Malachi was sitting on the couch in the main level of Raven’s house, face in his hands as he questioned what the hell he was going to tell her.
He had a strong possessiveness over her… followed by a protectiveness that he only had with his younger siblings…
He knew Raven was confused… but he also knew very well that when she didn’t know she could trust him—she wanted to, even when she denied it.
She was sometimes irritating… but he could never stay mad enough at her to complete his job…
He tried many things… finding traits about her that infuriated him, watching her be cruel to other people when she didn’t mean to be…
But it only made him fall in deeper…
The traits becoming so fascinating because no one had them… and when she realized that she was being cruel to someone… she’d walk up to them and apologize…
Even when she didn’t want to admit she did wrong, she knew.
And she fixed it.
Every little thing about her was unique… and he just couldn’t… just couldn’t…
He was mad at her at first for punching him and leaving… but he knew after he was in the car with her that he wasn’t angry…
He was scared… She could’ve died… he needed to watch her movements more… get into her head and know when she’d be planning something bad…
But because she was so unique… he could never understand her… How someone could be dark and light… depressed and happy… angry and excited…
Even if people could read minds… they could never understand her… And to some people it was infuriating…
But to him… it was fascinating.
He sighed, knowing he had to get out of his head and glanced down at his watch, seeing that ten minutes had passed, and she still wasn’t down.
“You better not have climbed out that window, Raven,” he muttered angrily as he stood.
But when he made it to the bottom of the stairs… some weird noise came from above him…
A soft sound… though a sad one…
Sobbing…
He slowly climbed the steps then, hoping to find out if she was okay without startling her…
But when he made it to her door… the wood was closed, though the sobbing was coming from behind the doorway…
Oh, God… did he say anything that hurt her?
He blinked.
That was the first time he worried about hurting other people’s feelings… wow…
But he slowly turned the knob, prying open the door carefully before glancing around the room, finding no signs of broken entry…
There were just some pencils scattered along the floor… a vase on her nightstand in pieces on the ground, the blue water staining the carpet.
Did she fall or something?
It looked more like she had an outburst and threw everything off the tables… not caring if they broke…
But Malachi followed the sound of her soft cries, circling quietly around the bed until he found the source…
Raven was lying on the ground, curled into a ball like she did in the car… but this time she was lying on the carpet that sharpened with glass and ceramic… face buried into her knees as her body shook with soft sobs…
Something inside Malachi shattered at the sight, and he remembered that she told him she held herself whenever she was scared… it made her feel safe…
He wondered if that was somehow connected to how she slept in his lap that one night.
How she calmed down when he held her.
So, he kneeled by her side, slipping his arms under her and making her scream and shoot her head up.
“Shhh…” he cooed, lifting her gently as she stared up at him wide-eyed…
Her cheeks were stained with tears, eyes swollen from all the bitter saltwater…
After he sat down, he held her in his lap, pushing her head gently to his chest while she couldn’t keep up the surprise anymore… and she looked down to her phone, face breaking.
“My mom…” she cried silently. “My mom!”
His eyes darkened in realization, seeing the hospital’s phone number on the top of her phone list…
“I know,” he whispered softly, “I know, Princess.”
Malachi held her tighter when she started sobbing into his chest, gripping onto his leather jacket for support.
He didn’t want to tell her… he didn’t want to tell her that those guys who hunted her down got to her mother first…
And he didn’t even know that… they were planning on killing Raven’s mother…
She was out of the equation so WHY?
To torture Raven? To make sure she’d be alone when they’d hunt her down again?
No… He wouldn’t let them… They would never hurt her ever again.
“It’s okay…” he soothed, holding her to him as she continued to cry, knowing part of the reason why she was crying…
She was in grief… she just lost her parents…
And secondly… she was terrified…
That she’d be next… there was no one else in the way now. No one she knew…
But now Malachi would stand in the way, and he wasn’t defenseless.
