The_Legacy_by_Mychael_Black

Chapter 1-2

Evan slipped out the front door of the tavern and around to the back of the building. There, waiting for him with arms crossed over a broad chest and an apron hung over a barrel, stood Rene, the barkeep’s son. A small jar of oil sat on the barrel beside him. Evan stepped up to him, and Rene pushed off from the wall. Evan gathered Rene into his arms and covered the young man’s mouth with his own.

“Evan,” Rene whispered as Evan’s lips left his mouth and trailed down his neck. “We must be quick. If my father finds me out here with you, he’ll have both our heads.”

Evan murmured his assent on the cook’s throat and pulled Rene’s shirt over the man’s head. Rene threaded his fingers through silvered hair while Evan layered kiss after soft kiss down his chest.

“Evan, please,” the young man whispered impatiently. “I don’t have much time. I want you.”

While his lips and tongue were busy above, Evan’s hands were busy below. With a rogue’s deftness, he unlaced Rene’s pants and shoved them to the ground. “Turn around,” he growled softly into Rene’s mouth.

Without a word, the cook obeyed. Evan unlaced his own pants just enough to free himself and reached for the small jar of oil Rene had set aside. He coated his length with the slippery, golden liquid, then worked two fingers into Rene’s body. Rene groaned, rocking backward. After a moment of preparing Rene, Evan withdrew his fingers, lined up his c**k, and slid inside the cook in one fluid motion.

“Evan,” Rene moaned as he gripped the edge of an ale barrel for support.

Evan pressed Rene down onto the barrel and stroked in and out slowly. Pleasure built up inside him, coiling deep in his gut. Rene’s moans filled his ears with such sweet music that he simply couldn’t hold back any longer. He gripped the cook’s hips and, with a final thrust, he climaxed. Evan felt the young man’s body tighten rhythmically as Rene spent onto the side of the barrel. When Evan pulled out, Rene turned around. The man’s stomach and the barrel bore the sticky evidence of their tryst. Evan smiled and stroked Rene’s cheek.

“When will I see you again?” Rene asked as they both dressed.

“As soon as possible.” Evan leaned forward to kiss Rene once more, then edged around the corner of the building, back toward the front.

William set his mug down a moment after Evan walked through the tavern door. “You didn’t.”

Evan sat down in his chair and grinned. “Oh, I certainly did. Although it was much quicker than I would have liked.”

William groaned. “I need another drink.”

“Personally,” Evan mused as he waved over the barkeep, “I think you could really use a good woman.”

The barkeep sauntered over with two more mugs.

William leaned over and whispered under his breath, “How would you know a good woman? You’ve never even bothered to lay a finger on one.”

Evan shot him a retorting look. “Thank you,” Evan said to the barkeep.

“Will there be anything else, m’lord?”

William c****d an eyebrow. Evan shrugged.

“Later,” Evan told the man with a wink. The older man blushed before bowing his head and turning to leave.

“M’lord?”

“Aye,” Evan said as he took a swallow of his ale. “It goes with the territory, I suppose. Now, as for me not knowing a good woman…”

“Ah, yes, that.” William leaned back and locked his fingers behind his head. “You wouldn’t know a good woman if one fell into your lap.”

Evan smiled demurely and snapped his fingers in the air. A young barmaid bustled over. Within seconds, Evan had her in his lap, his mouth on hers. When he released her, a trace of pink stole over her cheeks. She straightened her dress and returned to her work without a single word. Evan looked back at William with a smirk.

“You did that just to spite me.”

“Always,” Evan said. “But she does kiss quite well. You should try it.”

William glanced at the young woman. “You know her, don’t you?”

Evan nodded. “She’s the cook’s sister.”

“And the barkeep’s daughter,” William added.

“That, too. The barkeep knows me, therefore he knows you. He will not mind if his daughter is caught in your arms. Hell, William, I think he’d be angrier to find out I was buggering his son.”

