The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 7-9 (22 page)

I finished the swig of my drink and slammed the glass down on the table. “No fucking way. You want my help to capture Benjamin? Thanks, but no thanks. This is about as personal as it gets. If I get my hands on him, there is no mercy.”

“Can you tell me more about how he changed?” Paige said softly. “I don’t have any frame of reference, and I don’t think Riley does either. Perhaps you can tell us why you think he can be saved?”

I frowned in her direction. I wondered what it would take to dislodge the kernel of sympathy and compassion that she seemed to hold onto tightly for Benjamin. Every time I thought we crossed that bridge, she seemed to cross back.

“He is the eldest,” Samuel said. “He has long experience and wisdom, which is why it was natural that he would lead us in our missions while on the earthly realm. In the early years, we scoured the world for signs of wrongdoings and pestilence. Benjamin ensured that the world was safe. There were certain things that we weren’t allowed to interfere with, but we did everything we could within those guidelines. Our work was important, and we took it very seriously.”

“So what changed?” I asked.

Samuel sighed. “I don’t think it was a matter of what changed, but what didn’t change. It is the price of immortality.”

“Sounds like a bullshit answer to me,” I growled.

Paige put her hand on my arm, and then she turned toward me. “Riley, I’d like to hear more.”

I pushed my chair back and leaned backward. “Fine. Let’s get the sob story over with.”

CHAPTER SIX –
PAIGE

I knew why Riley was angry, and I could tell that he was about to dig his heels in. As soon as that happened, we might as well just close down the entire thing. But things that Benjamin told me while we were together looking for the relic were starting to click with me. I was beginning to understand more of the archangel paradigm, and it was a sad one.

Samuel’s expression told me that he was grateful for my interruption. I wasn’t doing it for him though. I was doing it for Riley. I had a feeling that he could all too easily give over to his darker base instincts. That was the danger of his current form. So he needed compassion and patience to temper it. He could be bad, and I sensed very bad. I needed to keep that desire to do the worst things possible balanced with an understanding of the full picture. Being put in this position didn’t bother me, which was something else that I thought I’d have to reflect on more on later.

“You are on the cusp of your journey into immortality,” Samuel said, returning his attention to Riley. “All you remember at this point is what it is like to be mortal. Those lives are like strikes from a match. They burn brightly and then are snuffed out. The passion and fire that drive mortals is fascinating to me. It always has been. Such strong emotions carried about in such fragile shells. Mortals have gone beyond the limits of whatever I think any of us thought possible when our father first created you.”

“Isn’t it the same for angels?” I asked. “You just have a lot more time to do it.”

All three archangels looked uncomfortable at my question. “Living isn’t the same when you know that you will do so forever,” Samuel finally said. “Our capacity for that kind of intensity of emotions has been dulled over the long years. It is harder and harder to find reasons to care about anything. I recall a time when it was different. But following the stem of this existence year after year, century after century, means that we never do anything quickly. If there is one thing that we always have more of, it’s time. By the time a decision is made to intervene on the mortals’ behalf, the conflict has often already been resolved. Sometimes years ago.”

“That sounds pretty horrible,” I said honestly. “If you are here as our guardians, then it sounds like we’ve been on our own for quite a while.”

Samuel nodded. “I am ashamed to admit that I feel the same way, and am sorry for my part in that. But I am but one of five archangels in this realm at any given time, and when I am here, my actions are dictated by Benjamin. Since he retreated to Calamata Island, he has gone into his own world. The rest of us have been listless and uncertain of what to do.”

“Sounds like a big ole excuse to me.” It was the first time Klein had spoken, and when he saw that the three archangels focus on him, he slunk a bit further down in his chair. “No judgments, of course. Bygones.”

“We each took care of our territories, but with what is happening in the world, there is too much to do on our own. Without coordinated efforts to root out the causes of all of these problems, we’re only able to address the surface level of any conflict.”

“Cutting off one head only to have two more grow back,” Riley said gruffly.

“Yes,” Samuel agreed. “We needed our leader. But whenever we approached him, he sent us away. He built his little fortress on Calamata Island and said that it was more important for him to guard the relics and the gates.”

My ears perked up. “Gates?”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you guys that,” Klein said. His tone was excited. “Turns out, Calamata Island does have both a Hell gate and a Heaven gate. That place is freaking amazing. I have to go there sometime.”

