by SJ West
“Why not?” he asks, looking at me suspiciously. “You aren’t developing feelings for her, are you?”
“The whole purpose of what we’re trying to do is to make her life miserable. If we end it by blowing her up, she’ll just go to Heaven and live in peace for eternity. Even an imbecile like yourself should be able to figure that much out without having me point it out to you. Oh wait … I just had to do exactly that, didn’t I? What’s a step below an imbecile? Whatever it is, that’s where you fit into the scheme of intellectual prowess, Abaddon. Now, I’m fine with you blowing the transporter up after Anna sees it. Let her think she’s actually making some progress. That way its destruction will have more of an impact on her. But you are forbidden to do it before or during her visit there. Is that understood?”
Abaddon’s thoughts are easy for me to read while he’s inside my realm. I can see his doubt that my orders aren’t propelled by my need to keep Anna safe. He wonders if I’ve developed feelings for my sister that are preventing me from seeking the ultimate vengeance: her death. Even though I just told him one of my reasons for wanting her to stay alive, he still seems to believe I’m weak where she’s concerned, but I don’t plan to share all my secrets with an idiot like him just to prove myself. Abaddon has always been shortsighted and probably isn’t mentally equipped to understand my strategy to destroy my sister’s life from the inside and gain more power for myself in the bargain. I need my sister alive in order for my plan to work, and I need Abaddon to continue his task on Earth to cement my schemes not only for Anna, but also Liana.
“Yes,” he finally says. “I understand.”
“Where is Silas, by the way?”
“He’s keeping a low profile, like you asked him to. His father doesn’t even know he’s on Earth.”
“Good. When the time comes, we’ll need him for the second part of my plan. Tell him to keep his pretty-boy looks in shape. They’ll come in handy to me one day soon. Now, I need you to leave. I’m expecting another visitor this evening.”
Abaddon doesn’t linger around. He’s at least smart enough to depart without question when I order him to.
I phase out of the throne room and go to the cottage. I already know who will be waiting for me there because I felt her enter my domain the moment she phased in. I didn’t want Abaddon to know Liana is in Hell. I wasn’t sure what the dolt would try to do to her if he knew. All I need is for him to do something idiotic to ruin all of my carefully laid plans.
Now that she’s close to eleven years old, Liana has already figured out there’s an uneasy truce between her mother and me. She’s only brought it up once, but I can see in her mind that she’s had discussions with her parents about why I am the way I am. They’ve told her about Cade and how he died. At first, Liana didn’t believe I could be cruel enough to help destroy the cloud city of Virga, but when she asked me about my involvement in its destruction, I didn’t bother to lie. We ended up having a discussion about what I am. Anna ended up joining our talk because it took longer than my usual five minutes at night with Liana to explain it all. She seemed to understand what we said, but she was only eight years old at the time. I’m sure some of what was discussed back then has been lost in the intervening years. Nevertheless, Liana understands that I am Hell and that my nature dictates that I crave destruction. It’s what feeds me, and I won’t apologize for who I am or the things I have to do in order to survive. I refuse to become as weak and emaciated as my counterpart on alternate Earth. That isn’t who I am, and I’ll be damned if I end up as pathetic as her.
“How was your day, Liana?” I ask her.
Liana turns away from the window in the living room to look at me as I stand behind the white couch in the room.
“It was okay,” she says with a small shrug. “We spent most of the day in Stratus with Kyna and Cara while Brutus enlarged my bracelet for me.”
Liana holds up her right hand to indicate the silver bracelet encircling her wrist.
“Has he used up all the silver he has from your rattle yet?” I ask.
“No,” she tells me. “My wrist isn’t quite big enough to need it all.”
A look of worry shadows her comely face and seems to mirror exactly what I see inside her mind.
“What’s wrong?” I ask her, feigning concern. “You look worried about something.”
“Mom’s taking all of us to see a new transporter installation in the down-world,” she says, not sounding at all excited about such a grand adventure.
“Haven’t you been badgering her for the last few years to visit the down-world?” I ask as I walk around the couch to take my usual seat.
Liana walks over to sit with me before further explaining her worries.
“I do want to go, but something inside me says it’s a mistake,” she tells me.
“Something inside you?” I ask, finding this curious. “Like an intuition?”
Liana shrugs her shoulders again like she often does when she doesn’t know exactly what to say.
“Have you told your parents about your concerns?” I ask.
“No. My mom’s already nervous enough about taking us. I don’t want to make her worry even more.”
“I’m sure your parents will take the necessary precautions,” I assure her. “She wouldn’t let you go if she didn’t believe it was safe there.”
“I guess,” Liana replies, not sounding at all convinced.
“Are you still going to Cal’s birthday party tomorrow?” I ask.
“Oh yeah. His party doesn’t start until noon though, and the down-world trip happens early in the morning.”
I smile tight-lipped. “Well, I hope you all have fun.”
“We always do, and Cal’s mom always has tons of sweets and games set up for us to play.”
“Is Cal happy on Laed-i?” I can’t keep myself from asking.
