After the Fall ba-2

by L. G. Castillo

  After the Fall

  ( Broken Angel - 2 )

  L. G. Castillo

  There’s a Spanish proverb that says, “From the thorn and the pain, a flower is born.” Naomi Duran never really understood what that meant until she became an archangel.

  Finally reunited with the love of her life, Naomi thought she had everlasting love and happiness in Heaven. Even with the rebellious Lash by her side, she learns that life as an archangel isn’t easy.

  When secrets of the past are finally revealed, tempers flare, brother is pitted against brother, and Naomi and Lash face the greatest threat to their relationship: choosing among love, family, or duty.

  In the end, can this family of broken angels forgive past mistakes, or will they carry the thorn in their hearts forever, ripping their family apart?

  After the Fall

  Broken Angel - 2

  L.G. Castillo

  De la espina y el dolor nace la flor.

  (From the thorn and the pain a flower is born.)

  ~Spanish Proverb

  1

  Rachel’s cloak fluttered as she sped through the dark tunnel. He was there. She could feel him.

  Shivering, her fingers fumbled with the heavy material as she drew it closer to her body. Puffs of white drifted from her mouth as she panted, trying to catch her breath. With each step she took, it was as if her angelic powers were being drained away. She stopped and slumped against the damp wall of the cave, unable to take another step. Could she do this? Even if she managed to reach him, would she have any power left to save him?

  Gabrielle had warned her it would be like this, but Rachel had dismissed her, especially when she first stepped into Hell. It looked just like home! Lush grass and fragrant flowers lined the landscape as far as she could see. Snowcapped mountains stood as a backdrop against the clear blue skies—even the stream was located in the same exact spot as in Heaven. If it wasn’t for the unnerving feeling in the pit of her stomach and the hairs that stood on the back of her neck, she would have sworn she was home.

  Considering Lucifer held his captives at the Lake of Fire, she had assumed Hell was a vast empty land of sweltering heat. It wasn’t until she found the cave hidden behind a waterfall that she finally understood what Gabrielle meant about not letting her guard down. The cave was frigid. The icy air seemed to seep into her pores and deep into her bones, causing her teeth to chatter uncontrollably.

  She wished Gabrielle had given her more information about what to expect. She would’ve dressed warmer. Gabrielle had only gone once, and she had waited on the outer boundaries of the cave. According to her, one time had been enough. It had taken her days to recover from the experience.

  Only Raphael knew what Hell was really like. He had made Gabrielle wait for him while he bravely went through the deepest depths of the cave to reach the lake. He was the only person she knew of who had gone down and returned—alive.

  If only she could have asked Raphael about what to expect and how to prepare. She sighed. If she had, there was no way she could’ve slipped away unnoticed. She would’ve been reported to Michael and more than likely, would’ve been put on watch until it was too late.

  A sob escaped her at the thought of his death. She slapped a hand over her mouth, horrified as the sound echoed in the darkness, bouncing off the walls. Her body shook as she wrestled with the thought of losing him. She had to pull herself together. If she were caught, it would be the end for both of them.

  She took a resolving breath and pushed herself off the wall. I can do this. I won’t lose him.

  Her feet scraped across the floor of the cave as she trudged forward in the darkness. As she rounded a corner, she came up to a pair of tunnels.

  Which way should I go? Her eyes watered, and she bit down on her lip, frustrated. She was tired. So tired. If she chose the wrong one, she didn’t know if she would be able to make it down the second. Time was running out. She had to make a choice, now!

  She was about to go down the tunnel to her left when she heard a moan from the right.

  It’s him!

  She raced toward the sound with renewed energy, and within minutes, she came into a large cavern. Heat slammed against her body, making her cringe in pain from the abrupt change in temperature. She stopped suddenly, her arms flailing out as she tried to regain her balance and not fall into the molten lava that appeared right before her eyes threatening to singe the tips of her toes.

  The lake!

  Immense heat blurred her vision, and she rubbed her eyes. All she could see was a sea of red heat. Where is he?

