Sins of the Fallen

by Daniele Lanzarotta

  When I woke up, I was in a completely different place.

  Kayla was there by my side.

  “Kayla?” I said. “What happened?”

  “We had to retreat.”

  “What? What about the others?”

  “We’ll go back when we’re ready. Kim is still there and Chase is helping her keep the others safe. There is no way we are leaving them there alone for long, but right now, we need to be really be ready before we do anything.”

  “Stephaine will protect Kim, you know?” I said.

  She gave me a confused look and then, she just laughed. “For some reason I think it is more likely that Kim protects Stephaine.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You really don’t know?” she asked.

  I shook my head. I felt like there were things that I wasn’t remembering clearly, or at all. I had no clue what she was getting at. “I haven’t seen her in a while. I just kept Hannah from getting to the humans. I guess I just assumed that she was doing the same, but with Benjamin.”

  “There is something going on between Stephaine and Benjamin. Stephaine, well… she is one of the fallen now and not in a good way. She seems to really care for Benjamin.”

  I looked down, avoiding Kayla. “It’s my fault. We should have stuck together.”

  “You can’t think that way.”

  “Where is Hunter?” I asked.

  Tears ran down her face.

  I nodded without her having to say anything. “He got held back there, didn’t he?”

  She shook her head, fast, and I felt as if I could relax.

  “It’s not that. You need to heal, Ethan. They said the succubus got to you pretty bad.”

  “How soon are you planning on going back to the Academy?”

  “Soon, but you can’t go. It’s too risky, especially with Hannah around.”

  “I’m going with you, Kayla.”

  “Ethan—”

  “I’ll be ready,” I said.

  Something about Kayla’s expression changed at that moment.

  “Ethan, there is something I need to tell you.”

  “Okay,” I said.

  “I’m not sure how to tell you this but—”

  The door opened and someone came in. She introduced herself as Clarissa.

  “Oh, good. You are awake. How do you feel?”

  “I have been better.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Kayla, we need to let Ethan rest so that he’ll heal faster. Our healers have been making their rounds and soon they’ll be able to stop by here, but the more rested he is, the faster he’ll heal.”

  Kayla nodded. “Are you okay?” she asked Clarissa.

  I could remember her being the one in the fight with Hannah. She looked as if nothing even happened.

  Clarissa said she was fine.

  I looked at Kayla and I was truly concerned. She promised me that she would be back later to check on me and I hoped she would tell me whatever was bothering her. Whatever it was, it couldn’t be good.

  Once they both left, I closed my eyes and tried to rest. I’m not sure how long passed, but when I opened my eyes, everything was dark, except for the brightness of the angel’s wings.

  She turned around to leave, but I stopped her.

  “Please, don’t go. You healed me, didn’t you?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  “Would you open the blinds for me?”

  She walked toward the window and opened it and with the moonlight in the room, I could see her much better. Her wings were so white. I could see her long brown hair, and her scent was so familiar. She was probably the most pure angel I had ever seen.

  “Thank you,” I said. “For healing me.”

  She turned around then and I wasn’t sure if I was more stunned by her beauty or by who she was to me.

  “Jennifer,” I whispered.

  She looked shocked, as if she couldn’t believe that I remembered her.

  “I have to go,” she said abruptly.

  “Stay, please,” I begged.

  “I’m sorry. I can’t stay. I have done my job and I’m needed elsewhere. Is there anything else you need?”

  I shook my head and she headed toward the door.

  “Wait!” I said. She turned around and even in the darkness I could see that she was fighting not to cry. I was lost. I didn’t know if I should ask whether she knew who I was and where she had been this entire time, and suddenly, I knew that was what Kayla wanted to talk to me about.

  “I need to speak to the Nephilim,” I said. I knew everyone had to know who the Nephilim was.

  She nodded and left.

  It was almost painful to see her go once again. Shortly after, there was a knock on the door.

  “Come in.”

  A guy walked in. “I heard you asked for me,” he said.

  “Who are you?” I asked.

  “Samael.”

  “So you are a Nephilim.”

  “Yep. That is who you asked for. Here I am. I don’t even know why I bothered to come in. My job is to train the other one, nothing extra.”

  “So you know Kayla? Where can I find her?”

  He shrugged. “Probably in her dorm or somewhere avoiding her little boyfriend.”

  “Wait. Why is she avoiding him and how do you know?”

  “Who do you think is helping her? Teaching her about who she is and about her not having any future with an immortal.”

  “Oh.” Something about him was off but I couldn’t quite figure out what.

  “Would you take me to Kayla or tell me where the dorms are located.”

  “Not a chance.”

  I gave him a stern look.

  “You need to rest. I’m not getting blamed for giving you the information you need to go out and about.”

  “I need to talk to her!”

  He rolled his eyes. “Again, not my job description, but I’ll send her here.”

  He turned around and left.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Kayla

  I was at the gym beating up one of those punching bag when I turned around to find Samael standing there.

  “You know, crying doesn’t suit you,” he said.

