One Soul Book Two

Chapter Ten

Harlee POV

“Harlee, I’m going to heal you now, ok?”  Sam asked softly.  “It’s going to hurt.”  I nodded and closed my eyes.  He placed his mouth against the back of my shoulder and I felt him stiffen and then relax into me with a soft groan.  He breathed outward and the wound there suddenly burned like a flame had been lit under my skin.  I whimpered and Sam squeezed me closer.  He moved on to do the same around the rest of the nearly oval wound.  It was impossibly large for a human mouth.  He kissed away the blood, licking his lips greedily and I was hit with a horrible thought.

“Sam.. How do I usually.. help.. you?”  I asked.  “With Sands, it’s love, Ash is an Incubus so s****l acts and dreams feed them, Zeev just bit me..”  I blushed.  Sam sighed.

“We were hoping to discuss this later, after you started getting used to us.”  Sam’s art twitched and he rewrapped the bandage slightly.  “Demons all have different needs and methods of getting energy or power.  We can get it from random humans, but the purest source is our Master.”  Sam hesitated.

“And that’s me.”  I provided for him uncertainly.  He nodded.  This was the softest and most uncertain I”d ever seen Sam since I woke up.  “Sam, what did I do for you?”  I asked gently.

“A couple things.”  He hedged.  “But mostly blood.”

“Blood-like a vampire?”  I gripped my shoulder and Sam laughed.  The noise surprised me, it was loud and startling, but it made me want to hear it again.

“No, more like a blood offering.  A.. sacrifice, if you will.”  He took my hand and turned it over, running a suddenly sharp nail up my arm, tracing a vein.  I shuddered.  “I would normally cut you here.  Drain it into a chalice that I would drink from.  I’m possessive and greedy and don’t like to share, so I’d often do this with you when we were alone.”

“How long’s it been, Sam?”  I asked quietly and he shrugged.

“A while.”  He answered.  I grimaced.

“Just... do it quick.”  I instructed, shutting my eyes.  He kissed the inside of my wrist.

“No.”  Sam replied softly and I looked at him in shock.

“Why not?”  I demanded and his hand dropped to my stomach.

“Because you’re not well.”  He said, caressing my stomach gently.

“But you’ve helped me several times and you’re hurt and you look exhausted.”  I objected.  Sam shut his eyes and swayed slightly.

“Don’t tempt me Harlee.”  He murmured.  “I’m barely holding on by a thread as it is.”  I looked around desperately for something to aid my cause.  Sam growled as if sensing my thoughts.  “Don’t do anything rash Harlee.”  He warned, clutching my hand again.

“Like what?”  I asked innocently, eyeing a broken knick-knack on a shelf that had missed Ash’s clean-up efforts after Sands’ demonstration.  Sam’s grip on me tightened and he made a disgruntled, half-choked noise in his throat.

“First, I’m desperate, this is torment.  Second, I’m not supposed to tell you this yet, but damnit Harlee, I’m a Demon, A Fallen Arch Angel.  You cannot shield your thoughts from me.”  He snarled.  I blinked.

“I kinda thought so.”  I muttered.  I should be more freaked out about this, but how many times had Ash answered my internal thoughts?  I shook my head.  “Then just do it, because you know I’m determined and will find a way if you don’t.”  I instructed and Sam growled again as the gold band on my arm momentarily heated up.  A jolt of heat shot through our joined hands.

“As you wish.”  Sam responded.  “Mistress.”  The word was almost a snarl.  A knife appeared out of thin air and Sam slid it swiftly down my exposed arm, drawing a gasp from me and a great welling of blood from my arm.  He tilted my arm over a golden chalice that he also pulled out of nowhere, licking his lips as it filled, and then he swiftly covered the wound with his mouth in a gentle kiss when it neared the half-way point.  I felt a little light-headed until the burning sensation in my arm captured my attention.  I yelped slightly, it felt like I’d stuck my arm in flames.  Sam’s tongue ran along the wound, leaving nothing behind.  No trace of a scar, nothing.  Just smooth, unmarred flesh.  My eyes nearly popped out of my head, and I heard Sam chuckling as he slowly swirled the blood in the chalice like it was a fine wine.  I blanched slightly as he took a sip.

“Is that going to be enough for you?”  I asked hesitantly.  Sam sighed.

