She needed a place to think, to plan. The basement was too open. She could see three other sets of steps. They were not enclosed, and she could be seen by anyone who ventured down any of them. Her eyes traced the stairs nearest her. They appeared to be longer than the Grand Stairway, and she did not know where they led. Perhaps into the tower. High above, she spied a landing, and she began to climb.
She hadn’t counted the steps, but felt as if she must be several stories high when she finally reached the top. She paused to catch her breath. A door opened out from the landing. Not knowing what, or who, she would find on the other side, she hesitated, then cracked it open, just enough to see.
As she leaned forward to peer through the crack, she heard a voice far below, and she jumped, almost losing her footing. She’d seen no one in the basement. Angi’s messenger must have arrived.
She heard footfalls, someone climbing the stairs in another corner. Knowing that she would soon be visible, she took a deep breath, shoved the door open, and stepped through, ready to attack anyone she encountered—ready to attack, and then run as fast as she could.
On the other side of the door was a hallway that seemed to run deep into the palace, but, thankfully, the hallway was empty. Adryel relaxed her body, no longer prepared to fight.
But she could not relax her mind. She needed to remain alert, so she waited several moments, listening, but heard nothing. She crept down the hall, pausing to place her ear against each door she passed, but every room was silent. It was as if everyone had fallen asleep.
Surely this was not the route to Adonai’s throne room. She chose not to think what he might do if she were to stumble upon him.
Adryel continued to walk, but something didn’t feel right. She glanced about but saw nothing unusual, so she continued, once again tense, repeatedly looking over her shoulder expecting to find a guard about to pounce.
She reached another stairway and realized where she was. When she had lived in the city, she had used those steps to reach the council chamber after entering the palace from the Grand Stairway. The chamber, overlooking Palace Square would be ahead on her left.
She took a deep breath then stole down the hall, stopping several times to look and to listen. The door to the council room stood ajar. She waited outside for several moments. Hearing nothing, she gently pushed open the door, peering inside, poised to sprint for the stairs, but she found no one in the room.
Instead of the large circular table at which she had once taken notes during the archangels’ meetings, she found small desks clustered under large drawings that hung along the walls. She gazed up at one of the drawings. It was more of a diagram than a drawing, really. She studied it carefully. This one was labeled “West” at the top, and there were sections marked off indicating various zones—Human Settlement, Hills, Far Mountains, Old Garden, and Lucifer’s Cavern.
Her mouth dropped open. It was a map.
She glanced at three of the other diagrams, each associated with one of the other cardinal directions. Each contained a section labeled as Human Settlement, but the location seemed to be different in each diagram, one at the bottom, one on the top, and on the right and left sides of the other two. She recognized none of the other sections.
On one of the maps, she found an area called The Iced Sea. Still another was divided into two parts by a wide line labeled as The Great River. Neither of these was familiar.
A sheet of paper lying alone on the middle of a long table in the center of the room caught her eye. She walked over and picked it up. It was titled The Tenth Expedition in Search of Adryel, and had an extensive list of locations underneath. She recognized a few of the names, and when she compared the list to the maps, she found the others.
She was in a command center. The one where they organized their search for her. It was a massive search. Angi had told her the truth.
At the bottom, a note had been scrawled in red ink, and it was dated—it had been written that very day. The handwriting was barely legible, but she attempted to read it aloud to herself.
“Michael, Ramael, Keruel, Gadriel. . .” She squinted, trying to decipher the rest of words. “We’ll talk. . .tomorrow at midmorning. . .Dariel.”
Her breath caught in her chest.
If the commanders of the army of heaven were convening to discuss her, if they had set up an entire room dedicated coordinating the search. . .then she was not solely Dariel’s obsession.
How can one orb. . .cause all of this trouble?
How, indeed?
Her hands began to tremble as she set the paper on the table, trying to recall its exact placement. Her heart began to pound as she scanned the room around her, afraid she was no longer alone.
What had she been thinking? She’d have no chance to speak to Ramael. No chance to redeem herself. As soon as she was seen, she’d be locked in chains and taken to the lake of fire.
Adryel released her held breath, and then took another and held it for several seconds before letting it out slowly and deliberately.
“Of course that’s what will happen,” she mumbled. “It’s what I feared. But maybe, just for a minute. . .”
Glancing toward the portico that reached out over the Great Gates, she discovered it was night. She shook her head, laughing at herself. That’s why no one was around. It was dark on Earth and in the city at the same time.
She paused, staring through the door that led to the portico. If it were morning, she would encounter any number of angels in the halls, but unless she were recognized, she would not be detained. At night, she likely could roam at will, but if she were to meet someone they would question her presence in the palace, recognized or not.
What possible reason could she give for being in the palace after dark?
Adryel stepped onto the portico, and pressed herself closely against the wall so she would not be noticed from the square below. It was still beautiful, even at night. She bit her lip as she struggled to hold back tears, recalling those occasions when she had stood in this same spot as the archangels had paraded across the square, flags flying, trumpets blaring, the crowd cheering.
In her mind, she pictured Ramael. How handsome he had been, walking behind Michael, his head held high, the read sash draped across his chest.
