by Kyoko M
Michael faced me. “Are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
I scowled. “That’s not how that line goes, Brain.”
He rolled his eyes, ignoring my perfectly appropriate Pinky and the Brain reference. Uncultured swine. “You want to steal the hellfire from Moloch and use it to destroy the coins. Am I wrong?”
“Not really.”
Faust adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. “Easier said than done, huh?”
“It’s a thought,” I said, trying to soothe him. “We need to play offense. Defense gets you ganked in this business. I say we take the fight to him.”
“How the hell do we even find him?” Myra asked.
I pointed to Ace. “Exhibit A.”
I then pointed to Belial. “If needed, Exhibit B. B is for Bastard, of course.”
Belial rolled his unnatural eyes. Michael frowned. “We’re not taking him anywhere. You know what he’ll do.”
“Yep. He’ll turn on us the second he gets the chance. Which is exactly why he stays here and we take Ace out to find Moloch. If we can’t find him that way, we’ll use Belial as back up. After all, his ass—”
“—my perfectly sculpted ass—” Belial corrected. This time, I rolled my eyes.
“—is on the line too. If we put Moloch in the ground, his boss’ll see that it was the wrong choice to give him the mission. Things will go back to the way they were—Belial and Mulciber up top, Moloch down below. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than all of us dropping like flies and the angels getting murdered left and right. The devil you know, and all that jazz.”
“Nice idea, but Ace hasn’t been able to find archdemons before,” Myra said, affectionately playing with the hound’s ear when he whined in protest to the comment. “He could only get us in the general area of a common demon.”
“True, but I’m betting Belial has something of Moloch’s, or could get it for us.”
I batted my eyelashes at him. “Isn’t that right, darling?”
He glowered. “I do not appreciate your tone in present company.”
“Too bad. Can you or can’t you, Bels?”
He stared me down for a long moment. “I was the one who got Moloch the police outfit when he abducted you. It is still in the car I took to the airport.”
“Good. Then we’ll work from there.”
I nodded to Michael. “You’re the strategist. What do you think?”
He paused. “It’s not the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“Gee, thanks, honey.”
Michael smirked. “You’re welcome. But we should split into teams. Half of us go with Ace, the other half stay here and guard the asshole.”
Belial smiled. “Why, Michael, I didn’t know you cared.”
The archangel stepped forward. I held out my arm, stopping him from unleashing all kinds of violence over the demon’s face. “Down, boy.”
I nodded to Faust. “Alright. Me, Myra, and Michael will head for Moloch. You guys hold down the fort. If anything stinks, relocate. Avriel will help you keep watch and he can call in backup if things get ugly. Sound like a plan?”
Faust held up his hand. “Just a moment. I had a thought.”
He regarded Belial with a stony expression. “When I was a child, I read some kind of literature on the true properties of the Judas coins, but I was unable to ever find it again. Did the demons have anything to do with that?”
Belial never batted an eyelash. “Of course not.”
Faust gestured towards Michael. “Hand me that knife.”
Belial smirked. “Well, well. The good doctor has a temper after all. No need for violence, my friend. The demons had that text destroyed years ago on my master’s orders. He didn’t want the angels to become suspicious that there were whispers of our plan ahead of schedule. We had been looking for the coins for quite some time before you came along. I assure you, Moloch will not give them up easily.”
“Then let’s get to it,” Myra grinned, cracking her knuckles. Avriel and Faust both nodded in unison, though I could tell they were worried. I didn’t blame them. My plan was ten different kinds of reckless, but then again, so was I.
I started for the door, but then Belial called to me. “And what of my payment, pet?”
I glared over my shoulder. “How about the whole ‘not getting eviscerated by Moloch’ bit? We’re protecting you.”
“Oh, yes,” he drawled. “Quite the protection detail. A man with a doctorate in archaeology and a demoted angel. I feel safer already.”
“You’ll live. Probably.”
“I made a deal with you, remember? I am bound by demonic law to hold up my end, and I have. I provided you with the means to track down Moloch and the details of his sinister plan. You must hold up yours.”
My hands formed fists. “What do you want?”
A slow smile curled across his lips. “A kiss.”
I froze. “Are you shitting me?”
“Afraid not.”
I laughed—a hideous, furious sound. “Well, guess what? I’m not a demon. Nothing’s going to happen to me if I tell you to shove it and twist it.”
Again, I started for the door, but he kept going. “Oh, very well. Then I guess you don’t mind me putting another mark on your soul.”
I stopped dead. My heart slammed against the inside of my ribs. He was bluffing. Wasn’t he?
I tilted my face towards Michael, who had flushed red with anger. “He’s not serious, is he?”
“Tell me you didn’t,” he murmured. “Tell me you didn’t make a deal with him.”
“What deal? I told him if he helped us, we’d let him live and kill Moloch.”
Michael gripped my upper arm, just this side of hurting me. “But did he say the word ‘deal’?”
I thought about it. “Yeah, I guess so.”
He squeezed his eyes shut. “Jordan, if you don’t do what he says, then he can actually put another mark on your soul. It’s a binding verbal contract. He probably slipped it into the conversation to trick you.”
