“I wanted it all to end…I wanted to go home to Paradise, but it never happened. And I saw you…and I watched you…and I knew—we’re the same, you and I. We’re both caught in the wheel and it just spins.”
Another violent crack of thunder rumbles around us, shaking the foundation of the carriage house. I shudder at the sound right before a high-powered beam of light comes through the ceiling and strikes me where I lay in Reed’s arms. It’s so bright, but it has no heat. My eyes roll back in my head…and I know. I have clarity, and with it savage fear blankets me. I can never beat Emil the way things are. I’ll be destined to be his slave in every future lifetime. I exist only to fight him, but he has all the weapons save one—love.
I can stop fighting Emil anytime. I can give up and remain in Paradise. But, if I don’t live another lifetime and defeat Emil, I’ll never be with Xavier again. If I don’t come back, there is no purpose in having a guardian angel. He will be taken from me. This is the price to be with my Angel—horrific death over and over and over… The light ends. Everything is darker in its absence, especially the knowledge that it left behind.
I glance at Reed. This Power angel has attempted to save me, even at his own peril. He would change my destiny, just because he couldn’t tolerate one more moment of Emil hurting me. Divine angels will be here soon with only vengeance to impart to Reed. He won’t survive it. He’s broken the law by saving me! Sheol will have its revenge on him for what he’s done to Emil. He will never see Paradise again. He’ll cease to be!
I unthread my fingers from Reed’s. Gripping his wing, my hand curls around a silky, gray feather. I tear it from him, clutching it in my fist. “I’ll come back for you, Reed. I’ll meet you in my next life. I swear it. Wait for me! I won’t let them hurt you!”
Reed caresses my swollen cheek and murmurs, “You can’t save me.”
“I will save you,” I promise him. “You will go home one day!”
Angels ride in on the storm swirling outside. Entering from above, they crash through the ceiling, the windows, and the door. A swarm of them hover in the air in the center of the room. Black wings of Thrones and bold blue wings of Cherubim flail around us. Reed eases me off of his lap and settles me beside him against the rough wood planks of the wall. The moment he lets go of me, two Cherubim with lion-like features swoop down upon him and tear Reed away into the air. He’s flown into the center of the carriage house. He goes willingly, accepting his fate. A Cherub with golden hair emerges from the crowd.
The cat-like eyes of the Cherub stare at Reed as he speaks in Angel, “Are you responsible for the death of this human?” He indicates Emil’s broken body on the cobbled stone beneath them.
“I am,” Reed admits.
“You have violated Angel law.”
“I have.”
“The penalty of that is death. This is not unknown to you.”
“I understand the consequences of my actions.”
“Why would you surrender your life so foolishly?”
“Was it foolish to intervene? I don’t see it anymore.” His eyes hold centuries of weariness. “I’m divine. It’s my duty to fight Sheol…and they’re winning. You need only step outside to know that. Innocence is slaughtered in the most horrific ways imaginable.”
“You cannot change the laws!”
“Why not? What are they for if they don’t protect the innocent?”
“All you have done is create a debt to iniquity!”
“That’s not all I’ve done. I gave Simone a few lasts breaths of peace in this world.”
“Why would you do that? She was dying anyway! She was going home.”
“I’ve watched her as I’ve stalked my prey—Byzantyne—his evil guardian angel.” Reed gestures toward Emil’s lifeless body. “She’s worth saving. This world needs her. My only regret is that I failed! I’m too late.”
“Why would you keep her here? Why would you change her destiny?”
Reed hesitates. He looks in my direction. His jaw sets. “I…needed her here.”
“You needed…you love the soul?” The Cherub asks incredulously. “You wanted her to stay with you!”
“Love? What do I know of love? I’m merely a Power, isn’t that right?” Reed asks. His eyebrows draw together. “But I’d gladly give up my life to save her an instant of pain. So you tell me, what is that?”
“Not your job.”
“It should be.”
“A payment to Sheol must be rendered for this divine breech of Angel law. You will pay the debt when the Thermopylae delegates arrive. We will end you in front of them.” Reed is stoic, accepting his fate and facing death as if it were a foregone conclusion. Divine angels swarm him, preparing to tear him apart the moment the order is given. He glances in my direction once more. Our eyes lock on one another’s.
I raise Reed’s crushed, gray feather into the air. With my dying breath, I utter a single word in Angel, “Champion.”