Staked!

by Candace Wondrak

  I sighed as I thought of Gabriel.

  He would be the only thing to make this world tolerable. But no, he couldn’t be here. I had to suffer alone.

  “I liked you,” John finally said, shattering my thoughts. “It was impossible not to.” He swallowed, wiping his forehead with a bloodied hand, momentarily pausing his deer-skinning. “There was a lot between us, including…” His deep voice trailed off, and he shrugged it away as if it was nothing.

  “Including what?” I questioned from my pew a few feet away.

  “Including someone who would’ve killed me if I made a move on you,” John finished under his breath, returning to the deer.

  Eyebrows creasing, I was taken aback. “Who?”

  The way John’s dark eyes bore into me made me wonder. It was like he believed I should’ve known who he was talking about. But I didn’t; I honestly had no idea.

  “Tell me this is some stupid joke on your part,” John hissed sourly.

  “Excuse me,” I deadpan, “none of the jokes I make are stupid.”

  That got him to smirk, but it was gone instantly as he muttered, “Right.”

  “Seriously though,” I tried prying it from him, “who?”

  As John finished whatever else he had to do before cooking the deer, he remained silent. He wasn’t going to tell me who would’ve killed him if he made a move on me. Whoever it was must not have liked me back in my world, because John certainly tried making a few moves on me, and no one killed him. He did all the killing himself.

  Okay, that might’ve been a stupid one.

  To say that dinner made me miss Michael and his home-cooked meals would be the understatement of the year. Deer wasn’t my choice of meat, and to have it cooked on a stick over a fire wasn’t my choice way of cooking something. It all left a chewy, gamey taste in my mouth, but I couldn’t complain.

  Well, I could, but that probably wasn’t the best idea.

  I was intent on digesting and listening to John and Raphael swap stories like old war veterans, and I closed my eyes, oddly content for the current moment. However, that contentment vanished the moment when I opened my eyes and I was in a makeshift prison cell.

  On my feet in an instant, I noticed the gore-filled walls. Old, dried blood spatters, some in accidental patterns, and others in distinct, purposeful designs, like tics in groups of five. What they counted, I hadn’t an idea, and I didn’t want to know. Whatever it was, was bad. That was all I needed to know.

  The sound of chains clinking nearly stopped my heart, and I was measured in turning to view the person chained to the wall. A tall, shirtless man, beaten and bloody. His arms were held to his sides, his head hung low. His hair was caked with dirt, and it was obvious it hadn’t been washed in weeks, maybe even months.

  I stepped closer to him, and it dawned on me that I knew this man. I knew him very well.

  When I was within an arm’s reach from the chained man, he lifted his head, revealing a cold, grey face. A metal mask sat on the front of his face; attached by some hidden mechanism. It covered his entire face, save for two small holes in the nose and two very small slits for his eyes.

  For the life of me, I couldn’t recognize him.

  Still, I knew I knew him.

  “Who are you?” I whispered, even though I was fairly certain he couldn’t hear me. With these visions, I was usually an invisible bystander, unless that said vision was out to kill me.

  The man in the mask snapped to attention. I glanced behind me, wondering if someone had walked by the cell, but no one had. It was only me and the man on the wall. When I turned back to the man, he lunged toward me, as close as he could with his chains holding back his arms.

  The coldness from the metal mask was so close to my face that I felt it. It sent chills down my spine, and even though I couldn’t see the man’s eyes, I knew he was staring at me. His breathing was hard inside the mask.

  My eyes fell to his chest. There was no cross tattoo. This wasn’t Gabriel.

  At least there was that.

  Not taking his masked face off me, the man used whatever was left of his strength to pull at the chains. Again and again, a vicious rhythm. With each harsh pull, the chains loosened, bolts slowly coming free. When I realized he was nearly free, I backed up, straight into the wall that kept him caged in this room that, at one point, housed a clerk or a secretary or some other nine-to-five job.

  My hand reached for the doorknob, but it was locked from the outside. Crap.

