Sanctuary . Amy Blankenship

on him from a distance. After a few days of watching, Dean began leaving him small items such as fresh clothing, blankets, and an occasional edible from the nearby deli. The food wasn’t always eaten but then… human food was not a necessity. They could live with or without it. The clothing and blankets were taken each time though.

      So far, the hybrid hadn’t exhibited any evil tendencies and avoided the other demons like the plague. It was a good sign of the hybrid’s mental state… but things had a tendency to change if such creatures were left alone for too long.

      From what Dean had observed, the hybrid was more Fallen than demon and he’d bet his own billions of dollars that he could get the hybrid to trust him if given some more time. If that happened, then maybe he could save him from the strangeness of this world he’d suddenly been released into.

      He closed his eyes remembering the man’s tears as he’d burst from the cave wall and fled into the night. That had been the clincher… demons do not cry.

      “I’m going out for a while,” Dean said suddenly and headed for the door.

      “Get some chocolate syrup while you’re out,” Kriss called out before Dean made it to the door.

      Dean paused and glanced back at him, “Chocolate syrup, why in the world do you want that?”

      “Chocolate milk,” Kriss and Envy said simultaneously.

      Dean shook his head and left the penthouse, closing the door on amused giggling.

      After the door closed Envy looked up at Kriss, “I didn’t bring any clothes with me and I’m starting to get sleepy. It’s been a long day… and night. Do you have anything I can change into?”

      Kriss nodded, “In the second bedroom.” He pointed at a closed door then winked at Envy, “that’s where I sleep when I’m pissed off at Dean. The dresser in there has some of my larger shirts and a few pairs of boxers… help yourself.”

      “Do you guys fight often?” Envy said worriedly, not wanting to take Kriss’ refuge away from him.

      “Only when he’s being a dick,” Kriss smirked then jerked his thumb toward another closed door. “That’s his spare room if I run him off.”

      Envy couldn’t help but laugh, “You’re a nut… you know that?”

      “My life’s ambition,” Kriss sighed playfully then started for the kitchen. He needed to make a new grocery list before his and Envy’s cravings started kicking in. He stopped in mid stride and turned toward the front door. Scratch the list… he wanted pickles right now. “I’m going to clean out the grocery store… don’t wait up.”

      Envy waited until he was gone before slowly getting off the sofa to go check out her room. Closing the door behind her, she opened the dresser and giggled at some of the shirts he had in there. Some were cute with little baby animals on them, some had funny phrases, and others were just solid colors. Choosing a plain black shirt and a pair of Sponge Bob boxers, she placed them on the bed and lifted her shirt over her head.

      Her reflection in the mirror caught her eye and she caressed the soft, smooth skin of her tummy. She cocked her head to the side trying to picture her belly full with the child and turned to the side to examine the concave slope of her belly.

      “I wonder who you’re going to be like,” she said softly to the growing baby. “Are you going to be like me, wild and hardheaded… or will you be like him, smart and hardheaded? I hope I make a good mother for you and I know Trevor will be a good daddy.”

      Envy smiled at her reflection, envisioning the small soul nestled there. “You’re already blessed… do you know that? You’re gonna have so many uncles and godparents protecting you that I can bet you won’t even get a paper cut.”

      She saw movement behind her in the mirror’s reflection and swung around to see what it was. Moving closer to the balcony window, she pushed the curtain aside and gasped at the beautiful white owl sitting on the railing watching her with deep dark eyes.

      The owl cocked its head to the side as though trying to determine what she was before turning its head in the opposite direction. Envy had never seen one so close before and was afraid that if she looked away it would vanish.

      The owl turned its head once more toward her before turning its back and leaping from the railing. Its wings spread out catching the draft and it flew off over the city toward Angeles National Forest.

      Envy remembered reading somewhere that owls were a sign of wisdom and she hoped it was a sign that she was doing the right thing.

      *****

      Aurora held tighter onto her small sword and looked back up the side of the building searching for any sign of Samuel. She couldn’t believe she’d been careless enough to let him sneak up on her like that. It had been an incredible stroke of luck that she’d gotten away from the roof of the skyscraper in one piece.

      As she fell, she’d resigned herself to the fact that this was really going to hurt but an unusual savior had helped her out. On that particular skyscraper were statues of hawks that luckily protruded out from the sides. She’d been able to grab hold of one in mid-fall and swing herself beneath it so she was hidden from Samuel’s sight when he looked down the edge of the building.

      It felt like she had been holding on for eternity when the sense of his aura finally started to fade. After she was sure Samuel had gone, she pulled herself up and was able to crawl on top of the hawk’s head.

      Tired and out of breath, Aurora leaned back against the wall of the building to rest for a moment. It took her a few minutes to catch her breath but any breather from Samuel's obsession with her was more than welcome. In her mind, she knew why he kept coming after her… lust, plain and simple.

      She wouldn’t deny that Samuel was desirable but that was the allure of the more powerful demons. They were beautiful to look at until you saw what was beneath their exterior. Samuel was more beautiful than most demons, but in a lot of ways he was much darker than them on the inside.

      She’d been avoiding him as well as she could and it looked like she’d finally lost him again… at least for now. Being anywhere near him left a queasy feeling in her stomach and Aurora didn’t know how much longer she could keep fighting him before giving in to what she was used too.

      She hated him but at the same time almost craved what he offered… what she had accepted after so long with him. Being on her own was exciting… but it was mixed with an equal amount of fear.

      She felt something for Samuel… had enjoyed his body and for brief moments even enjoyed his company. In the other dimension, she’d escaped him countless times only to be cornered by demons that were not a part of his army. She’d come so close to being killed and a tiny part of her had welcomed the thought of freedom… any way she could get it.

      Samuel had always shown up just in time to save her… played the hero several times. She wasn’t a fool though. He hadn’t rescued her because he loved her and he’d always punished her quite brutally for running away. She’d been his property… his to be cruel to… his to make love to. Now that she had her weapon back maybe she had a chance of breaking away from him completely.

      Looking down at the blade in her hand, Aurora sighed heavily. She’d discovered the weapon at a young age. She’d been an orphan and for the longest time had thought her name was Street Rat. It had been a demon that first called her by her real name… right before he tried to kill her. While defending herself, she’d felt the blade just appear in her hand… she’d won that fight.

      She never learned how the demon had known her name but in the end it didn’t really matter if it was her name or not. It was a far cry better than Street Rat.

      After that, the blade had been her protector until she’d been pulled into the rift. She had spent the last few thousand years in a demon controlled realm and under Samuel's rule. The weapon had never appeared to save her within the rift… no matter how much trouble she’d gotten into. She sighed wishing there