Guardian

by Kerri Morrigan

  “What is that?” Ted asked, his hesitation evident.

  “It is the Road of Purgatory,” Jophial said. “You need time to reflect on how you spent your days on earth. The Road is said to provide its travelers with both wisdom and understanding. There are numerous gates along the way that all lead into Paradise. When you are ready, one of the gates will open. Until then, you will walk in quiet meditation and confront your sins.”

  “There is nothing I can do?”

  Jophial shook his head. “It is too late now. You have made your road, now you must walk down it.”

  Ted slowly proceeded to join the line. He moved as if his feet were made of lead. His road would be a long one, filled with much pain, sorrow, and regret. Kalev’s chest ached. It irritated him.

  “Hey man, what’s eating you?”

  Was his annoyance that obvious? “Nothing. Just annoyed by that tool, I guess. Lifting the bad ones is getting old.”

  “I hear you. But, on the bright side, we don’t have to watch those stupid little cherubs come out and do their parade thing.” Jophial laughed at his own joke.

  “Fair point,” Kalev said, although only a hint of a smile touched the corner of his lips. “What a cush job they have. They’re like, the Walmart greeters of Heaven.”

  “Is that seriously all they do?” Jophial asked.

  “Far as I know.”

  “Man, we gotta get back in there,” Jophial said.

  “Yeah. No kidding.”

  ✽✽✽

  As Grace began walking the few blocks left to her apartment, she tried to figure out exactly what aspect of this night had been the most unpleasant. The shoe disaster had been bad enough, but then dinner had happened. At first, she’d actually been thinking about going on a second date with Peter. But then, in between the salad and entrée, he’d started expressing some thinly veiled discriminatory opinions.

  That was precisely when she had excused herself to use the restroom and had hailed a cab instead. She had made good on her escape with Peter none the wiser (at least until she was already in the cab), and she had been headed home to a nice cup of coffee and a good book, where she could happily forget this horrific date.

  Too bad the cab had spun out with a flat half a mile from her apartment, right near the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. While the cab driver had been apologetic and not charged her for the ride, he hadn’t able to find another available taxi nearby. She hadn’t wanted to wait the 30 minutes it would have taken for another one to arrive when she had been so close to home, so she’d sucked it up and begun walking the last few blocks, barefoot.

  Now here she was, looking like a bedraggled mess, shoeless, in the park. What must people be thinking? Except, come to mention it, there was no one around. Sure it was cold, but, there were usually a least a few die-hard runners squeezing in some last minute mileage, dog walkers getting severely underpaid for going out to pick up behind a dog in this weather, or dedicated students who took the subway into town. But not tonight. It was eerily quiet. It was a Friday for God’s sake! Where was everybody?

  A twig snapped. She jerked her head. Still no one. That didn’t stop a tingling of unease from travelling up her spine. Was someone watching her? Why was she so on edge? “Get yourself together, Gracie,” she said, but she picked up the pace anyway. This night had been a disaster; it was only natural to be creeped out. She shuffled her bag to lay further on her back so she could swing her arms more. She was almost home. Just a few more minutes. She tried her best to ignore the pain in her ice-cold, wet, bare feet. She was overreacting.

  A noxious odor filled the air. The fetid stench of waste and rot caused her to cough. She tried to breathe through her mouth but choked on the air. Where was this smell coming from? Her hairs stood on end. She needed to run. Right now. She gave up all pretense of trying to keep calm and sprinted toward home. But a sudden tug on her ankle caused her to trip. Her purse and pumps went flying, as her entire body slammed into the sidewalk.

  She tried to twist around to face her attacker, but it was too late. He was on top of her, pushing her head into the ground. He breathed heavily in her ear — a sickening gurgle that made her stomach roll. He was so heavy. She couldn’t catch her breath. She flailed and bucked, trying to knock him off her. He reeked, not only of the waste that she had smelled earlier, but of soot and ash. She screamed, but he smothered her. Her wail became nothing more than a muffled grunt. Was this horrible night really going to end with her death? Not if she had anything to say about it.

