Darker Angels

Tazzy: Oh, you'll love Cain even more after this one.

Miss Murder: Yes, I'm so happy you felt the need to compensate Cain being mean to his brother with that lovely bit of smut. ~Happy Sigh~ Hope your dad is better.

DarkCrusnikMagician: Don't worry about Abel, Gun will make him feel better later. heheh.

Eve of Ashe: Welcome aboard. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story.

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Abel’s lips drew back from his teeth in a snarl. “What have you done with her?”



Cain’s laugh echoed in the space of the mausoleum, bouncing off the walls. “Oh, the usual. Indulged in a little necrophilia, cut pieces off of the corpse, etc.”



“Damn you, Cain. I’ll kill you for this!”



“Hmm, those words sound so familiar. I know I’ve heard them somewhere before. Ah, yes. You say them every time we come into contact. You really must get some new material, brother of mine.”



“But you aren’t here to confront him directly, I notice,” Gun said.



“Of course not. I have more important things to do. He just happened to set off the sensor when he walked in. It was tuned to his particular energy signature. Genius thing that. But I see he hasn’t lost his penchant for redheads. I think this one is even more beautiful than the last one, Abel. Then again, considering his parentage, there was no chance of him being unattractive. How is your lovely mother, by the way? And your sister? Circe surely must be exquisite by now.”



To Abel and apparently Cain’s surprise, Gun started laughing. “Cain, if you’re trying the old “make someone worry about the family” trick, you’re doomed to be disappointed. Circe would make you a red smear on the wall right after eviscerating you and reading your entrails and my mother could destroy you with a thought. I’m hardly going to worry about you making threats against either one of them.”



For once, Cain seemed to be stunned into complete silence for a few moments.



“Give her back, you coward,” Abel said, still looking around just in case Cain was hiding somewhere in the crypt.



“And you aren’t a coward, Abel? You who’ve hidden behind the skirts of women since the outside of forever. First behind Lilith, then after that the good lady Cardinal and now you whimper and whine while being protected by Blaze. So, tell me, who is really the coward between the two of us?”



“Enough,” Gun said, there was such underlying menace in his tone that Abel looked up at him with a slightly startled expression.



Cain chuckled. “Ah, the vicious side of you comes out. You must get that from your father.”



Gun smiled a little and went to help Abel up from the floor. “If you believe that you’ve obviously never met my mother.”



“Don’t worry, brother dear. I’ll send Lilith back to you. Perhaps piece by piece but I *will* send her back,” Cain said, his laughter echoing off of the walls.



“Abel, stop,” Gun said into his ear. “He *wants* a reaction from you.”



“I know,” Abel said dejectedly.



“There isn’t anything else we can do right now,” Gun said, tugging on his elbow. “We should get back and tell the rest about all of this.”



Abel didn’t seem to hear him as he allowed Gun to lead him out of the crypt and onto the grounds. He was lost in thought as the things Cain had said rolled around in his head. He wanted to deny them, to insist they weren’t true. But something about it rang as completely valid.



“Maybe he’s right.”



“About what?” Gun asked, frowning.



“About me hiding behind others.”



“Remind me to have Tante Star or Circe look into your head.”





Blaze looked up from her paperwork when she heard her study door open.



“What’s wrong, Alessandro?” she asked, seeing the pained look on his face.



“Other than everything,” he said miserably. He was again wearing the heavy robes of his office.



“Pointe taken,” she said, waving him onto the small couch across from her desk. “How did the speech go?’



He shrugged. “It went. They still haven’t found Francesco. Brother Petros is in critical condition at San Marco. They’re still searching for survivors in the rubble,” he said, looking up at her. “I don’t think they’ll find anyone else alive.”



Blaze came around the desk and sat down next to him, putting an arm around his shoulders. “I’m sorry.”



He nodded, everything in him had gone numb for a moment. “That wasn’t what I wanted to talk to you about though. I wanted to ask you something.”



“You can ask me anything you like. I can’t guarantee I have the answer but I’ll try.”



“I . . .” he paused for a moment, trying to form the right words. “I want you to teach me.”



“Teach you what, Alessandro?”



His eyes seemed too big for his face at that moment but he set his jaw and took a deep breath. “I want you to teach me how to fight.”