by A. Catherine
“Why would Duma be avoiding you? Because of the fight?” I asked.
She smirked. “I can’t think of another reason.”
I swiped a piece of stray hair on my forehead and cringed at the thick layer of perspiration there, wiping it off with the bottom of my damp V-neck.
“Why did you two start sparring anyway? I didn’t see that part.”
Her eyes darkened. “He spoke my demon name. By saying it aloud he invoked a challenge of combat that’s spelled to it,” she explained.
“Your demon name? Is that what happens when someone speaks a demons name? They have to spar with them?”
“No. Just mine.”
“Why is that?”
Seere winked at me. “I told you yesterday that was a story you’d have to earn.”
I gestured to my trembling body. “And I haven’t done that?”
She laughed. “This was just a warmup, chickpea.”
I groaned loudly and laid my head back down, which got her to laugh some more. I stared up at the ceiling of the warehouse. Some of the steel was rusting, and there were cracks in some of the concrete beams. I had a feeling those cracks weren’t caused by anything of the natural world.
Seere got up on her feet only to flip over into a handstand. Then she started doing pushups in that position.
“Please tell me I don’t have to join you in doing that,” I begged.
She huffed amusingly, “I’m a wrath demon.”
“So…?”
“So we can’t sit still for very long, otherwise every muscle in our body starts to shake, and then we spin off into a killing frenzy. It’s not pretty. I have to keep myself active to ease the pressure,” she explained.
A wrath demon, huh? “There’s a name for everything, isn’t there?”
“Yup. The angels have names for what they all do. Demons—they have names that in a way refer to their heritage but also to their claiming abilities.”
“Claiming as in…?”
“Souls.”
“Right.” I massaged my temples. “I’m going to have to start writing all this shit down, I can hardly keep up with the angel encyclopedia,” I said.
She had to have done over fifty pushups in her handstand when she lifted one and continued one-handed. Crazy person.
“Eventually, stuff will just make sense. But it’ll be years before you understand everything. Don’t sweat it, chickpea, you’re doing great,” she assured.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” I asked suddenly, I didn’t look at her, but even from my peripheral vision I saw her drop back to her feet and tilt her head at me.
“Am I supposed to be mean to you?”
“I mean—you’re a demon. Aren’t you supposed to be constantly trying to tempt me towards evil or convince me to hail Satan or whatever?”
She laughed. “The faster you get over those religious stereotypes, the sooner you’ll understand the hellborn.”
I sat up and looked at her. “But what about my soul? Isn’t it a part of your job to try to ‘claim’ it as you said?”
Seere winked at me. “Who said I wasn’t?” she teased sarcastically.
I rolled my eyes and released my hair from its messy bun.
“Technically, part of my current job in this alliance is to protect you, and also solve a murder. So, claiming your soul is not on my to-do list, but also Kale doesn’t make his inner ring collect souls like Lucifer does. It’s an outdated job requirement. One of the changes he will try to change when he takes over the pit.”
“He’s going to take over hell?”
She shrugged. “In theory, he is the Heir Inferno. But it’s not likely Lucifer will hand over the reins anytime soon, not until he achieves his own agenda.”
“His agenda?”
“Never mind. Don’t worry about that, it’s our problem to deal with at a later time.”
I nodded, dropping it—even though my mind pocketed the nugget of information for later.
“I guess I just didn’t expect the demons in this alliance to attempt to befriend a human. In the grand scheme of things, it seems like it would be a waste of time.”
“Well, I wouldn’t count on Lillith planning a sleepover anytime soon. Although on second thought, she totally would, it just wouldn’t be the type of sleepover you’d want to participate in, if you know what I mean.”
We both chuckled.
“I have exactly two friends in this entire universe,” she stated a lot more seriously, causing me to look into her eyes.
“I don’t like hell. Hardly anyone does, but I have specific, personal reasons to avoid the Inferno. This alliance is giving me time away from it. That fact alone puts me in a more pleasant mood that can’t be shaken by something as dumb as a human who was a tad-judgmental or a few quick-tempered angels. I see this short time as a temporary freedom. And maybe while I’m enjoying it, I can maybe make some additional friends that haven’t seen me at my worst, you know?”
She looked at me and smiled, my throat was tight.
“I can be cold and hateful when I want to be, trust me.” Seere shook her head. “Right now, I’d rather be nice for a change. Sue me.”
I smiled back at her, whole heartedly. I truly misjudged all of them. I was beginning to see why Kale liked Seere so much. She was easy to be around, easy to talk to.
