by Stone, Leia
“I’m here!” Donnie was covered in demon blood, still holding his sword. The moment his eyes fell on Chloe, he swayed in place, and Luke had to reach out to steady him.
“Donnie, I am a reanimator. There is a unique process called soul infusion where I might be able to fully bring Chloe back, if she hasn’t crossed over yet. But I need consent from a family member in order to—”
“Do it,” he croaked.
My mom swallowed hard. “It might not work. She might not be the same. She might not want to have come back. She might have periods of forgetfulness and—”
“Kate, please! Just do it!” he screamed.
Taking a deep breath, she nodded. “All right, then. Please guard the door,” my mother instructed Shea. “It’s forbidden to raise the dead in Angel City, and I’m doing it in a housing facility that holds the military and their families. If one of them walks in, I’ll be arrested.”
Shit. The gravity of the situation hit me then. This new life I’d given my mom, that I’d fought so hard to bring her to, I was potentially taking it away by asking this of her. Still, I couldn’t bear to tell her to stop. I couldn’t bear to lose Chloe.
The orange and purple kaleidoscope of Necromancer magic that I was so used to seeing as a child, lit up the kitchen like a disco ball. My mother was powerful, and a small burst of pride ripped through me to see her use her ability. Her hands glowed with the magic I knew would tether my friend’s soul back to her body.
“I see her. She hasn’t left yet,” my mom said dreamily, staring at the corner of the room. She could see souls and auras, and all that weird shit that I didn’t understand—something only a Necromancer could do.
“Chloe!” Donnie sobbed.
Just then the front door opened, and Shea allowed Lincoln and Angela to walk inside. I hadn’t seen Luke’s sister in a while, but she looked bloodied from fighting as well. I scanned my husband’s body quickly, relieved to see no big injuries, but it was hard to tell whose blood was whose.
“I thought you could use some help, Kate,” Lincoln told my mom as he pushed Angela forward.
Of course! Angela was a Necromancer. She’d hardly had the training for something like this, considering they didn’t teach it at Fallen Academy, but my mom simply nodded.
“Wash your hands and anchor her feet for me please.”
Angela went right to it as if she knew what anchoring was. I sure as hell didn’t.
The rest of us paced the living room, wearing tracks in the freshly vacuumed carpet.
Lincoln made his way over to me, reaching out to grab my hand. “Are you okay?” he whispered. He must have freaked when he received my text that we were under attack.
I nodded. “Did Mrs. Greely and the patients make it out okay?”
“They hid until we could purge the campus of all the demons. They’re safe now, but they could really use healers. You and Noah, Raph and me. We need all hands on deck after tonight,” he told me.
I’d missed an entire year of healing training. I was still a baby second year when it came to that, but when you were given this power, it came with a certain responsibility.
Looking over at Chloe’s cold, mummified form, I couldn’t bear leaving her, or my mom, like this. “You and Noah go. I’ll meet you the second I know Chloe will be okay.”
Lincoln frowned. “I don’t want to go without you.”
Despite the demon blood splashed on his uniform, I pulled him in for a tight hug. Our year apart had left its mark on the both of us, neither one willing to be without the other for very long, especially in times of crisis.
“I’ll be right behind you,” I promised, then popped up on my tiptoes to kiss him.
Relenting, Lincoln gave me a curt nod. “Is it true? Angela said Chloe could actually be fully brought back, not like those zombies roaming Demon City.”
“It’s true. I never would have settled for a Chloe zombie,” I told him.
“All right. Meet us at the healing clinic the second you’re done here. The only people who know about Chloe dying were in that room, and I’ve sworn them all to secrecy, so your mom won’t get in trouble.”
I raised one eyebrow. “Even Michael?”
A slight grin pulled at his lips. “Michael’s the biggest rule breaker of them all.”
That was true. Human wife. Legion child. Michael broke all the rules.
“Thank you.” I squeezed his hand.
With one last look at me, Lincoln grabbed Noah, and they sprinted away.
