Chapter 20
Honor couldn’t believe the scene spread before her. Michael and the others rematerialized at the top of the cliffs, next to the spot where the wide Eastlake River tumbled over the sharp edge to create the village’s namesake waterfall. Honor never visited the cliffs before, and their sheer height gave her an excellent view of the land. From the east on her left, to the west on her right, Honor could see for miles in any direction. Or she would have, were the air not heavy with soot and smoke.
Large, dark clouds of toxic gases hung low over the land, thicker above the more populated areas, spreading outward from the various sources. Orange flames still burned hot in at least a dozen spots, whilst other areas merely smoldered as the fires already devoured any and all available fuel. When Honor located the castle—what was left of it anyway—tears stung her eyes and her heart ached with sorrow, her own grief compounded by her mate’s. Across their bond, the full extent of Michael’s devastation hit her like a punch to her soul.
Whist Honor was new to this area Eastlake Falls had been Michael’s home for centuries, mayhap longer. The pain emanating from her strong, proud Archangel caused both her heart and soul to overflow with pain.
“I’m so sorry, my love,” Honor said.
Fingers intertwined, Michael gave her hand a light squeeze but said nothing. Out of the corner of her eye, Honor caught sight of moisture glistening in the eyes of her brave warrior. Before today, Honor thought Michael infallible, and on the battlefield, it was truth. However, her angel has a huge heart and a deep sense of devotion to his Guard and the humans under his protection. Today, Honor discovered that Michael’s heart was no different than any other, fragile enough to break when pushed to its limits.
“There’s no way of knowing which Horseman did this.”
Honor tore her eyes from her mate to glance at the immortal who spoke, Donovan. Unlike Michael, Donovan didn’t appear distraught. Going by the purple shade of his normally pale face and the tightness in his heavy ginger brows, Honor would say the Angel of Protection was furious. She had no doubt Michael’s emotions would catch up to Donovan’s soon enough, and it wouldn’t be long before her mate grew equally enraged. Honor would soothe him the best she could, but even she would be unable to keep his fury at bay. This was too much. For the moment, Michael was quiet, stunned by loss. By his perceived failure.
Fates, it was Honor’s turn to become angry.
How dare some stultus Horseman make my brave lover feel inadequate?
For the first time in her existence, Honor was… she was… angry as a jilted Djinn! Aye, she nodded. That’s how she felt, angry. Enraged, actually. So much so, that thoughts of personally tearing the Horseman’s head from his body with her bare hands and drop kicking it across the burning fields made her smile instead of cringe.
Michael must needs be truly upset, as he didn’t flinch at her wicked thoughts.
“Any one of the four Horseman are capable of bringing about destruction of this nature,” Michael said, his tone flat. Without turning away from the carnage, Michael addressed Donovan. “Go, take your team and find this bastard. See if Dion can assist you when necessary, but I’ll require him to remain in Eastlake Falls to help rebuild the village.”
While Michael and Donovan made plans and strategized, Honor slipped her hand from Michael’s. He scowled. In response, Honor sent him a rush of affection. Michael’s harsh features softened at the gesture.
“I’ll be right back, love.”
Michael’s eyes narrowed, but he nodded. “Not far, dulcedo. I must needs be able to see you.”
“Of course.”
My poor Michael. So much pain.
Honor felt Michael’s gaze burning into her back as she picked her way over the rocky terrain until she reached her destination. Dante stood much as Michael had, back rigid, arms stiff at his sides, hands clenched into fists, and his stare fixed on the burning city far below.
“We haven’t had a chance to speak since…” Honor let her words drift off. There was no need to say it aloud, Dante knew full well of what she spoke. “I wanted to thank you for what you did for me.”
Dante shrugged and continued to stare straight ahead. Unfortunately for Dante, Honor knew how to deal with stubbornness, as her sister was the very definition of it, and Michael no better. “Nothing that happened was your fault, you know that.” It was easy for her to say, but after a century of torture, it was obvious the King of Lust left his son scarred and guilt-ridden.
