by Diem, J. C.
Reynolds was crouched beside Sam. He’d put his gun away and sent me a grave look. “This wound looks pretty bad. He needs to go to a hospital.”
Lying on the cold cement, Sam was breathing shallowly. The wound wasn’t fatal, but he’d lost a lot of blood. “One of the angels can heal him,” I said. We couldn’t take him to a hospital. He didn’t have any identification and we had no way of explaining who he was.
“Summon Brie,” Leo said. “Her healing abilities are better than Domiel’s and Jeduthun’s.” I could have summoned Nathan, but that would leave Sophia without a guard.
“Brie will not want to heal me,” Sam said. His eyes were shut, but he was conscious and he was listening to us.
“Of course she will,” I said. “She knows how valuable you are to me now and she doesn’t hate you anymore.”
“Why did she hate him?” the detective asked Leo.
“Because he was an imp,” he explained. “We were taught to believe that all creatures in hell are evil. We did not realize that imps could redeem themselves. It took her a long time to change her mind about Sam.”
I used my bracelet to summon his twin to me. She looked annoyed for only an instant before she saw Sam lying on the ground. Without needing to be asked, she knelt beside him and put her hand on his head. She concentrated and he gasped and his back arched. His eyes flew open and he looked up at her in wonder. “You healed me,” he said.
“You were injured,” she said. “I assume I was called here to repair your wound.”
“You were,” I confirmed. “Thanks, Brie. I owe you one.” I seemed to owe a lot of favors that I might not ever be able to repay.
“It was nothing,” she said, although I knew it depleted her power. She would need to rest to build up her strength again. “Samuel is important to our cause. You need him in order to succeed on your missions. I am aware that he is a valuable asset.”
I almost shook my head at how much she’d changed towards us both. She’d gone from hating us to actually having a small amount of respect for our abilities.
Leo hugged her tightly while she turned her attention to Reynolds. “Who is he?” she asked.
“Briathos, this is Detective Reynolds. He’s the cop we’ve been helping to identify demons for.” He nodded at her and she inclined her head in greeting. We’d been keeping her in the loop, but this was the first time they’d met.
“Can you get rid of the bodies?” Reynolds asked the two angels.
“What do you want us to do with the girl?” Brie asked. Grief hit me at the reminder that yet another one of my cousins was now dead. That meant there were now only four of us remaining. They were being cut down at an alarming rate.
“I don’t want her family to suffer not knowing what happened to her,” he said with a heavy sigh. “Can you leave her somewhere out in the open where she’ll be found quickly?”
Leo and Brie nodded. “Leave it to us,” Leo said. One by one, they removed the bodies until only the girl was left.
“I will leave her in a nearby park,” Brie offered then cleaned up the blood that had been spilled during our scuffle. No evidence had been left behind of the battle.
“Thanks for your help,” I said to her.
“You are welcome. I must go before I am missed.” With that, she disappeared with the final body.
Reynolds looked like he’d aged ten years. “I thought we had a chance to save her,” he said in anguish. He’d witnessed two murders himself and he was the one who had discovered that the girls were my relatives. I’d already come to that conclusion, but he’d actually ordered blood tests that proved it. He clearly felt just as guilty as I did that we hadn’t saved her.
“Sophia has a theory about their deaths,” Leo told him. “She thinks that Hannah’s descendants are being used as decoys. It is awful, but they became superfluous the moment that Violet was conceived.”
Reynolds blinked at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
“Hannah was a woman who was kidnapped and taken to hell four thousand years ago,” I explained. “One of the Demon Princes was going to rape her to death, but Fate stepped in and gave her a choice. She said that if Hannah chose to live, one of her descendants would end up saving the world.”
“How does this relate to you?”
“My mother was an angel,” I reminded him. “She was sent to Earth on a mission eighteen years ago and she needed to borrow a vessel. Fate gave her twenty of Hannah’s descendants to choose from. The one she picked was called Lily. She and Sophia were both captured by demons called Collectors a few days later and their grace was harvested. I guess my mom met a guy and became pregnant a short while later and I was conceived.” I wasn’t about to tell him that one of the Collectors was my father. That was a secret that only Sophia and I knew.
He took that in then frowned. “If she’d chosen any of the other vessels, does that mean it could have been you dying today?”
“Possibly,” I confirmed.
He stared at me for a bit longer. “What was so special about your mother? Why was she the one who gave birth to the person who would save the world from demonkind?”
“You’d have to ask Fate that question,” I said evasively. I couldn’t tell him that Asteraoth had been raped by a demon and had conceived the first Nephilim in eons. I wasn’t sure why she’d been chosen. She’d been given a choice and had opted to sacrifice herself in order to give humanity a chance of survival. Perhaps that was the answer. She’d cared about humans enough not to selfishly allow them to be destroyed.
₪₪₪
Chapter Nineteen
Leo performed his magic trick of cleaning the blood away from my face, hands and clothes. Sam waved away the offer. He didn’t want the angel to deplete himself. We were all shaken by my vicious attack on the demon even if no one said it out loud.
“I need to get back to HQ,” Reynolds said. He’d already been away too long. Gomez would be wondering where he was by now.
