Dangerous Things

“I’ll be sure to ask him as soon as I find him,” Kriss answered unable to keep the worry out of his voice.

“Dean loves you… he won't stay away long.” Tabatha closed her eyes hoping for Kriss’s sake that she was right.

“Sleep now,” Kriss whispered back hoping she was right about Dean returning soon. He hadn’t seen what the other fallen had looked like because he’d been moving too fast, but he’d felt him for a moment before the aura of the demon overpowered it. If just the fleeting feeling was haunting him, then he could imagine what Dean was going through.

The fallen were so rare that it took their breath away when they were anywhere near each other. Most thought they were the fallen angels of legend that had been cast to earth to help protect it… but legends are often only half truths that are molded by the words of men who crave a hero or sometimes an enemy.

The fallen had come to earth from another dimension… same as the demons. The legends called that dimension Heaven but they were wrong.

The myths said they destroy demons… again it was only a half truth. The Bible had said the fallen had mated with the beautiful women of earth and been punished for it… and that was the closest thing to the truth that the prophets had ever gotten.

The reason the remaining fallen kept themselves from mating with the females of earth… was because the product of those matings were the birth of a demons. It was the fallen that created demons.

When the first fallen had appeared, there were many but as the demons were born and began destroying what the fallen loved, they turned on their own children and fought. The numbers on both sides had diminished and the seal between dimensions was slowly closing.

Some of the original fallen had disappeared, thought to have lost their lives to the demons they’d spawned. Most of the survivors chose to go back home so they wouldn’t be tempted by the seduction of the human females. It was those few whom had sent the young warriors back into this world to watch over it… protect the humans from the monsters.

There was only one rule… they could not mate with the females of this world lest they kill them. One child of the true breed had been placed on each energy spot of earth and only a few of them had survived this long. Legends said they were immortal… legends were wrong.

The fallen were not immortal, they only lived for very long periods of time… millenniums would come closer to their lifespan. They could also be killed by human and demon alike… though for a human to succeed would be extremely difficult.

Syn had known the true legends and passed them down to his ‘children’. Remembering those lessons, Kane now understood how much Kriss loved Tabatha… enough not to take her as a mate… and enough not to let someone he thought wasn’t much more than a demon have her. It seemed he wasn’t the only one with dark secrets. The corner of Kane's lips hinted at a knowing smile as he turned and walked away.

*****

Envy and Devon were waiting at the bar when the first people started trickling in for the meeting. She and Kat were busy talking and trying to finish catching up on everything that happened while Devon and Quinn merely stood back and stared at them with a quirked eyebrow.

“What language are they speaking again?” Devon asked.

“There isn’t a name for it,” Quinn stated. “It is a ritual females partake in quite regularly. It starts out innocent then, before we know it, they’re out shopping and we’re stuck outside the changing rooms holding their purses.”

“You’re also stuck holding the bag while she goes inside girly stores and buys lingerie that you’re not allowed to see until your anniversary,” Nick chimed in with a smirk.

Warren clapped his hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Trust me little bro, you’ll happily hold those bags when the time comes.”

A pair of arms wrapped around Warren’s neck from behind and Michael’s face popped in between them. “Does that mean you’re taking me shopping?”

“Of course,” Warren said with a smirk. “I’ll take you to that bondage shop you like so much.”

Michael’s expression became dreamy. “Oh yes, whips, chains, stirrups, riding crops… leather.”

“What the…” Nick suddenly stood up and moved away from them making Devon snort.

“Homophobe,” Devon muttered.

“Shut up!” Nick growled, “They’re either very good liars or it’s disturbingly true.”

The door opened and Steven stepped in with Alicia and Jewel. Alicia had gone through her closet and found a nice purple sundress for Jewel to wear until she could get some more clothes. Luckily, they were roughly the same size and height so Jewel would be able to make due for now. Alicia had also told Steven that until he could get Jewel more clothing, Jewel was welcome to raid her closet as much as she liked.

Steven immediately stepped over to where Quinn and Devon were sitting with Nick at a table directly across from Kat’s bartending area.

“We’re not late I see.” Steven said smiling inwardly when he saw Jewel smile at Alicia. He realized he hadn’t seen her smile until now and he instantly felt a loss when it slid from her lips.

Warren looked around, “Actually I think everyone is here.”

“Not quite,” Envy said. “We’re still waiting on Chad.”

At that exact moment the doors swung open and Chad walked in with Trevor and Zachary behind him.

“What the hell is he doing here?” Devon demanded as he stood up.

“Chad’s a cop,” Envy reminded him. “He already knows some of what’s going on and he saw the tail end of what happened at the cemetery. He’s in whether he wanted to be or not. Besides,” she continued, “he’ll be able to keep the cops off your back for a while.”

“I wasn’t referring to your brother,” Devon’s voice had taken on a dangerous edge.

Kat nodded, seeing that Envy was getting ready to mistakenly take up for Trevor as well. Not wanting a full out battle royale to take place, she stepped away from the bar to put herself in their path.

“Trevor can stay too,” she said firmly and crossed her arms over her chest. “After all… he does play well with others.” Kat finished with a wink to the blonde man who gave her a mock salute.

Quinn stood up from his chair and walked over to Kat, putting his arm around her waist to pull her closer. “I’m going to have to keep an eye on you… aren’t I?” he murmured playfully, but the look in his eyes told a different story.

“Can we just get on with it?” Kane asked from the shadows.

Everyone except Michael jumped at the voice. He’d been so quiet no one knew he was there.

“Agreed,” Warren stated. “I think everyone knows why we’re here.” He looked at Chad who nodded once to indicate he understood before moving his gaze to Trevor and Zachary. “Before we go into what happened at the cemetery, I have a question for Trevor.”

Trevor narrowed his eyes, “Like what?”

“What the hell are you?” Devon asked interrupting Warren.

“I’m a shifter just like most of the people here,” Trevor answered.

Kane snorted in the shadows making everyone look his way.

“Do you know something about him?” Envy demanded. It wasn’t like she would take Trevor's word for anything… he’d already proven what a great liar he was.

“I might, but you’ll have to be really nice to me if you want to know,” Kane said with amusement in his voice. He would have blamed his moodiness on getting up on the wrong side of the bed, but hell… he hadn’t been asleep.

Devon was on his feet and had Kane hoisted into the air by the lapels of his jacket. “I think we’re done with being nice,” the jaguar growled.

Kane smirked down at the shifter, “Aw, that’s too bad. I already told my puppy what a sweetheart you were and he was so happy about meeting a new playmate.” They both knew who the loser would be if they decided to tangle… and it wasn’t the kitty cat.

“Your puppy?” Jewel asked, her eyes lighting up at the prospect of something cute and cuddly. Her lip twitched at the thought of a dog among all the cats in the room.

“It’s an oversized dust bunny,” Michael grumbled.

Warren pinched the bridge of his nose and Quinn had to fight to keep from laughing at his jaguar brother-in-law.