by Andrew Weis
“Look, Jessa, stick to Daniel and never mind his father Reggie.”
“Try again,” I said.
Ellis motioned to strike me but stopped himself. He leaned on the table, his scowled face inches from mine.
“Let things with Reggie play out,” Ellis said. “If he plays nice, Tyrone will cut him loose. At that point you can continue unfettered on your ARV with Daniel.”
“Come on, you’re a worse liar than me,” I said.
This time, he smacked me so hard I flew off the chair and rolled against the wall.
“That’s it, Jessa. I’m giving you one chance to leave. Go back to Hali. You don’t have what it takes to complete your ARV since you lost Daniel twice already. In fact, with you being here in jail, you’ve left him exposed yet again. You made a nightmare for yourself by telling him what you are.”
“I’m not quitting,” I said.
I got back on the chair and threw my hair back. The more Ellis told me I couldn’t do something, the more I wanted to prove him wrong.
“Go home,” Ellis said. “If you stay here on your present path, you’ll end up wishing you were at the Outer Edge.”
“You can’t make me go anywhere,” I mumbled.
“Why do you say that?”
“If you wanted me gone, you would’ve done it already. I’m making archangel, so maybe you should stay out of my way.”
Ellis’s eyes turned dark red.
“Have it your way,” he said and materialized a dagger.
I prepared to let him stab me if that’s what he wanted to do. He advanced toward me then stopped. He dematerialized his dagger and looked me in the eye.
“Well, good for you,” Ellis said.
I wasn’t sure what he was up to, but if his skill was mind games, he rocked it.
“What’s going on here?” I asked.
“I know your ARV is with Daniel. Mine is with Coz.”
“What? You’re protecting that piece of crap?”
“We’re here to protect humans, but to do so you must love them, regardless of what sewer they crawled out of,” Ellis said as he sat on the table.
The trainers in Hali said the same thing.
“I guess I never thought of it that way,” I said.
“I hate to lay more bad news on you, but Arlen set you up,” Ellis said.
“Chief? Not a chance.”
“Your goal is to get promoted to archangel. After you succeed with Daniel, you’ll get called back to Hali.”
“That’s nothing new.”
“Look, I’ve been watching you this whole time. If you think back on everything that’s happened, all you’ve done is play a couple games of hide and seek. You’ve had an easy time so far.”
In a way, Ellis was right. Other than a narrow escape with Coz, I had an uneventful time. I mean, nothing major’s come my way that posed much of a life threat other than Akio shooting at us.
“Why all the hard-ass stuff?” I asked.
“That was for Arlen’s benefit. Everyone in Hali knows you can succeed. You must’ve figured that they might throw you for a loop to test you. With you still being here, it means you haven’t figured that out yet. That’s why I’m saying you should stay away from Coz and keep up appearances. React to Daniel and Reggie’s needs instead of trying to solve problems before-the-fact. Any more will cause bigger problems for me and other archangels in the area.”
“I didn’t realize things were so entangled.”
“That’s the part the Powers never tell watchers on ARVs. They want to see how you handle intense situations with intense emotion repercussions.”
Saving a boyfriend I betrayed who then betrayed me back had deep emotional repercussions all right. I pretend-betrayed Daniel in front of Coz, then Daniel didn’t do anything to stop my death. Since we both jacked each other in the worst possible ways, technically we were even. So, why should I be upset with him? The only way to move forward now was if we both acknowledged our failures. I thanked my disguise for creating that barrier.
“How do you and I stay out of each other’s way?” I asked.
Ellis cursed under his breath as he slid off the table. He paced around the questioning room, and if there was anything to pick up, he would’ve thrown it.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I hate that we crossed paths,” Ellis said. “If you don’t watch your step you could jeopardize my assignment.”
Ellis stared at me with a stiff expression. A police sergeant opened the door. In an instant, Ellis returned to his policeman appearance.
“Done here?” the sergeant asked.
“The room’s yours,” Ellis said and stepped out. Hard clicks of his dress cop shoes faded as he walked down the hall.
The sergeant’s face changed.
“Dad?” I asked.
“Come on, we can’t talk here. There’s been a development.”
Chapter 25
I NEEDED A confidence boost in the worst way, and my Dad’s timing was perfect. With my mentor Ellis telling me to leave him alone, his intentions, whatever they were, seemed suspicious, so I decided I’d do what I could to stay out of his way.
Ellis didn’t need to know the details of what I experienced so far in my ARV. Even if he conspired against me, there wasn’t a way for me to take down an archangel like him.
Dad and I left the police station this overcast morning, then walked along Western Avenue to continue our talk.
“Did you hear what Ellis said?” I asked.
“I heard enough,” Dad said. “It’d be a good idea for you to stay away from him. He’s here for his own assignment, but he might have something else up his sleeve.”
“No kidding. He wanted me to give up my ARV.”
“He said that?”
“Yeah. Can I panic now?”
“Take what he says at face value. Remember what you’re here to do, so focus on business. Arlen’s word has more authority than Ellis’s.”
Dad was right. Chief wouldn’t set me up to fail. If he were, I’d have an earful to give him.