“What the hell is the second mark?”
“Direct telepathy and the ability to control your actions.”
I shoved past him, heading for the smirking bastard in the chair. “You want a kiss? How ‘bout a kiss with my fist, you shit-gargling mouth-breather—”
Myra caught me mid-swing. I missed the demon’s nose by an inch. “Stop it. We talked about this. Just get it over with so we can go save our asses.”
I jerked free of her grip. “Easy for you to say.”
“No, it’s not,” she snapped, and I realized what I’d said. “He threatened my kid. If we didn’t need him, I’d cover him in bacon grease and watch Ace tear him limb from limb. But we do need him. So shut up, put on some lip gloss, kiss the fucker, and let’s go.”
I clenched my jaw. She was right. I hated that. “Get out. All of you.”
“Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast,” Belial said as they headed for the door. “If you had not been so cheeky, I’d allow this to be a private matter, but since you decided to be petty, so shall I. Your friends will stay right where they are.”
Rage unfurled scorching and wild in my belly. It stretched through my limbs. My energy poured from every inch of my skin and everything in me wanted to pick up the blade Michael had been favoring and chop his damn head off. How dare he. Hadn’t he taken enough from me already? My life, my marriage, my dignity, my home. He was dangling me from his fingers like a marionette, just daring me to cut myself loose. Would I ever be free of him? What would I have to give to make him stop? My soul?
My Reeboks made muted echoes bounce through the room as I walked towards him, each step slow and painful. I felt everyone’s eyes on my back. Even Michael’s. As much as I didn’t want him to, I knew he’d watch me kiss the bastard. Dammit.
“Don’t be shy,” the demon whispered in his silkiest voice when I was close. “I won’t bite.”
“Liar,” I whispered back. “You poisoned me years ago.
I just didn’t know it.”
“Fret not, my pet. I’ll suck the venom out.”
I kissed him. Our lips burned and melted where they touched. I knew deep down that he wouldn’t allow for an innocent peck. He wanted to humiliate me. He wanted to infuriate the man I’d once promised to spend the rest of my life with. Mission accomplished.
Finally, I drew back. He licked his lips, smirking. “You’re learning. Good luck, Seer. You’ll need it where you’re going.”
I closed my eyes and walked past my friends and my fuming estranged husband.
“Let’s go.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
JORDAN
To my utter shock, someone was waiting for us by the car when we stepped outside.
“Gabriel!” I exclaimed, throwing myself in his arms. He laughed and hugged me tight, lifting me the usual five inches off the ground.
“What are you doing here?” I asked when he put me down.
“I figured you could use some backup,” he said. “Moloch’s lair will be guarded like a fortress.”
I squeezed his hand. “Thank you. Seriously. I always feel better knowing you’ve got my back.”
“Always.” He offered his hand to Myra. “Good to see you again, my dear.”
Surprisingly, she wasn’t smiling. She shook his hand with an uncharacteristically stoic expression.
I nudged her. “What gives?”
“I somehow managed to forget how ridiculously attractive he is, and the fact that I can’t do anything about it.”
Gabriel’s cheeks brightened to pink. I rolled my eyes. “Glad to know your priorities are still in order.”
“Damn right they are,” she mused, her near-hazel eyes tracking across the tall archangel. “After this is over, we’re gonna have words about you trotting around all these men I can’t have any fun with.”
She unlocked the car with the key fob, clucking her tongue so Ace would follow her. Gabriel’s golden eyebrows rose as he stared after her. “Is she always like that?”
“Yep,” Michael and I answered simultaneously.
He shook his head. “You meet the most interesting people in this job. Anyhow, I’ve brought my own transportation. Care for a ride or would you rather go with your roommate?”
I glanced at said ride. It was a silver 1992 Jaguar XJ220.
“Gee, a Honda Civic or a car that sold for over half a million dollars,” I said, holding my hands up like a weight scale. “Such a hard decision.”
Michael shook his head. “See you when we get there.”
He climbed into the passenger’s seat of the Honda and I followed Gabriel to his incredibly sweet car. I ran my fingertips across the polished hood. He’d just had it waxed too. Oh, yes. This was just what I needed to keep my mind off our suicide mission.
We drove back to Edward J. Knapp airport and scooped up the uniform Belial had lent Moloch. Ace sniffed it thoroughly and gave a short bark, confirming that he had the scent. He hung out the back window of Myra’s rental, his tongue lolling in the cool wind, and his supernatural senses tracking the archdemon.
Gabriel and I were on the road for a full six minutes before my former brother-in-law asked the inevitable question.
“So are you and Michael…?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
He shifted in his seat. “I assumed that mark on your neck meant you did know.”
The dark landscape we whizzed past suddenly became much more interesting. “Well, no one ever said we had good self-control. Do you mind if we don’t talk about this?”
“Why not? You know you can be honest with me.”
“Yeah, but I’d rather not discuss my relationship after having just kissed my arch nemesis in front of my husband.”
Gabriel’s eyes strayed from the road. “Pardon?”
I crossed my arms, grimacing. “I accidentally made a deal with Belial.”
“Jordan.”
