by Paula Weston
It’s not over.
Jude.
He’s still holding his own against the Gatekeeper, further into the forest now. I risk a quick look around. Rafa and Micah are tag-teaming against Zarael. Ez—thank god she’s okay—and Taya are side by side, fighting off a hellion and a Gatekeeper. I see red hair: Uri or Daisy, I can’t tell. There are too many moving bodies between them and me. The forest writhes and seethes. We have more numbers but the Gatekeepers are so freaking fast.
And then the air is hot, crackling, blasting the side of my face. Another rocket. The explosion knocks me off my feet. Drives the wind out of me. I taste dirt. Grass. Pine needles. My ribs throb. My chest burns. I roll over, catch a glimmer of something in the tree above.
Leon. Reloading.
‘Up there!’ I raise the tip of my katana in Leon’s direction and then run to help Jude. I’m two steps away when another Gatekeeper appears. I block a blow aimed for the back of Jude’s head, kick out the demon’s knee. I spin, cover Jude. The demon lunges again. I swing hard at his hip, force him to block me.
Where the hell is Nathaniel?
Jude and I are fighting back-to-back now, fending off attacks from both sides. Protecting each other. My arms ache. My lungs are about to burst. The scratches across my chest sting and tear with each swing and thrust. The tang of blood and sweat permeates the smoke. And yet, fighting beside Jude—the rhythm of it—feels familiar in a way nothing has since I found out I was Rephaite.
Behind me in the Sanctuary, something heavy collapses.
Jude takes a hit and slams into me. ‘Shit, sorry.’ We keep fighting. But I don’t know how much longer we can keep this up.
And then the light changes. The forest is steadily bathed in blue-white light, chasing away the shadows and growing in intensity until my eyes burn and I have to shield them, even at the risk of it costing me my head. The Gatekeeper in front of me howls. I try to peer through my fingers, see enough to know the demon has gone, but it’s too bright. Jude and I lean into each other. We’re both panting, struggling for air. The light is unbearable, forcing its way between my fingers and under my eyelids. A gust of wind flattens my hair, whips pine needles against my shins. I hear shouting. And then everything eases a little. I squint, try to see.
The forest is bathed in a preternatural glow.
‘Holy shit,’ Jude whispers. I look up and forget to breathe. It’s Nathaniel.
He’s flying.
NEW TERRITORY
Of course he can fly: he has wings. I gape anyway.
Nathaniel swoops over us again, wings beating slowly. Stirring up the forest floor. He’s shining like he was on the mountain when he drove the demons back at the cabins. It’s had the same effect here: Zarael is gone. So are his horde and their hellions.
The commissary is a furnace, roaring and hungry. Rephaim are everywhere: limping to each other, climbing up from the dirt, looking around—ready to shift and heal but waiting for permission. There are sirens now, faint, distant.
Rafa hobbles over to me, a palm pressed to his abdomen. Leaves stick out of his hair, cling to his clothes.
‘You all right?’ I ask, but he’s distracted by my tattered hoodie.
‘What happened?’
‘I got clawed, not as bad as last time. Are you all right?’ I repeat.
‘I might have re-torn something, but I’m fine.’ Rafa gives Jude a quick once-over and nods, satisfied that my brother is in one piece. He reaches behind him and pulls the antique knife from his jeans. It’s still in its sheath, covered in blood. ‘Got into a tight spot and had to use this.’ A quick grin. ‘Protected the blade, though.’
Nathaniel is coming around again. He flies lower and his wings beat backwards as he approaches the ground. He’s walking by the time he touches down, a seamless, fluid transition. The wings fold behind him and disappear.
‘Status report,’ he says to nobody in particular.
Daniel jogs over, sleeves rolled up, shirt smeared with dirt. Sword slick and dark. ‘All accounted for.’
Everyone is okay—unless he’s not counting Outcasts.
‘Let them heal,’ Nathaniel says and Daniel gives the order.
‘Have you seen Zak?’ I ask Rafa. I touch the wound on my chest. It’s stinging like crazy.
Rafa scans the forest. ‘Ah, crap.’