He had an automatic assault rifle… with endless bullets.
Anyone who came their way would find themselves walking in hell seconds later.
“It’s okay, Princess…” he whispered as she held on tighter, burying her face into his neck.
She wasn’t resistant anymore… because all defenses were gone… disintegrated, and it’d be a while before they’d come back up again.
“It’s okay,” he promised. “Everything’s going to be okay. You’re safe now, I swear.”
Her only response was continuing to cry, her tears bleeding through his T-shirt and dampening the skin underneath.
He wondered if she’d be able to defend herself when she’d be her normal self again. How would she explain that she let herself be vulnerable around him? What would her argument be when she let him hold her like this? Crying in his arms, turning further into him almost instinctually.
Asking for comfort, pleading for it.
He liked this… Not that she was sad, but… how she felt in his arms… Warm, soft… and she smelled so sweet like strawberries and cherries…
He wanted to hold her like this forever.
235Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOwUppfFbBs
*****
After a couple minutes, Ravens sobs trailed off into silence… though her fingers were still caught on Malachi’s jacket, holding it to her.
He had her cradled against him, gently rubbing her back to soothe her tremors, but when she was completely silent, he stopped the gesture and kept his arms around her, looking down to see her staring off into the distance with a blank expression.
He lightly caught her chin, tilting it up to his gaze so he could see her expression.
After lightly running his thumbs under both her eyes, drying the tears, he smiled. “Ready to go?”
A small nod.
He let her get off his lap, standing while her legs wobbled from all her muscles tensing earlier.
“Did you pack?” he wondered, looking around the room.
She nodded again, pulling a black backpack out from under the covers.
“Hand,” he said then, offering his.
She stared at it for a moment, then looked to him, confused.
“Take my hand. You’re not going anywhere unless I have a hold on you, okay?”
She hesitated for a moment, reaching out to him… and after what felt like hours, she set her hand on his, blushing when he twined his fingers within hers.
“C’mon,” he said then, his voice calm and gentle. “Let’s go.”
235Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2JHmhxDey
*****
It was around ten in the evening when Raven and Malachi exited her childhood home, walking down the porch steps to his black SUV that rested on the driveway.
A second after their feet touched the cement, Raven’s knees buckled, and she would’ve hit the ground if Malachi hadn’t caught her.
He knew she didn’t pass out… she was going through so much stress that it was hard to even walk… that and after those thirty minutes of crying, her muscles were so sore from tensing for so long.
So, he guided her arm around his neck and lifted her off the ground, carrying her over to the passenger side of his car and setting her gently on the seat, buckling her seconds later.
And she didn’t protest through any of it.
But he made it into his seat, buckling himself, as well and starting the car.
After backing down the driveway, he pushed the shift into drive and sped down the neighborhood, the car rattling with the bumps on the road.
His eyes moved to her when he noticed she was shivering… and she had her arms wrapped around herself.
“There’s a blanket in the backseat,” he said then, noting her goosebumps.
She never responded, just stared out the window.
He exhaled silently at this response, knowing she was going through too much to answer, so he just turned the heater on high.
“We’re going to lay low for a while,” he stated, “okay?”
He watched her nod in the corner of his eye.
After a couple minutes, he took an exit onto a freeway, making her glance behind her to see them heading into the city.
“Where are we going?” she questioned, a touch of concern in her tone.
“Where no one will find us,” he responded.
She was silent then, looking out the window to memorize where he was going so she could figure out where to escape if she needed to.
But five minutes later—after he took the next exit—he parked in the garage that Jae originally took Raven so she could go to the library.
He got out then and opened her door.
She numbly followed him as he held her hand, guiding her to the cement staircase that spiraled down to the underground parking lot.
Raven didn’t know what to make of this… but she didn’t have any reason to run right now.
When they made it to the lower level, the musty smell clogged her airways, and she had to cover her nose.
“You’ll get used to it after a while,” he stated, clearly seeing her cover her mouth, though he was staring ahead of them.
