Gates of Paradise (a Blue Bloods Novel)

“LONDON EUSTON!” the loudspeaker blared.

“This is our stop—” Mimi said. She pushed her way through the crowd and waited for Danel on the platform. She looked around at the signs, for the one that would direct them to their next train.

Among the rush of commuters, jostled by the crowd, Mimi followed the herd toward the tunnels, and for a long time she didn’t notice him. When she did, she felt a shock to her system, as if an electric bolt had shot up her spine. Every nerve tingled at attention, and her whole body was alight with love and desire.

What? Did you call me?

Jack’s voice in her head was a distraction. An annoyance. What did he want? Then she realized—it was the bond between them. Even if it hadn’t been renewed in this lifetime, it was still there, a pulsing thread that kept them together. It had sparked because she had sparked with love, lust, longing.…

I’m fine. It’s nothing.

She kept staring at the boy across the station, across the platform, on the other side of the tracks. He was turned away from her, but she recognized his handsome profile immediately, and she could hear his roaring laughter above the noise. Every part of her body hungered for him. If only she could leap across the train tracks and land in his arms—she wanted nothing but to be with him—and yet—she couldn’t. She had to see this through. He couldn’t see her. Danel was with her. It was too dangerous.

What was he doing?

Now that the crowd had parted, she saw that Kingsley wasn’t alone at all. There was a girl with him. Correction. There were girls with him. Three of them. Passing a little flask around, giggling, and he had his arm slung over two of them so that the girls were pressing their bodies closely against his.

Okay, so it wasn’t like he was making out with them or anything, but Mimi felt enraged and hurt nonetheless. She was furious. She had spent so much time working to be good, and this was her reward. So she’d been right as usual: all this sacrificing and suffering was for naught. Kingsley had moved on, and their love meant nothing to him—just like before. But what did she think was going to happen? As far as Kingsley was concerned, they were over. She herself had ended it.

Why was it that they always had to start over? She had lost her soul to rescue him from Hell, and here he was…acting just like he always did, just as she had feared. What did she expect, really? For Kingsley to change?

“There you are.” Danel suddenly appeared by her side. “Our train leaves from the other side of the station.”

Mimi stared at Kingsley in disgust. When the girl next to him slipped a hand into the back pocket of his jeans, Mimi turned to Danel with a crazed look in her eyes.

She grabbed his hand and swung him in her direction. “Kiss me!” she hissed, pulling him to her. She threw herself on him, kissing him passionately, as if he were the one she loved with all of her heart and not the boy across the way.

The angel looked shocked at first, but soon he opened his mouth to hers, and Mimi could tell that he was enjoying it…a little too much. He put his arm around her waist, pulled her hips closer to his. Ugh. There was no question that he was definitely enjoying this. She had to make it stop before it went too far.

Repulsed, she opened her eyes.

Across the length of the station, Kingsley was staring straight at her. His dark eyes boring into hers. Did he recognize her under the illusion? Under the disguise? Did he know it was her? He stared at her and Mimi panicked.

She impulsively crafted a spell that caused the train that had just pulled into the station to speed up instead of slowing down, almost crashing into a few commuters waiting for its doors to open. Several people began to scream while others backed away nervously, and the station master ordered everyone to keep calm over the loudspeaker. Just the distraction she needed.

Mimi wrenched away and pushed Danel off of her.

He wiped his lips with his jacket sleeve, his eyes glazed. “Never knew that’s how you felt about me. I mean, Abbadon’s a friend, but we can work something out.…” he said.

“Shut up,” Mimi said, straining to see across the busy platform.

But Kingsley was gone.





SEVEN


Bliss


o what do we do now?” Ahramin asked, when nothing worked.

The passage wouldn’t open, no matter how much they tried. Bliss thought her head was going to spontaneously combust, and she wasn’t alone—the boys were massaging their temples too.

“This sucks,” Ahramin said. “We need a new plan.”

“We need to regroup,” Lawson said. “Since we’re back in Hunting Valley, then we should go find Arthur at the cave; maybe he can help us.” Arthur Beauchamp was their patron and their friend; the warlock was the one who had helped the wolves when they’d escaped from the underworld to live aboveground.