Fall From Grace (27 page)

“It’ll take too long to reach him on foot.
We’d never make it.” David mumbled.

“He’s already won.” Avery kicked and bucked
but Prim maintained control.

Bruce paced. “Can you shut her up?”

Boon shot Prim a poignant glance. His
midnight face scrunched, and steam blew from his nose. “You planned
this.”

Sammy pushed to her knees. “Planned
what?”

Boon didn’t answer, his eyes remained fixed
on Prim.

“The only ones who might make it to Gaby in
time are Boon and I. We might be able to take form the minute we
cross.” Prim mumbled.

Sammy gasped. “That means you would be
facing him alone. No! I won’t let you—”

“It might be the only way.” Boon’s face
softened as he turned back to Sammy. It was peculiar how he
appeared to be a hideous predator ready to strike one second, then
a large stuffed animal the next.

“You said she was on Herak’s side. If so,
this means you’ll be headed into a trap.” Sammy blinked back
tears.

“She’s right. Gaby needs us, all of us.”
Alexander focused on another way. “Maybe we could fly above—”

“There is no above.” Prim glared at
Boon.

Alexander searched for another answer. “The
place between the trees.”

Boon shook his head. “It’s been sealed.”

David marched to Prim. “If this is a trap,
I’ll kill you myself.”

The man stood at half her height, but
Alexander didn’t doubt David would do it.

“Go, I’ll take her.” David held tight as
Avery growled and snapped at him like an animal.

“We’ll cross over with you and do a three
wave attack. Alex, Sammy, you both don’t wait for us, we’ll only
slow you down.” Bruce checked his firearm. “Boon, Mastema, you both
hold back and distract him until we can get to you, but most of
all, save Gaby.”

Sammy’s forehead creased and her head
lowered for a second. Then she lifted it and stood up to face Boon,
still resting on his knees. She took his face in her hands and
smiled. “Remember, no matter where you go I’m destined to follow.
We are Soulbonded.” She kissed him and backed away. “Okay, we’ll be
right behind you.”

Boon pushed up from the ground and shuffled
to the dark line. Sammy’s words had drained some of the fight out
of Alexander. He couldn’t imagine how Boon felt with the knowledge
that if he fell, he’d take Sammy down with him.

“We’ve got your back.” Alexander reassured
him.

Boon and Mastema exchanged a look before
they walked into the woods, and possibly a trap, leading them
straight to hell. The ground shook beneath them again, and the
trees around them crashed down. Boon flew out of the way, and
landed against the barrier, sending him flying back in the other
direction.

Alexander jumped over one of the fallen
trees and landed next to Boon. A sulfuric odor made him
stumble.

The wind picked up and the remaining trees
swayed overhead, but the Earth settled again. Three more long
cracks had formed in the ground. It wouldn’t be long before all the
fissures connected and Satan himself could rule humankind.

Bruce picked up a rock and tossed it at the
barrier, it exploded into dust.

“I don’t think any of us are getting in
there.” David tossed his head in the direction of the barrier.

“If we can’t get in, then we’ll never be
able to save Gaby.” Alexander picked up another rock and threw it,
but it burst into pebbles upon impact. They were right. She was
trapped in the demon lair, alone, and he couldn’t help.

Chapter Twenty

Gaby slid and cracked her elbow against hard
ground, the inner demon fled from her mind, as if cowering away
from the one he worshiped. She shuffled back, slicing her hand on
jagged edges of a rock.

The demon rose higher until she thought he’d
reach Heaven and rip open another hole to crawl out of. She heaved
and choked, struggling to breathe in the thick steam, but it reeked
of sour chemicals and burnt ground.

Sweat rolled down her back, arms, and legs.
She pushed up with her palms, but they seared against the glowing
rock beneath her. Heat surged through her skin as if she were being
cooked alive. The lava-red mist swarmed around her, but she lunged
for a grey rock several feet ahead. Her fingers wrapped around it,
but her knees burned and she scrambled to the next rock. Yellow
shot from small cracks in the ground, blinding her.

“Why do you run? This is your destiny. You
are a child of Satan.”

