Red Angel (The Angels of Paris Chronicles Book 2)

by Anna Santos

  “Someone kidnapped Aria because they knew that you would blame Philippe for it. If we hadn’t stopped Gerard and the witch, if the witch hadn’t been here, you would probably have beaten Philippe to death. Besides, killing Aria means that you would also die. The angels and the gargoyles would be without a leader. New fractions would emerge, supporting different princes who could take over the crown. I feel that there is some conspiracy behind this.”

  “If they want to get rid of me, why haven’t they killed Aria? They just took her.”

  “The witch said they wanted to take her angel. Why would someone do that?”

  I thought about that, too. I had no idea why they wanted to separate Aria from her angel. She would become mortal, but no longer be complete. Her angel was a part of who she was, it was her alter ego. Without her other half, Aria would become different, damaged. She would eventually die from depression. Plus, they couldn’t do anything with Aria’s angel. It was essence, white matter, raw power. They couldn’t use it to make someone else an angel and use its power. There was something terribly wrong about all that was happening. There was some more sinister intention that I needed to uncover.

  “We’ll find Aria before they can harm her. We have until sundown,” Josephine said as she put her hand over mine and squeezed.

  I looked at her. “I don’t want anyone else to die because I wasn’t strong enough to protect them.” It was odd, opening my heart to a stranger and a vampire whom I barely knew.

  “We won’t let her die or let them steal her angel,” Josephine said. “Philippe will do everything he can to save her. And you’ll do the same. She isn’t alone. She has us to rescue her.”

  “Why does Philippe want to help?”

  “Why do you think, Cedric?”

  “He rejected her. He tried to kill her.”

  “He wasn’t thinking straight. Sometimes pain can numb our feelings and lead us to make stupid decisions. He regrets his actions.”

  “She’s mine now,” I reminded her, my possessive side surfacing.

  “We know that. He knows that. It doesn’t mean that he doesn’t care for her and doesn’t want to help her. He wants her to be happy. You need to start believing that before you make any other stupid mistakes like coming here and destroying his home and screaming at your mate.”

  “I don’t need lectures from you,” I grumbled. Is everybody against me now? I knew what I’d done and that I should have handled the situation better, but I had all the right in the world to get mad at Aria sleeping over and spending time with her former mate.

  “I don’t give a damn about what you need. We’re just talking. You don’t need to be a jackass.” She removed her hand. “I’m trying to be nice to you because you’re suffering, and I understand what you’re feeling. But if you want to continue to act like a jerk, that’s fine by me, too. Yet, whether you want this to be true or not, not all vampires are bad and not everybody has dubious intentions. I, for one, don’t need to worry about your little war and your mundane affairs in this world anymore. I’ll be gone soon, and I won’t have to handle your pouting or Philippe’s tantrums anymore.”

  “I didn’t mean to upset you.” I regretted my outburst. It was true—I didn’t. Josephine was one of the few vampires whom I admired. She was brave and her heart was in the right place.

  Josephine’s time was running out. Uriel, the old gargoyle I sent to evaluate the parchment, was sure that it was the real stuff. The day for Josephine to go to my kingdom and recite the words to break Oliver’s curse and exchange places with him was drawing closer.

  “You don’t need to act like I’m radioactive,” she complained, folding her arms.

  “I don’t understand what you mean.”

  “You’ve remembered that I’m going to die soon, so now you’re feeling sorry for me. I’m fine with my destiny. I’ve accepted it. I need you to let me go to your world and perform the ritual. I don’t need your pity.”

  “Who’s being a jackass now?” I asked her, cracking a smile and finding it amusing how easily she’d gotten upset. “I’m not feeling sorry for you. I admire your courage.”

  “Hmm.” She assessed my face. “I’m not courageous. I’d rather save a soul that’s worth saving than go to Hell. I think I’m a coward, actually.”

  “You’re not. It’s not your fault that your former soulmate was a jerk who rejected you.”

