by Sunniva Dee
“Hey! Whatcha doing, Gaia?”
“Nothing much. I’m almost done. This thing took forever, I swear. Flippin’ piece of—”
“What’s the assignment?” She wore her sunglasses after dark again and pulled them up on her head while she approached the desk.
“Basically any part of a human being. I’m doing a face.” A tense muscle at the base of my neck screamed for attention. I was so close to finishing. I willed the darn thing to remain intact until I got to the classroom.
“Okay…” she tapered off.
“What?”
“Didn’t you say human?”
I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to figure out her game. Marina was serious.
“I did,” I said. My stomach shifted, guessing what she was getting at before my brain did. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I thought…Shit.”
“Dammit, Marina. What?”
She puffed out a breath. “Why are you carving Gabriel?”
I stepped back. Even though I hadn’t captured the full extent of his features, she was right. The bust was clearly of him. I examined my work.
Eyelashes—really? As important as the silky, black fringes were to his face, how did they even take form on a chalk piece? No way did I have the skill for that.
Loose curls slinked down, blowing in the winds of a Botticelli painting. Lush, pouty lips somehow appeared pink on a white block of chalk. The suggestion of shimmer…
Oh no, what in the world?
No colors had been used, no metals. Why did the chalk give off—?
“Gold, Gaia? But chalk’s white, right? Were you supposed to paint it?”
I hadn’t.
Jesus Christ, I’m off the deep end.
Hiding in my hands, I slumped down on my bed. For once, Marina remained silent until I could speak.
“Hey. An angel’s face, a human’s face, whatever, right? Not like the professor will recognize him and confront me. Can you imagine? ‘Gee Gaia, I’m sorry, he’s too drop dead gorgeous to be human, so you’re getting an F.’”
On the verge of panic, I burst into nervous laughter, but Marina didn’t join in. Instead, the mattress sank under her weight, and her voice was quiet when she dropped her head to my shoulder.
“Why haven’t we talked about this—for real, I mean? You sacrificed big time back then, huh?”
“Yes.” I didn’t want to rip into how unsupportive she’d been.
“Are you going to let him go, you think?” Despite the bluntness of the words, the tone was soft. Maybe I wasn’t the only one maturing.
The bed shook a little as I slid down and turned on my side to face her. With my chin supported in a hand, I looked her full in the eye when I answered.
“Are you up for the truth?”
Nodding, she met my gaze, but the corner of her eye twitched.
“Nobody else compares. I look around and nothing. Nowhere. And how can you let someone go when you know they’re with you night and day? There is no letting go, Marina.” After a year of silence, the need to share with somebody who believed overwhelmed me.
“You still think he’s your guardian angel.”
“I’m pretty sure, yeah.” The dam split open. Every detail from Angel Oaks burst free. I revealed everything Gabriel had explained at my house, how I’d demanded his invisibility. I told her about his pain—my pain. And most of all, I did not hide that I’d done it all for the peace of others.
At 3:00 a.m. on a weeknight, Marina lay curled up next to me in the darkness, her eyes glinting as she chewed on her bottom lip.
“Do you believe me?” I ventured, daring her to give me an answer untainted by tradition and religion.
“Crap. It’s mind-boggling. What he said about fallen angels makes sense, and so does the part about his name being common. Just think of all the regular guys called Gabriel out there? Plus, he’s kept his word to you for a long time. I mean, what would he gain by staying away?”
Staying away? Calm down. No need to get upset.
“Gabriel is here right now.”
“I know, but the whole not being visible to you part, I mean.” A small frown appeared as she changed the subject. “You’re not in love with Lucio, obviously.”
“No. He knows I’m not.”
“Yeah, I figured. You guys have always been weird anyway. No hugs, no nothing. Just that silly, cutesy hand-holding.” A sad smile moved over her face.
“Sorry, I can’t fake something like this, Marina. I know you want the best for us, but—”
“I know.”
“I’m super happy for you and Cody, though,” I said, perking up in an attempt to change the mood.