After a bit of walking, they made it to a corner in the garage, to a pile of boxes.
Raven stared as Malachi shoved them out of the way, exposing a large trap door.
“Umm…” Raven whispered.
He lifted the handle and pried it open, the gesture sending clouds of dust in the air, and she had to wave it away.
“Won’t people find us if the boxes are moved?” she questioned. “You can’t move them back when we’re inside.”
“Yes, I can,” he stated. “Come on. Get in.”
“I…” she wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her shoulders, “I don’t like cramped spaces.”
“It’s not cramped,” he stated.
“It’s a small room.”
He shook his head.
“Is it a bomb shelter? Are you going to lock me in there?”
He sighed. “Can you just trust me for once? I’ve saved you… what… twice now?”
She looked to the trap door.
“Clocks ticking,” he stated impatiently.
So, she went to the trap door, seeing a latter drop down into darkness.
“Go on,” Malachi said. “I’ll be right after you, promise.”
She exhaled a panicked breath, getting onto the latter and using her strength from her arms and legs to climb down into the darkness while hugging the metal so she wouldn’t fall.
Seconds later, she heard the trap door slam shut and she nearly fell off, but she held herself to the metal.
“Malachi?” she questioned, testing to see if he was there or if he locked her down here.
“I’m here,” he said from above her, making relief wash over her. “Keep going down.”
So, she did, exhaling quietly to keep herself from panting when her chest grew heavy.
She stopped to catch her breath. “How far down is it?”
“We’re almost there,” he promised. “It’s only thirty feet below the garage.”
So, she continued down, the weight in her chest growing heavier and heavier until the tip of her toe touched the ground.
She looked down, unable to see anything other than the metal glistening with the dim lighting from the cracks of the door above.
She lightly touched the ground with her other foot before slowly rocking her heels down to the floor, afraid it would collapse under her.
But when she put all her weight on the ground, she stepped away from the latter, holding onto the wall when she heard Malachi’s shoes click against the metal.
When he made it fully down, two loud claps echoed through the building, making her yelp at the sound.
But Malachi smiled as a bright light flashed in front of them, blinding her.
When her eyes adjusted, she looked ahead, eyes widening when she noticed a bunch of torches lighting the walls.
“How did you do that?” she questioned in awe.
Clearly, he clapped twice and it somehow lighted the room—
No… wait… it wasn’t a room… it was a passageway.
The walls were chiseled granite, glowing with the torches lighting the walls… the floors the same, though they were covered in gloss, reflecting her image as well as Malachi’s.
And when she looked to his reflection, she noticed he had a smile spread across his face. “What do you think?” he said.
“It’s not a bomb shelter,” she stated.
“Thanks, captain obvious.”
“Where does it go?” she wondered curiously.
He held out his hand. “Wanna find out?”
She took it, too curious to hesitate.
He then started down the lit halls, pulling her along when she took in her surroundings with her lips parted in awe.
As they made their way twenty yards down, Raven finally spoke, “Where are we going?”
He gave her an amused look but didn’t respond.
After a moment, Malachi pulled her to the right, where a door rested in the granite walls.
He turned the knob and pried it open, Raven expecting the hinges to squeak when it didn’t come.
But he pulled her into the room suddenly, making her yelp.
When she made it into the room, she gasped, taking in her surroundings.
It was a townhome… the floors lined with hardwood and the walls plated with glistening wood… an oak staircase pressed into the walls, leading into another mysterious hallway.
Her heart pounded against her chest, making excitement spill into her veins…
“Go sit on the couch,” Malachi instructed, nodding to the sofa as another indication.
She walked to the left of the front door—where the living room rested—settling onto the cushioned armchair, sinking into the softness like quicksand.
Malachi just went to the right, where the kitchen rested, running a rag he got from one of the drawers under some warm water and stepped over to Raven, kneeling down.
“Give me your hand,” he said, offering his palm.
