Betrayed

by Carly Fall

  Chapter 2

  Liam awoke and rolled over, afraid to look around. Would he be engulfed in flames? Had he somehow survived the firestorm and the pain from the burns hadn’t kicked in yet? What about his crew? Would he see the charred bodies of his friends?

  When he finally opened his eyes, he saw a teenager standing above him. The kid had brown hair, brown eyes, and was rail thin, but he had the brightest, friendliest smile Liam had ever seen. He wore black leather pants and vest, and black combat boots. Black wings flapped slowly at his back. The smoke was thick and flames licked at the kid, but he didn’t flinch.

  Liam gazed around at the charred grass and the inferno dancing and whipping around them. He stared at the four lumps on the ground, including his own body, and wondered if any of the others had made it.

  “Hello!” the kid said.

  Liam looked him over again. This was no kid. He thought of all the things that had wings. Birds. Bats. Planes. And . . . angels?

  Liam got to his feet, confused, and studied the kid from head to toe. He had never been much of a believer in the afterlife, figuring once a person died, it was the end of things—maybe just a fade to black. Now, this kid . . . or angel . . . stood in front of him among the flames, smiling as if he had won the lottery.

  The kid waved his hand and a blinding white light appeared. After Liam’s eyes adjusted, he realized that it was some type of portal, standing about eight feet wide and eight feet across. The light emanating from inside was glaring, even beyond the red-and-orange glow of the fire. The kid motioned for him to step inside.

  “What are you?” Liam asked.

  “I’m an Angel of Death, Liam. I’m here to deliver you to your final destination.”

  The black-feathered wings encrusted with thousands of small crystals spanned about six feet across and flapped lazily in the flames. Not that Liam had given a lot of thought to what angels looked like, but this definitely wasn’t what he had imagined.

  “I thought angels wore long, white robes and looked saintly,” Liam said.

  The angel shrugged. “Some do. Just not my tier of angel.”

  Tiers of angels?

  “You need to go now,” the angel urged, motioning for Liam to step into the portal again.

  “Where’s that thing going to take me, mate?” Liam asked.

  “You’re going to Heaven,” the angel said. “Unless you prefer the alternative, which is pretty close to what we’re standing in now.”

  Liam glanced around, stunned he couldn’t feel the heat from the fire as it burned around him. He truly must be dead, or he’d be choking on smoke and writhing in pain.

  “I’m really dead, right?” he asked, needing the clarification although he knew the answer.

  “Yes, you are. Now please, let’s go, Liam,” the angel said, motioning toward the portal again.

  Liam sighed. He wasn’t ready to die quite yet. He wasn’t leaving anything behind but a string of women who wanted more than he could give them, and a mum and father who would miss him terribly. Well, he felt pretty bad about his mum and father, but hoped that his older sister, Lisa, would help them mend from the loss. As for the women, he had remained emotionally detached from all of them after losing Annie, his one true love, and it was his fault she died. He’d been driving too fast, swerved, lost control of the car, and slammed into a guardrail. He’d walked away from the mangled hunk of metal, but Annie had died on impact.

  After Annie’s death two years ago, he promised himself that he would never fall in love again to avoid the heartache, and he’d done a damn fine job living up to that promise.

  He sighed, accepted his fate—whatever it would be—and stepped into the portal. The floor went out from under him, and he twisted and spiraled in a tornado-like tunnel of white light, being tossed around as if he were a Ping-Pong ball instead of a two-hundred-pound man. Closing his eyes, he wondered if dead people could throw up.

  As suddenly as it had started, the motion stopped, and he opened his eyes. A man wearing a long white robe stood over him. He had long gray hair, and his gray beard almost reached his knees. His blue eyes twinkled. He offered Liam a bony hand, and Liam took it, surprised by the man’s strength as he helped Liam to his feet.

  “Hello, Liam,” he said, his voice a deep rumble. “Welcome to Heaven.”

  Liam stood there, his eyes wide in awe. White gates extended upward into clouds farther than he could see. Beyond them, a pathway that looked as though it were made of clouds lead to tall, white buildings shimmering in the sunlight. Liam shook his head, wondering if he were dreaming.

  “No, you aren’t dreaming, Liam,” the old man said, placing his hand on Liam’s shoulder. “You’re dead. I know it can be quite jarring, but it’s the truth. I’m Saint Peter, by the way.”

  Liam stared at the gates. This place was beautiful. Damn, he was really in Heaven.

  “Evangeline will escort you in,” Saint Peter said.

  Liam turned, and there stood his version of what an angel should look like. Evangeline was a in her mid-twenties, and her white silk robe was interwoven with crystals that sparkled a rainbow of colors. Smiling, she tossed her waist-length blonde hair over her shoulder. He studied her heart-shaped face, kind blue eyes and rosy cheeks, and decided she was very pretty.

  “Come, Liam,” Evangeline beckoned as she turned and walked away from the gates.

  “But I thought I was supposed to go to Heaven,” Liam said.

  “Oh, you are, but you belong in a different part of Heaven,” Saint Peter said.

  “I don’t get it,” Liam said. “I didn’t know there was more than one Heaven.”

  Evangeline nodded. “Come, and I’ll explain everything. You’ll be going to the Fringe.”