Tempted (14 page)

“
What are the rules?” Jackson interrupted.

“
No influencing free will, and no intruding when someone’s already chosen sides,” Reniel answered. “That’s why I dispatched Eligos, he was trying to manipulate you using a very powerful form of hypnosis, or possession. Plus, he knew you had already chosen our side.”

Jackson shivered. Possession did not sound like a good thing. “So what does all of that have to do with gold bricks?”

“
I was getting to that. Phanuel asked Father if he could gift his power to other angels and perhaps even the Guardians. These gold bricks were the solution. They are blessed with Phanuel’s power.”

“
So, what, a demon shows up and I’m just supposed to chuck this brick at him?” Jackson couldn’t help the sarcastic tone. The particulars of this new path grew more and more farfetched by the minute.

Reniel frowned. “It bends to whatever shape you wish,” he answered, smirking as Jackson’s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. “That bow I had earlier is made of this same gold. It is my weapon of choice. Once you have the brick in your hands, you just need to form a picture in your mind of what you want it to be and it will take that shape. The weapon can only be used on demons for the purpose of sending them back where they came from. It will not work for any other reason.”

Jackson accepted the gold brick and turned it over in his hands. It was smooth and heavy and vibrating with an energy that Jackson felt to his very core. He focused on creating the image in his mind until he was holding a solid gold Desert Eagle handgun. His jaw dropped as he palmed the weapon and turned it over in his hands.

“
I figured as much,” Reniel said with a snort and a chuckle.

“
What’s that supposed to mean?”

“
That you’re just like all the other young Guardians. Only an old vet would turn their gold into something dignified like a bow or a sword.”

Jackson placed the pistol on the coffee table and fixed Reniel with a wide grin. “Nothing you can say right now will convince me that that isn’t the coolest thing on the planet. Nothing.”

Reniel chuckled. “Hey, you’re the one who has to live with it. I just hope you’re happy with it.”

“
Extremely. Now what?”

“
A bit anxious, are we?”

Jackson shrugged. “I have something I need to do later. I want to finish as much as we can before three o’clock.”

Reniel nodded. “All right then, we’ll move on. That medallion was for more than just leaving a mark. It activated something in you. It can only be described as a sort of inner light. All angels carry it, and so do Guardians to a lesser degree.”

“
Will my eyes glow like yours?”

“
No, which is fortunate since you have to blend in on earth. However, your inner light can be as useful to you as that golden weapon on the table. Today I’ll teach you how to use it as a barrier, or force field if you want to call it that. Eventually you’ll learn how to trigger a burst of light that comes straight from that mark on your chest. Nobody wants to be in the way when that thing goes off.”

Jackson’s smile was wide, and adrenaline pushed excitement through his veins. This Guardian thing was turning out to be a cooler job than he expected.

Chapter 17: Life and Death

Jackson stood in the park across from his son’s school, his eyes fixed on the closed doors. He glanced down at his watch. 2:58. In two minutes that door would open, and Rochelle would pull her black Nissan up to the curb. Today, Jackson wasn’t just there to watch.

His hands shook and nervousness gripped him as he took his first step away from the park. Panic swirled in his gut, but he clamped down on it, determined not to let it keep him from his son any longer. Today had been all about new beginnings. He didn’t intend to take his time when it came to putting his life back together. He’d always been a head-first sort of person.

He practiced his time-bending ability as he crossed the street, freezing his watch at 2:59, and halting the cars coming toward him. He was getting better at using his powers he noticed, as he crossed the street safely before allowing the seconds to continue moving past him. Reniel had promised him that practice would only make him better and stronger.

His only wish was that Sarah could have been there for his big moment. Confusion had given way to anger, an emotion he couldn’t stop when he thought about her. And so he fought to keep her from his thoughts, determined not to lose himself in the bitterness of her betrayal. Life had to go on.

The bell dismissing the students rang, and within seconds the doors were flying open and kids were pouring down the stairs.

“
Jack!” he called out when the top of his son’s familiar head appeared in the crowd. Bewildered, the boy turned in circles, searching for whoever had called his name. Recognition and joy flashed in his eyes as he spotted his father. Jackson held his arms out to the boy, who hurtled through the crowd toward him.

“
Dad!”

Jackson felt tears pooling in his eyes. He hadn’t been called ‘Dad’ in so long. The weight in his arms was heavier than he remembered, but the round, gray eyes were the same. His gap-toothed smile warmed Jackson’s heart.

“
What are you doing here?” the boy asked as he was set back on his feet after a long hug. “Are you picking me up from school?”

“
No. I—“

“
Jackson?” he was interrupted by a familiar voice. He turned to find Rochelle standing on the curb beside her car, staring at him from behind dark sunglasses. Her mouth hung open in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“
I was just about to explain to Jack that I came to see him. I hope you don’t mind.”

After a few seconds of silence in which Rochelle seemed to struggle to find words, she nodded and sighed. “Actually I’m glad you’re here. I’d been planning to call you this week. We need to talk.”

“
I’m dying, Jackson.”

Jackson’s heart plummeted into his stomach with the weight and coldness of a frozen boulder. He snatched his eyes away from Jack, who was rolling around with Mason on his living room floor.

After meeting up with them at P.S. 129, Jackson had invited the two to his apartment. Rochelle had hinted that they needed to have an important conversation, but he certainly hadn’t been expecting this bombshell. For the first time in a long time, he really looked at Rochelle.

He’d noticed that she seemed thinner, but hadn’t realized the cause. Without her sunglass her eyes seemed sunken in and weary, and her once beautiful and luminous dark skin now seemed void of its usual luster.

