Eden (5 page)

Knowing that even if I did come to
understand, I would never agree, I nodded. The expression on Eli’s
face told me that he was aware of my feelings, and he appreciated
that I was willing to let him move forward.

A new level of intensity weighed on
everyone—everyone but Eli, who seemed impervious. Michael’s chest
heaved as he readied himself to make his case and avenge Isaac’s
death. As Michael took a step forward, his small army lifted the
cloaks from their faces. I shouldn’t have been, but I was
surprised. I expected them all to look like Michael: Dark eyes and
hair. Instead they more closely resembled Claire. A few of them
looked upon me with curiosity, others with disdain, but mostly they
seemed to be there out of duty and not personal reasons. That logic
went against why Claire and Samuel appeared so uneasy.

Eli spoke. “Michael….”

“
Isaac had no choice!” he
said. “He was important. He was given gifts unlike any Half-Breed.
The choices of his Taleh do not justify his death!”

Eli nodded. “Jared….”

Jared showed no emotion. “The choices
of our Talehs never justify our deaths, but it is the duty and
curse that we must accept to be obedient.”

Michael shifted his weight. “What do
you know about duty, Half-Breed?”

Blood rushed to my cheeks. “How dare
you,” I seethed.

“
Nina,” Jared
warned.

“
Your son—the one with
such gifts—was also half human. I suppose since Jared doesn’t
support his Taleh living a life of crime and serving a demon, he
doesn’t take his duty seriously?” I said, my temper temporarily
removing any thoughts of my own safety.

A deep line formed between Michael’s
brow, and his eyes glistened with anger. “My son was not as
fortunate as Gabe’s. He accepted his fate and made the best of it.
We cannot interfere with the free will of humans. It is against His
will.”

“
So is serving the other
side,” I grumbled.

“
Nina!” Jared
growled.

Michael jerked forward, and arms burst
from the long, black sleeves of cloaks behind him as hands held him
at bay. Simultaneously, Samuel angled his body toward Jared in a
protective stance. He didn’t crouch, as I had seen Claire do so
many times before when she protected me. Samuel would not fight his
brothers, but he wouldn’t allow them to harm us.

Claire leaned against my arm, and
whispered in my ear. “Shut up, stupid. You’re not
helping.”

“
She should not speak
here!” Michael said, jerking away from his allies.

“
Enough,” Eli said, his
voice calm and even. “Nina’s fate is affected. She is allowed an
argument,” he said, looking to me. “Your thoughts have been
considered. That will be all.”

For the first time, I didn’t feel
Eli’s bias. I nodded quickly, showing my obedience with a small
step back.

“
Claire….” Eli said,
moving the trial forward.

“
The truth is, Isaac and
Donovan were working with Shax, and they were there to kill Nina,
in effect to kill Jared,” she said in her no-nonsense way. “Eli, it
was going to be Donovan or Nina. Isaac or Jared. If you ask me, the
best man won.”

Her words stung Michael, but he didn’t
argue.

Eli’s eyes scanned the looming angels
behind Michael. “Do any of your supporters wish to enter
opinion?”

Michael shook his head. “It is my
claim.”

“
And what exactly is your
claim?” Bex asked.

Michael’s eyes narrowed, staring
directly at Jared’s younger brother. “That he murdered my
son.”

Claire took a step forward. “Your son
murdered Nina’s father.”

When recognition hit that Claire was
speaking of my father, my knees buckled, and Jared tightened his
grip to keep me on my feet.

“
W-What?” I said, my voice
barely a whisper.

Jared leaned into my cheek, his nose
grazing my ear. “Donovan shot your father. Isaac was with
him.”

My eyes widened, focusing on Michael.
“You want to blame Gabe and Jared? You come here, interrupt our
wedding day, yell at me, accuse us of murder, and your son was an
accessory to the cause of all of this?”

Michael’s dark eyes darted from me to
Eli.

Eli shrugged. “She has a
point.”

