Chapter 35 #2
As they all stared at each other, Malachi sighed.
“I got this. Let’s see if it works.” He set Reena down next to him on the sofa and sat up straight.
Squaring his shoulders, he put his hands together as if praying and stared at the ceiling.
“Hey, Nicorette? You around? C’mon Nicaroni.
” Shaking his head, he sighed as Nathan’s eyes bugged, watching him worriedly.
After a minute of silence, he tried again.
“Don’t be shy, Nicodemus. We know you’re listening.
Ugh, seriously, Nicola? You’re gonna make me say it, aren’t you? ”
Sitting quietly for a few more moments, the others exchanged a confused glance and shrugged their shoulders.
“Bro,” sighed Malachi. “Don’t be like this, Nicholai.” He glanced around before rolling his eyes. In a monotone voice, he quickly offered, “Fine, I’m sorry, your name is Nick. Can you please come give us a hand? It’s about protecting Kelly. You remember, your niece?”
Suddenly, Malachi groaned and slid to the floor, curled in on himself, covering his head. “Fuck!” he shouted. “I said I was sorry, is that really necessary?”
Nick, the angel, sat on the sofa, staring down at Malachi with an amused smile before dialing down his glow.
“Oopsie, apologies,” he called in a sing-song tone that fooled no one into thinking it was an accident.
He glanced around the room and nodded a greeting to the others before his gaze landed on Chuck.
“Kelly,” he breathed. “You look so much like your father.” His fingers briefly covered his lips before his line of sight was broken by Malachi standing in front of him.
The demon’s fists were clenched, and his teeth were grinding together. “Hello, Nick.” He flopped back on the couch and crossed his arms across his chest. “Thanks for coming. No doubt you’re wondering why we invited you to join us.” His tone was unmistakably sarcastic and acidic.
“Oh, an invitation? Is that what it was? The purposeful wrong names, the obnoxious tone? The lack of respect? Only using my real name when you knew I wasn’t going to respond otherwise?” Nick snapped back, mirroring Malachi’s pose with his arms crossed over his robe.
The pair continued bickering and snarking at each other like two kids arguing over a toy until a hail from across the room interrupted them.
“GIRLS!” Chuck shouted. “You’re both pretty. Now put away the measuring sticks and let’s get down to business.” Her lips were squirming around suspiciously, and she was biting the inside of her cheek.
Malachi broke first, bursting into booming laughter, which made Chuck let out a laugh, followed quickly by Glenda and, finally, Nick, who merely chuckled ruefully. Nathan simply stared in awe at the scene before him.
Nick sighed, “Alright, fine. I’m sorry, Malachi. I know you’re a demon and you probably can’t help it.”
Nodding graciously, Malachi snorted. “Exactly. Now, let’s talk about why we invited you.”
Chuck cleared her throat and glared at Malachi, nodding her head towards where Nick sat expectantly, patiently waiting.
Glancing between them, Malachi bunched his eyebrows in confusion and held out his hands in a ‘what’ gesture.
“Apologize,” Chuck urged.
“What?” his tone rose in incredulity. “Apologize for what? Being me? He acknowledged it!” Malachi pointed at Nick with exasperation.
“I’m a demon. I might have developed feelings and emotions, but he’s still an angel, I’m still a Hellspawn for the love of Lucifer.
” He sat back with indignation and crossed his arms over his chest again.
Nick held his palms out, patting the air in a calming motion, trying to instill peace. “It’s fine, I wasn’t truly expecting an apology. He did acknowledge it was on purpose, and he did say please. That’s truly a lot for any demon.”
Pointing at the angel again in as close to a righteous gesture as he could manage, Malachi beamed before turning to Chuck with a smug smile.
“Hi, human, confused. What’s going on here?
” Nathan blurted out, his eyes wide and fingers clenched on his knees.
His whole frame was tense and on edge, nearly trembling with his anxiety.
The question dimmed the lighthearted atmosphere as quickly as a bucket of ice water dumped on a fire.
The others deflated in on themselves as they returned to the seriousness of the situation.
“Of course,” Nick murmured placatingly. “My name is Nick, regardless of what Malachi tells you. I’m an angel, a real one.
Nathan Bennett, it is a pleasure to meet you to some extent.
I’m very displeased that you allowed my brother to be murdered, of course, but…
” He leaned back and primly placed his hands on his knees.
Taking a deep breath, Nick continued. “I am torn,” he admitted.
“You allowed my brother to die, but not at your hands. I appreciate that you refused. I’m grateful to you for holding him and offering comfort as his soul was returned to us.
And I’m even more grateful that you stopped the other from harming my niece.
” He blew out a steady breath, shaking his head.
“But now your son is consumed by the darkness, and you have hidden this. Your silence in the face of the attempts on Kelly’s life, well, I must ruminate upon this. ”
Malachi growled low as Nick leaned farther back into the cushions, his expression adopting the serene smile he used when he was being pious.
“Oh, come on, Nicklerama,” he moaned. “Quit being dramatic. We aren’t here to judge and smite Nathan.
He shanked the bad guy; he offered to turn himself in for his crimes.
You know you’re going to forgive him; your kind always does.
So, let’s pretend he asked, and you agreed, so we can keep going.
Who is masquerading as one of you winged freaks to commit crimes in the name of your head honcho while actually doing it for mine? ”
“Malachi,” Chuck hissed, clearly horrified at his behavior.
A small, tiny, almost minuscule worm of doubt about his words began to wriggle through what little conscience he had while he stared at his hands.
“Chuck,” Malachi said slowly, evenly, feeling his way through his thoughts.
“You told me to not act based on how I think you want me to act, but to do what I feel. I feel like we will sit here for hours waiting on… Nick… to extract a confession and a request for forgiveness. I don’t feel like I can wait that long when there’s an active threat to your life.
Someone wants you dead because they think you’re an abomination.
I think you’re the most perfect creation on this plane or any other, and I would sooner give my own existence away than see the wonder that is uniquely you disappear.
So, I’m sorry for seeming impatient. I just care about you too much to see you die because the winged freak wants to hold a h-holy mass.
” He dropped his gaze as guilt ate away at his insides, churning his stomach in a sickening whorl, knowing his words would push Chuck away.
A soft, warm hand grasped his jaw, and the most exquisite lips ever to exist touched his.
Kelly was in his arms, kissing him. Clouds of awe, confusion, delight, and a healthy dose of what the fuck jumbled together as they swirled through him.
Kelly turned to the others and jerked her thumb in a get out gesture before turning back and kissing him again.
He heard Glenda clear her throat, Bennett cough in embarrassment, and Nick frown.
Yes, the angel’s disapproval was so strong, it was audible.
A negative humming in the air. But none of that mattered.
Kelly, his Kelly, was pressed against him, crushing her mouth to his and winding her arms around his neck.
Without fully understanding why this was happening, Malachi rose to his feet, Kelly still clinging to him, and lurched towards her room.
He vaguely heard Glenda mention grabbing a late lunch and coming back later as she closed the front door, but he was too caught up in the woman wrapped around him to hear anyone’s response.
Stumbling to the bedroom, he shoved the door closed and set Kelly on her feet before finally lifting his lips from hers.
He studied her as she stood there, hair mussed, cheeks flushed.
Her lips swollen from their steamy kiss, her eyes heavy-lidded and focused intensely on him.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, but most telling and intriguing of all, her aura was undeniably solid red.
“Kelly?” he whispered, uncertainty and nerves creeping into his voice. “What are we doing?”
“Picking up where we left off this morning, I hope,” she replied in a low, sultry tone.