Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel) (22 page)

“She should meet her daughter. Mahlyssa is not
evil; quite the contrary,” Aura insisted. “She can help us
finally bring Richard to justice.
She has as much to lose as
the rest of us.
She has lived a miserable existence the last
forty years. Perhaps it’s time for her to have some peace and
happiness in her life.”

“Aura, those types of people can’t always be
trusted,” Paul said quietly.

 

“If she wasn’t trustworthy how could she walk on
hallowed ground?”

Jack who had been silent said, “I’m afraid Aura has
a point. If she were evil, she would have burned. Since she
didn’t, I believe she must still be faithful.”

“I’m planning to bring Mahlyssa and her family here
this afternoon.
I wanted to tell you first, so you could be
prepared. Arian will also be coming.
I know Will has been
wondering about his brother since his parent’s deaths. Now
we know the truth.
It was Richard who captured him.
Mahlyssa said he was in terrible shape when he first arrived.
She spent a great deal of time nursing him back to health. If
she was following a dark path, she could have just let him
die.”

“I know you may
not believe me, but my visions
have never failed me before.
I trust her explicitly and I
know once you get to know her; you’ll trust her too.”

“We should wait to reserve judgment on this
unfortunate woman until we’ve interviewed her ourselves,”
Paul said.

“I need to take care of something before I bring
them here. Please don’t ask me about it now. I promise
you’ll know everything in a couple of hours. I’m asking you
to trust me.”

“We trust you Aura. We will honor your request
and see what happens,” her father smiled.

Aura hugged her father. “I need to get back to the
kitchen.
I promised Rita some stuffed mushrooms.
Thank
you for believing in me. I won’t disappoint you, I swear it.”

After Aura left, the Guild stayed behind to talk
privately.

“At
least now we have some answers about Richard.
We can use this new information when we bring him before
the Council with regards to Virgil’s death,” Adam said.

“I agree. We suspected Richard was working with
the creatures. He will have to explain how he was uninjured,
but was capable of saving Arian from them,” Joseph added.

“Aren’t you curious why he saved Arian? I would
like to know what his plan was for the boy. I’m sure he had
one,” Adam said. “Let’s not forget Richard took him against
his will.”

“At least the boy is safe and he will be reunited with
his brother today,” Paul said.

They looked at Martin who hadn’t said a word.
“Are you concerned about Myra meeting her mother after all
these years?” Paul asked.

“Of course I am. Myra was barely three
years old
when she came to Seraphon.
She knows very little about
Mahlyssa.
I have kept everything I knew about her parents
secret to protect her.”

“Myra doesn’t need protection Martin. Aura is
correct.
She should have the right to see her mother.
If
Mahlyssa is as Aura says, the reunion might be good for
both of them. I’m sure Myra has wondered about her
mother, now she’ll know,” Adam said gently.

“You may be right, but I don’t want Myra hurt.”

“Aura would never bring her here if there was any
chance of that happening.
Mahlyssa has put herself in great
danger by coming.
When Richard finds out Arian has
escaped with her, he will not be happy about the betrayal,”
Joseph said.

“The property will protect her. We’ll make sure
Mahlyssa
knows
not
to
leave
without
one
of
the
girls
accompanying her.
My daughters can use their shields to
keep her and her family safe,” Paul said.

“You do realize Richard may come here?” Adam
said.

“One can only hope,” Joseph smiled. They all
looked at each other and nodded.
If Richard was foolish
enough to come to the valley, it would not go well for him.
The men concluded their discussion and walked out of the
library to join the rest of their family.
They had a great
many things to celebrate today.

Chapter 22

When Natalie left the restaurant,
she couldn’t wait to
find Jeziel. She had a lot to tell her. She found her at home
and walked in the house to enlighten her with the news.

“Natalie I wasn’t expecting you to return so soon.
How was church this morning?”

 

“Ugh. Thankfully it was a short service. They
invited me to go to breakfast with them afterwards.”
“So I take it no one recognized you?”

 

“Not at all, my new identity was quite convincing,”
she laughed.

 

“What news do you have for me?”

“I can tell you
that Aidan and Aura are at odds with
each other. They barely spoke after the service and Aura
went home without him.”

