Chapter 8
“All those stories of the human flipping tables, raging at the temple, and telling the elders to fuck themselves,” Lucian said and pointed at Uriel who sat in a tree swing beneath an overgrowth of wild roses with a dozen colors painting their petals, “that guy right there.”
“He looks a bit like the legends of the mortal savior,” Radu remarked as he kneaded bread, frowning at how it stuck to his fingers.
“You need more flour,” Lucian corrected him. He sighed heavily. “I think. Yuri would know more.”
“We’ll find him,” Radu said.
“While keeping Morningstar and Uriel from destroying all of reality?”
“All you have to do is kiss Star to keep him happy,” Theo added. “Should someone tell Raphael to kiss Uriel? Would that help?”
“I’m pretty certain Raphael is already kissing Uriel,” Lucian added.
Theo frowned as he stared out the window at Uriel swinging slowly alone, the fallen archangel’s head rested on the chain-like vine holding up the swing. “Be right back.”
“Don’t interfere,” Lucian told him, but Theo vanished out the door and into the air with his rainbow wings sending light refracting all over their property.
“It’s fine,” Radu said. “Maybe Raphael needs a kick in the ass.”
“And our tiny seraph is the one to deliver it?”
“Worked for you,” Radu said.
Lucian glared at him. “You’re an asshole.”
“Runs in the family,” Radu agreed.
A few minutes later Lucian took the dough from him and put it in a bowl with a towel cover to rest and watched as Theo landed outside, tucked his wings away, and entered the kitchen.
“What did you do?” Lucian asked the breathless seraph.
But Raphael appeared holding a small pot.
He paused beside Uriel and held out the planter.
Uriel stared at it for a few seconds. Lucian recognized the dissociation since Morningstar did it often.
Uriel blinked a dozen times and finally tore his concentration from the plant to Raphael’s face.
“Come on, don’t be a dumbass. Kiss him,” Lucian said out loud.
“I thought we weren’t supposed to interfere?” Radu asked.
Raphael held out his hand, palm up. Time passed achingly slow before Uriel slid his fingers into Raphael’s, twining them together. He let Raphael pull him up and wrapped his arms around him. The two wandered off toward their tiny cabin. Lucian turned his gaze to Theo.
“I asked if he could make the plant bloom pretty fire colors like you are when you’re all horny,” Theo said. “Raphael mentioned the seraph that died had red hair…” He shrugged. “I don’t want them to be sad.”
Lucian wrapped his arms around Theo. “How about a nap?”
“Aren’t we prepping for another trip to the human world?”
“After our nap,” Lucian said, thinking he needed Star and Theo wrapped around him. “Coming old man?” He taunted his uncle.
Radu snorted. “Who’s the old man suggesting a nap in the middle of the day?”
“Asshole,” Lucian grumbled, but Radu followed them to wrangle Star from whatever dark corner he’d found.