by J. Ashburn
He stood and spotted the other hound still trying to maul Nick, the poor guy thrashed and covered his face with his arms as the thing ripped and gnashed. Caleb dashed across the park in a flash. He slung his arm around the hound’s throat and squeezed.
A cloud of vapor and shadow exploded and everyone fell to the ground. Caleb shook his head and got up. He saw Sebastian glaring at him, his eyes glowing deep red, a rage in them unlike anything he had ever seen.
“It burns!” Nick cried. “Oh my God… it burns!”
“Quick!” Jake yelled. “We have to get him to the hospital.” With the help of his twin Rick, Jake hauled him up and dragged him to his car.
Micah’s eyes welled with tears. “Nick…we…have… I need to go with them.”
Sebastian lifted his arms and the clouds stirred. Wind lashed. Lightning splintered across the sky. A Lightning bold struck the park and fire ignited.
“Damn you, Caleb!” Sebastian’s voice thundered. “I will slowly rip the flesh from you for destroying my boys.”
Caleb shook his head, pushing himself back as another lightning bolt struck dangerously close to him. His heart was in his throat. His entire body trembled. “No!” He sped to Jake’s SUV and climbed in with Micah and the others.
“He’s seizing!” Jake yelled. “Micah… Caleb…someone…”
“Here,” Micah yelled. “Lay him down. Caleb, hold him.”
Caleb stretched Nick out, his blood on his hands and held him in his arms. Micah ripped off Nick’s shirt and pressed it into his wounds. Nick buckled, convulsed then passed out.
“No Nick! Stay with us.” Tears rolled down Micah’s cheeks. He leaned over and gave mouth to mouth to his best friend. “C’mon Nick… C’mon.”
Caleb felt terror fill him, coupled with despair. He had no idea what to do or what to say. He watched Micah use his skills trying to save his friend and again… it touched him. This human being without regard to himself, in the midst of tragedy and terror, stepped up and did whatever was necessary. Now, Caleb’s eye filled with tears.
“We’re almost there,” Jake called. The SUV raced at breakneck speed, rocking and bouncing over bumps.
Nick coughed suddenly and his eyes fluttered. “That’s it, buddy.” Relief washed over Micah.
Caleb looked up into Micah’s eyes and he saw fear there. He hated that. Hated. He didn’t know what to say to him, all he knew was that things were not going to be the same. His heart sank.
Jake pulled into the ER entranceway and came to a screeching halt. Everyone leapt from the car. Caleb pulled Nick up singlehandedly and walked him through the ER doors. Micah stood frozen, watching in disbelief.
###
Hours later they were still waiting for Jake to come out of the ER operating room. Silence had permeated the waiting room. Nicki got everyone coffees from the cafeteria.
Micah finally turned to Caleb. “What just happened tonight?”
Caleb didn’t answer.
“Was that an ex-boyfriend of yours? Are you being stalked by some psycho ex?”
“No… it’s not that… he’s…he’s… one of my brothers.”
“That was your brother?”
Caleb nodded.
“What the hell…”
“You do not know the half of it. You wouldn’t even believe me…”
“Why don’t you tell me, Caleb? I’ll believe you. What’s going on? Why would your brother…”
“I have many brothers. All of them similar to Sebastian…well, he’s one of the stronger ones. They do not want me here. Sebastian was sent to bring me back home but I don’t want to go there. It’s a dark place. It’s abusive and terrifying.”
“Oh my God, Caleb. I’m so sorry. I knew you might be running from something…I just never thought—”
“They would never understand us… you… they would hate you. They will try to tear us apart.”
“This is bullshit. I can’t believe there are still assholes like that. It’s because you’re gay… they don’t want you to be with a man.”
“Not exactly… it’s not what you think. I mean…”
“No, we can’t let them do this to you. We’ll call the police. They can’t get away with that shit. Those dogs nearly killed Nick. He’s a murdering psycho and he needs to be locked up. I’ll call the police right now.”
