It was Seth’s turn to shift uncomfortably. “Sort of. Athena, we need you to convince the Titans, or the Watchers as you know them, to fight on the side of the Seekers.”
“And when you say we?”
Seth cleared his throat “I mean the powers that be. The archangels. Apparently you are the only one who will be able to convince them.”
His eyes hinted at something more.
I lowered my head. “Because of my father?”
He nodded.
“Right, so everyone expects me to sit quietly and plead our case to a Watcher in hopes that they will give up their horrid ways and turn to the Light? In what world is that even possible? And I’m sorry, Seth, I don’t care who my father is. You and everyone else are asking too much of me.”
“It’s your assignment,” Seth said calmly.
“I thought I was supposed to find out about my father’s new right-hand man and all that. I thought I had to get information about the Watchers and deliver it to the archangels, hopefully killing my way through downtown Seattle.” I nudged a noodle from my plate and sighed.
“So you’re upset because you don’t get to kill anyone?” Seth joked.
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, I live for blood. Didn’t you know?”
The moment seemed frozen as Seth leaned in. “I know more than you realize, Thena.” His voice sounded musical and familiar. His face contorted, turning into the most beautiful glow I’d ever seen. His eyes blazed with fire. “You are mine. You will do this, Thena. We need you to do this.”
Confused, I shook my head, and my eyes blurred; then Seth was next to me again. The normal Seth.
“Thena, are you okay? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” Seth patted my hand and smiled. “Sometimes I wonder about you and your little waking daydreams.” He got up from the couch and took the dish out of my shaking hands.
Why was it Seth always turned into that nightmare I had? Why him? Why not Adonis? I shook my head, trying to get the thoughts to jar from my brain.
“How many are we visiting?” I asked.
“The Watchers?” Seth clarified. “One. You will visit one. For now.”
“And the rest?”
Seth paced in front of me. “The rest follow. If you can get the one to stop this madness, or at least get him to side with you, then we have hope. We need them to understand the ramifications of bringing humans into the fight, of starting an all-out war between the Heavenlies. The theory is the rest of the Watchers will give up.”
“Right, because they’re known for making sound decisions.”
“I said in theory, Athena. Don’t be such a smart a—”
A yawn interrupted Seth’s crude remark, and I looked up. Adonis had just entered the room looking like he’d had the best sleep of his life. “Oh, pasta. Don’t mind if I do. Thanks, Seth.” He took a plate from Seth’s outstretched hand and piled a heap of pasta on it. “So, I take it you’ve told her then?”
I groaned out loud so nobody missed my frustration. “Adonis knows too?”
“Well, I do have some purpose, Athena.” He winked at me.
I contemplated throwing my pasta in his lap, as my eyes seared him with a hot glare.
“Besides, don’t you want my help when you start getting visitations?”
“Why does the word visitation have to sound so creepy, especially when you two say it? I am a grown woman, after all. I think I can handle a visitation. Even if it does suddenly feel like I’m in Dickens’s Christmas Carol, waiting for the Ghost of Christmas Past.”
Seth shared a look with Adonis before answering me. “Would it help for you to know that the Watchers are far more beautiful than any ghost in Dickens’s made-up story?”
“No.” I scowled and crossed my arms. “What would help is not being left in the dark anymore and getting my job done.”
“Fine.” Seth pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “As a marked one, I can’t do anything except help Adonis protect you. With both of our strengths, you should be able to hold your own against the Watchers.”
“Both of your strengths?” I looked at Adonis through pensive eyes. “Adonis?”
He lifted his shoulders as if to say, Sure why not? I’ll fight for you.
Perfect, I have a fallen angel and a beautiful enticer on my side. What do I have to fear? Oh right, death by Titan. Lovely.
Chapter Eleven
Seth’s constant movement nearly did me in. Frustrated, I jumped up from the couch and walked over to the window. We’d been waiting for the first visitation for hours. Adonis was keeping watch, while Seth tried to sleep. An activity he’s terrible at because his body isn’t made for it. None of the angels’ bodies are, but when they fall, they become human and distorted in their needs, wanting food, sleep, intimacy — only it was much worse for the cursed. Their emotions and desires are so blindingly strong that many of the Fallen became so tangled in debauchery, they no longer remember their origin.
