The man in black twirled me and then caught me in his arms, allowing me to recognize him at last.
“My, my,” Belial said with his usual insufferable smirk. “This is quite a surprise.”
I examined his fancy suit and then caught a good look at myself in the reflection of the microwave door. “What is it with you and these stupid themed dreams?”
He clucked his tongue, settling his large hands on my waist as we swayed back and forth to the music. “You have no imagination, my pet. It’s much more fun to be someone else for a change. You seem to be indulging in it as well.”
I scowled. “Don’t start. I’m already mad enough without your help.”
“True. Speaking of help, what can I do for you? It must be important. You’ve never contacted me before.”
I took a deep breath, stuffing down the frantic voice in my head that told me not to go through with this horrid idea. “I need a favor.”
Belial arched a thin eyebrow. “Another one?”
“Shut up. This is not something you can laugh off. This is serious and I’m about to ruin my life by asking you.”
The teasing smile faded. “I’m listening.”
“Raphael showed me the retranslated page of the Book of Time. It states that on October 31st, a Seer will wake the Leviathan and it’s going to kill a lot of people. He also said that no other Seers will Awaken before then so it’s going to be either me or your daughter. You can tell where I’m going with this.”
His hands tightened on my hips a bit. “You’re convinced it’s going to be you.”
A lump formed in my throat and I swallowed hard to push past it. “Yes. But I wanted to recruit the rogue angel to take a look at the translation himself and see if he knows any more details. Dates, times, places, anything that might stop me from waking the Leviathan. The archangels refused to agree to this so I’m asking you to help me break the rogue angel out and convince him to work with me.”
He let out a harsh bark of laughter. “Are you insane? Releasing the Leviathan would suit both my purposes and my master’s. What makes you think I would help you?”
“You’re still bound by demonic law to hunt the archangel. He’s not dead. Your contract with us isn’t up until he dies. Besides…”
I took a deep breath, forcing myself to continue. “If I do this, Michael is probably going to leave me. You’ll get your shot at turning me into your servant.”
Belial said nothing, staring down at me with his cold blue eyes as we continued waltzing. I could almost see the wheels in his head turning as he thought about my proposal. Still, even in my dream state, I was so afraid that there were goosebumps all over my bare arms. Being close to him scared me beyond all reasoning, but there was also a dark part of me that felt intrigued by the danger.
“I have a hard time believing that you would sacrifice your marriage for people you don’t even know,” he said finally.
“That’s because you’re a demon. You couldn’t understand sacrifice if you tried,” I replied, fighting to keep my voice level.
Belial scoffed. “Your arrogance is astounding. You act like you know me, but you don’t. You only know what you’ve read and what your archangels have told you.”
“Fine. Then who are you really, Belial? It’s just the two of us in here. No one will hear you except for me if you tell the truth.”
“The truth? Why would I reveal such a thing to the likes of you?”
I shook my head. “You are such a coward.”
In a flash, he spun me so that I faced away from him and then wrapped his arms around my upper torso, trapping my wrists in his iron grip. He crushed me against the front of his body, sending jolts of pain up my spine and my ribs. I couldn’t help gasping and trying to wriggle free, but he didn’t budge. His hot breath washed over my ear as he leaned down, pressing the side of his face into my hair, his words quiet but terrifying.
“Careful, my pet. My patience isn’t endless.”
I closed my eyes, ignoring how shaky I sounded. “Do we have a deal or not?”
He let out another one of those sandpaper chuckles. “Always business with you, isn’t it? But before I give you my answer, I want to hear you say it.”
“Say what?”
“That you’re truly willing to give up your sweet Michael and the friendship you share with Gabriel and Raphael to save these so-called innocent people. That you’re willing to betray your loved ones even though they have given you everything. If you do this, there is no turning back. You will do things my way and my way alone. Now say it.”
Tears gathered in my eyes, but didn’t fall. “I am.”
A long sigh escaped his chest. He let go of my left hand and slid his fingers around my neck. The fear inside me shifted. I had been afraid he would tear me apart, but now I could feel the heat from his body, every inch of him, even the part I didn’t want to think about, and knew I would never forgive myself for what I had done. I deserved to be in his clutches. We both knew that.
“So be it, Seer. We have an accord. I will contact you again when we arrive in the States. Until then, act as if nothing is wrong.”
“Fine.”
He licked my neck—a slow, sensual movement. “Shall we kiss on it?”
“Don’t get it twisted. I may be working with you, but I still hate you and I always will.”
“So you say. But who knows what the future might bring?”
His lips slid across my ear and he bit down on the lobe, hard enough that everything went white for a second from a quick rush of pain and pleasure.
I woke up in my bed with tears on my cheeks and an icy cold sensation gliding across my skin. I sat up and wrapped my arms around myself to quell the tremors flooding through me, and couldn’t remember the last time I had felt so alone.