  An animalistic rumble left his chest as he tugged one, final time and unshackled himself to the wall. The chains collided with the floor, creating a jarring sound as he dragged them while moving closer to me.

  Within a second his hands were around my neck, and he let loose a growl as he tried choking me. I did my best to fend him off, but he had Demon strength, after the first blow to his gut, he took a hand off my neck and broke my right wrist with one swift crack.

  I swore, or did the best I could with hardly any blood in my brain or air in my lungs. Breaking any bones didn’t feel too pleasant.

  With one final swearword, he took us to the ground, and I closed my eyes, feeling oddly cold.

  The coldness faded the moment I opened my eyes to view the broken top of Raphael’s church, the sensation of a broken wrist and someone’s hands around my throat lingering in my mind. I jerked to a sitting position, reaching to my neck tentatively.

  “Are you all right?” Raphael asked. “You look a tad pale.”

  “I’m fine,” I was slow to say. “I just had a vision.”

  “A vision?” Raphael echoed. “You have visions?”

  To that, all I could do was roll my eyes, because I knew I already had that talk with my Raphael.

  Chapter Thirteen – John

  Raphael told Kass she could use his bedroll. In spite of everything he was, he remained a gentleman. One thing I never was, apparently. My brother would be the first to agree on that. I was the one fathers kept their young daughters away from, the one wealthy old women desired. Flirting with the ladies was an innate talent of mine, one that I honed over the two centuries I’d been like this.

  Cursed.

  But Murphy’s Law would dictate that the one girl I wanted the most would be the one I would never have. The one I couldn’t have.

  I should have known he would sense her. I should have known he would come for her. I thought that he would take her, but to my surprise, when Raphael and I returned to the church, she was still there. She had no idea just who she came face-to-face with.

  Now she was fast asleep in the back room, and I couldn’t for the life of me think of going back there. I chose a hard pew and laid in it. Despite the fact that it was night constantly in this world, I wasn’t tired.

  Maybe that was because I knew he would come back for her. A Demon’s sense.

  That’s why I wasn’t surprised when I felt something soundless command me to get up and leave the church. That’s why I wasn’t shocked when I met Raphael outside. He looked oblivious to what was happening, but I knew he felt the same things I did.

  A large, black being came down from the sky, landing gracefully on his large, clawed feet. His eyes were filled with literal fire, and his mere presence made me sweat. His grey skin reflected the moonlight, his wings dissipating into wisps of darkness.

  “What do you want now?” I asked irately, crossing my arms. I wished desperately that I didn’t have to listen to him, that I could ignore whatever he was about to say, but I just couldn’t.

  It was impossible.

  “Watch your tone with me, Demon,” he spoke to me, baring his sharp teeth.

  All I could do was frown in silence.

  He continued, glancing from me to Raphael, “I need to know what you’ve told her about me.”

  Raphael shrugged once. “I said that you were long gone. There’s no way she knows, if that’s what you’re wondering. I thought knowing would only hurt her.” He spoke calmly and confidently, his years of experie
nce clear.

  “Good,” he replied.

  “If you’re asking me,” I spoke through clenched teeth, “to lie to her, I won’t do it.”

  He turned his horned head to me, towering over me with his immense height. “You have no choice. You will not tell her what I am, and you will back any story I give her.” The wind picked up, slowly eating away at his grey flesh. The darkness blowing off him like hair in the breeze.

  I glared at him hard, watching as he morphed from the eight-foot-tall beast to nothing but the Devil in disguise, wearing a face that he hadn’t donned in years. After the darkness was gone, he still stood taller than I, his frame wider and larger than mine, just as it was before. The fire burning in his eyes was gone, but I knew it was simply hidden behind that deceiving blue gaze.

  “Return,” he spoke. “I want her to answer the door.”

  Raphael disappeared in a blue rift, but I lingered, a question on my brain. I turned to him, to his aged face, asking, “What do you hope to gain from this lie? Her trust?” I gritted my teeth as I added, “Her love?” I hated saying it aloud. “When she finds out who you are, what you are—and make no mistake, it’ll happen—she’ll hate you.”

