Page 65 of Redeeming the Angel

The music sucked me in and I found myself at first irritated every time Razvan spoke into the microphone into the earphones they wore, stopping their playing and making one or more of them redo a part until it was to his liking.Eventually, as I heard the improvements he suggested, I became fascinated at the process.My admiration for Kerainne’s daughter, my cousin, and their friends doubled.Professional music was harder work than I ever could have imagined.

Halfway through, when Aurora called a break, Razvan asked me, “What’s with the ribbon?”

“My lady’s favor.”I grinned and told him about Zareth and Kerainne visiting Wurrakia and the note Kerainne had written.

And that’s when I learned that my lady wasn’t being melodramatic about battle.Razvan explained the scheme they’d come up with to lure a cell of Mephistopheles’s cultist vampires out of hiding.The band would play a concert in Lewiston in two weeks.Apparently, this had been set up shortly after the attack on the Nightwatch Society safehouse in New Orleans.I don’t know if I was the last to be told about it, or if it was discussed with me but I’d been too distracted at hearing about Sylvis being wounded and Gabriel saving her life with blood magic.

“Do you think Kerainne and Zareth will remain in Wurrakia that long?”On one hand, I dreaded being away from her that long.On the other, because of Delgarias’s vision, I wanted her as far from battles as possible.

Razvan shook his head.“The King has already been paying visits to Coeur d’Alene to continue the band’s magic lessons.He says they expect to return the week before the concert.”

“Will I be able to aid you in this mission?”

The vampire shook his head.“Delgarias says no luminites…aside from Nikkita, as she has experience taking out cultists in their hideouts.Kerainne will be watching over Kiara.”

“Then why did she mention me riding into battle?”

“Probably because the Evil One or his cultists could attack anywhere at any time.Though there is a possibility…” he trailed off and twirled his moustache.

“Of what?”

“That she gave you the favor because she’s starting to admit she cares about you.”

“Oh.”Then I realized something.

The last two times Kerainne had abruptly left, I’d been furious with her for not leaving me a note.This time, she had.And when I’d abruptly been called to return to Luminista, I’d sent her a letter assuring her that I wasn’t storming off in anger.I wanted her to know I was making an effort to be better.

Was the note and ribbon a message saying she wanted to do the same?

That hope—along with time spent with my friends on Earth and in Aisthanesthai, carried me through another ten days before Zareth and Kerainne finally returned.Although she didn’t come running into my arms like I dreamed about night and day, she did greet me with a smile.

“How is the young lady you worried about?”I asked, because what was important to her was important to me.Why had it taken me so long to figure that out?

“I think she’ll be just fine.”Her green eyes went far off and dreamy like when she read a story or watched a movie with a happy ending.“I’ll tell you all about it later.”

“Did you learn anything new about Mephistopheles’s attack?”

Zareth nodded.“Mephistopheles had an agent who’d ingratiated himself to the girl’s father and gained a position as an advisor.He convinced the foolish man that if he gave information to Mephistopheles regarding the next tourney and convinced his knights to gather a handful of healer mages, he’d be rewarded the Lordship of Wurrakia.”

All Kerainne wanted to do for the rest of the day and the day after was watch movies in the relaxation room.She allowed me to join her and, even though her taste in violent films still shocked me, it was wonderful to sit with her in utter peace, not needing to say anything.

After resting, she let me accompany her to Earth, where we spent a lot of time at the McNaught house and at the studio, watching the recording sessions coming along.I got better about riding in cars…except for Xochitl’s car.Not because she was devilishly amused with making me sit in the backseat, though that did make the car sickness worse.It was because Little Beast—as it was called—was somehow sentient.Xochitl cheerfully shrugged at my questions.

The day of the concert arrived, and Kerainne allowed me to stay with Kiara.It was the second time we’d been alone together since she returned from Wurrakia.Well, sort of alone.The half-vampire toddler was a whirlwind of energy and brought back fond memories of times Kerainne and I spent with Nikkita and Gabriel when they were that age.Together, we worked on her reading and counting lessons.The girl was astonishingly bright.

It was a welcome distraction from wondering how her daughter and our friends were doing.But by the time we tucked Kiara in her bed for a nap, I couldn’t help blurting out my worries.

“Delgarias told me about his vision of a luminite being captured.What if it’s Nik or Gabe?Gabe’s so young.”

Kerainne’s eyes reflected my worry, but she forced a smile and shook her head.“There may not even be a battle.The last attempt to take out the Lewiston cultists failed because they hid.They’ll likely know that the concert is a trap and avoid it.”

But she was wrong.Not only did the trap lure out the vampire cultists and the Evil One’s mages in a way that led to an open battle inside of the concert venue, right in front of the human nulls, it also led to Sylvis and Gabe chasing them into Qua’ al-fán.My cousin and best friend managed to rescue a blood mage who’d been taken in the attack on Shalafi.And a luminite from Medicia.

Before we could process that earthshattering news, Gabriel told us that he died after they passed through a portal Sylvis created to get them back to Earth…and Sylvis had drowned herself in the river to go after him.She’d ascended to Luminista and not only stopped Silvara Leonine from imprisoning Gabe, but also negotiated a betrothal so the matriarchs would finally have the Leonine-Jagwolfe marriage they’d been after for so long.

“Maybe now, we’ll find out why they wanted this match so badly,” I whispered to Kerainne while she stared in stunned silence at the rescued captive.

She didn’t seem to hear me as she shouted.“We need to go through the portal and rescue our people immediately!”

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