“How?” Russell asks.
“Russell, we’re the most powerful beings on Earth. We don’t even need a reason to take what we want.”
“Ah, so now you remember that you’re an ass kicker?”
“I can’t believe I ever forgot. You don’t have to come, you know? I can deal with the Gancanagh on my own.”
“I wouldn’t miss this for the world, Evie,” Russell replies.
“Okay, where are you now? I will find out where the Gancanagh have set up their new lair, and then I’ll meet you and we’ll go there together.”
Russell’s clone smiles. “I’ll come here. It’s not terribly far from where I am now. I’ll see you in a few hours.” Russell looks at Reed. “You’re in, right?’
“I’m in.” Reed nods. “Tell Zephyr to keep our Reapers away from Crestwood.”
“Why?”
“Before he slipped away from me, Atwater told me the hole Emil created between our worlds has ruptured. Evil souls and demons are escaping through it into Crestwood. Sheol’s souls will possess any humans who will let them. The demons will rampage. It will be a thousand fold worse than the angels in the 7-Eleven ever were. Reapers will be drawn there, feeling the need to reap souls. The sheer numbers of the evil dead will overwhelm them. They’ll be slaughtered. Tell them to get the word out to other Reapers.”
“We have to close that door,” Russell says urgently.
“We do. We need our armies in place first, or we don’t stand a chance. It’s a trap, Russell. Emil set it. He most likely has his angel army just on the other side of the gate, waiting for us to come to close it. When we do, he plans to meet us and butcher anyone who gets between him and Evie.”
Russell’s clone shivers. “He told me he wants to kill her last. He wants her to watch us all die first.”
“Yes, he wants to kill us, for sure, but he wants more than that.”
“What do you mean?”
“His mentor, Byzantyne, is obsessed with possessing Evie. To him, she is the wildest, most beautiful butterfly that he’s never quite gotten for his own. She makes Emil look like a moth in comparison. Emil doesn’t like being anyone’s moth. Her inescapable arranged a deal wherein Byzantyne never gets Evie’s soul, but that won’t be quite enough for him.”
“How do you know that?’ Russell asks.
“I know it because he would’ve killed me right away the first moment we met at Crestwood. His plan was to kill me first, but he found he couldn’t because of this.” Reed holds up his ring that I gave him. “It ruined his plan and allowed us to escape. He followed Evie and me, but I was taken to Dominion and Evie escaped once more with Xavier. Emil went back for you, Russell, but the Gancanagh saved you. Now his plan is to draw out our reapers as bait. He’ll try to capture or kill them. He wants us to return to Crestwood—back to him. It’s a simple plan, really.”
“So what does Emil do with Evie if he gets her?”
“He exacts revenge upon her and Byzantyne. It’s a good plan.”
“How do you know all this?”
“I remember him. I hunted Byzantyne and I watched them both linger around Simone. It was obsession.”
“Obsession. Are you talkin’ about them, or ‘bout you?” Russell asks.
Reed’s smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “I was referring to all of us.”
“Wait. You mean, you knew Evie when she was Simone?”
“I was there when she died. I will explain it all to you when I see you.”
“Russell, Reed and I aren’t safe here. Xavier will know I used his portal. He knows it leads here. You have to meet us somewhere else. We need to leave here as soon as possible. He’s probably on his way here now.”
“Where will y’all be?”
“Go to Detroit. I’ll think of a place in the city where we can meet, and then I’ll contact you. Hurry, Russell, Sheol is open and there isn’t much time.”
“Hurry, she says,” Russell’s clone mutters sarcastically, “like I didn’t just catch her making out with her aspire in the middle of a situation.” His clone disappears into the air.
“I need to find Brennus.”
Reed nods. “You may want your clothes for that.”
“I think that’s wise.” I pick up my clothes from the floor and put them on. Reed shrugs into his shirt. “It’s best if we leave now. We can find somewhere private for you to track Brennus.”
He’s right. Xavier’s mountain fortress is far away, but not if Xavier finds a portal in the vicinity of this house. He can be here at anytime. “We need to move.”
