Chapter 16 #3
I freed my hands from her hold. She immediately sat up and grabbed my upper arms, digging her claws in while hissing at me, her teeth bared, revealing a small pair of fangs.
In that instant, I could almost see the war raging inside of her between the light and the darkness, each one attempting to establish dominance.
I didn’t pull away from her even as blood began to trickle down my arms.
I cupped her face with both hands, and she hissed even more viciously.
On instinct, I sent a sliver of my light into her.
With a will of their own, my light wings extruded and wrapped around her.
Eleni’s pupils dilated, swallowing her irises only to be stopped by that new golden ring surrounding them.
Part of her feral stance faded, replaced by an air of confusion.
“Esto quod es, my love,” I whispered, eyes locked with hers.
“Be what you are, in all your beauty, in all your glory. Do not fight your darkness. It is not your enemy, just another facet of your perfection. You are my soulmate, my heart, my everything. Do not fear the unknown. Embrace all that you were always meant to be.”
A powerful shudder coursed through her. Confusion gave way to fear, and an almost pleading glimmer flashed through her otherworldly gaze.
“Do not fear, my love. Be what you are. I will not let you fall.”
Somehow, those last words seemed to get through to her.
She took in a deep breath, her body stiffened, and then she let go.
She threw her head back and breathed out in a raspy exhale.
Mesmerized, I stared as a wave of energy radiated out of her, and the air shifted all around us.
A few more scales appeared on her shoulders, and a few strands of her hair took on a fiery tinge.
They weren’t flames, but they seemed to glow from an inner fire.
Mouth open, her head still thrown back, Eleni blinked a couple of times as she stared at the skylight without truly seeing it. I kept holding her, giving her the time she needed, my wings still wrapped around her. And then she lowered her head to look at me.
“Lyall,” she whispered.
“Yes, my love. It’s me,” I replied, fighting the overwhelming emotions sweeping through me.
She threw her arms around my neck and crushed my lips in a desperate kiss.
I emitted the strangest chuckle, driven by happiness, relief, the endless terror that had been eating away at me ever since the witches had ripped out part of her soul, and a mix of infinite love and gratitude.
My heart full to bursting, I returned her kiss, pouring into it every ounce of the depth of feelings she stirred within me.
We broke the kiss, and I rested my forehead against hers, savoring the moment.
She tore off the necklace, threw it on the floor, then sunk her fingers in my hair.
We quietly remained like this, in perfect communion.
Movement at the edge of my vision drew my attention away from my mate.
My jaw dropped when I found my mother standing next to Azrael, as well as Pharos and Haroth standing next to their father. Eleni gasped, her eyes all but popping out of her head as she stared at my mother.
“The Weaver?” Eleni breathed out, stunned.
“Mother,” I said as she started walking towards us.
Eleni jerked her head towards me with a shocked expression. “Mother?! Did you just say mother?”
“Huh, yeah,” I said sheepishly. “I told you my mother was special.”
“But the Weaver?!” Eleni exclaimed, flabbergasted.
But my mother stopping in front of us silenced my mate. Eleni stared at her in complete awe and disbelief.
“See how beautiful you are Lyall, now that you’ve stopped fighting your inner light?” Mother asked. “Are you finally at peace?”
“Yes. Yes, I am,” I said in a voice filled with emotion.
“Good boy,” she said tenderly before caressing my hair and placing a soft kiss on my forehead.
She then turned her attention to my mate.
“Welcome to the family, Daughter,” she said with a rare maternal expression. “I know what insecurities still linger within you. You are not a monster, Eleni Stavros. Do not let doubt douse your fire. Let it burn, fierce and bright. You are what you were always meant to be. Flaunt it proudly.”
With this, Mother caressed her cheek briefly before turning and walking away.
My chest constricted when she headed straight for Azrael.
To my shock, she took his hand, and he leaned forward to give her a tender kiss on the lips.
They didn’t say a word, and she simply vanished before he did the same.
