Chapter 189 : Aftermath

Chapter 189 : Aftermath
Rayline.

As I lay nestled against his chest, I playfully drew small circles on his chest, the warmth of his skin keeping me wrapped in his arms, his wings spread out around me. 

The morning light sneaked in through the bedroom curtains while the two of us were still snuggled together on the bed, the sheets tattered messily. He ran his fingers through my hair, fiddling with the strands as I listened to his heartbeat, hearing every breath he took.

"Did you fall asleep?" he asked softly, making me smile.

"I should be the one asking you that." Spinning around to face him, my hand came to rest under my chin. "You were so busy as soon as we got back, and it doesn't seem like we got any sleep last night... or this morning."

His lips curled up mischievously and his hand slid down my bare back, giving me goosebumps. "I'm doing okay. It was all definitely worth it." 

"Mmm...hmm." I tilted my head cheekily. 

Right now I was in his room at his father's house. As soon as the chaos died down, his father offered his house to anyone who was injured and needed a safe place to stay. Originally, we were going to go to Taylor's house, but his father said he wanted to talk things over with the rulers of Hell once everyone was rested, and that made things easier being here. And with Jesse injured, Cole knew his father would have more solutions to help him here.

Jesse blacked out shortly after things had calmed down. The adrenaline that spurred his body had finally worn off, and the pain was too much. Nicolas started to panic at first, but his father figured that it was due to the pain and not the blood loss.

Cole wanted to help heal Jesse's wing as soon as he got to him, but it was complicated. He was afraid that if he healed it, the skin would basically just cover the wound, and not bring back what was already lost, like when someone loses a limb, they can heal the connected part, but there will only be a stump left. If he healed it, there might only be bones left.

It was hard though, but with the help of the healers and keeping the wounds open long enough, they could stitch back together what could be saved. He couldn't fly yet... still too weak, and surely not looking like he used to, but he was grateful for what they could restore. Nicolas was always by his side, he never left. Not once.

Once Cole had done everything he could, he called my parents right away. During the whole night, they looked for me and even called the police. Cole told them that he found me on the way to his house with a fever and that I had forgotten my cell phone. He apologized for not calling sooner, but he said that he quickly took me to his father's house because that was where he was staying that night and he wanted to make sure that I was okay. He said that everything I was babbling about was just a nightmare, and because I was so dazed in my state, I thought it was real... and that after I called Jesse, he called him to make sure that he was okay. He then said that my fever died down shortly after that, and I was resting at his place.

Apparently, after they wrapped things up at the police station due to a misunderstanding, they came here right away. Back then I even had to pretend to be recovered and tired, though it was not too hard.

At first, they were panicked and wanted me to go home right away, but Cole used his ability to put their minds at ease. It was fascinating, seeing the shadows leave their eyes as calmness set in, like he altered the knowledge of the night to be less burdensome, and they became reasonable to talk to. They had met Harvey for the first time, and he and Cole convinced them to let me stay and rest here, reasoning that it would be easier to let me sleep here than to drive home, on top of the fact that I was pleading to stay.

Once that was done, it did not take long. Just as soon as he closed the door, I dragged him to the bed, and the rest of the night followed suit.

"Have I told you how much I love you?" He snaps me out of my reverie as his thumb brushes my cheek.

"Repeatedly throughout the night," I replied with a snicker. "But I can always hear you saying it again." He turned on his side, bringing his face inches from mine, our noses touching.

"I love you," he smiled brightly with a magenta glint in his eyes.

"I love you too."

He leaned down to kiss me, his hands cupping my face, and I slowly rolled onto my back as he shifted on top of me. His tongue slipped into my mouth, brushing against mine as my hands wrapped around his back and ruffled the feathers of his wings, making a low moan escape from his mouth.

A knock on the door suddenly catches both of our attention, and Cole pulls away with an annoyed groan.

"Who is it?" he called.

"Me," Taylor cooed. "You guys have thirty minutes to get ready for the meeting." He paused for a moment. "So just get done what you are doing now."

"Exactly, we still have thirty minutes," Cole countered, and I laughed softly.

"Yeah, but you still need to shower and get dressed," he says. "I will be back in fifteen short minutes." I hear his footsteps fade away.

Cole lets out a breath as his head flops forward and a chuckle escapes me as my hand strokes his chest. "He is right, we need to get ready."

He sat up on his knees. "We will get to this later." Both his brows raised as he got off the bed, and I smirked, already anticipating when it would happen.