  His voice dripped venom as he said, “Then make sure it doesn’t happen, because if it does, I’ll take what’s left of your soul and make you wish you never broke that totem two hundred years ago.”

  I bit back any snarky reply, for I knew he never made threats. Only promises.

  As I returned to the church, pretending to be asleep, I did something I hadn’t done in years: prayed.

  For her.

  Chapter Fourteen – Kass

  My dreamless sleep was interrupted by a series of loud knocking. I was up and running out into the church, wondering why neither Raphael nor John had answered. With a yawn, I shook off the remainder of my grogginess and pointed to the doors, which both men currently stared at and made no moves to answer it.

  “Well? Neither of you is going to get that?” I questioned. “Last time it wasn’t good. I doubt whoever is on the other side of that door is an angel.” As I blabbered on, neither John nor Raphael moved an inch. “Okay, okay, hold your horses, I’ll get it. Apparently, it can’t be that bad, since neither of you are gearing up for war.”

  I wiped the corners of my eyes, whining somewhat as I went to the set of double doors.

  “If whatever’s on the other side of this door kills me,” I said, “I’m coming back as a ghost and haunting the crap out of you.” Once it was said, I pulled open the right side door, gazing out at the dark overgrown world spread before me.

  A person’s tall frame blocked most of it from my view. I angled my head upwards, squinting. I knew that crooked nose and that square jaw. The moment I met eyes with his blue stare, my heart skipped a beat.

  Before I knew what I was doing, I wrapped my arms around his chest, exclaiming, “Gabriel. I thought…well, I thought I’d never see you again, or at least for a long while. Thank God you’re all right. By the way Raphael talked about you, I thought you were dead.” I said all of this directly into his chest, so it came out very muffled.

  Gabriel was unhurried in setting his arms around me, hugging me like it was the weirdest occurrence in the world.

  That’s when I realized it was.

  This wasn’t my Gabriel.

  I took a step back, studying him. “Sorry. I forgot you, uh, you’re this world’s Gabriel.” I chuckled as I ran a hand through my hair, watching as he entered the church.

  He was less giddy and happy-go-lucky, that much was obvious. But his face was also older, more mature. His stubble thicker. If I had to guess his age, I’d say mid to late twenties. His hair was not a platinum blonde, but a dirty yellow, styled in an undercut, something my Gabriel always talked about getting. None of the intricate tattoos seemed to grace his body, which was covered in mainly black, something my Gabriel would never wear. All black? Too goth, he would say.

  Though I couldn’t believe it, if this was the Gabriel I had to look forward to in eight years, I hoped I would live that long. He was a drop-dead gorgeous specimen of a man. I felt the heat rising to my face, and I spun on my heel, waiting for the inevitable mocking and teasing that would surely follow a thought like that.

  Only it didn’t come.

  Because…this wasn’t my Gabriel. This Gabriel couldn’t read my mind.

  Oh, thank God.

  At that, I sighed explosively and fanned myself with a hand. Both John and Raphael were staring at me, so I immediately ceased the fanning motion and gestured to the older Gabriel behind me. “It’s Gabriel. Looks like you don’t have to worry about me coming back to haunt you.”

  The look John gave me told me that A) my joke wasn’t funny and B) he noticed the way I got a little hot and bothered.

  “John, Raphael,” Gabriel addressed both men as we moved farther into the church after closing the giant door. “It’s good to see you.”

  Raphael, ever the amiable one, except with me in my world, spoke first, “And it’s good to see you again as well. I thought you were long gone.” He smiled, but I saw how it was forced.

  “Yes, tell me, Gabriel,” John said his name like it was acid on the tongue, “how many years has it been?”

  The muscle in Gabriel’s jaw tensed as he replied, “Too many. Now.” He glanced to all of us, but mainly at me. “Can someone tell me what’s going on?” His voice quieted, “I thought we lost you.”

