Tormented Ch. 14

The room was stone as the rest of the castle, the ceiling was high and the room was light by candles that stood in large black metal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. At the far end of the room there was a raised platform made of the same stone as the rest of the castle floors and there was a large throne in which Abdiel sat. His Followers that crowded the room started towards Ryan, he watched them as he came at him and at the last conceivable second leapt at the closest, bringing his arm back he rammed it forward into the man's chest and when he removed it he clutched the still beating heart of the Follower.

"Leave us." Abdiel's voice rang out across the room and the Followers paused before skirting round Ryan and out of the doors that closed behind them leaving the Angel and the Demon alone. "Raim I wasn't expecting to see you."

"Don't give me that shit, where is she?"

"Lily isn't here."

"I don't give a fuck about where she is, you don't need to protect her from me. Where's Mae?"

"Mae?" Abdiel looked confused and stood taking a step towards the Demon. "What do you mean."

Ryan took a step matching the Angels and closing the gap further. "I'm not fucking playing with you! Where is she?"

"Raim I really don't know what you mean."

Ryan closed the gap and took hold of the front of the Angels shirt, they were the same height and Ryan shook him. "Where the fuck is my daughter?!"

"Let me through!" A woman's voice caught their attention and they both looked to the doors as they swung open. Lily stood in the doorway looking at the two men. "Raim."

He growled as she spoke his name and turned back to the Angel, his eyes flashed red and he growled through gritted teeth.

"Raim stop." He paused again at her voice and felt a faint jolt in the back of his mind, turning to her he let go of Abdiel and took a step towards her, she held out her hand and he saw tears in her eyes as she looked at his blood soaked face and clothes. The warmth at the back of his mind grew and he struggled with what he was thinking.

He took another step towards her until they stood face to face, she craned her neck to look into his eyes and she reached up to place her hand on his cheek. Instantly he felt their bond, it flooded his senses and without a word he wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her into his arms. She held him tightly and hugged his hips with her knees and kissed him, tangling her fingers in his hair she kept their faces close and spoke against his mouth.

"Don't you ever think that again." Her voice was strained and she kissed him again.

"I thought you renounced me, I thought you were gone."

"Never."

"But I couldn't feel you."

"It wasn't me," she shook her head. "It wasn't me."

"I can feel you now." He kissed her again. "I can feel you now."

Lucy and Aaron stood in the doorway and Abdiel watched them from where Ryan had left him, finally Ryan placed her back on the floor and she turned to the Angel. There was blood on her face and clothes from where Ryan had held her but her eyes looked clearly to him.

"Where is she?"

"I told you before," the Angel spoke feeling a deep sadness in his chest. "I don't know."

"Abi please," he shut his eyes at the sound of his nickname and shook his head. "She has my daughter. I haven't asked you for anything but I'm asking you now, please tell me where she is."

"I really don't know Angel, she didn't tell me. She didn't tell me about any of this. She mentioned something about going to find Gabriel."

"Gabriel? My father?"

"That's all she said. I don't know where she was going." A look of understanding crossed her face and he smiled. "You know where she is?"

"Infernum." She turned to Ryan.

"I thought that place was myth," her mate looked confused.

"So did I until she took me there."

"What's Infernum?" Aaron spoke.

"It's said to be one of the last places Angels cannot get to, that and Purgatory. Demons gathered there before the war, its the home of the resistance, or at least it was. I think they're all dead now."

"You know how to get there?" Ryan asked and she nodded.

"I want to help." Abdiel spoke and they all turned to look at him incredulously and he held his hands up. "I know I'm not your favourite person and probably not the most trustworthy but I truly knew nothing of this, I never would have taken your daughter from you."

"You came to Purgatory, almost killed us and now we're supposed to believe that you wouldn't hurt the daughter that proves the bond that keeps your mate from you?" Aaron's voice was scathing. "You're fucking insane."

Abdiel still looked at Lily and she searched his face, holding out her hand he walked to her and took it. She looked into his eyes and her face was sad.

"You make it fucking hard to trust you Abi."

"I know Angel, but I want to help. That's all." She still looked unsure and he took her hand and placed it over his heart, he had done this when they were children, running his finger over her hand in a cross he looked seriously at her. "Cross my heart."

She shook her head laughing slightly. "We're not kids any more."

"You always used to trust this promise though, its all I can do."

She looked into his eyes for a moment before nodding. "Ok, but I don't want you to see where we're going," she ripped a strip from the bottom of her green vest and reached on tiptoe, before she tied it round his eyes though she gazed into them. "If you try anything, you try and help her, you try and hurt any of us or don anything to put Mae in danger and I will kill you." He nodded his understanding and she wrapped the materiel around his eyes and tied it tightly. She nodded to Aaron and Lucy who came forward and took hold of his arms, Ryan touched her shoulder gently and leant down to speak in her ear.

"Can we really trust him?"

"I don't know," her voice was soft. "I really don't know."

*

Outside she turned to the others. "I wont be able to keep the doorway open for long, we're going straight to the entrance of the sanctuary and it's protected. With him it will be even harder to open it so we'll have less than a minute," she glanced at Abdiel who stood calmly flanked by the Elf and Ryan's Follower. Taking a deep breath she closed her eyes and began speaking under her breath, the words were foreign and even Ryan didn't understand what she was saying, a shimmering light appeared in front of them and began to grow, a dark hallway could be seen through the hole in the air and she motioned them forward, her eyes still closed and never stopping her quiet chant. The rest stepped through the doorway she created and she followed the light instantly disappearing and she let out a shaky breath. Ryan stroked a curl back from her forehead.

