Lightbringer

by Frankie Robertson

Jared delayed answering as he turned into the brightly lit parking lot of the McDonald’s in Globe and shut off the engine. That depends on who you ask Fortunately, she was asking him, and not Michael. Or Lucifer for that matter.

  He turned in his seat to face her. Cassie’s hands were clenched tightly on her thighs and her brow was furrowed. “Yes,” he said. “I’m one of the good guys.”

  She exhaled a deep breath, and the corner of her mouth curled up. “Good. I hate to think I needed to drive a stake through your heart or something.”

  Jared relaxed a little and returned her tight smile. “Me too.”

  “Of course, you’d say that even if you weren’t a good guy.” Cassie’s tone was light, but there was a speculative tone to it.

  Jared’s smile faded a little. “Especially if I wasn’t.”

  Cassie nodded. “‘Trust but verify.’” She lifted her hand, palm upward, indicating she still wanted to read him. “Do you want to do this before or after we get something to eat?”

  “After. After we use the restrooms, at least.”

  “Good point. Let’s go.”

  Cassie got the grilled chicken breast sandwich, and he ordered a Big Mac with large fries. There was no one else in the restaurant this early in the morning, but they took a seat in the back anyway.

  “So even a body made of soul needs to pee and eat?” Cassie’s eyes crinkled in amusement as she stole one of his fries.

  “I have every need any man has.”

  Cassie lifted a brow.

  Damn. Why had he made that sound so suggestive?

  She eyed his Big Mac. “But apparently you don’t have to worry about your cholesterol.”

  He chuckled. “That is one of the perks.”

  “Speaking of bodies,” she asked, “why did Aelziroth create one that looked just like Dave—that guy from the restaurant?”

  Jared hesitated. It turned his stomach to think of what the demon had done. “He didn’t. Aelziroth possessed him.”

  CHAPTER 10

  “POSSESSED, AS IN demonic possession?” Cassie dropped the fry she was holding.

  Jared grimaced. “Not exactly, but close enough.”

  Cassie’s thoughts whirled. “A demon is trying to kill me? Why?”

  Jared pursed his mouth and glanced away as if considering his reply. “He’s an Apostate. One of those who have turned away from Celestial Law. Aelziroth doesn’t care what harm he causes. He acts to please himself, and serves only Beelzebub.” Jared’s tone was bitter.

  “And he possessed Dave? Why? I thought you guys made bodies out of your—what did you call it? Essence?”

  “We do. Celestials like Gideon and me. Those like Aelziroth are forbidden to manifest here. Sometimes they do anyway, though it’s rare for enough Apostates to cooperate to make it happen. Like us, they can’t physically come or go from this plane without help. Apostates don’t have a problem with breaking the rules. Sometimes they possess the unwilling.”

  A chill shivered down Cassie’s back. “The unwilling? Does that mean there are willing possessions? Do people actually volunteer for that?”

  Jared nodded. “Sometimes. It used to be more common than it is now. But even today, in the Voudoun faith for example, and some of the Christian denominations, believers will invite riders into themselves, despite the risks. It can be a high like no other, I’m told. Or a hell.”

  Jared took a sip of his soda and continued. “We’re forbidden to possess an unwilling mortal. Free will is one of our paramount values, and possession destroys both the will and the body of the one taken. But those like Aelziroth don’t care. And if a mortal conjures a possession, Apostates think they have an excuse to violate our Laws.”

  “Are you saying somebody summoned a demon and put him into Dave?” Cassie couldn’t believe what she was saying. Their conversation sounded like a bad horror flick—except she was living it.

  Jared nodded. “Aelziroth would not have been able to take a mortal without some kind of invitation, and considering what you saw in your vision, Dave was vulnerable.”

  Cassie grimaced. “Well at least it couldn’t have happened to nicer guy.”

  Jared frowned and his voice was stern. “No one deserves that.”

  Cassie glared at her half-eaten sandwich, feeling chastened—and angry. She lifted her gaze to meet Jared’s. “Those villagers Dave killed didn’t deserve to be shot, either.”

  “No they didn’t. But as you’ve no doubt heard, life isn’t fair.”

