Then he heard Naomi calling out Deborah’s name. “Wait, she’s alive? Naomi’s alive?” For a brief moment, he was filled with relief. Then he felt a stab of guilt that he was glad it was someone else, anyone but her.
Lash looked at Jeremy confused. “Why are you here?”
A squad car pulled and two uniformed officers pushed their way through the crowd. As the people moved out of the way, Lash caught a glimpse of Naomi with Deborah in her arms. Nathan lay motionless next to them.
“No,” Lash sobbed, taking a step forward.
“There’s nothing you can do, Lash. I know you want to go to them, but you need to stay with your assignment,” Jeremy said. “Wait here for a moment and then go to her.”
Lash nodded. He stepped off to the side and leaned against the building. He watched Jeremy carefully for any signs that he might change his mind and go after Naomi.
Jeremy held his hands in front of him, palms facing upward, and slowly raised them up. A translucent replica of Nathan’s body floated through the crowd and settled down outside the circle. Jeremy walked through the crowd and people shivered as he passed through them. With a wave of his hand, a bright sphere of light appeared in the middle of the street.
“Time to wake up, Nathan,” Jeremy said, his voice low and soft.
Nathan’s eyes fluttered open. He shot up and glanced around, bewildered. “Wh-what happened? Where’s Deborah?”
“Everything will be fine, Nathan. You’ll find the answers to all your questions over there.” Jeremy pointed the light.
Nathan looked to the crowd and then back at Jeremy confused. His eyes widened when he realized what happened. “Deborah was shot! We were shot. Deborah!” he screamed. He ran toward the crowd and stopped abruptly. “Deborah! Deborah!” He banged his fists in the air as if hitting an invisible barrier.
He turned to Jeremy. “What’s happening? Why can’t I get to her?”
Jeremy’s face with filled with empathy. “You’re on the other side.”
“I”—he swallowed—”died?”
“Yes.”
“What about Deborah?”
“She’ll be fine. I promise.”
“How do you know? Who are you?”
“I am Jeremiel.” Jeremy answered, giving his heavenly name. “I’m one of His”—he pointed to the sky— “workers. My job is to help guide you to your destination.”
“You’re an angel?”
“Yes. I am.”
Jeremy’s lips thinned at the sound of blaring ambulance sirens. “Nathan, I need to help Deborah now. You need to walk through that light and all will be well, okay?”
“She’ll be behind me, right?”
“She will be fine. I promise.”
“Okay. I’ll walk through the light. You go help her.” Nathan swallowed as he walked to the middle of the street. He hesitated at the entrance of the light and an ambulance rolled through him and came to a stop near the crowd. He looked back at Jeremy, shocked.
“Whoa, that was strange. I actually felt that.”
Jeremy smiled. “Go on, Nathan.”
He nodded and turned to the light. Taking a deep breath, he took a step forward. For a moment, the light flickered and he vanished.
“Deborah, hang on. The paramedics are here,” Naomi said as the paramedics pushed themselves through the crowd.
“He’s so…beautiful,” Deborah gasped. “Who are you?”
“It’s the paramedics. They’re here to help you.”
“No. The man in the suit behind you.” Deborah stared up past Naomi’s shoulder.
Naomi turned. “There’s no one behind me.”
“He’s right there. He’s so beauti—” Her eyes glazed over.
“Deborah?” Naomi shook her gently. “Deborah!”
One of the paramedics helped Naomi up as the other began CPR on Deborah.
Jeremy stopped abruptly when he caught sight of Naomi. Lash saw the look on his face, and a low growl rumbled deep in his chest. Lash took a step forward, elbowing his way through the crowd. “Naomi.”
Naomi took one look at Lash and burst into tears. Lash drew her to him. It felt so good to have her safe in his arms.
“She’s wounded,” Jeremy said.
Lash nodded at him then said to Naomi, “You’re hurt. Let the paramedics look at you.”
“Deborah? They need to help Deborah.” She sobbed into his chest.
“They are looking after her.” Lash motioned to one of the paramedics. “Sir, would you take a look at Naomi?”
