A Taste of Mercy (A Recipe for Disaster Novel 2)

No rest for the wicked

The hallway we entered was cool after the constant heat and sun; made of pure marble and laid out so that it appeared to be impossibly long. But even this lengthy walkway ended, going from marble into a garden with no gradual change at all. There were trees, bushes, benches, fountains, birds and a veritable cornucopia of good cheer; but it felt false, staged somehow. Nikka led us down a path that wound through this impossible park so I started to hum 'we're off to see the wizard' under my breath. I heard Alex snort as he recognized it.

"If you call me the cowardly lion we're going to have a fight." he smirked at me.

"Nah, you're totally the scarecrow; if you only had a brain..." I retorted.

"Dibbs on being Glinda, pretty hot for a guy in drag." Sebastian pitched his voice over to be heard. I laughed and walked after Nikka, who seemed to be ignoring us.

I caught the scent of sandalwood incense as we rounded yet another corner of the trail and spotted some very colourful people waiting for us. The trail went a few paces on past them and ended at a door, but the six standing on the path before us deserved more than a cursory look. It looked like a rave and a box of crayons threw up on them. One chick had short, spikey hair and each strand was a different colour; red, brown, blonde, green, purple...

"What's with the glow stick people?" I whispered to Nikka, she frowned at me and didn't respond.

"It's been such a long, long time since you came home sister." One of the colourful guys said, fantastic with bright fuschia hair.

"And it's interesting to see that you brought such distinctly unique guests." the mellow female with multi coloured hair added.

"I'm guessing you're dopey. It's not terribly polite to talk about people as if they're not there." I interrupted, making Sebastian groan in vexation under his breath.

"So you're like that to everyone and not just me." Alex muttered behind me and Nikka gave me a death glare.

"Mish, I'd like you to meet Callahan Orenda. She rescued me from a Demon Lord's Keep. The gentlemen standing protective duty behind her is Alex Dominar, the Leader of the Ottawa Change Community and the other is Sebastian Demon Lord." Nikka introduced. "I've invited them here and they are guests under my protection. These esteemed Elders in front of you are Mish, Gabe, Raphe, Uri, Az, and Met. They're the highest level of authority in this Realm and I would greatly appreciate it as a personal favour if you were to behave." she looked right at me.

I smiled and executed a perfect curtsey. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." the lady I'd insulted gave me an equally fake smile.

"The pleasure is all mine. So may I ask why exactly you've brought these 'guests' here?" she switched her attention to Nikka.

"I was hoping to use the Door. There's a specific location we need to go to and circumstance and time have limited our options to this." Nikka started to explain the bare bones of my situation but since I'd been there for it, I tuned them out. Something was bugging the hell out of me, my brain had sent up a red flag but I couldn't track the thought down.

"Cal, how are you holding up?" Sebastian asked me softly. I blinked and grinned, the impulse driving me to grab him and kiss him on the cheek.

"You're a genius!" I turned from the startled Demon Lord to face the 'Elders'. "I know who you are." That little statement got everyone's immediate attention. "I couldn't figure it out until Sebastian used the short version of my name. Mish- Michael, Gabe- Gabriel, Raphe- Raphael, Uriel, Azazel and Metatron. You're angels. Or at least as close to what they are based in human mythology. And you Nikka? Nicodamus wasn't an angel, so what's your real name?" I demanded, feeling my skin tingle with a sudden rush of adrenaline and energy. The Wild Magic came flooding back and I struggled to calm down and keep a lid on it.