It’s why she gravitated towards animals to begin with. Eve would spend days at a time in wolf packs and lion prides. Sleeping with the animals was something she loved because she craved the closeness and solidarity of a pack life. There was a beautiful balance to the wild – everything had its place.
Eve was still trying desperately to find hers.
We all have a purpose, a place in this world. It’s better for you to learn where your place is… with me. Michael’s words rang in her ears. She knew her place with Michael now. And with how these Angels in the cave were so easy-going about letting her go and coming up with some fake ass story about Lucifer killing her, she now knew her place with them too.
They didn’t think Eve wasn’t good enough. They didn’t want her in their “pack” and that felt so isolating and hurtful. She’d done nothing to warrant this shunning.
They weren’t saving her; they were shooing her away.
“I came to the Brotherhood,” she said with a shaky voice, “because I wanted to train to be a fighter. A warrior like all of you. Even if you didn’t keep me… I still would have learned how to defend myself.”
“Why?” Gabriel’s deep voice cut her courage in two.
“Because this world is cruel and I refuse to be the dog that gets beat ever again.” She refused to look at Lucifer when she said that.
“Explain,” Constantine commanded.
One by one, the males surrounded her. Including Lazarus. Damn, she hated how all eyes were on her and for some fucked up reason she also craved their undivided attention. It was confusing.
“Explain,” Constantine repeated louder.
“I was… I did…” shit, she didn’t even know how to blurt any of this out correctly. “My wings were white.” Just saying that much had her in a tailspin. Her heart started beating too fast and it made her woozy. “I did something that cannot be undone.”
“It’s okay, Flower,” Lazarus broke the circle and approached her slowly. “This needs to be said.”
Eve trusted Lazarus as much as she did Lucifer. “Okay… okay…” she tried to find some courage to do this. Without literally drawing from their energies – which she absolutely refused to do – Eve was going to have to come up with her bravery by herself.
“What did you do?” Gabriel pushed.
Eve blew out another shaky breath. Her palms grew sweaty. “I’m not ready to say it all yet, but the end result was my number vanished. So, it was my purpose,” her chin quivered and her eyes stung. “It was my purpose!” she screamed at all of them.
“It was my purpose!” Eve begged on her knees for mercy and forgiveness. But in the Purity Sect, those things didn’t exist. Her number had vanished and wings turned grey. There was no hiding from her sisterhood now. The white of her wings was gone, as was her purity.
“It was my purpose!” she screamed at them. Terrified of her punishment, Eve prayed and begged for them to accept what she’d done. “My number is gone!” 227 no longer graced her skin. “It was fated to be me. It was my purpose!”
“Then your purpose was to damn us all,” said her leader. “Take her.”
“No! No! No!” Eve kicked and twisted with all she had, but she was outnumbered and fought sloppily.
“You didn’t just do this to yourself, Eve. You did it to all of us.”
They brought her to the center of their sanctuary. The purification fires danced with joy to have food for its hungry flames. The colors swirled and grew with every step she was forced to take towards it.
They shoved her in.
Eve screamed and thrashed, but her hands were bound and she grew so dizzy she thought she would faint. Convinced her fear had rendered her completely numb, she was thankful for the small mercy, otherwise she’d have been in utter agony having caught on fire.
The colors of the flames died like Eve had snuffed them out with her body.
Everyone gasped. Some ran. Others dropped to their knees and shook their heads.
“You are beyond hope,” their leader announced, “Even the flames have denied your purification.”
Eve ugly cried. Denial of purification had never happened before. It scared Eve so much, she swayed on her feet before puking all over the white marble fire pit.
“You bring shame to all of us,” their leader announced. “And that will not go unpunished.”
Two Angels from the sisterhood grabbed Eve by her elbows and drug her over to the stone bench they used for prayers and worship.
“Kneel,” their leader commanded.
Eve was so weak with fear, she dropped immediately.
