Chosen

by Ella James

  “A friend.”

  Whew.

  “Is there anything else we should know?” Cayne asked flatly. “Any other alliances?”

  Julia cringed at Cayne’s tone, but Jacquie didn’t show any sign of tension. “Just the Authorities. We have twenty-four of them on staff. They almost always stay in Heaven, unless there is a reason for them to be here. When they are, though, it usually means something is coming.”

  “What kind of something?”

  “The troubling kind.”

  Julia wondered if she was the trouble.

  “But I wouldn’t worry,” Jacquie continued. “We’re ready for anything. We have a lot of alliances. Very old people. Very talented people. People who can do all sorts of things. Offensive, defensive. You’re in a good place,” she reassured.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Julia and Cayne emerged from Jacquie’s room to find themselves face-to-face with short, bearded, WoWer Henry and tall, blue-eyed, curly haired, dimpled…Curly? Julia couldn’t remember the guy’s name, but she gave him a tired smile, because he and his soccer game were the reason she’d known there were Chosen here.

  He smiled back and nodded. “Hi, Julia.” Then he stretched his hand out for Cayne. “Ein,” he said.

  Hesitantly, Cayne took it; compared to lanky, boyishly handsome Ein, he looked so stern and sturdy—a warrior, like the Authorities. Of course, she realized: He was half angel. And it was weird, for just a second, picturing Cayne’s father…a fallen angel. It made her somehow sad.

  “Cayne,” he said finally, green eyes flicking up at Henry.

  Henry patted Cayne’s shoulder. “Sorry about what happened, man. We got them straight now.”

  Cayne nodded tersely, and there was a moment of awkwardness in which Julia wanted to babble, but didn’t.

  When Cayne continued making like an island, she gave a quick smile, said, “Nice to see you both again,” and dragged him off.

  “So that was awkward,” she told him when the elevator doors swished shut.

  “So it was,” Cayne said cryptically.

  “I understand if you’re upset about what happened,” Julia said quietly. “I guess it’s kind of like…racism or sexism or something.”

  Cayne shrugged. “Not nearly as bad. They have reason to be wary.”

  Julia groaned. “Cayne, what will it take for you to see that you’re a good guy.”

  He looked offended. “I meant because I could kick their asses.”

  “Oh.”

  “Yeah.” He crossed his arms and looked especially grumpy.

  “Well other than being mad, what do you think? About the angels….or the Authorities or whatever?”

  “I’m not doing any dances. How do you feel?” he asked, running his hand down her arm. His brows narrowed. “Is it getting worse? Be honest with me.”

  “Not much,” she fibbed. The truth was her whole upper body was aching, and her head was bad enough to bring on black spots at the slightest movement.

  “We need to tell the rest of them soon,” he said. “Determine what’s best for you. Decide whether to confide in these people—” he said that with a bit of bitterness— “or go somewhere else.”

  “Somewhere else?” They walked out of the elevator, onto the red-carpeted hall of the fifth floor, and Julia lowered her voice. The windows were pink with the just-breaking dawn, but she didn’t want to be overheard by a housekeeper or staffer. “You heard Jacquie. They have lots of resources here.”

  “And they have an alliance with Authorities.”

  “Are you saying that because you’re mad, or is there really something to be worried about?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know much about them.”

  Julia took a deep breath and shared her fear. “Do you think The Three and the other Chosen are going to try to break me out of here? Maybe it’s only a matter of time.”

  “We need to find a solution as soon as possible,” Cayne agreed. “Then I can get you out of here and somewhere safe.”

  He said it like a pledge, but for the first time Julia wondered if there was a safe place.

  “I’m sorry you’re caught up in all this,” she murmured.

  “I am this,” he said flatly.

  “You were this. You’re not now.”

  “Tell that to Gabriel.”

  “That was really Gabriel? Like, the Gabriel?”

  Cayne snickered. “I was being sarcastic.”

  “Jerk.”

  As Julia glanced down the row of doors, something jumped out at her: a wall-calendar done in fancy cursive script. As she ran through the days, she noticed it was October 3, and her heart did a silly little flip.

