Archangel's Fire Read online

  “You deserve better than me.”

  I looked at him, dumbfounded. “How can you say that? After everything you’ve done for me, for what you’re doing for the Sanctuary?”

  “If Rahab hadn’t—”

  I placed my hand over his. “This isn’t your fault.”

  “You don’t understand, Senna.” He shook his head. I could hear the shame in his voice. “Our family is angelic royalty. Everyone looked to Rahab. He was a natural leader. I never bothered with angelic politics. I didn’t care. If I had come with him the first time, maybe…maybe all this wouldn’t have happened. Your mother would still be alive. You shouldn’t love me.”

  “Oh, Cade.” I kissed his cheek gently. “You’re not your brother. Everything you’ve done since I’ve met you shows me that you’re not. Your heart is bigger than you think. Open your eyes and see what’s in front of you. See what I feel for you. You. Not your beautiful face. Don’t close your eyes. Look at me. Tell me what you see.”

  Slowly, he lifted his eyes to mine. “A glorious angel without wings.”

  I smiled, sliding my hands up his chest. “My sweet archangel. I guess I’ll have to show you again. Don’t blink. You don’t want to miss a moment of this.”

  “Miss what?”

  “Me loving you.”

  27

  If this was a dream, I didn’t want to wake up. I kept my eyelids squeezed shut and snuggled into Cade’s warm chest, ignoring the bright light, a constant reminder of where we were.

  I wish we could stay like this forever. No thoughts about the outside world. No curse. No battle between a demon lord and the rest of civilization. I wasn’t a witch and he wasn’t an archangel. We were simply Senna and Cade, love and light. What we felt for each other was what was good in the world.

  Cade’s chest rose and fell underneath my fingertips in a steady rhythm, lulling me into a semi state between sleep and reality—a reality I wasn’t ready to face yet. I wanted more of this. More of Cade. The moment we stepped out of the chapel, it would be over. I shoved away thoughts of what would happen to him if the guardians found out about us.

  Still, as much as I wanted to stay, we would have to leave this place soon. We had a job to do. And first and foremost, we had to find Lukas and Big John. They were still alive somewhere in the city. I felt it in my bones. I didn’t know how I knew. I just did.

  My hands began to grow numb, and I stiffened. Someone was near. The odd sensation tingled down my arm. I held my breath, waiting for what I now knew was to come. The yearning. Was Cade awake?

  An image of Lukas’s face raced through my mind. That was definitely not coming from Cade.

  My eyes flashed open. Cade was sound asleep. I concentrated on him, wondering what he was dreaming. There was nothing. Yet, I could still feel that pull, the yearning coming from—

  “Now this is interesting.” I jolted up at the sound of the voice and spun around. Standing between the two podiums at the front of the room was the girl with blue hair. I tightened the blanket around me.

  “You were right, Deeth. She managed to get him to bring her here. Although you failed to mention the potential of angelic boinking, you naughty man, you.” She smirked.

  Cade jumped to his feet and pushed me behind him. “Who are you?”

  The blue-haired girl looked at him, her eyes widening. “Well, good morning to you too. I’m Nevada. This is my brother, Deeth, who, by the way, also failed to mention that archangels are well endowed. Or is it just you?”

  “Enough, Nevada. I can only sense a witch’s presence, not see the future.” The young man she called Deeth stepped up beside her with a crossbow in his hand. He pushed back his hood, revealing dark blond hair pulled back in intricate braids. He had a clean chiseled jaw and sculpted lips, as well as the same intricate tattoo on his neck that Nevada had.

  Nevada waved a hand with polished black-tipped nails. “Don’t be such a party pooper. You’re no fun. You can sense more than that if you put some effort into it. Just because your magic is limited because of the curse doesn’t give you an excuse not to try.”

  “My gift is not for your entertainment, Nevada.”

  “Why should they have all the fun?” She placed a hand on her waist and tapped her fingers against her hip.

  “Enough with the games. We’re not here to have fun.” Deeth turned to Cade, tossing him our clothes. “Dress quickly. The hunters have marked this area to search next.”