Chapter 21
Michael
I COULD TELL the desk clerk at the Child Services office had gotten annoyed with me because I couldn’t stop tapping my fingers on the counter. If she had any inkling of the things weighing on my mind, she may have understood my fidgety nature. Impatience bubbled around me as I stood there, waiting for Belial to return with Juliana so we could hop on a plane and get the hell back to Albany.
I hadn’t spoken to my wife in almost a day. Not by choice, of course. Gabriel called when Raphael returned with the newly translated page of the Book of Time and told me everything. Understandably, neither Jordan nor I had taken the news well. I wanted to talk to her, but Gabriel told me to let her settle down first. He had a point. Jordan needed time to evaluate the situation. Hearing her worried husband wouldn’t facilitate that. But I still wanted to call. Every second of the day, I wanted to call and tell her I didn’t give a shit what that page said—I didn’t believe for a second that she would wake the Leviathan.
I didn’t surprise me that Gabriel didn’t believe it, either. After all, he had known Jordan longer than I had so we were both in agreement about asking Raphael to return to Heaven to have someone else analyze the page. There had to be something we missed—another Awakening, or some way to avert the Leviathan’s uprising. We needed to prevent the deaths of those one thousand people and we needed to make sure nothing from the underworld would be able to make it through to Earth from the Hellmouth. Again, the damn page did not specify the details of the incident so we were basically taking a shot in the dark.
Meanwhile, I’d been stuck with Belial as he secured all the paperwork and worked his magic on the judge to grant him custody of the child for the time being. Any normal person would have gotten a firm and rightful no, but Belial’s silver tongue had always been his greatest asset. Plus, he had paid off a shitton of people to get a trial date and a verdict in his favor.
The police were elbow-deep in the case of Juliana’s missing parents—interviewing locals, checking the last places they had been seen, and spreading the word. The Freitas family was well known in the area so a lot of people were concerned, which made things a little easier. The more informed the neighb
ors, the better our chance of finding them.
So far, I theorized that the rogue angel had some sort of accomplice who had been ordered to kidnap the parents if he failed in his mission to kill Juliana. He might have thought they would be bargaining chips for his release, but since he got arrested, things were out of our hands. Still, even with that hypothesis, I had doubts. Kidnapping didn’t seem like his kind of deal. Something just felt off about the entire situation and I aimed to get to the bottom of it.
I snapped out of my thoughts when I heard the unmistakable cry of a little girl. Seconds later, Juliana and a very irritated Belial came around the corner. He let go of her hand to sign out at the desk and she continued wailing as if she had nothing else to live for. Sympathy rushed through me in a wave. I knelt in front of the child, thinking fast.
“Hey, shh, it’s alright,” I said in Portuguese, rubbing the top of her head. She got a good look at me this time and I could tell she recognized me from her traumatic night, though it only made her cry a bit less.
“Do you like candy?”
She sniffled and then nodded. I reached into my pocket and withdrew a lollipop I’d swiped from the front desk. Juliana tore off the wrapper, then popped the sweet into her mouth. I wiped her face clean as she continued watching me with her cautious brown eyes.
“There you go. Do you know my name?”
She shook her head. “It’s Michael. I’m going to be helping to take care of you for a while, okay?”
Another slow nod. I paused, thinking. “Do you speak English?”
She rolled the candy around to the side of her mouth and spoke in a hoarse voice, still in Portuguese.
“M-My Mama taught me a little.”
“Good. That means when we get to America, you’ll be able to read signs and talk to people. Do you like reading?”
She nodded again. “Great. Then that’s what we’ll do.”
I scooped her up in my arms and she didn’t fight me—automatically sliding her hands around my neck like she was used to being carried. When I stood up straight, I noticed the rather amused expression on Belial’s face.
“I’m sorry, whose kid is this again?” he said in English.
We started walking towards the exit. I replied in English as well to avoid bothering the child. “What? She’s upset and you weren’t doing anything to help.”
“I’m not really the paternal type.”
“Big surprise there.”
“Suck my—”
“Oy,” I said in a sharp voice. “Language.”
Belial rolled his eyes. “I’m beginning to regret this decision already. What time is our flight?”
I shifted Juliana in my arms, checking my watch. “We’ve got about three hours. Let’s head straight to the hotel and get packed up. We’re probably gonna hit traffic on the way to the airport.”
Belial stepped out onto the sidewalk and waved for a cab. I turned my attention back to the girl as she spoke up.
“Where are we going?”
“Back to the hotel so we can get ready to leave for America. Have you ever ridden on a plane before?”
She shook her head. “Is it fun?”
“Yep. We’ll be really high in the sky and you’ll get to see what Brazil looks like if you’re a bird.”
“Higher than the clouds?”
“Yeah.”
For the first time, a faint smile touched her now cherry-red lips. “Mmkay.”
Another wave of affection went through me at her shy acceptance. I almost groaned at myself. Jordan made fun of me for being what she called a “softie” and I always denied it, but I knew she had a point. I was a sucker for cute kids, and Juliana was the cutest, even though her father was literally hellspawn.
