Black

by Angelina J. Steffort

  “And when it did remember,” Liz continued, “the tissue wasn’t ready. The wings are an angel-debris in his demon-body.”

  “Will he heal?’ Chris asked. He looked weary. Finding and losing his son twice within ten days must have been too much for him. It was too much for anyone in that room—and still, we all were there, coping with what we had been given.

  Hope was the one straw we were clinging to.

  “Of course I can only guess. There is no written word about a winged demon. And I would know. I’ve spent more than half my life reading angel and demon history.”

  I could only imagine how full Liz’ brain must be with written line after line. A memory like hers was rare and I couldn’t think of a better purpose to dedicate it to.

  “Judging by what I see and by what I can make of it, all I can say is give it time. If the wounds heal completely, he should be okay in a while. When he wakes up, make sure he rests.

  “If his body still works like that of a demon, he will need to feed on something.”

  “Souls,” Ben interrupted, his face showing mild disgust.

  “Yes, souls. Energy. What ever you want to call it. But he’ll need to stay strong enough to heal. And he’ll need plenty. So much about his physical condition. About his mental condition and his memory, we’ll find out once he wakes up.” Liz’ words weren’t exactly reassuring.

  “Can he feed without killing anyone?” I asked, naive enough to make such a question. I was certain everyone else in the room already knew the answer.

  “Animals, plants—it doesn’t have to be souls,” Jaden confirmed my suspicion. “He can feed on energy of any living thing. Human souls are just the most nourishing source for demons.”

  “So he will eat plants—just differently from before?” I asked, sounding silly.

  “Or animals, like Antonio,” Chris explained in a surprisingly calm voice considering Adam had recently killed the family dog.

  “But he will always see food when he looks at us, too,” Ben commented. Jaden nodded absently.

  I let that sink in. He would crave souls. I had felt the hunger myself. I knew what it would be like for him.

  Would the connection still be the same, now that his memory had returned?

  “We’ll make sure no one gets hurt. We’ll find a way—that is, if he wakes up before he starves.” Jenna wiped Adam’s hair off his face.

  Liz eyed the scene with half-open eyes. Her finger was lifted in front of her chest, pointing at an invisible book she was reading in her mind.

  “There is nothing written about a demon with wings...,” she repeated. “But there is something else.”

  She fell silent again.

  As her eyes kept flashing from left to right rapidly under her eyelids, I could see the change in all of the Gallagers. They were having a hard time waiting for her to come to her conclusion—as was I.

  Jaden seemed to be the only one who didn’t mind. He had the patience of a millennium.

  “There is a scroll I’ve seen once,” her attention returned to the room. “It is not history. It is more like a prophecy.”

  “A prophecy?” Jaden asked. “There have only been a few made. The documentation you shouldn’t have access to.” He looked upset. “Not even I know what’s written inside. How did you get hold of that document?”

  Liz looked at the floor, embarrassed to have upset the angel. “Believe me when I say, I didn’t ask to see it. I was asked to take a look at it, to verify if it was real.

  “The man who brought it to me didn’t tell where he got it. It doesn’t matter where it came from,” she dismissed the topic. “What matters is what it says.”

  “What does it say?” I couldn’t refrain from asking.

  “Yes, Liz, we’d like to know,” Chris pushed.

  Liz took a deep breath and went back into her perfect memory.

  “He, who fell and was reborn evil, will be awakened, and he will rise like a phoenix from the ashes. His shell will be black, but his heart will be golden and his soul will be light.” She quoted like she was holding the scroll in her hands right now.

  “The reborn’s life will be eternal and his power will be great, but his love will save us.”

  Liz’ eyes fluttered open. “Could it be this is about him?” She nodded in Adam’s direction hesitantly.

  “It could be fake,” Jaden pointed out.

  “Or it could be real,” Liz disagreed. “The man said the prophecy brought him back to Aurora. Why would he move around the globe for a scroll if it isn’t real?”

