Shadows (21 page)

The voice cuts through the clashing swords. I dive away from the demon, turning my face from the blinding light. I hit the grass, and shield my eyes. What the…?

The demon is silhouetted against the glare, turned away from its source. Daisy and I lash out at the back of his legs. Both blades strike flesh. The demon cries out—sounding so human my skin prickles—and then shifts.

I collapse back to the grass, panting. Exhausted. Relieved. And only then do I notice the fighting has stopped.

‘Hold your position.’ The voice is commanding, but not quite as sharp as before.

‘Daisy?’ I whisper between short breaths.

‘It’s Nathaniel.’

She hauls me to my feet. The white-blue light has softened, but the clearing is still lit up. The sky has vanished. Bel and Leon are at the edge of the forest, where they first appeared, a third demon with them. The other Rephaim are behind Nathaniel on the boardwalk, including Taya, who can’t stand up. Daisy’s grip leaves mine as soon as I’m steady, and I don’t have time to look around for her before she appears with the others behind Nathaniel.

Rafa and Zak are in the clearing with me, and we’re all that stands between the demons and the rest of the Rephaim.

I’m trying not to stare at Nathaniel—and failing.

He’s a fallen angel.

He stands at the same height as the demons. And the white-blue light is coming from him. Not from something he’s holding, but from
him.
Like an angel on a Christmas card. Except instead of robes or a tunic, he’s wearing jeans and a shirt. His fair hair is cut shaggy against his chiselled face, and he’s holding a sword that’s throwing off as much light as he is.

I don’t know what I was expecting him to look like, but this isn’t it.

He’s an angel. That makes him what? Thousands of years old, at least. And it sounds like he’s raised the Rephaim like a high school principal, so I was expecting
someone grim and authoritarian. Not a guy who could be a footballer on his way to a nightclub.

‘The twin is no longer yours,’ one of the demons says, shielding his flaming eyes, even though Nathaniel’s light is not as blinding as it was. I think it’s Bel, but now there are three of them side by side, it’s hard to tell. ‘We’re taking her.’

I see Nathaniel’s eyes. Where the demons’ irises are orange, his flicker an icy blue. ‘Why?’

‘Because Zarael wants her.’

My heart stumbles.

‘Belial, you know very well I don’t care what Zarael wants.’ Nathaniel’s voice is as melodic as I remember it in the Sanctuary treatment room.

Bel’s lip curls, revealing unnaturally white teeth. ‘You will when he finds your brothers.’

The demon next to Bel—possibly Leon—raises the tip of his sword and licks blood from it. ‘We have devised new torments for your return to the Pit, Nathaniel,’ he says.

‘The Fallen may well return to the Pit, but it will not be by your hand, Leonard. The Garrison will decide the fate of Semyaza and those who follow him, not a gutter rat like Zarael.’

Leon laughs. ‘You cannot believe your fate is no longer tied to your brothers. Nothing you do in this realm changes what you are. Remember that.’

Daniel is rigid beside Nathaniel, his shirt skewed and face bleeding. It’s the most crumpled I’ve seen him. None of the Rephaim are checking their wounds, or their wounded. They’re tensed, weapons ready.

My attention drifts to Bel. He meets my gaze, and the skin on the back of my neck prickles. He smiles, and taps his sword hilt twice with his thumb. He and the other two disappear. I can’t believe they’re going to leave without—

A brightly lit figure materialises in front of me and shoves me backwards.

‘Hold position!’ Nathaniel shouts at his Rephaim, at the same time the three demons appear where I was just standing. He blocks their flashing swords.

Rafa and Zak close ranks around me, weapons ready.

Nathaniel is as quick as the demons. He moves like the laws of gravity don’t apply to him, and his blazing sword, broader and heavier than any of ours, flashes so fast I can’t see it, until it is buried in Bel’s collarbone. The demon collapses under the weight of the blow and is still screaming when Nathaniel puts a boot on his chest and shoves him backwards, jerking the sword free.

The air around Nathaniel shimmers and brightens, and he starts to…
expand.
I stumble backwards and fall, but keep my eyes on that blazing shape. I blink. I’m starting to make out detail in the glare. It’s not Nathaniel getting bigger, it’s two massive wings unfurling either side of him.

‘GO!’ one of the demons calls, his voice so loud I feel it in my ribcage.

A few seconds later, the wings are gone, along with the white-blue light. It takes a moment for my eyes to adjust. After the brilliance of Nathaniel’s light, everything else is dark.