“I know,” Dante said.
Honor squinted. “Are you all right?”
Finally, Dante tore his attention from the smoke and fire to meet Honor’s gaze. “Aye. No. I don’t know.” She stared into his eyes, a stunning shade of sapphire that was second only to her mate’s in sheer beauty. But the pain in them… Fates, so much it hurt to see Dante so broken.
“If there is anything you need—”
“I’ll be fine,” Dante snapped. Honor kept her face neutral, though his terse response bruised her feelings. Dante sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his left hand. Aye, a daemon trait, that. Those from the Hereafter were right-handed, while those from the Underworld, left-handed. “Apologies, Honor. I simply don’t know what to do.”
“What do you mean?”
“I…” Dante glanced at the devastated village. “I’ve lived here since I was fourteen. A mere boy. Raised human before my sire came for me. But that house…” Dante tilted his head in the direction of Lust’s estate, which Honor knew to be somewhere close by, perched on the mountaintop. “I cannot go back there, yet everyone I knew in Tuscany and Florence are long dead and gone. I despised my father, but I love Eastlake Falls. The humans, a few of my cousins, the other immortals, I take solace and joy in them. In belonging somewhere.” Dante’s chin fell to his chest and his shoulders slumped.
He is such an honorable male and deserves to be treated as such.
“Then stay.”
Dante’s head jerked in her direction, his brows arched high. “Stay? What do you mean?”
“Your agreement with Michael, did it specify you must needs leave the village after the Kings and Horsemen were banished?”
Dante appeared confused. “No, but—”
“Good. Then you stay.”
“I can’t… I can’t live in my father’s house.”
“Who said you had to?” Honor glanced at Michael who was staring holes into the back of Dante’s head. She sent her displeasure through the tether and did an internal cheer when Michael frowned and turned his attention back to Donovan. “Listen,” she lowered her voice so Michael couldn’t eavesdrop. “The village requires rebuilding. You are dedicated to live peacefully among humans and you have more than proved your worth. Stay and make a life here. Construct a home of your own, surround yourself with those who care, and be happy.”
Dante opened his mouth, but no words came out. I left a Daemon Prince speechless. Who would have thought? Timid, obedient, Honor Ward, encouraging a daemon to take up residence in a village that would eventually, be filled with humans.
“We all must needs work together,” she insisted. “The only reason we accomplished what we did was because daemons, angels, saints, and practitioners joined with a singular purpose. In fact…” An idea came to her. One Honor knew would work. An idea that would mark the beginning of a new era of immortals. One in which the Hereafter didn’t fight the Underworld, but good fought evil. As they learned last night, not all daemons are wicked, and if one were in truth working with the Horsemen, it proves not all practitioners are good. She made a decision. “We shall form a coalition.”
“A coalition?” Dante asked. The daemon appeared truly baffled. He must think her mad, but Honor didn’t care. Excitement thrummed through her body.
“What has you so thrilled?” Michael growled as he grabbed Honor by the arm and tugged her under his arm whilst glaring at Dante. My protective mate, so sweet, but so jealous. Michael must have picked up on Honor’s joy and excitement, and likely believed Dante had something to do with it. Her savior didn’t like the idea of the daemon pleasing his mate, and barged in to put a stop to it.
Honor explained her idea. It took some convincing, and Michael pulled a few of the other Guard members over to discuss it, but eventually, plans were hammered out and the Trinity was born.
“A Trinity of immortals?” Tony asked.
“Aye,” Honor replied. “Equally represented, those from the Hereafter, the Underworld, and the Earthly Plane, also known as angels and saints, daemons and their kin, and practitioners.”
“And there shall be regular meetings of their representatives, to discuss threats or challenges, or issues of interactions with humans?” Donovan asked.
“Exactly. None of us communicate with each other and in the long run, and it makes us all weaker. This way, if someone hears of a plot to kill humans, or spies the Horseman, or whatever, we can exchange knowledge and deal with the problems effectively whilst keeping humans from discovering our kind.”
