~COLE~
"Should we be concerned?" Jeremiah questioned.
"Father?" Luke asked.
I opened my eyes and glanced over at Cedrick as he stood patiently like the rest of us. Even though two full hours had passed, he remained as calm as ever, his arms crossed over his broad chest.
"Her power is not average at all. It would take a longer period of time for her to gain a bit of it. It also depends on how many abilities Fantasia would like to grant Destiny and if Destiny has questions, which I'm sure she does."
"Will she be awake when she rises back up?" Owen inquired. "Mine was a good 45 minutes and I felt like death."
"Good point. I could barely swim back," Luke admitted.
"Father, didn't you have to get me out?" Jeremiah questioned.
"Yes, I did, and you were heavy," Cedrick replied.
"That's thanks to all my magnificence," Jeremiah countered.
I smirked and returned to watching the calm surface of the fountain.
Destiny.
She was a woman of beauty, and though we hadn't had much time to know her just yet, I could tell she was smart and bold. There was something about her that called to me, igniting something I'd buried in the depths of my being and truthfully wished it would stay where it belonged.
Down in the depths with my miserable past.
As Vengeance, I did my best to lock my emotions away. It was better that way. The wishes that requested my aid were endless, and I was quite thankful I could tune it all out when I needed to. I'd rather be dead than slave away with every wish that entered my lane.
Even now, as we waited for Destiny's initiation to complete, I could feel the pile of wishes; people all over the world begged to receive revenge for whatever had brought them misery. Whether it was as simple as a rumor screwing up their chance of winning or something as deep as a killer who got no jail time, people young and old wished for vengeance to act on their behalf.
Sometimes I answered, many times I didn't. Destiny's wish was different.
It wasn't filled with hatred or negative energy. It was filled with so much sadness, I teleported to that hotel room without realizing it.
A simple wish held so much pain, heartache, and sorrow that I couldn't ignore it. I hadn’t allowed a second to pass before I was there to see the damage the world had caused to her.
When my eyes had landed on her frail figure, my heart dropped. Such a beautiful woman whose eyes fluttered open and closed and her skin was white as a ghost, which was scary for that mixed tan complexion.
Any normal human would have judged her, assumed she'd done drugs or maybe was homeless and snuck into the hotel room. We could see more.
Her exhaustion, the tears that even in her sleep, escaped her eyes and rolled down her flushed cheeks. Her hair was in tangles and the lingering odor told me she must have not had any energy to reach the bathroom to bathe.
We inspected an entire situation before we judged and, once again, that was proven when she'd woken up and detailed why she was so weak. I knew the moment she explained her condition that she'd been cursed. It had to have been a Jinn for it to have such an impact on her and still remain after all those years.
Either way, I wanted to help her, and that was something that was rare for me. I didn't "want" to help someone. It was our duty as Jinn to aid someone with their wish. Regardless of whether it had consequences or not, that was the risk they took calling upon me, who delivered Vengeance to the person they requested to receive it.
Now that we knew she was a Jinn, everything was beginning to make sense. How her beauty drew me in like a moth to a flame. How her flower-like scent teased my nose and made me want to stand closer.
Those curves of hers that made me hungry to hold her and those lips with their plump surface, testing my level of restraint. The burning desire to taste her in my mouth and worship that body she assumed no one would desire was getting stronger the longer I was around her.
Watching the concern and love she showed over the simplest things, or the admiration that glittered in her hazelnut colored eyes when she saw something that amazed her, was refreshing and a delightful experience to watch.
She reminded me of the life I used to live around the people I loved dearly.
The people I'd caused harm to…
Even with my past, I wanted to help Destiny. I didn't want anyone else to help her adjust into this world. With the other guys, I personally didn't mind.
In fact, even with our lack of content, there was only a small percentage of good Jinns that weren't self-confident assholes who didn't give a shit about anyone but their own pleasures and riches. Jinns helped people for their own benefits. Most of them, anyway.
The other three guys Destiny had summoned were genuine, and maybe that was why they were also called forth to her aid. Or they were there to balance the darkness inside me.
