“We don’t owe you anything. If your best guys were easily taken down by the two of us, then maybe they weren’t all that great to begin with,” I said as I let my anger surface a bit. I refuse to be held against my will and participate in something illegal. I’m a minor for god’s sake!
His grin faltered a little, but he covered it up quickly. His confidence wasn’t as high as he portrayed it to be. No matter how many times he sings his, ‘I’m the greatest warlock of all time’ song.
“Well it really doesn’t matter what you think because you’re the ones in a cell, not I. Moving along, I need to know your abilities to be able to pair you up. You each have a fight tonight,” he said as he snapped his fingers. Like we were taking up too much of his time.
This was going to be the tricky part. We didn’t know if there was another angel with my abilities. It’s not known for someone to be able to produce Heaven’s Fire. So if I had said what I could do, then our covers could have been possibly blown.
“We both have exceptional strength,” Jones answered before I said something I would regret.
“What about mental abilities?” Josiah questioned. I’m pretty sure we were stumped on that one. I haven’t developed my mental abilities yet. My palms were getting sweaty and I felt the dampness on my forehead.
“I’m a mind controller and Max has persuasion,” Jones said and I held my breath, thinking of all the ways this could backfire.
“Persuasion? Ugh, that’s a horrible mental ability. It isn’t worth a damn thing,” he said in a huff and walked away from us mumbling incoherently.
Once we heard the slam of the door, we both slumped back against the wall and let out a deep breath.
“That was a close one, I thought we were screwed once he asked about my mental ability.”
“Yeah, me too. Luckily I remembered persuasion. Not many people have this ability because it’s really invaluable. Technically, anyone can persuade another to do their bidding with just the way they word it. It’s not rocket science, its rhetoric,” Jones said and I was relieved at how quick on his feet he was.
Nonetheless, I couldn’t get this weird gnawing in my gut that something wasn’t going to go right. Maybe I took too many punches in the abdomen, but we were in the middle of a lion’s den and we were vulnerable. We were running on pure speculation and for all we knew, Greed might not even like underground fights. Then again, Josiah did seem like he knew Greed. I just hoped we could get out of here without any more bruises.
“Listen we don’t have much time, we need to form a plan of action. He said we’re doing a fight tonight so that must be soon. Since I gave you such a crappy mental ability, I’m most likely to get the big fight. Remember no matter what, you cannot use your fire. Use that extra strength you’ve got and that’s it. He won’t be able to tell the difference if you’re fighting a human. We can’t afford getting caught, at least not until we’ve found Nikolai and know what he looks like,” Jones said in a rush.
I’ve never been to one of these sorts of fights but if it’s anything like Fight Club—my adrenaline was already kicking in.
“But don’t forget that these are humans you’re up against, so don’t kill them!”
I can’t believe he even had to remind me.
“I know Jones! Geez.”
“I’m just saying Max. It’s easy to forget in these fights and these humans are pretty tough.”
“You sound somewhat experienced Jones, something you want to tell me?”
He contemplated my question for a moment and then shook his head. “Another story for another time, brother.”
6
The sound of boots resonated again, but this time it was one of Josiah’s goons. This guy was big, black, and scary. I had to hold back a grimace once I saw the thick slash across his face. Luckily, he went to Jones cell first and unlocked it—waking him up from a nap. Only Jones could sleep in a high stressed environment. I could barely keep my right leg from bouncing like I had to pee.
“Come on, it’s time for your fight,” Scarface said as he picked Jones up like he was a rag doll.
Half walking and half dragging him out, Jones looked back at me and I nodded, silently wishing him luck.
I watched his retreating back as much as the bars in my cell would let me. Knowing that there was a possibility he’d come back battered or worse. And while I understood why we had to do this and get in the inside—I just wished we didn’t have to.
Since the night I was kidnapped by that succubus, everything changed and I may not complain about it as much as I did before, but I still can’t help but feel sorrowful at times. So much has happened and if only we had the knowledge we have now, maybe none of it would have happened.
