To Hell and Back (Mel Goes to Hell Series Book 4) (10 page)

Why was it so cold? Mel reached for the blankets to pull them over her head, but found none. Blinking, she looked around. The darkening sky outside the window told her it was evening, but she couldn't remember having lunch. She'd somehow fallen asleep on the sofa but she was colder now than she'd been that morning.

"I thought you were going to sleep all afternoon," Luce said, his touch tingling as he stroked her hair.

Tingling…healing…he'd been healing her as she lay unconscious. Well, that sure answered her question about whether he'd help her or cause more trouble while she was weak, but it didn't explain the chilly inside air. On the other hand, she certainly felt more like herself. Luce's healing ability was improving.

"You should have woken me," she said, sitting up. "What happened to lunch?"

"In the fridge. I figured I'd heat yours up when you woke."

Mel nodded and rose stiffly to her feet. "Why's it so cold in here?"

Luce shrugged. "It is? I didn't notice."

Shaking her head, Mel hurried to the bedroom and shrugged into her winter coat. Luce wasn't in the lounge room when she returned, so she followed the sound of swearing to the kitchen. "What is it?"

Luce held out his finger. "Paper cut from the tea box."

Mel laughed and healed him with a touch. "Tea would help."

"I figured whisky would warm you up pretty well, too, but I wasn't sure which you'd prefer." Luce nudged the glass on the bench and the aroma of aged whisky wafted Mel's way.

She breathed deeply. "That's Patrick's new one, the bottle you boys were drinking last night, isn't it? So you two didn't finish it off while I was asleep." She lifted the glass and sniffed. "Now I know why you boys didn't argue. Wouldn't want to spill a drop of this." She sipped it and sighed with pleasure. "I should have tea, but I haven't had whisky this good in a while." Carefully, she drank half of it, then handed the glass to Luce. "You should have some, too, so I'm not drinking alone. Thank you for taking such good care of me."

He looked gratified. "Of course I took care of you. With all you do for me, how could I not return the favour? It wasn't exactly a hardship. I got to undress you, share your shower, and hold you in my arms. Any time, Melody, I'd do anything for you." He drank some of her whisky. "Damn, that's good. See? I even get to share great whisky with you. Now, I should probably heat up your lunch. Are you hungry?"

Mel glanced at her watch. "Yes, but Patrick said he'd be done by five and it's close to that now. He'll be back within the hour and then we'll go out for dinner. I'll be fine to wait, as long as he isn't late."

A door slammed downstairs, followed by the thunder of running footsteps on old wooden stairs. "You're talking about me, aren't you?" Patrick called up. "Well, that's funny, because you're the one on everyone's lips today. The Chief of MI6 or whatever they're called now almost dragged me out of the Prime Minister's office to interrogate me about you. Wanted to know how I knew Ms D'Angelo…or as he called her, the Angel of Afghanistan." He reached for a glass and poured himself some whisky. "Care to explain?"

Mel permitted herself a small smile. "He was the senior British intelligence officer stationed in Afghanistan. I'm surprised he didn't recognise me this morning. He must have a lot on his plate at the moment. It was nothing unusual. You know me in war, Patrick. I…help."

"Help?" Luce repeated darkly.

Mel laid a hand on his arm. "It's what I do best. I help wars end and I try to minimise the casualties during the conflict. Afghanistan was actually easier than Iraq, which isn't saying much. It was the sand that got to me most. Now, I managed to skip lunch, so is there any chance you boys will agree to have an early dinner on my account? Patrick, you mentioned venison and I've been trying to work out how long it's been since I tasted it. You know what? I don't know. I must have forgotten."

Patrick grinned. "Let me get out of my work clothes and we can go. You might want to change, too, Mel – this one's a fancy restaurant and you know how Londoners get."

Mel glanced down. Yes, she did know how Londoners got. Sighing, she headed for the bedroom to find a suitable dress for dinner.

Patrick called after her, "Don't take too long primping. I'm starving, and after dinner I'm dying to hear all about your adventures in Hell."

Patrick reached for the bottle of wine. "I still can't believe you brought ping pong balls into Hell, Mel. I’m going to be laughing about that one for ages. Every time I think about it." Red wine glugged into his glass. He held the bottle out to Luce. "More?"

Luce glanced at his nearly full glass and shook his head. He'd lost track of how much he'd had to drink, but it wasn't like he'd be driving. All he had to do was stumble down the passage to bed. He could crawl and still make it.

"She's the only angel to ever make it all the way through Hell unscathed, and out again, too," Luce said, raising his glass before he gulped half of it down. "Nothing short of miraculous, that's Melody."

"An angel in Hell." Patrick burst out laughing, still shaking his head. "No one else would have dared…and you just walked in there. Mel, what were you thinking?"

Mel was strangely silent.

"Mel?"

Both Patrick and Luce stared at her. Mel's eyes were closed and her even breathing was the only sound in the silent flat.

