The Fallen Part 2

Chapter Four.

Detective Strand glared at the lab tech in irritation, wondering if he was on something. aToo much caffeine?a he asked suspiciously.

The tech calmed himself with an effort. aI found this in the vehicle you asked me to check,a he said in a voice tinged with awe as he opened the fuming cabinet and dragged out a sword nearly four feet long.

Detective Strand eyed the piece curiously. aAnd?a aI carbon dated it. This piece dates back to somewhere around the stone age.a aA real antique, huh?a The tech gaped at him speechlessly for several moments. aIt pre-dates the metal age,a he emphasized, his voice carrying a thread of hysterical laughter. aItas--itas probably the find of this century.a Detective Strand looked at him in disgust. aWhich means zero. Did you find anything I can use on the d.a.m.ned case or not? DNA?a Several emotions washed over the techas face. Disappointment was one, outrage another, but at the mention of DNA, he perked up again. aThat blue stuff--youare not going to belief this s.h.i.+t!a aProbably not,a Detective Strand said dryly, aand unless itas got something to do with my case, I donat give a s.h.i.+t.a aItas blood. Not human, canat be, too many strands, but some match human--but the DNA is off the charts. Iave never seen anything like it. The persons these blood samples came from are--well, they would be like super human, I suppose--except they arenat human despite the similarity of some of the markers--I donat think.a aWait--run that by me again. Persons? There was more than one? Was either one of them that low life, Enrico?a The tech stared at him with his jaw at half mast. aNot the blue blood--I did find his DNA--Enricoas--on the window gla.s.s, though. No doubt about it. He is the one that put his fist through it. But....a Strand cut him off. aThatas all I need to hear,a he said with satisfaction. aIall have a uniform pick that sleaze ball up.

Kylee was still trying to think up a convincing story to tell the cops when she pushed through the doors of the precinct. She completely saw Gabrielas point about the d.a.m.ned sword. It was his, and it was her fault it was missing and therefore her responsibility to retrieve it, but she had no idea how the h.e.l.l she was going to manage it.

Shead just stopped at the desk to ask if Detective Strand was in when he hailed her from across the room.

aGood! I was just about to call you. I had forensics check out the car.a Kylee felt the blood rush from her face. A wave of weakness followed it.

Strand frowned. aYou ok? Come on in my office and have a seat.a She didnat really want to go to his office, but she was certainly in no condition to run, which was her first thought. By the time shead sunk into the chair in his office, it occurred to her that she had no reason to feel guilty. She hadnat done anything wrong.

Nothing illegal, she mentally corrected.

aFeeling better?a Strand asked as he sat behind his desk.

Kylee managed a nod. She didnat feel a whole lot better, though. She felt a little nauseated in all honesty. Shead been uneasy when shead realized she was going to have to try to get into the vehicle in the impound lot. Now she didnat know what to do.

aGood news! We got the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Got his DNA all over the window. With your statement and the evidence, we can send him away for a while. Iam charging him with deadly a.s.sault. The pictures we got last night and your testimony ought to be enough to make a slam dunk.a Kylee struggled to s.h.i.+ft gears. Shead already told the detective she didnat want Enrico sent up for a.s.sault. She wanted him charged with murder. How was she going to get evidence on him if he was locked up?

aYouave caught him?a she asked finally.

aWeare looking for him. Itas only a matter of time. Youall need to give me contact information so that we can get you up here to testify when the time comes--I a.s.sume youare planning on going home soon?a Kylee stared at the man. The emphasis on that last comment was clear enough. He was asuggestinga she go home. She didnat like being ordered around, not even with subtlety. aI suppose,a she said finally. aI have to take care of that rental, though, first.a Strand shrugged. aItas part of a crime scene. Weall release the car back to the agency when weare done with it.a That sounded ominous, but not nearly as unnerving as his next question. aWhat were you doing with a sword in your car?a A jolt went through Kylee. She did her best to hide her reaction.