Two figures are huddled over a third at the base of a pine tree. My heart lurches. Please no, please no…
Ez and Jones are trying to get their arms under Zak. His broad shoulders sag. His thick hair is matted with blood. Eyes closed.
‘Bloody hell,’ Jude says when we get close.
‘He’s fine, he’s fine.’ I say it as much to myself as to him. Where are the healers? The last time the Sanctuary Rephaim fought demons, the soldiers not on rotation healed the injured. But everyone who could swing a sword was out here defending the Sanctuary, so tonight the injured have to heal each other.
‘He’s unconscious,’ Ez says and lifts her face. Blood trickles from a split above her eyebrow. Her eyes are wide, worried, but she’s trying to keep it together. ‘I need to get him to Brother Ferro.’
Rafa kneels but she puts out a hand to stop him helping. ‘You don’t have the strength to spare.’
‘I do.’ Daisy is behind me, twin-bladed daggers still in each hand. The sirens are closer.
Ez nods. ‘Thank you.’
‘This is bad,’ Jones says and then the four of them disappear. I don’t know if he means Zak’s injuries or the fact Zarael’s figured out modern weapons can damage the Sanctuary. How much of the place does he have to destroy before the wards break?
Calista, Uri and Daniel are deep in discussion with Nathaniel, their faces lit by the blaze. Calista looks up, sees us. ‘This is what happens when we break ranks and act on impulse,’ she says.
‘You think this is our fault?’ Anger burns through my worry over Zak.
‘If you hadn’t destroyed that house, Zarael would never have thought to use a rocket launcher on the Sanctuary.’
‘Then he must be the dumbest demon this side of hell.’
‘You pushed him to the point where he thought it was a viable option.’
She says something to the others, and then all four of them walk towards us. I meet them halfway, hear footsteps behind me. ‘We’ve got your back,’ Jude says. I know without looking that Rafa’s with him.
I point at Nathaniel. ‘You’re just upset that you didn’t get to keep the iron room. But if you’d done in Iowa what you did here tonight, we could have rescued Rafa and Taya with a lot less stress and you could’ve seen that room for yourself.’
‘You did not have to destroy the farmhouse today,’ Nathaniel says.
‘We should have left the threat to hang over all our heads? Didn’t you hear what was going on in that place?’
‘We could have returned to destroy it if and when the Garrison commanded me to do so.’
‘The Garrison? Seriously, Nathaniel, when was the last time you even heard from them?’
‘I do not have time to argue with you, Gabriella. I must prepare the brothers before they speak with the fire brigade.’ He shifts before I can push the point.
‘I really expected more from you, even without your memories.’
‘That’s enough, Calista,’ Daniel says before I can bite back. ‘Emotions are running a little high right now. Let’s not make this any worse.’
Another explosion in the commissary. We all flinch. It’s a war zone, all smoke and flames and rubble.
Rafa catches Daniel’s eye. ‘When’s the debrief?’
Daniel checks his watch. ‘Let’s make it twenty minutes. You and your people should be there.’ He nods at me and then shifts without warning. Calista scowls and does the same. Yep, the courtesies are out the window now.
Jude scans the shadows beyond the glow of the fire. ‘What about Zarael?’
I think about how many rockets there are in the world—and how easily Leon could get them.
‘What was that?’ Jude asks.
‘Angel mojo. It’s usually deadly to pit scum, but after his own stint downstairs Nathaniel’s only got enough juice to burn their eyes. They’ll recover, but it’ll take a day or so.’
‘Why would they risk Nathaniel doing that to them?’
‘They know he’s slow to get involved.’
Another blast from the house and a ball of fire spews out of the gaping window, driving us further back. The Sanctuary was supposed to be the one place the Rephaim would always be safe. It was—
‘Maggie.’ Shit. Shit. Shit. I have to get to her.
‘Gaby, wait—’
I feel the pull before I realise I’m even trying to shift, and then I’m in the maelstrom. Right in the thick of it. Alone. My skin feels like it’s being stretched from my body, my hair pulled. Sleet hits me from impossible angles. Focus, focus. I think of Maggie. The room. The room. Beige walls, beige carpet. Warm air—
My knees slam into something and I pitch forward into a soft landing. The wind is gone; so is the ice. I’m dry and the air is toasty. I finally stop moving. I open my eyes and the walls swerve by once, twice and then stop. It’s Jude’s room, but it’s empty. I know it’s Jude’s room because his books are still scattered on the doona next to me.
