Mystery's Choice (Vengeance Of The Fallen Book 1) (22 page)

Mystery just laughed at both of them and sat down with her coffee. Both Ryan and Seth stopped eating.

“You are having breakfast.”  Seth commanded.

“I am not hungry.”

“So. You are still eating something. You have gotten entirely too skinny. You want to have the strength to fight Cain, don’t you?”  Ryan got up and filled a plate and he sat it in front of her. They both stared at her until she picked up the fork and took a bite. Ryan sat down and finished his food. When he was finished he washed his plate and put it in the dish rack and went and gathered his suitcase and duffel from the living room.

“I am going to go sleep for the next four or five days. Wake me if you need me.”  He disappeared upstairs.

“Let’s go pick out some new furniture.”  Seth said when Mystery had finished the last bit of food on her plate.

“Okay. This time I think I want something with rose petals in the pattern.”

Seth blanched.

“Just kidding.” Mystery smiled mischievously and grabbed her purse and coat.

Seth pinched her behind as she went past him through the door.

They were both laughing when they pulled out of the driveway.

Cain bowed his head and searched out his father. He smiled with pride when he found his father punishing two lesser demons. Their shrieks bouncing off the walls served as a lesson to all of the Infernal Kingdom. Eventually, their shrieks stopped as Satan ripped out their spines and devoured them. With a raised hand he acknowledged he was done and growls broke out in the surrounding crowd as they rushed to finish the feast. Satan returned to his throne room, licking blood from his fingers. His face lit with a malevolent smile when he saw his son.

“You were magnificent as always.”  Cain said as he bowed down.

“Arise, my son.”  Satan lounged upon his throne. “I assume you have come to report on things with Melusine.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Has she decided to come home to her people?”

“Not yet. However, Father she is weakening. It is only a matter of time.”  Cain approached the throne. “Please give me more time, Father.”  Cain knelt before his father.

“Time is something, which is at a premium, my son.”  Satan stood, knelt and put an arm around his son’s shoulders. “I will give you three months, I can give you no more. If she hasn’t come to her senses by then, you must destroy her.”

“Thank you for the extension, Father.”  Cain stood.

“I know you love the girl, however she cannot be allowed to stand in the way of the ascension. I love her too, but I have been waiting two thousand years to take my rightful place. I have contrived and manipulated entire civilizations to come to this time. I can’t have anyone, not even my beautiful, young granddaughter stand in my way.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Now, go and tell Raevanne my decision, explain to her why. Tell her if there is anything she can do to sway her child to do it.”  He pushed Cain toward the door. “Give her my love.”

“Yes, Father.”  Cain sighed as he went to do as he was told.

Ryan smiled to himself as the scent of roses and vanilla filled his senses. Mystery was probably downstairs fixing breakfast. He could hear her humming as he headed down the stairs.

He stood in the kitchen door watching her dance across the floor to music only she could hear. He choked back laughter as she pretended to strip to the beat. The laughter fled when she began to gyrate, Ryan had to adjust his jeans and involuntarily he cleared his throat. Mystery stopped dancing and whirled around, her eyes locking with Ryan’s. She gasped when she saw the intensity in them. She tried to look away but she couldn’t, no one had ever looked at her with such heat. She fought to make her feet move as Ryan stepped toward her.

“Am I late for breakfast?”  Seth came bounding through the door. He stepped in between them, breaking the spell.

“No. I’m just making it.”  Mystery tilted her head up for his kiss. He kissed her and went to get orange juice; he was oblivious to the tension in the air.

Mystery looked over at Ryan, her eyes misting at the pain in them. He went to sit at the table, careful not to sit next to her place. Sighing, Mystery went back to fixing their breakfast.

After breakfast she went upstairs to shower. She rapped lightly on the door and when no one said anything she open the door and screeched to a halt. Ryan was standing there, toweling off his naked body. He looked up and their eyes met. Mystery allowed her gaze to take in the muscular chest and broad shoulders. Her eyes continued down to a rock hard abdomen and tapered waist. She heard Ryan draw in breath when her gaze slid to his manhood. Her hands ached to touch him as he began to harden from her stare. When he reached for her she turned and fled, slamming the door behind her.