  Grace did the only thing she could; she bit down hard on the hand covering her mouth. It didn’t feel or taste as she’d expected. The skin flaked like pastry, leaving pieces of it on her tongue. The taste of burnt flesh made her gag. Simultaneously, his guttural cry split the night air, but her attacker did not let go. Arms pinned, unable to see much of anything, Despair threatened to consume her. She refused to let it.

  “You’re mine,” came a hoarse whisper in her ear, spittle landing on her face. It burned like acid. Grace cringed, waiting for the final blow.

  It didn’t come. Instead, the weight suddenly lifted off her. She scrambled to her feet. Her first instinct was to flee, but she didn’t. Not when she saw she had a rescuer. She would never leave any good Samaritan to fight her fight alone — although, it appeared this one could more than handle the situation.

  Only his back was visible, but it was obvious how muscular his entire body had to be. His black t-shirt clung tightly against him, outlining the sculpted planes of his back and shoulders. As he swung an arm, his muscles rippled with exertion. This man was intimidating with a capital I. A shot of heat flashed low in her abdomen.

  Was she really ogling this guy right now? She never ogled anyone, let alone someone like him. She wasn’t into his type. Usually. God, what was she thinking? She should be helping him! Although Mr. Muscles was blocking her view, the hisses and growls of pain from her assailant were reassuring. The power behind her rescuer’s blows was undeniable. He had to have been professionally trained to fight. Military? Martial arts? Maybe both?

  Her protector ducked low, avoiding a blow and swept his leg out, knocking his adversary to the ground. What the… She blinked, trying to comprehend it. Her attacker wasn’t a man. Instead it was something resembling a human but was grey and withered—leathery skin pulled tight over pointy bones. It sprung back onto its feet and lashed out, gnashing its large, sharp teeth, eyes glowing red with hatred.

  Had Grace not had such an up-close-and-personal encounter with it, she would have thought she was hallucinating. As it was, she wasn’t entirely sure she wasn’t seeing things. This man was far too impressive and this creature far too bizarre to be reality. But try as she might, there were no good explanations for what was happening in front of her.

  The creature lunged, but the man dodged and jumped up to grab a nearby tree branch. He pumped his legs for momentum and smashed his feet into the creature’s face with a sickening crunch. Its head flew to the side, releasing a spray of acid-like spit from its mouth, along with a few teeth. It stumbled backward, hissing. The man released the tree branch, landing with a roll to get into a crouch. The creature recovered too quickly and jumped on top of him. Grace waited for her rescuer to pop back up, but he was pinned down and unable to get out from under it.

  Grace found her footing. She couldn’t just stand there without helping. After all, he could have just turned his head and walked on by, but instead, he had jumped in to try to save her. Grace ran and grabbed her bag. She came up behind the creature and quickly flipped the strap around its neck. She pulled with all her might. It barely budged.

  “Leave us alone!” She yelled and gave another heave.

  It was the opportunity her rescuer had needed. He slipped out from underneath the creature, grabbed its head and, with one deft twist, snapped its neck. It collapsed, legs and arms sprawled awkwardly at its sides. Its angry shrieks filled the night air before abruptly ending. To Grace’s amazement, it burst into flames and
disintegrated into ashes that floated away. All that remained was the lingering odor of burnt flesh.

  Grace couldn’t help but continue to stare at the spot where she had last seen her attacker. She kept expecting something to happen at any moment, like it would suddenly reappear before her eyes. It didn’t. It was as if that foul thing had never existed.

  “Are you alright?”

  The question brought Grace back to reality. She raised her head to meet her rescuer’s gaze. She hadn’t taken a good look at his face until then. Her breath caught; he was devastatingly handsome. His short dark hair, structured nose, strong jaw, and hint of stubble could’ve set any girl to fantasizing, but… his eyes. Oh, those eyes—bright, sparkling pools of hazel that shone brighter than moonlight should allow. His penetrating gaze was rife with concern.

  “Grace? I said, are you alright?”

  What? Oh, he’d asked a question. “I’m…” her voice wobbled. She took a deep breath and steadied herself, “I’m fine.”