  “I wasn’t crying,” I snapped.

  Of course he didn’t believe me. My eyes were probably swollen from crying, to the point where there was no way to hide it.

  “What do you want?”

  “Ethan wants to talk to you.”

  “Oh, okay. Thanks.”

  Instead of leaving, Samael walked over to the box where I kept the dagger that was now officially mine, and he grabbed a picture that Clarissa managed to get for me.

  “Is this your human family?”

  “That is my ONLY family.”

  “They seem nice.”

  “They are.”

  “You should go back to them once this is all over. Get out of this lifestyle before it consumes you.”

  I gave him a puzzled look.

  “From what I heard you seem to do well going back and forth between this life and your human life.”

  He grinned. “Don’t always believe what you hear. Besides, I don’t have a choice. You still do.”

  “You don’t have a choice?”

  He shrugged. “You know, Ethan seemed really eager to talk to you and he looked quite upset. You should probably get going.”

  I knew I wasn’t going to get anything out of him and it was none of my business anyway.

  I did need to talk to Ethan, so I just grabbed the box where I kept my dagger and left.

  ***

  Ethan was still in the infirmary and the door to his room was opened.

  I walked in and closed the door behind me. I thought he was sleeping until I turned around and saw that he was watching me with a shocked expression.

  “What you wanted to tell me earlier, it was about Jennifer, wasn’t it?”

  I nodded.

  “You’ve seen her.”

  “Yes
,” he said in a sad tone.

  I approached Ethan and sat on the bed next to him.

  “I’m so sorry. I wanted to warn you before you actually saw her.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for.”

  “How did it go? I mean, what happened when you saw her… when she saw you?”

  “In an odd way, it was as expected. She acted distant. I got the feeling that she remembered me but didn’t want me to know that.”

  “Ethan, Jennifer believes in what she has become. I’m sure she remembers you, but,” I shook my head, “it’s like she was brainwashed in a way.”

  Ethan smiled. “She’s what I thought she would become and exactly what they needed. She is pure. More so than any other angel I’ve ever seen. I could see that in her.”

  “So you won’t try to talk to her? Try to fight for her?”

  Ethan shook his head. “I can’t. The sin of trying to heal her when she was meant for something this great will be nothing compared to the sin of my attempting anything that would cause her to fall.”

  That made me frustrated.

  “I don’t see how any of you can accept things so easily.”

  “No one said it would be easy.”

  “I still don’t get it.”

  “You do. You just don’t know you understand it yet, but one day you will. You’ve already made sacrifices and accepted them as a part of yourself. It’s not much different.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t think I would care, you know? If I was an angel and Hunter came around—”

  “Even if your family’s sake depended on it? As angels, we protect humans. When we fall, that just leaves more of them unprotected.”

  “Okay, maybe I phrased it wrong. I would care, but I don’t think I would be able to help it. Besides, how can one being’s decisions impact the entire world?”

  Ethan gave me a serious look as if he was taking it all in.

  “There is a certain balance between good and evil; balance that is already offset by the fallen ones. Our ‘recovery’ helps to restore the balance, but when someone as pure as Jennifer or as you would be if you were one of them, falls of track, not even a thousand recovered fallen angels are enough to restore that balance. Let’s us just hope that we don’t have to find out how much of an impact that would have in the world.”

  “Let’s hope not.”

  “But you can’t tell me you wouldn’t make sacrifices to protect the ones you love. From what I heard, you are avoiding Hunter. I assume that is to protect him. How is that any different?”

  “You don’t understand. We are just not compatible.”

  He shook his head as if this part of our talk was far from over.

  “So, this Samael guy… Is he really helping us?” asked Ethan.

  I nodded.

  “I don’t like him.”

  “Yeah, Hunter doesn’t like him either, but I guess he’s okay. I mean, I don’t know what his deal is as far as turning his back on everything here, but he serves his purpose.”

  Ethan looked doubtful, but let it go.

  “Do you mind helping me get out of here?”

  “I don’t think you should. You need to rest.”

  “No, I need to go walk around or something. I need to get my mind clear.”

  I hesitated.

  “I’m going whether you help me or not.”

  “Fine!”

  Ethan asked if I could give him a few minutes. When I came back in the room, he was wearing a black shirt and jeans.

  “I think I should save my powers,” he said. “But if you could just help me make sure we are clear of anyone on the way out—”

  “No need,” I said. “Samael trained me well.”

  I walked toward him and held his hand, making us both invisible to anyone in here. That was how Samael and I planned on leaving here and going to the other Academy. We planned to leave just the two of us, leaving everyone else here and protected while we took over the other Academy ourselves. We had our differences but that was the only way to protect Hunter and everyone else. I was getting stronger by the minute and combined, we were stronger than a lot of the fallen. We could easily take on Benjamin and Hannah.

