Far From Center

by Debra Dunbar

  Terrelle bit her lip. “But Nyalla, the angels, the keep-away charm…”

  “I’ll be fine,” she told the demon. “Eighteen years in Hel and I learned a few tricks about locked doors and keep-away spells, and how to avoid demons — which are pretty much the same as angels. Just make sure this guy doesn’t get away. And Snip, make sure you don’t get caught, okay? You’re pretty much my only hope of getting out of this if I wind up locked in there with Gabe.”

  The Low saluted her with his fingerless hand. “Got it, Nyalla.”

  It was late, and there would be no one up at the lighthouse at this hour. This was the perfect time to go on a rescue mission, and with any luck, she’d get Gabriel back and they could somehow get off this island before the angels even knew their captive was gone.

  Chapter 26

  The keep-away spell was effective, but Nyalla gritted her teeth and squeezed the handle of the bolt cutters together. This seemed easier in the movies. In reality the chain was thick and the cutters awkward and not as sharp as she’d thought. And the whole time she felt like she was going to throw up or pass out.

  The last link finally broke. Nyalla looked down at her blistered hands again overcome with the need to vomit. Just a little bit longer. She pulled the chain from the door and slid the bolts aside.

  “Gabe?” A wave of cold air hit her as she opened the door. It was pitch black inside, and she couldn’t feel any light switches along the side so she set the bolt cutters down and took out the keychain-sized flashlight from her pocket.

  “Looking for this?” A man in the shadows threw something large at her feet — someone at her feet. Nyalla gasped, angling her flashlight down to see Gabe, bound and gagged, bloodied and bruised. He glared up at her and she bit back a hysterical giggle. He was mad that she’d come for him. Well, too bad.

  Except it wasn’t the right time for levity. The man in the shadows wasn’t a man, he was an angel, and he’d obviously been waiting for her.

  “Resya wasn’t the only one I had following you. Humans can be quite useful, as I’m sure you know. I’m quite impressed that you managed to capture him.”

  “I’ll exchange Resya for Gabriel,” she offered, hoping that Snip was already in the air, on his way back to the States, and then to Hel to find Sam.

  “I don’t care about Resya. And honestly I don’t care about the former archangel Gabriel either. He’s useless, expendable. He’s not a threat to anyone. It’s you I want, Nyalla.” The angel stepped from the shadows into the narrow beam of her flashlight. “Once I realized who you were, I knew I had a back-up plan. The Iblis will do anything to ensure your safety.”

  “I don’t have the Tear. She doesn’t know where it is, and neither do Snip or Terrelle. It would take them centuries to find it. By that time, I’ll be long dead.”

  He laughed. “I don’t want the Tear in exchange for you, I want the Iblis’ cooperation. She gets you and gets to have this place with all the stupid humans and elves. We get Aaru and the archangels are no more. I don’t care if they’re dead or stripped of their grace like Gabe here, I just want them out of Aaru and powerless.”

  “She’ll never do that. She loves one of those archangels, and she’d never betray him by agreeing to help you win Aaru.”

  He stepped close. “Yes she will. All I want is for her to remain neutral in the war, Switzerland, I believe you humans call it. Remain neutral, and lift the banishment once we’ve won. She’ll get you, all those humans and Lows she’s so fond of. I’ll even let her keep that angel she’s sinning with as long as we take his wings first.”

  Nyalla clenched her teeth. Sam might not actively fight against the archangels, but she’d refuse to fight for them in return for her safety. Normally Sam would never agree to this, but to save Nyalla, she might. But demons lied, and all Nyalla had to do was stay alive long enough for Sam to find and rescue her, then the imp would smash these rebels like only an angry imp with a powerful sentient sword could.

  The angel waved a hand and the door slammed behind Nyalla. She spun around, but the handle was locked and she could hear the chains once more wrapping around the exterior and the bolts sliding home.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you have enough food and water to survive,” the angel whispered. “I’m guessing this whole thing will only take a few weeks. But I’ll be back tomorrow to move you to a new location. Can’t have the Iblis sending half of Hel here to find you now, can I?”

