Divine Liaisons (6 page)

“
Who I really am.”

A douche with an overinflated ego? Oh yeah, clear as day.

“What do you mean?” I say instead.

“
You've reacted to me countless times over the last hour, but you're doubting what your eyes are showing you.”

Now I'm getting scared. How does he know?

“What do you mean?” I say again, like an idiot.

“
You keep seeing this.”

And in an instant, he's standing in front of the fire, a foot taller, as bulky and strong as Dustin, opening wings wide, which span to each side of the room. His face is completely different.

A cruel smile twists it when he laughs.

Chapter 8

Diving off my chair, I'm sprinting for the front door.

Sharp, angular, 'things', hook my arms, yanking me back. Dragging me over the floor, depositing me at his feet.

It was the wings. He folds them, somehow diminishing their size. I can't hear, my blood's pumping so loud. His eyes are graphite. Glittering a strange light in them, like stars.

“Don't run from me. Don't you
ever
run from me again.”

I have overwhelming fear coursing wild through me, making me shiver; trembling, clattering my teeth.

He steps over me, going back to his chair, sitting down with two sharp triangles showing behind either shoulder now. They're like gargoyle wings. Bat wings. His shirt and tie are gone. How did he even do that?

God, please hear me. Save me from this madman. This... creature.

“Please, sit down.”

“
No!”

Scrambling to my feet, darting my focus, looking for an exit, an escape –

“I have warned you, Sarah. If you run again, I will show you no mercy.”

Swallowing hard, I think I need to pee – or vomit – or faint.

“
Sit down!
”

My legs buckle anyway, and I sit heavily in front of the hearth. Staring at him, with black hair now, almost black eyes, his skin tone has deepened several shades, his voice deeper; threatening, booming. No wonder he wasn't afraid of Dustin.

Dustin! He'd better not hurt him.

“
Whaaaah – uh?” I clear my throat, stiffening for a fight. “What are you?”

“
This is why my mother never mentioned me.”

“
Let me go! I want to go home.”

“
No. This time you aren't getting your way. I've given you more patience and understanding than you deserve.”

My stomach is lurching, yet still I can't back down.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? You're a stalker! You have been a total creep!”

“
You don't know the half of it.”

He relaxes back, extending scary looking big legs, picking up his glass, sipping, watching me non-stop over the rim.

“Why?” I ask.

“
Why did I show you?”

I can't speak. My fear is getting the better of me, squeezing an invisible hand around my throat, silencing me. A primal survival instinct, probably. I answer him with a nod.

“Because you obviously like big men. You judged me on my appearance. I'm bigger than Dustin. If it's big you want, you're looking at the baddest motherfucker on the planet.”

“
Nnnnn–”

God dammit! Why can't I make myself speak. I can't form words.

He's also not pretending to be a gentleman anymore.

Leaning forward, he perches his elbows on his knees, bunching his enormous build into a caricature, pinning me to the spot with the danger in his expression.

“I thought, naively, that if I appealed to your brain, rather than your body, we could build a bridge to friendship. Dustin's timing was fucking impeccable. You are still who you always were. Rating speed, agility, strength, above a mastermind. Above brilliance. You disappoint me,
again
.”

“
N-no. No. None of this is making any s.sense. I don't know you! I met you three weeks ago. I've done nothing to you! You're full moon kinda crazy.”

He stands, crushing the glass in his hand, the snapping of crystal is enough to make me shrivel inside.

“Come here.”

“
No.”

“
I won't ask you twice. You have pissed me off for the last time.”

I couldn't stand even if I wanted to. I'm terrified, even my ankles are like spaghetti.

He takes one wide step, and is on me, lifting me off the floor by his grip on my arms.

I can't breathe, he's too close, too huge, too insane. I think I'm having a heart attack. My chest hurts like someone drove a stake through it.

“I have never hurt you. Not once. Why have you programmed yourself to flee from me?”

“
It's instinct. Sane women run from monsters.”

His grip tightens, it hurts so bad. Can he break bones the way he broke that glass?

“You're hurting me.”

“
I am not a monster. Close your eyes, and just breathe.”

His grip lessens, marginally. I want to rub my arms. I'm going to have bruises for a year with the pain in my muscles.

“
Breathe!
”

His shout in my face makes me jump, tears are running; I'm going to die.

Why did I wear a dress? Now I can't even knee him. The skirt is slimline, like a pencil skirt. Wearing stupid heels, that you can't run in.

