Sparrow Man
Page 27
Sparrow reaches for the feather and just as his finger pinch the shaft, a zap of static arcs towards his fingers. His eyes widen, bright green with pin-point pupils before returning to their normal state and focusing on me.
“What was that?” I ask.
“N… nothing.”
“That wasn’t nothing. What just happened? Tell me.”
“We must go. Now, Meg.” Sparrow grasps my hand.
I pull away from him. “What did you see?” I demand.
“Remember when I told you we’re invincible together?” he asks.
“Yes, and Clea said the same thing.”
“I saw a dark future, one where we are separate.” He closes the space between us and takes my hand again. “She showed me, Clea showed me.” He squeezes my hand tightly, runs his thumb over that mark on my leg, starts to say the words but nothing happens.
“Shit,” I mumble. “I hit my head earlier.”
He nods. “This won’t be good.”
We turn to find the seven Hellions and half-melted Jim advancing towards us.
“Stop!” I hold my hand out to them. “Lucifer forbade you from touching me. He promised safe passage out of this place.”
The largest Hellion, the one with the scar down his face, laughs. “We can’t touch the granddaughter of Lucifer, for now. But we can touch the bird-man. We owe him. Look what he did to Jim’s pretty face.”
Pulling the weapon from my belt, I hold it in front of me, step in front of Sparrow. “If you would like my feathered friend here, you will have to go through me first.”
They advance. One grabs my free arm, tries to tug me away from Sparrow, but Sparrow wraps his arm around my waist, holding me tightly to him. They chuckle, an arm rises, something flies through the air. Sparrow coughs, groans. And then, something so strange happens, the feathers burst from his wings, surrounding us in a flurry of white, a storm, a blinding fog. The feathers slide across my skin, soft and sleek. Yet, elsewhere, everything they touch echoes with the sound of a million razorblades clanging to the ground. The Hellions scream. Sparrow slumps to the ground, knife sticking out of his side, his scaffold of featherless wings returned.
“Jesus, Sparrow.” I reach for him.
“Now, Meg,” he coughs, bright red blood filling his mouth. “Take me back to Gabriel. He can fix this.”
Feeling the strength inside me, poof, we are gone.
…
Gabriel sputters on his dinner as we drop into the dining room.
“What the-” Gabriel starts.
“Fix him!” If his featherless wings weren’t enough to indicate a problem, I roll Sparrow's body to reveal the knife sticking out of his side.
“Ah, knife in the ribs.” Gabriel’s fork clangs on his dinner plate as he stands. “Not usually a life ender for our kind but… What the shit, Sparrow, you’ve gone and lost your feathers again. You look like a boiled goose.”
“Gabriel! Help him, please.”
Gabriel turns his focus on me. “What happened? You went to the Burning Caves alone. Sparrow was supposed to sweep in like a knight in shining armor and save you.”
I shake my head from side to side and remembering the feathers from my mother, I pull one out of my pocket and hold it out towards him. “Clea says she loves you.”
Gabriel’s fingers pinch the feather’s shaft. And just like with Sparrow, a tiny arc of static connects with his fingers, his eyes widen, a bright blue sea with pin-point pupils before returning to normal and focusing on me.
“Fuck,” Gabriel says.
“What?”
Sparrow groans on the floor.
“I will help him,” Gabriel replies. “But only on one condition.”
“What’s that?” I ask.
“You promise never to leave the Seven Kingdoms of Heaven, ever.”
“Why? What did you see?”
“Promise, Meg. Promise me. Promise on Sparrow’s life.” He crosses his arms. “Promise now or I let him die.”
“Why?”
“Promise.”
“What did you see? Sparrow saw something too. What?”
“Promise.”
“Why?”
“Promise.”
“I can’t-”
“Promise.”
“Gabriel-”
“Now, or he dies.”
“Wh-”
“Now.”
“Fine!”
“Is that a yes?”