  “We’re not going anywhere with you until you tell us who you are,” Cade said as we dressed.

  “Seriously? You break into the one place we use to smuggle our people out and basically make this building a target for the hunters so we can’t use it anymore. And despite you screwing us, we’re still going to help your sorry ass and you’re questioning us?” Her pale eyes narrowed. They were even more intense up close like cut glass. “You archangels are all alike.”

  “What did you say?” Cade growled.

  “Wait, Cade. I know them,” I said, approaching Nevada. “I mean, I saw you and uh…”

  “Deeth,” she said.

  “Yeah, Deeth. You were with someone else.”

  “That’s our younger brother, Ely,” Deeth said. “He’s waiting for us in the tunnel with Lukas.”

  Cade and I spoke with surprise at the same time.

  “Lukas is with you?”

  “I knew he made it out.”

  “Yeah, Lukas manages to squirm his way out of a lot of situations,” Nevada muttered under her breath.

  Deeth glared at her, clearing his throat.

  “Uh, what I mean is Lukas wanted to come get you two himself, but Deeth thought it would be a bad idea and made him wait. Now I see why,” she added under her breath as she looked down, keeping her eyes hidden beneath her bangs.

  “So you’re witches?” Cade asked.

  Nevada’s eyes flicked up. “Are we—?” She shook her head and turned to me. “Honey, I hope he was good because he’s a bit slow. Ooh, on second thought…”

  “Stop it, Nevada,” Deeth reprimanded before going to Cade and handing him the crossbow. “I believe this is yours.”

  “How many of you are there?” Cade asked.

  “Dozens. There used to be a lot more. Those of us against Rahab stay hidden underground,” Deeth explained.

  “Hidden? But you were in the coliseum. The scavengers and hunters didn’t even bat an eye,” I said.

  Nevada snorted. Sliding her pink tongue over the silver ring on her lower lip, she looked me up and down. “Wow, Lukas was right. You really don’t know anything about witches, do you? Are you sure we have the right girl, Deeth? She can’t be that ignorant.”

  Deeth pulled out a silver rectangular object and tapped it with his fingers. We had one like that in the Sanctuary’s library. Big John called it a smart phone. We were never able to turn it on because it needed electricity to work.

  “Yep, it’s her. She looks exactly like Diana,” he said.

  “My mother? You have a picture of my mother?”

  “Sure. Look.” He held out the phone.

  I stared down at it as if it were going to bite. All my life I wondered about her. Tovah and Big John hardly spoke about her. Now I knew my mother was a great witch who fought to save her kind and humans from a powerful demon lord. She died for me. And all that was left of her fit in the palm of Deeth’s hand.

  Why were my hands shaking? I looked over at Cade. He stepped beside me, took the phone from Deeth, and held it for me.

  I sucked in a breath. An older reflection of myself gazed out of the screen.

  “She was beautiful. Just like you,” Cade whispered.

  “There’s more. Swipe your finger over the screen,” Deeth said.

  Tears filled my eyes as Cade and I went through the photos. In each one, my mother wore a gentle smile. Her hair was almost down to her waist. She was happy. I could see it in her eyes. Then we came to a photo where she stood with another woman with light blond hair and familiar pa
le eyes. They stood arm in arm in front of a cluster of poplar trees just like the ones from home.

  “Who’s with her?” Deeth and Nevada looked at each for moment. It seemed like they were silently arguing with each other on whether to tell me. Nevada’s jaw tensed as she shook her head slightly.

  Deeth tilted his head to the side as if admonishing her before he turned back to me, speaking slowly as if choosing his words carefully. “The phone belongs to Niamh, the woman in the picture. She and Diana were”—his eyes darted to Nevada—“they were great friends.”

  I gazed curiously at Nevada as she let out a slow breath. A subtle pull came from her as she gazed at the phone. I couldn’t quite see the image that flickered through my mind. It was as if it were being blocked.

  “Hmm, she looks like you,” Cade said.