Maybe I could have saved my mother.
I could have saved us all.
I crouched down and put my ear to the ground, hoping I could hear the fight. Nothing. I knew it would be too much to ask to be able to hear without taking the plugs out. No dice. I steadied my breathing and on the count of three, I released the gel from my left ear and slammed it to the concrete.
A cacophony of sounds invaded my ear and I thought my brain was going to explode.
“Aagghhh,” was all I could get out as I tried to listen to the fight, but it was no use. I heard everything, from the footsteps of the people milling around, to the rats scurrying around me.
I quickly put the silicone back in and tried to catch my breath. Those few seconds had sucked so much of my energy, I felt like I had just run a marathon.
“Don’t worry kid, your friend will be back soon. We always win our fights,” a female voice said from what I think is the cell next to mine.
“Who are you?” I said as I scrambled to my feet and pressed my face against the bars to try and get a look at her.
“I’m no one you know.”
“What’s your name?”
“It doesn’t matter what my name is. What matters is the fact that you’re looking for Niko and why,” she said, her voice tense, and I felt like an idiot. Jones and I spoke out loud and I can’t remember what we said that might have given away what I am. We should have known we weren’t alone in here.
“You know where we can find him?!” I all but yelled in her direction.
“Why are you looking for him?” She asked and I didn’t know how to respond. I can’t tell her the truth—but I can tell her a lie.
“He owes me money,” I said after a beat.
“Niko doesn’t owe people money, people owe him. Come up with a better lie.”
We were officially a bunch of idiots. To have assumed that this guy had a gambling problem was our mistake. He might be an old Nephilim with loads of money. No wonder Josiah hadn’t bought our act.
“Listen, I just really need to find him. I don’t mean him any harm, I need his help. Please,” I tried to sound convincing, but I probably came off whinny. Desperation will definitely do that. If we can find Greed and figure this all out, we can possibly go home—and I can try to live a normal life. Forever.
“Look kid, I don’t know you and for all I know, you can be one of the Warrior’s, although I doubt it. So stop looking for Niko, you’ll never find him.”
“Warrior’s?”
“You don’t know?” She asked me and I wanted to punch the wall. Obviously I don’t know if I’m asking!
“No,” I answered and she let out a loud sigh. After a pause, I jumped when she started laughing hysterically. Goosebumps crawled over my skin as her hysteria echoed across my cell. Maybe she was not all there in the head. Only God knows how long she’s been locked up in here. Great, I was stuck with a looney. If we don’t get out of here soon, this is my future. “Uh…I’m glad you find this all amusing, but can you please tell me where I can find Nikolai or Niko—whatever,” I asked again hoping I could get something from her, anything really.
I was leaning against the bars with my eyes closed, when I heard the question I feared to answer.
“Please tell me y
ou’re not a Nephilim,” she whispered and I opened my eyes to see her dirty hands hanging out of her cell.
Before all this, I might not have been able to hear her, she all but breathed out the question. But I heard, and all I could do was sigh.
I let the silence hang between us because I never expected her to know who I am. I wouldn’t even know how to get out of this. Does everyone know he’s a Nephilim?
“You’re an idiot. Oh, my God, you are seriously an idiot!” She said as she slammed on the bars of her cell.
“I think I already know that,” I whispered.
She chuckled. “No, I don’t think you know the extremity of your stupidity. Coming here, you might as well have tattooed ‘Nephilim’ to your forehead. Who the hell is your Shomera?”
“My what? Look, I get it, I messed up but don’t piss me off by excessively saying how dumb I am. It won’t be pretty,” I said as I walked to the farthest corner of my cell. She was really ticking me off and I needed to calm down before I said or did anything I’d regret. While I may have learned to control my fire, I’ve been a lot more hot headed, so I needed to be careful.
