I looked to the rest of my brothers. They seemed to be torn over what they should do. “Will any of you stand against Gabriel and help me?” I asked them desperately.
Hellfire
How It Ends
Paranormal Romance
Book 6
By: Stacia Ford & Third Cousins
A SYNOPSIS...
It’s the beginning of the end. The war is impending and there seems to be nothing that can be done to stop it. Daniel is offered a choice that he seems unable to avoid making, but he’s got other plans that Gabriel could never have foreseen. When the fight breaks out, someone is hurt in the crossfire. That person is then given a choice. A choice between getting to do it all over again or being with the person she loves. Can there be a happily ever after for Daniel and Lucy, or will they always be torn apart?
INSPIRING WORDS
“Love, I've come to understand is more than three words mumbled before bedtime.”
- Nicholas Sparks
CHAPTER 1
Lucy
Daniel had been gone for what felt like hours. The seconds were tearing at my skin as they dragged by me. I could feel time slowing down as it sensed my anxiety over what was happening. Daniel had told me that it wouldn’t be safe for me to go with him. He’d told me that it was better for me to stay away from his brothers until they asked to see me.
He was probably right. I hadn’t argued with him, though, either way. He knew his brothers and I only knew of them. I knew that, if war didn't ruin everything, they would probably be curious to see me in the end. I knew they would probably be curious about how a soul might settle into a demon, but I also knew that they were scared of change. I knew that they were afraid of how I’d been created, and that in their fear they might become ruthless.
I wondered how long it would take him to talk with his brothers. I wondered whether they’d even let him leave again, once he was among them. But it was clear that he had to speak with them. It was literally his only chance of avoiding an all-out war between them, but that didn’t mean that he was going to be safe. It was a huge risk he was taking; it was a huge show of faith, and there was nothing I could do other than wait to see whether it had paid off.
The sun had started to dip below the darkening tree line that ran along the edge of the road, that led past the motel. I looked out at the hot pink sunset that had started to stain the vast, blue sky. It was getting late. I’d expected Daniel back well before the evening.
What if he didn't come back at all? Was there a point when I should stop waiting and start running? And would that do any good at all?
I could feel the inky pools of my worst thoughts starting to creep over my mind. I could see the images that they were playing out to me like film clips that couldn’t be avoided. My thoughts showed me Daniel already dead. His brothers probably struck him down on sight. But it could be worse that, thoughts went on, putting a sour taste in my mouth. Perhaps they didn't kill him on sight. Perhaps they tortured him first. Should I have started to run hours before? Had I waited too long? My head was spinning.
When someone knocked loudly on the motel room door, I sprang to my feet. Then I froze in fear. I didn’t know what to do. It could be anyone. There was no back way out of the room and the window in the bathroom was far too small. I was trapped. Another knock. I scanned the room for anything that I might be able to use as a weapon.
“Lucy,” a familiar voice called through the door. It was Daniel.
The panic I had been feeling started to wash away from me. I could feel the icy grip of anxiety started to loosen throughout my body and air returning to my lungs. “Daniel?”
“Lucy, it’s me. Can you let me in?” he asked me quickly.
I released the locks that were keeping the door firmly shut and pulled the door open. Daniel was standing in front of me. He didn’t look as though he’d been in any fights. He didn’t look as though his brothers had tried to kill him.
I glanced behind him and noticed that he had brought some people with him. “Are these your brothers?” I asked, trying not to stare.
“These are some of my brothers,” Daniel said.. “Unfortunately not all of them could be swayed to listen to reason.”
There were five of them. I suddenly realized they were as nervous as I was, and I stepped to the side so that they all could enter the room. “Come in. It's not much, but you are welcome.”
They trooped in silently, each one looking closely at my face and then looking around the room. Daniel came in last and shut the door.
“Is this the girl?” one of them asked Daniel.
“She is.” he nodded.
“She is part demon?”
“She is part demon, but only through creation. She’s had a soul her entire life. If anything she is closer to human that either an angel or a demon.”
“Has she ever hurt anybody or displayed demonic behaviour?” Daniel’s brother asked with a deeply serious face.
“Actually, yes,” I stepped forward and answered his question. I could tell from the look on Daniel’s face that he had been conflicted over whether to tell the truth.
They all turned to stare at me, and I said, “I was suffering from terrible nightmares, that I could neither understand nor control, for a long period. During a particularly bad nightmare I set fire to the home that I was living in. Several children got hurt. I knew nothing of it at the time, but now I remember it. I remember everything. But I can assure that it wasn’t deliberate.”
“Do you feel bad about what happened?” Daniel’s brother asked me.
“Well, I didn’t mean to do it,” I said with a small shrug.
“I didn’t ask whether it was intentional,” Daniel’s brother said and his voice sounded curt and almost agitated. “I asked whether you felt bad about it happening.”
“Well, I mean I felt bad that those kids got hurt, I suppose,” I said as I thought for the first time about how I felt. “But, I mean I didn’t mean to do it. It was an accident. I can’t beat myself up forever, right?”
