chapter 20
Malachi was cold. The night was damp and the tree cover did nothing to block the chilling wind. They had already been to one property and found it to be the residence of an elderly couple. After a thorough search, they determined that that was all it was.
They were nearing the second location in complete silence. The ground was soft and did a decent job of muffling their footsteps.
All right, there it is.
Malachi spied a lavish looking house, not too far from where they were. They were a few feet back from the tree line and crouched down to become less noticeable.
There’s movement in the back of the house.
Malachi looked to where Gemariah gestured, and saw a shadow pass in front of the window. There wasn’t a clear visual so he couldn’t make out who it was, but there was definitely someone inside.
They were both distracted by the front door opening and a young male exiting the house. He was tall and a decent size; would possibly be a good match if Malachi had to go up against someone. Malachi heard the flick of the lighter before he saw what the flame revealed.
F*ck! It’s him.
Right there, in front of him was Masters. Just a second ago, he was thinking this man would be somewhat of a challenge for him, and now he knew it was the same f*cker that was throwing around his Trinity. It was too much! He started to get up, but was stopped by Gemariah’s grip on his arm.
Not yet. We have to…
That was as far as he got before a gun shot rang through the air. The grip on his arm went slack, and when Malachi looked over, he saw Gemariah lying on the ground with blood coming out of a wound on his forehead. These f*ckers just shot him!
Malachi jerked his head around and saw that more people had come out of the house and were all looking in their direction, including Masters. That shithead was grinning at him, and at that moment all Malachi wanted to do was snap his head clean off. Just then, he heard another gun shot, and that’s when everything went black.
This was one hell of a headache, was the first thing Malachi thought of as he woke; that, and why the hell couldn’t he move his arms. The more he came to, the more his memories slowly started to return. Their trek through the woods, seeing Masters, Gemariah getting shot; everything was back.
Obviously he was shot as well, and that would explain the splitting headache. He guessed his body was still trying to repair the damage from the bullet, and that would explain why his head still throbbed. Knowing what he knew about his body and its abilities, as well as the severity of the wound, he guessed he had been out for around an hour, maybe more.
“Glad you finally decided to join us.”
He knew that voice. It was one he hadn’t heard in years, but would never forget. When he eventually opened his eyes, he wasn’t surprised to find Azazel standing in front of him. Taking his eyes away from his ancestor, he observed his surroundings. They were in a clearing that was located at the back of the house they had been observing. He was under one of the only trees in the clearing, and was on his knees with his arms tied to a thick tree branch over his head. He moved to stand up, and it was then he realized that his legs were strapped to the ground using a thick wire.
“Didn’t you learn at the tender age of…what was it, 18 or so? …that you can’t sneak up on me.”
Malachi gritted his teeth at the memory, and tried not to think of the scars that he had as reminders. The scars that he used to despise until Trinity came along. She didn’t care about any of them, and showed it numerous times when she was in his arms.
Holy shit! Trinity! He immediately stopped his struggling. Every time he pulled on his legs, the wire cut into him a little more. He stopped, knowing that Trinity was feeling every ounce of pain that he did. With a sickening feeling in his stomach, he wondered what she had to go through when he got shot.
Thinking about when he got shot, he realized that he hadn’t noticed Gemariah yet since he woke. Looking to the left, Malachi noticed his unconscious friend slumped against the truck of the tree he was tied to. At closer inspection, it looked as if he was tied to the tree as well.
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Thanks for reminding me.” He watched as Azazel strode over to Gemariah and knelt down in front of him.
“Don’t you f*cking touch him.” Malachi spoke through his clenched teeth. “It’s me you got; leave him out of this.”
Malachi watched as Azazel reached down and ran his hand over the wound that was in between Gemariah’s eyes. It closed immediately and he felt a sense of relief when he heard a moan come from his friend.
“What do you think I am, a monster?” Azazel went back to his lazy stance in front of Malachi and laughed. “Well, maybe I am, who knows?”
He bent over to be at eye level with Malachi. “You know so much about me. You probably already know how I love to be watched when I torture people. It’s even better if the person cares about the other one. It makes it so much more electric, don’t you think?”
Malachi didn’t answer, but instead gave him a deadly stare.
“Plus…” Azazel rolled his eyes and stood back up. “”I promised Ramiel that I wouldn’t kill him if I got the opportunity.” Getting a mischievous smile, he continued. “I never said anything about maiming though.”
As he took a step toward Gemariah, Malachi tensed and was prepared to do anything necessary. The sudden sound of “A Little Piece of Heaven” cut through the air and momentarily distracted Azazel. He held up a finger indicating that he needed a minute, and then sighed in annoyance when he reached into his pocket to pull out his cell phone. Holding the phone up to his ear, he barked something out before Malachi turned his attention over to Gemariah.
Hey, you alright?
Yeah, you?
Gemariah pulled at his bonds and tried to adjust himself.
Can you get loose?
Malachi had to ask, since he already knew that there was no way he could free himself. Before Gemariah could answer him back, Malachi was backhanded across the face…hard.
“There’s no talking!” Azazel yelled at them before returning his attention back to his phone call. “Okay, make sure it’s secure and get here in no more than ten minutes, if you value your lives.
He slipped the phone back into his pocket and turned back to Malachi.
“You know, you’re little bitch has caused so much trouble these last months.”
Malachi saw red. “You leave her out of this. She has nothing to do with me and you.”
“Oh, on the contrary, she has much to do with us.” Azazel then started to pace. “You know, we angels have seers as well don’t you? Of course, ours are much more accurate than your little slip of a girl.”
Malachi immediately thought of Terah, and all the times she had saved his life with her visions. Maybe she was better than they all thought. He left that thought to himself, thinking that it might help her in the long run to be underestimated.
“I was told a thousand and some years ago that my undoing would come from the soul mate of a blood relation. I tracked down all my kin throughout the years, and made sure that they would never side against me. However, I did not know of your mother till she was already dead and gone. By that time, you had already been snatched by the Godsend Warriors and were a lost cause. Therefore I knew it had to be yours.”
“Soul mate?” That was the one part that stuck out the most to Malachi. Is that why he had such a strong connection to Trinity? It made sense.
