Angel in the Shadows (Jaxon Malone)

by Mary May

  Trudy poked his head back around the corner to see what was keeping Jaxon. His face exploded in a wide smile when he saw the two angels and the dog.

  “Alright! I asked for backup and the Lord answered. I’m sure glad to see you. I have no idea what we are about to walk into. Think one of you might go take a look?”

  “I’ll go,” Sloan said before disappearing. In less than thirty seconds he was back.

  “What’s going on in there?” Jaxon asked.

  The grave look on Sloan’s face told her it wasn’t good.

  “They got Jazzy and it looks like she is going to be the next Suicide Killer’s victim.”

  Jaxon felt all the blood drain from her face. “What? We have to get her!”

  “How many are we facing?” Trudy asked.

  “A lot. I don’t know if we can do this with the few we’ve got,” Sloan answered.

  “Hey! I thought angels were all about faith and with God all things are possible. What happened to that?” Jaxon asked as she paced.

  “I have faith. I also know that going in grossly outnumbered as we are is a bad idea.”

  “We can’t just leave her in there and we don’t have time to recruit anymore help. We have to try!”

  Trudy nodded his head in agreement. “The kid is right, Blondie. Our chances may be small, but we are the only chance that little girl has.”

  “Why can’t you or Rocko just pop in, get Jazzy then pop back out again?” Jaxon asked.

  “We can’t. Jazzy would know what we were,” Rocko answered.

  “Ok, how about a diversion? Then one of you can grab her while the rest of us keep them occupied.”

  Trudy ran his fingers through his hair in aggravation. “Kid, it isn’t that simple. If it was only humans we were up against, then that might be possible. But demons are a little harder.”

  “We have two angels, two Muharreb’s… ok, one Muharreb and one in training plus a demon dog. Surely, we can go in and grab her… we have to try, and we are running out of time!”

  Sloan looked at the other two men then back at the woman who was begging him with her eyes to help Jazzy. “Alright… here’s the plan.”

  Chapter 14

  “Hi, has anyone seen my dog?” Jaxon plastered a fake smile on her face as she walked into the large room. Sloan was right… they were seriously outnumbered. Scanning the room, she spotted Jazzy gagged and bound sitting up in a chair at the front of the room. Her terrified eyes clashed with Jaxon’s. Three robed and hooded men stood near Jazzy. They had been reading something from a large book right before she had barged in. All eyes were now on her, and they didn’t look none too friendly. Higgins walked up next to her in a stiff-legged walk, his teeth bared and a deep growl rumbling in his chest.

  “Oh, here he is!” Jaxon said as she reached down like she was going to pat his side. Instead she released the leash that a now-invisible Sloan was holding to keep the dog from attacking too soon.

  “Get’em, boy!” Higgins leaped forward at her command and the room erupted into chaos. Rocko and Sloan both came running in now fully visible and swinging their massive fists at whatever came at them. Trudy stepped up next to Jaxon, his dagger now fully extended and glowing brightly. Stepping in front of her, he started swinging at things that Jaxon couldn’t see. Running toward the front of the room, Jaxon dodged and sidestepped bodies as they were tossed about by the angels. She could only hear what Higgins was doing; her focus was reaching Jazzy.

  The two men were now grabbing the girl, stretching out her arms to each side of her. Jaxon saw the flash of the blade in the third man’s hand as he slashed downward.

  Everything seemed to slow down. Jaxon watched in horror as she followed the path the blade was taking. Sliding to a stop she lifted her pistol, aiming for the arm that held the knife. The gun jerked in her hand as she pulled the trigger. The flash at the end of the muzzle blinded her for mere seconds as she watched the bullet exit the gun. The man screamed as the bullet tore through his bicep, causing him to drop the knife and fall backwards. The two men holding the young girl’s arms looked at their fallen friend in shock. Jaxon swung the gun their direction.