  I shielded Ethan and we stepped into the hallway. We made our way down the hallway and then I froze. It was as if my hearing suddenly heightened. “Clarissa, I’m begging you. You have to believe me! Of course I didn’t know that Hunter was training alone. I just got there and found the succubus draining him. I couldn’t pull them apart. When she stopped she looked at me and said he had asked her to drain him completely. She let go and his body dropped to the floor. He won’t wake up.”

  I couldn’t breathe and lost all concentration. Ethan and I were both visible again.

  I ran to Xavier. “Where is he?”

  I didn’t even let him answer. I rushed past him and barged into the room where I found Hunter lying down. No signs of life in him whatsoever. Even the color of his skin gone.

  I approached him and just stood there, staring at him.

  “Kayla,” said Xavier.

  “GET OUT! I want to be alone.”

  When Xavier and Clarissa didn’t move, I warded myself and Hunter, keeping everyone else out. They were not getting me away from Hunter.

  I stared at him for hours, looking for signs of life. There were none.

  I stayed there all night. I remember Ethan and the others trying to talk to me but I blocked everyone out.

  All I could think of was that seeing Hannah triggered something in him that made him crave the succubus… any succubus. I knew he shouldn’t have gone to the other Academy.

  Night went and probably most of the next day. There were no changes. I saw people walking in and out of the room, bringing food, trying to get me to sleep. I wouldn’t even let them check on Hunter. Not until Jennifer walked in and they said she was going to try and heal him again. I recalled Xavier saying that she tried to heal him when they first brought him in, with little change. Little change was better than no change at all.

  “I want everyone out of the room,” I said. “Jennifer stays. Everyone else… out!”

  They all left and I let the wards down so Jennifer could approach us.

  She held one of Hunter’s hands. I hadn’t even touched him. All this time I had looked for signs of life, yet, I was afraid to touch him and find out that he was cold, really dead.

  Jennifer closed her eyes and did whatever healing thing she did.

  I couldn’t see any change.

  She opened her eyes. “He’s fighting to come back. He just needs time.”

  I didn’t say anything.

  “You should eat something,” she said.

  “Yeah, and you should acknowledge Ethan,” I snapped.

  I didn’t even look at her as I said it, but I could hear gasp before she turned around and walked away.

  The wards were back up, keeping everyone away from us. I didn’t know what to think. I kept trying to convince myself that Hunter was immortal and would eventually come back, but that didn’t make me feel any better.

  A few more hours passed. Everyone had left me alone until then, but I now could hear commotion outside. Samael opened the door to the room and walked in. He was alone and he kept his distance. He didn’t even try to pass the wards that I had managed to keep up, even being as exhausted as I was.

  “I’m not playing games, Samael. Leave!”

  “You don’t want to know what happened?”

  “I know what happened. He kissed a succubus. I’m not leaving him, Samael. You are wasting your time.”

  “You know—getting into his head is a pretty good way to determine just how bad he is. I mean, if there is nothing there, it probably means that well—that he might be like this for a while.”

  I knew it was a trap. I knew he wanted me to see Hunter kiss the succubus because that would upset me enough to get me away from the room, yet, maybe he was right about seeing just how bad Hunter was doing.

  “Leave
the room! Now!” I ordered him.

  As soon as he was gone, I closed my eyes and I was in Hunter’s mind.

  There were nothing but memories, but it wasn’t the one of him kissing the succubus that I saw. It was almost as if I was being pushed to see what Hunter wanted me to see. I could see Samael, and he was telling Hunter to let a succubus drain him and he would be mortal again. He would be mortal like me.

  Within seconds, my eyes were open, the wards were down, and I was outside of the room, launching myself at Samael.

  I was furious that he had told Hunter that, and I was even more furious that he had played Hunter and I against each other.

  Before I could confront him, I felt Ethan’s grip on my arms, the needle pricking my skin and I started to feel drowsy. The sedative kicked in right away. I was holding on to Ethan as I felt that my legs were going to give out. Ethan ended up picking me up and carrying me away.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  When I opened my eyes, it took a while to adjust my vision to the light in the room.

  Then I could see Ethan.

  “Is Hunter awake?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “It looks like he’s improving though. There is more color to his skin.”

  “How long have I been out?”

  “A few hours.”

  “I want to see him.”

  “That is not a good idea, Kayla. You were there with him for a very long time, without food or sleep.”

  “I won’t do that again.”

  “I can’t let you do that, Kayla. I’m sorry. Not until Clarissa says otherwise.”

  Ethan gave me a concerned look.

  “What did you see? Why did you go after Samael like that?” he asked.

  I told him everything I saw; about Samael telling Hunter that letting the succubus feed from him until she drained all of his energy would make him mortal like me. “Is it true? Can he be mortal again?”

  Ethan shook his head. “I never heard of another immortal like Hunter, but I have a hard time believing that. For one thing, Samael couldn’t possibly know whether that would work, because that has never happened before.”

  “But there is a chance of it happening, right? Even if it is a small chance?”

  I couldn’t read Ethan’s expression. He finally said he supposed there was a chance of Hunter waking up and being mortal again, but I could tell he didn’t really believe what he was saying.