by J. E. Taylor
I stepped out of the car and circled around to Naomi, helping her out.
Agent Williams waited in the garage and I approached him.
“What kind of fool do you think I am?” he snarled when I got within the confines of the garage.
“Denial? That’s what you’re going with?” I huffed. That should have been what I expected based on the man’s history, but it still caught me off guard.
His eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms. The garage door engaged, dropping behind us.
“There’s no fucking way what I saw was real.”
I thought a moment, scanning through the contents of his life. “Your life hasn’t been a walk in the park either.”
Naomi shifted and she cleared her throat.
“Can I use your bathroom?” she asked with a small voice that cut through the tension. His gaze dropped to her.
“I’m supposed to believe you…” he waved at her and blinked, his gaze dropping to her belly. He nodded instead and turned, leading us into the family room of his home. “The bathroom is down there,” he pointed to a small hallway at the other side of the kitchen.
He waited until she was out of sight and turned to me.
“I’m not sure what to call you, considering,” I said. “Special Agent Williams seems a bit formal, don’t you think?”
“That shit can’t be real,” he said and crossed his arms.
“If you don’t believe what you saw, have your angel friend ask Michael directly.”
Wings fluttered and the winged man in Agent William’s memory appeared for a moment. “I can’t. I’m not allowed in heaven. At least, not yet,” he said.
I studied him, watching as he faded to nothing and finally I shook my head, refocusing on Agent Williams. His relationship with his guardian angel was as bizarre as some of the things in my life and as I focused on those memories, a flood of secondary memories filtered up from a lower level and I raised an eyebrow.
“So you’re telling me you’re twenty-five hundred years old?”
I nodded and he sat down on the couch.
“And there are such things as vampires,” he asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Well, there were. I think Eve was the last one.”
“And Lu…” he started and pressed his lips closed along with his eyes. “And arch angels, fallen or otherwise, exist?”
“Yes.”
“And your wife can transform into a white tiger?” He opened his eyes, his voice carrying the incredulous spin of someone whose world was crumbling around them.
I smiled and shrugged. “You forgot demons,” I added.
“I already believed in demons,” he said and a shadow passed over his face.
The memory filtered up to the forefront of my mind and I gave him a quick nod. He just stared at me in silent awe that made me uncomfortable. I shifted, unsure of whether I should sit or not.
“Well, doesn’t that just beat all.” He ran both hands through his hair. “So, what I saw in that poor cafeteria worker’s mind really did happen?”
“Yes. The devil slayed Michael and ate his heart.”
Naomi shuffled back into the room with pale cheeks and wet eyelashes. She blinked and gave me that sickly smile. From the looks of it, her morning sickness was acting up again.
“Agent Williams, you wouldn’t happen to have any ginger-ale?” I asked.
He stood and crossed to the refrigerator, pulling out a can and handed it to Naomi and then turned back to me. “Call me Steve,” he said. “Can I get you a drink?”
I smiled and stuffed my hands into my pocket. “Scotch,” I said, knowing that was his drink of choice as well.
He brought two glasses and set them on the coffee table and retrieved a bottle of Glendronach. I nodded my approval and he poured me a glass.
“It may take me a little while to digest all that I’ve seen. In the meantime, you might want to do that angel proofing thing.” He raised his glass.
“Do you have a bar of soap?”
“I think we have one in the bathroom cabinet.” He pointed the same way Naomi came. “Why?”
“I know it works on archangels, but I have no idea if it will trap him here, so, I figured you probably don’t want the symbols to be permanent.”
“I don’t know about that,” he said and gulped his drink down.
“Fuck you, Williams,” the voice spat out and I couldn’t help but smile. His relationship with his guardian angel was one I didn’t quite understand, even with the history I received.
“You seem to be a magnet for redeemed killers,” I said and received a snort from the air, followed by laughter. Instead of continuing the conversation, I turned in search of soap because between the three of us, someone was bound to fuck up and say Lucifer’s name out loud.
