Leila reacted with her heart instead of her head. “But that means I won’t remember Jerome. I can’t do that. What’s the other option?”
He cleared his throat, not happy about the interruption. “I was getting to that. Your second and final option is to undergo initiation into the Order of the Guardian Angels. You will sacrifice your life for the protection of humans and forever live in the angel village.”
“I’ll become a guardian angel?” Leila was confused, not entirely sure she was understanding. “Like Jerome?”
“Yes, just like Jerome. You will have to undergo training and there will be a lot of hard work before you will earn wings, but you will become a guardian angel. You will also be bound by the same rules.” He made the last sentence pointed, making sure she understood there wouldn’t be any exceptions. “You will never return to Earth again.”
“Why can’t I just go home? I won’t tell anyone about this.”
“Because humans cannot be trusted, we can’t risk it.”
“I’m not a liar, I keep my promises.”
“That’s what they all say.” Blondie stood. “You have until the end of the day to decide. When you have made your decision, you will report back here to inform us. We will make arrangements then.”
The council members went to leave, Jerome stood quickly before they could go. “What about me? What is my future?”
The blonde one turned. “If the human returns to Earth then you will be assigned as her guardian. You will never be able to reveal yourself to her, but you will continue to protect her. That will be your punishment.”
“And if she stays?”
“Community service for the council. We will keep you very busy for the next few months.”
Jerome nodded, getting the gist of things. They would want him to suffer either way for breaking the golden rule. Apparently, in their mind, the means never justified the end. He watched them go, waiting until they were alone again before turning to Leila.
“I’m so sorry, Leila.”
“I can’t believe them,” she started, in a daze that it was actually happening and wasn’t just a bizarre dream. “Do I really have to decide? Are they really my only options?”
Jerome took her hands in his, wanting her to know he was sincere. “They speak the truth. This is all my fault. I truly am sorry, Leila.”
“But I saved them.”
“You saved everyone, it’s not right, but they are the council and they get the final say.”
Leila shook her head. “They aren’t good options, I can’t decide. I don’t want to leave you, Jerome. Tell me what to do.”
“I can’t do that, only you can decide.” He let her go. “Come on, we need to get out of here. I’m sure you’re hungry and you never know who is listening here.”
Leila nodded and followed him out. They collected Alexander and filled him in on the meeting. Like them, he agreed their options were not exactly worthy of a hero. The trio left the council building and returned to the hostel. It may not have been as plush as the offices, but at least they could speak freely there.
Jerome picked some apples off a tree along the way. They weren’t the ruby red ones like Leila was used to, but the orange skin didn’t dissuade her – she was so famished she would have eaten just about anything. Her stomach growled as she ate.
When they reached the hostel, Alexander made sure Jerome was comfortable and still healing before giving them some privacy. Jerome and Leila sat on the lounge, facing each other like they had done so many times down on Earth.
“Jerome, I don’t want to forget you,” Leila started, on the verge of tears at the thought. “If I choose to go back to Earth, I’ll never see you again.”
“But I will see you every day,” Jerome replied with mixed feelings. He wanted to see Leila every day, but not if he couldn’t talk to her or she couldn’t see him. He would be bound to her protection, still in love with her, but unable to ever interact with her. The very thought of it made his stomach turn into knots.
“I don’t want to hurt you. I know being my guardian angel will do that.”
“It is a punishment I must bear.”
Leila was suddenly so angry she could hit something. She got up and started pacing. “You shouldn’t be punished. You did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong. They have no right to punish either of us. This is ridiculous.”
Jerome stood in her path to calm her down. He placed his hands on her shoulders to keep her still. “I did do something wrong. I fell in love with you and it was wrong. So very wrong. I deserve to be punished. I do, not you. I can’t tell you how sorry I am for you to have to make this decision.”
Leila shrugged his hands away. “I fell in love with you too, Jerome. And there is seriously nothing wrong with that. You can’t control what your heart wants, it just wants what it wants. It’s not a crime and you should never be punished for that.”
“Leila, I-”
He was cut off suddenly as Leila grabbed him by the shirt and laid her lips on his. The kiss felt just as right and wonderful as it did the first time. A shudder ran through her, an energy that made every part of her tingle with goodness. His lips were so soft and warm, so perfect she couldn’t imagine never kissing them again.
She finally let him go, staring into his beautiful blue eyes and knowing that he felt the same way. He didn’t have to say anything, she just knew. The two options she had to choose between were impossible, she couldn’t imagine living in either of them happily. But there was one scenario in which she could still see Jerome.
“I could choose to stay and be an angel.”
