by Lynn Landes
Simeon hears the call of a bird overhead and looks up to see Nameed carrying the dead soldier. Leaping into the air, he follows his brother.
Twenty_Three
Raphaim smiles when they leave him. Did they really think one simple watcher could get rid of him that easily? Now thinking of the Indian, his fangs lengthen and he realizes he is starved. “I need blood and this Hunter is the perfect candidate to give it to me.” His eyes go black as he steps out into the air. He closes his eyes and inhales to draw in the familiar scent of his prey. Raphaim flies fast, closing in on his search.
As he slips into the house, he sees Elina resting on the couch. It looks like no one else is home. With a demonic grin, he walks closer to the Keeper only to be distracted by his favorite scent. It can’t be! Looking around, he inhales deep.
He rushes down the hallway, into a bedroom and sees her, his Rena, sleeping. He starts to move towards the bed but a movement in the corner catches his eye. Hunter is holding a baby, and rocking it. Shocked and enraged at the sight of the man holding his child, he drops his shadow form as he enters the room.
“Raphaim?” her voice calls out. Hunter jumps up holding the small baby, and sends a shield around them. Looking from Rena to the baby; Raphaim growls deep in his chest when Hunter moves toward her.
“Raphaim, you will not harm him. He delivered your daughter and saved me. Please,” she says, “come meet her.” Shock shows on his face and he manages to tame his beast.
“Varena, you are well?” Hunter moves slow never taking his eyes off the demon and hands her the baby.
“Hunter, he will not harm us. Let him in. I will be okay. Go,” she urges him.
He drops the shield and does as she asks. “I will wait outside the door if you need me at all….” he says stepping out.
“She will have all she needs here, Hunter” Raphaim sneers at him, longing for a taste.
Hunter runs and wakes Elina. “The demon is free; he is here with Rena and the baby.”
Elina rushes down the hall, gathering her power and tries not to think how he managed to escape three archangels.
Before she can make it to the room, Malach ports in with the wounded. She decides to help Hunter with a wounded Elsbeth.
“Elsbeth was attacked by a demon, her shoulder is wounded. She has lost too much blood. The other arm might be broken. I can heal her, but we need to clean the wound,” Malach tells them. Elina runs to grab a bowl of warm water and rags. Malach places her on the dining room table, knowing it will be messy.
“Where is Simeon?” Elsbeth demands grabbing Malach’s hand.
“He will be here soon, Elsbeth. It is best if you let me heal you before he returns.”
She thinks of the last time he healed her and agrees. “Okay, do it.” Turning her head Elsbeth looks at Jake and tears from her eyes slide back into her blonde hair. She watches as Hunter checks Jake. He finds him exhausted but okay.
Elina rips away the shoulder of Elsbeth’s shirt and sees the puncture wounds, finding deep lacerations as well.
“Give her something for the pain,” Jake demands.
“NO! I want to see him, Jake. I need to know he is okay.” Elsbeth tells him. She arches off the table when Elina sponges off the blood.
“I’m sorry, Beth. It will be over soon,” Elina tells her and steps back to take her friend’s hand in hers. Malach moves forward and lifts his hands to heal her.
He calls upon his heavenly father as he rains down angel dust on Elsbeth. She relaxes as the healing begins. Hunter moves closer and watches in awe. They all smile when Elsbeth says, “I sure don’t feel like a Child of the Light right now.”
Raphaim sits on the side of the bed and touches Varena’s face. “You are safe now? It is finished.” Shaking, trying not to show her fear, Rena does not know what his coming means. She lays the baby on the bed and removes the blanket. The baby draws her legs up against the cold.
“She is perfection,” he says in awe. Looking at the pink infant with solid black hair, he understands why his father tries so hard to achieve this. Tears fill Varena’s eyes as she watches him touch his daughter’s hand.
“It is a shame it’s a female child, though,” he says. Varena reacts as though slapped,
“What” she asks softly? The baby begins to cry, and she bundles her back up and holds her tight against her heart.