“Ma’am? Let me take a look at your forehead.”
Lash stood to the side as the paramedic examined Naomi. When the paramedic explained that it was a grazing injury and not life threatening, he relaxed and turned to watch Jeremy work on Deborah just as he had with Nathan.
“You’re Jeremiel,” Deborah said when she woke. She furrowed her brow. “How do I know that?”
“Because you’re one of the chosen. You’ve been given special knowledge in order to serve Him,” Jeremy said. “That includes knowing who I am.”
Deborah looked thoughtful for a moment. Her eyes darted to Nathan’s body. “He won’t be with me.”
“No, he won’t.”
She winced and closed her eyes. After a moment, she took a deep breath and opened them. She watched as the paramedic worked on Naomi. “Will she be okay?”
“Yes. She’s in good hands” Jeremy glanced at Lash with a sly smile.
Deborah turned to look at Lash. “I had a feeling he was special,” she said, keeping her eye on him. “Can he see me?”
Lash nodded.
“Take care of her,” she said. “She loves you, you know.”
“It’s time for you to go,” Jeremy said.
“I’m ready,” she turned to face him.
Jeremy placed his hands on her head. The streetlight brightened and a breeze blew through the air. And then, she was gone.
Jeremy walked toward him smiling and a surge of fear went through Lash. He missed his best friend, but he didn’t want him anywhere near Naomi. One day, when it was her time to die, she would have to see him. A sudden thought entered his mind. Deborah had seen him before she died.
“Jeremy, I thought humans couldn’t see you in your heavenly form until after they passed. How was Deborah able to see you?”
“You caught that didn’t you?” Jeremy glanced down at the ground. “Well, she’s not the norm.”
“She’s not going with her companion to the other side?”
“No.” Jeremy brushed a hand through his hair. “She’s going somewhere else.”
Lash raised his brows. He didn’t know Deborah very well, but she didn’t exactly look like the type to lead a life that would warrant Hell.
“No, no. She’s not joining Lucifer.” Jeremy laughed. “Michael has a special job for her. Look, I can’t say anymore, and I really need to be going.” He turned to look at Naomi who appeared to be finishing up with the paramedic. “I think you have a job to do too. We’ll see each other soon, my friend.”
When the ambulence left and the last of the gawkers finally went away, Chuy went down to the parking lot for the car and left Naomi with Lash.
She stared at the spot where Deborah and Nathan died, clutching her mother’s crucifix between her fingers. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s wait around the corner.”
“Why would anyone want to hurt them? They were good people.”
“I don’t know.” What could he tell her? Fallen angels were, for some reason, after her and her shrink was one of them? He hated that he couldn’t tell her the truth. She would be devastated, thinking she was the cause of their deaths even though something bigger was at work. He just didn’t know what it was.
“I wish there was more we could do,” she said as she started to look back in the direction of the center.
Lash placed a hand on her cheek and turned her to him. “Sometimes, all you can do is take care of yourself and your family—be prepared for the wo
rst and hope for the best.” He wished he could give her more than just words. Without all his powers, or knowledge about what was really going on, he felt totally helpless. He did the only thing he could think of—he pulled her to his chest, holding her tight as if by doing so he could squeeze away her fears.
“I’m sorry, Naomi. I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” he said softly.
“I’m not. You-You could have gotten shot too, and I…I can’t…” She bit down on her lip, and a fresh set of tears spilled down her face.
She cried into his chest, and his heart ached for her at the sound of her sobs. After a moment, she collected herself and looked up at him. His breath hitched as wet blue eyes met his. He took in her pale face, red runny nose, and swollen lips. She looked so vulnerable, her eyes begging him to take the pain away. Without thought, he pressed his lips to her forehead and a blaze of fire rippled through him.
When he lifted his head, their eyes locked and, for that moment, it was only them. No Dantan, no Sal, no fallen angels.
A thousand thoughts went through his mind. He wanted to tell her who he was. He wanted to keep her in his arms and never let her go. He wanted to brush away the anguish from her eyes and promise her that everything would be okay just so he could see her smile.