“You don’t know, do you?” He then looked at Gemariah, which drew Malachi’s attention there as well. Gemariah looked just as confused as he felt. “Neither of you do. Hell, this is priceless.” Azazel smiled a devious smile.
“Everyone has a soul mate, including abominations such as yourselves. It’s just another slap in the face to us angels.” Azazel sneered. “Anyone that was born from his precious ‘man’ gets one to show His love. Because you have human blood running through you, so do you.”
Malachi was shocked and moved at the same time. Sometimes he felt unnoticed by the Lord that he always fought for. It was nice to know that there was something as special as her out there, and she was all for him. Pulling on his restraints one more time, he tried to get loose.
He was jarred out of his current thoughts when he realized Azazel had started to speak again. “…I have dispensed of your soul mate five different times. Always leaving her where you would find her was fun, and I would stand back and watch your face when you did.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Malachi snapped.
“My dear ignorant boy...” He sighed as if being put out. “A body is just a vessel that a soul lives in. I have killed five different women that had the soul of your mate.” Azazel looked into the air as if he were thinking, before snapping his fingers and returning his attention to him. “Do you remember the young girl you found impaled onto a tree where you normally trained?”
How could Malachi forget? He was fourteen, and it was the first body he had seen that was brutally murdered since his mother. The girl looked no more than twelve years old, and Malachi couldn’t help but mourn her loss; the loss of the happiness she should have had, instead of the end she had come to. After finding her, Malachi was more determined than ever to fight the good fight against evil.
“Ahh, I see that you do. Every time I would try to do something new for you; frozen in a lake, dismembered, yadda, yadda, yadda.” He waved his hand at the end, as if these lives were of no consequence to him. Then he got an excited look on his face. “The last one was my favorite. I had half of her body burned to a crisp while she screamed for mercy, then hung her in a tree right before you showed up, so you would have to try and save her…but you couldn’t. Could you?” Azazel got a spring in his step and laughed. “It was so much fun watching you scramble to help her. Little did you know that she was meant for you.”
Malachi squeezed his eyes shut to try and block out the memory of that day, but it wasn’t helping. The smell of burnt flesh stayed with him for years, but the helpless feeling when knew he couldn’t save her, has never been totally forgotten.
“You wouldn’t have wanted them anyway. They were all broken by that point.”
Malachi hung his head in defeat. Hearing that he had failed to protect five different women that were his to care for did not sit well with him.
“Every last one of them, I tormented until the day I came to kill them. Some were beaten, others raped, plagued with constant sickness, the list goes on and on. They couldn’t take it any longer, and were ready to die the day they did.”
All of the sudden, his features turned to stone. “Then came the little bitch you call Angel.”
Malachi’s entire body stiffened when Azazel referred to Trinity. He didn’t want her mixed up in any of the ugliness that had just been described to him, but knew it was probably too late. Malachi didn’t want to hear the next part. He didn’t want to know what she had gone through when he wasn’t around.
“I had her parents killed, and then I had her placed in homes with over amorous men that loved to use their fists to show dominance. Needless to say, they were my kind of men.”
“Bastard!” The shout didn’t come from him. Trinity had become close to them all, and obviously Gemariah didn’t like hearing about how she had suffered, just as much as he didn’t.
The comment didn’t faze Azazel; instead he just looked annoyed at the interruption as he turned his gaze onto Gemariah. “Don’t worry; what Ramiel’s done to yours is different.” Azazel laughed at his look of shock. “Oh yeah, I started a trend. All of your friends have ancestors that are giving their soul mates the same “welcome to the family” as I have been.”
“Anyways, back to what I was saying.” He brought his focus back to Malachi. “Did all of that break her? No! It made the little bitch stronger. Therefore I waited, and bided my time until I saw an opening. The answer came in the form of my new friend, Seth over there.”
Malachi’s gaze immediately snapped in the direction that was gestured, to see the face he had been staring at in a photograph for months. He couldn’t hold back the snarl directed at the man he planned to kill once he got free. Giving his arms one last tug, he stopped when he felt the wire cutting into his skin.
“Now don’t be mad at him. He was so easy to corrupt. Everything I had him do wasn’t anything he hadn’t thought up himself. It almost worked too. She was broken, I was sure of it. Then the bitch one day grew a pair and left for good.” Azazel sneered in the direction of Masters, which made the man advert his eyes. “I don’t do failure well.” He said in the way of explaining the other man’s reaction.
“That’s when everything got so f*cked up! She turned into a liability that had to go. I waited for the perfect moment, and that even got f*cked up. She was supposed to die in that river, dammit! After that, I tried to remind her of all the negatives in her life and that didn’t work. Hell, I tried scaring the shit out of her, lashing her…nothing worked!” Azazel closed his eyes and took a calming breath. “It’s all going to end soon though.”
This got Malachi’s senses on full alert. “What did you do?” He growled.
Azazel looked put out. “All I wanted was to have her die in front of you. Is that too much to ask? I didn’t think so.” He gestured back over to Masters. “Seth here is good for so many things, but kidnapping is not one of them. Twice he tried and twice he failed. I thought about killing him but thought better of it. He might still come in handy.”
Walking back over towards Malachi, he got extremely close. “I needed someone more capable for the job. Therefore I sent your cousin Jeffries over to get your “Angel” and bring her here. He’s almost as strong as you are, but has a mean streak that even impresses me.” With that, Azazel gave a small wink. “I never had any doubt.”
Malachi’s heart was in his throat. He wouldn’t get to her, Tori and Terah would make sure of it. He tried to control his breathing as he addressed Azazel. “It’s not going to happen, he’ll fail too.”
“Really? Then why did I just get a phone call, informing me that they had her and were on their way?”
“You piece of shit! I’ll f*cking kill you!” Malachi thrashed and tried to pull out of his restraints as Azazel practically skipped away. He had to free himself. He was not going to let this f*cker win…again.
“Tisk Tisk, Malachi. You know you don’t have the power to kill me. The only thing that can stop me is twenty feet away from you.” He gestured to a pile behind him that contained all their weapons. “Now, how should I do it, any suggestions?” Azazel was almost giddy as he rubbed his hands together.
