Horizon, Soul Guardians Book 3 (24 page)

Kara remembered the demon lord’s wails
the first time she had thought she had vanquished him. She had been
horrified to learn later, that he had not been destroyed—but simply
returned to his demon realm. Perhaps the demon lord couldn’t be
killed.

“
So … is Asmodeus gone
forever? Is he finally dead?”

The Chief picked at some food in his
teeth. “He appears to be. Yes, my dear. I believe we have seen the
last of him.”

It was the good news she’d been
waiting to hear. She let herself sink deeper into the soft sofa and
tried to relax.

“
Then the mortal world will
be safe, won’t it? If Asmodeus is no longer there to lead the
demons, won’t they simply disappear? They’ll be scattered,
leaderless … and much easier to kill. The mortals will have a demon
free world, right?”

“
I’m afraid it’s not that
simple.” The Chief shoved a slice of pizza in his mouth, and washed
it down with a drink. “Pizza?” He handed her the open cardboard box
with the juicy pizza inside.

“
Ah—no, thanks. What do you
mean?”

The old man placed the box on the seat
next to him and clasped his hands in his lap. “Where there is
light, there will always be darkness. And where there is good, evil
will always linger nearby.”

Kara screwed up her face. “I don’t get
it. What are you saying?”

“
There will always be
demons, Kara. Just as there will always be angels. Even with
Asmodeus’s demise, the mortal world will not be safe forever. Soon
another angel will fall under the temptation of power, and will
want to rule Earth or Horizon. It might be millennia before we know
of another demon leader’s claim, or it might be in two weeks. We
just don’t know. And the process will start all over
again.”

Kara sat back and processed the
information. What the Chief said made sense. At least for now, the
mortal world and Horizon were safe.

“
Kara. I asked you here for
a reason. I have a proposition for you.”

Kara looked into the Chief’s clear
blue eyes. “What’s your proposition?” She couldn’t think of
anything. Was he going to send her off on a secret
mission?

The Chief ate another onion ring, and
Kara couldn’t help but stare at his protruding belly. “As you know,
I have a few … vacancies in the archangel department.”

Kara sat up straight. She wasn’t
entirely sure she heard him correctly.

“
I’m offering you a chance
to be an archangel.” The Chief regarded Kara with such intense
delight that she figured he was sure she was going to accept. She
almost thought about it seriously for a moment. But she knew she
couldn’t. This wasn’t for her.

“
You have something
different to offer, and your youth will be a healthy change for the
government.” The Chief’s smile broadened and Kara noticed two small
dimples below his cheeks. “I believe you would make a great new
addition to the council. What do you say, eh?”

His words spun in Kara’s head. David’s
face appeared in her mind’s eye. How she missed him. Horizon just
wasn’t the same without him. She looked up and met the Chief’s
eyes. What was she to say? How could anyone refuse? But she heard
the words in her head before she could actually utter
them.

The Chief seemed to be reading her
thoughts again. “You are unhappy here, aren’t you? I can sense the
suffering in your soul, Kara.” He placed a hand on her shoulder and
squeezed gently. His kind eyes searched her face.

“
I’m … I’m sorry—I can’t
accept.” Kara didn’t know what else to say. She felt
terrible.

“
Well then. You give me no
choice.” The Chief bounced up from the couch. He seemed
surprisingly light on his feet for someone so large around the
middle. He grabbed a glass of tan liquid and drank the entire
contents in one large gulp.

Kara brushed the hair from her eyes.
“I beg your pardon?”

“
I said … you give me no
choice. You give me no choice
but
to offer you something in return. I need to thank
you somehow. You have saved my kingdoms—now I will grant you a
wish.”

Kara stared at him bewildered. “A
wish? Are you serious?” He didn’t resemble a jinni at all. Maybe
Santa could grant wishes too.

“
Of course I’m serious, my
dear girl. Ask, and it shall be yours.”

“
Anything?” said Kara to no
one in particular.

