Devada (Angels & Demons Book 1)

by Tich Brewster

  “Thank you so much. I mean it. This is amazing.” She ran her fingertips over the worn leather before looking back up at Teresa. “Well, good luck back home.”

  “Thank you, Hannah. You’ve been a pleasure to be around.”

  “You too, I hope we can hang out again in the near future.” Hannah hugged the journal to her chest.

  She stood at the door and watched as Teresa climbed onto the back of Raum’s Harley. They waved to each other one last time. As the Harley sped up the dirt drive and out of sight her heart sank. There went her new best friend and the boy that stole her breath with just one look.

  She locked the door behind her and went in search of Josh. He was nowhere to be seen in the house which meant that he was probably out at the silo doing whatever he did with all of those weapons. She was sure that he polished and checked to make sure they were fully loaded. Now was the time to take the opportunity to soak in a bubble bath.

  The hot water loosened the knots that had formed in her shoulders. She soaked in heavenly bliss until the water turned cold. She took one look at her pruned fingertips and wrinkled nose. “It’s definitely time to get out of the water.” She slipped into a tank top and pair of shorts.

  The house was quiet when she stepped out of the bathroom. She pushed open Josh’s bedroom door. Empty. The living room was also empty and so was the kitchen.

  A buzz pulled her attention to the kitchen counter. She must have left her phone there earlier. It was a voicemail from Josh. He said, “I was drawn to the high school so I left to check things out. By the looks of things, I would say that a demon was lurking around. I don’t sense any evil beings at the moment but I’m going to stick around for a bit. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  Retrieving the journal from her room, she sat cross-legged in the middle of the living room floor. The journal was small but each page was filled with spells to entrap demons and strip them of their powers.

  Page after page held symbols relevant to the spell. She recognized some of these symbols. She’d seen Josh and Raum drawing them in the dirt and in the air with their fingers as they chanted.

  The spell written on the next page was used to cast a demon out of the human it possessed. She repeated the words on the page. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to feel the words flowing from her lips.

  Laughter broke her concentration and she looked up. Josh stood in the doorway, arms crossed. She was so engrossed in the spell that she never heard the front door open. She didn’t even have a clue how long he’d been standing there — staring at her. “You’re glowing,” he said.

  She raised an eyebrow, confused. She had no idea what he was talking about. Pregnant women glow but she definitely was not pregnant so what did he mean? “I don’t get it.”

  He stepped into the room. “Look at your hands.”

  She did. “Holy cow.” Her palms glowed with a shimmering purple light. “What is that?” Turning her hands over, she examined the backs and then the rest of her.

  “That is your divine power. That is what you’ll use to slay the demons.”

  “This,” she held her hands up in the air, “is my Devada power?”

  A smile and nod of the head was his answer to her.

  “Holy freaking cow, it’s finally happening.” Turning several pages in the journal, she found the one she was looking for.

  Teresa wrote about a purple glow. This was the heavenly power entrusted to a Devada. This power was stronger, more potent, than what any other heavenly being contained. The only power stronger than a Devada’s was that of God’s.

  With this she would be able to kill a demon simply by speaking death to him. That sounds easy, Teresa had written in the journal, but this is a skill that takes a lot of practice to master.

  Hannah’s smile fell. She would need more practice to master her powers? If she could kill demons with her words then why did she need to master this? One would think that the words “die sucker” would be enough.

  “Why the long face?” Josh was now sitting beside her, Indian style.

  “More practicing, every flipping thing needs to be mastered. The physical training I don’t mind so much because I love to workout but all this mental work is driving me batty.” She lay back on the floor, arm draped over her eyes in a dramatic fashion.

  Josh chuckled. She was cute when she was tired and flustered. He lay back on the floor next to her, offering her his arm to her as a pillow.

