THE PORTER
Someday, today will be ours.
Until then…
For all those who wait for love.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Flightmares
Chapter 2 Dos, Don’ts, and Daisy
Chapter 3 Balmorhea
Chapter 4 Training Day
Chapter 5 Auras and Ink
Chapter6 Gossip
Chapter 7 Nightwalking
Chapter 8 Crash
Chapter 9 TheEasy Explanation
Chapter 10 Prom Night
Chapter 11 Visitors
Chapter 12 Third Wheel
Chapter 13 Truths Hurt
Chapter 14 The Past Comes Back
Chapter 15 Too Far Too Fast
Chapter 16 Jealousy
Chapter 17 My Mother’s Daughter
Chapter 18 My Strongest Weapon
Chapter 19 Strength Is An Illusion
Chapter 20 Skipping Class
Chapter 21 Into Hell
Chapter 22 Fog
Chapter 23 The Spider’s Den
Chapter 24 His Wilted Flower
Chapter 25 Broken Judgment
Chapter 26 A Choice Is Made
Chapter 27 Truth About Love
Chapter 28 Someday
Prologue
There is only one Porter.
One daemon can exist to carry such a heavy burden, to hold such immense power.
One daemon has the authority to rip through veils and transport beings between Hell and Earth. This daemon will be born of both realms, a member of the Vulgar that will have the freedom to live, fight, and exist in either world.
Historically, the Porter has been influenced by dark forces, unaware he had a choice, accepting defeat, feeling tied to a cause he had no stake in. But this Porter, my Porter, is different. Orrin and I have broken the cycle, and now the only thing he fights for is us.
Except he has no idea who he is.
The worlds cannot exist without a Porter, and I cannot live without Orrin. Regardless of the judgment passed upon him, his own choices, or the clouded future ahead of us - I need him.
Our world needs him.
None of us can live without him.
I am alone on this stretch of my journey, and trying to feel my way to him. As soul mates our paths will always cross. It is impossible to stay away from each other, but patience is never something I claimed to possess.
Hell is a mighty beast, impatient and restless. I can feel its claws scratching at the ground beneath my feet, hungry for human suffering. While here on Earth, daemons run free unafraid of Samael or Lillith, confined below. They know of Orrin’s judgment, and now have no one to keep their chaos in check or send them home.
Only Orrin has the power to silence the roaring that is growing ever louder and ever closer to the surface.
As the Beacon, daemons are drawn to me, - but I can’t fight them alone.
And only the Porter can send them back where they belong- cage the beast and set the rest of us free.
Chapter 1
Flightmares
The long slick, bony fingers were like vise grips, holding me, pressing me into their bodies. The writhing mass of Vagabonds were trying to get closer to me, tearing at my skin, licking the blood clean from my wounds, and worshipping me in the most torturous way they knew. This evil hoard surrounded me, invaded me, swallowed my screams and sucked me into the deepest pit of hell.
“No,” I yelled trying to free myself, “Let me go. I have to find Orrin.” I could feel a hand encircling my wrist. It felt warm, but I knew it was a trick.
“Miss,” a voice said from afar.
I was falling, forever falling, through time that I didn’t have to waste. I would die, he would die, and an unknown night would overtake the world, I needed to free myself from the Vagabonds surrounding me. My freedom wasn’t just for me anymore. I had a larger purpose to the world, and Orrin. They depended on me, and I refused to let them down.
I couldn’t pull my wings free to fly away. They were trapped, held shut by some immoveable force. It reminded me of the golden bands that had entrapped Lillith only yesterday.
Is that what’s happening? Has my judgment changed? Am I being sent to hell now?
You will always be mine. Lillith’s soft purr whispered in my ear, fueling my anger, drawing me down.
I awoke, sweating and panting, to see the flight attendant gently shaking me awake. I swiveled my head from side to side and noticed everyone had left the plane and I was now the last on board. I could smell something dark and smoky. I looked down and the armrest I was gripping had melted.