  “And why is that?” Cassie leaned forward. “You must know the answers to the Big Questions. Why do good people suffer and bad people slide by?” She held her breath. If he says, God works in mysterious ways, I’m going to kick him.

  Jared sat back in his chair and met her gaze with his own. “I’m Celestial, not omniscient.”

  Cassie’s leg jerked, but she restrained herself. “I don’t believe it! You don’t know any more than we do?”

  “About that, no. But I do know wishing harm to another will only pollute your own soul. Don’t go down that path.”

  Cassie glared at him, angry at his reproach. “What do you plan to do when Aelziroth shows up again? Speak harshly to him? You brought those guns along for some reason, and you weren’t exactly a pacifist back there at Linda’s house. That sword looked pretty sharp.”

  Jared startled. “You saw that?”

  Cassie blinked, surprised out of her anger. “Yeah. Shouldn’t I have?”

  “Never mind.” Jared waved his hand dismissively. “Be assured, I will defend you by every means possible. But meting out justice isn’t the same as wishing Dave ill.”

  Is he really that cold-blooded? Cassie stared at him.

  She liked Jared’s warm brown eyes, and the old-fashioned way he talked, and that he had strong ideas about what was right. She liked how strong his arms felt around her too. And the way he tasted when she kissed him made her want to nibble and lick his lips like gourmet chocolate. His broad shoulders and lithe grace made her wonder what it would be like dance with him. She could almost hear music as she imagined moving her body in rhythm with his.

  He might desire her, but if his emotions were that rigidly controlled he wasn’t likely to return her feelings. Her heart sank. He was the first guy in four years that got her juices flowing.

  Cassie gave herself a mental shake. I’m running for my life, not on a first date. She stuck out her hand.

  “If you’re done eating, it’s time to pony up.”

  She half expected him to find some way to avoid it, but Jared gave her a long look and grasped her hand firmly. She had a second to be surprised before a pulse of energy blasted her senses wide open, then her awareness shifted from the nearly empty restaurant to her inner sight.

  He was a Lightbringer, a lover of Truth. He wanted to protect her. Wanted to serve the greater good. She’d seen some of that before. She pushed, and a barrier slid aside.

  A flame of desire, carefully banked, sent a frisson of answering hunger through her. She’d seen that before, too. He’d even spent time imagining what it would be like to be with her, just as she had. It warmed her, knowing he found her attractive, but lust wasn’t liking, and that wasn’t what she was here for, anyway. She pressed deeper.

  And fell into a crystal prism.

  Blinding light bounced and reflected rainbow-like through mirrors. A maelstrom of feelings bombarded her, rather than the images she usually got from a vision. Simmering frustration from a long-standing conflict. A challenge that brought hope. A cryptic prophecy. A sense of boundless freedom, then confinement, isolation, loneliness. The shame and guilt of failure. The hollow ache of love lost. Anger.

  Fear plucked at her. She was lost, groundless, submerged in emotion that surged and pulled at her, sweeping her away from herself.

  The storm of sensation settled.

  Jared surrounded her, filled her, held her safe. She knew his mind. He was other. He didn’t wear his body like a hand in a glove. He was all of one whol
e, and his light glowed rich and steady. No blots of deception darkened him.

  Aelziroth. Jared had known him forever. Once a friend, Aelziroth was now defiant. An Apostate. Cassie felt the demon’s darkness like reflected heat when Jared thought of him, Jared’s anguish at the loss of his friend.

  His anger flashed like lightning in dark roiling clouds. Aelziroth had chosen Chaos over Creation. He’d deliberately tried to destroy Gideon, a Guardian. Her own anger flared with the knowledge.

  Jared’s memory of desperation and fear for his friend seared her mind. His rage at Michael’s rigid inflexibility. His joy and relief at Gideon’s transformation. His longing to return with him to the Celestial Realm, flavored by a taste of bitter hopelessness.

  She felt like a voyeur, peering into Jared’s pain. He’d let her experience the powerful emotions he kept so carefully concealed and controlled, hidden from public view. She wanted to comfort him, but had no idea how to do that.