I drew the symbols on all the first floor windows as low in the corner as possible, trying to make them inconspicuous. I drew it on the front door, garage door and the back sliders as well. Any place that allowed passage between the inside and outside was marked. When I finished, I stepped back into the family room and pointed to the ceiling.
“Yeah, go ahead,” Steve nodded and continued his conversation with Naomi.
I took my time; not only drawing the angel hex, but also digesting the memories I had been given. When I completed my rounds, I dropped the soap in the soap dish in the upstairs bathroom, cleaning off my fingertips before returning downstairs.
“When do you think your family will return?” I asked, rounding the last step.
Steve looked at the clock and then me. “Anytime.”
I nodded and slid next to Naomi. “How are you feeling?” I asked and rubbed her belly.
“Okay,” she said and I knew she was lying. Her cheeks were too pale and dark rings appeared under her eyes.
“Did you need to lie down?” Steve asked and Naomi hesitated.
“We’re safe for the moment,” I said and moved my gaze to Steve’s. “Right?”
He nodded. “We have a couple of guest rooms,” he said and stood. “Let me show you where they are. I’m also assuming that you two will be our guests tonight?” he asked, glancing at me.
“Honestly, I hadn’t thought that far in advance.” I met Naomi’s gaze and she shrugged, leaving the decision to me. She was too tired to function right now and needed sleep. “We’ll play it by ear,” I replied.
“When my wife was pregnant, she used to shut down all of a sudden, too,” I heard Steve say as he escorted her upstairs.
Left to my own devices, I poured another glass of scotch and stepped to the sliding glass doors leading to their back yard. A covered pool took up half of the vast lawn and the ocean view was stellar. I had to give it to Naomi, this place was beautiful. A bit colder than Greece, but it would do.
The sound of the garage opening pulled my attention to the door we entered and the man who stepped in the house a few minutes later could have passed as my twin. I shuffled through Steve’s memories and readily identified him as CJ Ryan.
He blinked and stopped, blocking the doorway as he stared at me with wide eyes.
“Who are you?” he asked and stepped aside, letting the rest of the family into the house.
“Damian Andreas,” I said and turned to face them, their names coming just as quickly as their faces appeared. Tom Ryan and his wife Raven followed by Steve’s wife, Jennifer.
Raven nearly dropped her bags when her gaze fell on me, and what color had been in her face bled out. The way CJ’s gaze shot to her, and then back to me made me shift. For a moment, I wished for Naomi in tiger form standing next to me, with her formidable force, I’d feel a hell of a lot safer than I did right now.
CJ’s eyes narrowed and he crossed, dumping his bag on the table. I knew enough about him to feel the discomfort prickle through me when he turned a glare in my direction. An unfamiliar tingle encompassed my head and I realized he was trying to force his way into my mind.
“Your father was nice enough to show my
wife to a bedroom upstairs. He should be down in a minute,” I said, doing my best to block his probe.
The creak of the stairs pulled my gaze away and Steve appeared.
“I see you’ve met my family,” he said.
“Yes. Is Naomi okay?” I asked and took a sip of the scotch, irritated with the slight shake in my hand that knocked the ice cubes against the glass.
“I think she was out the moment her head hit the pillow. Reminds me of Jen when she was pregnant,” Steve said.
He met my gaze and I swear I saw a flash of sorrow cross his features. After all the years, the loss of his children still created a visual pain. I doubted my own ability to carry on if I lost my children, and they hadn’t even been born yet, so the fact that Steve had been able to function at all increased my admiration.
Steve turned to his wife. “They’re going to be staying with us for a while,” he said.
“Just tonight,” I corrected and an awkward silence filled the room. The rest of Steve’s family just stared at me and Raven blanched a little more, shifting so her husband buffered her from view.
“What is he?” Raven whispered to CJ, thinking she spoke softly enough, but I caught it and glanced at her, trying to stifle a laugh.