“You can’t.”
“Why not?”
“They will not find a trace of him. Believe me. They won’t find anything… to them he won’t even exist. The dog’s bodies will be gone and besides we would never be able to prove they belonged to Sebastian. The police cannot help me.”
“Caleb…what have they done to you?”
He shook his head.
“We won’t let them touch you. Understand? We’ll protect you.” Micah stood up and paced.
“Damn right,” Rick said. “You’re our friend now. We’re not going to let some crazy shit come and mess with you and Micah.”
“No one is gonna break you two apart,” Nicki said. “You’re too damn cute together.” She tried to lighten the mood.
“They won’t find you at my place,” Micah said. “If they do we’ll take care of it. I have lot’s of friends on the police force.”
Caleb smiled. He half believed Micah but he knew it wouldn’t be that easy. He reached for Micah’s hand. Micah leaned over and kissed him. He whispered to him. “We’re together now. I’m not going to let anything happen to us.”
Nicki pulled Micah aside. Her voice was low. “I think I saw those dogs before.”
“What? When?”
“On my date with Jim. I’m almost hit them with my car. They rushed out in front of me. There was something really weird about them. It was like they weren’t really there… or really dogs or something. I don’t know.”
“We’re all tired.”
“What are you going to do? There’s some psycho family out there wanting to pound the shit out of Caleb for dating you. They’ll probably beat your ass too.”
“I know. I’ll be careful. I’ll keep all the doors locked. He doesn’t know who I am or where I live.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Please…what’s he some sort of secret agent? I’ll keep the police on speed dial. I’ll mention something to Eric on the force.”
“Oh sure, they’ll tell you to get a restraining order like that ever helped anyone. Yes, a piece of paper will keep the losers away.” She rolled her eyes.
Before she could go on, Jake appeared in the waiting room. His scrubs were streaked with crimson. “He’s stable now,” Jake said. “But really out of it.”
“Thank you so much, Nick,” Micah said.
Everyone gather around, even Caleb.
“When can we see him?” Rick said.
“He’s really out of it right now,” replied Jake. “He’ll be sleeping for hours. Probably best to see him in the morning.”
Everyone nodded.
“I’m going to get cleaned up. I’ll be back in a bit.” Jake walked away, heading for the bathroom.
Micah turned to the others. “I’m gonna use the bathroom too and check on Jake, see if he’s alright.” He motioned to Caleb, who looked like a lost puppy. “I’ll be right back.”
He left the waiting room and headed down the hallway. He spotted the men’s room down on the right and made his way to it. Micah pushed the door open and just caught a glimpse of Jake cup his hand to his mouth while sliding a small bottle into his pocket.
“Nicki was right,” Micah spoke up. Jake jumped. “Were you high when you worked on Nick? Were you?”
“Micah…I… no… never…”
Anger surged through Micah. He felt his face grow hot. “Don’t lie, Jake. I saw you.”
“I just started taking them. They’re only to relax me. A new job, a new city, and new friends. They’re so many expectations on me, so much pressure. It was just to get me through my transition. I swear I didn’t have any while I was with Nick. Please don’t te
ll him.”
“Jake.”
“Please, Micah. I really care about him. Micah, I’m a doctor. I know what I’m doing. I can control this. I’ll stop…right away. Please…”
Micah just stood, staring. He looked away, toward the sink, suddenly noticing that Jake had left the water running. He walked over and turned it off. He softened his voice: “I won’t tell him. But you gotta stop… not just for Nick, for all of your patients. You’re putting them all at risk.”
“I know.” Jake nodded. “I know. I swear I’m done.”
Micah nodded. “It’s been a rough night for all of us.”
Jake put his arm around him and Micah let him, this time. They walked back to the others, supporting one another. Micah hoped he would stay true to his word.
