Fall From Grace (7 page)

“It’s okay, hon. You’ve had a rough time of
it.” He walked away and put the pan on the stovetop, bowing his
head. “I wasn’t there when you needed me.”

Her heart twisted. She wanted to run over,
hug him, and tell him it wasn’t his fault. “Don’t be so hard on
yourself. You didn’t choose to drink, Forras played a big—”

“It was me. Me and my grief. Forras might
have taken advantage, but it was me.” He unlaced the bow in the
back of his apron and made his way back to the table.

There was something still fragile about him.
His normal drill sergeant stance slouched to a weak boy. He wasn’t
strong enough, not yet. She needed to handle things, even if it
meant dropping out of school. If she did, she could train full
time, watch over her dad, and not worry about setting half the
school on fire because she had a PMS moment.

No, she needed to face facts; she’d never
have a normal life and get over it. “I’m fine, Dad. Just still feel
bad about ruining your homecoming.”

Dad stroked her hair. He hadn’t done that
since she was ten. “Gaby, everything is changing, and it isn’t your
fault. You have people all around that love you. We’ll be here to
help you through whatever happens. I know I gave up before and
wanted to leave here to be with your mother.” He cleared his
throat, and she saw a glimpse of pain in his eyes that he tried so
hard to hide. “I won’t leave you, I promise. I’ll stay here on
Earth and fight until we see this through. Gaby, I won’t let you
down again.”

“I know, Dad.” She leaned in to hug him and
he flinched. His brow rose and he stiffened, but she leaned in and
hugged him, acting as if she didn’t notice. But she did, she’d
become such a monster she scared her own father.

For once she missed her drill sergeant
father who dictated and took charge of everything. At only sixteen,
how was she going to save the world?

She pushed up from the table careful not to
show how unsteady she felt. “Gotta run, Dad. Don’t want to be late
for school.” Especially when she knew she had to resign. She’d go
back to homeschooling. Sammy would make a fuss when she found out
Gaby wouldn’t be a cheerleader anymore, but she’d have to deal.

“I’ll see you after school.” Gaby gave a
back handed wave and raced for the front door but paused.
“Dad?”

“Yes, dear.” His voice sounded forced but
she didn’t turn around knowing neither one of them wanted to make
eye contact. “It’s okay, Gaby. I promise. I’ll be fine. There isn’t
a drop of liquor in the house. Alexander saw to that yesterday.” He
chuckled.

She grabbed the door in hopes of escaping
the uncomfortable moment and was greeted with fresh, cool air. A
cold front had come through. Okay, well, a cool front. Only dropped
down to the mid-seventies, but hey, that was winter for Kemp.

Alexander was already waiting outside for
her.

“Why didn’t you come in?” Gaby scanned the
car, but Sammy wasn’t in it.

Alexander followed her gaze to the car.
“Sammy got a ride from Avery.”

“Avery?” Gaby clutched her purse
tighter.

“Relax. She wanted to get a sense of why
Avery oozed such desperation the other night.”

“Desperation?”

Alexander opened her door and she slid onto
the vinyl seat. Why did it always have to be about Avery Desoto?
She rolled the small strap from her purse between her fingers and
tried to embrace helping Alexander and Sammy figure out what was
going on with Avery. If she wanted to have the love of an angel,
she should have the heart of one first.

Alexander hopped in and started the car. “I
know how you feel about Avery, maybe it’s best we don’t talk about
it.”

“I’m not threatened by her. Go ahead.” Yeah,
right, Ms. Perfect. Still, she wasn’t going to show it. She
couldn’t bear to be seen as the jealous, out of control girlfriend
even if Avery was a boyfriend-stealing tramp. Okay, she’d have to
work on the angelic heart part.

“Yeah, I can tell.” Alexander smiled and
pointed at the death grip she had on her purse strap. She smoothed
it out, chastising herself.

It wasn’t just Avery eating at her though,
she needed to tell Alexander that she wouldn’t be riding to school
with him anymore, sneaking off for a kiss behind the stairwell, or
holding hands in the hall. Instead, she’d be home watching over her
father and training to fight demons.

