by J. E. Taylor
His jaw tightened as he looked out the window. “I know the area where it was lost but I’m not sure that is the best course of action.”
“Why?”
“Because none of us know how that thing works. It was never used. But the lore is that it will wipe someone or something out of existence. No more. No heaven, no hell, no purgatory. As if they never existed. So that begs the question that I know you have already entertained. Is it from point in time forward, or does it wipe the thing out from all existence?”
I picked at a hangnail and nodded.
“If you use it on Lucifer, and the worst case happens, hell no longer exists as it does today. Lucifer’s lineage disappears, and that includes you and the Ryans.” He snapped his fingers. “Gone in an instant. The question that comes after that is what is the world like without hell or the devil? Does evil even exist? The world may be better off at first glance, but it also could have been destroyed eons ago. There is no way of knowing what will happen, so I am very hesitant to point you to its location.”
I ran my hand through my hair. “Fate said…”
“I don’t care what Julia said. She has no clue of what that knife will do either. Even her book of those fated to die doesn’t give her a clue. Usually she can see the alternatives…” He stood, glancing out the window at the ocean. “There is already an out of balance now that people have died that weren’t supposed to.” He sighed. “More will die due to the breaches, and Lucifer will continue to wreak havoc. So, the prescribed course of action is close the breaches, and then stop Lucifer.”
“And what if I cannot beat Lucifer with angel fire alone?” I asked.
He turned back to me. “Then I will bring you the knife myself.”
Chapter 9
I sat on the bed, stunned by everything Nick had told me. I had to leave soon, and I was not prepared for a nomad’s existence. Tom’s journey to close hell’s portals had taken him ten years. I stared at the paper in my hands, the map to all the breaches my little time jump seizure had created.
A throat cleared in the doorway, and I glanced over, right into Alex’s inquisitive gaze. A hollowness spread through my core, and I folded the paper in my hands and stuffed it into my pocket. Nick had said Alex couldn’t come with me, that it would be too dangerous for someone without powers or special skills.
I didn’t know how to tell Alex I was leaving him again. And leaving for a significant amount of time, not just a handful of hours. He stepped into the room, and my gaze lowered, landing on his bandaged hands.
I scrambled to my feet. “What happened to your hands?”
He glanced at the bandages and shrugged. “My touch wasn’t strong enough to stop the flames when you were freaking out with the time jumps. But at least I stopped you from doing any damage to the house.” His smile seemed strained as he moved closer, kicking the door closed. “I understand we’re going on an adventure?”
The hopeful lilt of his voice tugged at my heart. It would have been easier if I had just slipped out without seeing his pleading eyes.
I inhaled deeply and let out a slow stream of air. “I don’t know about we…” I dropped my gaze to the floor.
“Please,” he whispered, and it filled the room with an uncomfortable silence.
When I didn’t look up, he crossed and stood close enough for my focus to fall on his chest. He tilted my head up with one of his bandaged hands, and while he tried to hide it, his wince of pain did not go unnoticed.
“Don’t leave me here.” This time it wasn’t a plea—it was a demand. The anger dancing in his eyes made me take a step back, right into his desk.
“It’s too dangerous.” I repeated what I had been told, but it just felt empty.
He laughed. “And staying here isn’t?”
I couldn’t disagree with him. Being here was just as fraught with danger as being with me, but I doubted either of his parents would let him go galivanting all over the globe with me. Not when I was walking into dangerous situations every time I approached a breach.
“If anything were to happen to you…”
He stopped me with his lips. “If I stay, something is sure to happen to me, and you know it.” He pressed his lips harder against mine.
I opened my mouth to protest, but that just gave his tongue access. Any coherent thought of mine disappeared. When he finally pulled away, I had to shake the fog out of my head.
“You don’t have any special abilities,” I said.
“No. But I am a blackbelt, and I can take care of my own unless I’m hit with a tranquilizer.” He lifted his bandaged hands. “And I apparently can stop fire, so don’t give me that shit about not having special abilities. Just because I can’t shoot fire or move things with my mind doesn’t make me helpless.”
“But your hands are burnt,” I said. “You are hurt because of me.”
He closed his eyes and crossed his arms. His silent countdown echoed in my mind. When he got to zero, he opened his eyes. “I’m alive. I will heal. And if my mom doesn’t get a chance to fix me, I’ll suck it up, because it’s only temporary.”
“And what happens if the next time it isn’t something temporary? What happens if it is a fatal wound because I couldn’t react fast enough?”
“I am going with you.”
The door opened. “You are not going with her,” CJ said. He filled the doorway, and his gaze was darker than I had seen it since I’d arrived in town.
From the look in Alex’s eyes, I knew this wasn’t the last word on this subject, but I was happy for the interruption. I was also more tired than I had been when I woke.
“Kylee and Michael have agreed to go with you,” CJ said.
“Doesn’t Kylee have a kid?”
“Yes.”
“If it’s too dangerous for Alex, it is way to dangerous for a helpless child.” I crossed my arms. As much as I didn’t want Alex in harm’s way, I would rather have him with me any day over a child.
“Levi is accompanying you.”
