by SJ West
“We’ll need to think about it,” Malcolm finally answers. “For now, we should keep what you saw between the three of us. We have plenty of time to decide if Cal’s parents need to know what could happen in the future.”
Lucas looks up at me and says, “Did you go see Helena tonight?”
“Yes, but she kicked me out.”
This makes Lucas let out a small laugh before he says, “You need to keep going to see her, Mom. She needs you more than she realizes. You’re the one who will show her what she needs to do.”
Lucas’s words make me sit up a little straighter as my heart begins to beat faster inside my chest with excitement.
“What do you mean by that?” I ask him. “What does she need to do?”
Lucas shrugs his shoulders and looks at me helplessly. “I’m not sure. That’s all God would tell me.”
“When did my father come and see you?” Malcolm asks, leaning forward in his seat because it’s so unlike Lucas to keep important information from us.
“A little while ago,” he says, causing both Malcolm and I to relax. For a moment there, I think we both thought God was asking Lucas to keep us in the dark about something.
“Why did He come to you with that information?” I ask. “Why not come directly to me?”
Lucas remains silent as he sits next to me, looking decidedly guilty about something.
“He said that sometime in the future I’ll have a vision about something, but that I shouldn’t tell anyone about it until after it happens.”
“How are you supposed to know which of your visions you’re supposed to keep secret?” Malcolm asks, looking confused over the cryptic nature of God’s request.
Lucas shrugs his small shoulders. “He said I would just know.”
“Did He say why you can’t tell us about it?” I ask, not liking God’s request one bit.
“No. He just said what will happen needs to happen and that it shouldn’t be stopped because it would ruin everything.”
“Do you know what He meant by ‘everything’?” I ask.
“No. I’m sorry. I don’t know, but whatever it is, it must be important. God looked pretty serious when He was speaking to me about it.”
When my gaze meets Malcolm’s, he nods his head slightly in silent recognition of my unspoken question to him. We’ve been together for so long now that there are times, such as this one, when we don’t need to speak aloud to know what the other person is thinking.
“Well, I’m sure He has His reasons,” Malcolm says as he stands from his chair. “Come on, Lucas. You need to get back to bed and rest up for tomorrow.”
Luna follows behind the two of them as they continue to talk about the party on Laed-i happening the next day. Once I hear them enter Lucas’s room, I do what Malcolm and I just agreed I should do. I phase to Heaven to have a little chat with God.
“Hello, Anna,” I hear Lucifer say to me as soon as I cross the veil into Heaven.
I turn around to find myself standing right outside the home he and my mother share.
He smiles at me as if he already knows why I’ve come.
“From the look on your face, it seems like you knew I was coming here before I did,” I say as I walk over to him.
“My father did,” he replies, reaching out to give me a hug in greeting.
After I pull back, I say, “I actually came up here to speak with Him.”
“I’m aware.”
When he doesn’t go on to elaborate, I have to ask, “Was that your subtle way of saying God doesn’t want to speak with me right now?”
“He told me to tell you that He’ll come to you when the time is right to discuss Helena, but now is not the right time.”
“Why?” I ask, confused by all the cloak-and-dagger.
“Are you still visiting Helena in Hell?”
“Yes, but what …” And then it dawns on me why God doesn’t want to speak to me about Helena. “She can see my memories when I’m with her. I should have thought of that one on my own.”
Lucifer smiles at me and holds out one of his hands for me to take.
“I’m glad you didn’t. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here now, and we wouldn’t have a chance to see one another again. Why don’t you come inside for a little while? Your mother would like to see you too.”
I do love seeing my parents, and the fact that they’re finally together makes me happy. Yet spending time in Heaven is always hard for me because it isn’t my time to be here. When my father escorts me inside their joy-filled home, I get another unexpected surprise.
Cade is sitting in the living room speaking with my mother. When I see him, I instantly go to him and wrap my arms around his shoulders.
“I didn’t know you would be here,” I say, feeling tears of joy burn my eyes.
“I guess that means I had an unfair advantage,” he replies with a chuckle, “because I knew you were coming.”
When I pull back, I have to ask, “Did you come here just to see me, or is there something you need me to do for you back home?”
Cade smiles and says, “I was wondering if you could tell Helena that I’m thinking about her and that I miss her.”
“I will,” I promise. “I won’t be able to do it tomorrow, but I’ll definitely do it the following night.”
“I guess that means she still refuses to let anyone into Hell on Cal’s birthday,” Cade says.
“I didn’t know you knew about that.”
“God keeps me informed of things that happen with her,” he says. “He knows how much I worry.”
“I’m doing my best, Cade,” I vow. “I’m trying to show her that she isn’t alone, even though she does her best to cut herself off from the rest of us.”
“Keep showing her that you care, Anna. She likes to think she doesn’t need anyone, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Of anyone in the universe, she needs people more than she will ever admit.”
“I won’t give up on her,” I promise.
“That’s all I can ask of you.”
