No Angel (19 page)

“She’s right.” Krystal’s fingers dug into my arm. “Even if she’s lying about everything else. Which . . . I’m not so sure about.”

“I never lie, Miss Moon. Now come, Faith.”

Faith hesitated, caught between us and her mother in an agony of indecision. “I don’t—I can’t—I don’t know what to believe! How am I supposed to know what to do?”

“Simple, my daughter.” The Headmistress held out her hand. “You must decide if you trust me.”

Chapter 31

A
ll hell had broken loose. Girls crowded in the narrow corridor, fighting to get through to the notice board. Screams of excitement mingled with heartbroken sobs.

The Ball list had gone up.

“For God’s sake.” Krystal flattened against the wall to avoid getting squashed as yet another tear-stricken girl fled the scene of her humiliation. Krystal wasn’t even trying to get a look at the list herself. She knew full well her Peer Assessment results had her in last place. “You’d think it was the end of the world.”

“It might very well be,” I said grimly. Averaging about a foot taller than the rest of my year meant I had a clear view of the top of the notice board, even from back here. “Look.”

MASKED BALL PARTNER LIST (GIRLS)

1.
FAITH JONES
—
Billy-Bob

Faith had just finished writing his name next to her own. I tried to push through to her, but before I could get more than three steps she’d seen me. Her blonde hair flashed as she turned and fled in the opposite direction, the crowd parting before her like water.

Someone’s elbow caught me hard in the ribs. “That’s what you get for sucking up to that conceited cow,” Suzanne spat as she shoved her way past. “How does it feel to be rejected, Rafael?”

“You tell me,” I called after her. “Who’s
your
date, Suzanne?” She made an obscene gesture at me as she stalked away.

“Wow, it’s a good thing the demon Prince needs a nephilim to possess,” Krystal murmured, eyeing Suzanne’s retreating back. “If anything even vaguely male-shaped and unattached turns up at the Ball, Suzanne will jump on him without question. Along with half the year group, by the looks of things.”

“Well, he
has
got a nephil.” Both my stomach and my fists clenched as I read the list one last time, confirming that this wasn’t some horrible nightmare. “I can’t believe Faith fell for her mother’s blatant lies.”

Krystal was silent for a moment, her mouth set in that particular stubborn line that I’d come to learn meant she was deep in thought. Then she tugged on my sleeve, pulling me away from the crowd. Finding an empty classroom, she pushed me inside and shut the door behind us. “Not that that’s likely to do anything to stop eavesdropping demons,” she muttered, glancing at it. She shook her head, turning back to me. “Raf, there’s a hole in the Headmistress’s story.”

I snorted. “Just one?”

“Yes, just one. You may not like her explanations, but at least they’re consistent. Except for one thing. Michaela didn’t know you were a nephil, right?”

I blinked at the sudden swerve in topic. “Right. So?”

“So that means Gabriel didn’t tell the Order. In fact, he didn’t say
anything
to them about a second nephil. And the Headmistress told us that he intended to use Faith and an angel to close the Hellgate. Not two nephilim.”

“I still don’t see where this is going, Krystal.”

Krystal tugged on her hair in agitation. “I don’t know how much I dare say out loud. Not after what the Headmistress said about the other demons always listening. Raf, we have no hints that Gabriel even suspected you existed.
So why are you here?
”

“Because you—” I stopped dead.

I was here because Krystal had summoned me. Using a charm from the last entry in Gabriel Dante’s notebooks. An entry that he couldn’t have written.

And there was only one person who could have planted that information in the notebooks that she knew her daughter was studying.

From Krystal’s expression of relief, she’d seen that I’d followed her train of thought. “Someone wanted you here,” she whispered, barely moving her lips. “Someone wants you to do something.” She pointed significantly at the floor. “And that someone couldn’t just come out and tell us.”

I stared downward myself, imagining unseen demonic forms lurking on the flip side of the world. If the Headmistress really was a traitor to Hell, she’d have to be incredibly careful about what she said. She’d have to appear to be telling us to do what Hell wanted, while actually giving us clues to the real plan.

Faith needs only to be united with a suitable partner.

And I heard again the angel’s silence-filled voice:
The greatest light is love. If two become one, the darkness will be lifted.

“Krystal,” I said, matching her hushed tones. “The Headmistress said I might corrupt the light, that I’m not as pure as Faith.”

“But you know you wouldn’t.” Krystal squeezed my hand briefly. “
I
know you wouldn’t. I trust you, Raf. And I don’t think I’m the only one.”

I paced a few steps, my mind reeling as everything fit into place. The Headmistress
did
mean for me and Faith to close the Hellgate with our united light. The only problem was . . . “Do you think Faith has worked any of this out?”