“My God…are you…are you Wrath?” She whispered and I felt every muscle in my body wind up tight like a rope. What the?
“Listen kid, I know you’re not going to answer, but you shouldn’t be here. Forget your friend and just go. It’s not safe for you here, hell it’s not safe for you in this country. Get out and get out now!” She said, her voice with a bit of nervousness. I didn’t know if she was still crazy or she really knew what she was talking about.
“Why? What do you know?” I wasn’t going to leave here without answers and I was definitely not leaving without Jones.
“What I know is that you need to leave. Change your identity and get out of this godforsaken country.”
“I’m not going anywhere until I get some answers, so you can moan and whine all you want, I’m not going anywhere,” I said as I leaned against the cold concrete wall and crossed my arms over my chest—feeling accomplished.
“You won’t find Niko—not unless he wants to be found. And if he learns what you are, you definitely won’t find him. He’s in hiding just like you are, kid. So do you understand why you need to leave?”
“No, I don’t. He can help me, we can help each other—”
“No! Don’t you know kid? If you guys are anywhere near each other, it’ll amplify your abilities. It’ll be chaos. Which is why you need to leave now!” She yelled this time and she sounded like she was in pain.
I walked back towards the bars and tried to get a look at her.
All I could see were her knuckles as she gripped the bars of her cell.
“Amplified?! Is this why my hearing has gone haywire?! I have freakin’ earplugs on!” It sounded better in my head, but she needed to understand the severity of the situation. While it may have been vain, I didn’t want to walk around with these craps in my ears for the rest of my life.
“It’s because you’re near a Nephilim, which is why you need to leave!”
“He’s here?! Does he bet at these fights?”
“JOSIAH!” She yelled in anguish and I didn’t understand. First she was helping me by telling me to get out of dodge and now she’s about to blow my cover.
“Shh! Stop! I’ll stop asking questions, okay? Just please—,”
“Josiah!” She was crying and I didn’t know what to do. What was going on?
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, just please don’t tell him,” I all but begged as heavy boot steps were running down the hall.
I pushed away from the bars and got in a fighting stance, ready for whatever was about to happen. Jones isn’t here and I hope I’ll be able to find him.
“What’s wrong Georgie?” Josiah asked her—I couldn’t see him—yet.
“Next door…the one next to me…get him out. He needs to leave,” she pleaded.
“Georgie, calm down and tell me what’s wrong. Did he do something to you?” I could hear the familiarity between them.
“He’s…he’s a Nephilim.”
There was a pregnant pause and I felt the air get sucked out of the room.
His yelling made me involuntarily flinch and I cursed under my breath at how scared I was. So much for being fearless.
“Pull the guardian out of the fight! We forfeit!” He still hadn’t appeared in front of my cell and I was anticipating his approach. Another set of footsteps echoed and they were definitely speed walking. I wished I could see what was going on!
“Josiah, are you sure you want to forfeit? We’ll lose a lot of money,” a voice that was out of breath said.
“I said forfeit! Pull him out NOW!” Josiah yelled again. I saw the tips of his dreadlocks fling into view.
The silence was starting to get to me, I couldn’t just stand there and wait until he attacked. But if they brought Jones back, then I knew we’d have a better chance together.
“What are you going to do Josiah? He’s not one of them, he just needs to get to safety,” the girl in the cell next door said. This was all too messed up.
“Max?” Jones yelled as I heard him running towards me.
When he came into my line of vision, his white t-shirt now had blood splattered all over and it looked like he had a cut above his eye. Other than that and looking sweaty, he appeared fine.
Still in a fighting stance, I was hesitant to walk over to him.
“Hey, it’s okay dude, what’s going on? Are you ok?” He asked and I wanted to take a pause and explain, but I didn’t get the chance. Josiah was in his face in seconds.
“Why the hell did you bring a Nephilim into my establishment?”