  Raum sat on the edge of his bed. Need You Now was playing on his radio. Man he loved that song. And right now it seemed so fitting considering the feelings he held for Hannah. The first day he saw her he was instantly drawn to her. The girl was gorgeous and he saw the way other boys in school stared at her. In the short time that he’s known her she has taken claim of his heart.

  He knew that starting a romantic relationship with her would be disastrous because it would take their focus off of their purpose here — destroying demons. That’s why he jumped at the chance of coming home with Teresa. He figured that being back in Michigan would help him to relax and take his mind off of her but it didn’t help. His heart was so heavy. He wanted nothing more than to be in Oklahoma with Hannah.

  He picked up his cell phone and scrolled through his numbers until hers popped up. His finger hovered over her name. He wanted to hear her voice but what would he say? “Hey Hannah, I miss you.” That sounded so lame, even to his own ears.

  They came so close to kissing after their combat training but she pulled away at the last second. Was it Josh, did the two of them develop a relationship? It was certainly possible. The way Josh comforted Hannah after her nightmare. Those two have bonded in some way that made him jealous deep in his core.

  Pressing the home button, he opened his photos. There was one that he looked at often. It was taken before he developed these strong feelings for her, on his first day at Morris High School. She had been standing outside the gym building talking to a couple of her friends. She had no clue that he was lurking around watching her. He had raised his cell phone and snapped the camera button just as she let out a laugh that lit up her whole face.

  He looked at the picture now, tracing the outline of her jaw with his finger. She was so beautiful, so innocent, in this photo. His body ached to hold her, to breathe in her scent. The words of the song were a comparison to his emotions and he wondered if he ever crossed her mind.

  He sighed heavily and threw himself back on the mattress. Why did it have to hurt this bad? What was it about her that drew him like a moth to flames?

  Hannah didn’t sleep much at all. Her mind was focused on Raum and what he was doing in Michigan all alone with Teresa. It wasn’t any of her business, she knew that, but still she couldn’t help but imagine what they were doing.

  If she didn’t stop pacing she’d wear the shine off the hardwood floor. Picking up her cell phone, she found the one picture she had of Raum. He had no idea she had taken it or he probably would have snatched her phone out of her hand and deleted it.

  She had been washing dishes after last night’s dinner and had just happened to look out the window. Raum was bent over washing his Harley. She swore that man was just as protective of his Harley as Chris had been of his Silverado.

  She quickly dried her hands and grabbed her cell off the counter. As she snapped the shot he stood up and looked in the direction of the back door, giving her the perfect view of his face. Her camera caught the setting sun in the background. Around Raum’s frame was a halo of sunlight.

  She held the phone close to her chest. Thinking back to the moment when they nearly kissed, she wanted to kick herself for stopping that kiss. She had wanted nothing more than to place her lips on his and kiss him.

  Scrolling through her numbers, she dialed Raum.

  He didn’t answer his phone with a hello. No his first words were, “Is everything alright?” He must have had the phone in his hand because it didn’t even ring on her end.

  “Everything’s good. I’m j
ust checking to make sure you made it to Flint safely.” Really she just wanted to hear his handsome voice, but she wasn’t going to tell him that.

  “Just walked through the door a few minutes ago.” Raum closed his eyes and imagined her there with him. Reaching out he caressed the cheek of his imaginary Hannah and rubbed his nose against hers.

  “Good,” she said so softly it almost came out in a whisper. She leaned her forehead against the window pane. “You should probably get some sleep.”

  “Yeah. You should get your running clothes on. I want you to practice what I taught you.”

  “Yes sir.” Closing her eyes, she imagined him standing there with her. She could almost feel his nose pressed against hers. “Bye.”

  “Bye Hannah.” He hadn’t hung up yet, she could still hear him breathing.

  A smile spread on her face. Maybe he missed her as much as she missed him. “I can hear you breathing in my ear.”

  A chuckle escaped his lips. “That leaves so many images in my brain.” He made a noise that Hannah swore sounded like he blew her a kiss. “Good night, Hannah. Well for you, good morning.”