Samuel looked chagrined. “It appears that we must do a sweeping of the information archives yet again.”

Klein shrugged and waved his hand. “It’s not your fault. I’m really that good at what I do. That’s why Riley hired me.”

Riley rolled his eyes, and I hid a smile behind my hand. Leave it to Klein to soften a tense situation.

“I’m less worried about the Heaven gate right now,” Riley said. “The Hell gate is closed, and that’s not opening up again anytime soon. What I am worried about is that Bruno Proctor is running around out there with the relic.”

“That is our worry as well,” Samuel said. “That is why we need Benjamin. He is the strongest of us and built the device that kept the relic from doing any further harm. But first we need to convince him that you are not a threat.”

“I’m going to go back to the fact that your big bro is a bit nutso at the moment,” Riley said. “If you think he’s been influenced by the relic, then I’m going to guess he’s even less likely to listen to any logic or reason. He tried to kill Paige. He stabbed you in the gut too.”

“I forgive him for that transgression,” Samuel said. “He wasn’t himself, and I know that he was trying to do what he believed was right. Killing Paige is something that most of us will agree is the right thing to do.” Riley’s hiss filled the room. Samuel put up his hands. “I’ve told you that we will not harm her. But I am just stating the fact that you are not the only target. You are both targets, and there are many who would do just about anything to get ahold of one or both of you. Bruno Proctor just happens to be the strongest demon official at the moment, and he’s stronger by a factor of ten now that he has the relic.”

“So, we’ve got a batshit crazy archangel. A demon official who has the ability to deliver epidemic-like destruction. Both of them want to kill me and Paige for various reasons. We need a plan for neutralizing both of them before anybody else gets hurt in the crossfire. And we can’t forget about the bloodthirsty goddess threatening Paige from the ether. Am I missing anyone?”

“You are forgetting the one who is pulling the strings from behind the scenes,” Viho said. I had forgotten that the man was there at all. He stepped forward from the shadows of the room.

I saw Samuel shudder, and I grew alarmed.

“Jesus Christ,” Riley said. His tone held a note of awe. “That’s the reason Bruno wanted to find you. You know about the one who took down Eva’s Protector. That’s who you are talking about, right?”

Viho bowed his head. “It is information that is only told to the one who leads the tribe by the ghost of the one who led before. It is passed on only after death to ensure that the secret is never revealed to anyone. I haven’t told anyone. Not even the archangels that hid me away twenty-eight years ago know that truth. It is information I was willing to take to my grave. But now times have changed. It is time for that truth to be revealed.”

There was a long pause. “So are you going to tell us, or what?” Riley asked more briskly than I hoped he meant to. I knew he had all kinds of family drama at the moment, but he was coming across like an ass.

“It is not a story for now,” Viho said. “I was just ensuring that you understood the prioritization of your enemies. If you thought it ended with Eva, you are wrong.”

“Geez, thanks,” Riley muttered. “So when do you plan on letting me in on the big reveal?”

“When the time is right,” Viho said. “I think you have enough on your plate at the moment, don’t you?” I hid my smile again at the slightly mocking tone. It was exactly the same voice that my dad used with me when he thought that I had taken on too many things at once. I was sure Riley didn’t appreciate it if his scowl was any indication, but it was nice to feel like there were others in the world who could shoulder the big problems while you chipped away at the smaller ones.

“So you clearly want to go after Benjamin first,” Riley said when it became obvious that Viho wasn’t planning to say anything else on the matter.

“Yes,” Samuel said. “Benjamin had the relic in his possession for many years. He might have a way to track it.”

“How about we just open the paper and look under the ‘Death and Destruction’ section?” Klein offered. Everyone ignored him.

“The thing is he didn’t have it with him the whole time,” I said. “He crafted a way to move it around so it was never in the same place. That same spell wiped his memories so that he never knew for sure where it was. Once he hid it, he didn’t see it again until we retrieved right before heading to the Hell gate. It was inside me. I have no idea how long, but clearly I was fine. I’m just not sure about this idea that he was influenced by the relic.” I hated to say that out loud, but it was the thing nagging at me since the archangel voiced his theory about why Benjamin had become a recluse. I had a feeling the reason was for something far more heart-wrenching and benign. Benjamin had wanted to love and be loved in return.

