Seraphim

by Leslie Swartz

  “What would you call someone that completely loses their shit if they don’t get a text back within two fucking minutes?” Tae retorted.

  “It’s disrespectful and rude to make me wait!” Harrison griped.

  “I was in surgery!” Tae explained for the fourth time.

  “So, you were in surgery yesterday and three times last week and--”

  “Yes, bitch! I’m a surgeon. That’s my motherfucking job!”

  “Now you’re being condescending.” Harrison said with attitude.

  “And you’re being needy as shit.”

  “Needy?!”

  “I’m about to start calling you ‘dough boy’, you’re so needy,” Tae sassed.

  “Well, excuse me for--”

  “No, I can’t hear it.” Tae dismissed. “I don’t have room for this kind of bullshit. I’m done. Just go.”

  “Are you breaking up with me right now?” Harrison whined.

  “What was your first clue, genius?” Tae asked. “The ‘I’m done’ or the ‘Just go’?” He impatiently waved him towards the door, but Harrison wasn’t having it. He was furious. He picked up the closest thing to him, a lamp from an end table, and before he could stop himself, he raised it up, intending to throw it across the room. Instead, he let his fury overtake him and he brought the lamp down onto his now ex boyfriend’s head.

  “Uncle!” Michelle screamed from the hall. Harrison hadn’t realized she was there. He looked stunned, staring at Tae lying unconscious on the floor. He slowly backed away, guilt and self preservation setting in. He looked up at the girl’s terrified expression. His heart raced and he couldn’t think. After a few moments, he turned and darted out of the apartment.

  “Uncle!” Michelle yelped again, tears starting to form in her eyes as she watched the pool of blood grow larger on the hardwood floor. She ran to him, kneeling down as she cried. She shook him violently, but no response. She checked for a pulse, but found none. This couldn’t be happening. Not him, too! She sobbed as she rolled him over and slapped his face.

  “Wake up!” she commanded. “Uncle, please!”

  Tae groaned as he finally began to open his eyes. Michelle let out a sigh of shock and relief.

  “Psychotic asshole,” he complained, putting his hand to his head. He got up and stumbled to the kitchen sink where he used the sprayer to wash the blood from his head and face. As he dried himself with a dish towel, he noticed his niece staring at him in disbelief. She looked over his head and saw no evidence of what had just happened. There were no wounds.

  “How the--”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he ordered, putting the towel on the kitchen counter. “I’m fine. Get me some paper towels so we can clean this mess up.”

  She ran to the pantry and grabbed a roll of paper towels.

  “What--” she started to ask.

  “You know my name means ‘to endure’,” he said, picking up and placing the shards of ceramic and glass in a trash can. “I’m just resilient.”

  Michelle’s hands trembled as she started to soak up the blood.

  “Uncle,” she insisted. “What are you?”

  “Fine,” he sighed, putting the dust pan and broom down and sitting on the floor in front of her. “But, this stays between us, you hear me?”

  She nodded.

  “I’m Tae Iha,” he began. “Uncle, doctor, life of the party, all that shit. But, I’m also an angel named Raphael that took up occupancy in this body when it was a fetus. I heal myself, I’m really good with directions, but, otherwise, I’m a perfectly normal person. Please don’t freak out.”

  Michelle sat there on the floor, her hands covered in her uncle’s blood, shocked and confused by what she just heard.

  “And you’re not kidding?” she wondered.

  “Not at all.”

  “Angels are real?”

  “Looks like.”

  “Are there others?”

  “Yes, but I am not going to tell you about those people,” he said. “They are seven ways to fucked up.”

  “Have you always known what you are?” she asked.

  “No,” he told her. “When I was a freshman in college, this girl showed up at my dorm, kicked my roommate out. He was so dense, he thought I was about to get lucky. She told me who I was, said she’d be checking in on me, making sure I was all right, not working too hard. Over the years, she’s helped me in a lot of ways.”

  “She was an angel, too?”

  “HBIC.”

  “So, if angels are real,” she asked. “Why didn’t one of them save my mom?”

