Angel Magic (9 page)

 
Kari nodded. “But I don’t want to leave you here all alone.”

 
“Don’t worry about me,” Amber grinned. “I’m going fishing.”

 
Kari smiled a little. “That Auriel is cute.”

 
Kari and Amber helped Tressa clean up the kitchen while Rahmiel spoke with Tehmuel about the demon kills, then Kari showered and dressed. While she was alone, Kari thought about Rahmiel. She didn’t want to fight about sex, but she wasn’t ready yet for more. Everything had happened so fast. She needed time to regroup. She had a
        
new body, a man—an Angel, she reminded herself—in her life, and she was responsible for the deaths of her friends.

 
Thinking of her friends, so skeletal, she began to cry.

 
Rahmiel walked into the bedroom as she combed out her hair. Her eyes were still puffy from tears, and her cheeks were still wet. She tried to hide her tears, but he saw them.

 
“You are grieving for your friends,” he said in a soft voice.

 
She nodded. “Plus, I’m scared.”

 
He put a strong arm around her.

 
She snuggled into his embrace. “And I know that this is all my fault.”

 
“That it is not,” Rahmiel said firmly. “That ritual was written to deceive. You never would have done it if you had known it would summon a famine demon who would kill in a most hideous way.”

 
She was silent for a moment, her face buried against his chest. It felt good for him to hold her. Safe, warm…

 
“You’re right. I didn’t want to hurt anyone, especially not my friends. How did that ritual get into a book that I could read? Didn’t you defeat this demon long ago?”

 
“Yes. Defeated it, but I wasn’t able to destroy it. The ritual is something I plan to look into. It is possible a magician or witch has contacted demons, and the demons have used them to this end. Humans have long tried to summon demons to help them achieve power or other ends. But demons have no honor.”

 
There was a knock at the door. Kari let Amber in.

 
“I was just making sure you are all right.” Her pretty face showed concern. Rahmiel left the girls alone.

 
“I was just thinking about the Dieter’s Delight,” Kari explained. Then she started crying again and Amber joined her.

 
“Listen, Amber, I’m going to go with Rahmiel to the island. I do think it will help me unwind. He can tell me more about this stuff. We can have a picnic, swim a little…”

 
“Good, because Tressa has already packed you a lunch. Lots of fresh fruit.” Amber hugged her. “Remember, don’t feel pressured to have sex. A lot of stuff has happened in a short while…he doesn’t really seem like a selfish guy. I was expecting him to be, well, not as nice,” she whispered.

 
Kari nodded.

 
A short while later, Kari found herself wrapped in Rahmiel’s arms flying to the island.

 
They didn’t land on the beach. Instead he flew halfway up the mountain and then down through the thick canopy of trees.

 
A small waterfall fell to a pool. The water was deep blue and clear, she could see their reflections as Rahmiel flew them over the water, but she could also see rocks and water plants, far down through the clear water.

 
Rahmiel landed on a large flat rock, where sunlight filtered gently down from the clearing over the pool, and an occasional breeze scattered shade over the area. The air was hot and moist, like a sauna, and even her cotton shorts and tank felt heavy and sticky. Rahmiel was only wearing the white cloth wound around his hips. Kari wished she had packed a swimsuit.

 
“It’s pretty here,” she said.

 
“Yes. I knew it was here because I flew over it when we came before. I couldn’t see it from the prison.”

 
They sat side by side on the flat rock gazing at the beauty of the waterfall. Sunlight hitting the mist made by the falling water created a rainbow effect. Kari had never been anywhere so lovely in her life.

 
“Tell me more about being in prison.”

 
“There’s not much to tell. I challenged a Guardian to a duel and killed him. The Angeli sentenced me to life in prison. For murder.”

 
Rahmiel gazed out across the pool. “He was a traitor, but he came from a powerful Angeli family. We had a girl, like you, one the demon wanted. We found her under a pile of children’s bodies, wounded but still alive. We knew the demon would not cease trying to find her, to kill her. The demon always finishes a kill he has started. We don’t know why. Pride, maybe. Or perhaps it is in the nature of a religious act. Who really knows why demons do what they do?” Rahmiel stretched out next to her and leaned on one elbow, so his face was close to her breast. He lifted a lock of hair off her shoulder and began to play with it.

 
“Anyway, none of us had bonded with her. She was distraught and wounded. We were wounded. We needed to see to the burials. It was a horrible day. Gerial, a Guardian, said he would do the binding, which would give her a measure of protection.

 
He was the only Guardian who had escaped the fight unharmed. So the poor girl, who had lost her whole tribe, went with Gerial. But Gerial didn’t do it, after all. He got involved in family business of some sort and ignored the girl until our planned battle time. Tehmuel and I were so rushed neither of us noticed there was no bond. We just assumed it was there.” Rahmiel moved onto his back, and placed his forearm over his eyes, as though blocking the sun, which came down through the canopy of leaves in gentle dapples. Kari took advantage of the moment to inspect his body, and the sight of his lean muscular form wrapped only in the white fabric swatch made her feel warm.

