Gabriel (6 page)

“
You do not smell like the others. Why?”

Calla was eye to eye with him
and bit her bottom lip. Wings of leather protruded from his back. The scent of
the creature was strong, acidic with a hint of day-old rotten vegetables. Bile
rose in Calla’s throat as the smell overpowered her other senses.

“
What do
they
smell
like?” Calla asked in a whisper.

“
Like a filthy human, who is too ignorant to know they smell like
food.”

He snaked his tongue out and
ran it across her jaw. Drool covered his chin and dripped onto Calla’s jacket.
She remained still while he continued his exploration of her neck. He raised
his head and looked around at the other women. Calla trembled.
Oh God, what is it going to do now?
The
creature glared at her and began to lower his head. Calla raised her arms and
pushed against his chest. Her ribs burned, but that would be the least of her
problems if she was dead. He swatted her arms away as if they were a mere
nuisance. She twisted and turned, but he used his weight to smash her against
the wall. He pushed her head to the side, and then mind-searing pain ripped
through her as his teeth penetrated her throat, ripping flesh. A gulping sound
was the last thing she heard before everything went black.

****

Calla heard a voice yelling
at her.

 
“Wake up!
Listen to me! You have to wake up. There’s so much blood, and I don’t know what
to do. Please, wake up!”

She opened her eyes, but
everything was fuzzy. As things started to come into focus, the addict’s face
stared at her with tears in her eyes. Calla forced herself to keep the image as
the pain threatened to sweep her away.

“
What happened?” Her voice was weak.

“
You’re bleeding from your neck. A lot, you’re bleeding a lot,” the
addict said, hands shaking.

Calla put her hand to her
neck and pulled it away. Red dripped from her hand onto the floor.

“
Can you rip the bottom of my shirt off?” Calla asked.

The woman grabbed a hold of
the cotton and gave it a yank. She handed a strip of fabric to Calla who then
pushed the cotton into the wound and applied pressure.

“
Can you rip off another piece?”

Calla tied the strip around
her neck tight enough to hold pressure on the packing, but loose enough so she
could still breathe. The creature had ripped the flesh, but since she was still
talking she knew her carotid artery had not been punctured. Good thing or she’d
be dead in minutes.

“
Did he say anything?”

“
No, but I don’t think he liked the taste of you.”

“
Why do you say that?”

“
Because you’re still alive.”

“
Ah, good point.”

“
Can you move?” the addict asked.

Calla started to stand, but
her vision swirled. She stopped to take a few deep breaths. She tried again and
was able to keep her focus a little longer. After a few more tries, she was
standing, leaning against the wall.

“
The window is open. We need to leave now before it’s too late,”
the addict said.

The addict helped the
youngest woman out the window. She turned to the other two. “I know you’re in
pain, but if you want to live we have to go now.”

Neither of them moved or said
a word.

“
I’m sorry, but I want to live. The window is open if you change
your mind.” She helped Calla crawl out the window where the youngest woman was
waiting.

“
We should split up,” the addict whispered. “It’ll make it harder
for them to find us.”

“
We need to get away from here first.” Calla said.

“
If we stay together, there’s a better chance all three of us will
be caught again. I’m the one with the best chance of making it to safety. I’ll
take her,” the addict said indicating the younger woman. “But you’re on your
own.”

“
Wow. I’ve always appreciated honesty, until now.”

“
Listen, I appreciate what you have done for me, but you’re
bleeding. They might be able to track the blood, and that will lead them to all
three of us. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but I’m scared.”

Calla rubbed at the bandage,
and when she did blood oozed down her neck. If she stayed with them and the
demons could track by scent, then Calla would issue them all a death sentence.
She didn’t think she had any chance of making it home, to the hospital, or
anywhere else alive. She looked into their panic-stricken faces. It was, indeed
time to split up.

“
You’re right. I probably won’t live to see another day. But before
you go, I need to know your name.”

“
The woman who’s leaving here is Abbie. The woman you met inside is
dead, and I owe you for that. Thank you.”

“
Abbie, I’m Calla. Thank you for saving my life. Do you have
somewhere to stay?”

Yes, and I know where she
stays, so I’ll help her home. We really need to get moving,” Abbie said.

Abbie and the young woman
headed toward the bridge a few blocks away. Calla lurched towards her
apartment. She leaned against buildings trying to keep upright. The loss of
blood was starting to take its toll on her. Images began to blur, and sounds
were amplified as a migraine started right behind her eyes.

Calla had only made it two
blocks when she heard a series of high-pitched screams.
The other women didn’t leave. Those monsters are probably looking for
us right now. I have to keep moving.
The shrieks stopped as quickly as they
started. A downward rush of air alerted Calla that someone was above her, but
her neck was too sore to tilt her head. She huddled between a dumpster and the
wall, hoping that would provide some cover.

They were gone, or so she
hoped. She continued in the direction of her house. Her muscles were starting
to tighten, and every step was agony.
That
thing probably gave me rabies. First get to safety. Then you can worry about
where and how you’re going to die. Just keep moving, almost there.

Calla crawled up the steps to
her home and managed to get the door unlocked and open. Her muscles were so
taut that she dragged her body into the door. She reached for the phone sitting
on the small table and knocked it over, spilling it onto the floor. She dialed
911.

