Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel) (21 page)

 

“How can you make such a promise? Do you know
how dangerous he is child?”

 

“My father built a house on hallowed ground.
If
Richard dares to step foot on it he will burn. I swear it!”

“How do I know I can trust you?”
“Because you are family.”

“Family - I have never seen you before today. How
can we be family?” Mahlyssa laughed.

“
When Virgil took Myra, he sent her to live with the
angel Seraphon.
Seraphon was close to my grandmother
Alice. They raised their daughters together. Her daughter’s
name was Angela and Alice’s daughter, was my mother Eve.
The girls grew up as sisters.
They remain close to this day.
I know where Myra is,” Aura told her. “If you come with
me, I swear you will see her again.”

“You know my Myra? If I leave with you Richard
will find me. I care nothing about myself, but the others, my
Shannon; I would gladly give my life to save her.”

“I can guarantee Shannon’s safety and yours as well.
You must believe me.”

 

“Richard is evil. He too is an angel-blood. How do
I know you’re not working for him and trying to trap me?”

“I can prove my sincerity.” Aura r
eached into her
bag and pulled out a photograph and handed it to Mahlyssa.
“Richard couldn’t give you this.” Mahlyssa looked at the
picture and Aura saw a tear fall from her eye. “This is your
daughter. The other girls are my mother Eve and Seraphon’s
daughter Angela, as I’ve told you.”

“This is the way she looked when Virgil took her
from me. She looks so happy.”

“Myra is one of my mother’s dearest friends. She is
happy, but it would be a blessing to see her own mother
again.”

“What does she know about me? I haven’t seen her
in years. She will believe I abandoned her.”

“She will think nothing of the sort,” Aura went over
and held Mahlyssa’s hand. “She looks like you; except her
eyes. Her eyes are blue.”

“She had her father’s eyes. Did he suffer?
Do you
know if he suffered?”

“I don’t think so. Richard threw a blade into his
heart and he died instantly. I don’t mean to upset you
anymore.
Myra was told her father gave up his wings to
protect her, because he loved you both.”

“I should have listened to him when he tried to warn
me about my father.
I could have watched my little girl
grow up. Virgil and I might have given her a brother or
sister. We talked about that.”

“You are a grandmother to five grandsons and one
granddaughter,” Aura smiled. “You will find our family is
different from others.
I have no doubt they will open their
arms and their hearts to you. Won’t you please consider my
offer?
I know you care deeply for the children who live
here.
I can see the kindness in you.
It is the same kindness
we all see in your daughter.”

“Are you sure Richard won’t hurt any of them?”
“I will bet my life on it. And for the record; I’m
planning to live a long time.”

 

“Then we’ll go with you. When do you want to
leave?”

 

“We should go now; the sooner the better. I don’t
know when Richard might try to contact you again.”
“He called this morning to check on me.”
“Richard removed your fathers curse. Since the
spell is broken, he can’t change you back again.”

“I suspected as much
.
I lived as a hideous creature
for so long.
But what about the boy;won’t the Guild want
to punish me for taking him in at Richard’s request?”

“I have no doubt you saved Arian’s life. They will
see the same goodness in you I see.
My family trusts me
more than you know.
They would never go against one of
my visions and I see a happy reunion for you and your
daughter.
The Guild will know how hard you worked to
keep Arian alive. Were you not responsible for nursing him
back to health when he first arrived?”

“He was in terrible shape when Richard brought him
here. I thought in the beginning he might die.”

“He didn’t die because of your efforts and I know
his brother will be grateful to you for taking good care of
him. Why don’t you bring the others to the room and we’ll
tell them our good news?”
“Are you sure we will be accepted there?”

“They will love you, all of you.”

Mahlyssa smiled at her.
Could it be possible she
would finally see her daughter after all this time? She called
the others to the room and told them they would be leaving
the house immediately.

“Where are we going mum?” Shannon asked.

Aura was the one who answered.
“You’re going
home; somewhere safe and happy, where you will be loved
by the rest of your family.”

“How are we going to get there? We can’t all fit in
the car together.”