“No, you certainly can’t do it forever,” Daniel’s brother said with eyes that were narrowing. “I doubt, however, that you have beaten yourself up at all.”
“Well, I didn’t mean to do it,” I said as I tried to defend myself. “I shouldn’t have to feel bad about something I didn’t mean to do.”
“You still did it though,” Daniel’s brother said. “The fact that you didn’t mean to holds no relevance, because you still did do it. If it wasn’t for you, then those children wouldn’t have been hurt. Intention plays no part in your guilt. Your guilt is unquestionable.”
I didn’t know what to say. I had no argument for what he had just said, because he was right. It didn’t matter that I hadn’t intended to do it. I had still done it and those children had still been hurt. I’d felt nothing for that. I’d felt no guilt, no regret or remorse. I’d soothed myself with the idea that it had been beyond my control, but that really had nothing to do with it.
“I need to speak with you in private,” Daniel’s brother said, as he turned to Daniel with a look of disapproval on his face.
“Sure,” Daniel said quickly with a look of worry crashing over his.
CHAPTER 2
Daniel
I knew that it hadn’t gone well. I could tell from the look on my brother’s face that he’d been unhappy with the answers that Lucy had given to him. I should have answered him before she had a chance to speak. I should have lied. I should have told him that no harm had ever come to anyone who had been around Lucy. I shouldn’t have let her tell the truth. I shouldn’t have let her seal my brother’s judgment of her over something that he couldn’t fully understand.
“You said she was more human that either demon or angel,” My brother Dost said, as we stepped out into the empty parking lot.
“I believe that she is,” I said firmly.
“You must be kidding, Lucifer,” Dost said. “All this time away from your brothers, away from home, h
as turned your mind. She is not human, brother. I’m sorry, but the girl is more demon than I think even she knows.”
“You’re wrong,” I said forcefully. I knew Lucy. I knew Lucy better than any of my brothers knew her. She felt no remorse about what happened because it truly hadn’t been her fault. If it had been anyone’s fault, then it was mine. It had been I who had blocked her memories, which had led to her mind becoming troubled by questions it could not answer. That had led to the nightmares.
“Lucifer, I can admit when I’m wrong,” he said, with a look of pity in his eyes. “I can admit that it was wrong for our brothers to expel you from heaven. I can admit that I want you to come home. That a mistake was made and that it must be rectified. Lucy, however, is your mistake. She isn’t mine. I haven’t judged her. The judgment is on you and you alone. If you want to return home, brother, then I can make this happen, but not while you are still with her.” He looked at me with wide open eyes, as though he expected a sudden change of heart from me.
“I’m sorry I don’t understand what you’re suggesting,” I said, because I couldn’t quite get my head around it. “Are you suggesting that you will allow me home, but only if I leave Lucy behind?” I tried to clarify.
“I wish it were that simple,”he said, shaking his head. “It is not because you are with her. It is because she is. If you wish to return home, brother, you must rectify your mistake as we must ours. You must wipe her from the earth.”
“Do you believe that going home is worth that much to me?” I asked in surprise. “You and all of my brothers turned your backs on me. You expelled me from my home and you never once sought to rectify your mistake. So, why should chose you over her?”
“You are one of us, Lucifer. You should return home. It’s the only way.”
“There is never only one way,” I said. “We always have a choice.”
“You’re right,” Dost replied. “Your choice to make is this. You can give us Lucy and return home, or we take her and you stay here.”
“I think that you and our brothers should leave now,” I said bitterly. I held my brother’s eyes with my own, so that he could see that I had no intentions of backing down.
“I thought you said you wanted to avoid war.”
“I guess I’ve realized that there are some things worth fighting for,” I said with small shrug.
“We will take her, Lucifer. She cannot go on as she is. She is everything that is wrong in this world and that must be cleansed.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said. “You know nothing about her. You know nothing about who she is or how she thinks. You have judged her too quickly and in time you will see the mistake you have made.”
“It is not I who has made a mistake,” Dost said calmly. “I’m sorry that you’ve chosen for it to be this way, Lucifer. I really have missed you.”
“You better get back to Gabriel,” I said coldly. “He’ll be waiting for your word on how this went, I’m sure.”
“So it must be,” my brother said with a small nod. “You know, it was Gabriel’s idea to allow you back into heaven. Perhaps, when you speak of judgment handed out too quickly, you should look in a mirror before you start judging your brothers.” Dost turned and started to walk away from me.
I let him go, for I had no more arguments. I turned back to the motel room door. I had left my other brothers with Lucy and now it was time for me to ask them to leave.
CHAPTER 3
Lucy
Daniel hadn’t been the same since he’d stepped outside to talk with his brother. I could tell from his face that something was troubling him deeply, but he refused to answer my questions about the source of his sudden unhappiness. He stood at the door and gestured, and his other brothers had left without a word.
I’d hoped when he’d turned up with his brothers that they had been willing to see me with at least an open mind, but it had become quickly apparent that wasn’t the case. “I’m sorry that your brothers didn’t like me,” I said softly in a desperate attempt to sooth some of his obvious pain.
