Death's Door (Supernatural Security Force Book 3)

by Heather Hildenbrand

  “Gran said you had an errand.”

  “Your Gran is a force,” he said, and something about his dark chuckle that followed made me wonder what had happened between them.

  I groaned. “Do I even want to know what that means?”

  “Probably not.”

  I frowned when he fell silent again.

  “And are you going to tell me about the errand you had to run? Or is this just one more attempt for you to handle your sister behind my back?”

  He sighed and turned back to the view of the city.

  I kept my hard gaze pinned on his profile, unwilling to let him off the hook.

  “Selaphiel won’t go down easily. It’s going to take all of us.”

  “Does this mean you’re going to help me instead of trying to beat me to the punch?”

  “There is a reason I haven’t gone to face my sister alone.”

  “And is that reason because you promised me you wouldn’t?”

  He didn’t meet my eyes.

  “Sela has certain . . . gifts. Abilities that make it hard to get close, especially if my intent is to harm. The distraction you’ll offer will allow me to get past her defenses.” He turned to look at me. “We’ll work together. But in the end, I will destroy her before she can hurt you.”

  I nodded slowly. “I guess that’s as close to the word ‘team’ as I’ll get from you.” My lips curved. “I’ll take it.” My smile vanished as I realized he’d yet to answer my question. “Now, about that errand?”

  His expression clouded, and even though he continued to stare right at me, I knew he’d drifted far from where we stood on the penthouse balcony. Somewhere I couldn’t reach.

  “I had to be sure my idea would work.”

  His words, or the way he said them, sent a trickle of alarm through me.

  “Be sure what would work?”

  “Have I told you the full story? The history Sela and I share? Of our time here on Earth—and before?”

  “You’ve mentioned some things,” I said carefully, wondering where this was all going. Whatever errand he’d run, or sacrifice he’d found, I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like it.

  His expression darkened, shadows passing over. “I think you need to know. What kind of creatures we’ve truly become.”

  “Is this the part where you tell me you were cast out of heaven for being imperfect?” I feigned a gasp.

  “Cast out? Yes. Imperfection was the least of our issues.”

  “Cursing in church again?” I joked.

  “Try slaughtering in church.”

  My jaw fell open.

  His mouth lifted slightly. “I’m a Nephilim, not a saint.”

  I bumped his hip, recovering quickly though I actually couldn’t tell if he’d been joking or not. “Nah, you’re one of the good ones.”

  “Gem.”

  His expression darkened, and this time when our gazes met, they held. Something wild churned in his eyes. “My entire existence has always been for death and destruction. And up until I arrived here, it was a purpose I fulfilled with enthusiasm.”

  “Did you harm innocents?”

  He hesitated. “What I did, it was in the name of protecting the innocent.”

  “See? If you’re going to try and talk me out of the plan, you’re wasting your breath,” I said.

  He shook his head. “I know better than that by now.”

  I smiled, but the dark look he wore sobered me quickly.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “I know what Raph told you. About Sela’s vulnerability.”

  “The portals,” I said. “They’re what she cares about most right now.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think that’s right.”

  “What is it then?”

  He looked away, staring out over the cityscape.

  “Adrik,” I prompted.

  “Selaphiel’s desire to go home isn’t as simple as portals or demons.”

  “All right. I can handle complicated. Explain it to me.”

  “Sela and I were the first two Nephilim to come to this dimension.” He glanced at me again. “To Earth.”

  “Okay.”

  “Sela wasn’t happy about it, and for a very long time, the two of us remained hidden. Cloaking ourselves from the supernaturals and the humans. We lived that way for more than a decade, relieved to remove ourselves from the exhaustion of politics.”

  “But weren’t you sent here to help fight the demons?”

  “Yes.”

  His expression was stony, storms swirling in his gaze, and I could see the uncertainty. It mattered what I thought of his admission.

  “So you ran away from your problems.” I shrugged. “Everyone does that at some point.”

  “Because of our unwillingness to fulfill our duty, Raphziel and Jophiel were sent next. We’d never been friends with them, exactly, but when they arrived here and began the work my sister and I had been tasked with, they did so with resentment toward us.”

  “They were pissed because your slacking ruined their lives.”

  “In a manner of speaking, yes. But where we’d run from our responsibilities, they threw themselves into the work. Before the decade ended, half the demon population was eliminated. They were more successful than we’d expected, and Sela began to see what that could mean for them when they returned home. After that, she became resentful. Angry. She insisted we face up to our responsibilities.”

  He stared into the empty skies as he spoke, and I kept my gaze fastened on his somber profile, caught up in his story.

  “She convinced me to join forces with Raph and Jo,” he went on. “She said that if we were successful with our task, we could go home that much sooner.” He glanced at me wryly. “I think she couldn’t stand someone else looking better than her. Getting credit.”

  “She does seem to enjoy the spotlight,” I agreed.

  He grunted. “The Nephilim’s ego has always been our downfall.”

  “When did Azrael and Raguel get here?” I asked. “And why? If you four were doing your jobs properly by then, why send more of you?”

  “A year after Sela and I began working with the others, Azrael showed up. He claims he volunteered, and to this day, we have no idea if that’s the truth.”

