She Speaks to Angels (25 page)

“
I will.” Kian took my hand, and Mom glared at our touch as I stepped out of the house.

When the door shut, I could still feel Mom’s glare on me, on us. “You know she is going to watch us until we are out of her sight,” I commented with a chuckle.

“
I figured as much.”

“
So no vaporizing or morphing,” I joked.

“
I’ll try to restrain myself.” He bumped his hip against mine deliberately and smiled.

“
So are we going to walk the whole way?” I looked down at my expensive Hugg boots and wondered if they’d be spoiled in the streets.

“
No.”

“
Fly?” My eyes caught a passing cloud.

“
No,” Kian stepped off the sidewalk and hailed a passing cab. “We are going to travel New York style.”

My body shook in laughter as I slid into the backseat of the yellow marked taxi cab. The Indian-descent cab driver raked his fingers through blue-black hair before eyeing us in the leathered backseat. “Where to?”

“
Manhattan, Eagle Lake.”

“
That’s a pretty large family. Any address?” The dark skinned man grumbled, his accent heavy.

“
At the end of North Eagle Lake Rd.”

My knees leaned toward Kian, and I played with my thumbs as my hands lay in my lap. Turning to Kian, I whispered, “So are you ever going to train me how to fight for myself? After all, Dameon might slip by Angelfire again...and then what?”

Kian paused, deep in thought as he gazed out the back window. “I will, but first you must learn more about us.”

I couldn't argue with that suggestion. I’d been wanting to know more about Angelfire since I had heard the name. I’d only had one opportunity to explore the immense library inside the Angelfire mansion. I hadn’t talked to any other angels besides Kian, his duo, and Sammael, of course. At least, no other angels I’d known to be angels.

“
Will Sammael be fine with me being there?”

“
Yes; he knows you’re coming. No human is allowed inside without his permission.’

“
Oh.”

“
There are only a handful of humans allowed inside Angelfire walls.”

“
More than me?”

“
A couple more.”

“
Who?”

“
An old man of about sixty, Josh Stagger. Sammael met him long ago, during some of the earlier demon-angel wars. Sammael trusts him implicitly. You might see him from time to time speaking with Sammael.”

“
What about?” I tilted my head in Kian’s direction.

“
Survival mostly. Human survival.”

I swallowed hard. “And who else?”

“
Lucianda.”

“
Who?”

“
She is a close friend of Jacob’s. You will meet her today and learn all about the two of them.”

“
I will?”

“
Sure, unless you don’t want to.”

“
No, I want to.” I said eagerly. “Anyone else?”

“
Nope, just you three. Although we have had a few break-ins over the years. Probably from burglars thinking they could score a rich heist.”

“
What happened?”

“
A broken window now and then. Nathaniel scared them straight.” Kian laughed hard into his hands. “Sammael has improved security since then.”

“
I would hope so!” A dimple formed in my cheek with my half-smile.

“
So how are you feeling since last night?” Kian touched my sore cheek with his pinky; the light caress felt soothing.

“
I have to admit I was shaken up a bit, but I really do feel better now. After a long sleep and warm shower and, well...you’re here. I feel good.”

“
I’m really sorry I wasn’t there to protect you when Dameon hit. We had no reason to think he would be there. Krysta saw him miles away pacing back and forth in an alley, and Nathaniel had his eyes on a few other demons who were also miles away.”

“
I had Jacob,” I told him. “Let’s not quarrel over it. But I am anxious to meet this angel who saved my life.”

“
Yes, we both have a lot to thank him for.” Kian kissed my wounded cheek, and I let my head nestle against his neck as a few feathers plummeted from his covered back to the leather car seat.

He looked handsome in his black suit jacket and white button-down undershirt. Paired with a pair of blue jeans, he could have been off the cover of GQ Magazine. But instead, he sat here with me in the backseat of a cab. Not on a magazine, not in the clouds, not in his mansion.

I wrapped my arm around his as the cab stopped in front of Kian’s place, and we stepped out together. Kian handed the driver a stash of cash from the wallet he carried in his back pocket.

“
Thanks.”

Kian turned away from the cab and squeezed my arm tightly as he walked me to the back entrance. We unlatched arms so Kian could pry open the iron door. I followed him up the iron staircase.

At the top, I admired the hardwood floor and lone piano in the center of the otherwise empty room. Besides a few statues and paintings, the room looked bare, just as it had the first time I saw it.

“
Angels must not like furniture,” I commented under my breath.

“
We are more minimalistic creatures,” Kian responded as he guided me to the next room, the crimson room. The library looked the same, still a large bookcase filled with encyclopedia-like information about this unknown angel-demon world.

“
Do you mind?” I nudged Kian as I pulled a book off the shelf.

“
No, go ahead. Sammael encourages you to read our histories. This will better prepare you for attacks.”

I swallowed hard. I never got used to thinking about myself as someone in fights. I never once got into a fight with a student at school. Molly, on the other hand, had fought a few times (at school and on the streets), but me? Never. And now, I had fought with a demon several times. I guess that, next to a demon, fighting a student would be nothing, but I didn’t really want to find out.

The book I pulled had a black cover with an etched dragon in the center, and it felt ominous just looking at it...as if by opening it, I would allow the whole of the dark legions to come after me. Turning to the first page, I read about how darkness filled the souls of man and sin increased. Angels born of man would be the balance needed to set humanity right again. But then some of the angels relished in the darkness too and turned into demons. A war waged between angels and demons, the former trying to keep the light and the latter trying to overcome the light with darkness.