“
BREATHE!
”

Gulping down bile, I inhale deeply. Exaggerating it. Before he goes batshit on me for not breathing.

“Smell it?”

He smells like Dustin. But hotter. And, another strange smell. Like the ivory keys on a piano.

“Dustin is cut from the same cloth. And still I repulse you, yet with him your hormones were literally erupting out of you like a catherine wheel.”

“
What do you want, Erik?”

It's a gasping whimper. I'm tired. I don't even know how to react to this. He's mad, and clearly not human. If this day gets any better, I'll end it in little square plastic bags at the back of his ice-box.

“My name is Erra, not Erik.”

“
Then why did you –”

“
I didn't. It was my mother's idea.”

“
Was she,” I pause, daring to look into his eyes, startled by the gentleness in them. His grip is threatening, but his expression isn't. “Was she, like you?”

He releases me, dropping his arms to stare down at me, “It's a long story. Call me adopted, for lack of a better term.”

Adopted? I was never adopted. No one wanted me.

Rubbing my arms, looking down, hiding the tears. It's been a long and emotional day.

“No one adopted you, because I wouldn't let them.”

Rearing my head, I want to spit in his face for being such a cruel bastard.

“Leave me out of your nastiness. I'm not a rock. I'm fragile.”

My voice is cracking, becoming hoarse, but I need to fight back. I just know I can't show weakness. It's whipping me, in the back of my head, screaming at me not to back down.

“I'm older than I look. I'm not being malicious,” he says in a milder tone.

J.j.jesus. He's been stalking me my whole life?

“Say my name,” he orders.

“
No. This is ending right now. Take me home or I will scream so long and loud, SWAT will be blowing you up.”

“
I'm faster than I look too. Do you really want to press your luck with me? It should be clear to you, even in your grief, that I have run out of patience today.”

“
What do you want?”

“
You. It's always been, as always will be, you.”

“
You're insane. I'm. Not. Interested. How can I make that any clearer? I think you're a complete asshole. And everything you do just proves it more. Fuck off! Fuck you! Get a fucking life! Is that clear enough?”

Wings flare out, blocking out all light, closing in around me so fast, I don't have a chance to react. In a nanosecond, I'm shut in complete darkness, with two pinpricks of glittering starry eyes in front of me.

Chapter 9

“Scream all you want, no one will hear you now.”

I belt it out, my rage, my fear, my panic. Slamming forward, rallying fists into an immovable bulk. Using everything I remember, I elbow hard into his solar plexus, shoving the heel of one hand up and against his jaw, following through by ramming the heel of the other hand up into his nose. Fighting blind in this pitch ink around me.

“
Fuck you!
”

Stomping a sharp heel onto a foot, boxing around myself into his groin, I smash my head back into him, giving myself an instant concussion when I connect with bone.

“Are you quite finished behaving like a wildcat?”

Whipping around, leaping up I head-butt him, nearly breaking my own nose. Yelling, “FUCK YOU!”

I sink my claws into his naked chest and rake down,
hard
.

My wrists are snatched, held in a clamp so tight pain shoots up both arms.

“That is enough!”

Tugging wildly, I drop, kicking both heels into his legs, my left shoe comes off. Pulling heavily with all my dead weight against his hands, I sink my teeth into the hand holding my wrists, biting for all I'm worth.

“Stop it. Sarah, that is enough.”

I pretend to give in. Going weak in his arms, waiting for him to let my hands go.

He pulls me up off the floor where he holds above my hands, waiting for me to stabilize, slowly releasing his grip.

“
You always were such a fighter.”

Before he's even finished his sentence I lunge, digging my thumbs with their long nails into his eyes. Huge arms shove me hard, cutting down into my elbows, making both arms instantly lame, whipped around, I'm held tight against him, my heart pounding, breathing hard from exertion.

“Try that again, and I will hurt you for the first time in my very long life.”

He forces the air from me when he tightens both arms, emphasizing his words, “Are we clear?”

I nod, he's squeezing the life from me.

Maintaining his hold, he forcefully rotates me, slowly lighting up his wing-cave with his eyes. They get brighter in increments. Now I can barely see, I'm a little scared. He's like a devil.

“Are you going to behave?”

I'm aching, and his grip is harsh.

“Mmm.”

I can taste blood in my mouth. How did that happen?

“Why do you have to make this so hard? How long are you going to hate me?”

“
Forever and ever. You haven't given me one reason to like you. Here in Austin, we like our men with charm and manners. You lack both. Move, you're not welcome here.”