“I’m trying to, Dad, but Arlen must’ve held out on details I needed. Coz is much stronger than I thought.”
“Archangels can’t threaten a watcher on promotion assignments; it’d interfere with the natural course. Sometimes, archangels might help a lower-class angel but never with ARVs.”
“You mentioned back at the police station that there’s been a development,” I said.
“Yes. Keep in mind, you’re dealing with divine individuals.”
“I already knew that,” I said. “I just wish we could get a bead on who started all this crap with my note.”
“Don’t pursue that path directly. I don’t know if that’s a situation you could get yourself out of without serious help, considering the source might involve a higher ranking angelic choir.”
“What about Coz? There’s a chance he’s an angel, like me.”
“It’s not him, he’s still human. There are demons among us who look human, but they’re not.”
If I somehow got my promotion, I wondered if I’d be able to spot demons or other angels by sight.
“Are demons always disguised?” I asked.
“True demons can present themselves as human. Other times they occupy a human’s heart for awakening later. To humans, it’s known as a possession. They’re planted in people at young ages, at least the most dangerous demons are.”
“I think Coz might be one of those. He had a rough upbringing with his brother getting killed and all.”
“I remember.”
“Yeah. Then things, well, fell apart when Daniel and I became a couple.”
“How do you mean?”
“Coz and Daniel both liked me, but Coz kept trying to get between us.”
“I hate to throw this possibility at you, but there’s a chance that Daniel could be a demon.”
I couldn’t accept that my love was an evil demon. My brain didn’t allow it. I loved Daniel more tha
n any boy I knew. Our love was solid. But, when I looked back on it, it made sense if he were a demon. He could’ve slipped under my trust radar in the subtle manner in which evil infiltrates humans. That was something I couldn’t have on my conscience so I chose to believe he was my Daniel, the good guy.
It was hard enough being a human, but as an angel, helping them fast became a chore for me.
If angel cops existed, they could watch out for angel improprieties full-time and I might be golden. That sounded better than helping unhousebroken humans.
“I’ll stick to what I’m doing,” I said. “At least Daniel’s safe. But I still have to save his father. Once I get them back in bed, I can return to Hali.”
“Jessa, do what you must, but keep an open mind. I think you were right about the need for an angel cop. It doesn’t look like the higher-ranking angels can or will do anything about this situation without proof. We could use a detective, at least in the Power-class level.”
Dad hugged me, then headed to Hali while dozens of angels continued raining through the sky unabated. I continued walking down Western Avenue and headed to Daniel’s house. I wasn’t sure if Dad wanted to make me doubt myself or make my job tougher than it already was. Either way, neither choice made me smile.
Chapter 26
I WENT DOWN Venture Street toward Daniel’s house. I refused to let distraction get the best of me. I had to save Daniel first, consequences be damned.
As I approached the porch of Daniel’s house, I noticed the front door was open. My heart sank at the prospect that someone had taken Daniel again. After entering, I tilted my head and listened for the slightest sounds of anything man-made.
My eyes scanned the floor, then turned to a small hall table where I saw a stack of unopened mail. I froze as feelings of Daniel filled my heart.
Countless memories of him from the time we first met in grade school flooded my mind. From the moment Daniel looked at me when I told him to hush while the teacher taught us math, I knew he was the boy for me.
When Coz noticed that I paid more attention to Daniel than him, he started with the boyfriend-girlfriend teasing which grew into combative taunts that carried into middle and high school. The good days were behind me.
Daniel and I kept our relationship low-key as much as possible during high school. It was a tough time, anyway; we grew, met new people and even drifted apart for a while. Right when I thought Coz gave up on Daniel, he stormed back with a vengeance.
While I reminisced about Daniel, tears welled in my eyes. Despite our best efforts to exist without drama, Coz won and I died.
“What happened to you, Daniel?” I whispered to myself, wiping my cheek while my chin quivered.
“Abbey?” Daniel asked in a soft comforting tone I hadn’t heard in a long time.
My heart swelled with joy while my mind raced back to a more innocent time when my love for him was new. I turned and saw him seated at the top of the stairs.
My heart raced as I rushed up the steps and bear hugged him. I rejoiced to see him alive.
“Thank God you’re here,” I said. My urge to kiss him was at an all-time high and, before I knew it, I kissed his cheek and buried my face into his chest.
“Uh, is everything okay?” he asked, embracing me loosely. Damned disguise.
“I saw the door open and thought I lost you again,” I said.
“Everything’s okay, girl. You can, uh, let go of me now,” he said with an awkward smile.
I remembered my place and clumsily withdrew from him.
“Let’s go to the kitchen,” he said, starting down the steps. My eyes stayed glued to him as he moved down the staircase.
I observed him from the worn white-washed table as he opened the refrigerator door. He got two cans of Coke and set them on the table.
I opened mine and took a few sips. He did the same. His eyes stayed glued to mine. I wondered if I caused any feelings inside him to stir. If I did, he might tie those feelings to my fake facade. Boy did I have a gift for making things hard for myself.
“Got something on your mind, girl?” he asked.
“Huh? Oh, nothing. Forget it,” I said.
