-21-
There was hardly enough room for all of us inside Seraph’s home. Callum wasn’t the only visitor. Ruby was there, too. I wasn’t sure how I felt about their presence. I planned to visit the dungeons and talk to Prisoner Zero, and I didn’t want guards with me. Bran wasn’t in the living room, but he was nearby.
“Can I have this too, Mommy?” Seraph asked, adding a cream-filled croissant on top of the three pieces on her plate.
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” her father said. “Don’t you want your friends to have some too?”
Seraph’s lower lip jutted out, but she nodded and put one back in the basket. She glanced at me. “Can I have one more, Princess Lilith?”
“Two is great. I’ll bring more tomorrow.” I smiled at her father. It was my first time meeting him. He was a dark-haired man with a serious face. The wife had introduced him as Anzu, son of Barachiel.
“Thank you, Princess. Is it okay if she helps pass the rest to our neighbors?” Anzu asked, and I nodded.
Seraph and Ruby left with a basket and headed down the left hallway. Callum convinced the guards to help him. “The princess will be fine with Anzu and his wife,” he reassured them. “I’ll keep an eye on her.” They headed right.
Inside the house, Seraph’s parents pointed at another door. At the back of my mind, I wondered if I could really trust them. I had questioned the loyalty of some people after my talk with Gavyn. Now I suspected everyone.
I walked in to find Bran pacing. He stopped, his eyes locking on me with an intensity that made me blush. I smiled weakly. He looked amazing as usual in black T-shirt and jeans, but then again, what he wore never really defined him.
I closed the door and silence followed as we stared at each other. I wanted to clutch him and never let go, but there was that nagging voice in the back of my head questioning everything. Could he be working with his brother?
“You okay?” Bran asked.
I started to nod, but then I stopped. I hated liars and didn’t want to become one. I shook my head. Emotions surged through me and I started to shake. After the things I’d learned, I felt alone and vulnerable. Who could I trust? This beautiful man standing before me was supposedly putting his life in danger to be with me, yet I wasn’t sure whether to trust him anymore.
“Lil,” Bran whispered, and took a step closer. “What is it?”
I raised my hand to stop him from getting closer. If he touched me now, I’d dissolve into tears. “No. Don’t. I have things I need to say first. Questions that I need answered.”
He frowned. “Questions about us?”
“About everything. You and I are supposed to be in love, yet I don‘t remember you. How is that possible when I’m this powerful person? How could someone erase my memories? What’s wrong with me that I can’t remember anything?”
Bran extended his arms as though to touch me but stopped when I flinched. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. When he opened them, his eyes gleamed with unnatural intensity.
“First,” he said slowly as though choosing his words carefully, “there’s absolutely nothing wrong with you. We are dealing with Principalities and Archangels, powerful deities and demons. And they are douchebags. Second, there’s no ’supposed to be in love’ when it comes to us. We are bound in ways no one understands. We complete each other, Lil. From the moment I met you, I knew you were the one.” He gave me a sheepish grin. “In fact, I was drawn to your energy before we met. Whether you remember me or not, my place is with you, and that’s why I’m here. Always and forever.”
I searched his face. My chest hurt as though he’d sucked the oxygen from the room and my lungs were starved of air. My heart threatened to leap from my chest. I loved this guy. I couldn’t explain how I knew. It wasn’t just the utter belief in his voice or how I felt whenever he was around. Something inside me recognized him, like he was a part of me. But the doubts refused to disappear.
“Yours always, mine forever,” I whispered.
He smiled. “Those were our vows. We exchanged them thousands of miles in the air with the elements as our witnesses.”
“I dreamed about those words. I just didn’t know what they meant. So, you have wings?”
“Yes.” He pulled off his T-shirt and I caught myself ogling him. He had a beautiful body—broad shoulders, a chest that went on forever, washboard abs, and narrow hips. I wished I could let go of the doubts and just enjoy the view.
He curled his body, his knees bending, head dropping to his chest. Bumps appeared on his back. It was as though something was alive under his skin. He strained, the muscles on his back shifting and reforming until V-shaped bumps formed. The bulges grew and transformed into wings. At first, the wings were small like Cupid’s. Then they grew.
I took a step back, my eyes widening as they kept growing, the feathers black and glossy with a white line of down on the inside. They were huge.
In seconds, he stood before me shirtless, wings jutting above his shoulders and down his sides. He was magnificent. Echoes of memories teased me. I’d seen him like this before. Touched him.