  Jaden scowled at Liz for a moment. It was obvious how hard it was for him, having to rely on someone else. It didn’t matter how grateful he was for Liz’ help—he was used to being the strong one.

  “For the sake of pure speculation,” Chris mused. “Let’s assume the prophecy is a real thing.”

  “Let’s,” Jenna supported her husband.

  “What would that mean?” he finished.

  “He, who fell and was reborn evil,” Liz repeated.

  “Adam fell off the roof,” I noted. “Does that count?”

  Jaden grimaced at me. “It does. This can mean fall like the literal act of falling, or fall as in figurative falling. Like a fallen angel—”

  “...will be awakened,” Liz continued. “His memory returned when he was with Claire. This could be the awakening.”

  “But rise like a phoenix from the ashes?” Ben questioned the theory. “He hasn’t risen. Quite the opposite,” he referred to Adam’s flat position.

  “It could indicate the return of his wings,” Jenna suggested.

  “And the black shell could refer to the color of his wings,” I added. Jenna bobbed her head at the thought.

  “His heart will be golden, and his soul will be light,” Liz finished the first part of the quote.

  “This would mean, that he is good.” Chris watched Adam’s motionless body with glowing eyes. “He is good.”

  “He would have eternal life, like any angel or demon,” Jaden played along. “Great power—we have seen that.”

  “But his love will save us,” Liz quoted again.

  “He will be able to feel love,” I spoke more to myself. If he was capable of love, that meant there was a chance that we would be together.

  Everyone fell silent, letting the meaning of my words sink in.

  Jenna and Chris exchanged a look again. This time I knew what it meant. It was the same thing it meant for me. If he was capable of love, they would have their son back. Ben would have his brother back. They could be a family again.

  “His love will save us. What does that mean? What from?” Ben asked into the quiet room.

  Before he could get an answer, a green light flashed through the room and hit my eyes when Adam suddenly popped his eyes open. They were burning into mine with familiar intensity.

  Everybody was on their feet in an instant.

  Ben and Jaden were ready to spring at Adam’s arms while Chris and Jenna were just an inch from each wing to hold them down in case he should move.

  He didn’t. All he did was stare at me.

  I waited for the hunger to set in, for the strings to tear at me. They didn’t. He stared at me, feeling hunger or not, wanting to kill me or not, I wouldn’t be able to tell.

  What I could tell was that he was in pain. His mouth was twisted and his forehead creased.

  “Adam, can you hear me, my son?” Chris addressed him first.

  “I can,” Adam groaned.

  “Don’t move,” Chris continued. “You were injured.”

  “I can feel that. My back hurts—like someone ripped my skin off.” Adam flinched when he lifted his cheek from the couch. “What happened?”

  My heart stopped. He didn’t remember. How much didn’t he remember? Was everything gone? All his memory? Jaden gave me a warning look when he felt that I was becoming hysterical.

  “Claire, calm down,” he instructed while laying his hand on Adam’s forearm.

&nbs
p; He was right. I wasn’t the priority. It didn’t matter if he remembered me. It was more important that we got him to stay still so he could heal.

  After a deep breath, I was ready. I tore away from Adam’s green-glowing eyes and found Liz gaping next to the fireplace. The hysteria immediately disappeared. She must be completely overwhelmed by what was going on.

  “Adam,” I heard Jaden behind us. “When you spread your wings earlier, they tore through your skin. You need to stay still so the wounds don’t reopen. Do you understand?”

  “I understand.” Adam wasn’t fighting any of the Gallagers who had now placed their hands on him to make sure he wouldn’t accidentally hurt himself.

  “Claire,” he called me. An instant wave of comfort rolled through me. His voice was beautiful, even when it was distorted by pain. Especially when it was saying my name.

  I turned around to face him, unthinking, and my feet had carried me to his side before I could even grasp what I was doing. I knelt down.

  “Did I hurt you?” I saw my own disbelieving face reflected in Adam’s eyes—the glowing had disappeared.