"She's fallen asleep," Patrick breathed. "Must take something pretty important for her to just leave without a word like that. Best get her body to bed and be ready to help if she needs us. I hope it's not another bomb in the Tube…"

Something didn't seem right. "No. She's here." Luce leaned over. "Melody, wake up, sweetheart." He kissed her and felt her respond, so he kissed her again.

"You're a braver man than I am," Patrick remarked.

Luce ignored him, keeping every bit of his focus on Mel. Her lips were moving under his and her eyelids fluttered. Reluctantly, he pulled away, but his eyes didn't leave her face.

Mel sighed and smiled. "That was…the sweetest way to wake up. Thank you. I…I didn't mean to doze off like that. I was listening to you telling Patrick about the strange supernova you saw and didn't realise my body had slipped into unconsciousness."

Luce stroked her hair. "It's okay. It's probably not half as exciting to you. You didn't see a girl turn into a star."

Patrick cleared his throat. "Mel, you passed out. I figured you were off saving half of London, but he knew different. Care to explain? Is it true – you and him…" His voice seemed to die on him.

"Bonded," Mel said softly. "Our souls are bonded. The night Luce became an angel again. I'd never have found him in Hell if we weren't."

"Why?" Patrick croaked out. "He'd barely been an angel for five minutes, Mel!"

Luce had wondered exactly the same thing, but he'd never dared to ask her. Now was his chance to find out.

Luce felt Mel's fingers grasp his hand and squeeze. Her body stiffened as she kept her eyes on Patrick. "Because I love him. Because he'd invited me deep into his soul and I didn't want to break such a powerful connection with a kindred spirit. Because I was selfish and I didn't want to let go of the soul I loved." She blew out a breath. "Not after I'd had to give him up once for Persi." A warm drop of liquid landed on Luce's arm, followed by several more. She was crying, he realised.

He wrapped his arms around her, the precious angel who loved him. "Since when? When did you know?" The words were out before Luce realised he'd opened his mouth.

Mel sniffled. "I don't know. I believe it started at the office picnic, but I didn't realise until after you left with Persi. I…I travelled to New York one night to check on you both, and it broke my heart to leave you in that state. Persi called me every day after that and I told her how to take care of you. From your coffee to your meals to your shirts and your schedule and everything I could think of. She wanted so much to be an angel that she begged to take my place in HELL so she could prove herself. And Raphael agreed, so I stepped back."

Luce snorted at his own stupidity in not seeing it before. "It was you. The whole time, it was you. The first week with Persephone was maddening, she was so useless. And then it was like she learned and improved…but she didn't really, did she? Everything she did was on your advice." Triumph kindled in his chest. Mel had wanted him – she hadn't been immune to his charms after all. The constant offers of sex from the nephilim had come from Mel!

Mel laughed weakly. "Not everything."

Luce waited with bated breath.

"She's the one who wanted to go to bed with you. I had no advice for her on that subject, though she asked enough times."

Luce's heart plummeted. Had none of his amorous advances in the office affected Mel at all? Wait, there'd been the time Persi had…

"And I've never given a man oral sex in my life. That's definitely Persi's speciality, or so I've heard."

Shit. Even Luce's fantasies, wishing the lamprey who'd blown him had been Mel, crumbled into dust.

Patrick burst out laughing. "I'm not sure what's funnier. Hearing you talk about blowjobs or seeing his hopes for one wither and die in his expression." Under Mel's gaze, the saint sobered and stood. "I'll go get some more drinks, shall I?" He gathered the glasses and retreated to the kitchen.

Mel's soft voice was barely audible. "I'm sorry, Luce. If I'd known how much trouble Persi would cause with my assistance, I'd never have let her accompany you. And I shouldn't…shouldn't have sealed the bond without asking you first. If you want to dissolve the bond between us, tell me and I'll do it. I'll help find you another mentor to replace me so that you don't have to even look at me again if you don't want to. I did what I did because I wanted your soul and because I love you. You have no obligation to me and I thank you for everything –"

"Hold up," Luce interrupted. "What are you talking about? Breaking bonds and foisting me on someone else?" His heart froze. "Am I too much trouble for you, Mel? Please, I know I'm rusty at being an angel, but I'll try harder, I swear. Please don't dissolve anything. Please, Mel. As I recall, I begged you on my knees for your help that night and I'll do it again. Nothing has made me happier than this bond, or whatever it is we share. You raised me from the depths of Hell because of it. I owe you more than anything for what you've done for me. And I will repay you, in any way I can." He kissed her, praying desperately that she wouldn't pull away. She'd risked everything for him in Heaven, Hell and on Earth and all the realms were empty without her. "I love you, Melody, and NOTHING will change that."

She smiled through her tears and Luce's heart dared to beat again.

"Even if you don't know how to give a blowjob," he continued.

Mel let out a very un-angelic snort.

"With a bit of instruction and a lot of practice, maybe you could –"

"Luce!" Whatever else she'd meant to say was lost in her helpless laughter.