Luke and Donnie gasped at the same time, and I spun on my heels to see my mother holding a sage smoke bundle about three feet from Chloe’s body. There, standing in the middle of the kitchen, was a smoky spectral outline of Chloe’s form.
Her soul.
“Chloe!” Donnie ran forward, but my mother held up a hand.
“Stay back, or you could contaminate the process,” she told him in an iron voice.
He skidded to a stop.
I’d seen my mom reanimate hundreds of bodies, maybe thousands. Never, ever, had I seen this. The soul was always long gone, the body demonically reanimated to look and feel like the family’s lost loved one in a vain attempt to give them that person back, but it wasn’t really them. Not like this.
This was incredible.
“Hey, sweetie.” My mom spoke softly to the smoky apparition of Chloe, who stood in the kitchen looking around the room and then at her body. When she saw the form on the table wrapped in white towels, her hands flew to her mouth.
“It’s okay, hon. We’re going to help you back,” my mother told her calmly.
Chloe looked at me wide-eyed, and then Donnie. Startled, she took a step back, away from her body, and then glanced over her shoulder, where a small white light began to glow.
“She’s leaving!” my mom called out and flung her right wrist, sending a whip of braided purple and orange light to wrap around Chloe’s soul’s abdomen.
The Nightblood grasped at the rope traumatically, trying to yank it off, pulling with everything she had, while looking over her shoulder at the white light that was growing brighter. Suddenly this felt wrong. I was reminded of the enlightening moment I’d had with Michael. Death was a natural part of life, and we all deserved to return to the white light, take a rest between lives.
“Chloe, please!” Donnie choked. “I need you. Mom and Dad need you.”
She stopped fighting and let her hands go limp, looking up at her brother. She took one last glance over her shoulder, and the brightness intensified. For a crazy moment, I thought I saw Bernie, like a flash of a figure walking past the light. Before I could say anything, it was gone.
“Attagirl. Come on.” My mom pulled the rope, and Chloe’s spirit form floated closer to her body with ease.
“Get those feet ready. We’re going to have to stitch her in inch by inch,” Mom told Angela, who had created her own lasso of orange and purple magic that was tied around Chloe’s ankles.
Chloe’s soul allowed herself to be pulled by my mom, but she kept looking over her shoulder longingly at the now diminishing light.
“That’s it, baby. Come back to your body,” Mom coaxed her, the muscles in her forearms flexing as she pulled on the energy rope around Chloe’s soul.
Fanning more sage smoke, my mom finally got the apparition close enough to Chloe’s body for Angela to reach out and grab her feet.
Chloe froze, looking back at the light, which was barely glowing now.
“You need to talk her into this, Donnie,” my mom warned Chloe’s brother.
Oh God.
What have I done?
“Chlo.” Donnie’s voice shook. “I can’t imagine life without you. Mom and Dad don’t even know what happened. It would kill them. You’re the reason they live. You have to come back. I need you. I can’t stand seeing you like this,” he told her in shaky tones.
Finally, she nodded, then fell onto the table and back into her body, overlaying perfectly.
Every single perso
n in the room took in a giant breath and held it.
“Quick! We’re almost out of time. At this point, she’ll be a lost soul, so it’s important we do this right.” My mom turned to Angela and instructed her in terms I didn’t understand.
Lost soul. I didn’t want that for Chloe. Whatever it was, it sounded bad.
We watched in a mixture of fascination and horror, while they wove magic around Chloe’s body like they were stitching her soul to her human form. It was like watching two people sew the stuffing inside of a pillowcase.
“Brielle, fetch my frankincense.” My mother pointed to the expensive bottle of the essential oil on the counter.
I’d been so enthralled with watching the process that her voice startled me a little . I was familiar with this part. Stepping into the kitchen, I quickly washed my hands and grabbed the oil, spinning off the cap.
“How many drops?” I asked.
She thought for a moment. “Ten should do. Seven for me, and three for Angela to anoint Chloe’s feet.”
