His Soul To Keep (Dark Knights of Heaven Book 1) (3 page)

The silence stretched on, punctuated by the occasional slurping. When Cassidy finished, she handed Rail the mug, but didn’t make a move for the fruit or bottle of water next to her. She didn’t say a word; she just stared at him.

Suddenly Rail felt self-conscious and nervous—a feeling he couldn’t remember having experienced before.

"Where to start?" He cleared his throat. "What do you know of biblical history?"

"As much as anyone, I suppose. I’ve read books and seen programs on the History Channel." Her fingers edged toward the Twinkie, her intent gaze never leaving Rail’s face.

Noticing Cassidy’s covert attempt to reach the treat, he nudged it closer. "It’s a start, but nowhere near the truth." Settling back in the chair, Rail closed his eyes, took a calming breath, and organized his thoughts. "What do you know about Lucifer?"

* * *

Now, Cassidy knew she was in real trouble. Not only had she been kidnapped, but kidnapped by some sort of religious cult or Satanists. "Get away from me!" Summoning what little strength she had, she rolled off the bed, ready to run, only to be caught in Rail’s strong arms.

"Cassidy, stop it. You’ll hurt yourself."

"Let me go!"

Rail held her tight, her back against his chest. "Calm down."

Cassidy felt a zing of electricity from Rail that shot straight to her core and nearly knocked her to her knees. "You’re a nut. A crazy devil worshiper," she rasped, trying to catch her breath.

"I. Am. Not." Rail growled low, the sound reverberating around the room. "I have nothing to do with that bastard."

"Well then some religious nut." Panting, Cassidy stopped struggling, finding she was using up energy and making no progress at breaking free. Better to save it for when she had a real chance to escape.

Rail eased his grip. "Just listen to me. Please. It’s important you understand who we are and how you fit into all of this."

Wary, Cassidy turned slowly within the circle of his arms, enjoying the contact a little too much. She looked up into his dark gold eyes and that electric tingle skittered over her skin again. Clearing her throat, she asked, "All of what?"

"Will you sit still and listen?" When she nodded, Rail stepped back, guiding her to the bed before taking a seat at her side. "This will be a lot to take in, and I’m not good at this sort of thing. I’m more of a slash and burn kind of guy"—a wry smile played across his lips—"not a diplomat."

Cassidy looked him up and down, taking in the bulging muscles and tattoos. "I would never have guessed."

"I want you to know, I will only tell you the truth Cassidy."

"
Riiiight
." She rolled her eyes.

"I can’t lie to you. It’s physically impossible."

"You can’t lie?"

"I can’t lie to
you
. I can lie to everyone else, but not to you."

Cassidy turned slightly so she could read his face better. Rail didn’t appear to be joking, making what he said all the more unbelievable. "And what makes me so special?"

"To explain that you’ll need to know how all of this started. We’ll have to go back to the beginning."

"The beginning of what?"

"Everything."

Chapter Three

Rail waited for some sort of comment regarding his sanity—instead he got a blank look. Before the first word left his mouth, Cassidy interrupted with a sigh.

"Everything as in…?"

"The beginning of the world, mankind, everything." He studied her face, waiting for her reaction. It wasn’t what he expected.

"Couldn’t you give me the CliffsNotes version? Eighty million years is a lot of history," Cassidy quipped.

"All right. But first tell me about the beast that attacked you." Rubbing his hands together, Rail stood and took a few steps away.

"Rabid bear," she scoffed.

"And what about what you saw in the corridor? The fight between Boomer and me?"

"I...I don’t know. I was hurt and scared and…" She looked up hopefully. "Drug induced hallucination?"

Rail pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes. "This is harder to do than I thought. How did the others manage this?" He took a deep breath and turned. "Okay, here’s the quick and dirty version. The realms you know as Heaven and Hell are what you would call parallel dimensions to the World of Man—Earth." Rail paused, waiting for Cassidy’s reaction. When she didn’t blink, he took another deep breath and pressed on. "A long time ago, an entity from the Heaven dimension found this world in its infancy. For sake of argument, we’ll call this entity God. God was intrigued, so he stayed, and after a while his energies infused with everything in this world, including the developing life forms. Now we skip ahead a few million years to the time when angels walked the earth with mankind. The angels protected them, helped them, and taught them—some even fell in love with them."

"I know that story." She tilted her head. "It was against the rules."

"Yes." A ball of sorrow formed in the pit of his stomach. "And they, along with their supporters, were punished. Forced to watch as everything they had come to cherish was destroyed."

Cassidy sat quietly, her gaze locked on him.

Under her stare, his throat became a desert. Rail swallowed several times before the words came again. "You know how Lucifer was kicked out of Heaven? Well, the Hierarchy learned what a big mistake that was. This time the offenders were pulled back to Heaven, imprisoned, and stripped of their gifts. In fact, all the remaining angels were hauled back to Heaven whether they were involved or not." Unable to stay still, Rail paced. "It was during this time that several imprisoned angels escaped, sought out Lucifer, and begged for his help in avenging the loved ones they lost."

