Falling Hard

by J. K. Coi

  Pulling open his wallet, he grabbed a fifty and handed it to the cabbie. “Keep the change.”

  “Thanks man.” The driver looked up into the rearview mirror. “By the way, my son really digs your music.”

  Gabriel swore under his breath. So much for going unrecognized. “That’s great. I wish I had a photo or something to sign for you. Sorry. Tell him I said hi.”

  Gabriel and Amelia got out from opposite sides of the cab. Gabriel retrieved his guitar case and their two bags from the trunk before joining Amelia at the curb. Swinging his duffel over his shoulder, he watched as the driver pulled away, waving goodbye to them from out his window.

  Amelia stared at all the bodies walking past. At four o’clock in the afternoon, the crowd was heavy with briefcase-carrying suits moving quickly to catch their commuter flights back home. “What are you looking at?”

  She shook her head. “There are too many people here. It isn’t safe.”

  “It’s an airport. Of course there are a lot of people here, but the only thing that wouldn’t be safe is if we stood around like idiots long enough for all of them to figure out who I am.”

  With another careful look around, she took a step forward. “Yes…of course,” she said, sounding distracted.

  Digging the piece of paper with his e-ticket information from his jacket pocket, Gabriel read the boards hanging from the high ceiling above them. They flickered and sputtered on and off. Odd, the airport must be having electrical issues or something. He glanced at his printout. “I have to get to gate twenty-three.”

  A smooth shuffle of movement to the right caught his attention and Gabriel looked over his shoulder, only to see about fifty people behind him, all minding their own damn business. “Jesus,” he muttered. “Now she’s got me jumping at shadows.”

  He desperately needed some distance between them, needed to work out this mess on his own, and was about to propose that they say goodbye to each other here.

  Suddenly, she clamped her fingers tight around his left wrist. “Gabriel, we have to leave. We’ve been compromised.”

  “Compromised? Amelia, don’t start.” He gritted his teeth. “The plane boards in twenty minutes.”

  “You’re not getting on a plane in twenty minutes.” She glared up at him. “I’m pretty sure you won’t be catching a plane at all. We’re surrounded.”

  “Surrounded by who?” Gabriel took another look around. This time, he noticed them.

  Three men. Big guys. All poised about fifty feet away. One behind, one in front, and the third casually leaning a shoulder against a wide cement column to Gabriel’s right.

  The trio stood apart from the other travelers. There was no sense of haggard urgency to these men, unlike those who continued to rush on by to their gates. These guys carried no briefcases, laptop bags, or suitcases. Instead, they wore matching floor-length trench coats and stone-cold expressions trained on Gabriel and Amelia.

  “Who are the cowboys? What do they want?” Without taking his eyes from the big guy standing just ahead of him, Gabriel withdrew his hand from Amelia’s grasp. He wanted to believe it wasn’t possible, but he was suspicious, wondering if she’d set this up.

  “Now is not a good time for those kinds of explanations. This is where things get a little more…complicated.”

  “Of course it is,” Gabriel sneered. His shoulders tensed and he turned slowly to get a better look at each of the three men. “Just tell me which one of these guys is the bastard who killed David.”

  “Donato isn’t here. Not now.”

  So Gabriel had been right, the woman did know more than she’d told him before.

  She knew the murderer’s name.

  The pain of betrayal surged through his veins, but he pushed it down. He would deal with Amelia later. His hands tightened to solid fists at his sides and his jaw clenched. He allowed his anger to give him strength. It was time for answers, and he would get what he needed even if he had to beat the truth out of each one of these guys.

  Grabbing his arm, Amelia held him back before he could take more than half a step forward. “Don’t be stupid,” she hissed. “I have to get you out of here. Neither of us is strong enough to stand against these three.”

  He didn’t look at her. “I just want to ask the nice men a few questions,” he said, his voice calm and quiet. “Besides, what are they going to do to us in an airport full of people?”