aTechnically, it const.i.tutes a concealed weapon since it was found under your seat, but the tech says itas some kind of antique.a Surprise filtered through Kylee. He was offering her an out. Shead been trying to think up a lie, but decided just to tell him the truth--or the part he might believe anyway. aI found it by the car when I got out--after Enrico took off. I donat know why I picked it up--except I could see it must be valuable and I didnat want to leave it there.a Strand frowned. aCurious thing is, the tech said it had blood on it--really strange blood. That blue stuff all over the hood--turned out to be blood.a Widening her eyes, Kylee did her very best to look shocked, appalled, and thoroughly confused. She wasnat certain how well it worked, but not well if Strandas expression was anything to go by.

aAnything you want to tell me?a He wouldnat believe her if she did tell him. She knew that. She wouldnat have believed it herself if she hadnat been there, seen it, and then seen the--angel or whatever he was afterwards--alien, she decided. aLike what?a she hedged.

He shrugged, seeming to dismiss it. aYou should consider going home as soon as possible. I doubt itas likely Enrico knows where you are, but you canat be too careful.a Kylee nodded, pus.h.i.+ng to her feet. aAbout the sworda.a Strandas brows rose questioningly.

aWhat will happen with that?a He shrugged. aIf it doesnat have anything to do with this case--which I canat see that it does--itall stay in the evidence room until we see if we can locate the owner--since you said it wasnat you and you found it.a Kylee felt like kicking herself. aI did find it, though,a she managed to say after a moment. aIf it isnat claimed, Iad like to have it.a aCheck back with me in a month or so,a Strand said, getting to his feet.

Dismayed as she was, there was nothing Kylee could do but nod and leave. Gabriel grabbed her as she pa.s.sed the alley beside the building, dragging her into it.

aWell?a Kyleeas heart was still in her throat. Anger swiftly overtook the fear when she saw it was Gabriel, then dipped into fear again as she stared up at him. Whatever he was, he was probably a lot more dangerous than Enrico--and he was not going to be happy about his sword.

aIt isnat in the car anymore.a aI know,a he responded, his lips set into a grim line.

Kylee blinked, but she wasnat going to ask him how head managed to find and search the car. aTheyave got it in there--I think. The detective said it was evidence in the crime scene and the lab had it doing their thing, then it would go into the evidence room. Or maybe itas there already?a When Kylee nerved herself to see how he was taking the news, she discovered Gabriel had disappeared. One moment he was there and then, in the blink of an eye, gone. She hadnat heard a thing.

Confused, she looked around the alley, deserted except for her, and then frowned, wondering if she was hallucinating. Had he not been there at all?

She was still looking around in bewilderment when she noticed a strange phenomenon. The wall nearest her seemed to have turned liquid--sort of. She blinked, trying to focus her vision, certain it must be some trick of the light or her eyes. Before she could decide what it was, Gabriel stepped through it.

He was holding his sword.

Kylee felt her jaw sag to half mast.

He studied her frowningly for a moment and finally hooked a hand around the back of her neck, dragging her toward him. Kylee was too shocked even to enjoy the kiss as he dipped his head and thoroughly ravished her mouth--almost too shocked. Just about the time she swayed toward him, feeling warmth flooding through her, he released her, set her away from him and--his wings appeared.

Kylee was still trying to a.s.similate the fact that they hadnat been there moments before when he launched himself into the sky and vanished in a matter of seconds.

aI need to lie down,a she muttered, looking around the alley a little dazed.

She might have stood like a dolt in the alley longer except that it occurred to her suddenly that Gabriel had just waltzed right through the police station, collected his sword and walked out again.

She didnat want to be anywhere near the place when they realized the sword was gone. Leaving the alley, she walked briskly to the corner and hailed a cab.

Once shead settled in the seat, she wasnat certain of where she wanted to go. She finally decided, however, that shead just had too many shocks too closely together. Her mind was completely disordered, probably at least partly because of the medication shead been given for pain.

Finally, she simply told the driver to take her back to the room shead rented. She would rest, she decided, and then when she was a little clearer in her mind, she would decide what she wanted to do.

Kylee ended up taking a two hour anapa and felt almost worse when she first got up than before shead lain down. After a long hot shower, though, shead begun to feel almost human. Wiping the steam off the bathroom mirror, she studied her bruises. A s.h.i.+ver skated down her spine as it sank into her just how close shead come to dying. If Gabriel and the enemy head been battling hadnat landed on her car at precisely the moment they dida.