“As far as I can tell he is,” she replies. “At least he gets to go to a real school. We still get tutored by Jered in math, Desmond in science, and my dad in literature and grammar.”
“Is your mother still teaching you what it means to rule a cloud city?”
“Yeah,” Liana replies with a roll of her eyes. “It’s the most boring hour of my day.”
I can’t prevent a laugh at my sister’s expense.
“Did I miss a good joke?” I hear Anna ask, knowing my short time with Liana is over.
Liana looks worried that I’m going to tell Anna what she just said, but I would never embarrass her in that way. For one, it might cause Liana to withhold her innermost thoughts from me. And secondly, it’s really none of my sister’s business what her daughter and I talk about.
“Yes,” I tell her. “You did miss it. Maybe your timing will be better the next time Liana says something funny.”
Anna looks less than pleased by my response, but all that does is make me happier.
Liana stands but leans down and kisses me on the cheek.
“Will you let me come see you tomorrow?” she asks me.
Ever since God granted Liana entry into my domain on Cal’s fifth birthday, she’s been coming to me for her regular five minutes before bedtime on that day instead of staying away. I haven’t felt the need to block her out, but I still keep anyone else who wants to bother me on the day of his birth at bay.
“Of course,” I tell her with a genuine smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Liana phases back to her bedroom in Cirrus. Through her phase trail, I can see Malcolm waiting for her with a glass of milk in his hands. I suppose all those nights Cade brought Anna a glass of warm milk while she was pregnant with the twins must have rubbed off on Liana. My eyes meet Malcolm’s for a split second, and I see that his contempt for me hasn’t lessened over the years. I’ve never counted on his dislike for me to change with time. Angels like him are hardwired to detest creatures like me no matter how much their wives try to persuade them otherwise.
“Liana tells me you’re planning to take her to the down-world tomor
row,” I say. “Do you believe that’s a wise thing to do, Sister?”
“She and Liam have been pestering me for years to travel to the surface,” Anna replies. “I thought this might be a good learning experience for them. The transporter is in one of the poorer mining towns. This way, the twins will not only get to see how people live down there, but they’ll also be able to understand how providing the down-worlders with our technology can help them become more efficient in their work and provide them with more opportunities to earn money for their families.”
“I see you’re still hoping to save the world,” I scoff.
“I’m just doing the best I can at the moment,” she replies. “The other cloud cities are doing their part, but it seems like they’re only willing to follow my lead. Olivia Ravensdale is the only one keeping up with me.”
“Ah yes, how are Andre and his wife doing in Nacreous? It must be odd to have your father choose to leave your side to be with another woman.”
“I’m happy for them both,” Anna declares truthfully. “They make each other happy, and I’ve only ever wanted him to find a love of his own. He dedicated over twenty years of his life to me. He’s earned the right to live the rest of it with the woman he loves.”
“Oh, that’s right! Andre did ask to become human. Well, human is a bit of a misnomer, isn’t it? His soul is still angelic, but his body is human.”
“It takes too much energy to completely transform an angelic soul into a human one,” she tells me. “But you already know all of that. You’ve been inside my head and seen what God showed me about Seraphina.”
“You mean your saintly alter ego?” I scoff. “Yes, I did. Quite noble of you, Sister, to give up being a Guardian of the Guf in order to become truly human. I wonder how different my life would be if you hadn’t done something so foolish. I would imagine our father would still be with me now if you had just left things alone.”
“I’m glad I didn’t,” she replies. “Lucifer deserved to find redemption and be with my mother again. Have you looked at the memories I have of them together? Have you seen how happy he is now?”
“Of course I have,” I admit. “There isn’t much inside your mind that I haven’t delved into. I probably know more about yourself than you do at this point. My memory is everlasting. I don’t forget anything once I’ve seen it.”
“I don’t think I would want to remember everything forever,” she tells me. “Sometimes it’s better to be able to forget the specifics of certain situations.”
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never been gifted with that sort of ability.”
“Is Cade’s death still fresh in your mind?”
Anna’s question catches me off guard. “I never took you for being a person who would purposely try to hurt someone else.”
“I was actually hoping it might make you talk about what happened to him with me. Maybe if you did, it would lessen some of the burden you carry because of it. You’re always so careful not to talk about Cade or Cal, Helena, but I want you to know that I’m here for you if you need someone to talk to. It’s not good to keep your emotions all bottled up. At some point, you might explode.”
“And you want to make sure I don’t do that while I’m with Liana,” I say knowingly.
“Sure, that’s part of the reason, but if you look inside my thoughts right now, you’ll be able to see that I truly am concerned about your welfare. I know I can help you. All you have to do is let me.”
I have to look away from Anna’s earnest expression because the genuineness of her sentiment is causing me to feel decidedly nauseous. My sister and her do-gooder attitude are so predictable.
“Do you realize that you say this to me every year before Cal’s birthday?” I ask her. “And every year I tell you to mind your own business, yet you keep persisting in this futile quest of yours to reform me. When will you give up, Sister?”