“I’m sorry for laughing, Raven, but there really is no easy answer to that question.” Everyone’s eyes widened and their gazes traveled to Steve.
He shrugged. “We had a transfer of sorts,” he said.
“Isn’t he the one who killed those cops in Connecticut?” CJ asked, pointing in my direction.
“No.” Steve stepped into the room and crossed to the table, picking up his glass. “He’s being set up.”
CJ stared at him, then he wobbled, reaching for the table and sitting in the nearest chair, his eyes widening in shock, and then his gaze traveled to me. “I think maybe you guys should unpack the groceries and go get dinner somewhere.”
“Why?” Tom asked, his gaze bouncing between Steve, Raven and CJ before meeting mine and then they traveled to the fluttering wings next to Steve.
“Steve?” Jennifer asked.
He glanced at me and I sighed.
“I’m putting you at risk,” I said. “They have a right to know what could be coming.”
Tom’s hands flew in a pattern I didn’t recognize, but the question in his gaze was enough.
CJ hadn’t stopped staring at me, and even his complexion blanched.
“What might be coming?” Jennifer asked.
“Armageddon,” CJ answered and a silent chill blanketed the room.
Chapter Thirteen - Damian
“You know I have an open mind, especially with what happened to us in college,” Jennifer said as she sat down next to Steve on the couch. “But this, this is way too out there for me to even comprehend.”
I had been talking for a couple of hours trying to recap my life and our plight. The groceries had long been put away, five large pizza boxes sat on the kitchen table picked over, and the remaining half dozen pieces on a plate set aside for Naomi.
Tom and Raven kept their distance, giving me the greatest berth, because even though the others had warmed up to my being in their home, Raven still couldn’t look at me and when she did her expression was tense, like I was going to self-destruct at any moment and I focused on her for a minute.
“May I ask you a question?” I asked before her gaze flitted away again.
She pointed at her chest and I nodded. “I... I guess,” she answered.
“What are you seeing that everyone else can’t?” I had enough history from Steve to know she saw auras, but she hadn’t been able to look at me more than a cursory glance since she came in.
“You’re too bright for me to look at for any length of time. It’s like looking into the sun,” she said. “And if I squint, I can see a shadow of... of wings mingled with it.” She squinted and then blinked away. “But it’s not like CJ’s father’s wings, not angel wings.”
“When I was a vampire, I was able to change into a hawk at will,” I said and everyone’s gaze jumped back to me. I hadn’t included my ability to transition into a wild bird in my conversation, but I had explained the shadow virus and our near demise at Lucifer’s hands. They also knew his plans if he ever got a hold of Naomi. “Something about the combination of shadow virus and angel blood.”
“I turn into a tiger,” Naomi’s voice broke everyone’s stare and the relief I had at the sight of her rumpled hair and sleepy eyes was more than in my mind. The knot I developed in the middle of my back loosened and I stood. “Naomi, this is Steve’s wife, Jennifer,” I started introductions. “And this is Tom and his wife Raven.”
“Nice to meet you,” she said and received nods in response. Raven’s squint was less pronounced when she viewed Naomi, but it was there.
“She has the same aura?” I asked and Raven glanced in my general direction, but her gaze was averted toward the ground.
“No. It reminds me a little of CJ’s aura.”
I caught Naomi’s gaze. “Michael’s grace,” we both said at the same time. That was the only logical explanation I could conceive. The grace of an archangel must be glaring.
CJ turned and stood. “I’m CJ,” he said, finishing the introductions.
Naomi’s eyes widened, flashing between my doppelganger and me. She let out a nervous laugh. “You two could be twins,” she said.
A moment passed where their eyes locked, and then he offered her his seat. The blatant interest painted on his face sent a burning irritation through my core, landing in my stomach and churning like a time bomb. He glanced at me and raised an eyebrow and for the first time in over a millennium, I tasted the bitter pill of jealousy.