Her eyes darkened and lips parted as she angled her head. He swallowed, overwhelmed with all the emotions running through him.
“Lash,” she breathed.
The chugging of an engine startled him and he pulled away just as Chuy drove up. She blinked as if waking up from a daydream. The moment was gone, and he exhaled. He had done it again. He didn’t think about what it would mean for him to get involved with Naomi. It couldn’t happen. He would have to leave her one day, and he didn’t want to hurt her when he did.
“Get in, Lash. We’ll give you a ride home.” Chuy said as Naomi slipped into the car.
Sitting in the back seat of the car, Lash gazed at Naomi. Her head leaned against the window, eyes closed. The only sound was Chuy telling her they shouldn’t worry Welita with what had happened. She nodded. Lash tore his eyes away from her and gazed out the window at the city lights. He almost lost her tonight, and it was more than messing up a job. She was more than that. He only hoped that when the time came and his assignment was over, he could let her go.
13
Lash stepped out of the shower, wrapped a towel around his waist, and searched for a clean pair of clothes. As much as he hated leaving his watch of Naomi, it felt good to finally clean up. Since the shooting, he kept her in sight at all times, choosing to nap an hour or two behind the overgrown shrubs in Welita’s backyard whenever Naomi went to sleep. As he watched, he tried to think of what he could possibly say to convince her not to go back to Dantan’s office. He still hadn’t figured it out so he decided to wing it and planned to “run” into her outside of the office building where she worked. When she finally fell asleep, he ran to his apartment to change.
“You may want to try washing your clothes more often.”
He spun around to see Raphael holding a clean pair of jeans and a black t-shirt.
His relief to see Raphael was replaced with frustration. “You need to tell me what's going on. Naomi was almost killed a few days ago.” He snatched the clothes from him.
“You know I am not allowed to tell you that.” Raphael sat on the sole tattered chair in the one-room apartment. When it wobbled, threatening to break, he changed his mind and stood back up again.
Lash growled with frustration as he tugged the shirt over his head and pulled on his jeans. He knew it wasn't Raphael’s fault that any of this was happening and that he was taking great risk in being there.
“What can you tell me.” He was about to grab a bottle of whiskey from the mini-fridge when he changed his mind and took a soda instead.
“It's time for you to leave.”
No! The can fell to the ground and soda sprayed over the floor. He couldn’t leave. It was too soon. “Is my assignment complete?”
“Not yet. Naomi is in great danger, and you need to take her away from here. There is a safe house in New Mexico.” Raphael handed him a small GPS device. “Here are the coordinates of the location. You need to take her as soon as you can.”
Lash breathed with relief. He didn't have to leave her—not yet. However, asking her to leave her family and go to some unknown location hundreds of miles away was not going to be easy. “Any suggestions on how I convince her to do that? I don't even know what we're running from. Although, I have an idea.”
“What do you know?”
“I know that Naomi was steered to meet with this Dr. Dantan and that he’s connected with the billionaire Prescott.”
Raphael paled. “Luke Prescott?”
“Yes.” Lash was puzzled by his reaction. He'd never seen him like this before. Most of the time, Raphael had a clam demeanor, except, of course, when it came to putting up with Lash's antics.
“Are you sure?”
“I'm pretty sure. I saw one of his bodyguards, Sal, bribe a hospital worker to get Naomi to meet with Dantan. Then I overheard Dantan talking with Sal on the phone. And then, a few days ago”—he swallowed, remembering the blood on her temple—”someone tried to shoot her down. Innocent people were hurt.”
“Dantan. The name sounds familiar.” Raphael bent down, picked up the can, and placed it in the sink.
“I’m pretty sure Dantan is like me, a fallen angel, except he has his powers. He has a way of pulling you in and forcing your trust. He almost had me reveal myself.” Lash tore off some paper towels and bent down to wipe the floor.
“Do you get headaches when he questions you?”
“Yes.”
“Damn.”
“Raphael!” Lash popped his head up astonished at his language.
