The Weight of a Wing (The Stolen Wings Book 1) (6 page)

The two camps met on the front steps, which was the closest
thing they had to neutral ground. A small carry-on waited by the man’s feet.
The Guardians looked relaxed in their stance, although their eyes remained
cautious. Cassie’s uncle was tall and well built, in his forties, and very
male. He may have been human, but that didn’t stop Rafe and Vale from being
ready to pounce at the slightest sign of aggression.

“Uncle Mark,” Cassie said, “you’re here.”

“And so are you,” the man said, eyeing all of them. He
didn’t look too bothered, and if he was surprised, he kept it to himself.

“Our apartment got flooded. Everything is wet—” Cassie made
a face, “—so we decided to spend the weekend here while it dries.” The lie came
out smoothly. “Besides, Ben and Jerry were miserable,” she added for good
measure.

Yes, we were! Yes, we were!
The dogs huffed and
wagged their tails.

Mark lowered his hand to pet their heads, and they almost
purred with contentment. “I see you’ve brought company.” His eyes stopped on
Alise.

“We’re their boyfriends.” Rafe stepped in, slipping a
possessive arm around Alise’s shoulders.

She froze on the spot, startled by the contact, and glanced
up at him. His eyes challenged her to say otherwise. If he wanted to play it
this way, fine. Her back protested, but she didn’t care. The magic felt too
good to pull away.

Standing there with them, Vale looked uncomfortable in his
reserved silence.

“I hope you don’t mind.” Cassie gave her uncle a pretty
smile.

“No, of course not.” The answer came after a moment’s
hesitation. “I told you before. You can come here whenever you want, whether
I’m here or not. And bring your friends, too. The more the merrier!” Mark
grinned, his eyes drifting back towards Alise. “Now, the big question is…” He
picked up the carry-on and headed inside. “Is there any food in the house, or
were you planning to order in?”

Cassie hurried after her uncle, her reply lost as she
rounded the corner of the corridor.

“He likes you.” Rafe tilted his head, looking down at Alise.

“He tried to sleep with me once,” she replied casually.

Rafe pondered over the implications of that statement,
nodding slowly. “Want me to deck him for you?” he offered eagerly. There hadn’t
been a confrontation in almost twenty-four hours. That had to be boring for
him.

“It was a long time ago.” She smirked. “I had more magic
back then.”

“Ouch.” Rafe winced.

“What are we going to do about him?” Vale nodded in the
direction that Mark had disappeared.

“Stay close to Cassie,” Rafe said. “The leech would hit on
anyone.”

“He’s not that bad,” Alise said.

They retreated into the main hall and closed the door behind
them, leaving the dogs outside happily running after a butterfly, yapping,
Pizza
man!

To the Great Danes’ disappointment, the pizza man didn’t
show up that day. There were plenty of canned goods in the cupboard, so Cassie
offered to cook dinner. It was an elaborated process she preferred to do by
herself, refusing everyone’s assistance. She chased Alise out of the kitchen
with a hiss, saying, “Make sure they don’t kill him.”

Cassie had no reason to worry about her uncle’s safety. Mark
was more interested in taking a shower since his day had begun somewhere in
South America eighteen hours earlier. This left the Guardians to their own
devices, and they used the time to attack the liquor cabinet. They were
currently treating themselves to a bottle of eight-year-old brandy.

“Want some?” Rafe held up the bottle for Alise to check the
label.

She shook her head. “No, thanks.”

Rafe shrugged and refilled Vale’s glass. “There might not be
any left if you change your mind.”

Alise didn’t plan to change her mind. She wasn’t a big fan
of human alcoholic beverages, and this was not a good time to get tipsy,
especially with the Guardians around. Instead of curling up in a corner of the
window seat like she wanted to, she sat on the couch with her arms splayed out
on the backrest and her legs crossed. She had changed for dinner, and she was
prepared to put up with Mark’s flirting. She had to appear human, or at least
be convincing enough to fool him. She represented the distraction meant to keep
his attention away from the Guardians’ oddity.

Glass in hand, Vale was checking out the shelves loaded with
Mark’s souvenirs. “So much junk.”

Giving a small nod, Rafe seemed to agree, although he didn’t
say it out loud.

“Can you set the table?” Cassie yelled from the kitchen.
“I’m almost done in here!”