“Yeah, we’re lucky to have each other.” A slight smile lifted her lips before they fell again. “Are you gonna break the news to him soon?”
“To Lucio? I can’t imagine him wanting a formal breakup any more than I do. We’re great friends, but we never really existed as a couple.”
“I guess not.” Marina’s voice sounded resigned.
Then, she reached out for me. She stroked my cheek so tenderly that my throat thickened. The way my grandmother used to.
“Thank you, Gaia,” she whispered, “for telling me.”
Chapter 14 — Cut The Dazzling
Cassiel
I couldn’t stand by and watch the destruction unfold any longer. I burned with hate as I scrutinized the delicious specimen. All caramel locks and firm breasts, she sauntered toward the bar. Of course her seductive walk gave rise to the lust in me, but it’d be fine. They were all there for the plucking.
Gaia, daughter of Selene, stirred the Heavens. A mere Earthling teasing the goddamn universe. And here I was, reduced to seething with lack of control.
Gabriel should’ve let her die at the accident—nobody knew better than him how due she’d been. But the weakling couldn’t stand the thought and broke Heavenly Rule number one in the process. It was absolute B.S.
See, I liked my world. The infinite collection of black Prada shoes and silk Armani shirts. The expensive champagne with a single, squeezed strawberry, so curiously similar to a crushed heart. The sprawling penthouses I claimed within minutes of arriving in any city.
I furnished all my silver-and-black bedrooms with an oversized bed. I favored firm, circular mattresses surrounded by mirrors since I needed to appreciate my females from all angles.
Being a Fallen had definite perks. I’d never been tied to one miserable human for the entirety of her life. A taste, a lick. Earth was a playground giving up what I craved in abundance.
Until now, I hadn’t been on their radar. Gabriel’s mess was about to change that. My loyalty to him annoyed the hell out of me. Dude was a damn fool, but he was also the only Celestial who hadn’t cut me off as his brother. Because of it, he’d weaseled his way in as one of my few weaknesses.
If the archangels came, there’d be no pardon. My existence on Earth would be destroyed once they exposed the chaos a simple guardian could create. Yes, I appreciated my brother, but losing my exquisite lifestyle scared me more. Would they even allow Fallen Ones to stay afterward?
Gabriel had hampered my plans of flying to Stockholm. Thanks to Gabriel, I wasn’t off to New York, Rome, or Paris any time soon. Instead, my brother had my ass planted firmly in the quaintest, most boring little town in the world. Shades freaking Run. And all because I had to clean up after him.
I needed to get him back on his wings too, but first I had to take care of her. My future—and Gabriel’s—depended on the elimination of this daughter of Eve.
I’d existed for as long as Heaven and Hell, and I’d be damned if I wasn’t going to find a way to revert my world to what it used to be.
****
Gaia
Friday nights pulsed at Johnny O’s. Its owners added flavor by letting local bands loose on their customers. The bar was already packed with students when we arrived, and the waiters squeezed between us with drink trays held high.
“They check IDs as if their jobs depend on it!” Cody groaned after a failed attempt at ordering a beer. We ended up with Cokes and Shirley Temples, and I sighed in relief over another week gone by.
Across the table Kyle had Lucio in a headlock and was attempting to tie him to the barstool with his own belt. “Dude’s strong!” he laughed as Lucio elbowed him in the stomach.
“I’m off to the bathroom. Too bad I’ll miss out on the action here,” I screamed over the music.
Marina giggled. “Don’t worry, Gaia—I’ll take notes.”
On my way to the stairs, I noticed the outline of a man. He leaned lazily against the banister, and the way he stood reminded me of someone. He was too still, too focused. His gaze followed me, and I recognized the odd perfection of his beauty.
Tousled, thick hair of the blackest night caressed broad shoulders and framed an immaculate face. When he turned fully, I caught the cobalt gleam of the inky strands before my stare drifted down a deific dancer’s body.