She sat up then, lightly placing her hand on his and he tugged her arm out, making a small gasp escape her throat.
But he lightly pressed the cloth to one of her wounds, making her wince at the burn from the pressure.
He only caught her wrist and reeled her closer. “Don’t pull away. Let me help.”
She winced again when he touched another wound.
“You got a lot of cuts from that glass on your carpet,” he stated, pulling out his cellphone.
He turned the flashlight on, shining them on her wounds.
“There’s nothing glistening in these…” he said, moving to each wound with the light. “Okay.” He turned off the light. “There’s no glass in any of these.”
“Is that good?” she wondered carefully.
He gave her an amused look. “Of course, it is, silly. If you had glass in them, then that would be bad. I’d have to clean it out.” He tilted his head to the side, tapping the rag on another wound. “Which would be more painful than this. Right now, I just want to get most of the debris out.”
They were silent, so Raven just watched him as he cleaned out her wounds, tilting his head to the side every once and a while as if he were studying her arm from a different angle.
“There you are,” he said, standing now, and went back to the kitchen, running the blood-stained rag under water.
“Mal?” she wondered then.
“Yep?”
“Who are you?” she said then, watching him stand back up.
And he smiled. “You don’t want to know yet, trust me.”
“I do…” she responded. “I’m actually quite curious.”
He exhaled a chuckle. “I’m your guardian angel.”
She was quiet for a moment. “Metaphorically,” she questioned slowly, “right?”
He tipped his head to the side. “Sort of.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she questioned. “It’s a yes or no question.”
“And my answer is still ‘sort of,’” he answered with no anger in his tone, finishing cleaning.
“But…” she said, brows drawing together when he leaned against the kitchen wall, crossing his arms over his chest, “I don’t understand.”
The smile tilted. “I know you don’t.”
“Then…” she said, “can you explain it to me?”
He shook his head, making her face drop as she tried to find more words.
“How am I supposed to know you have good intentions… when you won’t tell me who you are?”
He was silent, but she knew he was studying her stance.
“Malachi,” she said after a minute.
“Yes, Ray?”
“That guy… or… guys… who were attacking me today… I noticed something.”
“What’s that?”
“The one who wasn’t about to murder me… he had blonde hair.”
Malachi was silent. “Did you know the other guy?”
“No… but I don’t think I’ve heard his voice before.”
“Hmm.”
She played with her fingers while she continued, one of the habits she developed to get her anxiety out without having a panic attack.
“The guy…” she said, “with blonde hair. He was the one who gave me this.” She pulled up her shirt, to the gauze that still stuck to her side from when Malachi put it there. “I recognized his voice.”
“Do you know him?” Mal said.
She shook her head but looked to him. “But I know now… that it wasn’t… you.”
He watched her for a moment, though she was staring forward, eyes fixed on the wooden walls.
“You’re shaking,” he noted aloud, watching her look down to her feet as a reaction.
But his eyes moved to the wound on her neck… the one he hadn’t seen yet.
And he stepped over to her, though she didn’t tense like he expected, and he kneeled down next to her, tilting her chin up.
She sucked in a breath as the movement split the skin apart, droplets of blood trickling down her neck.
“He got you here, huh?” Malachi said.
But despite his soft tone… his eyes were burning with something… though it wasn’t anger… it was a desire.
He lightly ran a thumb under the wound, his skin coming back red, but he looked back to the cut. “That looks like it hurts.”
She pulled out of his grip. “No, it feels awesome.”
He gave her an amused look, though the fire in his eyes didn’t dissipate.
A sudden knock on their door broke through the short silence, making Raven jump.
Malachi chuckled. “Relax.”
And he got up from her side, pressing a thumb to his mouth randomly.
Why did he?
Wait… did he just lick her blood off his finger?
Malachi opened the front door, peering out of the crack.
Raven leaned to the right to see who he was talking to, though all she could make up were three tall figures and some whispering…
Though she couldn’t tell what they were saying.