“What the hell is a dog going to do against demons?” I asked, and then a memory swam to the front of my mind. One of Tom’s memories to be precise. I gasped at the image of the dog turning into some hideous dragon-like monster.
“Leviathan,” CJ said. “And he likes to eat demons.”
I laughed. That would explain the leathery quality of his fur. “If that’s the case, then I’d rather go with Alex and Levi than relative strangers.”
“It’s not a field trip, Faith. Or a backpacking trip across Europe. You’ve got serious work to do, and Alex will be a distraction.”
“Don’t I have any say in this?” Alex asked, exasperated.
“No.” CJ glared at him. “Say your goodbyes because she needs to pack. She is leaving in the next half hour.”
I balked at CJ. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep for the next twenty-four hours.
Alex glared at his father, but nodded. “Fine,” he snapped between tight lips. “The least you could do is leave us alone,” he added when his father didn’t show any signs of budging from where he stood.
CJ cocked an eyebrow.
Alex looked at the floor. “If I can’t go with her, I need a goodbye that will keep me sane. And yes, that means what you think it means.” He glanced at his father and jutted his chin out in defiance. “If you won’t allow me to say goodbye in my own way, I will not be able to hang on to what little humanity I have left.”
His words were so soft and full of anguish that my heart squeezed in my chest. I needed Alex as much as he needed me, and I couldn’t fathom being away from him for as long as it would take to close the breaches. Even if each one took minutes to close, the traveling to each location would take months.
“You are not sleeping with her under my roof again.”
Alex threw his arms out, and his face reddened. “Then I might as well just waltz into wherever Lucifer is and let him take me, because by the time she gets back, there will be nothing left.”
Anger welled up in me, and before I could catch myself, I slammed my fist into Alex’s cheek.
Alex stumbled and caught himself on the desk. One of his bandaged hands flew to cover the ever-reddening spot where my fist had connected.
“Don’t you dare threaten that!” I pointed at him as every fiber of my being sparked with fury. My exhaustion magnified the indignity flowing through my veins, and my vision clouded with a red hue.
“Ow,” he muttered and stared at me. His eyes widened and he stepped back. Fear etched into his face, and he put his hands up. “Calm down, Faith,” he said softly, belying the sweat that broke out on his brow.
“You want me to calm down after that senseless threat?”
“Yes, I do,” he said and straightened, swallowing hard enough for me to see his Adam’s apple bob. He stepped towards the closet and swung the door open so the mirror on the back was directed straight at me.
I stared at the fiery wings spread out from my back. It was the same thing I had seen in the reflection of the windows when I’d closed the portal. My anger diffused, leaving my muscles feeling like pudding. The wings faded.
Tom turned into the spitting image of Lucifer when he got blindingly mad. I turned into a fiery winged being. Great. Just what I needed right now. I raked my hand down my face and glanced at the door.
“Just let us have a few minutes,” I said to CJ. “Please.”
He glanced between the two of us and nodded, closing the door.
“Don’t ever throw that out there so callously. You understand? It’s not a joke, and it certainly isn’t a bargaining chip.” Hot tears blurred my vision and burned my throat.
He went to run his fingers through his hair and stopped short, staring at his bandaged hand. He dropped his arm and sighed. “I’m sorry. I was aggravated, and it just came out.”
It was more than that and he knew it, which was why he was totally avoiding meeting my gaze. I crossed to him and wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him tight until his arms encompassed me. He kissed the top of my head.
“I don’t want to go, either, but it is my fault. My responsibility.”
“What if you have another seizure?” he asked against my ear.
“I don’t think that will happen. I was able to pull Tom’s memory of Leviathan without falling into a time jump.” I snuggled against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It lulled me into false comfort, enough so that when I pushed away, I had a momentary flood of panic that I would never see him again.
He unraveled the bandages from his hands and dropped them on the floor before tenderly cupping my cheeks with his reddened palms. “Lock the door,” he whispered, searching my eyes.
I pushed onto my tiptoes and planted a kiss, but I didn’t lock the door. When he started leading me towards the bed, I pulled away and shook my head. I was not going to blatantly disobey his father’s wishes.
“I need something to motivate me to hurry back home,” I said.
“I need…”
I covered his mouth with mine, shutting off his words. I knew what he thought he needed. I knew denying him wouldn’t make him happy, but I also knew if I let him have his way again, I would not be able to leave.
I peeled out of his arms and headed towards the closet.
He grabbed my arm and spun me back into his grip. My hands slapped onto his chest, and I looked up at him in surprise.
“I’m not always nice,” he said and pushed me against the wall. His entire body molded to mine as his kiss boiled heat in my veins.
Good lord, how I loved the way he kissed me. It was brutal and sensual and full of everything we didn’t seem to be able to articulate. It was pure and dirty at the same time—if there even could be such a contradiction like that—but it was there, living in the motion of our tongues.
And it lit my soul on fire.
It took everything I had to break away from him, but I did and danced out of his reach, gasping for air while my heart pounded in a tribal mating beat.