“
Yes,” answered the Chief.
“I will grant you anything you wish for.”

And so Kara smiled for the first time
in days.

Chapter 20

A new beginning

R
obins chirped and flew in the warm May breezes. Flocks of
them fluttered and swooped down onto a manicured lawn. With their
red bellies exposed they stood straight and proud. A male robin
with his vibrant colors jumped suddenly and poked his beak into the
ground. With sharp pulls, the robin yanked a large brown worm from
beneath thick layers of grass and swallowed it whole.

Kara smiled. She knew that seeing
robins was a sign that summer was near. And that also meant school
was nearly over. She could finally concentrate fully on her
presentation package for the Dawson College art program that
started in the fall. Her work needed to be outstanding to qualify
for the program. They accepted only the best, and Kara believed
that she was one of them. Her high school teachers had praised her
strange demonic-looking paintings. They told her she had raw
talent, and they believed she had a real chance to be
accepted.

Kara breathed in the fresh warm air
through her bedroom window. A few clouds peppered the blue sky.
Kara imagined them to be great big eagles chasing each other across
the sky.

The robins fluttered away. A young
couple walked up the street holding hands. They kissed and the girl
giggled excitedly. Kara watched them with longing in her heart.
They were disgustingly happy in love. It oozed off them as they
stared into each other’s eyes. Her ache deepened. How she wished it
were her. Although she was seventeen now, she was still
unmistakably single. She wished to find that special someone some
day, hopefully before she turned forty. She watched the young
couple disappear around the corner.

Kara let out a long sigh.
She wouldn’t let her feelings get in the way of this perfect day.
She’d have tomorrow to feel sorry for herself, she decided. Kara
laughed. It was a beautiful day; a perfect day to spend outside on
a park bench and read a great book. Saturdays were ideal for going
down to the used bookstore she loved. She thought maybe a nice book
on birds would do—or maybe that hardcover edition of
The Wizard of Oz
she’d
been dying to get a hold of.

But that wasn’t the only
reason she wanted to go to the bookstore. She needed a job. She had
to save money to go to college, and she figured she might as well
get a job she’d enjoy. Besides, she practically lived at that
bookstore; it was like a second home to her. And Mr. Patterson had
kindly insinuated that he needed help the other day. Kara decided
that
she
would be
the one to help.

She pushed off the window-sill and
skipped over to her closet. She pulled open the doors and poked her
head in.

“
Mom! Where’s my black
shirt!” yelled Kara from inside her closet. “I can’t find it
anywhere? You said you washed it.”

“
It’s in the dryer,” Kara
heard her mother’s muffled voice coming from the
kitchen.

After a few minutes of rummaging
through the dryer, Kara pulled out her favorite black v-neck
t-shirt. It was more like dark grey now, she realized, but she
didn’t care. It was the most comfortable shirt she owned. She
covered her face in it and sniffed. She smiled. It smelled like
lavender. She pulled the shirt over her head and dashed towards the
kitchen.

Her mother stood by the sink. She
stared out the window while she did the dishes. Her face looked
peaceful. Her large brown eyes sparkled, and somehow she looked
younger. Maybe it was the way the sun illuminated her face. It must
be that.

On her tip-toes, she leaned over and
kissed her mother on the cheek. “I’ll see you later. Gotta go.”
Kara sprinted out of the kitchen and headed towards the front
door.

Her mother turned. “What? Where are
you going?” Greasy water dripped from her hands on the black and
white linoleum floors. “Will you be back for supper, Kara?” She
called and wiped her hands on her jeans.

Kara pulled open the front door. “I
don’t know. Going to the bookstore. Love ya!” she called back, and
closed the door behind her.

She flew down the two flights of
stairs, through a small dingy lobby, and finally out through the
apartment building’s front door. Glad to be out of the stinky
cigarette smell from the lobby, Kara breathed in the sweet aroma of
the two lilac trees that stood by her building. The deep purple
blooms gave off a rich sent. She would cut a few branches for her
mom when she got back. They were her mother’s favorite. Warm air
brushed her cheeks. She breathed it all in.