  Cassie carefully pulled her mind free from his, separating her own thoughts and feelings from Jared’s. She’d never seen so deeply into a person before, and she had now only because he had opened himself to her. His trust humbled her.

  All of what he’d told her was true. And he isn’t as cold as I thought.

  She glanced at Jared, feeling suddenly shy. It was as if they’d been intimate without the seduction. His eyes were closed, his head bowed. Several moments later he looked up and met her gaze.

  Is he blushing? He was.

  Her own face heated. Had he seen just as deeply into her? This was like waking from one of those dreams where she was naked in the grocery store. Or in this case, McDonald’s.

  “Do you believe me now?” Jared asked softly.

  Cassie nodded. “Thank you.” The overwhelming truth of what she was facing crashed down on her, and she covered her face.

  What was she going to do? She’d had her life in order, under control. She’d made peace with who and what she was. Now it was all chaos. A demon was trying to kill her and an angel—a Celestial, a Lightbringer—was trying to protect her. Why? She hadn’t seen an explanation for that among Jared’s thoughts.

  Jared gently pulled her hands down and clasped them in his own. A tingle zinged up her arms and down to her toes, emphasizing his words. “It doesn’t matter why. You have a destiny. Every soul is important, but there’s something in the grand scheme of things only you can do. I won’t let anything stop that.”

  A chill rippled down her spine. This wasn’t the first time Jared had answered an unspoken question. “Are you reading my mind?”

  Jared’s eyes widened, as if he were surprised. “Not intentionally.”

  That means he can. “So what is this big destiny of mine?”

  Jared’s mouth twisted in a crooked smile. “I don’t know.”

  Cassie rolled her eyes and returned a disgusted grin. Their gazes lingered for a moment, sharing the wry humor. There was something warm and almost normal about it, as though they’d been friends for a long time.

  “Do I have any say in it?”

  “Of course. You have the freedom to choose your course as much as anyone.”

  “Then how can I have a destiny? Doesn’t that mean everything is predetermined?”

  “No. You’re free to choose your own path just as your clients do. Sometimes they act differently because of what you tell them, don’t they? Your visions never come to pass?”

  Cassie nodded, then remembered something she’d seen in Jared’s mind. “But you have a prophecy, right? Something that involves me?”

  “Yes. No. I don’t know.” Jared clenched his jaw and looked away for a moment, pulling his hands free of hers. When he met her gaze again he frowned. “The prophecy says that when the blood of all flows together, the Unity of the Realms will be restored.”

  “Blood flowing. That sounds like the peace of the dead.”

  Jared shook his head. “We believe it has to do with combining bloodlines.”

  “What has that got to do with me?”

  “Probably nothing.”

  “And yet, here I am.”

  Jared smiled and took her hands again. “Yes. Here you are.” He rubbed his thumbs over her flesh, sending warm shivers coursing up her arms.

  Heat pooled low in her belly. He was making it hard to concentrate.

  “The reason you’re psychic is because sometime in the past a Celestial gave his seed to a mortal woman, your ancestor. You inherited your psychic abilities from us.”

  Cassie just stared. Of all the things he could have said, this was not what she’d expected.

  “Don’t worry about it,” Jared continued. “You only have two bloodlines, not all four. Or five. Some Celestials think the Gaians figure into the prophecy too. I don’t think your heritage has anything to do with what’s going on, nor does it matter. Prophesy weaves a tangle of probabilities—you know that. I don’t particularly care about predictions, and you shouldn’t either. We’re freer to choose because we don’t know the details.”

  Did his feelings extend to what she did? She withdrew he hands from his. “I make predictions about the future.”

  Jared’s gaze followed her hands as she folded them on the table in front of her. When he lifted his eyes back to hers he said, “You help people make informed decisions. You don’t tell them what to do.” He grinned. “Except for Linda.”

  She grinned back. “Linda returns the favor with interest, I assure you.” She returned to the previous topic. “How will I know if I’m choosing the right thing?”

  Jared gave her another lopsided grin. “How does anyone?”

  Cassie grimaced. “I was hoping—”

  “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” blared from her cell, making her jump. She fumbled to pull out her phone, frowning when she saw the sender. “It’s Detective Morgan.”