  The trio started closing in, tightening the circle they’d made around Gabriel and Amelia. His tiny bodyguard bravely—or stupidly—put herself in front of him, looking to the tallest of the trio.

  “Cassiel, not you,” she whispered, so low the others—still at least thirty feet away and with the noisy bustle between them—would never hear her. “I expected better from you than this.”

  The guy cocked his head to her in perfect understanding. When he replied in an equally low voice, oddly enough Gabriel heard him loud and clear. “He is too important to our race, Amelia. Now that his existence has been discovered, the endgame is inevitable. We can’t pass up this opportunity.”

  Chapter Six

  “Nothing is inevitable, Cassiel. And make no mistake, I will stop you. I’ll stop you. I’ll stop Donato, and I’ll stop every other angel if I have to.” Amelia snorted, something she wouldn’t have done a week ago. It sounded like one of Gabriel’s impudent expressions. It felt good.

  The angels continued to close in, but slowly. They were in no hurry, knowing she was weak, that she didn’t have the power to stop them from taking what they’d come for. She hoped they were wrong.

  Beside her, Gabriel blew out a harsh breath of impatience and took another step forward. She held him back, but her focus was on Cassiel only a few feet away.

  A light flashed in the angel’s eyes and he lifted his arms out to his sides. The other two rogues followed suit, closing the circle around Amelia and Gabriel. It would have looked odd to the people passing them by, but Amelia knew the humans couldn’t see them now. Despite being on opposite sides of the coming battle, it was in everyone’s best interests to mask what was going on from those innocent souls for as long as possible. As a result, all the angels’ energy worked together, purposely creating a shield to keep them from drawing unwanted curiosity.

  “Amelia, you can still give the human over peacefully.” Cassiel’s voice could be heard aloud now. It echoed between the five of them as if they were the only people in the large airport. “Why fight it? Us?”

  Gabriel looked between them. “What the hell are you guys talking about? What’s going on?” Her human wasn’t known for his patience on the best of days. She could feel the rage and confusion urging him closer to recklessness.

  Amelia might have just enough strength for one blast against Cassiel and the others, but she’d have to be careful. There was too much at stake and too many other people around who would be caught in the crossfire if she failed.

  Just then, Gabriel broke. He exploded forward and grabbed Cassiel by the collar of his jacket.

  Amelia jumped after him with a shout. “Gabriel, no. Don’t touch him!”

  “Enough of this bullshit. From all of you.” He shook Cassiel, growling into the angel’s face. “What do you assholes want with me, and where I can find your buddy, the one who killed my friends?”

  A gleam of satisfaction lit Cassiel’s face. He clamped his hands on Gabriel’s upper arms.

  Amelia had only seconds before the angels would disappear from this realm, taking her reckless charge along with them. Without hesitation, she pulled Gabriel back and let loose with every iota of strength she had left.

  Gabriel stumbled back as Amelia pushed past him in a blur of movement. The three gunslinger types were thrown off their feet so fast he couldn’t even begin to guess how she’d done it.

  What the hell…?

  She was already pulling him with her into the bustling crowd.

  He stopped, refusing to move another step.

  She wouldn’t let go and kept d
ragging him along. Urgency darkened her eyes to the color of midnight. “Gabriel, we must hurry.”

  Ignoring the cutting edge of desperation in her voice, he tore his arm from her grasp. She knew those bastards. Their names. Their purpose. He couldn’t trust himself to touch her without wrapping his fingers around her throat.

  “Damn you, Amelia. I don’t know what you and your friends are playing at, but I am not running anywhere.”

  “Please.” She clutched his arm, glancing nervously behind him, her face white and drawn. He could feel her trembling. “I can’t protect you here…I don’t have…anything left…”

  The big thugs were already back on their feet. No more casual circling, now they were coming straight for the two of them. Fast.

  Amelia groaned and tried to stand in front of him once more, but she stumbled and dropped to one knee. He grabbed her arm to steady her and swore. He couldn’t figure out how, but whatever she’d pulled out of her ass to get the fall on those guys seemed to have drained her strength completely.