William dropped his head into his hands, the blonde waves of his hair falling through his fingers and spilling onto the wooden tabletop. When a shadow crossed over the table, he raised his head slowly. Luxuriant golden curls framed the maid’s face, and blue eyes glanced once to Evan before settling on William. Without a word, she cupped a slender hand under William’s chin and tilted his head up to meet her lips. Evan sat back and smiled, knowing every thought as it ran like mad through his brother’s mind. When their lips parted, she smiled softly at William. Then, as quietly as she had come, she left again.

“Her name is Annette,” Evan said, answering William’s question before his brother could voice it. “She has no one but her brother and her father. She’s eighteen. Oh, and she’s a wonderful kisser, although I think you’ve already discovered that much for yourself.”

“Aye,” William whispered breathlessly.

“She’s wanted you from the first moment she saw you.”

“What?”

“Annette told me she wanted nothing more than to find someone like you.”

“Why me?”

Evan smiled, a touch wistful. “Because you’re strong, handsome, and care more about the welfare of others than you do your own.”

William looked back to Annette. Her golden curls bounced around her head as she wiped down the empty tables. He sighed and took another swallow of his ale. Evan watched in quiet amusement when William steeled his nerves and went to Annette. They made such a pretty pair. Evan smiled, knowing it was another point in his ultimate favor. He had never been a matchmaker, but he knew William and Annette. They were made for each other. When William left with the young woman on his arm without so much as a glance back, Evan knew he would have the time he needed to be alone at the tower. William would be safe. He wasn’t the type to get into any sort of trouble on his own.

Evan finished off his ale and managed to slip out of the tavern while the barkeep had his back turned. He enjoyed the man’s son, but he honestly had no inclination toward the father. He made his way to the path that led into the forest and eventually home, pondering the possible locations of the book. He knew it was in the tower, that much he had been told, but its exact location had been kept from him. He and William had scoured every bare inch many times over.

“Work for it,” they had said.

Heaven above, if his task had been any more difficult, Evan would’ve chosen the alternative. That damned book had his name written upon its pages. His elders had given him no details, no instructions beyond telling him to find the book and obey the prophecy within it. So he searched tirelessly for the one thing that could ultimately save him from himself.

Upon entering the tower, Evan waved his hand over the hearth. From the mound of gray ashes, an orange-red flame flared to life. He turned away from it and started to cross the floor to his workshop door when he stopped abruptly. Out of the corner of his eye, the flames danced sensually, dragging his gaze back to them. He turned slowly and, in an instant, felt his blood run cold.

Within the flames, a man’s form appeared. The fire flickered, and the image became clearer until Evan could see his reflection in the brilliant emerald depths of the man’s eyes. Just as quickly as it had appeared, the image faded, leaving only the bright orange flames.

Evan shook his head in an attempt to erase the image he had seen. Even though the man’s features had faded away, those eyes remained clear and bright in Evan’s mind. Verdant pools as deep and infinite as time itself. Evan shivered and turned away once more. He threw open the door to his workshop gruffly. He needed answers, and he needed them now. The moment he stepped into the blackness of his workshop, Evan knew he was not alone. He saw no one, but he felt the all-too-familiar presence nevertheless.

“You have seen him.”

Evan swallowed hard and turned around toward the stone table behind him. A man stood against the stone, gaze fierce and boring through to what remained of Evan’s soul.

“Aye,” Evan whispered, “I have. Who is he?” The man shifted, and Evan heard the familiar rustle of feathers through the silence. The sound left a soul-deep ache in its wake.

“He is the one you have been sent to protect, but he does not exist in this time.”

“Then how do you expect me to find him if he does not yet live? It was you who made me what I am now,” Evan shot back.

“Things will happen in your life that will rectify the problem,” the man said. “You were told this would not be pleasant, but it was your arrogance that put you where you are now.”

Evan bowed his head respectfully and nodded. “I know. What will I face?”

“I cannot say, but I will tell you this: when you find this man, let your heart lead you to the right path.”

Evan opened his mouth to ask another question, but with a brief flash of an emerald feather, the man disappeared.

“Tell me I didn’t just see what I think I saw.”

Evan spun around and stared open-mouthed at his brother. William sat quietly on the stone steps. Evan had always known the time would come when he would have to tell William the truth, but he had never truly prepared for it. He sat down on the floor and leaned back against the wooden shelves across from the steps.

