Desiring A Demon (Archangels) (14 page)

“Why don’t you fight me?” Rafe demanded. “Why hide behind minions and these creatures?”

Forge scowled but didn’t pull out a weapon. He simply opened his arms in invitation. “If it’s a fight you want, then come and get it.”

He stepped forward
,
and Rafe held his ground. His sword was steady and prepared to defend Asta, but suddenly he was lifted from the ground and flung away on the breeze as if he’d been struck by a giant invisible hand. Asta screamed as his back hit the nearest building and he slid to the ground. Everything ached for a moment but nothing had broken. He shook his head to clear it, reassured his brothers telepathically, and sprang to his feet.

…

Horror filled Asta as Rafe went flying. She didn’t know what new power the demon had
,
but this was getting out of hand. Rafe was too important for her to let him get hurt again.

“You motherfucker!” she screamed, then charged at Forge.

He caught her in a bear hug and laughed as she struggled to get out of his hold. Finally
,
he shoved her away, still laughing.

Anger filled every part of her as she pulled a blade into each hand. She began to strike him with both blades, mindless of where they landed. She didn’t even care if it actually hurt him or not, she wanted to hit him with every bit of strength she possessed. Maybe if she distracted him long enough
,
one of the angels would land to take over. Forge’s shirt was shredded and his blood flowed from various cuts, but he didn’t even seem to notice.

He chortled and grabbed her upper arms. “There will be plenty of time for rough play later, sweetheart.”

“Fuck you.”

“That will come later
,
too.”

She screamed in frustration as she struggled against his hold. He slapped her hard across the face. Only his grip on her arm kept her from dropping like a ton of bricks. His large hand had felt like a sledgehammer against her cheek, and her eye began to swell. The pain caused her vision to darken
,
but she’d be damned if she passed out in front of this asshole again.

“You son of a bitch,” she slurred as she found her footing and stiffened her spine.

“Yes, my mother was a bitch. But then so was yours, right? I know all about your mother and how she liked her drinks more than she liked her little demon daughter.”

“She didn’t understand. She didn’t know what to do—”

“Blah, blah, blah. Make all the excuses you want. The truth is
,
you’re a demon here.” He roughly poked her chest, right where her heart raced. “Where it counts. And she knew it all along. Do you think the higher-level demons pretend to be something else when they fuck human women? Maybe at first. But believe me, their true face comes forth before the deed is done and your mom knew exactly what she carried when she found out she was pregnant with you. Just like my bitch mother did.”

“My mom loved me.”

“Hah! Tell yourself whatever makes you feel better, little girl. But remember, your father is the one with all the power. He’s the one who’s strong enough to lead millions of hell spawn and command the army that will kill every last one of those fucking angels you like so much.”

“No!”

She kicked with all her strength, hitting him squarely between the legs. He howled in pain as he released her and dropped to the ground.

“Asshole. You’re not all big and mighty now, are you? Your powers don’t mean shit when your nuts are cracked.”

She turned with the intention of running to Rafe, but a sea of bugs, rats, worms, snakes, and God knew what else separated them. They crawled over each other in their haste to get to her and only an ever
-
shrinking circle surrounded her and Forge. He continued to writhe on the ground in pain, cursing her with every foul word she’d ever known. Terror filled her and drowned out Forge’s words, presence, and everything else around her. She opened her mouth to scream but no sound emerged. Her pulse kicked up until her chest throbbed with it. Her head pounded to the beat of her racing heart. There was a very real chance she was about to pass out.

Then Rafe’s voice penetrated the haze of terror and caught her attention.

“Asta,” he called. “Asta
,
look at me.”

His voice barely registered past her fear, but she looked up to see him on the other side of the crawling mess.

She dropped the blades and lifted her arms like a child to her mother. “Please…Rafe, please.”

He shook his head helplessly. “I can’t. There’s something blocking me. I tried to fly toward you and ran into an invisible wall.”