Although the practice of Necromancy was demonic in nature, I found it ironic that they used an oil from the Bible. Frankincense was needed to awaken the body again. Coupled with my mother’s magic, Chloe would reanimate. Without the oil, it didn’t work, though I’d never questioned why.
I dropped seven drops into my mother’s palm and then three in Angela’s. The smell hit my nose instantly, and I couldn’t help but smile. The scent of sage and frankincense was my childhood. It had a sharp yet sweet smell, and it reminded me so much of Demon City.
Beginning to unwrap Chloe, I positioned parts of the towel to cover her modesty—her brother was watching, after all. Once she was free of the binds, my mother started to massage the oil on Chloe’s temples while Angela massaged the balls of Chloe’s feet. Orange and purple magic wove her into a colorful cocoon of light.
Luke walked a bit closer with Donnie, one hand intertwined with his boyfriend’s as he slipped the other in mine.
We waited as one, holding our breaths.
Shea was at the front door standing guard, but she kept sneaking anxious glances in our direction.
We waited some more.
Finally, just when I thought it wasn’t going to work, Chloe took in a huge gasping breath. My knees gave out, and I yanked Luke and Donnie down with me. We all burst into tears. I didn’t have the strength to stand—I barely had the strength to be awake right now—but none of that mattered. Chloe was alive!
Her eyelids popped open, and my mom peeked over her, smiling. “Hey, sweetie. Welcome back.”
This was the test. If she talked like a robot or paused too long, and didn’t know who my mom was, then I’d officially created a zombie.
“The light,” Chloe said in a dreamy voice. “It was so… Donnie?” She searched the room.
Donnie shot up off the floor and went to her, grasping her face. “Tell me you’re okay. Tell me you’re you,” he begged her.
She grinned. “I’m me, but I died, didn’t I? I remember everything.”
My mom’s gaze met mine, and I mouthed, “Thank you.”
“You did,” Donnie told her the truth.
She looked up at my mom. “Kate?”
Mom leaned over her. “Yes, dear?”
“Can you make me some of your yummy waffles? I’m starved.”
The collective burst of laughter that filled the room reached down into my very soul.
Chloe was going to be just fine.
Ten
“Hey. How can I help?” I asked Lincoln as he stood over a male patient in the healing clinic.
He turned back to face me, looking tired but alert. “How’s Chloe?”
I nodded. “She’s back. Like fully back.”
The look of relief that crossed his face pinched my heart. I loved that he never questioned me; he always just went along with my crazy plans.
“Catia is in room three, with a broken collarbone, and in a lot of pain. You could help her,” he instructed.
“Of course.” I nodded and left the room. Could I fix a broken collarbone? Hell no. But I could take the pain until Noah could heal her.
For some reason, Sera popped into my head in that moment. It was the perfect timing for one of her ill-placed comments. My heart ached without her, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could go on without her with me.
“Knock-knock.” I peeked into the room, pushing thoughts of Sera away.
Scarlet was at Catia’s side, who lay in bed moaning and sweaty. “Brielle, don’t worry about me. Tend to the others first. This isn’t life threatening.”
Pulling up a chair, I sat before her. “I know, that’s why they sent me in here. I have no idea what I’m doing.”
That caused the Light Mage to smile. “Great, so they’re letting you train on me?” she joked.
I nodded, firing up the buttery orange glow that always seemed to flow in endless supply, even when I was dead tired. “You’re screwed,” I confirmed, giving her a wink.
She laughed, instantly wincing.
Scarlet was smiling too. “Glad to see you’re all right.”
A heavy sigh left me. “You too, girl. Thanks for all your help.”
What would I have done without her meat cleaver? I honestly had no idea. She nodded and something passed between us. We were no longer random acquaintances; we’d gone through war together, which made us lifelong friends.
“Thanks for keeping her safe,” Catia huffed between ragged breaths.
“Ha! Is that what she told you? She saved me.” I placed my hands on Catia’s neck, and let the healing go where it needed.
The relief in her face was immediate, her cheeks slackening as the sweat stopped dripping.