  Searching through the haze, she finally saw a faint figure, motionless. She blinked again and gasped when her eyes finally focused.

  No! It can’t be him.

  Across the lake, chained to the wall, naked, was the one person in her life who she couldn’t be without. The one person for whom she would defy the orders of the most high of archangels just so she could save him.

  Uriel.

  Tears spilled down her heated cheeks as she took in his once magnificent body, scorched by the lava that splashed onto his skin. His beautiful downy-white wings were now a grotesque black. With each movement he made, feathers turned to ash and fluttered lifelessly to the ground.

  “Uriel,” she croaked.

  Uriel lifted his head, and pained eyes looked back at her, a startling blue against the black of his charred face. “No,” he groaned. “Leave. Leave now. He’ll be here—”

  The cave rumbled, and lava sprouted into the air. A splattering of the searing liquid fell onto his chest. He arched his back and screeched.

  “I’m coming, Uriel!” She tore off her cloak and flicked her wings open.

  “It’s too late for me,” he rasped. “Don’t do this.”

  “No, it’s not. I don’t care what the others say. You’ve redeemed yourself. You deserve another chance.”

  He looked deep into her eyes. “Forgive me. I’m unworthy of you.”

  “There is nothing to forgive. I love you.”

  Desperate to find a way to get to him, Rachel looked around the cavern. She swallowed hard as she flit her wings and with all the strength she could muster, propelled herself into the air. She was only able to get herself a couple of feet off the ground. It was as if an invisible barrier was holding her down. Frantically, she looked around for another way to get to him and saw a narrow stone path with lava washing across it. There was no other way to him.

  With all her might, she pushed herself upward, trying to get distance from the fiery liquid. The cave shook again, and a wave of lava slammed against the walls, sending droplets of lava flying into the air and onto her wings.

  She wailed in pain and began to fall.

  “No, Rachel. Go back,” Uriel moaned.

  Before Rachel could tell him there was no way she was leaving him, she felt a rush of air on her back. An arm wrapped tightly around her waist and yanked her away from the lake, away from Uriel.

  “Take her...Gabrielle,” Uriel gasped. “Keep her...safe.”

  “You have my word,” Gabrielle said as she tightened her hold on Rachel.

  “No!” Rachel screamed, struggling against Gabrielle’s steel-like arms. “Let me go. Let. Me. Go!”

  Rachel stretched out her arms as if just by doing so, she could hold on to him. “Uriel! Uriel!”

  Just as Gabrielle flew out of the cavern, a loud thunderclap rocked the cave, and the sound of his screams ripped through her, mixing with her own.

  Then, silence.

  He’s gone.

  She fell limply into Gabrielle’s arms as they flew back through the frigid tunnel. The cold spread to her face, her hands, and then crept into her heart and the deepest part of her soul until there was no
thing left except a dark numbness. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered anymore.

  When they flew out of the waterfall and into the sunlight, she stared lifelessly at the clouds drifting overhead. And though the sun shone down on her face, she couldn’t feel its warmth. She doubted if she would ever feel it again. The cold emptiness in her heart would be there forever because Uriel was dead.

  * * *

  “Wait! Uri died? Like died, died? No longer existing, died?” Naomi gawked at Rachel and then glanced at Uri. His dimple flashed as he grinned. “But, you’re...you’re here.”

  Rachel stared off into the distance with a sad expression as if she were still back in the cave.

  “Rachel? Are you okay?” Naomi shook her shoulder, her brow furrowed with worry. She wasn’t used to seeing her friend so sad. Out of all the angels she’d met during her short time in Heaven, Rachel was the most cheerful, always chirping away about angel gossip. She wished she hadn’t asked Rachel about how she and Uri met. Naomi had no idea about their tragic past or that Rachel and Uri were ever apart. Uri, who had shortened his name from Uriel, was always by Rachel’s side.

