by Debra Dunbar
I thought of Nils and nodded. Gabriel was a stickler for the rules — I just had to find a rule that supported my cause. “But you angels killed those who attacked you at the council meeting. You’ve killed rebel angels in Aaru — continue to kill them. How is this any different?”
He reached out to give my hands a quick squeeze, and I felt his spirit–self against mine. “You’re still a demon in the eyes of Aaru. And you’re residing here among the humans at the whim of the Ruling Council. True, the angels should not have attacked you, but the Council will argue that because you have been known to harbor Nephilim, you’re subject to searches.”
“Searched,” I argued, “is not six assholes trying to kill me! They were shooting at me, beating the crap out of Nils. There was no ‘searching’ going on. Besides, these angels weren’t Hunters. They weren’t Gregori. They weren’t sent here on behalf of the Ruling Council to check whether I’d been naughty or nice. They were a band of vigilantes trying to kill me and scare a pregnant woman into compliance. The whole bunch had more sin going on than most demons in Hel.”
He held up his hands, and I knew I was preaching to the choir.
“Okay, okay.” I ran my hands through my hair and tried to think. “So what will my punishment likely be? Death? Imprisonment in that fucking nightmare of an Aaru prison?”
I heard Harper’s gasp and Nyalla’s softly whispered “no”. I didn’t want to scare the girls, but I had to know what I’d be facing.
“Best case scenario, you are confined to Hel except for Ruling Council meetings in a designated neutral territory. Probably Aerie.”
I’d never been to the Fae realm — had no idea how I’d even get there. It would take me centuries to find the damned place. Besides, my work was here. Even when I was banished to Hel, I hadn’t had the conviction that roared through me at this moment. I needed to be here, with the humans and the werewolves. This was where I was needed most.
“Worse case scenario, you’ll be condemned to death. I’m not sure how we’d go about executing an Iblis without retaliation from Hel, but if the Council decreed it, they’d accept the fallout. In fact, some in Aaru would probably welcome the further division between our kind.”
And all the progress we’d made over the last few years would be undone. I thought of Raphael and our pact to try and bring about demon–angel unions. I thought of Nils and his ill–conceived breeding petition. We’d come too far to retreat. And there was something else bothering me.
“What will happen to you?” Because no matter how grim my future looked, this angel had to be facing worse. This kind of shit was expected of a demon, not a six–billion–year–old archangel. Who knows what they’d do to him for aiding and abetting, or whatever the angels called it.
He shrugged, refusing to meet my eyes or answer my question. My heart raced out of control.
“Will they kill you? Throw you into Hel or here as a Fallen? Take your halo?”
He barked out a short, bitter laugh. “They can’t take my halo. No one in Aaru is strong enough to do that. They could sever me from the source, which would reduce some of my abilities, but not remove my halo.” He smiled and reached out to caress a lock of my hair. “I’ll survive. One thing I’ve learned in my long life is patience. This is a setback, but with time and persistence, we’ll turn this around, and both Aaru and Hel will be the better for it.”
I didn’t see how that was possible with me trapped in Hel and him who–knows–where. Still, I tried to smile back at him. And failed. My mouth wobbled, and my vision blurred. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.”
Why the fuck couldn’t I think before I ran off half–cocked and did things? Why was I so impulsive, such a slave to my baser self? Yeah, I was a demon, but what the fuck was wrong with me? I’d been lucky that in my nearly thousand years, all my bad decisions had turned into a happy ending. How long was that luck going to hold out? Eventually I was going to go down, and I was going to drag the angel I loved with me.
“No.” He gathered me to him, and I forgot all about Harper and Nyalla watching with rapt attention. “Never be sorry for who you are. It’s a demon I fell in love with — an imp. You may have wings, but the being I love has the soul of a devouring, chaotic, self–destructive little Cockroach.”
My laugh came out like a hiccup, and I pulled back, wiping a hand across my eyes. “Okay. Got it. Pity party over.”
