Good Side of Sin (45 page)

Ethan lifted his fist and pounded on the wood door of the library. There was no sense in giving the impression he was happy about meeting this particular archangel; he was actually anything but happy.

“It’s me,” Ethan said.

“Only you?” a voice echoed from inside.

Taking in a deep breath, Ethan turned to look at the crowd of people in the hall behind him. His eyes fell on Josselyn and she nodded her encouragement. “You can do this,” she mouthed silently, before he turned back to speak through the door.

“Yeah. It’s just me coming in.”

“Clever boy. You may enter.”

As much as his nerves were screaming for him to turn and run, Ethan faced his fear and turned the door handle.

He remembered this room. He had wanted to show it to Emma, because he had noticed the overflowing bookshelf in her apartment. It looked the same now as it had when Isaiah had told him of what
he
was, what
he
would become if he chose to accept it. He hadn’t remembered accepting it, but, seeing as he was here and about to give it his all, he guessed he had at some point.

Valuable foreign rugs were spread out sporadically, and in no apparent arrangement, to prevent the movable objects from scuffing the unblemished flooring.

“Come in,” a male voice bellowed cheerfully. “Join us!”

Ethan saw Aries first. She was standing by a window, looking out onto the back yard. As if she had sensed his rage, she turned to give him expressionless eyes. “Hello, Ethan. I’m glad you could make it.”

With his fists clenched tightly at his sides, Ethan forced himself to look away from her without blowing up in her face, which was the nicest thing he wanted to do to her at that moment. Whatever magic or gift or power or whatever the hell was in him was struggling to get free and do some damage. It felt as though a tiger, with all of its strength and temper, was about to tear its way out of his body and attack everyone in the room, starting with the seer.

“You have to control your emotions, Ethan,”
Josselyn spoke through his mind, and then gave him a few moments to calm down before speaking again.
“That’s what Geoffrey wants. If he can’t make you give yourself over by talking to you, then he will try to get you to commit some sort of sin bad enough Lucifer won’t need to ask.”

Giving the blood access back into his fingers, Ethan took a few calming breaths and let his eyes continue to take in the rest of the threat around him. The instant he saw his dad, Emma and Troy, he started forward and then immediately stopped when Josselyn started shouting at him through his mind.

“Sorry. I wasn’t thinking,”
Ethan said, apologetically.

“Well, can you try and do that? You just about got all of us killed. I’ve had three months of intense training, preparing for situations like this. I realize that you’ve only had about two hours. I can’t teach you common sense, though, Ethan. Calm down and use your head—”

“Ah…” Geoffrey chimed in, interrupting the silent conversation, and Ethan shot him a look of warning. “I thought you said you were coming in alone?”

“I’m here. I’m alone. What do you want?” Ethan snapped at the beady-eyed, thin man.

“Who is our little stowaway, hmm? Alexandra?” He shook his head, and then smiled knowingly. “No—it’s Josselyn. I told you to come in alone or I would destroy the souls of my guests here.” Geoffrey started walking toward Emma.

Ethan’s eyes popped wide and he took a step toward her, too. “No! Please don’t hurt her.”

Geoffrey stopped and looked back up at Ethan, then whipped his wrist quickly through the air. Ethan immediately dropped to his knees, grabbing his head and screaming as his skull threatened to explode. Blood ran freely from his nose and ears. He heard Josselyn’s scream, and then a rush of panicked voices from out in the hall, and he fought through the pain and hyperventilation to open his eyes so he could look toward the door.

“What did you do to her?” Ethan said through the pain.

Geoffrey lowered his hand and Ethan fell forward on his hands, gasping for air as the torture subsided. “Nothing she wasn’t expecting me to do. Now—we are alone.”

“Josselyn!”
There was no answer. He cursed as he slapped the wood floor with the palm of his right hand.

“Do not worry about her. She was only a pawn to bring us together, to bring you to your real destiny. She followed the plan precisely.”

Ethan lifted his head and glowered at Geoffrey from under his brow. “And what plan might that be? Because if you thought I was going to waltz in here and take you up on a ridiculous offer to free Lucifer, so that he can take over Heaven and Earth, you’ve got me mistaken with someone who doesn’t give a fuck.”

Geoffrey took the remaining steps to where Emma sat, chained and gagged, eyes full of fear. Ethan’s breath hitched as Geoffrey reached out and took a strand of her hair between his fingers.