  “I know. I didn’t do anything. He was a greedy madman. I…don’t want to talk about my life. Can’t we keep talking about how miserable you’re feeling because you’ve lost Aria?”

  I frowned, and she smiled. She was a weird woman.

  My phone vibrated, and I checked it. It was a message from Camille. I’d left her in the hospital with Aria’s father. Healing angels were coming to try to cure Aria’s mother and uncle. I’d told her to inform me when they were feeling better or if anything bad had happened.

  “Who is it?” Josephine asked.

  “One of my angels. Philippe was able to cure Aria’s mother with his blood. The healing angels cured her wounds, but she was still unconscious. After Philippe’s cure, she woke up, and Camille’s saying that she’s asking for Aria. I don’t know what to tell them.”

  “Tell them the truth. Tell them that someone took Aria, and we’re doing everything we can to get her back.”

  “In two hours it’ll get dark. Whoever wants to take Aria’s angel will arrive and it’ll be too late. We need to find out where she is and who took her.”

  “Margaret will find out. You know she’ll do anything for you once you’ve kissed her.”

  Jo’s hand landed on my shoulder as she looked at me with compassionate eyes. “I don’t feel comfortable with that,” I said. “Aria may not understand that I had to kiss Margaret.”

  “I’ll make her understand. Now stop pouting and feeling sorry for yourself. Philippe and I won’t let anything bad happen to Aria or you.”

  “Me?” I asked. It troubled me that I needed Philippe’s help to get Aria back. But if that meant we’d find Aria and discover for certain who was producing Clarity, that wouldn’t matter.

  “You’ll also die if something happens to Aria’s angel,” she reminded me.

  “Do you think I’m worried about that? I just want Aria back, unharmed. I couldn’t care less about what happens to me. They should have taken me instead of her.”

  “Yes, but it wouldn’t hurt you so much, would it? They wanted to hurt you, to make you feel powerless. If they’d wanted to kill you, they wouldn’t have kidnapped her. They would have simply finished her off there. They want you to suffer, and they need her angel for something.”

  “Whoever’s behind this will regret this day. Mark my words,” I said, clenching my teeth and making my eyes glow with silver. My powers were restless, and I wanted to smash something.

  “Calm down. Don’t go all angel on me and start breaking everything.” She rubbed my arm as her lips curled into a smile.

  “I don’t appreciate your sense of humor,” I muttered.

  “Tough luck. I’m the only one here to keep you company whereas I could be doing something more productive with my last days of life. Instead, I’m here listening to you complaining. You should loosen up and stop finding reasons to hate me.”

  “I don’t hate you,” I said. “I don’t care about you enough to hate you.”

  “Ouch!” she exclaimed, only to giggle. “You are good. I have to give you credit. You’re extremely good at pushing others away. Do you display this kind of attitude with your mate? Do you also push her away and keep your secrets to yourself?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I love my mate and we…” I stopped talking and glared at her. “You don’t have anything to do with my life. Stop prying.”

  “I’m not.”

  It seemed that she found me hilarious when I wasn’t trying to be funny. Maybe I was overreacting. “Stop talking. I’m not in the mood for small talk.”

  “You can be such a j
erk sometimes,” she complained, getting up and leaving.

  She was dead wrong if she thought I was going to run after her and apologize. I wanted to be left alone, anyway. She was doing me a favor by leaving. Silence was welcoming. I wanted to focus on my hurting heart and on what my mate must have been feeling. She was scared. I knew she was calling for me; I just couldn’t find her. As long as I could feel her, she was alive and there was a chance of saving her in time and preventing the separation.

  “You could reject her right now and get this situation over with,” Josephine said from the door, staring at me with cool eyes.

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I muttered.

  “I do. If you reject her, she’ll lose her powers. She’ll become human again, and they can’t rip her angel from her.”

  “Then, they’ll kill her as they won’t have any more use for her. Don’t you think I had others advising me to do that?”

  “Isn’t it the best option for you to stay alive?”

