“Then I shall see to it that once he returns, he hears your message.” Hannibal set his hand gently on her shoulder. If she were most angels, the action would lead to the man receiving a severed hand. Though Maira only knew one human’s touch, she did not see the harm in Hannibal’s gesture. He meant no harm and did not realize the dangerous line he walked with such a polite gesture.
“Thank you. I don’t know if I’ll ever find a reason to return to Yeld, but I want you to know, I’ve enjoyed our friendship.”
He glanced away as if embarrassed by her sudden sentiment. “I know I’ll be seeing you again. Xander wouldn’t dare let a fine woman such as yourself go.”
“One can only hope.” Gathering the blue tunic around her waist, Maira turned to walk just far enough outside the grounds to return home.
She’d grown nearly as found of Yeld as of Xander. With Niall dead, his successor ruled with less bloodshed. Still disdain for the humans who lived under his rule, but death did not stain the land any longer. The people of the village were less than a hundred, but they were kind. They did their part to keep each other safe and well.
They do everything angels don’t.
Snorting, Maira sucked in a lungful of air before stepping out the gate. She’d made this journey enough times to do so in her sleep. Still, each time she hugged the stone wall and walked as far to the opposite side of the entrance as she could before sprouting wings to fly. If the humans below ever saw her, it was likely they’d not recognized her as the woman with Xander.
Safely on the far side, Maira closed her eyes, and with a simple thought, her wings appeared. Unlike shifting to a form not her own, exposing her wings was as painless as removing a corset. A single, downward thrust sent her feathers grazing over the graze before she found herself in the sky.
If Xander knew her identity and fled, she didn’t doubt their time together was over. A human male who feared for his life didn’t suddenly return because his heart wanted him too. He did so only when he thought the threat to his life ceased.
I do love you, and I will return. As often as I can.
“Where have you been?” Klina stood inside Maira’s room, blonde hair perfectly braided and touching the floor where she stood. Fire danced in her mother’s pale blue eyes.
“I had something to take care of.”
“For the fourth day in a row when you know, we have little time to secure our throne?” Disbelief colored the question.
Sometimes her parents reminded her of human parents, scolding her as if she were a small child.
“It was important and could not be helped.” Maira swallowed back a wave of emotion that threatened to wash over her. “It’s done. For now.”
“Very well. In the morning, we leave for Brigendale.”
Brigendale was to the west, nearly as far west as one could go. The coastal palace sat upon beautiful cliffs overlooking crystal blue seas. She’d been twice as a child, a few hundred years or so ago. It proved a stunning retreat, but an escape did not seem wise.
“If matters are so dire, why would we leave?”
“Brigendale’s eldest son, Thomas, lost his wife three days ago. The angel lost a bet to a demon, and it stole her soul.”
A shudder raced through Maira. Demons, like angels, walked the earth alongside men. The difference between them was only the darkness demons clung to. Angels were violent and power-hungry, but they did not seek to wipe out all life aside from their own. Demons did and nearly succeeded until angels showed themselves to humans and banished them.
“That is terrible, but we are not in the habit of visiting others for funerals.”
Her mother sighed and paced the room to stand before the large window on the back wall. “This is not to be a funeral.”
Realization struck with her mother’s careful tone. The words did not need to be said.
“You wish for me to marry him?”
Klina nodded. “Our enemies have not gone. We’ve allowed you years to find a suitable husband and have failed in all attempts. If we do not take this chance, the next time the Dallen’s come, we will not fair as well as two years ago.”
Two years ago, the warriors returned and slew half the angels in the palace. Ninety-two lives lost in a display of power only stopped by Klina’s magic. Maira still did not know precisely what her mother did, only that she’d lain in a deep slumber for days from the power drain.
Xander’s icy gaze and full lips formed in Maira’s mind. His tousled dark hair and sharp cheekbones called to her as they always did. She could tell her mother of the human, but it would do no good.
Marriage to a human would upset the balance of power. Marriage to a simple blacksmith would end her family. You’ve always known this would be the way. Did you truly believe that because a human loved you, that was reason to abandon your family?
A tear threatened to fall as Maria’s right eye grew hazy with it. Xander was right to flee. He’d never be safe by her side, and she’d been a fool to believe love would be enough, even for the most caring of angels.
“I understand.” The words seemed dead as Maira spoke them.
“This will be the best thing. Thomas does not seek more power than his family has. By joining our families, he will gain more than he wants, as will you. Where are army is small from lack of concern for one, the Brigendale’s is not. You, our family, and our land will forever be safe.”
Maira nodded, ignoring the way her hair waterfalled in front of her eyes. There was nothing she could say for fear of Xander’s name slipping past her lips. Angels were not supposed to fall in love with humans.
And yet, Maira had, and her heart burned as a searing line of fine seemed to pierce it, extinguishing her thoughts of the human she would never see again.
Chapter Six
“This is doable.” Jeremiah glanced sideways at Maira, his dark gaze showing only the smallest signs of concern. “Thomas is a kind angel, closer to our way of life.”
There was no need to point out that in the last year her parents grew more vicious as the need to protect their land grew stronger.
The crystalline blue waters of the Nirea glimmered under the harsh rays of the sun. The water seemed to stretch as far as Maira’s gaze could travel. She could jump into its frigid depths and escape – swim toward the islands off the coast where humans lived without angelic rule – only that would damn her parents and those she’d spent her entire life with.
Squaring her shoulders, Maria pushed open the carriage door. “I can do this. I was willing to tie myself to Niall to protect our family. I can do this.” Blowing out a breath, Maira stepped out, her eyes drawn to the brilliant white castle before her.
Unlike the short, dark gray stone of Castle Pire, the towers of Castle Brigendale’s stretched toward the sky and were so white they seemed to glow. Eleven spires topped adorned with purple flags greeted her.
“It’s bigger.”
“Much,” her mother set her hand on Maira’s shoulder, another very human gesture.
“Shouldn’t someone have greeted us?”
Angels thrived on power and showing it off. Thomas should have sent a dozen squires to announce her family’s arrival.