“Please…” Ethan swallowed hard, and his eyes flicked from Geoffrey to Emma, and then back again. “…don’t—”

“Pick one.”

Ethan’s eyes widened in horror. “What?”

“Pick one to save.”

Geoffrey moved slowly to the chair a few feet from Emma. Ethan’s dad sat slumped and pale and wounded. It was obvious the demon had not treated him well. He was only hours away from death if he didn’t get him out of here so he could get the medical attention his body required to heal.

“The humans are destroying Earth, young alflight. What is God doing about it? Nothing. Even the purest of souls are turning dark, because crime and war and poverty and disease continue to worsen, and yet… He does nothing. Lucifer has another option. There will be no hunger, no sickness. There will be peace. Everyone will prosper.”

“Just like everyone in Hell is doing now? Lucifer is a master of deceit. He has told you nothing but lies, so you will do his dirty work for him. Then he will throw you to the bottom of the pit with everyone else.”

Geoffrey held up one of his gloved hands and began to pull the fabric from his fingers. “Do you know what my gift is, Ethan?” He didn’t wait for an answer. He pulled the glove the rest of the way off. “I have the power to damn souls with only the touch of my hand. When an angel commits a crime worthy of falling, I am the last face they see before they are damned to Hell—to Lucifer. And right now Lucifer is waiting to welcome your father’s soul.” He moved his hand toward Ethan’s dad.

“No!” Ethan roared, and slung his hands forward, sending a jolt of power from them strong enough to knock Geoffrey across the room, back-first into a book shelf.

With a growl, Geoffrey shot to his feet and started running toward Ethan’s dad.

Ethan acted on instinct and ran to stop him before he could touch him. He couldn’t let the archangel damn his dad’s soul to Hell. A war cry left his throat as he ran, and then he crashed into Geoffrey just before the archangel made contact with his dad. The force of the collision spun them around and Geoffrey smiled as he stared down into Ethan’s rage-filled eyes, eyes that quickly turned panicked when Geoffrey’s eyes turned from black to a pale blue. A strange sensation coursed through Ethan’s body and he knew something was very wrong.

Geoffrey pushed Ethan away, and he landed hard on his hip and elbow beside his dad’s chair. He struggled to get to his feet, and then positioned himself between Geoffrey and his dad, his hands thrust out in front of him in case Geoffrey tried to get to his dad. He would die himself before he would let Geoffrey touch him, but Geoffrey didn’t move; he only stared at Ethan with a smirk.

“I’m so sorry I wasn’t a better father to you.” Ethan’s dad said from behind him, and then he coughed and blood came out of his mouth, landing on his dirty shirt. “I love you, son.”

“Dad!” Ethan shouted, and knelt beside his father. “No, I can fix this. You are going to be all right.” Ethan felt a shiver course up his arm the instant his fingers touched his dad’s skin. Geoffrey’s manic laugh echoed throughout the room. In the next moment, his dad’s body fell completely limp and lifeless beneath his hands.

“What did you do to him?” Ethan choked out, his eyes staring at his dead father, seeing, but not believing.

Geoffrey chuckled. “I didn’t do anything to him. You, however, just damned his soul. Welcome to the dark side, alflight. Enjoy the gift I gave you.”

The house shook on its foundation as if an Earthquake had just rocked Las Vegas. I reached out for the wall and was steadied by a pair of hands around my waist. Thoros’ eyes filled with concern, and then we both looked toward the closed door of the library.

“Something has happened! I have to get in there,” I said in a rushed voice, and started for the door, but Archangel Aberney stepped in my way before I could burst through it like a mad woman.

“If we go in there and Geoffrey damns three innocent souls—”

“Compared to the seven billion other people that are in danger of losing theirs? Either help me or don’t, but whichever you choose, you need to get out of my way; Ethan needs me.”

“I’m with you,” Lameria said from behind me. “I’ve got a bone to pick with a certain little seer, and she just happens to be in that room.”

Thoros linked his fingers with mine, and I gave them a gentle squeeze as I stared at Aberney. “The majority of the Council gave me permission to try and stop Lucifer from taking over. You were one of the first archangels to stand, Aberney. Don’t stop me now, not when we still have a chance. I’m asking you to let me do my job.”