Apparently, Seth was no exception to the sleep rule. You’d think he’d been wrestling with Hercules. I shook my head in dismay as he nearly fell off the couch. He looked at Adonis, who wore his typical bored expression.
I turned back toward the window, taking in the view, or lack of it. The apartment had the feel of a high-rise penthouse, but we were still far below the city. The window looked out on a tunnel that I guessed was used for the old subway, which used to run downtown. Luckily for us, nobody ventured down here anymore — except monsters like the Titans.
Would they knock? Announce their presence? Earlier, I’d armed myself with five throwing knives as well as two pearl-handled.45s, in hopes that if my anger gets in the way and the wisdom of the gods doesn’t descend upon me like everyone hopes, I’ll at least be able to defend myself.
“Where are they?” I asked, slightly defeated, as I leaned my head against the glass-paned window. Everything was dark and dead-looking, except for a tiny light at the end of the tunnel. My vision couldn’t reach that far. All I could see was the blinking light. It had been on ever since I’d been standing there. My guess was it was as bored as I felt.
I sighed and turned to look again to where Adonis was sitting. He was gone. Within seconds, I felt his breath on my neck. “Nervous, Thena? My, my, you are a little jumpy, aren’t you?”
Slowly I turned to glare at him, but once my eyes met his, I was rendered mute. All the glory of the Heavenlies was on display for me to see. Adonis was beautiful, no doubt. But his grace, the way he moved, the way he licked his lips, everything about him was sensual. I took a laborious breath, cursing myself for the weakness I felt descend upon me like a cloud. Adonis inclined his head to the side, reached out, and ever so lightly touched my arm.
Seriously, the man could charm a streetlight.
I made a move to slap his hand away, but he grabbed it, and, with a quirk of his brow, brought my fingers to his mouth and began kissing them. His beautiful lips curved into a seductive smile. Those dangerous lips pulled and then he licked at one of my fingers. I thought I would pass out from ecstasy.
How could I ever for one second think Seth was attractive when I have a man like this standing next to me?
His body was rock solid, his eyes predatory and sensual at the same time. I was transfixed by his eyelashes and how they fanned across his high cheekbones. Suddenly I wanted to slit Aphrodite’s throat for ever touching him, not that they were anything but old partners, but still.
Jealousy and possessiveness threatened to overwhelm me, and then with a moan, his hands were in my hair, drawing my face closer to his. His lips felt hot. Desperately I clung to him, wanting — no needing — to be as close to him as possible, wanting to breathe his air, needing his oxygen, needing his scent. Sandalwood and honeysuckle teased my senses. I opened my mouth to drink him in.
The room faded away.
His hands were all over me, touching, pulling, kneading.
“Adonis…” I mumbled.
“Not now,” he snapped, then picke
d me up and slammed me into the wall by the window. He pushed my hands above my head and trapped me. His assault continued. Drugged by hunger for his mouth, I allowed myself to drown in the feeling, not wanting to ask questions as to why he was being so forward.
I wanted to possess him like he possessed me. I felt out of control as my body reacted to every single one of his touches, as if he was setting me on fire. And then it hit me.
The jerk was enticing. My back arched against my better judgment, curving into him.
“Selfish jerk,” I muttered as he took my mouth again.
He laughed against my lips and took my tongue into his possession.
As suddenly as the kiss started, it ended, and something hit my head.
I shook it, and my vision became cloudy. Adonis was gone. Confused, I realized I wasn’t against a wall; I wasn’t being trapped by him. I could still feel his breath on my neck. Hadn’t I turned around? Hadn’t I? Had I imagined the whole thing? I touched my lips. They were still buzzing from his kiss. My entire body felt like it was on fire.
“I promise,” Adonis whispered, pulling me back into the comfort of his body. “I have never enticed you… until now.”
