Chapter 10
KASTIEL
The emotional heaviness of our conversation weighed on me as I held Isolde close, her head resting against my chest. I could feel the tentative hope blooming inside her, mixed with the lingering fear that refused to let go completely.
Her aura brushed against me. It was calmer now but still carried that underlying tension she couldn’t quite hide.
My beautiful mate was starting to believe she could be more than the harm she feared she’d cause. But the guilt was still a quiet shadow in her eyes, and I knew it would take more than my words alone to help her let it go.
I pressed a kiss to the top of her head, my arm tightening around her waist. “We don’t have to figure this out alone.
Adan and Calliope have been through something similar.
Calliope’s awakening to the powers she never knew she had wasn’t easy.
Hearing her story might give you the hope you need right now. ”
Isolde tilted her head back to look at me, her emerald eyes searching mine. “You think they’d be willing to talk to me?”
“It was their idea.” I tapped a finger against my temple. “Adan messaged me while you were still sleeping. He wants to see us. Calliope insisted on being there too. She thinks her experience might help you feel less alone.”
“Messaged you?” she echoed, her gaze darting up before meeting mine again. “Are you telepathic?”
“Sorry to disappoint, little spark.” I flashed her a rueful smile. “Adan is the one who opened that pathway.”
“Darn.” Trust flickered in her gaze. “But we should go. If there’s even a chance Calliope can help me understand this, I want to try.”
I pressed another kiss to her forehead, my demon purring with satisfaction at her willingness to lean on me. “Good. Because I’m not letting you face this alone. Not anymore.”
After we showered, got dressed, and ate the breakfast I insisted she needed, I took Isolde’s hand in mine.
Her fingers were warm in mine, but I could feel the faint tremble she tried to hide.
The mate bond hummed between us, and I squeezed her hand gently, hoping she could feel my reassurance through it.
With Adan’s private quarters only a floor above us, it didn’t take long to get there. He opened the door before we even knocked. “Come in. Both of you.”
Calliope was on the couch, one hand resting protectively on the gentle curve of her belly. She smiled warmly as we entered. “Isolde, I’m so glad you’re here. Please, sit. Can I get you anything?”
“No, thank you. I’m okay.” Isolde shook her head, shy from her kind attention. “Kastiel made sure we ate before we left his quarters.”
“Good.” Calliope beamed at me as we settled on the comfortable couches in their living area.
Adan sat beside her, his arm automatically wrapping around her shoulders in a protective gesture I understood on a new level now that I found my fated mate.
Calliope leaned forward, her voice gentle. “Kastiel told us a little about what’s been happening with your aura. I know how terrifying it can feel when you have no idea how to control your power. When mine started to wake up, it was so scary. I don’t know what I would’ve done without Adan to help.”
Isolde nodded, her fingers twisting in her lap. “I’ve spent years trying to suppress my aura because I was afraid of what it might do to people. Especially to my fated mate.”
Calliope’s eyes softened with understanding. “I can only imagine how hard that must have been. I had no idea I had latent demonic blood until I stumbled into The Abyss during a storm. All of a sudden, I had this power that triggered a curse.”
“A curse,” Isolde echoed, her eyes going wide.
Calliope nodded. “I summoned a supernatural assassin and everything.”
Adan’s hand stroked Calliope’s shoulder. “Only because she didn’t fully understand her power. Once she started learning how to work with it, everything changed.”
Calliope nodded, her smile warm. “Adan helped me see that my power wasn’t a curse. It was part of me. I can feel the hotel’s magic now, sense when the wards need strengthening. It’s not always easy, but it’s mine. And I’m not afraid of it anymore.”
Isolde swallowed hard, her green eyes wide. “It really felt that terrifying for you too?”
“Absolutely,” Calliope confirmed. “But worth it. You’re not alone in this, Isolde. And you don’t have to figure it out by yourself.”
I squeezed Isolde’s hand, my thumb stroking her knuckles. “I was hoping they could help you see your power as a gift instead of a threat.”
“Maybe with the right guidance, you can learn to embrace it like I did.”
Calliope’s words loosened more of Isolde’s tension, and she squeezed my hand.
Adan leaned forward. “The rifts aren’t happening because your aura is dangerous. You’ve been starving it for years. A succubus aura needs to feed to stay balanced. When it doesn’t, it starts looking for any outlet it can find.”
Isolde’s cheeks flushed, and she looked down at her lap.
My demon pushed forward with raw hunger at the thought of her taking from me. “Not the way you’re imagining. It doesn’t have to be predatory. It can be consensual. Intimate. There’s no seduction needed with me. Just honest desire.”
“And if your mating bond works similarly to ours, it will offer further stability,” Calliope added with a rueful smile. “Not that I’m trying to add any pressure. You should only accept Kastiel’s brand when you’re ready.”
I stroked the back of her hand with my thumb. “You don’t have to decide anything right now. But if you’re willing, feeding from me could help stabilize your aura.”
Isolde’s plump lips pressed into a flat line. “I wouldn’t want to try something like that without knowing what I was doing. I refuse to risk you.”
Adan leaned back against the couch, his arm still loosely draped around Calliope’s shoulders. “Then it’s a good thing I already made the call yesterday to someone who can help.”
A low growl tried to rise in my throat before I swallowed it. Another demon near my mate while she was vulnerable—even one here to help—made my demon push against my skin. I forced him back. This wasn’t about me. It was about giving Isolde the tools she needed that I couldn’t provide myself.
Isolde’s breath hitched. “Already?”
Adan nodded. “She’s the one who gave me the advice about you needing to feed. Lirael agreed to come. She’s on her way and should arrive later today.”
“So soon?” Isolde asked, her hand trembling in mine.
“Lirael will understand if you’re not ready to begin your training quite so soon.
She enjoys being at The Abyss, so it’s not a hardship for her to stay as long as it takes,” Adan explained.
“She’s offered to work with you privately while she’s here.
There are no expectations beyond what you’re comfortable with.
But she can teach you how to feed safely and consensually so your power stops fighting you. ”
Isolde was quiet for a long moment, her emerald eyes flicking between all of us. I could feel the fear warring with the fragile new hope Calliope and Adan had planted.
“And she won’t push me?” Isolde asked softly.
Adan shook his head. “She’ll go at your pace.”
I brushed my thumb over the back of Isolde’s hand. “You don’t have to meet her when she arrives if you’re not ready. But if you are, I’ll be right there with you. Every step of the way, since I’m the only one you’ll feed from.”
Adan’s gaze met mine, a silent understanding passing between us. He knew exactly how hard watching my fated mate need help I couldn’t give her myself was for me. But he also knew I’d do anything to keep her safe and whole.
Isolde took a deep breath, then nodded. “If she can really teach me how to feed from Kastiel without hurting him, then yes. I want to try. Right away. Before another rift opens and the Council has more reason to come after you.”
Relief and fierce pride surged through me. My little spark was still terrified, but she was choosing to fight instead of run.