Rafa is beside me, breathing heavily and favouring one leg as he helps me up.

Nathaniel waits until he has Rafa’s attention.

‘There are humans here?’ he asks him.

‘Two idiots with guns,’ Rafa says. ‘Hell-turd bit one. Ez and Uri went after them.’

‘Please call him Uriel, Rafael. You know he is a member of the Council of Five now.’

‘Fights like it too.’ Rafa’s all attitude with Nathaniel, but he can’t quite maintain eye contact.

‘Do you not think you should find these humans?’ Nathaniel asks.

Rafa straightens. ‘I’m not the one—’

‘I’ll go,’ Zak says before Rafa can finish. No doubt he’s more concerned with helping Ez than stopping an argument between Rafa and Nathaniel. He jogs along the boardwalk and vaults over the rail. It’s quiet again, and I can make out faint sounds of fighting, deeper in the trees.

Nathaniel signals for Micah to step forward.

‘Please fetch the healers.’

The tall blond Rephaite disappears.

The other Rephaim haven’t moved from their positions. Even Daisy stands waiting for orders, despite the fact she’s bleeding heavily from her punctured sides.

Finally, the fallen angel turns his attention to me. I crane my neck to meet his gaze. Those flickering eyes, there’s something strangely soothing about them. I have to remind myself he’s sanctioned everything that’s happened to me in recent days.

‘They will not stop coming for you, Gabriella.’

‘What just happened?’ I ask. ‘Why did they leave like that?’

Nathaniel regards me for a moment. ‘Demons cannot stand to be in an angel’s presence when we reveal ourselves in glory.
In full
glory, abyss sludge like Belial would combust at the mere sight of me. Sadly, I no longer wield that power.’

‘But when you showed your wings—’ I stop. Nathaniel has
wings.

‘It’s enough to banish bottom-dwellers like Belial and Leonard.’

I dab at a cut on my face. ‘Zarael is their, what, boss?’

‘He is their lieutenant.’

‘But didn’t he manage to keep you chained up? How long were you down there?’

‘Thousands of years.’ He doesn’t look away. ‘There is
no glory in hell, so we were without weapons. That is no longer the case.’

Rafa is watching me closely, tense, like he’s waiting for me to fall at Nathaniel’s feet or something.

I take a long, deep breath. The air is heavy with eucalyptus. ‘What would they have done to me?’

‘Tortured you in ways you cannot imagine.’ Nathaniel speaks without hesitation, bringing goosebumps to my arms.

‘Because they think, like you do, that I know where the Fallen are?’

He doesn’t answer.

‘I thought demons were trapped in hell. Why are they in such a rush to go back? And if someone down there has the power to toss them out, why aren’t they all running around up here?’

Nathaniel’s gaze as he considers the question is unnerving. ‘There is no simple answer,’ he says at last. ‘It is true that Lucifer and his followers are imprisoned in the Pit, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have influence in this realm.’ He scans the silent forest for a moment. ‘There are many types of demons, and it is more difficult for some than others to leave hell, but not impossible. There are portals, possession…You must remember, though, this world is a shadow playground for demons—one they can only experience in a limited physical form. It’s not until
the end of time that they will be able to fight the Angelic Garrison in their true form. In the meantime, they have their own dark kingdom in the abyss. It’s the only home they know. And while they are in this world, they are vulnerable. Especially against my Rephaim.’

My fingers are wet with blood, and I wipe them on my clothes. ‘But aren’t demons just fallen angels too? What’s the difference between them and’—I catch myself—’your brothers?’

It’s Daniel who answers, still holding his position with the others. ‘Demons fell because they believed they were equal to God. They grew arrogant and despised creation. The sin of the Fallen was that their profound love for God’s creation was poisoned by lust. In every other way they were loyal Watchers and holy warriors.’

Nathaniel remains impassive. I can see where Daniel learned his emotional control.

‘Gabriella,’ the angel says, ‘there’s much you need to relearn, and you can only do that safely under my protection. Return with me and allow me to watch over you.’

I let out a startled laugh. ‘Are you forgetting what happened the last time I was there?’

‘Now that you have a hint of what we are up against, you must understand why we used certain methods to try to reclaim your memories. It did not work, and I give you my word it will not happen again.’

‘What’s the point? I can’t give you what you want. One of your so-called bottom-dwelling demons just said he cut my head off.
He
knows more than I do. Maybe you should put your efforts into torturing him.’