“Oh…God…”

With her head already pounding, saying “God” barely added any pain. Tears welled and she looked skyward to see other angels flying above them. Rain began falling all around
,
except on the circle she stood in with Forge. The critters became more agitated with the water, but didn’t disperse.

“God, please,” Asta prayed. “Please help me.”

She dropped to her knees and gripped the sides of her pounding head and prayed in earnest. Words she hadn’t said in over a decade flowed from her lips without hesitation. Every single one of them hurt, but she pushed on through the pain and said the Lord’s Prayer. Then she said a few more she remembered from her childhood, before repeating the litany again. It wasn’t working. The bugs kept coming and the angels were blocked. Was that her punishment? Was this God’s way of showing her she didn’t deserve to touch one of his divine angels?

…

As Asta prayed, angels landed all around the circle at Rafe’s side. The weather worsened to hurricane proportions as they attempted to get through Forge’s sorcery to fight the half-demon. Rafe pounded with fist and sword on the invisible barrier and used every power he possessed, but it was an impenetrable bubble around Asta, Forge
,
and the creatures steadily closing the circle toward them.

Forge sat up slowly, hair hanging over his face and blood covering most of his torso. He got to his knees and stood with a grimace. Asta didn’t notice him as she continued to pray with her hands over her ears and her eyes shut tight
,
rocking back and forth like a child in the grips of her worst nightmare. Forge closed the distance and pulled a short sword out of thin air. Death was in his gaze as he watched her pray. Her head was bent, neck exposed to the wicked blade in his hand. Rafe knew what was coming and continued to bang on the invisible barrier with every ounce of his strength. He yelled out to the heavens as Forge lifted the short sword to cut off Asta’s head.

“No!” Rafe hollered. “You said Armoros wants her. No!”

“He has other children,” Forge growled. “This bitch is more trouble than she’s worth.”

His face showed his madness and absolutely no remorse as he swung the blade down.

“Asta!” Rafe screamed and thought his heart would freeze in his chest.

The blade connected with the chain around her neck
,
and there was a blinding flash of light. Forge flew backward and fell in the midst of the creatures he’d called forth. He rolled onto his hands and knees
,
but in a frenzy of confusion they attacked him en masse. He thrashed and fought them off with only his bare hands. The blood flowing freely from his arms and chest incited them to a more frantic pace. He screamed even as the smaller ones filled his open mouth. There were thousands of them. He never stood a chance.

In the same moment, the barrier seemed to drop
,
and Rafe nearly fell on his face as he was propelled forward by his own momentum. He ran to Asta, who was lying in the fetal position.

“Asta!”

He lifted her by the shoulders but she didn’t respond. Her face, neck, hands, and all other exposed skin had darkened to the crimson hue of her birthmark.

“What the hell happened?” Mike asked.

Rafe shook his head as he pulled her into his arms.

“Look at this,” Sebastian called.

Rafe lifted his head to see the angel holding Forge’s short sword. It was twisted into a broken piece of metal. Rafe looked back down at Asta and spied the necklace he’d given her. Then he threw his head back and laughed.

“Thank you,” he whispered skyward
.
Of course, there was no answer.

His brothers surrounded him as the weather slowly cleared. The snakes were the first to leave, then the rats. The smaller bugs had to be shooed away. All that remained of the man called Forge was a pile of ripped, bloody clothing and his boots. The angels burned the small pile and called forth a breeze to blow it away. Then they all let out a sigh of relief the ordeal was over.

Rafe held Asta in his arms and watched his brothers. She was safe now from the half-demon, as were all the innocents he’d hurt in the city and on the island
.
His human followers might be trouble for the next few weeks, but they’d keep a close eye on them. As far as they could tell, Forge had never given the knowledge of opening portals or calling forth demons to anyone else. The angels would keep a more diligent watch to be sure.

They had to keep Asta safe from Armoros, but for now
,
that demon remained trapped in hell. If he still wanted her he’d find it harder to get to her without Forge’s help.