“I was actually thinking of killing her, and then waiting to kill you after her soul had been reborn. That way, she’d be constantly searching for her one and only, and never be able to find you. Kind of like torturing you while you’re in the grave. What do you think?” Azazel laughed at Malachi’s struggle.
Malachi didn’t answer, but instead let out a roar of anger as he tried to free his legs. He couldn’t let her get here while he was helpless to protect her. He had to get free, and quick.
Trinity was hurting to the point where she was in tears. It was completely dark and all she could feel was the pain. Her legs were burning and the wrist restraints they had put her in were cutting into her skin. She tried to press them together to relieve the tension, but nothing was working. Constantly blocking out the pain was not helping her to conserve any energy.
At least there were only two now, instead of the original three. That made her odds a little better when she finally got out, of course she didn’t know how many would be there once that happened. The men had shoved her in the trunk of their car, after roughly tying her wrists together with twine.
Trinity fought back the tears when she thought about the attack at her home. She had been lying on the couch with her eyes shut, fighting off a killer headache when the doorbell rang. Everyone that would have come to see her where accounted for, so she was confused about who could be there.
When Tori made her way to the front door, she looked through the peep hole and jumped back. “F*ck! They brought a nephilim!”
After that, everything happened so quickly. There was a loud explosion that blew up her back door, and two men walked in through the new opening. Terah ran, and was there in a matter of seconds.
Trinity would never forget what happened next. Tori turned to yell something at her, but never got the chance. As if going at lightning speed, the front door was kicked open and a knife was being dragged across Tori’s throat by an extremely large and mean looking male. Tori’s eyes met hers the split second before they closed and she fell to the ground.
She was momentarily stunned, but then her basic survival instincts kicked in and she ran. The man that slit Tori’s throat, zeroed in on her and started to make his way over. Managing to miss his grasp by inches, she maneuvered around him and ran into the kitchen to find Terah.
Terah had her hands full with the others and Trinity knew that she was on her own. Narrowly making it back to the living room, she got to the bag the girls brought over and saw something she recognized. She grabbed the small spear shaped weapon but before she could make another run for it, the man was on her. Wrapping his arms around her, he started to squeeze and Trinity knew she only had seconds before she blacked out.
A familiar sensation coursed through her body; the same one that had come when she was attacked by Seth in the parking lot. She felt stronger, and knew this was one of the many gifts that Malachi had given her. It took this new energy to be able to use the weapon and stab the man in his leg. The floor came up fast when he ended up dropping her. She hit hard, but didn’t let it slow her down. Turning, she pulled the spear out of his leg and gave no second thought to ramming it into his chest the moment she had an opening.
They both stood still, and it was like time stopped as they stared at each other. Eventually, he snapped out of it and charged. Grabbing her by her throat, he hit her against a wall and squeezed, successfully cutting off her airway. “You little cunt! You really think that would kill me? You’re gonna have to do better than that.”
Trinity was pulling against his hold on her throat and trying to gasp for air. She couldn’t breathe, she needed to breathe! When his grip loosened a small amount, she took gulps of air and ceased her struggles. Grabbing the handle to the spear, she looked him right in the eye and choked out, “This is for Tori, a*shole.”
Trinity will never forget the sound it made when she pressed the button. She could just picture the different extensions cutting into the muscle of his heart. His eyes opened wide, obviously not expecting this outcome, before his body collapsed to the ground, bringing her down with it.
She had killed someone. When she had a moment, she would contemplate how she felt, but right now, she had to get out of here.
The other two men walked into the room just as she was standing up.
“Hey Jeffries, you ready to go? It took a while, but we eventually took care of…”
The man stopped talking at the sight before him. She knew she probably looked feral, covered in blood and standing over a body, but she didn’t care. She reached down and grabbed the fireplace poker and charged the two men. All she knew was that they were standing in the way of her and her way out.
It was a decent fight and she had gotten in a few good hits, but her body was too exhausted from what she had already been through. Eventually, they subdued her and bound her wrists. Before shoving her into the trunk, she watched as they torched her house. A feeling of dread filled her, because she knew that if Terah and Tori didn’t wake up fast, they would truly die in the fire.
Shaking off her emotions, she strained her ears and tried to listen to what her captors were saying, but their voices were too muffled. At first she had tried to remember the direction and turns they took, but soon got mixed up. Now, she felt extremely helpless as she lay there waiting for the trunk to open.
Fighting through the pain, she felt around the dark space, trying to find anything that might help her. She quickly realized that she was the only thing in the trunk. A thought then occurred to her as she felt around the edges of the upholstery and the side paneling.
As a teenager, she had once gotten a flat tire. Not wanting to have to rely on another person for anything, she watched diligently as Joseph changed her tire. He had pulled part of the paneling off and exposed the jack and tire iron.
Jackpot! Trinity popped open the compartment and felt around inside for what she had in mind. Finally, she felt the long metal tool and quietly pulled it free. Holding it there, she quickly formed a plan.
After some time, the car began to slow down and Trinity wrapped herself around the bar. She could do this, she could do this, she repeated to herself. Not knowing what she was getting into, she knew that she was not going down without a fight.
The car eventually stopped, and she heard car doors open and shut before finally hearing voices near the back of the car. She tightened her grip and waited.
“What the hell happened to you two?” Trinity knew that voice. Of course he would be behind this; he had been the cause of all her troubles for the last two years.
“Hey, she wasn’t alone. Plus this she-cat didn’t come easily.”
“Whatever. She’s never been…”
The trunk popped open and Trinity threw herself up and started swinging. She got one good hit across the head of one of the men, and felt a small amount of satisfaction when she saw him drop to his knees. A set of hands reached out for her, and she brought the bar down on top of them. Someone let out a curse and she brought it up to swing again, but her weapon was then ripped from her hands.
Hands were everywhere now, grabbing at her as she fought and lifting her out of the trunk. Someone grabbed a hold of her hair and another got her arms behind her back. A man stumbled towards her and placed fingers against his head where he was bleeding.