“Move an inch, three more lashes will be added. Make a sound, ten more lashes will be added.” Their leader bent down and whispered in her ear, “You will take this punishment with the remaining grace you have, for when I am done, I intend to bleed it out of you. If what you say is true, and what you did was your purpose, then you are an abomination and undeserving of divine grace. Should your wings turn white after this, then perhaps we will consider giving you a second chance to redeem yourself and set this right.”
The first lash of the whip had Eve crying out. She couldn’t help it. And after the twentieth lashing, she’d passed out. After enduring the rest of her punishment, Eve’s body was marked in red and she was forced to wear her shame for the sisterhood to see. Once her punishment was over, they beat her bad enough to render her unconscious then dragged her out of their territory and dumped her body in the woods. From there, Eve healed slowly and painfully and all alone.
Her wings stayed grey. Her number remained gone. But at least the red on her skin eventually washed away.
Eve vowed to never again be helpless like that. Next time, she would fight back twice as hard. She knew her worth. Impure or not, she was good. Cast out or not, she was still a motherfucking Angel…
“Eve,” Constantine’s voice sounded distant and fuzzy, “Eve!” he smacked her cheek and her eyelids flew open. “You with us?”
“Wh-what?” Eve’s vision came back slowly and she realized she was outside. The sky looked different. The moon was high and full and bright. “What happened?” She felt too confused and that made her feel stupid. She didn’t like feeling stupid.
“You passed out,” Constantine said.
“Not entirely accurate,” Uriel chimed in, “You screamed, then you pissed yourself, then you rambled about being lashed and left for dead, then you passed out.”
“Just before you fell right off the ledge,” Gabriel added.
Eve sat up slowly and despised how hot her cheeks felt. “I’m not weak,” she argued. “I’m just—”
“Traumatized,” Constantine frowned. “Yeah, we know. We’ve all been there once or twice.”
“Lucifer. Where’s Lucy?”
“Up in the cave,” Con answered. “We left them there.”
“Why?”
Gabriel squatted in front of her and pinned her with his blue eyes, “Because the three of us all dove off the cliff to catch you.”
“I’m… sorry.” Why was she apologizing? She hadn’t done it on purpose.
“No saying sorry,” Uriel patted her leg. “It’s not like you jumped on purpose. You were just that triggered. And for that, we owe you an apology.”
Eve glanced at Gabriel, “I’ll try my best to give you the whole truth, but I’m still not ready to speak it yet.”
“Do you swear what you’ve said already is the truth?” Gabriel’s voice was deep and authoritative.
“I swear it. Upon all that is holy and good and righteous in this world. I swear it.” She didn’t know how much she’d rambled on about just now, but their pale faces and sudden gentle demeanors led her to believe she’d given them the gruesome part.
Eve was half grateful for the panic attack and temporary blackout because reliving that moment was still too fresh to deal with properly.
“I will tell you what I did when I’m able to speak the words out loud. I will own my purpose, but not until I can speak it wi
thout… this,” she gestured at her current state.
Gabe nodded once and held his hand out to her. Eve clasped it and he hauled her to her feet but kept his grip firm on her. “You have a choice then,” his voice was deep and steady, “Stay with us or leave. Either way, we’ll train you to fight and properly defend yourself.”
Eve’s heart hammered in her chest. “Thank you,” she started crying and didn’t care if it made her look weak because she was too grateful to be embarrassed. “Thank you, Gabriel.”
He placed a finger under her chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes, “Welcome to the brotherhood, Eve.”
And that’s when a wild looking Angel came barreling towards them on the beach with a blade in her hand.
Chapter 20
Gabriel jumped in front of Eve, shielding her from the potential threat and roared, “Halt!”
“Eve!” the woman called out.
“Lilith?” Gabe heard her say from behind him. Keeping his wings fanned out, and still prepared to strike, Gabriel cautiously watched the intruder come closer. Then he felt Eve shift behind him when she squealed, “Holy Merciful Hounds, Lilith!”
“Thank goodness I found you in time!” The brunette rushed forward, but Uriel grabbed her arms and held her back.
