The Lonely Wolf (24 page)

At her statement, the majority of the angels applauded.

“You savagely tortured a werewolf who was helping you get rid of me.”

“And you think angels see that as a crime? Roughhousing a barely sentient dog doesn’t constitute a felony. The bitch thought she could talk to me as if we were equals. She dared give me an order. Any angel would’ve reacted to such an affront.” She pivoted on her heels, opening her arms to the side, eliciting a louder response from the crowd that cheered her. “Am I right, or not?”

The response was immediate. Angels uttered their yeses and walked back toward the center of the room.

Ludwig waited for the crowd to calm down, then he said, “You would’ve killed her in any case.”

“Of course. I couldn’t leave a dog alive only to have her saying she had helped an angel later on. But had she not disrespected me, I would’ve have spared her the suffering.”

Again, the spectators agreed with her.

“The fact you found the dog alive, it’s nothing more than a setback. It only means that I’ll have to repeat what I’ve just said to the Holy Court. I’ll be commended for my fast thinking and my selfless sacrifice. I’d do anything to maintain our purity. Wolf-lovers can’t be archangels—” She opened her mouth wide to unleash her Wrath on Ludwig.

“At long last. I was starting to worry you’d never attack me.” Ludwig moved out of the blast’s way in a flash.

Where he had stood a fraction of a second earlier lay smoking rubble, and a few spectators’ wings singed. The cheers mutated into cries.

“How did you move that fast?” she panted, eyes bulging in surprise, but ready to strike again.

“You forgot why I was elected archangel.” He walked back to her, one arm stretched before him, palm up. “I have heard enough.”

Azahel’s mouth closed with an audible snap.

“I am the archangel because I am the pinnacle of our race. I am stronger and faster than any angel. And I can revoke other angels’ powers. Like your Wrath. In fact, even Arariel wasn’t as strong as I am, and that’s why I could demote him.”

Her eyes filled with angry tears as she clawed at her lips.

Ludwig continued, “You are right in thinking that according to
our
laws you would have never paid for torturing a werewolf. You would’ve gotten away with working with a vampire, because as you put it, you were sacrificing yourself for the greater good of our race.”

The crowd followed Ludwig as he slowly paced around. “But even if you have sympathizers—” He looked at the angels, and several of them lowered their gaze. “You attacked the archangel in his house.”

Realization donned on Azahel’s face as she paled and frantically looked around for help, but the people who had applauded her a moment ago were now retreating toward the corners.

“For one like yourself who recites the angelic dictates with such pride, you have forgotten the most sacred of all.” Ludwig advanced toward Azahel. “And you carried out your crime before a room full of witnesses.”

She shook her head, tears now streaming down her cheeks and staining her white dress.

“Even if all of them feel as you do about me, you attempted against the wellbeing of an archangel in his sanctuary, and you will be punished for it. No angelic court will ever save you. Keeping our heritage pure is what matters the most to the Holy Nation. ”

The woman collapsed to her knees, her hands united before her, begging.

“You live by the rules, you fall by the rules as well.” He removed the binding on her mouth. “By the powers vested in me, you are not an angel anymore. You are a fallen. Yours is the decision to forget about the present and become a demon, or retain your broken wings and your memories and walk the Earth forever.”

Before the astonished crowd, Ludwig whispered the command that clipped Azahel’s wings. The feathery ends fell to the floor and burned, leaving only dust behind, as if they had been made of dry paper.

Holding her truncated wings with shaking hands, she whispered, “You shouldn’t be the archangel.”

“By your beloved rules, I am the only suitable angel for the office.” Ludwig couldn’t help but scoff at the irony. Then, after one last look at Azahel, he flexed his long wings and flew out from one of the arches.

Quintilius felt Ludwig several seconds before the angel appeared on the marble landing outside the prison.

The huge smile on Ludwig’s face was unexpected and gave Quintilius a pleasant jolt. “Are you that happy to see me or did you just have a mighty good sixty minutes?”

“Both.” Ludwig hugged him, then he lowered his lips to Quintilius and kissed him. Out there in the open, for all of passing Rome to see.

“What happened?” Quintilius asked.

“I’ll tell you all about it while I take you to my apartment.” The angel’s arms wound around Quintilius’s back and pressed him to his chest.

Ludwig’s nervous urgency made Quintilius shiver. “Why are we going to your place?”

“Because making love to you here would be frowned upon, and I have a reputation to uphold,” was Ludwig’s answer whispered to his ear as they were already flying.

