Bound by Time (30 page)

“
Meae deliciae
, he attacked you. What did you want done with him?”

“It wasn’t his fault; he had a demon in him.” She brought her hand up to her forehead and grimaced.

“A lower level demon can’t force a man to do something that wasn’t already somewhere in his heart. They prey on that and intensify it. It usually takes a while for the demon to bring everything to the surface in order for the human to act on the demon’s wishes.” He gently brushed her hair away from her face. “That man had only been possessed for a few minutes at most. For him to do what he did…he would’ve had to commit such acts before only he wouldn’t have stopped at the vial during those.”

“I thought only the Higher Powers got to pass judgment.” She tried to move so she could look at him but gasped and held her head with her hand.

Damien traced his fingers over the lump. He wasn’t sure if it was life threatening at this point. If not, he couldn’t heal it but he might be able to ease the pain. Damien embraced his powers as he answered her, “We are dark angels,
meae deliciae
.” He allowed his power to slip through his fingertips and into the wound on her head. “In defense of our channels, we have the right to pass judgment.”

Isobel said something incoherent and then, “Are we in Wichita yet?”

Damien looked down at her and his heart lurched. Maybe it was worse than he thought. Her eyelids drooped, and he gave her a shake. “Isobel,
meae deliciae
, I need you to stay awake for now.” He changed tactics and whispered for permission to heal.

The bruise faded and the lump under his fingers disappeared. His breath froze in his chest for a moment. It shouldn’t have done that unless it threatened her life. He wrapped his arms around her again and pulled her tight against him, lowering his face to her hair.

“Damien?” her voice sounded soft and sleepy.

“Yes,
meae deliciae
?” Damien whispered into her hair.

“My head doesn’t hurt anymore.”

He ran his hand down her hair. “I know, you can sleep now.” She mumbled something and slipped into a deep slumber.

Lucian growled quietly and ripped the tattered remains of his shirt away. “That was too damn close.”

Damien agreed with him. “We seem to keep saying that.” He removed his own ripped shirt more gently, not wanting to wake Isobel. He didn’t bother thinking about another one yet. He had little doubt his wings would come out again before the night was over.

They drove in silence for several hours as the night stretched out in front of them. The road, making its way through the middle of nowhere, was empty save for them.

Isobel jolted awake in his arms as something heavy hit the roof of the car. A second later the back window smashed in and a smoky, clawed hand reached into the backseat. Damien lunged forward as the claws grabbed her hair. He clamped his hand on the demon’s wrist with a crushing grip.

The demon roared and continued to try and pull Isobel from the car. Lucian threw on the brakes sending the vehicle fishtailing down the highway to a stop. The demon was flung forward, its arm ripped off in Damien’s hand. It tumbled over the front of the car and immediately leapt back up. More demons swarmed out of the night.

Lucian burst out of the car, his light spreading over the road. Lesser demons shrank away but the larger, stronger demons charged him.

Damien pushed Isobel down onto the floorboard. ”Stay in here,” he ordered and then left the car as more demons swarmed from the night. The sting of their claws ripped through his skin as he wrestled the first down.

Isobel lay on the floorboard and wrestled with her desire to help until a demon crawled in through the shattered back window. She embraced her power before it could reach her and raised a circle. It only took a second to find the right symbol and banish it.

She scrambled from the car as two more started in from the window. The scene outside the car was one from a nightmare. The two angels couldn’t banish the demons fast enough, and both were taking wounds. Isobel whirled around as more crawled into the light bathing the road.

Isobel pulled in more power until it raced like fire through her veins. Ignoring the pain she raised a massive circle trapping nearly fifty demons within. The power rushing through her had drained away any fear. Her senses heightened, every blade of grass was easily visible, and even the smallest rustle in the trees reached her.

Focusing her strength she fixed her eyes on the circle of light as symbols began flashing simultaneously under each demon held captive by her power. When all the appropriate symbols were attached to each demon she spoke loud and clear, “I banish thee. I banish thee back to the pit from which you came. I banish thee from this plane. I banish thee from the world of the living. I banish thee.”

The screeches of the combined demons being banished all at once filled the night and echoed off the trees around them, though most humans would never hear it. Somewhere in the distance dogs barked in response.

A demon jumped at her from behind. Isobel heard it coming and stepped out of the way. Pain tore down her arm as the demon raked its claws along her skin when it grabbed for her and missed. The ache of the lacerations couldn’t compare to the burning in her blood. Her body felt flushed and overheated and still she pulled in more power. Another circle went up, this time around an even larger number.

Almost a hundred symbols began to flash at the same time as the demons battered against the wall of golden-white energy that held them. When the symbols settled she again banished them all at once. This time Isobel threw so much power into it, instead of melting away, they all burst into showers of sparks that drifted on the breeze and faded.

“Isobel, no!” Damien’s shout carried through the night to her.