And it was. My luck might run out. I might someday pay the price for my crazy, impulsive actions. But he’d made a choice to be with me, and he entered into our relationship with his eyes wide open.
He smoothed a hand over my hair, and this time my smile was genuine. “I’ll transport Harper to safety. We’ll ensure she has everything she — and the baby — needs, to have a fulfilling life, and then we’ll go to Aaru and face whatever happens. Together.”
“Together.”
My front door flew open and Nils stood in the entrance, his clothing ripped and singed, his face and arms covered in long gashes. “There’s an angel outside insisting he needs to speak to you.”
They couldn’t see who or what was inside the barrier, but nothing would stop them from attacking my house. I wondered why this angel had held back. Clearly he’d fought Nils, and given the Fallen angel’s state, had won. Why hadn’t he killed Nils and come on through the door himself?
“Okay.” I stood and summoned my shotgun. I was so tired of this shit. Gregory had said last night that the Council was too busy with the shit storm in Aaru to mess with me, but he must have been wrong. “I guess I better go see this guy.”
“No,” Nils shook his head, flinging drops of blood onto the floor. “Not you. Him.”
He pointed at Gregory.
“Come on, Cockroach.” Gregory sighed. “Time to face the music. No matter what happens, I vow I’ll make good on my promise to see Harper to safety.”
I looked over to the girls, both white faced with wide eyes. There was one angel outside, but I doubted Gregory would stand by while I dusted him and shoveled his sandy remains in a pile with the others. No, we’d have some bullshit conversation then gate off to Aaru to face charges. Whether they were for my angel–killing activities, or Harper’s continued presence in my home, I didn’t know. Either way, this might be the last time I ever saw either Harper or Nyalla.
I grabbed my girl in a quick hug. “I love you. Don’t settle for any shithead cops or surfer dudes. Promise?” I asked Nyalla.
She laughed, sounding right on the edge of hysteria. “Promise. And I love you, too.”
“You.” I pointed at Harper. “Take every fucking knife from my kitchen and put them to good use if you have to. Wand, nets, marbles — don’t let those fuckers take your baby.”
Harper ran at me like a linebacker, crushing me in an awkward hug. Her bowling ball of a belly pressed against mine, causing me to arch my back as she yanked my shoulders against hers. “I will, Sam. And don’t you let any of those angels tell you what to do. You’re Satan. They don’t got nothing on you, girl.”
She let me go, and I caught Nyalla giving me a grin and a fist–pump. It was good to know my girls had faith in me.
“I’ll be back,” I told them. And I would. Eventually. Nils stayed behind to guard Nyalla and Harper, while Gregory and I walked out my front door to face whatever angel had assaulted my Fallen and demanded this meeting.
Of all the angels I’d envisioned demanding an audience, I never expected this one. It was Gabriel, standing at a respectful distance from my front door, pristine in white. He’d either healed whatever damage Nils had done to him, or had never suffered a scratch.
“We’ve got a problem,” he said to Gregory after a quick, scornful glance my way.
“Nephilim problem or other problem?”
Gabe breathed out an exasperated sigh. “Killing angels problem. The Nephilim problem is still under control. Or at least it was when I left Aaru.”
“How did the Ruling Council find out?” I asked. “
I doubt Bencul would have risked his son’s life by making his sin widely known.”
Gabriel shrugged. “Angels were noticed missing, and then traced here where their energy signature was found among their remains.” He turned to face the elder angel. “How should I play this one, Micha? You know I don’t condone what you’re doing with this imp, but I respect your vision and want to hear your thoughts on this.”
My angel put an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. “By the rules, Gabe. Play it by the rules.”
–22–
I stood before the conference table, facing the other angels. Seems I never had a seat at the table anymore — I was always the one in trouble. The difference this time was that Gregory stood beside me. He had a chair, no doubt a last effort to get him to put aside his wicked ways and return to a higher vibration level. Either that or they were too afraid of him to deliver the affront of denying him a seat.
“Iblis, it has come to our attention that in addition to the prior incident where you were harboring a Nephilim, you or your agents have killed six angels in the last seventy–two hours.”