The flight was fueled by their crescent ardor that was displayed by Ludwig’s wings brightly lit. Despite Ludwig’s promise, there was no talking, and they reached Ludwig’s place in a state of frenzy. Quintilius’s mouth was swollen by his lover’s searing kisses, while he had ripped the angel’s shirt buttons and lowered his jeans to his hips.

“Gods, I missed you,” Quintilius said, before plunging his hand lower.

Their pants were gone the moment Ludwig landed on his terrace. Half-walking, half-stumbling they reached Ludwig’s bedroom and his oversized bed. The angel made to push him down to the soft mattress, but Quintilius grabbed his wrist and turned him, sending him to the silk coverlet instead. Then he straddled him, holding Ludwig’s hands over his head, and lowered both of them until he blanketed the angel with his body.

“I love you,” Ludwig whispered from under him.

The angel had told him before, but never had he been shaking with his eyes full of tears.

“I love you, my wolf,” he repeated. “Marry me.”

“Ludwig?” Quintilius shored his weight on his straight arms.

The angel didn’t try to overturn him as he would have any other time. He remained with his hands linked over his head, although Quintilius wasn’t restraining him anymore. “Marry me.”

“Yes.” Quintilius bent his arms and dipped over Ludwig’s mouth for a long, sweet kiss. “Yes,” he whispered to his ear. “Yes.” To his jaw. “Yes.” To the hollow on his throat. “Yes.” Over his heart. “Yes.” To each of his taut nipples. “Yes.” To his ridged abs. “Yes.” To his lower abdomen and the fine, strawberry blond hair dusting his skin. “Yes.” Lower still.

Quintilius made love to him then, with his mouth, with his hands, with his whole body, kissing, stroking, caressing Ludwig inside and out. At the apex of their combined passion, they cried together, and Quintilius fell on top of him, spent and lost to the world.

“I love you,” he said, before closing his eyes.

When he woke from the deepest of slumbers, the bedroom was illuminated by the silvery light of the moon.

“You are beautiful when you sleep.” Ludwig traced his fingers over Quintilius’s thigh, stirring him awake. “I just realized I’ve never taken the time to do anything mundane like watching you dream.”

“We never had that luxury.” Quintilius turned to his back and tilted his head to kiss Ludwig.

Ludwig opened his mouth for him, then whispered to his lips, “I’ve missed out. You’re gorgeous when you sleep.”

“Am I now?”

“Yes, and you’re even more beautiful when you moan my name.” Ludwig moved on top of him, easily pinning him down, his strong legs framing his in a steel grip. “And I’ll never have enough of that, my love.”

Later, Quintilius ate a meal that would have satiated a family of ten. While he was asleep, Ludwig had ordered food from Quintilius’s favorite restaurant and kept the trays warm in the oven. While he demolished plate after plate of lasagnas, steaks, potatoes, grilled vegetables, rice coquettes, pizzas, fruit tarts, cannoli, and tiramisus, Ludwig told him what had happened during those sixty minutes they had been separated.

“One more thing,” Ludwig said after recounting his visit to the Holy Nation. “While you were taking your beauty nap, I received a call from Claudius.”

“What does he want?”

“He said he wants to talk.”

“What for?”

“He was generic, but I don’t think we will have another opportunity to confront him any time soon.”

“I guess we should pay him a visit,” Quintilius said.

“I’d rather stay in bed with you, but the sooner we take care of this loose end the better.”

They were airborne a few minutes later, and this time Ludwig slowed his wings enough for them to cuddle on their way to Castel Gandolfo.

“Where are we going to marry?” Quintilius asked.

Ludwig leaned to brush Quintilius’s nose, then smiled. “I was thinking Seattle. I love the city, and the Mount Rainier National Park would be perfect for your wolf.”

“Seattle it is, twelve months from now.”

They spent the rest of the flight chatting, something they had rarely done in all their time together.

The specter of the next goodbye had always been present. Not anymore. Not even now, when they were about to enter Claudius’s lair.

The vampire’s majordomo let them inside the nest. “Master is waiting for you,” he said.

They were led through a different maze of hallways and corridors. Instead of going down and into the manor’s underground inner chambers, they climbed two set of stairs, then they entered a long hallway where the majordomo opened a stately, carved, wooden door and said, “Please.” Then he moved to the side to let them in a large room with a long table.

Claudius was at the head of the table, surrounded by his nest. Feeders sat on either side of the vampires, their throats exposed, their expressions dreamy.