I noticed a single bubble from the middle section of the water. My eyes narrowed as I noticed another one.
With my initiation, I was out of it for an hour and a half, and I'd been unconscious for days. It could have been due to my title and the magnitude of power involved as well, but I knew I didn't' remember anything that happened after I'd spoken with Fantasia.
I decided to listen to my gut for once, and I moved forward, not caring about getting my clothes wet.
"Cole? Where are you going?" Jeremiah asked.
"Wait, I think Destiny's coming back up," Owen suggested.
"She's definitely not awake," Luke announced. "I can barely sense her energy."
I ignored their comments and when I reached the steps, I dove right into the water.
Did I care about whether there was some procedure to getting her out of the water? Nope.
I locked onto her immediately, her long two-toned hair was glowing, and she had zig zag marks on her arms and legs. The robe she'd worn stayed mostly in place, and as I reached her and placed my arms under her arms and legs, I noticed the glowing mark between her breasts.
I wouldn't lie that the sight of her underwater was immaculate, but it also turned me on in areas I hadn't felt such emotion since I was alive. The way her nipples peeked through the wet material made me wonder how she'd look once out of the water and the drenched cloth grabbed onto every curve of hers.
One look at her expression told me she was drained and needed rest. It was what snapped me out of my appreciative perusal and I swam back to the surface, moving to where the stairs were situated.
Carrying her out of the water wasn’t easy, and my silent wish to see the robe cling to her body was granted, only contributing to my growing hardness. It made me thankful that I wore black pants and not another color that would have given me away.
"Fuck, is she okay?! She's pale as a sheet." Jeremiah and the others rushed over to me.
I was fine with their concern, but I glanced at Cedrick as he approached, worry lingering in his expression. If he was concerned, there could have been a problem and that wasn't helping my heart at all.
The others moved to the side to give Cedrick space when he reached me. He pressed his hand against Destiny's forehead and her hair began to flow and lift upward, while the markings I'd seen underwater reappeared.
Cedrick closed his eyes for what felt like forever, but I had mentally tracked it as two minutes before he opened them.
He glanced at each of us before he revealed what he had learned. "She was blessed with half of her Jinn powers."
That deserved a gasp from all of us, shocking even me which didn't happen often.
"Half? Isn't that too much?" Luke asked.
"Maybe she needs half to function?" Owen suggested.
"From my observation, the power pulsing inside her is of an averagely ranked Jinn. If Fantasia gave her half of the power she's been blessed with, it means Destiny will be in the higher rank categories for Jinns."
"Her title," I noted. "It could also be a contribution?"
"It is," Cedrick replied. A proud smile formed on his lips, which told me Destiny had not only pleased Fantasia, but him as well. That was hard to do without knowing Cedrick for a long time and proving yourself worthy of his praise and admiration.
"Can we ask what it is?" Jeremiah asked.
"Destiny the Merciful," Cedrick announced.
We all stood there, speechless, as the title sunk in. Shit…
The guys looked up at me and I glanced away. It made sense. It had to make sense now, but I didn't want to admit it yet.
"Let's move her to one of the rooms. She'll need lots of rest and monitoring."
"How about her mentor?" Owen questioned.
"I can tell right now that I don't qualify," Jeremiah said with a sad expression. "Her power is on another wavelength than mine."
"Same," Owen admitted.
"It's not like her power is repelling mine, but it doesn't quite fit either," Luke confessed.
I didn't reply, not wanting to reveal how I felt. Not to show how fucking amazing it was to have her in my arms.
The energy coursing between us and how calm I suddenly felt was beyond words, and I just couldn't share how deeply she influenced me. I wouldn't.
"That was quite a long initiation process."
If I had one of my hands available, my fist would be in Marc's face by now. The others immediately crowded in front of me, and Cedrick sighed.
"Marc," he warned.
"My apologies, Father, but I waited outside for as long as I could. I thought by now the initiation process would have been done and I could finally have my time to catch up on some things. Didn't think two hours would pass by."
