Second Sight (Sojourner Series Book 3)

by Maria Rachel Hooley

  “He’s here.” Kane’s voice is too calm. He should be worried about Lev, but he isn’t, and that doesn’t make sense. Isn’t that why we’re here?

  “I can’t see anything.”

  “Allow me to help.”

  Suddenly the lights flare to life, and I blink, unprepared. Ahead is the dagger, waiting for me to pick it up, but I’m not sure I should. Lev is sitting in a chair, a silver cord tangling around his body. His head droops forward in an unconscious slump, and there’s blood all over his face and hands.

  Gasping, I look up to find the other angels—Kane, Colin, Sarah, and Jayzee standing on the running track overhead. They’re stationed around the track, probably to make sure they won’t have a bit of trouble catching me should I decide to run. And although that is troubling, there is something far more disturbing—their wings are not white but a dark grey, the color of ash.

  “You said Jayzee was in danger.”

  “She is. Just not at present. You see, your little boyfriend over there has caused lots of problems for us, and if we don’t do something, it’s only going to get worse. So how about you pick up the dagger, Lizzie,” Kane says, leaning on the rail. “And finish the job.”

  “No.” I say, shaking my head vehemently.

  He laughs and points a finger at me. “Trust me, you won’t like it if I have to force you. Remember that. Now pick up the blade.” His voice is loud, daunting.

  I fold my arms across my chest, watching Lev from my peripheral vision. How badly is he hurt, I wonder. “I’m not going to do your dirty work. And you can’t do it yourself.”

  Kane shakes his head and he exchanges glances with Colin. “All right, Lizzie. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  From the corner of my eye, I see a couple of people entering the court and I turn. It’s Theresa. Her wings are finally apparent, ash-grey like the rest of them. She’s holding Jimmie in front of her, a knife to his throat and a smirk on her face. Jimmie’s body sags, pale and weak. I called 911, but what happened? What did she do?

  “You sure about it, Lizzie? You see, if I don’t get what I want, you and everyone you love dies. We start with Jimmie and then go to Griffin. Of course, you’ll be next because you just don’t seem to have much of a life. Is that what you want?”

  Theresa probes Jimmie’s neck, drawing a small bead of blood. His half-closed lids widen slightly, and his whole body tenses as he gasps. When she releases the point from his skin, he slips back into semi-consciousness with his head drooped forward.

  “Time is of the essence here, Lizzie.” Kane leans on the railing again, fingers laced together. His dark wings twitch, hinting at his impatience.

  Chapter Twenty

  I feel them looking at me. A coldness rushes through me, and my body starts shaking so violently I almost drop the dagger again. Gritting my teeth, I look at Lev, so still and alone. And it’s all my fault.

  I shake my head. “Why? Why Lev?”

  “I can’t tell you what a thorn he’s been in our sides, this past decade especially. And when Evan realized that we were the ones stealing souls instead of escorting them to the next world, well, we decided to step up the game, and poor Lev was an easy mark. He was so worried about you that he stole the dagger from Evan in exchange for our help without realizing the dagger could kill us. The problem is Evan can still be objective enough to destroy us because he ‘loves us all with the grace of our father.’ But after you kill Lev, he won’t be so objective. Do you have any idea how long it will take to get another angel down here who has enough control to do this job? Decades. By then it’ll be too late.” He offers a smirk. “Now you know. Do you feel better?”

  Unable to answer, I close my eyes and think, You knew this all the time, Lev. You knew and tried to tell me, and I didn’t listen. This is all my fault.

  There’s no time, Elizabeth. It’s Lev’s voice, weak and soft in my thoughts. I stiffen and force myself not to look at him, afraid Kane or Colin will understand the connection Lev and I have, the only way we have left to stop this.

  What do I do? He’s got a plan, I tell myself. I know he’s got a plan, and whatever it is, he will be able to fix everything somehow.

  You must free one of my hands, then take the dagger and pierce my heart. The blow must be quick and sure.

  No, I think, and the dagger falls from my grip. I look at Lev, but he isn’t moving. I won’t.