She frowned at the thought of Gabriel, wondering what sort of battle was going on. Was it some sort of personal vendetta with another of his kind? Or something broader? And why had they been fighting with swords of all things?

The mystery surrounding Gabriel was almost as bizarre as--well, Gabriel. If shead been a religious sort of person--which she wasnat--she wouldave been poring over a bible trying to figure out what was going on. She didnat believe he was anything close to being a deity, however, or that there was anything of any religious significance to the fight that had ended on the hood of her car. She wasnat certain what was going on, but she didnat believe that.

Alien?

She supposed if he wasnat human--and he wasnat--and if he wasnat a deity or heavenly being--which she didnat believe--there wasnat much left but alien. What sort of alien race would have the technology to travel to Earth, though, and then fight with swords? And why fight at all?

Were they fighting over who could claim the place?

Unnerving thought, but she dismissed it after a moment. If aliens were slugging it out to claim Earth, she felt fairly confident everybody would know.

Head acknowledged that he was of another race. Head also spoken about superst.i.tions his people had about hers--which meant the Elumi knew about humans whether humans knew about them or not.

So maybe theyad been around a while, coming and going for whatever reason and theyad been seen in the past? It seemed pretty farfetched on one level, but what would have made people from the past believe they were seeing and sometimes interacting with G.o.d-like beings if theyad never encountered something to make them believe that?

It still confused her to think that the Elumi could have had the ability to travel to Earth for centuries and behave so--barbarically that they fought one another with swords.

Now that she thought about it, though, his clothing was very reminiscent of statuary and paintings shead seen from way back--which meant that if shead guessed right, they hadnat changed a lot.

It didnat take much thought to figure out the sarong. He had wings. Unless shead been hallucinating earlier, he also had the ability to avanisha them. It was fairly easy to figure out why he wouldnat want to wear anything that would impede his ability to make the change.

She wondered if he could change besides that, make himself a.s.sume a completely different form.

Her eyes widened as it occurred to her to wonder if he even really looked like he had appeared to her. What if he had just made himself look like that?

She dismissed that after a moment. Why make himself look almost human but with wings? It didnat make any sense.

Realizing shead been staring blankly at the mirror long enough the mirror had dried, she finished drying herself, combed the tangles from her wet hair and left the bathroom to search for a change of clothes.

Gabriel was lying on the bed, his arms propped behind his head.

Kylee let out a whoop, did a war dance, and fled back into the bathroom before it dawned on her that it was Gabriel. When shead wrapped herself in her towel, she peered around the edge of the door again.

Gabriel was staring back at her, a bemused look on his face.

aYou scared the h.e.l.l out of me! What are you doing here?a He came up on one elbow, studying her a.s.sessingly for several moments. aI brought food,a he said finally.

Kylee glanced toward the table in one corner of the room, saw that white Styrofoam containers were stacked on it, and looked at Gabriel again. aBut--I thought--you said you were just looking for your sword.a His eyes narrowed. A faint smile curled his lips. aTonight I came to find my sheath.a aYour sheath?a Kylee repeated blankly. aI didnat see aa. Very funny!a He came up off of the bed and began to move toward her, slowly, as if he thought she would run if he rushed her--which she would have. She didnat feel threatened, however, and it didnat even occur to her to slam the door and lock it.

Not that that wouldave done her a h.e.l.l of a lot of good. She knew she hadnat imagined seeing him pa.s.s through the brick wall of the police station as if it was nothing more substantial than air.

aI may have given you the wrong impression when--uh--before,a she said a little unsteadily.

He stopped when he was toe to toe with her, placing his hands on her shoulders and kneading them. aHow is that?a aUh--well--I--uh--I think it was the drug--partly. I got carried away with the moment. I donat usually do things like that and I hardly know you--well, actually, I donat know you at all and I didnat then either, buta.a aYou will,a he murmured, threading one hand beneath her damp hair and pulling her closer.

