Angels Soaring (Angels Rising Book 2)

by Harriet Carlton

  “So, that’s it?” snapped Amelia, looking up sharply. “You’re just going? No indication of when you’ll be back? Nothing?”

  “Mom,” sighed Imorean. “I have to help Roxy. She’s my friend.”

  Amelia sighed again and looked down at the carpet, shaking her head.

  Imorean looked at Gabriel for any sign of help. The Archangel tossed his head toward the door.

  “Go. I’ll stay with her.”

  “Thanks. Mom, we’re leaving. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “Be safe,” said Amelia, looking up. Her eyes were brimming with tears. “Please.”

  “I will be,” replied Imorean. He hesitated at the door, suddenly wanting to stay with his mother and let Michael handle the entire situation.

  “Imorean,” said Michael, pushing him lightly in the back and urging him through the door. “We need to get moving.”

  Imorean nodded and exited the house after a quick backward glance at his mother. Gabriel’s hand was on her shoulder, but her gaze was riveted to the carpet, bluntly refusing to look at him.

  Chapter 29

  Imorean was almost knocked off his feet by the rush of air that hit him as Michael took off. He had forgotten just how powerful the Chief Archangel was.

  “Are you coming?” asked Michael, hovering close to twenty feet above Imorean’s head.

  Imorean looked up, noticing for the first time the single strap across Michael’s chest and the lone sword handle showing just behind the top of his wing. “Yeah. Just getting myself together.”

  “Well hurry. Miss Daire may be relying on us.”

  Imorean nodded and flared his wings, beating them once and lifting off the ground. It seemed becoming airborne was getting easier to do.

  “Any ideas?” asked Imorean when he reached Michael’s level in the air. He looked again at the sheathed sword on the Chief Archangel’s back. Imorean had to wonder if they were expecting trouble. He shuddered, glad when Michael spoke up.

  “We will start our search at her home. Perhaps we will be able to pick up some clue as to where she has gone or what has happened.”

  “Okay,” nodded Imorean, wobbling slightly as he held his hover.

  “Lead on,” said Michael, gesturing.

  “You want me to lead?” asked Imorean, angling his wings slightly to catch the air currents. He swallowed as Michael narrowed his eyes venomously.

  “Indeed. You claim to know the area so well. Prove it to me.”

  “All right,” nodded Imorean, taking a deep breath. Of course, this would be one of Michael’s tests.

  Imorean spun in the air for a moment, getting oriented. He knew how to navigate the roads around the area. He could practically do it in his sleep, but as for finding places by flying … that was a different story.

  “This way,” said Imorean after a moment, wishing his voice carried the confidence that he felt he was lacking.

  “Very well,” said Michael.

  Imorean nodded once again and spun in the air, turning toward his heading. He couldn’t help but feel slightly excited as Michael drifted over and flew quietly beside him. He, Imorean, was the one leading the Archangel.

  The cold, morning air hardly bothered Imorean as he and Michael made a beeline for Roxy’s house. In spite of his worry, Imorean crooked a tiny smile. The drive between his house and Roxy’s normally took him well over fifteen minutes. This time though, it seemed that they would be there in around five.

  “Can’t people see us?” asked Imorean as he and Michael coasted over tree tops. The Archangel seemed to be being quite careful as to not ascend too high into the sky.

  “No. All human eyes will see is a pair of rather large birds,” replied Michael, cruising forward so he was flying directly next to Imorean, no longer in his slipstream.

  “Then why are we being so careful?”

  “Humans are not the only beings in this area, Imorean. Or perhaps you have not noticed. Somehow, a large number of demons have managed to break through Gabriel’s barriers undetected.”

  “What happened?” asked Imorean, turning his head to look at Michael. The Archangel’s face revealed nothing.

  “Sometimes, if they are powerful enough, demons can deceive and trick even angels and slip past our defenses. It is hard to do and it takes a very powerful demon to do it, but it has happened before.”

