Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel) (25 page)

Michael
stood
up
to
address
the
family. “Aura
speaks
the
truth.
Richard
is
far
more
dangerous
than
Natalie.
His friends were once great angels before they
followed Lucifer. They are not without power.
I realize we
are asking you to allow a murderer to have her freedom, but
if we are patient we can bring Richard and the others to
trial.”

Jane looked at her son Jayden and said, “They have
far more experience in these matters than either of us.
I
know in my heart they will target you first. I don’t want to
lose another son.”

Henry who remained silent all this time was still in
shock. “How could she change like that? Who would do
that for her?”

“Your son went to an Enchantor. Her name is
Mahlyssa.
I can assure you she can answer more questions
than I can,” Aura said.

“I thought Virgil was the last Enchantor?” Jessica
asked.

“Mahlyssa was Virgil’s wife.” Aura went on to tell
them the story of Mahlyssa and Virgil.
She talked of how
Marcus tricked him into giving up his wings and then cursed
him. She didn’t say anything else about their daughter
except he had taken her to a safe place.

Myra asked, “Did she ever see her daughter again?”

“No, I’m afraid Richard made their reunion
impossible.
I have had the pleasure to meet Mahlyssa.
She
will be joining us later today. I need you to trust her as I do.
I’m afraid there is something else you don’t know. I will
answer those questions when I return,” Aura said.

“Where are you going Mommy?”Alannah asked.

Aura smiled at her daughter.
“I need to bring some
family and friends home. I won’t be long.
You can stay
here with Bren and Tracy until I get back.”

“I don’t want any of you to go after Natalie. We
have a plan and we need to stick to it, if justice is to be
served. I’ll be back soon; I promise.”

Aidan walked over to Aura.
“I’ll come with you.
If
Richard
has
aligned
himself
with
Samhael,
he
may
be
close.”

“Neither of them can go where I’m going Aidan.”
“How can you be so sure?”

“I will be on hallowed ground. They can’t touch me
there. Watch over the girls. I’ll only be a few minutes. You
do have to start trusting me.” She opened the door and was
out of sight within seconds.

“How did Aura know it was Natalie?” Jayden asked.
“Her visions have grown stronger these last few
weeks,” Eve said.

 

“Do you think she saw who started the fire or killed
Elijah and Ericah?” Jane asked.

“I’m afraid I can’t answer that. Aura will only
reveal her visions when it’s necessary. Sometimes as a seer,
we have to wait for other events to occur before we fully
understand what we are being shown. As I’ve said before, it
is a special gift,” Eve said.

“Aura is becoming more powerful by the day,”
Michael said. “I have no doubt she will lead all of you
where you need to go.
She may be young, but her mind is
old. Trust her and she will never fail you.”

“I wish we could stay longer, but we have other
matters requiring our attention,” Ariel said.

 

“Will you be coming to the wedding?” Jessica
asked.

 

Her grandmother smiled at her.“We certainly hope
to be there.”

 

“You’re coming too, right Uncle Gabe?” Bren
asked.

“I’m looking forward to dancing with my little
ones,” he smiled. Bren and Tracy gave him a big hug.
Alannah hugged Michael and Uriel.
One by one the
Archangels said goodbye. Helena assured Rita she would be
there for the wedding.
She promised to arrive early, so she
could help her get ready.
After a few minutes they were all
gone.

After the Archangels departed Eve sensed Martin
was still apprehensive about Myra meeting her mother.
She
pulled him aside to assure him the reunion would go well.
“You have nothing to worry about.
I have seen them
together in my visions.
This needs to
happen Martin.
Mahlyssa will prove herself to you and Heaven; I’m certain
of it.”

Martin looked at his friend and smiled.“I have
always trusted you Eve. I know you love Myra as I do.”
“She’s like a sister to me. I would never allow
anything tohappen to her.”

 

“I’m being over protective aren’t I?” Martin
laughed.

“We can never have too much protection. Lucifer is
planning something, but we will stand together as we have
always done. Our gifts will keep us safe.”

“Do you think it would be better to move Mahlyssa
here to the valley?”