“Why did you deny having them when I told you about my dreams?” I asked.
“It wasn’t the right time.” His wings retracted. He pulled his T-shirt back on and pointed to the bed.
Funny I hadn’t realized we were in a bedroom until then. The room was sparsely decorated, with just a queen-sized bed, dresser, and wooden chair. “The right time for what?” He went quiet, making my chest hurt as my suspicions shot up. “I want to know everything about my past, Bran. Not just the things you confirmed last Saturday. No more hesitating or giving me vague answers. I want…” I wanted to know that I could trust him.
Bran laughed. “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to hear you say those words.”
I frowned. “Why?”
“Because they mean the time is right. You’re ready for the truth. I see it in your eyes and hear it in your voice. We need to mind-meld.”
“Mind-meld?”
“We overlap our energies and our minds, and you’ll see everything. My memories. My thoughts. My feelings. They might not answer all your questions, but at least you’ll know more than you know now.”
I studied him, wanting so badly to believe him. How could I love him and not trust him? He moved closer and searched my face. “What is it?”
“Does it hurt?”
“Not for us. Our energies are matched.”
“Meaning?”
“They blend perfectly and completely, enhance each other without the highs and the lows others feel when they steal energies.” Without breaking eye contact, he took my hand and directed it to his lips, pressing a kiss into my palm. “I know you don’t trust me. I can see it in your eyes, but once we mind-meld, you’ll see you have no reason not to.”
“How is it done?”
He cupped my face and gave me a calm, reassuring smile. “Look into my eyes and let that powerful mind of yours take control.”
It was weird recognizing his energy, the same energy that had comforted me so many times over the last three months. Tonight, he didn’t have a shield and I actually saw his psi energy for the first time. It was bright and pure with no blemishes.
It was both comforting and exciting as our energies blended until I couldn’t tell where mine ended and his began. We were one.
Then something weird started happening. I could feel what he was feeling, hear his thoughts. Then the thoughts were replaced with images. Scenes after scene starring me—entering this bedroom, at school, practicing with Master Kenta, at the beach…
Hearing my own voice seemed weird. He’d watched me often. In some of them, I hadn’t been aware he was around. He’d fought with his brother after the beach party. He kept yelling at Gavyn that he shouldn’t have told me about the past before I was ready. I saw his sister Celeste, who idolized him. Another tunnel led to a scene of me on my bed. He’d visited me while I was in a coma. The feelings accompanying the visits were raw and intense. When he’d said he loved me, he hadn’t been joking. He’d visited me often, sometimes leaving just before Lady Nemea or my father came into the room.
I wanted to stay there, but I had other memories to explore. I went down another tunnel to a weird place—the top of a building or a mountain. I could see the sky and clouds and that was it. Or maybe they were in the air, since the gorgeous woman that appeared had massive wings just like his. Instead of leaving, I stayed and stared at her in awe.
She was gorgeous, with luminous eyes and radiant skin as though tiny lights danced under it. Her long red hair flowed to her waist, and her wings, white and dazzling, fluttered gently behind her. The white silk dress hugging her curvaceous figure frothed around her feet.
“Goddess Xenia, thank you for meeting me,” I said, and I giggled at my voice. Actually, Bran said that. I was reliving his memories as him. Using all his senses. Seeing with his eyes, hearing with his ears, and talking in his voice.
“You were once foolish enough to make a deal with me, son of Llyr,” she said, her voice melodic and calming. “I guess you haven’t learned your lesson. How are your wings?”
“The feathers grew, Goddess,” Bran said. “Lilith found the cure.”
“She’s a resourceful young lady, isn’t she?” Xenia said with pride.
“She loves me and would do anything for me,” Bran said, the conviction in his voice unwavering. “I want to show her the same devotion. I want to join the Hermonites and watch over her.”
A tinkle of laughter escaped the goddess. “You ran away from them, and now you want back in?”
“Yes. I’m willing to give up anything for her. Take my wings.”
She stopped smiling. “Taking away your wings was not my doing, my dear. But it was part of Lil’s journey. The Tribunal was another.”
“You sent the Tribunal?” Bran asked.
“No, silly boy,” a voice like nails sliding on a chalkboard hissed. “I did.”
A second woman appeared. She was so pale that blue veins were visible under her translucent skin, and her hair was as pale as her skin. Like Goddess Xenia, she wore a flowing robe, but hers was red, matching her blood-red eyes. Her wings were like Prisoner Zero’s, bat wings with sharp points. I knew who she was before she opened her mouth. Queen Coronis. The paintings and statues on the island had been kind. Probably created by those who’d loved her.