  A streak of light from the side launches toward me, and when it strikes, pain explodes through me, forcing me to my knees. “Pick up the dagger, Lizzie,” Theresa seethes. “It’s time to finish this. Before I finish you.”

  You must do this, Lev says in my mind. Evan and Celia are coming, but there isn’t enough time, and they won’t be able to get to the dagger with the others so close. They do not understand the stabbing is what activates the blade. But it won’t just be me who dies. When it enters my body, the light will go through me as a blameless sacrifice for their evil. When the light comes, so will the purity. That will be their undoing. But they do not know this. You have no choice. Now free my hand. It must be with yours when you strike the blow, or the light will not come for them.

  Tears stream down my face. Another bolt of light strikes, and I gasp. Then I know there is no choice. There is no way to avoid this fate.

  “I’m losing patience, Lizzie. Perhaps I’m giving you the wrong motivation.” Theresa turns toward Jimmie, and the light sears a path to him. He shudders as the brilliance consumes him, and his body sags. Had Theresa not still been holding him, he would have fallen to the ground.

  “Stop it!” I yell, grabbing the dagger. “I’ll do what you want.” I’m crying so hard I can’t see. Everything blurs together. I feel the pearl grip in my palm and crawl towards Lev. I know he’s only pretending to be unconscious, but seeing him appear so vulnerable shatters me. I cry even harder. I touch his leg, half expecting he will stir, but he doesn’t, even as I slowly make my way to a kneeling position beside him. My throat is so try, and I can barely control my hands as I fumble with the cord.

  “What are you doing, my lovely?” Kane demands. “I said kill him, not untie him.” I feel him glaring at me, and the weight of his gaze splinters my resolve, making me stop.

  “I am going to kill him. I just want to hold his hand once before I do. It’s not like you couldn’t stop him if you wanted. How many angels would it take for that—especially considering I’m only a mortal?”

  He narrows his eyes, scrutinizing my expression. I know he’s looking for reasons not to trust me, but he can’t seem to find them, no matter how diligently he looks. Finally, he smiles and shakes his head. “All right, Lizzie. You have a point. Lev stands no chance of freedom, no matter what you do, so be brief in getting it out of your system.

  Nodding, I turn my focus back to slipping Lev’s hand free. It’s not so hard, really, suggesting the cord isn’t supernatural. As I touch his hand, I realize the warmth I remember from his skin is too weak; a clamminess coats his flesh. Once his hand slips into mine, I lower my face to it and stroke my cheek with it.

  I love you, I think. I’ve always loved you. I was just so hurt and angry.

  I know, he whispers in my thoughts. Now you have to get on with this.

  For a moment, I stay in that position then finally sit up. I look around at the angels perched around the track above before I take the dagger to enclose it in Lev’s fist. I know the angels are watching, but they don’t react. Maybe they think this is a vengeance thing. I don’t care. I just have to get through this, one way or another.

  More tears. There will never be enough for this. I look at Lev’s face and lower my head to his to his cheek. As my face gets close to his, I see, for the first time, Lev’s eyes slowly flutter open and peer at me. The brilliant blue is faded, probably from whatever the other angels have done to him. His lips slowly tug into a smile before he blinks and I kiss him; he closes his eyes to resume the part.

  I shudder and draw back.

  You have to
do this, Elizabeth, he whispers in my head.

  What if I can’t?

  Then Jimmie and Griffin will die. So will others, and Colin and Kane will either hide or destroy the dagger before Evan can use it. You have to do it. Kane was right. You are the only one who can.

  I don’t answer, probably because my voice has completely left me. His fingers clench the blade, and mine wrap around his hand. While it probably looks like I am the one raising the blade, it’s actually Lev. My hand is riding the will of his motion, not the other way around.

  When our arms rise fully into the air, that’s when I make my decision. As the blade descends, I feel Lev trying to slow the arc as his thoughts probe my mind and my thoughts reveal my intent. He’s too weak to stop me, but his screams suddenly break the silence as I impale myself.

  The pain and light wash over me simultaneously, and I gasp as both consume me. Heat—the world is made of heat. I hear so many screams, and it occurs to me one of them is mine. Lev is screaming my name. His is the loudest of them, and I can hear the fear in his voice.

