Wyatt pulled his sister in for a hug and kissed the top of her head as she cried, tears welling in his eyes, as well. She sobbed into his chest, allowing herself, finally, to feel the loss wholly. She’d been avoiding it, keeping herself distracted. She had to be strong for the others, to make sure they stayed focused, but Wyatt was different. She knew he would do as she asked simply because it was the right thing to do. He didn’t need to be scolded or threatened or harped at. She could relax when it was just the two of them and at that moment, she could not have been more grateful to have found him.
“All right,” she said, pulling herself together. “What is there to eat around here?”
“There’s still a lasagna in the freezer,” he shrugged.
“Well, heat that bitch up. I’m starving.”
They sat quietly, eating straight from the pan, the plates already packed and on the truck. “It’s nice out here,” she observed. “Peaceful.”
“Yeah,” Wyatt agreed. “And boring, and lonely.”
“Still, it’s good to have a place far away from people. The only thoughts I can hear are yours. No neighbors stressed out about the news or health issues. No one worried about relatives overseas or wondering if their high school crush likes them back. It’s soothing.”
“I suppose.”
“Let me buy it.”
“The house?”
“Yeah. You’re selling it, anyway. I could use a place to get away from everything, especially once this whole golem thing is over.”
“The what?”
“The other reason I came by,” she said, putting her fork down and taking a sip of soda. “Long story short, Lilith’s army is still going after the Gate. We have a few days to get our shit together and haul ass to old Babylon to protect it. It was already a nightmare, then Lucifer decided to go rogue and kill off most of the soldiers, so Lilith’s general, a guy named Mitchell Spade, you know, the Cardinal Rain guy? He used a spell Lilith left for him, like a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency sort of thing, and turned what’s left of his army into golem. Basically, puppets that’ll do anything he wants. They can’t be hurt by anything living. Luckily for us, your girl is providing her army of undeads to kill them all while I hold them back from the Gate and Lucifer takes out tanks and drones. Still not sure how to stop Spade, himself, though. Lilith warded him. Anyway, your lightning skills would come in real handy, but I’d totally understand if you’re not up to it.”
He glared at her. “You just said a lot of things.”
She shrugged and nodded in agreement.
He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. “When do you need an answer?”
She looked at her phone, reading the text from the pilot saying the jet was gassed up and ready for departure. “I have to go,” she said, getting up from the table. “You have an eleven-hour drive to think about it.”
Chapter 24
“I just don’t know what to do now,” Ms. Landry sniffed, sitting down across from Valerie, the desk between them more cluttered than usual. “The after school drama program is working. Giving these kids an outlet, keeping them out of trouble. They’ll be devastated.”
“Man, these budget cuts are out of control,” Valerie bemoaned. “Did you know they’re getting rid of SAT prep? They say their goal is to get every kid ‘college-ready’. How do they expect--”
“Ms. Moore,” the principal’s secretary said, poking her head into the office.
“Hey, Karen.”
“Principal Simpson would like to see you.”
“Oh, lord,” she said, getting up and heading to the door.
“Good luck,” Ms. Landry said, patting her arm as she walked by.
“Thanks, girl. I’m probably gonna need it.” As she walked across the hall to the principal’s office, she was almost run over by the boys’ gym teacher. His face was red and he muttered obscenities under his breath as he passed. “That’s not encouraging,” she uttered to herself as she went in.
“Ms. Moore, have a seat,” the weary principal offered.
“What’s going on? Andrea’s in my office on the verge of tears and Bill just came out of here lookin’ like you smacked his momma.”
“It’s the damn budget cuts,” he grumbled. “I’m having to make some tough and, admittedly, unfortunate decisions.”
“It’s really that bad?”
“It’s worse. I hate to do this, but I have no choice. I have to knock you down to part-time. Two days a week, a third of your current salary.”
“The fu--” She stopped herself. “Sorry, I mean, what?!”
“I know,” He rubbed his temples. “I know. But my hands are tied. Even with all the cuts, we’ll barely have enough money to keep the lights on. Mentoring programs, after school programs, all gone. Any teacher without tenure will be replaced by a newbie at half the salary. The union’s gonna have a field day with that one. I really am sorry. I wish there was something I could do.”
“All right, you know what? There is no way I’m trying to do this shit part-time. I’m a guidance counselor, not a cashier. If I wanted to work for less money than it takes to live, I wouldn’t have worked my ass off putting myself through college. I tried to be professional, but fuck this. I quit.”
“Ms. Moore, please don’t--”
“It’s Mrs. Perry and I’ve got more important things to do, anyway.”
Chapter 25
“Fair warning, Uriel’s in a mood,” Lucifer said as Gabriel entered the apartment. “She’s on the roof, honing her swashbuckling skills. I offered to assist, but she said if I dare follow her, she’d lop my head off the way she did the golem this morning.”
“Fucking Lilith,” she complained. “Ten thousand golem we have to deal with now. Next time I tell you not to kill people, can you just listen? For fuck’s sake. No, you know what? After we secure the Gate, maybe just don’t kill anyone ever. How ‘bout that?”
