Falling from the Darkness

by Sirena Noir

  “Me?” Aiden looked around to make sure he was talking to him. “What are you talking about?”

  Sariel pushed off the counter and got closer to Aiden, his voice low enough as to not be overheard. “Siphoning.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Aiden glowered at him then turned to exit the building, but Sariel stepped in front of him.

  “Yes, you do. I had a feeling you could do it, but now I’m sure. It’s a rare talent, but dangerous. I’d be careful if I were you. Getting caught stealing another lorean’s energy is worse than wing-checking. Way worse. And the consequences…” He let out a whistle that rose and lowered in tone.

  Aiden looked around, but no one else seemed to notice him, or Sariel. The commotion of Darius’s death took over their attention. Thankfully, no one else noticed his siphoning.

  Aiden knew the penalties, but he was careful. There was no way he was going to be locked in Nevaeh under house arrest for gaining energy. “I’m good. I don’t have a problem so it’s not dangerous. I don’t do enough to cause problems or be seen.”

  Sariel grinned. His toothy smile irritated Aiden. He stepped even closer. “But, I saw you.”

  Aiden cocked his head, trying to decipher what Sariel was doing. His wings fluttered in anger. “What do you want?”

  The Reaper looked around. “The same thing you want.”

  “How do you know what I want?”Aiden wasn’t in the mood, nor did he have time for games.

  “I can see it in you. It’s part of who you are.” Sariel shrugged. “It’s my talent.”

  Aiden didn’t have time to respond, the stinging in his wings came on strong and in the next second he was ripped from the nursing home without warning.

  He stumbled as the world tried to focus around him. That was new. Usually he had a few seconds to prepare himself before being jerked away. What was Sariel getting at? He would have to return to the lorean at some future point to discover what he was getting at. Would he report what he’d seen?

  Blinking, Aiden took in the scene, still trying to gather his bearings. A long red brick wall with graffiti followed the potholed road down past the street lamps that were flickering on and off. Ivy and vines wove their way throughout the stone. Trees shrouded them in shadows.

  They were up on a hill overlooking a small city. Just below the wall were old buildings with broken out windows. The sharp jagged points of glass reflected the diminishing light.

  A car rattled past on the crossroad. The squeal of its breaks echoed as it descended the hill.

  Sabre sat a few feet from him next to the wall. Her knees curled up to her chest and her hands covered her ears as she rocked back and forth, her back hitting the brick each time.

  Aiden’s stomach rolled. He wasn’t good with emotions and yet that’s all he could feel around her. She omitted such an intense sadness and fear that even he could feel it.

  And he hated it.

  “Sabre?” He winced trying to move closer to her, but each step was more painful. “Don’t you ever shut it off?” It would suck to feel that bad all the time.

  She looked up and sniffed back a fresh round of tears. “Aiden?”

  He held his hands up. “You called for me?”

  She hiccuped and her breathing hitched. Her watery eyes were wide. “Take me out of here. Please.”

  Aiden wasn’t sure what to do, but he understood the need to run away. There were many days he wanted to run. Hide in the dangerous shadows of Tealsdor where no one would find him. Disappear and throw the world off his shoulders.

  He reached down for her. She took his hand and he went to the first place he could think of. The last place he had his mind on before being snatched away to Sabre’s side.

  The last memory in Darius’s vision.

  Chapter Twelve

  It was already dark on the east coast with the moon shining its steady soft light down on the duo.

  “A cemetery? Really? You couldn’t think of anywhere else to take me?” Sabre turned her sad eyes toward a centuries old headstone. She ran her fingers along the top of the stone and shivered.

  The moonlight helped mask her sadness, but Aiden could still feel it, like she radiated it to him. He would have preferred a different gift, but non-the-less, he felt it. And it didn’t make any sense either. He’d never been bestowed the talent of emotions like his brother. It had to be Sabre. There was no way it was him.

  “Well, it was kind of a last minute request. You didn’t give me sufficient time to plan a proper vacation.” Aiden sat down on a headstone. His ebony wings draped over the back like coat tails. “What were you thinking? Hawaii?”

