by Elicia Hyder
“Tell her to bring supplies for a blood transfusion,” I said.
“A transfusion?” She looked at Cassiel again. “Is it that bad?”
“Yes,” I said. “We also need her to test Cassiel’s blood for toxins. We think she’s been poisoned.”
“Poisoned…oh my.”
Iliana stood in front of Shannon. “Can you do this for us? For Nico?”
Shannon’s head twitched. “Yeah. I’ll do it.”
“Thank you,” Iliana said.
Shannon left with Jett, and I looked at my daughter. “You just used your power on her.”
“No. That was straight manipulation.” Iliana returned to Cassiel. She put her hand on her forehead. “Her temperature is coming down, I think, but it might go back up once my power wears off.”
“Hopefully, it won’t before you’ve had a chance to get some rest,” I said.
The statement triggered a yawn from her. “On that note, I’m going to lie down.”
“Where will I find you if there’s an emergency?”
“In the big apartment downstairs. Kane and Jett have keys.”
“Jett won’t be with you, then?”
“No, Appa,” she said, shaking her head. She kissed my cheek. “Send for me if she gets worse.”
“I will.”
When Iliana was gone, I sat on the edge of the mattress and took Cassiel’s cold hand. Someone had dressed her in a thin hospital gown, and she was covered in two thick blankets. There were no machines. No heart monitors or respirators. Just her, lying helpless on the bed.
I stroked her hand. The skin was so pale it was almost clear. I could see the tendons and tiny bones, and her veins had all but disappeared. When I felt for a pulse in her wrist, it was so faint I almost missed it.
Her hand twitched, and I looked up to see her eyes cracked open. I stood and pushed her golden hair off her forehead. “Cassiel, can you hear me?”
The slightest flutter of her eyelashes confirmed she could.
“We’re getting you some help. I need you to hang on a little longer.”
Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes as a faint sound escaped her cracked lips. I leaned my ear close to her mouth, and the sound came again. It was barely a whisper.
“Hurts.”
My throat clenched. “I’m sorry. I’ll get the morphine.”
I stepped away, but she let out a dry grunt in protest.
Her fingers stretched toward me.
I took her hand again and eased back down beside her.
She closed her eyes again. Just when I thought she’d fallen from consciousness, she sucked in a shaky breath. “I’m going to die.”
The words were barely audible.
“Don’t talk like that. You’re not going to die because I won’t let that happen.”
The corners of her mouth twitched like she was trying to smile. “Always in control.”
“Me or you?” I asked, making a pathetic attempt at being lighthearted.
When she didn’t answer, I leaned closer. “Cassiel, I need your help. You’re the smartest person I know.”
Her eyes opened to slits again.
“Is there anything that might have done this to you? Any kind of poison or weapon that could harm an angel like this?”
She shook her head just enough for me to know the answer.
I looked down at her hand in mine “Are you worse with me being here?”
If Cassiel were human, she’d already be dead with me so close.
“Stay,” she whispered.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
She was quiet for a little longer. Her breaths were ragged and shallow. I feared she might be right. She sounded like she was dying.
“San…” She wheezed in. “Sandalphon.”
“I haven’t heard anything yet, but we’re trying to contact someone on the inside. As soon as we get word, I’ll tell you.” I gently squeezed her fingers. “So I need you to hold on until we get word.”
“You…need…to find…swords.”
“Swords can wait until you’re better.”
The sliding door opened behind me. I turned and saw Fury as she walked past the nurse’s desk holding a bag and two coffee mugs.
“Hey,” I said as she came in. “That was fast.”
“I worried Reuel might get to the food before we did, so I came on up. I ran into Iliana in the dining room. She said you were staying in here. Figured I’d bring you some breakfast.” She lifted the bag.
“Thanks.” I tilted my head toward the rolling bed table. “You can put it there. I’ll get to it in a few.”
Fury put down the bag and one of the mugs. “How is she?”