Awkward silence filled the car as they
pulled into the parking lot. She spotted Sammy and Avery getting
out of Avery’s little Volkswagen convertible. She gripped the side
of the seat trying to hide the rising hatred that seemed to bubble
to the surface each time she spotted Avery.

Alexander swung into a parking spot, and
Gaby bolted from the car without another word. She caught a glimpse
of him as she raced by the front end, but she didn’t stop. If just
seeing Avery triggered some sort of anger, she wouldn’t take a
chance on being at school all day waiting for another attack, this
time she’d probably kill everyone inside the school.

She bolted through the side doors, took the
second hall to the left, and marched into Prim’s office.

“Principal Mastema, I’d like to resign from
school and go back to homeschooling.” Gaby blurted out before she
realized Prim was on the phone. She held up one finger then hung
up.

“Now, Ms. Moore, what is the emergency?”

Gaby drew in a jagged breath and braced
herself. “I need to resign from Kemp High School. I’m going to be
homeschooling again.”

“Ms. Moore, please have a seat.” Prim
gestured to one of the brown leather seats facing her desk. Gaby
plunked down into the overstuffed chair.

Prim took off her reading glasses and
smoothed back a stray piece of hair. Yep, she always was perfect,
prim and proper, just like her nickname. “I understand that you’ve
been going through a difficult time. You lost your mother a little
over a year ago and your father was in rehab—”

“How—”

“Please, Gaby. I know, but I didn’t report
it to social services because I knew you were in good hands with
Ms. Grace Lorre.”

Gaby pushed her palm against her right knee
trying to stop the wild tapping her heel was doing to the hard
tiled floor, echoing in the room. “I see. Well, this doesn’t change
anything. I’m going to fill out the paper work so that I may return
to handling my own education at home.”

“I’m afraid that wouldn’t be a good idea.
You see, I kept social services away while your dad was recovering,
but I won’t be able to keep it a secret that you resigned from
school.”

“I don’t understand. What does one have to
do with the other?” Gaby tried to connect the information but it
didn’t compute.

“Because, Ms. Moore, I have to file
paperwork letting the state know that you are returning to school
in your own home. This automatically dispatches a social worker to
evaluate your new learning environment, and I’m sure we both would
agree it wouldn’t be such a great idea having your dad interviewed
right now. He just returned from rehab and needs time to recuperate
before he is under any undue stress.

Gaby’s head swarmed with things to say but
she couldn’t grasp any of them. “But, Principal Mastema, I
can’t—”

“You can’t what?”

“Nothing, I-I’ll figure something else out.”
Gaby shoved from the chair and bolted for the door.

“Ms. Moore, please, I’d like to be here for
you. I know you don’t have a mother, and I understand how difficult
life can be at sixteen.”

“I’m fine.” Gaby pushed the glass door open
and hurried to her locker. She couldn’t stay in school and chance
hurting someone, but she couldn’t return home and cause her dad any
more stress. She reached her locker and tried to spin the lock but
her hands were shaking so bad she couldn’t stop it at the right
number.

Alexander sauntered up to her. “Gaby, what
is it? Why’d you run off like that?” His finger brushed lightly
against her temple as he pushed her hair behind her ear. “Talk to
me.”

The bell screeched, startling her back to
reality. She couldn’t tell him how scared she was. After all, she
was supposed to be the one to stop the angelic-demonic war before
it happened. How could she tell an angel, especially one she loved,
that she was a coward and wasn’t strong enough to be some sort of
warrior angel. God had made a mistake and even though her father
was a hunter and she knew how to handle guns, didn’t mean she could
handle the responsibility of being a walking time bomb that could
blow up, killing everyone she loved.

She had to figure out a way to protect
everyone not only from the demons, but from herself, too.

****

The hallways were packed with students
muttering about tests and parties. He scanned the long hall for a
glimpse of Gaby. He wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort
her, make her tell him what was going on. Every word came strained
and forced. She was so distant. Just yesterday, she couldn’t keep
her hands off him, begging him to be with her forever. Now, she was
a thousand miles away. Human emotions were so volatile, would he
ever completely understand her? Heck, he didn’t understand his own
occasional surges of hostility.