  “I was thinking…” She sighed, folding her arms. “I don’t know what I was thinking, except… Except I wanted to escape the pain.”

  He watched her closely, trying to figure her out. What was it about her that kept pulling him to her whenever she needed an angel? Why him? Of all the loreans out in the world, why did she keep calling for him? Yes, he had wanted to find her, and he should be calling it a blessing, but that was before… Before, when he wanted to kill her. Now he wasn’t sure what he wanted. “What was going on? What triggered your emotional tantrum?”

  Sabre glared at him with her dark eyes. “You are horrible at this angel thing. Has anyone ever told you that?”

  Aiden smirked. “A few.”

  She slumped to the earth and leaned back against a headstone, pulling her knees up to her chest. “It’s just people. They can be hurtful, ya know?” Sorrow laced every word she spoke. It made Aiden’s chest pain just watching her. He hated how she made him feel her pain.

  “Yeah.” He knew all too well. He’d been around for three hundred years. Humanity was not always light. “What happened?”

  “You know, it might be the twenty-first century, but you’d be surprised at how many people still hate black people. It’s like my skin makes them afraid.” She looked up at Aiden, a defiant look crossed her face. “But I’m a person too. I don’t understand why they have to be so mean.” New tears filled her eyes.

  He chuckled, even though he knew it wasn’t appropriate. “You’d be surprised to know how color in the lorean world makes a difference in how you are treated, too.”

  Sabre sucked in a ragged breath, drying her eyes with the sleeve of her blouse. “Lorean? What is that?”

  “Another word for angel.” Aiden scanned the cemetery, not wanting to make eye contact. Things were getting too personal.

  “Lorean…” She let the word trail off her tongue.

  He shivered despite never being cold. Hearing her say the word hit a part of him inside that he couldn’t explain. It was like she was meant to be a part of his world, but wasn’t. Another crazy thought.

  “What do you want?” Sabre asked.

  “What?” He discarded his thoughts and tried to focus on Sabre as just a means to an end and nothing more. But, his heart told him that she would never be just that. She was more. “What do you mean? I’m here because you brought me here.”

  She smiled sadly. “No, I know that. I just mean, what do you want?”

  “What I want, I can’t have.” He released a pent up breath, needing to change the subject. There was no way he was going to spill his deepest desires to some pain ridden mortal. There was no way he’d tell her he was jealous of her. Well, not her exactly, but her life. Life in general. It was stupid to even have a hope for such a life.

  And then, there was the prophecy. He wanted that to end. And, thinking of what Darius said, he knew he wanted something else. Something only someone equipped to feel others could find. He placed a finger to his mouth then grinned. “Come to think of it, I do want something. And I think you can help.” Aiden jumped up from the headstone to squat down next to her. “Yes, I think you can. You do all the emotional crap like my brother. You’re an empath.”

  She scoffed. “Yeah, so?”

  He kinda thought it was amusing seeing her try to be rebellious, but he knew she didn’t hav
e the heart to keep it up. And he had a good few hundred years on that game, there was no way he’d lose to her. “I need your help finding someone.”

  She stood up and flung her arms in the air. “Why would I help you? You want me dead. Worse, you want to be the one who kills me.”

  Aiden stood, rolling his hand over, palm up in the air before pointing at her. “It’s true. I do want you dead, but only because I want to save my brother. But as long as you have a purpose, I’ll make sure you are safe.”

  “That’s comforting.” She sat down on the edge of another headstone. And just like that, he knew she had caved. It was a lot easier than he thought it would be. Maybe he had hoped for a bit more resistance? It was a bit disappointing that she wasn’t very stubborn. He always thought women with a bit of fire were fun to be around.

  Looking at him, she frowned. “You said I was like your brother.”

  Aiden sat down next to her, resting his arms over his knees. “Yeah. You’re both a pain in the butt.”

  She smiled, a slight giggle escaped her lips. “Is he cute?”

  “Meh,” Aiden shook his hand in the air. “Not like me.” He gave her a side grin.

  Sabre rolled her eyes and nudged him with her shoulder. “So how does he do it? You know, handle all the feelings? I go crazy daily.”