“She’s awake right now.” I looked back at Cassiel. Her eyes were closed again. “She’s in a lot of pain.”
“Can we give her something? If this is like the triage rooms in Azrael’s other bunkers, there’s probably pain meds in one of these cabinets.”
“I don’t think she wants any. I am going to stay with her a while,” I said.
Fury carried her mug over to me. “OK. I’m going to eat and go back to the apartment.”
I nodded.
“Can she hear me?”
“Yeah.”
Taking care not to spill her coffee, Fury leaned toward her face. She spoke softly in Katavukai. “Ciyet ai kayam. Ala rattanai ain alis.”
“Thank you,” Cassiel breathed. “But Fury…”
Fury paused.
Cassiel’s blue eyes opened. “There’s no one to hear your prayers.”
Chapter Fifteen
“Oh. My. God. It’s true?”
I’d recognize that high-pitched voice anywhere. I dropped my feet off Cassiel’s bedside and sat up as Ionis came into the room. “Hey, you.”
Ionis tore his worried eyes from Cassiel and blinked a few times when he looked at me. Then his face softened, like he’d suddenly realized who was standing in front of him. “Oh, Warren.” He threw his arms around me, pinning mine against my sides.
I laughed. “I missed you too.” I wiggled one arm free and hugged the small messenger.
“We thought you were—”
“Dead?” I pulled back. “I’ve heard that a lot.”
For the first time I’d ever seen, Ionis’s hair was long and straight. With his pale skin and chiseled cheekbones, he was only lacking pointy ears to be an elf from The Lord of the Rings.
“You were in Nulterra the whole time?”
“The whole time. Which was only a couple of days for me and Fury. We figured out how the Morning Star sidestepped his fate in the Thousand Year Prophecy. Time all but stood still down there.”
“Is it true you destroyed Nulterra completely?”
I nodded.
“What happened to the fallen?”
“I assume they’re gone. None of them followed us out of that hole.”
An unmistakable flash of sadness crossed his eyes.
“You all right?” I asked.
“Yeah, but it’s big news. The angels…” He swallowed. Then he jerked his head upright. “But don’t think I’m sorry. I’m not—”
I put a hand on his shoulder. “Calm down. They got what they deserved, but that doesn’t mean you have to be happy about it. The angels have been together since the beginning of time. If their demise didn’t affect you, I’d worry you were a psychopath.”
“It’s a little hard to stomach.” His eyes shifted back to Cassiel. “We’re supposed to be immortal.”
“I know.”
“Do you think she’s dying?”
“I think her body is dying, at least. Not sure about her spirit.” I walked over and checked Cassiel’s forehead temperature again.
“But her body.” Ionis looked down at his own figure and whimpered. “I really like mine.”
“Yes, we all know you do.”
Fury and Anya walked in. Fury’s hair was damp from the shower. “Ionis?” she asked.
He spun around so fast
his white hair whipped over his face. “Fury. Whoa…and Fury’s twin, I presume?” Ionis did a small bow in front of Anya. “No need to ask which one’s the evil twin.” He pointed at Fury.
Anya laughed and nudged Fury with her elbow. “I think my sister had some quick anger management down in that pit.”
Ionis looked up at me. “You have something to do with that?”
I grinned.
“Oh yeah?” He thrust his hips forward a few times.
I shoved him sideways. “Ionis!”
He laughed. “You should be proud. No telling how many lives you”—his eyes sank to below my belt—“might have saved.”
Fury crossed her arms. “I say we test out one of those bullets on Ionis.”
“Eek!” He hid behind my arm.
Something beeped overhead. We all looked up.
“Warren, it’s Kane. Can you meet me on the main floor of Echo-5?” Kane said over a loudspeaker I wasn’t aware existed.
I looked at Fury.
“Go,” she said. “We’ll sit with Cassiel a while.”
I kissed her. “Thank you. Iliana is in the large apartment downstairs if there’s a problem.”