  “He wanted to come here?”

  Adrik nodded. “By then, word had spread in our homeworld. We were making progress. The demon problem had been driven back. The supernatural community had allied with us. There was relative peace.” He glanced at me again. “Remember when I told you there are multiple versions of what you call heaven and hell?”

  I nodded.

  He glanced around, gesturing to the world we stood looking over. “This particular version is one of the most enjoyable.”

  I snorted. “Right. All the mayhem and death is very appealing, I’m sure.”

  “Compared to some of the others, this one is heaven.”

  His absolute seriousness wiped the smile from my face. I hated to think about how terrible those other versions must be if this one was considered so great.

  “Raguel came last,” he went on. “About forty years ago. And he wasn’t thrilled with it either.”

  “Did he do something to be sent here?”

  I wanted to ask that question of them all. Of Adrik. But it felt so personal.

  “He won’t talk about it much. Says he was betrayed, but that’s about it. According to him, the dimension he’d overseen before this one had extinguished demons altogether. But instead of being ‘rewarded’ with a return trip home, he was sent here. To help speed up the cleanup that had somehow faltered.”

  “Let me guess. Selaphiel took that as an insult,” I said.

  “More like a threat. She’s afraid her work here isn’t being recognized. Or that we won’t get what was promised when we’re finished.”

  “So, she’s engineering a reality where she is directly responsible for ridding this planet of demons,” I said.

  I decided not
to point out that she was also directly responsible for bringing those demons here in the first place.

  Adrik sighed. “She is afraid that what happened to Raguel will happen to us all. And she’ll be caught in an endless loop of protecting worlds from creatures they don’t even know exist. Or, more specifically, don’t know she exists.”

  “She wants the glory,” I said, frowning with the realization. If that were true, it meant our theory about her caring most about those portals might be wrong.

  “For starters, yes. Sela and I have spent centuries invading, conquering, felling dynasties and raising new ones—but always with a credit to our name. A reward. Glory, recognition. Power.”

  He hesitated, and I knew whatever he was about to say was big. Probably big enough to throw a wrench in our entire plan. But we needed to know. Needed to understand what we were facing.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “Raphziel told you to identify what or who Selaphiel cares for most. But I don’t think caring for something is the same as love or affection.”

  Understanding finally dawned.

  “For Selaphiel, ‘caring’ about something is more like an angry obsession.”

  He nodded, grim now.

  “And her obsession began the moment someone else took her spotlight,” I added.

  “Unfortunately, yes.”

  “Raphziel and Jophiel.” Their names were no more than a whoosh of breath as I spoke them.

  Adrik was silent—which meant I’d guessed right.

  Selaphiel’s greatest devotion was to hating two of her fellow Nephilim.

  “Just when I thought this bitch couldn’t get more evil,” I said at last.

  He watched me warily as if he couldn’t be sure I’d read between the lines properly.

  “Well, we can’t just kill them too,” I finally blurted. “It’s hard enough taking down one of you. I can’t handle two more, no matter how much I don’t want my mother dating that asshole.”

  “I have no intention of killing my brethren.”

  “But your errand. Gran said you figured out our sacrifice.”

  He hesitated.

  “Jophiel has volunteered to help us.”

  “Help us how?”

  “When you conjure the portal glamoured to appear as heaven, he will pretend to go through it.”

  I blinked, realizing his intention.

  “She’ll think he returned home before her. It would destroy her to think he’s won her prize,” I said. “It’s brilliant.”

  More importantly, it was a way to weaken her without actually killing anyone.

  Adrik nodded. “He’d like to speak with you. Before we do this.”

  “With me?” I sucked in a deep breath. Nephilim had, in my experience, proven unpredictable at best. Murderous at worst. “Okay. When?”

  “How about now?”

  Before I could answer, a spread of wings blanketed the sky on my left, and a figure dropped down from the roof above us. A shock of sandy hair ruffled in the breeze, and the most piercing green eyes I’d ever seen stared back at me.

  “Uh, hello,” I said.

  Where Adrik was all dark and broody and Selaphiel was all blonde and bitchy, Jophiel was…wholesome. His smile, his flawless skin, even the way he stood just looked so straightforward and trustworthy. Like I could tell him anything. Or like I should tell him everything.

  Weird.

  “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Gem. I’ve heard so much about you.”

  Nerves shook me. “Well, that can’t be good.”

  As soon as the words were out, I pressed my lips together to keep from blurting anything else.

  But Jophiel only smiled. “You’ve certainly stirred things up, but I’d say it was about time.”

  He glanced at Adrik, who stepped back.

  “I’ll give you two a moment to talk.”

  Before I could protest at being left alone with a strange Nephilim, Adrik lifted off and shot up into the sky; a bullet into the clouds.

  Jophiel chuckled. “A bit of a show-off, isn’t he?”

  “Is he?”

  Adrik? A show-off? Hmm. That was relative, considering every Nephilim I’d met so far seemed to show off their superiority. Especially Selaphiel. Though, the only showing off she did was with how easily she could kill me if she tried.

  “Adrik tells me you befriended a lupine demon.”

