Angel Incarnate: Second Sight (28 page)

Chapter 43

While their husbands
left to meet with the High Council, Eve and Angie finished the funeral
preparations for Gregory Godwin. When everything was finished, they went to New
York to advise Andromeda about the service the next afternoon, and to try to
coax her into spending the night in Aeden. Eve knew she would refuse because of
the students, but she did allow Matthew to accompany Willow.

Paul and Adam stopped
in Savannah first to meet with the other members of the Guild before leaving
for the assembly hall.
 
Their meeting was
brief. After informing the Council about the recent deaths, Samhael’s visit to
the farm, and the pentagon marks burned into the skin of the Chastains, Paul
showed them the bracelet.

Uriel didn’t seem
surprised to see the relic; he suspected Lucifer took it off Laelah’s person
before he was banished. The ebony eyes proved the fallen angel had tampered
with the protective spell he placed on the charm.

The Council decided the
bracelet should be taken back to Aeden. They were convinced someone was feeding
information to Lucifer, and hoped if the jewel was openly displayed at Aura’s
home; it might draw out the new owner.

There was always a
chance Samhael might make another attempt to retrieve I, but they were
confident the girl’s powers would keep them safe.

 
Paul didn’t like putting his family at risk,
but Michael was unyielding, so he had no choice but to consent.

By the time they
returned to Aeden, Aura had cleaned up the dining room, and the children were
playing in a bubble bath.

Willow and Matthew were
already there. Paul took note the nine-year-old boy didn’t seem too broken up
about his father’s death.
 
He did,
however, ask to accompany the group when they went to Utopia.

At first, Paul was
going to object, but after seeing a frown on Eve’s face, he changed his mind.

“We’ll be meeting with
the Governor, “Adam said. “It’s important all of you stay together.”

“Don’t worry, we need
to talk to Joshua and Will,” Rita said. “Jess and I will keep the kids with
us.”

Paul’s brow wrinkled
and he placed a firm grip on his daughter’s shoulder. “If this is about
Richard, I’ve told you to let that matter drop.
 
We have no proof he was involved with Gregory’s death.”

Rita gave a
half-hearted shrug. “I’m not accusing anyone, but it can’t hurt to ask about
Richard’s whereabouts this morning. Don’t worry, Dad – I’ll be discreet.”

Willow startled
giggling, and even Matthew forced a smile. Rita usually attacked a problem
head-on; discreet wasn’t something in her vocabulary.

“What – I know how to
be tactful; unless he pushes my buttons.”

“It doesn’t take much
to push your buttons,” Jessica mumbled.

“You always have
something funny to say. You should have been a comedian. Maybe I’ll let you ask
the questions. I’m sure Joshua will tell you everything you want to know.”

“Nah—comedians live out
of a suitcase. They couldn’t pay me enough money to do that.”

Jess could detect a
hint of sarcasm in Rita’s tone, but she decided to just let it go. Since Matt
was Willow’s best friend, they owed it to him to try to find out who poisoned
his father; if for no other reason, than to allow Andromeda to forgive herself
for wanting Gregory out of the way.

After grabbing jackets
for the two kids, Rita threw a wool cloak to Jessica and kept another for
herself.
 
Adam had made the temperatures
mild for the wedding, but it was nearing the end of October and the weather
would be much colder in Europe.

As soon as they were
outfitted, Paul and Adam kissed their wives goodbye, and then walked the
children outside where the portal took them to Utopia.

Though most of the
smoke was gone, there was still a faint odor in the air when they arrived in
the village square.

Willow and Matt
immediately crinkled their noses.
 
“What
is that god-awful smell?” she said, using her shirt sleeve to cover her
nose.
 

Paul’s brow furrowed as
his eyes turned towards the woods.
Hell-fire
…
What happened here?
 
Looking around, he noticed no one was
sitting at the outdoor cafes; the streets were empty, and the shops all closed
up tight.

He called to a man
stepping out of the barbershop.
 
“Where
is everyone?”

“There was a fire here
this morning. The smoke was so bad, you could barely breathe. Most of us closed
our businesses and the governor has called a special summit at the justice
hall.

“We’d better follow him
and find out what Henry knows,” Adam whispered to Paul. “Did you notice
anything familiar about the odor?”

Yes, but I hope we’re wrong.
 
“Alright kids, stay together,” Paul warned. “Until we find out about
this mysterious fire, I don’t want you going anywhere without Adam, or myself.”

Willow grabbed Matt’s
hand and they walked next to Paul and Adam; Rita and Jessica stayed a few steps
behind.

The freestanding
edifice stood a few hundred yards past the village on the opposing side of the Governor’s
estate. Corinthian-styled stone columns flanked the wide marble steps that led
to the twelve foot mahogany entrance doors.
 

The hall, measuring one
hundred feet wide, by two hundred feet in length, could easily accommodate the
residents who resided in the European colony.

Inside, white,
linen-covered tables seating a dozen men and women were arranged in two rows.
In front was a dais with a long table, where the governor and his assembly
gathered to address the large group.
 
Along the walls, sideboards were piled with fresh fruit, pastries and
assorted drinks.

“It looks like they’re
having a party instead of a meeting,” Matt whispered to Willow.

Jessica spotted Will
and Joshua at a table on the left. Thankfully, they were not sitting with
Meredith. She was in the front, along with Nathali and Desiree, but Richard was
noticeably absent.

Joshua nudged Will in
the side as soon as he saw the girls. They were wearing blue jeans, plaid
shirts and combat boots; a far cry from the gowns they had on at the wedding.
He motioned for them to take the empty chairs at their table, unable to mask
the huge grin on his face.

“I wonder where Richard
is,” Jess whispered to Rita, as she took a seat across from the Governor’s
youngest son.