“YES!” I scream.
“Say it.”
“I promise never to leave the Seven Kingdoms of Heaven!”
“Good. Close your eyes.”
Dropping to my knees, pressing the heels of my hands against my eyes, I shut them tight. Still, I can feel heat, sense a brightness in the room, hear the groan of Sparrow, the sliding of a chair, the whispering of words.
Warm arms wrap around my back and lift me to my feet. “It’s okay,” Sparrow’s voice whispers in my ear.
Burying my face in his neck, I ask, “What did you see?”
“Later,” he promises, rubbing my shoulders, my arms, my back, pressing his lips to my temple.
“Get a room,” Gabriel grumbles before he leaves the room, slamming the door on his way out.
…
Listening to Sparrow in the shower that shoots diamond-glistening water, I move a chair under the bedroom door handle so no one can get in. Pulling the last Argentavis feather from my pocket, I twirl it in my fingers and switch it from hand to hand.
“What did you show them, mother?” I whisper to the feather.
There is an arc of static electricity, my fingertips tingle, my eyes widen and… I see… I see.
Wars. Blood and death. Good and evil. A dead Sparrow. A motherless child and a fatherless child. Light and dark. The earthen plane and the ethereal realms. A burst of bright light. An explosion. Fear and pain. Emptiness. A dark, never-ending vat of emptiness that would suck every joyful moment right out of me.
I drop the feather, run to the bathroom, pull the door open and run into the huge shower stall fully clothed. Reaching for Sparrow, I grip his arms, shoulders, neck, face, just to make sure he’s real, he’s alive.
“Meg?” he asks. “What’s wrong?”
“I saw,” I tell him. “I saw… the feather… Clea. I saw.”
“Oh, Meg.” He pulls me towards him, locks me in a tight embrace.
“What does it mean?”
“I’m not sure of all of it. But just remember, we are invincible together.”
Shuddering in his embrace, his words scorch me with their truth. I hold onto him tight, the water soaking through my clothes, afraid to lose the one person who has ever showed me love and caring and truth.
AUTHOR Note
Thank you for reading SPARROW MAN! This book is one of my favorites, I hope you enjoyed it!
Wait until you see what happens next in Sparrow and Meg’s story. It’s going to be lots of fun
Since there is no better way to share the love of a book than by word of mouth, please take time to leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads or tell a friend about SPARROW MAN, SARATOGA or THE PHOENIX PROJECT SERIES.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
M. R. Pritchard is a lifelong inhabitant of upstate NY. When she is not writing she is a NICU Nurse, wife, mother, gardener, aquarist, book hoarder and science geek. She holds degrees in Biochemistry and Nursing. Visit her website, MRPritchard.com or her blog, secretlifeofatownie.blogspot.com, where she writes weekly posts about life, writing, and sometimes Zombies. Sign up for the M. R. Pritchard Newsletter to receive updates on new releases, coupon codes, giveaways, and sneak peeks!
Meredith would love to connect with you. Like her Facebook page, follow her on Twitter, or follow her on Pinterest. Visit any of these sites for information regarding previously published works and upcoming projects.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many thanks to my husband, who has supported me every step of the way on this crazy journey, and who keeps my wine fridge
, beer, and hard liquor stocked. I love you, Jorden.
There is no way I would have ever found the courage to complete this book, and continue on with more, if it weren’t for my encouraging family, friends, and fans. I thank you all from the center of my heart. ♥
To my beta-readers, Heather, Jessica, Nora, Sandy, and Cynthia, you girls rock! Thanks for believing in me and listening to my blabber.
To Teari, for letting me immortalize her namesake forever in a book.
Lastly, there are not enough thanks I could give to Kristy Ellsworth. Thank you so much for loving Sparrow Man as much as I do! And thank you so much for all of your hard work, for putting up with my middle of the night rants and meltdowns, you’re more than an editor, you’re pretty much my therapist.