“He left her alone? That’s interesting. She must
have seen me kiss him last night.”

 

“You kissed him? You didn’t tell me that. What
was his response?”

“He certainly didn’t pull away as I expected. Maybe
they aren’t as close as I thought. I need a little more time
and then Aidan will join me.I’m sure of it.”

“He looked depressed today. I wouldn’t count on
him leaving her yet.”

“I’m just getting started. I have a great many things
planned for Aidan and I can assure you none of those plans
include Aura.
What else did you learn?
Did you see
Jayden?”

“Yes, he was co
zying
up
to
one
of
my
grandmother’s servants. He acted as if we were never
married and he was a single man.”

“Don’t do anything stupid. Remember your father
warned you to stay away from him.”

“I’m not going to do anything, but they invited me
to a party this afternoon.
Apparently Joshua and Will are
engaged now to Rita and Jessica.”

Jeziel laughed. “Oh I bet your grandmother will be
thrilled when she hears that good news.”

 

“I doubt she even knows. My father said she’s in
Paris visiting Desiree.”

 

“So you’re going to the party?”

“Yes. They’ll all be there and I might be able to
gather some information for my father.” Natalie looked at
the clock on the wall. “I have to go. I wanted to stop by and
see you first. I’ll come back afterwards and let you know
what’s happening with Aidan and Aura.”

“Please do. I might visit Aidan again later tonight. I
haven’t decided yet.”

 

“Well if you do, be careful. I know they’re looking
for you and it won’t be good if the Guild finds you there.”

“I doubt Aidan would betray me to them, but don’t
worry I’ll be careful.” The two girls hugged each other and
Natalie left to get ready for the party.
Jeziel sat there
smiling, “Soon the ring will be mine, very soon.”

The Guild returned to the family room as most of
the guests arrived.
They said nothing of their conversation
with Aura.
Martin stood close to his wife Myra, who was
talking
with
their
son
Logan.
The
girls
were
busy
introducing Aureus and Dareus to the rest of the family.
Aura was glad everyone was in a festive mood.
“I see you are in better spirits,” Aidan commented.

“Why wouldn’t I be? We have a great deal to
celebrate today.
Although I have to admit, I was surprised
by Will’s sudden declaration of love. I certainly didn’t see
that coming,” she laughed.

“They will be good together. I have no doubt Will
loves her. I’m happy for them.”

 

“Yes, but it’s hard to imagine Rita as somebody’s
wife. I wonder if they’ve discussed children yet.”
“Don’t you think your sister wants to have
children?”

I’m sure they’ll have children eventually, but I can’t
picture Rita with the whole pregnancy thing. Maybe she and
Jessica will have children together.
Most of us were born a
minute apart from each other.
I often wonder if it was
planned that way.”

“I believe Rita will be an exceptional mother.
She
will certainly be protective.”

 

“You may be right,” she laughed.

Aidan felt like Aura was letting go of some of her
anger.
Later he would talk with her again.
For now he
would enjoy the fact she was speaking to him.
He was sure
she witnessed Jeziel kissing him.

Aura needed to understand it meant nothing to him
and he didn’t plan for it. He was shocked momentarily by
her display of affection towards him and he didn’t react fast
enough.
Before he thought of something to say, Jeziel was
gone.

He loved Aura.
He knew that she was his wife
Avriel incarnate. Jeziel was nothing more than a friend.
He
would remind her the next time they met. First, he needed to
convince Aura he would never betray her trust.

Even though he believed Jeziel was innocent in the
deaths; part of him felt the kiss was intended to be seen by
Aura.
He remembered vividly how jealous Jeziel was when
he had the conversation before the fire.
He thought about
her eyes.
They were as black as ever.
He was conflicted
about that. He held out hope she hadn’t fallen, but only time
would tell.

Aura looked at him and asked, “Why don’t you take
these mushrooms and put them on the dining room table.
I
promised Rita I would make them and I’m sure she thinks I
forgot.”

As he headed to the table, Aidan couldn’t help
noticing the little ones were engaged in a conversation with
Aureus and his twin brother Dareus.
Though he spent most
of his life in Heaven, Aidan had never met either of the
brothers.