‘What the fuck, Gaby!’
Rafa and Jude are standing by the window.
‘You could’ve ended up anywhere.’ Rafa is rattled. Jude’s not much happier.
I roll over and sit up. ‘But I didn’t—I’m here. And they’re not.’
Jude turns to the window, checks outside. The commissary is down the other end. The air in here smells faintly of smoke. ‘They would’ve heard the explosions,’ Jude says. ‘Jason would have had them gone three seconds later.’
I flop back on the bed. Adrenaline burns through me. My sword is still caked with whatever black gunk runs through hellions. It’s all over the doona now. Sirens, muted through thick glass, have reached the front car park. I close my eyes, feel the battle settling into my body, becoming part of me. But I don’t want it to be part of me. I’m tired of fighting for my life, of fearing for everyone I care about.
A weight settles next to me on the mattress. ‘You scared the shit out of me.’ Rafa’s voice is tight. I open my eyes, see the tension in his face. He offers a hand and I let him pull me to a sitting position. ‘How about you try calling Margaret.’
I feel for my phone. Incredibly, it’s in my back pocket, intact. My fingers shake but I manage to call up Maggie’s number.
‘Gaby,’ she says before it’s even rung at my end. ‘Are you okay? What happened?’
I explain.
‘I thought…I didn’t know…’
‘I know, I’m sorry. Where are you?’
‘Rome. It’s—Oh. Jason wants to speak to you.’
He comes on the line and I tell him what’s been happening here.
‘Is it safe?’ he asks.
‘As much as it ever was.’
‘Dani is insisting on coming back.’ He doesn’t hide his frustration. ‘There’s no talking sense to her when she’s like this, but I’m not bringing her to you if the wards are down.’
‘They held, Jason. We saw a Gatekeeper hit an invisible barrier. They still can’t get in, at least for now.’
A terse sigh. ‘Fine.’ The phone disconnects and then the four of them materialise in the middle of the room: Jason, Maggie, Dani and Maria.
‘Gabe,’ Dani says. ‘I think I—’ Her eyes roll back in her head and her body goes limp. Jude lunges forward and catches her before she hits the carpet.
‘Oh god.’ Maria drops to her knees beside them. She presses her fingers on Dani’s neck. ‘Her pulse is crazy. Everything is so much more extreme for her in this damned place.’
‘What’s happening?’ Jude asks, alarmed.
‘It’s a vision.’
I brace myself for Dani to start convulsing or vomiting or something, but she stays slumped in Jude’s arms as if she’s asleep. He sits down on the bed, carefully holds her across his lap. I can’t bring myself to look at Jason.
‘How long does this usually last?’ I feel a thread of panic. What if she doesn’t wake up? Maybe this has been too much for her. Maybe I’ve done irreparable damage asking her to project her mind into a room full of demons. We wait in silence. It could be a minute, it could be five. The thread wraps around me, pulls tight. And then Dani’s eyelids flutter open.
She frowns, swallows. Her eyes are bleary, as if she’s been in a deep sleep for hours. She focuses on Jude and then sits up so fast she almost head-butts him. ‘Gabe.’
‘I’m here, Dani. What did you see?’
‘Zarael and the Gatekeepers.’
‘Are they coming back here?’
‘No. They’re going to Pan Beach.’
I can’t breathe. ‘How many?’
She squeezes her eyes closed and her lower lip trembles.
‘All of them.’
A NEW LINE IN THE SAND
I can’t stand still.
I fidget with the leather on my sword hilt. Toss the katana from hand to hand. Tap the flat of the blade against my calf.
‘Calm down,’ Rafa says. I’m between him and Jude. The Outcasts are here in the chapterhouse too, except for Zak and Ez: Zak’s still in the infirmary, Ez at his side.
‘Yeah,’ I say, ‘because you’re an expert at patience.’
‘Which is why I look to you to set the example.’