Goddamn it… sometimes she wished she had super-hearing.
Though she could tell that they were some kind of informants because Malachi was nodding, not attacking them.
“Uh-huh,” he said, “okay. Thanks. Tell me if anything else comes up.”
And he shut the door.
Raven looked at him quizzically. “Who were those people?”
He smiled, leaning a shoulder on the front door. “Is someone being nosy?”
“Tell me,” she urged.
“Let’s just say,” he tilted his head to the side, “they’re my friends.”
“Your friends?” she echoed.
He nodded.
“You have friends?”
His eyes reflected amusement in them instead of anger, though he got off the door and stepped over to the kitchen, washing the blood off his thumb.
“Malachi…” Raven said, “what are you?”
He chuckled. “Is that supposed to be a question?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not normal,” he answered vaguely. “I’m different from everyone. Just like you.”
“So… you’re an outcast?”
“Something like that.”
She was quiet for a moment, managing enough strength to ask, “Mal? Are you one of them?”
“One of who?”
She hesitated. “An assassin.”
His eyes moved to her before back down to his hands. “I was.”
She was silent then, looking down to her hands when she started playing with her fingers again. “What made you change?”
“Why? Are you actually curious?”
A nod.
He looked to her then, throwing a towel he used to dry his hands over his shoulder. “You did, Angel.”
She blinked. “I… what?”
“You made me change.”
“How? I don’t even know you that well.”
He shook his head. “It’s really hard to explain, Raven.”
She was silent.
“You look… pale,” he said then, walking over to her.
She still didn’t respond.
After setting the rag on the coffee table, Malachi sat next to her on the couch. “Everything’s going to be okay…” he whispered.
She kept her gaze to her hands. “When I showed you my phone… you automatically knew what happened to my mom.” She sniffled. “I think you knew before I did… so… is what happened to her somehow connected to this? Did you finally take me from Jaelyn because I’m in danger?”
He nodded. “Incredible danger, sweetheart. Your mom was under direct supervision, and they still—” He noticed her grow even paler, tremors spreading across her body. “What… what I’m saying is, Raven: is that you’re safe with me, alright? I have a goal to protect you, and I intend to stick with it.” He held out his arms, offering an embrace…
But when she didn’t take it, he caught her arm and brought her against him, making her shiver when he started rubbing her arm through her jean jacket.
“It’s okay…” he promised softly. “Everything’s okay now, Angel. I promise you’re safe with me… I’ll keep you safe… And you’ll be able to sleep… Because I know how you can’t anymore… But I also know that night when I held you… you slept so peacefully.”
“You can’t hold me all night, Malachi,” she answered softly, loving the chills flowing through her when he stroked her upper arm with a palm.
He smiled. “Don’t challenge me. You’ll lose.”
He then swung her up in his grip, making her yelp… but before she even knew it, he carried her up the wooden steps, down the hall, to the right…
And they entered a master bedroom.
Raven squirmed in his grip. “Malachi.”
“Don’t worry,” he promised, holding her tighter. “I won’t try anything. I know I seem scary, but I’m not that kind of guy.”
He sat down on the side of the bed, her in his lap.
But she gently—almost playfully—shoved him away, crawling on the other side of the bed.
“Raven,” he warned, though when she looked to him… he could tell she was suppressing a smile.
So, as she crept away, he caught her ankle, making her gasp when he reeled her toward him with harsh force…
But still not enough to hurt her…
Before he could grab her arms, she caught a pillow from the headboard, holding it out as a shield from him. “I have a pillow and I’m not afraid to use it.”
He smiled then, and for some reason, she knew what he was planning.
He lunged for her, but she rolled away last minute, getting off on the other side of the bed; the only thing between them.
He darted around the foot of the bed, making her jump on top and spring off, landing on the other side.
The bed—once again—between them, though they were on opposite ends.
