by D. F. Jones
Baldric did a three-eighty and yelled, “Damn it. Seneca? I screwed up.”
Seneca, Ruby’s guardian angel, and Baldric’s boss, appeared before him as the humans wrapped up their investigation of Henry’s Tailor Shop. Humans rarely noticed angels, even when they appeared in front of them.
Seneca exhaled a deep breath and said, “You’re heading for big trouble. Are you really in love with Sandy? Do you want to be an earthbound angel? Don’t get me wrong. I want you to be happy, but Saints preserve us, does it have to be your ward?”
Seneca paced back and forth in the small office while he waved his hands in the air. “You’re jeopardizing our entire mission. Is there anything I can say or do to get inside that thick skull of yours? You’ve given Luc bait. The Demons of Pain and Suffering have lived inside of Sandy since she was nine. Luc will use them to get to her. A few more carefully placed demons and Sandy’s divine power could be used against us. I cannot reiterate enough what a colossal setback that would mean for us.”
Baldric slammed his fist into the wall of the office. “Do you think I fell in love on purpose? No one in heaven or earth chooses the one. She’s the one. I’ll resign my post if you need me to, but I’ll never leave her.”
“Jesus, Joseph, and Mary.” Seneca sat down in the reception chair close to the dressing room. “I knew you’d formed an attachment. Has it progressed to the physical element?”
“Ah, no. I do have scruples. I’m not sure Sandy realizes the depth of my feelings. She’s behaved since she tried to seduce me the night Joe was born.”
Seneca shouted, “Michael could take you from our team. I need you, Baldric. The Campbell Ridge wards need you, and most especially, Sandy needs you. Control your feelings and do your job. Have you got the book? If so, get Sandy, get the book, and get to Everglade Farms. I trust this conversation is over for now.”
“No, I don’t have the book, but I know where it is.” The doorbell chimed as Sandy walked into Henry’s Tailor Shop. Baldric stood erect, and the air backed up into his lungs. He glanced at Seneca in time to see the scowl. Oh, he was in big trouble.
Seneca turned back to Baldric and shouted again, “Get a grip, or I’ll pull you myself. You’re placing her in grave danger.”
Baldric frowned and said, “I will protect her. See you later, boss.”
Poof! Seneca disappeared.
Sandy ran her fingers lightly over the silk ties arranged on the cherry pedestal table as she looked about the room. “Baldric, are you here?”
Baldric appeared at her side. “I’m here, Daireann.”
Sandy went into the little office in the back of the store. She stepped over to the air return, opened it, and pulled out the folder with the key. Her eyes held Baldric’s stare, and she said, “It’s a key to a lockbox at City Bank. I have a friend who works over there.”
Baldric read her thoughts. Sandy’s friend was a human male that she’d slept with in the past. It sucked to know the most intimate details of Sandy’s love life. He took a deep breath and exhaled.
Sandy placed the folder under her arm and raised a brow. “What’s wrong with you? I did what you said. I drank a cup of coffee and ate a bagel with cream cheese. Geez Louise, why are you mad?”
“Hmph. I’m not mad—I’m angry. Your friend at the bank. I read your thoughts, and he’s not just a friend. You slept with him.” Baldric placed his sword in its sheath.
Sandy shook her head and said, “You’re acting like a jealous boyfriend. It’s just sex, not love. Besides, I’m damaged goods. You need to quit looking at me all moon-eyed like a lovesick schoolboy unless you want to do something about it.”
“You’re not damaged goods. Have more respect for yourself.” Baldric disappeared.
* * *
Sandy stepped over to the assistant manager’s desk at City Bank. “May I speak to Ken, please?”
Without looking up from her typewriter, the woman said, “He’s in a meeting.” She glanced up and recognized Sandy. “Oh, Ms. Cothran, let me check for you.”
“Thank you, Susan. How are the twins?”
Susan beamed with pride. “Growing like two little weeds. Would you like to sit down?”
“I’m good. Thanks.” Sandy caught a glimpse of Baldric sulking in the corner with his arms across his chest. Good grief. She stared at him and exchanged telepathic comments. You’re acting like a child.