  Nevada blinked, startled. Schooling her face, she snatched the phone and handed it back to Deeth. “Of course she does. All witches look alike to you angels, right? We’re all the same to you. Well, I’ll have you know that we are not the same. Case in point, this one”—she waved her hands to me—“can barely use her gift of controlling the elements.”

  What was wrong with her? For someone who was here to help, she sure was trying hard to make herself as unlikeable as possible.

  “Nevada, be nice,” Deeth warned. “That’s not what he meant, and we need to get going.”

  “I am being nice,” she said as Deeth moved back one of the pedestals, revealing a set of stone steps. Ignoring him, she continued. “Look, I’ll cut you a bit of slack because I’m not against getting some hot archangel candy and technically you’re one of us, but could you please be a little more subtle with your magic?”

  “I…I…” My cheeks flamed with embarrassment that she had caught us together like that. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

  “Girl, it hasn’t rained here in twenty years. And since the sun never goes down, it doesn’t get dark. You freaked out a lot of people. And you brought a lot of attention to yourself. Now Rahab knows you’re here. No stealthy sneak attack for you guys.”

  “We weren’t planning to attack,” Cade said.

  “You’re not here to take Rahab down?” Deeth sounded surprised.

  “I told you they couldn’t be trusted,” Nevada muttered.

  Cade scowled. “We need to find the book first. Can we just focus on that for now? How do we get into the tower?”

  Nevada eyes him skeptically. “Lucky for you, that’s where we come in. Deeth has the power to sense the location of witches. That’s how we found you, by the way.” She glanced at me. “I can get you into the tower without being seen.”

  “How?” I asked.

  “I have the power of misdirection. I can make people not see us. It’s like hiding in plain sight. People will see us only if I want them to. That’s how we are able to move about the city.”

  “That’s enough explanation. We need to leave.” Deeth took a few steps down into the staircase. “Come on, everyone is waiting.”

  We made our way down the narrow tunnels, our footsteps echoed against the bare walls. Cade kept close, one hand held the crossbow in front him and the other on the small of my back. I could sense that he didn’t completely trust Deeth and Nevada. I didn’t either. They were hiding something. Maybe they were spies for Rahab and were sending us straight to him. Maybe they lied about Lukas just to get us down here. Yet, even as I thought that, something inside told me they were with us.

  There was a soft glow from the twinkling lights that lined the ceiling. The lights were actually pretty, flickering on and off in a rainbow of reds and greens.

  “We were able to rig some Christmas lights to the electricity down here. Thanks to Ely,” Nevada said.

  “So what’s the plan to get the book?” Cade asked.

  “I’ll take you there,” Nevada said.

  “We’re just going to walk in and take it?”

  “Yep, that’s the plan.”

  “It’s more elaborate than that,” Deeth said. “We have others who will be ready to fight if needed.”

  “Including me.”

  My heart lurched at the sound of the familiar voice. Lukas emerged from the shadows. A rainbow of colors flickered on his face.

  “Lukas!” I ran down the tunnel to him and flew into his arms, hugging him hard. “I knew you would make it out. I just knew it.”

  “He’s a strong fighter.” Sylas stood behind Lukas with a sword in his hand. Red was beside him.

  I walked over to Sylas, wondering if this was a dream. My hand reached to touch his cheek, needing to make sure this was real. “I thought you…and him…but I saw you kill him. You’re supposed to be dead.”

  “Really, Lukas,” Nevada’s voice echoed behind me. “You went back for that?”

  “Not now,” Lukas grumbled.

  I gazed into Sylas’s amber eyes, not caring what Nevada was talking about. Sylas was here. He was real. I looked down at the band around his arm and touched the pink ribbon peeking out. I’d never been so close to Hannah as I was right now.

  “It was an act,” Sylas explained. “We’ve been doing it for years. The hunters and fallen want their entertainment. A few of us volunteer to give it to them so they won’t go after others and force them to fight. A volunteer fakes their death and lives in the tunnels. Red, here, volunteered this season.” He patted his friend’s back.

  “With my wife, Mayra, gone, it was the least I could do,” Red said. “She would’ve wanted me to come to the underground to help the others.”

