Mercy for the Damned (17 page)

“I’m sorry, you’re just so cute when you get mad,” he grinned.  I closed my eyes and counted to ten before I exploded and showed him exactly what it looked like when I got really mad.  I swear to God, I was so close to losing it…  “I’d rather not have you deal with all the sordid details.  I’ll get it.  That’s all that matters.” 

It wasn’t all that mattered, but I could see I was getting nowhere and I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of watching me fume over it.  “How long will it take for you to get it?” 

“Not long, a couple of hours.  I’ll pick it up today when I’m out running errands.  I can be ready to go by tonight.”

His not needing to sleep came in handy and I admit I was a little jealous of that ability.  You’d think with three kinds of Grace running around inside of me I’d have inherited that ability to go farther on less sleep, but if anything I’d been more tired lately.  Still, I’d slept some in the car, and with a couple of hours I’d be ready to go.  “Alright, I’ll take a little nap and then go see Daphne later; I should really talk to her about Sam in person.  But I’ll be ready by tonight too.”

“Wait, what do you mean you’ll be ready?  You’re not going.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Uh, no… you’re not.”

Was he messing with me to watch me blow my stack again?  Or did he really not intend to bring me along?  Either way didn’t make me very happy and I decided to reacquaint him with a few facts, sitting up on the edge of the bed.  “I’m the one who has the ring, so I think I’ll be the one opening the portal.”

“I’d rather cut the ring off with your finger still in it than let you come with me.”

“I’d like to see you try,” my eyes narrowed dangerously.  Was Adam actually trying to threaten me?

“Fine, screw the ring, I’ll go through the main gate,” Adam tugged his jacket back on again after removing it two minutes ago. 

“Then enjoy your chat with Naberios, because I’m taking the portal.  With or without you.”  The hand with the ring on it clenched into a fist, throbbing dully where the metal cut into my skin.  He wanted to be stubborn?  Oh, I could show
him
stubborn.

Adam leaned close, his face inches away from mine.  “Get it through your head, I’m not taking you back into Midian.”  Refusing to be cowed, I pushed back at his shoulder, forcing some space between us.

“Get it through
your
head, I’m not asking you to
take
me anywhere.  I’m leading this operation, because I’m the one who has the most at risk here, and I need to make sure Ben gets out in one piece if something goes wrong.”  His feelings towards Ben were murky at best, he made no secret of the fact that he didn’t like him.  

“If you think I’m going to let you set foot back on Raum’s territory, you’ve got a screw loose,” he pushed back.  “After everything I’ve done to protect you…”

“I don’t need your protection, Adam.  I can take care of myself.”  He started to laugh, and I just lost it.  Shoving him backwards, I pushed him against the wall.  Hard.  “You think this is funny?” I yelled when he giggled all that much harder at the show of force. 

“Actually, I kinda do.  It’s cute how you think you can run with the big boys.”

I wanted to break every bone in his body.  Instead, my voice dropped, shaking with the effort to control my temper.  “I’m deadly serious about this.  One way or another, I’m going to Midian to get Ben out.  I’m not the delicate flower you think I am.”  Hadn’t he been listening to me about my tangles with Azazael and demons?  I had lived to tell the tale. 

“Show me.”

“What?” I blinked.

“Hit me.  Go on, take your best shot.”

That was too much, he actually gave me permission to hit him?  Without stopping to think about it, my arm cocked back, but instead of going for his smug jaw, my hand came out aimed at his solar plexus.  Palm up, I delivered a burst of Grace with the blow, sending him crashing against the wall again, hard enough to crack the drywall.

That time, instead of laughing, his head came up with a groan, brows drawn together in a wince of pain.  “Again.”

Without hesitation, I followed up with a knee to the stomach, (lucky for him I wasn’t feeling too vindictive, or I would have aimed lower).  Grabbing a hold of his head by the hair, I slammed him against the wall again, the bottles on my dresser rattling and falling over as we smacked into it. 

Adam countered with a knee between my legs, using the momentum to flip me around so that he pressed me up against the wall.  Before I could react, he slanted his mouth over mine in a passionate kiss, but I wasn’t in the mood.  Wrenching my lips from his, I hit him with my Grace again, in the head that time, pressing my advantage when he stumbled backwards to tumble him onto his back on the bed. 