“What kind of car did Xavier drive?” Reed asks with a grin.
“C’mon, I’ll show you his garage.”
I take Reed to the underground stable of chrome and steel horses. When I turn on the light, I see what I now know is part of an angel arsenal—endless rows of motorcycles, cars, and SUVs polished to a high shine. “Which one do you like?” Reed asks. I walk down the row of SUVs. “The white one.”
Reed chuckles at my total disregard for the makes and models of the luxury vehicles. “The white one it is.” He opens the passenger door for me. I climb in. He’s sitting in the driver’s seat in a fraction of a second. I smile at him. He shows me a chip in the palm of his hand. “What is that?” I ask.
He closes his hand and crushes the chip. Dust falls from it when he opens it again.
“I disabled the tracking device and anti-theft protocols.” The keyless fob is in the console. Reed opens the fob and disables more components. He starts the car, glancing over at me. “I’ll find us a safe place to meet Russell while you find Gancanagh.”
I exhale and close my eyes. As Reed uses the car elevator to take the SUV from the basement to the driveway, I concentrate on creating a clone. Reed drives the car onto the street. My shimmering image floats through the roof of the SUV, up through the leafless branches of oak trees and into the night sky.
BRENNUS
I close da door ta me room. Having jus left Finn ta manage da fallout of whah we learned from our parley wi’ da trolls, I rub me face wearily. I despise da weakness associated wi’ needing ta sleep. Da only consolation I have in it is dat I can search for Genevieve in me dreams. I miss her more dan I care ta admit, even ta meself. I need her more dan I need anyting in dis miserable world.
I’ve had ta abandon her dis long because circumstances dictated it. Dere’s unrest everywhere. Craiturs are mobilizing. We have a very small window of opportunity ta persuade dem ta our side—ta join me queen’s army. I could’ve used Declan on dis front. He was adept at finding da angle dat gains compliance. I miss da counsel of me captain o’ da guard. Beside Finn, he was like a brudder ta me.
I go ta me bedside table. Tugging da small vial from da chain I wear around me neck, I lift it over me head. I set da vial of Genevieve’s blood down next ta da lamp. Dere is na much left in da small bottle. I will need ta ration it until I can get more or until she sees reason and joins me in dis fight. She is so stubborn. It’s da Seraphim in her.
I lie down on me bed, propping me head on a couple of white pillows. I reach over, intent on unstopping da vial of Genevieve’s blood when I pause. A commotion stirs from da hall beneath me room. Electricity surges tru me body as a radiant image of Genevieve enters me room. I set da vial back on da table, watching as she moves gracefully ta da edge of me bed. She hovers near da footboard before she climbs up on da mattress and crawls seductively ta me side. She lies down, looking up at da ceilin’.
For a moment I tink dat I’m already dreamin’, but den she turns her head and faces me, saying, “So, dis is a crap room ye’re livin’ in.”
A bark of laughter peels from me as da bed shakes wi’ me mirth at her attempt ta sound like a fella. “’Tis, Genevieve. Now do ye see da lengths I will go ta in order ta protect ye?”
“Is that why you chose this place?” She gazes around. Her eyes linger on da vial of her blood on da bedside table.
Me voice is gentle as I say, “It’s where ye’re f
rom, is it na?”
“It is, but as it turns out, I’m from a lot of places.”
“Yer guardian angel was right about dis place. ’Tis a foin city in which ta hide from angels. Dey do na seem ta like it here.”
Her tragic sadness dat so attracts me ta her is in her eyes when she turns ta look at me. I suck in me breath, wanting ta be da one ta save her from her sorrow. “I’m coming to pay you a visit. I should be here in a few hours.”
“Is dat so?”
“’Tis,” she replies, trying to hide her sorrow in humor.
“Ta whah do I owe da honor?” I have ta catch me breath and resist da impulse ta try ta reach for her across da bed. She’s in phantom form.
“We need to parley. You have something I need.”
“Whah have I dat ye need?”
“I’ll tell you when I arrive.”
“A hint, perhaps?” I wheedle.
