by Idella Breen
June grabbed my arm. “No, Eliza! What are you saying?”
I tried to break free from her grasp, but her grip was iron. I turned back to Death. “There must be something you want?”
“What exactly is it that you want?” He asked in his bored tone.
I glanced back at June. She was pleading with her eyes, but I had to do this. For my sake; for her sake. I turned back to Death. “I want you to free us.”
“Free you?”
“Yes.”
He paused, and I watched as some strange emotion entered his eyes. It was something sinister. Something cold and slimy.
“A contract to free yourself from your job as the Lamb of Essence.” He stated.
I nodded. “That’s right.”
He held out his hand.
“And you can’t hurt June ever again.”
Death nodded. “Let us shake on it then.”
I stepped forward but was held back. I met stormy gray eyes. “Let go.”
Her gaze hardened but her voice was steady. “No.”
“June, let go.”
“You don’t know what you're doing. I’d rather be beaten for all of the eternity then let you shake his hand.”
I could feel the familiar sting in the corners of my eyes. “Please, June. Let me do this for you.”
She shook her head. “Never.”
Tears began to fall down my cheeks. “Let go.”
She didn’t reply, but her grip tightened almost painfully.
“This won’t do. Interference is not allowed.” Death clapped his hands twice and suddenly June was on the other side of the room being held by two burly men with bone masks. Henchmen. I mused.
“Eliza, shall we?” His apathetic tone had something hidden in it that made me hesitate a moment. With one last look at June, I stepped forward.
“Don’t do it Eliza! Don’t you dare shake his hand!” Her usually quiet voice was harsh and threatening. I could hear her struggling to break free even as I reached out and shook the pale and cold hand of Death. Something bit me as our hands met and I jerked mine back tucking it into my chest.
“Ow! What was that?”
“What?” He tilted his head.
“You bit me!” I held my hand out as proof.
He didn’t even look down. “No, I didn't.”
“It’s right-” I looked down only to see unbroken skin. The only proof I had that I didn’t imagine the incident was the throbbing pain left behind.
“But-”
Death cut me off by clapping again, and I turned to see June alone, once again studying the carpet.
“Now that you have signed with blood, the contract will not fade; you are under Death’s dominion until Death is remade.”
I met the bored gaze of Death and watched in terror as he smiled wickedly for a moment before it was gone and all that remained was apathy.
“What was that?”
He shrugged. “I’m required by the contract to say it. But, onto more important things. You have a job to do.”
“A job?”
“I have some things I want to be acquired and you must both get them for me or I can’t uphold my end of the contract.”
“But I didn’t sign anything.”
He absently waved his hand. “Do you want your contract upheld or not?”
“What exactly do I get out of it?”
“Didn’t you clearly state your terms?”
“But I didn’t get to see them in writing.”
He nodded. “One doesn’t always get what one wants.”
“But-” I was cut off by June gently touching my shoulder. She didn’t look at me but instead met Death’s gaze. “What do you need?”
He sighed. “A tear from an archangel and the blood of the Morning Star.”
June nodded, “Is that all?”
“That is all that I require.”
“Are we now free to leave?”
He shrugged. “I suppose.”
June grabbed my hand and dragged me out of Death’s office. She continued to drag me all the way to the elevator in silence. When the doors opened, she glared at the people still in it. “Get out!”
They scurried like ants. Then she all but threw me into it. I stumbled inside catching my balance on the bar. “Hey! What was that for?”
She turned her back to me and pushed the button for the lobby.
“I’m talking to you!” I reached for her shoulder only for her to spin around and push me up against the back of the elevator. Her eyes were like a raging storm as they bore into mine.
“June?” I whispered.
She glared, pushing her body further into mine. Then she was kissing me. Her mouth was claiming mine and forcing her tongue into my warm depths. June held my hand's prisoner, with one of her’s, against the wall. I groaned as the other trailed under my shirt and lightly scratched her fingernail along my stomach. She nipped at my lip while pushing her hips into mine.
I was lost in her relentless onslaught of my mouth, but every time I tried to touch her, to pull her closer or push her away I wasn’t sure, she would push my hands away. A carnal sound escaped my lips when a firm thigh settled between my legs.
“June!” I moaned and couldn’t stop myself from grinding helplessly against her.
Then, she was gone. It was like having ice water dumped on me. She was missing, and I was a panting mess. I struggled to keep my balance and looked up at her only to be met with her back once again.
“What-” The doors opened, and she walked off leaving me and my racing heart to chase after her.
“June! Wait!” I jogged to catch up with her. I only managed to do so once we were outside the building and I grabbed her hand. She slowed her gait to a stop. “June what was-”
I spun her around again only to see the woman; I had come to associate with unshakable strength, crying. Big fat tears were flowing down her face. I was at a loss for words. She continued to cry silent tears as we stood outside in the courtyard that surrounded the building.
“June,” I whispered and reached out to cup her face.