  “You don’t look fine,” he said, taking a step toward her, “Why don’t you sit on the bench for a moment.” He took her gently by the arm and lead her to the closest one. The contact almost made her jump. Usually, she instinctively pulled away from a stranger’s touch. But not this one. Awareness drummed through her, unlike ever before. Even through her coat sleeve her skin was tingling. How could a single touch do this to her? And right now, no less? It must be the adrenaline. It was screwing with all her senses.

  “Thank you,” Grace said, failing not to stare, “I don’t know what would have happened had you not…” Her voice began to quaver again. She tried to shake the oppression of powerlessness that threatened to consume her. Her body was beginning to tremble; she clasped her arms around herself. Her emotions were flying all over the place. One second attraction rushed through her, then the next panic, back and forth like a game of Ping-Pong.

  She forced herself to take slow, deep breaths, extending the length of the exhale with each one. She willed her thoughts to stop and hit her mental reset button. She listened for her strong inner voice. Wait…wait…there. There it was, reminding her she was not weak or helpless. She had fought until help arrived and then fought more. She hadn’t run or hid. She was a strong woman who had forged her own path in the world against the odds. Yes, this had been terrible, but she would rise above it, as she had everything before.

  He seemed to sense when she had steadied herself because he waited to speak until she was calm. “I’m just thankful I arrived in time,” he said. He gave her a quick smile of reassurance. “I’m… Caleb.”

  The tip of his mouth curved upwards. One corner lifted further than the other, forming a roguish grin. Her heart started to beat faster again as her awareness of him returned.

  “I’m Grace.” She tried to swallow, but her throat had suddenly become the Sahara Desert. His eyes scanning the length of her didn’t help.

  “Do you want to go to emergency care? You’re covered in scrapes and bruises.”

  She wasn’t interested in going to emergency care, but she was interested in getting some answers. “What was that thing?”

  “Let’s get you home. You’ve had a very long day. Now really isn’t the time to discuss it.”

  “It attacked me. I have a right to know.” She couldn’t keep the anger out of her voice. She had just been assaulted and this guy knew by what. How could she protect herself if she knew nothing about it?

  “Really. We cannot have this discussion right now. I swear to you, I will tell you another time, but not now and not here. Can you please just trust me on this?”

  “But-”

  “I understand you want answers. Please be patient. You need rest. Try not to think about it.”

  Easy for him to say. He was cool as a cucumber and barely phased that he’d killed something straight out of a nightmare. Not to mention that it burst into flames. But he had saved her life. He didn’t really deserve a hard time right now. He said he’d tell her another time. And another time meant she’d get to see him again. Her heart did a little flutter.

  “Fine.”

  They didn’t speak the rest of the way back to the apartment.

  ✽✽✽

  “Well this is it,” she said coming to stop in front of the stairs. The light from the front hallway dimly illuminated the sidewalk. “Thank you again, Caleb. I owe you my life.” He turned to face her, leaving only a few inches between them.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t there sooner,” he said, a hint of gruffness in his voice.

  “I’m just glad you showed up at all,” she said, trying to keep her wits about her.

  “Has anyone ever told you how beautiful your eyes are?”

  He was only inches from her now, his over six-foot frame dominating the immediate space, warmth radiating from his body. It was surprisingly reassuring and arousing. As was the scent of him. It was an intoxicating aroma of earthy spices and fresh pine. Awareness thrummed through her like never before.

  “Not for a long time,” she whispered. His eyes began searching hers. His meaning was unmistakable. He laid the tips of his fingers on her elbow. She swayed toward him, her eyes beginning to close.

  Suddenly lightheaded, she stepped back. She caught herself on the rail of the steps leading up to the door. Had she seriously almost let that happen? What was she thinking? She didn’t let strangers even stand this close to her, no less kiss them in the middle of the street. He might have saved her life, but she didn’t really know anything about him. This night had been too much. She wasn’t thinking straight.

  “I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry,” he mumbled as he turned to the side and ran a hand through his hair. “Lord, I have to go.” He took off.

