Falling (The Falling Angels Saga) (10 page)

“Let’s go mountain climbing,” Guy said as his Mustang escaped the student parking lot. We bounced out onto the street and headed toward Glendale Avenue.

“What?” I started laughing. I couldn’t help myself. The request was so out of left field it caught me off guard. “That’s the last thing I’d expect from a guy who just enticed his girlfriend to ditch school for the rest of the day.” Laughter continued spilling out of me. “Besides, I think I left my mountain climbing gear at home. Let me look in my bag to see if I brought it with me.” I started rummaging around in my bag, giggling the entire time.

“All right, all right! I was trying to come up with something interesting to do that would take your mind off of things.”

“Nope! No mountain-climbing gear. Sorry.” I snapped shut my bag and looked over at him. By now there were tears in my eyes. “Maybe we should go scuba diving instead,” I said, starting off another laughing jag.

“Are you finished?” Guy said. He was smiling, but I don’t think he was enjoying it as much as I was.

“Almost.” I tried to stop, but then I pictured Guy and me on the top of a mountain, dressed as we were, and high-pitched giggles spilled from my lips.

Guy continued to drive, that smile brightening his face. He looked over at me every few minutes and was greeted by another burst of laughter. After several minutes, I took a few deep breaths and got myself under control.

“There,” I said breathily. “I’m done.” I reached across and mussed his hair. “I love you.” That was as unexpected as the mountain climbing remark, but I was enjoying myself so much, it slipped out.

“I can tell,” he said. His eyes were still on the road, but they were shining. “Like the queen loves the court jester.”

I smiled and ran my fingers through his hair again, this time straightening it. “That laugh was just what I needed.”

A look of pride came over him. It was a smile, but more than a smile. He was pleased to see he’d taken me out of my funk. “Let me rephrase what I said earlier… at the risk of more humiliation. I thought we’d drive up to Camelback and hike one of the trails. I figured the activity would be different enough to get your mind off of things.”

“Oh,” I said, my lips forming a mock pout. “You mean we’re not going mountain climbing?” He shot me an exasperated look, and I burst into laughter all over again.

*

We drove to the Camelback Recreation Area near Arcadia, a neighborhood in Phoenix. We parked in the lot nearest the hiking trail and approached the base of the trail. I noticed the slight limp Guy had displayed upon his return was now totally gone. He was walking just fine. Guy was his old, limber self again.

By now the sun was shining brightly, although it was cooler here than in Glendale. Still, when we reached the foot of the trail, all I could think was that I’d be a sweaty mess in fifteen or twenty minutes. Not very sexy, especially when my hiking partner was a gorgeous angel who probably didn’t even have sweat glands.

“It looks steep,” I said, raising my doubts.

“Looks are deceiving,” Guy replied. He took my hand. “We’ll go slow.”

There were steps at the trailhead made from sawed-off railroad ties that up-sloped gently into the mountain. The steps were lined with large rocks. From what I could see, it was uphill all the way. I got tired just looking at the road ahead.
Ugh!

We started up cautiously. There was very little vegetation on the mountain, just scrub brush that had muscled its way through the greasewood and dead mesquite that comprised the barren landscape. As we walked, a calmness drifted over me and settled like a veil. Guy was right. Being on the mountain not only took my mind away, it also relaxed me.

We walked in silence. It was a weekday, so there weren’t many hikers. We only passed a few coming down. A short time later, two men in their twenties, in sweat pants and cut off tees, jogged past us heading up. Aside from them, we were alone with nature.

Before long, despite our snail’s pace, I realized we’d gone pretty far. The steps came to an end but the uphill trail didn’t. We continued on, picking our way between large red rocks that dotted the trail. I was perspiring, but not as badly as I had envisioned. Guy didn’t seem to mind, so neither did I. We continued walking and holding hands. The air seemed thinner. Perhaps it was all in my mind, but after a while, I felt I needed to take a break.

“I need to catch my breath,” I said.

“Righteeo,” Guy replied. “Let’s sit on that boulder over there,” he said, pointing.

We moved to a cluster of large boulders alongside the trail. It was the perfect spot for a break. From where we sat, we looked down into the valley stretched out below us. I couldn’t believe we’d come so far. The view of Phoenix spread out below was spectacular.

