by Kelly Oram
“Yes. What I did to Danielle was cruel in a way, but it was also necessary. We had to break her bond with Russell. What Alexander did to those children was wrong, and dangerous for them both. Danielle will be healthier now. I only wish I could have done the same for Russell. Imagine the agony he must be feeling in being parted from her right now.”
The Councilor sighed again. “Do you understand, Gabriel, that I did it to help her? To save her? I hated doing it. I feel like a monster for it, but she is the Chosen One. I had to do what was best for her even if I didn’t like it. Please do not think me cruel anymore. If there had been any other way, you know I would have never allowed her to suffer so much.”
Just then the teakettle whistled. “Please do not be upset anymore, son,” the Councilor said.
“Yes, sir,” Gabriel replied as they prepared tea without continuing their conversation.
After a while, I heard Gabriel say, “I am still concerned about something.”
“What is on your mind?”
“Danielle.”
He always said my name with so much emotion. I couldn’t understand it.
“She was so full of energy before. So passionate, and brave and full of life. All of that is gone now, sir. Everything is gone. Her aura is still as powerful as it ever was, but I can’t feel her anymore. Her soul has been stripped away. What if there has been too much damage done? What if she is no longer the girl she was? What if she is unable to fulfill the prophecy now?”
“Have no fear, Gabriel. She will regain herself over time, only now she will be able to live her life properly.”
“You’re sure, sir? She will come back?”
“Of course I am sure. She has you to make her strong.” They scooted their chairs away from the table. “Will you inform me if anything changes? I should like to speak with her when she is ready.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you.” The Councilor stopped as he opened the door. “And how are you doing, Gabriel? This is quite an adjustment for you too, and I’ve been so busy lately we haven’t been able to spend as much time together.”
“I am all right sir, except…never mind. Thank you for explaining your actions.”
“Come now, Gabriel. Something is weighing on your mind.”
Gabriel hesitated and then quietly said, “I am not sure what I am supposed to do, sir.”
“Be patient. She will come back when she’s ready.”
“I do not mean that. I mean… I do not know how to be someone’s mate. I am not even sure how to be someone’s friend. With all due respect sir, all I have ever had is you.”
“Oh, Gabriel, do not make yourself uneasy over that. You will learn. Just be yourself and your relationship will come naturally.”
Now there was much affection in the Councilor’s voice.
Despite the love being shown him, Gabriel’s answering voice seemed tiny. “What if she does not accept me?”
“I would not worry about that too much. She will open up to you eventually. It is her destiny after all.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I must go for now, but do call if there is any change. I will be her mentor just as I am yours. We can help her together.”
I heard the door shut and then a few minutes later Gabriel was attempting to wake me up. “I brought you some tea,” he said sitting me up and taking a seat on the sofa next to me.
He placed a cup in my hand, but I was still too overwhelmed by his conversation with the Councilor to take any interest in the tea. The Councilor thought he was helping me. He said that Alex had manipulated me—hurt Russ and me on purpose. He said Russ was suffering right now.
“Please, Danielle. You need to try to get something in your stomach.”
I shook myself from my thoughts and looked at the boy in front of me. Gabriel had been angry on my behalf. He was worried about me. It was hurting him that I was not taking proper care of myself.
He’d done so much for me since I came here that I couldn’t deny his request. I looked down at the cup. I’d never been a big fan of tea—Russ and my dad had turned me into a coffee junkie years ago—but it was warm and smelled of honey and lemons. When I brought the cup to my lips Gabriel let out a breath of relief.
“Thank the Creator,” he muttered to himself. “Sip very slowly. They used healing magic to keep you from starving to death, but you will still make yourself sick.”
When I was done with the tea Gabriel took my cup away and returned with his hands full. I gasped when I saw my quilt. I snatched it up and buried my face in it, inhaling its familiar scent.
“The Councilor said this would make your transition here harder, but I saw the way you clung to it when you arrived and thought you might be happier having something from home with you.”
I pulled the cloth away from my face. I was touched by the thoughtful gesture and felt he deserved to know that, but I still couldn’t meet his eyes as I whispered, “Thank you.”
I heard Gabriel suck in a breath, and really I couldn’t blame him for his surprise. That was the first I’d spoken to him in almost a week. He cleared his throat nervously and then sat down with me again. “There is something else I asked the Councilor for.” He brandished a small box and said, “I know very little of human customs, but I understand that when two people are united they wear rings as a symbol of commitment to one another.”
Gabriel placed the box in my hands and pulled the lid back. My jaw dropped at the sight of the matching wedding bands lying on the small velvet cushion. I’d wanted to go back to ignoring him, but how could I? I looked up at him incredulous. “Are you asking me to marry you?”
Gabriel shifted uncomfortably. “I believe it is too late for that. The council has already sanctioned the union.”
“No!” I dropped the box like it was on fire. “We can’t be married! You need my permission! I—I’m only sixteen! It’s not even legal!”
“The laws of the council are not the same as the human laws you understand. It is done, Danielle. We have been paired.”
Married.
I was married!
