Darkness Wanes (28 page)

The angel holding a limp Lorna opened the portal in the sky. I couldn’t help thinking there would be no way—if I ever had such an inclination—to break into Heaven. They’d chosen this entry location well.

We flew into the opening and zoomed through another tunnel, except this one was filled with light so glaring that it had me clenching my eyes shut. It only lasted a few seconds before we reached the other side. Remiel set me down, and I cautiously lifted my lids.

Holy crap, we were standing on an endless landscape of clouds. I took a few steps and felt the ground squish underneath my shoes—and not because they’d gotten soaked. A sense of peace bombarded my senses, unlike anything I’d ever felt before. It relieved my tension and gave me hope that everything would work out. It wasn’t magic. More like something built into the very structure of the place, which made it difficult to think clearly.

Lucas moved to stand next to me. “Annoying, isn’t it?”

“Are you kidding? It feels amazing,” I said, spinning around with my arms held out wide. I felt like a kid again, full of wonder and happiness. Even the sky above us was a perfect shade of blue that made me want to burst into song and dance.

That’s rather unlike me,
I thought. I wasn’t the musical type.

“It must be my parentage that allows me to block the sensations.” He stared down at me, his gaze somewhat amused. “I should let you revel in that, but I believe in fair play. You must push the peaceful feelings aside if you are to make your arguments to the council. It will not be as bad inside the courthouse, but it would be best to clear your head now.”

Oh, right. I’d forgotten all about my purpose for coming to this place. I wasn’t here to get high off of some kind of heavenly mojo, no matter how good it felt. I gritted my teeth and made myself think about Yerik and Ariel, their faces appearing in my mind. It helped that the air here had a surprisingly high oxygen content so I could breathe deeply and regain my proper focus. After a few moments, I’d formed a shield against the peaceful waves flowing around me.

I glanced over to my left and found the female angel kneeling over Lorna, who lay on a puffy bit of cloud. The older sensor’s skin was bright red, and she gasped for air. From portal to portal, the trip had taken about five or six minutes. I’d been so distracted by the new sensations around me I’d forgotten all about Lorna. Guilt rushed through me, and I hurried over.

“How is she?” I asked, kneeling next to her.

“She will need a few minutes, but I believe she will recover with no lasting effects,” the angel answered.

“Maybe it will help if I give her another dose of my blood,” I said, hating to see Lorna suffer. Her eyes were closed and she clutched at her chest as if it pained her.

Remiel hovered over us. “Such an act would be a desecration to this holy place.”

“We are not actually in Heaven here.” Lucas glared at the archangel. “We are outside the gates. Is it truly necessary to let her suffer?”

“Nevertheless, we are close enough that I cannot allow it. She will recover soon enough, as you can see.” Remiel gestured toward Lorna.

I returned my gaze to her and discovered she did seem to be breathing easier. Even her sunburn was beginning to fade. I could only guess that she’d needed to get enough oxygen in her first before her enhanced immune system could kick into gear. With every breath, her body relaxed, and after a few more moments she opened her eyes.

“My, this was not how I expected my first experience in Heaven to go, but the part about being surrounded by angels is about right,” she said, her voice weak but clear.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

She braced her hands next to her and sat up slowly. “Better than before. Is it me or is it rather peaceful here?”

“Do not allow it to cloud your judgment,” Lucas warned.

The female angel took Lorna’s hand, kindness in her eyes. “I am sorry for any discomfort our travels may have caused you.”

“I knew what I risked, and you did all you could for me. Do not apologize.” She squeezed the angel’s hand.

“You’re a better person than me,” I said, taking Lorna from the other side so we could help her stand. “Do you think you can walk yet?”

She leaned against me. “I need a moment. This place is a lot to take in at once.”

“Why is there such a rich amount of oxygen here?” I asked Remiel. That was bugging me since usually only angels and human souls would reside here, neither of which needed it.

He gave me an amused look. “It helps to promote purity and peace among our kind. We may not need it, but it does give us strength of spirit.”

“And yet you don’t bother with it in Purgatory—because
that
makes so much sense. No wonder the guardians are always in such a foul mood.” I wagged my finger at him.

His expression turned stoic. “There is a reason for everything, even if you do not understand it. The guardians have a different mission from the one we have here.”

“I almost want to feel sorry for them—almost.”

Lorna cleared her throat. “I’m ready.”

We stood by and watched as she took her first steps with the angel’s help. She was slow but surefooted. We followed behind her across the cloudy plain until a large building appeared up ahead. It was pearly white with tall columns surrounding it similar to ancient Roman architecture.

The courthouse Lucas rarely spoke about had a sense of importance as one might expect. It wasn’t very large, but butterflies fluttered in my stomach as we got closer. What had I gotten myself into this time? Could I really convince the archangel council to do as I asked, and was it worth it to drag Lorna into this?

Chapter Twenty-three

Melena

Remiel took the lead up a short set of stairs. Once we stepped inside, my eyes rounded. The place was disproportionately larger than what I’d seen from the outside. Despite my abilities, I couldn’t make any sense of how that worked.

We passed through a wide corridor running the length of the building, through a set of open double doors, and into a cavernous room. The walls and floors were carved from Carrara marble, and the ceiling must have been three stories high. The place lacked any hint of color—only white and a faint blue-gray mix. Whatever peace I felt before fled in the face of such intimidating brightness. It was almost as if the room was designed to make insignificant people like me feel small.