He did as she did, and jumped onto the bed, but when she went the same direction he did before, he hopped off at the foot while she darted that way, catching her arm and throwing her down onto the mattress.
He was on top of her now, and after her shock he watched her rub her cheek on the sheets… somehow not afraid that he was on top of her right now. “Malachi: one,” he said. “Raven: zero.”
She didn’t respond.
“Raven?”
She continued to rub her cheek on the covers, then stopped when she heard her name. “Oh, sorry… it’s just… Your sheets are so soft… I like soft things.”
“You want to know what’s softer?” he said suddenly.
He grabbed the throw blanket that was originally on the foot of the bed, draping it over her gently.
Her cheeks lighted with comfort. “Oh, wow.”
He only chuckled.
She flashed him an evil look at the noise, and before he could register what she was planning, she hurled herself at him, taking him off guard.
Until finally they replaced spots, Raven straddling him and balancing her hands on his chest while Malachi rested under her.
After his surprised look vanished, he smirked, pushing his hands under his head as if this position was comfortable, twining his fingers behind his hair and using them as a pillow.
“Stop it,” she said then.
“What?” he questioned innocently.
“Stop looking at me like that,” she answered. “It’s creepy.”
And she started getting off, but before she could fully get on the other side of him, he grabbed her arm, throwing her down onto the bed and straddling her, once more.
He smirked, pressing his elbows on each side of her head. “Now who wins?”
She faked a glare. “You’re extremely irritating.”
“I knows,” he responded. “Want to go get some food?”
She looked to the clock on the nightstand, then back at him. “I thought we had to lay low.”
“And I know you’re going to go insane cooped up here like this.”
How did he know her so well? This was going to bother her.
“Malachi…” she whispered then, looking to his chest.
“Yeah?”
“What do you want from me?” she asked not for the first time.
He smiled, though not an evil one. “I want to keep you safe.”
“You’re putting yourself in danger,” she stated, looking into his black eyes now… that somehow looked… warm…
“I know,” he responded, “but I don’t really care.”
Her brows drew together. “But why?”
His smile then grew playful. “Because I’m eviiiil.”
And he moved his hands to her sides, lightly running them along her skin until she started writhing from under him, laughing as he tickled her.
“Stop it!” she laughed, pushing against his chest. “Malachi!”
“What’s the magic word?” he prompted.
“Eat feathers!”
Before he could process what she just said, she hurled a pillow at him, taking him off guard and got out from under him, standing on the mattress and bringing the pillow down on him three more times.
He smirked up at her when she stopped. “This means war.”
So, he grasped her ankle and threw her feet out from under her, making her collapse on the bed, and grabbed his pillow while she brought hers to face, shielding it when he attacked her with his fluffier one.
When he stopped to give her a break, she slid out from under him, standing on the other side of the bed while he jumped down, as well.
So, she hurled the pillow at him again. “Take this!”
But her fingers slipped, and she accidentally let go, the cushion flying out of her hands and hitting his face.
But he looked to her, smile widening.
She glanced back at the bed, lunging forward to get another pillow but he caught her leg again, throwing her down onto the soft mattress, and as she let out a huff, he was on top of her again, panting.
“I win,” he said.
Raven glanced at him, smiling…
But… something seemed so… different about him…
She just looked into his soft black eyes… wondering what he was thinking… There was still the fire in there somewhere… sparks flying away as it slowly dissipated… and his hair stuck to his temples with sweat, the lights in the room haloing his gold locks, making him seem almost angelic…
Her gaze was so bright… contrasting her raven hair that glowed purple in the gentle lighting, her eyes reflecting him so softly… it almost looked safe in there…
They stared for a moment… watching the other’s gaze…
And Malachi started to lean down, watching her close her eyes while he inched closer…
She knew what he was doing… but didn’t move to stop him…
He lightly touched his lips to hers, testing…
But she tilted her chin up almost instinctively… the side of her that screamed to resist currently dormant…
So, he clasped their lips together, twining his fingers in her hair when she tightened her grip onto his shoulders.
