Angel of Darkness Books 6-10

by Mackenzie Morris

  "And you have that here?"

  "I have love here."

  "Love?"

  Jaylen poured water over Zeriel's head, washing away the shampoo into the water. "I've changed a lot over the past year, Zeriel. Captain Kato and I are courting."

  "Oh. I see."

  "Don't worry. I haven't broken that vow and I don't plan on ever doing so."

  "That vow? What about your others?"

  "Not so much. I drink and I gamble. I've smoked tobacco once, but didn't like it, and I made a tiny deal with a demon."

  "You made a deal with a demon?"

  "It was just in exchange for some money. Nothing important."

  "What did you give the demon money for? What did you get out of it?"

  "This is going to sound absolutely insane, but nothing."

  "Nothing?"

  "He needed some money, so I gave it to him. All he offered was that he would come back into my life when I needed him. I don't know what that means. He needed help, so I helped him. I found him when we were raiding a coastal town to the east of Wolfekin. He was injured and needed money for a healer."

  "So you helped a demon?" Zeriel smiled and took Jaylen's hand. "I wouldn't expect anything else from you. You've always cared about everyone. You still care about me, after all. And I'm not exactly the best person in the world."

  "But you are to me. I want to . . . I want to bond with you again. That is if you will have me."

  "Why change your mind now?" Zeriel asked.

  "Being away from you made me realize how much I do need you. How much you mean to me."

  "But if we renew our bond, you run the risk of dying when I die."

  "What I'm about to is probably going to sound really dumb."

  "Say it."

  Jaylen held Zeriel's hand to his chest. "I would rather die with you tomorrow than to live a hundred years without you."

  * * *

  "I have another letter, Kato." Xair landed on the railing of the ship and held up his leg where a little scroll was attached. "This one has been passed between a network of people to get here. It seems important. I haven't read it, but it was rumored to have come from Carvael's underground palace."

  "Carvael? Why would Carvael be writing to me?"

  "I'm not entirely sure. Maybe it's another threat like the one on that abandoned Tivareshen ship the other day. Oh, and it's addressed to Jaylen."

  Kato took the scroll from Xair then unrolled it. "I will read it."

  Dearest Jaylen,

  Forgive me. I know that you will never let me be close to you again like we used to be, but know that I haven't forgotten about you or us. I will not pretend to justify my actions against our friends. However, I will attempt to explain things in a way that maybe you will be able to understand. When I sided with Carvael and Stephan to keep our friends locked up in his underground palace, I had only your best interests in mind. I knew that Trevor, Brinx, Oviel, and Liam would be kept safe while you dealt with the events in Ilyan. I've been playing both sides, hoping that Carvael and Eternal Eclipse would not find out about my dealings. But my time has run out. This is my final letter to you. I don't know if you've received my others, but I sincerely hope you get this one. None of this is your fault, Jaylen.

  Carvael found one of those letters that I was writing to you before, so he knows everything. Tomorrow morning, I will be taken before the Angelic Court and the archdemons in Hell to face punishment for my crimes. He is painting me as being the worst threat to Heaven, even though we both know that he would burn everything down and slaughter Sola herself if he could. This will be the first time that Heaven and Hell will meet to decide the fate of someone who has betrayed both sides. This doesn't bode well for me, Jaylen. I'm not asking you to put yourself in any danger for me, but if there is anything you can do to stop this, please do it.

  Don't do it for me, though. Something about this entire process seems off. Having angels and archdemons in the same room at the same time is just begging for trouble. Someone is going to make a move, but I don't know who. This was Carvael's idea, of course. All I know about the location is that it will be in The Veil, the supposed neutral ground between Heaven and Hell. At the time of my trial, both Hell and Heaven will be empty as everyone is mandated to attend the trial. We need to have people stationed in both in order to watch for anything suspicious. And I think I know what will be used to infiltrate both.

