Ruined (The Seraphim Series Book 1) (16 page)

“Don't worry. I'll save you if anything happens.”

They both snickered before falling into a comfortable silence until they had finished eating. Lilliah revelled in how close she was to Azrael.

“What was your favourite time to live in?” Lilliah asked, watching Azrael put the food away. They had both eaten their fair share of sandwiches, crisps, and little cakes that Azrael had informed her he hadn’t baked, but rather had bought from a shop nearby. She didn’t care how the food was prepared; she thought it was all amazing. The best first date ever.

“Honestly, none of them.” He turned to look at her. “I wasn’t really living. I was just focused on finding you. You consumed my entire being.” It would have been the most romantic thing anyone had ever said to her, had it been in another context. Azrael stopped what he was doing and moved so he was kneeling closer to her
.
“Now you consume my life but for completely different reasons.” He leant forward so they were inches apart.

And cue the butterflies,
Lilliah thought. She leant in closer, pressing her lips to his. The kiss started softly, but then Azrael grabbed her head and kissed her more deeply. She opened her mouth, letting him in. His taste was overpowering. Every kiss they had was better than the last, Lilliah realised when they finally broke apart for air. Would she ever get used to it?

“Come here.” He smiled, wrapping his arms around her waist and dragging her closer to him. “I want you closer,” he joked once she was on his lap.

“This really is amazing, you know?” She sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. “Even if it wasn’t your idea originally.”

“Hey,” he protested, poking a finger into her side, making her squeal and laugh. “The boy did it because he had no money to take you anywhere else. I did it because I knew you’d like it.” He smiled, looking proud of himself.

“Your reason is better,” she agreed. “Don’t worry, though. I won’t tell anyone you stole the idea.” She squealed with laughter as Azrael flipped her around and off his lap, pinning her to the floor.

“I said I wouldn’t tell anyone!” She laughed again.

“You know,” he said, smiling down at her, “most people would be terrified if they were in this position.” 

“Because you’re so big and scary?” She giggled again, trying to move but unable with his weight on her. “Well, it’s a good thing I’m not afraid of you then, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” He looked down at her, almost thoughtful. “You’re really not afraid.”

“No.” She smiled, looking up at him, trying to work out where he’d gone to in his head.

“I love that you’re not afraid of me. Everyone else can be, but not you. Never you.”

“No,” she replied, still trying to twist and turn. “You know, after a few more lessons I’ll be able to get out of this.”

“Lessons?” He laughed slowly, sitting up and letting go of her arms.

“Yeah, you know, the lessons that I take on YouTube?” she reminded him, sitting up as well.

“Right. Your cyber lessons.” He looked at her for a long moment before standing and helping her to her feet. “Come on. We better get going.”

“Do we have to leave just yet?” she asked, wrapping Azrael’s coat tightly around her. She wasn’t ready to leave just yet. She wanted to stay in this bubble she and Azrael had created a little longer.

“Yes. I don’t want you to freeze to death.” She hadn’t noticed how cold it had gotten. Azrael took her hand in his and led her to the car.

She didn’t know what time it was, but she knew it was late and that he was most likely right, but it didn’t mean she had to like it any better.

Azrael held her hand the entire way home, only letting go to change the gear.

When they reached the mansion, he walked her up to her room, even though she had laughed and told him he really didn’t need to.

“It's only right,” he told her, smiling. “If I picked you up at your door, it's only right that I make sure you’re delivered safe and sound at the end of the night.”

Lilliah smiled, glad she got to spend a few more minutes with him. When they reached her door, he leant forward, placing his hands on the wall on either side of her head.

“I'll see you tomorrow,” he whispered against her lips before he kissed her quickly and deeply and then pulled away. “Sweet dreams, Lilliah.” He smiled and walked away.

That night, all she could dream about was Azrael and his kisses. It really had been the best first date ever.

Chapter 14

“You need to focus. To concentrate more,” Azrael stressed, helping Lilliah off the ground. A soft glow from the sunset was washing over the trees.

“I’m trying!” she replied through gritted teeth, picking up the stake she had dropped. “You’re just too fast.” They had been fighting all day and Lilliah was getting tired. Rubbing the dirt off her backside, Lilliah winced when she ran a hand over a bruise. Azrael had told Lilliah he would teach her how to fight. The idea had seemed great at first, until Lilliah realised there was no way she could ever possibly win against him.

“It doesn’t matter if you only want to protect yourself. You have to be prepared to fight. They will be fast. They will be strong.”

“You don’t think I know that?!” Lilliah shouted, the stress of the last few days suddenly being released.

Azrael had been trying to teach her how to fight for the last four days. She had quickly found it was impossible to actually get a hit on him. And now he had finally given her a stake, a real stake, so she could actually have a chance at killing a vampire. Only it was almost impossible to fight with; it just got in the way.