“I apologize for my use of profanity. You are correct. Dantan is one of the fallen, but you are nothing like him. His real name is Dantanian. He works on Lucifer's behalf, which is why he has his powers. He's a highly skilled, able to put on many faces to deceive the humans he controls.”
“Controls?”
“Yes, controls. That is why he works as a psychologist. It's a well-respected profession and is a perfect cover to complement his talents. He can use his inherent gifts of mind manipulations and hide them behind the skills humans refer to as psychodynamic therapy.”
“Why would he want to manipulate a group of college kids?” Lash thought about Andrew, who had no idea of the world beyond the zombies in Call of Duty, or Tori, who was as antisocial as they come, and Ellen, who could barely step out of the house without her mother's permission.
“What do you know about their families?”
Lash plopped himself on the edge of the bed and reflected on the previous group session. “Andrew's father works for Prescott Oil as a software engineer. That alone is suspicious. His mother is fundraiser organizer. Tori's mom works as secretary in the local American Federation office, and Ellen's father is—” Lash's eyes widened. “They’re all tied in. Ellen's father works in Jane Sutherland's office.”
Raphael nodded. “For some reason, there was a need to keep them under control, and Dantan was given the task to do so.”
It suddenly all made sense to him and he now saw how Dantan manipulated the group members, one by one: encouraging Tori's infatuation with him; suggesting gaming strategies to Andrew, and even quashing Ellen’s surging independence. All of it was to keep them dependent on him. But why?
“And Sal, he’s one of the fallen, too. What do you know about him?” Lash asked.
“His name is Saleos. He's Lucifer's foot soldier.”
“That means Lucifer is working behind the scenes in all of this.” He wondered if Luke was somehow affiliated with Lucifer. Maybe that was how he got all his billions. “What about Luke?”
Raphael blinked then cocked his head to the side as if hearing something in a distance. “Michael calls for me. I must take leave.”
“He doesn’t know you’re her
e?”
Raphael raised an eyebrow.
Holy shit! Raphael has actually gone rogue.
“Who's covering for you?”
“Gabrielle.”
Lash snorted. “Why would she want to do that?”
Raphael’s lips curved into a thin smile. “Don't underestimate Gabrielle's goodness. She has done a lot for me, as well as you, over the years. She cares deeply.”
“For you maybe,” Lash muttered.
Raphael squirmed, and Lash wondered just how close to home he hit with that statement. “I must take leave, and so should you. Take Naomi to the safe house as soon as you can.”
***
“That'll be $150.38,” the cashier droned.
Naomi glanced down in her wallet and back up at the cashier. “One fifty as in one hundred and fifty?”
The cashier nodded. “Do you want this in paper or plastic?”
“I brought my own bags.” Naomi placed her bags on the counter. She went down her grocery list again, trying to figure out what she bought that could have cost so much. Damn, Chuy and Lalo. She was going to have to start charging per meal, especially for Lalo. He was at the house for breakfast and dinner. At least Chuy helped to pay the grocery bill. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't really complain, she hadn't been bringing in much money and the money her parents left her was starting to run out.
She had volunteered to go to the supermarket and buy the items Welita needed to prepare her Saturday morning tradition of caldo. Welita was famous around the block for her Mexican style soup. After throwing on a white t-shirt and an old pair of jeans, she walked out of the house to find Lalo waiting outside on the porch with a spoon and bowl in hand. He offered to help Welita so she let him in the house.
She pushed the cart through the automatic doors and headed toward her car. It was still dark in the early morning, and the parking lot was almost empty. She hadn't been able to sleep very well since the shooting. For some reason, she couldn't stop thinking about Lash and that's what upset her the most. Why would she be thinking about him when she should’ve been grieving for Deborah and Nathan? They were good people. But there was a part of her that was relieved, thinking that if Nathan had to die, maybe Deborah was better off being with him. She’d seen firsthand what losing the love of one’s life could do when she watched her father lose her mother. He was a shell of the man he’d been before her death. Even when he sobered up, and got his life on track, he still wasn't the same. She doubted Deborah would have been either.
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