“Let’s listen to what
Henry has to say, and then we’ll ask the boys if they’ve seen him.

There was a lot of
chattering in the room, and Henry started banging a gavel on the table, trying
to calm everyone so the meeting could begin. “Please, take your seats so we can
call this summit to order.”

Paul took a seat near
Meredith. When she looked up at him, he wiggled his eyebrows as a good-natured
gesture.

Refusing to acknowledge
him, Meredith’s nostril’s flared and her lips tightened in annoyance. Her chair
toppled to the floor as she moved hurriedly to the opposite side of the room,
with Nathali and Desiree following behind like well-trained puppets.

Adam, who was laughing
out loud at Meredith’s childish behavior, righted the chair, and then sat down,
turning once to wink at the Baroness.

Henry cleared his
throat once more, trying to ignore his wife’s rudeness, and finally, the room
fell into a hushed silence.

“Most of you – no, I’m
sure all of you, realize there was a fire in the woods this morning and with
the smoke, a sickening stench filled the air. After a lot of discussion, we
have concluded that the fire was intended to prevent us from identifying a
group of dead bodies. Everyone who resides in Utopia has been accounted for,
except my son Richard, who left this morning to take care of some business, and
Caspian, and Axel, who are… Well, they are on a mission for the Guild. Paul and
Adam are here; perhaps they can shed more light on what happened.”

“Did you hear that?”
Jessica whispered to Rita. “Richard has been gone since this morning.”

“Yeah – I wonder if his
business involved killing Gregory Godwin,” Rita said.

“Gregory is dead?”
Joshua asked. “When did this happen?”

“He collapsed outside
the academy just a few hours ago.”

“Does my father know
about this?”

“No – we were coming to
tell him. That’s when we learned you had a fire here. Have you seen your
brother, Richard?” Rita asked.

“No – he supposedly
left early for a business meeting. What does he have to do with Gregory?”

“Andromeda said her
husband came to Utopia to meet with Richard. Just before he died, he tried to
tell me something. All I made out was “rich.” I think he was trying to tell me
your brother was involved, but I don’t have any proof. I was hoping to speak
with him, but he’s not here. How long do his business meetings usually last?”

“It’s hard to say with
him. I try to avoid my brother whenever possible,” Joshua said. Will gave a
slight nod of his head as he watched Paul and Adam walk to the front of the
room, and turn to face the audience. “Your father is going to speak; we should
hear listen to what he has to say.”

“Most of you are aware
there have been some angel-blood deaths recently,” Paul said. “Regrettably,
another of our friends was killed this morning. Felled by poison, Gregory
Godwin died a few hours ago outside the entrance to his school.”

“My son is at the
Academy,” one of the women screamed. Several of the other women wanted to know
what the Guild was doing to protect their children.

Paul glanced at Adam
before speaking to the crowd. “We don’t believe the students are in any danger.
The school sits on hallowed ground.”

“Hallowed ground didn’t
protect the administrator,” she replied.

She stood to address
the other mothers. “We don’t know what we’re dealing with. If the school is so
safe, then why is Gregory’s son with them?” She pointed a finger to
Matthew.
  

Sneering at Paul,
Meredith decided to add her two cents. “Gregory Godwin was a good and kind man.
I certainly hope whoever was responsible for his death will be found and
punished severely.”

“He couldn’t have been
too good a man if he was Richard’s friend,” Willow mumbled.

“What did you say?
Impertinent child -- how dare you talk about my son when he isn’t here to
defend himself,” Meredith shouted.

“You leave her alone,”
Matt yelled. “You don’t know anything about my father. You think he was so
good, maybe you should have seen him belittle my mother until she broke down in
tears!”

Willow grabbed Matt’s
hands and gave it a gentle squeeze. Rita handed him a napkin to wipe away the
tears which were sliding down his reddened cheeks.

“So where is your
eldest son?” Willow asked as she walked from table to table. “Maybe I’m blind,
but I don’t see Richard in this room. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that
Andromeda mentioned Gregory was meeting with him this morning.”

Meredith jerked her
head towards her husband. “Henry – are you going to just stand there and allow
this brat to insult our son?”

“Who are you calling a
brat?” Willow asked, pushing and shoving her way through the audience. Rita
tried to grab her goddaughter’s shoulders when she walked by, but Willow
twisted her body, breaking free of her grasp, and was soon standing defiantly
in front of the governor’s wife.

Matt felt the hair lift
on his arms and nape of his neck. “Do you think Meredith will hit her?” he
whispered.

“Willow can take care
of herself. Maybe Meredith will go for another swim in the fountain,” Rita
said, as she glared at Henry’s wife.

Meredith raised her
hand with visions of slapping the girl, when someone grabbed her wrist.

Speaking between
clenched teeth, Nathali tried to reason with her grandmother. “Don’t be a fool;
have you forgotten how powerful she is? Willow is Rita’s goddaughter. What do
you think she’ll do if you attack her?”

“I want this- this-
child out of here now,” Meredith bellowed to Henry. “We have never allowed
children to attend our meetings. Just because she is the daughter of a Guild
member, is no reason for her to receive special privileges,” she hissed.

“Unfortunately, you
don’t make the rules,” Willow sneered. “I’m here to make sure nothing happens
to my friend Matt. If you have a problem with that, then I suggest you take it
up with my grandfather. You may remember him; he’s Raphael -- one of the
archangels. I don’t think he’d be too happy about some wanna- be Baroness
bullying his only granddaughter.”

The sound of snickering
could be heard coming from Rita.
That’s
my girl. You don’t have to take crap from that beast.

Meredith’s eyes
squinted as she glared at the nine-year-old girl. Despite her anger, she held
her tongue.
I’m not going to get into a
pissing contest with you now. But mark my words, you’ll pay for that.