Return to Eden

by G. P. Ching

  "So, what did you need to talk to me about?" Malini asked.

  Lillian folded her hands. "You’ve made a mistake. I know you assigned me to run this school but I can’t do it anymore. You need to find a replacement."

  "What? But everything looks perfect. You’re doing so well!"

  "And Laudner’s Flowers and Gifts has been closed two days this week. I still don’t know how I’m going to explain it when the Laudners come home from their cruise. I’ll have to say I was sick or something. I know this is more important, but we’re spreading ourselves too thin. I can’t pretend to help John run a business, while simultaneously running a school, and preparing my skills to fight off Lucifer."

  "I’m sorry, Lillian. I know I’ve asked too much. Maybe one of the new Helpers can become more involved. Let me think about it and get back to you."

  "Please do, and quickly. I needed help, yesterday. And to be perfectly honest, I never wanted this job. I’m a Horseman, not a Helper. I don't mind teaching the Soulkeepers about weapons, but running a school just isn’t my thing."

  "I know. I know, Lillian. Let me meditate on it. I’ll find someone else. But promise me you’ll hang in there until I do," Malini pleaded.

  Lillian sighed. "Okay. But not forever. I’m fine with going back to the way things were before we found Eden. I’m serious about this. I don’t want to do it another day. For you I will, but you better get to work on finding a replacement because I’m not sure how much longer I can force myself to do this."

  Malini nodded. "We should probably go," she said. "I need to speak to Gideon and we still have three more Soulkeepers to round up. Abigail should have August and Bridget ready by now."

  "Of course. I’ll walk you out to the boat." Lillian stood and headed toward the hall.

  They trotted down the stairs and through the foyer. "By the way, I heard from your Uncle John last time I was in the shop," Lillian said to Jacob. "He and Carolyn are enjoying their cruise. They send their love."

  Jacob grinned. "I’m glad it’s working out for both of us, but what are we going to do about them when they get home? I can’t make excuses forever."

  "We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it."

  They reached the edge of the jungle and stepped onto the dock. "Hey! Where’s the boat?" Malini asked.

  Their eyes darted around the harbor. The three searched until the boat's dark hull appeared at the gate on the horizon. It passed under the flaming swords and drifted toward them.

  "Who else knows about this place?" Jacob asked.

  Malini blew air through her nose. "No one."

  Lillian reached for her calf and pulled a dagger from a sheath there. She assumed a defensive pose as the boat docked and the sail lowered.

  The bench seats were empty but there was a body in the bottom of the boat. A corpse? Pale but smudged in ash, the skin hung off the skeletal remains in a way that hardly seemed human. Malini jumped in and turned the face to the light.

  Dane.

  Chapter 22

  Jacob and Malini

  Jacob watched Malini’s fingers feel for Dane’s pulse with a heavy heart. Dane’s pale skin hung on his skeleton, his body covered in cuts and bruises. He looked like a corpse.

  "Quick! Help me get him up to the school. His pulse is weak and he’s dehydrated. I can heal him but only if we get some nourishment into his body," Malini commanded.

  Jumping into the boat, Jacob peeled off his t-shirt and tossed it over Dane's naked hips before gathering his friend into his arms. He was much too light.

  Lillian reached forward to help Jacob out of the boat but he didn’t need it. He leapt to the dock and jogged up the path unable to comprehend that the sleight weight in his arms was once Dane, the stocky bully turned friend. When he reached the school, his mom was already there holding the door, her Soulkeeper speed kicking in.

  "West wing, fourth floor. There’s an infirmary."

  Jacob bounded up the spiral staircase to the clean white room. Gently, he positioned Dane on one of the six hospital beds. Malini rushed to his side.

  "He needs water," Malini said.

  Lillian disappeared behind a divider and returned with a glass and pitcher. "I added some sugar. He needs the calories."

  "Good thinking." Malini lifted the glass from Lilly’s hand and brought it to Dane’s lips, cradling his head in her left hand. "I’m going to give him enough healing energy to drink but I won’t be able to heal his body until he has enough calories inside of him to rebuild his cells."