Desire flooded through her as his lips skated lightly over hers and their breaths mingled. aI shouldnat,a she said doubtfully, breathless with antic.i.p.ation.

He nibbled at her lips. aBecause?a

Chapter Five.

Because, why? Kylee couldnat think of a single reason not to at the moment.

He slipped his hands down along her arms, catching her wrists, and then tugged her with him to the bed. She followed like a sleepwalker, mesmerized by the promise in his eyes. Pulling the towel from her, he tossed it aside and then removed his sarong and flung it the way of the towel.

Her breath caught in her throat as he lowered her to the bed and settled half on the bed beside her, half covering her. One hair roughened leg stroked along hers before settling between them as he supported himself on an elbow and explored her body with his gaze and his free hand. Currents of warmth and excitement eddied and flowed through her from the feel of his warm, faintly calloused fingers and palm. Through half closed lids she watched the skate of his hand as it roamed her body, gently cupping one breast, smoothing down over her midriff and belly and finally gently plucking the curls on her mound. After teasing the sensitive nether lips briefly, he moved upward once more in his exploration, tracing the curve of her hip with his large palm and long fingers, the dip of her waist, and then moving up to cup one breast again and pluck gently at the nipple that hardened and nudged against his palm.

aYou are a beautiful woman, Kylee,a he murmured, lifting his gaze to hers at last, apleasing to my eyes, to my touch--to my taste.a He leaned closer, until the tip of his nose brushed her skin, breathing deeply and nibbling a row of kisses along her neck and collar bone. aNow I understand why this is forbidden. There is much truth to the tales. I thought that I had supped from your lips and drank my fill. Instead, I only thirst more than before,a he whispered near her ear, sending s.h.i.+vers of want and antic.i.p.ation through her. Her belly quivered as he sucked her earlobe into his mouth.

He lifted his head after a moment, staring down at her and Kylee opened her eyes with an effort. He cupped her face in his hand. aAre you certain death, Kylee? Or salvation? My thirst for war has dimmed before my thirst for you,a he murmured, leaning down and covering her mouth in a kiss of unrestrained pa.s.sion, of need, of possession that made her senses reel.

The questions startled her, filled her with a nameless dread, but the heat of his kiss banished awareness of anything beyond the feel of his mouth on hers. It was drugging, depriving her of any will to resist that remained, though there was little enough of that from the moment he had looked into her eyes with desire. His taste engulfed her, entranced her as he laid siege to her senses, stroking his tongue along hers possessively, exploring the heated, keenly sensitive cavern of her mouth with a thoroughness that made her heart leap, pounding frantically, and her breath catch in her chest.

She might know little or nothing about him, but her body knew his well as her pleasure master, responding with a will all its own, a desperation to experience the ecstasy he had wrung from it before. Murmuring a sound of need, she laced her fingers through his silky hair, urging him closer, kissing him back with abandon, her mind and body already pounding with the need for full possession. Heat and moisture collected in her s.e.x. Blood engorged the tiny capillaries in her most sensitive places, making her feel swollen and achy with a need only his touch could a.s.suage.

He drew his knee up between her thighs. They parted in invitation before his advance, until his erection nudged against her nether lips. Skimming a hand downward along her body once more, he traced a path that went directly to her mound, parting the swollen lips with one long finger and exploring the hot wetness of her arousal. Breathing gustily into her mouth at his discovery, he broke the kiss and s.h.i.+fted to catch one erect nipple between his lips, plucking at it briefly before he sucked it into his mouth.

Gasping in a sharp breath, Kylee arched upward to meet the tantalizing heat of his mouth and tongue as jolt after jolt of keen sensation arrowed through her, colliding in her belly with the exquisite sensations touched off by his exploring finger along her cleft. The muscles in her belly clenched, seeking his hard, heated length, needing it with a growing desperation.

Unable to move the leg he lay against, she dragged the other one upward, bending her knee and bracing one foot against the mattress as she spread her thighs wider to accommodate his broad palm. Accepting the invitation, he s.h.i.+fted over her. Lifting his head from her breast, he captured her lips once more, settling his narrow hips between her thighs and surging against her so that his swollen member sc.r.a.ped along her tender inner thighs and b.u.t.ted the sensitive flesh of her s.e.x.