“You can do this,” he told her, walking back. “Remember what I said: the stake should be pointing up. Try and use as much force as possible. It will take a lot of force to get through the rib cage. And it’s pure silver, so if you get attacked by a werewolf, you can also use it on them.”

“It’s hard to hold when I fight.” Lilliah sighed, looking at the trees that surrounded them. They were deep in the forest, far away from anything and anyone. “Is there a way to secure it to my hand?”

“No,” Azrael answered simply. “Now get ready. We’re going again.”

Before Lilliah had time to breathe, Azrael came at her. The first hit she blocked, but he came again and again without missing a beat or pausing for even a second. Lilliah hadn’t even realised she had moved back until her back hit a tree. Without thinking, she ducked, causing Azrael to hit the bark instead of her. Expecting him to be in pain, Lilliah made her first attack. Bringing the stake up, she used all her strength and launched forward, aiming for Azrael’s chest. He saw her moving and had moved out the way before she could even blink.

“That was good!” he praised, now standing beside her. “You didn’t hesitate. You blocked and you nearly got a hit. Your aim was spot on.” He really did sound impressed, but Lilliah couldn’t meet his excitement.

“But I didn’t hit you,” she reminded him, dropping the stake in frustration. “And how the hell did you move so fast?”

“I’m an angel,” he reminded her. Grabbing Lilliah’s hand, he pulled her to him and kissed her on the mouth, his smile playful.

“So am I.” She laughed, nuzzling her head into the crook of his neck, having had enough of fighting for one day.

“I’ve been doing this a hell of a lot longer. But don’t worry. You’ll get the hang of it eventually.”

“I just want to get it, you know? My mum’s been gone for a month; when we find her I want to be able to protect her.”

“You’re not giving yourself enough credit. You’re doing great. Amazing, in fact.”

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”

“No, I’m not,” he assured her strongly. “You and your brother have taken to all of this so fast. It’s amazing.

“Oh, I don’t want to talk about Sebastian.” Lilliah groaned. “How is he picking this up so quickly? He’s only been training for like three weeks or something! Did you see him this morning? He was like a ninja.”

Laughing, Azrael let go of her and walked over to the rock where his stuff was.

Sebastian had also decided to learn how to fight, and for reasons Lilliah couldn’t understand, her brother had taken to fighting like he had been doing it for years, even knocking down Benedict, who was no novice fighter, earlier that morning.

“He’s a lot younger than you,” he reminded her, the smile still in his voice. “In reincarnation terms anyway. So it’s bound to come back to him a lot quicker. Don’t worry. You’ll get it.”

“He couldn’t even do a cartwheel a month ago. Now he can do back flips!” Lilliah stressed, trying to get Azrael to understand. No sister wanted her twin brother to be better than her.

“Then ask him for pointers. He could probably help you,” Azrael suggested, not realising Lilliah had tried to do just that the day before.

“I tried,” was all she said, remembering Sebastian’s taunts.

“It’s okay, sis.” He had laughed when she had asked him for help. “Some of us are born for this kinda thing. I guess I’m a born fighter.”

“Hardly,” she had told him. “Remember that time you got stuck in a tree and were up there for three hours?”

“I was ten,” he’d replied, annoyed that she would even bring that up. “But now I’m like Bruce Lee.” He’d shrugged, overly confident. “And because of that comment,
this
Bruce Lee is not going to help you.”

Lilliah had been practicing with Azrael all day since then. “He actually compared himself to Bruce Lee!” she told him as he handed her a bottle of water.

“Aww, you two are so sweet,” Dena purred, leaning on a tree nearby, effectively ruining Lilliah’s day.

“The day just keeps getting better,” whispered Lilliah so only Azrael could hear her as she rested her forehead on his chest. Dena really was not what she needed right now. She childishly wished the sun would come back up and burn her. She could feel Azrael’s chest moving with silent laughter.

“What's wrong, Dena?” he asked harshly.

“You asked me for information. Well, I have it,” she replied snidely, holding up a folder in one hand.

“Well?” he pressed, not much warmer. “What did you find out?”

Lilliah turned so her back was to Azrael’s chest so she could see Dena better. Azrael’s arm snaked around her front. As much as she hated the woman, she couldn’t deny Dena was beautiful. Her long, red hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail, leaving her beautiful face exposed. She would have been much prettier if she weren’t scowling. The jeans she was wearing fitted her perfectly, hugging every curve, and the little red top left little to the imagination. She wanted to run a hand over her own hair, knowing that after hours of training, it had to be messy, but she didn’t.
If Azrael wanted to be with her, he would be,
she reminded herself.