“So that wasn’t…”
“Real?” I felt him tense. “No, but, Thena, it could be, you have no idea how many times I’ve—”
“He’s here,” Seth said, jumping off the couch like he was ready to pounce.
My heart pounded in my chest. What exactly did Adonis wish? And why was he enticing me? Naturally, it was a good distraction, but what did he mean about it being real. He couldn’t just distract me whenever he thought I needed it, and he couldn’t maul me and then not finish his sentence. Arrogant man.
Sensing my questions or maybe just knowing me too well, he leaned in and whispered, “We’ll talk later, Thena.”
“Adonis, never again. Don’t ever do that again without my permission.” I felt my hands shaking as I grasped at his shirt, needing him to understand how off-axis I felt at the moment. It had felt so real, and I felt robbed that it wasn’t. I was embarrassed my treacherous body was still shaking from the encounter.
He nodded and turned me around to face the giant light beaming in the room. “Like I said, Thena, we’ll talk later. For now, prepare yourself. It seems the world can stand still without someone carrying it on his shoulders.”
“Wha—” I began to ask, but I was dumbstruck by the visitor in front of me.
“Atlas,” I said breathlessly.
Smiling, he reached out to me, touched only my head, and the room went black.
****
I closed my eyes against the sting of wind as it snapped against my face, throwing my hair all over the place. My hands immediately went to my knives, making sure they survived whatever waking nightmare I was experiencing.
“Athena,” he said, his voice so similar to that of Michael’s and the other archangels: strong, smooth, and confident with a following touch of echo, as if they desired to stay in the air longer than what was necessary.
“Baraqijal.” I called him by his real name, not the name assigned by mankind, but the true identity given by Him.
The wind shuddered around me. Or was it Atlas? I couldn’t tell. Everything was black. I felt like I was in nothingness. Hanging above the earth, unable to move, and completely numb except for the constant feel of wind against my face.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“Up.”
“Perfect. You know, I was wondering when everything would start getting cryptic again. First I went down, and now I’m up.” I fought to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. Atlas laughed as thunder sounded in the distance.
“So, I take it we’re in the sky then?”
Afraid to move my hands, I stayed immobile, and then I felt a presence in front of me. And like a switch had been flipped, the lights came on.
I desperately wished they would have stayed off. It wasn’t that I hated heights I just hated that I had to be focused on not falling rather than any enemies sneaking up on me. It seemed wasteful.
Hanging out in the stars was not exactly my idea of a fun time. I glanced around. Stars sang and glimmered in the dark like diamonds on a black blanket of velvet. I could only hope I was experiencing another hallucination, and I wasn’t really suspended miles above the earth. I was optimistic and turned toward my tour guide, wondering if part of my curse was to be surrounded by beautiful and evil men.
I wouldn’t mind carrying that burden, if every single one of them wasn’t so unavailable or terrible.
“So.” The word escaped my lips in a whoosh as I fought for composure. Atlas, all ten feet of him, was covered in head-to-toe black armor. A midnight sword hung from his belt. His eyes, a curious shade of crystal blue, stared back at me. His hair looked identical to Michael’s, long and silver but tied at the neck. A tiny piece of red made itself known at the front.
My curiosity was peaked “What’s this?” I asked, reaching out. Intuition told me if he was going to hurt me, it wouldn’t be at this moment.
“I thought Seth told you about us,” he said with a sad smile.
“Obviously not.” I tilted my head toward his, trying to get him to understand I was his friend, not his enemy.
“Marked, all of us. Seth has cut wings, like so many of the fallen ones, but he’s different than us.”
“Different how?”
He snapped his fingers and motioned for me to sit. I turned around, and a rock was suspended underneath me. Odd, but I didn’t ask questions, a huge feat to be sure. Instead I sat on the cool brown rock and waited as he took a seat next to me.
“A hierarchy like none other exists in the Heavenlies.” His head hung. “There are the archangels, which I’m sure you know well, Thena. I hope Seth at least told you the part about the Fall. Many of our kind have chosen to forget such a painful time. I imagine it’s equally as painful for you to remember.”
I nodded.