Kara strolled down the sidewalk and
crossed to Saint-Marc Street. Shoppers already scurried up the
street with large bags dangling from their arms. Everywhere she
looked shops lined the streets. Green, red, blue, and yellow doors
stood ajar, inviting the curious shoppers in. Paul’s Pet Shop came
into view, and Kara stopped to admire the golden retriever puppies
in the bay window. As usual, the window next to it demanded her
attention.

The large metal cage took up the
entire bay window. Inside the cage was a small brown monkey with a
shriveled black face like a dried plum. It was the same monkey
she’d passed everyday on her way to school, and on her way to the
bookstore. His yellow eyes always gave her the creeps. It was as
though he was trying to communicate something to her. The monkey
was the owner’s pet, and everyday he would place the cage in one of
the two bay windows at the front of the shop. Strangely enough, the
monkey would spend the day making obscene gestures to the
passersby. At first, Kara thought he was cute and friendly, so she
had poked her fingers through the bars to pet him—and had yanked
them back quickly—after he had bitten them. She never cared for him
since.

And now he climbed up the walls of his
metal prison and pushed his face between the metal bars, screeching
at Kara, demanding her attention once again.

“
What is it with you and
your bad attitude?” said Kara to the monkey. “You know, if you
tried to be a little nicer, I might give you some chips.” Kara
tapped her front pocket.

The monkey’s wet yellow eyes glared at
her. He squished his little face into a scowl. He pursed his
lips—and spit.

Kara stepped out of the way. The spit
splashed onto the sidewalk. Kara laughed. She had recognized his
spit-face, since he had spit on her before. She had told herself
then that she would never let him do that to her again. Now she had
been prepared. Soon, she would get him back.

“
You see? Now why did you
go and do that? You nasty little bugger.” The monkey seemed angry
that he had missed her and started to howl and rattle his
cage.

Crazy beast, Kara smiled as she passed
by his cage, ignoring his wild tantrums.

The smell of burning
incense filled her nose. Kara looked to a great red door that was
kept open by a tall stack of books. A peeling wooden sign with
painted red letters read,
Old Jim’s
Bookstore
—her new employer.

With a grin Kara leaped onto the
street, her eyes glued on the bookstore, and ran into
someone.

She jumped back and yelped in
surprise. She looked up. A handsome young man stared back at her.
He had disheveled blonde hair, a gorgeous face and strong square
jaw. A brown leather jacket covered his strong shoulders. He wore a
pair of shabby blue jeans with a white t-shirt. His was fit, an
athlete, Kara thought. He regarded her with piercing blue eyes, the
kind that forced Kara to look away.

“
Sorry,” said the stranger
with an amused grin. “Didn’t see you there.”

Kara’s heart caught in her throat.
Where had she heard that voice before? Her eyes went to his face
again. Goose bumps spread over her entire body. She started to
shake. That face looked familiar to her. Who was he? She couldn’t
stop staring, and when the stranger smiled at her, she looked away
abashed. Her cheeks burned. She knew she was blushing.

“
Do I know you?” The
stranger took a step forward. “You look really familiar. Have we
met?”

Kara’s jaw was glued shut. She
couldn’t speak. Her skin tingled.

Kara stared into the face of the young
man she had just met, but somehow she felt she’d known him all her
life. It was as if he had come from another life at a different
time. She felt the blood rush to her face again, but she didn’t
care. She couldn’t keep her eyes off him. She couldn’t understand
what was happening.

“
How can I forget such a
babe?” The stranger raked his fingers through his hair. “Man, this
is going to sound really weird … but … I feel as if I know you.
I’ve seen your face before. But it feels like more than that—like
I’ve known you all my life.” He scratched the back of his neck and
laughed softly. Color flushed his cheeks. “Whoa. I sound
crazy.”