Malcolm (Book 1, The Redemption Series) (16 page)

“There's nowhere to run,” Levi mocks, “and nowhere to hide, my little dove.”

I lean my back against the doors to the room and watch through my blurred vision as Levi approaches me. I try to phase, but obviously, I still don’t have the hang of it because I go nowhere.

“Why would you drug me?” I say, my speech sounding slurred.

“Because I want to know if you can conceive a child from me,” he says in all seriousness, coming to stand directly in front of me and cupping my face between his hands. “I want to know what it feels like to have a descendant of my own and you're the only one who can make that dream come true.”

“I don't understand,” I say, trying to hold onto consciousness. “Why me?”

“Because you are a descendant of Lilith and only you can take my seed and conceive a child from something like me. Your father was able to do it with your mother. I should be able to do it with you.”

Levi makes to move closer to me, but his plan is interrupted.

I see Malcolm phase in behind Levi, grab him by the shoulders and throw him against the far wall of the room.

Malcolm turns to look at Levi who is now sprawled out on the floor.

In a strident voice, I hear Malcolm say, “That will
never
happen.”

CHAPTER thirteen

Levi stares up at Malcolm in surprise at first, but then he simply starts to laugh slowly as he sits on the floor and bends his knees up to prop his arms over them.

“You surprise me, Malcolm,” Levi says, a cocky grin on his face. “Of all the people to come to sweet Anna's rescue, I didn't see it being you. Weren't you the one who banished her up here in the first place just so you didn't have to look at her?”

“I didn't send her here so something like you could paw at her,” Malcolm replies in a deadly voice.

“What do you care?” Levi asks. “As long as she has a child, what does it matter who fathers it? I'm as good a candidate as anyone else.”

“She isn't yours to have.”

“Oh?” Levi says, his eyes lighting up with mischief. “Are you claiming her for yourself then? Because I distinctly remember you calling her an abomination to God and that you didn't want to have anything to do with her after she was born. Or has that rather large thing between your legs started to think
for
you after seeing what a beauty she's grown up to be? I can't say I blame you really. She does look rather delectable. Good enough to eat in fact.”

Malcolm takes a threatening step towards Levi.

“You will
never
lay another hand on her if I have anything to say about it.”

“Hmm, I seem to remember you saying those words once before to her mother's suitor. I guess we know how that turned out since we have the proof of their union standing in the room with us. My, my... what would Lilly think of you now, Malcolm? You weren't strong enough to keep Amalie from bedding the enemy. Now, you want to lay with her last direct descendant yourself. It's just shameful really. How many epic failures can one person have in a lifetime?”

“Don't you dare sully Lilly's name by having it come out of your mouth,” Malcolm snarls. “You're not good enough to even have it pass over your lips.”

“Lilly... Lilly,” Levi pauses before taunting, “Lilly.”

Malcolm descends on Levi and stretches his arms down to grab him up off the floor, but Levi phases to where I stand forcing Malcolm to twirl around and face us. The anger he feels is etched clearly on his face.

“Tsk, tsk,” Levi taunts, “and here I thought you were in love with my little dove. Seems like that old flaming torch for Lilly is still lit and burning as brightly as ever.”

“I will always love Lilly,” Malcolm confesses as his eyes drift from Levi to me. “She will always be a part of me.”

Levi grabs hold of my arm closest to him and pulls me roughly against his side. I still feel drugged and helpless to stop him.

“Well, if that's the case, I don't see why I shouldn't be able to keep Anna for myself. She's obviously not of any use to you. Poor thing thinks she's in love with you though. I feel sure after a few days with me I can remedy that little fantasy and bring her back to reality.”

“How? By driving her insane?” Malcolm scoffs.

“By giving her something you can't, all of me. You Watchers might think you have the monopoly on being able to fall for human women but you don't.”

Malcolm crosses his arms in front of him. “Do you think you're in love with Anna? Is that why you tried to have Amon kill her the other night?”

Levi looks at me like he's considering Malcolm's question carefully. “That was a mistake. I never should have tried to kill her. She's much more valuable to me alive. I might not love her, but I could care for her better than you, especially if she gives me what I want,” Levi says, looking into my eyes. “A child.”

“Why does that seem so important to you?” I mumble, needing to know.

“Because it's the one thing your real father has that I don't, and I refuse to let him have anything over me.”

Levi looks back at Malcolm.

“I'll even give you what you want without a fight,” Levi tells him. “I'll give you the seal I have and not fight you from taking the other seals from my brothers. All you have to do is give me Anna, and you can complete your mission and finally die so you can be with Lilly again. I'll willingly give you everything you want, Malcolm. All I want in return is Anna and the child she can bear for me. Odds are she'll die like her mother in child birth, but what will that matter to you? You'll be in Heaven with the real love of your life and finally have the peace you've been longing for.”

Malcolm's arms unfold and fall to his sides as he looks at Levi thoughtfully.

“You would do all that just to have her?” Malcolm asks skeptically.

“Yes,” Levi says, and I know he's telling the truth. I'm not certain Malcolm does though because he still looks dubious. “I'll do all of that to have her and the child for myself. What do you say? Do we have a deal?”

Malcolm is completely silent, and he seems to be seriously considering Levi's proposition.

“Malcolm...” I say, feeling a corner of my heart begin to tear over the real possibility that he will agree to Levi's terms. I can see the wheels of his mind tumbling back and forth between the easy way out Levi is offering and rescuing me.

