Archangel’s Legion (Guild Hunter #6)(50)
Author: Nalini Singh

“Kahla is the first she has lost since the Awakening.” His hands closed over hers when she wrapped her arms around him from the back, her cheek on the living silk of one of his wings and her palms on the rippled muscle of his abdomen. “If she could call off this ball, she would, but it’s too late.”

Elena thought of the haunting sorrow she’d glimpsed on Caliane’s face. “How does she not see anyone lesser as disposable, given how long she’s lived?” Of all the archangels Elena knew, including Raphael, it was Caliane who appeared the most attached to her people, mortal and immortal.

“I asked her the same question once as a boy,” Raphael answered. “It was after we’d been to the territories of two other archangels within a short period of time, neither of whom treated their people as I’d always seen my mother do.

“She told me there was a time when she, too, was utterly remote from the world. It was her love for my father that began the change . . . and my birth that completed it.” Echoes of time, of memories from the dawn of his life. “In becoming a mother, she found an ability to love that transcended the change engendered by time and power.”

Elena thought of the life Caliane had lived, tried to imagine the weight of so many years: To see an eon pass, then to fall in love and bear a child, only to watch your mate be consumed by a madness that forced you to execute him. And later, to be consumed by insanity yourself, cause harm to the child who was the last cherished reminder of your mate, to Sleep for over a thousand years and wake to find your son a man of incredible power . . . one who’d given wings to a mortal.

“If that happens to us,” she whispered, unable to wrap her mind around the idea of a life so long and so full of tragedy, “if we feel ourselves, who we are together, becoming lost in time, I don’t want to Sleep. I want to say good-bye when I’m still me and you’re still you.” A clean, sharp ending rather than a gradual unraveling.

Turning, Raphael cupped her face, his eyes incandescent. “Caliane and Nadiel never lost one another, Elena. My parents loved even in the madness.” And so, Raphael thought, would he.

Elena’s hands fell to his waistband, finger hooking slightly inside. “Together,” she said, and he knew she was recalling what he’d told her about Caliane’s inadvertent admission when it came to the whispers that plagued his dreams, his hunter’s words a reminder of the promise they’d made to one another.

“We fall, we fall together.”

Eyes going to his right temple now, she shook her head, jaw set. “If you dare go before me, I will haunt you in the afterlife.”

“To be haunted by my heart is no threat.” Tugging back her head, he claimed her lips. He’d meant only to initiate a kiss, needing to taste the fiery life of her, but they were by the bed seconds later, her robe falling to the carpet to leave her golden-skinned body open to his caresses. Passion a crash of sensation in his blood, he took her to the sheets, their limbs entangled and skin hot as they forged another memory that would hold through eternity.

• • •

Her body feeling deliciously used, Elena fixed the final straps of the gorgeous ankle-length gown that had magically appeared in the luggage one of Raphael’s staff had driven to Amanat from the jet. She’d given up trying to figure out when or how formal clothes like these poofed into her wardrobe—or into her suitcase, for that matter—all she knew was that a tailor came by every couple of months, took her measurements, and things turned up when she needed them. She was good with that.

Today’s gown was sea froth around her ankles, the color an evocative azure blue, the tiny buttons that anchored the straps designed to hug her body faceted diamonds, and the azure lace accent along one side unexpectedly striking. She didn’t wear her workmanlike forearm sheaths but strapped on the jeweled upper-arm sheath and blade set Raphael had given her prior to the last ball they’d attended.

It had survived the ensuing carnage, and the blade, sweet and deadly, looked prettily decorative on her biceps. She slid a second blade into a thigh sheath, her dress created with a discreet slit that gave her quick access—the tailor knew who he was dressing, that was clear. Into the hair she’d put in a fancy twist, she slipped the blade pins given to her as a gift by Jason’s princess, the spymaster currently on the other end of the call Raphael had received as he was buttoning up his severely formal black shirt.

“What did he say?” she asked when he ended the call.

Taking in the sight of his consort in her finery, Raphael walked across to run his finger along the curve of her bodice, the way she arched her neck in a responsive shiver enticing him to bend, press his lips to her throat. “You appear a pampered courtesan.” The jeweled blade on her arm only added to that effect.

She smoothed her hands over the crisp fabric of his shirt. “Good”—her fingers slotting in the remaining buttons—“the better to fool people.”

It would be a stupid individual indeed who’d miss the acute perceptiveness of Elena’s eyes, the fluid hunting grace of her walk. “Jason,” he said, in answer to her earlier question, “has heard not even a whisper of other vampiric deaths such as the ones in New York, and no incidents with mortals as in Amanat.”

“Hmm.” Slipping her hand into his, she led him to their balcony, which overlooked the cobblestoned square that was to be the center of the ball, the area lit with old-fashioned standing lamps of delicate iron, and accented with the natural blooms of the city. “Are all immortal balls outdoors?”

“For the most part—a ballroom big enough to comfortably handle so many wings would be an impersonal structure.”

“Like a stadium.” She made a face. “I get why angels would prefer an outdoor setting. It’s much prettier this way. The carpet over the cobblestones—it must’ve taken the weavers a human lifetime to complete.”

Raphael nodded, making a mental note to take her to visit the master weavers in the Refuge on their next visit. Elena would appreciate both their skill and their artistry. “Do you see how the buildings are built in a staggered pattern around the square?” Sliding one arm around her waist, he pointed out the design with his other. “It’s so each rooftop has an uninterrupted view of the festivities.”

Elena’s face glowed as she took in the informal seating areas that had appeared on those rooftops, each warm with candlelight. “It was built this way on purpose!”