  Carvael and Eternal Eclipse have the dragons under the palace so they can control them. Stephan has been manipulating them, enhancing their magic breath. If you can get Liam into The Veil during my trial, I believe that his telepathic communication with the Elder Dragon Karix will be restored. I am warning you, though. The priorities here are to stop whatever Carvael has planned, release the dragons, and save the innocent angels and demons who will be stuck in the middle of this conflict. Do not risk anything to save me.

  It never would have worked out between us, Jaylen. You are too innocent and trusting to be involved with someone like me. Lying is just part of my nature, I guess. Now look where those lies have gotten me. Even though we weren't a good match, know that I wasn't lying when I told you I love you. Even in Cilona, I knew. Go have a good life, Jaylen.

  With love,

  Liaxa

  (1:2:1/ 3:8:4/ 2:1:17/ 4:1:8/ 4:1:14/ 5:7:1/ 1:2:11/ 5:6:3/ 1:6:13/ 1:5:5/ 2:3:2/ 3:3:5/ 3:6:13,14/ 1:7:14/ 1:5:7)

  Kato showed the letter to Xair. "What are all these numbers at the bottom? Some sort of coordinates?"

  "I don't think so. If that letter truly was written by Liaxa, then maybe there is a hidden meaning in it."

  "So it's a code? I don't have time to deal with this right now. I will give it to Jaylen to decode today. Maybe he and Zeriel can figure it out together."

  "So?"

  "So what?"

  "Are we going to save Liaxa?" Xair asked.

  "I don't know if there's much we can do. To be honest, I couldn't care less about the angels and demons she claims are innocent."

  "Oh, so the truth is that you're jealous."

  Kato crossed her arms defensively. "I am not."

  "Yes, you are. You're jealous that Jaylen had something with Liaxa before he met you. Are you jealous of his relationship with Zeriel as well?"

  "Fine. Yes. I'm jealous. I want Jaylen all to myself, but he doesn't want me back."

  "Sure he does. But he doesn't think like a normal man. You have to take baby steps with Jaylen because he is still an infant when it comes to romance and relationships." Xair took off into the misty air, disappearing above the low clouds.

  "Goodbye to you too, Xair." Kato rolled her eyes. It was time to get this over with. Maybe Zeriel wouldn't be too bad. She had been down below deck when he showed up alone and some of the crew had let him into the cabin to be with Jaylen. She thought for sure that he would have had someone with him, but it appeared that he had flown all this way by himself, despite his rumored injuries. The crew hadn't managed to get much of a story out of him because he kept demanding that he see Jaylen.

  Kato opened the door to her cabin to see a disturbing sight. The black-winged angel was naked on his knees in front of Jaylen who was holding the angel's hand against the sun sigil on his chest where he had pulled his shirt open. "Oh, sorry for interrupting . . . whatever this is."

  Zeriel wrapped a towel around his waist. "Come on in. We were just bonding again."

  "And you have to do that naked?"

  "I just got out of the bath. It's not a big deal. Jaylen and I have seen each other naked a lot. Nothing weird going on here."

  "Sure, because none of this weird." Kato held out her hand. "Anyway, pleased to finally meet you in person, Holy Angel Zeriel."

  He spread his wings out then took her hand and gently kissed it. "The pleasure is mine, Captain. Jaylen didn't mention that you were one of the most beautiful women on the planet."

  "Oh, my goodness. You are one fine-looking angel yourself."

  Jaylen pushed them apart. "Geez, Zerie
l. Laying your charms on a little thick, aren't you?"

  "Sorry. I'm not used to being around women. Forgive me, Captain. I am chaste just like Jaylen. But that doesn't mean I'm a stranger to being flirtatious." Zeriel winked at her as his towel fell off. "Oh, dear."

  Jaylen doubled over in a fit of laughter as Zeriel scrambled to cover himself. "Smooth, Zeriel. Real smooth."

  The angel blushed all over then ran into the closet and shut the door. "Jaylen, can you bring me some clothes?"

  Jaylen wiped the tears from his eyes as he continued giggling. "Wow. So, Kato. Now you've met Zeriel."

  "A little too much of Zeriel."

  Zeriel grumbled something from the closet.