  After all Amelia’s talk of protecting him, it looked like it was his turn to do the same for her. Whether he wanted to or not, it seemed he’d have to get them out of here now if he was going to keep her alive.

  “Christ,” he muttered. “You’re going to explain all of this the minute we lose these guys, do you understand?”

  She nodded, but even that small motion made her face whiter. The hand around his wrist slid away weakly. Gabriel threw his shoulder under her arm and hauled her into his side.

  “I can walk,” she protested, pushing against his chest with her free fist. Her voice weedy, her words slurred.

  “Sure you can.” He didn’t bother to let her go but maneuvered them left, into the busiest corridor, hoping to lose the dark cowboys in the massive crowd. Glancing behind him, he noticed the thick crowd had forced the trio of badasses to slow their pursuit, but they hadn’t given up yet.

  He increased their speed. Amelia’s steps faltered and she hissed through her teeth.

  “Come on, baby. Stay with me.” Strong, capable Amelia was more than just a little wiped. She shook like a leaf and looked worse than death. “I’ll get you out of here.”

  When next he chanced a glimpse over his shoulder, their tail had vanished. “I think maybe we lost them.”

  Amelia shook her head. “I can still feel them coming,” she whispered. “They won’t let you go. They can’t.”

  Can’t?

  After noticing some of the looks he was getting, Gabriel forced himself to slow down so he wouldn’t end up getting hauled into the security offices for carrying a woman through the airport who looked drugged. He could just imagine the byline that would show up in the newspapers tomorrow if that happened: Bad Boy Rocker Previously Linked to Young Girl’s Death, Wanted for Kidnapping.

  Gabriel kept going until he was certain they were no longer being followed, then he found the car rental desk and sat Amelia down in a nearby chair while he got a set of keys to the only vehicle they had available, a tiny Toyota hatchback.

  In the parking lot, he helped Amelia into the car and quickly stuffed his guitar case into the backseat. Luckily, it had been strapped to his back in the airport, unlike the duffel bag he’d been carrying that was now lost forever.

  Gabriel drove out of the airport and onto the freeway before taking a deep breath and daring a look at the woman reclining in the passenger seat. “Amelia.” Her eyes were closed. She didn’t stir. “Amelia, are you okay?”

  He placed his palm across her forehead. “Jesus, you’re burning up. What the hell have you done to yourself?”

  Amelia groaned. Her eyelids fluttered as she twisted to face him. “Where are you going?” she mumbled. “There’s no safe place…”

  “I’m taking you to the hospital.”

  “No.” She coughed, a deep rasp coming from her chest. He didn’t like the sound of it. “I can’t go to one of your hospitals.”

  “What do you mean you can’t go? You’re hurt, you need—”

  “No!” Her vehemence stunned him. “It won’t help. Your doctors can’t mend this.”

  “Amelia—”

  She reached for his arm. Her hand felt clammy against his skin. “Gabriel, please keep driving…don’t stop. Put as much distance as you can from this place. I just…just need to…rest for a little while. I’ll be fine once I rest.”

  Her eyes drooped closed again and he sighed. “You’re so full of shit, you know that?” He weighed his options and made a decision. No doubt the wrong one. “I swear to God, you’re going to tell me what all this is about…as soon as I get you somewhere safe.”

  It was full dark and pouring rain when Gabriel pulled into the parking lot of a motor inn and stopped the car. Amelia’s eyes were closed, but her head tossed back and forth against the headrest, and perspiration glistened on her brow. He didn’t think she was asleep, even though it had been half an hour since she’d said anything.

  He shouldn’t have listened to her. He should have taken her to a hospital and had her checked out by a doctor. So, why hadn’t he?

  He kept replaying that scene in the airport—the eerie feeling of pressure in the air when the three men had ambushed them, the strange one-sided conversation, and then the unbelievable push of…power that seemed to come from Amelia herself.