“Did you not…”

William shook his head. “She deserves more than a quick romp.”

“How much did you see?” Evan asked, gesturing toward his altar.

“Enough to know you have some explaining to do,” William said quietly.

Evan sighed. “William, I’m sorry. I knew the time would come, but I never expected it to be so soon. Nor did I ever expect you would see anything like that.”

“Go on.”

“My true name is Kaliel. When Lucifer was cast out of Heaven, several others followed him. I was one of them.”

William’s eyes widened more than Evan ever thought possible. “Are you telling me you’re an angel?”

“Was. Like the others, I became corrupted by greed and power. I lost my standing in Heaven. When several of us went back to beg for forgiveness, we were denied entry. Each of us was given a task to complete, a way to prove our hearts are pure. I was reborn as a human, as your twin.”

“And finding the book is your task?”

Evan shook his head. “The book is the first step. Within its pages is a prophecy. I have to stop the descendant of Cain from becoming immortal.”

“What aren’t you telling me?”

“The descendant does not live in this time. All I’ve been told is that when I find him, I must follow my heart.”

William looked skeptical. “But if he does not live now, how are you to find him?”

“The man you saw, the being, was the Archangel Michael. He did not tell me what I will face, but he made it very clear it won’t be pleasant. Coming from my Prince, I believe every word. It was Michael who ordered me to be reborn as a mortal man. I don’t dare question his judgment.”

William nodded. “I would have to agree. If you’re an angel, where are your wings?”

Evan swallowed, ignoring the damnable ache that echoed along his shoulder blades. “They were stripped from me. I will only get them back once my task is done.”

“So you are not immortal anymore?”

“No,” Evan said. “I was reborn as a mortal, with all the damned vices and pitfalls, including the possibility of death.”

“Well,” William chuckled, “that explains the vices you have now.”

“I figured if I’m stuck in this body, I might as well enjoy myself. It’s not like I can really damn my soul any further than it already has been. In fact, every good thing I do is another point in my favor.”

William laughed and shook his head. “I always knew there was something odd about you. Is the magic part of your past, too?”

“More or less.” Evan shrugged. “I was a solar angel, an angel of fire, hence the reason why fire is my element as a sorcerer. It’s also the reason why fire cannot hurt me. I can be shot by arrows, drawn and quartered, run through with a sword, hung, any manner of death and torture a human would expire under, but I cannot be burned in any way. I’m not invulnerable, William. I have weaknesses just like a human, and I am not immortal anymore.”

William sighed, and Evan noted the sad smile on his brother’s lips. He stood and knelt before William, smoothing blond hair away to reveal blue eyes heavy with sadness.

“Do not mourn for me, gefell,” Evan whispered. “From the moment I was born into this world, you’ve been by my side. I will always remain by yours until the end of your days on this earth.” Evan brushed a single tear from his twin’s cheek. “Now, off to bed with the both of us. I plan on searching more tomorrow. I have the feeling something may happen soon which will bring my search to a halt. I want to at least know the name of the man I seek.”

“I heard you tell Michael you saw him,” William said as Evan sat back on the floor. “What does he look like?”

A shudder stole up Evan’s spine when he thought about the man in the fire. “His exact features were not very clear, but his eyes were. They were a bright green. He had black hair, too. Something tells me I will know, from the moment I find him, that he is the one.”

William nodded and stood, then offered Evan a hand up. They ascended the stairs and Evan collapsed onto his bed, weary for the first time in several days. He rolled over once William had gone upstairs and remembered them growing up as young boys. Even then, he had always been the odd one, the one who never quite fit in with the others, the one who stared off into space, longing for something no one else had any knowledge of.

He let out a ragged sigh. Tomorrow, they would resume their search for the book, and hopefully more would become clear about the man he sought. As he slowly drifted off to sleep, a voice came to him. He felt himself slip further into his dream, yet the voice was as clear as if he heard it in wakefulness. Deep and masculine, with just a hint of sensuality. The man called to Evan, as if reaching through countless centuries to find him.