Satan
? Until that moment that word
had only been a name of fiction. Something told to make children
behave. Now, she trembled at the idea of him, an all-powerful
creature ready to burst from the underworld to rule all of mankind,
destroying everything and everyone in its path. Terror penetrated
deeper into her body than the steam rising from the ground.

There was no more time; she’d seal the rift,
even if it meant trapping herself inside. For the first time she
was glad she’d never Soulbonded with Alex. She shoved the thought
from her mind and concentrated on the rift between Hell and Earth.
Cracks and thunder roared through her ears, but it wasn’t from the
rift sealing. Instead the heat spread further from the source. The
demon roared and swung a redwood-sized arm down, smashing boulders
into small chunks. He was making a path. Soon he’d be outside of
his world and living on Earth.

Her powers, they didn’t respond. It had to
be because she was on demon ground. She’d missed her opportunity
her mother had warned her about. She had to do something. The
rift…she could seal it from the outside. Her angelic abilities
would work there. She only needed to open the gate. But was that
inviting him out of his earthbound prison into the world of
humans?

The demon’s fist slammed down again, and the
ground beneath her split in half. She glanced at Grace, her one
limb still secured. If she could only manage one more surge of
power, but the demon’s power was too strong, it was too late. She
jumped over the gaping hole in the ground and raced for the gate.
It didn’t matter if she opened it now; all he had to do was take
possession of her again to open the gate himself.

The demon hissed and clawed the rocks
between them. Gaby shuffled up to the top of the rocks to the burnt
grass and ran, pumping her arms as hard as she could. Sun-yellow
lightening shot through the sky illuminating the dark woods.

The ground twisted again and she fell,
smacking her shin. Blood trickled down her leg, but she dug the toe
of her shoe into a small hole and pushed back to her feet. The
ground shifted, and she slammed against a broken tree trunk. Bark
embedded in her palms and knees.

Her legs and arms shook with exhaustion. How
would she make it to the gate? There was no one else to help. She
was alone. She shoved from the tree trunk and shuffled on weighted
legs, until a glow of pink caught her attention.

Dad and Sammy stood near the edge of the
clearing, talking. Then she caught a glimpse of Alexander pacing.
Her belly flopped at the sight. The world stilled for a moment. No
lightening flashed, no ground shook, and no evil plagued her.

She bolted toward them and broke free of the
mangled ground. Burnt grass crunched under her, signaling she’d
made it. Alexander turned. His wings lifted with his lips into a
smile. They only stood a few feet apart. She couldn’t hear him, but
his mouth moved in a familiar pattern.
I love you.

She heaved with exhaustion, but managed to
mouth back. “I love you, too.”

His eyes grew wide and he bolted toward her.
A light flashed, he flew backward.

“No!” she screamed and lifted her hand to
blast the barrier.

Dad and Sammy stood with their faces
scrunched in horror. Alexander rushed forward again, and his eyes
locked with hers.

Warm breath caressed the back of her. A
sting of warning jolted her back to reality, and she locked gazes
with Alexander.

The beast’s massive fingers curled around
her body with a strange gentleness, before he tightened his grasp.
Her ribs cracked under the pressure. Air retreated from her lungs
with a quick escape. She never looked away from Alexander. Instead
she focused on the barrier. A chill ran through her, despite the
fiery hand around her. She clung to it and embraced the power,
hoping to blow the demon back to the ground, and release everyone.
But she was torn away.

The demon jerked her high into the air. Her
stomach left below. It didn’t matter, her concentration remained on
the barrier. Ice glided up her throat and down her fingers.

The demon squeezed tighter. “You’ve failed.
Now, I possess the key. You are all I need to free Satan.”

****

Lightening filled the air, first a dismal
gold then silver. Alexander’s insides twisted at the sight of
Gaby’s feet kicking below the demons fist. She cocked her head; her
eyes matched the color of the light then changed to amber.

His breath hitched in anticipation. “Yes,
you can do it.” Wind picked up and the ground stopped trembling.
The demon roared and threw her to the ground.

“No!” Alexander slammed against the barrier,
ignoring the charge that shot through his bones down to the tip of
his wings.

Gaby’s bloodied finger moved. She rolled
onto her side.