Jerome shook his head. “You’ll never be able to return to Earth. You’ll never have a normal life again.”
“It doesn’t matter, all my family are gone. Everything I ever had is gone. I could still be with you if I stayed,” Leila insisted. “We could be together.”
“The council would never let it happen. They’ll find ways to keep us apart. You should go back to Earth where you belong and forget all about me.”
Tears started to well in her eyes in earnest. “I belong with you.”
She buried her head in his chest, feeling his strong arms wrap around her. He was so warm and comforting, it felt more right than anything else in the world. It was like his embrace was made for her. She let the tears stream, so frustrated and angry with the whole situation. She wished she could freeze time and stay in that moment, when it was just the two of them and nothing could separate them. That was how it was supposed to be, not trying to decide between two impossible options that were meant to punish them both.
He finally let her go, his shirt smeared with her wet tears. He held her head in his hands, staring at the beautiful face that had fascinated him so much. She was the only person, either human or angel, that had made his heart skip a beat. He didn’t want to let her go, for the first time in his life he felt like being selfish. He wanted to be with her, pure and simple. He hated the council even more for their decision.
“The decision has to be yours, Leila. Just know that I love you. I always will.”
Leila believed him, she could see the intensity flickering in his eyes and in the soft tenderness of his hands. “I love you too, Jerome. I wish it didn’t have to be like this.”
“Me too.”
“Why are they so awful? What’s their problem?”
“They believe in rules, I broke them.”
“It wasn’t your fault that you fell to Earth, Jerome.”
The angel had been thinking the same thing, if he never fell in the first place then they wouldn’t be in the situation they found themselves in. He had been wondering over and over again how he had fallen. He thought the council may have had something to do with it, but after their reaction, he wasn’t so sure.
“I know,” he finally replied, sighing.
They held each other for a very long time, so long that they were running late for their final meeting with the council. Leila had to return to give her d
ecision. She had to decide what she was going to do. Her mind changed so many times that she had no idea what she was going to do.
On one hand, it would be easy to return to Earth and have her memory erased. She wouldn’t remember the battle with Septuses, the prophecy, the existence of angels, or the heartache at saying goodbye to Jerome. She could go back to a world that would recover from the influence of evil and live the rest of her life oblivious to her part in it.
However, Jerome would remember it all. He would be forced to protect her for the rest of her life. It would hurt him to be so close to her but unable to interact at all. He would have to watch her fall in love with another, watch her get married, have children, and then grow old. He would eventually watch her die and have to go on to protect someone else. She wouldn’t suffer, but he would.
The second option was equally unappealing. She would have to become a guardian angel herself. She would never be able to return to Earth and live a normal life. Forever, she would be in service to humans and have to protect them at all costs. And Jerome was probably right, the council would make sure to keep them apart, they had the power to. She could be assigned to someone halfway around the world so their paths would never cross. Jerome had told her once that all angel marriages had to be approved by the council and they would only approve the ones that were best for the future of their kind. What would be the chance that they would sanction their relationship? Slim to none, probably.
Either way, it seemed like she would be saying a final goodbye to Jerome in just minutes. She didn’t want to. She wanted to find another way, wished there could be another end to their story. She couldn’t bear to even think of a future without him. The thought made her chest cave in, it sucked all the air out of her lungs. There was such a dread in her stomach she thought she might throw up.
She stopped just outside the doors to the council building. “Jerome, I can’t do this. I can’t decide. I don’t want to.”
“You have to.”
“But I can’t. Let’s just run away. We’ll go somewhere so they can’t find us.”
“They’ll find us no matter where we go,” he shook his head sadly. “It has to be this way. I’m sorry.”
“You told me to have faith but you’ve lost yours. There has to be another way, Jerome, there has to be.”
“The council have the final say.” His own tears were starting to well. He tried to fight them, he wanted to stay strong for her. But his walls were slowly starting to crumble down with his emotions. “Have faith that you’ll make the right decision.”
Leila let the words sink in. She knew he was wrong, because there was no right decision. Both choices sucked. However, he was right about the council having the final say. In that moment, she finally decided what her answer would be.
CHAPTER 19
The same five council members sat across from Leila and Jerome in the same room, at the same table. Nobody looked happy, the mood as sullen as Leila as she sat there with crossed arms. The blonde one had read out her options again. And once again, she had told them there had to be a third option and that was for her to keep her memory and allow Jerome to visit her. They had scoffed at the idea, like it was some ludicrous notion that a toddler would come up with.
Blondie sat forward, growing impatient. “Well? We will need your answer now. I can’t wait all night to hear of your decision.”