  “My brother, Chase, he used to tell me that he had more energy or power when he compartmentalized his emotions. He harnessed them or something. I don’t know. I’m not great with emotions.”

  She laughed. “That’s an understatement.”

  He shot her a mock glare, but a tiny portion of the corner of his mouth raised. Bantering with her appeased him. “But I did learn a few things from him. Like, I know you can feel without becoming overwhelmed.” He leaned back, looking at the moonlight filtering through the tree leaves.

  “So, what? Focus on the pain, but don’t let it get to me?” She smirked, rolling her eyes. “Gee, that sounds easy. Now why didn’t I think of that before?”

  “I know it’s hard. But I watched him. He learned how to cope with the pain. He was logical about how he handled it.” He held a hand up when she started to protest. “I’m not saying you aren’t logical, just listen to me.” He pressed a finger to her chest. The heat from her radiated to him and up his arm. “What do you feel here?” He moved his hand away quickly. That was close. Too close. He couldn’t let himself get too close to her, he might still have to kill her. Not to mention he wasn’t sure if he could siphon off humans. That was something that wouldn’t be safe to test.

  Her breathing hitched and her cheeks darkened with a flush. “I, um, I don’t know what I feel. I feel everyone else’s feelings more. Then I’m overridden by emotion and I can’t stop it.” She cleared her throat and stood up, walking away from Aiden. “Who is it you think I can find?”

  He gestured all around them, his hand falling to rest on the headstone he sat on. “She is here.” He looked down where he sat. “Well, not here, here. But, somewhere here. In the cemetery.” Aiden replayed Darius’s last memories of her dead daughter in his mind. He had transported Sabre and himself to the cemetery where she was buried.

  Her stance stiffened and she stared at Aiden through narrowed eyes. “Here? So that’s why you brought me to a cemetery. You had a plan all along.”

  Aiden shrugged. “I always have a plan, but no. That wasn’t my plan. I just wanted to get you out of that place you were wallowing in.”

  Sabre licked her lips and placed her hands on her hips, looking around. “How do I find her?”

  “Feel? I don’t know. You’re the empath. Let yourself feel for her.” This was it. He was going to find the locket. He let allowed himself the moment of excitement.

  She nodded. “Alright. I’ll try.” Closing her eyes, she sucked in a long deep breath. “I can feel… pain.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “So much pain.” She shook her head, backing away. “I don’t think I can do this.”

  Aiden grabbed her by the shoulders, stopping her escape. “You can. Focus.” He was too close. He couldn’t let her quit now.

  She continued to shake her head. “No. It hurts.”

  Of course it hurt. What did she expect? “This is a cemetery. It’s going to hurt.” He shook her. “Focus, Sabre. I need to find her.”

  “I’m trying.” Tears streamed from her closed eyes as her breath hitched with the sensations, then she stilled. “Wait. I think I feel something… It’s different.”

  Aiden’s heart raced. “Where? Where, Sabre?” He was practically yelling now. He let go of Sabre’s arms and paced beside her, gripping his hands in his hair. “Argh!”

  Seconds passed like minutes, minutes like hours. Sabre didn’t move. She didn’t talk.

  Aiden could barely breath. Waiting was not his strong suit. How long was he expected to be patient? This was crazy. Maybe she couldn’t do it after all?

  Her eyes opened, but they were blank and unfocused. Aiden leaned back, watching her. “Over here.” She started walking, staring off at nothing, but knowing exactly where she was going.

  Aiden followed her to a large willow tree. Parting the branches, he walked under. In the seclusion of the tree, Aiden welcomed the darkness.

  Sabre fell to her knees in front of an old headstone. The carved words were unreadable. “Here. She’s here.” She placed her hands on the stone, caressing the rough texture. “I think I can read it.”

  He jutted out a hand at the tombstone. “There’s nothing there to read.”

  “I can see that, but it’s more like a feeling. It’s hard to explain.” With her fingertips, she traced invisible letters. She shook her head. “It’s cryptic. I don’t get it.”