Kylee sucked in a sharp breath, arching her back and spreading her thighs wider still until she felt his hardened flesh plowing along her cleft. s.h.i.+fting his weight, he reached between them and aligned their bodies, pressing steadily until he had buried the head of his c.o.c.k in her channel. She held her breath, held still, panting as her body slowly adjusted to his intrusion.

Dragging his lips from hers, he burrowed his face against her neck, breathing raggedly as he forced his engorged c.o.c.k deeper, by agonizingly slow degrees until he filled her completely. He pushed his upper body upward then, supporting himself with his arms, studying her face as he stroked her inner pa.s.sage with his heated length. Sensing his gaze, she opened her eyes with an effort. His face, taut with his own need and his efforts at self restraint sent a shaft of need through her. The muscles in her belly clenched in response, tightening around him. A look of pleasure/pain skimmed his features. He sucked in a harsh breath, holding it. A tremor went through the bulging muscles of his arms.

Releasing his breath on a hoa.r.s.e groan after a moment, he lowered himself against her. Burrowing his face along her neck and slipping his hands beneath her hips, he began to move within her, stroking his flesh along hers feverishly. Kyleeas gasps of pleasure became moans of desperation as her body tautened with the escalation of sensation and grew tighter still until she felt she could contain no more. And still it grew, expanding until she couldnat catch her breath, until her heart could not seem to keep pace with the flood of adrenaline through her, until her struggle to drag enough oxygen into her lungs made darkness crowd close upon the fringes of her mind.

When it burst upon her, rolling over her like a tidal wave, the sensation of release was so exquisite, she uttered sharp, keening cries she was scarcely aware of. The convulsing of her v.a.g.i.n.al muscles in the throes of pa.s.sion sent him over the edge. A deep groan seemed to be dragged from his chest as his c.o.c.k jerked and convulsed, pumping his hot seed against her womb.

He settled heavily against her as the last waves of rapture rolled over him and began to dissipate. Gasping for breath, still shuddering, he nuzzled her neck, sucked a love bite just beneath her ear.

Scarcely aware of anything beyond the cloud of repletion and utter contentment that enveloped her, Kylee merely lay limp beneath his caresses, struggling to gather her senses to her once more.

Minutes pa.s.sed in a haze. Finally, almost reluctantly, he pulled away from her. Settling beside her on the bed on his back, he gathered her against him, stroking her back.

Sighing, Kylee reveled in his soothing caress, feeling almost like purring with contentment. Shead begun to drift lazily, more than half tempted to relax into sleep, when he moved away from her and got out of the bed.

Roused, Kylee rolled onto her side, watching him as he strode across the room and stood examining the plates of food. A faint smile curled her lips. She was still smiling when he glanced toward her.

An answering smile gleamed in his eyes. aHungry?a She searched herself and discovered with a little surprise that she was. She nodded, but got up from the bed and went into the bathroom to clean up. Grabbing another towel when shead finished, she wrapped it around herself like a sarong, tucking one corner edge in and went back into the main room. Gabriel was sprawled in the bed, eating.

She sent him a disapproving frown. aYouall have the bed full of crumbs.a He held out a hand to her. After a moment, she answered the summons, settling on the opposite side of the bed. He offered a tidbit of food. When she reached to take it, however, he closed his hand over it, shaking his head. Feeling a little shy, a little embarra.s.sed, she leaned toward him again, opening her mouth. He placed the tidbit on her tongue.

It was chicken, fried and barely warm now, but it tasted it delicious. She chewed it, looking around for something to drink. After a moment, she got up and went to the table. Collecting the bottled drinks there and another container of food, she returned to the picnic on the bed and examined the contents, then fed him a piece of chicken.

She frowned slightly as she took another bite. aAre you--forbidden to tell me anything about yourself?a He looked a little surprised. After a moment, amus.e.m.e.nt gleamed in his eyes. aWe are forbidden to have any congress with humans. The rest hardly matters--now.a Kylee nodded. aWhere are you from?a aMy home lies in Tearra in Pearthen--high Earth--beyond the gateway.a The explanation only left Kylee more confused. aHigh Earth--then youare nota?a She paused. aIs it, like another dimension?a aClever and beautiful,a he murmured approvingly, offering her another tidbit of food.