“
Dying?” he whispered, his gaze darting back and forth between her and little Jack. “How? I mean, what…?” There were no words. As angry as he had been with Rochelle for leaving him when he’d needed her, he would never have wished for her to die. “Does he know?”

Rochelle shook her head solemnly, her lips quivering as she fought back tears. “He knows that I’ve been sick—he’s had to stay at my mom’s the few times I’ve had to go to the hospital—but he doesn’t know how serious it is. He doesn’t know that I’m probably not going to make it.”

“
How long have you been sick? Why didn’t you call me sooner?”

Rochelle sighed and wiped at the tears on her cheeks. She sniffled a few times before continuing. “A few months ago I found a lump in my breast. By the time I found it and went to the doctor, the cancer had spread to other parts of my body. I’ve been undergoing chemotherapy for a few months now, but even that combined with aggressive surgery isn’t going to do much for my chances. Even with this course of treatment, I may not see the end of the year.”

Jackson felt as if he’d been punched in the gut. The wind had definitely been knocked from him. “I’m so sorry,” he finally managed. “I had no idea.”

“
I didn’t want to burden you at first,” she said. “I know that you’ve been struggling. I know you’ve needed time to get yourself together, so I was giving you space. I know that our marriage is over, but I was hoping that once you sorted through your feelings and got your life together, you would want to be there for Jack. I was willing to wait and be patient, but now time is of the essence. I don’t have very much of it left. I need to know that you can be there, Jackson. I need to know that you are fit and able to take care of Jack when I’m gone. If you don’t feel like you can do it, I understand. I can have my mother set up as Jack’s legal guardian and you wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. But you’re his father, and I know he loves you. I wanted to give you a chance to step up and be his dad.”

“
Of course I want him,” Jackson said earnestly, clasping Rochelle’s bone-thin hand in his. “That’s why I came and found you guys at school today, to tell you that I’m sorry for all that I’ve put you through. I want to be a part of my son’s life again.”

Rochelle managed a tiny smile. She squeezed Jackson’s hand. “I’m so glad to hear you say that,” she said.

He was glad too. He wanted to share with Rochelle all the things he’d discovered about himself recently. He wanted to tell her about his father and the Guardianship, and his undiscovered abilities. He wanted to tell her just how much his life had changed, and about the legacy that he had most likely passed on to their son.

But as he looked her, he knew it wasn’t necessary to burden her with all of this. It didn’t matter anyway. As the two sat and planned the next few months of their lives around Jack, he knew that the only thing that mattered was that Jack was his son—now he was ready to start being his father.

Chapter 18: DNA

Six Weeks Later…

“
You shouldn’t be here.”

“
Are you going to show me or not?”

Leliel sighed and frowned, his annoyance clear. Sarah crossed her arms over her chest defiantly and stared back at the Angel of the Night. His transparent form hovered in space across from where she floated waiting for him to give her what she’d asked for.

“
You are out of control,” he muttered under his breath and shaking his head. “Fine, I’ll give you access.”

Sarah sighed with relief and smiled as Leliel gave a glimpse into Jackson’s most recent dream. Her heart fluttered and sang with joy as she recognized the scene of their first kiss. She squeezed her eyes shut and replayed the memory in her own mind, feeling just a little bit closer to Jackson by knowing they were both reliving the moment at the same time.

He was thinking about her. He did often, although his thoughts were not always pleasant ones. Her heart ached at the thought of Jackson hating her for what she’d done. Not a day went by that she didn’t regret leaving him behind without so much as an explanation.

There were times she even thought about stopping by his apartment between assignments, just long enough to tell him that he meant more to her than he realized. She wanted to tell him just how much she loved him, and that if things had been different they would be together. But then she realized that she would have to tell him why they couldn’t be together, and lost all of her nerve. It wouldn’t ease either of their pain to tell him the whole truth, and so she stayed away.

It would only hurt him more to know just how impossible their love was. She had already hurt him once; she didn’t intend to do so again.

She forced the image of their rainy-night kiss from her mind and turned away from the images of Jackson’s dream as he fantasized beyond the single kiss. The thoughts she was witnessing made her skin grow hot just looking at them.

“
That’s enough,” she whispered to Leliel, unable to take it any longer. “I’m finished.”

Leleil did not respond. With a shake and a quiver, he transformed back into his spherical form, leaving Sarah alone once again. As she traveled back across the universe toward home, she told herself that this would be the last time. Viewing Jackson’s dreams and memories of her were just too painful. Her own memories were agonizing enough without her tormenting herself with his.

She’d been watching him for weeks as he trained with Reniel, learning to use his time-bending abilities as well as his inner light. She felt pride as she’d watched him growing each day, coming into his own as a Guardian. Soon he’d receive his first assignment.

She’d also witnessed his reconciliation with his son, and knew that Jackson’s journey toward a new and complete life was headed in the right direction. Her one regret was that she was not able to be a part of it.

Abigail, a fellow messenger angel, was waiting for her on the front steps of the throne room when Sarah arrived. Her expression was grave as she approached Sarah.

“
What is it?” Sarah asked, confusion creasing her brow. “Is something wrong?”

“
Father has requested an audience with you.”

Sarah frowned. Father’s wanting an audience with her wasn’t unusual; Abigail’s grave delivery of the news was. “Is it an assignment?” she probed.

Abigail shook her head. “I am not at liberty to discuss it, but a decision has been made that you are to be informed of shortly. He is waiting for you.”

Avoiding her questioning gaze Abigail spread her wings wide and disappeared into a cluster of angels swooping overhead. Sarah turned toward the throne room, resigned to whatever was about to happen to her. She could not imagine what would warrant such strange behavior from Abigail.