Her Black Heart (The Dark Amulet Series Book 2) (11 page)

CHAPTER

THIRTY

Ra’zael

Julia stretched and rolled onto her side on the bed. Her body arched into a lovely s-curve. Ra’zael closed his eyes and sucked in a breath. Deus, she was beautiful. When he looked at her, he no longer wondered why the Creator brought them together. Although she was young, he was also youthful by angel standards, made after the day the Earth had formed.

“Ra’zael? Are we ever going to have sex?”

“Ah, technically, I think we just did.”

Julia rolled her eyes at him. “All we did was mess around. I mean, are we going to, you know, do it?”

“I don’t know what will happen if we do.”

“I think we’ll enjoy it.” Light gleamed in her eyes from the bedside lamp.

Ra’zael laughed heartily. “You think so? It’s…I don’t think you’re ready for babies, is all. Not sure if you’re an angel or not, but you’re definitely not warrior class if you are.”

Julia blanched. “What are you talking about…babies? Who said anything about babies?” She exaggerated a shiver, ruffling the little amount of feathers she had.

“I’m just saying there’s a possibility I could impregnate you. I don’t want to do that,” he lied. He knew damn well she couldn’t get pregnant without a mating ritual first.

She squeezed her thighs together. “Haven’t your people heard of condoms?”

“Sure, I’ve heard of them.” He shrugged.

“Why do I hear a ‘but’?”

“I’ve never had sex with a human before, so I’ve never used one.” There were other reasons he shied away from going all the way with her, none of which involved getting her pregnant. He didn’t completely trust her and he was falling for her. One time inside her and he knew there would be no going back; he’d head straight toward that steep love cliff and dive off before realizing the bottom led to Hell. His greatest weakness was females. The angel, Joelle, had called him a serial monogamist and said he had a knack for choosing the wrong types of females. Another glaring fact was she’d been Tainted by Abaddon. The poisonous venom needed to come out, because if by some chance they actually wound up together, his home realm of Arcadia could make her extremely sick and could possibly destroy her.

Julia didn’t respond to his admission. She too seemed to be lost in thought. “Can I ask you something?” she asked after a few moments and propped herself up with her elbows.

“That depends. Do I have to answer?”

“What’s Heaven like?”

“I…I haven’t been there in a long time.”

“You’ve got to remember, don’t you?”

“Yes. It’s, um, hard to describe.”

“Can you take me there?”

Ra’zael shook his head, his eyes locked on the carpet. Although he wanted to show her his world, he knew he couldn’t.

“Why not? Oh, it’s because I don’t—it’s Heaven, right? And I don’t deserve to go there.” Her eyes glassed over.

“It’s not that.”

“What?”

“Abaddon poisoned you, so if I were to take you there, you’d get violently ill. Or worse.”

“Oh. Wonderful. You have any other great news to share with me?” She paled. “Oh,
crap
.”

“What is it?”

“I can’t even leave this hotel room. Dammit.”

Ra’zael looked confused. “Why can’t you?”

“Uh,
duh
. I have wings.”

“Uh, duh, only beings from Netherworld or Arcadia can see them. Mostly.”

“Oh. How was I supposed to know that?”

He shrugged. “I guess you wouldn’t.”

Julia rose from the bed and paced the room. She stopped after a couple of revolutions around. “How do I get rid of the poison?”

Ra’zael sighed like a deflating balloon. “Only Abaddon can remove it.”

Julia’s eyes met his. Ra’zael couldn’t read her expression. Something hid behind her beautiful features, a mystery he needed to solve before she likely destroyed her chances of an afterlife outside of Netherworld. But first, they needed to find a way to Chicago.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-ONE

Amalya

After Amalya took a shower, she put on a backless nightgown and laid down on the bed. Even though the day had turned into night hours ago, city lights allowed her to see in the dimness. She watched her mate where he lay sleeping. The angel always looked at peace when he slept. There weren’t any worry wrinkles or frown lines around his mouth. He almost smiled in a way.

He stirred and reached blindly for her hand. Once he found it, he brought it up to his lips and kissed her knuckles. Amalya relaxed a bit. She felt safe in his arms. Lying there staring up at the ceiling, for some strange reason, she thought about Christmas time. She and her sister Genie had been forced to share a room to make space for relatives staying over. This was the only time they would be civil with one another and had actual conversations. Alone together, they would be brave enough to be themselves without the usual sibling rivalry that plagued every other moment of their lives. They found sanctuary in the dark. Exactly as she did with Elliott.

Her mate squeezed her hand and sat up. He edged off the bed.

“Where are you going?” Amalya asked.

Elliott cracked the bedroom door open, an invitation of sorts for Virgil, letting him know it was safe to join them in slumber.