Gabriel was my husband. At least he obviously considered himself to be as much since he picked up the rings I’d dropped and slipped the larger one onto his left ring finger.
“The Councilor told me that you do not understand the ways of the supernatural, and that this might be hard for you to accept at first. That is why I wanted the rings. I want you to know that I am committed to you, Danielle. I accept this union and give myself to you as a mate.”
I was in shock. I sat there unable to move or say anything while Gabriel slid the other band onto my finger.
He pulled my hand into his, something he’d done many times since I’d found myself here, but this time it was not the same. This gesture was not about my need for supernatural energy. This touch had meaning. He was claiming me as his wife.
My memory of our future kiss and the supernatural desire I felt toward him physically made the moment so much worse. He waited for me to say something but what was there to talk about?
When my eyes brimmed over with tears I turned away from him. It didn’t do me any good because I couldn’t bring myself to let go of his hand. I was still weak. I still needed his touch, and worse than that I found it comforting.
“What can I do to make this easier for you?” Gabriel asked me.
There was nothing he could do. “How can you be okay with this?”
Gabriel gave my hand a small squeeze. “Of course I am all right with this,” he said sincerely. “The Councilor has always said that someday he would find me an exceptional mate, and I trust him. Would you like me to say I am displeased with his choice? Because I am not.”
Gabriel pulled my chin up, forcing me to look directly into his eyes. “I have been wishing for a companion for some time now, and since the moment I had the vision of you, I prayed to the Creator that you would find your way to me. I was desperate to meet you. When the Councilor told me that you were to be gi
ven to me as a mate I rejoiced. I could sense how scared you were when we met, and how sad, but you were also brave, and strong, and good and beautiful.”
Gabriel dropped my chin and looked down at his lap. “I am sorry that you do not find me as satisfactory.”
He did look sorry, too. He looked devastated. Heartbroken. Truly sorry.
Life is so unfair sometimes.
“I don’t find you…unsatisfactory,” I admitted. I wanted to be so angry, and I was, but as hard as I tried I couldn’t direct my anger at Gabriel. “It’s because I’m being forced.”
Gabriel looked confused, but how could he not understand this?
“Marriage doesn’t work like this,” I told him. “Most people have a choice. They meet lots of people. They date. After two people get to know each other really well, and are lucky enough to fall in love, then they decide to get married. Generally the man asks the woman, but sometimes it’s the other way around. The point is, they always ask. The decision to spend their life together is between the two getting married. Their parents, or the council or whoever, should have nothing to do with it.”
I was finally able to pull my hand out of his. “I had a life. I had a family who loved me and took care of me. You people took that life away from me and you want me to be happy about it?”
I was annoyed with myself when I started crying again. I’d cried more this past week than I’d cried my entire life.
A surprising burst of fury suddenly fueled me to start yelling. “I was kidnapped! I was taken away without even getting to say goodbye to my parents! I’ll never see them again! Or Russ! I don’t know how I’m going to live without him! You may have just gained a companion, but I lost everything!”
I started bawling so hard I couldn’t breathe any more and I passed out.
I was calm, relaxed and bathed in warmth. There was fire all over my skin, running up my arms, across my back, on my neck and face. A fire that made me feel so good I begged it to consume me. I felt weak, but the fire was making me stronger. I tried to drink it up with deep breaths.
“Danielle?”
I recognized now what was causing the fire. I would know his energy anywhere.
When I opened my eyes we were lying in bed, though I last remembered being on the couch. I also remembered us being fully dressed but I was now stripped down to just the boy shorts and camisole I’d been wearing under my clothes, and Gabriel was in nothing but a pair of silk pajama pants.
Gabriel held me tight against his bare chest and was running his hands over every part of my skin his fingers could reach.
“What are you doing?” I asked, though I made no conscious effort to pull away from him.
“You collapsed. You did not have enough energy to sustain your emotional outburst. The best way to pass supernatural energy is skin-to-skin contact. I apologize if this makes you uncomfortable.”
“It does.”
Gabriel immediately released me and put about a foot of space between us. I felt my body ache slightly when he broke our connection and was hit with a cold rush of sadness. I wanted to pull him back to me.
“Maybe,” I said shyly. “If it’s all right, you could just hold my hand?”
Gabriel looked pleased by the question. He propped himself up on his elbow and held out his hand. It wasn’t exactly what my body wanted, but it was enough to keep the emptiness away.
“Thank you,” I whispered. I could feel my cheeks burning.
Gabriel smiled down at me with his dark eyes that seemed to be windows to his soul. I felt myself get caught in them and then suddenly I was standing out front of an unfamiliar farmhouse at night. The moon was full-on white and a million stars showered light as if there was not another building around for a hundred miles to fade out their brilliance.
My peace was disturbed when Gabriel came out of the house and leaned against the porch railing. He looked up at the stars and his breath came out in puffy white clouds around him. He looked so upset that my heart broke for him.
I didn’t notice anyone else until another version of me was placing a hand on Gabriel’s shoulder. “He was just being cruel because he’s hurt,” this other me said.