How much can I really mean to him if he would consider trading me in a bargain with Levi to get what he wants, what he's always wanted?

Jered phases in and touches Malcolm on the shoulder. This seems to bring Malcolm out of his thoughts and back to reality.

“Everything is ready,” Jered says to Malcolm, looking over at me with a worried glance. “You know you can't trust a word that comes out of his mouth.”

Malcolm looks at Jered for a moment before finally nodding his head in agreement.

“I won't let you just take her,” Levi says angrily, pulling me even more tightly against his side.

With his free hand, Levi raps his knuckles three times against the door behind us.

Instantly, Christopher and Clark are standing on either side of us without the flashing light associated with teleportation. I can only assume they phased in.

“I didn't think you would let her go without a fight,” Malcolm answers.

Three men phase in beside Malcolm and Jered.

I take in a sharp breath because all three of them are glowing to my eyes like Jered is. Malcolm is the only one among the five men who doesn’t glow.

“Called in the troops, did we?” Levi says, not sounding as sure of himself as he once was.

Before Malcolm can answer, Levi phases away with me in tow.

Malcolm isn't far behind though because he's right beside us in a matter of seconds. Levi keeps phasing us over and over to new locations in Cirrus so fast I end up having to close my eyes because I start to feel ill.

“You're going to kill her!” Malcolm finally yells at Levi, making the prince of Hell stop phasing.

“I thought she could take it,” Levi says, telling the truth.

“She's still part human, you idiot,” Malcolm says to him trying to be the voice of reason. “You know human bodies can't survive that much phasing.”

Levi pulls me behind him and stands between me and Malcolm.

“I won't let you take her away from me. Not when I'm so close to having what I want,” Levi says with grim determination.

“I won't be asking for your permission,” Malcolm replies before phasing over to us and grabbing Levi by the throat, tossing him off to the side.

Without Levi to prop me up, I fall to the ground on my knees before completely sitting down.

I turn my head and see Malcolm and Levi fighting, but my vision is so blurry by this point that I can't make out much of what is happening. I feel my stomach begin to heave and completely lose what little food is still left inside me. Someone comes to me and lifts me in their arms. When I look at his face, I recognize him as one of the three men who phased into the room before Levi phased me away.

He's tall and has oriental features. The smile on his face is kind, and I know I can trust him.

The stranger doesn't waste any time and quickly phases me away from the fight.

We end up somewhere I've never been before but know of. It's one of the thousands of escape pods on the underside of Cirrus.

The interior is small and completely white. Escape pods were built to only carry four people at a time in case some catastrophic event befell Cirrus and an evacuation was necessary. The man puts me in one of the command chairs at the front of the pod and activates the invisible protective shield which helps hold me upright in the seat.

“I'm sorry you've been placed in the middle of all this, Anna,” he tells me. “I hope we can resolve things quickly and eventually give you a normal life.”

“Who are you?” I'm able to ask through the haze of my thoughts.

“My name is Daniel,” he tells me before turning his attention to the control panel in front of me. He waves his hand over it to make the holographic controls light up. “As soon as Malcolm gets here, he'll launch this pod to the surface. Once it's moving, you won't have to worry about Levi anymore for a while.”

“How are we going to lose him?”

“It's impossible to phase into a moving target,” Daniel tells me. “He won't be able to follow you, and please, remember not to phase once you're on the surface. There’s technology Levi can use to track our phasing. He'll know exactly where you are in an instant if he catches you using it.”

I nod because I simply don't have the energy to do anything else.

Malcolm phases in.

“Go!” He yells to Daniel, quickly sitting in the seat beside me and taking command of the controls.

Daniel takes one quick glance at me the second before he phases. In that one look, I see a multitude of emotions but the most prominent one is worry.

I soon feel the pod's freefall from the magnetic lock holding it to the underside of Cirrus.

I silently watch Malcolm as his hands move quickly over the controls, guiding the pod where he wants it to go. He doesn't say anything to me and seems completely focused on the task at hand.

My heart aches inside my chest, and I feel the wetness of warm tears begin to trickle down my face.

How could he have even considered the offer Levi made? Was he so desperate to be with Lilly again that he would completely ignore the bond between us? I understood the fact that we had only just met and didn't really know each other that well. Yet, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that we are each other’s soul mates. The evidence of our connection is unmistakable to me.

Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I won't be able to share Malcolm's heart with Lilly. It seems as though she might have taken it all with her when she died.

The pain in my heart becomes unbearable, and my silent crying turns into an anguished sob.

Malcolm looks over at me in alarm.

“Are you hurt?” He asks in worry.

I turn my head away unable to look at him anymore, but slowly, I shake my head so he knows I'm not hurt, at least not physically.

I force myself to stop crying because I don't want to divert Malcolm's attention from our getaway. I try to remind myself that Malcolm didn't agree to Levi's offer. He actually chose to rescue me instead. Yet, if Jered hadn't shown up when he did, would Malcolm's decision have been the same? Or would he have traded me off in a bargain that assured his quick reunion with Lilly in Heaven?

I had no way of knowing. The moment was gone and now we were on the run.

A few minutes pass and I hear Malcolm say angrily, “We have company.”

Through the front glass of the pod, I see two drone war craft flying on either side of us.