by Ivy Sinclair
“I have a feeling it doesn’t really matter what I want,” I said as I spun one of my knives around in my hand. “I’m just waiting for them to come back like the rest of you.”
“Yes. My brothers and I would like to know if you know where Benjamin went.” Samuel proceeded to sit down on the step next to me, just as I expected he would.
“How would I know? In case you didn’t notice, he didn’t stop long enough to confer with me,” I said.
“He took your associate along with him.”
At least he hadn’t made the mistake of calling her the ‘vessel’. “Paige,” I growled. “Her name is Paige, and she’s more than my associate.”
“So I gathered,” Samuel said easily. “Yet, you don’t seem concerned about this turn of events.”
“They’ll be back,” I said. “My guess is Benjamin wanted to discuss the matter privately and didn’t want any more comments from the peanut gallery.”
“You are so refreshingly human,” Samuel said with a small laugh. “I miss that when I am assigned to be in Heaven. I was called back when all of this business with the demons began. It feels good to be back in this realm.”
“Great,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“It would appear that Benjamin has some affiliation with you as well,” Samuel commented. “Has he used your services before or is it friendlier than that?”
I wasn’t going to go into the fact that it was a job for Benjamin that brought me to Calamata Island to begin with. It wasn’t anyone else’s business. “Trust me, the only mutual interest Benjamin and I share is Paige,” I said. That much was true. Benjamin had hired me to find out why demons were appearing on his demon-free zone island. The reason had been Paige. “Otherwise, I couldn’t care less what happens to that prick.”
“He is a bit standoffish, but he’s not a bad person,” Samuel said. “None of us are.”
I looked at Samuel with a bit of chagrin. “Save the sales pitch for somebody else. The only people I care about in this whole mess are Paige and my family. I will do whatever it takes to make sure they come out of this whole thing in one piece.”
“Then you understand our position,” Samuel said with a small shrug. “This is family business at its core, no matter what side you think we all sit on. Eva was an archangel. Our father determined that Eva was no longer fit to reside in either of these realms. Her place is in the ether, and we must ensure that she stays there.”
“Well, she’s got a foothold, and she will come back if she can,” I said. “I don’t care about what happens in your little family. Paige stays out of it. Eva can go find herself another vessel and then you can do whatever you want with that one.”
“Is that really how you feel? You’d willingly pass that sentence to another human?” Samuel shifted his stance and put his elbows on his knees.
I opened my mouth to say yes, but something stopped me. I thought about what he said and what it would all mean. That was something that I never stopped to think about before, and it was more than a little unsettling that I was doing it now. The whole idea of suddenly possessing a moral compass was frustrating, to say the least.
“Paige and my family are my priorities,” I said. “If things go the way that we want, we are going to get rid of the threats that affect everyone. All of our interests are aligned at the moment.”
“My brothers don’t want Eva to return, but they similarly have great concern about the idea of a mortal possessing Eva’s power,” Samuel said. “And it seems that possession could fundamentally change your Paige even if that wasn’t the intention.”
He had given voice to a small, yet vocal voice that had been clamoring in the back of my mind ever since Klein’s suggestion that Paige take on Eva. “I trust Paige, and I realize that this is unprecedented in many ways. That makes things scary for you guys, but maybe it’s about time that things changed,” I said changing the subject.
“What do you mean?”
“You don’t think it’s clear to me that things have been going downhill between everyone for the last few centuries?” I doubted that the archangels stopped long enough to think about anything outside of their self-interests. “Everything seems to point toward another showdown between the three species, and mankind is at a pretty severe disadvantage. Nobody believes in angels and demons anymore. That means that all along you’ve been able to plot and plan against each other and humans too without anyone making sure you are staying in line.”
Samuel looked shocked. “You think that we’d start a war?”
“I think that this whole thing is a lot bigger than anyone is letting on. Eva was the one who kept the balance between the species a thousand years ago, and somebody made sure that she was taken out. She was never replaced, and that’s put all of us on a one-way street to some eventual showdown. It’s just a matter of who is the strongest when all of that goes down.”
“It would almost seem as if you are in favor of Eva’s return,” Samuel said slowly. “You seem quite passionate in your views of the situation. Or are you volunteering yourself to take her place?”
“That’s not my job,” I said, shaking my head. “But somebody will need to step up eventually and make all of this right again. I don’t think anyone wants the kind of bloodshed that could happen if all hell literally broke loose.”
“It is interesting that you mention that,” Samuel said. “There is a current situation here on the island that suggests that time might be sooner rather than later.”
For the first time, he had said something that got my attention. “What are you talking about?”
“Surely you know about the myths of Calamata Island? There was a reason that this place has always been of interest to both angels and demons, and why Benjamin chose this place as his territory.”
“They’ve said it holds the gates to heaven and hell.” I rubbed my chin and wondered again when Paige was going to come back. “Are you about to tell me that myth is true?”