“The males usually live longer than the females. She seems rather small. That must be the human attributes. I am happy you are both well,” he says standing and turning away from her, hating himself for hurting her, but he is Shadow.
Raphaim tells her, “Varena, I made a promise to myself to free you and you are free. It is all I have to offer you. I can be nothing more.”
Holding her child, she nods in understanding; afraid to hope. “I am glad she is your child Raphaim. There is a part of your soul that is beautiful and she is from that part of you. I will cherish and protect her with everything I am. Do you want to hold her?”
“What is the point?” With a shake of his head, he tells her “I will stay while you rest. Sleep, Rena and dream peaceful dreams.”
He sits on the side of the bed and watches the baby snuggle on her chest. He strokes the chubby cheek and watches her little mouth moves as though sucking in her sleep. So fragile, he thinks as he looks at her.
When he rises up from the bed, his foot kicks something. Reaching down he picks up the small scroll and begins to smile. Varena’s eyes go large and she sits up slowly and holds out her hand.
“Raphaim?” she pleads with him.
He looks back at Varena and the baby, tempted for a moment to take them both and run, until Hunter steps into the room. Raphaim’s smile grows larger as their eyes meet. Hunter’s eyes narrow when he sees what the demon is holding, and he lunges at him only to find empty air!
“It can’t be? Varena you, had the scroll the whole time?” Hunter turns to find Varena staring at him in horror.
“Nooo!” she moans leaning over the baby. Elina rushes into the room and finds Hunter trying to comfort Rena. He tells her about Raphaim, and Elina sits hard on the edge of the bed, trying to think what this means.
“I didn’t know what it was, and when I did finally piece it together, I went into labor! Please believe me, Elina; I did not know what it was!”
“You could not have known, Varena,” she tells her friend. “I have to tell the others now” she hurries out of the room.
“Betrayer!” Varena screams in her mind.
“I am Shadow” comes his dark reply.
“NOOOO,” she wails knowing they doubt her now. Varena looks at her tiny newborn daughter, and is afraid. Afraid of what the future will hold for her and her daughter.
Hunter moves closer, “Varena, everything will be okay. Your daughter needs you to be strong right now. This is not your fault. You are not blame here. Nothing that happens is out of the Maker’s hands. He is the great orchestrator and we must trust in that. Look at me!”
Raising her tear stained face, she nods her head, “You are right,” she says calming down. She lifts the baby to her breast to nurses her, knowing it will calm them both.
Elina returns to find Elsbeth has gone to shower and clean off the dried blood before Simeon returns. Malach is talking to Jake about what occurred with his friend.
“You think it was a trap?” the archangel asks Jake.
“Yes. He knew we were coming. They used Lucas to lure me there. Elsbeth was a bonus.”
Malach looks at Elina. “Things are escalating,” he says to her.
“I have more bad news; Raphaim has a part of the book now.” Elina relates what happened and they all know this is bad.
Malach’s head snaps up and he says, “Simeon comes.” He meets his brother outside on the lawn and Nameed lands just behind him holding a wrapped body. Jake rushes outside and Elina watches as he drops to the ground beside his friend and weeps.
“I’m sorry I failed you, brother,” Jake says as his tears
fall. After a moment, he looks up at Nameed, “Thank you for not leaving him.” One by one, the angels drop to bended knees and say a prayer over the body.
Nameed looks at Malach, shifting to owl form he returns to the trees. In his weakness, he feels Polly close and knows he is not strong enough to face her.
The sound of an approaching vehicle has them all turning as Ronnie, Ruby, Polly and Alex return from shopping. Alex is the first out of the vehicle. His dark eyes take stock of the situation and he walks slowly forward stopping beside Jake. Hunter steps out onto the front porch followed by Elina. They are drawn by the sound of the vehicle. Hunter watches silently as his son places a hand on the wrapped body.
He hears Alex tell him, “All is not lost, Jake. His soul fights in the darkest of places. We will free him so he can go home.” Pride fills Hunter’s soul.
“You did good, Dad,” Elina says with a small smile.