As Ryan dried off, he wondered how much more of this he could take, he had been the one to hold her the six months his brother had been gone. She had cuddled next to him, when she woke up screaming from some horrible nightmare. She felt perfect in his arms; she flooded his mind and his heart. He knew he couldn’t stay here and keep pretending he didn’t want Mystery. He knew he would eventually not care who they hurt and stop her from running away.

He dressed and began to pack his things; a hotel was the safest place for him. He closed the suitcase and walked to the door, glancing back to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything. So, he didn’t see Mystery standing in the door and he almost ran her over. He grabbed her before she could fall and they both jerked apart.

“I’m going to a hotel.”  He looked at her. She was crying,

“What is it?  Is something wrong?” he pushed past her and started down the stairs. She followed him.

“No.” she wiped at her face, I was just coming up to ask you if you didn’t think a hotel would be a good idea.”  She touched his face. “I don’t want you to go, you make me feel safe. But this attraction between us is only going to get us in trouble.”

“I know. I feel the same way. But, if I don’t go, we’re going to end up hurting Seth.”  He took her hand and gently squeezed it before lowering it. He picked up his suitcase and without turning around, he walked out the door, fighting not to go back when he heard her sobbing behind him.

15

Seth noticed the dark circles under Mystery’s eyes as they sat down to dinner. He had guessed why Ryan went to a hotel, but until he’d seen Mystery’s face, he’d thought Ryan’s feelings were one-sided. He lowered his head and ate his peas. After dinner they played rummy and he let Mystery win a few hands, until she called him on it. She walked around the table to sit on his lap.

“Aren’t you going to ask why Ryan left?”  She rested her head on his shoulder.

“I know.”  He turned her to look at him. “It’s only natural, he was here helping you get through the last six months and I wasn’t. I just know neither of you would hurt me, you both love me.”

“I don’t know why it happened.”  Mystery said returning her head to his shoulder.

“I do.”

“Why?”

“Because he doesn’t run and hide. He stayed here and took care of you and went looking for me for days on end. He called you every night to make sure you were okay and to let you know he was fine. He stayed.”

“You have been dealing with this longer than he has. You had a right to freak out.”  Mystery lifted her head and glared at him.

“That may be true. But we both know no matter how long Ryan had been dealing with this he still wouldn’t have run. Ryan’s never run from anything in his life. He will stick by you every step of the way. He will never make you wonder if this is
the something,
which will make him take off. You have feelings for him, because you can see his strength.”

Mystery settled in Seth’s lap, she wished nothing Seth was saying made any sense. But she knew he was telling the truth.

“I still love you, Seth.” She hugged him.

“I know.”  He hugged her back and wondered how long it would be before she loved his brother more.

Ryan lay across town and dreamed of his brother’s fiancée. He kept seeing the way she had caressed his body with her eyes. He knew it was wrong but he couldn’t help it. His heart hurt and he rubbed his chest, God help him; he was falling in love with her.

Mystery hummed softly to herself as she let the warm soapy water fill the bucket. Dunking the mop up and down in it she allowed herself to pretend she had a normal life. She could finish mopping the sunny kitchen and start baking cookies for her family for when they came in from school and work.

She fantasized Jeremiah had come home unscathed and was now in school. She and Seth had other happy, healthy children who were proud to call him brother. They all would sit around the kitchen table and tell her how fascinating their day had been. Later, Seth would come home and they would gather as a family to eat some mundane dinner like meatloaf. The kids would do their homework and go to bed. And Seth and she would quietly make love behind a locked door. Mystery wanted that life desperately. Instead she had a never-ending nightmare. Her powers had grown in strength enough to protect them while they slept. And she almost had Seth believing she would win the battle eventually.