“It sounds… amazing, actually,” Joan said. Honor blushed when the blond female gave her a grin.
“We don’t have anywhere large enough to gather such a group. Or anywhere on neutral ground. No one likes to be at a disadvantage,” Donovan said.
“I have someplace,” Dante said.
Everyone turned to the daemon, eyes wide, as it was the first time Dante spoke since the discussion began. “I shall never return to Lust’s mansion. Take it. It is yours. For the Trinity. Redecorate, redesign, Fates, tear the whole damn thing down and rebuild it for all I care. I don’t want it.”
“Are… are you certain?” Honor asked. “Your offer is generous and I’m not unappreciative, but the wealth—”
“I want nothing from my sire, not money or property or otherwise,” Dante growled. Michael’s arm tightened around Honor’s waist and he subtly moved her behind him when Dante’s eyes flashed a glowing blue.
“Then we accept your gracious gift,” Michael said. Honor’s jaw just about dropped when Michael extended an arm to Dante.
Dante was equally stunned, but with his usual grace, the daemon shook Michael’s hand. “It is yours. I shall be… gone from Eastlake Falls for a while.” His gaze flicked to Honor for a brief moment. “Upon my return, I shall find you.”
“Then safe travels and may the Fates watch over you,” Michael said.
Dante gave a sharp nod and disappeared from the cliff top, leaving the Guard to get on with picking up the pieces of the once vibrant village. Donovan left to gather his team to search for the rogue Horseman. After a few minutes of silence to wrap their heads around everything, Tony spoke.
“Where do we start, Michael?”
“Put out the fires and collect the bodies. We must bury them properly once I return.”
“Where are you going?” Tony asked.
Michael glanced at Honor and her pulse picked up. Fates, he was amazing, so gorgeous and authoritative. Michael smirked as though he knew Honor’s thoughts, which, ugh, he likely did. She must needs remember the bond and not project her desire so emphatically. But how could she help it? Michael in authoritative mode made her body tingle.
“We are going to speak with my brother,” Michael growled.
In Michael’s arms, Honor felt her physical form disintegrate and the world turned dark. When the lights returned, they were brighter than usual. She blinked and sighed at the white on white on white.
The Hereafter.
Honor tried to move but couldn’t. She frowned at her immobility. A low chuckle from behind and Honor twisted her neck to find her mate towering over her. She quickly worked out the reason she couldn’t move. Honor was still wrapped in Michael’s embrace, only she couldn’t feel a thing. Not the delicious heat of Michael’s body pressed against her back, or the sinewy muscles of strong arms around her waist, or his warm breath rustling her hair to caress her ear and make her shiver. For the love of angels, Honor despised the whole “your body isn’t real” sensation of the Hereafter.
“In agree. I despise it as well, dulcedo,” Michael murmured as he released her. “Come.” Michael took her hand, not that she could revel in the brush of his calloused palm against hers, and led them directly into Gabriel’s chambers without knocking or announcing their arrival.
Gabriel? Mayhap this shall turn ugly.
“Brother,” Gabriel said. Honor watched as Michael’s expression turned to stone and his shoulders rose as the muscles tightened. Both the result of Gabriel’s smug smirk, which she suspected also had quite a bit to do with the irritation currently flowing from Michael.
“Why?” Honor internally flinched at the amount of hostility Michael managed to convey with a single word. “Why would you purposely keep me from my altarasha, my soulmate, my other half?” Michael’s voice rose until it almost reached a shout. “To what end did it serve to cause her such pain and suffering?” While she cringed, Michael moved until he towered over his smaller brother, who to Honor’s surprise, continued to smirk despite the nearly seven-foot warrior glaring down at him whilst likely imagining Gabriel as a smudge under Michael’s heavy boot.
With deft grace, Gabriel slipped around a seething Michael to stand behind his desk. Honor was relieved, as she had no desire to watch Michael fight his brother.
“Worry not, dulcedo. As we have no physical form on this plane, I cannot pound my brother’s face to a pulp, though I do fantasize about it,” Michael growled.