“Drop your weapon,” Uriel growled. “You’re not getting closer with a blade. Let go of it now before I snap your arm and force you to drop it.”
“It’s for Eve,” Lilith said.
Uriel took the small knife and released her arms. “You take a swing at our girl, you’ll regret it. Understand?”
“She’s not going to hurt me,” Eve huffed. “We’re sisters the same way you all are brothers.”
Angels weren’t related by blood. They were connected by energy and also bonds forged from being with each other for so long. The Brotherhood of the Angels was notorious for having loyalty and devotion that ran so deep within the sect, not a single Angel there would hesitate to make the ultimate sacrifice for another brother. Eve seemed to trust Lilith with the same unwavering confidence.
“What are you doing here?” Eve asked. “And why the knife?”
“I stole it from Michael’s kitchens.”
Gabriel tucked Eve behind him again. “Get the fuck back.”
“Gabe, stop!”
“She’s with Michael,” he argued. How could Eve be so foolish and naïve? All it took was seeing a familiar face and she was ready to embrace and trust. Fuck that. “Restrain that female,” Gabriel commanded.
“I can explain!” Lilith yelled as Uriel retightened his grip on her.
“Oh, for crying out loud,” Frustrated, Eve plucked a feather from Gabriel’s wings and slipped out of his protection. “Hey, look at me,” she reached up and cupped his face. “Look at me, damnit!”
Gabe obeyed and their gazes locked. He hated how pretty her eyes were right now. Hated that she had no fear right now. What the ever-loving fuck was her deal? He was protecting her, and Eve not allowing him to do his job royally pissed him off.
“I trust her,” Eve said.
Yeah? Well Gabriel didn’t.
“I gave you my weapon,” Lilith held her hands out, palms up. “I only came here to help.”
“Or to spy,” Gabriel growled.
“If I was going to spy, I certainly wouldn’t have let you see me. I’d have watched and left to report back to Michael about you. Instead, I ran straight towards you.”
“With a blade.”
“With a weapon for Eve,” Lilith arched her eyebrow and let her gaze sail down Gabriel’s body. “I’m not a threat to you. If I wanted to harm one of you, I would have long before today.”
“You went to the brotherhood,” Eve said. “That’s where you ended up when you left the Purity Sect?”
Lilith nodded, “I wanted so badly to come to you and tell you everything when I saw in you in Michael’s chambers, but there was no way. Not with Michael watching so close. Kudos to you for stealing those oranges though. You almost got away with it.”
Gob smacked, Eve’s eyes widened, “I… I don’t understand. You work with Michael?”
“I always told you I was meant for something more than purity, Eve. I went to the Brotherhood of Angels, seeking Michael’s guidance.”
Eve crossed her arms. “And?”
“I got more than guidance,” Lilith said dryly. “What’s worse is I’m the reason we have hunger.”
Gabriel was stunned silent. So… Lilith was the reason the world hungered. Before an Angel took the first bite of something, food wasn’t necessary. Then, one day, everyone was starved. They ate everything they could put in their mouths until they figured out what was good and bad, edible or not.
Lilith rolled her shoulders back, completely unashamed. “I’m not sorry it happened, although I didn’t mean for it to. Michael forced me. He would take me to his chambers and have me do things to see what would happen. One day, he handed me a grape. Such a tiny, insignificant looking thing. And he said ‘Eat it’ and I did. I never thought to say no. I opened my mouth and bit into it.” Lilith sighed longingly, “That first burst of juice exploded on my tongue. The snap of the skin as my teeth broke through the plump ripeness of it. The sweetness of juice and the tart of the flesh,” she smiled wickedly, “I’d never experienced anything like it.”
Everyone stared at her in utter silence.
Leave it to Uriel to break the tension, “Well now I know who to thank for my deep passion for pineapples.”
Gabe wanted to smack him.
Lilith’s cheeks flushed and she cleared her throat, “So, yes, I’m the reason we crave food. And I have been with the brotherhood, under Michael’s thumb for so long, I’ve lost track of the years. He doesn’t allow me out of his private quarters on my own. I’m never to be seen by anyone.”