She remembered setting up her easel in the garden and painting the flowers and the birds and the children cavorting in the grass. She thought of her classes and imagined she was, once more, lecturing at the Institute, explaining to her students the intricacies of logical argument. She recalled long dinners with Ramael where they talked, and laughed, and shared their days. She recalled even longer nights, spent lying with him in the dark.
Life had been so simple back then, at least in her thoughts.
She spied a few guards patrolling the square, marching from one end of the palace to the other, then turning and marching back. They made the same tour, time after time.
If she could slip through the door at the far end, keep to the shadows, and wait until they turned, she should be able to cross the square behind their backs and to disappear.
It should work.
She knew the way to the far door, down the steps, though the front gallery, turn right. It would take five minutes, no more. As she moved toward the opening, stepping back into the council chamber, a door opened at the far end of the palace. Commands rang out and a squad of soldiers, fifteen or twenty of them, jogged into the square. She stopped and watched as they spread out, setting up barricades at each intersection so that one would have to pass a checkpoint in order to leave the palace.
Three of the new soldiers joined the patrol, walking to the north when the others went south. She’d be captured if she even stepped through the door.
She clenched her jaw and clapped her hands across her mouth, stifling a scream of desperation. The soldier must have delivered Angi’s message already. She saw no way out now, no way to go home to Ramael. Adryel dropped her head as tears stung her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.
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Suddenly she raised her head. Wiped her tears. Ramael would be in the council room tomorrow by midmorning, according to the note she had found. Perhaps her best course would be to simply wait. If she could avoid detection until Ramael arrived, then she might have a chance for a few words with him before she was hauled to the dungeon.
In the far corners of the portico, columns supported the roof. Behind either column, she would be hidden from those marching in the square as well as from anyone who ventured onto the portico. Adryel crept to the column on her left and sank behind it. She tucked into a ball, making herself as small as possible, and she soon fell asleep.
***
Adryel awoke with a startle as the first light shone in the sky. She was hungry, but she’d dropped her bag of fruit and her water flask on Earth when she had run from the guard. Good thing she was not out on the plain. Still, it was better to be hungry than to be a prisoner. She stretched to relieve her stiff muscles.
She had no mirror, but she could imagine how she must look, hair disheveled, face smudged from hiding in the tent during that last day on Earth. The hides piled in the tent had reeked, and she recoiled at her smell. She shook her head when she surveyed her dingy, stained robe, comparing it in her mind to the sparkling white ones that the others would be wearing.
Appearing as she did, it was quite possible she would not be immediately recognized. . .
But before long, she heard talking.
Lord Michael had arrived.
Other voices mingled with his, Gadriel’s and two of the archangels. . .perhaps Gabriel and Jophiel. When she heard Dariel’s raspy voice, it sent a shiver down her back. She sat for what seemed like an hour, hearing them speak but unable to make out their words. At one point, Michael and Gabriel strolled onto the portico and gazed down on the square.
“Dariel is quite intent on finding her,” Gabriel said. “Any idea where she might be?”
A soldier walked out onto the portico and whispered something in Michael’s ear.
Was that the messenger? Was Angi’s news just now reaching Michael?
As the soldier saluted and strode away, Michael resumed his conversation with Gabriel. He shrugged. “Dariel has no idea where she is, none at all, although he insists he has made a thorough search.”
“Is her capture worth the effort?”
Michael paused before answering, glancing around the portico. Adryel plastered herself against the column and watched through half-closed eyes. She caught her breath as Michael’s gaze seemed to linger as it reached the column, but he turned back to Gabriel.
He must not have seen her. If he had, if he knew she was there, surely he would arrest her before she could do more harm.
“Yes and no,” Michael said. “Another of Lucifer’s angels will undoubtedly take up her mission to torment the humans, so arresting her will not save them.” He turned his head, briefly, in her direction again. “As an example to the others, well, she could be quite useful.”
“How is Ramael handling it?”
The sound of his name captured her attention fully. If she could only speak to Ramael. . .
“How would you expect?”
“Not well.”
“Not well at all,” Michel said. “I know he doesn’t want her to be found, and I’ve tried to convince him he doesn’t need to be involved. He attends meetings only when he feels he must, and he contributes little to our discussions.”
“Will he be coming this morning?” Gabriel asked.
Adryel clapped her hand to her mouth to cover her gasp. She had not considered Ramael might not attend the meeting. What would she do if he didn’t appear?
“I’m not sure,” Michael said, “but I sent him a message. I asked him to attend, and. . .” He turned to exit the portico and, reflected in the window, Adryel noticed a tiny smile cross Michael’s face.
“. . .I hope he does.”
The two archangels walked back into the palace, and Adryel took a deep breath. Surely Michael hadn’t seen her. Surely it had been nothing more than her imagination. He would have summoned Dariel if he’d seen her.
“Are we ready to begin? I’ve other work to do this morning.”
Adryel sighed in relief as Ramael’s voice boomed through the council chamber and out onto the portico. Silent tears stung her eyes—love, hope, and fear mingling together.
