Chapter 108: THE ANSWERS (1)
His voice was filled with frustration, worn and old. Arella could recognize the exhaustion in his voice, and for the first time, she understood something: Haniel cared about Kratel. More than just as a fellow angel, more than how a subordinate would like their superior. There was a history between them, one that she did not have the access to.
The tall male did not take Arella’s hand, but Arella could see how his hand twitched, as if he was trying to not reach out.
Arella did not reach out either. She leaned back slightly, "When did you figure out that I am not him." She asked.
Haniel did not act surprised that she had figured it out. The corner of his lips twitched, though there was no humor in it. The halo covering his eyes slipped down ever so slightly, revealing the pair of baby blue orbs that sat behind them. Haniel raised his head, and the halo repositioned itself correctly over his eyes.
"I knew it the moment you spoke," Haniel admitted, though quietly, "Kratel does not speak as you do. Also he would have smitten me the moment I walked into the room without waiting for him to allow me in."
Arella sighed, "So it was from the moment you saw me on the floor." she murmured, and lay her back onto the chair she sat on, "you have known this whole time?"
Haniel gave a slow nod, "I did. But I needed to understand who you are, and why you are taking the place of my sire." His wings shifted slightly as he turned to face her, the faint rustling of feathers filling the heavy silence. "You may wear his face, and his body, but he and I have been close for centuries. It would have been an insult to not know that you are not him."
Arella groaned, "Here I thought my acting skills were actually top notch. Cassie that liar, he said I was the best actor he had ever seen. I hope he falls down a ditch."
Haniel did not reply to her ramblings, but instead looked at her with a raised brow, "if this is actually how you really are, then you are quite similar to my sire."