###
Sebastian held the ashes of the hellhounds in his hands. He wept over them. His sorrow turned to utter hate and rage. Screaming, he let the ashes blow away in the wind.
“Caleb!” He spat at the sky and clinched his fists. A circle of fire rose up around him and the wind howled. Flames crackled. “I will see you tortured in Hell for this. My boys… my boys… you’ve destroyed them and I will have your soul for this. It is now personal.”
He opened his mouth and the flames streamed into him, his eyes glowed deep red and his human body rippled, his perfect clothes nearly tearing apart. A moment later they did as black wings tore from his back and unfurled. A couple of feathers fluttered into the air, dancing on the wind.
Sebastian took flight, soaring through the night sky. It would be more difficult to track Caleb without his pets, but it could still be done. It had to be done. He would not rest until he found the deserter, the traitor…the murderer. There was no place on the Earth Caleb could hide from him. He could run for all eternity and Sebastian would follow.
He will suffer for all of time my mind hand for his crimes. By Lucifer I swear it.
12
Nick stirred, opened his eyes and tried to make out where he was through blurred vision. He felt someone holding his hand. His head cleared and he focused, finally seeing Jake smiling at him from his bedside.
“Jake…”
“I’m here. How are you feeling?”
“Eh..like I’ve been run over by a truck. God, it felt like I was on fire or something.”
“Well, you’re here now.”
“How long have I been out?”
“About eighteen hours or so.”
“Great.”
“All of your friends have been here.”
“Even Rick?”
Jake chuckled. “Especially your brother.”
“Oh, ok.”
Rick stepped into the room, a plant in his hands.
Jake stood up and smiled. “Well, I need to get back on call.” He slid his hand over Nick’s and leaned over, kissing him.
Nick looked up with a half-smile. “Jake, thank you…for everything.”
Jake smiled then left the room as Rick took his seat next to the bed. “How’s my little bro?”
“Little bro? You were seven minutes ahead of me…please…”
“That’s my bro. You’re getting back to your old sarcastic self already.”
The brothers shared a laugh as the morning shifted to afternoon.
###
Nicki looked out the window but still no Micah. She looked at her phone and was about to dial when he pulled into the parking space. She grabbed her stuff, ran outside and pulled the door shut behind her.
“Where have you been?” she said the moment she jumped into his car.
“Sorry. I was talking with Caleb. He’s feeling so guilty about the other night.”
“He should have told you about his psycho family.”
“I know…but can you blame him? He was afraid I’d dump him…as if.”
“All of this is creeping me out, Micah. Did you see those dogs? They weren’t normal dogs.”
“Nicki, it was dark and foggy. We were all just terrorized by the vicious animals…I…”
“No, I know what I saw. I saw them before. Something really weird is going on here. I’m worried about you. His family might be some killer cult that worships some fictional God that rises from the ocean or something.”
“He’s got a fucked up family…who doesn’t.”
“This is beyond fucked up.”
“I’m not going to be bullied by someone. Especially assholes like that. That’s it. I love him, Nicki.”
Nicki was quiet for a moment. Then looked over at him. “And how exactly did Caleb kill those dogs? Did you see him? He snapped their necks. How did he—”
“Have you met him? He’s pretty big. His arms are huge. And the adrenalin…we’ve seen a lot of things on our job… he was in survival mode. He probably didn’t even know he had it in him.”
“Just be careful… please. What else don’t we know about him?”
“Nicki…he’s a good guy who’s been abused by his family. He needs understanding and caring. Don’t give up on him. I’m asking you, for me.”
She was quiet again, glancing outside, watching some dude walk a German Shepherd. Chills slithered down her spine. “Okay.”
###
Caleb walked far from the apartment. His mind wandered into all sorts of horrific scenarios. The worst of it was losing Micah or even Sebastian killing him in an act of vengeance.
There were ways against that—protection that Father had crafted at the beginning, before the war in Heaven had ended. There were just rules that needed to be followed. He was bound to them.