She tasted so sweet… like soda and candy and fruit… Her hair smelled like cherries and watermelon… somehow mixed with coconut, sending him into a sweet haven.
He tasted like cinnamon and smelled so earthy… like pepper, mint, and soap… the scent of his cologne washing away all her terror, all her anxiety…
In this moment… she felt safe with him…
He let go then, staring down at her while she returned a surprised look… eyes darkening.
His gaze dulled in worry. “You oka—”
She caught his shirt and reeled him back down, clasping their lips together, once more.
Malachi stared at her in shock at first… but felt the fire inside him take over, and he leaned down on her, evening his weight along his knees and elbows… pushing her gently down onto the bed as the kiss deepened.
And he lightly nibbled her bottom lip, hearing a soft moan come from her mouth and he pushed her down further, pressing his mouth harder to hers, though purposely not hurting her.
She wrapped her arms around him, nibbling his lip back…
She didn’t know what was happening to her… When he kissed her the first time… she felt some kind of spark burst… and she loved the warmth that spread across her body from it… and she wanted to feel it again, so she pulled him down again… hoping it would last forever…
She leaned up toward him, hoping he could get a little closer because he was so warm… it was addicting…
But he heard her quiet pleads, leaning down so even a millimeter of air that separated them was diminished… and it was just them…
A sudden knock broke through the moment… almost shattering it like glass and they broke off, panting…
They stared at each other for a moment, Raven’s cheeks heating when she realized what just happened, and Malachi smirked.
She knew what the look said, I was right about you liking me, wasn’t I?
He climbed off her then, giving her space when he stepped out of the room, to the front door where she guessed the knock came from.
She just numbly followed him, wrapping her arms around herself when all his body heat was gone… and the air felt bitter and cold.
She leaned against the hallway wall like Malachi always did when he pried open the front door, opening it slightly, though she could tell the three guys who knocked earlier were there, straightening their backs when Malachi opened the door fully.
Jesus… it was like he was the leader of a military group or something…
The whispering developed from all three men, Malachi nodding again, and Raven would’ve stepped closer to listen if he hadn’t looked to her, a small smile curving his lips.
He held out his hand then. “Come on. I want to show you something.”
She stepped over to him then, lightly placing her hand on his. “Is it bad?”
She probably should’ve asked him before taking his hand, but whatever…
He shook his head no.
And he pulled her out of the townhome, the three guys closing the door behind them while Malachi dragged her down the halls.
“I know you were wondering if all this place was a passageway or something… but it’s a little more.”
He opened a door on his right, pulling her in before she could register what the hell was going on.
And she gasped when she saw the room she was in…
It was a giant pool room, though it looked a little dusty and old…
The walls were lined with blueish-white tile, some of them stained with some kind of old grime… the floors lined with them, as well…
But the ground was straightened until it got about halfway into the room, and it bent down to unknown lengths… the water developing from the top of the slant to the end…
She stared at this room in awe… something odd but warm coiling her stomach… and she would’ve stared longer if Malachi hadn’t pulled her across the dry tile, to another door across the room…
And they entered some kind of hotel space… the floors lined with red carpet, the walls halfway covered with slabs of wood from the floor, up, the rest painted a cream color.
There were doors on each side of the walls, each one painted a coffee color…
The same feeling was coiling her stomach… and she kind of liked it… It looked old and abandoned, creepy but amazing…
Malachi tugged her arm. “Come on. It’s easy to get lost in here, follow me.”
So, she did, though mainly because he was dragging her along, not giving her a chance to look around fully.
“This place is like a portal to another dimension…” she said in awe. “It feels so weird being in here.”
Malachi chuckled. “We purposely built it that way. There was this hotel in Denver, Colorado that had a floor on it that some people said was haunted. It’s not, really. The halls just look so old, abandoned, and quiet that it seems kind of creepy, so I got inspired by the feeling it gave me.”