The archangel looked unsure until he glanced to Rhyan, Abigail and Alexandra, that moved up on the other side of me. Abigail lifted her hands and blue sparks danced across the tips of her fingers.

“You heard the woman. It’s time for you to move,” Abigail said.

I smiled as I glanced over my shoulder, noticing that everyone in the hall with us was lined up behind me, waiting to join me on the other side of the library door, no matter the risk.

“Let her pass, Aberney,” a female voice said from farther down the corridor, by the grand staircase. Gabriella emerged from the top of the stairs with the remaining eleven archangels trailing behind her. My eyes locked on her and I blew out a breath through puffed out cheeks. Out of all the archangels, she was my least favorite, and it stunned me to hear her side with me now. “I’m anxious to see if the girl can live up to her word.”

Aberney intruded in on my personal space. “Troy is in there—”

I sighed. “I know. And I aim to do everything I can to save my friend, but Ethan isn’t prepared for this; he needs the help we promised him.”

“The help
you
promised him.” He inhaled deeply, and then let it out before commenting again. “If you fail… this is on you.”

“I understand that. Ethan was hand-picked by God himself; do you really want to be the one to tell God the alflight was taken because you stood in the way and let it happen?” We stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity, but he looked away first, and then stepped to the side so I could pass. I released Thoros’ hand and moved toward the door, knowing he would follow right behind me.

“Wait!”

Irritated, I turned and glared at the approaching group of people. My eyebrows shot into my hairline and I looked to Alexandra for an explanation. She was smiling.

“I wasn’t sure she would come,” Alexandra said, and nodded her head in the direction of the six people walking toward us. Leading the pack, was a woman—about mid-thirties—with long, bright blond, curly hair, dressed in black LOD gear, complete with hot pink combat boots.

“Who—” I began, but the woman stuck her hand out before she even came to a complete stop in front of me.

“The name’s Gloria.” I took her hand and she nearly shook my arm out of its socket. Still pumping my arm like a car jack, she pointed with her other hand to a very pretty blond. There was a very handsome man with dark hair standing protectively at her side. “This is Ariana—she’s an alflight, too—and this is her husband, Abe. He’s a vampire,” she said nonchalantly, as if vampires were the main topic in everyday conversation.

“Oh—oh!” My eyes widened in surprise when the guy standing beside Abe smiled and flashed a pair of
real
fangs.

“And I’m Jonah,” the guy said as he gave me a wink.

I had to remind myself to breathe, and not because Jonah’s rugged good looks had taken my breath away—although he was very attractive—but because it was the first time I had ever met a vampire. How did I not know they existed for real?

Thoros nudged me, and I realized that Ariana had her hand out. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry. I’m Josselyn.” I took her hand in greeting. “Vampires…” I shook my head, still trying to wrap my mind around that word. What else did I not know about?

“I hope we can be of some assistance,” Ariana said with a kind smile.

Abe rocked on his heels and avoided eye contact. It was clear he didn’t want to be here, or maybe he didn’t want
her
to be here. “Yeah. We’re all thrilled to do what we can to help. Always,” he said on a sigh, but Ariana acted as though he hadn’t said a word.

Time was wasting, and I hadn’t heard a single sound from the library in over five minutes. “If Ethan gives himself over to the dark side, Heaven and Earth will belong to Lucifer.”

Abe’s shock was evident as his pretty greenish-blue, guarded eyes blinked at me, and then his head whipped around to glare at Ariana. His enthusiasm toward being here seemed to switch from ‘off’ to ‘on’ in less than a second. I guess his wife had left out a few minor details about their visit. Oops!

“That’s why we’re here,” Ariana said.

I watched as Abe’s lips tightened, and then glanced at Thoros, who had a smile from ear-to-ear. Guess he was relating to how the guy felt.

“Ariana—”

“Not now, Abe. We’ll talk about it later.” Without waiting for a response, she turned and opened the door leading into the library. I followed after her without a glance back at her husband; I knew he wasn’t a happy camper.

Ethan was at the opposite end of the room, his head bowed and his body kneeling before the middle of three chairs, containing Emma, his dad and Troy. Geoffrey smirked at me from his standing point behind the victims. I didn’t know whether to take that as good or bad news; after all, he hadn’t destroyed any souls when we walked in, like he had threatened he was going to. On the other hand… were we too late?