“You bitch!” He yelled at her, before backhanding her across the face.
Shit, that hurt. Flexing her jaw to relieve some of the pain, she looked back at him. “So I’ve heard.”
“If you guys are done, I would really like to move this along.” Looking over, she saw a man looking towards them and fear coursed through her. This couldn’t be happening, she thought.
“Aww, so you do remember me. That speeds things up.” Trinity was frozen as she watched him turn the other way. When she turned her head to see what he was looking at, her fear intensified. No! Malachi! Looking at him now, he resembled a wild beast more than the man she loved. His face was covered in blood, and he wouldn’t stop thrashing and yelling out. At a closer look, she noticed the blood dripping down from his wrists and she had to plead with him.
Malachi, you’re hurting yourself, stop!
It was as if he didn’t hear her, because he continued to throw threats at Azazel and pull on his restraints.
The men brought her forward, and she put up no fight as she examined her surroundings. As they got closer, she noticed all of Malachi’s weapons not too far from her and got an idea. She had to help. She was not going to sit by and watch what he wanted her to anymore.
Immediately, she started to pull against the men restraining her, kicking out and biting any appendage that she could get to. With her quick change of going from docile to attack mode, the men were taken off guard and she managed to get free. Not pausing once she did, she started to sprint towards to weapons. She had seen the sword many times to know that it was Malachi’s. After wielding it so many times in her dreams, she was pretty sure she could handle it now.
Leaning down in mid-run, she scooped it up. Ignoring Malachi’s yelled warning, she held it with her bound hands and pointed it in the direction of Azazel. Damn, this thing was heavier than it looked!
All he did was turn and smile. “I do like this one. She’s got spunk.”
“Yeah, so much spunk that she took out Jeffries.” One of the men chimed in.
Azazel looked on, but with an expression of awe. No remorse was present. “Really?”
“Let them go!” She gestured in the direction of Malachi and Gemariah, ignoring Azazel’s question.
“’Fraid I can’t do that, love.” He turned and held his arms out wide. “Tell you what…I’ll give you a free shot. Make me let them go.”
“No!” This was yelled simultaneously by Malachi and Gemariah, but she wasn’t listening. This, whatever he was, needed to be stopped. Taking a step forward, she swung the sword. A look of surprise crossed his face before jumping out of the way. She missed her mark but did end up cutting a small strip across the front of his shirt.
Everyone was quiet and staring at her with their mouths ajar.
“What the…” Before she knew what was going on, Azazel was directly in front of her and ripping the weapon from her hands. He tossed it to one of his many minions.
“Swing that!”
The man picked it up and adjusted his grip before bringing it back. He didn’t make the forward swing before dropping the sword and going down to his knees. He was screaming in agony while staring at his hands. At a closer look, Trinity saw that the flesh off the man’s hands was disintegrating enough to where the bone was starting to show.
“Oh Crap.” Trinity couldn’t take her eyes off the man. She then looked down at her own hands, grateful she wasn’t subjected to the same fate.
“You two have already bonded! Of course, why didn’t I see this before?” Azazel frowned down at her. “This complicates things. Now I only have so many ways I can kill you. But now my fun can last even longer.” The last part was said as an afterthought with a grin on his face.
He held up his hand and brought it to her arm. She was still in her same t-shirt from before, so his fingers touched her bare skin. Trinity watched his hand gently caress her upper arm before he took one of his long nails and started to push it into her arm.
“God Dammit! Get your hands off her!” Malachi yelled.
Everything stopped and there was a collective gasp as Azazel froze. “What did you say?” The menacing sound to his voice made Trinity shiver.
“You heard me, God Dammit!”
Malachi barely finished what he was saying, before Azazel flew over to him and threw a punch that connected with his nose. The punch had enough force behind it, that anyone near could hear the bones crunch under his hand.
She wanted to be concerned for Malachi, she really did, but all she could think about was the pain exploding over her face. She threw her hands up and covered her nose before she dropped down to the ground moaning.
Azazel paused in his assault on Malachi and started to laugh. “Oh this is too good. She feels your pain. This is going to be so much fun!” He turned to look at his men. “Seth, handle your woman. Bring her to her knees.”
“Gladly.” That was the only thing she heard before she was lifted off the ground and placed facing Malachi. She hated to be touched by Seth and she tried to shrug him off, but he just tightened his hold.
The pain had slowly subsided as she knelt there, and she was finally able to open her eyes. Malachi was staring at her with a look of dread in his eyes.
She took a moment to look him over. His face and shirt were covered in blood, but she couldn’t find a wound. It had probably already healed, she thought. Then what Azazel said finally hit her, she felt Malachi’s pain. Trinity remembered the sudden headache earlier, and she eyed Malachi’s bloody wrists as she remembered the pain in hers before. This bit of information should have shocked her, but after everything she had learned recently, it didn’t. Did she understand it, no, but that would come eventually. She did understand that Azazel was going to use this against them and she had to brace herself for the worst.
Trinity watched as Azazel unsheathed the sword at his side, that she had failed to notice earlier. He examined the blade and slowly ran his hand over it, as if in a comforting gesture. In the next instant, he quickly thrust the blade into Malachi’s shoulder.
Shit! The pain was unbearable! She wanted nothing more than to curl up and scream out, but she wasn’t going to give him that satisfaction. As she knelt there, she blocked out Malachi’s roar and Gemariah’s shouting. Azazel’s laughter slowly faded, and Seth’s touch was now non-existent to her. She looked passed everything and stared at the tree line, while refusing to move.
The pain was still just as strong, and she noticed from the corner of her eye that Azazel was frowning at her while holding the sword that was still impaled in Malachi. A look of determination crossed his face and he gave his wrist a swift twist, successfully rotating the sword.
She was going to be sick. The feeling was beyond anything she had ever felt before. God, please let it be over soon, she thought.
Trinity slowly looked over toward Malachi and noticed that he was staring at her, probably trying to judge how much she was feeling. Slowly, she grinned at him.
I love you.
At that moment, he understood. She felt everything, but was holding it in for him. Immediately his body relaxed against the pain and her discomfort dimmed. They could do this, they could manage, together.