  “Vortigern?” asked Imorean. He almost quailed under the scrutinizing glare Michael sent him.

  “I am not sure. I do not believe he is in the area. He does have a multitude of demons beneath him though, who are reasonably powerful.”

  “I see. Do you think one of them may have found Roxy?”

  When Michael spoke, his voice was heavy. “I do not know. I have an awful feeling that that is so, but I beg my maker that I am wrong.”

  “I thought demons couldn’t find us?” said Imorean, hoping he didn’t sound accusatory.

  “They are not supposed to be able to. Gabriel, Raphael and I have wards set up around all of you that are supposed to keep you and your families safe.”

  Imorean furrowed his brow. “So?”

  “It seems that somehow one of them tracked Roxy down, or, in an even worse case scenario, someone sold out her location.”

  “You mean her address?”

  “Yes. Why?” asked Michael.

  “She said Bethany needed her address.”

  Imorean cringed under the glare Michael sent him.

  “It seems we may have a larger problem than I thought,” said the Archangel impassively. Imorean’s heart skipped a beat. There was a graveness to that simple sentence.

  “Do we know they have her?” asked Imorean. He heard the tremble in his voice as he asked the question.

  “I feel they do not yet have her in their grasp,” replied Michael. For the first time, the Archangel’s voice carried a tone of comfort. “But we must hurry and try to find her or at least some trace of where she has gone.”

  Imorean nodded and bent his wings closer to his sides.

  “Her house is just down here,” said Imorean, beginning to spiral down to the ground.

  “Very good. Well done.”

  “Thanks,” replied Imorean as his feet touched down lightly on the gravel of Roxy’s driveway. It was almost a year since he had been to her house. Imorean shuddered. Despite the fact that he had been here many times in the past, the place now felt alien. Somehow sick and almost infected. There was also a lingering smell of something like decay. Imorean swallowed hard, forcing down bile. He had smelled this before.

  “As I said earlier, demons have most definitely been here,” nodded Michael, landing softly next to Imorean.

  “How can you tell?” asked Imorean, making a concerted effort to breathe in through his mouth.

  “The smell. Their blood reeks of sulfur, but demons themselves carry a disgusting, pungent stench of rot with them wherever they go. I am certain you can smell it as well.”

  “Yeah. I was wondering what that was.”

  “There are visible signs as well,” said Michael after a moment. Imorean wondered if the Archangel was turning Roxy’s disappearance into a form of a lecture. If he was, Imorean had a feeling it would be the most morbid lecture he had ever been through.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Look around. There are leaves churned up, some branches freshly broken. And look here. Everywhere they go, demons bring destruction with them. It is their nature.”

  Imorean stepped closer to Michael as the Archangel knelt down and ran his fingers over three, long, deep grooves in the ground.

  “Demons claws,” said Michael, turning his head to face Imorean.

  “They have claws?” asked Imorean.

  “In a manner of speaking,” nodded Michael. “In their true form, they do. Most demons, however, choose to maintain a humanoid persona. It helps them to walk the earth in disguise and helps them with aesthetics. Even in human form though, they retain more … animal, primarily feline, features. Le
ss powerful ones are unable to shapeshift at all.”

  “Right,” replied Imorean, taking a deep breath. He wished Dr. Haroel hadn’t decided to wait until next semester to cover demons.

  “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah,” nodded Imorean, taken aback by Michael’s concern. “I think so.”

  “Good.” Michael straightened and looked around.

  “Doesn’t look like we’re getting a welcoming committee.”

  “That was the impression I was under as well. Go around the outside of the house, look for anything unusual. Meet me in the backyard.”

  “Okay,” nodded Imorean, watching as Michael stepped off briskly. Imorean chewed the inside of his cheek. He couldn’t help but feel nervous without Michael being very close by. A moment later, Imorean shook his head and turned away. He needed to help Michael find Roxy however he could. He walked slowly around the side of the house. Now that Michael had pointed them out, Imorean couldn’t help but notice all of the signs of destruction nearby. There were more deep rivets in the ground. How many demons had been here? How much danger had Roxy been in? Imorean suddenly kicked himself. What if that was the reason she hadn’t contacted him? A wave of guilt crashed over him and Imorean ran a hand through his hair. How could he have been so callous? Perhaps if he had just driven here, this would never have happened.