  “Wait,” Grace shouted after him, but it was no use. He disappeared around the corner and out of sight. Grace blinked after him in shock. She had expected relief when he left, but she was also surprisingly disappointed. Not only had the man who’d just saved her life run away without an explanation, he’d also failed to give her any way to contact him.

  Chapter 3

  Fuck. What had he just done? One second, he’d been saying goodnight to Grace and the next he’d been an inch away from kissing her. This evening hadn’t gone according to plan at all. When he’d returned to the restaurant, he’d expected to find Grace and Peter enjoying coffee or dessert or waiting for the check. When they hadn’t been there, he’d assumed she’d either gone with Peter or gone home. He figured he’d just pass by her apartment and make sure, but then he’d heard the commotion in the park nearby.

  He’d found her too late. The fury that had rushed through him when he saw her pinned to the ground was as intense as it as was unfamiliar. While he’d already accepted that he thought about her differently than other humans, he’d never imagined the defensiveness she’d inspired within him. He couldn’t bear to contemplate the consequences if he’d arrived any later than he had.

  He did have to admit that she’d defended herself valiantly. She’d kicked and bit and screamed. When he pulled the demon off her, he’d expected her to run away, but she’d rushed back to help him, giving him the opportunity he’d needed to finish it off. She was much braver than he’d ever given her credit for. Why that made him proud, he wasn’t sure.

  While her injuries had initially concerned him, it had quickly become clear that none were life threatening. She’d certainly be sore tomorrow, but her unsteadiness was caused more from shock than injury. His own unsteadiness was caused by something else. As he’d sat there, he’d been acutely aware of how drawn he was to her. He’d wanted to reach out and hold her, assure her that everything would be alright. Guilt had threatened to consume him. How could he have endangered her for such selfish reasons? In his arrogance, he’d not only risked her life, he’d risked her very soul.

  When he’d walked her home, he’d collected himself, or so he’d thought. But when he’d turned to say goodbye, he’d made the mistake of looking into her eyes. The glas
siness of them only made their blue more brilliant. He’d never been so close to them before and only then did it hit him that their color matched the cerulean skies he so longed to return to. He’d leaned in to kiss her. What in God’s name had possessed him? Thankfully, she’d had the sanity to pull away. Any unnecessary contact was strictly forbidden by the Council. He could rationalize leading her to a bench and walking her home, but this? Not a chance. He had broken one of the main tenants of his pledge to serve—the mere intention of physical involvement was enough to earn him a harsh punishment. If anyone discovered this, he was in serious jeopardy of losing any meaningful position. Forget soul recovery or even cemetery duty. He’d be stripped of any and all privileges, relegated to wander the earth without purpose for a millennium, and only then could he hope to get a small, entry level post back. The Council took rules very seriously. He couldn’t let this happen again.

  Kalev paced outside the gates that led to the Council’s chambers. He was starting to wonder whether he would wear a path in the carpet before they finally chose to grant him an audience. At first, he’d been happy to have the time to fully collect his thoughts, but as the minutes had ticked by, he’d reached a painful conclusion. If he ever hoped to enter Heaven again, he needed to strictly adhere to the rules, which meant he could not guard Grace any longer. He’d already bent the rules for her enough, and, if tonight was any indication, he might not be able to stop himself from doing so again. He didn’t think straight where she was concerned. The only way remaining to truly keep her safe (and him away from her) was to take her ring and finally destroy it. Then neither she nor anyone else in her family would ever suffer the consequences of inadvertently triggering it ever again.

  By the time the doors slowly swung open, beckoning him to enter, he was in a foul mood. Even so, he paused to appreciate the dark night sky that shown through the open, pillared walls. Here, above the clouds, the view of the universe was crystal clear, unpolluted by city lights or smog. Far-off galaxies swirled in an entrancing cosmic dance. It was a sight he’d only glimpsed a handful of times in the past twenty years, but, even if he saw it every day, he’d never tire of it. Unfortunately, he couldn’t spare the stunning expanse more than a moment’s glance.