“The last time my brothers and I were together on this island was the day we were told the gate to hell was closed and locked; we thought forever. By all indications though of what Benjamin has told us about the activity here over the last week, that is no longer the case. The demons are appearing in droves.”
“Unless they have a way to get off this island, considering demons aren’t big fans of crossing water, it sounds like you have quite a problem,” I said. “Hopefully he evacuated all the residents days ago.”
“He did,” Samuel said. “Although many of them chose to stay. You might be surprised to learn that there are many of them who feel in debt to Benjamin and the safe haven that he created here. It’s their home, and they wanted to fight for it.”
All sorts of warning bells rang in my mind. “So while you are all sitting here yapping with me, who is helping them fight off the demons?”
Samuel looked surprised. “There are several angels who accompanied us here. They have been assisting us with getting the demon situation under control. The demons are quite effective at hiding during the day. Their preferred environment is night, of course.”
“So what’s your plan for closing the gate?” I started to scan the area around us. The cemetery stretched in every direction as far as I could see, but I knew we had to be within a half-mile of a main road somewhere. The island was only so big. No demon would be foolish enough to attempt an attack on a group of archangels during the day. At least, I hoped that was the case. “I also guess that’s the reason every demon official on the western seaboard has high-tailed it in this direction. The gate is putting out an influx of new recruits. New blood is attractive.”
“Right now, we’re focused simply on stemming the effect of those that have already escaped,” Samuel said.
“Which is on hold as well due to your rather inconvenient interruption.” Ezekiel appeared in front of me. I jumped. That was not the impression that I wanted to give the archangel at all. “Samuel, it’s time.”
“Time for what?�
� I asked as Samuel rose to his feet.
“While Benjamin is off cavorting with Eva’s vessel, someone has to continue the fight here,” Ezekiel said.
“Her name is Paige,” I said. “I’m sure they’ll be back shortly.”
“I received a missive from him. He said that we shouldn’t expect them back soon,” Ezekiel said. “His focus has clearly shifted away from his responsibilities.”
I leaped to my feet. “What do you mean they won’t be back soon?”
“My brother isn’t being terribly forthcoming on that point,” Ezekiel said. “In any case, this is the time to track down the demons who have come from the gate and send them back where they came.”
“So they can turn around and pop right back out of the gate again?” I asked. “Your problem is the fact that the gate is open at all. You should be working on closing it.”
“One thing at a time,” Ezekiel said.
“Your problem is the gate. Unless you don’t know how to close it,” I said. I watched the scowl appear on Ezekiel’s face. Samuel looked in the other direction. “You have to be shitting me. You said you closed the gate the first time.”
“Eva closed the gate,” Samuel admitted. “She never told us how she did it. Benjamin has tried. We’ve all tried.”
I couldn’t believe the words that I was about to say. “That’s where we need to go then. Now.”
“We?” Ezekiel scoffed. “And what exactly do you think you’d be able to do that the entire council of archangels could not?”
I crossed my arms. “Well, one thing for sure. I’m not going to stop trying until the damn thing is closed.” Paige had her objective, and for the moment, so did I.
CHAPTER FOUR – PAIGE
The sky dissolved into a familiar scene that for a moment caused my eyes to tear up. I hadn’t even realized that in my mind I had come to peace with the idea I would never see this place again. It was the living room in the apartment I had shared with Benjamin since I made Calamata Island my home. Of course, that was before I knew his name was Benjamin. With no memories of my past life or work experience, I had been given a job as an assistant in his floral shop downstairs. He offered me a room to rent, and once I got settled I hadn’t left the island at all until a week ago. That was the night that a demon attacked me, I met Riley and had my world turned upside down. My old life had been a simple one, but I had loved it despite the fact that I didn’t have anyone to share it with. Not then.
“What are we doing here?” I asked.
“If we are going to figure out where I hid the relic, then we have to start at the beginning,” Benjamin said. He swept his arms around the room. “It makes sense to start here. This is where most of my happy memories currently are.”
“I still don’t understand how I’m supposed to help you remember,” I said. My feet took me across the room to the mantle above the fireplace. There were pictures of the last three years of birthday celebrations there. Benjamin had always made a big deal out of birthdays.
Since I hadn’t been able to remember my birthday, Benjamin decreed the day that I came to Calamata Island to be my birthday. He thought I’d be less likely to be sad as the years crept by without remembering that tiny, but important detail. That day was July 14th. Now I knew my real birthday was January 12th. That was one of those little details that caused confusing thoughts as memories in my past collided.
“We’ve only known each other for three years, and you said that you’ve had the relic for a hundred years. If you tied its location to clues within happy memories, how could they have anything to do with me?”
“That’s the beauty of the spell,” Benjamin said. He flopped down on the couch in front of the fireplace and ran a hand through his hair. “It was meant to morph over time and move the object automatically to suit what would, in theory, be an ever-changing array of memories.”
“Can you find the person who cast the spell and make them reverse it so that you remember?”
“I just said that the relic has moved from the original place where I hid it based on my happiest memories. Even if the spell could be reversed, which it can’t, it isn’t where I left it.”