Ronnie looks at his daughter as Polly and Ruby walk up carrying bags. They all look afraid “What happened?” Polly asks.
Simeon leaves to check on Elsbeth, needing to see with his own eyes that she is healed. Malach sighs for his brothers feeling the pain they carry.
“Lucas,” Jake says hoarsely wiping, his eyes with the back of his hands. “His name was Lucas. We need to bury him.” Looking at Alex beside him, Jake is touched when he sees a tear in his eye for a man he does not know. “Why do you weep, son you did not know him?”
Alex replies, “I weep for the lives he should have touched, but I know faithful men are given the crown of life. His journey is not over, Jake, until we bring him home.” Rising up he pulls Jake to his feet and at his touch, they are gone.
Everyone moves at once, Elina tries to port to follow her brother but finds the way blocked. With a horrified look, she tells, Hunter, “He’s blocking me!”
Malach tries to follow but he, too, finds the way barred. “Incredible!” he murmurs.
“Incredible? Someone better get my son back!” Hunter yells!
Polly starts laughing, and they all look at her as if she has lost her mind. “That boy is a fast learner!”
Journeying deep into hell, they follow the screams of Lucas’s soul. Jake is stunned as they travel swiftly through the volcanic depths. The smell of sulfur fills his mind, and he urges Alex to go faster. They find his soul being beaten by the angels who hold him prisoner. They laugh as they make Lucas relive his skinning, as they mock his pain. Standing beside his friend, Jake is furious, he hears Alex say “Not yet,” in his mind.
“They can’t see us, can they?” As if to prove the point Alex steps forward and stands in front of Lucas.
“Jake when I tell you cast a shield around Lucas; make sure it is solid so he does not slip through.”
With a grin, Alex leaps into the body of the angel in charge. The three angels torturing Lucas, all freeze and stare at Jake as he seems to materialize from nothing.
“Get him!” They scream pointing at Jake.
“Now!” Alex screams in Jake’s mind. Jake slams the shield around Lucas.
“Cap, how did you get here?” Lucas asks.
“I will explain it as soon as we are free,” Jake tells him.
Alex turns in the body of the leader attacking his companions and the fight begins. They can’t understand why their leader is fighting them. Like piranha smelling blood in the water, they attack each other.
Confusion gives them the moment they need. Breaking free of the angel’s body, Alex grabs Jake and Lucas. Picturing Lucas’s body in his mind, they return, slamming onto the ground in Polly’s yard. Alex is laughing.
“You are amazing!” Jake tells him.
Hunter rushes to his son followed by Elina. Malach checks out Jake for injuries and Lucas stands back watching. He is staring at his body on the ground. Everyone goes quiet when Lucas speaks.
“Thank you for not leaving me, Cap.” Lucas says softly.
“I am sorry I failed you, Lucas. Can you forgive me?” Lucas begins to glow softly filled with a peaceful light.
“There is nothing to forgive, Jake, that others may live brother that is our creed. I know you would have been with me if you could have.”
Alex knows what they need to do and asks Elina, “Will you show me what you do, sister?” With a soft smile, she steps forward only to be stopped by Malach.
“It would be my honor to escort you home, Lucas.” Stretching out his hand, Malach says, “They are waiting for you, Lucas. Are you ready?”
Lucas looks up at the large archangel and smiles, “Yes.” Malach grasps his hand in a warrior’s handshake, a beam of holy light drops down from above and the two are gone.
“That was sick!” Alex says excitedly and everyone laughs.
Jake knows his work is not complete. They now have to bury his friend.
Twenty_Four
Inside the house, Elsbeth wipes the steam off the mirror with her hand and stares at the reflection in the mirror. She has lost weight and the bags under her eyes are dark. Her long, blonde hair is damp. She towels it dry then brushes it. With a towel around her body, she turns away from the mirror and finds Simeon standing behind her. Startled, she drops the brush and hesitates only a second before throwing herself into his arms. Simeon wraps his arms around her waist he lifts her from the floor savoring the feel of her.
