The swarthy Diego suddenly stood up, taking it upon himself to clarify. “That it’s game on.”
“What does that mean?” I asked weakly, struggling against the rising panic in my chest.
“Well, I guess it’s safe to let you in on the secret now that you’re here,” Lucifer drawled. “Let’s just say it’s time this little family feud was brought to a head.”
Jake, who had so far remained silent for the duration of this conversation, chose this moment to speak. “Dragging an angel into Hell against their will is a sign,” he said. “It marks the beginning of the war.”
“There’s going to be a war?”
“There was always going to be a war,” Lucifer said, “ever since my self-righteous prick of a brother had me evicted.”
“We’ve been waiting a long time,” Diego added in his clipped Spanish accent. “To show them who’s boss, to let them know just how fragile their precious little planet really is.”
I swallowed hard and shook my head. “No,” I said. “It’s not true.”
“Oh, yes,” Nash piped up, enthused by the turn the hearing had taken. “We’re talking about the final showdown, the face-off between your daddy and ours.”
“You better believe it, little angel,” Lucifer added. “We’re on a one-way road to Armageddon. And what a show it promises to be.”
I stood rooted to the spot, hardly daring to breathe. Part of me hoped the demons would suddenly burst out laughing and reveal I was the butt of some cruel joke. But deep down, I knew it was no joke. They were deadly serious and the world was in dire trouble. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. They believed my capture was going to work as a catalyst, the final straw that would tip the angels over the edge. Would it really work? Hell had lashed out, would Heaven now have no choice but to retaliate? Lucifer had condoned my abduction to rally against My Father and stir things up to trigger a final confrontation that would be bloodier than ever. He knew it was a step too far, but that was the point. He was throwing down the gauntlet and waiting for Heaven to take up the challenge. He was opening the gates and inviting war in.
The hearing seemed to have gone off on a tangent. Jake brought it back to what was uppermost in his mind.
“So will you leave us be?” he asked. “Father, the angel has served her purpose and poses no threat. I ask that she be entrusted to me.”
“Oh, dear,” said Lucifer with an exaggerated sigh. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.” He lifted his cane and pointed it directly at me. “Not after the little show Miss Church put on for us yesterday.”
“She belongs to me!” Jake’s voice was too strident in the lofty warehouse. I was no strategist, but even I could see that he was losing ground. He needed to curb his emotions if he wanted to get anywhere here.
Lucifer sat up straighter and Jake dropped his head humbly, showing regret for his outburst.
“When I put you in charge I wasn’t aware you had invested emotionally in the project.” Lucifer spoke these last words as if they left a bad taste in his mouth.
“I … I haven’t,” Jake said. “I knew she would be a prize, and I thought only to add to our conquests—”
“Don’t lie to me, boy!” Lucifer roared so unexpectedly that those assembled jumped. “You have coveted her right from the start. I would never have trusted you with this had I known the extent of your obsession.”
Jake looked up to meet his father’s gaze. His jaw was twitching now. “It’s what you taught me to do: Reach out and take what I want.”
Lucifer gave a hollow chuckle and his tone softened. “To want is different than to need,” he said. “You wanted the boy with the lame leg and the brat from Buchenwald. But Bethany … you need her and your attachment is weakening you, siphoning your strength. It disturbs me to see one of my strongest fall like this.”
“I will redeem myself, Father,” Jake said.
“You will indeed,” Lucifer replied. “I will see to it personally that you do.”
“What can I do?” Jake bowed his head and Lucifer clicked his tongue softly.
“You are my child, one of my most accomplished children. Don’t worry.” He smiled indulgently. “Daddy will fix everything.”
“He’s not one of your children,” I cut in, unable to stop myself. My mouth appeared to have made a decision independently of me and kept moving even though I knew with every fiber of my being that I should shut up. “If you recall it was My Father who created him … and you, by the way.”
Jake spun on his heels and flashed me a deadly glare. Lucifer only cocked his head to one side and regarded me with mild amusement.