“Perhaps Myra will ask her. We can’t forget she has
others
with
her
who
she
regards
as
family,
two
other
couples.
One
has a
son; the other a daughter.
Aura
wouldn’t have brought them here if she wasn’t trying to
keep them safe.”

“There is also a little girl named Shannon, a very
special five year old.
She was abandoned by her own
parents shortly after her birth and Mahlyssa has raised the
child as her own.
Her parents left when Mahlyssa forbid
them from practicing the dark arts.
I have a feeling we will
be introduced to them soon.
We need to ask the Guild to
allow her to adopt the child in order to keep her from harm.”

“If she is tru
ly a daughter of Heaven, we will do
whatever is necessary to protect her and those she cares
about. You have my word,” Martin said.

‘I have no doubt of her loyalty. Of course I see a
great many things you don’t. In time all of you will see the
same trust in her that Aura does,” Eve smiled.

“Let’s hope Richard won’t be able to convince her
to walk his path.”

“He will certainly try, which is why we must protect
the child.
Richard will use her to get to Mahlyssa.
Aura
intends to ask the Council to allow the child to receive
angel-blood, as they did Alice.
I can promise you the child
is as true to Heaven as our other children.”

“We can discuss it later this afternoon. Why is Aura
so interested in this child? Isn’t she mortal?”

“She is, but as I’ve said
the child is special.”
“What makes her so special?”
“She has the sight.”

“A mortal born with the sight; I’ve never heard of
such a thing. Are you certain?”

 

“I am absolutely sure. She will be a valuable asset
to us.”

 

“Won’t the child want to return to her parents if they
come for her?”

“She barely remembers them. She is faithful to
Mahlyssa without reservation.
Shannon has seen her as she
appeared with the curse, and yet she was unafraid of her.
Perhaps she saw the goodness in her. You’ll meet her in a
few minutes.
I know Myra will love Shannon as your other
children.”

“We should return to the party before Myra comes
to find us. It won’t do to spoil the surprise.”

Jayden still didn’t understand why they let Natalie
go, although he would never question the decision of the
High Council. Acadia was sympathetic to him. “We are
both going to have to trust their decision,” she said
genuinely.

“All this time, I thought my parents died in an
accident.
Now it appears Richard was responsible for their
deaths too. I have to wonder what Meredith’s involvement is
in all of this. She benefited by using us as servants. Perhaps
Aura’s visions will show us those answers as well.”

Jayden stopped thinking about himself for a moment
and looked at Acadia. “Aura will help us sort this out. I’m
sorry about your parents,” he said, as he reached to take her
hand. Acadia didn’t pull away. She was comforted by his
gesture.

Rita looked at Will with great sorrow.
He now had
no doubt Richard killed his parents. Rita was sure he was
thinking about his brother Arian.
No one knew if he was
dead or alive.
Jade was still not convinced Arian was dead.
She held out hope until she had proof; though Will disagreed
with her. He was overheard telling her if Arian was alive, he
would have returned to them.

“What if he can’t return Will? What if he’s hurt?”
Most of the time Will would walk away, not wanting to
accept what Jade said.
Maybe Arian was still angry about
the argument they had about Natalie. But that was no reason
for him not to come back to Jade; he loved her.

Henry couldn’t help overhearing the conversation.
He
contemplated
if
the
others
would
distrust
him
considering he was Richard’s father. He wouldn’t have
objected to trying Natalie then and there.
He was more
concerned knowing Natalie had Lucifer’s blood. He saw her
wickedness clearly when she threatened the life of the priest.
How could he have been so blind?

Paul saw the worry on his face and came over to
him. “There is no reason for you to feel guilty about your
granddaughter.
We have known for some time she killed
Ella and Jasper.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

 

“Richard has a way of knowing our plans. It was
safer for you not to know,” Paul apologized.

 

“Do you think I am in danger?”

“Not only are
you in danger, but your daughter
Analie and Ambrosia are in danger too.
As long as they
remain in the sanctuary, no harm will befall them,” Paul
promised.

“It hardly seems fair to keep them confined. Isn’t
there something else that can be done?”

