Angel's Blade by Erin M. Leaf Page A

Nathaniel murmured his own
promise back to Zeke, he knew he’d finally come home.

 
    Epilogue
     
    “I guess you’re happy to be heading
home,” Nathaniel said to his father.
    Orifiel nodded. “I am. I’m looking
forward to the quiet.” He grinned at his son. “This place is a little too noisy
for my taste. And Raguel has healed enough to travel.”
    Nathaniel snorted. Castle Archangel
was not quiet. Not anymore. More angel delegations had come to visit and
declare their loyalty to Gabriel. The halls were slowly filling up with as
pockets of their people came from all over the world to see their new Alpha.
Unfortunately, many of them learned that the new resurgence of their species
wasn’t all good. They suspected demons had slowly been infiltrating the weakest
members of the clans, taking over their bodies and using them to further their
own evil aims. Maion wasn’t the only one who’d been corrupted. One clan had
spoken of a missing daughter. Another had talked of a seemingly happy member
who’d committed suicide. They believed that many of these problems stemmed from
the same demonic cause. Nathaniel sighed as he thought about his best friend.
“At least Raguel has gotten better. It won’t be so bad traveling with him
anymore,” he told his father.
    “That’s true. I’m pleased with how
much he’s changed.” He tilted his head. “And I think you’ll be happy here with
your mate, even in the midst of our new difficulties. You belong here.”
    “I don’t know, Dad. I can’t help
thinking that there was something I should’ve done earlier to help Maion,”
Nathaniel said.
    “There was nothing you could do. I
suspected that something was wrong, but even as his leader I couldn’t tell he’d
been demon-bound.” Orifiel rubbed his face. “If he’d been outright possessed, I’d
have been able to tell, but that was a subtler transformation.”
    “I’ve never heard of being
demon-bound.”
    Nathaniel’s father looked at him
for a long moment before replying. “To be demon-bound is to be seduced
willingly.” He sighed. “Maion had to have accepted the demon’s presence into
his soul. He wasn’t forcibly possessed. He welcomed the evil.”
    Nathaniel sat down, feeling sick. “So
he wanted it.”
    Orifiel shrugged. “Maybe not
consciously, but somewhere deep inside him, yes. He wanted the power.”
    “That doesn’t make me feel any
better,” Nathaniel said, his grief sharper now.
    “I know. And I’m truly sorry that
this happened to your friend, Nathaniel. If I could’ve stopped it, I would
have.”
    Nathaniel shrugged and looked away.
His father was a good angel. He knew he would’ve done everything he could if he’d
known about Maion. Across the room, early morning sunlight decorated the old
wood with warmth. It was a stark contrast to the cold night of the fight. Was
it only a week ago that he’d taken Maion’s life? It felt longer.
    “Don’t dwell on it. You did what
you had to do,” his father said, walking over to the window. He opened the curtains
wider. “We must rejoice in the light when it is here and remember the dark
times with wisdom.” He turned to his Nathaniel. “You should spend time with
Zeke. Enjoy the beginning of your life together.”
    Nathaniel knew his father was
right. “I know.” He forced the memory of Maion’s death out of his mind, at
least for now. “And I will. He’s showing me his favorite spot to fly today.”
    “Good.” His father pulled him into
a rough hug. “It’s long past time for you to learn how to fly.”
    ****
    A few hours later, Nathaniel
grinned as he opened his arms wide and soared along the ridgeline, Zeke by his
side. He’d spent his childhood yearning for the skies and his adulthood
reconciling himself to the knowledge that he would never feel the wind like that.
To be here, now, flying with his mate was a gift he would never take for
granted.
    “See? It’s all instinct,” Zeke
said, swooping past him on a thermal.