“Look around you, little angel,” he said. “The world is in ruins and you are in Hell. Where is your father now? Why doesn’t he come and save you? Either he doesn’t care or he isn’t as powerful as you seem to think.”
“He had the power to cast you out of Heaven,” I said brazenly.
“And why do you think he did that?” Lucifer flashed me a brilliant smile. “Why do you think he built this underground cage to contain me? It’s because he was scared. One does not need to lock up that which is not dangerous.”
“If you’re so dangerous why don’t you bust out?” I challenged.
“Can’t.” Lucifer shrugged and waved a hand around him.
“But I can breed an army and send them out in my place. It’s called a loophole, darlin’.” He turned his attention to Jake.
“I admit I can see the attraction. She’s quite spirited, isn’t she?”
“I’m sorry, Father,” Jake implored. “She doesn’t know what she’s saying, do not take offense.”
“I’m not offended,” Lucifer said, “but I’m afraid you cannot keep her.”
Jake’s eyes filled with alarm despite his efforts to appear composed.
“Is it true what your brothers tell me … did she conjure life?” Lucifer asked.
“Yes, but it was an accident. It won’t happen again, I’ll make sure of it,” Jake insisted.
“You’re not following me, boy. Her presence has raised hope. You introduce hope in Hell and everything we’ve worked for goes up in smoke.”
“I’ll keep her under lock and key. I’ll do whatever it takes. You have my word.”
“I can feel the righteousness rolling off her in waves. It’s nauseating. Is it just me or can anyone else feel it? She’s already infected our world with her compassion and that dreary lovethy-neighbor attitude. Her very presence here is an aberration.”
“But, Father, think of the gains.”
Lucifer looked dismissively at Jake. I could see he was ready to bring the proceedings to a close. “I gave you permission to bring her here; I never said she could stay.”
“You cannot take her from me!” Jake sounded like a petulant child and even stamped his foot.
Lucifer leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “There is nothing I cannot do if I so desire,” he replied. “You are at my mercy here and don’t you forget it. I could strip you of your powers for this. Lucky for you, I don’t like to see my sons downtrodden.” He gave an exaggerated sigh. “I can’t help my paternal instincts.”
“So you’re going to send her back?” Jake sounded crushed.
“Send her back?” Lucifer arched an eyebrow. “This ain’t some fairy tale, boy. We don’t work that way down here, you of all people should know that.” He shook his head in dismay. “See the damage she has done to you already.”
Jake turned to me, his eyes wild with panic.
“Do something,” he mouthed fervently.
I stood numb with confusion and a penetrating fear. First he had instructed me not to speak and now he wanted me to react. What did he think I could do?
Lucifer stood in one fluid movement. “I’m sorry, Arakiel, but this plan of yours has been very poorly executed. From the moment she descended into Hades you knew it would come to this. Never love that which you cannot keep. Your angel was always condemned to die.”
Suddenly
an idea came into my head. “It won’t work,” I stammered. “I can’t die here. Those are the rules. Killing me will only send me back to Heaven.”
“No, my dear.” Lucifer shook his head. “Your death on earth would send you back to Heaven. It’s a whole different ball game down here. Hellfire is strong enough to annihilate an angel for good.”
“What if she agrees to convert,” Jake said desperately. “What if she becomes one of us?”
“Highly unlikely,” Lucifer said languidly, inspecting his manicured nails. It was evident he was bored with the whole discussion. “She’s shackled to the A-Team, I can tell.”
“At least offer her the choice.”
Lucifer gave a heavy sigh. “My dear Bethany, would you like to consider the option of renouncing Heaven and using your powers to assist us?”
“No,” I said. “A thousand times no.”
“Satisfied?” Lucifer said to Jake.