“Oh.”

“Virgil doesn’t like to be alone.”

The other angel was so odd. “I know. What’s wrong with him?”

“You want a list? ‘Cuz there’s not enough paper in the world.”

“Well, even though it annoys me to no end that you leave the door open for him, I do think it’s sweet.”

“Well, he thinks you’re the one who leaves it open, and I want to keep it that way.”

“Okay, whatever, I don’t care.” She yawned and patted the mattress. Elliott stretched out beside her on the bed. The soft feathers on his wings were silky against the skin of her arm. “I love these wings,” she said, fingering a plume. He purred. A touch anywhere on the wing, even at the tip of a feather, could be felt.

“I love it when you touch them.” Even in the darkened room, Amalya could see the outline of his smile.

“Balls!” someone shouted from outside the bedroom.

Amalya rolled her eyes. Virgil was home. What was he swearing about now? He made his return known to everyone in the entire building, not only the two in the apartment. Something brushed against the wall in the hallway. Large wings, cloth or…like someone used their hands to steady themselves while they moved along.

Virgil barged into the room; the door slammed into the rubber stopper. Light flooded in from the hallway.

“Jesus Christ, man,” Elliott said.

“Oh, ex-exshuse me,” Virgil slurred.

The angel was piss drunk. And not alone. Amalya ran a hand through her hair.
You’ve got to me kidding me.

Another angel entered and put her hands on her hips. Her wings were a different color, at least she thought they were. It was hard to tell from the light in the hallway at the female’s back.

Elliott switched on the light and everyone squinted.

“Dahlia?” Elliott asked the female with golden wings. She was warrior class, according to the tapestries that hung on the basement walls at Eternity.

The feathers looked like they’d been sprayed with metallic paint and didn’t appear real. Then she opened and closed them. Amalya glanced at her glassy eyes. The female angel was drunk too.

Great.

“Hi, Ellie,” Dahlia drawled.

“Um, excuse me,” Amalya corrected, “his name is Ellio—”

Her male stood and bear hugged Virgil’s “date.” Naked. Dahlia giggled like teenager with a crush. This beotch only had on a thin cotton gauzy dress and was clearly not wearing any panties.

If he has an erection when he turns…

Amalya squeezed her eyes shut and opened them. Elliott was lucky. This time.

“Heard you made it out of Netherworld. And I see the rumors are true.” Dahlia eyed Amalya, who kicked up her chin.

“What rumors?” Amalya asked Elliott. He ignored her. “What is she talking about? Rumors?” She grabbed his bicep.

“Angel with black wings. A dark angel.” Maybe this chick wasn’t as wasted as Amalya thought.

“Who are you?” Amalya asked.

“Dahlia,” everyone but Amalya chorused.

“Okay. Let me rephrase that. What are you doing in my bedroom?”

“Virgil invited me,” the female said in a tone that suggested Amalya was an idiot.

She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, is there a reason you’re insulting me in my own home? ‘Cuz, uh, I’m totally about kicking your ass.”

Elliott placed an arm around her waist and pulled her around so he was standing between her and Dahlia. “She didn’t mean—”

“Yes.” Amalya stepped out from behind Elliott with her hands on her hips. “Yes, I did mean that.”

Dahlia chuckled. “Feisty. I like her. Like her a lot.”

“I said you would be pleased,” Virgil said, bowing his head.

“You did. And I am. Take care of my Ellie.” Dahlia winked at Amalya.

What the…?

Amalya’s mouth fell open. Who was this person?

“Take care of who? Elliott, what’s she talking about? Calling you hers?”

Elliott’s cheeks reddened. “Nothing.” His eyes didn’t meet hers.

“Uh huh. Right.” Amalya crossed her arms over her chest. “Nothing.”

Dahlia remained silent, which was a good thing. Amalya was liable to go all Netherworld on her ass.

“So,” Elliott started, “how long you in town for?”

“Not sure.”

Amalya was tired and when it seemed the happy reunion wasn’t going to end anytime soon, she cleared her throat. “Ahem.” The talking continued and the three other angels ignored her. “Ahem!”

Elliott glanced at her. “What do you need, sweetheart?”

“
Nothing
. Just
sleep
, is all.” She couldn’t keep the snotty tone out of her voice and didn’t try.

“So go to bed.”

Amalya stared at the wall for a moment. “Fine.” She sighed heavily and crawled up the mattress toward the headboard. After situating her wings, her head hit the pillow. She closed her eyes but didn’t fall asleep. The intention was to ignore her naked mate as he spoke to some beautiful golden winged nightmare. A former lover of Elliott’s, no doubt. She told herself he wasn’t a virgin when they met.

What.

Ever.