I crossed my arms with a frown. “That sounds either incredibly smart or incredibly stupid.”
Benjamin smiled wanly. “I’d prefer you think it’s the first one.”
“I’m serious, Benjamin,” I said. I waved my arms to encompass the room. “I feel like we are looking for a needle in a haystack. And that needle is something that is really sharp and likely to stab and kill the person who does find it. How do you even know that the relic is still where you think it is, and someone else hasn’t found it?”
“If someone else had found it, there would be signs,” Benjamin said. He leaned against the back of the couch. “I thought this through many years ago. I’ve lived a long time. I feel like you are underestimating me. That’s something you’ve never done before.”
I felt my shoulders stiffen. “You mean, I’m not following you around like a little lapdog accepting everything that you tell me is the truth anymore?”
Benjamin sighed. “That’s not what I meant. You are…different.”
“Of course, I’m different,” I snapped. “I have all of my memories back, and most of them are pretty shitty to tell you the truth. I have the pleasure of remembering the bloody faces of my parents on our kitchen floor as they were dying. I remember winding up on the street looking for answers while being hunted by things that I didn’t know or understand. I had to figure all of that out for myself, and usually that information came from people who always wanted more than I was willing to give to get it. I’ve been attacked multiple times by demons, knocked out and left for dead, and all of that is because I’m supposed to be the vessel for some crazy goddess hellbent on revenge who has been dead for a thousand years. Forgive me if I’m not the wide-eyed naïve bumpkin that you thought I was.”
Benjamin got up from his seat and slowly approached me. My speech had left me breathless, and I felt tears burning in the corners of my eyes. Waves of regret, anger, and despair rolled through my body. He gently touched my shoulder. “I’m sorry, Paige. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I brushed his hand away. “Well, you did.”
“I know it probably doesn’t bring you any comfort, but I look back over my past and feel similarly. My pursuits haven’t always been black and white or pure. I’ve traveled far and wide and lived many years, and there isn’t a lot that I’d say I was proud of.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “You are an archangel for God. You lead all of the other angels here on earth. What could be so bad about that?”
His face tightened. “To have power does not mean I have found the secret to happiness. It essentially just means I am good at my job.”
Silence sprung up between us. I looked out the window at the street below. It struck me how quiet it was given it was the beginning of the day. Normally, the streets would be bustling with residents of the island getting ready for another day and another onslaught of tourists. I realized with a start that no one was out and about because it wasn’t safe on the island anymore. That was my fault too.
The weight of the guilt for a destiny that I didn’t want or ask for was heavy on my shoulders. I needed to do something. This prattle about the past didn’t help anything. It seemed to serve only to rub salt in old wounds.
“Fine, if you are telling me that currently the relic is in a location that only I can help you find, then let’s get on with it. I know you said Riley is safe with your brothers, but I want to get back to him as soon as possible.”
Benjamin’s lips pursed. “Of course.”
My patience was gone around Benjamin’s obvious dislike of the situation between me and Riley, but I decided to let it go. The sooner I had my hands on the relic, the sooner Riley and I could get out of here. I was discovering that I didn’t really care for the company of archangels. No matter what Benjamin said, I didn’t think there was any way tha
t I could trust him the way that I used to; although I knew that I wanted to feel that way again. An archangel, especially the leader of all archangels, would be a powerful ally.
I hated that was the course of my thoughts, but it was the influence of years alone on my own. I learned how to play the political games to my benefit and put a chokehold on emotions like trust, loyalty, and morality. Those were the kinds of things that got a person killed in the dark world where we lived.
Riley had managed to slip through all of those boundaries though. I let my thoughts wander to him because he was the one who calmed me now, although he also incited instant anger. I thought that was perhaps the way love was. It had the power to sway emotions to any extreme. Right now, I was more than a little worried about him, but I had to get my hands on the relic. There was no way Benjamin would have let Riley witness our walk down memory lane. It was for the best. Riley was hardly Benjamin’s biggest fan either.
I took a deep breath and turned back toward Benjamin. “So we’re here. Any suggestions on how we figure out where to go next?”
“Every recent happy memory I have involves you,” Benjamin said quietly. “I wouldn’t know where to begin. I was hoping you’d be able to decipher some of them because you would have shared them with me.”
“The world’s most confusing and convoluted treasure map,” I said with a sigh. “Let me think.” I looked at the mantle again and the pictures there. The birthday celebrations had always been fun, but they involved many people. The community on Calamata Island had been welcoming to me, and although it had been difficult to grow close to any of the residents, they always showed up to the parties.
I shook my head to dismiss those memories. I looked around the room. What we were looking for wasn’t here. I left the room and wandered down the hallway. As I passed the kitchen, I paused to look into the small cheery room. When I came to Calamata Island, I hadn’t been able to cook a lick. Benjamin was a wonderful cook, and he taught me all kinds of recipes. We created exotic foods within the walls of the small kitchen and were transported all over the world through it. It made sense to me now. Benjamin had over a thousand years of practice.