“I was so worried for you, Simeon!” Pushing back, she looks at his face and smiles “Are you hurt?”
He slides her back down to the floor, relieved to see she is healed. “I am fine, Elsbeth. Let me see you.” He runs his hands over her shoulders and leans close probing the pink scars.
“Does it still hurt?” Pressing his lips to her wounds, she cradles his head and leans her head back savoring the touch of his mouth. Chills erupt over her body and she sighs.
“No, Simeon, nothing hurts when you touch me.” Opening her eyes, she watches his dark hands run over her shoulder and she turns to face the mirror. His brown eyes meet hers in the mirror and she smiles. He massages her shoulders, and she says “Thank you, Simeon, for not yelling at me.”
Elsbeth slips into her robe and steps into it. Securing the belt around her waist, she faces him and drops the towel free. His eyes go dark as he realizes she wears nothing underneath.
“As much as I would like to lock you up somewhere safe, I am aware that you would not like it.”
With a smile, she opens the door to the bathroom and steps into the bedroom. “No, I would hate that, but I am really tired of being everyone’s punching bag.”
He follows her into the bedroom. She sits on a chair and looks at the beautiful angel in front of her. He notices the circles under her eyes. “How are you sleeping?”
She stares out of the window “I don’t sleep much anymore. The nightmares won’t leave me be.” Trying to blow it off, she says, “but that’s when I do my best work.”
Simeon keeps his distance from her, “Tonight you can rest, I will watch over you.”
“That is not a good idea Simeon,” she says standing up in surprise.
He moves closer as he tells her, “I was not offering. You need to sleep and I need to make sure you are safe.”
“I will not risk your soul again.” She says moving away from him, deciding to put some distance between them. Walking to the dresser, she pulls some clean clothes out and turns to find him directly behind her again. Elsbeth plants a hand on his large muscular chest and gives him a firm push. “Simeon you have to stop crowding me. I can’t think with you this close to me.”
Understanding crosses his face, “I am sorry, I did not mean to cause you further pain. I will bring food while you get dressed.”
In a flash, he is gone and she sighs. She pulls on her clothes she walks to the window, and watches the scene unfold outside. As she rubs her shoulder, she worries for all of them. Moving to the temporary worktable she has set up she looks over the pieces she has made.
“They are amazing, your best work yet.” Simeon says from the doorway.
Frowning at her he asks, “Do you think this task would have been given to you if you were not capable of doing it? Do not let doubt weaken your faith, Elsbeth. I believe in you. We will figure this out together. Come and eat, so you can rest.”
Simeon smiles and instantly a table for two appears set with candles and she looks at him with tears. “It’s beautiful, Simeon. Thank you.”
“No more talk of war” she thinks, “tonight I will take this gift and savor it.”
Simeon knows his time with her is limited and tomorrow he would return to the battle being fought in Heaven, but tonight he will take the gift of time with her, and give thanks for it.
Later when the candles have burned low, she stands and says “Simeon” holding out her hand to him. He takes her hand and pulls her close as he lifts her in his arms and walks to the bed. He wraps his golden wings around her, stroking her silken hair, Simeon stretches out with her. He will hold her until the sun breaks across the morning sky. Elsbeth presses a kiss to his sculpted chest and sighs. “Thank you” she whispers as she sleeps secure in his embrace.
Christmas Eve
As the first light of the new day breaks across the morning sky, Ronnie swings his axe over his shoulder and heads into the woods. We will not save the world today, Ronnie thinks, and it is almost Christmas day. In all the turmoil that has occurred, they have forgotten the meaning of the holiday. Death and new life will wait for no man. They have been blessed to experience both in the last few days. To honor that he plans on finding an enormous tree and creating some good memories with his family while he still can.
Ruby watches him head into the woods with a smile on her face. Sipping on her first cup of coffee, she hears the baby cry. Softly padding down the hall, she sneaks a peek and sees Varena rocking the baby in the corner chair. She knocks on the door as she pokes her head in.