“I…” She trailed off and furiously tried to wipe away her tears.
I pulled her into me. “It will be alright.”
She pushed me away, and her gaze was suddenly hard, stone cold. “We have work to do.” Then she walked away from me with tears still streaming down her face.
Chapter 11
I shook off my shock and chased after her again. Just as I grabbed her arm, the world around me shifted. Blurs of colors and shapes rushed by one second only to stop the next. Suddenly, the loud, obnoxious sounds of rush hour Seattle filled my ears. It was disorientating after the stillness that the Otherworld offered. I dropped June’s arm and grabbed my stomach as it caught up a second too late. The next minute I was bent over and dry heaving. People quickly jumped out of my way.
My eyes watered as my stomach attempted to empty what wasn’t there. It took me a moment to realize that there was a warm hand rubbing up and down my back and someone was holding my hair up. I looked up only to realize that June had somehow moved us into an alleyway.
“Are you okay?” She asked.
I nodded. “I think so.”
“Good.”
Then she was cold and walked away from me again.
“June! Stop it!” I grabbed her hand for the last time.
“Goddamnit June! If you walk away from me one more time I’m going to punch you.” I held her hand, but she still wouldn’t look at me.
“June, look at me. Quit being a little kid. We are grown up, and adults talk about things that are bothering them. So, talk to me.”
Finally, she met my gaze, but I was stunned by the depth of pain revealed in hers. “Then why didn’t you talk to me before you shook his hand?”
I frowned. “Death’s hand?”
She nodded. “You said adults talk about things. You ignored me.”
“I had to.”
“No, you didn’t.”
&n
bsp; “He was going to hurt you again.” My grip on her hand tightened.
“It would have been better than what you did.”
“How can you say that?”
“Eliza, I’ve been hurt before, and I’ll be hurt again. It’s part of the job. But what you did? You signed a contract with Death. Do you even realize what that means? There’s no going back. You have to uphold your end of the deal or else…”
“Or else what?”
She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. We are going to do what he wants.”
I released her hand. “I hate it when you do that.”
She frowned. “What?”
I met her gaze, and I could feel my face getting hot. “You never tell me anything! You’re always keeping things to yourself! I’m not a little kid, June. I can handle the truth, but you’re always feeding me half truths and trying to keep me safe by not telling me everything.”
“That’s unfair.”
“Oh, yeah? Then tell me why you signed the bone walker contract. Tell me what is happening to us. Why is all this happening now? Tell me everything I should know not what you think I should know!”
June studied my face, and I could already feel the imaginary steam blowing out my ears as my temper ebbed away leaving exhaustion in its wake. “I just don’t want to be lied to anymore. Please.”
She nodded. “Answer me one question.”
“What?”
“Do you love me?”
I hesitated a moment. “I don’t know.”
Her face went blank, and she stilled. “What?”
I took a deep breath. “I said that I’m not sure if what I feel for you is real or not.”
“But you said-”
“I know what I said, but I said it during a moment. Look June; I’ve never liked anyone. I thought that I was asexual or something. It was both a source of relief and confusion when I met you and felt something. I don’t mind that you’re a woman. I’m cool with that. You being a bone walker threw me off, but I can accept that too. But these things that I feel for you? They are so intense, too intense. I’ve never wanted to be with someone the way I want to be with you, and it scares the shit out of me. I don’t know you, but I’ve also known you for a really long time.” I finished in a whisper.
June remained silent, her face still blank. Then she spoke. “Do you want to?”
I frowned. “Want to what?”
She gave me a small smile. “Do you want to know me?”
I paused, but I already had my answer. “God yes. I want to know everything about you. I want the chance to see if I can feel these things as I am now, not as I was. You love my soul, June. But can you honestly say that you love me, Eliza Trust?”
“Yes.” She didn’t even hesitate.
I smiled. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because, I know you. You may change a little in every life as your soul matures, but the essence of you, what makes you who you are regardless of your upbringing or the time period you are born into, that is what I love. The way you look and your name may change, but you Eliza, I love you, and nothing will ever change how I feel. You are my other half. I don’t want to love another. All I’ve ever wanted was you.”
My breath hitched as I watched the emotions play out on June’s face only to settle with the one that has always been present beneath the pain and sadness. Love was ever present, whenever she gazed at me, and it never diminished.
“Then give me the chance to see you, June. Show me everything that you are without fear of whether I will accept you the way you accept me. Let me learn you like the back of my hand so that I can answer your question of whether or not I love you. But all I can give you right now is that I care for you deeply and that I want to know you. Is that enough for now? Please, can that be enough?”
She reached out and pulled my hand up to her mouth where she kissed each knuckle before placing it above her heart. “It’s more than enough. I’d wait an eternity for you if you asked it of me.”
Stepping forward our lips met in a simple kiss. It was both light and filled with unspoken promises. I pulled back and smiled. “Thank you, June. Thank you for loving me.”
