Page 34 of Dark Shadow of Guilt

Dom stared at the couple. Indigo and Ohngel. They still puzzled him. The witch was sprawled a step below the OneCreator, chatting him up as if they were friends, equals. Why did he allow her such freedom? Ohngel stood off to the side, his gaze pinned on his mate, clearly taken with every word she uttered.

The Aeternal female was frivolous on the outside, but Dom suspected that inside was pure substance. She had not given up on Ohngel when he had been in a millennium-long stasis. She had awakened him early. For that, Dom respected her, though he continued to study the unlikely pair, wanting to figure out what attracted them to each other.

The OneCreator cleared his throat. “I’m waiting to hear about this human in OneWorld.”

Dom flipped his attention from the mated couple. “Yes. She’s a librarian from St. Louis, a city in America. She was grabbed off a street, and the next thing she remembers is coming to as a prisoner of the Scourge Praevus, though she has a vague recollection of a female accomplice.”

The OneCreator stroked his chin. “Praevus, the Mind Rat. A particularly cruel male. I was conflicted with him, wondering whether I should issue a capture or extinct order. And a female. Go on.”

In typical OC fashion, he didn’t fess up to making the wrong decision about Praevus. Always right even when he was wrong. “The Rat discovered we were on to him, released her, and went into hiding. He likely thought she would cause enough of a stir to buy him some time. I found her surrounded by Soul Suckers. Once I sent them on their way, I stashed her at my place. It’s warded.”

The OneCreator resumed a slouch on his throne. “The solutions are simple. Find Praevus and anyone else involved. Show the female home. Leave me alone. I am beset with pressing problems.”

“We’ve divided up for the search, but he is illusive.” Dom crossed his arms over his chest.

Ohngel nodded. “I’ve been conducting flyovers. No sign of him.”

The OC smoothed his fingers through his hair. “Unusual. Scourges are not so clever or lucky.”

Dom said, “Rumor has it that Praevus wasn’t doing his Ordeals. He was excused from them. Your decision?”

“Nope.”

“Here’s a bigger question. How did he obtain a human when he can’t leave Angor? Obviously, he has a friend who can. Could be the female accomplice. Maybe someone else. We haven’t extracted names from anyone.”

“Have you talked to Michael?”

“We haven’t questioned Michael.” Why should they? “Could Harmony, your manager on Angor, have conspired with Praevus?” Dom knew the OC favored her, but he wasn’t so sure of her loyalty. She’d fucked up once and could again.

“I trust Harmony, but feel free to talk to her. She may have some ideas.”

Once a Scourge herself, Harmony had opted to remain in Angor after her rehabilitation. She cited the need for more penitence, and the OC appointed her to manage the dimension in his absence. Over the millennia, she’d become his confidant and someone he leaned on heavily.

The OC stroked his chin. “Another rebellion?” The OneCreator’s eyes wandered far away as if he were lost in thought.

Indigo shook her head, her braid whipping back and forth. “Fill me in. I’m in the dark.”

Ohngel took on the task. “Three millennia or so ago, an Immortal in Vast led an uprising. His name was Lucian. There is some question whether he suffered a malady, but it seemed likely. Regardless, he gathered others to his cause. Once he had enough ass-kissers, he hacked his way to the throne room, leaving blood and body parts in his path. He challenged the OC. A monumentally stupid move.”

Indigo arched her brows. “And?”

Dom sighed. “The OC lopped off his head. Luce’s followers turned tail and flew off.”

“And?” she repeated.

“I condemned him to Angor. It took about one-and-a-half millennia for his head to grow back. Painful, I hear, but tough love. He was on a destructive path.” The OC’s eyelids drooped, sad. “What’s Luce up to now?”

Ohngel shifted from foot to foot, his wings flicking out and snapping back in. “Word is he’s the perfect Scourge. Takes his punishment. Lays low. Quiet. But Luce isn’t capable of traveling to Earth to kidnap a human and returning. Is he?”

When Dom looked to the OC for confirmation, he was met with a passive, non-committal expression.

“Are you going to answer?” asked Indigo.

His lack of expression remained intact.

The closed-mouthed OC made Dom’s head ache. He rubbed a temple with the palm of his hand.

The OC wagged a finger at him. “Investigate this shit. Leave me out of it until you know what is what.”

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