Entranced, I slowed down and stopped. He had a full, scarlet mouth, too sensual to dwell on. A nose to be envied by any Greek god, and a pair of gorgeous, almond-shaped eyes lined with thick, black lashes. His irises shifted between lime and gold, and his skin was…oh, please.
Shimmering.
My breath caught as he crossed his arms, narrowing cat eyes into a sardonic smile. “Well, well. Took you a while.” He tilted his head and studied the ceiling in mock deliberation. “Maybe neon signs would be better for future run-ins?”
“Who are you?”
My question was a squeak, and he smirked, rolling his eyes. “Oh hell, you’re predictable.”
Barely crouching, he did a small panther leap toward me and kissed my hand. “I’m Cassiel, and believe me, the pleasure can be all yours.”
His golden eyes penetrated mine, undressed me down to my soul, and made my abdomen contract.
“Cut the dazzling.”
My voice sounded breathless, and his eyebrows shot up in fake surprise. “Oh my, she knows her angel tricks, doesn’t she?”
The molecules in the air compressed as if mirroring my distress, and Cassiel chuckled, “Easy, bro.”
Amused, he fixated on something behind me, and his spell on me slipped.
“Sorry, Cassiel, I don’t keep company with demons.” I pivoted to head back to Marina.
I didn’t see him move and jumped when his nose almost touched my forehead. Motionless, he stood tall in front of me, blocking my retreat. He cocked his head, examining my expression.
“Obsessed with demons, are we? Sorry to disappoint. I’m no demon, but—ta-dah,” he opened his arms wide, “you’ve met your first fallen angel!”
He bared an impressive row of pearly-whites in a car salesman smile. I sucked in air, choked, and started coughing. Cassiel loved the reaction and slapped the outline of his six-pack, guffawing.
Good God. If this guy’s a Fallen, I better not run into an actual demon.
Yet again, my life was taking a turn for the worse. I tried to pass him, but he caught my wrist and jerked me to him.
Not a trace of cheerfulness remained when he wheezed through his teeth. “I needed a closer look at who’s done this to Gabriel.”
My brain was a muddle of fear and questions. I wanted to ask what I had done to Gabriel. How he knew him. With my wrists crossed tight in one fist, he yanked me off the ground.
“You should’ve been dead for years by now. Dead! Get it? Instead, everything’s falling apart. Because you are not dead.”
His laughter was soft and seductively menacing.
“All your fault, babe,” he whispered. I dangled over the floor inches from his face. “And you’ll destroy me too.”
In a flash, his other hand crushed me close. His mouth seized mine and kissed me with an avenging passion my body couldn’t even absorb.
Every light bulb at Johnny O’s exploded simultaneously. Darkness enveloped the stunned silence. The ground started shaking in sideways tremors. As he dropped me and I collapsed, the vibrations traveled through me and crept up the walls to the ceiling.
Screams rose around me as drinks fell and crashed to the ground, but I was entranced by Cassiel’s bright laughter.
“Good one, Gabe,” he said conversationally as he walked off. “Who knew you had it in you? She’s tasty, but you’re still pretty damn pathetic.”
He whistled as he disappeared into the dark.
****
Cassiel
The second I ducked out of Johnny O’s, he was in my face. From the way he’d stopped shimmering since their fall-out, I figured he’d lost his powers. Let’s just say I was wrong.
I should’ve seen the writing on the wall with his little vibration exercise from the bar. Now, he was roaring at me. Refreshing how he almost looked like his old self, though. Gabriel was appropriately glorious and shining—and absolutely enraged.
Before I could laugh, he fired off a force field that sent me across the mountain chain at the speed of light.
He was already at the summit when I got to my feet. With eyes narrowed in anger, he bombarded me with razor-sharp ice crystals from all sides. Oh, yes, somebody was out of control.
I regained my senses and shot a couple of lightning bolts at him myself. Instead of reversing them at double speed, Gabriel waited until I was back up on my knees.
I had time for a single eye-roll before he flattened me to the ground with the most god-awful tremors since the War in Heaven.