  “Get away from her!” she ordered. No more than she had uttered the words, a heavy weight slammed into her back, knocking her down and sending her pistol flying. Twisting, she rolled over to her back just in time to see a foot swinging at her head. Quickly rolling in the direction the foot was swinging, it just grazed her shoulder instead of kicking in her skull. Throwing her left leg out, she connected with the kneecap of the guy that was after her. The sickening crunch of bone shattering let her know she hit her mark. Getting to her feet, she spotted her gun a few feet away. Sprinting toward it, she swooped it up only to feel a searing pain along her right side. Spinning around, she saw the man she had shot standing behind her.

  “Officer Malone, nice of you to join us.” Holding the knife in his left hand, he stalked toward her. Jaxon recognized his voice.

  “Zero? I know that’s you. Stop hiding behind that hood.”

  Throwing the hood back, Zero glared at her as he stepped toward her.

  “Do you really think you think you can stop this?” he asked.

  “Maybe not, but I can stop you,” Jaxon replied.

  He stepped closer, slowly twirling the knife in his hand.

  “Zero, I shot you once. I will do it again,” she warned as he came closer.

  Ignoring her warning, he lunged forward, slashing at her.

  Lifting the gun, Jaxon aimed at his left bicep and pulled the trigger, watching the bullet hit its mark. Only this time he remained standing. A slight backward motion of his left shoulder indicated he had just been shot for the second time. The smile never left his face but Jaxon saw his eyes change to an impossible color and his voice became a low guttural sound that made chills run down Jaxon’s spine. Flinging out his hand, the gun was knocked from her hand by a blow that she didn’t see coming.

  “We knew you would come for her,” he said as he nodded at the two men who had been standing with him. They reached down and untied Jazzy, who no longer looked scared. Getting to her feet she approached Jaxon with smile that mirrored Zero’s.

  “I hope you understand this is nothing personal. But if you want a job done right, one must simply do it themselves.” She reached out and took the knife from Zero.

  “Hold her,” she ordered, and the men grabbed Jaxon by her arms. Jaxon twisted as she tried to see where the guys were. All that could be heard were the sounds of fighting, screaming and Higgins’ growls and barks. They clearly were busy, and she was on her own.

  “Jazzy… you don’t want to do this. You aren’t like them. We can get you some help. Think of your parents; they wouldn’t want you doing this,” she reasoned.

  Jazzy laughed, the sound of it light and child-like. “Oh, but you see… I am like them. If fact, I created them.” Walking a small circle around her, Jazzy swirled the knife in the air. When she turned back, her eyes were the same color as Zero’s. They looked even creepier in Jazzy’s little-girl face. “And my parents? Well, they had to go… they just couldn’t see the whole picture.”

  “What picture? Jazzy, don’t you see? Even if you win this battle, you will lose the war. That’s been written in stone. God wins.”

  A look of pure hatred crossed the girl’s pretty face. “Do you think I believe that? Nothing is written that can’t be re-written. My future is what I make it. Your God has nothing for me, and he certainly can’t do anything to stop me.”

  “Jazzy, you’re wrong. I used to think the same way. I had nothing for the God my grandmother worshipped. But I was wrong and so are you. Stop this…stop before it’s too late.”

  “It’s already too late.” Jazzy looked over to Zero and nodded.

  “Wait! How did you fool my dog and Sloan?” Jaxon asked with a confused frown as she tried to buy time.

  The girl shook her head. “Now, I can’t be giving away all my secrets. I might need them again next t
ime.”

  “There won’t be a next time. Even if you kill me, I know Sloan will come after you.”

  Jazzy’s eyes widened in surprise. “Kill you? I’m not going to kill you. It’s quite sad and tragic really. You see everyone will think you killed yourself after being fired from your job.”

  The man to her left reached up and lowered his hood. Jaxon tried to be surprised when she saw Rawlings standing there.

  “I tried to warn you to leave things alone,” he said.

  Jaxon shook her head as a feeling of utter disgust filled her. “You’re a disgrace. I have nothing to say to you.”

  “It doesn’t matter. There isn’t anything you can say that will make a difference. The city will soon belong to us. You are just another brick in the road that we are building.”

