Page 111 of Sorrow & Strangers

“You okay?” I ask, sitting up.

Alice nods. “I need to go check on my plants. Are you good to watch the baby?”

“Sure. But it’s like four in the morning . . .”

Alice yawns. “I know, but they need to be watered and fed every five hours.” She groans, but I can see the sparkle of joy in her eyes. She is really enjoying this class. “Rafe’s awake too. He’s trying to work out, but he keeps busting his back wounds open.”

“I’ll handle it,” I say, slipping out of bed. Alice nods and leaves as I pull on one of Connor’s hoodies. It is huge, enveloping me in softness and warmth. I lift the collar to my nose and inhale deeply, imagining that I can still catch the faint scent of him. A smile tugs at my lips, feeling as if he has wrapped me in a hug.

The floor is cool against my feet, and I wish I had slipped on socks as I pad down the hall to Rafe’s room. Pushing open his door, I find him stretched out on the floor doing push-ups. His arms shake as he presses his chest off the floor.

“Rafe. What are you doing?”

He glances up at me, his face glazed with sweat. “Working out.”

I roll my eyes. “Barely. Bed now.”

“It’s fine,” Rafe grunts, slowly lowering himself back to the floor.

“Now, Rafe,” I demand as he attempts another painful push from the floor.

His entire body trembles, and he collapses back to the ground, panting.

“Rafael,” I warn, and he narrows his eyes at me before conceding. Moving with the care of someone who is in extreme pain, he gracelessly shifts to his knees and climbs onto the bed.

He collapses onto the mattress, tracking me as I walk to his bedside table and pour him a glass of water from a stylish carafe. I hand it to him, and he downs it in two large gulps.

“Are you hungry?” I ask, scanning his body carefully for any obvious damage.

“Why won’t you let me work out?” he asks, clearly irritated.

“You’re still healing, and you’re prolonging the process by pushing yourself like this. Now answer me. Are you hungry?”

He pouts but nods.

I fill his glass again and set it on the bedside table. “Okay, I’ll grab you a steak.” I can tell by the defiant tip of his chin that he’s planning on continuing to work out the moment I leave the room. The stubborn asshole that he is. I roll my eyes and sigh. “Don’t move or I’ll find out how to do an Infernal rune to hold you here.”

He glares at me but then relaxes into the bed, grimacing a little as his back brushes against the pillow. I round the bed and help him sit up so I can arrange the pillows, making him as comfortable as possible before I head downstairs to get his food. Alice and I finally made peace with the fact that there is no point in warming it. He enjoys it just as much, if not more, completely raw. I pull it from the fridge, and the red slab of meat makes a wet noise as I slap it down on the plate. Alice has portioned out a whole week’s worth of brimstone into little baggies, and I sprinkle one onto his meal.

I return to his room barely five minutes later to find a still-pouting Rafe lying on the bed, his arms crossed.

“I’m healing fine,” he grumbles.

“Will you stop being an asshole and just give yourself time?”

“How am I being an asshole?”

“You’re transitioning from an angel to a Fallen. You need rest.”

“Demons heal faster,” he says petulantly.

I glare at him. “Yeah, demons do. Not freshly Fallen.” There is very little research on Fallen, given how infrequently it has occurred, but I did find one transcript that mentioned the last Fallen was hidden within the palace of Hell for three months while his body underwent painful changes. Compared to that, Rafe is breezing through it. He’s sore, but he’s not writhing in constant, excruciating pain.

“Since when did you become an expert in demonology?” Rafe scoffs.

“I’m not an expert,” I say, picking up the textbook that I’d placed under the bed, just below where I usually sleep. “I am an intermediate in demonology, and I have been ever since my brother became one.”

Rafe rolls his eyes, but I can see a hint of gratitude there. I help him sit up a little and hand him the plate.