I’m not sure what’s going on, but I do understand God’s reluctance to speak with me about his visit to Lucas. It’s obvious now that everyone here expects me to help Helena in some way. I just need to figure out what miracle they believe I can work with her and pray that I can get the job done.
Chapter 3
(Jules’s Point of View)
If anyone had ever told a ten-year-old me that I would grow up to be the queen of a distant world, marry a gorgeous War Angel, and become mother to the most perfect child in all of creation, I would have smacked that person in the face for being a bald-faced liar. Yet my life has turned out to be just that perfect, and there isn’t one single thing I would change, even if I were given the chance.
“Do you think I went overboard?” I ask Ethan as I scan the birthday decorations in the ballroom of the castle we live in.
“You? Go overboard for one of Cal’s birthdays? Never,” he scoffs as he comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my waist.
I lean back into him and sigh contentedly. “Good answer.”
Ethan chuckles as he slides his head against mine until his lips are a breath away from my right earlobe.
“I have your birthday present all set up for tomorrow night,” he whispers, causing me to smile in anticipation of his next words. “Zane and Verati said they would love to have Cal over to spend the night with Keelan while we’re otherwise occupied.”
I turn in Ethan’s embrace until I can place my hands on the back of his neck and look up into his eyes.
“And what exactly do you plan to do with me for a whole night, King Ethan?” I ask coyly.
“Anything and everything you want me to, Queen Jules,” he replies with a slow smile filled with promises I know he’ll fulfill for me on my birthday.
“I plan to keep you to your word,” I tell him.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he replies, dipping his head toward mine until our lips touch.
>
“Wow, Mommy!” I hear Cal say in awe as he’s escorted into the ballroom by Gideon, interrupting my kiss with his father. “Is all of this just for me?”
Ethan and I turn to watch our son walk in and gawk at the decorations. As Cal gazes in wonder at all the round tables covered with white tablecloths, colorful balloon bouquets, and games, I know without a doubt that we’ve made him happy.
“No, this isn’t for you,” I tell him with a small shake of my head. “There’s another little boy I know who’s having a birthday today.”
“Oh, Mommy, you’re so silly,” he says with a smile as he waves a small hand in my direction. “You know this is all for me.”
“Of course it is,” I say as he gets close enough for me to pick him up in my arms and set him on the side of my hip. “A big boy like you deserves a big party to celebrate his fifth birthday. You’re practically an old man now.”
Cal giggles and leans in to give me a kiss on the cheek before wrapping his arms around my neck.
“Thank you for my party,” he tells me. “I love it.”
“It hasn’t even started yet,” I remind him. “You’ll love me even more when all of your guests arrive with presents.”
“But I don’t need anything, Mommy,” Cal protests. “I have you and Daddy. That’s all I need to be happy.”
As if he had to confirm my earlier thought that he is perfect, he goes and proves it to me yet again.
“At least you have a birthday to celebrate,” Gideon tells him, sounding more than a smidge jealous of my son. “I don’t even get that.”
“If you really want one,” I tell Gideon, “I could designate a special day for you and decree that all in the realm celebrate it as Gideon Day.”
“You’re as witty as ever, Jules,” Gideon replies, only looking slightly amused by my offer.
“Why don’t you have a birthday?” Cal asks him, looking confused by his friend’s lack of such a special day.
“When I was brought into the universe,” Gideon begins to explain, “time wasn’t measured like it is here.”
“You can share my birthday if you want to, Gideon,” Cal offers, displaying his thoughtful and generous nature to his friend.
“That’s okay, little fella,” Gideon replies with a wink in Cal’s direction. “I like being ageless. I think it makes me more mysterious to the ladies.”
“Yes, you definitely have a problem drawing the attention of the female population on this planet,” I say jokingly. If anything, Gideon has been overrun with admirers ever since he joined us on Laed-i. He, Zane, and Xander have been trying to help Ethan clean up the mess King Manas left behind due to his reign of environmental terrorism.
After Ethan killed Manas in a duel that won Anna the planet and released me from my supposed marriage to the king, the people of Laed-i asked Ethan to become their new monarch. After Cal’s birth, we needed to live on a planet that wasn’t inhabited by rebellion angels in order to keep Cal safe. Laed-i ended up being the perfect fit for our needs since Lucifer never sent his minions to this particular planet to do his bidding. Apparently, Manas’s family had been terrorizing the citizens of this world for centuries, and there was no need to send rebellion angels here to cause added havoc.
When we first made our home here, Ethan was constantly working as he tried to find ways to restore the renewable resources Manas sold off to other planets. The depletion of the planet’s non-renewable resources was itself a nightmare that couldn’t be easily resolved. Once a material that isn’t renewable is depleted, it’s gone forever. Luckily for us, the money Manas made by selling these natural resources to other planets is helping us buy some of them back. The only problem is that we’re paying for them at a much higher rate than they were originally sold at. We still haven’t replenished what was lost, but the planet is slowly recovering, and in time, it will be the way God intended it to be.