Mystery walked back over to the sink to dump the dirty water after she’d finished mopping. As she rinsed the bucket she began to think about how much she missed having Seth in her bed. It had been two weeks since Ryan had left for the hotel. Things between the brothers were strained; things between her and Ryan were awkward. Seth had moved into the guest room one night last week. He claimed she had called out Ryan’s name in her sleep. He wouldn’t talk about it, he just ignored the problem, and instead of it getting better, things between them were becoming more and more distant. She put the mop and bucket down with a newfound determination; she would just have to make sure Seth moved back in with her. Mystery decided a romantic meal and some candlelight might break the ice. She smiled. And with any luck, she wouldn’t be sleeping alone tonight. She closed her eyes and dreamt about how nice it would be for Seth to come in the door and put his arms around her like he used to.

Mystery shrieked as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. She looked down and her vision blurred, for she could see no arms there. The arms loosened their hold and invisible hands began to knead her breasts. Mystery’s head fell back and she moaned. The hands turned her so she was facing her invisible lover. They lifted her up and placed her on the kitchen table. He unzipped her shorts and pulled them and her underwear down her legs and off over her bare feet. He spread her legs. A disembodied chuckle filled the air as Mystery’s breathing sped up. She gasped in shock as a finger slowly worked itself inside her. Slowly it moved in and out, in and out. Mystery could feel a broad chest pressing her down on the table and an invisible mouth kissed her, its tongue imitating the motion of the finger. She felt the pressure building and building until she thought she would die from the pleasure. He used his knees to press her legs further apart and then he rammed into her. The shock made Mystery come. She held onto the sides of the table as he worked in and out of her furiously, the friction almost too much, just this side of pain. Then she felt herself coming again and with a primal shout and one last shove her invisible lover came. In the next instant, she was alone in the sunny kitchen again and she was so cold. She curled up in a little ball on top of the table and cried. Mystery dozed for several hours, so when she awoke the sun no longer shone through her frilly yellow curtains. When she slid off the table she realized she was sore. She slowly bent to pick up her clothes. When she looked down at her body she could see it was covered with bruises. She sighed resignedly and got dressed. Mystery jumped as she heard a voice call her name.

“Mystery, my darling child.”  Cain smiled as she backed away from him. “What, no hug for your old man?”

“Screw you!”  Mystery yelled at him. She made herself stand her ground.

Cain chuckled. “My little gift wasn’t enough?” he moved toward her, “very well, bend over.”  He finished matter-of-factly.

“Why are you torturing me?  If I am your daughter, why don’t you just leave me to lead the life that makes me happy?”

“It is not my wish to torture you. I just need you to come home. As for my gift, I figured if you sampled someone worthy of your sexual talents and stamina” he was close enough to toy with her hair, “you could begin to see how inadequate your life here, with him, is.”  He cupped her face in cold, cold hands. “Come home, my daughter.”

“Never!”  Mystery jerked away from him and focused her thoughts. He stepped towards her, she raised her hand and he roared angrily as he slammed into an invisible wall.

Mystery gasped, all the air was being sucked out of the room, out of her body. She screamed as she burst into flames. Calming herself, she thought about cool, clear water extinguishing the fire. Slowly, the flames died. She centered herself and with everything in her concentrated on banishing her father from the room.

“I’ll be back!”  Cain bellowed as he began to fade. Mystery fell to her knees and wept. He would definitely be back.

Seth surprised himself. He knew he had lost Mystery to his brother, yet he kept hoping he would come home and find things between himself and Mystery like they used to be; she wasn’t staying out of obligation; he wasn’t staying out of fear. He knew sooner or later Mystery would figure out how to beat Cain and then all of this would be over. Yes, he occasionally came home to find the house ripped apart and Mystery scrubbing muck off the walls but all in all things had gotten better. It was like just having Ryan near by and having him add his protective powers to Mystery’s was swinging the battle in their favor. His food no longer came to life when he cut into it, and he never drank any body fluids, just beer and the occasional o.j. Things were going smoothly with the review board, if they continued the way they had been he would definitely be starting his residency over in the spring. He had his drug problem under control. If he and Mystery could find their way back to each other, life would be almost back to normal. Only now he had to find a way to tell Mystery he would have to go away for two weeks to a seminar if he expected to get back into the residency program.

