MIDNIGHT DIVINE (The Helio Trilogy Book 1) (41 page)

As he reaches the door, I
lift my head from Jack's chest and croak, “Dad?” He turns with a small smile.
“Thank you.” He inclines his head in acknowledgement and exits the room.

Jack pulls my attention
from the doorway, his green eyes watching me closely, “I thought I lost you.”

I try to force a smile on
my lips, but it fails to flourish, “You’ve got my back.”

“I’m sorry it took so long.
We couldn’t find you. I couldn’t
feel
you. Then, something changed today, and there was a faint pull. I
knew
it was you,” he states with the soft tone of sorrow.

“I’m sorry, Jack.”

“Shh, I’m going to carry
you to the bathroom so we can get you cleaned up.” I nodded my head and wrap my
arms around his neck, reveling in his closeness.

Jack lets me down easy to
stand on my shaky legs, and I lean against the sink. I catch my reflection in
the mirror while he fills the tub with clean, warm water. Dry blood stains my
skin, my wings are missing handfuls feathers, and my ribcage is adorned with
three deep claw marks oozing with blood. The edges of the open lacerations are
crusted with dry blood and dirt, indicating its active healing.

I tuck my wings behind me
and hold myself, embarrassed of my appearance. Jack retrieves a few towels and
lays them on the counter. He asks, “Do you want me to stay?”

I bite my lip and nod
without meeting his eyes. “I don’t want to be alone right now,” I mumble.

I sit on the edge of the
tub, carefully inching my underwear down my legs before slipping them over my
toes. I shift my legs over the precipice of the tub and glide them into the
water. The gore from my skin stains the water in a brown tinge. I watch the
color swirl for a moment, lost in its hypnotizing dance. After pulling my
tattered wings inside myself, I reach behind me to unclasp my bra and let it
fall off my arms. The water clouds over and stings the various lesions on my
body as I ease into the water.

Jack comes to kneel beside
the tub with a washcloth in his hand. “Here,” he says, plunging the
cloth
into the water, void of reservation. He squeezes the
water out before brushing my hair away from my face and removing the blood and
dirt from my cheeks with his gentle caress. As he continues to wash away the
damage of the past three weeks, his calming touch relaxes my body. The silence
between us is a welcoming modulation in comparison to the constant screams and
roaring flames of Sheol.

Jack holds a towel out for
me, “I’ll go see what’s in the closet.”

I stand up and let him wrap
the towel around me before stepping out of the murky water. “Thank you,” I
rasp, my voice not fully recovered from the constant strain of screaming. He
leaves me a moment, and I pull the edge of the towel back to check my wounds in
the mirror. Their superficial appearance seems to be fading at a steady pace.

“You’re healing a lot
faster,” Jack notes.

Letting the towel fall back
into place, I take the clothes he offers. “Yeah. A
lot
faster.”

“Well, someone's dying to
see you. I’ll let you get dressed,” he says before closing the door behind him.

My heart thuds in my chest.
Solas?
With shaky hands, I put on the dark gray sweats and white shirt.
I twist my hair up into a bun and take a deep breath before returning to the
bedroom.

Alice paces back and forth
at the foot of my bed, biting her thumb nail. When her eyes fall on me, she
sprints over and our bodies
collide
in a tight embrace.
Relief,
love, joy.
“I’m so glad you’re alright,” she cries.

Even though ‘alright’ is an
understatement, I tell her, “Me too.”

“We were so worried. It
happened so fast. No one knew Lucian was evanescent.”

We release each other from
our embrace, and silent tears run down our faces. I ask, "What's
evanescent?"

She sniffles and rolls her
eyes, "His little vanishing trick."

“He had more tricks up his
sleeve than any of us could've suspected.”

An unspoken sorrow passes
between us before she speaks again, “Everyone's waiting for you downstairs.
They want to hear what happened. Are you up for it?”

“Not really, but I need to
anyways.”