“So,” he continued. “Twelve of us fell. We were different than the archangels, set apart from Eden. Some angels sat around the Throne. Others were messengers and others warriors. We, we were the Watchers. Set apart to make sure the humans stayed safe, that no harm would come to them. Sadly, the very ones sent to protect were the ones who caused the most harm. Have you any idea the difficulty of such a choice, Thena? To become slaves to our desires and to creatures of our own making? I take full responsibility because I helped teach the humans.”
“Astrology, right?” I said, scooting farther down on my rock, pretending it was a couch and this was a fairy tale, not a life and death situation.
“Exactly,” he beamed. “What I taught wasn’t necessarily evil, it just made the humans all the more curious about things they should never have known about in the first place. My brothers followed my lead, teaching the art of metal-working, the art of war, and worst of all, the art of cosmetics.” He scowled. “It was hard enough being forced to watch over mankind day in and day out, but once the women began painting their faces, learning the dances of the Heavenlies — we were entranced. It is a weak excuse, but a reason nonetheless.”
“What’s your story, Atlas?” I said, not recognizing the curiosity in my voice.
“My story…” he mumbled, shifting in his seat. “It’s sad, Thena, and don’t think I’m ignorant of why we are having this little meeting. My power is endurance and reading the stars. I am not easily swayed, nor do I give in to pressure, regardless of how beautiful the messenger may be.” He reached out and grasped at a piece of hair that had fallen loose from my ponytail. “I’ve always admired the Seekers. They have both the beauty of the angelic race and the fascinating characteristics of the humans.”
I felt uncomfortable at his pensive stare, as if he could see right through my clothes. I crossed my arms, offended that he was staring at me in such a way.
“Calm down, little one. I mean you no harm. Isn’t that what got me in trouble in the first place? No, I have learned my lesson, and now I’m c
ursed. Tell me, Thena, why would I fight for the side that so heartlessly threw my brothers into the Abyss as punishment?”
“You tell me. After all, you were willing to meet. It does make one wonder if your desire is to be whole again — to rejoin your brothers, to go home.”
The look on his face darkened. I knew I had him there, but I needed more information about the reason behind his betrayal. It needed to make sense to me. Why would someone who was given everything, knowingly abandon all he held true for one human?
“You are young, Thena,” Atlas said. “Don’t you understand love at all?”
I didn’t want to answer. He grabbed my hand. I liked his touch enough to allow him to hold it. He said something in his angelic tongue that sounded a lot like beautiful sin.
“Pardon?” I asked.
“Love can masquerade as a great many things, Athena. It can possess you, show you power, promise you things you never knew you even wanted. I became entranced by the outward beauty of the women I saw. I fell, and once I fell, I turned into something I didn’t recognize. I needed more and more of the intimacy that the women gave me. I didn’t stay true to my partner. I didn’t stay true to myself. Sin has a way of pretending to be something good. That is how the Darkness works.”
“Yet you’re willing to sin, to fight on the side that promotes sin, for what? For revenge?”
He dropped my hand and answered, “Acceptance. I see in your eyes you don’t understand, my dear, but those who fell will never be accepted by the Heavenlies, regardless of the side we fight on. If we fight for your father, we’ll be rewarded with freedom. If we fight with you… the only ending is eternity in the Abyss.”
“So you’ll make the wrong choice all over again to hide from the punishment you deserve?” I asked sadly.
He drew his sword and stared at it. Like a flash of lightning, he pulled it across his hand. Silver and red liquid oozed out. “Do you see my blood? The divine ichor of the angels flows through my veins. I am connected to my brothers, whether I like it or not. In the Abyss they see… everything.” His eyes flashed white before returning to blue again. “My brothers see what they betrayed every day of their existence. That was our punishment. Can you not understand? I carry the weight of the world on my shoulders, Athena. My burden to bear is that I will always know the happiness, the joy, and the pain of my brothers, whom I’ve been separated from, but I will never rejoin them. Being free, regardless of which side I fight on, is my only aim. No being is strong enough to witness what I’ve witnessed or carry my burden. I would do anything to be free.”
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