“I don’t think so.”
“Why na?”
“You always want something in return. You rarely give me anything I really want without my having to bargain for it.”
“Dat’s jus good business.”
“This is more than business.”
“I know. ’Tis flesh, bone, and soul. Ye’re welcome ta whahever I have ta give. I’ve information ta impart ta ye as well.”
She looks skeptical. “A little hint?” she asks. Her eyes are so dangerous. Dey make me want ta open me veins ta her—ta bleed for her.
“Sheol is a rising tide dat is flooding our shores wi’ unwanted guests. Evil souls are inhabiting da earth in unprecedented numbers. Da less dan divine craiturs of dis world are choosing deir sides. We’re negotiating wi’ da trolls. Dey can be swayed ta our side.”
“We have to rise above the flood soon, Brenn. What are you doing to manage the tide?”
“Me magic is na holding against Sheol—even wi’ Finn and da other fellas’ help. Da ground dere shakes wi’ fury. All is at stake now. I need me queen by me side when worlds collide.”
“Fate calls,” she murmurs.
“Dere is someting else.”
“What?”
“Da fact dat ye saw Atwater troubles me. He can na be trusted. Whahever deal ye make wi’ him, he’ll fail ye.”
“He wants me to join your army—to lead it by your side. He acts as if he has made a promise to you—that he owes you something. He believes we cannot prevail without the Gancanagh in this fight.”
I blink. I was na expecting dat. “He leads well wi’ little lies. Like a blind man, I have followed him before. I would na have ye make da same mistakes as me.”
“Maybe he’s been playing a larger game than either of us realizes, Brennus.”
“Dat’s da problem wi’ Heaven. Ta dem, dis is all a game, Genevieve.”
“It’s a fragile thing—this life.”
“’Tis even more precarious in undeath,” I say wi’ a quirk of me eyebrow.
“Get some sleep, Brenn. You look tired.” She reaches a glowing hand out ta me, touching me cheek. I feel da heat of her soul in da hollowness of me body. It eases da ache in me for a moment. “I will see you soon.”
Her clone rises from me bed and travels tru da wall, out onta da city street. Shadows creep in on me wi’out her light ta keep dem at bay, and I’m forced to obey whahever spell ’twas dat she placed upon me. I close me eyes and I drift off ta sleep, dreaming of her.
EVIE
I don’t return my consciousness to my body after leaving Brennus. Instead I think of a golden-haired Seraph with one eye the color of sky and the other the color of clover. My clone moves through the night, retracing the path I’d just taken. I’m a blowing feather, floating downward, into the house that I left a short time ago—Xavier’s house.
I go through it, passing from room to room, each one more destroyed than the last. My light illuminates the night as I float back outside, onto the rooftop patio. I find Xavier, his shoulders rounded as he grips the railing overlooking the water. His hands have bent the metal. Snow falls around us. He’s shirtless, his crimson-colored wings shifting in the frigid air. He must be cold.
“You should go inside. It’s freezing out here.”
He whips around, facing me. The savage pain etched upon his face is almost more than I can bear. “Where are you?”
“Not far from here.”
“Show me where you are and I will come get you.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Please go inside,” I beg. I hate seeing him like this. He’s an open wound.
He takes a few steps nearer to the image of me. “Not until you tell me where you are.” His warm breath clashes with cold night, causing white wispy vapor to curl away from him.
“I need you, Xavier. I’m dead if you don’t help me.”
His face stiffens as he attempts to rein in his emotions. “Tell me what’s happened.”
“I know about that night—the night I was suppose to meet you at the bridge. I never made it there.”
“You have the boatswain.” He inhales as if he can take his first deep breath in a long time.
“I do,” I say in Angel. I know I’m not supposed to tell him, but I have to in order to make him understand.
“You remember Simone? You remember us?” he asks in Angel. His handsome face is hopeful.