  Tae looked sadly at his niece, knowing there was no explanation he could give her that would be good enough.

  “It’s God’s rest time, baby,” he said. “It’s complicated, I can’t really go into it. I know it’s not fair and it feels like life is just one big heap of bullshit after another and I’m sorry I can’t fix it for you. There are only a few angels here right now and they have a metric fuck ton of their own shit to deal with. Saving the world type stuff.”

  “Why aren’t you helping them?”

  “I did my part,” he said. “It’s up to them to finish the job. My abilities are no longer needed. Besides, I have other things on my mind. You, work, filing a restraining order.”

  They both laughed and went back to cleaning. After a few seconds, Michelle’s curiosity got the better of her.

  “So,” she started to ask. “Angels are allowed to be, um--”

  “God doesn’t give a fuck about our sex lives,” he insisted. “Not mine, not yours, not anybody’s. Assuming everything’s consensual. I mean, from what I hear, there’s a special place in Hell for predators.”

  “I was always told marriage is sacred and people shouldn’t--”

  “Marriage is sacred because two people make a promise to God to love, cherish, blah fucking blah,” he explained. “When the preacher says, ‘let no one tear asunder’, he’s talking to the couple. Those two people swore to God that they wouldn’t be with anyone else. Breaking that promise is like lying to God, which is a sure fire way to piss off the Almighty. But, if you’re single, He couldn’t care less about who you’re sleeping with and he sure as shit doesn’t give a fuck if you marry a man or a woman. We’re all the same thing to Him.”

  “How do know that?” she asked.

  “When I was first told about who and what I was, I was scared,” Tae admitted. “I thought I was gonna get punished or some shit for being gay. But, she explained it to me and I’ve been comfortable with myself ever since.”

  “The angel?”

  “Not just any angel,” he told her. “The highest authority on Earth. The Messenger of God.”

  Gabriel quickly put her shirt back on as she looked around for her sock. The woman rolled over in bed, felt that her playmate was no longer there and opened her eyes.

  “Going already?” she asked, stretching and then covering her mouth as she yawned.

  “Yeah,” Gabriel said. “I have to meet my brothers for breakfast. Have you seen my--” she stopped, noticing the woman swinging her sock around in the air. They both smiled as Gabriel took the sock and put it on. The woman sat up and scooted herself behind Gabriel, moving her hair away from her neck then kissing it softly.

  “I really have to go,” Gabriel said.

  “I know,” she said, still kissing her.

  “Beth,”

  “It’s Brie,” she corrected her.

  “Right, sorry,” Gabriel apologized. She could hear the thoughts of a man in the apartment above. Beth is so cool. I hope I get to see her today. “Listen, I have your number. We’ll do this again sometime, yeah?”

  “Definitely,” Brie agreed.

  Gabriel got her shoes on and walked to the bedroom door.

  “I’ll see you later,” she promised as she left the room. Brie lay back down to get a little more much needed sleep.

  Gabriel found her coat on the living room floor of the boho chic apartment and put it on. She chec
ked her pockets for her phone, wallet and keys and once she was sure they were all in their rightful spots, she exited the apartment, making sure to lock the door as she left. When she got outside, she had to look around to remind herself of where she was. She sighed. Long cab rides home were a drawback of picking up randoms at clubs. She caught a cab, told the driver the cross streets and pulled her phone out to check her messages. Three texts. From Ethan, U wanna cum over??? From Lucifer, I find the programs on your DVR insipid. You should watch more documentaries. Expose yourself to some culture. And from Allydia, My man says he thinks Lilith’s taken up with a new lover and has headed out of the city. Will keep you posted.

  “Fantastic,” she muttered to herself. It had been months since they had exorcised that first demon. Gabriel was getting antsy. She thought Lilith would be back where she belonged by now and she was growing increasingly impatient as time went on. The plan was to lay low until they knew Lilith’s exact location and then ambush her, but no one seemed to be able to track her down. Every night, Allydia’s goons staked out the theater and, every night, it was filled with the same old demons but no Lilith. She thought about going after the nest because who knew what kind of trouble they were stirring up, but there was no way Lucifer could expel all of those demons at once. Some would get away and alert Lilith that not only was Lucifer awake and hunting her, but that there were other angels after her as well. It would blow their cover, and without the element of surprise, Lilith was sure to do an even better job of hiding and they might never get a chance to throw her ass back in a cell.