  Imorean’s blood ran cold as he saw a smashed window. It had been burst inward by an outside force. There were blood spatters on the white exterior wall of the house. His breath caught in his chest as he realized just whose window he was looking at. Roxy’s.

  “Michael!” called Imorean, his heart racing in his chest. The Archangel was there almost immediately.

  “What is it?” asked the Archangel, soaring over the house’s roof and landing next to Imorean.

  “This is Roxy’s window …” said Imorean, unable to keep the tremor from his voice. He barely felt it as Michael rested a hand on his shoulder. Could Roxy have truly been kidnapped? What if she had been? What would be happening to her? Imorean’s stomach turned as he remembered his own night of terror in the gym. That had just been a simulation. If Roxy was being tortured … it would be real. This was his fault. If only he had thought to call her or to come and visit her. Why had he neglected her in such a way? How could he possibly have done this? This was all his fault.

  There was a heavy hand shaking his shoulder, and Michael’s fingers snapped twice in front of his eyes. “Imorean. Calm yourself. I can almost hear your thoughts.”

  Imorean’s voice came out in a hushed whisper. “Sorry.” He blinked quickly clearing tears that he hadn’t realized had gathered.

  “I am going to have a look inside. You are welcome to come with me or to stay out here,” said Michael, sliding his hand off Imorean’s shoulder and stepping away.

  Imorean shook his head and steeled himself. “I’m coming.”

  He watched as Michael vaulted up and entered the house through the shattered frame of the window. Imorean copied the Archangel’s motions and shivered as he stood in Roxy’s dark room. He couldn’t stop himself from whimpering. There was an unearthly calm in the room. Nothing was out of place. The bed was perfectly made. Nothing on any of the shelves was displaced. Everything was tidy. Perfect.

  Then Imorean spotted it. There were two long smears of blood on the mirror and white tabletop of Roxy’s vanity counter. Imorean looked up at Michael. The Archangel seemed to have noticed it as well.

  “It is not hers,” said Michael. “Neither is the blood outside.”

  “How do you know?”

  “It does not smell like human or demon blood. It is angel blood. It belongs to my sister.”

  “Your sister? The one who was watching Roxy?”

  “Yes,” sighed Michael, closing his eyes. Imorean wasn’t sure, but he felt that they stayed closed for just a fraction of a second longer than they should have.

  “Is your sister all right?” he asked.

  “Let us just say that our need for you hybrids is becoming more and more imperative with each passing day.”

  “Is she dead?”

  “Raphael contacted me not long after we left your home. She did not make it. There was a curse upon the weapon she was struck with, and she could not overcome it.”

  Imorean resisted the urge to cover his mouth as Michael turned to look at him. Where normally the Archangel did not display much, if any, emotion, now there was pure and terrible agony shining in his jade eyes. If Imorean hadn’t known better, he would have thought Michael looked close to tears. Then he looked away, pointing at the floor.

  “You can see here,” said Michael, becoming short and businesslike again. “Where the altercation between my sister and the demon or demons occurred. The carpet here is disjoined from the rest of the rest. What I am assuming happened is that, as my sister was engaged, Roxy was able to escape.”

  “Can you be sure?” asked Imorean.

  “Yes.”

  “How?”

  “As Chief Archangel, I am tuned in with the students and with my angels. It is a … a sort of shared state of being. By and large I know when they are all right and when they are not. Because of your status of human-angel hybrids, not all of our angelic powers work properly on you. If I am seeking a specific angel, for example, without asking them where they are, I can track them to within a few yards of their physical location. You hybrids though … you seem to fly, no pun intended, under my angelic radar. I know of your wellbeing, but I cannot trace your locations. It is the same with the Archangels, which is why Uriel’s recovery has been so difficult. This handicap is part of why I hoped you would offer your help to locate Roxy. I could find her with my eyes, but you can find her through her habits. You know her better than I do. You should know her regular haunts and places of refuge. It humbles me to say, but truly I cannot do this on my own.”