  Dane swallowed a few gulps of water without opening his eyes.

  "It’s going to take some time. We’ll have to take shifts. I’ll go first, until he’s strong enough to drink on his own. Jacob, you can go next." She tipped the glass to Dane’s lips again.

  Jacob nodded. "Maybe we can get Dr. Silva to create an elixir to heal him faster."

  Malini groaned. "If Dane is here, Lucifer must have gotten what he wanted." She turned panicked eyes toward Jacob and Lillian. "Dr. Silva must’ve—"

  "No. She wouldn’t." Jacob shook his head.

  Lillian rubbed her forehead with her fingertips. "Yes, yes she would, Jacob. She’s always been a loose cannon."

  "And Ethan told us she was fighting with Gideon. We have to face the possibility that she gave up, Jacob." Malini’s eyes darted around the room, like she was searching for the answers in the corners.

  Jacob paced like a caged animal. "No. How could she do that? We can’t do this without her. We need Dr. Silva."

  Lillian placed her hands on Jacob’s shoulders. "We may have to. We may have no choice."

  "Jacob’s right. We shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I need to meditate. There might be some answers in the In Between. And we need to talk to Gideon.”

  Jacob looked at Dane’s wasted body in Malini’s arms. "I don’t think we can leave him yet."

  She stared at him over her shoulder. "We won’t, Jacob. We’ll take shifts." Her eyes welled with tears. "One thing at a time. Saving Dane comes first."

  * * * * *

  The garden was dark by the time Jacob finished with his shift caring for Dane. He found Malini sitting cross-legged at the end of the dock, face tilted toward the tranquil waters, her silhouette carved from the reflection of the moon.

  "My mom asked Ethan to help with Dane. She’s going to teach that defense class to the Soulkeepers, just in case. Plus, she needed to run the school. Did you know that the gnomes won’t eat unless she tells them to take care of themselves?" Jacob lowered himself to the wood beams behind Malini. At her level, the moonlight picked up the glint of wetness on her cheeks. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "What is it, Malini?"

  She swept her fingers under her eyes and cleared her throat. "I went to the In Between for guidance and to center myself."

  "Why are you crying? What did you see?"

  Turning her body toward him, she slipped her fingers into his. "I can’t tell you."

  Jacob whispered into her ear, "I know you can’t always share the specifics and you have to be careful not to upset the balance of nature or change the course of history. But, look at you, your head is going to explode if you don’t talk about it. Can’t you tell me anything?"

  Malini rested her head on his shoulder. "Before I became a Healer, do you remember when I went to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum with my parents?"

  "Vaguely."

  "Well, did you know that his decision, the Civil War, resulted in the deaths of over 600,000 people?"

  Jacob squeezed her hand. "No, I didn’t. I knew there was a Civil War, though."

  Malini blew a puff of air out her nose. "You really should pay more attention in school."

  "I’ll start as soon as I think anything they teach us will save our lives." He chuckled.

  Her mouth tugged downward. "Even though so many people were killed, it was the right thing to do. Did you know a Healer was helping him? Panctu. I used to wonder what it was like for her to know her guidance would mean the death
s of so many. But it was the right thing to do. A Healer’s job is to guide people toward the greater good, no matter what." A tear traced a sparkling trail down here cheek.

  Jacob swallowed hard. "You’ve seen what we have to do and it means death, maybe for a lot of people."

  "Sometimes one person seems as valuable as a whole army of them." She sobbed in earnest and Jacob pulled her into his arms.

  He wondered if it was him. She might have seen his death or his mom’s and of course she couldn’t say, or he might change what was meant to be. The thought stuck in his throat, a swollen egg that made it hard to breathe. He tipped his face until his forehead met hers. "This is why God made you a Healer. Another person wouldn’t be as brave. We have to do what we have to do. I’ve died before, you know, twice. It’s practically a habit."

  She straightened. "It’s not you! Do you think I’d be able to have this conversation if it was? I’d be a sniveling idiot, completely useless. No, it’s not you, but it’s bad enough." Her hand lifted to his cheek and her lips found his in a kiss that was as comfortable as breathing.