He snarled. Oh goody, Ken approaches.
Sandy turned to Ken and gave him a huge grin. “Why, Ken. You get better looking every time I see you.”
Ken pulled her up into his arms without care and kissed her cheek. “Ms. Cothran, to what do I owe the pleasure of such beautiful company today?”
Sandy poured it on as thick as dripping molasses. “Well, I’ve come across this little ole key, and I need to get into the lockbox. Think you could help me?”
“Why, I’d be delighted. This way, Ms. Cothran.” Sandy followed Ken as he unlocked the door to a private viewing room for customers with lockboxes. He shut the door, swept her into his arms and kissed her as she draped her arms around his neck. He ran his hand down the curve of Sandy’s spine, and Baldric zapped Ken’s hand with electricity.
Ken yelped. “Yikes. Your outfit has electricity in it. How about you lose it?”
Sandy tilted the angle of her face and gave him a sly smile. “You know I would love to do just that, but I’m in a bit of a hurry and have to deliver the contents of that little box to my family. Raincheck?” Sandy kissed Ken again.
Baldric pinched the soft skin under her arm. Sandy frowned and waved Baldric away. He grinned and planted his feet hip-width apart and didn’t move.
Ken said, “You can give me a raincheck anytime. I’ll leave you to it. Number thirteen-oh-nine is located on the top row, the second box to the end. I’ll be outside if you need me.” He exited the room.
Baldric gruffly said, “Get the book and let’s get out of here before I do something I regret.”
Sandy whipped around to face him. “Look, buddy, you and I are going to have a big problem if you can’t tell me what’s bothering you. I’ve already told you I want you. If you want me, all you have to do is say the word.”
Baldric threw his hands up in exasperation. “Not everything is about your sexual prowess. We have a job to do. And how can you kiss that mealy-mouthed man? I’ll meet you in the car. My stomach can’t take anymore.”
Sandy giggled. Baldric was jealous, and that gave her hope. Maybe he felt about her the same way she felt about him. Sandy had never been in love, never wanted to be until the night Baldric rescued her from Carson Jones, another one of Cole’s attack dogs.
Sandy left work to go home and change clothes before heading out to Anna and Jerry’s farm to celebrate Ruby and Reed’s baby party. She parked in front of her condo building in a tow-away zone and placed her press pass in the window. Sandy grabbed her purse, threw it over her shoulder, and sprinted through the double doors of her condo building to the elevators. When the doors opened, she pressed the button to the third floor. Right as the doors were about to shut, a man wearing black trousers and a black turtleneck slid inside.
As the elevator pulled into its ascent, the man leaned over and pressed the stop button. The large man slammed Sandy against the elevator wall and choked her, his forearm cutting off her windpipe. Sandy had been on the verge of passing out when a brilliant white light filled the elevator and ripped the man away. Sandy watched as this beautiful being beat the ever-loving shit out of her attacker.
Afterward, Sandy looked into the sea green eyes of a radiant being, and life on the planet changed for her. The key to a distant memory unlocked. She remembered Baldric from childhood. His heavenly scent, his warm touch—Sandy remembered her guardian angel. But it also opened up horrible memories. Memories of Mr. Ben. Memories she still didn’t want to face.
Sandy opened the lockbox and found a wad of money, several titles to cars, and a brown, leather-bound book. Her hands trembled as she ran her
fingers over the cover of the large book and wondered how Nick had ever lifted it in the first place. In the center of the book was an emblem of a serpent-entwined rod, and each corner had metal embellishments that looked new, but inside, the pages were old and made of vellum.
Thumbing through the pages of the testament conjured up images tracing back to antiquity. Just holding the book revealed some pretty startling information that Sandy would have to make notes on at a later time.
The Sunday sermons Sandy grew up listening to spoke of damned souls tortured in hellfire and brimstone or sulfur. In Luc’s Testament, contracted souls lived abundant lives on earth while their mortal bodies existed. It was only at death that the contracted souls lived in servitude for the rest of eternity on the lowest rung of hell’s ladder. Luc despised humans who were weak enough to sell their souls for any price for a mere lifetime. Eternity lasted forever.