Krystal winced. “I don’t know. She’s not talking to me either.” She blew out her breath. “I hope that the Headmistress is right, and Faith
will
be able to recognize that ‘Billy-Bob’ is actually the demon Prince when she meets him.”

“You do realize that we’re staking the fate of the world on Faith’s observational skills and common sense, right?”

Krystal groaned. “Oh, God. Raf, we’re in deep trouble.”

“Hey, Raffi!” Debbie poked her head around the door. From her ear-to-ear grin, I guessed she at least had a date for the Ball. “Hiding out? Good plan. You are gonna get ripped to
shreds
.”

For a heart-stopping moment, I thought she meant that the demons were after us. Then I realized Debbie had no idea what was really going on. “Huh? What do you mean?”

“Haven’t you seen the list?” She winked at me. “Open season just got declared.”

Krystal and I exchanged puzzled glances as Debbie withdrew again. “It’s a bit clearer,” Krystal said, leaning out to check the corridor. “Let’s go see what she was talking about.”

I felt like I had even more of a target painted on my back than usual as we stepped out into the corridor. The girls still lingering nearby were pinning me with identical stares of desperate hope. And as I got close enough to read the
other
notice on the board, I realized why.

MASKED BALL PARTNER LIST (BOYS)

1.
RAFAEL ANGELOS
—

That was all that was printed on the notice. Krystal and I both stared at the empty space next to my name.

“Do you think I can pick whoever I want?” I said slowly.

Chapter 32

I
t’s not much of a costume,” Lydie said dubiously. She eyed a nearby group of sixth-year girls, glorious in white party dresses and feathered wings. The courtyard outside the chapel had been hung with hundreds of fairy lights, so that the milling girls seemed to waft through a star-filled night. “Everyone else’s is much better.”

“Hey, it’s the best I could do.” The theme of the Masked Ball was “Heaven and Hell.” The Headmistress had a
terrible
sense of humor. “It wasn’t like demon costumes form a big part of my daily wardrobe.” I could have done a really
excellent
angel, but of course boys had to be the bad guys. I was making do with my regular all-black school uniform, minus the jacket and tie, and accessorized with Krystal’s old pentagram charm and some other bits of occult jewelry my girls had managed to scrounge up. “Tell everyone thanks for finding this stuff.”

Lydie nodded, dropping her gaze as if having suddenly found something fascinating about the flagstones. “We studied medieval tournaments last year in History,” she said, apparently at utter random. “Did you know, if a lady really liked a knight, she’d give him a token, like a scarf or something, for him to wear. It was called a ‘favor.’ It was to bring him good luck in battle.” She thrust something out at arm’s length. “Um. Here. I made you this. For your costume.”

The homemade devil’s horns were just cardboard, glue-gunned onto a red plastic headband, but Lydie had really gone to town on the glitter and sequins. Very solemnly, I knelt on one knee so that Lydie could fit them on my head. She adjusted them carefully. “Thank you, Raffi,” she whispered. “For trying.” Then she blushed from throat to hairline, and fled.

“What in the name of God have you got on your head?” Krystal said from behind me. “You look like a cow trying to pass as a unicorn.”

“If you mock my knightly favor,” I said, rising and turning. “I shall challenge you to—”

My words died in my mouth.

Her gossamer-thin white tunic floated over her curves, fluttering with every movement. Golden chains secured the fabric, highlighting her slender waist. Matching gold sandals laced high over her smooth, elegant legs. She was wearing her hair up, exposing the delicate, vulnerable sweep of her neck. Another golden chain wound through the intricate braids, catching the light like a halo. A small pair of white-feathered wings completed the angelic effect. She could have just stepped down from one of the stained-glass windows.

“Wow,” I said weakly. “You look . . . nice.”

“Nice?” Krystal said from Michaela’s side. Krystal looked pretty good herself, though even I could tell that gym shoes didn’t really go with her party dress. She prodded me in the chest with the point of Gabriel Dante’s sword. “Three hours of preparation and all you can say is
nice
?”

“No, I mean, literally nice! As in, a nice girl.” I waved my hands in Michaela’s general direction. “Rather than a terrifying man-eating lesbian dominatrix.”

“Is that how I normally look?” Michaela said, sounding pleased. She looked me up and down, squinting a bit when she got to my disco-tastic horns. “Hmm. If more demons looked like you, we’d have less trouble with people agreeing to bindings.”

I was pretty sure I’d just been dissed, but before I could defend Lydie’s costume-making skills, a gong rang out. An expectant hush fell over the courtyard, all the girls going as tense as runners at the starting blocks as they stared at the chapel doors.

“Ladies and gentleman.” The doors opened to reveal the Headmistress, golden light and music spilling out around her. She stepped to one side. “The Ball has begun.”