  He didn’t care if it was in an ancient language that he needed to decipher, as long as she could read it. “What does it say?”

  She sucked in a shaky breath. “Release my pain. Release my fears. Find life again. Hope in my tears.” Sabre looked at Aiden, her eyes brimmed with fresh tears.

  Aiden groaned inwardly. The girl was always crying. “What?”

  “It’s a baby. The mom… she didn’t mean to, but she killed her. She was so scared.” Sabre stood up, shaking her head. “I can’t do this.”

  “Seriously?” He was so close. Now she wanted to give up?

  Maybe he had enough power to see the child with his mind? Closing his eyes, he let his mind go deep down to the tiny casket. He dropped to his knees. He still wasn’t fully rejuvenated from his time at the nursing home. And being snatched away by Sabre didn’t help.

  A soft hand rested on his shoulder. He could feel a worried, but calm sensation roll over him. Sabre was pushing her emotions onto him again, trying to help. But, he didn’t need emotions, he needed energy. Using her touch, Aiden tried to siphon her energy from her, filling his reserves until she fainted. It worked, too well. She was a weak human and he might have taken too much.

  Spinning quickly, he caught her before she fell and gently placed her on the ground. “Thank you,” he whispered. “I’m sorry, but I need to see her.”

  Just like in Nevaeh, a shovel appeared, leaning against the tree. He took it and went to work, digging up the casket. It didn’t take long before he hit something solid. Climbing down in the hole, he heaved out the coffin, placing it on the surface beside the grave.

  He hesitated before opening it. There were the remains of a small infant and an old tarnished dress resting peacefully inside. The soul was long gone, enjoying her eternity in a different layer. But it was the principle behind the fact that he was about to disrupt an innocent corpse. That didn’t sit well with him and uneasiness roiled in his gut.

  Aiden held his breath a little superstitiously. A small golden box shone up at him like a beacon. He reached in and snatched the trinket without disturbing any of the bones, and closed the lid. He leaned over, resting his head on the casket. He had it. He had the key.

  He lowered the coffin back to the ground and tossed the dirt back over it. He wanted to kill Sabre, but he was
n’t completely cold hearted. And even though she irritated him with every fiber of his being, she was growing on him.

  He stuffed the locket into his pocket, knowing now was not the time to look at it. It would have to wait until he was alone.

  Aiden picked up Sabre. She hadn’t flickered out of his layer yet, and he needed to make sure she was safe. There were so many loreans who would do much worse than just kill to have her. And a few that he knew of that would kill her without hesitation. He had thought he was one of them, only to be proven wrong.

  He wasn’t sure they were friends yet, but there was something about her that pulled him toward her.

  “Put the girl down.” The voice rang with authority that sent chills down Aiden’s arms.

  Aiden spun around with Sabre in his arms. A lorean all in white stood there, a fierce look etched in his face. He wasn’t near as tall or large as Aiden, but he wasn’t afraid.

  “I said, put her down,” the smaller angel said again, righteousness shoring up his voice.

  “I heard you.” Aiden chuckled. The other lorean couldn’t be much taller than five feet. How did he expect to do anything against Aiden? “I didn’t know they had fun-sized angels.”

  “I am Leopold. And I am not a fun-sized lorean.” Leopold glared at Aiden with striking blue eyes that mimicked the azure gems in other worlds.

  Aiden cleared his throat, attempting to stifle his amusement. “Sorry, Leopold. But, I’m not going to put her down.”

  Leopold took a step forward, stretching out his arms for Sabre. “You put her down, or you’ll have the wrath of the seraphs on you.”

  Aiden wasn’t sure if Leopold was bluffing. Tossing out a threat with the seraphs was a big deal. What did Leopold have on his side—because Aiden knew it wasn’t height. He may never get tired of goading the smaller lorean. “The seraphs, huh? Well, then, I guess I’ll take my chances.”

  “I said, put her down!” Leopold’s wings flapped open as he yelled.

  Aiden was bored with the puny angel. His muscles quivered and heat rolled through his body. His wings purred against his back. “Now you just had to go there. Yelling at me? Really?”