“You really know how to take all the fun out of being alive, don’t you?”
She rolled her eyes.
“Perhaps if you’d be willing to share more vital information, we wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
“You know I can’t.”
“Yes, yes. God’s ‘need-to-know’ policy. You know all and the rest of us are left scrambling.”
“I don’t know all,” she asserted. “Just more than you, so it would be super helpful if you could just trust me.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s that I’m impatient and impulsive.”
“Maybe something to work on.”
“Speaking of things that would be helpful,” he cajoled. “Now that our enemies are no longer human, your witch friend could prove useful.”
“No.”
“Think about it, sister. A Tituban witch happens to fall in your lap just as we’re in need of--”
“I said ‘no’.”
“You’re being unreasonable.”
“Probably.”
“Gabriel,”
“I’m not putting her in danger.”
“She’s a Tituban witch. She’s hardly defenseless.”
“She’s still human.”
“What do you remember of Salem?”
“It doesn’t--”
“Children attempting to summon me, demons torturing them instead. Tituba was the only real witch among them. She drove out the demons on her own. I didn’t have to lift a finger. No other witch in history had that kind of power. None human, anyway.”
“Wendy isn’t Tituba. She’s a white girl from Tribeca. The genes are so watered down--”
“Perhaps, but if she possesses a tenth of her ancestor’s power, she’s still the strongest enchantress on Earth. Do you honestly think meeting her now was a coincidence?”
“No,” she conceded.
“Then find out what she’s capable of. You’re derelict in your duty to our Father if you don’t use every weapon available to contain this threat.”
“Trying to give me dad-guilt?”
“Ne
ver. Just trying to win this war.”
Valerie was getting used to the weight of the sword as she grew more comfortable with every swing. The setting sun’s light glinted off the steel as she sliced through the air again and again, her anger fueling her effort. Furious and resentful, she threw the blade, embedding it in the building, barely missing her sister’s face as she stepped onto the roof.
“I should have brought you some fries to go with all that salt,” Gabriel teased.
“Unfunny,” she huffed as she pulled the sword from the stone.
“Sorry about your job. I know it meant a lot to you.”
“Gives me more time to kill monsters, right?”
“I know it’s not what you want to be doing, but--”
“I know, I know. God’s will or whatever. Is this it, though? This fight with the monster army? Is our angel-work done after this?”
“Well,”
“Man, what the fuck?! How long is this gonna go on?”
“Just like, three or so years, give or take.”
“So you’re telling me I have to tell my husband we can’t have a baby for at least three years? If the adoption agency calls, I have to tell them ‘not right now’?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Well, bitch, I’m not trying to raise a kid in the middle of this bullshit! Everywhere I go, something’s trying to kill me.”
“I mean, I see what you’re saying, but--”
“So, what’s up with your girl? Lucifer thinks--”
“I know what Lucifer thinks.”
“Well? If she’s as powerful as he says she is, maybe--”
“She could get hurt.”
“Girl, so could we. Besides, you’re the one that keeps telling me our mission is the most important thing in the world. That still true?”
She folded her arms. “Yes, and Lucifer’s probably right. Don’t tell him I said that. If his head gets any bigger, his neck won’t be able to support it.”
Valerie laughed. “What about Wyatt? Is he coming, or is he still too fucked up?”
“He’s thinking about it.”
Wyatt ate in the cab of the moving van, not feeling up to being around strangers. He’d driven in silence, mulling over everything Gabriel had told him. He needed more information. He sat his sandwich on its wrapper and called Allydia. The sun had been down for hours; she should be awake.
“Yes, darling?” she answered.
“Hey, what can you tell me about golem?”
“You spoke to your sister. I hope you’re not angry with me for keeping you in the dark. I didn’t want to burden you.”
“No, I understand.”
“Thank you. So, golem are living dolls, bound to their creator by blood magic. They’re fiercely loyal and will carry out his wishes even without him having to say a word. They feel nothing. They’re creatures of blind obedience.”
“Do you need me?”
“I always need you.”
He smiled for a moment. “For the fight.”
“Oh, I don’t know. My soldiers are quite capable. Still, last time I talked to your sister, her heart was beating more rapidly than usual. I’d dare say she was nervous.”
“If she’s nervous, it must be pretty bad.”
“Yes, I suppose it is.”
“All right. I’ll be home in a few hours.”
“I’ll see you soon, then.”
He ended the call and went back to his sandwich, thinking as he chewed. He was tired, not physically or mentally fit for battle, but what choice did he have? It was the Gate to Heaven. He knew how important protecting it was, that it was the reason he and his siblings were born. It was why Lucifer was on Earth. It was why he’d had to put that poor girl that Lilith had been possessing in a coma. While an army of golem was the last thing he wanted to deal with, his family needed him; the only family he had left.
