Revelations: Fire & Brimstone Scroll 1

by Nikole Knight

  The soles of my feet complained as rocks and twigs bit into the tender flesh. I stumbled over the forest floor and sent silent prayers into the sky. Maybe the messages would reach my angels and they would rescue me.

  I missed them so much. I didn’t even care that they lied to me. To a certain extent, I understood why they had. But none of that mattered anymore. I just wanted them to find me. I wanted to go back to their apartment and sleep in their beds. I wanted to go home.

  A twig snapped. The crack rang through the air. I strained my eyes to search the darkness. “Brian?”

  I waited for a response, but the woods remained quiet. When I continued my trek, I focused on my surroundings this time, and the telltale signs of a stalker were unmistakable. Something heavy bumbled through the brush behind me, snuffling and growling. Not human.

  Fudgsicles!

  Easing behind a fat tree trunk, I pressed my back into the bark, ignoring the bite. The animal breathed heavily, sniffing and yipping. Maybe it was a coyote. But then it growled, a deep, angry sound. Were there wolves in California?

  The wind swayed the branches above my head, carrying with it the unmistakable scent of sulfur. Oh God, please no. Please let me be hallucinating again.

  As the snarls encroached on my hiding place, I carefully peeked around the trunk of the tree. The night was too dark; I could barely see five feet in front of me. But in the distance, I spotted movement. Two glowing orbs levitated above the ground. Eyes. Two blood-red eyes looked back at me, reflecting the flames of Hell within.

  There was no room for thought, only action. My body took over, my need for survival taking the reins. I ran. I didn’t care about direction. All that mattered was creating distance between myself and the creature of death behind me.

  I ran until my legs turned to pudding and my lungs ached. I sprinted through the trees, ignoring the sharp rocks and sticks slicing open the soles of my feet. I fled like my life depended on it, because it did.

  Something was chasing me.

  It barreled through the trees, its terrifying snarls echoing through the woods. I was being hunted. If it caught me, it was going to kill me. Adrenaline raced through my veins, powering my muscles. My feet took flight. I’d never run so fast in my life.

  Time and thought held no meaning anymore. I was aware only of my shortness of breath, the ache in my legs, and the absolute, all-encompassing terror.

  As the trees thinned, hope ignited in my chest. I might actually make it. I wasn’t going to die!

  Something pierced the pad of my foot, and I lost my momentum, tumbling to the ground with a cry. Digging my fingers into the loose dirt, I crawled toward freedom. My injured foot dragged behind me, a wicked stick embedded in the flesh.

  If I couldn’t run, I had to hide. I spotted a hollow tree trunk and threw myself inside it, bending my limbs to hide from view. For once, I was grateful for my terrible genetics. I was just small enough to fit.

  My breath clouded in front of my face in heavy puffs, and I clamped a hand over my mouth to muffle my pants. Ash and sulfur clogged my throat as my hunter approached, its scarlet eyes glowing in the night. With a ferocious snarl, the beast stepped out of the shadows and into the dim moonlight. It was like nothing I had ever seen before.

  The size of a small horse, it resembled a wolf in general body shape. Its black fur was matted and patchy, revealing shiny scales beneath. Three reptilian tails spasmed behind its body like individual snakes, their tips sharpened needles like a scorpion. It walked on four legs, but the bones were misplaced and disjointed. Razor-sharp claws gleamed in the moonlight, and its massive jaws stretched open in a howl, its dagger-like teeth layered in rows like a shark.

  It was grotesque. A thing of nightmares.

  I pressed myself into the tree as it stalked forward, sniffing at the ground. It lapped at a puddle of my blood and shuddered with a pleasured hiss. Tears carved over my cheeks as its fatal gaze locked on me.

  Not real, not real. It wasn’t real.

  When it came to a stop at the opening of the hollow tree, it peeled back its lips and roared, its hot, reeking breath fanning over my face. I gazed into its eyes, filled with eternal flames, and I saw death. The beast coiled, preparing to lunge, and I squeezed my eyes shut and screamed.

  I expected ripping and tearing, blood and pain. Instead, the atmosphere trembled, and the creature yelped. Wings rustled inches from my face as a deep voice grunted a curse. I smelled sunshine and peppermint.

