Beauty Awakened

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

ZACHAREL DISMISSED EVERYONE except Koldo and Axel.

Thane, Bjorn and Xerxes flew up and darted west. The females stepped from the cloud and arrowed down, toward the earth. Each person wore a similar expression: a blend of shock and horror, fury and determination.

Koldo wanted to curse. There was only one reason to keep him here—an assignment that would prevent him from hunting the demons responsible for Germanus’s death.

“A horde of Nefas and serp demons did some damage to a park in Wichita, Kansas.” Zacharel rattled off the coordinates. “Clerici has asked that I send the two of you to clean the mess and find the culprits, since you each have a personal stake in this.”

“Because we fought the serp scum a few days ago,” Axel said, a statement rather than a question.

Zacharel’s piercing green gaze locked on Koldo. “That’s one of the reasons, yes.”

He didn’t know. He couldn’t know. Not even Germanus had known about Koldo’s origins. Zacharel had to be referring to the fact that Nicola was involved. “I’ll take care of this. Alone.” His father’s people had done the damage, and so Koldo would be the one to fight the battle—and finally wipe out the entire clan. “And then I’ll hunt the demons responsible for this travesty.”

Zacharel arched a brow, amused rather than irritated. “Actually, you’ll do it together. I’ve decided to make your partnership permanent. And no, you won’t be hunting the demons responsible for the king’s demise. You’re too busy guarding the human.”

“I can do both.”

“But you won’t. You singled her out, and I allowed you to bring her into our world because I wanted to see you happy. I know how drastically love can change your—”

“I don’t love her,” he said in a rush. He couldn’t.

Zacharel patted him on the shoulder. “You agreed to look after her, and you cannot do that if you’re never with her.”

Bottom line: he had to choose between helping Nicola and avenging his dearest friend. “If your men haven’t found the demons by the time Nicola is healed and able to defend herself, I’ll take over the hunt.”

“Take over? No. One day, however, I might allow you to join the hunt. One thing you need to learn, Koldo,” Zacharel said tightly. “You can’t do everything on your own. Sometimes you have to accept help. It’s a lesson I had to learn, as well.” With that, the Sent One flared his golden wings and shot straight into the night.

“Should we get rings to seal this deal, life partner?” Axel asked, stroking his chin.

“One day I’ll probably remove your head,” Koldo replied, and flashed to the park in Wichita.

The change in time zones brought him to a sun-drenched paradise. Humans strolled through the grass and along the cobbled walkway. Mothers pushed strollers, men walked their dogs. Trees stretched high, casting shadows. He knew this was where Nicola and Laila had spotted his father, but where was the mess Zacharel had mentioned?

He dug the phone out of his pocket and dialed Nicola’s number. After three rings, she picked up.

“Hello?”

The sound of her voice soothed the roughest edges of his emotions—and the knowledge irritated him. “Where did you see the bald man?”

“Oh.” She described the area.

“Thank you.” A pause. “I’ll be late.”

“No worries.”

He cleared his throat. “Are you wearing the pajamas I got you?”

“I am. But, Koldo—is everything okay? You sound upset.”

Do you care? he wanted to ask.

Axel landed beside him, wings snapping into place at his back.

“I must go,” Koldo said, shifting from one booted foot to another. “I’ll speak to you soon.” He closed the phone and stuffed it back in his pocket.

“So...no rings?” Axel asked, as if their conversation had never lagged.

Koldo picked up where he’d left off, as well. “One day might be today.” He walked until he reached the location Nicola had described. There! Tracks. He pounded forward and crouched in front of a pair of footprints. The soles of the boots had been spiked with serp venom, leaving the grass singed. It was a pattern he knew well. His father or one of his men had stood in this very spot and—

He sniffed. And infected the bark of the tree, as well. Frowning, Koldo studied the trunk. Several areas had been scraped and left jagged by sharpened claws. The sulfur-scented black smoke the Nefas projected covered the wood. There appeared to be hundreds of tiny bugs crawling from the damage.

Already the tree bore signs of impending death. The leaves were withering. The grass around it had yellowed. Several dead birds lay in its shade. A nearby dog had attempted to mark the tree but was now hopping around next to its owner and whimpering, its paws probably burning.

“What’s the damage?” Axel asked, stepping up beside him.

“Have you ever been exposed to Nefas smoke?”