  “Guess what?”

  Cayne took her hand, lacing his fingers through hers. “What?”

  “It’s your birthday!” Julia winced at her own outburst, looking down at her feet so he wouldn’t see the pain in her eyes.

  Even looking away, she could hear him frowning. “I don’t know my birthday.”

  “But I gave you October 3, remember?”

  Cayne stopped, and she realized they were outside their door. She looked up into his green eyes, and he kissed her forehead. “Indeed, I do.”

  “Can we celebrate it? One last hoorah before we tell the rest of everyone about my headaches? Please, please? It would mean the world to me. Just a few hours of fun.”

  Cayne kissed her head again, this time on her temple. He kissed her on the other side, feather light. “On one condition,” he murmured.

  “What?”

  “Birthday spankings.”

  Her jaw dropped, and she almost winced from the pain.

  *

  Edan blocked the warbling voice out of his head and pushed the girl against the slick tile wall. She moaned, the sound echoing through the damp room that housed the resort’s Olympic-sized pool. The pool was closed, which meant the room was dark, and Little Miss Snow Patrol was getting naked fast.

  She’d found him as he was creeping back into the hostel a couple of hours before dawn, careful because his run-in with the boy had attracted notice from the Authorities. She’d been easy to charm; he hadn’t even had to try. All it had taken was a large mug of hot chocolate, a few well-timed caresses, and half an hour listening to the story of her last failed relationship.

  Humans were like that: vulnerable. Had to do with their desire for the fellowship of other humans—most of whom were shitheads. He’d watched their masochistic cycle of desire and hurt, desire and hurt, for the last two centuries, and he felt lucky that he had no similar desire. Lucky. He smirked. Almost blessed.

  He was, however, more than glad to lend his considerable skill to the occasional human female. He never got too close to any of the Chosen, and he’d gone far too long in the company of the delectable Carlin. Peeling back her expensive clothes would truly be a dark deed, but the Spanish Chosen was forbidden fruit for several reasons. She was too young, too innocent, and too close to business. And yes, believe it or not Edan actually cared. About business.

  That old-ass voice echoed through his mind again, heating him up inside like a beam of radiation.

  …is coming. The girl moaned again, grabbing his hair, and Edan moaned with her. …tomorrow.

  “What’s your name?” she panted.

  ...your purpose. Defy me and—

  “Gabriel,” he smirked, gritting his teeth.

  Then, with unnecessary force, he severed the link. Methuselah’s connections were always easy to break, but he had a masochistic side; he enjoyed angering the old fart, and he enjoyed wondering what would happen next. Being divine in a world full of lesser beings was so boring, most of the time.

  “Your hair’s…amazing,” the human whispered.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Meredith awoke for a second time that night to Carlin’s muttered cursing. She wasn’t a fluent Spanish-speaker, but in California, knowing some was essential, and as a high schooler she’d learned all of the dirty words and phrases.
>
  Like this latest one…which Meredith’s bleary mind translated into Your mom shits on my dog!

  Could that possibly be right?

  “MEREDITH!”

  She rolled over, nearly bumping her forehead on the phone, which Carlin held out like a gun.

  “It’s for you,” she snapped, handing it to Meredith as she flopped back over, muttering another swear word.

  Meredith realized Julia was missing as she brought the phone to her ear, terrified that something bad had happened.

  “Yes? Hello?”

  “Meredith, it’s me. Nathan.”

  “Nathan?” Her heart began to flutter and she bolted up in bed.

  “Nathan. What are you doing?”

  “I’m here. Room 533.”

  And she didn’t even think before she blurted: “Omigod! I’ll be right there!”

  *

  Getting less than six hours of sleep was not advisable for someone with a killer headache, but Julia was living dangerously. When Meredith gently shook her shoulder, it was ten o’clock—too late to still be sleeping if she wanted to keep the details of the night before to herself. And she did, until they celebrated Cayne’s birthday.

  She blinked and glanced around, moving slowly so the pressure in her head didn’t blow it open like a watermelon.

  Just Mer and her.

