The dial over the elevator slowly counts down from the thirteenth floor. I lean against the security desk, one ankle crossed over the other. The door slides open with a quietding. Willow darts out, then skids on the polished marble floor as she sees me. What little color she has in her cheeks drains in a heartbeat.
“Please. You have to let me go. They’ll find me.” Tears shimmer in her eyes. “Once they have what they want, they’ll make me do…terrible things. I can’t imagine what they’ll do to anyone who tries to get in their way.”
“No one will force you to do anything while I am around.” I offer her my hand once more. “I can protect you. The woman—Hannah—does not have the same power over me that she does over…others. And while I cannot fly at the moment, I have certainabilitiesthat make me a formidable enemy. And a strong protector.”
“Your friends don’t trust me.”
“They are not my—fuck. I suppose they are.” I have never had…friends before. It is an odd realization. One I am surprisingly grateful for. “They work for the Bureau of the Occult and the Other. It is their job to be…suspicious.”
“The Bureau of the Occult and…oh God. B.O.O.? Their name is B.O.O.? Iseverythingin the Other community a joke?” She hugs herself tightly and shivers.
“The Other community often pokes fun at itself. It is part of their…charm.Or so they say. I have never found it all that charming.” With a shrug, I push off the desk. “You are only learning of the Bureau now?”
Her cheeks tinge the slightest shade of pink. “I thought I was human until three weeks ago.” A wave of goosebumps washes over her bare arms.
Fuck.
“Please, Willow. Come back to the hotel with me. I have your shoes, and I can give you one of my sweaters. Though I’m afraid it will be quite large on you, it will keep you warm.”
She stares at me, her emotions so very clear. Disbelief. Offense. A hint of fear. “You seriously expect me togo to a hotel with you? I may not know anything about the Other community, but I’m not a complete idiot.”
“You were in my hotel room an hour ago. Did I harm you in any way?” I don’t understand her resistance. I kept her safe. Cared for her. Tried to bring her back from the void. And she is afraid of me now?
A single tear tumbles over her lashes. “Mybodywas in your hotel room.Iwas trapped in the void.” Her strangled sob shatters my control. I tried to keep my distance. To give her time to trust me. But I cannot abide her suffering.
In two steps, I have her in my arms. She struggles for a moment, then sinks against me. “I will not let anyone harm you. I swear on my wings.”
For several tense moments, she tries to hold back her tears. “Y-you…make me feel safe. But so did they. How can I trust anything after what they did to me?”
I nudge her chin up so I can see her eyes. So much pain. But also…power. Magic gathers within her, swirling like a tornado.
“Let me get you somewhere safe. Then start from the beginning.”
The air stirs gently. Willow’s ghostly twin hovers just over her shoulder.
I turn us so she can see the apparition. “Perhaps you can also explain whosheis.”
Willow sucks in a sharp breath. “You can see my whisper?”
“Of course. She practically accosted me outside the hotel and led me to the alley. Admittedly, Ihadoffended her by calling her a ghost.”
Tears brim in Willow’s eyes. Herwhisperglares at me until I incline my head. “I will not make that mistake again. You have my word.”
The whisper’s expression softens. She turns, her spectral fingers brushing Willow’s cheek, then reaching up to mine. Something passes between the two of them. I can sense the connection they share, but not what the whisper is feeling.
Willow meets my gaze, her tears still threatening to fall. “She trusts you. I don’t know why, but she does.”
“Do you?” I hold my breath—when did I start breathing all the time?—as I wait for her answer.
“I…I think…yes. As much as I can trust anyone—or anything—right now. I do.”
“Then close your eyes. This may be shocking. Even a bit painful. But I will protect you as best I can.” I cup the back of her head with one hand, the other fused to her hip. “Hold on tight.”
Bending space and time around us, I focus on our destination. The trip—my third or fourth of the night—drains much of my remaining strength.
Easing Willow down onto the bed, I stagger back until I find the desk chair, then collapse into it.
“Gabriel?” She lays her hand on my knee, the touch settling me in a way I am not prepared for. “Are you okay?”