“Well, yeah. Who hasn’t?”

Almost everyone still breathing. But all right. Axel knew what to expect if he allowed himself to so much as brush against the stuff. “Check all the other trees. Any bearing the taint will have to be uprooted, the entire area cleansed.”

“So you plan to be the boss in our little partnership?” Axel asked casually.

Koldo ignored the question. “Do you have a cloud?”

“Is this silly-question day? Of course I have a cloud.”

“Summon it.”

Axel nodded, and a split second later, white mist enveloped them.

“Let the humans see the park,” Axel told the cloud, “but don’t allow them to come near us.”

As the mist cleared, becoming translucent to the eye and somewhat solid to the touch, forming a bubble around them, Koldo jumped into the necessary work. The venom and smoke wouldn’t kill him, but it would weaken him. Still, he wrapped his arms around the tree trunk and, using all of his strength, ripped the roots from the ground. He tossed the entire thing into an air pocket to be burned later. He also scooped up every grain of dirt bearing the sharp, telltale aroma of the smoke. He picked up every fallen leaf, even the dead birds.

“There were five others,” Axel said, returning to his side.

They spent the next few hours on cleanup, Koldo leaving pieces of the cloud around each of the sites, preventing any humans from seeing what had been done. Tonight, when the people were tucked safely in their beds, Axel could remove the barrier. The humans would arrive tomorrow morning and assume what they would about this “travesty.”

“What do you know about the Nefas?” he asked Axel as they picked up the last of the infected leaves.

“They like to attack humans, Sent Ones, or anyone, for that matter, and they think rules, compassion and generosity are stupid. Oh, yeah, and they’re as bad as demons.”

Koldo nodded. “They’re planners. They do little things at first, to see how their opponent will react, as well as to elicit as much fear as possible, since fear confuses, weakens and makes you do things you wouldn’t normally do.”

“Your mother took your wings, but I’ll take your heart and feed it to the dogs,” his father said. The silver glint of a blade he held waved in the light. “Do you want me to take your heart, boy?”

Why not? You’ve already broken it. “I want you to die.” He sat in the far corner of his cage, dirty and blood-caked from his many failed attempts to escape.

A mocking laugh boomed. “Too bad. I’m here to stay. And I’ve given you five days to do what I commanded you to do. Now, you have five seconds to do it. Kill the human or else. One.”

“Someday I’ll make you suffer for this.”

“Three.”

“Someday soon.”

“Five.” Hinges squeaked as the door to a cage he could not flash in and out of was thrown open.

Koldo jumped to shaky feet, stalked over to the trembling human that had been shoved into the cell and struck.

In the present, he ground his fists into his eyes to disrupt the sickening crimson-soaked images behind them. If he could go back... He so wanted to go back.

You have to forgive yourself, Nicola had said.

He doubted she would have uttered those words if she’d known even half of the things he’d done. He should have died rather than cave to his father’s demands. He should have—

Concentrate. Distraction killed. Right. So. An old war had now been renewed. Strike one, Nox had appeared to Nicola. Strike two, the decimation of this park. The third would happen all too soon—but it would be by Koldo’s hand.

He would bet his father had left a man behind, someone to watch the area to report Koldo’s every reaction. He gazed around, and sure enough, he spotted a tall male with a bald head and the dark eyes of a predator at the pretzel stand, buying a midday snack and peering at the right area.

Even though the contact with the smoke had left him a little shaky, Koldo stepped from the protection of the cloud, allowing the Nefas to spot him.

The male grinned a wide, toothy grin, his fangs gleaming bright white as he approached. The smoke wasn’t seeping from his pores. The bodily function was something all Nefas could control; most days they simply opted not to.

“We’re doing this, are we?” Axel asked, sounding excited. “Well, okay, then. Good thing I strapped on my big-boy panties today.”

Anticipation buzzed through Koldo. He met his enemy in the middle, studied him anew. They’d never met before. Either the male was younger than Koldo by several centuries, or his father had stolen him from another Nefas clan.

He munched on his treat, as if he hadn’t a care in the world, assuming Koldo would do nothing in front of human witnesses. “Took you long enough to gather your courage and show up,” said the Nefas in a too-deep voice. “I have a message for you, Koldo the Terrible.”