 
“I moved away from her in the fight, thinking she had the protection,” Rahmiel continued, “and she was pierced. She didn’t survive. Later Gerial said he couldn’t do the bond because his father had arranged a marriage to an important Angeli family. I was furious. He should have told us. She was the last of her tribe. The entire tribe died.

 
Thousands more died before we found another survivor to lure the demon to our trap.

 
The demon doesn’t leave something unfinished if he can help it. Neither do I. I challenged Gerial to a duel and killed him. But by then the powerful marriage had happened…politics intervened. Lemuel, the Guardian leader you met, is related to Gerial’s wife.”

 
“That’s not what I consider murder,” she said, relieved at finally knowing the truth.

 
“I think you did the right thing.”

 
He rolled over onto his elbows, his face very close to hers. His lips curved into a slight smile, and he raised a hand to trace her lips with his finger. “I am glad you do not think me a murderer. I took my Guardian vows to protect our human brethren seriously.”

 
For a moment she looked into his eyes, and then the soft brush of his fingers sent a sudden shiver through her.

 
Rahmiel grinned and sat back up. He picked up a handful of pebbles and began tossing them into the pool. Kari enjoyed the play of muscle as he moved.

 
“Have you ever been bonded before?” she asked after awhile.

 
“No.”

 
“What is it, exactly? I could feel something last night, I think.”

 
“Close your eyes.”

 
Kari looked into his for a moment and then shut her eyes.

 
“Now relax.” He slid one finger on her forearm, moving it slowly. “Focus on the touch. It will take a moment.”

 
Kari concentrated on the gentle touch and then something began to happen. An intricate pattern began to swirl and loop behind her eyelids.

 
“I see something.”

 
“Yes, a pattern. Our patterns are exactly the same—same colors, same shapes.”

 
“But what does it do?”

 
“It is a power grid. We can learn to connect, learn to use the power to do different types of work. Angeli use the power to do manual labor, like building or farming.”

 
“Angels farm?”

 
“Yes.” Rahmiel gave a breathy chuckle that sent a shiver through her. “Angeli are similar to humans. We eat, sleep, raise families, and have occupations, crafts.”

 
She opened her eyes and looked straight into Rahmiel’s crystal blue ones. He had moved during the demonstration and was now just inches from her, resting on one elbow. He looked good so close. His skin was smooth and flawless and his pink lips carved to perfection. She glanced down. His chest was not hairless, but covered with a light blond down. It looked so soft she wanted to touch it.

 
“You can do this power stuff with humans, too?” she asked, her voice a breathy whisper.

 
His finger was now caressing her arm in smooth, firm circles. It reminded her of something he’d done before, when they were bonding, his hand between their bodies.

 
She felt herself blush.

 
“Yes, but with humans and Angeli it takes longer to figure out. Back in my day, there were many marriages between humans and Angeli. Mixed couples tended to have many children, which of course are a distraction, when a couple is still learning to work with the bond.”

 
He took a deep breath. “There is a possibility, then, that you could be pregnant from our bonding.”

 
Kari felt her face get a little hot. “Um, no… I can’t get pregnant right now. There’s this shot…I started it not too long ago. It’s so I won’t get pregnant.”

 
“A form of birth control?”

 
“Yes.”

 
He frowned. “Was there a man in your life? Some boy you were planning to have relations with?”

 
“No. And no one calls it relations nowadays.” She turned away from him and gazed at the pool.

 
“Do human-Angel babies have wings?” she asked after a pause.

 
“Sometimes. Not always, though. We are able to tell before the birth if the child has wings.”

 
He reached up and brushed a strand of hair from her sweaty forehead. “Come, let us go swimming. I can feel how hot you are.”

 
“I didn’t bring a suit.”

 
He raised his eyebrows at her.

 
“To wear.”

 
“You can swim naked.”

 
She rolled her eyes.

 
“You are wearing undergarments, they will suffice.”

 
“They’re lace,” she grumbled.

 
His eyes opened wide. “See through?” His lips curved into a delighted smile. “I would like to see those.”

 
He stood before her and her eyes caught sight of his groin, where his white cloth tented out.

 
Kari crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I’m not having sex with you.”

 
“I wasn’t even thinking of it. Not until you aren’t sore anymore.”

 
“Liar.” She waved one hand toward his crotch. “You are too thinking about it. I can see your—your tent.”

 
He laughed. “Tent,” he crowed. “Even I know you Americans don’t call it a tent.

 
You call it a hard on.”

 
She scowled at him until he finished chuckling.

 
“Kari, you can’t expect me not to react to you. You are lovely and we bonded in the most intimate way.”

 
He moved close and a shiver ran through her body, which was not paying much attention to her mind. Rahmiel reached out and stroked her face. She should pull away, but his hand was warm and tingly sensations ran through her.