  I growled like a wild animal. “I love Aria. I don’t care what happens to me as long as she’s safe and unharmed. Do you understand me? So, stop finding ways to save me. I’m only interested in saving her!” I yelled the last part as I got up.

  Jo wasn’t afraid of me. She smiled as if she was pleased by what I’d said. “Now I really want to meet the girl.”

  “Why?”

  “She has two men willing to die for her. I would love to be in her shoes.”

  I frowned at her words, only to sigh and sit down on the couch. “I’m sure a lot of men have already died because of you, Josephine.”

  “Just Oliver. I’m not even sure if he died for the right reasons. Since lust isn’t the same thing as love, Cedric.” I looked at her, and she continued, “I admire your altruism, but you need to let people in and be a part of your life.”

  “Aria is a part of my life.”

  “Does she know what happened to you in the past? Did you tell her that she has a choice, that you can set her free? Does she want to be an angel?”

  Josephine’s words were like poison to me. She was manipulating me. I was sure of that.

  “You’re trying to take Aria from me, so she can be with Philippe. You know she has feelings for him.”

  “No, I don’t. Does she?”

  “He was her soulmate. He played her well and pretended to care. She’s too innocent to understand the difference between love and manipulation.”

  Josephine came closer, and I followed her feline movements. “I’ve never met Aria. I saw her at the party. Being an angel made her a real beauty.”

  “She was already beautiful,” I grumbled.

  “She was a normal girl. I’ve seen the pictures. Being an angel made her special. She’s a Red Angel. How long did you wish for her? How much were you willing to give up to find your mate?”

  Her questions were making me mad. She seemed like the serpent in the Garden of Eden. She wasn’t tempting me to do anything, but she was trying to spread doubt.

  She repeated herself, “How much are you willing to give up for her?”

  “Your questions don’t make any sense!”

  “She’s innocent and pure. You said it yourself. Are you willing to let her become a Red Angel for good?”

  “She’ll become whatever she wants to become. It’s her choice. Do you think that being a vampire would be best for her? Wouldn’t she become a predator and a killer?” I asked her.

  She was close to my face, either trying to read my mind or simply testing me. Either way, she wasn’t going to convince me to give up on Aria and leave her to Philippe.

  “Won’t she become the same thing once her angel takes over? I’ve heard rumors about the Red Angels. They’re ruthless forces of destruction. No wonder others want to get rid of her.”

  “Don’t believe everything you hear. It’s a fairytale, a myth to make others fear them. Red Angels are just more powerful than normal angels.”

  “If she’s a Red Angel, what does that makes you? You’re different from others, too.”

  “I have a different power, but I’m as powerful as she is. She’s a part of me. Her power came from me. I don’t manipulate fire, but other elements can be as deadly as fire.”

  “Are you going to start a war once you’re crowned regents?”

  “No, Josephine, I don’t intend to start wars. I intend to keep the peace.”

  “Then, remember that when you get Aria back,” she said, moving away and leaving the bedroom.

  She was odd, and I was in no mood to be questioned about my future actions by a vampire. I was more worried about finding Aria. Margaret should have sent word by now. If anything had happened to the witch, I wouldn’t know of any other way to find Aria. At least, not in time. I had packs of werewolves looking for the rogues that had taken Aria. I had my angels scattered across the city, gathering information and looking for her in abandoned buildings and known places where vampires and wolves kept their prey.

  An hour and a half of silence later, Margaret walked in.

  “I know where they have her,” she said, breathless and happy.

  I got up, and I saw Philippe behind the girl. He’d arrived home and looked as eager as I was to know what Margaret had to tell us.

  “Where is she?” Philippe asked.

  “I’ll have to show you,” Margaret said to me, ignoring Philippe. She came closer and hugged me. “Then you’ll be happy with me, won’t you? We can be together.”

  “Yes, now tell me where Aria is,” I demanded, pulling the girl away from me. I had no intention of hugging her back or pretending that she meant anything to me. She didn’t.