He returned his gaze to Naomi. “Can I get you some pizza?” he asked and Naomi nodded, still staring at him in a way that burned my insides.
Silence blanketed the room and Steve’s brow creased as he glanced at me. A smirk appeared on his face and he slid his glance to his wife, sharing a silent communication that I was not privy to. By the sudden appearance and suppression of a smile, I guessed he was broadcasting my discomfort with their son’s chivalrous behavior.
Naomi’s gaze followed him and I set my drink on the table and stood.
“I need some air,” I said and turned without explaining. The chill slapped at me as I stepped out of the sliding glass doors into the back yard. The cold Atlantic beckoned in the distance and I crossed the expanse of yard to a quaint rock wall that separated the yard from a fifteen-foot drop into the ocean.
I shoved my hands into my pockets and scanned the vastness before me.
A few minutes passed and despite the frigid breeze, I remained in my spot, trying to isolate why I was suddenly feeling so insecure about Naomi. She was bound to me by marriage and blood, and yet, I was afraid that she’d run to the nearest man with an honest and pure heart.
“You really have nothing to worry about,” CJ said, stepping next to me. “Your wife loves you.”
I glanced at him and then back at the water. “I know she does, but I’ve never had any competition before,” I admitted, knowing he was privy to my train of thought.
He chuckled in a way that pulled my attention to him.
“I didn’t think it was a competition,” he said.
“So you’re not interested in Naomi,” I stated, hoping to put my mind at ease. I glanced back at the sunset painting the clouds, turning everything the purple-pink of twilight.
Silence drifted between us and I turned toward him, meeting his gaze.
“No comment?” I asked and he gave me the kind of smile that I always equated with Lucifer; cocky and certain that he held the winning hand. I clenched my teeth, sending a glare at him.
“Look, if this was a competition, you would lose. But it isn’t, so just fucking relax, will ya?”
“I wouldn’t lose.” I crossed my arms and scanned the sea once more before trudging back into the warm house. Naomi looked up from the kitchen table where Jennifer sat
with her. She tilted her head, questioning me without words and I shrugged. She didn’t need to know just how unhinged I was right now.
“Where’d everyone go?” I asked, sliding into the seat next to her.
“Steve went to change and Tom and Raven decided to catch a movie in Portsmouth,” Jennifer said and we all glanced as CJ stepped inside and took a seat on the couch. “Are you really as old as Steve says?”
“I’m twenty-five,” I said. “Of course, I’ve been twenty-five for over two thousand years, but, who’s counting”
She glanced at Naomi for confirmation and got a nod in return. When her gaze landed back on me, she asked, “Did you have a chance to meet Jesus?”
I laughed. “I’ve met a lot of people, ma’am, and yes; the messiah was one of them.”
“What was he like?”
“Interesting. He had a lot of good ideas, and an honest heart. Of course, I had already been introduced to Michael and angel bloodlines, so the idea of God’s child wasn’t as farfetched as some people thought.” I glanced at Naomi. “I can tell you this much though, he has got to be livid that so many acts of violence have been perpetrated in his name. He was a peaceful man, but had no tolerance for those who skewed the word of the Lord for their own gain.”
Jennifer looked down at her hands. “And heaven?”
When her gaze returned to mine, I knew where she was going with the questions. Even with the existence of a guardian angel looking over her husband, she still had doubts and worries about where her children’s souls were. I sent her a soft smile and a nod. “Yes. There’s a heaven,” I said, and the relief swept over her face. “And I’m sure your daughters are there.”
Jennifer blinked her tears back and gave me a quick nod.
Naomi watched the exchange, her brow furrowing with questions and I shook my head. She let it go and focused back on the conversation, but I could tell she understood. She blinked, studying the woman at the table with the same admiration as I felt for both Jennifer and Steve.
“What was your favorite era?” Jennifer asked.
My gaze moved to Naomi. “Right now,” I said with no hesitation.