Of course it wasn’t unusual for some of the angels to
go unnoticed.
Heaven was a vast area with many levels or
tiers, he was unfamiliar with. Unlike most of the Archangels
who traveled freely among the tiers, Aidan stayed closer to
the lower levels, near the earth.
It was where most of the
guardians stayed. He wasn’t forbidden from going to the
other levels. His mother was one of the Angels of the Tiers.
But he preferred to stay where he was most comfortable.

He would speak to Iris later.
She seemed friendly
with the two young angels.
Even though Iris was not an
Archangel she was one of Heavens most beloved.
It was
common knowledge she was often in the company of the
Lord Father himself.
That was one of the reasons Aidan
trusted her so completely.

After he placed the tray on the table he walked over
to
join
the
conversation
with
Alannah
and
her
friends.
Aidan smiled when he thought about his daughter.
She was
so sad for such a long time.
He was ecstatic when he was
told Alannah could come with him.
Alannah loved being
here with her mother and her best friends Bren and Tracy.
Aidan loved them as well.
He remembered them as Bree
and Tercia, but he was convinced they were reborn as Bren
and Tracy. He knew having them here meant a great deal to
Alannah.

“What are you talking about?” he smiled, as he
picked her up.

 

“Aureus and Dareus are going to teach us how to
ride a horse Daddy,” Alannah said.

 

Aidan laughed as he remembered the spurs Bren had
given to Meaghan. “What’s so funny?” Bren asked.
“I was hoping those poor horses won’t be introduced
to Meaghan’s spurs.”

 

“Are your horses fast?” Bren asked Aureus.

He smiled at the girls.
“They can go fast if we let
them. But maybe we should wait until you have a little more
experience before welet them run wild.”

“We’re quick studies,” Bren assured them. “It
doesn’t take us long to learn anything. It will be like flying
and we’re really good at that.”

“Maybe we can go flying later tonight!” Tracy said.
“Yeah we haven’t been flying since Christmas
Eve,” Bren said.

“We saw Santa Clause and his reindeer,” Alannah
said with enthusiasm. “He wished Bren a Merry Christmas
and everything.
We had to leave him though, so we could
go home and go to bed. Santa Clause doesn’t come when
you’re awake.”

Alannah stared at the Christmas tree.
“When your
sister comes home, we’ll put up the biggest and best tree
ever,” Aura promised.

“She’s coming home Mommy. I know she’s coming
home. She told me,” Alannah insisted.

Bren and the girls continued to tell Aureus and
Dareus all about Santa Clause. They hadn’t heard the story
before.
Aidan excused himself laughing.“They’ll keep you
occupied for hours talking about this. I’m going to see if
Aura needs any help in the kitchen.”

Aidan was surprised at how comfortable he felt
talking to the twins.
They had a way of making him feel at
ease. He still didn’t know why they were here, but if Iris
trusted them; he saw no reason to doubt her judgment.
“Do you need any more help?” Aidan asked Aura.

“No, I think the cater
ers
have
taken
care
of
everything. Why don’t you tell them to start fixing their
plates? It looks like they have all the food set out now.”

Aidan couldn’t resist leaning over and kissing Aura
lightly on the cheek. He was grateful she didn’t pull away.
Maybe she would talk to him later.
At least now he was
somewhat optimistic.

He left her standing there with Iris as he went to tell
the others lunch was ready.
The little ones each took the
brothers by the hand.
It was obvious to them they needed
guidance in the art of eating.
Aidan remembered his first
meal with them.

“So how do you know them?” Aura asked Iris.

“I’m sure you may have some
knowledge about me,
but I doubt we’ve ever talked about my life before.” Iris
looked at Howard and assured him she would join him
shortly.
He nodded.He wouldn’t interrupt her if she was
talking to Aura.

“I’m sure you know we all suffered terrible loss
es
during the Great War, but some of us lost loved ones before
that. Did you know I have a twin sister?”

“No, I’ve never heard you speak about her.”

“Your fathers all knew her. There was a time when
we
were
very
close,
but
that
changed
when
she
was
captivated by Lucifer.
Her name is Isla.
We are identical
twins.”