"You OK poppet?"

She nodded turning her face into his hand before opening her eyes and looking around. "We're not quite at the door, its just down this way."

They followed her through the stone corridor dimly lit by candles until they came to large round stone door, she placed her hand on the surface and spoke one word.

"Feristaar." Her eyes flashed red as her Demon blood came to the surface and the door rolled opening into the chasm of the Sanctuary. Lucy looked around in wonder.

"Well fuck me, it is real."

Lily lead them through the aisle, shelve branched off either side and she watched the floor as she walked, she held up a hand and they all stopped. On the floor there was a round circle of marble and she spoke quietly.

"Merstiraas," the marble circle glowed white and she looked to the others. "This is going to feel horrible." Then she stepped on the glowing circle and seemed to disappear, the rest looked to each other and Ryan shrugged. Following his mate he stepped onto the light and an instant feeling of sickness overtook him, it felt as though he fell a great distance his stomach lurching before his feet touched ground and he opened his eyes looking around. He was stood in the middle of a circle of old tone houses, the floor beneath him was cobblestones and Lily stood beside him. The others landed next to them, their faces slightly pale and Lucy clutched her stomach.

"Ugh that was horrible."

Lily smiled guiltily. "Sorry," she nodded to Abdiel. "You can take it off now."

He undid the blindfold and looked around. "Holy shit, I never thought an Angel would ever be here."

"You will be the only one." Lily's voice was threatening and he nodded in understanding.

"Which one is she in?" Ryan spoke looking around at the houses.

She pointed to one in front of them. Her hand shook and she swallowed. "I don't want to do it." She turned to look at Ryan.

"We have to, we have to get Mae back."

She nodded and together they stepped into the house, it was sparsely furnished and through a door they could hear soft singing. She followed the sound and pushed open the door. Tayana held the tiny baby in a pink blanket, she stood at a large wooden table rocking back and forth but looked up when they entered. She smiled when she saw Abdiel but her face turned sour when her gaze landed on Ryan.

"What's he doing here?" She held Mae tighter to her. "He isn't supposed to be here."

"Where else would I be Tayana?" Ryan's voice was strained as he tried to keep his anger in check.

"He was meant to kill you," she glanced to Abdiel. "Abi what are you doing?"

"I've told you Demon," Abdiel's voice was filled with disgust. "Don't call me that."

"Mum?" Lily stepped forward. "What are you doing?"

"This is the best way baby," Tayana's smile was almost unhinged and she nodded as though she was trying to convince herself. "With you and Raim gone I would raise your child with Abi and give her a good life. She would be raised as an Angel, she would be safe."

"She is safe with me," Lily held her arms out. "Give her back to me."

Tayana shook her head and stepped backwards. "No," her voice was angry and her eyes flashed dangerously. "No, you've always had everything. What do I have? Your father is gone, I have nothing and the man I love pines after you." She looked down at the child in her arms and as they watched she changed before their eyes. Her face turning younger, the grey going from her hair as it lengthened to her waist and when she next looked to them it was as though Lily stood in front of them. "He would have killed Raim and then I would have taken your place at his side, we would raise this child together and in time he would learn to love me."

"I could never love you." Abdiel's voice was like ice and Tayana's face fell returning to her own.

"Don't say that Abi. Please. What else do I have?"

"Everything you have you brought upon yourself, what happened to your mate you brought upon yourself."

Lily looked from her mother to the Angel. "What does he mean?" No one answered. "Mum what does he mean? Dad left to keep us safe, you always told me he left to keep us safe."

"Don't be so fucking stupid," Tayana spat out the words. "You stupid child you think everything jut falls into place for you but it doesn't, you know the only thing that can kill an Angel once they have bonded with their mate?" Lily's face fell her eyes growing wide and she shook her head. "Only their mate can kill an Angel."

"Mum no."

"I killed your father."

Lily took a step backwards. "No, no." Her face changed as the information hit her and her eyes flashed angrily, growing darker and bleeding out until they were two black pools in her face. "Why? How could you fucking do that?!"

"Because why should you be allowed to live? Do you know what you are? You're an abomination, we should have killed you at birth."

"Tayana," Abdiel spoke calmly. "Give Mae back to them."

The Demon turned to him. "What?"

He took a step forward and his voice was soothing calming everyone in the room. "You don't need to do this, give them back their daughter. They mean nothing."

"What do you mean?"

"You want me? Then you can have me, I'll be yours but give Mae back."

Tayana looked suspicious. "You're lying."

"No, I love you and I always have. We don't need them."

"Really? You mean it?"

"I mean it," he held out his hand. "Come with me."

Tayana looked shocked and her arms slackened their grip, Ryan stepped forward and took the bundle from her arms holding his daughter close to his chest he kissed her head and turned to walk away. Tayana seemed to lift from a reverie and shook her head, reaching behind her she took a dagger from the waistband of her jeans and raising it above her head went to plunge it into Ryan's back.

"No!" Lily shouted and raised her hand. A ball of white light flew from her hand and hit Tayana in the chest, she gasped and stumbled backwards her eyes growing dull. Her eyes rolled back in her head and in front of their eyes her skin turned black and seemed to flake away like ash. Lily watched her mouth open in horror as her mother disappeared leaving behind nothing but a black burn mark on the floor.

Ryan, Aaron, Lucy and Abdiel all looked at her with something like fear on their faces.

"What was that?" Aaron spoke quietly.

"That," said Abdiel. "That was Angel Light."