“No agents. I did it all by my lonesome, although it was five, not six.”
Who knows what demon killed that asshat I threw into Hel. It wasn’t me, though, and I wasn’t taking the rap for that one.
“Correction, you killed six angels or acted in such a way that their death was an unavoidable conclusion.”
Okay, I guess I was taking the rap for that one.
“They attacked my home and my Fallen one, necessitating forceful action on my part. I was simply defending myself and my property.”
“They intended to kill you?” Rafael asked.
I hesitated, knowing how badly I lied. “When five angels open fire on me and beat the crap out of someone under my protection, I don’t stop to ask them whether they intend to kill or injure. Let me assure you, they weren’t shooting blanks.”
“Killing them was not a suitable response to the attack.”
New Guy. He was such an asshole. Number two on my most–hated list after Gabriel.
“So sorry. I had planned on inviting them in to discuss our differences over coffee and pastries. Too bad they tried to blow my head off before I could make the offer.”
“You said five. What was the other angel doing? You killed six, but you said only five were attacking you.”
Damn. “He is the one who ordered the attack. If I didn’t take him out, he’d just bring back more angels next time.”
Sleazy clenched his fists on top of the highly varnished oak table. “You have enough power to subdue an angel, transport him via automobile then throw him through the gate into Hel, but you couldn’t do that to the other five. You had to kill them outright?”
“Yeah.” I wasn’t sure what else to say.
Gabriel took a deep breath and let it out, his hands skimming the papers before him. “Even if we decide those five were killed in self–defense, that you had reasonable fear for your life, the sixth one is clearly murder. He was not physically attacking you. You had restrained him. There was no reason for his death. You could have simply returned him to Aaru to stand trial on your accusations, just as you did that member of my choir who violated the treaty.”
I was totally fucked. The poetic justice of throwing Bencul into Hel was something the angels would never comprehend. I wasn’t sorry I’d done it, but I was sorry that Gregory was being dragged into this ditch with me.
As if sensing my thoughts, Gabriel turned to face his eldest brother. “And where were you when all this was happening?”
“In Aaru,” I jumped in before Gregory could even open his mouth. “He was completely unaware of my actions until last night.”
Gabriel scowled at me, then turned back to the angel beside me. “Why didn’t you bring her straight to Aaru for trial? You were there when she was summoned. You knew about this.”
Gregory smiled serenely. “A few weeks’ delay isn’t going to resurrect six dead angels. The Iblis has been assigned important responsibilities by the Council, and given the sentence she is likely to face for her actions, I decided it was crucial for her to accomplish those tasks first.”
“Such as?”
New Guy. I was being pummeled from all directions. Other than Raphael and Gregory, no one was on my side.
“Are you kidding? I’m responsible for the Fallen. That’s a whole lotta work. It could take me a few–million years to raise all those vibration levels to an acceptable level. Important shit, you know. Just rack up all my punishments, and I’ll pay my dues once I’m done with my official assignments.”
“You’ve got one Fallen.” The intensity of Gabriel’s gaze felt like a shard of ice through my chest. “How long could it possibly take to rehabilitate one Fallen?”
“Iblis or not, this wanton murder of six angels warrants death.” Sleazy was on a roll. “We were wrong to retain this seat on the Council. Wings or not, this creature is no Angel of Chaos.”
Sleazy’s rant faded to an incomprehensible buzz as I stared at Gabriel. There was something behind the frosty blue of his eyes. I felt a slight nudge from Gregory, as if he were pushing me toward something. Fallen. Bits and pieces of that boring Ruling Council meeting where I’d been chastised for my late reports tickled along the edges of my mind.
“One? Do you know how many humans have a FICO score in the shitter? And at the rate you angels sin, I’ll need to hire staff. I’ll be lucky to show progress in a dozen millennium. And the recidivism rate? Shit, that alone will keep me busy until the end of time.”
I felt lost in the frozen blue of Gabriel’s eyes. “Those who violate the treaty are yours, but other angels who sin are not.”