“I win,” I breathed triumphantly, straddling his waist to hold him down by the shoulders.  

“Is that what you think?” With a playful flash of the eyes, he rolled me onto my back, pinning me to the bed with his body.  “I have to say, you’re kinda hot like this.”

“And you’re kind of a jerk,” I squirmed under his grasp.  I was strong, much stronger than I’d realized, but he was stronger.

“Aw, I just want to keep you safe, baby.  Is that so wrong?”

Calling forth my sword, I held it to his neck.  “I still win,” I smiled.  We both knew he’d never retaliate with his sword, just like I’d never really use mine to hurt him. 

“Fine,” Adam sighed, “you win this round.”  His hand let go of my shoulder to brush the hair away from the corner of my mouth.  “Go ahead and cut me if you want to, but I’m still gonna kiss you.”

“You think so?” I raised my brows at him playfully, the anger gone as quickly as it had come on, now that he’d capitulated.  Opening my hand, the sword winked out of existence, and I took advantage of the distraction to leverage myself back on top.  “If there’s any kissing to be done, I’ll be the one doing it.”

“Whatever you say, boss,” Adam grinned, his hands coming to rest on my hips.  

“I kinda like the sound of that.”

“Don’t get too used to it.  I’m all for playtime, but let’s keep things in perspective.”

God help me, but I still loved him, obnoxious behavior and all.  “Shut up and kiss me before I have to hit you again,” I growled, covering his lips with mine.

* * *

It was much later in the day when I woke up again.  Adam was gone, off on his errands I supposed, and it was nice to have the place to myself.  Well, myself and Mimsy, who had curled up on the inside of my leg under the covers.  I assumed Nelo napped in the hall closet.  Briefly, I thought about waking him up to let him know we’d be going back to Midian that night, but in the end I decided it was better to let him rest up. 

As I puttered around the apartment, I started to wonder what it would be like to move out.  I’d lived there for a few years, long enough for it to feel more like home than any of the cramped apartments I’d grown up in.  I had no doubt Adam’s place was nice, wherever it was, but did I really want to completely uproot myself just yet? 

I couldn’t help but think that maybe it would be better to take things a little slower.  Take that date Adam offered, see how we got along day to day first.  If that morning was any indication, things could get volatile between us pretty quickly.

My temper is legendary among my circle of friends, but it had never exploded into out and out violence as it had earlier.  I’d never wanted to actually smash anyone’s face in before, especially not someone I claimed to love.  Was I slipping more and more out of control with each bout of Grace I absorbed? 

A tiny part of me doubted whether or not Adam really accepted I could hold my own against a demon, but I felt confident I’d made my point.  I didn’t worry about him sneaking off to get into Midian without me.  Not too much anyway. 

*hungry?* I sent a text to Daphne, thinking I might bring over some lunch.

*starved.  tacos or deli?*

I mulled that over.  Knowing what I was headed into that night, I decided to steer clear of tacos and hit the deli instead.  *I’ll get Kovacs, see you in twenty*

Kovacs was this cute little deli about halfway between my place and Daphne’s that featured great peppered meats.  Peppered turkey, peppered salami, peppered pastrami… if there was a spicy rendition of meat or cheese, they had it on a regular basis.  It was also more expensive, but I was in the mood to splurge.  I was either moving in with Adam and wouldn’t have to pay rent soon, or I’d be stuck in a demon realm.  Either way, my bank account should be able to withstand a sizeable hit. 

Picking up the sandwiches, a couple of chocolate fudge brownies and a giant pickle to share, I let myself in to Daphne’s tiny apartment.  “Hi, honey, I’m home,” I called out, glad to see she already had cold sodas and napkins laid out on her coffee table.

“You’re in a fine mood today.  It’s good to have Adam home again, isn’t it?” she smiled, taking the bag from my hands and laying things out on the table. 

“It is, though it feels almost strange to have him here.  Is that weird?  That I should feel off having my boyfriend around?”

“I think it’s probably normal for you two.  After all, you can fit the amount of real time you’ve spent together into a thimble.  If you don’t count that dream thingy.”