Marc shrugged and I wanted to growl when he glanced at Destiny. I was glad for the others’ protectiveness, but I didn't want Marc anywhere near Destiny. Especially when she’s unconscious and vulnerable.
"I'd be more than happy to mentor her. Our powers seem a tad comfortable from here. With our current 'distance' I'm unsure, but if you'd let me hold he-"
"I'm mentoring her."
There goes all my resistance. I normally didn’t lose my cool, not in a long time to this extent, but if Marc thought he'd get to even touch Destiny, he was going to experience being punched by Vengeance for the first time.
"What? You? MENTOR? Please tell me this is an inside joke," Marc mocked.
"He's serious." Jeremiah gawked at me like the others.
"Fuck, you really are serious," Owen commented.
"Well… damn," Luke whispered.
Marc frowned then, and Cedrick cleared his throat, grabbing all of our attention.
"I'll need more time to analyze Destiny’s power and compatibility with a few other Jinns of similar power status. However, from first glance, Cole has the strongest compatibility. He will be her mentor until she awakens, and I can do a more thorough inspection."
Marc appeared unimpressed; his frown only deepened as a hint of anger flickered in those blue eyes of his.
I stared right back at him, hoping the glare I was displaying was enough of a "back off" warning.
"Marc, I'll meet you in the meeting room. I need to talk to Cole for a moment."
Marc simply nodded and, with a final grimace and look at Destiny, he turned and was out of the room.
"Oh, thank you, Fantasia, for thy patience." Luke sighed. "I was about to taint my title with blood."
"We wouldn't let you. We'd let you hold Destiny while the three of us beat the shit out of him," Owen replied.
"Let's ask Destiny when she wakes up to ban him from coming near her. It would piss him off," Jeremiah suggested.
"Agreed." The other two were quick to respond.
Cedrick cleared his throat again and the three flinched and turned to focus on him. "Oh..." The three of them said before they bowed their heads in apology.
"Didn't realize that included us." Jeremiah chuckled nervously.
"We'll go help set up the other room," Luke announced.
"Ya," Owen replied.
I nodded to them and Cedrick smiled; the three guys bowed toward Cedrick before making their way out of the room.
Once we were alone, Cedrick turned to me. "She's a match."
"I'm aware."
"How are you feeling?"
"Confused."
"Fantasia makes no mistakes."
"I'm aware. Doesn't make me feel any better. To be fair and honest, it hurts...a lot."
"Time, Cole," Cedrick reminded.
I nodded, and my gaze was drawn to Destiny whose chest rose up and down. "I'm going to go put her to bed."
"All right." Cedrick gave a short nod.
Turning around, I began to walk away, but I stopped. "She needs a cat."
"What?" Cedrick questioned, clearly taken aback by my comment.
I turned back around to stare at Cedrick once more. "She can't sleep alone, and her old cat died in the fire. We need a therapeutic… Jinn cat or something. We won't be there for her all the time, and she can't sleep without someone or something living being near her."
"Cursed."
"We had a hunch," I admitted.
"I’ll look into it."
"Including the cat?"
"You clearly want to help make her adaptation period here easier," Cedrick noted.
"No," I mumbled and turned around. "I'm thinking of her well being, and I don't want to see what I saw when she'd summoned us the first time."
"Sure," Cedrick replied. "I'll look into the cat."
"Thank you, Father," I said quietly.
It made no sense for me to feel almost grateful for his assistance, but I did.
I began to walk forward, but Cedrick spoke once more. "Cole."
"Yes, Father?" I asked, stopping mid-stride.
"Control your anger. Don't let the past and the decision of Fantasia ruin this opportunity for you," Cedric warned.
I took a deep breath and nodded. "I understand, Father. Thank you for the forewarning."
With those words, I headed out of the room. My gaze lowered to Destiny once more and, again, that feeling resurfaced. I pushed it back below the surface, hoping it would stay where it belonged. In the ground, with the rest of my main emotions.
"Merciful..." I whispered and shook my head, beginning to head toward the door.
No wonder she had a heart of gold.