Remiel pointed to a stone bench at the center of the room. It was the only place to sit, except for a wide marble table twenty feet across from it where several archangels waited. They didn’t move or show any signs of emotion on their faces. Two of them were men and one a woman. Now that I’d gotten here, I wasn’t certain whether all the pleading in the world would win them over. They sure didn’t look all that sympathetic, and my senses didn’t detect any feelings coming from them. I was tempted to tap my head like a microphone to see if my abilities still worked.

Lucas, Lorna, and I took a seat on the bench with me in the middle. I’d expected it to be cold, but the marble was surprisingly warm. Lorna and I cast nervous glances at each other. The archangels might not have had any emotions coming from them, but ours came through just fine. Except Lucas, who sat stiff as a board and stared dead ahead.

“I shall introduce the other members of the council who will be hearing your petition today.” Remiel gestured at the three archangels, starting with the one on the far left. “The first is Zadkiel. The female next to him is Azrael, and the member on the right is Gabriel. Along with myself, they will be deciding whether the sentence for Yerik of Mesopotamia should be commuted.”

Each of the archangels dipped their chins in acknowledgment. As with all of their kind, they had an overwhelming presence, and a soft light glowed around them. Zadkiel had long blond hair down to his shoulders and fair skin with golden undertones. There was a hint of kindness in his eyes when our gazes met. Azrael had black hair she’d pulled back in a bun and beautiful ebony skin. She folded her hands in front of her on the table in a gesture I hoped meant she was open to my cause. Gabriel sat completely stoic. He had medium-length brown hair and golden-tan skin. His gaze stared straight ahead with no indication of what he thought of our presence. Maybe I should have brought some cookies to help perk them up.

I leaned toward Lucas and whispered, “Why did they say Yerik of
Mesopotamia
? Don’t they usually give you old folks a town for your designation?”

He frowned at me. “Old folks?”

“You know what I mean.” Yerik had been born about five thousand years ago, which counted as really old to me.

Lucas let out a sigh. “Neither of Yerik’s parents were human. Even he is uncertain of his true place of birth, but the man and woman who raised him were farmers in what was once known as Mesopotamia. It was decided long ago that he would use a general location for his place of origin.”

I tried to imagine Yerik growing up. His adopted parents must have had an exciting time raising a half-demon, half-angel child on a farm. One had to wonder if his magical talents developed at an early age or if they’d been suppressed the way Lucas’ and Micah’s had until they got older.

“Have you met them before?” I nodded toward the archangel council.

“All except Gabriel.” Lucas stiffened. “From what I understand, he usually doesn’t bother with dealings of this nature. I am rather surprised he is here today.”

The archangel in question turned his head and lifted a brow. “For you, Lucas of Pistiros, I would not have come. It is your mate and the reputation she has developed among our brethren that brings me.”

If he’d come out of the woodwork for my petition, that had to be a good sign. I bumped Lucas in the arm. “You’re so gonna lose this battle.”

“We shall see, sensor.”

It might have been my imagination, but I could have sworn Azrael’s lips twitched. That gave me hope. Maybe I just needed to be myself and pull at their emotions to get them to listen to my arguments. I’d had worse plans.

“I assume each of you wish to speak today?” Remiel asked.

“Yes,” Lucas and I both said at the same time.

Lorna cleared her throat. “I do as well, though I’d prefer to go last.”

She was doing better, but she probably wanted a little more time to collect herself. Since I was the one who’d pushed for the petition in the first place, it was up to me to begin. Not to mention Lucas wasn’t exactly jumping up to speak. He probably wanted to hear my arguments first and then use them against me. Damn the man.

“I’ll go first,” I said.

Remiel dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “Very well.”

I waited until he’d taken his seat at the table before getting up and moving toward the council. It was more than a little nerve-wracking, having four archangels staring at me. The closer I walked toward them, the more their ethereal presences bombarded my senses. I pushed through the pressure in my head and gathered my thoughts. If I was going to make this happen, I needed to give the best speech of my life. Too bad my oratory skills didn’t match my ability to shoot bad guys.

I stopped five feet from the table and lifted my chin. “I’m not going to pretend Yerik of Mesopotamia is going to win best man of the year anytime soon. He can be rather eccentric and domineering, which is no surprise given his heritage, but the one thing I can say about him is that everything he does is with his whole heart. The way he loves this woman,” I paused and gestured at Lorna, “and his willingness to stay by her side no matter what is a prime example.”

When I’d met Lorna, she’d been an elderly lady in her seventies who expected to die soon. Neither her aging appearance nor the fact she wasn’t long for this world, had made Yerik leave. I’d sensed his total love and devotion toward her. If nothing else, that earned my respect.

“There is also the matter of his son—known as Tormod—who Yerik rescued because of his dying mate’s wish. I cannot begin to imagine why the nerou were taken from their families.” I took a deep breath and reminded myself not to antagonize the people I needed to win over. “But I think the noblest act any supernatural has made in modern history is to do whatever it took to free those innocent children.”

Gabriel leaned forward in his seat. “This includes breaking the mandate that supernaturals must not reveal themselves to the mortal world?”

“Yes,” I said, voice resolute. “With all of your resources, I am sure you know humans were catching on anyway and that the ruse could not continue. The modern world has few places to hide with cameras and satellites watching everything now.” From what I understood, the angels had been working overtime to cover up various incidents worldwide. There was a certain point where it wasn’t worth the trouble anymore.

Gabriel’s eyes hardened. “Be that as it may, it was not their decision to make.”

“No offense, but time probably doesn’t pass the same way for you. My entire life is a mere blink in your long existence.” Even my senses couldn’t determine the age of an archangel—only that it was too long to calculate. “Those of us born into this era have a better understanding of how it works and how modern people think.”