Page 68 of Seraph's Tears
A hare jumped through the tall grass, pausing to sniff on its hind legs, then tucked its tail and darted away.
Disappointment settled in my stomach. Only an animal. Adjusting my grip on my sword, I pushed onward, angling toward Castiel’s home. As I swooped toward the thatched roofs of the village, the few humans still outside as the weather worsened paused to look up at me. I was near enough to see dismay and fear fill their faces as they saw my white wings against the storm clouds turned and scurried back into their houses.
I gritted my teeth. I might need their help, and they’d be too frightened to assist me. Perhaps I shouldn’t have played the monstrous, distant lord of the manor so well. But at least there was Castiel. They tolerated Castiel.
His cottage emerged from the gloom. I angled downward, nearly shearing off the edge of one wing against a nearby roof, and hit the ground right outside his door. My fist rose and pounded on his door.
“CASTIEL! OPEN YOUR DOOR, CASTIEL!” The longer I went without seeing Eve, the more my heart ached and the more my fear grew.
The door opened, revealing a scowling Castiel backlit by cheerful firelight. “Captain?”
Sweat dotted his temple, and his broad shoulders drooped, though his wings stayed in proper position. He must’ve returned from flying Azrael away. Azrael hated being anywhere near humans.
“What’s wrong?” Castiel demanded, taking in my appearance in one blink. He stared at the sword in my hand.
“Eve. She’s missing.”
He tensed, alert instantly. “I haven’t seen her. Could she be in the village?”
I shook my head. “We…argued. She might be leaving me.”
Shock filled his dark eyes, but I didn’t have time to be embarrassed at being such a poor mate.
“But her betrothed is also here, those people I asked Azrael to watch. He is a deeply unpleasant person. He could be forcing her back into their fold. I need to know if she’s well.”
Castiel left his house, shutting the door behind him. His wings nearly brushed mine, and I shifted backward to grant him space. “I can search the village.” He didn’t pause to put on a flying vest or shoes.
I sagged with relief. “Thank you, Castiel.”
He gave me a bemused look. “For you, anything, Captain.”
We turned as one. I expected us to shoot into the air, but Castiel tightened his wings against his back and walked the short distance into the village.
My tender feet protested as I hurried over gravel and coarse grass, but I ignored them.
Once inside the village, we walked down the main lane and glanced down side streets. Suddenly, up ahead at the pub, a door opened and a human woman tumbled into the street in a blur of purple skirts and shining, white-blond hair.
Castiel sucked in a breath and hurried toward her. I beat him. I hauled the woman upright. “Where is my Eve?”
She blinked up at me, blue eyes nearly violet framed by cornsilk lashes. Horror made her mouth drop. “W-w-who are you?” She tried to pull away, eying my sword with panic.
I growled. This was a waste of time.
Castiel’s hands set on mine, gently prying them off the woman’s arms. “We are looking for his housekeeper, Eve Lovejoy.”
Her face changed, a blush rising to her round cheeks. Her eyes fluttered nervously away.
“You’re one of them,” Castiel realized. The suspicious travellers on the road. “Why are you here?”
“I–I’m here because they told me I had to come,” she stuttered.
“And where is Eve Lovejoy?” Castiel coaxed, probably aware I was panting and furious.
With a shaking finger she pointed off into the wilds of the moors. “She escaped. They chased after her.”
“Good. Now, I need you to—” Castiel’s persuasive tones cut off as I whirled and threw myself up into the air.
Vertical takeoffs could only be accomplished by adults with fully developed muscles, and even then we could only do so many in quick succession before exhausting ourselves. I pushed against the strain in my ligaments and muscles, climbing into the air. I surveyed the wide, flat lands below me, so unlike my homeland.