  Jared frowned. “Sooner than I expected. You’d better answer, or he’ll put out an Amber Alert on you.”

  Cassie flipped the phone open and put it on speaker. “Hello?”

  Morgan’s clipped voice sounded concerned. “Ms. Lewis are you all right? Where are you?”

  “I’m fine, Detective.

  “And Mrs. Fallon?”

  “She’s fine, too.”

  Morgan paused for a moment. “Are you able to speak freely?”

  “What?” Did he think she’d been kidnapped? “Yes! I’m okay.”

  “Where are you? For that matter, where is Mr. Price?”

  Jared shook his head and mouthed, No.

  “Linda’s with her husband. Mr. Price is with me.”

  “And just where would that be, Ms. Lewis?” Morgan’s tone was impatient.

  Cassie answered with more sass than she felt. “Where are you, Detective? At home in bed, I hope.”

  “I’m at Mrs. Fallon’s house. Where I left you. The patrol officers found the door smashed in and the place a wreck. There are bullets in the walls. What happened?”

  “Somebody broke in.”

  “No shit. Can you describe the intruder?”

  “Uh, I was in the closet most of the time.”

  “Why didn’t you call it in?”

  “I didn’t feel safe anymore. I had to get away.”

  “And just how did you manage to get away?”

  She couldn’t tell Morgan Jared had vanquished an armed gunman with a glowing sword.

  “Ms. Lewis? Cassie?” Morgan prompted. “Did Mr. Price have a gun?”

  Cassie looked at Jared, who nodded. “I think so. He scared off the guy who broke in.”

  “I want you to come in, Cassie. Before this happens again. Before someone gets hurt.”

  Jared shut the phone. A moment later “The Flight of the Bumblebee” started up again. He turned Cassie’s cell over and took out the battery. “That’s enough of that.”

  “But I need a phone. I should check on Linda,” Cassie protested.

  “I’ll get us a couple of burners at the Mini-Mart.”

  “Burners?”


  “Sorry. Cam is rubbing off on me. That’s cop-speak for disposable phones.”

  “Was Cam a cop?” He hadn’t seemed like one.

  “A long time ago.” Jared stood. “We should go. Morgan may have gotten a GPS reading off your phone.” He shook his head. “I should have thought of that before.”

  “But we’re not criminals.”

  “No. But we are witnesses in a car bomb investigation and a home invasion. And Morgan strikes me as the kind of guy who doesn’t give up easily.” Jared stood. “It’s another two hours to Pinetop.”

  Cassie gathered up her half-eaten sandwich and the rest of their trash. “Do you think he’ll send local cops after us?”

  Jared shrugged. “I don’t know. As you said, we’re not criminals, but I’d rather not be held as a material witness when Aelziroth finds us again.”

  They went out to the car. The air was cold and sharp. Jared unlocked the door for her, then touched her arm, stopping her. It was a simple gesture, but it felt as though he’d wrapped his arms around her. She yearned to do the same, to press herself against him, to feel his warmth and strength with her whole body. The power of her response unnerved her, and she held herself still.

  “I—” Jared looked away, then back at her. “Linda is right. Andy is a jerk. And a coward. He didn’t deserve you. He couldn’t see what a blessing he had in you.”

  Shock rippled through her, erasing her desire. He knows. Why hadn’t she thought about what he might learn while he opened himself to her? He must have seen it all. How Andy had rejected her psychic abilities, and how she’d tried to placate him by denying her own nature. That self-denial was almost worse than how he’d tricked her and put nude photos of her pudgy self on the internet. Had Jared pulled those images from her mind, too? Shame made her start to shrivel inside.

  But then his words echoed in her mind. He thinks I’m a blessing?

  “You are.” His tone was forceful. “Never doubt it again.” He pulled the car door wider so she could get in. *And never doubt your body is beautiful, either.*

  Had he said that aloud? She didn’t think so. Perhaps she was hearing his thoughts as he occasionally heard hers. Cassie’s heart sped. He’s been looking at my body. As she’d been looking at his. She glanced quickly at Jared as an awareness of his warm regard, and something hotter, spread through her. Her nipples tightened, and it wasn’t because of the cold October night.