owed him more than one favor and should have known better than to question him. “A matter of importance. That is all you need to know.”

The less he told the master vampire, the better. If Theirn discovered Melena would be waiting at the plane’s destination, he might decide to come along as well. That wouldn’t have been such a bad idea if he wasn’t disturbingly fascinated by the sensor. Lucas did not want the master vampire anywhere near his wife when he couldn’t be there to watch over her.

He was still not happy that Theirn had forced a challenge on Melena that required her to battle against a female vampire several times stronger than her with nothing except a sword. His wife had barely managed to win that fight—blades not being her best weapon. Theirn had wanted to see how an immortal sensor handled herself against a more powerful opponent, putting them all in a difficult position just to satisfy his curiosity.

“Alright. Your servant may have use of my plane,” Theirn said, sighing. “But I do hope you and your wife will visit once you are able.”

The master vampire was aware of the current geographic restrictions placed on Lucas. Word had spread quickly about how the archangels punished every nephilim who participated in the supernatural coming-out event and nerou rescue several months ago. Lucas didn’t like that so many individuals knew he could not reach them at the moment if they crossed him, but he reminded himself that his semi-confinement wasn’t supposed to last more than a year.

He ended his call with Theirn and went to check on Melena. She’d pulled on a robe and started packing a small overnight bag, stuffing items inside with no sense of organization. Lucas moved to the bed and took it all out. Then he placed her things back inside in a more orderly fashion. Melena didn’t comment on it, having gotten used to his tidiness.

“Will you go to Lisette’s home first?” he asked.

She nodded. “Yeah. I want to make sure she’s safe, and it makes for a good base of operations. She wants to help.”

Lucas could at least take comfort that Melena would be in familiar territory. She’d spent many years in the Monterey Bay area and knew it well. He only wished he could go with her. Lucas did not like feeling helpless to protect his wife.

“Have you called Cori?”

She tossed him a pair of dark cargo pants to put in the bag. “Yeah. She has a part-time tattoo artist guy who can keep her shop running while we’re gone.”

“I suspected she’d agree if you asked,” he said, shaking his head. “The woman is crazier than you.”