Reluctantly leaving her seat on the couch, Alise pulled open
drawers and cupboards in search of the fine china.

“Oh, so you’ve been here before,” Rafe teased her, noticing
how long it took her to find everything she needed. It wasn’t her fault the
entire house could use a bit of organizing.

She turned around and held out a set of plates. “Boys?”

“Boys?” Rafe snorted, more revolted by the appellative than
the idea they were actually supposed to help with setting the table. “Did you
forget how old we are?”

“Hey, I’m only twenty-five here. You can pretend to be
younger, too.” Alise smirked. Age was hardly an issue on their side. “Mark has
some liberal views on life, but even he wouldn’t approve of his barely legal
niece keeping company with some…” She gestured in their direction, “walking
corpses.”

Vale took the plates from her.

“She loves me,” Rafe said, grinning at Vale. “Forks?”

Alise pointed with a knife.

They were nearly done when Mark made his way into the living
room. He had changed his shirt, his hair still damp from the shower. He looked
less tired and even sniffed the air then glanced at the dinner table and
smiled. “Are we celebrating something?”

Rafe placed the last crystal glass on the table. Next to
him, Alise finished folding a napkin, making it look like a flower, and
decorated the glass with it. “No, just dinner,” she said.

“We’re celebrating your return, Uncle Mark.” Cassie carried
a tray containing finger sandwiches. “Eat fast before the soup gets cold.”

“Soup?” Rafe blinked.

She nodded. “Mushroom soup.”

“We’re eating
soup
?” He made a long face as if he had
been hoping for something more substantial

Alise mockingly patted his arm. “Now, don’t start being
fussy…”

“Don’t worry about him. He’ll eat anything.” Vale waved a
hand and helped Cassie with the tray.

Mark followed the exchange with curiosity as they moved
closer to the table. He leaned in to whisper to Alise. “Are they part of some
gang?”

On her other side, Rafe’s mouth twitched.

“Not one you would understand,” she whispered back, and Mark
didn’t push it.

The conversation mostly revolved around Mark’s trip. He
talked about distant places the others had only heard about. He traveled a lot,
his business taking him to the oddest locations, but he was a smooth talker so
his stories didn’t bore them. The Guardians pretended to be interested in the
girls he had met. Cassie muttered under her breath, “I’d like to know how Sarah
feels about that.”

“Sarah?” Mark raised his eyebrows at her. “She’s history.”

“I don’t think she got that memo,” Cassie replied, and Alise
had to muffle a chuckle.

Mark’s off and on girlfriend refused to understand the
meaning of the word “no”. She appeared by his side at all family reunions, and
everyone thought she wasn’t going to give up until he surrendered and married
her. No luck yet, but she was persistent.

“Well, I didn’t get these for her.” Mark retrieved two sets
of necklaces and bracelets from his pocket—one made of red coral and one of
turquoise—and handed them over to Cassie. “I got them for you. This old woman
at the airport practically begged me to buy them.”

“Thanks,” Cassie murmured. She spread the threads with her
fingers, a pleased smile on her face. Her uncle had an eye for nice things.

“I wasn’t prepared for guests. You’ll have to be a good girl
and share them with your friend,” he told her, nodding towards Alise.

Cassie smiled and handed Alise the coral set, keeping the
turquoise one for herself. Vale helped her put it on. Alise wrapped both the
bracelet and the necklace around her wrist. The uneven pieces of coral bit into
her skin, but the color complimented her shirt nicely.

“That looks dangerous,” Rafe commented, pointing with his
fork at her choked wrist.

Mark grinned, not worried by the fact that he was offering
jewelry to another man’s woman.

“They’re lovely. Thank you.” Cassie awkwardly leaned over
the corner of the table to give her uncle a hug.

“Thanks,” Alise echoed her words.

“You’re both welcome. Anything for the two constant women in
my life.”

“You forgot Mom,” Cassie said.

“Your mom doesn’t count,” Mark replied.

Cassie rolled her eyes. The ongoing family feud was the bane
of her existence. “Okay. I’m going to get the main course. Everybody, don’t get
up.” She waved her hands for them to remain in their seats.

Three pairs of eyes followed her as she headed to the
kitchen.

Food! Food!
the dogs chanted outside the back door,
but no one hurried to let them in.

