by Ching, G. P.
Dane returned the grip, flipping him off with his other hand. “Oh, I handled it. I just know you need it more than I do,” he said, passing the power back.
Malini rolled her eyes. “Do you guys ever stop?”
Ghost’s electric violet eyes fluttered in response. “Whatever do you mean?”
“One more,” Lillian said, grabbing Dane’s hand. Malini watched her power return to her like a long lost friend.
“How are you feeling now, Dane?” Malini asked.
“Much better. My headache is gone.” He accepted Ethan’s help and sat up on the ugly brown bedspread.
“Excellent. We’ll help you back to Eden to unload Archibald’s gift.”
“Archibald? He gave you something?” Ethan asked.
“Yeah, super sight and hearing. It saved our lives.”
“No shit?” Ghost grinned incredulously.
“No shit,” Dane said.
At the serious glare Dane gave him, the smile melted from Ghost’s face and he nodded.
“Malini,” Lee said. “We’d better go. I don’t think it’s safe for all of us to be here.”
“Absolutely,” Malini said. “Not to mention, I’ve got to do something about this before my parents see me.” She pointed to her head.
Grace and the girls lowered their eyes, as if they couldn’t stand the sight of her talon-shorn hair. Even Lillian looked like she might cry. But Jacob rubbed her head with his hand. “Looks tough. Very G.I. Jane.”
* * * * *
While the other Soulkeepers discussed the mission and how they were all going to get back to Eden, Dane smiled weakly at Ethan. “So, I made it home, as promised.”
“Knew you would.” Ethan shrugged.
“Right. You thought I was Watcher fodder.”
“But you’re not.” Ethan’s dark eyes lit up, and he wove his fingers into Dane’s.
“So, I guess we should come out to my parents,” Dane suggested, suddenly serious.
Glancing away, Ethan played with the corner of the pillowcase.
“What?” Dane asked.
“Might not be the best time,” he said. “Your dad is still in the hospital. He hasn’t gotten any better.”
“How long were we gone?” Dane asked.
“Weeks. It’s October fifth.”
Stunned, Dane glanced at Malini. She didn’t look much better than he felt. This mission had ruined both of them and she’d missed her birthday. But he would never forget how it felt to plunge that metal rod into Auriel’s back. They’d attacked Lucifer in his own backyard, and they’d lived to tell the tale.
“Well, I guess life changing conversations can wait ‘till everything is back to normal.”
Ethan nodded. “We’ve got nothing but time.”
“Yeah. I guess we do.”
* * * * *
After some discussion, the Soulkeepers divided themselves into groups of two for the trip home, deciding to take turns with the enchanted staffs rather than chancing the challenge of a new portal with Malini and Dane in their weakened condition. Since the staffs were limited to two Soulkeepers at a time, Jacob, Ethan, and Jesse volunteered to stay back for the second trip.
Cheveyo balked. “What about me? This is my home. What about my mom and dad? Raine?”
Malini placed a hand on his shoulder. “Your father, Willow, and Raine were there today. They understand exactly what you are and why you need to leave. Our Helpers will come up with something to tell your mother.”
“I want to stay.” Cheveyo shook his head. “My dad says I can complete the Hopi coming-of-age ritual. I never thought I wanted to before but I do. I really do.”
Bonnie, Samantha, and Grace glanced at each other, and then eyed Cheveyo empathetically. They knew all too well what sacrifices becoming a Soulkeeper required.
“I’m sorry,” Malini said. “There will come a time when you can go home. But not now. It’s too dangerous. Lucifer could retaliate and you’re too vulnerable here.”
He opened his mouth to argue but Malini grasped his hand, giving him a heavy dose of her healing power. Understanding softened his shoulders, and eventually he nodded his acceptance.
They agreed to meet behind the flower shop. Lee helped Dane into position, and Malini joined Lillian at the staff Lee had brought for her. Bonnie and Samantha huddled around the one Samantha had used, and Grace offered a kind hand to Cheveyo. They tapped the staffs on the shaggy beige carpet and began their journey home.
Epilogue
Abigail waited in her bedroom in Eden for any word from Malini or the rest of the council. Jacob’s call had been brief and hurried with little details other than Malini’s location at the Desert Days in Flagstaff. She’d passed on the urgent request for help to the other Soulkeepers but hadn’t heard anything since. Were they alive? Dead? Captured? If Dane didn’t survive, the other Soulkeepers would be without the benefit of their gifts. They’d be sitting ducks.
She wrung her hands and wished Gideon would return from the library. Something was wrong; she could feel it in her bones. And she couldn’t shake the feeling, not by reading or working on potions in the lab. Anxiety made her queasy and tired, but she couldn’t sleep. Restless, she paced the floor in front of the four-poster bed until a vibration in her pocket made the breath catch in her throat.
She pulled out the sapphire and allowed the blue glow to etch out Malini’s transparent form in the space before her.
“Malini! Where are you? Are you okay?”
“Abigail, I need your help. I can’t give you the details now, but you have to meet me.” Malini brushed her long brown hair behind her shoulder before clasping her hands together in front of her lips.