“So many people died because of you,” Bran snapped.
Coronis looked at Xenia. “Tell your boy to watch his tone or I’ll try to take his soul again.”
Xenia laughed. She sounded like wind chimes. “That won’t be necessary, my dear sister. He tends to be passionate and a bit careless when it comes to our Chosen One.” Xenia threw him a warning glance. “He forgets we don’t help unless they ask.”
“That’s right,” Coronis said. “Your brother and his friends wanted justice for what they perceived as the Guardians’ unfairness, and I helped.”
“By sending the Archangels?”
The sister goddesses looked at each other and shrugged.
“The Archangels come and go, but the Nephilim survive,” Xenia said.
“Why did you summon us?” Coronis asked impatiently.
“I summoned her.” Bran pointed at Xenia. “Not you.”
Coronis cackled. “Don’t you understand anything, silly boy? When one of the Nephilim asks for help, we answer it. Even if I’m not here, I know when you summon her. When someone summons me, she knows. I am her shadow in the Tribunal. When you asked her to show you a way to save your sister, I was still alive and busy. Her shadow in the Tribunal didn’t know any better.” She shook her head. “My son, the idiot, represented me.”
“What my sister is trying to say is,” Xenia cut in, “you asked for my help to save your sister and I led you to the Guardians, where you met your true love and destiny.”
“And I decided to take your wings,” Coronis said with malice.
“My soul,” Bran said.
“Wings, souls, who cares?” Coronis snapped. “Good and bad go hand in hand. You can’t get blessings without suffering. I still don’t like his tone, Xenia. Can’t I just take his soul?”
“No, sister. His is not yours or mine to take. He’s already given it to her.”
“You could give her another one,” Coronis suggested.
“I could,” Xenia said.
“He would make a wonderful addition to my minions in Tartarus.”
“No, you can’t,” Bran cut in, sounding a little worried. “My soul is perfectly safe with Lil. You said my brother and his friends wanted justice? What good came out of sending the Archangels, other than death and mayhem?”
“Lil is gone to the island with her father, my dear,” Xenia said. “This is the good that came out of it. Being with her father is going to be good for her. It is part of her journey.”
“I find this tiresome, son of Llyr,” Coronis said. “If you are not here to trade your soul, what is it you want?”
Xenia’s blue eyes glowed. “Remember, there will be consequences. So think very carefully what you ask.”
Bran swallowed and nodded. “I want the ability to come and go undetected around Mount Hermon Island so I can keep an eye on Lil.” The sisters looked at each other. “The only people who would see me would be those I choose.”
Some sort of exchange went on between the sister goddesses before Xenia said, “Okay, dear. You have your wish.”
“But she will not remember you or her past life,” Coronis said bluntly.
“All of it?” Xenia said. “That’s a little extreme.”
“I’m responding to the request I received, little sister.”
Xenia frowned. “Request? From whom? And when were you going to tell me this?”
Coronis chuckled darkly. “That’s not my job, sister. It’s not my fault your minions are asleep on the job. But I can adjust the little one’s memories. That will make things difficult and painful for our boy here.”
Xenia smiled mysteriously.
“Who asked to have her memories erased?” Bran demanded.
“I don’t answer to you,” Coronis snapped.
“Lilith is following her destiny, son of Llyr,” Xenia said. “You need to follow yours as her protector, guide, friend, and love.”
“You’ll know when your paths can cross and when they cannot,” Coronis said.
Bran sighed. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Coronis cackled. “It means that if your paths cross at the wrong time, your destiny will change and she will be lost to you forever.”
“But I believe in you, Bran. You will triumph. Do we have a deal?” Xenia asked as Coronis watched with glee.
Bran nodded. “Yes.”
Bran’s confidence was daunting. I saw it again and again as the memories of the night he and I met under a willow tree unfolded. He might not have known me before my sixteenth birthday, but I’d told him about my childhood. I knew about my grandfather and what the Guardians represented. How they viewed my father and the Hermonites. What my destiny as the Chosen One meant. I might not know what had happened between the moment I’d left the presence of the Tribunal and the morning I regained consciousness, but I knew about the Great Battle and the sentence the Tribunal had handed down.
I was crying hard by the time our minds separated. I don’t know how I ended up in Bran’s arms, but I clung to him, never wanting to leave the room.