“You leave the transportation to me,” Aura winked
at her. “Don’t take too many things. We can go shopping
when you get there; perhaps just an overnight bag. I’ll have
my father and his friends collect the rest of your things later
today.”

“I suppose you’ll want to see the boy?” Mahlyssa
asked. “He should be awake now.”

Aura followed her to one of the back rooms.
She
had an invisible guard on the room, so Arian couldn’t
escape.
The room was tidy and from his appearance, she
could see Mahlyssa had taken good care of him.
Aura
introduced herself and said, “We’re going to see your
brother today Arian.
I know he has been missing you
terribly.”

“What about Jade? Do you know if Jade is alright?”
he asked weakly.

Aura smiled at him. “Jade is fine. You’ll see her
today too.” Arian thanked her and Mahlyssa and Shannon
helped him get ready.

When they were all packed Aura took them outside.
“You’ll have to hold each other’s hands and put the bags
over yourshoulders. This won’t take long.”Aura spread her
wings and they gasped.
They had never seen anything so
breathtaking before.
Her wings were pure white with tiny
golden balls at the end of each feather. Aura looked at them
and asked, “Are you ready?”

When they all shook their heads in agreement, she
lifted them off the ground and took to the sky. They were at
their new home a few minutes later. When they landed Aura
could see they were shocked by the experience.
Shannon
asked excitedly, “Will I get wings too?”

“If your Mum says it’s ok, I’m sure I can arrange it.”
Aura smiled at her new little friend.

 

Shannon begged Mahlyssa.“Please mum-can I?”
“If Aura can arrange it, I see no problem,” Mahlyssa
grinned at the young child.

Shannon was so
excited
her face
was beaming.
Aura would make sure one of the little ones passed their
blood to her. She walked them into the house. As usual her
father thought of everything. Though it wasn’t exactly like
the home they left, it was warm and comfortable.
She was
grateful no one burned when they stepped on the property.
They were all children of Heaven.
Aura would ensure they
were treated as family, because they were.

As they entered the house, Mahlyssa helped them
choose their rooms. The refrigerator was stocked with foods
and
Aura
was
glad
her
father
remembered
to
put
the
toiletries in the bathrooms. Her mother must have helped
him because there were clothes in the closets sized perfectly
for the new tenants.

Shannon’s room was pi
nk with a butterfly mobile
hanging from the ceiling.
She loved her new room.
She
checked out the clothes in her closet with Mahlyssa.
Aura
knew they would not be treated like servants here; although
she was certain Mahlyssa treated them like family in her
other home.
Aura promised she would return for them in a
couple of hours.

“Before you leave there is something else I must tell
you,” Mahlyssa insisted. “It’s about Richards daughter
Natalie.
I
performed
a
spell
on
her,
changing
her
appearance.
She now has blonde hair and blue eyes and
goes by the name Natasha.
I feel terrible I helped Richard
after everything he has done.
I hope your family will
forgive me?”

“They are your family now too Mahlyssa. Never
forget that,” Aura smiled. “When I return, I’ll take you to
meet them. You’ll have to stay here Arian, but not for long.
I need to deal with Natalie first and then I promise I’ll
return.
We
will
all
be
celebrating
something
special
tonight.”

Arian would use the time to clean up.
He needed a
haircut and when Mahlyssa offered, at first he was skeptical.
He changed his mind after Aura reminded him that Mahlyssa
saved his life.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can. Richard can’t bother
you here. I swear you will all be safe.” Shannon came up
and hugged Aura before she left.

Aura used the portal to return to her house.
She
arrived
at
her
home
before
her
family
returned
from
breakfast. She was grateful she wouldn’t have to explain her
whereabouts to them. The caterers showed up a few minutes
later and she directed them to the kitchen where they could
start preparing the menu.

She went into her room and picked out clothes for
the little ones.
Perhaps they would spend the night at home
tonight after they saw what a good mood she was in.
She
thought about Aidan and wondered if she had gone too far
with some of the comments she made.
If he knew what she
was planning it would only add to his grief.
She needed to
be careful to expose Natalie at precisely the right time. Aura
knew Jayden would be most upset when he saw her, but she
would deal with him later.