Wryly, Kylee thought she wasnat that clever. It still boggled her mind. It wouldave been easier to grasp another world altogether than a dimension unseen and inaccessible to humans. aWhy are you here?a His lips twisted. Anger filled his eyes. aI am banished for displeasing my king. It has always been the way of things--to be banished from our own beautiful kingdom into the land of humans--lower Earth--as punishment--when death is not the punishment. When war erupted once more, though, the banished grew rapidly in numbers. It is much harder to please the king, much easier to fall from grace, when he is beset by enemies.a Kylee stared at him while she tried to a.s.similate that. It was almost as if theyad been caught in a time warp that kept them prisoner of the dark ages--or something like the dark ages of Earth.

aSo--when did your people discover the gateway and learn about humans?a He chuckled. aMy people discovered the gateway long before humans evolved into an intelligent species. We evolved here on lower Earth first, built our civilization here. We pa.s.sed through the gateway when the human infestation became--intolerable to us.a Kylee reddened at the insult. It didnat matter than he hadnat intended to insult her. In fact it made it worse since it made it obvious he felt humans were beneath his own race.

Or maybe species was the correct word? He had lumped all of the races of man together. Was he a member of another species? Or an earlier variety of human?

His blood was blue, not red, but she didnat know if that was significant or not. There was also the fact that his molecular structure seemed to differ tremendously--the wings which he could sprout at will, the staggering ability to heal wounds that would have been mortal to a human.

She shook that thought off. On a personal level, it didnat matter, really. She certainly had not been able to tell the difference in so far as their amatinga went--unless she counted the fact that she had not had s.e.x with anyone before that took her to such heights, but that only seemed to indicate a chemical similarity between them, not a difference.

And, in any case, there was no commitment here, or expectation of one, and no relations.h.i.+p. He enjoyed her body. She enjoyed his. It was as uncomplicated as that.

aSo--itas a form of punishment to have to live among us?a Something flickered in his eyes. aNay. The punishment is to be banished from all those we know, all those things familiar to us and to live on lower Earth without even the succor of contact with humans. As I said, it is forbidden. And the only chance we have to shorten our sentence of solitude is to best an enemy of the king and win his favor once more. And so we search for others of our kind, fight our enemies here, and each hope to win the victory that will allow us to return home.a Slightly mollified, Kylee nodded, but she frowned again at one thing that was bothering her. She had been hesitant to ask for fear of insulting him, but he hadnat seemed to have any qualms about insulting her. aThis war--fighting with swords--it seems very archaic to me. We did that long ago, but weapons have advanced a lot in the wars of mankind--everything has.a Instead of appearing insulted, he looked amused. aYou think we are barbaric because we do not use the same weapons to kill each other that you do? Because we find it unnecessary to kill the innocent with the guilty by using weapons that kill everything in its path? You think the things that you surround yourself with are a necessary evidence of superior intelligence and advancement of civilization? The man who attacked you--he carried a blade. I have seen many that do. These things you consider the trappings of advanced civilization, they are the product of need, want, desire for change. We are content as we are, with who we are. This world seems primitive to us.a Kylee frowned, but she could certainly see his point. It was hard to convince anyone that mankind was superior when their animal side still dwelt closely to the surface and they erupted into brutal, violent behavior with regularity.

He tapped her chin. When she looked up at him, he hooked his hand behind her head and dragged her close, kissing her briefly and releasing her. Slipping from the bed, he headed into the bathroom.

He didnat close the door and, more than a little uncomfortable with such intimacy, Kylee concentrated on cleaning up the remains of their meal and disposing of it, trying not to feel domestic about the whole situation. Relieved when she heard the sound of the shower, she searched her suitcase for something to wear, wondering if head been teasing when head made that remark about her having a man.

He must have been, she decided. Or maybe it was just one of those alinesa men fed women because they thought it was what they wanted to hear, the hint of a promise of some sort of commitment, or relations.h.i.+p?