  My eyes flew open, and my vision filled with golden feathers. Gideon pinned the beast to the ground with one golden sword through its body. His biceps rippled as he twisted its head at an unnatural angle. Crack! Its neck snapped, but it continued to thrash and roar. Gideon swung his second sword, severing the barbed tips of its three tails, before he plunged the blade into the monster’s skull.

  With one last mournful howl, it went limp.

  “Bloody crucifixion!” Noel broke through the bushes, his pale face flushed, chest chugging like he’d just run a marathon. “We need to do more cardio. I’m so out of shape. Oh, Maker, I’m dying!”

  “Stop whining, you baby.” Jai staggered into view a moment later, his hands falling to his knees as he bent at the waist. “Depths of Sheol, what is a hellhound doing here?”

  Three sets of wings fluttered nervously as I blinked through my shock, attempting to unlock my frozen body. A strangled choke escaped my mouth, and three pairs of eyes landed on my little alcove. Gideon knelt before my hiding place, his cheek streaked with black blood, and offered me his hand.

  “You’re all right now, little one. You can come out.” Noel and Jai crowded in behind him, but the golden angel shooed them away. “Give him a minute.”

  With one last glance at the dead hellhound to ensure it wasn’t getting back up, I reached out and slid my hand into Gideon’s. He guided me from the hollow tree, and I collapsed into his arms, throwing my arms around his neck. Burying my face in his shoulder, I sobbed.

  Gideon didn’t know quite what to do with me, but at long last, he patted my back awkwardly. “It’s okay. Everything’s okay.”

  His method of comfort left much to be desired, but Noel made up for it. The moment I stretched my hand in his direction, he scooped me up and crushed me in an embrace. My legs wrapped around his waist as I smeared his shirt with tears and, most likely, snot. He didn’t care, though.

  “You’re safe now, baby. We’ve got you.” He kissed my head as I clung to him like a monkey.

  I trailed my fingers over the ridges of his braid, inhaling honeyed floral. Tobacco and spices washed over me next as Jai shifted at my side, his hand circling my ankle. I touched his shoulder, to make sure he was real, and his thin lips pursed.

  “Deep breath, Riles,” he said, then he grasped the twig sticking out of my foot and ripped it free.

  “Holy cats! Fudge nuggets!” I wailed, and Noel rocked me side to side like a baby as he and Jai chuckled.

  “Even when he curses, he’s cute.” Jai ruffled my hair, and I sent him a watery pout as Noel lowered me to my feet. “Sorry, shortstack.”

  Gideon cleared his throat, his face paling. “Where are his clothes?”

  As if they just now noticed my state of undress, they panicked. Fretting over me, they ran hands over my shoulders and arms, head and back. Jai looked murderous, and Noel’s eyes flooded with tears.

  “Riley, are you hurt? Did someone touch you?”

  I shook my head as my cheeks pinked. “No!”

  “Look at me.” Gideon captured my chin and forced me to face him, his expression hard as stone. “Who did this?”

  “B-Brian.”

  Jai and Noel released matching exclamations of rage, but Gideon silenced them with a stern look before focusing back on me. “Did he touch you?”

  I understood what he meant, and my blush heated until my whole head broiled. “No.”

  After retracting his wings, Gideon shrugged out of his shirt and handed me the white material speckled with bla
ck blood. I accepted it, doing my best not to ogle his perfectly sculpted torso.

  Ducking my head into his shirt, I hid my hormone-induced blush for the few seconds it took to slip the shirt over my head. It nearly fell to my knees, the neckline sliding off one shoulder.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” One large palm came to rest on the top of my head, and I sighed. Gideon wasn’t affectionate like Jai and Noel were, but I understood this touch.

  Jai kicked at the hellhound’s corpse, nose scrunched. “It’s a scout. We should get out of here before its pack catches up.”

  “Indeed.” Gideon retrieved his swords from the body and cracked his neck.

  “What’s a pack of hellhounds even doing here?” Noel asked.

  “Scouting, apparently.” Jai gestured at the dead beast, and Noel rolled his eyes.