I grabbed Krystal’s arm to keep her from getting bowled over by the sudden surge of the crowd. Michaela just deployed her best glare, effortlessly maintaining a bubble of personal space even as girls fought to be first through the doors. By unspoken agreement, we waited for the rush to subside before making our own way forward.

I hadn’t even seen Ms. Hellebore standing guard until she moved to block our path. “No edged weapons on the dance floor, Krystal,” she said a touch mournfully. “Much as I approve of your accessory choice, you’ll have to leave it here.”

“But it’s part of my costume!” Krystal waved the sword. She’d wrapped orange tissue paper around the blade. “I’m the angel at the gates of Eden. This is my flaming sword, see?”

With a glance that clearly said that she knew what Krystal was up to, Ms. Hellebore plucked the weapon out of her hands. Krystal cast me a “well, I tried” shrug, then slipped past Ms. Hellebore into the hall.

“Rafael,” Ms. Hellebore greeted me. Her expression turned sour as she looked at Michaela. “I cannot believe the Headmistress allowed this.”

“Can’t argue with school tradition,” I said. “I’m the most popular guy in my year, I get certain privileges.” I put my arm around Michaela’s waist, drawing her closer to my side despite the way she stiffened. “And Michaela is still technically enrolled here.”

“She
shot
you!”

“Yeah, well, just her passionate nature showing.” I gave Michaela a warning squeeze. “Right, babe?”

“Ours is a tempestuous love,” Michaela said through gritted teeth.

Ms. Hellebore growled. A shiver ran down my back as I remembered her tentacles lashing up through the world, trying to pull me and Faith out of Heaven. “Go ahead then,” she said, stepping aside. “But I’ll be watching you.”

“I bet,” I muttered. A shimmering curtain of crystal beads veiled the doorway, catching the light beyond like a waterfall. They chimed sweetly as I ducked through them, trying not to catch my horns. “Let’s find—augh!”

“What? What?” Michaela nearly drew her daggers as I bent over, clutching at my head. “What can you see?”

“Nothing,” I said, straightening again and rubbing at my normal eyes, even though
those
ones were working perfectly well. “That’s the problem. The instant I stepped through those doors, I went blind.”

“Me too,” Krystal said, appearing at my elbow. She was gaping, openmouthed, at the transformed hall. Pale stone columns soared up to delicate arches high overhead, where an enormous crystal chandelier blazed with rainbow-edged light. All-white mosaic tiles glimmered underfoot like chips of ice and pearl. White silk banners draped the walls and pillars, rippling gently and giving the impression that the whole structure was built from clouds and mist. “This is incredible. I had no idea the chapel looked like this under all the carpet tiles and temporary partitions.”

“I didn’t mean the decorations blinded me,” I said, lowering my voice as a group of giggling girls pushed past us, heading for the buffet table. “You know how I said there was a darkness over the staff room? Well, it’s back. And about a thousand times worse. Seriously, I can’t see a wing in front of my eyes.” Even Michaela’s angel was just a dim, guttering candle flame amidst the choking black cloud.

“The Prince,” Michaela said grimly, tugging her skirt down over her daggers again. “He must be here already. We have to find Faith.”

“Already ahead of you,” Krystal said. She motioned us to follow her. “But you’re not going to like this.”

A dance floor had been set up in the center of the hall, under the chandelier. Couples spun in that wide, clear space, each radiant angel shadowed by a taller, black-clad form. As I watched, the boys lifted their partners in perfect synchronization, as easily as if the girls weighed no more than the feathered wings fluttering at their backs. Guess the reason for the limited number of guys was due to the size of Winchester’s dance club.

“I could do that,” I said under my breath, as one guy performed some complicated move that ended up with his starry-eyed partner bent backward over his knee. “If I wanted to.” Nonetheless, I was suddenly very glad that my own escort was likely to disembowel me if I suggested we take a spin around the floor. “Bloody show-offs.”

Michaela’s breath caught in her throat. She stared through the dancers as if she hadn’t even noticed them. “Faith,” she whispered.

At the very center of the floor, Faith spun, her unbound hair shimmering in her wake like the tail of a falling star. It wasn’t just a trick of the light that made her seem to glow—her halo was showing, just the merest sliver of gold edging her head. The crystal beads covering her long, white dress caught her divine light, shimmering as if she were clothed in raindrops. She wasn’t smiling, but there was an air of intent solemnity around her, like a bride preparing to walk up the aisle. She was so dazzling that for a moment I didn’t even see her partner. Then he twirled her around, dipping her nearly to the floor in his strong, confident hands, and I got my first good look at my rival.

My first thought was relief. The guy had a bloody great long tail sticking out of his butt, bright red and barbed, whipping around his legs as he danced. Even Faith couldn’t fail to notice
that
.