“And yet here you are,” Constantine arched an eyebrow.
“Here I am,” she pulled her long brown hair over her shoulder. “All because he forbids it, doesn’t mean I don’t break his rules.” She sounded so happy about that, too. “I came as soon as I heard you were here, Eve.”
Gabriel interjected, “Who the fuck told you we were here?” His hackles raised. Lilith showing up here wasn’t a good sign. They were found too easily.
“Rave told me.”
That got Gabe’s attention.
“We slip notes to one another whenever we can get away with it. He knew I was originally from the Purity sect. He knew Eve and I would be sisters.”
“Some sister you are,” Gabe growled. “You poisoned her food.”
“And you kept her locked up. We both did things that were necessary to keep the façade in place.”
“The façade?” Gabriel stalked closer, “What do you mean by that?”
“Ignorance doesn’t become you, Gabriel.” Lilith stood her ground. “We have all played along with Michael’s machinations. Whether we agree with his reasoning or not, whether we approve of his methods or not… we follow like good soldiers.”
Someone cleared their throat.
“Look, I don’t expect you to believe me. I didn’t come here for you; I came here for Eve.” She turned to her sister and said, “Rave told me you were going to flee the moment your feathers grew back in. I brought you the knife so you had something to use for protection.” Her voice lowered, “I know if you left the Purity Sect, there had to be a reason. For you to have come to the brotherhood…” Lilith shook her head, “I don’t know what’s happened, but I don’t want you on your own without something to protect you.”
“She has us to protect her,” Gabriel snarled.
Lilith glared at him for a heartbeat, “Rave said you were faking her death. She was going to be on her own and you were coming back to us.”
Rave needs to learn to keep his mouth fucking shut.
Eve cut in, “Thank you for the blade, Lilith.” She walked over to Uriel and held her hand out. He passed her the small knife and then she turned back to Lilith, “What are you going to
do now? Are you staying with us too?”
There was no denying the hopefulness in Eve’s tone. It pissed Gabriel off even more. How dare she invite another into their circle. And without discussing it with the rest of them first. Eve was going to have to learn that one voice didn’t speak for the masses. Not anymore.
Lilith shook her head, “I can’t stay. I only rushed here hoping I would catch you before you truly disappeared. And I needed to warn Gabriel.”
His eyes narrowed. “Of what?”
“Michael is planning something,” she whispered, “I don’t know what it is, but it’s bad. Really, really bad. He took Raphael and some of the others into his… place.”
No one said a word. Silence cloaked all manner of weakness – anger, fear, guilt.
“There are four of them total,” Lilith said that like it should have some significance. “You… we… are all in danger. Ever since Eve and Lucifer escaped, Michael’s been silent. Furious. He’s stayed locked in his room, pacing, and won’t talk to anyone. Then today, he grabbed his books,” she looked over at Constantine, “the old ones with the red ink.”
Constantine cursed under his breath and Uriel ran a hand angrily through his hair.
Gabriel took another step closer and leaned down to Lilith, “Why should we believe you?”
“Why would you not? I’ve given you no cause to distrust me.”
“You’ve given us no reason to trust you either. And I think it’s highly suspicious that you’ve come here and offered this much information so freely.”
“It’s not free.”
“Then what are you after, coming here and acting like you’re a friend of Eve’s and an ally to us?”
Lilith bit her bottom lip thoughtfully. “I want in.”
“In on what?”
“I came to the Brotherhood because I knew I was supposed to be there. We all have a purpose. Mine… is coming. I can feel it. We were all graced with free will, I’ve made my choices and I’m sticking by them. I choose you. I choose righteousness.” Lilith took her time and looked at each Angel, “I know some of what Michael does to you - the brothers he’s supposed to care for, the warriors he’s trained and sharpened into weapons. I know he’s not a kind master. I’ve suffered right along with you even though you didn’t see me.”
Raise Hell Page 14