The book got a bit deep and used a lot of metaphors and symbolism. I couldn’t be sure exactly how much of the book to take literally and how much to take in allegory. But then, I sat here on the floor of a mansion with an angel in my mist. Who was I to say what was a metaphor and what was not?

Jacob

While
I sprawled over the floor with my legs spread out and the black book flat in my lap, a tall older man walked into the room from the mysterious mahogany door I had yet to enter. In this crimson colored room, I blended in with my sweater. Strolling up in a nonchalant fashion, he hugged Kian before squatting to meet me eye to eye.

“
You must be Ali. You look different without blood all over you.”

I half-grimaced and half-smiled as he gave me his hand. Taking his offer, I stood and returned the book hastily to the shelf.

“
You must be Jacob.” I rubbed my dusty hands over my jeans before I shook his hand.

“
At your service.” The red stubble on his chin matched his red curly hair. Aqua-green eyes felt soft and endearing. Nothing about him felt abrasive. His was perhaps the softest angel presence I’d encountered, even compared to Kian, which said a lot about him.

“
I wanted to thank you for saving me the other night. I don’t know what I would have done.”

“
You would have had your hands full...but don’t mention it. That is what I am here for, what Kian is here for. Heck, what we all are here for. To protect humans, especially from demons.”

“
And from other humans?”

“
Sometimes...and sometimes, even from themselves. I can’t tell you how many humans I’ve talked off the ledge. Just a quiet voice in their ear telling them everything will be fine.”

Jacob wore beige slacks and an off-white cotton t-shirt. For an older man of about forty, he appeared well-chiseled around the abs and arms. Even his legs looked well-toned.

“
Well, thanks. For everything I guess.”

“
So how did you two lovebirds meet, anyway?” Jacob didn’t beat around the bush.

Kian and I both blushed simultaneously.

“
We’re not...” I stumbled.

“
Not lovebirds.” Kian fidgeted.

“
Sure you are. I can see the
amour
in the way you two look at each other. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this one out.” Jacob had an accent I couldn’t place; somewhere between French and Italian.

When I looked at Kian we smiled at each other and maybe for the first time felt completely comfortable about our feelings for each other.

Jacob continued, “Despite the rules of Angelfire forbidding your intimate touch, the two of you can still spend time together. I know how that longing feels...better than most.”

“
You do?” I could sense that he wanted to tell me his story, a story Kian had to be familiar with already.

“
Ahhh...sweet love. Look at what it has done to me.” Jacob vaporized for a quick second before his flesh transformed into ragged wings and, instead of the usual angel-glow, his skin dimmed. Mossy eyes became emerald in color. The only proof he used to be an angel.

What stood before me failed in comparison to Kian’s majestic angel form. Instead of fluffy wings, Jacob had arched bare white bones where soft, feathery wings should have been attached to his body. The bottom of the bone had a few patches of feathers, and I suddenly felt very sad for him.

“
What happened?” I asked.

“
I fell in love with Lucianda and lost most of my wings.” I didn’t want to get into the details, but I gathered that Jacob and Lucianda must have touched and been intimate many times to have resulted in such bareness.

Rubbing his hands over his dull shoulders and arms, he continued, and I felt even sorrier for him, because his color should have been brilliant. “My color is lost because my Essence is weak.”

“
But how?” I shook my head in wonder.

“
I revealed myself to Lucianda, and while I was trying to save her family from a demon, I revealed myself to them. I wanted to become mortal again. I wanted to be with Lucianda. But in the end, the demons killed her entire family and left her alone. Now, she has only me, and I, only her. I have all but lost my wings and my Essence. But my gifts remain. I’ve never harmed a human.”

Kian interjected, “Jacob is still excellent at hearing and seeing great distances.” He sounded like he wanted to rush over the fact that Lucianda’s entire family had been killed, by demons none-the-less!

“
Her family was killed!”

“
Jacob!” Kian nudged him in the side.

“
Well, her family would have been safe had I not been so insistent in my love for her. My passion brought danger into their lives. I spent too much time with her, and eventually her brother saw me...my angel form. This drew the attention of the demons, because, as you know, once a human discovers the truth of our existence, the entire supernatural world feels the shift of power weaken. If I hadn’t of been so selfish, her family would still be alive today.”

I wanted to ask more about what happened to the family, but I could see a tear leave a crystal track down his cheek and didn’t want to conjure up past pain. But Jacob volunteered the information.

“
Demons came to the house to kill the brother, and I had to reveal myself to fight them. Two demons! The family saw me and the demons, and more Essence deteriorated in the supernatural realm. Of course, more so with the demons and myself. I saved her brother that day, but the demons returned. I wasn’t prepared, and they killed him. I eventually killed the demons, but not before they murdered her sister and parents.”

“
Good God.” I breathed heavily.

“
This is why we have the rules. This is why I warn you to not get too close. Spend time together, but keep the rules. Whenever anyone is intimate, his guard is down; he doesn’t hear or see as well. Had I been vigilant, I would have heard her brother coming to the room and could have become mist, become human.” He shook his head.

The room grew quiet and then I had a question.

“
But Jacob, if you have such little angel power, how did you fight Dameon?” My forehead wrinkled; I was confused.

Kian responded, “Jacob is still a skilled warrior. More of a human warrior now with heightened senses, but he doesn’t have to rely on angel powers to fight the demons. He is well experienced in battle and quite buff. Besides, his gift for calming those around him allows him to kill demons with their guard down.”

I searched Jacob up and down and couldn’t refute the point.

“
Dameon’s Essence is weaker now because of you, Ali, and though his Essence is not as weak as mine, this fact does make him easier to fight.” Jacob added, “Because he tried killing you on several occasions, he has also all but lost his Gift Power.”