Hand in hand, Alice and I
descend the steps to meet everyone in the entertainment room. I can’t help but
feel I may be dreaming as I absorb my surroundings. I wonder if I'm really here
or if I'm still trapped in Sheol and hallucinating. We turn the corner into the
entertainment room. I'm greeted with looks of shock and warm embraces all
around before I'm ushered to sit on the sofa. Everyone's here. Alice, Eric,
Jack, Evelyn, Michael, my father, Cass, Beck, Thea—everyone but Solas. I look
to Cass and Beck standing in front of the cold hearth with their arms crossed
over their chests, “Where’s Solas?”

Beckett glances at his
brother and lets his gaze fall to his feet. Cassius’ expression falls, never
looking away from me, “We don’t know.”

“What do you mean? How do
you not know? Where is he?” Fear surges through me.

Eric clears his throat, “We
haven’t seen him since you disappeared.” I stare at him in disbelief. “Since he
sent Jack to the Ball in his place, he waited outside in his raven form so he
could follow Lucian if he came out with you. When Lucian vanished with you,
Jack and Solas worked together to find you. They followed their bond to you and
found the warehouse. Solas went inside while the rest of us tried to find a way
in. We could hear Solas speaking inside and thought he had it all under
control. After Lucian disappeared with you again, Solas took command of the
legion left in the warehouse as Lucifer. We charged in, expecting to slay all
of them, but they were gone… We haven’t heard from him since.”

“Maybe he’s still looking
for me.”

“Sweetie,” Alice lays her
hand on top of mine. “We thought that too at first, but it’s unlike him to not
keep us updated.”

I look to my father for
answers. He states, “We can only assume he has been accosted to Sheol and
reassigned into a new legion.”

I'm stunned silent as
everyone waits for my reaction. “Michael?” I croak, my vocal cords on the mend.

“Yes?”

“What are the chances of
him being released from his new assignment?” I ask, feeling small and hopeless.

Michael’s eyes soften, “I am
sorry, Ivy. The only way to be released from a fallen legion is the elimination
of their essence or of their commander's essence.”

Silent tears fall down my
cheeks and blur my vision. Alice puts her arm around me, and I turn my face
into her embrace.
He’s gone. I’m never going to see him again. We'll forever
be set against each other. He'll always be a Warrior of Darkness because of me,
and I'll never be able to ask for his forgiveness.

When I regain my composure,
I pull away from Alice to wipe my face. Jack stoops down in front of me, “I’m
really sorry, Ivy. But we need to know everything that happened to you. Can you
do that?”

I hesitate before I agree.
“Can I get a drink first?”

“Anything, Sunshine.” Jack
rises and kisses the top of my head. “I’ll be right back.”

I squirm as I wait for Jack
to return. Michael steps forward, “Ivy, I am happy to see you safely returned
to us. I must go now. There are matters I need to handle immediately. I will
return to check on you as soon as I am able.”

“Like my mother?” I ask
coldly, knowing I should have more respect when speaking to an angel of his
ilk.

Michael hesitates before
letting my disrespect slide, “She will be taken care of soon. It is a delicate
situation.”

“I see,” I respond. Michael’s
excuse to avoid his decision in sending Lilith to Purgatory
or eliminate her
makes me believe he has another agenda he's keeping to
himself. Jack returns with a bottle of water and a short glass of what smells
like scotch. “Thanks.” I down the scotch in one large gulp before consuming the
entire bottle of water.

Michael bids everyone
farewell and vanishes to wherever he's needed. Azrael takes a seat in the open
high-backed chair
next to
Evelyn, and Jack takes the
open seat beside me. I release a heavy sigh before I mumble, “Do you really
need to hear everything? I would rather skim over some of what happened.”

“Tell us whatever you
think's important, dear,” Evelyn says.

I nod, holding back the
tears that want to escape. “When I first had my visions of Lucian, you were all
skeptical that it was really him. You talked about him being a failure and a
disappointment to his father. Something must have happened that's changed him.
He's vicious, cruel, merciless, and more dangerous than you gave him credit
for. Maybe it’s because I killed Beleth. Lucian spoke of him often. I think
they were close at one time. I’m not sure where he was keeping me within Sheol
that you couldn’t find me.”