“Oh my,” said the flight attendant who had come to wake me up. She stood straight up and was staring down at my right hand clutched tightly to the smoking armrest. I followed her eyes and quickly released the blackened mess.
“Oww!” I hesitated, a bit too long. I would blame it on the wires in the seat. They could have legitimately sparked or overheated.
That can happen, right?
I hoped she would believe me. I pulled my unharmed hand quickly to my stomach and stood up. I gave her an injured, bewildered look and feigned innocence.
“Your hand! Oh, no. Let me get that.” She fussed with my bag and escorted me to the exit. She was shaking her head from side to side, trying to align her thoughts to the events she just witnessed.
“It must have been some faulty wiring in the seat control. Let me see your hand, sweetie. You probably need to go to the infirmary. We have a first aid kit aboard…”
“No,” I recoiled, “It’s okay, really. I wasn’t hurt at all. See,” I showed her my hand, “it was just a little hot.” I knew I couldn’t let on that anything was amiss. I needed to act indignant, upset. After all it’s not like I had anything to do with melting the armrest. It’s not like I had the power within me to light fires with my touch or with only a thought. It’s not like I had a fiery daemonic soul igniting my desire to burn everything I see.
Ohh, that sounds like so much fun!
I shook my head, releasing the irrational thought.
While we walked off the plane, I listened to the flight attendant’s concerned chatter. She was saying so much, but nothing of importance. I discovered that people do that far too often- fill the void with noise. Silence is an underappreciated and fleeting thing. I have learned to appreciate it, and miss it when it’s gone. So often people talk, and talk, and talk, avoiding an awkward silence and only achieving useless noise.
We walked into the terminal. I was given a thorough once over by the other flight attendants and a voucher for coffee at the Starbucks by the Baggage Claim.
Not bad…
I was tired, weary down to my soul. My head ached, my back ached, and my eyes were gritty from unshed tears and lack of sleep. In the past forty-eight hours I had discovered not only was I part human and daemon, but also angel as well. The powers that had developed within me so far were only the beginning of my unfurling birthright. My entire senior year had been one scary discovery after another. I didn’t know what I was capable of, and that scared me the most.
Among my powers that developed was the ability to control fire; pyrokenesis, which has proven to be the largest part of my birthright. It was a gift, or curse actually, given to me from my mother, Lillith, the Daemon Queen. I am also blessed with heightened senses and wings, a gift from my other mother, an angel. But the part of my soul that I cling to the tightest is my humanity. My father, a somewhat normal daemonologist, is one hundred percent human, and raised me on his own. There were many times in my life when we were like strangers living in the same house, but I realize that my course had been set long before my birth, and he was trying, desperately so, to give me the most uneventful upbringing he could manage.
/> With the growing distance that separated us, I felt his absence almost as much as I felt Orrin’s. I said goodbye to my father not just the day before. He drove me to the airport in Providence where we were forced to say goodbye. I broke the laws of Neutrality and was banished. The roughest part was I had to go by myself. This world of angels and daemons was still so new to me and yet I was already weary from the fight.
I lost Orrin, my father, my mother, and I was sure Lillith was just biding her time until she could come after me again. I found myself looking over my shoulder waiting to see the tell-tale sign of Vagabonds. They had been in Providence, they were invading my dreams, and I was positive they would find me in Texas as well.
I stood in the baggage claim area and instead of looking for my one suitcase I found myself squinting, examining every face that passed by me, waiting for their mouths to turn into a gruesome, sharp smile and their skin to slip down and hang off their bones. To any other human, a Vagabond wouldn’t look out of place on Earth, but as a Vulgar, or half-daemon, I could see through the human hosts and into their dark, shifty souls.