…

Two days later
,
Rafe watched Asta sleep in his bed as the events of the past few weeks played through his mind. She’d been everyone’s victim. Forge had tried to use her, her father had hunted her, and the angels had condemned her. Now she lay motionless in what appeared to be a peaceful sleep, but he knew better. The red tint that now covered her head to toe told a different story. Her demon half had taken over
,
and she struggled against it in her own mind. She fought a battle within herself
,
and there was nothing he could do to help. She hadn’t regained consciousness since Forge’s attack.

The bedroom door opened and Rafe lifted his head out of habit. Then he froze and his heart hammered at the sight of his long-lost brother in the doorway.

“Gabriel?”

Gabe didn’t look at him, simply walked in with his gaze fixed on Asta, his expression blank. Their brothers followed him with expressions to match the shock ringing through Rafe. They all filed into the room and put themselves between Gabe and Asta. Even Mike. Rafe ran around the bed to stand with them. Gabe could have no idea what Asta meant to him; he simply saw a demon lying on the bed.

For at least a minute no one spoke. It seemed no one even breathed while they waited to see what Gabe would do. Then
,
he looked at Rafe and pointed at the bed.

“Yes?” Rafe asked. The pain of not hearing his brother’s voice shot through him anew. “This is Asta. She’s my… I love her.”

Gabe nodded and gave them all a reassuring smile. Then he used both hands to gesture for them to lift the bed. The brothers gathered around the mattress and did so. At Gabe’s silent direction
,
they moved it off the frame and onto the floor. He stepped to the head of the mattress and held out his hands. One by one
,
they clasped hands until all seven of them surrounded the mattress. It was an age-old custom to pray this way. Something they hadn’t done in centuries. Rafe’s chest ached again for the time lost with Gabe, but having him here when he was needed most made up for it.

The brothers began to chant quietly, all but Gabriel
,
who kept his eyes closed and head bowed. Rafe did the same and slowly began to relax. He prayed to the Source for healing to fill Asta. He prayed for her redemption and for her soul to be eased from the demon taint she’d had since birth. He prayed harder than ever in his long existence, with every fiber of his being. He offered himself to the Source yet again, even though he was already wholly owned by the greater good. He made promises he knew he could keep and begged to be heard, even if no obvious answer was forthcoming.

Light hit his closed eyelids
,
and he opened them to see a soft glow surrounding him and his brothers. It wasn’t the first time a healing prayer had created this reaction, but it had been so long he hadn’t expected it to happen. He watched in hopeful anticipation as the light flowed out of them to cover Asta completely. Her tinted skin seemed to glow from the inside out for a moment before slowly beginning to fade. Her short black claws evened out into blunt nails and lightened to a human pink. Her purple-black hair also began to change.

To his great surprise the strands lengthened and turned into a light auburn, nearly copper, shade. They even curled a bit into a soft wave. Her eyebrows matched
,
and he realized he was finally seeing the real Astaroth Sinclair as a full human
.
She was beautiful.

The light faded
,
disappearing completely
,
and the angels silenced. They were slow to release each other’s hands, especially those holding Gabriel’s. He smiled at Mike and Rafe in understanding and loosened his fingers until they let go. Then he hugged each of them in turn before giving Rafe his full attention. He began to use sign language
.

“She is fully human now,” he signed. “But be wary. Due to her parentage she will always be tempted more easily toward evil. She will become more easily addicted and may have to struggle with even minor sins such as lying and cheating.”

“I understand,” Rafe said aloud.

Gabe nodded and walked back to Asta’s side. He knelt and placed one hand on her forehead. When he removed it she opened her eyes. She looked at him in confusion, but when he held out his hand
,
she took it without hesitation. He stood and pulled her up with him, then he helped her off the bed and handed her over to Rafe. He barely controlled himself from grabbing her and holding on tight. She looked at him with confusion and even a hint of fear.

“It’s all right, baby,” he said. “I’ll explain everything in a minute.”

She nodded and stepped into his arms. He closed his eyes to savor the sensation of having her back where she belonged.