Seere’s gaze turned mischievous when she finished with, “Except with getting you in shape. That is not something I’ll be nice about. Now get up, it’s time to work on chokeholds.”
I whimpered and slowly dragged myself off the floor into my wobbly legs.
We both turned when a large golden flash of light appeared in the pentacle, and then Gabriel emerged. Every muscle in my body awakened, and my heart skipped at the sight of his face.
He looked around and locked eyes with me, and then a warm smile grew on his face.
“Hello,” he greeted.
Just the sound of his voice warmed me all over. I was barely breathing.
“Hi back. Haven’t seen you for a few days,” I responded.
He exited the pentacle and began walking over to me. “Sorry about that. Trips to heaven take longer than other forms of travel. Jophiel and I had to make a couple other visits along the way. How have things been here?” he asked.
“Fine.”
He looked me up and down, and my cheeks burned realizing that I was soaking in my own sweat and probably looked like a hot mess.
“Have you been exercising?”
Seere hummed. “I’ve been teaching her some self-defense maneuvers,” she replied, she was watching the two of us like we were a comedy special, twirling a small throwing knife between her fingers.
“Was that something you wanted to do?” Gabriel asked me as he stepped closer. “Or were you—"
Seere scoffed. “We didn’t force her, mother hen. It never hurts to be prepared.”
Gabriel was right in front of me now. He reached across the distance between us to gently touch my elbow. The touch sent sparks up my arm and down my spine. I tried not to blush from the reaction.
“Are you doing alright?” he asked gently, now looking down at me from his height.
“I’m sure she’s giddy as a school girl now that you’re here, Lancelot.” Kale’s voice filled the warehouse as he jumped from the top of the archway. Landing the twenty-foot drop like it was nothing.
Gabriel glared at him, but Kale’s eyes were on me. His mouth was twisted in an evil smirk, but his eyes were cold. Still angry with me.
He beelined straight for the pentacle and whistled while gesturing with his hand.
“Let’s go, Seere,” he instructed.
“And where are you going?” Gabriel asked.
Seere joined Kale in the pentacle, clasping her hand in his. He sneered at us.
“I’m tired of watch-duty. I need to kill something,” he said rudely, pointedly glaring at me.
I breathed as a column of orange and red fire surrounded Seere and Kale, taking
them away from the warehouse. Gabriel’s gaze lingered briefly on the now empty five-pointed star painted on the concrete floor before finally sliding back to me, a curious curve on his face.
“What’s that about?”
I bit my lip and shrugged. “Don’t worry about it.”
I read in his expression that he wanted to ask about it further, my response only increasing his concern. But I didn’t want to talk about that right now.
“So, a lot has happened since I last saw you.”
“Yes. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you woke from the memory walk. I needed some time to calm down,” he started.
I nodded. “They told me. It’s okay.”
He smiled and jerked his head towards the archway. “Hungry?” he asked.
My stomach growled loudly in response. “Starving.”
He chuckled and took my hand as we walked up to the kitchen. It was a real effort not to read too much into the handholding. I knew he meant it to be a comforting sentiment, but it made my heart do jumping jacks.
“Any more nightmares?” he asked as he reached into the fridge and pulled out a water bottle. He handed it to me then returned to pull other ingredients from the fridge.
I’d never been happier to see a bottle of water. I chugged half of it in one sitting, wiping the stray droplets off the corners of my mouth before answering his question.
“A small one a couple days ago, but other than that, nothing major. I’ve stayed distracted enough.”
He was putting together a ham and cheese sandwich. For someone who didn’t eat, he didn’t seem shy when handling food.
“And how are you taking the news of being a Nephilim?”
I took another chug of cold water. “Surprisingly well, though that could just be that after everything else I’m becoming thoroughly desensitized.”
“At least it explains a lot of things. Like why your brain hasn’t fried from the knowledge of our existence,” he countered.
“True. I did have a question about that though.”
“Ask away.”
He folded the sandwich together and cut a diagonal slice before sliding the plate onto the counter in front of me.
“Thanks. If I’m half-angel, does that mean I am immortal too?” I asked.
He brushed his hands clean of the wheat seeds from the bread.
“It depends. Some Nephilim in the past could live angel lifespans, but some of them didn’t. We don’t know why, but it tends to be random. You’d probably have to speak to the almighty to get a more accurate answer on that.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Like, in-person? Or would I have to pray?”
“In person,” he chuckled. “Being half-angel gives you some privileges that mortals aren’t granted. Although, Azrael might be able to tell you as well. She would have to look at how much angel grace is in your blood, and then compare it to her books.”