  When Naomi first met Uri, she’d been taken off guard by the way he winked and teased her. And he was a hugger, just like Rachel. She’d thought Lash would be jealous of the way Uri flirted with her. But then she noticed he was that way with everyone, even Gabrielle.

  Heaven was not at a loss for drop-dead gorgeous angels. Although Lash’s dark, brooding looks were more her type, she had to admit Uri was attractive. His dark blond hair was worn short with long bangs that flopped on his forehead, highlighting teasing blue eyes. His most striking features were his full lips that always seemed to be in a puckered position. Many of the female angels drooled every time Uri kissed their hand “hello” or melted whenever he flashed a smile at them. And if Uri really wanted to get them going, he’d go heavy on his Russian accent.

  Despite all the attention he drew, it was clear that his heart belonged to Rachel. Every time she walked into the room, his face would light up and grow even more breathtakingly handsome. It was like all the energy he radiated was because of her.

  Rachel blinked a few times, and she shook her head as if bringing herself to the present. “Yeah, sorry. I got lost in memories there for a moment. What were you saying?”

  “Ah, my love, allow me to explain to Naomi my miraculous resurrection,” Uri said to Rachel.

  He leaned over the table and took Naomi’s hand into his. He paused and then glanced over at Lash. “May I?”

  Lash nodded and leaned back into his seat. “As long as you rein in some of the charm.”

  Naomi rolled her eyes. “He’s just holding my hand. Why are you holding my hand, Uri?”

  “Tell me, my beautiful Naomi. What do you feel?” Uri gave Rachel a wink.

  Naomi blinked, confused. “I, uh, well, I feel your hand.”

  “Yes, you feel Uri’s hand,” he said, flipping the “r” as he spoke. “But, who is Uri?”

  “What?” She glanced over to Lash, not knowing what to think. He shrugged.

  “Is this Uri, flesh and bones?” He slid her hand up his muscular arm. “Or is this Uri?” He then placed her hand over his chiseled chest.

  Lash bolted up in his seat. “Hey there, watch it now.”

  “Shh.” Naomi waved a hand. “I think I’m on to something.”

  “Looks to me like you’re feeling Uri up,” he mumbled.

  Rachel giggled and picked up the cards from the center of the table. “Naomi’s right. You’re cute when you’re jealous.”

  “I’m not...aw, give me the cards.” He snatched the deck from her.

  Naomi could feel Lash pouting as he shuffled the cards. She wanted to put his mind at ease, but she was close to figuring out what Uri was trying to explain. It was on the tip of her mind.

  “Are you saying that it was only your body that changed?”

  Uri grinned. “Very good. This”—he tapped her hand against his chest—“is a new and improved Uri. You like?” He winked.

  “Yes.”

  He beamed, and she heard a muffled giggle from Rachel.

  Naomi felt her face grow warm as she pulled her hand off his chest. “I mean...you’re a...a...a good friend,” she stammered.

  She took a breath and tried to re-focus the conversation back to what they were talking about. “So, what you’re saying is that the real you, your soul, didn’t die. It was still alive.”

  “She is a smart one, no?” Uri said to Lash.

  He grunted.

  “Let’s take that as a ‘yes’.” Naomi turned her attention back to the game they were playing. She swiped the pinto beans off the bingo card and looked for another one. Her current one had to be jinxed. She hadn’t won one game the entire evening.

  She had introduced Mexican bingo to Uri and Rachel a few weeks ago, hoping to have some fun during her time off from training. Rachel loved it so much—probably because she won most of the time—that she and Uri came over every evening to play.

  “I learn something new every day. I didn’t know it was possible for angels to die, or at least their bodies. It must’ve been a relief to know Uri was going to come back,” Naomi said.

  The room went silent.

  “Not everyone comes back,” Rachel said quietly. Her constant smile disappeared.

  “Oh, but I did.” Uri got up from the table, lifted Rachel from her chair, and placed her on his lap. “It took many years, but I came back to you, my love.”