  “You are forgetting one thing, Rawlings. God always wins!” Sucking her lower lip between her teeth, Jaxon blasted out a piercing whistle. Within seconds ninety pounds of fury was flying through the air, taking down Rawlings as Jaxon dropped to her knees forcing all of her weight on her arms, causing the two men that were holding her to lose their grip. Jumping back to her feet, she swung her right fist, catching Zero in the throat, making him to drop to his knees, grabbing his throat. Stepping sideways, she ducked the knife as Jazzy lunged toward her, her face twisted into a mask of hatred. Throwing her arm up, Jaxon blocked the second blow as she grabbed the girl’s left wrist, twisting it up behind her back as she grabbed the hand that held the knife. The other guy that was still hooded up lunged toward them only to be stopped by Rocko, who simply lifted him up by the scruff of his neck like a mama dog carries her pups.

  “Whoa there, dude. Didn’t your mother teach you not to hit girls?” the angel said with a fierce look on his face.

  Sloan grabbed Zero while Trudy pulled Higgins off Rawlings, who was doing his best to crawl off. Pulling a handful of zip ties from his pocket, Trudy quickly bound their wrists behind their backs. Once Jaxon had her hands free, she turned and looked at the room behind her. Everyone was sitting on the floor with their hands behind their backs. Some looked more worse for wear than others, but all were alive.

  “Wow… you guys do good work,” she complimented with a grin.

  Trudy reached over and patted her on the back. “You did good yourself, kid.” Seeing the blood on her side, he pulled up her shirt, exposing a long but shallow gash just above her hipbone. “Got your first war wound.” He pulled his sweater off over his head then pressed it to the wound. “Hold pressure on this. I don’t think it will need stitches.”

  Jaxon winced as she pressed her hand over the sweater. “I’m fine. It’s almost stopped bleeding.”

  Looking around, she pulled out the chair that Jazzy was sitting in and dropped down into it. Now that it was all over and the surge of adrenaline had flatlined, she could hardly stand. “Now what?”

  “Now we call the clean-up crew,” Rocko said.

  “Clean-up crew? We have one of those?” Jaxon asked.

  “Yeah, I will explain how that works later.” He nodded at Trudy who pulled his dagger out, waiting until it glowed white hot, then with no mercy he plunged the blade into Rawlings’ chest. The man’s eyes bulged out as a noxious green and yellow smoke billowed out around the blade that was buried in his chest. The smell of sulfur and rot filled the room. Trudy yanked the blade out and went around the room plunging it into everyone that was tied up. Jaxon watched in amazement as he did it. The blade only seemed to harm the demons that were trying to hide within their hosts. The humans were left unharmed and empty of demonic influence.

  Jaxon got to her feet and walked over to stand in front of Jazzy. “Where’s the dagger?” she asked.

  Jazzy nodded to the knife that she had held earlier. It was on the floor about three feet from where Rawlings sat. Jaxon picked it up, looking it over carefully. It looked like a normal knife. Glancing over at Sloan, she handed him the knife. “I know how she fooled you and Higgins, but that’s not the right knife. She has the same dagger Trudy carries somewhere. She either stabbed herself or had someone do it to purge the demon so she wouldn’t set off your alarms.”

  Sloan handed the knife to Trudy, who looked it over carefully. “No, this isn’t it and I don’t know where or how they got their hands on one of our daggers. It only works in the hands of a Muharreb. In the hands of anyone else it acts like a normal dagger.”

  Jaxon shook her head. “Well, purging the demon is the only way she fooled Sloan and my dog. Unless you have any other ideas of how she would do it, they must have found a way to make one work for them.”

  “Or they have a Muharreb,” Rocko said quietly.

  Chapter 15

  Jaxon watched with a large lump in her throat as her beloved Mustang was driven away by its new owner. Trudy clamped a hand on her shoulder. “Sorry, kid, I know it’s hard, but it’s for the best. It would have gotten beat up out on the road.”