At last, Belial managed to flag down a cab and we climbed in, telling the driver to head for the Hilton at Morumbi. I tried to get Juliana to sit between us, but she insisted on sitting in my lap. She didn’t seem to feel comfortable around Belial. Not that I blamed her. He usually put on a façade for people he needed to manipulate, but that rarely included children, so he acted like himself around her. His perfectly foul, normal self.
The ride was long and Juliana fell asleep halfway through, her head on my chest and a thumb in her mouth. Bad habit for a kid at four years old, but I knew some kids did that whenever they felt uneasy so I let it slide. I wanted to ask Belial about the assassin he had planned on sending after the rogue angel, but we were still in public so I had to hold off on it. I didn’t like leaving things to chance. Even if it felt wrong, I wanted Edmond dead by my hand, not some anonymous demon’s. Plus, I wouldn’t have confirmation of his death until his soul crossed over.
I forced myself to stop thinking about it and instead focused on what to do about Jordan. She wouldn’t like having to sit around. She wanted to help just as bad as the angels did even though it would be dangerous. I had been thinking about training her in the more advanced martial arts. She knew the basics, but nothing as extensive as me. Plus, her energy-shielding needed some work. She took to attacks, like me, but defense was just as important in a fight.
The cab pulled up to the hotel and Belial paid the driver. I opened the door and hefted Juliana in my arms as I stepped out. She stirred a little, but didn’t wake up. She probably hadn’t slept at all the night before. Poor thing.
When I made it to my hotel room, I laid her down on the bed so she could continue napping while we got our stuff together. Once I was sure she was asleep, I turned to Belial.
“What’s the word on your guy on the inside? Can we get to the rogue angel before they transfer him stateside?”
“The last time I spoke to him, he told me defenses were too tight, even for him. There would be no way to get to Edmond without massive casualties, and since you told me that you wouldn’t allow any collateral damage, we’ll have to catch him en route to his first trial.”
“I had a feeling you’d say that. Just one more problem to deal with.”
“No one ever said this job was easy. Once we return stateside, we’ll have our work cut out for us. Did Gabriel dig up some information on la petite putain?”
“Yeah. She’s FBI.”
“Fantastic. We’ll both have the feds breathing down our necks when we return. That will make things infinitely harder. But who doesn’t mind a little challenge?”
“It’s not a game.”
“Maybe not to you. I’m not completely attached to this body, after all. I can disappear and leave my life behind. You, on the other hand, are foolish enough to have dreams and an identity you have to keep. I don’t envy you there.”
“So you say.”
Belial gave me an unfriendly look, clenching his jaw as if he wanted to argue. “Just get your stuff together so we can leave sometime this century.”
He walked out, slamming the door. A petty part of my soul enjoyed the sound.
I tossed my stuff into my suitcase and sent a text to Jordan and Gabriel to let them know we were heading to the airport. Gabriel responded, but Jordan didn’t. I suppressed yet another urge to call her. Give her time, Michael.
When everything was packed up, I woke Juliana. She blinked sleepily at me from beneath her long lashes, mumbling, “Where’re we going?”
I smiled. “Home.”
* * *
ELEVEN HOURS LATER, I stood on the ratty brown welcome mat to my wife’s apartment—our apartment—with the keys that I had finally remembered in my hand. I took a deep breath and opened the door, not entirely sure of what I would see on the other side.
Jordan stood in the kitchen wearing one of my shirts and looking beautiful despite the fact that I knew how upset she had to be feeling. She glanced up at me when I walked in and a faint smile touched her lips.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” I said, pushing the door shut. I didn’t waste any time crossing the hardwood floor and pulling her into me. It wasn’t like our usual hugs. She wrapped both arms around the back of my shoulders and pressed her face into
my chest, as if she wanted me to swallow her up and make her disappear. That alone told me how much pain she was in.
I held her for a long time, saying nothing even though I had about a million things I wanted to tell her. Eventually, she let go and I brushed the hair out of her eyes, trying to figure out where to start.
“You wanna talk about it yet?”
She shook her head. “No, I just…”
She sighed and there was an echo of something in her voice that I couldn’t place. She leaned her forehead against mine, laying her hands on my cheeks.
“I need you. Now. Please.”
I nodded. “Okay. I’m here.”
I slipped my fingers between hers and led her to the bedroom. For now, we didn’t need words. They had their place in our lives and it wasn’t here. But for the first time, I wished she had said something because the way she touched me felt like she was afraid of losing me, as if we would never be here again. It scared the living hell out of me. She poured every ounce of herself into me with each kiss, and somehow, the dynamic between us changed. I could feel her sliding away; sand through my fingers. God help us.
After it was over, we lay in bed for a long while. She propped her head on my left shoulder and I threaded my fingers through her soft black hair, smoothing it away from her face. The silence carried on until I couldn’t stand it, so I took a deep breath and spoke.
“Do you remember what I said before you died last year?”
She snorted. “Which time?”
“The first time.”
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