The metal conveyor belt hummed behind me, people were chatting away on their cell phones or pushing through the thin crowd to find their bags before they moved around the carousel and out of reach. I stood still letting the actions whirl around me and found clarity in watching others around me. I waited for one, then two minutes, hoping to see any sign of Vagabonds, but there was none.
The baggage claim emptied quickly. It was 2:00 a.m. and no one wanted to linger in the Midland International Airport. My shoulders started to loosen but I kept on my backpack. I looked down hoping I hadn’t burned the shoulder straps accidentally. I had limited funds and a precious few possessions.
I couldn’t see much of the darkened landscape out of the large windows that surrounded the baggage claim, and I had been asleep while flying into Texas. I knew very little about this state, even though I lived in Louisiana most of my life. Texas was broad, and very different depending on what part of the state. The ever-changing scenery was pretty, but I wasn’t in the mood to appreciate the quiet moonlight touching the flat land beyond the window. There was so much unknown and the fear of that made me shiver.
“Excuse me,” someone behind me had cleared their throat. Then I felt it, a hand barely touched my arm. I turned with a speed born only to those with darkness inside them.
The man moved almost as fast as I did, he backed away and assumed a defensive stance. I didn’t know who he was, but he knew me. My eyes glowed red as I stared through his innocent façade searching for the Vagabond inside.
But there was nothing.
“Layla?” He asked, the muscles in his bunched shoulders easing a little. He began to smile. His crinkly eyes were kind and welcoming. “Layla Justus? Is that your name?”
My eyes cooled.
This is him. Calm your freaky self down!
“Yeah,” I croaked, “Mr. Reese?” I was still wary, after all I didn’t know this man, even if my dad did say he was cool. I’d be living with him and his daughter until graduation, or I found Orrin- basically my entire unforeseeable future.
“Hi!” He said, suddenly excited and a little unsettled, “I’m glad to meet you. I haven’t seen you since you were very little. But you’re father and I kept up. Did you have a nice trip?” He walked away from me, giving me his back. This was a guileless man for sure. He picked up my bag, which was the last piece of luggage on the unmoving carousel and started walking toward the door.
It was either go with this stranger or be stranded in the airport. He reached into his pocket suddenly and fished out his cell phone, “Hey James,” he said with a slight smile and a sigh, “I’ve got her luggage with me now,” he paused to listen, “yeah, yeah…yup,” he held out the phone to me.
I knew who it was, “Dad! Hi,” I started to tear up. I had just heard his voice hours before but it felt good to hear it now- by myself in a far-off place.
“How are you? You’ve met Kevin?” The questions came streaming out faster than I could even answer him. He was making my head spin, but it felt wonderful and reassuring to hear his voice.
“Dad, Dad,” I started, but he didn’t stop, “Dad! I’m really okay. I promise. The flight was okay, and now I guess Mr. Reese, here, is going to drive us to Balmorhea.”
“That’s the plan,” Kevin Reese whispered, shifting my large bag on his shoulder. He looked tired. I needed to be grateful for his help. Not very many people would have done what he did- taking me in with only a day’s notice, a stranger he hadn’t laid eyes on in almost eighteen years. He and my dad had one of those friendships that would never fade.
I wished I had a friend like that still.
Ben, I thought. My friend who I abandoned on the beach after a Vagabond possessed her body. I left her in a crowd of other seniors from my former school, North Providence High, which was a rotten thing to do, but Orrin and I were being pursued by my daemonic mother, Lillith, and I didn’t have much choice. She woke up fine, and was okay, no thanks to me.
It was dangerous to be my friend. I was destined to a solitary life, my friendships would be limited to people I could trust with my heavy secrets. Orrin, my best friend and soul mate, had been taken from me just days ago and his absence weighed heavily on me. It was like a large cavity had eaten away the recesses of my heart, and only his love and touch could make me whole again.