  Jaxon nodded as they walked back up her driveway where Trudy’s black Bronco was parked next to another large 4x4. This was a silver 1990 Chevy Suburban. It was as jacked and beefed up as Trudy’s truck. It wasn’t totally up to par yet; he was waiting for the special bullet-proof windows to be delivered. But he had put in the roll cage, safety harness and airbags. He went so far as to add some extra safety features in the back where Higgins would be riding. A steel box with thick padding would be his safe zone. Jaxon still couldn’t believe how much Trudy was adding to the already heavy vehicle. It weighed as much as a semi by now. The one thing she had insisted on was XM radio; with all the hours on the road she knew she would need her tunes.

  The last two weeks since they had busted Rawlings and Jazzy, Jaxon had a crash course in all things Muharreb. She had found a buyer for her car and her house. The fact that she found both so quickly proved that God was moving in her life. Trudy had been training her in some serious hand to hand combat. Jaxon just thought she was a tough opponent before. Now she knew she was. He taught her skills and tricks she had never even heard of before. The respect she had for the man grew in leaps and bounds as he trained her. He had near super hero skills. Catching him off guard was something that Jaxon had added to her bucket list as time and again he had tossed her on her backside.

  The best part of all the training was receiving her own dagger. It looked nearly identical to Trudy’s, except hers had a design on the hilt of blue stones. Jaxon didn’t study them too closely, but she suspected they were sapphires and she probably held a small fortune in her hands. Learning how to read the dagger and use it had been the coolest thing she had ever done. The dagger now felt like an extension of her own arm. They had gone demon hunting a few times to give her a chance to try out her new skills. The hardest thing to learn and to get used to was the fact that demons were literally everywhere! At the supermarket, post office, the bank; basically anywhere there were humans, the evil gremlins were there, too.

  “Remember, you can’t engage every demon you see. You have to pick your battles,” Trudy had instructed.

  Turned out that Jaxon wasn’t the only one getting some serious schooling. Higgins was getting some of his own. Most of his was learning that he couldn’t attack every ugly thing he saw either. He had to learn to listen to Jaxon and to attack on her command. Jaxon felt sorry for the poor dog as he would change from growling to whining as he tried to fight his natural instincts. But he was a quick student and soon he had it mastered.

  “So, what happened with Jazzy and Zero and the others?” She didn’t have to ask about Rawlings. He was brought up on numerous charges from manufacturing and peddling Hell Hash to being involved in the murder and cover-up of Jazzy’s parents.

  “The ones that we found to be involved with either making or selling the drugs are waiting for their day in court. Of course, both Jazzy and Zero are in it, neck deep.”

  “I don’t understand how she could have murdered her own parents. Shouldn’t she be getting some help? She is still a minor. I hate to see her get lost in the sy
stem.”

  “Jaxon, Jazzy was the Suicide Killer. She will have to serve whatever the courts give her. But we will have some people on the inside that will try to work with her,” Trudy said softly.

  “She never had a chance, you know? How can she be held responsible when she was under the influence of evil?”

  “Remember Zero saying that if the drug liked you then you lived but were hooked? I think it liked the ones it could control. If you were strong-minded, you fought against the control of the drug. That’s what killed you. But the weak would submit to it. The one thing that both the good guys and the bad have in common is we can’t mess with free will. The enemy had to find a way to encourage submission to his will.”

  “But why would she listen to Rawlings at all? I don’t understand that.”

  Trudy shook his head. “I don’t know, kid; I don’t have all the answers. I wish I did. I wish I knew what slick lie he told her to sway her his way. The thing you need to remember is that the enemy doesn’t appear as he really is. He appears as everything you could ever hope for. He appears as your salvation when he is really your damnation.”

  “Do you think that’s what Rawlings did? Offered her something she always wanted or needed?”

  “I think so. It must have been something along those lines. Truth is, we may never know. The best thing we can do is pray for her, Jaxon. Use the weapon that can’t be defeated.” Trudy walked to his truck and got in.

  “I’ll be back in about two hours. I have something I need to take care of before we roll out later.”

  Later that evening Jaxon tossed the last of her bags into the back of her Suburban. Sloan came out behind her with Higgins on a leash. He walked him to the back of the truck then set him over in the back. Shutting the door, he turned and handed Jaxon the keys to the house.

  “Are you all packed up? Do you need me to load anything else for you?” he asked.