He worked out different scenarios in his head as he drove down the street. He would just explain things and Mystery would understand, he could even ask Ryan to come and stay in the house. He needed to know if what they felt for each other was stronger than their loyalty to him. Leaving them alone in the house for two weeks would give him his answer, but it couldn’t seem planned or they would fight whatever they felt for each other. He pulled into the driveway, stopped the car, got his duffel bag and bounded into the house. The house was pitch black, and freezing. A foul stench hung in the air, wrapping itself around Seth and pulling him in. He jumped as the door slammed shut behind him.

Seth forced himself to breathe. “Mystery, are you home?”

“No one’s here but me, lover.”

Seth watched as a tall sultry redhead with an impossibly perfect body, slunk down the stairs. He closed his eyes and prayed she would go away. Long, graceful fingers worked his zipper down and grasped his manhood. Seth kept his eyes closed and continued to pray. His legs involuntarily shifted apart as her mouth closed on him, making him harden. Seth moaned, but kept his eyes closed. Tears slipped through his closed eyelids, as he came in her mouth. Her sultry laughter whispered across his chest as she leaned up to kiss him.

“Better luck next time, lover.”

Seth slowly opened his gray eyes. He sighed. Everything was as it should be. There was a fire crackling in the fireplace exuding cozy warmth. He could smell dinner and a faint hint of the pine-cleaner Mystery used to clean with. With slumped shoulders Seth headed upstairs to find his girlfriend. Seth found her upstairs brushing her hair, making it shine. She smelled of soap when he nuzzled her neck.

“Hi, hon.” He whispered as he turned her around and hugged her. They both began to cry. Seth didn’t need her to tell him she’d had another fight with Cain. He only got the special demon welcome home after Cain had upset Mystery.

“Dinner’s ready.”  She pulled away and went out into the hall and down the stairs.

Seth took his place at the table and waited as Mystery brought in the chicken she had baked. She made a second trip into the kitchen and brought out the broccoli and potatoes au gratin. They bowed their heads and said grace and Seth cut the bird and placed some on both of their plates. He smiled after the first bite; Mystery sure could cook.

“So, how did it go today with the review board?”

“Good, except, they need me to go to a conference out of town for two weeks.”  Seth chewed on his lips.

“For two whole weeks?”  Mystery put her fork down.

“Yes. I was thinking of having Felicity and Mary Kate check on you every day.”  He lied. “I’ll call every night; I think you will be fine.”

“I wish you didn’t have to go, but I understand. I am trying to keep Felicity and Mary Kate away from me as much as possible. Just because Cain hasn’t gone after them doesn’t mean he won’t. So, I don’t want to put them in harm’s way; I’ll manage by myself.”  Mystery made herself eat. She knew her strength was important.

“Okay, if you’re sure?  I will have to leave in the morning.”

“That soon?”

“Yes. My flight is at 6 a.m. out of DIA. It’ll take me at least an hour and a half to get out there. So I will take a cab.”

“Okay. I’ll help you pack after dinner.”

“I love you, Mystery.”  Seth finished his food and moved to take their plates back into the kitchen. “I’ll do the dishes.”

“Okay.”

Seth squatted down in front of her. I’ll just be in Dallas. A two hour plane ride and I’m here if you need me.”  He hugged her.

“I know. I’m fine.”  Mystery lied. She closed her eyes when he left the room. It didn’t matter if he was two hours or two weeks away. It would never be enough to make her feel safe. He would never be enough to make her feel safe.

Mystery had begged Seth not to go, even though she had promised herself she wouldn’t. But he had and now she was alone in the huge barn of a house. She chuckled at herself as she went from room to room turning on the lights and locking all the windows, as though it would help.