  “But it wasn’t fake. You were bleeding. I saw it.” I glanced at his abdomen.

  “Oh, the stabbing was real. It hurts; there’s no getting past that.” He rubbed the spot where Sylas had stabbed him. “But Nevada used some of her magic to heal me up a bit. A few more days and I’ll be good as new.”

  “All in a day’s work,” Nevada said as she and the others caught up to us.

  “Sylas, I was telling Cade that there are dozens of us, witches and humans alike, ready to take down Rahab,” Deeth said.

  “So you’re the archangel charged with killing Rahab?” Sylas eyed Cade.

  I looked nervously at Cade. This was his brother they were talking about. He pulled his shoulders back, his face stoic. “I’m here to break the curse. It’s as simple as that.”

  “It’s not that simple,” a soft voice said. I turned and saw a younger version of Deeth. It was Ely. Up close, he looked so young. He couldn’t be more than sixteen. His light blond hair fell to his shoulders. His skin was smooth and flawless, except for the tattoos around his neck.

  As he stood between his siblings, I could see the differences between them, mainly in their eyes. He had the same clear blue eyes, but where Nevada’s were fierce and Deeth’s were serious, his were sad, as if he were grieving too, like Sylas.

  “We’ve talked about this before, Ely. She’s made her choice,” Deeth said under his breath.

  Nevada clapped her hands. Her strained voice rang over Deeth and Ely’s agitated whispers. “Well, let’s get this party started. Lukas, hand me the map of the tower that Ely drew for you.”

  Lukas held the map up. “I’m hanging onto this. And I’m coming with you.”

  Nevada scowled. “I already told you, that’s not happening. It’s just me and the two newbs.”

  Lukas let out a frustrated growl. Nevada went to him, hands on hips, glaring up at him. They didn’t seem to notice that everyone had their eyes on them as they argued.

  “Look, Nevada, I’m coming and that’s all there is to it.”

  “Not happening.”

  “If this is about last time—”

  “Get over yourself.”

  “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  “Puh-lease. Don’t make me laugh.”

  “You’re not getting your way this time.”

  “This time? This time! You’re the one who left.”

  “I tried to explain. Tovah and Big John…”

  Big
John!

  “Lukas, where is he? Where’s Big John?”

  The tunnel silenced. No one had to say a word. I read it on their faces.

  He was gone.

  28

  When we emerged from the tunnel, I squinted, adjusting to the intense light. I looked behind me and watched the tunnel door replaced by a palm tree just as Lukas stepped out.

  Cade stood next to me, our fingertips touching as we gave each other comfort. Lukas didn’t know what happened to Big John. He’d said Big John was behind him as they fought their way toward the tunnel passage, but when Nevada and her brothers showed up to take them, he was gone.

  “I don’t know about this,” Cade said as we weaved our way through the crowds. We were close to the tower’s entrance, and we were the only ones not wearing a red or blue robe.

  “Just stay near me,” Nevada said with confidence. “You’ll be fine.”

  Nevada and Lukas walked in front of us. It was fascinating watching how her magic worked. As she moved through the crowd, the sea of red robes seemed to part, making way for us to pass. Most of the hunters and fallen were busy talking to each other. One group surrounded a black motorcycle, admiring it as the hunter sitting on it roared its engine. Only a couple of fallen seemed to look in our direction. But when they did look our way, it was as if they were looking at an empty space. It was as if we weren’t even there.

  “We’re almost inside,” Lukas said as he turned his head, glancing to make sure we were okay.

  I arched my neck, taking in the massive building that loomed over us. The word “Stratosphere” hung over a set of large curved windows. Higher and higher my eyes climbed the smooth walls of the tower until I reached its dark eye.

  Just as we stepped inside, I saw the giant. His black hair gleamed under the lights. I came to an abrupt stop.

  “Senna?” Cade whispered nervously.

  “It’s him.” I didn’t dare say Nimrod’s name for fear that he would hear us over the noise from the crowds and casino.

  I willed my feet to move. He couldn’t see us. Nevada’s magic was working. We were invisible to him like we were to the others. Then why wouldn’t my feet believe it?