  Eventually he pulled back, remembering that neither of them had eaten dinner yet, and he was supposed to have her home in a few hours so that she could check in with her parents. "Where does your father think we are right now?"

  "Movie."

  Jacob chuckled. "Are they enjoying the cruise?"

  "I think so." Malini picked at the side of her nail.

  "What’s our next move? Do you think Abigail ever met with the two Soulkeepers this afternoon? And there’s a third out there somewhere. If Lucifer has the list, we should have rounded them up yesterday."

  "The two Abigail met with are dead."

  Jacob swallowed. "Did Abigail do it?"

  "No."

  "What about the last Soulkeeper? Do we try to find the last one on the list?"

  "That’s what Lucifer will expect us to do. It’s the logical thing. But Lucifer’s game was never about the list."

  "What?"

  Malini’s eyes widened. "We’ve been playing into his hands the entire time, Jacob. It’s all so clear to me, now. It’s true that someone needs to gather the last Soulkeeper, but not us and not now. We need to use the element of surprise and go after what Lucifer really wants."

  Jacob pushed himself up to his feet. "I don’t suppose you would know what that was. You know, aside from rounding up a bunch of humans to farm for flesh after he takes over the world."

  "That is what he wants to do, but if we are going to stop him, we need to know how he plans to do it. I can’t see that part. But I know who can."

  "Who?"

  "Gideon."

  "Gideon?"

  "Yes. He’s our link to what's really going on." Malini used Jacob’s hand to pull herself to her feet.

  Jacob shook his head. "You mean what's going on with Dr. Silva?"

  "No, I mean with Lucifer. Gideon may not know it yet, but he’s the key to undoing Lucifer’s plan. You and I need to find him and make sure he stays on our side."

  "Why wouldn’t Gideon be on our side?" Jacob asked. He intertwined his fingers in hers and led the way up the path.

  "I’m not sure yet."

  "I don’t suppose you could be more specific," Jacob pleaded.

  Malini shook her head.

  "Okay." He sighed. "Gideon it is." They’d reached the school and Jacob held the door open for her.

  "I wonder what’s for dinner?" Malini asked.

  Jacob smiled. "A hot, gnome-cooked meal."

  Malini groaned.

  "Hey, Malini, guess which dessert you should skip?

  "What?"

  "The forbidden-apple pie."

  Malini giggled, wiping the remnants of tears from her face. "Thank God you’re good looking because you’re not getting anywhere on your humor."

  Jacob followed her toward the dining room, wondering how long they had to laugh about anything at all.

  Chapter 23

  Mara and Henry

  As hard as she tried, Mara couldn’t keep her eyes off of the hourglass. Henry, on the other hand, couldn’t look at it. He avoided it by staring out the window, his fingers rubbing the bricks of the sill impulsively.

  "Don’t worry, Mara. Once I’ve helped you through the door, I’ll find someone to challenge me and I’ll meet you on the other side. Of course, it might take me some time. I have to find the right person."

  Mara’s face turned from the hourglass. "How do you find the right person to challenge Death?"

  "They have to be a champion, someone who doesn’t give up easily. The first days are difficult, even painful. Lucifer will try to sway the new Death to his side by promising to take the pain away. I have to find someone who won’t be swayed."

  "What? I thought everyone here was neutral?"

  "We are neutral. But sometimes remaining neutral means doing things to counteract Lucifer’s cheating ways. When he doesn’t follow the rules, we don’t either."

  Mara walked up behind Henry and slid her hands up his chest. "If Lucifer doesn’t follow the rules, isn’t there some kind of punishment? What about God?"

  Henry turned in the circle of her arms and placed his hands on her shoulders. "God never breaks His promises. He never breaks the rules. When Lucifer cheats, He can’t match cheating with cheating. But we can. Those of us in the In Between have been keeping the balance for good for a very long time."