“You need me to leave Eden?” Abigail asked.
“Right away. It’s an emergency.” Malini sighed heavily. “You are the only one who can help us. You must come right away.”
“Of course. Where are you?”
“Meet me in the maple orchard, behind your old house. Come immediately, Abigail. You are our last and only hope.”
The blue stone flickered and Malini’s hologram was gone. Abigail wasted no time. She scratched Gideon a hasty note and left it on the bed. Then, she raced from the room, asking the nearest gnome to call the boat that would take her out of Eden.
* * * * *
Lucifer quivered from head to toe, shaking Malini’s illusion from his black, double-breasted suit. He flipped the blue stone into the air, caught it, and slid it into his pocket. Imitating Malini’s appearance had been easy. He had her clothing. He had the stone.
“Do you think she bought it?” Auriel asked, adjusting the tortoiseshell glasses on her nose. Dressed in a gray suit with her hair styled in a blonde chignon, she presented a sophisticated demeanor at his side. Her back had already healed, thanks to Lucifer’s sorcery.
“I am the Lord of Illusions, Auriel. Of course she bought it,” he said. The wall of windows in Harrington’s office gave him a panoramic view of Lake Michigan, one piece of the world he would own soon enough.
She glanced at the crumpled, bloody mess in the corner. “What should I do with him?”
“Eat him for all I care.” The look he gave her burned, and not because of the flames that flickered in his pupils. Lucifer was angry, so angry he was calm and cold. Auriel hoped to never be on the receiving end of that anger, which was why she didn’t rush to the human snack that bled in the corner.
“How many did we lose?” she asked.
“Including this summer? Thousands. Our minions are less in number but no less powerful. Those who were destroyed were weak and disloyal.”
“Yes.”
Lucifer approached her until she could feel the heat of Hell blasting through his Armani suit. “We are not going to run or hide this time, Auriel. The stage is set and that little twit and her team of birthday party magicians aren’t going to get the best of us.”
A heavy knock rattled the door. “Come in, Cord,” Lucifer said, unlocking it with his will.
“I have a job for you,” Lucifer said.
“Yes, My Lord.”
“Retrieve Abigail.” Lucifer scowled at Cord’s reaction, a subtle cringe that betrayed his fear of the former fallen angel. “Oh, I think you will find that Abigail has become much more amicable, Cord. She’ll be waiting for you in the maple orchard, behind her old house.”
Cord nodded. “Of course. As you wish.” He remained fixed to the spot.
“You’re not leaving.”
“My illusion is weak, My Lord.” Cord glanced toward the body in the corner.
Lucifer motioned toward Mr. Harrington’s body. “Well? Help yourself. Lunch is getting cold.”
With an unholy growl, both Watchers swooped in and began to eat, fighting over every scrap.
Lucifer lowered himself into the executive’s leather chair. He grinned as the evidence of Mr. Harrington’s murder was conveniently ingested. “Enjoy. Consider the meal an employee benefit.” Fingers laced behind his head, he leaned back to prop his feet up on the mahogany desk.
“Harrington Enterprises is officially under new management.”
Book Club Discussion Questions
1. The Hopi Snake Dance at the beginning of the novel is based on an actual ceremony. Do you feel that preserving cultures like the Hopi’s is important for our future?
2. Adults don’t always take Malini seriously as a leader. Why do you think this is?
3. Grace says that the Soulkeepers’ work deserves scrutiny. Do you agree that it’s better to debate important decisions from both sides before adopting a change? Or should people simply follow a leader’s direction?
4. Is Malini a good leader? Why or why not?
5. Dane shows small kindnesses to Archibald throughout the book. Do these things matter?
6. Compare and contrast Ethan and Dane’s relationship with Lucifer and Auriel’s. Which do you think is the healthier relationship?
7. Did anything about the progression of Dane and Ethan’s relationship bother you? Did you think Ethan should have been more direct?
8. Dane never labels his sexuality in this novel. How would you characterize him based on what you know? Do you think how Dane is portrayed is realistic?
9. Eden is perfectly safe. Some people would call it paradise. Would you want to live there?
10. Bonnie has a misaligned attraction throughout most of Soul Catcher. Why do you think girls sometimes obsess over what they can’t have?
Lost Eden: The Soulkeepers Series, Book 5
Copyright © G.P. Ching 2013
Published by Carpe Luna, Ltd., P.O. Box 5932, Bloomington, IL 61701
www.carpeluna.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author or publisher.
eISBN: 978-1-940675-00-8
Cover art by Steven Novak.
www.novakillustration.com
Formatting by Polgarus Studio.
www.polgarusstudio.com
v.3.0
Dedicated to those who do what’s right when no one is watching.
Chapter 1
Consequences
Balance. All life, the world’s very existence, hinged on perfect balance. Rain and drought, work and play, love and hate, good and evil, each in measured quantities, rising and falling in a constant struggle for equilibrium. Balance bolstered the natural order of things, and Fatima’s job was to record it all. Record, but not change.