“I seem to remember hiding behind your shield,” Scarlet offered.
We talked easily for the next twenty or so minutes, until Lincoln came to pull me into another room. Room after room I moved through the clinic, staunching blood, and taking pain where I could.
For the first time ever, I worked alongside Raphael. It was incredible to see the Archangel of Healing at work. The entire room lit up when he healed someone, and just being near him gave me more energy.
When I was finally done for the night, Lincoln and I made our way out of the clinic, tired as hell and dragging our feet. The moment we stepped outside, I heard Grace’s angry voice off to the side, in the atrium, as she argued with Raphael. Lincoln pulled me into the shadows so we could listen and watch without being seen.
“The time is now! After tonight, it’s become abundantly clear that we can’t wait,” Grace told the archangel.
Raphael sighed. “I’m inclined to agree with you, but—”
“But nothing. When the new school year starts in a few weeks, I’m going to bring in human recruits, and start training them. We can work alongside each other. Angel blessed and demon gifted students working with human demon hunters. It’s the way of the future.”
Raphael rubbed his temples. “You can’t just start up a school in two weeks. There are rules, parental consent, funding and teaching staff to take care of first. So many things to figure out. In a year’s time would be better.”
Grace shrugged. “Watch me.”
Raphael smiled. “You are the most passionate woman I have ever met.”
Grace’s lips stretched into a perfect grin. “’Passionate’ is a kind way of calling me stubborn.”
He nodded. “Indeed, it is.”
“So, two weeks? I’ll start tomorrow. Got room in your office for a desk for me?” she asked.
Raphael belly laughed, a genuine chuckle I had never heard from him before. “Oh, Grace. I’ll always make room for you. See you tomorrow.”
After a warm embrace, they went in separate directions, Raph back to his office and Grace to the dorms, presumably to check on Emberly. When they were gone, Lincoln pulled me out of the shadows, and we walked hand in hand.
“Humans learning to fight demons alongside us next year?” I frowned. I mean, I wa
s all for the idea, but what if they got hurt? I couldn’t imagine having a human in my battle class. It would be better in a couple year’s time, like Raphael said, when the last cohort of the first years had gone through the program. Then we could focus solely on training the humans with no powers, and not worry about them being hit by friendly fire in the process.
Lincoln shrugged. “Grace seems to know what she’s doing, and I can’t deny that we need them. Tonight, was an ambush through and through.”
His tone was clipped, eyes red-ringed and tired, but I wanted to hear more.
“What happened on your side of things?” I asked, crossing the parking lot to our trailer.
With a shake of his head, Lincoln sighed. “It worked at first. We were killing demons left and right, but they seemed to catch on quickly, and news of our raid spread throughout the war zone. There are so many more of them than there are of us, and I think they put two and two together that the school was unguarded.”
He stopped in the middle of the parking lot, and looked down at me with searing blue eyes. “I’m so sorry I left you here all alone. That will never happen again. From now on, you go where I go.”
Oh no. Stage-five-clinger Lincoln was back. I feared I’d never use the bathroom alone again.
Reaching up, I ran my fingers through his dark hair. “Linc, he’s going to come for me. I made a pact with the Devil. Do you think he’ll just let that go?” I needed to be real here. The time would come when I wouldn’t be able to escape Lucifer again. Tonight was a test, but the real day was coming.
Lincoln looked determined, jaw clenched and menacing scowl in place. “Let him come. I’m ready for him.”
“Lincoln…”
He was all puffed up and looked ready to kill someone. I didn’t have the heart to tell him he couldn’t fight for me, that it would be pointless. Instead, I rested my forehead against his chest, and sighed.
His hands made their way to my face, cupping my cheeks and tilting my face toward his. “Brielle, I took a vow as your husband to protect you, and I meant it.”
“I know,” I murmured.
That’s what I was afraid of more than anything. If Lucifer killed Lincoln… No. I couldn’t even conceive of it. That would be my worst nightmare come to life.