Orrin tried stupidly to defend me against Lillith, one of my mothers, knowing that he was violating the laws of Neutrality, and knowing that he couldn’t win against her. He was very powerful in his own right, but Lillith was next to unstoppable, even on Earth. I don’t know how I even managed to restrain her. Something within me, some angelic part of me kicked in and I was able to harness a power reserved only for the members of the angels, the Virtuous.
That’s me- part Vile, part Virtuous, part human, equals on messed up Vulgar.
I was unique in this world. Actually I was unique to all worlds. Never had someone been created from all three- human, daemon, and angel. I knew my life would be more than just Lillith’s screwed up prophecy, I existed for a reason. It was difficult not being angry at the Almighty who allowed all of this to go down. I sometimes wished He had picked someone else for this gig.
I stood in the baggage claim listening to my father remind me to be on my best behavior, be polite, respectful, and try not to burn down anything while I was living in the Reese’s house in Balmorhea. The last was going to be a tall order, but of course I would try. I didn’t want to ever hurt anyone again because I lost control. I watched Mr. Reese standing a few feet away, patiently waiting for me to end the phone call.
He looked like a nice man. He was about my height with short red hair and a thick red beard covering his face. He had quite a few wrinkles around his eyes, and a kind smile. Even in the early morning hours he dressed nicely, in pressed khaki pants, a blue long sleeved shirt. He kept checking the time on his watch.
“I love you, Layla,” my dad said drawing my attention back to the conversation. I technically wasn’t supposed to be talking to him, but I don’t think my dad cared at that point. I know I didn’t. Part of my judgment included talking to my father- it wasn’t allowed. I wasn’t sure if humans could actually receive a judgment like angels and daemons. Mine was unique.
“Please take care of yourself. I’ll check in with Kevin once a week, hell, probably more than that. He can tell me how you’re doing and if you need anything. Okay?”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t want to violate any more of your judgment. So this is goodbye for a while.”
I let out a long sigh. My future was foggy, and I felt mired with all the uncertainty. But it felt good knowing that my father and I had grown closer with my birthright and his own story in the open. I was still keeping much of my future from him a secret. I had to find Orrin and make him love me again. It was the only way to save us all.
We walked out to Mr. Reese’s plain silver
unassuming car.
Definitely not the jet black Audi like I wanted to see.
He loaded my bag in the trunk and reached for my leather backpack, “That’s okay. I’ll hold on to this one,” I said clutching my favorite possessions to me even tighter.
Like all other travelers I had in my bag the most important things I couldn’t live without. But it wasn’t a toothbrush and change of clothes or a passport. I squeezed the pack feeling the contents within- one spiral notebook, my wallet, jean jacket, cell phone, IPod, and my battered old copy of Jane Eyre.
Inside of my book is a picture I printed out before I left Providence. Orrin and I were lying on his couch, him on bottom and I was nestled into the crook of his arm. His tattooed forearm was wrapped around my shoulders pulling me close. He was staring directly into the camera, as he held it over our heads, the slight smile on his lips was a rarity and only there because I had trailed my fingertips down his chest as he took the photo. My profile was facing the camera, as I laughed and looked up at him, my nose barely touching the line of his jaw. It was a good day, a good moment.
We had a hellacious meeting and first few months. I moved to Providence and things had progressed quickly to that point in the photo. I wouldn’t have traded all the power in Heaven for our time together, but I wondered what I would have to bargain away before we were together again. The photo was the only tangible thing I had of him. That and the t-shirt of his I had traveled in. It no longer carried his scent, but I brought my nose to my shoulder hoping that I could still breathe him in.
I also had in my bag a large stolen library book from Providence College. It was my father’s book- Daemon Possessions: Reasons and Repercussions. My dad wrote this book before I was born, while he was still an active daemonologist- a fancy word for daemon hunter. His job was to protect an area when daemons got out of hand. He didn’t talk about the job not wanting to ever expose me to that part of his life. I wished Dad had told me something of his own story, something true about his role in this mess.
The Porter Page 1