“He used his magic to bind it and ensure that its influence couldn’t be felt outside of its casing,” Samuel said. “Even if he wasn’t in physical proximity to it, over time that energy can be tainted. It is something that Benjamin would have had to actively maintain with his magic, and so there would have been a bridge to it no matter what.”

I hadn’t thought about it like that, and I filed that nugget of information away. I was still learning so much about magic and what it entailed. It seemed like as soon as I thought I had one thing down, there was another thing I learned that made me question if I knew anything at all. I certainly wasn’t an expert about angels and their abilities.

“So the question is really if we wait for him to find us, or if we go on the offensive and find him,” Riley said. “I vote for the latter. If we wait for him to find us, I’m assuming he’s going to show up with friends.”

“Everyone is going to assume you are dangerous,” Samuel said. “They will strike first and ask questions later. So I’m in agreement with you. We need to find him first and make sure he’s alone so that we can talk to him.”

“He’s not going to listen,” Riley said, shaking his head. “I keep trying to tell you guys this, and I feel like it’s not getting through. Reason and logic aren’t part of his make-up right now. His carefully crafted world has completely imploded. A week ago, he had his island, the people who respected and feared him, and the girl.” Riley looked pointedly at me, and I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. “Now, he’s got nothing. If that were me, I’d be pissed. And I guarantee that I’d be after the one who I thought took it all away.”

“You think that he’s going to be focused on you? Why not Bruno Proctor?” Samuel asked.

“Because he’s irrational and losing everything comes down to one thing, or one person really. It’s all about Paige.” I felt everyone’s eyes on me once again. “Bringing Paige to Calamata Island three years ago was the beginning of the end for him. All of those demons went there looking for her. The Hell gate opened up. She left him, and now he’s lost the relic because we took it away from him. He’s not going to be gunning for me. He’s going to be going for her.”

I felt as if the air in the room had somehow thickened around me. It was hard to breath. Six pairs of eyes settled on me, and I felt judgment and pity in them. Why did this always come back to me? It wasn’t like I asked to be the focus of a goddess’s possession.

I stood up and hated the fact that I felt my knees shaking. “This isn’t my fault, but I know that everyone thinks that it is.” I felt the control over my anger loosening. “When I was a kid, I wanted to grow up, go to college, become a nurse, get married, have the requisite two point five kids and grow old, fat, and happy. I didn’t ask for any of this. I don’t care what anyone thinks. This wasn’t my choice, and it wasn’t my fault.”

Riley tried to grab my hand, but I shook his hand away. “Babe, we know that. I wasn’t trying to upset you.”

“There’s a goddamn archangel out there hell-bent on killing me, and you didn’t want to upset me?” I heard my voice climb an octave. “I understand the score here, Riley. I know that no matter what anyone says, or anything that happens, this all started with me. You wouldn’t be a dark angel if it wasn’t for me. My parents would still be alive if it wasn’t for me. There are so many people who would be alive…” Their faces flashed in front of my eyes. I stood up straighter.

“I killed five people while I was on the run from the demons. Five. And I didn’t even feel all that bad about it after the first one. They were bad people. Men who gladly took advantage of girls like me, who didn’t have a home or family anymore to depend on. But I turned the tables on them after I used them, and I made sure that they didn’t prey on any other girls ever again. That is what I have to live with now, and those decisions will haunt me. I thought then that I was able to do it because I was a bad person. Why else would demons hunt me down, and why else would a goddess who was clearly off her rocker want to possess me, right? It had to be because I was a bad person. But you know what? I’ve seen some pretty crazy shit over the last week, and I can tell you that I’m one hundred percent confident that I’m not the only one with this kind of cross to bear.”

My confession felt as if it was being ripped from the depths of my soul. Hot tears burned at the corners of my eyes, and my breath came in ragged gasps. “I know that you’ve all done worse than that. I don’t care about that. I really don’t.” Those words were for Riley, who watched me with a stricken look on his face. He wanted to do something, but there was nothing that he could say that was going to make me feel better at the moment. I had nothing left to hide. To do so was pointless.

“Still, even then, I’m the one that caused all of this mess simply by being born! I never had a shot. It’s like everything in my life was predestined for me to be here. And I can’t do anything about it. I’m helpless against this fate.” I whipped around and started toward the door.