Koldo had no desire to hear the rest. All Nefas could flash and he had to act quickly. In one fluid motion, he withdrew his double-edged short swords from the air pocket he used to store his weapons and struck, crossing his wrists to form a giant pair of scissors.

“Cloud,” Axel said, as the man’s head detached from his body.

The cloud was there in an instant, shielding the happenings as both pieces thudded to the ground and a pool of black blood formed.

“Well, the pretzel’s ruined,” the warrior added conversationally. “So you weren’t curious about his message?”

“No. I knew what he was going to say.” A hello from Koldo’s father, as well as a threat to Nicola, all in an attempt to draw out Koldo’s apprehension.

“Mind sharing with the rest of the class?”

“I do.”

“Fair enough, since I wasn’t really interested. But I gotta say, I am so proud right now.” Axel flattened his hand over his heart. “You borrowed my patented move, proving I’m made of more than awesome. I’m awesalicious. Is that a word? It’s probably a girl word, but who cares! Seriously. Do you see a tear in my eye? Because I’m pretty sure I feel one.”

Koldo didn’t understand the man’s humor, and yet, he realized he was coming to like Axel despite that. He was strong, courageous and never backed down from a fight. He never allowed Koldo’s moods to affect his own, and he was happy to do anything Koldo asked. Or demanded.

What was the male’s history?

“You’re very weird,” Koldo observed.

“Nah. I’m mysterious. There’s a big difference.”

“You’re definitely weird.”

Koldo placed the body and the head in the air pocket with the trees and dirt, and searched for any other spiked footprints. He found none, but then, he hadn’t expected to. Had only hoped his father would have left a trail behind, thinking to lead him into a trap.

A trap you knew about wasn’t actually a trap—but a weapon.

“So, where do you want to go from here?” Axel asked.

“I need to burn the air pocket and check on the females. Let’s meet tomorrow night and go hunting for the Nefas.”

“Color me there.”

MORNING ARRIVED, sunlight seeping through the crack in the curtains covering Nicola’s bedroom window. She stretched muscles gone tight, and sat up. After she’d tucked Laila into bed, she’d reclaimed her spot on the couch and read. After a while, she’d closed her eyes, thinking to recharge, and then...nothing until now.

She hadn’t made it to the bed, but she was there now. She hadn’t covered herself up, but she was wrapped in the comforter. There was no way Laila had carried her, so that could only mean Koldo had returned. He just hadn’t woken her up.

Argh! He was too sweet for his own good. Now she couldn’t avoid him forever and pretend the kiss had never happened. Now she had to face him and thank him for his kindness.

She grumbled as she lumbered out of bed, grumbled as she brushed her teeth and showered, being careful of her new tattoos, and even grumbled as she pulled on an adorable pink top and glittery jean shorts.

The moment she looked at herself in the mirror, the grumbling stopped. She had worn hand-me-downs most of her life. Her parents had shopped at thrift stores, and then, when she had been in charge of her own finances, so had she. Now...look at her. It was... It was...amazing.

A groan bubbled from her. Once again, Koldo was responsible for something wonderful in her life. And really, for a little while during the kiss, she’d made him feel this same sense of awe. She’d made him feel special. She knew it, would never forget the way he’d trembled.

Maybe...maybe she wasn’t such a bad choice for him, after all. Yes, she’d passed out during their second intimate moment together. And yes, she could pass out next time, too. But cutting him from her life rather than facing the infirmity and the embarrassment that followed? How silly could she get?

She might be weak—but she was stronger than that, she thought, anchoring her hair in a ponytail while the strands were still wet. It was her mother’s hair, and she’d almost cut it a thousand times. But every time she’d grabbed the scissors, she’d remembered the way her mother used to brush and braid it, the way her father used to call her Mini Kerry, after her mom, and the way her brother used to tug on the ends.

Her brother. Her beautiful Robby.

We’re sorry, Miss Lane, but your brother was thrown—

Nope, not going there. Thinking about him opened wounds that had never really healed. So, she always removed him from her thoughts before they had time to form.

Raising her chin, she marched out of her room and decided to check on her sister first. But Laila’s bedroom was empty, the bed unmade and clothes strewn across the floor.

She moved through the living room—still no sign of her sister—and into the kitchen. Nicola breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted Laila at the table, her head resting in her upraised palm. A cup of tea steamed in front of her.