“For now, it will have to be.  You’re not well enough.”  Sam ran the back of his knuckles down my cheek with the hand holding the chalice and I shivered.  Despite the blood in his hand, the moment seemed to be gently sensual, like Sam might lean in at any moment and kiss me.  But also dangerous, like he was taunting me with my own blood so close to my face.  I felt it summarized our whole relationship in some way I couldn’t really define.  The danger and yet the strange sense of love.  Surprising myself, I captured his hand and kissed the back of it softly, making his eyes go wide.

“I’m sorry you guys have suffered because of me.  I hope this helps.  Now drink up.”  I said and again the heat radiating from the gold armband through our joined hands surprised me.  Sam’s eyes fell closed for a moment or two.

“Yes Mistress.”  He sighed and took another drink.  “I still wish you would stop calling me Sam.”  He muttered into the chalice.

Zeev POV

I writhed in ecstasy, the taste of Harle’s blood still hot on my tongue.  Yes, it had torn my own shoulder open as well, but the act itself, consuming her blood..  Something inside me felt less broken.  I wanted to crawl inside her skin.  Maybe that’s not quite accurate, but I did want to bury myself in her as I feasted on her blood.

“Zeev!”  Ash snapped, then panted, still clutching their side.  They struck me.  Hard.  I growled.  “He’s nothing more than a feral dog now.  I can’t even get in.  I don’t know what to do!  How is this going to affect Harlee?”  Ash said over their shoulder.

“Harlee.. I need..  Harlee..”  I growled.

“I don’t know.”  Sands coughed, sliding down the wall to sit on the basement stairs.  “I’m going to have to go to her-soon, myself, or risk losing everything too.”  Sands coughed again, this time, wiping blood on his pale blue jeans.

“Go Uncle, I’ll handle father.  You too Zaza.  I sprang from him, perhaps I can help restore him to a degree.”  Cael’s soft voice answered them as he tugged Sands to his feet.  They tried to object, but Cael gave a stern look and shoved Sands’ shoulder in the direction of the door.  “Go.  Or I’ll drag you there myself.”  Cael instructed, then turned to me.

“Aw shit.”  I mumbled.  I recognized that look of determination.  It had been on Harlee’s face often enough.  I backed up a step.

“Father.”  Cael growled.  I began to cackle.  Couldn't help myself.  I tried to step out of the basement to, well, anywhere, but Cael reached out a hand, and without physically touching me, yanked me back.  I cursed as I landed in a sprawl.  This was going to turn into a fight that I was pretty sure I was going to lose.  I didn’t want to hurt Cael.

“Then don’t fight.”  Cael said softly, hovering over me.

“Can’t do that.”  I snarled, kicking at his legs.  I knocked one out from under him and he hissed, but managed to skitter backwards, keeping his feet.  He brought a hand down and slammed it to my chest as he knelt and I felt my back bow off the ground as the room suddenly arced with lightning.  I screamed.

Harlee POV

My cheek was pressed to something cool.  It was nice, like finding the cool side of the pillow in summer.  Oh, it wasn’t just my head.  I blinked groggily and realized I was wrapped around Ash quite well.  They were running their fingers up and down the arm I had clutched around their thin waist.  My head was on Ash’s bare chest, my legs wrapped with theirs.

“Oh god.  I was using you as a body pillow.”  I moaned.  I’m sorry.”  Ash grinned.

“Wouldn’t be the first time.”  Ash smirked.  I was mortified and tried to withdraw, but bumped into someone else, who had their arms around my ribs I just noticed.

“Good morning Harlee.”  Sands’ voice gently purred in my ear.  I was confused for a moment.

“Oh my God, I literally have an Angel and a Demon in bed with me, and the Angel just purred in my ear!”  My voice is nearly hysterical, and it set off four distinct laughs.  I struggled upwards to see little Cael has wedged himself between Sands and I, and on Sands’ other side is Sam.  “What?”  I shook my head.

“What’s that they say about Angels and Demons on your shoulder?”  Ash teased, pulling me back down on the bed.  I shook my head.

“I honestly don’t know, but I don’t think this qualifies.”  I responded.

“Either way, come back down here and feed your Angels and Demons Harlee.  We’re starved.”  Ash tugged me again and I relaxed into their embrace.  Only then did I see the nasty ragged pink scar on Ash’s side and reached out my fingers to trace it, my memories catching back up with me.  Ash shivered and I sucked in a breath through my teeth as their memory of the event hit me.  I snatched back my hand.

“Zeev did that.”  It’s more a statement than a question and Ash turned their head, avoiding looking at me.