Play it by the rules.
“Nonsense. The Council gave me the Fallen — humans and angels. Treaty violations certainly can’t be more heinous than interfering with the natural lifespan of a human, then deliberately entrancing and impregnating her.”
Raphael shifted in his seat. “Not all angels who breed with humans are so callous. Some actually feel love for their mates. You have a human lover. You surely know this.”
I did. But now wasn’t the time to get into my fading relationship with Wyatt.
“That may be true, but the pregnant human I protected was treated this way. And we are demons — we’re expected to do this sort of thing. Angels who care about their vibration levels and rightful balance should not be tempted into a physical relationship with a human.”
Gabriel crumpled a piece of paper in his fist. “We are all tempted, but angels should never succumb to that temptation. We are above sin. And those who are not are Fallen.”
The air grew thick and heavy as all turned to Gabriel. “And the Fallen are mine,” I told him, my voice soft.
Mine. The silent word reverberated with power, and I know the angels felt the impact as I did. I’d claimed this group, and my claim was stronger than any vow. There was no backing out now. I was the Iblis, and my workload had just increased tenfold.
I felt a collective gasp of breath.
“Bencul was Fallen. He interfered with the natural course of life. He saved a woman who should have died. He inserted himself into her life. He enthralled her, impregnated her in spite of her precautions otherwise. Then he brought a group of angels to my house — twice — to attack me and intimidate the human into complying with his wishes. Because of those actions, he became Fallen. He belonged to me, and those he dragged into the abyss of sin also became mine.”
I felt a wave of pride from the angel beside me, and I realized for the first time in my life that I really did sound like the Ha–Satan. Confident, assertive, wily. Angel of Justice. Angel of Vengeance. The Trickster. The Iblis. I was the devil’s advocate, and my job was to provide much–needed balance. How ironic that the very concept I scorned was what I was meant to create.
“Aaru rots from the inside. How you intend to rectify that situation isn’t my concern. I care not for Aaru or the problems of ange
ls. My responsibility lies in Hel and among the Fallen. Deny me what heaven deems mine at your own peril.”
There was a flurry of mind–speech, and Gregory left my side to take his seat. It didn’t bother me. I could stand alone, and I needed him more at the table than to prop me up. There he could make a difference — both in Aaru and in my own fate. I loved him; he made me feel safe and worthy of the title I bore, but I was the Iblis, and that meant I had to stand my ground on my own two feet. And with my own two wings.
“We recognize your authority over the Fallen,” Gabriel announced. “However, that designation must be formally assigned. We can’t have you subjectively assuming that an angel is Fallen. There must be due process.”
I nodded. Sounded reasonable, but with angels, due process could take centuries. I couldn’t exactly sit around getting my head blown off while they debated these things. Keeping my mouth shut was the prudent thing to do at this juncture. I’d managed to talk my way out of a death sentence. Might as well not push the envelope too far. At least at this particular moment.
“Punishment for rushing to judgment on six angels is one rotation cycle naked and restrained. Beginning immediately.”
I opened my mouth only to snap it shut. Nyalla and Nils didn’t expect me home tonight, if at all. Gregory said he would transport Harper to safety for me. There was really nothing pressing for me to do beyond pouring bubble bath in the fountain at City Hall. I’d get this over with then go home to my life and my newfound responsibilities.
–23–
I was alone in my jail cell this time, escorted without all the fanfare that had preceded my last incarceration. It was just as well; I was in no mood to fake bravado. Everything had seemed to have worked out to my advantage, but I was still worried. That other shoe was going to drop any moment, and I was tense, waiting for it to fall on my head with the weight of a hundred–ton brick.
Aaru seemed empty of angels. I couldn’t sense anyone, even snotty Gabriel, who had dumped me here after stripping me of my physical form and blocking my stash of raw energy. I had an irrational urge to shout “hello” and hear the word echo through the blank white expanse. Irrational because I didn’t have vocal chords at the moment, and even if I did, there was no echo in Aaru. Sound here was deadened, like screaming into a box of cotton.