Behind the door was a responsibility so great my stomach hurt thinking about it. How could I unite people who’d been fighting for thousands of years? I’d warmed up to the idea of being a leader to my people because I’d assumed that responsibility was decades away. Instead, I had two months to make tough decisions.
“You can do it,” Bran whispered above my head.
I didn’t want to.
“You already started,” he added. “You know both sides, know their strengths and weaknesses, their beliefs and prejudices. Only you can bring them together. I will be by your side. Always. I believe in you.”
Just like the Goddess Xenia had believed in him. As he talked, I calmed down. I pushed away my uncertainties and focused on what had to be done. I stepped from his arms and smiled weakly. “Now I understand why you said we are dealing with douches.”
Bran smiled. “I said powerful demons and deities who are—”
I touched his lip. “You took a chance making a deal with them.”
“You are worth it.” He grinned. “Besides, I knew our love would pull us through. You reached out to me when you needed me, and I stayed away when you didn’t, and here we are.”
I touched his face. He was amazing. “I think Solange might be the one who asked Coronis to remove my memories. She has a stash of CCs from Gavyn. They talked about controlling me, keeping me docile, and killing the old High Council to make way for a new one. I think she or someone she’s working with has been draining my psi energy, too. Sometimes, I wake up with low energy and weakened powers.”
Bran scowled. “I noticed that when you practiced with Kenta.”
“At first, I thought it was because my energy was unstable and they did it for my own good, like the Specials in the dungeons, but now I know that’s not it.”
“There are Specials in the dungeons?”
I nodded. “Solange also brought me a crystal from Father during lunch today, but it was blank. I think she and her dark lord friends are planning something, and it involves Father.”
“He’s okay now.”
“How do you know?”
“I went to check on him. That’s why I wasn’t around much today. Once you told me you were worried, I took off. I saw him at a meeting in L.A. He’s fine.”
Tears rushed to my eyes. I couldn’t believe I’d doubted him.
“In fact, if you want to send him a message, Sir Norath and I have become buddies since your fight.” He wiped the tears from my cheeks. “Don’t cry.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He searched my face. “For what?”
“Not trusting you. I wasn’t sure whether I should…” I touched his face again.
“Can you show me the crystals from my brother?”
I nodded. “Sure.”
A ping came from Ruby. We’re almost done and will be on our way back shortly, she said.
Keep them busy until I ping you. “Ruby and the others are almost done, and I still want to talk. Can we meet later at the library? I’ll bring the crystals.”
“Ten minutes?”
“Hmm, thirty minutes. I’m going to the dungeons to talk to Dante.”
Bran’s eyebrows shot up. “Dante?”
“He’s being kept down there, Bran. I went down there and saw a CC recording, and he looked familiar. Then I saw him. He’s so skinny and sad, Bran. How could Father keep him locked up after everything he’s done in the past to protect me?”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Bran said, a preoccupied expression on his face.
Dante had taken an oath to protect me and hadn’t cared who he went up against to protect me—Hermonites, Guardians, or Archangels. He’d risked his life several times, and even lost the man he loved because of me.
“Lady Nemea told me an elaborate lie about how Dante betrayed my father when they lived in Seattle. Why would Lady Nemea lie?”
“I don’t know. To gain your trust? Maybe mislead you?”
I felt a little sick. Lady Nemea was now added to the list of those I couldn’t trust. What else had she lied about? “I can’t trust anyone. Not even Katia. And poor Lottius…” I winced, remembering. “We weren’t nice to her before. I hope she never finds out.”
“I don’t trust her.”
“I do. The whammy I put on her still holds.” Another person I owed more than an apology. “I want to talk to Dante and find out what happened.”
Bran shook his head. “No, you can’t go down there.”
“I wasn’t asking.”
He stepped away. “No way. I sneak in and out of places undetected. You come with an entourage, guards, kids and their parents screaming ‘princess, princess’ and alerting everyone nearby to your presence. Then there’s all this.” He bowed. “And this.” He pressed his hand on his chest. “So, let me do what I do best, sneak in and out. I promise to tell you everything he says. Okay?”
He was right, even though I found his imitation of our people insulting. “Okay.”
He leaned forward and kissed me. “Sorry. I couldn’t help it. I love your smile and had to capture it.”
My lips tingled. “Be careful down there. They have light cages.”
“Light cages don’t affect me anymore.” He stole another kiss, taking his time.
I reached up and gripped his face as the kiss deepened. Then he was gone.