  “Is she okay?” Philippe asked.

  “Is she?” I asked the girl, holding her by the arms and making her look at me. “Answer me, Margaret!”

  “I don’t know. I only know where they’re keeping her,” she whispered in a sad voice, almost breaking into tears because I’d yelled at her.

  “I’ve gathered my men. Call yours, and we’ll go there and bring Aria back,” Philippe said.

  I nodded and stared into Margaret’s eyes. “Tell me where she is.”

  Half an hour later, we were in a poor part of town with old and abandoned buildings that were falling apart amongst dirty, narrow streets. The sun wasn’t totally gone from the sky. But it was dark enough for the vampires to come out and be safe in the shadows.

  I had ordered my angels to follow behind me while others scouted the premises and looked for enemies. In a few minutes, my gargoyles would wake up and join us.

  Whoever had taken Aria was inside the building at the end of the road. It was the one with dark doors and barricaded windows.

  “How do you want your humans, dead or alive?” Philippe said, his voice disturbing the silence.

  “Do you think there are humans inside?” I asked him. I wasn’t counting on it.

  “I don’t know. I wanted to know if we can kill or not,” he said, shrugging. “Mutts, humans, or warlocks, you have to decide now if you want them dead or alive.”

  “We should keep prisoners to interrogate them,” I said.

  “I already know who did this to Aria. But if you want prisoners, then prisoners I’ll give you.” Turning around, he spoke to his men, “No killing unless you don’t have any other option. And if you find specters,” he added, holding to his sword tighter, “use iron to make them disappear.”

  “Philippe,” I called, holding on to his arm, “you better tell me who’s behind this. I’m going to come after him once I get Aria back.”

  “I can tell you where you can find him,” he said with a serious face. “But for now, let’s concentrate on saving Aria and finding out who the creator of Clarity is.”

  “Margaret said she was in the building in front of us.”

  “I’m sure there are a lot more enemies in the surrounding buildings,” he retorted.

  “My angels will have our backs while we raid the building to find Aria.”


  “Your angels are worthless against specters.”

  “I’m not,” I told him, letting my eyes glow as my wings unfolded behind my back. “Let’s stop chitchatting and save Aria.” I lifted off the ground.

  I motioned my men to enter the buildings and find our enemies while I flew to the building where Aria was. Philippe was already in front of the door, looking for a way to go in without making too much noise. Silence was important so as not to scare the ones who had Aria. They might kill her if they knew they were surrounded. But the silence around us was disturbing. I hoped that Aria was there, and we weren’t in the wrong place.

  Chapter TWENTY-ONE

  ARIA

  The pain was unbearable. I kept going in and out of consciousness. I had no idea how long I was there. My mind was being overrun with the screams of my angel, and my body was sore and aching. I sat in an uncomfortable chair with rope around my ankles, my knees, and my waist. My hands were behind my back being burned by the rope that I was trying to get free of. I had a rag in my mouth preventing me from screaming and breathing properly. I tried to get rid of the ropes and the rag. It was instinct. I wanted to get free no matter how much it hurt. I needed to remove that magical symbol from my chest and escape from that creepy, dark room, where the rotten smell was too much to endure. In the back of the destroyed and decrepit place, I could discern a form—a statue of some sort.

  Salt burned my eyes from the tears that I cried once I’d woken up alone, aching, and cold. My body wasn’t healing from the accident, but the worst was that I had no idea if my family was dead or alive. I didn’t know what my kidnappers had done to them. I also didn’t know why they’d taken me and what they wanted from me. Is Cedric looking for me? He should be. I had to believe he was and that he was going to find me. They hadn’t killed me, so they wanted something.

  Somehow they’d locked my angel away in me, making it impossible to use my powers. I wished I could burst into flames and get out of there. I couldn’t, and knowing that my angel was in pain because of the symbol on my chest made me feel even more powerless. And if no one finds me? If so, does that mean I’m going to die here? I’d been faced with the possibility of dying twice in the same month. What are the odds?