  Imorean nodded. He couldn’t say he really understood fully how Michael’s system of keeping track of them worked, but he was certain that eventually he would find out properly.

  “We need to keep moving. The more time we waste, the more danger Roxy may be in.”

  Imorean could hear an unexpected fury in the Archangel’s voice.

  “She was probably going to head west. I know she has family in Tennessee. I’m sorry I never said anything. I didn’t think she was serious about leaving,” said Imorean, unable to stop the blush coloring his cheeks. He gulped and Michael took a deep breath while pinching the bridge of his nose. The Chief Archangel’s wings were twitching in irritation.

  “That does not currently matter. We need to continue our own search. When the remainder of my angels arrive, they will follow behind us and do in depth sweeps of the surrounding area to secure it properly.”

  Imorean nodded and followed Michael as the Archangel exited Roxy’s house through the broken window.

  “Imorean,” said Michael. The Archangel was kneeling near the wood line.

  “What is it?”

  “Footprints. They are not demon footprints. They are heading west. Just as you speculated. Well done.”

  Imorean bit the inside of his cheek. “Thanks.”

  “I am not angry, Imorean,” said Michael, spreading his huge wings.

  “You aren’t?” asked Imorean. He was shocked. Michael? Not angry? That had to be a first.

  “No, I understand the bond of secrecy between friends. I only wish you had spoken up before now.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Forget it. What is done is done.”

  Imorean stumbled as the Archangel beat his wings and lifted off into the sky. Imorean followed him. He was surprised to find Michael was still refusing to fly much higher than the tops of the trees.

  “Just out of curiosity,” said Michael as he began to lead away. “What did you tell her when she mentioned she wanted to leave the custody of her escort?”

  “I told her she wouldn’t make it to the Tennessee border,” replied Imorean, frowning. That had been the last
direct contact he’d had with Roxy.

  “Well. You are quite correct.”

  “Do you think she flew or do you think she was on foot?” asked Imorean as Michael began to lead the way over the treetops.

  “We have just seen footprints, Imorean. How do you think she was travelling?”

  “I was just asking.”

  “…I believe she may have started on foot, but perhaps took to the air later. Most angels will. After some time, we start to feel safer up here as opposed to down there.”

  Imorean nodded, keeping his eyes glued to the ground, looking for any sign of his friend.

  “What if we don’t find her?”

  “We will do our best to find her,” replied Michael. Imorean shook his head in irritation. Michael was a master at not giving direct answers. Why couldn’t he just give a proper answer this once? All he wanted was some hope.

  Imorean lifted his eyes from the ground for a moment and looked over at the Chief Archangel. He was scouring the ground below, but also looking at the trees and the horizon. Eyes on everything.

  “What were you doing in Romania?” asked Imorean, unable to stop the question before it tumbled from his mouth.

  “How did you figure out about Romania?” replied Michael, his head jerking up almost immediately.

  “You told me you were going campaigning, but it was only after I saw a news report that I figured you were in Romania,” replied Imorean in a small voice. “There was a big storm over the country and I thought you might have something to do with it.”

  “I see,” replied Michael, sounding skeptical. “I was searching for Vortigern and for Uriel. My latest reports had directed me to search there for him.”

  “Did you find him?”

  “We found Uriel. Injured and horribly damaged, but alive. Father knows what might have happened if we lost another Archangel. But as for Vortigern … let us just say that if I had found him, I would not be searching for your friend,” said Michael. Imorean had a feeling there was a tone of hopelessness in the Archangel’s voice. “But, no, all I found were my brother and a large demon garrison. Vortigern had been there recently, but by the time I arrived he had gone again.”