  Before they could start bickering, Gideon interrupted. “We probably don’t have much of a head start on its pack. Let’s go.”

  “Yeah,” Jai muttered, kicking the cadaver one last time. “I don’t feel like being hellhound kibble anytime soo—”

  A black blur leapt from the brush and hit Jai center mass, sending them tumbling to the ground. Jai bellowed as the hellhound crushed his shoulder in its jaws. Noel screamed, his opal swords materializing in his grasp. I was yanked back as a second hellhound bounded out of the trees, lunging at Noel.

  Gideon crouched before me, his wings springing open once more, and three more hellhounds crept from the shadows. They stalked toward us, snapping their jaws, their triple tails serpentining in the air.

  Jai wrestled one hellhound, spitting curses as he stabbed at its rough hide with his onyx blades. Noel battled another, and I curled my fingers in Gideon’s belt loops, peering under his wings at the threat before us. I knew next to nothing about demonic creatures or angelic abilities, but I feared we were outnumbered.

  “Whatever happens, Riley, stay behind me,” Gideon commanded. I merely whimpered in response.

  The three hounds stalked toward us, moving as one unit. Despite Gideon’s larger size and the threat of his weapons, they barely noticed him. Their focus was locked on me. They were here for me; I was the sole purpose of their mission. My angels were simply collateral damage, and they were going to die protecting me.

  An opal sword flew through the air and sliced into one of the hound’s flanks. It rounded on Noel with a snarl. “Come on, pooch. Come and get me,” Noel challenged as he palmed his second sword. Distracted by new prey, it stepped in Noel’s direction, leaving Gideon to fight two.

  “What are you waiting for?” Gideon muttered under his breath, his body tense as he awaited the attack.

  With a mighty roar, they lunged. I shrieked and jumped back to allow Gideon space to maneuver as he defended the offensive front. Jai and Noel were locked in their own battles, and while Gideon held his own against two now, how long could he last?

  I searched the ground for a large rock or fallen branch to use as weapons, but there was nothing. Just me, in my boxer-briefs and Gideon’s soiled shirt. I was useless.

  As Gideon dodged a vicious snap of jaws, the second hellhound lunged. Its jagged claws glittered in the night, aimed at Gideon’s back where his wings connected to his spine. It was a weak point—somehow, I knew this, like long forgotten knowledge I’d only just now remembered.

  If Gideon fell, Jai and Noel would follow. They’d all die. For me. I couldn’t let that happen. I had no weapons, so I used the only thing I had at my disposal—my body.

  Like I was moving in slow motion, I stepped in front of Gideon, a pathetic human shield. I raised my arms in defense as the moonlight glinted off the hellhound’s claws. I squeezed my eyes shut and braced for impact.

  The seconds before death stretched, like someone had hit pause on the clock. My brain supplied me with comforting memories—Jai’s raspy laugh, Noel’s lilac scent, Gideon’s emerald eyes. They were my family; they always had been, and family took care of each other.

  A fierce possessiveness rose within me, a potent rage toward the monsters trying to take away my family. Like an electric current, it flowed through my body, lighting up every nerve ending until it was too much. I was the soda bottle again, trembling with too much emotion to hold.

  I released the hold on my control, and the night exploded.

  It was impossible to understand the next few moments. There was a rush, a dark satisfaction, and then the calm after the storm. Opening my eyes, I blinked in confusion at the scene around me. Shockingly, I was alive. More shocking still, my angels were alive, too.

  Jai’s shoulder was mangled, and the skin of Noel’s chest had been shredded. Gideon bled from numerous puncture wounds and a head injury, a dark crimson river streaming down the side of his face. But they were alive. We were all alive.

  The hellhounds were not. Their bodies littered the ground, charred and sizzling as smoke coiled into the air. Surrounding their corpses was blackened earth and ash. My head swam from the putrid stench of burning flesh and fur.

  What the heck happened? How did we win?

  “Well, fuck me sideways.” Jai collapsed to his knees, dark eyes wide.

  “Sorry, you’re not my type,” Noel murmured out of habit.

  No one laughed.