  Jaylen shook his head as he rummaged through the dresser for something that would fit his angel. "I'm looking for you some clothes, Zeriel. Just hold on."

  Kato leaned against the wall. "So, are you two close again?"

  "Yes. We bonded. Because Zeriel is Fallen, our bond has major setbacks. If he dies, I die as well. If I die, he dies. But I like to think it makes us stronger. I know it's complicated and difficult for you to understand."

  "No, it's fine. I can tell how you two complete each other."

  "We're best friends and Zeriel is like the father I never had in Doran. I know I ran away from him, but I am so glad to be back with him now." Jaylen carried some black leather pants, a long-sleeved white shirt, and a brown vest to the closet. "Here. Get dressed, please."

  "My wings will ruin the back of your shirt."

  "It's fine. Just cut a tiny hole and squeeze your wings through like you always do."

  After a couple of minutes, Zeriel emerged and spun in a circle. "What do you think?"

  "Perfect fit. Keep them. I'll get more."

  Kato had become so enthralled in watching the two of them together that she had nearly forgotten about the important thing she had to share with Jaylen. She pulled the rolled-up letter from her pocket. "This letter came for you, Jaylen. There is a code at the bottom that you need to-"

  "I'm on it." Jaylen went to the desk and immediately began scribbling on the paper. It wasn't even a minute before he held up the letter. "Got it."

  "You decoded it that quickly?" Kato asked.

  "It was a very simple code that I have seen many times before. During my training to become a paladin, we would pass notes with hidden messages between the paladins all the time. These number sets each correspond with a certain word in the letter. The first number is the paragraph, the second number is the sentence, and the third number is the word. It was so easy to figure it out."

  "What does it say?"

  Jaylen read from the paper. "I have everything under control. Go to Cilona while Carvael is in The Veil. Find Stephan."

  "Interesting. So Liaxa isn't in as much trouble as she said in the letter?" Kato asked.

  "Exactly. We need to get to Cilona as soon as possible. That is where Stephan will be vulnerable and alone. We can strike and take him down while all of Carvael's angels are in The Veil at the trial. It's brilliant."

  Chapter 11

  Jeremiah couldn't do it. He couldn't leave Cael on that ship. The appearance of an ishim out of nowhere would raise too many questions, questions that he wanted to avoid at all costs. Instead, he kept the baby angel in the sling on his back. He would take care of him, especially after the adoption process was completed. Every angel baby needed an angelic father to better take care of him, even if he was half human. It would be finalized in a matter of hours, to be sure. The angel in charge of such matters was authorized to work on his own without the approval of Carvael. But it shouldn't have been an issue anyway. After all, no one in Heaven actually knew about his deception or of him playing both sides of this conflict. They all still believed that Jeremiah was going to do the best thing. But in his mind, this was the best thing. Jeremiah could teach and train Cael to be good, not bring the apocalypse. He would have to be a father. Even the thought of that was daunting. Was he really doing this? That would have to wait, though.

  The cave in the side of the mountain was secluded and back away from the only road that crossed this part of the upper reaches of what used to be the kingdom of Vilyron. It had been used as a makeshift prison to hold runaway slaves and highway robbers who were captured along the trade routes. Jeremiah just so happened to find it when he was looking over a map of the area. It was good enough to hold Divinus, especially with the golden shackles that prevented him from using his magic. Besides, it hadn't been that long since he left him there.

  As Jeremiah's heavy boots slipped through the slime and icy sludge on the cave floor, he started to feel uneasy. It was far too quiet. The torches that he had lit before were still burning on the walls, so he followed the path back to the iron cells. "Divinus?"

  Jeremiah could have sworn his heart stopped. The cell was empty. He grabbed the gate bars and shook them, but they were still locked. He dug in his pocket to get the key for the cell and unlocked it. Stepping inside, he looked around at the bleak grey stone walls and the slick slime-covered floor where stalagmites pointed up towards the ceiling. He held out his hand where a bright purple light flickered to life. Jeremiah used his seraph-shine to scan over the area, looking for any signs. Purple fog swirled around the footsteps and residual magic that Divinus left behind. He could tell it was another seraph, but there was something else as well. Dropping down to one knee, he scooped up the fog and sniffed it. An angel. It was the magical scent of a holy angel. And a powerful one at that.