A fresh wave of pain hit her when Azazel pulled the sword free. He growled. “I guess I was wrong.” Immediately, he shook off the disappointment and gestured in her direction. “Back to the original plan. Kill her.”
Trinity immediately tensed and Malachi looked panicked as his struggles started up again.
Instead of the killing blow that she expected, she was pulled back against Seth. “No. You said I got to keep her for a while.” As if to punctuate his point, he wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck. A fresh wave of nausea came forth at the close contact.
Azazel looked furious and turned his gaze in their direction. “You dare defy me?”
She felt the body behind her start to quake out of fear, but he still didn’t move. “You promised.” He now sounded more like a child, denied his favorite toy.
She watched as Azazel walked over toward Malachi’s bag and pulled forth a weapon with a long blade before coming towards them. She really thought Seth had lived his last day, and if the tightening hold on her was any indication, so did he. When he reached them, he held the knife out with the handle side closest.
“Kill her now! If not, I’ll make a meal out of your intestines and make sure you stay alive to feel every last bit of it.”
Seth didn’t hesitate in grabbing the knife.
“No! You f*cker, I’ll kill you! Don’t touch her!!” Trinity’s body began to ache even more, and she looked up towards Malachi. His attempts to escape his restraints were doubled, cutting into his skin with each pull.
“Through the heart should do it.” Azazel’s words brought her attention back to him. He looked so calm, and at that moment and she witnessed how much evil had really taken him over.
She felt the tip blade at her back and she looked over towards Azazel. “He’s never going to take you back, you know.”
There was no misunderstanding who she was talking about, and the look of utter hatred that came over his face said that he knew as well. “Now!”
It was so quick, and there wasn’t as much pain as she thought there would be. He removed the blade just as swiftly, and she started to fall towards the ground. Before she touched, however, all hell broke loose.
There was a sharp cry from somewhere around her, and Seth’s body hit the ground before hers did. She saw his body land and his head roll in the opposite direction, while Gideon was standing over her, breathing heavily. Glancing around, she noticed Tori, Terah, and others she didn’t recognize, joining in the fight as well.
Letting out her last breath, she relaxed into the ground. Malachi was going to be okay. He had his friends, they would take care of him; they loved him.
With that last thought, she looked over to see a lone figure walking amongst the fighting. He was like nothing she had ever seen before, so beautiful. Once he was by her side, he held out his hand for her to take and she easily accepted the offer.
He guided her onto her feet and directed her away from the battle before she realized that she hadn’t felt this good in a long time. There was no more pain, no more heartache. The burdens she had been carrying were all lifted away.
The man smiled down at her as he led her farther away. Taking her gaze away from him, she looked forward and saw two figures standing in the distance. It didn’t take her long to realize that it was her mom and dad. There was no hesitation as she let go of the man’s hand and began to run, run right into the arms of her waiting parents.
“No!” Malachi yelled as he saw the knife go through Trinity. He couldn’t get lose to get to her! Continuing to pull at his restraints, he no longer felt the pain anymore. When he watched her fall, he knew the knife had hit its mark and passed through her heart. He could still heal her if only he could just…get...free!
When the night exploded around him, he thought he might just have a chance. Gideon almost flew at Seth, and with one swing of his weapon had him decapitated. He noticed people he had worked with in the past, were fighting the others. It was then he spotted Tori and Terah running through the scuffle, towards him. Splitting apart, Tori ran to Gemariah while Terah reached him and started to undo his bindings.
“You guys okay?” Terah asked.
“Hurry up!” Malachi pulled on his restraints, but never took his eyes off Trinity’s body.
The second his hands were free, he reached around and pulled the wires off his legs, not caring about the small amounts of flesh that came off with them. Finally being able to move, he stood and ran over to Trinity.
When he finally reached her, he pushed Gideon, who was kneeling beside her, out of the way. Placing his hands on her, he concentrated on finding her spirit to lock onto.
There was nothing there. She was gone.
“I’m sorry Mal. I tried to reach him in time.” Gideon was kneeling next to him. “I even tried to use my healing power to sustain her till you got here, but she was dead before I could.”
“No.” Malachi shook his head and refused to accept it. He reached out and tried to find even the tiniest spark left. There was nothing to grab onto; she was truly gone.
Rage like never before coursed through his body. This was not going to happen again! Looking up, he locked eyes with Azazel, who was grinning widely at him. This f*cker was not going to be around to torment anyone else after tonight.
Malachi stood and made his way over to his sword, that hadn’t been touched since it was dropped earlier. Picking it up, he remembered his little firecracker wielding the weapon. At the time, he had been so afraid, but never more proud to see the fight in her. Now she was gone. Gone!
Turning, he strode toward Azazel and watched as the man easily unsheathed his sword and waited. If he could kill him, he would, but he would have to settle for banishment instead.
“You think you’re ready to play with the big boys?”
Malachi ignored his remark and swung. The blow was easily blocked, but that didn’t stop him. He continued to swing and thrust his sword, not letting up for a moment.
The fight went on, each person alternating being on the offensive. Malachi had no idea what was happening with everyone else around him; he didn’t care. To lose his focus one moment would cause him to lose everything.
Azazel lunged toward him and Malachi spun away. At the same time, he brought his blade down and grazed the side of Azazel’s face. The sizzling sound meant that he had obviously broken skin.
Jumping back, Azazel reached his hand up to feel the wound. There was no blood, just an open cut that was not healing right away.
“I think I’m actually going to kill you this time.” Azazel nodded. “It’s been fun all these years playing cat and mouse, but all good things must come to an end.”
Malachi could listen to the words all day and not be fazed, but the look of Azazel’s true form coming through was enough to make Malachi take a step back. He physically grew as his skin became more pewter and sunken in. The eyes were now black as night, and the razor sharp teeth showed as he hissed. Malachi could tell that Azazel’s time on Earth had severe negative effects on him. Angels were always so majestic, but Azazel mostly resembled his demon counterparts now.
Basically, Azazel was pissed, and this was Malachi’s clear warning.
The fighting resumed and he found himself on the defensive more than not. This was quickly turning south. One more swing, and Azazel’s sword slashed across his chest and threw him back.
