by Jane Hinchey
“I’m here to deliver a message.” His voice was as cold as ice, not the warm, friendly, funny Dacian that I remembered so fondly.
“Which is?” I sighed, planning a trip to Heaven to bang my brother's heads together…just what were they doing up there?
“Return to Hell. Immediately. You have no place on Earth.”
“No can do, my friend.” I spun on my heel and began walking toward the cemetery gate. “In case my brothers haven’t noticed, there’s a soul stealer on the loose.”
“An evil creature of your own creation that you intentionally brought to this plane.”
“Are you friggin serious?” I glanced over my shoulder at him following behind me. “Did you have a blow to the head?”
“You are ordered to return to the underworld,” he grated, anger coloring his words.
“I take orders from no one. Least of all you and my pathetic brothers.” His hand clamping down hard on my shoulder stopped me in my tracks. He spun me around to face him, his wings extended behind him, magnificent and splendid in their blazing white. Only he held them in an attack pose. Oh really? He wanted to rumble? Bring it on! I extend my own wings, six foot either side, my once-white feathers now black with flames dancing across the surface. You get that after millennia in hell.
“What happened to your wings?” His frown was back, but at least the sight of my wings had thrown him off his intention of fighting with me.
“They evolved. Working in Hell with all the flames, fire and soot, it’s impossible to keep anything clean. Black is the new white.”
“And the flames?”
“I’m the Devil.” I shrugged. My flames only burnt if I wished them to, which was never. But they were intimidating and made a good threat. Some of the truly evil souls were hard to crack and it took displays of my strength and power to break them. But to repent for your sins, you had to be broken down so that you could be rebuilt.
“Are you going to return to Hell?”
“Nope.”
He launched at me, but I danced out of the way. I was quicker, faster, more experienced than he’d ever been. True, he’d taught me how to spar. Once. And then the student had become the teacher. It made my heart ache to think he didn’t remember any of it, of our time together, our friendship. And it puzzled me why. Angels didn’t suffer memory loss. Something had happened to him, and I needed to find out what.
My own pondering was my downfall. While I was distracted he tackled me to the ground, spear diving me. His arms wrapped around my waist and we slid along the ground, my wings dragging in the gravel, stinging. He brought one white wing around in front to press against my throat while he straddled me. A wave of sadness filled me, not that we were fighting or that I was worried he would hurt me, but that the Dacian I knew and loved had changed so much. Of all the things, that was what hurt.
“Your eyes,” he muttered, frowning.
“What about them?” I pouted.
“They look…sad.”
“I am sad.” I agreed with his assessment.
“Because I beat you?” he gloated.
“Pft. You haven’t beaten me, Angel. I’m sad that you don’t remember me. Our past.”
He stiffened. “Your lies again.”
“No. Not lies, Dacian. How would I know your name if we hadn’t met before?”
“Spies.”
“I’m far too busy running my own plane to worry about yours, sweetheart. Why would I bother spying on you or my brothers?”
He seemed at a loss, thinking about what I said.
“Let me try something,” I asked.
“What?” He eyed me suspiciously.
“Trust me.”
“You can’t be trusted.”
“Just let me try this one thing. I promise I won’t hurt you or try and get away.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Move your wing from my throat.”
He looked down at me for several moments before slowly removing his wing. I reached up and gently laid my hands on his cheeks and pulled his head toward me. Rising up to meet him, I settled my lips softly against his and projected all of my memories of us to him. The fun we’d had, the laughter, games, and over time—attraction. The day he’d stolen a kiss. Our mutual delight. I stopped the memories there, didn’t share with him the chaos over what had happened in the Garden of Eden, the betrayal of my brothers, my heartache at leaving him. Slowly I released him from my hold and lay back on the ground watching as he closed his eyes for a moment.
“You planted those visions. They aren’t memories, just your twisted fantasies.”
“You’re trying my patience, Dacian,” I growled, flipping him off me and rising to my feet. This time it was my wing pressed against his throat, the flames dancing across his skin, yet not burning.