“We’ll
do everything within our power to keep all of
you safe. I don’t know Aura’s plans, but I can say with
confidence you are regarded as family. Joshua will never be
in any danger. Jessica would never allow it.”

“Do you think it’s wise for them to marry after all
that’s happened?”

“If we wait for the threat of darkness to go away,
I’m afraid we’ll be waiting a long time. We’ll have the
wedding in twelvedays. Richard won’t be foolish enough to
disrupt
the
celebration.
The
High
Council
will
be
in
attendance.
Natalie was visibly uncomfortable by their
presence today.”

“She wasn’t that concerned. She would have easily
cut Father Patrick’s throat without hesitation.”

“She may have considered it, but she realized if she
hurt Father Patrick it would have been
the end of her
existence.”

“I don’t understand why you allowed her to go free.
Surely you have other means to go after Richard?”

“We still need to identify the other participants. We
have every intention of bringing Richard before the Council
to standtrial for Virgil’s death.”

“Do you think my son will appear now?”
“He’ll have no choice. Phillipe Devereaux still
serves as one of your ambassadors, does he not?”

“Yes, but I’m certain he has probably already
aligned
himself
with
position immediately.”
Richard.
I
should
terminate
his

“On the contrary, he may afford us information that
would benefit us in our quest for justice. I am asking you to
leave things as they are for now.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?”

“Phillipe lives in New York. His daughters
are
residing at the Godwin Academy. I’ll ask Will and Joshua
to return there until the wedding.
Andromeda can keep an
eye on them for a few days.
Rita and Jessica can do some
shopping while they’re there.”

“I’m not sure I agree with your decision, bu
t I will
honor it.
Are you sure Will and Joshua will leave here
now?”

“I’ll speak to Rita and Jessica. The boys will go if
they ask them. I’ll inform Arthur about today’s events.
Richard will be angry when he realizes Mahlyssa is no
longer under his control.
His priority will be to make sure
Natalie is safe first. We’ll convene the trial in a few days.
Aura should have a better understanding of where we stand
by then.”

“I thought we agreed to give him a week.”

“We have Tristan and Jasmine’s wedding
on New
Year’s Eve. Rita and Jessica will marry the boys six days
later. We can’t wait for them to make a move.

“I’ll warn Analie about what’s happened. I wish
Axel and Caspian were back, but I suppose we can deal with
Richard until they return. I’m starting to believe the rumors
that Analie and Ambrosia were the intended targets of the
initial attack.”

Paul felt he could now trust Henry enough to tell
him the truth. “Axel and Caspian have been working as
members of the Guard. I can assure you they’re both safe
and will be returning soon.”

Henry laughed.“I should have known they were
working for you. Was their journey a successful one?”
“Very successful,” Paul smiled.

PJ and the boys didn’t seem fazed by the
confrontation.
They went back to the dining room to fill
their plates a second time. As Aidan watched them he shook
his head.
How could
they remain so calm after what
happened? He was impressed by their composure. Even he
was more emotional.

There was a time he would never have shown any
sentiment.
That was the way of Heaven.
But he was in
Aeden now with his family and he found himself acting
more like the angel-blood every day.

Iris and Howard checked on Father Patrick who was
not in the least upset by Natalie’s threat. He was a true child
of Heaven and did not fear death.

When Mia heard movement at the front door, she
told everyone she would answer it.
She must have thought
Becca Cohen would make an appearance, because she was
seen
standing
on
the
sofa
looking
through
the
curtains
frequently.

Once again it was not Becca; Aura had returned with
her guests.
Chapter 24

Aura asked Arian to remain hidden outside, until she
came for him.
She knew Will would be overwhelmed with
joy, when he saw his brother.

Aura walked in the house, holding the hands of
Mahlyssa and Shannon.
The two other young couples held
tight
to
their
small
children.
While
they
were
clearly
apprehensive about the meeting, Shannon entered the house
with a huge smile on her face.

The little ones were the first to walk over to greet
them. “I’m Aura’s sister Bren. This is my best friend Tracy
and this is Aura’s daughter Alannah,” Bren said, with a
welcoming smile.