Then my gaze dropped to the guy’s feet, and the enormous expanse of perfectly white, perfectly pentagram-less mosaic floor surrounding him.

We all stared at one another, then back at Billy-Bob, as if we could make the pentagram reveal itself through pure willpower. “Could it be on the ceiling?” I muttered to Michaela.

“Does he
look
like he’s hanging from the ceiling like a bat?” Michaela hissed back. Her hands twitched helplessly over her hidden daggers. “I don’t understand. That
has
to be the Prince.”

“They make a lovely couple, do they not, Mr. Angelos?” I jumped. I’d come to rely too much on angelsight—I hadn’t noticed the Headmistress coming up behind us. Now she stood at my elbow, watching Faith and Billy-Bob dance, her face as neutral as ever. Her voice was dry enough to shrivel a slug. “Ah, young love. How heartwarming.”

It wasn’t my heart that was getting hot. I shifted my wings, stuffing my hands in my pockets to keep them away from anything metal. If Billy-Bob really was an ordinary human being, had we been wrong in thinking that the Headmistress had meant
me
to be Faith’s true partner? “Is he everything you hoped for?” I said bitterly.

“I do not hope for anything, Mr. Angelos. It is a poor substitute for planning. Mr. McFly has appeared precisely as intended.”

“Like a certain other individual?” Krystal said.

The Headmistress regarded her in silence for a moment. “You are a very intelligent young woman, Miss Moon.” She tilted her head, her eyes drifting from Krystal to Ms. Vervaine, who was standing against the wall a little way off, watching the dancers with an unusual, small, pleased smile on her bony face. “And as such, you will recognize when it is not the time nor the place to speak.”

“What is it time for, then?” I asked. If I
was
supposed to separate Faith from Billy-Bob, by the looks of things I would need a crowbar.

“It is time to party, Mr. Angelos.” The Headmistress gazed at the crowds with the air of a naturalist observing the mating rituals of some rare species. “I suggest you enjoy both the company and the surroundings. Perhaps find a vantage point from which to admire the bigger picture. I trust you will do so.” With a last nod to us all, the Headmistress moved off, effortlessly parting the crowd.

Michaela was looking baffled. I was glad I wasn’t the only one. “What was all that about?” I muttered into Krystal’s ear. “Did she really just tell us to go mingle?”

“I think she really did,” Krystal murmured back. “Think about it, Raf. All the boys here go to the same school. All of them except one.” As she spoke, the music ended with a few bright, final chords. Faith broke free from Billy-Bob’s hold and turned to applaud with everyone else. I made a move to head for her, but Krystal dragged me back. “Faith doesn’t think anything’s wrong at the moment.” Sure enough, Faith was already in Billy-Bob’s arms again as the string quartet struck up a slower tune. “If we want her to listen to us, we need evidence.”

“Let’s go get it then. Krystal, you see if any of the girls have noticed anything odd. I’ll talk to the guys. Michaela—”

“I’m staying to watch Faith,” Michaela interrupted. She glared at Billy-Bob as his hand slipped farther down Faith’s back. “And if he goes any lower, I’m cutting in. With a dagger.”

“Did I ever mention how glad I am you’re here?” I said with heartfelt sincerity. I clapped her on the shoulder as I went past. “Keep up the good work, Mike.”

“Mike?”
Michaela could pack a lot of outrage into one syllable. I made a mental note never to call her that within dagger range.

I scanned the room, searching for the flashes of black in the sea of white. Most of the guys were firmly embedded within circles of girls, but I finally spotted a lone Winchester lurking in the shadow of an enormous flower arrangement. I felt weirdly nervous as I headed for him. I’d grown too used to hanging out with girls, who tended to supply the vast majority of any required conversation. What the hell was I going to say?

Apparently, nothing. The guy caught my eye as I sidled up to him, and nodded in acknowledgment. I nodded back. Crossing my arms, I leaned back against the urn myself, as if I’d just been looking for a convenient place to loiter. We spent a peaceful moment just standing there, side by side, idly watching the girls go past.

Man, I’d forgotten how much easier it was to get along with other guys.

He tilted his head at me. He was wearing horns too, glossy black prongs that jutted straight out of his temples. His movie-quality prosthetics might be cooler than Lydie’s headband, but I wouldn’t have traded. “Which one’s yours?”

Now I was doubly glad I’d brought Michaela. “Over there. Black hair, gold chains, looks like she’s about to rip out someone’s spleen?”

The Winchester guy whistled under his breath. “Better you than me, brother. Getting anywhere?”

“Doing well so far.” Given that my internal organs were still unpunctured, it was absolutely true. “What about you? Who’re you here with?”

“Her,” Horny said morosely, pointing. “I’m having absolutely zero success, no matter what I try. There’s no chance she’s giving it up tonight.”