  Cael started squirming in the sling as he squealed.

  "Shh, Cael. It's okay. Just let me finish checking this out."

  "Take your time. I can wait, seraph."

  Jeremiah stood up and spun around to see a grey-skinned elf with long ears, orange eyes, and waist-length black hair that hung over his skin-tight black bodysuit. There was something about this stranger that stirred fear in Jeremiah's chest. "Who are you?"

  The elf bowed lavishly. "My name is Sulstair and I am here for the baby."

  Jeremiah untied the sling and held Cael close to his chest. He nervously backed up against the wall as he held his free hand up in the air. His bright white glowing wings spread from his back as his purple halo hovered above his head. The walls of the cave began to shake with the tremors below his feet, sending rocks and water droplets falling around them. He let the power surge up in his body. "You will not take Cael from me."

  Sulstair laughed dryly as he rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. His eyes glinted in the light. "Is that how you want to do this? I had hoped it wouldn't come down to a fight, but you seraphs are all the same, aren't you? Violence is the only way you know how to handle things."

  "You're one to talk, necromancer."

  "Oh? How did you know I was a necromancer?"

  The sickening rotten smell infiltrated his senses. "I can smell you. You smell like death . . . but not in the natural way."

  "Very well. Go ahead and make the first move, seraph."

  Jeremiah clapped his hands together and channeled his magic at the elf. Nothing. His power fizzled. "What? What's going on? What did you do?"

  Sulstair chuckled and pointed down at the ground.

  Jeremiah's heart sank. He looked down to see the gold circle that he had inadvertently stepped into. Enchanted gold, just like the shackles. While he was within the circle, there was nothing he could do. "Clever. Did you think of this on your own, or did you have Carvael set this up?"

  "As much as people like to forget about me, I can do things on my own. And while we're taking the chance to speak on such good terms, I will let you in on a little secret, my seraph friend. Carvael is all flash, pompous acts, and flowery language. But he's not the one who will bring about the new era for Heaven. Do you know what zombies can do to a town of people? Now, take that carnage and multiply it by one thousand or more. What could do something like that, you ask? Zombie angels."

  Jeremiah gave a slight gasp. He couldn't. Was that even possible? "I don't beli
eve you. No one has that kind of power."

  "Says the seraph trapped in a golden circle. You don't know true power, Jeremiah. True power isn't given by Sola or any other being. No. True power comes from scraping and clawing your way to obtain it. It's a culmination of learning from failures and basking in victories. And that's where your downfall is, seraph. You've been stuck in Purgatory where everything was just peachy. Nothing bad ever happened there, did it? That is why you are so much weaker than everyone thought you would be. Without weakness, you cannot know power. Without pain, you will not know peace. The others might be terrified senseless of you, but I've seen what you truly are. You are a coward. You are naive, gullible, and all too ready to obey every single order that these filthy vermin we call humans give to you. That submission makes you worthless."

  "You can insult me and keep me here for as long as you want, but I will not give you Cael."

  "Oh?" Sulstair asked mockingly. "We will see about that. I have plenty of time. I can leave and come back to find you still standing there. But tell me this, Jeremiah. When will I come back and find you clutching a corpse?"

  "What?"

  "You can stay there forever without a problem. You don't eat. You don't sleep. But you can't say the same about that baby. He's not fully a holy angel. As an ishim, he is mortal. I can feed him and keep him warm. Surely you've noticed that he is fussy and has already started to shiver from the cold?"

  Jeremiah looked down at the baby who was on the verge of crying. His tiny fists were clenched as his skin was turning pink from the icy air. Then just when he was backed into a corner and facing having to make a terrible decision, he heard the high-pitched ringing that entered his ears. His seraph summoning bell. Tristan was calling for him. Jeremiah locked eyes with the necromancer. "If I give the ishim to you, you have to let me out of here."