She pressed her lips to my forehead and tightened her hold on my hand. “You couldn’t stop me even if you tried.”
I nodded. “I know.”
***
“So will you tell me why you signed his contract?”
June stepped back and nodded. She took a deep breath. “I died. It was a very long time ago but when I died Death was there.”
“You went to the Otherworld?”
She nodded. “I was a warrior in my past life. You don’t know this, but not just anyone is offered the bone walker contract. You have to die a valiant death even to be considered for it. Only certain people can handle a position of such great power and not go insane from it. The bone walker contract is eternal and the only way to escape it is for Death to nullify it. Or at least that’s the only way I know of.”
“So what happened?”
“When I died I woke up in his office. It was as you saw it today and it was very disorientating, to say the least. I had never seen anything like it. He held out his hand to help me stand and warily I took it. Then he bit me and the contract was signed.”
“That’s it?”
June nodded. “Death is known for his tricks. He will do anything to get what he wants, and as he stated earlier, he wanted our souls, and took the easiest route to obtain them.”
“That slimy son-of-a-bitch!”
She smiled. “You could say that. Do you see why I didn’t want you to sign another contract? You may think you stated your terms clearly but who knows what he has up his sleeves. No one ever knows what Death is planning, and I trust him about as far as I can throw him.”
I frowned. “Do you think he has something planned?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter. You signed it, and now we have to keep your end of it, or else you will be subjected to a pain unimaginable.”
“What do you mean?”
“No one knows what happens if you can’t keep up your end of a contract but it’s said that it’s something so terrible that it blackens your soul. As a bone walker, we can see the color of a person's soul. The color tells us whether it should be reincarnated or not. A pure white soul is given to the angels, gray souls are within our jurisdiction and are reincarnated but blackened souls, those are given to demons. They are souls that have made their choice to deny an angels guidance and the chance at another life.”
I nodded. “Okay. So how do we go about getting this archangel’s tear and the blood?”
June smiled. “Well, time in the other world is different than the physical world. It moves neither forwards nor backward, but it doesn’t stand still.”
“What does that even mean?”
She laughed. “No one really knows, but I do know that Gabriel has been promoted to the position of archangel while we were in the Otherworld.”
I frowned. “I thought he had to catch me first?”
She shrugged. “One of the bone walkers that I get my information from mentioned that Gabriel’s father convinced the other angels that his son was worthy of the position and they accepted his reasoning. So Gabriel was promoted.”
“But what about the blood of the Morning Star? How do we get that?”
“Kaleb.”
“Kaleb? Is he actually the Devil?”
June shook her head. “No, but he was a soul made physical by the bone and blood of Lucifer. His blood is the closest we can get to the real thing. We just have to hope it’s enough.”
I nodded. “But do you know where we can find either of them?”
“Since they were the representatives for the competition this time I was given a sort of tracking device for the both of them. It only tells me the general direction they are in, but I’ve been following them and know most of the places they like to hunt. The problem will be if they have gone back
to their realms. I can’t enter the demon’s or the angel’s realm without permission.”
“Are they here?”
June closed her eyes and nodded after a moment. “Kaleb is hunting while Gabriel is in the direction of the gallery.”
I frowned. “What do you mean by hunting?”
“He’s hunting for souls.”
“What exactly does he do with them?”
June shrugged. “Depends on what he wants to do with them. Sometimes demons eat souls while other times they turn them into their minions by corrupting them.
“Oh.”
June reached out and took my hand. I met her gaze. “You have to focus Eliza. We need to stay on task. Death has no concept of time, but your soul is meant to die within the next few days.”
“What! No one told me that.”
“As the Lamb of Essence, you have never lived passed your twenty-fifth year especially not after the competition has begun. Either a demon or an angel will claim your soul soon. Kaleb and his minions will be out to kill you and who knows what Gabriel is planning now that he has the wisdom granted to archangels. We have to have Death free you today because you might not last another.”
I nodded. “So, what do we do?”
June smiled before turning serious. “I only know of one way to make an angel cry.”
“And that is?”
“By playing the Devil's Trill on a demons violin.”
I frowned. “By playing music?”
“It’s not just any music.”
“Isn’t that a classical song or something?”
June nodded and began to lead me out of the alley. “Yes. It was written by a composer named Giuseppe Tartini.”
“So how does that help exactly?”
“Tartini wrote the song after having a dream. In that dream, he met the Devil. He offered the Devil his violin in which he played a haunting tune. Once Tartini woke from the dream, he attempted to create the same tune and thus the Devil’s Trill was written. What people don’t know was that it was a song the Devil played after his fall from Heaven. It contains all the sorrows of the Morning Star and all of his regrets. When played on a demons violin, it will make a demon laugh, but it will make an angel cry for the loss of one of their own. It is very rare that an angel’s soul is blackened while they are in Heaven but when it happens they mourn the loss.”