Leila took one last glance at Jerome and took a deep breath. She hated herself for the words that were about to escape from her mouth, but she had to speak them. “I choose to return to Earth.” The council members nodded as Leila turned to Jerome. “I’m so sorry. I just can’t stand the thought of living without you. I can’t do it.”
Jerome nodded. “I understand. I want you to have a normal life, you deserve it. I know you’ll find happiness.”
She was almost angry at him for being so understanding. She wanted him to hate her, to despise her for the choice she made. If he had to protect her for the rest of her life, she needed him to not love her anymore. She needed him to be so angry that he found it easy not being able to interact with her.
“You should find happiness too.”
“My happiness will be in protecting you.”
Tears fell from her eyes, it wasn’t how it was meant to go. She didn’t want to leave him like that. She wanted him to be angry, she just didn’t know how to stop him being so damn understanding.
Blondie interrupted them. “You have to go now.”
Leila shot back at him quickly, panicking. “No, I need more time. I need to explain.”
“Time’s up.”
The blonde one clicked the fingers on his right hand and everything flashed a brilliant white. It only took a second and, in that moment, Leila was gone.
Jerome stared at the empty seat, not wanting to believe she had been taken so suddenly. He wanted to yell at the council members for not even having the decency to give them time for a proper goodbye. After everything they had gone through, they could have at least showed them some respect. He shook his head, knowing it was so typical of the council to show their power through their arrogance.
Blondie turned to him next, not showing even a hint of remorse. “You are hereby appointed as the guardian angel of Leila Loudon. You will protect her for the term of her natural life. Do you understand?”
Jerome nodded, not trusting his voice. Either he would yell the words or have a complete breakdown, he couldn’t be sure which would happen.
Blondie, however, was not satisfied. “Do you understand, Angel Jerome?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
The two angels regarded each other in silence, both expecting the other to speak. Jerome’s burning question finally got the better of him. “You know, none of this would have happened if I didn’t fall to Earth. If you made it happen, then you’re partly responsible for this too.”
Blondie reeled with the accusation. “I wouldn’t send an angel to Earth, I’m not that stupid.”
Jerome stared him in the eyes and knew he wasn’t lying. He turned his attention to the others. The council member at the end, he remembered him as Ambrosia, the one he had met with when he had demanded the council do something, wouldn’t meet his gaze. It wasn’t exactly a submission, but it was enough for Jerome to know he had something to hide. He made a note in his mind for later.
Blondie ran out of patience, banging his hand on the table. “Now go, Jerome. You’re on active duty now. Congratulations.”
Jerome stood as he was dismissed. As he reached the door, he couldn’t make his feet go any further. He turned to face the five council members, sitting so smugly along the table. “You’re going to regret this.”
“Is that a threat?” The question came from the member closest to him, a man bigger than all the others.
“No, it’s a promise.”
He didn’t wait for a response, Jerome could finally leave. He slammed the door behind him and walked away from the council and their lavish building. He suddenly felt like the loneliest being in the entire universe.
* * *
Leila found herself in a street she recognized, with absolutely no idea how she got there or what she was doing there. Her home, or the few bits of rubble that were left of it, stood directly before her. She missed her family terribly, she wished she could walk through the front door and be greeted by her parents. She could then argue with her sisters and then be told to do her homework. If only her house still even had a front door.
She was suddenly very lonely, she felt like there was something else missing but couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. She cast her gaze along the street, recognizing all the houses and remembering all the families that used to live there. All her old neighbors, what had become of them?
Her eyes fell on the house at the end of the street. Perhaps Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair would still be in their house? She hurried along, hoping they would be. They had always been good to her family, maybe they would take her in.
When she knocked on the door, Leila crossed her fingers for good luck. When the doorknob turned and the door opened, she was overjoyed. Toby Sinclair answered, he was alive.
“Leila, it’s so good to see you. Come in, Maree has just baked some bread. Are you hungry?”
She smiled, she was starving. She couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten. “Famished.”
“Come on in, you can stay as long as you like.”
“Thank you, Mr. Sinclair.”
Toby gave one last look to the street before closing the door and locking it tightly.
Out Now
Angel’s Uprising
Book Two in the Aron Angels Series
Can Leila find her way back to Jerome?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jamie Campbell grew up in the New South Wales town of Port Macquarie as the youngest of six children. A qualified Chartered Accountant, she now resides on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia.
Writing since she could hold a pencil, Jamie’s passion for storytelling and wild imagination were often a cause for concern with her school teachers. Now that imagination is used for good instead of mischief.
Visit www.jamiecampbell.com.au now for exclusive, website only content.
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