“I know, I know! I screwed up royally. We’re lucky I got off with just a kiss. It could have been a lot worse. And that’s why I don’t want to talk about it. Next subject. For instance, did you know Belladonna sold me out?”
“What?”
“Belial told me she gave us up in exchange for a quickie. And after giving me a speech about angels being the most loyal creatures in existence. I can literally taste the irony.”
Gabriel’s large hands tightened on the wheel. The leather squeaked. I almost stopped him. Don’t take it out on the car, man. “Unbelievable. Two angels have fallen within a year of each other. This is deeply disconcerting.”
“Tell me about it,” I muttered. “We have our hands full with the demons. We don’t need to be worried about double agents.”
He scrubbed a hand through his feathery hair. “This is why I chose to accompany you. Something sinister is on the horizon, Jordan. Not just Moloch and the coins. I can feel it in my bones.”
“Another rebellion?”
“I am unsure. I just know that there has been a lot of unrest among the troops after the Leviathan incident and when Michael went missing. That is why Raphael has been absent for so long. He’s been keeping the peace. I spoke with him not long ago and he said the angels finally managed to force Michael to be retired from his position as Commander.”
I froze. “You’re joking.”
He winced. “Unfortunately, no. They say his judgment has been clouded.”
I swallowed. “It’s my fault, isn’t it?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to.” I closed my eyes, steadying my breath as panic wriggled through my guts like a tapeworm. “Is it permanent?”
“It…is possible,” Gabriel said. “It would ultimately be decided by the Father and Son, but if enough angels join the movement, it may come to pass.”
I buried one hand in my hair. An entire lifetime of service and this was the thanks he got. Distrust, mutiny, shame, and dismissal. He didn’t deserve that. “Is there anything I can do?”
“Jordan—”
“Gabe, just tell me the truth.”
He sighed. “If you were to decide to divorce him, his reputation might be salvageable. The angels believe that you are steering him off the righteous path. If you two were no longer together, that might quiet some of the rumors.”
Something inside my chest shriveled up. Give him up and he’d keep his title, keep what made him one of the most feared and respected angels in history. Keep him and it might all go to shit. Great. I loved ultimatums.
“Jordan, you don’t have to do this. Michael loves you. You love him. It is as simple as that.”
I shook my head. “No, it isn’t. It never was. We bent the rules being together in the first place. Ever since I said ‘I do,’ it’s like the universe has been actively trying to rip us apart. Michael was fine for millions of years before I came along. He’ll get over me.”
“And what about you?” Gabriel asked, his voice torrid with disbelief. “Are you going to tell me you are willing to live the rest of your life without the other half of your soul?”
My answer came out a whisper. “Maybe.”
“I do not understand you.”
I smiled, though it was bitter. “Join the club.”
An ugly silence swallowed the car for several miles. It hurt. Gabriel had been upset with me before, but I’d never been around to deal with the consequences. He was never distant. He was like the sun. I naturally gravitated towards him when we were together. Now that star had dimmed and everything felt cold.
“We talked about this once before, you know,” he said after a while.
I glanced at him. “When?”
“About six months after I met you, you told me you broke up with your boyfriend to protect him. I scolded you because you made the decision for him instead of trusting him with it. I said it would haunt you for the rest of your life if you didn’t learn to have faith in yourself and in others. You did for a while, and I was proud of you. I have been proud o
f the woman you’ve become since then.”
He met my eyes for a moment. “The woman sitting in this car is not the Jordan I know. You fought for Michael. You died for Michael. How can you look me in the eyes and tell me that you’d let him go to protect his title?”
“Because doing what’s right doesn’t always mean I get to be happy. You and I both know Michael is a brilliant leader. He’s saved the world a hundred times, and he’ll keep on doing it for the rest of eternity. How can I deprive him of that? It’s who he is. It’s who he’s always been. I won’t be that selfish, even if it means your disapproval.”
“Again, you misunderstand. This is not about my approval. How many more things can you sacrifice, Jordan? Your job, your home, your best friend, your family, your husband? You are running out of things to live for. Keep it up and one day the barrel of a gun will start to look rather friendly.”
His words burrowed into my skin and stung like a dozen mosquito bites. Was he right? My life had been a conga line of traumatic events, and each of them tore a chunk out of me. How much of my heart was left? If we stopped Moloch, what did I have to live for? A cold bed, a phone that never rang, and an empty grave awaiting my corpse?
“I’m not going to kill myself, Gabriel. I made that decision the night after you appeared to me for the first time.”
“I’ve seen harder people than you give in to their demons. Do you truly believe that you can survive on the cause alone?”
“I guess I’ll have to find out, won’t I?”
He didn’t reply. I told myself not to care. It didn’t work. Big surprise there.
Ace’s nose led us to a foreclosed business district outside of downtown Chicago. It used to be a hybrid dealership-slash-car-repair shop with three floors above it for the office employees. The windows were all boarded up or blacked out. Zero cars out front, but that was no surprise. Moloch wouldn’t want to tip anyone off. Too much trouble to eliminate them while he was melting down the coins.
We gathered on the roof of an old coffee shop across the street for recon. Myra and Michael took point with their high-powered binoculars, scouring the structure for the best tactical infiltration.