7
A glint of understanding crossed Jones’ face and he slowly turned his head to face the warlock. “Technically, you brought us here, I brought him to the Devils Lair which is a sanctuary for ALL supernaturals,” Jones said and go figure, he had to be a smart ass.
Josiah grabbed him by the front of his shirt and slammed him onto the bars of my cell.
“Is he why you’re looking for Nikolai?” Josiah said as he pointed in my direction.
In two long strides, I was behind Jones with my hands gripping the bars on either side of him. Hands aflame, I was going to burn this place to a crisp if he tried anything.
Josiah’s eyes bulged out as my blue flames licked the air around us. “H-how? The runes…” he trailed off.
“Let him go,” I gritted out.
He released Jones and cautiously stepped away from him. I put out the fire as Jones reached the cell bars and pulled them apart—making an opening.
I stepped out and stood next to my guardian.
“You’re Wrath, aren’t you?” Josiah asked in slight wonder. I didn’t want to answer; I can’t admit it out loud to anyone, not yet.
“He won’t answer you, just get them out,” the girl in the cell next to me said in defeat. I completely forgot about her. She was hiding in a corner of her cell because I still couldn’t see her.
“We’re not going anywhere until you tell us what we need to know,” I said as I eyed Jones from the corner of my eye. I don’t want to start a fight if he’s hurt.
“Is he your Shomera?” Josiah motioned towards Jones.
“Uh, no. What’s that?” He looked at me in bewilderment, like I just said the most ridiculous thing he’d ever heard.
“What’s a Shomera?! Are you serious? Is he serious Georgie?!” Josiah walked to her cell entrance and looked to her for confirmation.
“Please, just get them out, I’m in pain,” she cried out and I finally got to see her. She sluggishly dragged herself towards us and I couldn’t help but gape at her appearance—she’s a spitting image of G.I. Jane. Average build, shaved head and the look in her eyes said she’s ready for war. Who was this chick?
Josiah kept exchanging glances between G.I. Jane and I—he looked conflicted about something, I just didn’t know what.
“I’m sorry we can’t be of much h
elp, but she’s right. You guys need to get out of here,” Josiah said as he turned around and walked back towards the exit. The resolve in his voice and face was a complete 180 to what he’d just been saying.
Left with no option, but to follow him, we trudged along, getting one last look at Georgie. She gave me a sad smile and I could only give her one back in return.
Following Josiah through what appeared to be some underground tunnels, the silence was so loud—not even Jones could contain himself.
“Okay, I don’t think I can keep quiet anymore. What the hell is going on? I just fought for you—was about to win by the way—then I forfeit to get thrown out because of what? I need someone to start explaining,” Jones said and we both looked to the one who could give us the answers we needed.
He let out a deep sigh and whispered, “I can’t say much but what I can say is you,” he pointed at me, “need to find your Shomera. You won’t survive long without him. And most importantly, stop looking for Niko, or any of the Nephilim. It’s dangerous.”
“What’s a Shomera?” Jones asked.
“A Shomera is Hebrew for guardian. They are specifically designated to the Nephilim. Each one of you have one specialized to your particular sin.”
“So Jones is my Shomera?” I asked.
“No, he’s not,” he looked to Jones, “You have no idea what you’re doing because if you did, you’d keep him as far away from Sin City as possible.”
“Fine, we’ll stop looking for the Nephilim,” Jones said and the relief was evident in Josiah’s face. “But, you need to tell us where to find Max’s Shomera.”
“It’s not that easy!” Josiah exclaimed and took a deep breath. “Shomeras are supposed to be assigned at a Nephilims birth. I don’t know why you never had one.” His tone softened and I could have sworn he felt pity towards me.
We followed Josiah through the rest of the tunnel pathways until we went through a door that brought us back into the Devils Lair. The bar was pretty packed as we maneuvered our way to the exit and into the chilly Nevada night.
Greed (Sins of the Fallen Book 2) Page 4