“I’m getting hungry,” I said, realizing my stomach was grumbling.

“It’s not even ten thirty!” Guy said in mock outrage.

“Tell that to my stomach.”

Guy laughed then, laid back on the boulder, his head pointing toward the heavens. He was as breathtaking as the view.

My mind wandered to thoughts of a future with Guy. What would that be like? He didn’t eat. He didn’t drink. He probably didn’t age. When I was thirty would he still look eighteen?

“I love it up here,” he said, disrupting my thoughts. His eyes were closed. He breathed in the fresh mountain air.

“You’ve been up here before?”

“Many times. Whenever I need to think or work through a problem, I come here. It’s peaceful.”

“Angels don’t have problems,” I said with a small laugh.

“I do.” He looked at me. I tried not to stare into his dreamy eyes for fear I’d get lost in them. I focused on his nose. “Remember the day you said you needed a timeout? I came here.”

A wave of guilt settled over me. I had insisted on that timeout, and it led to Guy being captured and nearly destroyed by Beelzebub. “I’m… sorry.” The words struggled from my lips.

He saw the change in me and sat up. “You were right to ask for a timeout.”

“But it nearly cost you your existence.”

“That wasn’t your fault. Remember when you said my not telling you about Rocky was the same as a lie? A lie of omission, you called it.”

“I can’t believe I said that. I was very emotional that day.”

“You were right to be emotional.” He reached out, wanting my hand. I gave it to him, and he squeezed gently. “I know you think my being captured was your fault. But it wasn’t.”

I shook my head vehemently. “It was a stupid, childish thing to say. I just felt so blindsided.”

He smiled. It was an indulgent smile. “You
were
blindsided. I was being a coward and you caught me. I didn’t want to tell you about Rocky because I knew it would upset you, and I didn’t want to deal with you being upset until I was ready. Don’t blame yourself. It’s all on me.” He squeezed my hand again. “Okay?”

“Sure,” I said, although I knew there was no way I’d allow him to shoulder the blame for being captured by Beelzebub and nearly being destroyed. “Let’s go,” I said. I was more anxious to end the conversation than I was to continue the hike. The conversation was starting to bring me down. I didn’t want to think about nearly losing Guy, or my role in it.

He clutched my hand, and we continued uphill for several minutes, the grade of the slope getting steeper as we went. We rounded a bend. I was starting to think it was time to turn around and go have some lunch. A lone hiker was coming down the slope toward us. When I saw him, I stopped walking, jerking Guy to a stop along with me. I recognized the cinched hoodie and large dark glasses that did their best to hide the repulsive face of the man coming toward us. It was Orthon.

A pang of guilt ripped through me. It was as if my two lovers were about to come face to face for the first time. The guilt made no sense, since I had no feelings for Orthon.

At first Guy didn’t know why I’d stopped. He looked into my eyes and then at Orthon on the trail up ahead and quickly put two and two together. Anger rose on his beautiful face. Anger can make some people look like monsters, but Guy looked even more gorgeous. His skin grew taught and white, like fine porcelain china. His eyes grew wide with rage.

“YOU!” he screamed, shattering the silence. He rushed toward Orthon, moving so quickly it was practically in the blink of an eye.

“No, Guy!” I called.

He reached Orthon, corralled him in his arms and picked him up. I was stunned by his incredible strength. He held Orthon as if he were a small child.

“Don’t!” Orthon cried out, his voice coarse like sandpaper. His arms were pinned to his sides. He squirmed in Guy’s grasp.

Guy moved to the edge of the cliff where, before I knew what he was going to do, he threw Orthon over, down into a ravine. Orthon cried out as he fell, his diminishing cry sounding like an old Bugs Bunny cartoon.
AAAaaaaah!

His body hit the rocks below with crunching thuds that ripped through the ravine as he pinballed off the rocks. And then—silence. My stomach began to churn, bile bubbling up into my throat as I wondered if Guy had killed him. Yes, I know demons can’t die, but he’d fallen so far and landed so violently, my mind automatically went to the worst.

“What did you do?” I called, the bile stinging the back of my throat. My head was spinning. I staggered forward.