Eleni rubbed her cheek where my mother had caressed it, her face still displaying the same wonder.
“By the gods, her touch is amazing. It’s like being touched by Life itself,” she whispered.
“Because it is,” Pharos said with a hint of amusement.
“What?” I asked.
“Mother weaves the threads of life. She literally imbues it into each of the paths that run between her fingers. There’s a reason she avoids direct physical contact, mainly skin to skin.
Her touch is extremely addictive to most living creatures.
Some people have quite literally lost their mind over it,” Pharos explained.
I gaped at him, floored that I should only discover this now. But it explained so much! It just confused me why she simply didn’t tell me. As needy and clingy as I could be, I wasn’t unreasonable. At least, it would have spared me from feeling rejected and unloved.
I eyed my brother, the seed of suspicion firmly taking root.
“You knew all along, didn’t you? That’s why you were telling me to embrace my divine light?” I asked, sounding a little accusatory.
“Of course, I did,” he replied mockingly.
“Why do you think I sought to have a relationship with you once I was freed from Cornelius? I wanted to see you follow the right path. And you were straying so far from it, I was beginning to despair. But I had faith Mother would find a way to save you in spite of yourself.”
I snorted in self-derision before nodding slowly.
“You couldn’t embrace your light before, and now you’re a sweet little angel like Pharos,” Haroth said tauntingly.
I glared at him. “I’m not an Angel, and I’m certainly not sweet,” I said, putting as much disdain as I could muster in that last word.
He smirked, a provocative glimmer sparkling in his red eyes. “Those light wings say otherwise, little Angel.”
“Don’t you have some people to reap, you wretch?” I snarled, making both him and Pharos chuckle.
“Always. But I will have a lot more once the two of you finish your mission. So you might want to get back to it promptly, after your mate has rested a little. I love reaping a good villain,” he added with a shit-eating grin.
Although they were both Azrael’s sons, Haroth didn’t share our mother.
Unlike Pharos, he wasn’t an Angel of Death but a Grim Reaper.
His breed specialized in reaping people with questionable pasts, who committed many crimes of any nature, and who usually required an escort to the less savory regions of the afterlife.
That didn’t stop them from also reaping the commonfolk, but that task was normally reserved for Angels of Death.
The latter were a lot gentler and compassionate, easing the dying onto the next journey.
Where an Angel of Death couldn’t sever someone’s life thread until it had reached its end, Grims could kill people at will, before their time, or even drag it out past their time.
Naturally, such behaviors could have unpleasant consequences for the Grim depending on the circumstances, but they had a lot more leeway and tended to be far more ruthless in executing their duties.
Like most Grims, Haroth usually presented himself in his skeletal form covered in a black robe.
A thin layer of leathery skin covered part of his body, with his bones clearly visible underneath.
It always confused me why they did so. Like his father, Haroth’s normal form was stunning.
I could only assume he enjoyed the fear his skeletal appearance stirred in those ‘villains’ he was coming to take on their final journey.
Before I could question him about what he meant about the villain, Haroth redirected his attention to my mate.
“Welcome to the family, little sister. I have a feeling you and I will get along famously. I am a long-time fan of your work,” he said in a mysterious tone before vanishing.
I glared at the now vacant spot at the feet of the statue of Hecate where he had previously been standing. Pharos laughed and gave me a half mocking and half sympathetic look.
“Stop pouting. You know Haroth cannot help himself when it comes to needling others,” Pharos said teasingly.
“I know. He’s a massive jerk. Which is why I like him, I guess,” I grumbled.
My brother burst out laughing while Eleni snorted.
“I will never understand you, Lyall. But I’m glad you like him. For now, I can only spare you a few minutes to teach you something you’ve coveted for a long time before I have to go back to my duties,” Pharos said with a grin.
“Oh?” I said, my curiosity piqued.
He nodded. “Angels of Death do not need a portal to cross through the Veil or teleport to specific locations. Guess what you are now, little brother.”
“Oooh fuck, yes!” I shouted, making the two of them laugh.