She looked to him. “You built this?”
“Yep,” he nodded, “with a little help, though.”
“This must’ve taken centuries,” she said, looking around.
He never answered.
They made it to the end of the hall, a door that originally looked like a hotel room door resting there, and Malachi pried it open.
Raven gasped, seeing thousands of people crowded in the giant room, their voices filling the walls with an ear-shattering noise.
She didn’t hear it in the hallway… Malachi must’ve put on heavy noise blocking doors…
Malachi pushed her gently in the room, her eyes darting around the crowd curiously.
Some of them were men with long beards and tattoos darkening their arms like make-shift sleeves… some were women with a similar biker look… Some looked cutesy, some goth…
They were all different…
But Raven’s eyes settled on a teen girl who was talking with another girl… and there were canines poking out of her lips…
Some of the men and women had claws sliding out of their fingernails… others had wings sprouting from their backs.
“Raven,” Malachi said, gesturing to the crowd, “this is my pack. I’ve been building it for a long time.”
“Is this some kind of joke?” she said, stepping behind him when some people looked to her.
Malachi gave her an amused look when she moved behind him, knowing she was slowly giving in without knowing it, but looked up to the pack, slapping his hands together twice, the sound almost deafening.
The murmurs slowed to silence, and all attention focused on Malachi.
“Hey, guys,” he said as if talking to his friends, “thank you so much for gathering on short notice. I appreciate it.”
All of them nodded in approval, smiling while whispering something to their friends.
“I hope you all have been having a great time with me,” he said. “I’ve been trying to lighten your lives because you all have gone through something horrible.” He waved to the crowd with angel wings. “Fallen and angels, too have been suffering greatly, being disowned by their families.” He waved to another group. “And my fellow werewolves, all of you have suffered something great, same with you vampires, and I know how hard it is to suffer through all the traumas we did. That’s why I created this pack. How’s everything?”
Everyone cheered… not one person seemed angry, spiteful, or depressed…
But… he was joking, right? About the vampire, werewolf stuff? Those beings didn’t exist… It was impossible, magic was fantasy…
Maybe they were all dressed up… cosplaying?
“On another note,” Malachi said, holding out a hand to Raven.
She shook her head.
He caught her arm and reeled her next to him, taking her off guard.
“Let’s welcome a new member to our pack!” he said. “Raven Magicae!”
All of them cheered, making her cheeks burn.
“Let’s all get drinks!” he called. “On me!”
They cheered again, but somehow louder… and they all got back to talking, exiting the room through two sets of double doors.
And Malachi turned away from them, focusing his attention on Raven whose brows were drawn together.
“What’s happening?” she questioned, pulling her hand out of his grasp.
He only smiled. “What if I told you,” he said, “that everything is true? All the myths about Angels and demons… vampires and werewolves, fairies and fallen… All of them?”
She took raspy breaths, backing away. “No… no.”
“I know you don’t want to believe it,” he said, keeping his place. “But it all makes sense, doesn’t it? My super speed? How I turned on torches with a clap? How I can do all these things regular people can’t?” He looked to her then. “Read your mind?”
She backed away, stomach coiling. “No… No!”
She spun around and darted out of the room, making her way down the hallway and disappearing out the door they came through at the end of the hotel rooms…
Though he didn’t move from his place.
“Malachi,” one of the trainers said, “do you want one of us to catch her?”
He looked after her for a moment before shaking his head. “No, it’s okay. She’s not planning on escaping. She just needs space for a little.”
“But....”
“It’s okay,” he turned to the werewolf who stood in front of him, patting him on the shoulder, “I know you’re afraid she’ll get killed, but I’ll protect her, alright? Don’t worry, she’ll be alright.”
He nodded.
Malachi looked after her again. “I’ll give her space for ten minutes, then I’ll go find her and make sure she’s okay.”
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