“Elena-mine. A good hunt?”
“Yeah, we got the vamp.” Arms folded as she leaned against one side of the doorway, she shook her head. “Older one. Stupid to allow his control to fray after all this time—and for what? A bad breakup that left him enraged to the point he surrendered to bloodlust.”
Unfolding her arms, she straightened up. “I was just going to wave at you to let you know I was home, then head up for a bath, but then I heard you mention Her Evilness. What’s happened?”
When he told her—for she was welcome to all he knew, his consort in the truest sense—she hissed out a breath. “I thought I understood evil, but this . . .” Striding over, she cupped the side of his face. “You okay, Archangel?”
No one else would’ve thought to ask that question. Elena alone understood how the specter of madness haunted Raphael. Both of his parents had gone mad. One had died. One had survived. Each had caused carnage.
“Yes.” He wrapped her up in his arms and in his wings, needing her close.
“Raphael, I’m sweaty and—”
“Hbeebti.”
She locked her arms around his torso, the lithe muscle of her warm and possessive. “Not that I’m not happy to see you,” she said softly against his neck, “but that’s a knife hilt that’s digging into you.”
He laughed, the sensation unexpected after the ugliness of what he’d just discussed with Suyin. Then, surrounded by the fierce life of his Elena, he told her the full extent of what Aodhan and Illium had discovered.
“Fuck.” A shake of her head against him, tendrils of her hair clinging to the white of his shirt. It had grown out in the time since she’d woken, the tiny feathers at the ends now all gone, and the length enough for her to braid it back out of the way as she’d done today.
Every so often, however, he’d catch a glimpse of light arcing through her wings. She’d told him she didn’t feel anything, and as far as they’d been able to determine, her power levels remained appropriate to her age as an immortal—though the Cascade had left her one lingering gift: she healed faster now, the archangelic cells in her body having accelerated her immortality.
“It disturbs me that I interacted with Lijuan as an elder archangel during the time she was torturing her child,” he admitted. “Because that was what it was: torture.”
“You won’t get any disagreement from me.”
“But I never saw any signs of such depravity. I saw that she was old and wise and not necessarily ‘nice’—but so few of the old ones are. It makes me question my ability to judge my fellow members of the Cadre.”
Elena pushed back so she could look up at him.“No one saw it,” she pointed out. “Not a single person outside of her inner circle. I know angels well enough to predict that almost none would’ve countenanced the mistreatment of a child—especially not back then, before she turned so many of her people into obedient followers.”
She put a hand on his chest, over his heart. “The news would’ve spread if Lijuan had brought in anyone but her most fervent acolytes. Trust me, Archangel, she put a firewall of unquestioning devotion around that information—and she was still stable enough to appear normal.”
Raphael went through a list in his mind, of Lijuan’s most trusted courtiers and generals. “I can’t believe this of General Xi. He saw her as his goddess, but he was a good man in many ways—especially back during the time of Jinhai’s birth.”
“Mortals have countenanced a hell of a lot of cruelty in the name of religion,” Elena pointed out. “And Lijuan had Xi since he was real young. I’d like to think he didn’t know, that she used others who were less intelligent, less likely to question her, but unless Suyin’s people dig up records that make it clear, we’re never going to know for sure.”
“No. The boy’s words certainly can’t be trusted, not given his state of mind.” Raphael pressed his lips to the top of Elena’s hair. “I think I will join you in that bath, Elena-mine. I feel the need to wash off this darkness.”
She stroked a hand down his back, her knuckles brushing the underside of his right wing. “Aodhan and Illium?”
“I haven’t spoken to them, but I know Illium will be all right. It’s Aodhan about whom I worry.” He’d never told Elena what had happened to the angel made of light, and she’d never asked, for that was a piece of private history for Aodhan to share.
But she understood enough to wrap her arms around him again and say, “Illium’s there. You know those two will be fine as long as they’re together.”
46
Jinhai was silent on the flight to join Suyin, though it was a silence awash in wonder. The snow had stopped falling, the landscape a pristine carpet of white under cool winter sunlight that turned Aodhan into a star on one side of the sling that held the boy, while Illium took the other.
Jinhai was interested in everything, looking around with wide eyes.
Illium saw in his curiosity a glimpse of who this young angel might’ve become had he not been molded into a monster. For Lijuan had never been less than intelligent—and the same intelligence burned in the eyes of her son.
Driven by the situation, they’d accelerated the closing up of the stronghold. Now, only a day after they’d found Jinhai, Li Wei and her team traveled in three all-terrain vehicles on the ground below and just far enough behind them that Illium and Aodhan could check for threats on the road.
A grumbling Smoke traveled with them.
Li Wei had chafed at the rush that meant things weren’t up to her standards, but she was also a senior member of staff for a reason. She’d prioritized the list of tasks, mobilized her people, used Illium while Aodhan kept watch on Jinhai, and got the job done so they could leave this morning at first light. It had to be this way—Suyin was the only one who could deal with the boy, both because she was an archangel, and because she was his kin.
He and Aodhan landed often, but each time, they did so at a distance from Li Wei’s team, while still keeping them in sight. The sightline to ensure the team was never out of Illium’s or Aodhan’s protective watch, the distance a precaution in case Jinhai’s mental powers were more virulent than they’d initially judged. He’d had a long time to work on his guards, so it was probable he needed continuous access to manipulate—but there was no point in taking chances.
As for the regular landings, it was to give the boy a chance to stretch his legs, as being carried in a sling for a long period could be difficult on the body. Jinhai appeared to appreciate the breaks and used them to explore what there was nearby, but he never made any move to escape, too excited for further flight.