The hall cleared and he realized he was
about to get detention again for being tardy. He took a short cut
down the hall by The Prim’s office when he spotted Avery in her
office. She was slumped over, head in hands, and The Prim was
standing over her. A sense of fear and desperation filled him. He
pressed against the wall and peered around, trying to watch their
exchange without being noticed.

The Prim slammed her palm down on her desk
and Avery jumped. He couldn’t make out what she was saying even
with his angelic hearing. The fish tank, fax machine, and music
humming from the secretary’s computer, drowned out their
voices.

The glass door to her office swung open.

“And remember what you have to do to Gaby
Moore.”

Alexander froze. His blood ran cold. Do what
to Gaby? What was The Prim up to?

“I don’t—”

“You don’t have a choice, or I’ll make sure
you’re off the cheerleading squad for good.”

“No, I’ll—”

“Good, I’m glad we understand each
other.”

Terror radiated from Avery. What were they
talking about? Something wasn’t right. What was Avery suppose to do
to Gaby? His gut clenched tight in warning. He clutched the cool
cement wall and focused on The Prim but felt nothing. No anger,
resentment, or anxiety. Nothing. How could he not feel anything?
All humans emitted some sort of emotion. Unless, she wasn’t
human?

“Can I help you with something, Mr. Lorre?”
The Prim’s voice echoed down the white hall.

Strong, smoldering weed smelling perfume
nearly made him choke. Perhaps she used it to stifle her demon
scent. He had to clutch the rough material of his jeans to prevent
from holding his nose. Slowly, he turned to find The Prim with
hands on hips. “I was just headed to class.”

“Did you not hear the bell, Mr. Lorre?
You’re late. Again.” Now she stood with arms crossed, eye to eye
with him. He couldn’t help but glance down at her four-inch heels,
making her nearly six feet tall. Part of her power trip maybe?

“Yes, I heard the bell. It’s just that—”

“What Mr. Lorre?”

He mentally slapped himself upside the head.
Snap out of it.
“I’m not feeling so well, I texted my mother
and told her I’d be heading home.”

“I hope it’s nothing serious.” Sarcasm
dripped from her voice.

“Nah, probably just ate something bad.”
Alexander drew his hand to his stomach for added emphasis. He
needed to get home and tell Grace about Prim, but he couldn’t leave
Gaby here if Prim was a demon. If only their ability to communicate
had grown stronger. He would have been able to tell her the trouble
from where he stood, but she was too far away.

The Prim waved a hand toward the end of the
hall. “I’ll walk you to the door.”

Dang, he needed to protect Gaby, but there
was no way to change his story now without drawing more suspicion.
Hopefully, if Prim was a demon, she was still trying to figure out
who possessed the power to stop the war. Grace, he had to talk this
out with her.

He shuffled to the exit, all the while
trying to get a sense of whom or what the principal was.

“I hope you feel better soon. Maybe you
should take a couple of days. We wouldn’t want another flu epidemic
hitting the school.”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.” He slid his hand in
his jean pocket to retrieve his cell phone.

“Oh, and Mr. Lorre, I’d appreciate it if you
didn’t lurk around my office anymore.”

The door clicked shut from behind before he
could respond. A chilly breeze shot through his body to his bones
as if an angel carried a warning on the wind.

With eyes closed, he concentrated on warning
Sammy and Boon, but there was no response.

He pulled his sleek black phone from his
pocket and bolted to his car. His thumbs pressed so hard against
the display he thought he’d break it, but he continued his mad
texting to Boon. He knew cell reception was spotty in the school,
but he had to try. Then he sent Sammy a text, warning her to stay
close to Gaby.

The engine revved loudly in the silent
parking lot, and he paused, gripping the steering wheel. Did he
dare leave her alone in that school with a possible demon? What
choice did he have? He couldn’t go back in and say he felt better.
It would be too suspicious.

His phone buzzed at his side, and to his
relief, Boon texted back he’d keep an eye on Gaby. If anyone could
handle things, it was Boon. He’d fill him in more after school, but
for now he needed to talk to Grace.

The gravel spun up under his tires as he
pulled out onto Old Highway Nine. Not too many cars on the road
during the day so he sped home in a matter of minutes. The thought
of leaving Gaby behind still gnawed at him.