The demon lifted his fist to smash Gaby to
dust. “Do something!” Bruce yelled.

“Come on. You can do it.” Alexander
mouthed.

Amber shot from her eyes. The fist swung
down like an anvil. The barrier wavered. Alexander didn’t wait for
it to completely disappear before he took off. His wings started to
fold, but he swooped down and grabbed Gaby. They rolled. Her bones
cracked beneath him. The fist slammed into the ground. Hot air
rushed over their bodies. The lava bubbled through the cracks.

Alexander pushed up on his elbows. Gaby’s
limbs were twisted in awkward positions. Adrenaline and terror
pumped through him. He needed to get her out of there so he could
heal her, or she wouldn’t make it.

“Alex, move.” Bruce raced over and yanked
Gaby back. Alexander glanced up in time to see the Demon’s fist
ramming down at him. He tried to fly, but his wings didn’t respond.
He rolled backward and landed on his knees.

Boon shot out between the two red legs
protruding out of the lava. “Go, get Gaby out and heal her. I’ll
distract.”

Black nails scratched down the rocks as the
demon tried to pull himself out of the ground. Alexander crawled
over several large chunks of rock and scurried to the edge of the
grass.

Sammy helped Bruce drag Gaby away, as The
Prim swung in and out of the demon’s flailing arms.

One of Alexander’s wings touched the lava
and the tip disintegrated. He ignored the burning pain and
continued to crawl out. Energy drained from his body. Each knee
scraped against the hard ground like dead weight.

He reached the edge and pulled himself the
final few feet.

“Heal her now.” Bruce clutched his arm and
jerked him toward her. Blood covered her body along with burns and
scratches. Spear-like pieces of bone pierced her right upper arm
and lower leg.

Gaby whimpered as he approached. Her blood
shot eyes were open. Dear God, she was awake. His heart ruptured
with sadness. He tried to touch her but couldn’t find a spot on her
body that wasn’t injured. Blood and burned skin everywhere, the
smell churned his stomach. His eyes stung with tears, but he tried
to focus on where to heal her first. It didn’t matter. His energy
was drained.

“God, please. Give me strength. She is the
chosen one. Grant me the power to heal her.”

A desperate cry sounded, and Alexander spun
around to find the demon making his way out. It had caught Prim.
Its dark claw stabbed into her black wing, pinning her to the
ground.

Sammy waved frantically, Boon darted across
the crimson smoke to help, but the demon batted him like an
irritating bug, sending him flying back toward the lava pit.

Gaby mumbled something and lifted her right
hand. Silver light shot from her palm. Lightning flashed in the
distance, and thunder rumbled for miles.

Crimson clouds rolled in overhead. Sammy
crawled to them. The demon caught her ankle with his other hand,
and Boon rammed his arm over and over trying to free her.

Gaby’s hand thudded to the ground.

“Heal her. We’ll buy you some time.” Bruce
saluted with his gun to his forehead.

Avery broke free of David and raced for the
demon. David drew his gun and leaned back against a tree. “I ain’t
gonna live if that thing’s taken over.” He yelled and charged into
the fight.

Alexander’s hands shook with desperation to
join the fight, but he’d be no good to them. He’d only be one more
person they’d have to rescue. No, he needed to focus on healing
Gaby. She was their only chance. He took in a long, deep breath and
blocked the gunfire, moans, and pleas surrounding him. He leaned on
his elbows, one on each side of Gaby. Dozens of evil scents fought
for dominance, but he centered his attention on her apple-scented
hair. He touched his forehead to her moist brow. “Gaby, I need
you…we need you.”

His mind drifted to when they touched each
other’s souls. Warmth curled around his heart, and joy filled him.
He remembered the soft skin of her stomach. The tone muscles of her
legs, and the full, soft touch of her lips.

“Alex, I.” Her words filled him with hope
and he moved his palm to her broken arm, visualizing the rejoining
of the bone and each muscle thread binding. She reached up and
touched his cheek, sending a jolt down his back all the way to his
toes. His wings stirred at the connection.

She clung to him with a weak grip. Silver
glass marbles of turquoise water stared at him. Dark crimson clouds
blew out into the open and covered the skies overhead, warning him
the others were losing the battle.