  This time he did hang up and she pressed the phone to her lips, kissing his photo.

  Soma was the best way to start off any workout. Hannah finished her last mile, not winded and definitely not sore. Walking closer to the silo, she heard metal against metal. What in the world was going on inside there? “Hello?” she called out before opening the door.

  Josh stood in front of a large table testing the sharpness of the sword he held. “Hey, how was the run?” He sheathed the weapon, setting it beside the others.

  “Refreshing as usual.” Retrieving a water bottle from the mini fridge, she unscrewed the cap and downed the cool liquid. “Are you ready to spar?”

  He smiled. “I was just finishing up.” Picking up a Bo, he tossed it to her. “Let’s add in a weapon today.”

  Examining the object, she wondered what kind of weapon this could be. “Okay.” The stick was just about as long as she was tall. “Are we going to limbo our enemy to death?”

  A burst of laughter escaped him. “You crack me up.” He picked up another Bo. “No we will not be playing limbo.”

  “Are we parting the Red Sea?”

  Another outburst of laughter. “Nope, we’re not Moses either.” He gained his composure and exited the building. Hannah followed, still confused about the staff thing she held in her hand.

  Josh griped his Bo, right hand facing his person and left palm outward. Hannah could only stare in amazement when it rotated in his hands with ease. “You don’t expect me to maneuver mine like that do you?”

  “That’s exactly what I expect.”

  Her jaw fell open. Looking down at the Bo she held, she twirled it. A searing pain radiated from the back of her head where it smacked her skull.

  “First,” Josh said, “hold yours like I’m holding mine.” Again he showed her where his hands were. “Okay, now you’re going to rotate it with your left hand.”

  Following his lead she rotated her Bo, slowly at first. The more she rotated it the better she got. Soon she looked like a pro, well close to one anyway.

  “Good,” Josh said. “Now let’s see how well you do when I attack you with mine.” He swung his Bo at her and instinctively she raised hers to block the blow. “Not bad.”

  He combined every technique that she had learned thus far. She may not be capable of destroying demons just yet but she was well on her way. They practiced all morning, only stopping to rehydrate. Hannah was still unsure of herself but Josh was quick to praise her. Regardless of what she thought, she was learning at an exceptional rate.

  “It’s time for lunch. Why don’t you shower and I’ll take you out to eat.” He sipped from his water bottle then wiped his sweaty face on this shirt.

  “Sounds good.” She waited on him to lock the silo door and the two of them raced back to the house.

  Josh was waiting for her in the living room when she finished her shower. He took her out to eat sushi. Never in her life would she have thought she’d raw fish. She stared at her plate fearing the unknown.

  “It won’t bite.” He motioned to the piece of meat he held in his hand. “See.” He stuffed in his mouth.

  She poked at hers with her finger and wrinkled her nose. “I don’t think I can,” she admitted.

  “Just take one bite. If you honestly don’t like it then I’ll take you out for a burger.” He picked up a roll and held it to her lips. “Just a taste.”

  She took a deep breath and held it. On the count of three she took a small nibble of the roll he held out to her. It wasn’t as bad as she had first feared and she took another bite. Sushi was actually quite tasty.

  Lunch was eaten mostly in silence. It appeared that they had worked up a bit of an appetite. The waiter cleared their table and thanked them for dining with them. Josh placed his tip on the table and the two of them left.

  Hannah really wanted to go out and do something fun. Since the death of her parents she had been cooped up in the house. Her only activity was learning how to fight. Today she wanted to live a little.

  She sat in the passenger’s seat and turned toward Josh. “I want to skip our afternoon lessons and do something fun.”

  “Hannah, you know that our time is short. These demons want you, bad.” He gave her a sideways glance.

  “Yes they do but I’m still just a teenage girl. I need to have some sort of fun or I may as well not even be alive.”