“Welcome back, archangel, wolf.” Claudius motioned for them to walk closer to the table. “Always such a pleasure to see you.” He kissed his feeder’s pale lips, then patted her arm and sent her away.

Quintilius wondered if the vampire was in the room, or if he was somewhere else, safely out of Ludwig’s Wrath.

“Will you present yourself before the Immortal Court?” Ludwig asked.

The vampire gave him a raised brow. “Archangel, I don’t have time for stupid questions.”

“Why the summons then?” Quintilius stepped in front of the table, and placed his hands on the solid, marble surface.

Claudius regarded him with a knowing grin. “Because it pleases me to have the archangel at my beck and call. Why else?” He snapped his fingers and a second feeder sat on the recently vacated chair. The young woman tilted her head to the side and moved her long auburn hair out of the way. Claudius lowered his fangs into her skin and fed with silent gulps. When he finished drinking, he looked up and smiled at Ludwig. “And before you destroy any of the décor in this priceless room, let’s make it clear that I’m elsewhere, as your consort has rightly guessed.” To demonstrate his words, he and the feeder disappeared, then they were back in the chair.

Ludwig made to turn and Quintilius followed him.

“Don’t you want to know my plans for Lupo?” Claudius asked, his tone smug.

“We know you planned to kill him in prison all along—” Ludwig started, but Quintilius pressed a hand to his shoulder.

“You’ll leave Lupo alone,” Quintilius said. “Or so help me, I’ll make my mission in life to flush you out from whatever hole you’ve burrowed yourself in.”

Slow clapping his hands, Claudius laughed. “My, my. Aren’t we overprotective?”

“You heard him.” Ludwig stepped toward the door.

“Wait a moment longer.” Claudius appeared at the door.

“Say your piece.” Quintilius had enough of the vampire’s eccentricities.

“I never cared about Lupo. It was always Iris’s request I kill him. And yes, there’s no point in denying the original plan was dwarfed by the archangel’s untimely intervention, and that I had to improvise to deliver the boy to Iris—”

“You took great pleasure in tormenting us.” Quintilius’s itch to drive a punch through the vampire’s face was strong.

“Yes, but I’m no longer interested in having Lupo removed. In fact, the exact opposite is true. I might even consider ordering the victim to withdraw his deposition. After all, the poor guy was highly distressed and couldn’t see his attackers well.” Claudius caressed his smooth jaw. “And for the record, I never cared about your torrid romance. That too was Iris’s obsession. But, in any case, as I just said, Lupo’s safe.”

“And why is that so?” Ludwig asked, his body tense beside Quintilius’s.

“Because, since dear Iris didn’t find her demise when she should have—thanks to the bloodlust of one instable ally—I’m sure she talked to you and revealed secrets that should have remained such.” Claudius tilted his chin up, as if gauging their reaction, but neither Quintilius nor Ludwig said anything.

“I see.” Claudius sighed. “You want me to spell it out for you. How uncivilized.” He tsked, then shook his head slightly. “Very well. I’m sure by now you must be aware I was behind the attack on one of my vampires. Although, as a sire I have the right of life and death over my nest, for reasons I won’t be bothering you with—but suffice it to say, it’s all about vampire politics—it behooved me to have this particular individual removed by someone else. Iris, always ready to give me a hand, saw her opportunity to get rid of the cub. Imagine my surprise when I realized who the pup’s father was. That was a definite plus then, and now.”

“You want us to keep quiet about your involvement?” Quintilius asked, worried for the first time since the vampire had started talking.

Claudius waved his hand dismissively. “That would be ideal, but it won’t be necessary.”

“Why?” Ludwig’s wings flexed, the white feathers shimmering bright.

“The why will soon be clear. But what is important you understand, is that Lupo is still breathing because I said so.” He waved at them and stepped to the side to let them go, as if he were there in flesh and bones.

Quintilius crossed the door without looking back and was glad to hear Ludwig’s steps soon behind. Only when outside did he swear out loud. “He wants us to owe him,” he said after cursing all his frustration out.

“I’ll obliterate him one day.” Ludwig kicked a rock against the wall, then stomped on it and pulverized it under his heel.

“Let’s get out of here.” Quintilius pulled at Ludwig’s arm, stepping out of the manor’s shadow. “From now on, I only want to think about our life together and the family we’ll create with Lupo.” He kissed Ludwig as he was tightly embraced.