  When he compared it to his memories from the night of the concert—not what he’d been told or what had probably happened, but what he really remembered—he came up with too many questions, and right now he couldn’t see there being any credible answers.

  Leaving the car running with Amelia inside, he ran through the rain to the front door.

  “Evening.” He nodded to the white-haired old man standing behind the desk and flapped the edges of his jacket to shake the water from his arms and shoulders. With a smile, he combed his fingers through his wet hair and pushed it off his forehead. “Can I get a room for the night?”

  The clerk looked him up and down, his wizened face full of creases. “You alone?”

  Gabriel lifted a brow and stared right back at the old man. “My wife is in the car.”

  The man leaned to the side to peer around Gabriel’s shoulder, making no bones about the fact that he was trying to see through the window into the Toyota parked out front. “We don’t have none of them girlie channels on the television.” Finally, he straightened and turned around, picking out a key from the peg wall. “And you better believe I’ll call the police at the first complaint of noise,” he warned, facing Gabriel again.

  Gabriel smiled wide. “No noise. No porn. Gotcha.”

  The clerk glared at him, paying particular attention to the rings in Gabriel’s ears and the tat snaking up the back of his neck. “Checkout is at ten tomorrow mornin’. If you’re late, you pay extra.”

  To be safe, Gabriel gave the man cash and signed the register with a fake name, which was scrutinized more carefully than a bank teller would have examined a fishy hundred-dollar bill under the ultraviolet light.

  “All right, mister. Go on and drive your car ’round back to parking space G9. You’re gonna be in room 109.”

  Gabriel tapped the key on the scarred oak counter, then flipped it into the palm of his hand. “Then I guess I’ll see you bright and early for the continental breakfast,” he said, heavy on the sarcasm.

  “There ain’t no kitchen service here, fella. If you want to eat, you gotta go across to the diner.” The crotchety bugger paused. “But I guess I could give you a coupon.”

  “Thanks, that’s real generous of you. I’ll think about it. Have a good night.”

  Gabriel felt the old man’s suspicion and knew his eyes followed him all the way back to the car. He wondered how long before the cops would be knocking on the motel room door, having been called to check him out under the guise of a noise disturbance.

  After moving the car, Gabriel carefully lifted Amelia into his arms and carried her inside. She weighed almost nothing.

  He laid her
on the double bed and removed her tall laced boots before going back outside for his guitar case. When he came in again he locked the door behind him, made sure the drapes were drawn tight, and only then did he turn on the small light on the table beside the bed.

  Gabriel toed off his boots and stripped off his jacket, draping it over the back of a chair. It had been years since he’d been relegated to staying the night in a dive like this. These days when the group was on the road, they enjoyed the plushy comforts of their tour bus or David made arrangements for them to crash in the best hotels.

  A dusty shade muted the lonely lamp’s yellow glow, keeping most of the room cloaked in deep shadows. There was still enough light for Gabriel to notice the water stains in one corner of the ceiling and the brown splotches in the carpet.

  He sat by Amelia’s side and wiped droplets of rain from her cheeks, worried about the purple hollows under her eyes and deathly pallor to her skin.

  She moaned, a low sound full of pain. He brushed a hand between the strands of her hair—hair that had been thick and glossy and golden a few days ago, but now hung in pale, lifeless strings across her face.

  “Amelia, what’s happening to you?” he whispered, furious with her for making him feel so powerless. He hated the feeling, hated that it happened to him so often. He hadn’t been able to keep Dani from being choked to death or Leanne from overdosing. And he hadn’t been able to save David.

  Was he going to have to watch Amelia die now too?

  He was ready to pick her up again and drive her to the hospital despite her ridiculous objections when she stirred. She struggled to open her eyes and he laid a hand on her arm to quiet her.

  “Gabriel.” Her voice croaked.

  “I’m here.” He took her hand. “This was a bad idea, baby. I’m going to take you to see a doctor.”