We kept going for a while, and despite the excruciating pain, I enjoyed seeing him engaged. A year was nothing in angel time, but I’d already spent too long watching the horrendously boring show of Gabriel sinking into a goddamn swamp of deplorable misery.
After the last shot he flung at me, I moaned like a girl over the shoes he ruined. They were my only Pradas with gold buckles on the sides, pretty hard to find. Time for the hands-up-in-defeat move.
“All right, you’re ticked—I get it. Just giving you a hand, man.”
“By ravishing her? You’re insane, Cassiel!”
“A complimentary smooch is not me ‘ravishing’ anybody. Which reminds me, it’s been too long since you’ve seen the real deal—we should…”
He stared me down, effectively stopping the invite. While I waited for him to say the words, I sighed. He had to get it off his chest.
“Don’t you ever. Touch her. Again.”
“Lover Boy, as I said, ’twas just a taste. She’s quite a…”
My verbal appreciation hung unfinished in the air while I crashed to the ground with Gabriel crouched on top of me like a winged tiger. Oh well, I couldn’t help chortling a little. Jealousy. One of the nonexistent sins for an angel of God. Poor Gabriel was tumbling off the pedestal. I brushed him off of me and sat up.
“Enough of this. Let’s talk.”
“Cassiel, we’ve got nothing to discuss. You need to get lost and stay the hell away from her.”
“Oh right, so you can keep working on the mess you’ve created? The archangels will swoop in, Gabriel. You’ve got to get your shit together!”
He’d gotten me good, and I popped a broken rib into place before I continued. “Are you so stuck in your own little wretched world that you can’t see what the two of you have started?”
“Cassiel, it’s over.”
“It’s not goddamn over. Look at yourself! You’re head over heels for the chick. That’s one,” I said, tapping off the Heavenly Rule on my fingers. I didn’t bother mentioning the obvious, how he’d started the whole ordeal by saving her life.
He squeezed his eyes shut.
“Number two, you interfere in her life.”
“Absolutely not. I stay invisible and don’t communicate with her.”
“Oh, I can think of at least five times you’ve affected her life.”
“Cut the crap, Cassiel.”
“You compelled a doctor to come to her house on Christmas Eve when he otherwise would have been in Florida with his beyond-a
ncient mother. Somebody also persuaded him to know exactly what your Earthling’s problem was and how to fix her. I wonder who?
“But I’ll give you some slack and only count those two examples as one.” I took a moment to wiggle my eyebrows playfully. “Two, you extinguished her pain.”
“No, I just…”
“…chilled her heart with the healing touch of oblivion, you say? Right, because that’s so different. C’mon Gabriel. You might as well fess up. You don’t possess the ability to lie, remember? For now at least.”
I snorted at my own joke, and he groaned.
“How come you keep a better eye on me than I do, Cassiel? Stalker tendencies or just bored?”
He knew it required no energy on an angel’s behalf to track someone. I could have full overview of Gabriel in seconds. Since I wasn’t up for another detonation, I didn’t remind him.
“Three, you just let all hell break loose to protect her from a little kiss. Pitiful, Gabriel, just pitiful.”
“Okay, stop talking, Cassiel.” He’d straightened up, and I could tell he was praying for an excuse to attack me again in one of his kitty pounces.
“Sorry, brother, not done yet.”
Sighing as if performing a tiresome duty, I went on counting Heavenly violations. “You want her. Four.”
“Give me a break, Cassiel. You’re counting the same infraction twice.”
I explained the difference between violation number one and four with a leering look. Surprisingly, he chuckled, ashamed for a second.
“Worst of all, though, is the fifth: the female loves you like crazy.”
“No, no, she’s over me.”
“Oh, yeah? Well, I guess it’s just a coincidence that she hasn’t kissed another human since she met you.”
“She kissed—”
“No, she didn’t. Wishy-washy pecks by little boys at movies don’t count.”
Troubled, he ran a hand through his hair, but I was on a roll.
“Also, it must be a coincidence that her heart feels wrong to her, and it’s probably a coincidence that all she ever paints, draws, and sculpts at that silly college of hers is you.”