Michael’s jaw dropped. “Isaac did not
to deserve to die. He was a good son. He accepted the curse and
honored his duties.”

“
Michael,” Samuel said in
his deep, firm voice.

Michael stepped toward Eli. “Gabriel’s
son should be punished! He allowed his Taleh to kill my son!
Rebecca’s son!”

Eli looked to the ground in thought.
“Rebecca was unhappy with Isaac’s choices, was she not?”

Michael’s eyes flickered to each of
us. “I demand Jared be punished for taking Isaac’s
life.”

Samuel spoke again.
“Michael….”

“
Jared should be killed,
and leave his Taleh to the savages,” Michael said, pointing to
Jared.

“
Michael…” Samuel
repeated, this time with a low growl.

“
An eye for an eye, Eli! I
demand it!” Michael said, his fists balled at his sides.

“
MICHAEL!” Samuel boomed.
The earth trembled when he spoke, and my hands flew to my
ears.

Eli watched the interaction between
Samuel and Michael for a moment, and then spoke. “Okay. All right.
I’ve heard enough from each side. Only one argument
remains.”

We all looked to one another,
wondering who was left.

“
My apologies,” a warm
voice spoke. It was a voice I hadn’t heard in a long time. A voice
from my childhood.

Jared’s hand was still in mine, and
the moment the voice could be heard, his hand went limp. “Dad?” he
said.

I turned, seeing Gabe Ryel at the top
of the chapel’s rock steps. He looked exactly as I remembered him:
tall, his blond hair and piercing, ice-blue eyes glowing even from
several feet away. A flash broke from the crowd and up the steps,
and in the next moment, Claire was in her father’s arms, sobbing
uncontrollably. She pressed her cheek against his chest, whispering
something I couldn’t understand. Gabe bowed his head, spoke
something back, and then he kissed his daughter’s forehead. They
descended the stairs together, and approached Bex.

Gabe offered a small smile to his
youngest son, who fell against him with a clap.

My mouth fell open, and I immediately
searched Jared’s face for a reaction. There was none.

Gabe’s expression turned remorseful.
“I’m sorry for your son, Michael. You and I are in unique
positions…to know love for a child. You and I agree that if we
could change the outcome, we would make it so.”

Eli reached out to Gabe. “It’s
important to remember that it is in the height of adversary that we
must come together. Michael, you’ve lost your son. Your widow has
now lost her husband and her son. It is unfortunate.”

Michael bowed his head.

Gabe approached Michael, pulling him
into his arms. “We need you on our side, Brother.”

Michael shrugged out of his
grasp.

“
Eli?” Michael
pleaded.

Eli offered a small, comforting smile.
“You already know the answer.”

Michael shot an accusing glare at
Jared.

Jared’s brows pulled in. “I didn’t
want Isaac to die, Michael. I swear to you, I wish it hadn’t
happened.

“
Very well, then.” He
gestured to the cloaked angels, and they all disappeared into the
darkness.

Eli clapped his hands together, lacing
his fingers together. “Impeccable timing, as always,
Gabriel.”

Gabe nodded. His eyes paused on me for
a moment before fixing on Jared. “This isn’t your fault,
Jared.”

Jared didn’t speak. His face tense,
his dark eyes meeting the eyes of his father, he was paralyzed. The
scene brought back memories of the moment I saw my father for the
last time, and I ached for Jared. He would have to say goodbye a
second time.

“
Jared,” Gabe began, “it’s
not your fault. You’ve done everything right.”

Jared’s head dipped slightly as he
attempted a nod.

“
Son….” Gabe cupped both
of his hands on Jared’s shoulders. “I’m proud of you.”

Jared choked, and his body gave way,
allowing him to fall against his father. I covered my mouth,
unaccustomed to seeing Jared relinquish control of his emotions.
They embraced, and Jared’s knuckles turned white as he held Gabe in
his arms. When Gabe released him, Jared used his thumb and index
finger to make a quick swipe of his wet eyes.