‘Oh, fuck off.’
His mouth quirks.
‘You two right there?’ Jude asks.
‘Yeah,’ Rafa says. ‘Baiting your sister has always been the best way to distract her when she’s wound this tight.’
We’re waiting to be debriefed. It’s been twenty-five minutes. The mood in here is pensive, the chatter low and intense. Daniel, Uri and Calista are on the dais, their backs to us. Taya and Malachi are in the middle of a crowd of Sanctuary Rephaim. Everyone’s cleaned up and bandaged. My chest is tender, but not too bad thanks to a shift with Rafa. Just what I needed: more scars.
At the other end of the Sanctuary, fire fighters are battling the blaze in the commissary; as far as they know, the only other people on the grounds are the half dozen monks evacuated into a makeshift shelter in the car park. But Simon, the Butlers and their crew are in the infirmary with Brothers Ferro and Benigno, and Brother Stephen is still in his cell.
Rafa leans in close. ‘You still okay about…before?’ He doesn’t touch me, which makes the question even more distracting.
‘Is this another tactic to unwind me?’ My eyes drop to his mouth and he smiles.
‘Is it working?’
‘Maybe.’
‘In that case, I have a few ideas on how to spend our time when we get to Pan Beach.’
For a few heat-filled seconds I’m far from the chapterhouse, thinking about Rafa’s lips and hands. And then the side door opens and the urgency of the moment jolts back through me. A gust of wind catches the door and slams it open, bringing with it the stench of the fire.
Nathaniel closes it behind him.
I tap my blade against my leg again and wait as the fallen angel climbs to the dais. His boots echo on the stone steps and the room falls quiet. He takes in the crowd, gives nothing away.
‘Good work tonight,’ he says. ‘We have now seen the desperation of our enemy. Our mandate—’
‘Why couldn’t they get inside?’ The question comes from someone in the front.
Unbelievable. The Sanctuary Rephaim still don’t know about the wards.
‘Let Nathaniel speak,’ Daniel says, but I can see he’s realised his mistake. I stand on my toes and try to see who spoke. The Rephaim closest to the dais—all of them loyal to the Sanctuary—wait for Nathaniel to answer.
‘The Sanctuary is warded against demons.’ The fallen ang
el says it matter-of-factly.
‘Since when?’
‘Since the day the monks agreed to shelter me.’
A strange silence follows.
‘But…we’ve brought hellions here.’ Another voice, from the back this time.
Nathaniel nods. ‘And you have always been required to seek my authority to bring a creature from hell inside these walls. Now you know why: my will, and my will alone, can alter the wards, if only fleetingly.’
Malachi and Taya exchange a glance, pieces sliding into place for them. That’s great. But it’s not what we’re here for.
‘Have you heard from the Garrison?’ I ask.
Nathaniel’s eyes meet mine. ‘No, and I would say their silence speaks volumes.’
‘You think they disapprove of us rescuing Rafa and Taya?’
‘I doubt they would approve of risking the lives of every other Rephaite by bringing Zarael to our doorstep with a rocket launcher.’
I check the faces around me, try to read the mood. The Rephaim shuffle and fidget, agitated and unsure. On the dais, Calista and Uri stand perfectly still. Daniel watches me carefully: he thinks he knows where this is going. He has no idea.
‘So we should have left them there?’ I ask.
‘You should have exercised patience and discipline.’
Daniel catches my eye and shakes his head in a warning. But I’m out of patience. And discipline.
‘Dani had another vision.’
The fidgeting and shuffling stops.
‘The Gatekeepers are going to Pandanus Beach to kill as many men, women and children as they can find.’
Nathaniel doesn’t blink. ‘They would not risk it.’
‘They would and they will—to punish me.’
‘Not everything is about you,’ Calista snaps.
‘Zarael wants payback for us destroying the house—you said it yourself, Calista. He’s wreaked havoc here, but not enough to give him access to us. The only other place he knows he can bait us into a fight is Pan Beach.’
‘No, that’s the only place he can bait you into a fight. You and Rafa are the only Rephaim with a connection to it.’
‘And me,’ Taya says. ‘I have an attachment.’