Keeper of Crows (Keeper of Crows #1)(37)

15





The crows began cawing outside, becoming more frantic as they swirled, darted, and dove toward the ground. “We have to leave this place,” Michael said.

“More Lessons?” I didn’t have the mental strength to deal with them yet.

“No, a bigger threat.”

I instinctively knew who he meant. My father ruined everything he touched. He was a poison; a cancerous tumor, whose tentacles were strong and far-reaching. They twisted and grazed and took root where they didn’t belong. He was ruining the world on Earth, and if elected, would have more opportunity to wreak havoc. He was ruining souls here. He had probably trapped the soul of my real father in order to steal his body. Malchazze had to be stopped. And if the archangels wouldn’t stop him...

“I would,” Michael answered my thoughts sincerely. “And when given the order, I will, Carmen. I promise you that.”

Michael’s words were a vow, but it was only as good as the possibility that it might actually happen. If he never got the order, he wouldn’t do anything other than stop merchants and guard fissures.

“Your promise means nothing. You may never get the order. I can’t rely on maybe, Michael.”

Dimitri’s tar-filled face floated through my mind. He did it for me. He broke the rules, making him a triple. He kissed me…

Michael walked to the front door, flinging it open, the handle embedding into the siding of the house. He could’ve just stepped through the empty metal frame. “We need to move. Malchazze is searching for you himself.”

I shivered. “How do you know?”

The crows cawed as one; a flying security system.

“Oh. Okay. I need to find some shoes.”

I found a pair of boots yesterday and had placed them beside the door, on top of the shards of glass. I pulled them on and stomped after him. He led me through yards and into the forest, but I didn’t make it far before my body started to tire. Michael growled when it was clear I couldn’t keep up. As hot as he was, he was impatient and it was wearing on me, just as each step made my body more tired.

“The crows will carry you,” he said simply.

I threw my hands up. “I don’t want them to carry me. I want to walk at my own pace. I want my body to fucking work!” A hot tear fell from my left eye.

Michael was before me in an instant. “Your body will work when it heals. Until then, Carmen, please let me help you. Let the crows help you.”

I turned so he didn’t see me cry, although he could hear it. Hell, he could probably smell my tears, but he wouldn’t see them. “Fine.”

Suddenly in front of me, he brushed the tear from my cheek. “Don’t cry.”

“Why does it even matter?” my voice shuddered.

“It breaks my heart,” he said softly, running his fingers through the short strands of my hair. “I care for you, and I can’t bear to see you so upset. I need to make sure you’re safe, and right now, safe is far away from here. My crows can carry you. Just think of them as an extension of me. They are my wings.”

I sniffed and did my best to keep my hands plastered to my sides, despite the fact that I wanted to touch him, to hug him and pull him tightly against me. I knew it would hurt him, and hurting him was the last thing I wanted to do at the moment.

Some moments with Michael were tender and heartfelt. Others, he was angry and frustrated at me. I wanted to curl up in this gentle moment and stay. It would make Purgatory much more comfortable. However, this place wasn’t meant for comfort, not anymore, so we had to go. I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to tell me, but didn’t want to push. I opened my mouth first.

“Let them help me.”

Within seconds, I was surrounded by a murder so large in number, they encapsulated me within their swirling mass and carried me quickly through the forest, setting me gently down on a rocky outcrop near an angry, frothing river of silver water.

Michael was quiet for several long moments. When he broke his silence, his words sliced me in two. “Thank you for trusting me, and for allowing them to help you.”

“I let you help me, Michael.”

He smiled sadly. “I know.”

“Why does this have to be so hard? Why does everything have to be so complicated?”

“Is it not the same on Earth?”

“Oh, no. It’s completely complicated there, but this is on a completely different level.”

He smiled. “Because of your father or because of me?”

“Because of him. Because of you and how… and how I feel about you. How can I feel anything? That’s the part that’s so confusing. I’ve known lust. This isn’t it.”

“What’s between us is infused; lust threaded with passion, but it isn’t only passion. Those emotions fizzle and burn out as fast as they ignite. They burn brightly for a moment, but that moment is all there is.”

“I want more than just a moment with you,” I admitted.

He cursed and chucked a stone into the river. It sank along with my heart. “I wish for the same, but I can’t give you more than what I am. I hope you can understand.”

Of course, I could understand. He didn’t want to go to Hell, and I didn’t want him to go to Hell or be placed in harm’s way just because I’d developed feelings for him. This was a stressful situation. Emotions were high. That was all this was. If I could go home, I might forget him, I told myself, but my heart knew it was a lie. My brain knew it was a lie, but I had to tell it anyway.