“He is right though. I have seen first hand your fearless spirit. You do need someone strong who can match that passion. And what am I? I am not that man.”
The other me whirled Gabriel around to face her. “You are strong,” she insisted fiercely. “And you have more passion in you than anyone I’ve ever met. There’s a good inside you that no one on this earth can match. That’s why the Creator chose to bestow you with the gift of foresight.”
The me in the vision dropped her hand from Gabriel’s shoulder and laced her fingers with his. Her voice lowered to just above a whisper. “He’s wrong. Maybe I’m confused about where my heart is right now, but I’m also proud to be married to you.”
My heart fluttered as I watched the other me pull Gabriel’s hand to her lips and kiss the band around his finger. “I accept this union Gabriel. I accept it not for the prophecy, or destiny, or for the will of the council. I accept it for you.”
The moment was gone and Gabriel was staring at me full of concern. “Another vision?” he asked.
I snatched my hand away from him with a gasp. “I don’t want to talk about it.” I rolled away from him and pulled the covers up over me. “I can change it,” I promised myself. “If I know the future, I can change it.”
Gabriel pulled the covers off my face and rolled me so that I was facing him again. He looked sad, and I wondered how much he’d guessed about what I saw. What I was denying. “You can change it,” he agreed hesitantly. “But should you?”
I couldn’t say anything.
Gabriel thought for a moment and then said, “Shall I tell you what I saw?”
The question was so unexpected I couldn’t stop myself from asking, “What? You saw something just now too?”
Gabriel shook his head. “I have only ever had one vision concerning you. I was speaking of the vision wherein I recognized you to be the Chosen One.”
“Oh.”
“Since my vision has caused you so much suffering, would it comfort you to know what I saw that night? What the council is so determined to protect despite what it cost you? I warn you, it is not all pleasant.”
I had to know. I had to know what made the council think they had the right to claim my life. “Tell me.”
“You were in an abandoned warehouse hanging from a cross. Your wrists were cut and bleeding onto on an altar built at your feet.”
My hand flew to my mouth but Gabriel didn’t seem to be too distressed. He took my hand and I let him squeeze it. “When your blood fell upon the altar, it summoned a demon. Not just any demon—an extremely powerful demon. Addonexus, the Angel of Death.”
Gabriel squeezed my hand again and I watched, incredulous, as a smile broke out on his face. “You were dying, but you were not the least bit afraid. You were angry, and defiant and confident—much like you were when you met the Supreme High Councilor for the first time. Addonexus thanked you for raising him and told you he was now going to use your body as a vessel to bring death and destruction to all the world.”
Gabriel actually laughed then, as if remembering a funny story he’d heard years ago. “You looked the Angel Of Death in the eyes and said, ‘If you enter this body, the only death and destruction it will bring is your own when I send you back to Hell.’”
Gabriel was caught up in the memory of his vision and absently brought my hand to his lips.
I stared wide-eyed at him until he seemed to come back to the present. “And then what happened?” I gasped.
Gabriel frowned. “And then the vision ended.”
“That’s it?” I was horrified by that thought. “You mean you assumed I was the Chosen One just because I mouthed off to some freaky demon? That doesn’t prove anything. I mouth off to everyone! How do you know this demon guy didn’t barbeque me and eat me right after that?”
I was
so not kidding, but Gabriel laughed again. “Danielle, you were radiant. I’d never before seen a supernatural of your equal and I just knew. I knew you were the Chosen One like I know the sky is blue.”
“I can’t believe this,” I muttered, shaking my head and holding my hair in my hands. “That’s called having a crush, Gabriel. Just because you were impressed with what you saw doesn’t mean I’m some kind of savior. You can’t be sure I’m the girl you need.”
Gabriel shook his head forcefully. “You do not understand. When I saw you it was somehow more than a vision. It was as if I knew you. I knew your name even though you never said it. I knew where to find you even though you were far from home. Danielle, I recognized your soul.”
Gabriel had become so intense that he scared me. When I shuddered, he sat fully up in bed and took both of my hands. “You are special. The Creator led me to you for a purpose. If you do not do this task, the Angel of Death will be loosed on earth. There is no one that can defeat him but you. Forgive me, I am sorry for your pain, but I believe a task of such importance is worth sacrificing the life you had.”
It was clear that Gabriel had absolutely no doubt I was who he thought I was. I’m not sure if his faith in me was comforting or terrifying. “They still could have asked,” I muttered stubbornly. “Instead of just taking me.”
“I am asking you now, Danielle. Will you be that girl? Forget your disagreement with the Councilor. This is beyond even him. Think of the supernaturals you have met so far that are good, decent people—your friends—Duncan, Gina, Alexander Devereaux, Russ…”
“You.” The word escaped my lips before I could stop it.
Gabriel smiled and put his hand to my blushing cheek. “Think also of the humans you love so much. We will all be lost. I beg you to stop fighting your destiny and live to fulfill the prophecy.”
I drew back from Gabriel’s touch and my voice shook as I said, “But I don’t know how. I don’t know anything about your world.”