“Tell my brothers this. I will not be returning to Hell until the soul stealer is dealt with. End of story. If you’re not here to assist, don’t bother coming back.”
4
With a flap of my wings, I materialized in front of the police station. I strolled inside, smiling at the officer behind the front counter who reacted by drawing a gun and pointing it at me.
“Freeze!” she yelled, then over her shoulder, “She’s here. Out front. Backup!” The foyer was suddenly a bustle of activity. Another office flung open a side door and ran toward me, spun me into the wall and clapped handcuffs around my wrists. I bit back a smile, letting them think they had the upper hand, that they had me under control. Jared appeared, frowning at me.
“How did you get out?” he demanded.
“I flew out,” I told him.
“Flew out?”
“With my wings?” I wiggled one shoulder at him.
“If you could fly, why would you come back?”
“Because we have unfinished business, Detective. There’s a soul stealer on the loose. This isn’t the time for bailing.”
He sighed and ran a hand around the back of his neck.
“Put her in interview room two.”
The officer who’d cuffed me grabbed me by the upper arm and dragged me through the station to a door with the number two stenciled on it. Pushing me inside, he closed the door with a terse, “Stay put.”
I slipped the cuffs off and laid them on the table before sliding onto the rather uncomfortable chair they’d provided. It was warm in the room, my leather pants, bustier, and coat soon sticking to my skin. In the blink of an eye, I switched outfits into a figure-hugging Alexander McQueen red dress that had cut-out sides and stopped several inches above my knees. Louis Vuitton heels in the exact same shade of my dress encased my feet.
An energy thrummed through the building, making the hairs on my arms stand on end. It could only mean one thing. The girls were here. And if I could feel them, well, I had to assume the soul stealer could as well. I’d have to remedy that, pronto. While it was tempting to leave the station and begin the search for the items I’d need for a couple of warding talismans, I didn’t want to give the detective a brain aneurysm, so for the moment, I sat tight. While I waited, I listened to the girls giving their statements, their descriptions of last night’s events matching what Ruby had already told me.
A couple of hours had passed when I felt the girls’ energy shift and move. Then I could hear the detective explaining to them he wanted them to see me, identify me as the person they’d seen at the cemetery. I plastered a bored look on my face and sat staring at the wall, knowing they were observing me through the two-way mirror. I turned and looked their way, studying them as the studied me, the mirror useless against me. They were pretty. One had short dark hair cut in a bob, her skin a tanned mocha. She was tall and slim, her dark eyes reflecting her pain, her cheeks tear-streaked. The girl next to her was a similar height and build, her skin was pale, her brown hair hung long and straight almost to her waist. She trembled ever so slightly.
“Brianna? Do you recognize her?” The detective addressed the short-haired girl. Brianna. I fi
led her name away.
“No. It definitely wasn’t her. It was a man, I’m sure of it. Tall and very broad. Huge.”
“Sarah? What about you?”
“It wasn’t her. We’ve already told you.”
“Have you seen this woman before?”
“Never. She wasn’t at the cemetery. Not when we were there.” Sarah swiped a tear from her cheek, turning to the older woman standing behind them. “Can we go home now, Mom?”
“Sure, honey, if it’s okay with the detective.”
“Yes, you can go. Call me if you remember anything else. No matter how small or incidental a detail might be, it can all help.”
“Sure,” Sarah all but whispered, then wrapped her arms around Brianna, hugging her tight.
“Come on, girls. I’ll drop you home to your gran, Brianna.” Sarah’s mother ushered them away.
The door opened and the detective stood frowning at me.
“What happened to your clothes?” he demanded. His voice may have been curt, but the look on his face as his eyes traveled the length of my body was one of appreciation.
I shrugged. “It was getting hot in here. I changed.”
“How? You didn’t have anything with you when we brought you in.”
I crossed the room and patted his cheek. “Don’t stress, Detective, my clothing is the least of your worries. So I take it I’m free to go? Brianna and Sarah confirmed I wasn’t the one who hurt their friend.”