  There was a rush of cold air and the angel was gone. Nyalla dropped to the floor and struggled with Gabe’s bonds, finally holding the little flashlight in her mouth and using a pen knife from her pocket to cut through the tape.

  “You fool,” he raged the second the tape was off his mouth. “Why did you come here?”

  Not the most romantic statement, but Nyalla didn’t care. She threw her arms around him, yanking the flashlight out of her mouth so she could kiss him. After a second he kissed her back, running his fingers through her hair and across the nape of her neck.

  “I was afraid they would kill you,” she whispered, her lips still against his. “They were after me anyway, trying to get the Tear. We managed to grab that other angel before he snatched me, but I couldn’t leave the island without you. I couldn’t leave knowing that they had you and that you were defenseless.”

  “I just need a few more days,” Gabe said, his hands brushing the hair from her face. “My angel-ness is returning. I kept it from Sidriel, letting him beat me up so he’d think I was powerless, that this was permanent. I was waiting until I was strong enough to surprise him and kill him.”

  She leaned her forehead against his. “But what if he killed you before that? Gabe, you heard him. Your only value was to ransom for either the Tear or for me. If I hadn’t come for you, if I hadn’t been willing to exchange the Tear for you, then you would have just been dead weight. Emphasis on dead.”

  She felt the muscles in his jaw clench. “Then I would have fought with everything I have. I might not have won, but I could have injured Sidriel. He’s arrogant, and when pride is your sin, you underestimate your foes. That makes you vulnerable. If that imp of an Iblis has taught me anything, she’s taught me that.”

  “Yes, but I don’t want you dead, even if you injured Sidriel. I want you alive. And now we’ve got a few extra days or weeks for you to regain your powers. It will take them that long to find Sam since she’s in Hel right now. We’ll just stay here, eat whatever horrible food they send us, and when you’re an angel again, we’ll make our move.”

  Gabriel winced. “She’s going to know about me — the Iblis, that is. Great. Everyone will know. Humans, elves, demons, angels. I’ll never live this down.”

  “As long as you live, I don’t care. It isn’t like everyone else doesn’t have embarrassing things happen to them. You said Rafi flew into a billboard. Micha ended up bound by an imp not even a thousand years old. You’ll survive some teasing.”

  Nyalla turned off the flashlight to conserve the battery and curled up next to Gabe on the hard ground. It was going to be a long few days. “What was it like, growing up as an angel? Were you always in Aaru?”

  She felt his arms around her, his cheek resting against the top of her head.

  “Those first few billion years seemed to go by in a blink. I’ve got vague memories of trying to do the same things as Michael and Uriel, and failing miserably, then before I knew it we had Raphael and Samael, and the pair of them seemed to turn everything upside down. They were so contrary, especially Samael, and constantly breaking the rules. In time I caught up in strength and abilities. I’m pretty sure I could take Uri, and hold my own against Micha if I pushed it, but I always resented how the younger two always got away with breaking the rules.”

  “Rules you had to follow,” Nyalla commented. “Doesn’t sound like a very good childhood to me.”

  “Oddly enough, I remember it fondly. We had such a powerful bond back then, so much love and affection for each other in spite of our d
ifferences. But then other angels came to Aaru. We found ourselves with choirs and structure and more rules, but this time we had responsibilities toward the others. Over time we grew apart; most of our interactions were because of matters dealing with the governance of Aaru. By the time of the war with the Angels of Chaos, it was like we weren’t even siblings. It was like all that time together as a family had been washed away with the tide.”

  Her hand caressed his outer thigh, resting up near his hip. “And then the war came.”

  “Michael had become so intractable and cold, like nothing could never touch his heart. Uriel sided against her life-mate and child, and has never forgiven herself for that or their loss. Raphael blames himself for not taking a stand against Michael and supporting Samael. We’ve never been the same. I’m not sure we ever will be.”

  “How did the war change you?”