Getting the wind knocked out of him, he was now lying on the ground. He was wrong, he couldn’t do it. He wasn’t strong enough.
As he struggled to rise, he glanced around at his surroundings. The fighting had stopped and people were rounding up the dead. Gideon and Gemariah were yelling at him, but wouldn’t interfere. This was his fight, but the problem was, he hurt too much and didn’t know how much longer he could go on.
Looking in the opposite direction, he saw Terah cradling Trinity’s lifeless body in her arms. The tears running down her face made him remember that it wasn’t only him affected by the loss. Trinity had so many people that cared about her, but how many other people’s lives have been crushed because of Azazel?
This is why! This is why he had to succeed. He had failed to protect Trinity, but at least he could avenge her and everyone else.
Finding his sword, he got to his feet with a recharged confidence. The fighting increased in strength and speed, but Malachi was still holding strong. As he was fighting, he was watching; watching and waiting for an opening, no matter how small.
There it was! Azazel raised his sword for a downward arc and his chest was left wide open. Taking what probably would be the only chance he would have; he leaned into the blow and rammed his sword through the area where Azazel’s heart should have been.
Azazel gasped when the blade hit its mark and he knew he had been beat. He stumbled back, but Malachi followed him, never taking his hand off the sword. The movement made Azazel fall to the ground, and Malachi pushed the sword into the earth to secure the weapon.
Not missing a beat, Malachi started to recite the words that have been ingrained in him since he was a boy. “Lord, please accept my gift to you.”
“No!” Azazel yelled and struggled to free himself.
“Your messenger has abused his power and is here to wait for his judgment.”
“This didn’t work the last time, and it won’t this time.”
“Do with him what you wish.”
Nothing happened. He went through the words again in his head to make sure he got it right; he did, but still nothing happened.
Azazel started to laugh. “And you thought you were special enough to have Him listen to you? That’s priceless!”
Just then, the ground started to shake, and Malachi doubled his grip on the sword so it wouldn’t pull free. He watched in amazement as Azazel started to sink into the earth. It was then he released his hold and jumped back, not wanting to go with him.
“Wait! Not yet!” Azazel was clawing at the grass to try and keep himself above ground, but the effort was worthless.
When he was down far enough, the ground covered back over the top of him, successfully silencing his screams. Everything looked as if nothing had happened. The only thing out of place was the sword that was left standing and stuck in the ground.
Malachi fell to his knees and hung his head. Sending up a silent prayer of thanks, he finally felt free. The feeling was instantly clouded when all his grief slammed back into him. He choked out a sob, thinking of living the rest of life without Trinity. He rose to head in her direction.
All the extra people, which had been at the clearing to help, started hollering and running up to him. This was a monumental night, and they were all proud to be a part of it. It didn’t take them long to realize that he wasn’t in the mood. After a few congratulatory slaps on the back, they all started to disperse.
The rest of his team, his friends, were all huddled around Trinity by the time he got there, including Gideon. They all knew that this was not a time for celebration. Their emotions matched his own.
Going to his knees once again, he pulled her onto his lap and just held her. She was starting to get cold from the night’s air, and knowing that she wouldn’t be warming up anytime soon, he held on even tighter. She should never have been here. Her only crime was being his. The thought made Malachi break down, and he did something he hadn’t done since he was a boy, he cried.
The others were silent, letting him have his moment. A warm hand was placed on his shoulder, and he immediately started to feel calmer.
“Gemariah, don’t! I told you I don’t like you doing that.” Malachi snapped at his friend.
“That’s not me.” The answer was almost a whisper.
Looking up, he noticed that everyone was staring at something behind him and they looked almost in awe. Noting that everyone was in front of him, but the hand was still on his shoulder, he jerked and pulled away. He turned and at the same time, shielded Trinity’s body from whomever was there.
Standing there was the most ethereal person he had ever seen. He was what you would get when you mixed peace, wisdom, and love together in human form; it was angelic. That thought is what helped him figure it out.
“Who are you?”
Ignoring his question, the angel tilted his head to the side and spoke. “Tell me son, why do you weep when she will eventually come back to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You have a strong soul, and likewise have a strong soul mate. That is the only way she could have been reborn so much in such a short amount of time. I have no doubt that it will happen again.”
Malachi shook his head. “It wouldn’t be her, though.”
“No, she would be better. The woman would not have gone through the anguish that Azazel put this one through.” The angel motioned in the direction of Trinity. “She would not be so scarred.”
Not taking his eyes off her, he smoothed back the hair from her face. “She was perfect to me.”
The angel had a whisper of a smile on his face. “She is a determined woman, isn’t she?”
Malachi felt his heart constrict all over again, but it was Gideon that caught onto the spoken words. “What do you mean ‘is’?”
Eyeing them all, the angel stood a little taller, as if proud. “I am the angel that comes to collect the souls when they pass, and guide them to where they need to go.” He then zeroed in on Malachi. “I was the one that took Trinity’s soul.”
Malachi couldn’t prevent the wave of anger that surged through him. This was the one responsible for taking her away. All of his muscles tensed before he felt a sudden calming effect.
“Don’t.” Malachi spoke through clenched teeth.
“Then calm yourself and let me finish.” He felt the power behind the words, and Malachi knew to listen.
“As you already know, she was bound to you by the essence you saved her with; which could only be done to a soul mate by the way. Anyway, the bonding wasn’t completed. If it was, this wouldn’t have happened.” He opened his arms to indicate Trinity.
“I didn’t know anything about bonding. We were never told.” Malachi was confused and a little defensive.
The angel nodded. “We try not to announce it. Any nephilim can be bound to their soul mate, even the ones that choose to fight for Satan. As you all know, nephilims have a hard time staying on the path of good, some more than others.” He looked directly at Gideon when he said the last part, before addressing everyone again. “Think of having double the amount of nephilims out there fighting on the side of evil.”
“Double the amount of…are you saying we can turn our soul mates into nephilims?” Gemariah asked.