“
It’s good to see you
again, Dad,” Jared said with a weak smile.

Gabe beamed. “You’ve done well, Son.
You’ve done well.”

“
I’ve tried,” Jared said,
relieved at his father’s words. He took my hand, then. “You
remember Nina.”

Gabe leaned down and kissed my
hairline. “Of course.”

Eli walked up the steps, watching with
amusement as Claire and Bex crowded their father.
“Gabriel….”

“
I know,” he said, seeming
a bit sad. “One more thing,” he said. He wrapped his arms around
Bex and Claire again, and then followed Eli through the double
wooden doors, down the aisle of the chapel. Lillian was still
frozen. The same sweet, small smile on her face hadn’t moved a
centimeter.

Gabriel kneeled before her. He noticed
her folded hands in her lap, and tenderly covered hers with his.
“She is as beautiful as the day I first saw her,” he smiled. With
two fingers, he brushed her cheekbone, and then leaned in to kiss
her lips. His mouth lingered on hers for a few moments, and he
closed his eyes, taking in his last moment with his
wife.

Claire wiped a stray tear from her
cheek, but her cheeks were glistening with preceding tears.
“Eli…”

“
I’m sorry, no,” Eli
said.

“
We’re already pushing the
rules allowing Nina to be animated, not to mention allowing me to
be here at all,” Gabriel said. His eyes didn’t stray from Lillian’s
delicate face.

“
Not unlike hacking into
dreams to get your point across….” Eli said, looking away in
dramatic fashion.

“
The dreams,” I said. The
moment I spoke, I wished I hadn’t. Bothering Gabe while he spent
his last moments with his wife was ridiculously selfish.
Regardless, Gabe touched Lillian’s lips to his once more, and then
stood to face me.

“
Yes, the dreams,” Gabe
sighed.

I hesitated, and then decided to ask,
anyway. “Why did you come to me in the dream if there was nothing
in the book to help us?”

Gabe looked to the floor, and then to
Jared. “At first, we were hoping you wouldn’t go right along with
the prophecy and get pregnant the first chance that presented
itself.”

A flush of red lit my cheeks, and
Jared cleared his throat. “That’s not exactly how it happened,
Dad.”

Gabe gave a quick nod. “You have the
book?”

“
Yes,” Jared
said.

“
Now that you have it,
it’s safe to say that it would behoove you to help the Pollocks
replace it. One less thing to worry about, wouldn’t you
agree?”

Jared frowned. “But…if it puts us in
danger, why did you take it from the Pollocks to begin
with?”

“
Answers. Jack knew the
moment she was born she was in danger of being the woman in the
prophecy. When you fell in love with her, Son, we knew it was a
matter of when, not if. We were fighting time and fate…an
impossible task. Still, Jack loved his daughter, and he wanted to
do everything in his power to try to keep her from that path. We
knew there was a chance the book could help us find a loophole, so
we took it.”

In frustration, Jared shifted his
weight. “But…by the time you came to Nina in the dreams, you knew
there was no loophole. Why did you put her through that? Why the
theatrics? Do you have any idea what she’s been through? What I
went through?”

“
To get your attention. We
were desperate to find a way to stop you from commencing the
prophecy.”

“
By then it was too late,”
Bex inserted.

“
Obviously,” Claire
grumbled.

Gabe shook his head. “Not quite. She
still had time.”

I looked around the room. “Where is
Samuel?”

Claire shoved her hands into her
jacket pockets. She wore sweats, her gathered gray pants pushed up
to just below her knees, and a matching hooded jacket over a ratty
white tank top. She had been summoned unexpectedly. “Babysitting
Ryan until I get back. Now that the trial is over, he’s
vulnerable.”

“
Is he okay?” I
asked.

She nodded. “Kim goes home tomorrow.
Father Francis is in stable condition, but he will be in traction
for a while.”

Bex frowned. “That should have never
happened. Clergy should have more protection than that.”