“Father.” One of the unfamiliar Originals stepped forward. It was a woman with coils of glossy raven hair that fell to her waist, ruby lips, and brilliant hazel eyes. She had a face like a porcelain doll’s and her skin was so milky pale she looked as though she had never seen the sun. Maybe she hadn’t, I thought absently. I wondered why I wasn’t filled with panic, why I wasn’t crying or begging for leniency. I felt like time had stopped, the seconds were crawling by and my emotions seemed to have shut down as if someone had pulled out a plug. The female demon continued, “I think we could make an example of her.”
“How so, my lovely Sorath?” Lucifer asked.
“If we are to undo her influence and restore the balance of power we must show the people that we mean business,” Sorath swiveled her swanlike neck to look me in the eye. “We must punish her publicly.”
Lucifer tapped his chin and looked pensive. “Interesting idea. What do you suggest?” He smiled at the seven demons like an indulgent parent. “I will let you decide the method.”
I watched in silent dismay as the Originals scampered out of their seats like a swarm of vultures to form a huddle. They conversed together in hushed voices. Diego and Nash cast sly glances in my direction and Asia looked smugger than a cat that had just stumbled upon a saucer of cream. Lucifer waited patiently while Jake paced compulsively, looking like he wanted to say something. He kept opening and closing his mouth, the perfect argument eluding him. Eventually, Sorath stepped out of the circle.
“We have decided,” she said with a satisfied grin.
“And you are all agreed?” Lucifer sounded almost disappointed. “There’s no need for lively debate?”
“No, Father,” she said.
“Then by all means, declare your verdict!”
Sorath turned to face me and the others slunk forward to flank her. Her eyes gleamed like blades and her lips pulled back into a smile of delight.
“Burn her,” she purred.
Lucifer clapped his hands in approval. From behind me, I heard Jake let out an agonized moan.
22
Vigil
I stood helplessly as the demons filed out of the warehouse. Now that my fate had been decided, they didn’t deem me interesting enough to acknowledge. Only Asia paused, long enough to mockingly blow me a kiss as she sashayed past.
“Arakiel, at dawn you will surrender your angel to us,” Lucifer called nonchalantly over his shoulder. “You have what is left of tonight to say your good-byes. Can’t say I’m not bighearted.”
I knew the enormity of what had just happened hadn’t sunk in because I was so calm. Jake was saying something reassuring to me, but I barely heard him.
“You’re in shock,” he said, guiding me to the chair Lucifer had occupied. “Sit down here. I’m going after my father to try and talk him out of this madness.”
I knew Jake was wasting his time. The decision was irrevocable and nothing Jake said was going to change it. I didn’t want to waste time pleading or bargaining. I had one thought and one thought only. If Lucifer was right (and there was no reason to doubt him), I only had a few hours of existence left and I had no intention of spending them with Jake. It was his selfishness that had gotten me into this fix to begin with. I had to make it back to Venus Cove one last time to say good-bye to Xavier and my family.
I knew that if I saw Xavier once more whatever happened to me in the morning would be a lot easier to bear. But I wasn’t going back just for me. Somehow I had to let Xavier know that it was okay for him to go on with his life, give him my blessing to move on. There was no way I was going to try and tell him what lay in store for me. I’d never want to cause him that much pain. I wanted Xavier to accept that I wasn’t coming home and stop searching for answers. I knew from my time in the Kingdom that people never really got over the loss of a loved one, but their lives did continue, eventually offering them new joys to compensate for their losses.
I didn’t know how long Jake would be, but I figured negotiating with Lucifer was bound to take a while. I’d never attempted projection from anywhere other than my room before, but it was easier than I expected because this time I didn’t care who found out.
I found Xavier in his room sitting on the edge of his bed. He looked distracted and a little disheveled from lack of sleep. A half-packed gym bag lay open beside him. His gaze was fixed on the feather sitting on his bedside table. It was the one he’d found on the seat of his Chevy after our first date. He picked it up, lightly brushed his fingertips across it and inhaled its rainy scent. I watched him place it between the folds of a pressed shirt in the sports bag. Then he reconsidered and returned it to its place on top of the leather Bible on his bedside table. I knelt in front of him and saw him shiver as if from a draft. Goose bumps appeared on his arms, but he continued to sit very still.