He bagged up his trash and took it to the bin next to the entrance. He noticed, through the glass door, the many people sitting down together, enjoying their meals. Couples and families, laughing and talking, oblivious to the dangers Gabriel wanted him to help her fight against. He knew it was big. Even Allydia was offering up her army to aid in the battle. As he watched a young boy dip a french fry into a shake, a tear came to his eye. He couldn’t let anything bad happen to anyone else’s son. He got back in the truck and began the last two hours of his trip home. As he pulled onto the highway, he thought to his sister, Looks like we’re saving the world.
Chapter 26
A guard Camael had never seen before opened the cell door, waking him from a dreamless sleep. “Move it, Lee.” He shot the guard a confused glare but followed him to the visiting area. He was surprised to see Gabriel there, impatiently waving him over.
He sat in front of her and picked up the phone. “It’s the middle of the night. How’d you arrange this?”
“I’m rich.”
“Oh, right,” he laughed. “So, twice in one week. What’s the occasion?”
“I need your counsel.”
He raised an eyebrow in interest.
“Lucifer and Uriel think I should ask Wendy to help with the Gate.”
“You probably should.”
“Damn it, Cam. You, too?”
“You came for my opinion, right?”
She grunted, then nodded.
“She’s a witch. She could help.”
“Something could happen to her.”
“Again, she’s a witch. You probably don’t need to worry about her so much.”
“I worry about everyone I care about.”
He tilted his head and smiled, his eyes wide.
“I think I’m falling for her. I mean, hard to say, but it’s like…it’s kind of like--”
“Ada?”
Gabriel’s face fell. “Not exactly. Wendy and I don’t have to hide.”
His features softened. “You never had to hide from me.”
“I know, and I appreciate you, more than you know. This girl, though. Dude, I’m concerned.”
“I think she’ll be fine. What’s the worst that can happen? If she gets hurt, you can just heal her.”
“It’s not only that. What if she sees it, what it’s actually like to be with me? The monsters and the killing. What if she decides it’s too much?”
“Some unsolicited advice?”
“Why not?”
“It sounds to me like you love her. As far as I know, that’s only happened for you one other time, so if there’s a chick out there giving you the warm and fuzzies, I say enjoy it. You deserve to be happy, despite what you think about yourself most of the time.”
“What if she bolts?”
“Then you’ll be sad for a while. Who cares? Wouldn’t you rather have something amazing for a little while than sentence yourself to a life in solitary?”
“I see what you did there.”
“Don’t worry so much about it ending that you push her away.”
“That’s some strong wisdom, bro.”
“I’m in prison. All I have to do all day is work out and read.”
They both laughed.
“Listen, get through the next couple days, defend our way home, defeat the bad guys, and then have some fun. Take your girl on a trip. Somewhere tropical. A beach. Chicks love beaches.”
She bit her bottom lip and chuckled.
“I mean it. Get out of town for a while. Go on vacation.”
“I can’t leave. Barachiel--”
“Is a grown man, with the Queen of all vampires lookin’ out for him. What are you worried about? It’s not like he can die. I know you feel guilty about what happened when we were kids, but you can’t beat yourself up over that forever. At some point, you have to forgive yourself and live your life.”
“I’ll consider it. All right, I’m gonna go talk to Wendy. Maybe she can give me a charm or something to break Lilith’s warding. I’ll see you next week. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” He waited until she
disappeared behind the door before standing to go back to his cell.
“Goddamn, your sister is hot as shit,” the guard blurted.
“What did you just say to me?”
“She slipped me a grand to sneak her in tonight, but with tits like that, I would have done it for a lot less, if you know what I’m sayin’. Tell her next time she can visit whenever she wants, if she spends some time with me, that is.”
Camael gripped the guard by the throat and threw him into the wall. “The fuck did you say?!” He grabbed the back of his head and slammed it onto the table. “That wasn’t very polite.” He gritted his teeth, his whole body shaking with rage. He took the phone from its cradle and smashed it into the man’s temple, again and again, sending blood and bits of flesh flying. His skull shattered, the impact of Cam’s blows growing in strength as he relented to his impulses. When the guard’s head was little more than a puddle, he dropped the phone and backed away, his chest heaving as he struggled to calm himself. He looked at his reflection in the glass, the blood splattered on his face and clothes filling him with shame. His shoulders slumped and he looked down at the floor. “I’m sorry.” He took the keys from the guard’s belt and turned to take the long walk back to his cell. Once there, he locked himself back in and hid the keys in a hole he’d dug into the wall, carefully placing the poster back over it. He washed away the blood as best he could, assuming the guard had turned off the security cameras before retrieving him. The block was quiet. If anyone had been awake to see him, they weren’t saying a word. And they wouldn’t. They wouldn’t dare risk that he’d come after them next. This wasn’t the first time Cam had lost his temper, and every prisoner there knew what he was capable of. Unfortunately for the rookie guard, no one had given him the memo.
Chapter 27
Gabriel took Wendy’s face in her hands and kissed her hard.
“Well, hello,” Wendy giggled, closing the door as Gabriel entered the apartment. “It’s late. Everything all right?”
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