A tiny crease appears between Nathaniel’s eyebrows. ‘Which one?’

‘Bel,’ Rafa says.

‘Did he claim you were alone when this attack took place?’

‘No. He said Jude was there. Begging for my life.’

Nathaniel looks to Daniel. ‘Is this true?’

Daniel discreetly straightens his shirt. ‘So Belial claimed.’

The darkness changes. Micah reappears on the deck with six new Rephaim. Like the others, they’re in black, but they’re not armed. They all do a double-take when they see me.

‘Taya first,’ Daniel says, and two of the women go to her.

‘They’re the healers?’ I ask Rafa.

He nods. ‘Soldiers not on rotation get healing duty.’

Of course. No down time at the Sanctuary.

Micah goes to Daisy. There’s not much left of her black t-shirt. Her torso is smeared with clotting blood and grass. She puts her thumb and little finger up to her ear, and mouths, ‘I’ll call you.’ Micah nods a farewell to me, and the two of them disappear.

‘Look,’ Rafa says, and I turn to see Ez and Zak coming along the boardwalk. Zak is carrying Mick and Ez has her fingers pressed to his bearded throat. In Zak’s arms, Mick almost looks small. And he’s so still.

‘Can they shift to help him?’

‘No,’ Rafa says. ‘That only works on us.’

Uriel is trailing behind them. He has Rusty over his shoulder and is swinging something big and grey in his left hand. Bile rises in my throat. It’s a hellion head. Uriel tosses the macabre trophy to Malachi, who uses his good arm to catch it.

Rafa nods his head at the cabin and they take Mick and Rusty inside. We follow to see Zak laying Mick on the daybed. Ez takes her hand away to check on the wound. His neck is chewed up like it’s been through a grinder. Blood seeps from multiple bites, so at least his heart’s still beating. But he’s a mess: his beard is matted and one eye is swollen. The blue singlet is soaked in blood.

I grab a tea towel from the kitchen and take over applying pressure on the wound. Ez checks Mick’s side, gently probing for more damage.

‘I think it’s just the neck.’

‘That’s probably enough,’ I say. Rusty is propped up in a chair at the dining table, his head lolled forward. ‘How bad is he?’

Zak scoffs. ‘Big hero fainted and smacked his head
against a tree going down. He’ll survive. He’s got nothing to worry about.’

‘Except that his brother’s been mauled by a hell monster.’ I rearrange the tea towel to find a dry section and put pressure back on Mick’s wound. ‘He needs to get to a hospital.’

‘We can treat him at the Sanctuary,’ Daniel says, over my shoulder.

‘Uh-uh.’ I turn to face him and find Nathaniel has come inside too. ‘There’s a medical centre in town,’ I say. ‘He’s not going anywhere but there. Rusty’s going too.’

Daniel doesn’t need to argue for me to know he doesn’t agree. ‘What if he tries to explain how he got those injuries?’

‘Who’s going to believe them? Everyone in town knows what they do up here. They’ll sound like the pair of stoners they are.’ My muscles are aching now, and a slow throb has started in my cheek. ‘Let’s get Mick patched up. Right now, before he loses any more blood.’

‘Enough of this,’ Rafa says, stepping between Daniel and me. He signals for Ez to take over tea towel duty and sends Zak in Rusty’s direction. ‘Where’s the medical centre?’

As soon as I tell them, Zak and Ez shift with the Butlers.

‘That was a mistake.’ There’s an edge to Daniel’s voice I haven’t heard before. He’s about to lose his cool.

‘This whole thing was a mistake,’ Rafa says. ‘So why don’t you all piss off back to Italy and let us clean up your mess.’

‘Do you really think you can keep Gabriella safe?’

‘Not your problem.’

‘But it is hers.’

Nathaniel doesn’t interrupt their bickering. He’s only interested in me.

‘Gabriella,’ he says quietly, ‘Rafa is an exceptional fighter, but he alone can’t hold back those who will come for you.’

I meet his eyes. ‘Do you remember my mother? My
real
mother?’

He blinks. ‘No.’

‘Really?’

‘Like all the other women my brothers seduced, she did not survive the birthing.’

I watch the lying, the smoothness of it.

‘Every single one died?’

‘Yes, Gabriella, all of them.’

I move to stand beside Rafa. ‘I’m staying here.’

‘In that
fishing
village down there?’ Daniel says.