  The cabbie pulled up in front of her building and she paid him, including a large tip that would pay for the prescription he’d been putting off getting because it was too expensive.

  “Thank you so much!” he told her. “You don’t know what a blessing this is for me.”

  “Yeah, I do,” she said as she exited the cab. “Have a good one.”

  She walked into her apartment, doing her best to be quiet. The boys were still asleep and she didn’t feel like having an awkward conversation with Lucifer about where she was all night. She took a quick shower, dried her hair and put on fresh clothes. She went to the kitchen and opened the fridge to see what was available to make for breakfast. She was starving and it might be nice to make a proper meal for her family for a change. She grabbed a carton of eggs and some butter, then, after placing the items on the counter, got a pan from a lower cabinet and glanced around the room. She was still impressed with how quickly the contractors had gotten the apartment back in functioning condition after Barachiel’s meltdown a few months before. The place was stunning. Hopefully, he’d be able to hold it together in the future.

  She poured three glasses of orange juice and began to make scrambled eggs. After a few minutes, the pan started to smoke and the fire alarm sounded. She took a newspaper and fanned it until the noise stopped, but it woke the boys up, anyway.

  “Everything all right?” Wyatt asked sleepily, taking a seat at the island.

  “Fine,” she answered. “Just making breakfast.”

  “What the bloody hell is the racket?” Lucifer called as he came down the hallway.

  “She cooked,” Wyatt told him.

  “She what?” he griped. “Do you hate us that much, sister?”

  “Shush your mouth,” she said, setting plates in front of them.

  The eggs were well over cooked and smelled awful. Wyatt took a bite out of politeness but Lucifer covered his nose.

  “I can’t,” he told her.

  “They are not that bad,” she said.

  “Barachiel,” Lucifer asked. “Thoughts?”

  “I don’t want to be rude,” he said as he struggled to chew.

  Gabriel took a bite of her eggs and immediately spit them back out onto her plate.

  “Okay, they’re really gross,” she admitted.

  “So disgusting,” Wyatt agreed, dropping his fork, relieved he didn’t have to choke them down.

  “This is why I don’t cook real food,” she lamented. “It’s fickle. Toaster pastries never break your heart this way.”

  Wyatt chuckled.

  “If you’ll both excuse me, I need to make a call.” he said, standing up.

  “I already handled it,” Gabriel told him, taking a sip of her juice.

  “Handled what?” he asked suspiciously.

  “Your landlord in New Jersey. I called him last week, pretended to be Annie and paid off your lease. You have about four months before you’ll have to renew. You’re welcome.”

  “I don’t need you to pay my bills.”

  “I know you don’t,” she said. “But, you’re not working right now and most of what your uncle left you is tied up in property and you shouldn’t be worrying about selling houses seven hundred miles away when you’re supposed to be focused on fine tuning your lightning skills. It’s unnecessary for you to be stressed out about money when I’m sitting on a stockpile of cash.”

  “She has a point,” Lucifer chimed in.

  “Pipe down,” Wyatt told him.

  “I don’t know what your problem is,” Gabriel said. “I mean, I do, but it’s stupid. I’m just trying to be helpful. It’s the sisterly thing to do.”

  “I don’t need yo-”

  “My charity, I understand,” she sighed. “Ugh, you sound like Uriel.”

  “How is our lovely sister?” Lucifer asked. “It’s been some time since I’ve seen her.”

  “That’s because she hates you,” Wyatt said.

  “That’s a bit of an overstatement,” Lucifer rebuffed. “She just misunderstands me.”

  “No, she fucking hates you,” Gabriel confirmed.