“Xavier?” I knew he couldn’t hear me, but the expression on his face changed to one of concentration. Could he sense my presence? Could he also sense how wrong things were? He leaned forward as if to catch a sound in the air. I thought about making contact with him the way I had that day on the beach, but somehow it didn’t feel right anymore. And I wasn’t sure I could pull it off in my current state of mind.
“Hey, baby,” I began tentatively. “I’ve come to say good-bye. Something’s happened and I’m pretty sure it means I won’t be able to come and see you again. So I wanted to come one last time to tell you not to worry about me anymore. You look so tired. Don’t go to Tennessee — there’s no point now. Try to forget you ever met me. I want you to have an amazing life. You need to focus on what’s ahead of you now and let go of the past. I wouldn’t take back a single second of the time we had, but …”
“Beth,” Xavier spoke suddenly, interrupting my train of thought. “I know you’re here. I can feel you. What are you trying to tell me?” He waited a moment and then added, “Can you give me a sign like last time?”
He looked so hopeful that an idea popped into my head. I had a way of telling Xavier exactly what I wanted him to know without the need for words. The room was in semidarkness. I focused my energy and used it to throw open the drapes and saw Xavier blink as the room flooded with light.
“Good one, Beth,” he said. I drew closer to the window and blew hard on it so that a patch of glass fogged up. Then I stretched out a ghostly finger and used it to draw a heart on the windowpane. In it I simply wrote, X + B.
Xavier smiled at my handiwork.
“I love you too,” he said. “I won’t ever stop.”
My tears came in a flood then and I couldn’t stop them. If only I knew I would see him in the next life, maybe I could stand it. But I wasn’t going back to Heaven. I didn’t know where I was going. All I knew was that an eternity of nothingness awaited me.
“You have to stop loving me,” I said in between sobs. My entire body was wracked with the sorrow of giving him up. “You have to move on. If there’s any way back after death I promise I’ll find it. But only to check up on you and the extraordinary life you’ll be having.”
“There you are!” I
jumped at the voice, but it was only Molly letting herself into the room. “Gabriel and Ivy are waiting outside. They want to get going. What’s the holdup?”
Xavier closed the curtains protectively over my sketch.
“I’m on my way,” he said. “I just need a minute.” Molly made no move to leave.
“Before we go, can we talk? I need some advice.”
Xavier turned his face to the window where I still stood. I knew he didn’t want me to leave. “I’m kinda busy right now, Molly. Can it wait?”
“Kinda busy staring into space? No, it can’t wait. My whole life is falling apart and you’re the only person I can talk to.”
“I thought we were fighting.”
“Build a bridge,” Molly snapped. “I need advice and nobody else will understand.”
“This is about Gabriel, right?” I noticed then that Molly’s face was tear stained. She had been crying too. The corners of her mouth quivered and her shoulders shook now that Xavier had broached the subject of my brother.
Talk to her, Xavier, I thought. Molly needs you and she’s your friend. You’re going to need your friends around you. I didn’t know whether Xavier received my silent message or the sight of Molly in tears tugged at his heartstrings, but he sat down and patted the bed beside him.
“Come on then,” he said. “Spit it out but make it quick, we don’t have much time.”
“I don’t know what to do. I know this thing with Gabriel isn’t good for me, but I can’t seem to let it go.”
“What’s stopping you?”
“I know how amazing we could be together. I just don’t understand why he doesn’t see it.”
“So you still feel the same?” Xavier asked. “Even though you know he isn’t human?”
“I always knew he was special somehow.” Molly sighed. “And now I know why. He’s not like any guy I’ve met because he’s not just a guy … he’s a freaking archangel.”
“Molly, you’ve got so many guys chasing you, you practically have to beat them off with a stick.”
“Yeah, but they’re not him. I don’t want anyone else and he doesn’t want me. There are times when I think he feels something, but then he just shuts it off.”
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