“I’ll never stop,” she tells me, sounding as stubborn in her ways as ever. “And deep down, I don’t think you want me to give up on you. I still believe there is a small part of you that wants to be more than what you were made to be. You proved that by allowing yourself to fall in love not only with Cade, but also with your baby. A mother’s bond to her child is stronger than anything else in this universe. I think you know that now. It’s the only way you could have found the strength to give Cal up so he could have a happy life with Jules and Ethan.”
“Is he happy?” I ask before I can stop myself.
Anna smiles at me before saying, “From what I can tell, he’s very happy. Jules and Ethan are doing a wonderful job of raising him.”
“Are any of the other children picking on him for having wings?”
“Jules mentioned that it was a problem when he first started preschool, but now the kids just view them as being a part of Cal. They’re used to the way he is now.”
“Did you know Liana told him that she’s never seen anyone on Earth with wings like his? She believes that there might be people in the down-world who have them. What are you going to tell her when she notices that no one there has them either?”
“I suppose I’ll tell her that we made that story up to make Cal feel special. I can’t tell her that you’re his mother because then Liam would know too. Either of them could inadvertently tell Cal the truth.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t take the children to the surface yet,” I suggest. Even as the words leave my mouth, I’m not sure if my suggestion is to protect the secret surrounding Cal’s heritage or to protect Liana from what I know Abaddon is planning. The fool could destroy all of my carefully laid plans and accidentally kill Liana.
“Odds are it will be years before they start to question why no one in the down-world has wings. They’re still young and not that observant of others around them.”
“Still, it’s risky, Anna. Hale and his group are still out there waiting for an opportunity to make you pay for what Lucifer did.”
“I feel zero pity for Hale and the rebellion angels who are still following him,” Anna says testily. “God Himself came down here to offer them all forgiveness. If they wanted to return to Heaven, they could have. No questions asked. All they had to do was repent. Their fates were sealed the moment they refused Him.”
“That’s true, but can you imagine the level of anger they must feel for God to reject His offer? That kind of rage isn’t easily squelched, and all of it is directed toward you and your family, Anna. I don’t believe it’s the right time to risk the children’s lives by taking them to the surface. That’s just my opinion.”
Anna looks at me like she’s suspicious of my warning.
“Do you know something that I don’t?” she asks me.
I want to smile because I’m proud of her suspecting I know more than I’m saying, but I’m not about to make it that easy for her.
“I know a lot of things that you don’t, dear Sister,” I answer, unable to keep the arrogance out of my voice. “I have the wisdom of everyone who resides in my domain. Trust me, the knowledge I’m privy to would give you nightmares for the rest of your life.”
“I don’t doubt that,” she says, studying me closely. “But I have a feeling you know more about tomorrow than you’re telling me.”
“All I know is that it’s dangerous to take the children down there. If I were you, I would reconsider it. That’s all I’m saying.”
Anna continues to stare at me as if she hopes I’ll give something away by an unconscious gesture, but really, she should know me better than that by now. I’m not some fool to be trifled with, and I never let anyone know what I’m thinking unless I want them to.
“I’ll talk it over with Malcolm,” she finally says before standing up to leave. “Liana might be a little later than usual tomorrow. Jules has fireworks planned for Cal’s birthday, so we’ll be staying to watch those.”
“Thank you for letting me know,” I reply.
Anna hesitates as if she expects me to say more. When I don’t, she phases back to her f
amily.
I remain seated where I am as I consider aborting the attack on the transporter. Even if I decide to call it off, I don’t have a good way to get a message to Abaddon in time. All I can do is hope my sister heeds my words of warning before it’s too late.
Chapter 7
(Anna’s Point of View)
I decide not to phase back into the twins’ room, which is what I normally do after my visit with Helena in the evenings. I know Malcolm will be in there reading a bedtime story to them, and I just don’t feel like facing him just yet. I need to talk to someone else first, so I phase outside Lucas’s room and knock on his door.
“Lucas?” I ask as I stand out in the hallway. “Can I come in for a minute?”
I hear movement come from inside the room before the door is quickly opened by my oldest son.
“Hey, Mom,” he says with a smile. “Is everything all right?”
“I think so,” I tell him, feeling unsure whether I’m stating the truth or deluding myself with a lie. “I was wondering if I could talk to you about something.”
Lucas opens his door all the way, allowing me entry into his teenage sanctuary.
I have a hard time believing Lucas will be seventeen in a few months. It seems like only yesterday we were working on Operation Family together to make Malcolm realize he was being foolish in denying that we’re soul mates. If it wasn’t for Lucas’s tenacity and unconditional love for us both, I might have given up on my husband ever coming to his senses. Lucas has been through a lot in the past few years, but I know there’s still more I must ask him to do for me.
Lucas walks back over to his bed and sits down beside a lounging Luna. The two of them have practically been inseparable since she came into our lives, and I can still remember Lucas’s excited face when he first met her. Malcolm had never let him have a dog before then, but the moment Lucas and Luna saw each other, I knew they would be together forever.
“What did Helena say to you this time?” he asks as if he’s able to read my mind.