I close my clone’s eyes in concentration, breaking off a small fragment of her. I open her eyes again as I thrust the glowing shard of my energy into him. It pierces his heart like a dagger, disappearing inside his chest. He glows brighter for a moment. His face is one of shock until the memory plays out to the end. The light dissipates from him and he sags a little, unharmed, but trying to make sense of all he saw in my memory. When he looks at me again, the hopeless ache that was in his eyes is gone and reckless joy replaces it.
“You told me you made a deal for us, but you couldn’t tell me anything else.” He would hold me in his arms now if he could. His hands open, and then close tight. “I will destroy your inescapable and Byzantyne. Your soldier will ascend, and then it’s you and me together for eternity.
“Reed is my aspire.” My voice is as haunting as my clone body.
“Only until he ascends. Once that happens, his binding mark will strip from your skin and you’ll be released from your obligations to him. You’ll be his champion no more. You can choose your love.”
“I’m in love with him, Xavier.”
“You love me.”
“I do love you—”
“It’s always been us, Evie, even when you were tied to your soul mate. No one knows you like I know you.”
“I remember, but I’m different now. I’m not the being with whom you fell in love.”
“I know exactly who you are! I’ve protected you in this lifetime, too, until your contract with Byzantyne made it impossible for me to remain. I love you. I will finish this for you, and when I do, Reed will ascend. He’ll vanish from your life. All that will be left is us.”
I ache inside my real body, the one that is with Reed. “Until then, you have to respect that he’s my aspire,” I say through my clone.
He doesn’t like what he sees—my sorrow. “Where are you?” he asks again.
“I’m on my way to gather my army.”
He frowns. “Your army is where we were—in the mountain.”
“No, that’s your army, Xavier. My army is the Gancanagh and any other being who would follow me.”
“The Gancanagh are evil!”
“This is about redemption.”
“Whose redemption?”
“Theirs—mine. They deserve a chance to change and we need them to fight for us.”
“And you would give them redemption?”
“I would, but it’s not up to me.”
“No, it’s not. Only Heaven can decide their fate.”
“These are the flames by which they will burn then—or not. If they must die, then let this prove them worthy of forgiveness.”
&nbs
p; He paces in front of me. “The gates of Sheol are open, Evie.”
“I am aware of that.” He stops to look at me, surprised by my calm, in-control demeanor. “You have to return to Tau and convince my father to meet us with his army in Crestwood. We have to join our forces in order to defeat the Fallen.”
“You’re asking divine angels to fight alongside undead demons? They will never agree to such an arrangement.”
“Then you have to make them agree. You have to lead them.”
“Your father—”
“He’ll listen to you if you explain it to him. Tell Tau that Emil is waiting for me there. The more time that passes, the more humans Emil will corrupt to fight for him. He hides just behind the gates. He has a plan to draw us in. He will attack us with an army of fallen. The boatswain wasn’t meant to open the gates of Sheol, it was meant to close them. And when that happens the sound of its music will separate Emil’s soul from his angelic body, just like it almost did to me the moment we used it before. Once Emil’s soul has divided from his body, we have to use the weapon Heaven has hidden for us in order to destroy his soul. His soul has to be annihilated or the contract is not fulfilled.”
“Tau said that Phaedrus is working with your soul mate to secure such a weapon—”
“We’ll find it. I promise.”
“The thought of you at the mercy of the Gancanagh is more than I can take, Evie.”
“I won’t be at their mercy, Xavier. They’ll be at mine.”
“How do I get in contact with you?” he asks.
“I’ll contact you. Convince my father, Xavier. My life depends upon it. I will see you in Crestwood.” I let go of my clone and she evaporates into the air.
I return to myself, waking up from my clone. Opening my eyes, I look through the windshield of Xavier’s car. Red neon light blinks the word “Opa” on and off from a sign, turning my skin rosy, and then pale. I straighten in the passenger seat of the SUV. Soft Greek music plays from somewhere out on the street. I glance over to the driver’s side of the parked car. Reed is there, watching me. He squeezes my hand clasped in his. “Hey,” I murmur, trying to smile but finding it too difficult to manage right now. “Brennus is here—in Detroit—not far from where we are now.”
Iniquity (The Premonition Series Book 5) Page 24