Instantly we're back in pitch dark. He's shut his lights off. His hands finally letting me go.

Adrenalized, I turn, pushing against the wing igloo. It's silky soft, oven hot, but rigid hard, like granite.

Fuck!

“Say my name. That's all I asked from you before you launched your issues at me.”

“
You can't keep me here forever. Melissa saw me here. People will notice when I go missing and they'll know where to look. I've got all night, asshole.”

A heavy sigh blows at me. Closing my eyes against the force behind it, I'm immediately aware of smells. I can smell his earthy scent, but in a really weird way, I can
hear
his smell. Tilting my head just so, there's a sound coming off him. His sigh smelled like smores. What? This is nuts.

“
Just say my name. And I'll let you out.”

“
Erik.”

“
That's not my name, and you know it. Why do you have to be so fucking difficult?!”

“
Honey, you think the sun comes up just to hear you crow. If you think I'm going to indulge your overinflated ego and small dick syndrome, you can think again.”

He moves, and I can't see a darn thing. But it's made me nervous. My instinct is warning me. It's screaming blue murder, yelling
get out of here
,
NOW
.

My hands are gripped again, pulled hard toward him, pushed against something.

“Call that small? What you need is a good tanning, girl.”

“
Oh god!”

I'm frantically yanking, tugging, pulling, kicking; wild now, I don't care if I get hurt.

“You're sick! Sick! There isn't a loony-bin bad enough for you!”

Writhing, squirming, twisting, thrashing, flailing in mad terror, I'll die before I let him make me touch that thing again.

“
Say my name!
”

I scream my longest, loudest, most wolf howling
help me please
, screeeeeam!

“
You are getting boring. You can end this just by saying it.”

I've got desperation running out of my eyes; I'm finally getting scared.

“No.”

“
Fine, I have eternity. You will starve long before then. You will run out of air. I will stand here and watch you wither and die before my eyes. I will not release you until you say my name. You determine how long this stand-off lasts.”

Dropping to my knees, I sit back on my ankles. The tears are on a roll now. Why does he want to make me so unhappy? What's the big fucking deal?

“Why?” I sob.

“
Please? Please Sarah Tempest, say my name, just once.”

“
Erra.”

There, I said it! Are you happy now, dickhead?

Clean air rushes in when his wings open, letting the living room and its heat back into my lungs. Sitting, staring up at him, the only damage I managed to do are the scratches down his chest.

“
She-devil.” He turns, stalking to the bar, grabbing the bottle from the shelf.

Watching him, I'm lucky he didn't hit me back. At least I tried, right? He's colossal. He is without a doubt the biggest 'man' I've ever seen. And I thought Dustin was big.

He glares as he makes his way back to his seat before the fire, the wings retracting into nothing on his back, the skin smoothing over, unveiling hard muscle and the deep ridge of his spine.

“
Take me home, Erra.”

“
You can wait five minutes,
ma'am
.” His tone is mocking, scornful.

From here, I just see the bottle tilt up, dancing with merry firelight through amber liquid off glass.

Shaky, sore, I push myself off the floor, getting my shoe and putting it back on.

“
I hope you feel better now that you've unleashed thirty years of anger at me.”

“
No, I don't. You're a cold hearted bastard,
Erra
.” I sneer his name, almost limping back to my chair.

God, I hurt.

“I grew up an orphan. You admitted to keeping me homeless. Without a family for Christmas, Easter, or my birthday. Alone, a reject, my whole childhood!”

The anger is coming back, and this time she's bringing her comet's tail.

Stalking to his chair, I don't even wait for him to lower his baby's bottle stuck like a pacifier to his mouth; I slap him with every last shred of dignity and righteous anger left in my trembling body.

Breaking two nails in the process, I watch the bottle fly, pouring an arc of fluid through the air.

The roar that follows rimes me, stripping me of my soul. Before I can blink, he's up, over me, wings shimmering, snapping like flags in a gale, two ice-pick eyes turn coal black, losing all sparks.

Terrified beyond measure, the room tilts when his roar hits me like a physical blow.

Lifted off the floor by two hands, I'm crushed, compressed into a space my body can't fit. I can't breathe, sharp pain shoots through me, he's breaking me, physically snapping ribs, pushing them into lungs, my head lolls back, and a wave judders me, rattling me like an unwanted ragdoll in his hands. But it's warm.

It's peace.

Peace.