  “Where’s Carlin?” she croaked.

  “Julia, we need to tell Cayne. Now. You look—”

  “Don’t say it.”

  “Okay, I won’t, but I’m worried about you.”

  “He already knows.” Julia touched her pointer finger gently to her head. “I told him last night.”

  “Good. We all need to have a pow-wow. About everything.”

  Julia groaned again. Meredith had this intense look, and Julia knew she couldn’t handle it from her boyfriend and her BFF. “You people. Okay, we can, but I want to celebrate Cayne’s birthday first. Just a few hours.”

  “It’s Cayne’s birthday?”

  “Yes.”

  Julia staggered off toward the bathroom before Meredith could ask her any more questions. She was grumpy, hurting, and she really just wanted to be alone.

  Besides that, she had a trick she wanted to try. Once, a few months before she left group home for good, she’d fallen off one of the donated bikes and twisted her ankle. She’d tried to heal herself. It hadn’t worked, of course, but directing her power at herself had made her feel pleasantly disoriented. Kind of…drunk.

  Julia started the shower and eased out of her clothes, biting her tongue to keep from groaning. The throb in her head extended down her neck and back, and below that, her stomach roiled. Her ribs ached and the joints in her arms felt swollen and inflamed.

  I’m being taken over from top to bottom.

  When the water was hot, she eased herself down onto the chilly tile and crossed her legs. She placed her hands on her knees, and she looked at her own aura.

  It scared the ever-living crap out of her, how brown it was, but she didn’t let the fear consume her.

  I can do this. I need this to work.

  Then she focused on the knot above her head, and she felt a rush like cool water. For a split second, it overcame the pain. She slumped, weak with relief. Then slowly, bit by bit, the pain returned—but behind a veil of…fuzziness. Although the ache was still intense, it was distant.

  She finished her shower, then she brushed her long, dark hair, and it wasn’t agonizing. It was pretty painful, but she could do it.

  She did feel a little loopy, but it wasn’t a bad feeling, all things considered.

  She had her hair wrapped in a towel and her warm, clean body cloaked in a fluffy robe when she came out of the bathroom. She ran right into Drew and let out a little shriek, pain dots dancing at the edges of her vision.

  “Sorry,” Drew muttered. He looked less than pleased.

  Julia glanced around the room, but it was just Drew and her. She noticed he was already dressed for the day, wearing a plaid button-down and thick gray cargo pants.

  “I like your outfit,” she said. “It’s…mountainy. What do you need? I’m indecent here.”

  She pulled the towel off her head, and Drew folded his arms.

  “I had a vision.”

  Irrationally, Julia was shocked.

  “You did? Really? When?”

  “About half an hour ago.”

  She looked at his serious face, and decided if there was one thing she didn’t need, it was a frightening premonition. She held up her hands and took a small step back. “Drew, are you sure? Are you sure about…whatever it was? Are you sure I need to know?”

  “It has to do with Cayne,” he said—and the headache bloomed like red tide. Julia’s hands shook, her mouth went dry, and the room started to spin.

  “Drew, don’t tell me this.” She walked to the window. Outside, the slopes were people-dotted.

  She felt his hand on her shoulder, but she didn’t turn around.

  “Julia… I think you need to talk to Cayne. I saw a group of us—Mer, you, me, and Carlin. We were travelling…” He sighed. “I don’t understand this, but we were travelling to Hell. And neither Edan nor Cayne were with us.”

  “Go away, Drew. I can’t handle this right now.”

  “Well it needs to be handled. We need to meet. Discuss. Just the four of us.”

  Julia turned all the way around. “Are you implying that Cayne’s not trustworthy?”

  “I’m not implying anything. I’m just telling you what I saw.”

  “Well I’m telling you that we’re celebrating Cayne’s birthday—”

  “Today’s his birthday?”

  “Yes, and for a few hours we’ll be like normal people. And then we’ll get down to business. Is that okay?”

  He nodded. “Fine”

  “Good.”

  She glared at him, and eventually he remembered she was in a towel. “I, uh, I guess I’ll let you get dressed then.”