  I slip to the floor, my gaze lowering to the dagger protruding from my chest. Neither my hand nor Lev’s remains on the blade. The damage has been done. The world dwindles to breath, light, and blood. I watch the scarlet ebb from my chest and spatter the polished wood. Some part of me distantly wonders if the blood will stain the floor, and how long this will remain a crime scene before someone is allowed to wipe away the traces of what happened here tonight. I touch the area around the knife, coating my fingers in blood. Absently, I brush them across my jeans, trying to clean them.

  A lightheadedness washes over me. Lev’s arms encircle me, and he leans close so the side of his face touches my forehead. His hands support me.

  “How did you get free?” I whisper. Even talking is hard.

  “When you activated the blade. Why did you do this?” He slips his arm beneath my legs and scoops me up though I’m weightless, and that’s how I feel. The world is spinning so much I clench my eyes, trying to shut it out. As he cradles me, I lean against him, grateful for the warmth. I’m cold. Probably blood loss.

  “What’s going on?” I ask, aware that even if I open my eyes, all I’ll see is the light surrounding me. “What of the other angels?”

  He nods. “The light has swallowed Colin and Kane. Jayzee and Sarah may yet survive because there is yet goodness within them.” Lev’s voice dwindles, and I feel his body rippling beneath me.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “So sorry.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” He kisses my forehead, and I feel moisture touch my cheek. At first, I think I’m crying, but another drop spatters my skin, and I realize it’s Lev’s.

  “I guess you’re going to carry my soul again.” My voice is ragged with pain, and my body clenches. I groan.

  “Don’t say that,” Lev manages, his voice less than restrained. “I’m not carrying your soul. This was a mistake, and somehow I’ll will fix it. It was supposed to be me.”

  I feel a sudden shift in temperature, suggesting we’re are no longer inside. The cold consuming me has grown much worse, and I tremble even harder, my teeth chattering. I know it’s the blood loss, it has to be.

  “No, you saved me last time when it should have been me. This time, it was my turn. I would have done anything for you, especially after I realized just how much Kane had twisted things. How could I have believed him?”

  “Your mind was not your own, Lizzie. You had no choice, not considering the strength of an angel’s will. Had it ever occurred to me you might hurt yourself, I would have controlled your mind instead of suffering this.”

  The blackness is reaching for me, and I feel my body start to give in even as Lev suddenly starts into flight, his body a missile headed directly into the heavens.

  “Lizzie, you have to stay awake. I need you with me.” Lev’s lips touch my forehead.

  “I’m tired,” I whisper.

  “I know.” His voice is broken and desperate, which is enough to hold onto consciousness in spite of the pain.

  “Where are we going?” I whisper.

  “You’ll see.” He looks at me, his eyes frantic as he sees all the blood. It oozes from my body like there is no end to it, and I want to ask how all of that fit inside, but it’s getting so all I can do is focus on breathing.

  “I never should have doubted you,” I whisper.

  “It’s doesn’t matter,” he says.

  I stare at him, trying to keep his face in focus, but it blurs, and the pain is so excruciating now even breathing hurts. I don’t know how much longer I can take it. I need to rest.

  “Lizzie!” I hear distantly. “We’re here. Wake up!”

  I know Lev wants me with him, but I don’t think I can fight the darkness. It’s warm and inviting, and for the first time, I’m unafraid.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Elizabeth? Can you hear me?” The voice is distant, worried. Lev’s voice. I slowly open my eyes, half-expecting pain or darkness. Instead I find the sun, a bright jewel in a cloudless velvet drape of blue. The brilliant light makes me blink and shield my eyes.

  “There you are,” he whispers from where he leans over me. It takes a moment for me to figure out he’s lying beside me, propping himself on one elbow as the other hand lazily strokes my face.

  “Yeah.” Even as I speak, I hear another sound, something comforting in the background, like a white noise. Frowning, I cock my head to the side and listen, trying to identify it.

  “Elizabeth?” Lev asks, his hand pausing mid-caress.

  “What is that?”

  Lev flinches, and his whole body tenses. He swallows hard and forces a smile. “The ocean.”