  He paused a moment to think. “It didn’t. But watching my family fall apart like that was one of the most painful things I’ve ever experienced. Samael gone, the others broken and hurting…that’s what my nightmares are about. I was the middle archangel, so I found my own path. I’ve never sided with any of them to the exclusion of the others. And I was the only angel who didn’t actively fight in the war.”

  “You were a conscientious objector?” she teased.

  “No, I felt both Michael and Samael were wrong and that there was a solution neither were considering.” He huffed, his smile wry. “Not that anyone ever listens to me. I kept things together while everyone else was chopping wings and banishing, and when the dust settled I tried to regain a sense of structure and order within Aaru. It’s not the same, though. I miss the Chaos angels. I’ll admit most of the time I wanted to strangle the lot of them, but I do miss having them around.”

  He pulled away so he could see her face — even in the dark he could see the curve of her cheek and lips, the honest affection in her eyes. “What about you? Or is that a painful topic, given that you were a changeling slave?”

  “As a baby the elves fussed over me. They love infants, and at the time they didn’t realize that I had no magical ability of my own. Changelings are prized over the older humans that fall through the traps because with proper training they can become mighty sorcerers. That human magic combined with the elven magic makes a kingdom powerful, strong against any foes. And they needed to be strong because elves fight all the time. They are intensely tied to their kingdom loyalties, and it seems like there’s always some sort of assassination attempt or power play going on.”

  He kissed her forehead. “What happened when you got older?”

  “I failed my first magic test. And I mean failed miserably. They thought there was some error and had me take it four additional times just to be sure. They’d never met a human that had not one speck of magical ability. The elf who had bought the rights to me was furious. He couldn’t kill me because the kingdom had laws regarding that sort of thing, so he assigned me basic sanitation tasks. I was denied the companionship of others, had to sleep alone on the hard floor with only a blanket. Sometimes they forgot to call me to dinner. If I made one wrong move, I was beaten.”

  Gabe felt an overwhelming urge to kill some elves. She must have felt the tenseness in his muscles because she reached up to cup his face. “Don’t worry. I got them back. Nettles in their bed linen, alum in their soup. Things went missing. A bow broke when a Lord went to make a killing shot. And I always made sure none of it was traced back to me.”

  “Please tell me that owner of yours is dead, and that he died slowly and painfully.”

  She chuckled. “How un-angelic of you. Yes, he’s dead. When he sold me to the demons, I was terrified. I would have rather been executed then face what demons do to their playthings. But it was Sam that had bought me as a gift to my brother. She brought me across the gates and sort of adopted me. I live in her house, and she is the most indulgent, loyal, protective demon that I’ve ever known. And now I have her, my brother, my half-elf changeling sister, werewolf and human friends, a hellhound that I love. Oh, and a young dragon.”

  And you. He heard her unspoken words in his head and his heart ached. It was like that Nephilim story all over again, only this time he’d be the angel overcome with sorrow when his human love eventually moved on to a more suitable match. But until that happened, she loved him. And he’d do anything he could to make sure she never regretted giving him her heart.

  “The last few years more than makes up for the first eighteen,” she added.

  She was free because an imp wanted to do something nice for her human toy. The Iblis could have stopped there, just handing Nyalla over to her brother, but instead she’d taken the girl under her wing. It was hard to dislike someone who’d done that. Yes, he’d still fight with the imp every chance he got, but between Nyalla’s story, the way the Iblis had treated the Nephilim and werewolves, the way his eldest brother came alive in her presence, he couldn’t hate the Iblis.

  There was a flash of light and this time in addition to Sidriel, Tura and a human stood before them, lightly illuminated, no doubt for the benefit of the human. Were they being moved? So soon?

  “Well, get to work,” Sidriel told the human. The man shifted his weight from foot to foot, looking from Nyalla to Gabriel.

  “She’s pretty small. And what about that guy? He looks kind of big.”

  “He won’t bother you. He’s an angel and physical altercation is beneath him. Besides, he’d never harm a human. Just hurry up. This is all rather unsavory, so I’m hoping you can make quick work of it.”