Slowly my body rolled onto my stomach as he rested on the edge of the mattress. "Are you sure I should be at the meeting?" I asked. "I just feel like it's weird. I will be sitting next to some of the most powerful demons... wouldn't I be out of place?" 

"Rayline, my father is literally setting up this meeting to be held here because he wants you to be there." He said as he leaned back. "He wanted everyone who was there to tell him what happened, including you."

I scooted over to his side. "It's a bit nerve-wracking though." 

"I will be right there with you," he tilted his head adorably, making me smile. 

"I guess I will be fine then." I leaned down and gave him a slow kiss. Then I pulled away, and my eyes traced down his naked body, and a rush of heat seared my core. 

"We still have thirty minutes," I smiled seductively. "We can go faster." 

His eyes flashed purple as his tongue darted out of his lips. "I'd love that," he purred. "But we both still have to shower."

I shrugged and got to my feet, heading for the bathroom. "We can do so many things," I flashed him a wicked grin over my shoulder and walked out of sight.

He shook his head as he cracked a smile. "Naughty girl." He jumped up to run into the bathroom.

 

Before stepping into the large meeting room, I sucked in a deep breath and grasped his hand. Once we entered, all eyes were on the two of us, and I tensed for a moment, but soon he was squeezing my hand, and I followed at his side.

Most of the members of the lords of Hell that I recognized, especially Asmodeus who sat across from Taylor and his father. Taylor was being extremely quiet and kept his head down, which made me feel that it had something to do with the being sitting across from him. In addition, I could also recognize Leonardo who was sitting near the end. His eyes were fixed on Cole, which was not surprising to me, but what was surprising was that there was no malice like there was before.

Jesse was sitting next to Taylor. His wings popped out and draped behind him, hanging over the back of a chair that looked specially designed for winged creatures. I remembered that Cole had said that he needed to let them out for some time to help regain the strength of his torn muscles. He was looking a bit off, almost in a daze.

Nicolas was also sitting near the end. Cole says that he is here on behalf of the Nephilim. Harvey also said that he wanted to know the extent of their involvement and knowledge, and he trusted Nicolas to be the one to represent on Jesse's behalf, which his father did not question at all.

Both Cole and I find our seats near Jesse and Nicolas, all the while trying to ignore the stare we get from the demons sitting around us.

"Hey," Nicolas greeted beside me, finally catching my attention.

"Hey," I smiled back at him.

"How are you doing?" He looked at Cole. "Both of you."

"I'm doing good. We both are too." He nodded with a faint smile. "And you? Did anyone get hurt during the attack?" 

"No, no. They barely put up a fight afterward." He trailed off for a moment. "We managed to find Silas after it was all over. He is still alive." I blinked in shock, though, I felt a bit of relief in my chest. "We got him to the hospital as quickly as possible. He looks stable."

"That's good," I said with a sad smile. "That he's okay." Nicolas nodded.

My gaze then moved to Jesse, who was still lost in thought.

"Jesse?" I asked softly. His head shot up as he looked at me, blinking a few times, as if he did not even realize that I was there. "How are you doing? Are you okay?"

"...Yes," he said weakly. "I'm fine."

I nodded slowly, forcing a smile, and he turned his head forward, his eyes looking down at the table. Nicolas put a hand on his shoulder, but he even made no move. I let out a shallow breath and turned to Cole, concern showing in my eyes.

"What are you thinking?" his voice echoed in the back of my head.

"He's not okay."

There was a pause at the end of Cole's words.

"I know... He just needs time. Maybe after he recovers."

My eyes lowered.

"Yeah. Maybe."

We were both silent as we waited for the last people to arrive, especially Harvey.

"Look at poor Taylor," Cole said with a chuckle, and my eyes snapped to the demon. His legs were bouncing nervously while his eyes remained downcast, his whole body rigid. "He looks like he's about to piss his pants."

"Because of Asmodeus?" I asked amusedly while staring at the demon. She was idly playing with her hair, looking relaxed in her seat as her eyes wandered, but I could catch her glance at Taylor, as well as the small smirk that tugged at her lips. "You think she'll say something?"

"Of course not. But she's probably enjoying his flustered state with his father over there. I have a feeling this might be a topic she will bring up if they meet again."

"Do you think they will?"

"Who knows? Maybe it will go away with time."

"Maybe," I said with a laugh.

Harvey then walked into the room, and everyone straightened up. His eyes looked around at each person seated before him, and the demon council members all gave a nod of approval. He pulled out a chair at the end of the table and took a seat before resting on his elbows.

"Let's get started, shall we?"