He paused and scanned me up and down again. The look was contemplative, not wanting—but it made me blush, nonetheless.
“Do you want to be immortal?”
“I don’t know, I’ve heard it can be boring.”
He threw his head back and laughed. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him laugh so openly, it was beautiful and warm like a fresh sunny day.
“I suppose that’s an accurate factor to consider.”
I smiled and ate my sandwich. He tidied up the kitchen while I did, both of us not speaking while doing so. I wasn’t sure how much the others had shared with him about the events of the last couple days, there was a lot to discuss about the things this alliance had learned a few days before that.
God, it had been a week.
Only a week since my life was turned upside down. It felt like two months. It just made me understand what Seere said about time moving slower. We were still on earth, but it felt like time was moving slower with these ethereal beings.
They weren’t much closer to finding Mason’s killer, and I wasn’t able to offer much help. I could feel the weight of the stacks of books and papers that now piled on the dining table left of me. I hadn’t looked at them since the day Daevas went into my head.
Such help I’d been. I ought to make that my next priority, after taking a long hot shower of course.
“They told me that you went to visit heaven to ask about the relics, how’d that go?” I asked.
Gabriel turned to me. He sighed and shook his head. “Not as well as we’d hoped. He only knew where one of them was, and when we went to get it, we were refused.”
“By whom? Who had it?”
“Chamuel.”
Chamuel. He was the…Jade said he was essentially the cupid of the archangels. Right.
“Why did he refuse to give it to you?” I asked.
Gabriel walked over to the dining table and looked down at the collection of records that had accumulated.
“He says that until we actually need to use it, there isn’t a logical reason why we should have it in our possession. Which he’s not wrong about. At least we know where one is. It’s progress at least.”
He picked up one of the scrolls and sat down to start reading. A few lines in he paused again, staring at nothing in particular, his brows pinched tight.
“I’d like to apologize,” he stated.
“For what?”
He looked up at me, those ocean blue eyes gentle and remorseful.
“For reacting so irrationally when I found out Daevas was rummaging through your consciousness. It was my fault that he broke his focus, and if he hadn’t managed to lock you in a memory my poor reaction could’ve been harmful to you. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not upset about it.”
“I know, but it doesn’t excuse my behavior. Surprisingly enough this is my first time being an official Guardian. As an archangel, everything is stronger. The Guardian bond is more intense for me than it would be for say Duma or Jade. I’ve had bad experiences with some of the demons in this alliance, and I let that hatred fuel the already powerful protective bond. My reaction was rash and unprofessional. You may not fully understand it, but that was a failure on my part. It went against my training and I feel displeased with it,” he explained.
“I don’t really get this whole Guardian bond thing. Is it supposed to just be about protection or is it a psychic connection? I’d like to understand it,” I stated.
“The best way I can describe it is to compare it to the bond between a mother and child. A mother’s amygdala actually creates new neuropathways to hardwire her brain to better protect her child. It’s like that. It is a psychic connection, but it’s also chemical, in a way.”
I didn’t think I liked the idea of our bond being analogous to a mother-child relationship…
He went on, “For a regular angel, it keeps them aware of their mortal assignments and protects them from harm. For me, it clouds my judgement and hard-wires me to go against my rationality in order to keep you from potential harm,” he tried to describe.
“So, I’m like your child?” I asked with a grimace.
He laughed lightly. “Not that literally no. It’s just a similar comparison to make sense of it. I’m just saying that there will be times when I have to fight against it in order to make any rational decisions. I didn’t expect or prepare for a reaction like that a few days ago, so it took me over in the moment. Now I know better, and I will be more careful and aware of it. I promise to restrain myself in the future,” he promised.
What if I don’t want you to restrain yourself? Butterflies swarmed my stomach at the unexpected thought. Get yourself together, Heather.
“Iaoel said that being a Nephilim also intensifies the Guardian bond, and that’s why I experienced Mason’s death,” I said. Thinking about Mason and his pain was as effective as an ice-bath.
Gabriel nodded. “I’m not entirely sure what it is you feel between the bond with me, but I’m guessing it’s stronger than it would be for a full-blooded mortal.”
“I trust you. Before I even knew you, I
trusted you full-heartedly. I felt that way with Mason too, like I have known you my whole life.” I explained.
“That doesn’t surprise me at all. The essence of angel grace evokes rapport in mortals, your angel grace combined with a full-angel’s in a bond would make that much stronger.”
Not to mention everywhere he touched me my skin warmed up like a blanket and made my senses sing with excitement. But that wasn’t something I was about to say out loud.