The entries over the last several decades had recognizable names of some very influential people, not just from Sandy’s home state and region but in the country and across the world. Listed in the book were leaders of industry, leaders in politics, and leaders in religion.
In earth’s purgatory, Luc held the human souls who straddled the fence in the angelic war between heaven and hell until the person declared allegiance to one side or the other. His notes made it clear he thought the modern-day soft sell of religion was an edge in his favor. Many of the undeclared souls converted to Luc’s church while others dug in deep for The Creator and fought for the light of love.
Luc had marked a favorite chapter in his Testament—the one regarding souls belonging to The Creator in the Everafter. The Campbell Ridge wards were among the souls listed. The faithful humans of The Creator were the ones Luc enjoyed tempting the most.
Luc’s manifesto listed dozens of spells and magical incantations, including a chapter on exorcising evil spirits. In the Testament, all of the light and dark supernatural powers available through the universe were listed and named the being who possessed the power.
Further into the book, Sandy glimpsed Luc’s demon angels, and their divisions seemed based on inherent human flaws. Baldric would have to help her with this chapter. The language was different than any Sandy had ever encountered. The pages and text kept changing before her eyes. If she thumbed back to a previous page, the text held different passages or was deleted entirely.
The dark energy within the book merged with the light energy of her powers. Malicious thoughts and nefarious deeds swirled inside her mind. Sandy slammed the book shut, dropped to her knees, and began reciting The Lord’s Prayer.
Luc’s Testament held the keys she needed to bring down his network in more places than Nashville. Sandy had enough ammunition to disrupt Luc’s empire on earth. She held the power in her hands. Sandy wrapped the large book with a black velvet cloth and secured it with a leather strap.
Sandy felt weighed down by Luc’s Testament as if she carried an enormous burden on her back while walking slowly to her Corvette. She placed the book in the back storage with her Ditch Lane Diaries master copy, then slid behind the wheel and cranked up the engine. A stern Baldric appeared in the passenger seat, arms crossed and jaw clenched.
“You can’t stay mad at me anymore. You’re right. Luc’s Testament has enormous power and contains everything we need to bring him down. Nailing Cole Steele will be a bonus. Before we head out to Everglade Farms, I need to stop at the library and make copies of the pages mentioning Cole. I’ll keep the original book with me.” Sandy grabbed Baldric by the face and kissed him on the mouth.
Flames of desire shot up her spine as the kiss lengthened, and she melted into Baldric’s strong arms. Sandy gazed at him through heavy lids, and a slow smile came to her lips. “You have sparkles floating in the air all around you. Golden sparkles. What is that?”
“Don’t ask or we won’t make it to the library or Everglade Farms, and I’m already in deep enough waters with Seneca.” Baldric held her hand and kissed her fingertips.
Sandy turned up her CD player and began to rock back and forth to the music from Electric Light Orchestra. She teased him and sang out the words, “You like me, you love me, you want some more of me.” She giggled and pulled out onto the highway.
“You’re some kind of woman.” He laughed.
“Yup, the kind that wants some.” Baldric’s response to her kiss made her heart flutter with excitement. It was the middle of February and her palms were sweating.
Everglade was thirty miles south of Nashville. Driving down I-65, Sandy’s thoughts raced back to Luc’s Testament. She’d followed leads on Cole for months. Not a single solitary soul would even speak to her off the record. Everyone was scared to death of him. But with the book in her trunk, Sandy had all the answers she needed to nail Cole to the wall and couldn’t wait until her segment hit the airwaves.
* * *
The Everglade Library parking lot was empty. The librarian, Miss Manning, sat behind the checkout counter as Sandy walked inside the door. “Hi, Miss Manny. How the heck are ya?”
Miss Manning removed her glasses and allowed them to dangle on the gold chain next to her chest. She walked from behind the counter and gave Sandy a quick kiss on the cheek. “Aw, it’s so good to see you, child. You’re making big waves in Nashville. I watch you every night on the news. So what brings you to the library?”