  He was lying there on the couch, enduring pain and a group of people hovering over him, and he wasn’t worried about himself. He wasn’t trying to escape or fight. He was worried he had hurt me. If that wasn’t a sign that there was good in him, then what was?

  “I am fine,” I took his hand in mine.

  A smile spread on his tired face. “Ben, would you mind shifting my right wing a little bit? Something is blocking the blood-flow and the tips are beginning to tingle like they are filled with ants.”

  Bloodline

  It was impossible to tell which emotion was more pronounced on Ben’s face—shock or amusement.

  Jenna and Chris shared a secret smile that told me everything was going to be alright. For the moment at least.

  “I would move it myself,” Adam pushed. “But I was forbidden to move.”

  A laugh won the fight over Ben’s face. He reached down and gently lifted the wing in the joint at half length before he pulled it toward Adam’s legs—always careful to not touch the wounds—and laid it down there.

  Adam’s hand was still tightly wrapped in mine. He gave a low groan when Ben moved the feathery extension and his hand twitched in mine.

  Jaden was hovering next to me, making sure that Adam wouldn’t hurt me, always at the ready to step in.

  “How are you feeling?” Jaden asked.

  “It hurts a lot,” Adam answered. “How long have I been out?”

  “A few hours,” Jaden answered.

  “Not as bad as I thought.” Adam winked at me.

  I felt my lips part and shape into a girlish grin. I couldn’t believe he was here—alive, and having his memory back. It was almost too good to be true. Of course there were the scarlet lines on his back that threatened to burst open with every movement. And the fear of him turning against us without any warning.

  “Hi, Dad,” Adam looked at Chris, and recognizing his father. “You look tired.”

  If he’d had any idea what Chris had gone through since that terrible incident on the roof—I couldn’t even think what we all had been burdened with. It was a miracle Adam was back. I could see it in all their eyes that they were feeling the same.

  “Not anymore, son.” Chris had tears in his eyes. They were exquisite tears of joy.

  Jenna hugged Chris with one arm and stroked Adam’s cheek with the other hand.

  “Mom,” Adam smiled up at her.

  “Welcome home, Adam,” she beamed back at him.

  “Jaden,” he creased his forehead. “I am sorry I had to knock you out so often—three times—” There was embarrassment in his voice and also a hint of pride. “No hard feelings?”

  After all, he had surprised and overpowered Jaden at the graveyard, in his room, and at my house. And Jaden was the most powerful angel I knew. This had been only an appetizer of Adam’s power. The reborn’s power will be great, I remembered. Impossible as it may seem, the prophecy began to grow on me.

  “I forgive you. But if you do it again...,” Jaden grinned, but his eyes were serious. I didn’t even want to imagine what he would threaten Adam with.

  “I am sorry, but I don’t recognize you,” Adam noticed Liz, who was still standing near the fireplace. “Should I?”

  Liz broke into a look of astonishment. “You shouldn’t—I mean, you wouldn’t. We’ve never met.”

  I empathized with her. After tearing her from her utterly normal evening plans, I’d thrown her into a room full of supernatural creatures—one of them appearing to potentially be the object of a prophecy. She must have been beyond distressed.

  “That’s a relief,” Adam grimaced as he lifted his head to have a better view of the room. “I was worried this brain of mine missed out on recovering some things. Glad it didn’t.”

  “Adam, that’s Liz,” I explained. “She’s a friend who knows all about your family and you. We can trust her.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Liz,” Adam smiled at her. “I’d be more polite and get up if they’d let me.”

  “Oh—please, not for me,” Liz found her confidence at Adam’s joking tone.

  I heard Ben chuckle behind the couch.

  “How long before I will be able to sit up?” Adam asked, serious this time.

  “We don’t know exactly how long it will take for the wounds to heal.” Jaden repeated to Adam what we already knew. “None of us have ever seen anything like your injuries.”

  Adam nodded cautiously.