After breakfast Natasha excused herself saying she
needed to return home to change.
The others were still
talking excitedly about the weddings.
No one paid any
attention to the looks she was giving to Jayden and Acadia;
except Jessica and Rita. They didn’t want to talk in front of
Will and Joshua so when they arrived home they told the
boys they were going to change for the party.

Iris brought the two young men home with her.
They were definitely pureblood angels. Aura wondered how
Iris knew them, but their fathers didn’t. Perhaps they were
born after the Guild came to earth. They didn’t look any
older than Aidan, but then none of the men looked older than
twenty five.
Their hair was no longer braided. It was
flowing freely past their waist.

Iris approached Aura.“This is Dareus and Aureus.
They will be staying here for a while.”

 

“Will they be staying with us?” Aura asked, not
noticing that Aidan was listening.

“No, I’m afraid they have
a small home outside the
valley.
The boys are fond of horses and they found a nice
piece of property where they can ride every day.”

“I never ride a horse,” Mia said.

 

“”We’ll be more than happy to take you for a ride,”
Dareus said to her delight.

 

“Joey come too?” Mia asked.

The two brothers laughed.
“Of course he can. We
have a couple of miniature ponies that will be perfect for the
two of you.”

Alannah looked at the brothers. ‘I’ve never ridden a
horse either.”

Dareus knelt down in front of her. “We
have more
than enough horses at the farm. It’s actually good to
exercise them on a regular basis.
Maybe you and your
friends can help us?”

Alannah looked at Bren and Tracy. “Do you want to
go horseback riding?”

“Yeah that sounds like fun,” the two girls
agreed.
“I need my spurs Bren?” Meaghan asked.

“No you won’t need them for those horses. You
only need them for lazy horses.”

 

“Ok,” Meaghansmiled. “When we going?”

“We just moved in so we’ll need a couple of days
before we can receive visitors.
How about one day this
week?” Dareus said.

“That’s good; as long as it’s not tomorrow. We’re
going shopping in New York,” Bren reminded them.
“You can let us know when you want to come. The
farm is close and easy to find,” Aureus said.

“Would you like to join us?” Dareus asked Aura.
“Certainly, it sounds like fun,” Aura smiled.

Aidan couldn’t help noticing how Aura’s mood had
changed since this morning.
He wondered if the arrival of
the strangers had anything to do with her new frame of
mind.

Aura pulled her father and the other Guild into the
library after she was sure the caterers were settled in the
kitchen.
She often used their service, so they knew their
way around.
It was a blessing not to have to show them
where everything was.

“What’s this about Aura?” Adam asked.

“When I left you after church this morning, I went to
visit someone. I couldn’t tell you before, because I didn’t
know how I would be received.
I can tell you the visit went
well and we can expect some guests here this afternoon.”

“Is this about the house your father and I built this
morning?” Adam asked.

“Where is this house?” Joseph asked.
“It’s on Hespa’s property,” Aura said calmly.

“Were you given permission to build there?” Martin
asked.

 

“No, but I’m sure if Hespa knew my purpose, she
would wholeheartedly agree.”

 

“Why don’t you let her speak first and then we can
have a discussion?” Adam said.

“I went to see Mahlyssa this morning. We had a
long conversation and she told me about Richard and part of
his plan. I can’t tell you everything yet.
But I moved her
and her family to the house on Hespa’s property because it
was hallowed. I knew they would be safe there. Will’s
bother Arian was with her,” Aura said honestly.

“Why would you bring her here?” Martin gasped.
“She’s an Enchantor. Do you know what she’s capable of?”

“She has great goodness in her,” Aura affirmed. “If
she was dark in any way, she would have burned when she
stepped on the property. The fact that she didn’t, makes me
believe she is still a child of Heaven.”

The men looked at each other.
They knew Aura
spoke the truth. “I still don’t understand why you brought
her here. Surely she will want to meet Myra now,” Martin
said.