“How did you know that? This room is virtually soundproof.”
“Not to these angel ears.” I smiled again, then shuffled past him in the open doorway.
“As much as I’d love to hang around and chat, Detective, those girls are still in danger. I need to rustle up a couple of talismans to protect them.” I could feel his eyes boring into my back as I walked away.
Outside it was a beautiful day, the chill of the night forgotten with the rising of the sun. Summer wasn’t far away. I stood for a moment to get my bearings. The police station stood opposite the town hall, in between was the town square, as if the two buildings were standing sentinel over the picturesque marquee in the middle of the square. All around were quaint shops, cafes, hair salons. Shadow Falls was a very picturesque town. I liked it. I crossed the road to the town square. Keeping my eyes peeled, I wandered along, letting the warmth of the sun sink into my skin. It wasn’t until I was here on Earth, breathing in the air, feeling the breeze in my hair and the warmth of the sun that I realized how much I’d missed it. Hell was a whole lot warmer, but we didn’t have the sun. Our skies were a perpetual swirl of orange, red and pink clouds, mystically lit. We didn’t have seasons; it was constant.
Finally, I saw what I was looking for. The Black Hat. Not literally a black hat, but a new age shop with purple signage of an eighteenth-century woman in a long dress complete with bustle, parasol, and black hat. As I pushed open the door, the bell above it jangled, announcing my presence.
From the back of the shop, a voice rang out. “Be with you in a minute.”
“Take your time, Levi,” I called back. Levi Forrester, clairvoyant, twenty-eight human years, hundreds as an old soul. A man I was very interested to meet. A man who had me curious. A man who’d sent me a vision, connecting with me from a different realm.
He poked his head around a shelf to eyeball me, then stepped forward. His brown hair was cut short in back, but longer in front and brushed up into some sort of messy quaff. His eyes were the same as when I’d seen them on the monitor, a gorgeous shade of hazel mixed with gold, and he still sported the light beard that I had a sudden desire to run my fingers over. Wearing jeans and a T-shirt, well-worn Converse on his feet, he was the exact opposite of Detective Jared Morrison, who while very pleasant to look at in his crisp suit, was nothing compared to what the sight of Levi Forrester did to my insides. My attraction to him was immediate and I wondered if it was due to his clairvoyant abilities, the otherworldly nature of it, for I could feel it on him and it made me want to purr.
“How do you know my name?” he asked, stepping forward, his eyes running over me, the gold in them smoldering, the flash of desire unguarded. My heart leaped in my chest and I placed a hand over it, the unbidden reaction surprised me.
“I know most things.” I shrugged. “I’m Lucifer. Call me Lucy.”
“You’re…you’re…a woman.” He blew out a surprised breath.
“Correct.” I waited patiently for him to gather his thoughts. I knew everyone thought Lucifer was a male, thrown out of Heaven to the depths of Hell for his sins. Truth be told, that was a load of bullshit made up by my brothers. Unfortunately, that old wives’ tale stuck.
You want to know the true story? The truth was after God created Heaven and Earth and gave his precious little humans free will, well, certain individuals chose the evil path. So when their time on Earth was up, they ended up in Heaven with all the angelic souls, wreaking havoc. God realized his mistake and subsequently created Hell, where souls could be punished for their misdeeds. It also ensured that those in Heaven behaved themselves. And he asked me to run it. I was not thrown out of Heaven. I was promoted.
“Is God a woman?” Levi asked.
“No.” I shook my head.
“There goes that theory,” he cursed, wiping his palms on his thighs.
“It would’ve been nice, I agree.”
“So you are Lucifer. Lucy. The fallen angel.”
It was my time to sigh and shake my head. “Not fallen. I’m still an archangel. I rule Hell. I ensure you are punished for your sins before you can ascend to Heaven. It is an honor, not a banishment.”
“Right!” His smile was dazzling. “That makes perfect sense.”