Sandy hugged Miss Manny and then took a step back. She giggled and said, “Perceptive as ever. No beating around the bush with you, is there? May I use your copy machine, please?”
Miss Manning pressed her fingers together and leaned in closer to Sandy. With a whisper, she asked, “Is it news related? Some big scoop?”
Sandy’s eyebrows popped as she held the book to her chest and nodded. “Yes, ma’am. Top-secret stuff. I promise I’ll call you and give you a heads up the night the story airs. You can tell the ladies during bridge that you helped. But not until it airs. Promise?”
Miss Manny pretended to lock her lips and throw away an invisible key. “Follow me. Let’s see if the machine has paper and ink.”
The copy machine was located in a cramped little room in the back of the library against the wall. On the opposite side of the room, shelving held office supplies for the library. Sandy placed the book on a side table.
Luc’s Testament bound in brown leather measured around nine inches wide by seventeen inches long. As Sandy thumbed the pages, wild, colorful images flashed through her mind, making her reel with nausea. The moving mental images carried her on the cords of light back to the days of Caesar.
A Roman soldier or official knelt before someone Sandy couldn’t see. The Roman kissed the mysterious person’s hand and then took a small knife and sliced the palm of his hand, allowing blood to fill the inkwell. The Roman dipped his pen into the blood and signed his name into the book. Sandy could only assume the unseen person was Luc.
Sandy released the book and jumped away from the machine. She was on the verge of hyperventilating. Dark moving images filled her brain with disgusting, vile profiles of possessed and deranged humans throughout civilization. The images zipped along the cords of light as Sandy braced herself against the wall and gripped the lip of the book shelves.
Baldric appeared next to the copy machine loudly enough to make the door vibrate against the jambs. “Ah, what’s wrong? You’re pale as a ghost.”
Sandy shook her head and said, “That book is disgusting. Vile images fill my mind every time I turn a page.”
Baldric placed his hands on top of her head and closed his eyes. His positive energy seeped into her bones like hot butter and drained the negative energy right out of her body. She sighed and said, “Thanks. I thought I was going to get sick.”
Baldric leaned against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest, watching her as she made the last copy from the book. “Once you get the info you need to do your story, burn those pages and give me the book. I’ll see it gets to the right hands. Oh, and one more thing. I told one o
f Luc’s demon angels I had the book. I placed a veil of protection over Luc’s Testament to prevent them from finding it. At least until your story airs.”
Sandy stomped her foot and stopped the machine. “Can’t I get a freaking break? Dad gum it.” She turned to Baldric and said, “If Luc’s demon knows, then I’ve not only placed myself in danger but my best friends along with Martha, Alice, and Miss Manny. Would you set up a protection veil over them, too?”
Baldric grabbed her by the shoulders. “Listen to me. Luc’s Testament causes great pain. The only reason I’m allowing you to use the book is that you might save lives which could otherwise be ruined. Even if you only expose Cole and his cronies. I won’t lie to you. Luc will come for the book. Your story may never see the light of day, but it won’t be for the lack of you trying.”
As if to gather his thoughts, Baldric closed his eyes for a brief second and then stared into her eyes. He continued, “Ruby, Anna, Jerry, and Lee know the risks. Guardian angels protect the innocent, but Luc and his demon angels can make hell on earth for them. Revealing the truth opens more light into the world.”
Sandy tilted her head. Her eyes widened as the revelation hit her, and she shouted, “Hell’s on earth, isn’t it? That’s why Luc wants to destroy humans.”
Baldric retold the story of how Luc was one of the three mightiest angels in the universe. He told her about Luc’s obsession to overrule The Creator, which got him cast out of heaven to earth while it was still null and void. “Luc’s lived here ever since.”
With determination, Sandy tucked the copies in her briefcase. She wrapped up Luc’s Testament with the velvet cloth and tied it with a leather strap. “Let’s boogie, my Big B.”
Sandy walked over to Miss Manning as she placed returned books back on the library shelf. Sandy tapped her on the shoulder. “Thanks for letting me make copies.”