  Nyalla took a step back and Gabe angled himself in front of her. Did Sidriel seriously mean for this human to harm Nyalla? Why would he do such a thing?

  “Are you sure? That guy looks like he’s going to hit me.”

  Sidriel glowed slightly, shooting an irritated glance at the man. “I’m paying you quite nicely. Now get to work or I’ll find someone else interested in making a quick buck.”

  The man grumbled and took a step forward. Nyalla hid behind Gabe. “Don’t you touch her,” he told the man. Then everything tilted around him, pain exploding in his face. He felt himself hit the floor, the trickle of blood from his nose and mouth. Nyalla screamed, and Gabe heard the sounds of a tussle, the sound of a fist hitting soft flesh. Nyalla cried out again, her voice echoing both her pain and frustration.

  “Stupid girl won’t hold still,” the man said, sounding rather out of breath.

  Gabriel shook his head, struggling to get to all fours. A foot hit him in the ribs and he flew across the small room, rolling against the wall. He wasn’t good at this. He wasn’t used to brawling or defending himself in a human manner. But the last few years of fighting with the Iblis had taught him to be resourceful. His eyes lit on an object in the corner, and as he picked it up he thought once more that he owed that imp a favor.

  Staggering to his feet, he heard Nyalla cry. Rage poured through him and he swung, hitting the human on the side of the head with the pair of bolt cutters.

  The man dropped like a stone, but seeing Nyalla bruised and bloodied, fear and pain in her eyes fanned his anger into a white-hot flame. He hit the man again and again, not stopping even as bits of flesh and blood decorated the floor and walls of their cell.

  “Wow. I didn’t think you had it in you, Gabe.” Sidriel clapped while Tura stared at the bloody corpse open-mouthed. “What a show. And now I don’t even have to pay the man. Well done.” He motioned to Tura who took a phone from his pocket and aimed it at Nyalla. A flash went off, and Sidriel leaned over the other angel’s shoulder to look at the picture. “Nice. That will definitely convince the Iblis to see things our way. And just in case those two idiot demons come looking for you–”

  The angel snapped his fingers. Nyalla and Gabe found themselves inside what looked like an empty bank vault. There was a plate of dried fruit and bread on the floor along with several large bottles of water. At least the angel had remembered they had human needs. And at least they didn’
t need to spend days or weeks in a small cement room with a decomposing corpse.

  “Thank you.” Nyalla’s arms wrapped around his waist and she pressed herself against his back. “Do you need to get started on that four-nine-five report for killing that man?” her voice hitched, but she gave a soft laugh. “Have you ever filled one of those out before? I mean, two hundred pages and an impact analysis…I hear Sam complaining about them all the time.”

  He grabbed her arms and held her tight against him. “Oh, I’ve filled out my share of those reports. Not as many as the Iblis, but I’m no saint. Although I seldom resort to violence or murder, occasionally I have ended a human life. And I truly feel that the world is a better place because of it.”

  “You surprise me, Ancient Revered Archangel Gabriel,” she said.

  “There are times I surprise myself,” he replied.

  Chapter 27

  Nyalla sat and watched as Gabriel paced their small cell. He’d wanted to heal her, but she worried that if one of the angels came back and found her uninjured, they’d realize Gabe wasn’t quite as human as they’d thought. He wasn’t ready to fight either of them right now. And she wasn’t sure how long it would take for him to completely regain his powers. Part of her wished that they could escape on their own, rather than having to wait for Sam to rescue them, but she was worried if Gabe was pushed to fight before he was ready, they’d kill him.

  Honestly, she wasn’t sure why they hadn’t killed him already. She was the one they were using to blackmail Sam. Gabe was just another mouth to feed. Although from watching Sidriel interact with them, she got the feeling the angel liked the idea of having Gabe locked in a room, unable to do anything to escape.

  “I don’t know if I can stand being cooped up in here for days,” Gabe muttered.

  “Tired of my company already?” she teased.