I smiled in return, pleased he’d believed me. Though why it mattered whether a human believed me or not I couldn’t say. Who was I kidding? Of course, it mattered what Levi thought of me. I was drawn to him like a magnet. That not only intrigued me, it brought out my feminine sensibilities. I wanted him to like me.
“The detectives have a bigger problem believing me.”
“Who? Jared and Nic?” At my nod, he rushed on. “Jared’s okay. Sometimes he just needs a little time to get his head around things, but he’s fairly open. I’ve worked with him a time or two. As for Nic? She’s tighter than a ducks ass. She’s a by-the-book, do-not-deviate, no-shades-of-gray type gal.”
“Yeah, I got that.” I laughed.
“So…” He paused and looked me up and down and I felt the heat radiate from his gaze, “Not to be rude or anything, but what are you doing here? In my shop?” he clarified.
“You sent me a message, Levi.”
“I did?” I wasn’t surprised by his surprise. He had no idea how strong or deep his powers were.
“You saw the death of the girl. Emily Barlow. You projected it to me.”
He wiped a hand around the back of his neck and blew out a breath. “That was intense! I was doing a reading for a client and BOOM, it hit me. I could sense something, I don’t know what, then I saw her body fall. She was dead before she hit the ground.”
“Did you see the soul stealer?”
“I saw a dark, shadowy figure wearing a long black cloak with a hood obscuring his face. He grabbed the girl by the neck and kissed her. And she dropped down dead.”
I nodded. That matched what the two teenagers, Sarah and Brianna, had said.
“He’s a soul stealer? For real?” Levi asked.
“Yes. From a pocket dimension. They unwittingly summoned him with a séance out at the cemetery.”
“Oh man, these kids messing about in stuff they don’t understand. Haven’t they watched enough horror movies to know that contacting the dead can have some serious negative juju?” He ran his hands through his hair in apparent frustration. I couldn’t disagree with him. Nor could I take my eyes off him. “Anyway, to get back to your question. I felt him, like a tug on my magic, so I tuned in to see if I could channel what was going on. That’s when I saw what happened. Then it
ended, but suddenly there was a flash of brilliant energy. Nearly knocked me out, but I couldn’t see what it was.”
“Probably me arriving,” I told him.
“That explains it.” He nodded. “I’ve felt you ever since. You’re like an electrical hum.”
“I can feel you too, which is one of the reasons why I’m here.”
“Oh?” I almost told him of the delicious feelings he was arousing in me but swallowed them down. My libido may be raging but lives were at stake, I scolded myself. “We need to make a couple of talismans to protect the remaining girls. He’ll come back for them. He needs to take their souls to bind himself to this plane permanently. We can’t allow that to happen. The only way to protect them is to hide them from him.”
Levi shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Just tell me what you need.”
The talismans were deceptively simple to make. A leather cord and a blue crystal, one for each bracelet, which I subsequently infused with my power. When they were complete I held them up in my hand.
“Perfect! Now to get them to the girls.”
“I can take you. I know where Sarah lives and Brianna is probably with her.”
I waited while Levi locked up his shop, then followed him outside. A dented old Volkswagen van was parked out the back and I sank into the passenger seat, admiring the old car.
“Picked it up for five hundred bucks—can you believe it?” he told me, turning the key in the ignition. The engine fired to life, settling into a soft rumble.
“I’m going to do it up one day, total engine rebuild, bodywork, paint, and upholstery job. It’ll cost a bit, but it’ll be worth it.” Levi lovingly patted a hand on the dashboard.
I failed to see why a human would bond with a vehicle, but Levi and his van clearly had one, so who was I to rubbish it? I smiled and settled back, listening to his chatter as we drove through the streets before pulling up ten minutes later in front of a standard suburban home. Something about being near Levi was soothing to me, and again I wondered about the strange connection I had with him. I looked at him as we climbed out of the van, his loose-limbed walk, the way the breeze ruffled his hair. When he caught me looking he raised a brow and his lip curled up in a grin and I wanted to touch him. Reach out my hand and run my fingers across those lips. Press my own lips against his and see what he tasted like.