As Fatima, or Fate to those who would call her by her title, stood barefoot on packed dirt, her eight arms weaving the fabric of human destiny, she carried a heavy weight within her bosom. She bent her knees to counteract the encumbrance of the yards of shimmering cloth made by her hand, but the heavy burden of a secret bothered her most. Fatima had broken the rules—rules put in place to maintain balance. She’d taken an action, saved a boy named Dane from certain death by giving him a sip of water. A simple, compassionate gesture meant only to counteract the devil’s unjust deeds.
But small deeds could have big consequences.
In the process of saving Dane, she’d made him a Soulkeeper. Fate understood the implications all too well. You did not drop a pebble into a sacred pool without causing ripples. All she had to do was read this particular stretch of fabric emerging from her hands—red, pink, and yellow threads, bright and hot colors—that spoke of increased metaphysical activity on Earth. It stung her fingers. Things were heating up down below. How much had her crime cost humanity? She crumpled her forehead and wove faster to alleviate the burn.
Movement caught her eye near the bolts behind her. Without pausing her work, she twisted her neck and shuffled her feet to see who it was. Perhaps Malini was back from Nod with news of the Soulkeepers’ latest mission. For a moment, she was blinded by the sparkle from the fabric, the woven destinies of billions of souls, their light seeming to collect at the center of the room. Like a mirror, it reflected her image back at her, sleek black hair, smooth russet skin, graceful limbs, and eyes…
Fate halted her weaving. Her lips parted. Her reflection did not share her black eyes or the dancing lights of souls within them. The reflection’s eyes were hazel, as Fatima’s had been when she was human. Other differences prevailed. The image did not bear the burden of her weaving or the frown that Fatima was sure she wore now. This reflection was a perfect Fate.
Light. Warmth. Joy. Fatima’s doppelganger exuded peace and love. When she realized who had come to see her, she put aside her work and dropped to her knees, both honored and terrified by the presence before her. As a kindness, God always took the form of the person present, a concession meant to keep the soul from going mad.
“M-my Lord, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?” Fatima stuttered.
“Rise. We have only moments. I’ve come to warn you.”
Fatima scrambled to her feet, unable to take her eyes off the beauty of the being in her own image who floated to her side.
“There is sin between us, Fatima. I feel a blockage, an invisible wall, keeping me from connecting with you. Tell me so we can move beyond it.” God moved closer and met her eyes.
“When Lucifer freed Dane from Hell, he left him for dead. Abigail delivered his body to the gate of Eden. She didn’t know any better. In her fallen condition, she’d never been allowed close enough to learn he’d be cast out. The injustice of it all would have tipped the balance in Lucifer’s favor. I had to do something. I visited the boat and gave the boy the living water to drink.”
“You took his destiny into your own hands.” God widened her eyes.
“Yes.”
“And your actions produced greater consequences than his admission to Eden.”
“He became a Soulkeeper.”
God turned away then, clasping her hands behind her back. Fatima shuddered at the elimination of the light and warmth of her attention. “Not just a Soulkeeper, Fatima. Dane’s power, along with his personal characteristics, allowed him to slay over a thousand Watchers in Nod. He broke the terms of my compact with Lucifer.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Nod is off-limits to Soulkeepers as the In Between is off-limits to Watchers. He will demand a consequence for the infraction.”
“But … but … he broke the compact first! Watchers live among men even now, permanently! They taint the water. He’d planned to use Cheveyo to destroy Eden. Not to mention, Auriel took Malini and Dane to Nod in the first place. The two Soulkeepers simply fought their way out.”
God’s still, small voice was in direct contrast to Fate’s panicked one. “All valid points, Fatima, but you must see how y
our actions have forced my hand.”
Fatima did see. The rules existed for a reason. Even though other immortals had taken similar actions to keep Lucifer at bay, it didn’t excuse her. She’d given the devil an opening, and surely it was just a matter of time before he took full advantage. She fell on her knees again, tears forming in her black eyes. “Please forgive me. Tell me what I can do to make this right.”
With a smile that spread a tangible joy across the villa, God turned back to Fate and motioned for her to rise. “All is forgiven, Dear One, but now we must manage the consequences, and unfortunately the cure for the world’s ills will be more than either you or any of the immortals can achieve.”
As Fatima rose from the dirt, she noticed a patch of black mold where the ceiling met the front wall in the upper corner of her stucco manse. Her home was a product of her consciousness, constructed of her thoughts and will, but this was not hers. She did not invite the darkness. This was something other, something dangerous. The black mold spread down the corner of the wall to the floor, and then mushroomed, reproducing to the size of a grapefruit, a bowling ball, a bush. Fatima backed away, taking her place behind God, who held Her ground faithfully.
With a final sprout of growth, the black fuzz paled and hardened, and a man in a shiny gray business suit stepped from the darkness. His blond curls set off his lapis eyes, and the perfect smile he flashed took Fatima’s breath away. But his expression was icy and his posture arrogant. Lucifer.