  Brows knit, Mara pulled back a little. Henry described God as a He, which seemed odd to Mara who had seen God as female. But then she remembered that everyone saw God as the best part of themselves. For Henry, God was a He.

  "The immortals keep the balance. How?" she asked.

  Henry fixed her with an intense stare. "I mean, when a murderous dictator meets an untimely death, often it is exactly that, untimely. Much can be accomplished when Death, Fate, and Time work together. Have you ever wondered why time in Nod and hell is different from here and on Earth? Aldric keeps it that way to give us the advantage. Everything there takes longer, giving us more time to respond. Fate sees when her loom becomes tangled by Lucifer’s trickery. She shares those incidents with us and we conspire to set things right. But imagine, Mara, if someone were to win my role who had a proclivity toward evil."

  "The balance would sway in Lucifer’s favor."

  Henry nodded.

  Mara pressed a finger to her lips and lowered her eyes, twisting from his embrace. She couldn’t believe what she was about to say. "I don’t think you should find a challenger. I don’t think you should come with me to the other side. Not right away."

  Henry’s face snapped up. "Why?"

  "Yesterday, I saw Gideon. He used the stone to seek guidance from Malini’s power."

  "Gideon? Who’s Gideon?"

  "He’s the angel who’s in love with Dr. Silva." Henry looked confused and Mara realized he hadn’t met either of them. "Dr. Silva is a fallen angel who helps the Soulkeepers. Gideon is the angel who’s in love with her."

  "I think I remember seeing them before you kissed me at the prom. They were huddled around Malini’s body. I can’t hone in on their souls like I can with humans."

  "Anyway, Gideon was here and I had a chance to talk with him. He said that Lucifer is up to something. He’s kidnapped a friend of ours named Dane Michaels and has been holding him for ransom, to obtain the list of all Soulkeepers who have come to power."

  Henry paused, shaking his head and frowning. "Dane Michaels is in Eden. His soul I can see."

  "What? What does that mean? Does Lucifer have the list?"

  "I don’t know the circumstances, only the soul. I remember him."

  Mara sighed. "Even more reason that you have to stay in your position. I think it was a little too convenient that Lucifer showed up with the hourglass just when all this crap started going down with the Soulkeepers. I have a feeling that he created this consequence to try to force you out of service. He’s up to something. He wants you to offer someone the challenge so that the In Bet
ween will be weak when he makes his move." She pointed at the hourglass, now half empty. "That is to ensure you are at your most vulnerable precisely when he wants you to be."

  While Mara had always understood that Henry was Death, the air he assumed taught her exactly what that title meant. The bones of his face became more prominent and his eyes darkened into black holes of anger. The skin peeled back from his hands. He formed a bony fist and the temperature in the room plunged.

  "You are right, Mara," he said. "We’ve been played for fools. He has used my love for you to attempt to further his wicked scheme." Henry’s skeletal fist came down on the table, splintering the wood into a million pieces. Her coffee mug rolled across the floor.

  In this form, his presence was overwhelming. Mara backed toward the door instinctively, her hand pressing into her collarbone. "Please, Henry. Don’t give him the satisfaction of wasting one more minute of our time together."

  Henry bowed his head and Mara felt the cold retreat into him. His face fleshed out and his hands returned to normal. When he looked at her again, it was with soft brown eyes, filled with love and longing. He opened his arms and she ran into them.

  "It won’t be forever, Mara. Where you are going, you will hardly notice my absence. Someday, when this is all over, I’ll come to you. My predecessor did it and I will do it. We’ll be together.”

  Mara pressed her face into his chest, trying to absorb every detail about him, from the sound of his voice to the way she fit into his embrace. She believed him when he said he would come for her. But someday was a long way off and Mara knew, as good as heaven was, it wouldn’t be paradise without him.

  Chapter 24

  Malini and Jacob

  Malini sighed impatiently from the passenger seat of Jacob’s truck. He’d circled the block three times and still couldn’t find a place to park near Katrina’s dorm. Students rushed in all directions, trying to make their afternoon classes and cutting off Jacob in the process.

  "Just park, Jacob. I’d like to do this before my first gray hair."