Archangel's Heart(80)

He bent, spoke close to her ear, his breath whispering over her skin once more, the touch of his wing over hers almost familiar. “We may need to go to the town multiple times. It would be highly suspect if it is only the two of us who keep turning up. A group of bored escorts, on the other hand . . .”

Oh. “You’re good at the sneaky stuff,” she said approvingly.

“Jason made me practice that,” he said in the same cool voice as earlier. “It took seventy-five years before he declared I’d be passable as a spy if I didn’t glow in the dark.”

Laughing so hard that her stomach hurt, Elena tried to see if he was joking. “Did they ever leave you alone?” she asked when she could speak again.

“No, no matter how hard I tried.” A smile that held an ineffable joy. “They were always there, Ellie. Constantly hauling me back from the edge of the howling abyss.” He swallowed. “Illium . . . he used to sneak into my house and leave art supplies everywhere, until what could I do but start using them or be buried in them.”

Elena dared link her fingers to his for a second, felt her heart squeeze when he curled his own around hers. “We lucked out with the people who love us, didn’t we, Aodhan?”

His answer was a smile that lit up even the secret-shadowed hallways of Lumia.




Tasha, Xander, and Valerius weren’t the only ones waiting for them in the courtyard. Titus’s escort, Mau’lea, was also there, as was Neha’s general, Hiran.

It appeared everyone was ready for a field trip.

Seeing her and Aodhan, Tasha said, “Magnus has already left. He’ll go overland, meet us in the town.”

Magnus, she remembered, was the vampire Astaad had brought as his escort. The other man had arrived on a glossy black stallion he left to run wild, calling it back with a whistle when he needed a ride. Elena had no idea how they’d got the horse to Morocco—maybe the gorgeous creature was used to planes. “Cristiano?” she asked Tasha.

“He’s going to stay with Hannah—she’s still drinking up the Gallery.”

Seconds later, they all spread their wings in preparation to rise, and then the sky was filled with wings as they took off one by one, careful to give one another space to get lift without the risk of tangling wings.

Elena waited right to the end, until only Aodhan was left. It would make it more difficult for the others in the sky to judge how much effort it took her to achieve a vertical takeoff. As for the Luminata, hopefully, since she stood in the center of the courtyard, they were far enough away not to catch any betraying nuances.

“Ellie, I can give you a boost.”

She shook her head. “No, I’ve decided I want the Luminata to know I won’t be easy prey.” There was a time to play games of stealth, and there was a time to showcase your weapons so your enemies would think thrice over before considering any hostile action.

That the Luminata had done nothing threatening to this point didn’t change the fact that her skin crawled with an awareness of danger every instant she was in this place. Keeping her face expressionless despite her emotions, she spread her wings, gathered her strength, and launched. The familiar strain pulled across her shoulders, made itself felt in her chest, sent sparks of sensation shooting down her back.

But then she was airborne and able to glide on an air current while Aodhan came up to join her. “Go high, Aodhan,” she said to him, her fitted black T-shirt sleek against the wind. “You’ll be better able to keep an eye on things.”

“I can’t protect you if I’m too high.”

“I can hold off anyone in this crew until you’re here to back me up,” she pointed out, patting the crossbow she’d strapped on over her jeans. “I’d rather have eyes above so you can monitor any strange movements.”

So brilliant in the sunshine that it was hard to look at him, Aodhan nodded and then he was winging his way to the clouds, where he turned into a distant shatter of light, an independent piece of the sun.

The others had all scattered across a wide area, each one flying independently while staying with the wider group. When Neha’s general fell back until he was next to Elena, she had to stop herself from checking that her gun remained within easy reach.





25


“Consort,” said the black-haired angel with wings of dark sienna, the color one she’d seen on no other angel.

“General Hiran.”

“I have instructions from General Rhys to ask after Mahiya,” the male said, his expression impassive. “Is she content?”

Thinking back, Elena remembered that Mahiya had spoken warmly of Rhys and his wife. They’d never treated her badly. “Yes,” she answered. “She’s finding her wings.” For the first time in her life, Mahiya was free to be exactly who she wanted to be and she was extraordinary.