  “Three thousand, three hundred eighty-six years, five months, two days, twelve hours, forty-eight minutes, and twenty-three seconds,” Rachel said under her breath.

  Naomi gasped. He was gone for that long? Her chest tightened as Uri tenderly brushed a tear off Rachel’s cheek. If angels could die, then Lash could too, and there was no guarantee he’d be resurrected. All this time, she had thought there was nothing that could tear them apart. She’d thought she had forever with him.

  “When did you die?” she asked.

  “1400 BC. My return wasn’t until...hmm, let’s see, 1967 or so, when I was born into a human body. Not too much different than when you were born into your human body.”

  “Only he was in Chernobyl instead of Texas,” Rachel poked Uri in the chest. “I finally saw him again when he turned nineteen.”

  “Chernobyl in the ’80s,” Lash sighed. “I remember that.”

  “Yeah, me too,” Rachel said. “I’d never been so happy and frustrated in my life. Believe me, Lash, I totally understand what you went through when you were assigned to Naomi.”

  “Uri came back human?” Naomi turned to him. “You didn’t know you were an angel before?”

  “Nope. It took much convincing from Rachel. Unlike you, I was not the most, umm, should I say, moral of humans.” Uri winked at her. “Of course, Rachel changed all that for me, and we were finally together again.”

  “But three thousand years. I could never...” She looked over at Lash and took a deep calming breath. “I can’t even imagine.”

  “Hey,” Lash leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Everything’s okay. I’m here,” he said as if he could read her thoughts and her fears about living a life without him. How had Rachel done it? All those years without Uri, watching him die the way he did, not knowing if he’d ever come back.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “It didn’t come up.” He took the bingo card out of her hand and held her hands in his. “You don’t have anything to worry about. Uri’s situation is totally unusual. No offense, Uri.”

  “None taken, my friend,” Uri said. “Naomi, Lash is not the most rebellious angel here, as much as he likes to pretend that he is.” He grinned, dimples flashing. “There are much worse things one can do than throw a few temper tantrums and mess up assignments.”

  Lash scowled. “I wouldn’t call them tantrums.”

  “What did you do?” Naomi couldn’t imagine Uri doing anything so bad that his punishment was death in
Hell. He didn’t seem the type. “I didn’t know angels could be punished like that.”

  “It wasn’t the archangels who punished him.” Rachel looked down at Uri’s bingo card, frowned, and reached over to the table to get another. “They would never do that.”

  “Oh, I can see Gabrielle ordering something like that,” Lash said.

  “Lash,” Naomi warned. Gabrielle was still a sore spot for him. Rachel had told her how Gabrielle and Lash didn’t get along. So, when Gabrielle was assigned to be her supervisor, she thought Gabrielle would be difficult to work with. Instead, she was very patient with Naomi and even gave her extra time to complete some of her training. She did notice that Gabrielle was all business and never interacted with any of the angels on a personal level. Naomi could understand that. It must be difficult for her to be second in command next to Michael. She hadn’t met him yet, but everyone spoke about him with high reverence, including Lash. The only time Gabrielle appeared to let her guard down was when she was with Raphael. If she didn’t know any better, she could swear Gabrielle was in love with him.

  “What?” Lash looked innocently at her. “It’s true. If it were me, she’d do it in a heartbeat.”

  “Gabrielle can be a bit...stiff at times, but she means well.” Rachel’s big brown eyes glistened with tears as she looked into the distance, appearing to remember something. “She risked her life, coming after me, and she didn’t have to tell me how to get to the Lake of Fire.”

  “Uh, hmm,” Lash looked at her skeptically for a moment, then turned his attention to Uri. “So, what did you do?”

  “You don’t know?” Naomi asked, surprised. She figured since Rachel and Lash were such good friends, they would’ve talked about it by now.

  “Lash knows I was killed and then was brought back. I just haven’t told anyone why,” Uri said, appearing flustered. He looked at Rachel nervously before he continued. “You see, I was a very different person back then. In 1400 BC, I went to the City of Ai with Raphael and Luci—”