Azrael interjects, “I
believe he was using
wards
to cloak you from being found. If Lucian
disobeyed his father’s orders not to harm you and continued to hold you within
Sheol, he would have been forced to conceal your location. Even though it was
Solas who demanded he not harm you, Lucian knows his father is aware of every
essence within his realm. If Lucifer could feel your presence, Lucian would
have been forced to relinquish you to his father.” I nod in understanding,
trying not to let thoughts of Solas deter me from continuing.

“What else can you tell
us?” Evelyn urges.

I release a heavy breath
and proceed, “I was kept
in a
cave at all times.
The only lighting was from the few torches on the walls. Even the ground was
sharp, jagged rock. I refused to speak to him most of the time, so he did a lot
of the talking. Sometimes, I was so out of it I couldn’t understand what he was
saying or asking. He wanted me to release my essence to him so he could have
complete control over me. He wanted to use me against his father so he could
take over the throne of Sheol. I didn’t understand why Beleth’s death set his
plan in motion or why, all of a sudden, his father’s throne matters to him.
Only in my last moments in there did I get my answer.

“Lilith's been manipulating
him. After three weeks, she showed herself to me. She said I was created for a
purpose and called me her 'little pigeon'. From Lucian’s interactions with her
in my presence, I gather he's doing all of this to
please
her. Maybe he gets something out of it. I don’t know. I
think if Lucian ever obtained my consent while I was down there, he would've
used me to kill Lucifer. In turn, he would rule next to Lilith, and I'm
positive she would have eventually found a way to eliminate Lucian. I think she
wants the throne for herself
,
and maybe even
planned this since before I was conceived.”

“Where are they now?”
Cassius inquires.

I glance over to Jack, who
sits unblinking next to me. When he doesn’t respond to Cass’ question, I answer
for him, “Jack took Lucian out. I imagine his essence will return to his father
and he'll be able to regain his bodily form again. As for Lilith… She's very
powerful. I tried to take her essence from her, but she was able to keep it
from me and take it back. Then, she vanished… I don’t know where she is, but I
know she’s not going to give up that easily. She'll be back for me. Maybe
Lucian as well.”

The room becomes deathly
still as they contemplate my capture and try to imagine what I went through.
There's no need for me to touch each of them to understand what they must be
feeling. Their guilt's obvious. Evelyn and Theodora stare off into the
distance, not seeing anything beyond their own lashes. Beckett leans away from
us on the mantle, his back turned and face burrowed into his crossed arms.
Cassius is fuming as he glares to the rug at his feet, his right leg bouncing
in agitation. Eric holds Alice against his massive form to soothe her worries.
I watch his tense jaw twitch with controlled rage.

“Thank you, Ivy,” Azrael
says, standing with arms wide. Without hesitation, I leap into his arms and
embrace my father for the first time.
Pride, Love.
He pulls back to
speak, “Let me know if you need anything. I will be checking in on you more
regularly. I hope you do not mind.” I approve and he releases me. “
Do
try and stay out of trouble, darling,” he grins and disappears.

Jack’s arms envelope me
from behind, and I lay my head back into his sturdy chest. I close my eyes,
“This isn’t over. They’re going to come back for me.”

He squeezes me tighter,
“There's nothing we can do right now. Let’s get some rest.”

Pulling out of Jack’s
embrace, I scan over everyone left in the room, “Will you all be staying?”

Eric and Alice rise from
the sofa as one, holding hands. Eric gives me a small smile, “You know we
will.”

“Absolutely,” Cassius says.
Beckett and Theodora agree with him.

Evelyn pushes out of her
chair and takes a step forward. She declares in a firm tone, “Well, you all
better
be staying. We're having Thanksgiving dinner next week, and we'll be
celebrating Ivy’s return to us. I expect you
all
to be here.”