  “John,” Raphael spoke before I had the chance to answer Gabriel, “help me with a tome in the back.”

  John mumbled something incoherent, but nonetheless stood and went in the back with Raphael, leaving me alone with this older and, God help me, more attractive Gabriel.

  I eventually faced him. “Looks like it’s my job to tell you.” I pointed to a pew. “Sit down. It’s a long story. Well, not really, but I could make it long if you want.” I smiled at him, but he did not return the smile, so it fell off my face quickly.

  I sat in a pew, and he was slow to follow, sitting beside me, our legs touching. It felt weird to be this close to Gabriel. If it was my Gabriel, it wouldn’t be so strange. We slept in the same bed all the time. We wrestled out our arguments. I’d even fallen asleep on him, once. We had next to no boundaries, other than the fact that he was not allowed to see me naked. That was one boundary I planned to keep in place.

  With this Gabriel, I didn’t know what boundaries to put up, how to act around him, what to say. If the world went down the toilet all because I died, I couldn’t even imagine how Gabriel took it.

  Though he did look remarkably well.

  I met his heavy gaze, feeling awkward beneath it. “I, um, I went into the woods to find weapons for these Nightwalkers and I came across this Demon with glowing eyes and a yellow staff. It used its staff and the next thing I know I open my eyes and I’m here, in this world where I apparently died and everything turned awful.” I frowned somewhat. “I guess it’s a pretty short story after all. Not too many details I can add to it.”

  Gabriel gave me a look that I couldn’t decipher.

  “What?” I questioned.

  “I’m sorry,” he said quietly, “it’s just…I can’t believe that you’re here, Kass. That you’re you.” Gabriel’s arm was suddenly on my shoulder, pulling me into his chest. This hug was a lot less awkward than the one we had at the door.

  I couldn’t say if that was a good thing or not.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” he murmured, his other hand tangling in my long hair. Gabriel inhaled deeply, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was smelling me. “You have no idea…”

  I grinned into his chest, saying, “Oh, I think I might have some clue.” He was sluggish to let me go, but he didn’t pull back his head, which led our noses to touch. I coughed and scooted a few inches away. “Anyways, uh, Raphael thinks it was a Sorcerer who brought me here with some spell, and any spell can be reversed. We just have to figure out how.”

  The rea
ction on Gabriel’s face was not one that gave me hope, but doubt.

  Doubt was something I didn’t need.

  I grabbed his hand. “You know I have to go back, right? I can’t stay here. This isn’t my world.”

  It was a long, tense while until he whispered, “I know.” After saying it, he just seemed sad, and sad Gabriel was a Gabriel I wasn’t used to handling. Rowdy Gabriel, sarcastic Gabriel, inappropriate Gabriel. I could handle all those Gabriels.

  But sad Gabriel?

  That wasn’t my forte.

  “Until then,” I finally said, squeezing his hand tightly as I moved it to my lap, “you’re staying with us, right?” When he didn’t immediately reply, I said again, “Right?”

  Gabriel’s hand was no longer limp in mine. His fingers intertwined with mine, and he spoke, “I could never leave you.”

  With a sigh, my eyelids dropped, and I set my head on his arm. Even if he wasn’t my Gabriel, even if he was a sad, good-looking version of him, I felt better with him here. I felt safer. We might always get into trouble together, but regardless of what it was, we got out of it. We survived. We did everything together.

  The me in this world, though, wasn’t so lucky.

  Chapter Fifteen – The Prince

  She was fast asleep, her breathing steady, her chest rising and falling evenly. Even unconscious to the world, she was more than I hoped for. Hope was not a specialty of mine, but being with her gave me more hope than I could’ve asked for. I watched her breathe, watched her chest rise and fall. She was alive.

  Kass was everything.

  I sat beside her, hunched, leaning my back against the wall. A tendril of hair covered her face, and I gently moved it aside, amazed at how perfect she was. Why did I keep it to myself all those years? Why didn’t I have the balls to tell her, to save her? Instead, I failed her.