  He pursed his lips but said nothing. It took a whole lot of convincing but he finally caved in and told her they could go do anything she wanted.

  The first place she wanted to go to was the local bookstore. Morris only had one and it was a new and used bookstore. Most of what they had was for little children but one book on the far top shelf drew her attention.

  She plucked the book from the shelf, thumbing through the pages. Tears sprang up in her eyes. Her mother had bought her this book last year for her birthday. The author had come to town for a book signing and Sally figured an autographed copy would be perfect for Hannah’s special day.

  “The Rain Song?” Josh tilted her hands so that he could read the back cover.

  When he released her hands she hugged the book to her chest. “Last year for my birthday this author came to town for a book signing. Mom brought me here.” She pointed to the far corner. “The author table was set up over there.” Wiping the tears away she continued, “This was my birthday present, a signed copy of The Rain Song.”

  “Man, I’m so sorry Hannah.” He held his hand out for the book. When she handed it to him, he carried it to the register and paid for it.

  “Can we go home? I changed my mind about browsing the clothing stores. Right now I just want to go home and read this book, to remember my mom. Does that make any sense or am I just being a big dope?”

  “That makes perfect sense, Hannah.” Josh opened the passenger door. “I can understand your pain, I’ve been there.”

  They drove home in complete silence. Finding that book brought back so many memories, good and bad. Mostly good but the pain of losing her parents was still very raw and was brought back to the surface with that book.

  “I’m going out to the silo.” Josh walked her to the front door and held it open for her. “Come on out when you’re ready and we’ll get out some other weapons.”

  Red rimmed eyes peered at him over the top of the book. “An hour, just give me one hour.”

  He nodded. He didn’t know if he should stay and comfort her or leave her alone. “Do you want me to stay until you’re ready?”

  She shook her head, not looking him in the eye. In truth, the company and comfort that she craved was Raum’s. “I’d rather be alone if that’s okay?”

  “Sure thing.” He backed out of the house. “I’ll be out back when you’re ready. Call me if you need anything.”

  She smiled. “I will. Thank you.”

  Hannah looked at the tic
king clock on her bedroom wall. Her hour that she promised Josh had passed fifteen minutes ago. Walking over to the only shelf on her wall, she carefully placed the book there.

  Outside the sky darkened almost instantly. Why would it darken this early in the day? Glancing out of the window she spotted Josh running toward the house. “Well that can’t be good.”

  Racing through the house, she met him at the back door. “What is that?” She pointed out the door toward the eerily black sky.

  “That,” he said while randomly tapping on the tiled kitchen floor, “is one of the kings.” The floor shifted where Josh had been tapping. Maybe he wasn’t randomly tapping after all. A hole just large enough for a body to pass through opened up. “Micaloz.” Light shone from the opening.

  “You don’t expect me to go down there do you?”

  Without a single word Josh shoved Hannah down the steps. More tapping and the floor above them closed. A terrible twisting formed in the pit of her stomach. She hated tight spaces and she especially hated them when there were no windows.

  Descending the steps she found that it opened up into a massive shelter. This shelter was set up identical to the silo. Weapons hung on every inch of the walls. “What is this place?” She was becoming more and more afraid as the seconds passed.

  “This is the basement. It’s also a weapon storehouse just like the silo.” He opened a drawer and pulled out several holsters. “Here, this one straps to your thigh.” He indicated to his own thigh where he had two.

  Hannah fumbled with the straps until he finally helped. He fastened a holster to each of her thighs and both of her arms. She had no idea what to do with them it’s not like she knew what to put in them anyway.

  Josh handed her a knife. “Um,” she held it by the handle, unsure what he wanted her to do with it.

  “It goes here.” Again he pointed to his own thigh.

  After holstering several knives to her, Hannah finally asked what had been worrying her since he walked through the back door. “What exactly is a king? I know Raum said that Satan’s four followers were his kings but I’m not sure I know what that means.”