“Don’t you want to do this in a place that is a little more private?” Lilliah knew Dena was talking to Azrael, but her eyes and smirk were directed solely at Lilliah. She knew what she was doing.  Lilliah refused to let her get under her skin.

“No. Whatever you say to me can be said in front of Lilliah,” Azrael replied, making Lilliah want to sing and dance. She didn’t. Instead, she settled for a cocky smirk.

“Fine,” Dena grumbled. “The woman that was taken was last seen at a club. It's called
The Orphanage
. Small place known for a lot of vampire activity. I’ve been there a few times. The place is a dive.” Lilliah went completely still as Dena spoke.
“The woman that was taken . . .”
 Dena was talking about her mother.

“I don't know what happened after the club.” She shrugged, seemingly bored with the conversation; she clearly didn’t want to be there.

“That's all you have?” Azrael demanded harshly, even making Lilliah jump.

“Yes, that's all I have. We could go to the club together if you want? Try and get more answers there?”

Lilliah tried not to hurl at Dena’s obvious attempts.
Can you say “desperate”?
she thought, wanting to laugh.

“No. You can leave the folder on my desk.”

“Fine!” Dena snapped back, throwing the folder on the ground. “Any more errands you want me to run for you, sir?” she spat icily, walking towards them. “Anything else I can do while you play house with the same little girly you wanted to bleed dry not four weeks ago?!”

Before Dena could take another step in their direction, Azrael was in front of her, his hands gripped around her neck in a fierce hold.

“You’re lucky I don't kill you here and now.” Lilliah didn’t have to see Azrael’s face to know he meant business. The menacing words were enough. “You ever speak to her like that again, and I will not think twice about ripping your throat out. Do you understand?”

Dena made a strange sound before Azrael released her by throwing her to the ground.

“Get out of here,” he ordered, taking Lilliah’s hand and leading her out of the opening.

“We've known each other for years, Azrael,” Dena pleaded, her eyes filling with tears. “Please don't throw that away. Please.”

Lilliah was the only one who looked back. Azrael didn’t even flinch as he led her out of the forest and into the house.

“She was talking about my mother, wasn’t she?” Lilliah asked once they were in Azrael’s office.

“Yes. I have people everywhere, following up every lead. I’ve been examining every detail, waiting for a crack to show,” he explained, taking the seat behind his desk. “It seems one has just appeared.”

“Okay, so are we going to go to the club? Ask around or something?” she asked, getting excited. This was the first bit of information they'd received about her mum in just under a month. She couldn’t help the anticipation she felt at the thought of getting her mum back and making sure she stayed safe. She had felt so guilty during the past week as she’d grown closer to Azrael while her mum was God knew where. But now the end was near.

“No.” He frowned. “Benedict and I are going to the club. You, your brother, and Rebecca are going to stay here.”

“I don’t think so.” She shook her head adamantly. “I’ve been training. I can handle myself. I now have a stake!”

“This isn’t about you.” He looked up from his desk. “I don’t know what we’ll be walking into. And if your mother is there, I want to get her out as soon as possible.”

“But I could help! You could distract them while I sneak in the back. It’s the perfect plan.”

“No.”

”But why? What’s the point of me learning how to fight if I’m never going to get the chance to?”

“You’re learning how to fight so you can protect yourself if you’re ever attacked again. I’m not going to put you in harm’s way on purpose.”

“It’s my mum out there!” she shot at him. “I want to help save her! It’s my family!”

“And you are my
everything
!” Azrael shot back. “I will not put you in danger. I refuse to. You’re going to have to trust me to bring your mother back to you safe, like I promised.”

Lilliah stared up at him, a little too shocked to speak. “I do trust you,” she said after a minute, stepping closer to him and hugging him tightly. “But I’m not useless. I could really help you.”

“I know you’re not useless, Lilliah,” he stressed, holding her back. “I just need to keep you safe.”

“But surely the best place for me is with you?” she tried again, but this time with a different approach.

“Yes, but not when I’m going into a room full of vampires who may or may not be after your blood.”

“I just want my mum back.”

Azrael and Benedict had constantly assured her that her mum was still alive. Benedict had said he could feel her but that there was a stronger power surrounding her, making it impossible to track. But it wasn’t enough. She needed more.

“And I swear to you.” He held her back so he could look directly into her eyes. “I swear that I will bring your mum back to you. If it’s the last thing I do, I will bring your mum back safe.”

Lilliah didn’t say anything back; she just smiled and nodded to show she agreed.

A short time later, Azrael called Benedict into his office to inform him of their plan for the night. Lilliah left them to it, not wanting to get into an argument with him about it again. She wanted him to concentrate on finding her mother.

After her argument with Azrael, she had energy and lots of it. She needed to burn it off.