  “The ocean? I’ve never seen the ocean!” I sit up, looking for the water, and just as Lev promised, it’s there, a few yards away, the tide dragging driftwood in toward the shore.

  Up and down the coast, the sand is a blank canvas, begging for me to stir to life with my feet. I look in the opposite direction of the sea and find small sand dunes rising around us, and stretches of tall grass clustered in bleached stands. Far down the coast stands a lone lighthouse, an ancient and watchful sentinel.

  “Look!” I say, laughing. “A lighthouse. I love lighthouses.”

  Lev pulls me to my feet and walks beside me, a gentle breeze wafts through his golden hair. He wears white jeans and a white button-down shirt. His skin is dark, as though he’s spent most of his life beneath this kind of a sun, full of warmth and beauty. There’s never been anyone as perfect as he is, a realization that steals my breath.

  “Elizabeth,” he says, trying to still me. But I want to see the water.

  “Where are we?” I ask, dropping his hand, whirling. I’m wearing a white sundress that balloons in the salt air as I spin, my arms outstretched to the sides, taking in the breeze caressing my skin.

  “Somewhere safe,” Lev finally answers. His shoulders are bowed, and I wonder if he still feels the weight of the world pressing down upon them. “Elizabeth, we need to talk.” He tries to take my hand, but I dodge him.

  “You’ll have to catch me first,” I squeal and race toward the shoreline, ready to plunge my bare feet into the surf.

  “There’s no time,” he argues, looking at the sky. “Please.”

  His eyes beg me, but I start running, gesturing for him to follow. His shoulders droop, and he finally shakes his head in defeat and chases after me. I squeal and run faster, knowing he’s right behind me. Despite his somber mood, he smiles when he latches onto me.

  We both tumble in the sand. I land on my back, and he lands on top so all I see his face, particularly those striking blue eyes which seem to radiate the light. We end up in the path of the tide. It washes over our bodies, cool and refreshing.

  In his eyes, I yet see a timeless pain that transcends everything. His lips part, and his breath emerges in a heated stutter. Even like this, his urgent control remains, and his eyes resemble a storm-tossed sea.

  For a
moment, we linger there before his head slowly dips, inching toward me until our lips touch—a light brushing that burns through me. It begins feather-light before deepening, the urgency matching the darkness in his eyes. It’s fed not by hunger but fear, and though Lev’s gentle kisses leave my heart racing, his troubled brow makes my mind wonder all the same.

  Ducking his head, he rolls to the side and forces himself to stand before offering me a hand. I slip my palm into his and feel his strength. He pulls me upright, his fingers lingering upon mine, unwilling to let go.

  The wind suddenly picks up, and although I’ve enjoyed the warmth till now, the wind carries a coolness and the scent of rain, though the blue sky seems unhindered. The wind abruptly touches the places where the ocean has soaked my clothes, and I shiver.

  He frowns, and the expression furrows worry lines in his forehead; he wraps his arms around me until his warmth and skin are all that I can feel. I’m not sure I want to ask what troubles him. It’s not that it doesn’t bother me because it weighs just as heavily on me; the thing is, if an angel is worried, it’s probably not something I’m going to like or be able to change.

  “You want to walk over?” I nod to the lighthouse.

  He stops suddenly, halting us. “I will, if you want. But first we need to talk.” His gaze drifts to the sky, where we see a grey unfurling across the heavens, following the track of a growing storm. For a second, he closes his eyes with his head yet tilted upwards. He slowly lowers his chin, and his eyelids flutter open, the ocean of his eyes encompassing me.

  “Why?” I feel the dread surrounding us both, and I’m afraid to give in to it.

  “Because you have to make a decision—and it has to be now.” His voice is shaking, and he reaches for my hands.

  “About what?”

  He takes a ragged breath. “Elizabeth, I can’t sugar-coat this. Right now, I’m what’s tethering you to your body.” His expression changes to one of pure agony, and as he winces. “I can’t seem to let you go.” His eyes are frantic and moist as they dart from my face to the ground and back again. “You’re body is broken, and you are in so much pain I can’t stand it.”