Leo teleported us back to the detective’s car. Reynolds climbed inside, waved then motored off. Sam grimaced and pulled his sticky t-shirt away from his now healed shoulder. The shirt was black, so the blood wasn’t noticeable. “I need to take a shower,” he said.
“What were you thinking, jumping in front of me like that?” I said.
“I was thinking that you are Hellscourge and that I am just your sidekick,” he replied cheekily. “It does not matter if I die, but the world needs you.”
I put my hands on my hips and glared at him. “Of course it matters if you die. How am I supposed to get through hell without you?”
“Sam is alive,” Leo pointed out. “Why are you arguing about this?”
“You guys are always putting yourselves in danger to save me,” I said in frustration that he didn’t understand. “You’re all just as important as I am. I can’t do this without you.”
“You will not have to,” he said soothingly. “We will all be there for you right to the end.”
A feeling of dread was rising inside me and I couldn’t articulate it. Nathan had almost died from the Wraith Warrior’s toxin and now Sam had been badly injured again. I hated seeing my close friends in danger. Fate would sacrifice anyone she saw fit if it would keep me alive long enough to fulfil the task that she’d set for me.
We headed back to the store and Sam trudged upstairs. “What happened?” Sophia asked. Her eagle eyes had seen the tear in his shirt and the bloodstain that just looked like a damp patch to me.
Nathan tensed when Leo and I told them the story. His jaw clenched at how close I’d come to being stabbed. He hadn’t been drawn to me by our bond this time. Sam had acted too quickly and had stepped in first.
“There are so few of Hannah’s descendants left now,” Sophia said sadly. “Apart from you, only three of them remain.”
I’d already done the sums myself and nodded in agreement. “I wish there was something I could do to save them.”
We knew it wasn’t pos
sible and fell silent. From upstairs, I heard Sam singing in the shower. He had a surprisingly deep baritone. “What is he singing?” I asked. It sounded vaguely familiar.
Leo looked slightly embarrassed when he answered me. “It is the theme song for one of the programs that we watch.”
Nathan’s lips twitched, but I didn’t try to hold in my snort of laughter. “It’s official, you’re both beyond help now. Your lives will forever be ruled by television.”
“It is not our fault that these programs are so entertaining,” Leo said in self-defense. “They are designed to draw you in until you need to know what happens next. If they were less interesting, this would not be a problem.”
“I don’t have a problem resisting them,” I pointed out dryly.
“You already have too much on your mind,” he replied. “You have to focus on saving the world, while we are just your backup.”
“Nice justification,” I said in admiration.
“I thought so,” he smirked.
Listening to make sure Sam was still in the shower, I leaned forward and lowered my voice. I knew his hearing wasn’t as good now, but I didn’t want there to be any chance that he’d overhear me. “You’ll take care of Sam when the toxin kills me, won’t you?” I directed the question at Sophia and Leo. I knew Nathan would be too distraught to even think about caring for someone else when that happened. He opened his mouth to offer the same denial as always. “ If the toxin kills me,” I amended.
Sophia and Leo exchanged disturbed looks. “Of course we will,” Sophia said. “But I am sure you will find the cure before the toxin spreads too far.”
It would be cruel to remind her of her vision. She wouldn’t have seen it if I’d had a chance of survival. It was a warning of how long I had left to achieve my task. It had been a clear sign that I was running out of time.
The singing stopped as Sam finished his shower. I left my seat and headed to the kitchen to put the kettle on. Hearing a stealthy hand trying to turn the knob of the backdoor, I resisted the urge to snatch it open and frighten the angel away. They’d never give up on trying to break in. “Go away!” I shouted and heard a panicked scuffle of footsteps outside.
Nathan strode into the room and took in my scowl. Knowing I was upset by more than just our former allies, he wrapped his arms around me. I leaned my head against his chest and bliss and safety came when his wings manifested. They wrapped around us both in a warm and comforting blanket.
“Everything will be alright,” he told me and I wished I could believe him.
Hearing a gasp at the door to the stairs, I looked over Nathan’s shoulder to see Sam gaping at us. He’d seen Nathan’s wings before, but it was so rare to see them that it was always a surprise. They usually only appeared when I was in dire need. Maybe I was more depressed than I’d realized.
Walking towards us slowly, Sam reached out then drew his hand back. “May I?” he said.
“If you wish,” Nathan replied.
“They are so soft,” Sam said wistfully when he touched a feather. “And so beautiful.” He’d touched Nathan’s wings before, but I understood his desire to feel them again. They were magic that no human had ever touched before.
Nathan’s gaze had gone distant. This was as close as he could come to being in his natural form. It shouldn’t have been possible for his wings to manifest at all. Celestial beings couldn’t be in their natural forms in this dimension. He was like no angel that had ever existed before. He was my guardian and his abilities had changed so he could be equipped to save me from harm. Being stripped of his rank and being locked out of heaven had to have hurt him deeply.
“Do humans get to have wings like angels when they die?” Sam asked.
He had such hope in his eyes that Nathan hesitated before he shook his head. “No. Souls are just spirits without a real form.”