  Facing Gideon, I followed his riveted stare and balked at my glowing hands. Spindles of electricity sparked along my fingers, crackling like the ends of loose powerlines. Power surged beneath my skin with every beat of my heart, but as the glow ebbed, the energy was replaced with exhaustion.

  It was too much. This whole day had been too much, and I was more tired than I’d ever been in my life. My vision dimmed, and I lost connection with my body. As my knees gave out, Gideon reached for me. Everything went dark before I hit the ground.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Floating in a glass ocean, I listened to the rhythmic thumping of a heart beneath my ear. Heat pulsed through my feet in cadence with the thudding heartbeat, and I sank deeper into bliss. I surrendered to soothing peppermint, drifting along with the current.

  At some point, voices infiltrated my stasis, and my ears perked in recognition. I swam toward the surface, wanting to be closer to the owners of said voices. Bit by bit, I returned to the land of the living.

  “Jai, stop squirming,” Noel instructed.

  The rasp of something tearing followed, and Jai hissed. “Ow! Watch it.”

  “Well, I told you to stop squirming!”

  “Please, don’t get blood on the couch.” Gideon’s voice rumbled against my cheek, and I shivered. A heavy hand rested on my head, thick fingers working through my hair. “Shh, don’t pay them any mind, little one. All is well.”

  Relaxing under his ministrations, I bobbed along the surface of consciousness without fully waking. It was safe here in this in-between state, and I wasn’t sure what I’d face when I had to finally wake.

  “So, is this the time when I remind you that you owe me fifty bucks?” Noel snickered at Jai’s responding curse.

  “I can’t believe he lit up like a damn Christmas tree. Un-fucking-believable.”

  “Well, it’s about time he showed his abilities.”

  “He almost fried us.”

  “Oh, he did not, you big baby!”

  As always, Gideon intervened. “He showed a shocking amount of control. His power bypassed each of us completely.”

  “I got singed,” Jai grumbled, and Noel snorted.

  “Probably because you grabbed at the hound Riley was barbecuing. Next time, keep your hands off when Riley’s dishing out vengeance.”

  “How was I supposed—ouch! Watch it, No—supposed to know he was going supernova? I saw him acting like a fucking martyr, trying to save Gideon’s ass—”

  “For the record, I did not need saving.” Offense colored Gideon’s tone. “Now, keep your voices down. He needs to rest.”

  “S’okay.” I tried to lift my head, but it was much too heavy.

  “Hush.” For the secon
d time, Gideon’s large hand landed on my head. “Sleep.”

  Pressed against his chest—his bare chest—I relaxed. He’d never been this close to me, never held me like this before. I liked the vast largeness of his body compared to my smaller one, like I could lose myself inside his embrace. My half-conscious state bolstered my courage, and I hooked one arm around his neck and snuggled into his pectoral. His chest hair was soft and fuzzy, tickling my nose.

  Gideon turned to stone beneath me. “Uh, do one of you want to take him?”

  “He looks pretty damn comfortable to me,” Jai said. “What do you think, No?”

  Noel’s wind chimes tinkled through the room. “Yeah, you better keep him, Gid.”

  I agreed. There was no way I was letting him get away that easily, not now that I finally had him.

  Gideon’s grumble vibrated through my body. “Thanks so much.”

  As I roused further, I lazily blinked my heavy eyelids, watching my fingers sift through the dark blond curls covering his sternum. It took too long for me correlate the inappropriateness of my touch to the resulting discomfort leaking from Gideon’s every pore. He was far from relaxed, and my cheeks flushed as my hand froze, my gaze lifting hesitantly to his.

  His Adam’s apple bobbed in my peripheral. “It’s still quite early. Go back to sleep.”

  I fought the pull of his suggestion. There was something vitally important I was missing, wasn’t there? Where was I? Why was I here? What had happened?

  One blond eyebrow arched, and I lifted from my reclined position in his arms as the happenings of the last twenty-four hours bombarded my weary brain. Our argument, Brian, the woods, hellhounds… Everything.

  “Oh my God, are you okay?” I grabbed Gideon’s head and inspected the place where he’d been bleeding. His scalp had long since healed, so I turned my attention to his torso. My hands slid over his sides, analyzing the closed wounds left by the hellhound’s barbs.