“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Daniel said and he caught my eyes and held them intensely with his own. “My brothers came here only to try and convince me of what they believed. I’d hoped that perhaps they had come to ready to be convinced, but I was wrong and I’m sorry for that. I should have never brought them here.”
“Daniel, you had to try,” I said. “You had to try. You have to try to prevent the war.”
“I think that the war is unavoidable at this point,” he said. His shoulders were slumped as if his strength had left him.
“You still have to hope, don't you? I mean, you don’t know. Maybe your brothers might be willing to strike up another kind of deal. Perhaps, there is something you can do to make them realize that war isn’t the right way forward.”
“Lucy, we need to go,” Daniel said suddenly, as he clasped his hand around mine. “We don’t have much time.” I could see a determined, strong look starting to fill his eyes.
“Where are we going?” I asked as we strode across the parking lot and onto the sidewalk.
“You’ll see when we get there. It isn’t far,” he said and he pulled me along after him, as though his whole goal in life was to get to his destination.
I tried to speak, and the words were bounced out of me by the way we were moving.“Daniel, is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine,” he said, but not in a way that sounded as though anything would ever be really fine.
“Why are we rushing? Where are we going?” I asked, as my lungs started to burn for more air. My legs were aching with the sudden quick walk after having been still for so long, and all I wanted to do was stop for a moment so that my body could catch up with what was going on.
“You made me realize that I have to end this. I have to stop the war no matter what the cost is,” Daniel said. He sounded certain, determined.
“How are you going to stop it?” I was asking as he pulled me around a corner and then stopped abruptly in front of me. I crashed into him and found myself staggered back. After a moment my eyes moved from him to what lay beyond him. It was a huge church, its front reaching up into the night sky like a barrier.
“You’ll see,” he said. He took a hold of my hand again and started to pull me across the road toward the church.
“Daniel, I can’t go in there,” I said. I started to pull back and show resistance. “You know what you made me from. I can’t go in there.”
This was not good. This was the last place I wanted to be, but Daniel pulled me forward anyhow. My fear fed my sleeping doubts. Could I trust even Daniel, this man I knew and did not know? This creator who was dragging me closer to the building—to do what with me?
“You’ll be fine,” he said, as he stepped onto the small cobbled path that led up to the church doors. “Trust me,” he added, as if he could sense my doubts as clearly as I could myself.
I let my body move in his direction. The ground felt hot underfoot, as though I was walking on top of a volcano that was ready to explode just underneath my feet. Nothing bad had happened yet, but I felt all bad things hovering in every direction, out of my sight but as pressures on my soul.
“Daniel, what are we doing here?” I asked.
“We’re here to put a stop to the war,” he said, as he glanced around the church yard.
“How are you going to do that?”
“He’s going to hand you over,” Gabriel said from behind us.
I jumped at the sudden sound of his voice, and spun around to face him. I could feel my feet starting to take slow steps back away from Gabriel, but Daniel’s body was behind mine and he was forcing me to stand my ground.
“I don’t understand,” I said. I looked over my shoulder at Daniel, but he was holding me so I could not turn to him. He had a cold look in his eyes. I’d never seen that look before. I could feel the sudden icy grasp of anxiety in my chest, as I realized that I had no
idea what was going on. “Daniel, why is he here?” I asked.
“Well, I gave your precious Daniel a choice,” Gabriel said with a wicked glint of enjoyment in his eyes. “He’s allowed to come home, but he has to give you up.”
“Daniel,” I said quickly. “Daniel, this isn’t true, is it? Daniel?”
Daniel wasn’t saying anything. He was just stood looking between Gabriel and me. I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to run, but I knew I had no chance of escaping. “Daniel?”
He finally spoke. “This war cannot happen.”
CHAPTER 4
Daniel
I put my hand on Lucy’s shoulder. It was meant to be supportive, but she read it the wrong way and shrugged me off. “I can’t believe you’d do this to me,” she said with her eyes filled with a hurt that sank into my heart with the sting of a needle.
“Lucy, you have misunderstood,” I said gently. “I’m not about to hand you over. I would never do that to you.”
I took my eyes away from her and placed them on Gabriel. He looked confused. He’d heard what I’d said to Lucy and I could tell that now he wasn’t sure what was about to happen. “How do you suggest ending the war if you are unwilling to hand over the cause of it?” he asked me with venom in his tone.
“She is not the cause of this war,” I said sternly. I held his eyes firmly with my own, so that he was forced to pay his undivided attention to me. “You and I are the reason this war is brewing and you and I are the only ones who can put a stop to it.”
“I have told you my terms and you refuse them,” Gabriel said. He turned his gaze on Lucy, who was still looking awkwardly over her shoulder up at me.
“You don’t look at her,” I said with the force of storm. “You have no right to look at her.”
“This love you harbor for a demon will be the reason that you see her and many of your brothers die,” Gabriel said flatly.
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