“The Ether?  Yeah, I guess that’s not reality.  By those standards we really haven’t,” I agreed, chewing thoughtfully.  “Um, speaking of spending a little time apart… did Sam reach you after what happened last night?”  I know I said I’d tell her why Sam left, but I figured he’d probably remember he could call her whenever he wanted to once he was done beating himself up about letting Matty escape with Oriana.  But from the look on her face as she grabbed a napkin I realized she hadn’t heard a peep from him. 

“What happened last night?”

“We got back to the apartment after work and Sam brought us a note that Matty left.  He formed an instant attachment to Oriana and decided it was too cruel to use her as a bargaining chip to get Ben back, so he took her.”

“Well, it is pretty cruel,” Daphne allowed. “What do you mean took her?  Took her where?”

“That’s what Sam left to find out.” 

“Sam left?”

“He felt sorta responsible since he was supposed to be keeping an eye on Oriana.”

“He was.  We were all watching her, but I left to go to work last night.  Sam came to make sure I got home alright, he worries about me you know.” I could imagine.  “Then he went back to his place.  He never said a thing to me about the two of them running off.  Where do you think they went?”

“I have no idea.  Matty’s not exactly a planner and he’s not flush with cash either.”  They were probably holed up in a cheap motel somewhere in Tacoma, or maybe even Olympia.  “The thing is, we needed her back to get Ben by the solstice, and we’re kinda running out of time now.”

“Oh, that’s right.  What are you going to do?  Did Adam leave again too?”

“No, we actually found another way in to Midian.”  I skimmed over the visit to Remiel’s place, figuring Sam had already filled her in on the first time we went to see him.  I still wore Lysha’s ring on my finger, and she was very interested in seeing it and the compartment for “virgin’s blood”. 

“Wow, that changes things.  When are you going then?”

“Tonight’s the big night.”  I took a deep drink of my soda, cooling off the burn from the peppered turkey.  “Daph, do you think I’ve changed much lately?”

“Is that a trick question?” The corner of her mouth tugged up into a lopsided smile.

“No, I mean besides the whole angel thing.  I mean me, Mercy, personality wise, am I very different?”

Daphne let out a long sigh.  “I don’t know what to say to that.  To tell the truth I feel like we haven’t spent all that much time together lately.”

“What do you mean?  You’ve been hanging out at my place all the time.  You’re the one who spends it all in Sam’s lap.  When’s the last time you went a whole twenty-four hours without seeing him?” I challenged, immediately on the defensive. 

“Whoa… have you had too much caffeine today or not enough?” she frowned, setting down her soda to really look at me and I took a good look at myself in the bargain. 

“Not enough I think.  I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s going on with me lately.  I even got in a big old fight with Adam this morning.”

“You did?  Over what?”

“Over him not taking me seriously.  He didn’t want to let me go back to Midian to get Ben.”

“Adam just wants to protect you, that’s all.  He loves you.”

“I know, but he was so…”  I could feel myself getting mad all over again and forced myself to calm down.  “You should have heard him.  He actually started laughing at me when I said I could take care of myself.  So I hit him.”

“You didn’t!” Her mouth fell open in shock, and I gave a half shrug.

“To be fair, he told me to.”  Not that I hadn’t wanted to already.

“You guys have a twisted relationship.”

She should talk…
but I didn’t say that, instead I took a big bite of dill pickle.  By the time I was done chewing, the urge to snipe back had passed.  It wasn’t a bad trick really, and I considered that maybe I should keep a pack of munchies on me at all times? “Hopefully after tonight, things settle down, and we can all get back to our regularly scheduled lives.”

“If you guys get Ben out alright then Sam can come home, right?”

He hadn’t even been gone a whole day and she already looked down in the dumps, but I couldn’t blame her for having a one track mind.  “Yep, that’s the plan.  Then we get Azazael bound away, Ben goes home and we look to the future.  Adam asked me to move in with him,” I added as an aside. 

“He did?  I don’t even know where he lives.”

“Neither do I, that’s one of the things that’s making me hesitate.”

“You don’t want to do it?”

“I didn’t say that, I’m… weighing my options carefully, trying not to leap before looking for once.”

“It’s a big step,” she agreed pensively. “But you love him, right?”

“I do.”  Even if I wanted to smack him half the time, I loved Adam enough to risk everything for him.  Just like that I decided I’d do it.  I would move in with him.  “You know what?  I’m gonna do it.  You’re right, I love him, at the end of the day that’s all that matters,” I smiled broadly.