“Why haven’t you picked someone to marry yet?” I ask Gideon, finding his reluctance to choose a wife odd. “Isn’t that one of your God-given duties? Lord knows you’ve been asked by enough of the women here to basically have your pick of them.”
“I just haven’t found the right person yet,” Gideon answers, looking uncomfortable by my questions. “I only get one shot at love. I’m not going to waste it on just anyone.”
“That’s a good plan,” Cal agrees with a nod of his head. “You shouldn’t settle when it comes to love. That’s what my daddy told me.”
“Oh, did he now?” I ask, finding this revelation an interesting one as I give my husband a sideways glance and see him smiling at the two of us. “What other wise words of wisdom has your father bestowed upon you?”
“He said that if he hadn’t met you, he would still be roaming the universe unhappily,” Cal tells me with certainty.
“I don’t doubt that for one second,” I say, “because if we hadn’t found each other, I would be doing the same thing. You and your daddy make my life complete.”
Cal’s wings spread out from his back as he leans in and hugs me again.
“I love you, Mommy,” he whispers, resting his sandy-haired head against the side of my neck.
“And I will always love you,” I whisper back, feeling at peace and unconditionally loved by the little angel nestled in my arms.
When our guests begin to arrive, Cal acts as the perfect host to his friends and even lets them win at most of the games. I’ve always marveled at how unselfish he is and how much joy he seems to gain from helping others. I’ve always assumed that side of him comes from his father, but in the back of my mind, I have to wonder if some of his natural instincts are also derived Helena.
Over the past few years, Anna and I have had long discussions concerning Cal’s biological mother. I wanted to better understand Helena in case I saw Cal adopt some of her behaviors. Anna told me the story of how Lucifer made both her and Helena from parts of his own soul. I won’t pretend that I understand the mechanics of all that, but I do know one thing. If Anna and Helena were made in the same way, then their personalities had to have been formed by the differing conditions under which they were nurtured. Anna told me that Lucifer basically dumped all of his hate into Hell like a repository. Understanding this fact helped me realize just how far Helena has come on her own. I know she’s perpetrated horrible, and possibly unforgiveable, crimes against humanity, but if she’s found a way to overcome what she was raised to be, I have to believe she’ll find her way back into the light. Is Hell itself redeemable? I don’t know the answer to that question, but I hope for Cal’s sake Helena will be able to meet her son one day. Yet it’s not a reunion I wish to happen too soon in the future. I know I’m being selfish for wanting to keep Cal all to myself, but I also know he won’t remain a child for very much longer and that I should treasure every second we have together while I can.
As I watch Cal play chase around the ballroom with Liam, Liana, Lucas, and Keelan, I begin to worry how the children of Laed-i will behave towards my son. I fear his physical difference from other kids his age will cause him problems in the years to come.
“I recognize that look on your face, Jules,” Anna says as she comes to stand beside me. “What are you worrying about this time?”
“Ethan and I are discussing the option of letting Cal go to a public school here on Laed-i,” I tell her. “I’m not quite sure what to do, to be honest. I have a feeling the children will make fun of his wings.”
“I thought you told everyone here that the wings are a mark of being special on Earth.”
“We did, but you and I both know children can be some of the cruelest creatures when it comes to someone being different from them. What if they make fun of him, Anna? I’m not sure my heart can take that.”
“All I can say is that you’re being braver than I am.”
I turn my gaze away from the kids for a moment to look at Anna. “What do you mean by that?”
“Malcolm and I still haven’t let the kids go to any of the other cloud ci
ties or anywhere in the down-world yet. This is really the only other place I feel like they’re safe because none of the rebellion angels have phase points here.”
“Well, I think our situations are slightly different,” I tell her. “All I have to worry about is a little bullying by other kids in school. You’re trying to protect your children’s lives from some pretty twisted rebellion angels.”
Anna remains silent as she considers my words.
“Helena believes I’m sheltering the kids too much and that I’m not giving them enough real-world experiences.”
“They’re young,” I point out. “Once they’re older and able to protect themselves, they’ll have plenty of time to experience new things.”
“I know, but I can see where she’s coming from. If Liam and Liana are going to rule Cirrus and our down-world territories one day, they eventually need to be exposed to how people live down there.”
“I thought conditions were getting better in your territories.”
“They are, but it’s slow going,” she tells me, looking troubled. “Some of the people welcome our aid with open arms, but there are others who refuse to take our help.”
“Why is that?”
“Some of it’s just stubborn pride,” she tells me, “and some of it is resentment. The cloud cities have ruled over the down-world for so long that there seems to be a permanent divide between us.”
“Then why don’t you come out of the clouds and live in the down-world with everyone else?” I suggest. “It would at least make you more approachable.”
Anna stares at me for a moment like my idea is a totally foreign one to her.
“Your cloud city can float down to the surface, right?” I ask, wondering if she’s looking at me so strangely because it simply isn’t possible for them to descend to the ground.
“Yes, it can,” she answers. “I just never thought to do what you’re suggesting. It never even dawned on me that we should join the people in the down-world. It’s a brilliant idea, Jules!”