“What did the old lady do to you?” Rafe asked, reaching for
the bottle to refill his glass. “Why the hate?”

“She got married at eighteen … to my brother.”

“Mark will never forgive her for that,” Alise added.

“Not in this lifetime.” Mark nodded. “She screwed up his
life.” It didn’t matter that both of Cassie’s parents were accomplished doctors
and had a wonderful daughter. In his opinion, the woman had still ruined his
brother’s life.

“Well, something good came out of it,” Vale said, looking
towards the kitchen.

 Did he mean it, or he was just making conversation? Alise
had to agree, though. She was glad Cassie was in her life.

Mark shrugged. “She must have gotten her determination from
her mother. She definitely didn’t get her shitty cooking skills,” he said,
pensively. “More wine?”

Vale held up his glass to be refilled.

“Umm … guys? I could use a hand in here,” Cassie called out.

Rafe and Alise looked at each other, alerted by the slight
hint of panic in the girl’s voice. “Hold on! We’re coming!” Rafe rested a hand
on Vale’s shoulder to keep him in his chair, then picked up two empty plates to
carry into the kitchen.

Alise put her napkin down and followed him. They found
Cassie standing in a corner between the sink and the fridge, staring with
terrified eyes at the muddy mess overflowing from the oven.

“The soufflé is
not
supposed to do that,” she said,
her voice shaking.

With Rafe having instinctively gone to Cassie to protect
her, Alise stood closer to the oven so she placed her palm on the sticky mess
coming out of it. Sparks ran all over the monster’s body, the mud trying to go
up her arm. Lucky for her, Rafe wasn’t far. He opened the oven door wider and
stabbed the monster with his blade. The bubbling stopped.

“Running out of juice, huh?” He glanced at her while keeping
an eye on the oven.

The monster showed no sign of movement. It deflated and
poured out of the oven, gathering in a muddy pool on the floor.

Pressing her lips tightly together, Alise walked to the sink
to wash her hands. Drops of monster blood had collected on her new set of
bracelets, and she kept her hand under the running water for a long time to
wash it all off.

With Cassie still shaking in her corner, Rafe went to her.
“It’s okay. We got it. Sorry about the soufflé. Is there anything left to eat?”

“Y-yeah…” Cassie nodded and gingerly walked to the stove,
careful not to step into the pool of mud. She pulled the lid off a tray
containing baked potatoes and steaks.

“Good.” Rafe gave an approving nod. “Take it to the table.
We’ll be there in a minute.”

Cassie glanced worriedly at Alise, but when she also nodded,
she did as she was told.

There was a long silence in the kitchen, then Alise frowned,
asking, “How did it get in?”

Rafe shook his head. “I have no idea.”

“Not as monster-proof as you’d think, is it?” She made a
grimace. They were nowhere near safe.

When they heard a muffled sound like an unfolding paper bag,
Rafe narrowed his eyes and eyed the top row of cupboards, trying to identify
the source.

“Third from the right,” Alise said quietly. She didn’t know
how she knew it, but she did.

Rafe pulled the door open and stabbed the growing thing
right before it dropped on him.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the only one. The second cupboard
was full, too. Then the first from the left. And the second. And the fourth and
fifth. Why did this kitchen have so many cupboards? It wasn’t like anyone used
them, other than the monsters nesting inside. They were popping out like
popcorn.

Alise pointed them out, and Rafe killed them one by one. It
was creepy how she could feel their presence. She didn’t remember anything like
that happening before.
First wave
. She didn’t know how, but she knew it
was only the first wave. Rafe managed to keep up with the attack … barely. Like
the previous day, it wasn’t a simple attack. It was an invasion, and it didn’t
stop. She retreated towards the door. The kitchen was compromised.

Her foot slipped on the tiles, and something bubbled by her
feet, so she jumped back. The monster wasn’t as dead as they had thought
because it had slowly migrated towards her. Its edges had turned purple and
started to scintillate. This couldn’t be a good sign. “Rafe! The floor!”

Rafe spun around. One look was all it took for him to forget
about the cupboards and slide on his knees across the floor. With one hand, he
slammed his blade against the ground with such force, a tile cracked. So did
the monster. It turned into a solid mass that broke in several pieces. When
Rafe pulled out the blade, the monster turned into sand, finally dead. As if
commanded, the cupboard monsters did the same. Tiny dust particles rained over
them.