  “Well, I’m insulted,” Lucifer complained. “I have nothing but respect for our dear Uriel. She’s helped me tremendously on dozens of occasions tracking down rogue demons. One incident I remember quite fondly. There was this king in Naples, I’m not sure of the year. It was five centuries ago or so, I believe. Anyhow, he was quite villainous on his own, but then--”

  “Yeah,” she interrupted. “She doesn’t remember that.”

  “Of course not,” Lucifer realized. “Perhaps I should remedy that.”

  “Don’t get crazy,” she warned.

  “Me?” he said, feigning innocence. “I would never.”

  Chapter 14

  Gabriel had agreed to take Lucifer to see Valerie in an effort to mend their strained relationship, leaving Wyatt alone to work on better controlling his abilities. He had come a long way and was now fairly skilled in keeping his emotions from getting the best of him. He stood on the balcony and watched carefully as he pulled a lightning bolt from the clouds and dragged it across the sky, making sure it didn’t come down and hit anything. He felt a twinge of pride as it disappeared into the overcast. Just then, he heard something from the living room behind him. He entered the apartment and closed the glass door behind him, glancing around the room. He saw no one.

  “You back?” he called. No answer. From the corner of his eye, he saw someone rush down the hall to where the bedrooms were. Concerned there might be an intruder, he readied a small ball of lightning in his hand as he made his way, finding his own bedroom door to be open. He went inside and found a woman standing in the far corner. It was the same woman he’d seen on the street a few months before. She smiled at him and as he got closer and her face became clear, he realized who she was.

  “Mom?” he choked out.

  “Yes, Wyatt,” she said. “It’s me.”

  Wyatt nearly fell over, catching himself on the bed.

  “You’re,” he started, but couldn’t finish the sentence.

  “Dead, yeah.” She slowly approached and sat next to him. He scooted away from her a little as the shock began to wear off.

  “And, I’m real, just to be clear,” she told him.

  He stared, unable to take his eyes off her face. His father had been right. He really did look just like her. The faded photos from the eighties hadn’t done her justi
ce.

  “I don’t know what to say to you,” he admitted.

  “You don’t have to say anything. I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. Despite everything you’ve had to deal with, despite what I did, you’ve grown up to be such a good man. And I know you’re an angel underneath, but to me, you’re just my sweet baby boy that I never got a chance to meet. I can’t tell you how sorry I am.”

  Tears filled Wyatt’s eyes as all the long buried pain of his childhood came flooding back.

  “It’s not your fault,” he assured her. “You were sick.”

  “I was. But, I’m okay now, and I want to make sure you’re okay, too.”

  “I’m fine,” he said, wiping tears from his cheeks.

  “Are you?” she prodded. “When was the last time you spoke to your father?”

  “It’s been a while. It’s hard for him.”

  “Because you remind him of me,” she said, tears welling her eyes now, too. “I’ll never forgive myself for what I did to you both. John still hasn’t recovered. Finding me like that, it destroyed him. It’s my fault. Not his and most certainly not yours.”

  “He’s a grown man,” Wyatt said, resentment and anger building as he spoke. “I was a kid. A kid with no mother. I deserved better from him. He should have done better.”

  “You’re right,” she conceded, letting the tears fall. “He’s been a lousy father. But, Wyatt, I know him. Before I died, he was a different person. He was so excited when I told him I was pregnant with you. He loved you so much, and he still does, just--”

  “Not as much as he loves you,” Wyatt told her. “No matter what I did, I was always just a reminder of what he lost. I will never be anything but an emotional burden for that man.”

  Abigail stared at her son’s heartbroken face, crushed by what he’d just said.

  “I owe you more than I can ever give,” she sobbed. “But, I swear, I will fix this for you.”

  And with that, she was gone.

  Valerie was enjoying a lazy Saturday. She had some high sugar cereal for breakfast, watched a bad movie on TV, and was still in her pajamas when there was a knock at the door. She ignored it as she scrolled through the guide trying to decide what to watch next. She heard the clicking sound of the door being unlocked, so she turned the television off, jumped up from her seat on the sofa, grabbed a knife from the kitchen and prepared herself. The door opened and Gabriel and Lucifer came strolling in as if they’d been invited.