She exhaled loud enough for the next door neighbors to hear. The bathroom door closed and the lock clicked into place.

A shadow hung over her face; she opened her eyes. Elliott hovered over her with a crooked grin. “Are you mad?”

“About what?” she asked and rolled onto her side away from his gaze.

He chuckled low and deep. “You’re mad.”

“Nope.”

“Then why are you facing the other way?”

“Maybe I don’t want to look at you right now.”

“Oh,” he laughed, “I see.”

“Was she your lover?” Something banged against the other side of the bathroom door. Dahlia giggled and said a few muffled words to Virgil. “What are they doing in there?” Amalya asked.

“What do ya think?” Elliott rolled his eyes. “And Dahlia and I were over a very long time ago.”

Bang.

“How long is long?”

Bang.

“A couple of millennia ago.”

Amalya looked at the ceiling and winced at another bang from the bathroom. “How long were you togeth—Jesus Christ, Virgil!” He moaned loudly. Elliott whistled, more to avoid the question than to drown out Virgil and Dahlia’s grinding. “How long?” Amalya crossed her legs at the ankles and tapped her feet together. She’d wait all night for his answer.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-TWO

Julia

Julia remembered Abaddon’s words from the night she was murdered:
You’ll come crawling back, they always do.
He’d also called her a hero. Yeah…what a joke…some hero. Several cops had been killed before she intervened. She could do a million good deeds and still feel like a monster. Her heart was black lead inside her chest, weighing her down to the point where she wondered if she would sink if thrown into the ocean.

The wingless guardian angel next to her fell asleep at least three hours ago. Julia sat up, swung her feet off the bed, and stood. The joints cracked as she spread her wings out. A feather fluttered to the floor. She glanced over her shoulder. The patches of feathers were larger and more covered the skin. She scooped the errant plume off the carpet and held it in her open palm. Her gentle exhale caused the downy barbs near the quill to wave in the breeze.

Two hundred and ten dollars was the amount of money Julia had to her name. Getting to Chicago posed a problem. They had two choices; take a bus or steal a car. Considering the price of gas…shit. And how would they eat? Ra’zael had the appetite of a football team.

Again, she thought of Abaddon and the kiss he’d planted on her. At the time, she’d not known the significance. Now she knew he’d infected her with his venom. Why? Had he wanted to see her again? He’d let her go so easily and also told her it was too bad about losing the amulet. How did one summon a Demon Lord? Hmm…

Given the size of the beast she found the summoning called for a larger area. Julia threw on her pants and tied a towel around her torso to shield her breasts from view. She used the elevator to the top floor of the hotel. Finding the rooftop access took about ten minutes. The sound of her shoes on the metal grate stairs echoed in the stairwell. The walls, steps, and hand railings were all painted a medium gray. Freshly painted too. The door to the roof was locked.

She hadn’t thought about that, and perhaps she should also have brought a demon summoning manual with her too. She closed her eyes on the landing by the door. Julia thought about Abaddon…his ebony skin…horns…

This is ridiculous.

“Abaddon,” she whispered.

The heavy metal door creaked and swung wide. She expected to see the demon Ruler on the roof. Instead, a smaller red skinned half-beast with ram-like horns stood in the doorway, only about three feet away. It cocked it head from side to side and spoke in a hissing sort of way. “You ssssummoned my massster.”

Did she?

All she’d done was say his name out loud once. “Ah, yeah.” Julia crossed her arms over her chest.

“He sssent me.”

“You don’t say?” she mocked him.

The beast stared at her. “I do say. My Darknessss is busssy. He asssked me to come inssstead.”

“Busy doing what?” A noise Julia was familiar with came out of the creature. It panted and groaned. So Abaddon was screwing someone…or some
thing
.

Ew
.

She wasn’t going to think about a female version of him.

Gross. Too late.

“He’s having sex, huh?” The thing in front of her recoiled its head. The air around the furry-legged beast fuzzed, creating an outline. “Wait. I need your master’s help. Tell him if he wants the amulet back, he’ll help me.” Julia had no intention of handing over the necklace once she retrieved the talisman. Also, she wasn’t even sure if the Ruler wanted it back; she only assumed it did.

“Yesss, as you wissssh.” It stepped backward and disappeared when the warped atmosphere closed in on him. The door slammed shut in her face, narrowly missing the nose.

Julia headed back down to their room. She laid on the bed next to Ra’zael, who slept without a sound. He was so quiet she sat up and watched his chest for a minute to make sure he was breathing. The angel remained in the same spot as before she went on her little trip to the roof. The effort had been a waste of time. She doubted that imp would relay the message accurately and should’ve made it repeat the words back to her. She laid back onto the mattress and closed her eyes.