“
911, state your emergency.”

“
I need help.”

Her hands went stiff, and the
phone fell. Every breath was a struggle. She began to tremble as she lost
control of her bodily functions and urinated on the floor.
 
Blood began to drip from her nose.

I’m
going to die.

Chapter Four

Gabriel felt Calla’s life
force fading.
 
He doubled over from the
pain that shot through his heart. With every ounce of strength he possessed, he
forced himself to fly faster. The pain started to recede, and panic took over
where it left off. He landed in the back yard with a loud thump. Bolting into
the house, he found Calla face down in a pool of bodily fluids.

Gabriel flipped her over.
“Calla, can you hear me?”

“
Calla!” Gabriel clenched his jaw.

She didn’t respond. He pulled
her close, removing the makeshift bandage. “Calla, what have you done?”

He felt the poison from the
bite spreading through her body. She had minutes left to live. Gabriel lifted
her face to his, put his lips on her, and breathed into her mouth. Light filled
her body and radiated from her extremities. Her lips parted as she gasped air.

Gabriel felt Michael enter
his mind. He knew Michael could feel him use his gift of life.

“
Brother, what have you done?” Michael asked.

“
I can’t let her die.”

“
She has been contaminated. What you are doing may cause her grave
suffering. Are you prepared for the consequences of your actions?”

“
The only thing I am sure of is that I love this woman.” Gabriel
reached down and traced the line of her face. The truth of that statement
resonated from within and filled parts of him that he didn’t realize were
empty. Gabriel didn’t understand the how or why this was happening, but the
feelings were real. How was it possible that he could find someone that he
wanted to share his entire existence with? There should be an explanation, but
instead all he was filled with was a feeling of being complete. Would he ever
understand how love worked, or would he accept it for the gift it was? At this
moment he embraced the gift, and he would hold it tight and risk everything for
it.

Michael was silent for a few
moments.

Calla was breathing, but
still unconscious. Sweat beaded on her forehead. Where once a huge gash had
marred her beautiful features, it was now replaced by flawless skin. Gabriel
lifted her and carried her upstairs.

Her clothes were saturated in
filth. Gabriel didn’t want to lay her in bed like this. He closed his eyes and
envisioned her unsoiled. When they opened Calla was clean. He pulled back the
blankets and set her in the middle of the queen-sized four poster bed. At the
moment, she was not a danger to herself or others. No human had ever survived
an attack and lived. The ripped necks didn’t kill the humans. It was the venom
from the bite that was fatal.

He needed to prepare for the
worst. The posts on the bed would be ideal to tie her down, but he hated to do
so. He vanished and returned with a rope, a bucket, flashlight, a washcloth,
and a vial of water. As he began to ready the room, he heard a knock on the
front door. Gabriel rushed downstairs. With a wave of his hand the fluids from
Calla vanished, and then he opened the door. Two EMS personnel and a sheriff
stood on the front steps.

“
We received a 911 call,” the sheriff said.

“
There is no need for your services.”

The taller of the two EMS men
stepped forward. “I’m Eric. This is Calla Stevens’ house, right?”

“
Yes, Calla resides here.”

“
Calla is a friend of mine. She’s the one who made the call. May I
see her?” Eric asked.

“
She is not accepting visitors at this time.”

“
Look, mister, we’re not asking you if she’s accepting visitors.
I’m telling you we need to see her, now.” The sheriff started to edge his way
toward the door. He unsnapped the holster and rested his hand on the gun. “Step
away from the door.”

Gabriel stood at the
entrance, trying to the figure out the quickest way to handle this so he could
get back upstairs to Calla. He rustled through their thoughts. The three of
them had nothing but concern for Calla. All three knew Calla very well, and
they weren’t going anywhere until they made sure she was safe.

Taking them upstairs was out
of the question. Causing them harm was also not an option—after all they were
here to help. That left only one option, and one Gabriel was reluctant to use.
After a few seconds, he decided it was the only way.

“
Come on in,” Gabriel said stepping away from the door.

“
Who’s here, Gabriel?” Calla asked from the living room.

“
EMS and a Sheriff.”

Calla walked to the entryway.
“What’s going on?”

“
We’re responding to the 911 call you made.” The sheriff glanced at
Calla, removing his hand from the holstered gun.

“
Oh, my gosh, I’m so sorry.”

“
Calla,
the message said you needed help. Is everything okay?” Eric asked.

“
Yeah. I fell walking into the house. Gabriel came over and helped
me. I forgot all about the call. I’m so sorry for wasting your time.”

Gabriel watched as the
sheriff scanned the room behind them and then inspected Calla. His eyes
narrowed when they met Gabriel’s. The sheriff then turned toward Calla.

“
If something is wrong, Calla, you can tell us. You’re among
friends.”

“
I’m fine. I really am sorry about the inconvenience this has
caused you. You know me well enough to know I won’t put up with crap from
anybody.” Calla glanced up at Gabriel. “I’m lucky he found me.”

“
I will always be here for you, Calla,” Gabriel said, staring into
her eyes.

“
You seem happy, Calla, and it looks like you’re okay, so we’re
going to leave.” Eric and his partner headed out the door. Eric turned back
again. “Calla, I heard you have taken an extended leave from the hospital. The
last time we spoke, you were pretty upset. Is everything all right?”