“Why do you keep shutting me out? You’ve been helping me all this time. Maybe I can help you. Ain’t we supposed to be a partnership or something?”
“There’s nothing you can do to help me. This is my problem to figure out.”
“Good, there’s a problem. Now we’re getting somewhere.”
I paced around the kitchen while I thought. The futility of avoiding his questions was like me chasing down a sprinter faster than I.
“It’s so complicated that I don’t think I can explain it,” I said.
“Before the Continental robbery, you said a boy got you killed,” he said.
My eyes widened as distant thunder rumbled.
“No, you’re the one who said it, not me. Get your facts straight,” I declared.
“It was a boy, though, right?”
He was irresistible to refuse, so I conceded.
“Yeah, it was a boy,” I said.
“What did he do to you?”
Daniel reached for my hand. My heart soared when he squeezed my fingers. In my heart, the guilt that ravaged my soul since the day I died went supernova. I so wanted things like they were. My love for him exploded out of the repressed depths of my soul, an original love I thought was long dead but was only in suspended animation.
With my head hung low, my mind battled the decision that faced me, and I understood what the consequences were. Regardless, the Outer Edge was just another place I hadn’t stayed.
A passing rain shower poured down the windowpanes while I gazed into Daniel’s eyes. My vision turned blue while I returned my face to my own, complete with the cheek scar, courtesy of Coz.
Daniel stared at me with an icy, spine-tingling horror, then his chin quivered as he shot up from his chair. His eyes appeared to struggle to accept what sat in front of him. In seconds, they flooded with tears. Mine did too.
“Jessa?” Daniel gasped.
“It’s me, Daniel,” I said, stifling back tears.
“So, I was the boy who got you killed?” He choked up, and even with his creamy mocha complexion, he looked pale.
He paced around the kitchen as though he were ready to vomit. I hoped he didn’t. From the way he carried himself, it appeared his heart carried a burden as great as mine. What a pair we were.
“I didn’t know Coz was going to kill you,” Daniel said, his eyes flowing with tears. “Jessa, I know I froze at that rail yard, but since Coz already had my father, I couldn’t live with the thought of Coz keeping you like a prisoner. Somehow, I had to make a break for you to escape, but I was too late.”
It never occurred to me that Daniel took responsibility for my death even though I betrayed him. That was backward, but that was Daniel. He was more than willing to take the pain from me even if I caused it. My God, that’s either a love I never knew or the actions of a crazed fool.
“Why didn’t you tell me it was you, Jessa?” he begged. “If you did, I wouldn’t have run off and we could’ve fixed this whole Coz-Tyrone mess.”
He lowered his head, then he looked away. With my fingertips, I drew his chin toward me.
“I changed my appearance because I didn’t want you to see who I was or why I’m here. On the day I died, at school, I wanted to tell you.”
“Tell me what?” he said as he moved closer.
His eyes thirsted for confirmation, the lynchpin to a truth that’d bind us together for all of time.
“Loved you,” I said.
Daniel threw his arms around me and strangled me with a love-soaked embrace. I hugged him tight and didn’t want to let go. The embrace relieved years of stress and intertwined our hearts, then tears rained again from my eyes.
During the time I knew him, I didn’t remember saying the words to his face but recalled the many stupid emojis of hearts or kissing lips to him through text messages.
The words were much more powerful when spoken in person.
“At school, on my last day, you told Coz you liked him instead of me. How could you say that?”
“I said that in front of Coz so he wouldn’t hurt you. I knew he’d do what I said. He would’ve killed you if I weren’t there. But he ended up killing me instead.”
I thought through that terrible moment then covered my face.
“Then you were watching out for me?” Daniel asked.
“A woman has to protect her man. Sometimes, it’s not pretty, but we had to stick together no matter what.”
“I was a mess and thought you betrayed me, but I never stopped loving you,” he said.
I hugged him again.
“It’s okay now, Jessa,” Daniel said, caressing my head in the loving way he did so many times when we sat on the Museum of Science and Industry’s back steps.
Of course, his smartphone rang. I hated those damned things.
Daniel sniffled as he dug out the phone from his pocket.
“Hello? Hey, Nemo,” he said.
While Daniel spoke on his phone, I yanked out several tissues from a yellow floral-printed cardboard box on the kitchen counter. I blew my nose then headed outside to the back yard.
The sun was below the houses now. My spirit never felt clearer and right. A massive weight lifted from my shoulders, and I felt free to move forward. My vision turned blue, and I observed the sparkling angelic contrails in the sky. I loved knowing angels worked behind the scenes, and that there was something more after death.
Daniel joined me on the patio and slid his arm around my shoulder.
“What’d Nemo want?” I asked.
“He told me Tyrone’s robbing the Fed tomorrow night.”
“That boy ain’t wasting any time.”
“Since the cops are still investigating the Continental hit, he figures they’d never expect another hit so soon.”
“He has a point.”
“My dad will be there, Jess,” Daniel said. “Nobody has ever tried robbing the Fed. They’d have to make a deal with the devil to pull off that one.”
I considered the thought that maybe someone did.
