The Devil's Mate

Chapter 13

Gently licking my forearms as he sits across me, I press my lips together tightly to prevent myself from hissing at the sharp sting from his saliva coming in contact with my wounds. Certain enzymes that make up Dominic's saliva have healing properties that are amplified when applied to his mate ie. me. Unlike Theresa who has already healed and is currently examining the arrow's message with special gloves, I need help from Dominic to speed up the healing process since the cuts I received are deeper than hers.

"Being brave is one thing but putting yourself in harm's way whilst doing so is stupid," He lectures, wiping his mouth of my blood with a black handkerchief. "You're lucky these cuts aren't enough for you to bleed out."

"Would you have rathered your sister in law get impaled in the head?" I sarcastically ask him, examining my newly healed arms.

"Don't you dare answer that Dominic," Theresa warn him in a sing-song voice paying half a mind to our conversation.

Notchantly shrugging in response to his sister-in-law, Dominic gives me an isn't-it-obvious look before getting off the couch to inspect the arrow's message with Theresa while her husband and I sit on opposite couches watching them intently.

"I think these could be ancient runes from the early time of the humans," Dominic suggests, turning the cloth in his bare hands which I'm slightly concerned about. "Do you have any books on the different alphabets used after Father separated humankind into different families?"

"No," Theresa responds, taking the note away from him. "You should have them though."

"Of course I do, greenie," Dominic rolls his eyes, standing up. "But I'm not exactly in my home now am I?"

Joshua laughs loudly when his eyes catch sight of my expression which I'm sure is an open book about my feelings towards the way Dominic responded to Theresa.

"Theresa was Dominic's trainee angel shortly before the creation of Hell," He explains while his brother glares at him. "If you were to ask him, he'd tell you Theresa was the one Angel he could never teach right."

"You are sleeping in a different bedroom tonight," the woman who is the topic of our conversation huffs. "It's not that he couldn't teach me, it's just his teaching method that made it difficult to understand."

"As if Gabriel was a better teacher than I was," Dominic shrugs, taking a seat next to me casually slipping his hand into mine. "I, for one, think he made you worse of an Angel than what I would have made you."

"Can we just focus on the main matter at hand which isn't who my mentors were or how badly devoted I was to my studies?" Theresa snaps, glaring at both her husband and Dominic. "We need to figure out what these symbols mean, who the arrow was aimed at, where the shooter is and how, if the shooter is human, did a human get into Heaven without passing your Judgement?"

"I'll go back to Hell and have a word with the beasts," Dominic sighs as he stands from his seat, pulling me up with him. "They've been celebrating this one's arrival so the portals might have been unguarded though I'm doubtful they let humans through the labyrinth or that the humans that managed to get past them find a way out of the labyrinth."

"You heard what Father said," Joshua states with a sombre look on his face, going from the carefree character who was just teasing his wife to a character that takes no bullcrap from anyone. "Secrets are not best kept when you're in a relationship. Show her the file when you get home."

"Joshua, it's not the time," Dominic growls, looking positively primal as he glares at his brother.

Squeezing his hand to get his attention, the primality on his face falters a little as he turns to look at me. I don't know how to tell him that I'd like to know whatever it is Joshua is saying and considering the amount of sleeping I've been doing since I've met him to cope with the overwhelming feelings, I don't blame him for not wanting to tell me until I'm more used to my change in lifestyle.

"I promise I will speak my feelings regarding whatever it is Joshua wants you to tell me," I begin, holding my hand up to stop him from speaking when he opens his mouth to protest. "I'll have to know it eventually so prolonging the news may just make my reaction to it worse."

Dominic closes his mouth, seriously considering my words for a moment before nodding albeit reluctantly. Pulling me flush against his body, he says something in Latin to Joshua and Theresa who both nod in agreement before the wall of fire envelopes us and takes us to Helmsley Mansion.

I struggle to keep up with him as he pulls me in the direction of his library, his face pulled into a terrifying scowl which scares the fae so much that every time we pass by them I can hear the little gasps of fear that they let out as they fly off, probably to find Arima. In the library, Dominic releases my hand once we reach his desk. It takes him a while to sift through the multiple papers litter the surface before he finds a brown coloured manila file.

Handing it to me, he states, "This is the report Father collated on the informant that reported your disappearance. Read it and I'll tell you what Father has found out today which is why Joshua came to Hell this morning."

Opening the manila file slightly apprehensive as I sit down on the same chair that I had sat in on my first day in Hell. Dominic hovers over me as I read the contents.

Investigation Summary of Ms Luarn Rose Parker

Name: Lauran Rose Parker

Age:128

Born: Oct 1883

Married: Nil

Children: Nil

Born in the city of Rome, Ms Parker was the firstborn child of Master Bunes an active leader of the many groups in The Covenant. (Picture attached.) 

At the age of 28, Ms Parker participated in a raid of a magical refugee camp resulting in the capture of Daniel Osbourne and his family. Daniel Osborne is under contract with The Covenant to eliminate subject in 1911 subject is appeared to be 2 years old at the time but age is unknown as the birth record of the subject is off the record. (Picture attached)

Elimination fails. Subject's caregiver is burned alive by a protective spell projected by the subject. The subject then collapses and is taken to The Covenant's headquarters for further evaluation and second elimination attempt.

21/03/2007

The subject looks to be 3 years old now and execution failed. Resulting in the death of all 316 personnel in the facility where elimination was tried. The subject is unharmed through the process. The Grand Masters of The Covenant determine the Subject to be unidentified and dangerous resulting in a decree that states Subject be moved around the US every six months in different locations under the observation and care of Ms Parker and Daniel Osbourne in the event that she grows destructive. Daniel Osbourne is tasked with using magic to kill her if the need arose in exchange for the freedom of his family in The Covenant's holding cells.