Guy had been peering down into the ravine, admiring his handiwork. He now gazed over his shoulder at me, his eyes still black with rage. He was standing at the precipice of the cliff. He shrugged, as if to imply he had no choice in the matter, then he turned and leaped off the cliff, following Orthon down.

I reached the edge and peered down into the ravine, my eyes narrowing at the jagged rocks below, my gaze frantically bouncing along the canyon floor. My heart thumped in my chest, feeling as though someone were hammering against my ribcage from the outside, trying to bring me back to life.

I had died. The moment Guy leapt off the cliff I ceased to exist, and now my dying heart was trying to come back to life.

I saw them. They had both landed on a wide flat ledge about thirty feet below where I stood. Guy was now shirtless, standing opposite Orthon, his chiseled body and white angel wings gleaming in the sunlight. I knew Guy was an angel, but until then I hadn’t thought about his wings. The moment I saw both Guy and Orthon below, I breathed. I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath until then, and now fresh air came whooshing in in hungry gulps.

Orthon hadn’t been injured in the fall, although his clothing was ripped and covered with red clay. He was now standing, facing Guy. His hood was down away from his face, his shades were gone. His lizard-like complexion and bald head glistened in the sunlight like snakeskin. His crimson eyes flared at Guy. Both he and Guy were holding large boulders above their heads, about to hurl them at one another.

“Stop it!” I screamed, fearing for both of them. “Guy, what are you doing?” I hollered down. “Someone will see you like that. And then what will we say?” That seemed to do the trick. Both Guy and Orthon realized they were exposed.

Orthon lowered his rock first, but wouldn’t put it down. “I come in peace,” he called up to me, his eyes never leaving Guy. “I have important information,” he continued. “Tell the angel to put the rock down.”

“She does not command me!” Guy bellowed. He jabbed the rock menacingly at Orthon, who didn’t flinch.

“Guy, please. Put the rock down. And do something with your wings!”

He gazed up at me. Upon seeing the concern scrawled across my face, his wings retracted. He turned his attention back to Orthon. “What information do you have?” he inquired, lowering the rock.

“It’s for Megan’s ears, not yours, angel,” Orthon replied, the word
angel
laced with disgust. He gazed up at me. “We need to talk,” he called.

Butterflies swarmed in my stomach. A chill tracked up both my arms.
Does Orthon want to declare his love for me in front of Guy?
That thought didn’t linger as a darker, more sinister thought took hold.
Satan has sent him to deliver a message?
Guy had said Satan would try other ways to get to me. I was certain that’s what it had to be, and equally certain the contents of the message would send my life spiraling in a new direction.

“Fine. I’m hungry. Let’s find a place that serves food. We can talk there,” I called back, doing my best not to let my concern shine through.

“Wait!” Guy called. “He is a demon. I do not trust him.”

“But I do,” I called back. I shot him my sweetest smile. He heaved an exasperated sigh. It wasn’t that I trusted Orthon, but I trusted him enough to believe he didn’t wish me any harm.
Don’t shoot the messenger.

There was a food truck not far from the entrance to the parking lot. I ordered a breakfast burrito and a soft drink. Guy and Orthon didn’t order. I was again reminded that neither angels nor demons eat or drink. I again wondered what my life would be like after we were married.
At least I wouldn’t have to worry about burning dinner.

Orthon was once again covered up. His hoodie had been torn in the fall, and the right lens of his dark glasses was cracked. We moved to a picnic table where I sat and began unwrapping my burrito.

Orthon sat across from me. His eyes were drinking me in as if I was something precious. I glanced at Guy, who remained standing, his arms folded across his chest, a scowl frozen on his face. He didn’t notice the way Orthon was looking at me. Good. The last thing I needed was for Orthon’s feelings for me to become an issue.

A lie of omission.

“Start talking, demon,” Guy commanded.

Orthon wouldn’t look at him. I saw pain flash onto his face at the mention of the word
demon
. I recalled how I’d used the word to torture him. I no longer wanted him to feel tortured. I felt ashamed of how I had once behaved toward him.

“It’s okay, Orthon,” I said softly. “What’s up?”

He smiled over at me. I could still see the lingering pain from Guy’s remark peeking through. “The local Satanists have a new leader. Someone from out of town.”