  He was bound to stay still until it was safe for him to stand up. However, we couldn’t predict the speed of the healing.

  This made me think of a factor we hadn’t addressed yet.

  “Adam,” I asked, disturbing the elation of his return. “Who knows you came to see me? Do the demons know? Maureen? Volpert?”

  Liz’ gasp was audible through the room, even for my weak human ears.

  “Excellent point,” Jaden cheered. “About time we discuss this.”

  Adam rested his head and looked at me with a gaze that made me feel like I was the center of his universe. His pale-green, glimmering eyes were the center of mine for sure for that moment before he spoke.

  “After I bolted from this house a few days ago, I returned to Volpert’s clan,” he started. “They weren’t happy with me. I’d failed to kill Claire for the second time.”

  His eyes didn’t release mine while he was speaking to all of us.

  “Maureen was especially unhappy about the development. She found it unsafe for me to go anywhere near Claire after that.” He shuddered at her name. Did he remember his history with her?

  “Maureen has been doing anything she can to prevent my memories from returning. It’s one thing Volpert want’s Claire dead—but Maureen, that’s a whole different story.

  “For her, it was pure revenge. She wanted to take revenge for my loving you—and if my memory hadn’t returned, I would have eventually killed you and never even known how terrible a thing I’d done,” he addressed me directly this time. I felt hot and cold at the same time. Hot because of his confession of love, cold because of Maureen’s lack of scruples.

  Everybody was hanging on Adam’s words.

  “Maureen suspected you would be the key to bringing back my memory. After she told Volpert her theory—and after my hesitation in the graveyard—he kept me on a tight leash. I only got away a few times to see you from a distance when I took detours while I was out feeding.

  “If any of them had suspected that I had visions of you and I saw you in my dreams, they would probably have locked me up.”

  My heart revolted at the image of a locked-up Adam.

  “Whenever I saw you from a distance, I knew I had to be closer. Something was drawing me toward you.” Deep sadness filled his features. “Had I known back then that I’d been ordered to kill the love of my life, I’d have run earlier.

  “But I couldn’t just run. Maureen was the one who fo
und me after I woke up. I didn’t know who I was or where I belonged. She gave me a new family by introducing me to Volpert’s clan. And with meeting her, came the powers—”

  “That’s incredibly interesting,” Liz interrupted Adam’s story.

  “What exactly?” Jaden wanted to know. His face gave away that he was already playing with theories of his own.

  “Maureen—” she explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “With her came the powers. She catalyzed his demon powers.”

  “I was thinking the same,” Jaden agreed, intrigued. “But there is more. What you don’t know is that Maureen was Adam’s girlfriend for a short while before he met Claire.”

  Liz walked over to Jaden’s side. Now we were shaped in a cluster around the couch. The tension in the atmosphere was gone. It was more like a family sitting together, discussing. Liz was as much part of it as anyone else. She knew everything and I considered her a trusted friend. She knew more than my actual family—Sophie, the only person who was left.

  “This gives an even more interesting twist. Who would have thought—” she stopped mid-sentence and looked at me with her big, brown eyes.

  “What are you talking about?” The way she was looking at me made me uncomfortable.

  “Maureen’s a demon, Adam, right?” Liz asked without looking away.

  “She is part of the clan.”

  “Chris,” Liz turned to Adam’s father who was curiously waiting for the explanation. “Have you told Adam about his mother?”

  Chris swallowed. I could see how the thought made him uncomfortable. It was a sensitive topic, even without the new aspect to it.

  Still, there was no way around it now. We were unearthing the truth about Adam’s death, resurrection, and he had the right to know.

  “Your mother was part-demon, Adam,” Chris rushed out the words. “She never catalyzed her darker side, but nevertheless you have demon heritage.”

  Adam gawked at him. “I was born part-evil?”

  “I said part-demon. Not part-evil,” Christ corrected. “I believe that’s a different thing—your mother was a good person. I would have never guessed. We just recently found out.