  By the time Julia finished pulling on her suede boots, soft denim leggings, and a slouchy, comfy gray sweater that still had its outrageous price tag on it, everyone else had gathered in the kitchen. Meredith was dancing in front of Cayne, pretending to sprinkle birthday dust over him.

  Cayne’s freaked out-but-still-stoic expression was hilarious.

  “Julia!” Meredith clapped. “I’m planning festivities for Cayne’s birthday.”

  “I ordered a cake for the rest of us to enjoy,” Drew said, and Julia relaxed a little. Maybe Drew’s implication hadn’t been that Cayne was a traitor. But wait, did that mean he thought something happened to Cayne? Captured or killed? With Edan…or by Edan?

  Where the heck was Edan anyway? She needed to find out more about what had happened between him and Cayne.

  “Julia?” Mer’s brows were wiggling, and under them, her eyes were wide and concerned. “Why don’t you come sit down and help us select our winter sports for the day?”

  She gave Julia a pointed look, like if you want to put off talking, you will have to cooperate.

  Julia was willing. She hoisted herself into a bar stool beside Cayne, and it took everything to keep from moaning as his hand caressed her back, then moved up to her shoulder, squeezing gently.

  “I vote for the horse-racing,” Carlin was saying.

  “How is that a winter sport?” Drew asked.

  “They race on ice.”

  “Okay, wait a minute,” Julia said. “What are we talking about?”

  A winter sports festival. Once a month between October and March, the House of the Gods transformed into an outdoor sports arena, and apparently today was the day for October.

  Thirty minutes later Julia and her crew stood on the back deck, getting pummeled by thick snowflakes and looking out at the ski slopes. Which looked distinctly un-ski-slopey and more like an icy obstacle course.

  Over to the right, close to the hostel where Julia should probably be camping outside Edan’s door, someone had carved slides into the
snow. Drew pulled some binoculars out of his jacket and aimed them at the slides, which looked kind of like paths that worms had slithered down.

  “House of Gods – Cresta Run,” he read, using his gloved hand to brush snowflakes off his lenses. “I think that’s the one where they lay face-down on sleds and go head-first.”

  “I hope that’s a sport for Authorities,” Julia said, looking at the straight-down angle of the run.

  “You better know what you’re doing,” Mer agreed—and Julia realized she hadn’t yet told her friends about encountering the angels.

  “Ohhhh, I see that yummy blond bodyguard,” Carlin said—and there he was. Securing a small deck at the top of the slides, maybe 100 feet up.

  Julia heard Cayne growl softly beside her. Not metaphorically, but an actual animal growl, and she put her hand on his arm, worried he would charge up the mountain. A few seconds later, a ski lift released a mob of people on the deck, and the Authority was lost in the crowd.

  “Look at that. Cricket on Ice.” Drew was pointing to a cricket field—was that a field or a block of ice?

  Beside the cricket pond was another frozen pond, and on this one, people were crouching down with iron bars and what looked like a red roll of cheese.

  “That’s curling,” Carlin said. “And that looks like another delish bodyguard,” she said, pointing at the curling pond, where a ‘guard’ with strawberry-colored hair towered over every regular around him.

  “Guys, what’s up?”

  The group turned to find Monte striding across the wrap-around deck with what looked like a giant fish hook. He stopped and extended his other hand to Cayne. “You all right?”

  Cayne, who had been extra quiet all morning, shook it, an impassive expression on his face; Julia thought Monte’s face looked apologetic—probably for what had happened with the Authorities.

  “What sport to watch,” Carlin said, waving at the scene. “You have any ideas?”

  Monte shrugged. “Ice skating, curling, cricket…they’re great. And Cresta Run is awesome. But—” he lowered his voice— “someone…er, they saw something…unsavory on the run, so we’re postponing that until the snow is lighter. We haven’t announced it yet,” he said, pointing to the crowd gathered around the run. “For right now, I say you take a lift up,” he said, pointing to the clouds, “and watch the paragliding and the ice climbing.” He shook the hook in his hand. “Later this afternoon, it’s all about the dog sledding.”