She swayed as the temperature of her skin heated more. Damien was there before she could blink, taking her face in his hands. His massive black wings filled the night behind him, and his rich blue eyes were frantic as he stared into her face. “
Meae deliciae
, what have you done!” His palms felt cold against her skin.

Lucian appeared next to him. “She’s burning up, Damien. It’s gone too far.”

“No.” He shot Lucian a glare before turning back to her. Though his eyes were wild with panic his voice was calm. He gazed at her and captured her attention. “Isobel, you need to back it down.”

Though the power burned like a wildfire in her body, cold seeped through her. Isobel shivered as she stared into his eyes and her teeth chattered when she tried to speak. “I c-c-can’t c-c-control it.”

Damien smoothed her hair back from either side of her face as anguish closed around his heart. “Yes, you can,
meae deliciae
.” He tried to keep the terror out of his voice. Her eyes blazed with the light, only a small sliver of green was left near the pupils.

Shivers wracked Isobel so hard she thought her insides were coming apart as she tried to grapple with the runaway power. Every time she pulled it down a notch it slipped through again. The agony in her veins grew to unbearable levels and she cried out, “Damien, help me!”

A vice tightened around Damien’s chest at her plea. “Listen to me, Isobel. Can you control any of it?”

Deep shivers shook her body as she nodded. Isobel’s legs trembled and gave out. She collapsed into him. Damien’s arms caught her and he took them both down until she sat on the empty road, and he knelt in front of her with his knees braced apart. The pain in his chest grew as alarm filled him.

Her head fell back as her eyelids fluttered down. Damien grabbed her face in his hands again, desperation raising the volume of his voice. “Isobel!” Her eyes opened slowly as if it took great effort. “You will not die on me! Not this time. Gather the power you can and back it down.”

Isobel couldn’t open her mouth; her jaw was clenched shut by the icy tremors that tightened their grip even as she burned. She managed a small nod and tried to do as he said. Instead of working to gather it all up and keep any from escaping, she grabbed what she could and forced it back, reining it in and pushing it down.

The blistering heat inside her faded a fraction. Isobel struggled to pull more down and then more. With the last of her strength, she finally caught hold of the last shreds of power that still raged through her body. It took everything she had to pull it back and wrestle it down.

Damien pulled her into his arms as she went limp. Heat radiated off her skin and her body still trembled uncontrollably, but she was alive. He held her close, one arm around her back and the other hand buried in the hair at the base of her neck.

Lucian started to reach for his shoulder and hesitated. “Is she…”

“She lives.” Damien’s voice was rough with emotion. Weakness washed through him and he eased himself down to sit on the road.

“Damien, what are you doing? We need to get her in the car, now.” Lucian frowned.

Damien nodded. “In just a moment.”

Lucian gripped his shoulder, pulled him slightly away from Isobel, and swore. “Stay. I’ll grab something to bandage that.”

“No.” Damien stopped him. “Heal Isobel’s arm first. It’s bleeding too much.”

Lucian nodded and grabbed her arm. It didn’t take long for the wound to pull together and disappear. Damien fought against the hazy shadows that crept around the edge of his mind. The rips in his skin, though bleeding heavily, wouldn’t kill him. Made by a powerful mid-level demon, they would just take longer to heal.

Isobel swam in and out of darkness. When she slipped to the pavement, it jarred her semi-awake. Damien sat slightly hunched, his arms lying at his sides. Four long, deep gashes were torn across his torso from one shoulder to the opposite hip. Blood soaked the front of him and the waistband of his jeans.

Isobel struggled to find the strength to speak. Finally, she was able to whisper his name. “Damien?”

He didn’t answer. Oh God; he couldn’t be dead. She fought to raise her voice. “Damien? Please answer.”

Tears stung her eyes and rolled down the side of her face and into her hair as she lay, too weak to even move her fingers. Darkness clawed around the edges of her mind and she tried to push it away. Pulling in a deep breath Isobel released it with all the strength she had. “Lucian!” It came out more of a hoarse cry than the shout she had intended.

Sapped of everything her body had to give, her vision dimmed. Just before it grew dark, Lucian came into view. He laid a hand on her forehead. “I’m here Isobel, and I’ve got him. Don’t worry, he won’t die.”

Darkness closed over her.

D
amien woke knowing the cloth wrapped around his torso was no longer needed. The wounds had healed. Late morning light filled the car. He lay across the backseat with Isobel wedged in front of him, her head cradled against his shoulder and their legs tangled together.

The plastic sheet secured over the back window rattled in the wind. The inside of the car felt like a morgue. “Do you think you could turn down the air conditioning? It’s freezing, and Isobel’s skin is cold.”

Lucian looked back at them briefly before returning his attention to the road. “It’s about time. I’ve checked her throughout the night, and her skin was still too hot. The air’s been on max the entire time. I was starting to worry she wasn’t going to make it.”