Miracle

Pt. 27

"Of course you both don't remember. You guys got pretty wasted last night. We went to a bar after dinner with Alex, and I decided to let you both stay here." Lily tried to explain the night her friends couldn't recall. It was hard to lie to them, but this was the only way. Sometimes ignorance truly was bliss... and they seemed to easily fall for it.
Emily checked the time on her phone before standing up from the couch. "Damn, I gotta go. I have to get ready to teach classes. Someone has to teach those kids." Cherry rolled his eyes, following her lead and standing up. "Or you could call out, and they can find a substitute?" Emily was a workaholic, so that was definitely not in the cards for her.

They made their way over to the front door. "Let's go half on an Uber. It can drop me off, then it can drop you off at home to get ready. The dance studio will be opening soon, like you said. Someone has to teach these people, and I guess that's us." They waved goodbye to Lily, waiting outside for their Uber to pull up as she watched them from the window. As the Uber pulled up, Cherry blew her a kiss as they both got in and drove away.

Alexander suddenly appeared on the spot beside her. "Ready to talk yet?"
Lily let out a sigh. Honestly, she didn't want to go through talking about what happened last night, but this wasn't something they could just sit on, she thought to herself. She turned towards him, her voice barely a whisper. "I don't know, Alex. That's never happened to me before. It seems I have powers now, and a serious temper problem. Those guys just attacked us on the way to a bar." She fiddled nervously with the necklace around her neck, the events of last night playing in her head like a grotesque movie reel.

She had been completely out of control.
"I was so angry watching them hurt Cherry and Emily. I thought they were going to die right in front of me. I've never felt so powerless in my life... so scared. I begged them to stop, but they didn't listen. Before I knew it, everything went black. I was filled with just so much rage, I couldn't control myself. The next thing I knew, I was covered in blood and everyone was dead around me."

He gently rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. "I'm a monster now... a murderer." Her voice broke, tears rolling down her cheeks as she buried her face in her palms, soft sobs shaking her frame. It was true, she had killed those men, but Alex saw it more like self-defense than murder. She had asked them to stop, and they chose not to listen. Their death was on their own hands "Why didn't you come sooner?" she asked softly, lifting her tear-streaked face to him, pressing her lips tightly together. A part of her was angry with him; maybe if he'd come sooner, she wouldn't be a killer.

Alexander understood her frustration. He had some explaining to do. "Every so often, angels have to come in for a meeting to make sure they are taking care of their humans properly. It's mandatory, and there's no excuse to get out of it." Lily nodded, following along, but to her, it was stupid as hell that they couldn't get out of a meeting if their human was in danger. "Needless to say, word has gotten around in the magic community that the demon named Alistair is after you." He looked down at his lap, a flicker of guilt in his eyes.

Lily's eyes widened slightly, hearing her father's name. How was it possible that kind of information got around?
"They basically told me that I need to step up my game as your angel because right now I'm failing them. I knew you were in trouble, but they wouldn't let me leave early, saying if I was a good guardian angel, I would have left you in a position where you weren't in danger at all. It was complete crap, I'm sorry, baby."

She nodded, now understanding, but now she was more pissed at the higher-up angels for just not letting Alex leave when she needed him.
"You're not going to work today. You'll call out. Lily, you need to stay here and relax. This is all very traumatic," he said, gently changing the subject. He didn't want her to stress any more. She nodded, walking into her room to grab her phone so she could call off for the day.

*****

"My dear Jinx," Valentine drawled, his voice deceptively calm, though his eyes held a sharp, dangerous glint. "Are you quite certain our little human was meant to grace us with her presence here today? My time, as you well know, is a rather precious commodity."
She paced around in front of him, her frustration mounting.

She was sure the human would be here today, but where the hell was she? Jinx had been able to find out that the human worked at this place, but now she wasn't even here. What a lousy employee. "I know... I know. It looks like we may need to make a house call." It seemed they would have to work a little harder if they wanted to get the human today.

She knew Valentine was getting frustrated with her, but he would have to just suck it up and get over it until the job was done if he wanted those rubies. He sighed, a sound that conveyed deep, weary displeasure. Jinx was testing him, indeed. He'd find it utterly disappointing if she were leading him on a wild goose chase; the hours he spent here could be far more... pleasurably utilized elsewhere.

With a smooth, almost predatory grace, he rose. "My apologies, darling," he purred, his voice dripping with false sincerity. He stepped closer, placing his hands on Jinx's shoulders, stopping her pacing, his grip tightening to an almost painful squeeze.

His gaze, sharp and cold, locked onto hers, a silent promise of consequences that made her flinch. He leaned in slowly, allowing her to feel the weight of his presence, the chilling warmth of his breath. "You know how terribly vexed I become when expectations aren't precisely met." Then, without breaking eye contact, he captured her lips in a hard, breathtaking kiss that stole her air, a possessive, dominating gesture designed to remind her exactly who was in control. He pulled away abruptly, a faint, chilling smile playing on his lips.

"Now, what are we waiting for, darling? Let's drag that bitch back to hell."