The angel kneeled next to Malachi, but still spoke with everyone. “Yes, if there is a precise verbal agreement after knowing all the facts, but there’s a catch.” He paused to make sure he had everyone’s attention. “The two of you would be connected in every way. There would be a constant beacon to thoughts, memories, and feelings. You would also share death. They can’t be killed unless their mate dies too; they die when you die.”
Malachi pulled Trinity higher up onto his lap after she had slipped down a little. He found himself still trying to keep her warm. “This would have been nice to know before…” He couldn’t finish, but everyone understood.
The angel put his hand on Malachi’s arm in a comforting manner, and Malachi took note that all the emotions he was feeling were his own. “When you gave Trinity your essence, you breathed your life into her, but you were missing the other element that would have bound the two of you together permanently.” Malachi glanced at him and he continued. “Blood. If you two had exchanged blood, the bonding would have been complete.”
Malachi was becoming angrier with each revelation. “You’re not helping.” He just wanted to be left alone to grieve in peace.
“Don’t you get it? Even though it wasn’t complete, you two are still connected. If you can somehow get your blood to course through her veins, and vice versa, it just might complete itself.”
Hope spread through Malachi, but he quickly stomped it down, still being skeptical. “She can’t give her verbal agreement. How can I know that she would even want that life?”
The angel actually laughed and looked skyward. “She’s already given her agreement. When I went to lead her to heaven, she pulled away and claimed that she wasn’t going to leave you.” Malachi, at that moment, felt every ounce of love that he had for her and almost didn’t hear what was said next. “She’s standing here, after hearing everything, and is now waiting on your decision.”
The angel was eyeing Malachi expectantly, but Malachi could only focus on one thing. “She’s here?”
“Yes.”
Malachi didn’t know where she was, so he chose to look down at her body. “Are you sure?” His voice was so small, dreading the answer he might get. “I have failed to protect you numerous times. Are you sure that I am the one you want?”
The angel looked to a spot at Malachi’s side and chuckled. “She said to get the show on the road.”
Malachi laughed as well and laid Trinity on the grass. The mood around the circle had changed drastically. He could feel the hope and excitement, mixed with a little disbelief, pouring off everyone.
“Here.” Tori handed over the small blade she always carried strapped to her leg. “You might need this.”
Malachi took the blade and made a cut across the palm of Trinity’s hand. He then did the same thing to his and pressed their wounds together by holding her hand.
Almost instantly, he had a vision of himself being pushed in a tree swing. He was laughing and yelling at the person pushing him to go higher. When the swing stopped, a very pretty woman circled in front of him and smiled. She opened her arms, and Malachi didn’t hesitate to run into them. Pulling back, he looked into a set of beautiful violet eyes that he had only seen on one other person. Trinity! This must be her mother. That’s when he understood what was happening. He was seeing one of her memories as if it were him. It was working!
Malachi sucked in a gulp of air when he returned to reality. “Wow. It’s really working.” He was amazed, but when he looked down at Trinity he noticed there was no change. Something was wrong. Her blood easily entered his system, but she couldn’t circulate his. “She’s not taking it, what can I do?” Panic had now replaced his excitement.
Through everything, the angel had stayed calm. “I might be mistaken, but somebody here might have the ability to move objects with a single thought.”
No one spoke up, he was wrong. There was nothing he could do. It wasn’t going to work! Gideon groaned and broke through Malachi’s negative thoughts.
“Give me that.” Gideon knelt down across from him and grabbed the small dagger that Malachi still held. Picking up her other arm, he slashed the knife down her wrist, successfully opening a vein. He then grabbed Malachi’s injured hand and placed it over Trinity’s new wound. “Right to the source.”
Malachi watched as Gideon closed his eyes to concentrate. How come he didn’t know Gideon could do this? He could only think of one answer. Gideon always steered clear of anything that had to do with his father, and telekinesis was primarily a demon power. Maybe he had been trying to push it back like every other trait.
Underneath his hand, he felt a movement and knew that Gideon was doing it. The blood started to flow through her body.
After a few minutes of waiting, there was still no change. He figured that they were too late. That was until he noticed the tiny movement of her fingers. Immediately, he placed his hand on her chest and focused. She was there! It was faint, but there was a spirit there to lock onto.
“She’s there! It worked!” Malachi practically collapsed on top of her in relief and buried his head in the crook of her neck. “Thank you God. Thank you God.” He repeated over and over.
When he noticed that Gideon had pulled away and was starting to stand, Malachi snatched his wrist to stop him. “Thank you!” Looking directly at Gideon, he didn’t want there to be any misunderstanding of how grateful he was.
Gideon’s mouth lifted into a hint of a smile before he nodded and stood to walk away.
“I think you are forgetting something, my son.”
Malachi sat up and looked over. “What? We did everything you said. She’s back, it worked.”
“Yes, it did. When she is more capable, she’ll learn to heal herself and others, like you, but not until she’s stronger. There is still damage to her physical form that will prevent her from a fast recovery.”
“Oh.” Something that had been nagging at Malachi resurfaced once more. “Why are you telling us all of this now? Not that I’m not grateful, but what makes her different from the others in the past?”
“You are a sharp one, aren’t you?” He gazed at Trinity as if in awe, and sighed. “This one is different. She is a very rare precious gem, a gem that will be a huge asset in the fight of good versus evil.”
“She’s not an asset!” Malachi snapped. He made it sound as if she was nothing more than a tool.
The angel just smiled patiently at his outburst, and once more spoke with a soothing tone. “Of course she is. Just like all of you are, as well as all of God’s messengers, and including any human that does a single good deed. Everyone has an important part they play.”
Once again, the angel’s gaze went to Trinity. “This little one has a very rare ability that will come in handy someday. Have you ever heard of a Dreamwalker?”
The question was directed toward Malachi, but it was Terah that groaned and spoke up. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that.”
Malachi shook his head in confusion. “What’s a dreamwalker?”
“It’s a person that can enter into anyone’s dreams they want. That would explain the dreams you two shared before the day at the river. Her soul was calling out to yours.” Terah answered, frustrated that the pieces were just now falling together.
The angel nodded his head. “All of that’s correct, but when someone is a dreamwalker, it also leaves their mind susceptible to more powerful beings entering theirs. Azazel felt her enter your dreams through your connection, and knew he had an in.”
