The one nearest him had the nerve to hiss like a cat. “The Malachai protects Malphas? Why? We served you well. And here you dare to side with our enemy after he betrayed us all? How could you?”
Nick was aghast at his fury. “First, you didn’t serve me. You fought for some ancestor I don’t even know the name of. Dude, for real? Put that card back in the deck. It ain’t gonna win this round. Second, Caleb fell in love and walked away from that war you’re talking about. Who can blame him for that? You’re the ones who came at him when you should have just left him in peace to live with his wife and be happy. If you didn’t want him to kick your butts, you should have stayed at home. That’s on you. Not him.”
The leader Memitim cawed loudly. “He knew our secrets to betray them to our enemies. We could not suffer him to live with such knowledge when he could destroy us.”
“And you knew his… Assured mutual destruction. Again, you could have chosen to leave him alone. Yet you didn’t. Fair’s fair. You came at him. He defeated you. Now grow a set and deal. Let him be.”
They rose up again into a dark cyclone to attack Caleb’s barrier. But at least they were no longer after him.
Nick wasn’t sure if he should be happy or not.
Weary and sick, he sighed at their stubborn determination. “Do I have to banish you back to whatever hole you crawled out of? For real? This is what you want to do with your freedom?”
Their answer was to continue their assault. So, yeah. This was what they wanted to do with their newfound lives.
It made no sense to him whatsoever. Why would they continue down this path when they could do something positive or constructive?
Like get a beignet. Grab some coffee.
Get a girl and have some happy private adult fun time.
Why choose death when they could choose life? Weren’t there girl raven-demons for them to pursue? Really?
Stunned at the waste, Nick stood back in the storm to watch them as they flew in wave after wave against Caleb’s protection barrier. He wasn’t sure if he should be appalled or impressed by their raw, single-minded determination.
It also said a lot about Caleb’s power that it could hold even while he was drained. Still… he felt bad for both sides. The Memitim for not being able to let it go after all these centuries, and Caleb for not being able to move on because of their obstinacy.
Why dwell on the past when you have a perfectly good tomorrow to look forward to screwing up? Mark’s favorite saying went through his head. There was definitely something to be said for that. Especially while watching them pursue their madness. They were so focused on Caleb that they’d destroyed themselves trying to strike at him.
Was it worth it?
Definitely not.
Gah, I hope I’m never that stupid. ’Cause let’s face it. I basically hog all the dumb, most days.
But there was nothing he could do to help them with their idiocy today. And right now, he had a renegade demon who might be neck-deep in trouble and needing his help to locate. A mom to guard. Funky weather to avoid.
And a strange mystery to solve.
He stared at the Memitim. How do I get rid of those? And again, he had that off, hollow feeling in his gut that something wasn’t right.
That his time was running out.
All of a sudden, the Memitim scattered as if terrified. Yeah, that had to be a really bad sign.
Nick cringed at the omen as more lightning flashed, narrowly missing him. That was stunning, but not as much as the beautiful teenaged girl who stepped out of it and eyed him with great curiosity.
Completely dry in spite of the weather, she had rich caramel skin with dark hair that fell in intricate braids around a perfect face. But it wasn’t her beauty that made his senses stir, it was the amount of power that emanated from her. This was a preter of unparalleled Source power. If she announced herself to him as Azura, he wouldn’t be surprised.
Her powers were that strong.
Dressed in a short skirt and a halter, she met his stunned expression with a shrug as she approached him with a slow, seductive walk. “You wanted them gone. They’re gone now.”
Yeah, but he wasn’t quite sure he should be thanking her for it. Or running in the opposite direction and screaming like a kindergartener on Benadryl who’d just met Freddy Krueger.
His gut voted for the boogeyman bolt.
“Who are you?”
She smiled. “Don’t you know?”
“Not a clue.”
She paused beside him to sniff at his shoulder and hair. Kind of creepy. Yeah, he was leaning even more toward the boogeyman scenario. “You are the Malachai?”
Nick hesitated at her tone that was almost insulting. Even so, when a being this powerful asked that question, it was never a good idea to give a straight answer. “Uh… Malamaybe?”
Cupping his face, she pressed her cheek to his and took a deep breath. “You are not Monakribos.” That was the name of the first Malachai, who’d been cursed… she must know a lot about his kind to have the given name of his ancestor. Most had no clue about that.