“What could be more important than finding and extracting this thorn in Adonai’s side?”
Dariel. Adryel despised him.
“You’ve had the use of an entire battalion for over two months, Dariel, and you’ve come up empty,” Ramael said. “What more do you want?”
“The third legion. We must search every cave, every crevice, every tree on Earth if necessary.”
The babble of voices made it impossible for her to understand what was being said. Finally, Ramael’s rose above the others.
“It’s a waste, Dariel. You won’t find her if you take the entire army of heaven and scour all of creation. . .She is dead. We all know it.” His voice broke, and Adryel wanted to go and comfort him. Michael truly must not know she was in the city. He certainly would have told Ramael, wouldn’t he?
Twice she stepped forward to enter the room. Twice she stepped back. Her stomach was churning. She felt like dashing through the council chamber, pushing past any guards, and sprinting down the steps to the basement. She could be gone before anyone realized what had happened. Once she stepped through the portal she would run as fast and as far as she could and never look back.
She shook her head.
No. She wouldn’t run. It was time. . .time to talk with Ramael.
Her hands were trembling, and her chest was so tight she doubted she could speak. Finally, she drew a deep breath, crossed the portico, and forced her legs to step into the room.
“I know nothing of the kind.” Dariel was shaking his finger in Ramael’s face. “She could be anywhere on Earth. Holed up in the darkest jungle perhaps, or hiding in a snow cave beside the sea of ice. . .” he turned his head as Adryel entered, “or. . .or. . .”
A pin dropping to the floor would have sounded like a roll of thunder. Adryel felt lightheaded, as if she had left her body and now hovered above, gazing down on herself and the others. The angels she had admired, the one she had loved, those who were her enemies, all stared, speechless.
Only Lord Michael did not seem surprised.
Dariel dropped the scroll he was holding, and it clattered to the floor, unrolling as it fell.
Ramael stepped toward her.
She reached out to him.
“Ramael. . .Ramael, I love you. I. . .I’m sorry. . .I never meant. . .”
The words sounded so trite, so contrived.
“Arrest her.” Dariel pointed and then shouted, motioning to two guards who stood at the door. “Now,” he screamed. “Seize her. Bind her. Don’t let her escape.”
The guards started to obey, but Michael held out a hand to stop them. Dariel opened his mouth to complain, but Michael turned his palm to him.
Adryel took the opportunity and continued pleading. “Can you forgive me, Ramael?” She reached out to him again, willing him to take her in his arms, to make all of her problems disappear.
“Forgive her?” Dariel screeched. “There can be no forgiveness for one like her. Eternal punishment. . .Guards, do as I say.”
Adryel turned to Michael, tears running down her cheeks. “I am your prisoner, Lord Michael, but I need to know, I need for Ramael to tell me.”
“She cannot talk her way out of this,” Dariel screamed as he tore around the table, his hands stretched out toward her.
“Dariel, halt,” Michael commanded.
Ramael stepped between Dariel and Adryel, lowering his shoulder and plowing into him. Dariel crumpled to the floor and looked up to find Ramael standing over him, his sword drawn.
“Lord Michael said to halt,” Ramael growled through clenched teeth.
“You’re a traitor, Ramael.” Dariel glared
at him, fury spread across his face. His arm shook as he pointed his finger accusingly. “You’ve known her whereabouts all along, haven’t you? You’ve conspired to hide her from me. You’ve led me astray, you’ve. . .”
As Ramael raised his sword, one of the guards looked up and turned his head, seeming to hear a noise. “Adonai.”
All in the room fell to the floor, their foreheads pressed against the cool marble. In the silence that followed Adryel lifted her head and peered through half-open eyes. Wisps of cloud floated through the door and swirled about, moving across the room in her direction. She closed her eyes and lowered her head. After several moments, she looked again.
The brilliant cloud, shining with a light of pure white, had entered the room and rested directly before her. Six seraphim hovered behind the cloud, chanting quietly. It was just as she remembered. The cloud rotated slowly and thousands of tiny lights, like strings of diamonds orbited the cloud, without beginning and without end.
Everything but the cloud seemed frozen in place, as though time itself had stopped.
“Adryel, why have you come?”
As before, there was no sound, but she clearly heard Adonai speaking.
“She wants her pair to know she loves him.” Dariel’s sarcastic voice rang out, breaking the silence before she could answer.
The cloud slowed, almost ceasing to turn. “Truly? You love him?”
She bowed her head. “I thought he was dead. I. . .I never would have gone. . .I never could have left. . .” She could not continue and, finally, she simply nodded.
The tiny lights began to move more rapidly, and the cloud seemed to turn to face Ramael now. “Do you love her?”
Adryel dropped her eyes and shook her head. She knew the answer would be no.
Ramael raised himself to his knees. He tipped her head back, and looked into her eyes. She tried to avoid him, ashamed of what she had become, knowing what he had to say, but his gaze held hers, and it seemed as if he stared into her very heart, recalling their life together, all of what she had once meant to him.
Finally, he nodded. “I do. . .Yes. . .I can’t help myself. . .I love her.”
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