“OK.”
I looked back at the messenger. “Ionis, are you coming with me? I need to talk to you.”
“You bet. Angel business is my business.” His chest puffed out proudly.
I kissed Fury’s cheek once more before Ionis followed me to the hallway. “Have you talked to Kane yet this morning?” I asked.
“Was I supposed to?”
“He was going to find you. We need you to get in touch with Gabriel and tell him what’s happening with Cassiel. All the angels need to know about this threat.”
“To do that, I’ll have to go outside.” His nose scrunched at the idea. “I don’t wanna get shot.”
“I’ll take you myself.”
“So brave.” He smiled and batted his eyelashes up at me. I was pretty sure he was wearing mascara.
The door to the kitchen and dining room was open when we passed by. “Warren?” a woman asked.
Ionis and I stopped, and I looked inside.
“Bless my soul.” At the sink, Kathy McNamara covered her mouth with her rubber-gloved hands. “Warren?” She peeled off the gloves and dropped them beside the sink as I stepped inside.
Nathan’s mother was the cookie-baking grandma nursery rhymes were written about. She was round with wavy white hair and glasses with bright red frames.
“Is it really you?” she asked, grabbing my biceps.
“It’s really me. Hi, Kathy.”
She hugged me. “Lord, have mercy. I can’t believe you’re alive.”
Over her shoulder, I saw her husband, whose name escaped me, getting up from one of the tables. Sitting with him was a young man with shaggy black hair and olive skin. His eyes were mismatched, brown and dark blue.
Kathy pulled away from me and turned toward her husband. “Warren, you remember James.”
James came closer with his hand extended. “Good to see you again, son.”
The title somehow comforted me. These grandparents to my daughter could have easily believed that I’d abandoned her all those years.
I smiled as I pumped his fist. “Good to see you again too, sir. Thank you both for helping take care of my little girl.”
James tilted his gray head. “I do believe she’s the one taking care of us.”
“I’m learning that about her.”
“Any word from Nathan and Sloan?” he asked.
I shook my head. “We’re working on that, but I’m sure they’re OK.”
For now.
James’s unconvinced eyes told me he was thinking the same.
Kathy seemed to be holding her breath, and when I didn’t elaborate with any news, her eyes searched the room like she was searching for something good to hold onto. She found the boy at the table, and she immediately perked up.
“Oh! I don’t guess you’ve met our other grandchild.” Kathy snapped her fingers toward him. “Come here and say hello.”
The young man peeled himself from his chair with all the speed and enthusiasm of an arthritic ninety-year-old. He tossed his head to the side, swooshing his dark bangs out of his eyes.
“You must be Luca.” I offered him my hand, and he shook it. “I’m Warren.”
“You’re Iliana’s dad?”
I nodded.
“Did you really go to Hell?”
“Luca!” Kathy snapped. “Language.”
“It’s a place, Nana,” he argued.
“He’s right, but only humans call it Hell. It was called Nulterra.”
Luca smiled, his hair falling back into his eyes. “That’s stupe.”
“Stupe?” I asked, confused.
“Badass,” he translated.
“Luca!” Kathy said again. “Go finish the dishes. And wash your mouth out with soap while you’re at it.”
Luca waved. “Nice to meet you, Warren.”
“You too.”
James smiled. “I swear, kids these days have their own language.”
“I’m afraid it’s going to take me a long time to catch up.” I smiled at Kathy. “Thanks for breakfast. As always, it was delicious.”
“Oh, thank you. I’m glad you got to eat. This kitchen is not quite as nice as the one aboveground, but it will do.”
James glanced up. “Any idea when we might be released to go back upstairs?”
“Yeah. The connection speed down here is killing me,” Luca added.
“Kane and I need to address some security concerns with the building, but I hope we’ll get that resolved today.”
James patted my arm. “You’re busy. We won’t keep you.”
