Demon Bound

thoughtfully. It was similar to one of the reasons Guardians hid their existence from humans. Not that they didn’t deserve to know the truth—but that the repercussions might be far too dangerous.
    “And it does not change what Michael is now,” she murmured. A leader, a healer, the most powerful warrior—Michael was the heart of the Guardian corps.
    “That it doesn’t, little lady.”
    Alice lifted her brows.
    Jake grimaced, and was suddenly himself again. “Yeah. That was more John Wayne than Drifter. Anyway, I’m guessing that even if it isn’t a lie, Michael is thinking the same thing as Drifter: that at this point—after the Ascension, the nephilim popping up—it’s better not to have division in the ranks. Especially over something that could be nothing.”
    Yes, and especially now. The minor grumblings that had begun after Michael appointed Lucifer’s daughter as the head of Special Investigations might escalate.
    Michael had never suppressed opposing viewpoints, had never reprimanded anyone for dissention. She remembered several instances when he’d called for debate over the Guardians’ role during human wars, the heated discussions that had followed. But even when Guardians acted contrary to the consensus they’d reached, Michael hadn’t disciplined them. As long as the Rules had been followed, as long as the Guardians hadn’t hurt humans or denied their free will, Michael allowed the Guardians to act according to their free will.
    So he likely didn’t want to create tension over a matter that had no bearing on problems the Guardians were facing today. It was, Alice thought, the decision she’d have chosen, too.
    “So,” Jake said, his gaze steady on hers. “That help at all?”
    Perhaps discovering that Michael had a dark secret might have helped—it could have let her consider the unthinkable. But this had only served to remind her of what a fine Guardian he was.
    And there was nothing to use against Teqon.
    “I don’t think so.” Alice gathered her skirts in her fist, holding them bunched and tight against her thigh. “But thank you.”
    She dropped through the clouds, and heard the snap of Jake’s wings as he dove after her.
    He couldn’t have been far behind when she broke through the mist and leveled out, but she didn’t see him when she glanced over her shoulder. Wondering if he’d looped around, she looked down—just as he flew in beneath.
    “You don’t give a guy a chance to say ‘You’re welcome,’ ” he said, facing her with his hands laced behind his head and his ankles crossed.
    “I’m sorry. I—” Alice broke off, marveling that he hadn’t rolled over yet. Flying on one’s back was tremendously difficult. Instead of beating in a smooth sweep, their wings had to perform an awkward rowing motion while in vertical alignment. It was easy to roll and to fly upside-down for a short period, but after a few seconds Alice—and every Guardian she’d ever seen practice it—lost her balance and went spinning out of control. Yet Jake had maintained a smooth course for several hundred yards now. “You’re very good at that.”
    He grinned. “I can even carry weight.”
    “Most impressive.”
    “Yep.” Though he was still smiling, the humor had left his eyes, the intensity of his stare had deepened. “Wanna ride?”
    Her gaze fell to his waist. His damp T-shirt molded to an abdomen that was as tightly muscled as his backside. She had no doubt he could support her.
    And she wanted to. Wanted to close her eyes and feel the wind against her face, that incredible sense of freedom—and have it come through no effort of her own.
    It wouldn’t even require trust. If he faltered, she could save herself.
    But she wouldn’t be able to escape the intimacy of such a position.
    Alice shook her head, and increased her speed. She half-expected Jake to keep pace beneath her, but he simply rolled into his flanking formation. Shortly, they came over Charlie’s large lodge-style home at the edge of the lake.
    A dock extended out over the water, and stairs led up to the house. Trees provided cover near the rocky shoreline.
    Alice caught the side of her skirt again, and quickly descended. She’d barely touched down on the shore when a loud splash sounded behind her, a body hitting water at enormous speed.
    Jake.
    She whirled, scanning the sky. No demons. She pushed her Gift in a wide sweep, touching hundreds of spiders, building a sensory map of the immediate area.