The city was alive with traffic, pedestrians, construction and the race to accomplish, to acquire, to consume. Car horns honked, chisels tore up streets, conversations escalated on cell phones, and laughter echoed. This was life. This was the humans in their glory, in their weakest and their strongest, this was chaos that worked, and the struggle that bound each soul to the other.
He came upon a homeless man clinging to a bottle like a life preserver. He felt the man’s pain, read his memories, the loss of his job, the loss of his wife, the past that would not let go. Caleb approached him and set his hand on his head.
“Your addiction is no more,” Caleb said. “You will seek redemption, you will seek a new life of your choosing. No longer will you be a slave to this life. Your children are waiting.”
Tears filled the man’s eyes. He smiled at Caleb. “Thank you…Thank you…” He turned and dropped the bottle into the trashcan beside the bench he had slept on. He crossed the street and vanished into the midst of the city.
Caleb walked on, guilt heavy on his shoulders but at least he knew Nick had survived. It was nothing short of a miracle. There weren’t many that survived an encounter with hellhounds.
Outside of the city was some preservation land, tall pine trees and hillsides. A river ran through it and Caleb felt drawn to it. He sat on the edge of it, watching the water flow. Robins and Cardinals glided overhead, skimming the water briefly and soaring away.
He looked into the water and a face appeared. Sebastian glared at him. Caleb pulled back, terror crippling him. The arch-demon was everywhere and would never rest. Caleb had to face him before he ruined everything. Did it mean revealing his true self to Micah? He wasn’t sure he could. He was convinced that would be the end of things. The end of their love.
Caleb couldn’t bear to lose this man but he couldn’t risk putting him in danger. He wept, looking back into the river and seeing nothing.
“Let me go!” he cried. “I no longer belong to Lucifer! Go back to Hell Sebastian! Go back and leave us alone or I will smite thee!”
He looked down at the river’s shore and shifted his hand into its clawed form. He scratched a nearby rock, etching a strange symbol onto it—a triangle with a star in the center of it, then he drew a double circle on the outside of that, in between the circle he carved a host of tiny symbols that looked like arrows and runes.
I will never go back…
13
&
nbsp; Waking up next to Micah and his smile was something Caleb no longer thought he deserved. His heart was breaking and he feared the danger he was putting him in. Micah kissed him and Caleb winced.
“What is it?” asked Micah.
“I should go. I am putting you in great danger.”
“No. Don’t let them do this to us. We can’t let anyone tell us who to love.”
“I couldn’t face any harm coming to you. Not because of me. This is all my fault. Your friend nearly perished because of me.”
“It’s not your fault that your family is sick. You’re not responsible for what they do. Simple as that.”
“You don’t understand. It’s far more complicated than that. They are vast and reach to all corners of this wor—
Micah cut him off. “I am not going to let anything happen to you. He doesn’t know where I live anyway. If and when he bothers us again I’ll call the police.” He jumped out of the bed, slipped on some underwear and a t-shirt and headed out of the room. “Want some breakfast?” he called from the hallway.
Caleb rolled to his feet and followed him. “Micah wait… I need to tell you something.”
“Shit!” Micah froze as Caleb joined him at the kitchen threshold.
Sebastian stood in the kitchen, eating a banana slowly, seductively, licking it, swallowing it down. When he finished he let the peel fall to the floor. “This what you do with your new human friend, Caleb? Must be nice. Oh, watch the peel, people have been known to fall to their deaths because of them.”
“Sebastian, no…”
“Did you think I wouldn’t find you?” Sebastian shook his head. “You may have killed my boys, but I still have my ways.”
Micah snatched a lamp from the corner of the living room and rushed the arch-demon. “Get out of our lives, asshole!”
Sebastian smashed the lamp from Micah’s grip but that didn’t stop him. He followed up with a punch that Sebastian caught in mid throw.