Gabriel chuckled and threw Honor a wink. Her jaw dropped, expressing her shock at Gabriel’s casual attitude. His compete disregard for Michael’s feelings, the pain that transpired over the last few weeks, as well as Honor’s own agony. It appeared Michael was correct to accuse his brother of being callous. Not allowing them to come together as soulmates, did in fact lead to Honor’s capture and torture at the hands of Asmodeus. Normally levelheaded and one to avoid conflict, Honor found herself sharing her mate’s anger.
“This is a joke to you?” she asked, tilting her head as she studied Gabriel. Aye, he was beautiful, though not in the same rugged, powerful way as her lover. Gabriel was smaller and slim, his hair a shocking shade of auburn that fell in tousled waves to his shoulders. Despite his stature and soft features, the Archangel was as masculine as any warrior. Too bad his beauty wouldn’t save him from Honor’s fury. “I was humiliated! Tortured! I…” She choked on a sob and in the blink of an eye, Honor found herself back in her mate’s embrace. Numb though it was, the gesture still comforted Honor as their life forces swirled around them.
“You bastard,” Michael snarled. “How dare you upset my mate?”
“Stop.” The power behind Gabriel’s command made both Honor and Michael freeze, the two of them gaping at the normally passive male. “I gained no pleasure from your suffering, either of you. You are my brother, and I care for you and your mate.” Gabriel leveled an accusatory glare at Michael. “How could you think I enjoyed what you experienced?” The fast-talking Gabriel gave Michael no chance to respond. “My current state of happiness is the expression of my joy at your mating. You are the first true bonded soulmates in the history of our kind. You have no idea what your bond means to the Fates. What you have is a blessing above all blessings.”
“Then why—?
Again, Gabriel barreled on, this time his handsome face twisted into a deep frown. “I answer to the Fates, the same as you, Michael. I have not the luxury to refuse an order sent down from above. I am The Messenger of the Fates. It was not my desire to cause either of you any pain. I just…” Gabriel’s gaze dropped to the pristine white floor and his sharp cheekbones flushed. “What happened was the will of the Fates.” Gabriel flicked his attention back to Honor and Michael. “I shouldn’t tell you this, but the delay in your mating wasn’t entirely about you. It had something to do with the half-daemon prince.”
“Dante?” Honor exclaimed as Michael growled, “Lust?”
Gabriel waved his hand dismissively. “I know not the reasons the Fates do what they do, and even if I did, I am bound to secrecy. I have already disclosed more than I should. So…” Gabriel took a deep breath and—Honor knew by the tightness around Gabriel’s eyes—forced a grin. “I congratulate you on your mating. You give me hope there will be others who shall follow suit. Immortals of the Hereafter have waited many thousands of years for this moment. Now, I beg of you, return to the Earthly plane and continue with your joyous existence. Carry out your duties as Protector, brother, and cherish your beloved.”
Michael grunted. “Fine. But don’t think I’ve forgotten about this.”
Honor elbowed Michael in the abs, then remembered he wouldn’t feel a thing. Rolling her eyes, she stared into her lover’s sapphire gaze, swept up by the sheer amount of love reflected every time she gazed into their depths. “Gabriel explained it was not his decision to make, and I believe him. He cares for you, for us. In truth, you cannot hold him responsible for that which is out of his hands.”
“Hmph,” was all the response she got.
Fates her mate was stubborn. And hardheaded. And hot-tempered. And every sexy inch of him is mine.
“Michael,” Honor warned. “Be nice.”
“Only for you, dulcedo.” Michael dipped his chin at Gabriel. “We shall take our leave.”
“I’ll see you at the first meeting of the Trinity,” Gabriel said, a cheeky smile on the Archangel’s face.
“How do you know—?”
Gabriel tapped the side of his head. “I have my ways, Honor Ward, eternal soulmate of the Protector. I have my ways.”
The last thing Honor saw before Michael dematerialized them out of there was a mischievous sparkle in Gabriel’s dark eyes.