Malachi nodded, still processing all this new information. When he turned, he placed his hand once more onto Trinity to lock into her spirit. When he was in, there was a feeling of completeness that hadn’t been there before. It was so overwhelming that he almost forgot what he was doing. Eventually, when he felt the ripple of something being out of place, he honed in on her heart. Sure enough, it was struggling on trying to form a beat because of the hole that was still present.
He focused there and started to mentally fuse the heart back together. Because of everything that had gone on tonight, along with the loss of blood, it took longer than he would have liked. Eventually, everything was perfect once again. His own heart swelled when hers made its first strong beat.
When he pulled back, the feeling of completeness never left, and he wondered if it ever would. At that moment, he prayed that it never did. He felt that after so many years, he finally had something to lose. The feeling was utterly terrifying, but at the same time, very comforting.
Everyone was now waiting around to see her wake up. They wanted to all be there for her, but at the same time, all were a little curious if she would wake up a true nephilim.
The angel stood and addressed them all. “Well, I better be off. I’ve already spent too much time here.”
Malachi stopped him. “What about Azazel? Where is he?” He needed confirmation that it was finally over.
The angel let out a small breathy chuckle. “You don’t have to worry about him ever again. The Lord has him now.” Turning serious, he addressed Malachi only. “Be safe and remember everything you have learned tonight. One day we might need her help.” He nodded to Trinity before starting to walk away. Before fading away, he partially turned and addressed Malachi once again. “You did well tonight, son.”
“Son?” Malachi asked in a whisper.
The angel gave no answer, just winked and turned back around. The next second, he was gone. Malachi continued to stare at the spot where the angel once stood. He was trying to rack his brain for any memory where he could see the face of his father. Nothing came up, so he tried to reach deeper. He couldn’t…
“Malachi?”
The softly spoken whisper made his head jerk back around. Looking down, he gazed into the violet eyes that he would never tire of seeing. “Hey. Welcome back.” His voice was more of a croak than anything.
“What happened?” As if remembering something, she jerked up and looked around. “Where is he? Are you okay?” She grabbed onto his arm and started looking him over.
The fact that she was more concerned with him, and not the fact that he just brought her back from the dead, was humbling. “Everything’s fine. He’s gone.”
“I’m fine too, thanks for asking.”
Ignoring Gemariah’s comment, she sighed and looked troubled. “Do you have an idea where to look for him next? Obviously he won’t come back here.”
“No, Trinity. He’s gone, as in never coming back.”
He watched as the information soaked in and she smiled. “You did it?”
Her joy was infectious and he nodded.
“Never had any doubt.”
He couldn’t hold back anymore. He laughed and leaned down to kiss her. He practically devoured her lips, but he couldn’t help himself. She was alive, and she was his. When he felt her fingers in his hair, he slanted his head and deepened the kiss, marveling in the fact that she was holding him in place.
Someone cleared their throat and successfully broke the spell they had been under. Slowly and reluctantly, he sat back up.
Tori knelt on the other side of her and eyed her skeptically. “What’s the last thing you remember?”
Trinity stared over their heads as if thinking. “Um, Azazel telling Seth to kill me. Dodged that bullet, huh?” As if an afterthought, she remembered who else had been at the clearing. “Seth! What happened to him? Did he get away?”
It was Gideon that ended up answering her. “He was handled and got what he deserved.” Malachi looked over and saw that he was stone faced. Gideon’s hatred for Masters was almost as much as his own.
“I completely agree, heads down. Hands down, I meant hands down.” Gemariah insincerely corrected his words.
The joke made everyone shake their heads at his audacity, but Malachi noticed one or two smirks. He had difficulty holding his own back as well.
“Can I get up?” Trinity’s words brought everyone back to the situation at hand.
“Sure.” Malachi jumped up and reached down to slowly help her up.
“Why am I on the ground anyway? What did I miss?”
Gemariah was on the other side of her, helping until she was steady. “Oh, there is so much, Little Sis.”
Obviously, she didn’t remember everything that had happened while she was gone. He hoped she still felt the same way. Turning her towards him, he enveloped her with his arms and held on tight. “What if I told you that something did happen to you, and the only way to save you was something kind of drastic?”
For a moment she looked worried. “Am I okay?”
He ran his fingers down her face and into her hair. Ever since she came back, he couldn’t help but continually touch her. “You’re perfect, just like you always have been.”
“Do I still get to be with you?”
“Always.” The moment the word came out of his mouth, he felt a tremendous amount of love, more than he could ever remember feeling before. It was then, he realized what was going on. He obviously felt his love for her, but the rest of it was coming from her.
“Then we will figure everything out together.” She pulled him down and brought their lips together again. Finally pulling away, she looked him in the eye. “I love you Malachi Starkman.”
He would never tire of hearing those words. “And I you”
Gemariah was standing back and watching everything unfold. He was happy for Malachi, he really was, but all the new information was a little jarring.
A soul mate? What did he want with one of those? He was having fun being with as many women as he could and didn’t want to be shackled to just one.
Even though he didn’t want her, the thought of her being tormented, because of him, didn’t sit well. Maybe he should just find her and stop whatever was going on, then he could go on his way. That was a plan, he thought. Maybe he would look into it.
He felt the presence before they made themselves known.
“I know you’re there.”
“So I am.”
Gemariah looked in the direction of the voice. “I thought you left.”
The angel that had “helped” them all, shrugged. “I wanted to talk to you.”
Raising an eyebrow, Gemariah waited for him to continue.
“I was wondering if you had heard anything on the whereabouts of Ramiel.”
“Why? Afraid he’ll come back and reclaim his position?”
The angel had the gall to laugh. “Not at all, but if he did, I would willingly step down.”
“Right.” Gemariah was doubtful. “Is that all?”
“Do you want some advice?”
He was not in the mood right now. “Not really.”
Ignoring his answer, the angel continued. “You need to focus more on the little things happening around you. Big things are coming and you need to be prepared.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Gemariah looked over, but he had already disappeared.
Big things…what big things? This couldn’t be good.