“Don’t talk,” her sister croaked. “Just...don’t.”

“Hangover?”

Laila groaned. “Co Co! Please.”

“Sorry,” she whispered. Nicola fixed a cup of tea for herself, and sipped at the hot, sweetened liquid.

“You should eat the fruit,” a male voice said, and Laila issued another groan.

Nicola’s heart sped into a faster beat as she twisted to face Koldo. He wore the same flowing white shirt and pants he’d worn at the hospital. There were lines of tension branching from his eyes. A tension that matched what she’d heard in his voice last night.

He paused to look her up and down, and his jaw dropped. He began a more leisurely perusal of her, his pupils expanding. “You...you...”

“Yes?” she asked hopefully. Are beautiful? Stunning? Worth trying to kiss again?

“Are wearing the clothing I picked for you.” A croak.

“Yes.” She waited. He said nothing more.

Seriously? That’s all she got? The obvious? “I’ll eat if you eat,” she grumbled.

He thought for a moment, nodded stiffly and sat at the table. Nicola eased into the chair beside him. There was a plate piled high with oranges, strawberries, bananas and melon. She selected a strawberry and bit into the center, the juice running down her throat and making her moan.

“Oh, that’s good.” Almost enough to make her forget Koldo’s lack of appreciation for her makeover. Almost.

He reached out and swiped a droplet that had dribbled onto her chin. Her eyes widened as he brought the finger to his mouth, and tasted. “It is,” he agreed, a husky note to his voice.

Her skin tingled where he’d touched her, burning in the most delectable way. And when his gaze lowered to where his finger had been, a gleam of satisfaction glowed in his eyes.

Okay, so she finally forgot.

“You’re in better spirits today,” he said.

She liked that he was so attuned to her. “I am.”

“Why?”

Her unease with yesterday’s kiss was private, something between them, not something to be shared even with her beloved twin. “So,” she said, changing the subject. “Who decorated your house?”

There was a pause before he shrugged, and said, “I did,” surprising her. What, no pushing for an answer? No deep concern for what had bothered her?

You’re a mess. “Just so I’m clear, you decorated every room?”

“Yes, every room.”

“But...there’s so much pink in mine.”

“And I can’t like pink?”

Her eyes widened. “The room is yours?”

“No. But when I was younger and foolish, I hoped my moth—” He pressed his lips together. “Never mind.”

Hoped his...mother would stay with him? What had made him think such a hope was foolish?

“Sorry, guys, but I’m in desperate need of a thousand profees.” Laila stood, pushing back her chair. “And maybe a total body massage, a nap, an hour-long shower and a TV marathon of How I Met Your Mother.”

“Profees?” Koldo asked.

“Ibuprofen,” Nicola explained.

“Once they kick in, I plan to get ready for my date. By the way, I’m sorry I busted into your room last night. It won’t happen again. Probably.” Laila shambled out of the kitchen.

Koldo held Nicola’s gaze. “Why the change?” he asked, pouncing the moment they were alone.

He’d known why she’d avoided the question. He’d cared. Melting... “I was embarrassed that I’d passed out.”

A breath gushed from him, and she thought she caught threads of relief. “I never want you to be embarrassed with me, Nicola.”

“Good, because I’m over it,” she said. Mostly.

“So, you didn’t regret what we had done? Didn’t think I was too rough?”

“Not at all. You were amazing.”

“Then why did you dress this way for your date?” he asked softly. “As if you crave another man’s desire.”

She gulped, then answered honestly, “I—I didn’t.” I did it for you.

A pause. Then, in a strained voice, “I don’t want you to go. I...need you here. With me.”

Nicola’s stomach performed a series of flip-flops. The way he’d said the word need—he did care. And he’d issued a request this time, rather than a demand. Her own relief was palpable, her elation hard to tamp down. But... “I wish I could cancel. I really do.” Just then, more than anything. “But you heard Laila. She’s excited, and she won’t go without me. And she’s been so upset, and I’ve been so worried about the toxin inside her. I need her calm, peaceful and joyous.”

“You can control your emotions, not hers.”

“I know, but I have to try something.” Please understand.

His hands were on the edge of the table, and his knuckles began to bleach of color. Finally, the side of the table snapped off, wood chips raining on the floor. Koldo jumped to his feet and stomped from the room.

Leaving her alone.

So heartbreakingly alone.