“Alex,” I said and splayed my fingers toward him. “I can’t.” The words felt foreign on my lips, especially since every cell was crying out for me to step back into his arms.
He leaned against the wall and stared at the ceiling. That mental countdown went into effect again as he counted his way into control. This time, it took him three counts to finally lower his gaze to mine. He nodded and turned, leaving me alone to pack up the shattered remnants of my life.
Chapter 10
I sat in the back seat with a baby between me and Levi. Michael drove while Kylee studied the map Death gave me, plotting our course on her tablet. The silence in the car was maddening. I glanced out the window, wishing it were Alex on the other side of the car seat.
He hadn’t even said goodbye. He had just stared at me with his arms crossed from the farthest point in the room. He’d purposely blocked me from any of his thoughts. It was a harsher punishment than anything he could have done to me. I imagined it would be on par with tearing my heart from my body.
The whine from the other side of the car pulled my attention. At first, I thought it was the baby, but she was sleeping peacefully with a pacifier in her mouth. That left one other being. I met Levi’s sad-eyed stare.
Do not fret. The boy loves you.
The deep and very ancient-sounding voice filled my head. I pointed at the dog.
Who else would it be?
My mouth popped open, and I snapped my gaze out the windshield while the silent communication sank in. I slid my gaze in his direction and thought, You can read minds?
The dog’s mouth opened, and his tongue lolled out to the side in a weird canine grin. It was as creepy as his faux fur had felt.
I shivered. It was unnatural, and I didn’t want to discuss Alex, even though the creature was trying to ease my mind. Alex had left me with a cold certainty that whatever we had shared yesterday hadn’t meant a thing to him.
Stop with the overdramatic teen angst!
“Get out of my head,” I muttered and turned away from the monster dog.
“Did you say something?” Kylee stretched around the seat to look at me. Her blonde hair hung in a wave between the seats.
“No, just talking to myself.” I swore Levi was laughing at me.
Kylee glanced at the dog and back to me. “How are you holding up?”
I glanced out the window and shrugged. “I don’t know. Honestly, I’m exhausted, and Alex didn’t make leaving easy at all.” My stomach muscles tightened at the thought of his brooding expression, as if I had taken his last piece of special candy away. It was childish and so very effective at hurting me.
She let out a small laugh. “It must be a trait of that name. My husband used to give me that look when I left for a job without him.”
“You were married?” I asked.
Michael’s gaze flicked to mine in the rearview mirror before he looked back out the windshield.
“Yes. Alejandro, or Alex for short. That’s what I called him for years. He was Alexis’s daddy.” She turned back to the front of the car, but even her profile announced her sadness. I didn’t need to be a mind reader to feel it fill the car.
“What happened to him?”
She didn’t answer at first and suddenly her mind went to static. She was purposely blocking me, and she glanced at Michael. Her hands seem to wrestle each other as she looked over her shoulder at me.
“You did the right thing by leaving him behind.” She offered a grim smile and turned away.
“If this is so dangerous, then why are you taking me? You have a daughter, for God’s sake.”
“Because I have an arsenal of ancient weapons that will help you. And I’m a seasoned fighter. I was the best choice in that room to help you do this quickly. Michael is going to watch over Alexis for me when we get to San Diego, which will ease my mind. Leaving both of them in York was not an option. No one but Fate knows where I live, which means both Michael and Alexis will be safe while I’m gone.”
Kylee glanced back at me and nodded. “Yes. It won’t take us as long as you think to do this job. Not with the map and a privately chartered jet that will take us to our destinations.”
As if on cue, Michael turned off the highway and headed towards signs announcing Berwick. He navigated the roads until he pulled into a small private airport.
We climbed out of the car, and Michael grabbed the suitcases in the back as Kylee let Levi out of the car and unhooked the car seat. I stood next to the car waiting for them because I didn’t know what to do. I had never flown before, and the only experience I had with airports was what I had watched in movies. This little stretch of tarmac didn’t follow anything I had ever seen before.
Levi came over to my side of the car and nudged my hand with his nose. I glanced down and then realized that both Michael and Kylee were heading towards a plane that was waiting for us. We didn’t go inside the building, and we didn’t have to pass through any metal detectors like I had seen countless times on movies I’d watched.
I followed and climbed the stairs after the dog. The interior of the plane looked like a high-end living room. More posh than even the Ryans’. I was waved to a seat by the pilot.
“Hello, I’m Josh. I’ll be your pilot.” He glanced at the paper in his hands. “It looks like I’ll be your pilot for quite some time based on the schedule here.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “First stop is San Diego.” He turned and closed the door.
I glanced around the fuselage, and my heart picked up in my chest. I rubbed my hands on my jeans and tried to shake the building unease in my belly. Levi jumped up on the seat next to me and stretched out, laying his head on my lap. He glanced up at me with eyes that reflected the same amount of unease riding my blood.
The monster was just as afraid of flying as I was.
Kylee and Michael strapped in with the baby between them and smiled at me from across the plane.
“By the time we are done, you two will be seasoned air travelers.” Kylee smiled. “That doesn’t mean the unease of being sealed in a tin can ten thousand feet in the air goes away either.”