Crestfallen, Sam’s shoulders sagged a little. “Oh. Then I suppose I should just be grateful that I might one day go to heaven. It is still very possible that I will be sent back to hell when I die.”
The fact that he was changing from a hideous imp back to a human had to mean he was becoming mortal again as well. That meant he really would die one day. An insidious voice inside my head whispered that I didn’t need to face that destiny. I would become immortal if I stayed in hell and became a demon.
Sam looked at me sharply, as if he sensed something that made him uneasy. Deep in my gut, I knew what it was. He felt the evil surging within me. It was calling me to give in and to succumb to the darkness. I felt strong and powerful when I was in my demonic form. Soon, I would be equal to a Demon Lord. I could reign over lesser beings as their ruler and they would bow to me and do my bidding.
Nathan’s wings shimmered and faded. He stepped back from me abruptly and shivered. “A goose must have walked over my grave,” he joked.
I managed a ghost of a smile, but felt no amusement at all. He’d felt the same thing that Sam had and he just didn’t realize it. My evil had driven his wings away. Thankfully, the kettle started to boil and I had an excuse to turn away.
₪₪₪
Chapter Twenty
I was in the middle of a training session with Leo the next morning when he put up a hand to pause our mock battle. His gaze went distant and the color fled from his face. “The wards that Brie and I erected near the store have just been triggered by a demon.”
“It has to be Vepar,” I responded. “Get me out of here before they find us!”
He took my hand and teleported us to a rooftop of a nearby building. Half a block away, we saw Vepar and her eighteen minions chasing after a boiling mass of black souls. They’d been heading directly for Sophia’s place, but veered away when they sensed that I’d left the building. Doubling back, the souls swung upwards and aimed for me. The Demon Lord spun around, but Leo shifted us again before she could see us.
We appeared on a street several blocks away and we didn’t have to wait long before the souls found me. They’d managed to leave their pursuers behind, but they would be here at any moment. I took the evil essence into myself as Leo looked around frantically. Seeing Vepar turn the corner, he zapped us into a room on the second floor of the closest building.
We stepped up close to the window and looked down just as she stalked into view. Her face flickered and her scarlet eyes swept the area, searching for us. At her curt gesture, her lackeys spread out and began trying doors. Any that were locked were forced open. They didn’t bother to search the buildings thoroughly. They knew we’d have defenses in place to keep them out. Vepar was just trying to narrow down the building where our base was located.
Vepar caught one of her captains by the arm and he halted to listen to her. Leo whispered her words to me. “I know Hellscourge is here somewhere. I want her lair to be found this time!”
Exchanging worried looks, I lifted my brows in silent enquiry about what we were going to do. We couldn’t talk here for fear of being overheard. Leo took us back to the store where we could discuss our problem.
Sam and Sophia were sitting at the table, waiting expectantly. We’d disappeared without giving them any warning and worry was etched on their faces. “What happened?” Sam asked when he realized we were back.
“I’ll grab Nathan,” I said rather than answering him. “He needs to hear this.” I used the sapphire stone to summon him to me.
Nathan looked startled for a moment then relaxed when he saw that none of us were injured. He’d been out spying on our former allies and hadn’t been due back for another hour or so. He was the best at concealing his presence and watching their warehouse without being seen. “Why did you bring me back?” he asked.
“Vepar and her death squad just came this close to finding the store,” I replied and held my thumb and finger a fraction apart.
“I sensed the wards being triggered and teleported Violet away,” Leo told our friends. “We led them to a nearby area and they began searching the buildings for us.”
Frow
ning in concern, Sophia barely held in a shudder. “We will not be able to remain hidden for much longer. Perhaps it is time for us to find a new location to use as our base.”
I could see how much the thought pained her and shook my head. “No way. This is your home and it’s the closest thing I have to one as well. We’re not leaving.”
“What do you suggest we do then?” Nathan asked.
“I think we should try to lure them into a trap. I know you said Vepar is too smart to fall for it, but she looks pretty desperate to me. Her master must be pressuring her to find us, just like he is with Bob.”
He considered the idea then looked at the others for their reactions. Sophia looked doubtful, Leo was thinking hard and Sam was trembling in fear. “What are your instincts telling you?” the clairvoyant asked me.
“That we have to try something, even if it isn’t likely to work,” I responded with a shrug. I didn’t have her talent for seeing snatches of the future. I only knew we couldn’t sit around and wait for Vepar to come bursting through the door.
“If we are going to do this, we need to find a suitable building to use as a trap,” Nathan said and looked at Leo. “One of us needs to see which buildings they are searching right now.”
“I will go,” Leo offered. He disappeared before anyone could tell him to be careful.
We waited and our tension grew when he didn’t return. Sophia made tea for me and coffee for Sam and gave us a plate of cookies to share. Sam and I ate them automatically. We were too worried for our friend to really enjoy them.
Leo finally returned a couple of hours later. He sat down and shook his head. “I did not think Vepar was ever going to give up on her search,” he said. “Her death squad searched every building within a two block radius.”
Nathan went to the counter and returned with a map. “Show me the area they covered.”