  Out of all the things he could have brought up…

  “Wolfrick. He’s not a bad guy. Just upset at being torn from his family.”

  “May I ask how you know this?”

  I shrugged. “He told me.”

  Jophiel’s eyes sparkled with something I couldn’t name. “How very unexpected you are,” he murmured.

  I hoped that was a good thing.

  “Adrik says you want to help. To be a decoy,” I began.

  “Not just a decoy. I want to go through the portal.”

  “Wait, what? I thought—”

  “I know. I might have led Adrik to believe I’d go along with some sort of ruse. But the truth is, I’m tired. Selaphiel has shirked her duty since the moment she arrived because she cares nothing for the humans. I’ve done what I can to protect the people of this world for four centuries. My time is finished.”

  “But what about the decree?” I asked. “Once your mission is complete, you can go home.”

  He shook his head. “I am done living for some future promise that may or may not exist. Most of us are, in fact. We’ve made lives here or at least made peace with the idea that we may never know another home besides the one we’re in.” His expression tightened. “I’m not sure how much Adrik has shared with you about the other worlds out there, but the one I came from before was much worse than this one. I’ve been grateful for my time here.”

  “But what if the portal leads to another terrible world?” I asked. “I’ve never conjured a portal. I don’t know what will happen when I do, or whether it’ll be a nice place or—”

  “I am a protector of worlds,” he said, his smile gentle. Reassuring. “I will either find a world not so in need of me, in which case I’ll rest. Or I’ll find a people desperate for hope. Either way, I will face it.”

  “What about Selaphiel?” I asked.

  He smiled. “I think she’s met her match with you.”

  “I’m just a mortal,” I said.

  “You’re much more than a mere mortal.”

  “She could kill me so easily.”

  “You are stronger than you think.”

  Okay, cryptic pep talk aside, maybe Jophiel was better off leaving. He didn’t seem delusional, but how could he possibly think I could beat a Nephilim?

  His lips curved. “You’ll see,” he added. “As I have.”

  I blinked. “What do you mean? You’ve seen what will happen? Like, the future?”

  “I am Jophiel, archangel of what will be.”

  “Wait. Are you saying you have a superpower? Do all angels have one?”

  As if they weren’t already powerful enough. Ugh.

  “We’re all imbued with our own unique spiritual gifts.”

  “Is Selaphiel’s gift being a raging bitch?” I muttered. Then winced. “Sorry. Language, I know.”

  He laughed. “Selaphiel’s gift is destruction. It’s why she was chosen in the first place. An opportunity for redemption, squandered, it would seem.”

  “What did she need redemption for?”

  His expression clouded. “As I said, destruction comes naturally for her.”

  “What’s …”

  “Adrik’s gift?” he finished for me.

  “Is that too personal?”

  “Adrik is an archangel of death.”

  I swallowed hard. “Let me guess, that’s why he was chosen.”

  “Adrik volunteered to accompany his sister. An action, I believe, also rooted in redemption.”

  “Oh.”

  “You have a spiritual gift too,” he said.

  I
looked up at him, scanning his expression for some trace of humor. “Is it chaos?”

  He chuckled. “Sometimes, it might seem so. But no, that’s the universe in motion. Your gift lies in your resiliency. Your ability to keep going. You do not give up, Gem. That is rare. And it is powerful.”

  “Thanks.”

  I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. Selaphiel’s gift was destruction, and mine was being too damned stubborn to give up, probably to my own detriment. Or death.

  “Well, I appreciate you helping us,” I said finally. “And I hope the portal takes you to a world that offers you some rest.”

  He winked. “I see a world that offers us both rest in the near future.”

  I let his words boost my confidence. “Sounds good to me. I was in the middle of a rewatch of Buffy when my life went crazy.”

  He laughed again, this time his gaze lingering on me as if studying me. Or maybe my future. I resisted the urge to ask him what he saw. Was that cheating?

  “You will be a good match,” he said finally, and I was too afraid to ask if he meant a match for Selaphiel or for someone else. “This world will be better for it.”

  Selaphiel then.

  “I just hope I can perform magic strong enough to get you through that portal before she realizes what’s happening,” I said.

  “I may have an idea for that.” Wind stirred my hair as he spoke. We both looked up as Adrik reappeared. “Just in time,” Jophiel said as Adrik landed lightly beside me.

  “Will you help us?” Adrik asked.

  “I will,” Jophiel said, “And I was just about to tell Gem how we’ll do it.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jax glared at me from where he stood near the window. With Adrik gone to continue keeping an eye on Selaphiel, I’d swapped out one brooding male for another, and my patience was running thin as I tried to explain Adrik’s plan. Or, more accurately, Jophiel’s plan—which apparently would work right down to him walking through that portal since he’d “seen” it happen.

  The part about sending Jophiel into the void went over smashingly. The part about letting Adrik face Selaphiel when the time came, not so much. At least, Milo and Gran had been into it, especially after I’d explained the whole “archangel of death” situation. And Faith hadn’t blinked an eye at the level of danger we intended to put ourselves in. I couldn’t tell if her fearlessness had reached new and idiotic heights or if her need for vengeance had eclipsed everything else.