“Hopefully, we’ll have plenty of time to chat soon. I don’t plan on getting stuck anywhere else for the next seventeen years.”
He smiled. “We all certainly hope not.”
I waved as Ionis and I walked back out and continued down the hall.
Lex was at the desk in the lobby. “Morning,” he said, looking up at me from his coffee. “Kane’s looking for you.”
“I heard. I’m on my way up now. Any idea why?”
“Didn’t say. He took one of the Claymore soldiers up to the control room upstairs. Ground level. The door across from the living room.”
“Is the power back on up there?” Ionis asked.
“Must be. The cameras in the building are working.”
“Hallelujah!” Ionis sang.
I frowned as we started toward the door. “Don’t get excited. It’s probably not staying on.”
“I am excited. We can take the elevator.” He linked his arm through mine as we crossed the decontamination room. “Do you know how many steps it is up to the top?”
“We came down them last night.”
“But you haven’t had to go up them.” He patted my forearm. “Trust me, you should be thankful for the elevator too.”
When we entered the long concrete corridor, Reuel’s back was toward us, far up ahead. He turned around when he heard the door.
“Hey!” I called. “Where are you headed?”
Reuel pointed up.
“I think he was looking for a more specific answer,” Ionis said, shaking his head.
“Kupa aral,” Reuel clarified.
“Us too. Did Kane call you?” I asked.
Reuel nodded. “Akai enta ai utal vliye.”
Ionis stopped walking. “Kane needs your help outside?”
Reaching back, I grabbed the front of his shirt. “Come on. Stop being such a baby.”
We caught up with Reuel. “Did Kane say why?” I asked.
He shook his head.
Reuel let out a happy, quiet squeal when he saw the lights on above the elevator.
Ionis pointed at him. “See? Reuel gets it.”
I grimaced. “Maybe this isn’t a good—”
“You’re being ridiculous.” Ionis pressed the up button, and the elevator ro
ared to life. “You just survived Nulterra. You can’t be whining about an elevator. I get so dizzy trying to fly up that staircase.” He whirled his finger up in a spiral.
I cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t even walk?”
“Of course not.”
It was a long wait until the elevator doors opened. Unsurprising since we were a long way beneath the ground.
The three of us stepped inside, and I pressed the button for the ground level.
“Iru ai Cassiel?” Reuel asked.
I lifted both shoulders. “She’s about the same. It doesn’t look good.”
“But Iliana can keep her alive, right?” Ionis asked.
“For now. We’re working as hard as we can to find—”
The elevator lurched to a stop, and the lights cut out.
Ionis squeaked. “Oh no.”
“Damn it, Ionis. Why do I listen to you?” I brightened my wings. “Kane must have cut the power to the building again.”
Ionis was biting down on the insides of his lips. “My bad.” He started pushing buttons on the panel. “Maybe Kane is rebooting something.”
We waited for a few moments, but the power never came back on.
Ionis was fanning his face with his hand. “Anybody else feel like this space is getting smaller?”
I let out a frustrated sigh and put my hands on my hips. “So how do we get out of here without destroying anything?”
Above us was a covered escape hatch. It was too high for me to reach, and the elevator was too small for me to use my wings. “Can you give me a boost?” I asked Reuel.
With a nod, he bent his knees and laced his fingers together. I put my boot in his hands, and he hoisted me up with so much force I smacked my head against the ceiling. “Ow!”
He grimaced. “Sorry.”
When the stars dancing around my vision stopped, I used my power to open the lock on the outside of the hatch—a trick I’d watched my daughter perform during our escape from Claymore. This elevator was much smaller than the one in the prison, but luckily, it was a similar design. The lock opened, and I pushed the hatch door up and out of the way.
Reuel helped me up through the hole, and I climbed out and stood on top of the elevator. The dark tunnel disappeared high above me into blackness. We were very far below the surface, and it was a thousand degrees inside the tall shaft.