Rail ran his hands through his hair. "Unfortunately, these newly Fallen were easily manipulated and fell under Lucifer’s sway. Idiots even helped him open multiple portals from the Underworld dimension to Earth. That was the first demon war."

Memories flashed in his mind. Those had been dark days for the humans. So many were lost while he and the others sat in prison, helpless.

Cassidy’s soft cough pulled Rail back to the present.

Letting go of the dark thoughts, he snorted. "Imagine how pissed Lucifer was to discover he couldn’t cross over himself."

"But I thought…there are stories…"

Rail shook his head. "No. The manifestations of Lucifer are projections, demons, and minions, nothing more than tools and extensions of his power."

Cassidy gave him a questioning look. "But every religion has angels who intervene on behalf of God."

"Right. God created a new breed of angels to place on Earth as replacements, but they were no competition for the demons—on the advice of the Hierarchy, God had cut back their gifts. Most were little more than guiding spirits or muses. Those who had once been on Earth had their gifts reduced before they were allowed back. Even the new warrior class was weaker and fled back to Heaven with their tails tucked between their legs." He snorted his disgust. Realizing they needed help, members of the Hierarchy convinced God to use the imprisoned angels, send them back to Earth to fight the war."

Cassidy raised her hand. "Uh, who is the Hierarchy?"

"The Hierarchy consists of the first children of God. They are born solely of the Heaven dimension. They became known as the Arch Angels and are the most powerful. Lucifer was once a leader amongst their ranks. My brothers and sisters are lesser angels created after humans became more than animals."

"Wait. If you guys are weaker and the new angels are weaker, then why didn’t this Hierarchy fly in and take care of business?"

Rail's sharp laugh made Cassidy jump.

"Let me guess," she offered, "these big-high-mucky-muck angels realized they were in deep shit, didn’t want to risk themselves or the other angels, and decided you were expendable?"

"Pretty much." Pride flooded Rail. Cassidy had a quick wit and a quick mind. And she was his. "But the imprisoned said,
‘No, not after what you did to us and the people we loved.’
They were willing to stay imprisoned forever, even if it meant turning their backs on the humans. Who could blame them?"

"Understandable." She nodded solemnly. "I’d tell them to fuck off too."

"The Hierarchy took offence, as did God—who wanted the humans to be protected."

Caught up in the story, Cassidy leaned forward. "What happened next?"

"One day, every one of the imprisoned angels were tossed out of Heaven and told to stop the demons."

"Why didn’t they refuse to fight, or go into hiding, or join Lucifer like the escapees had?"

"The Hierarchy hobbled them." Rail tightened and released his fists. Rage simmered just below the surface, feeding the need to transform and relieve the pressure. Sucking in air through clenched teeth, he willed his inner beast to calm. "Just before they cast out the prisoners, the Hierarchy tore the immortal souls from the angels and scattered them amongst the unborn humans."

Cassidy lifted a shaky hand to her pale cheek. "Why?"

"Insurance. The angels didn’t know where their souls landed and if they wanted to keep their souls from being devoured by demons, they would have to protect the humans."

"How is it you know so much about this?"

"Because I was there." Rail shrugged. "I’m one of the outcasts."

Chapter Four

"And what does this have to do with me?" Cassidy asked, a hint of skepticism and irritation in her tone.

"You are my
Aktura
, my soul-keeper."

"Excuse me? I’m your what?"

"My…"

"I heard what you said," she snapped, "but you’re wrong. I am not some storage unit for your soul."

"There is no mistaking the connection, Cassidy."

Moving with confidence, if not strength, Cassidy stood and moved in front of Rail. "Well, I gave you a chance to explain yourself, and you have."

"I have? You believe me?" The tension slid away; relief coursed through him.

"Yes. You are just as insane, if not more so than I thought you were."

"I am not insane. Everything I told you is the truth."

"
Riiight.
" Cassidy patted his arm and shifted to the side, attempting to get past him. "Get out of my way."

"You’re not leaving." Rail parked himself in her path, arms crossed over his chest.

"Yes. I. Am." Once again, she pushed against him and found it was like trying to push a mountain. "Move!"

"You are not leaving. I can’t protect you from the
skratars
if you’re out running around
.
"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cassidy huffed, giving one more weak push.

"The creature that attacked you is a called a
skratar.
They hunt our soul-keepers and kill them in order to kill us. If you die, I die."

* * *

Cassidy blinked a few times and then sat on the edge of the bed. There was so much weight and emotion behind Rail's words; she felt their truth. It was staggering.
Maybe this is really happening
. Cassidy chewed on her lower lip and reviewed what she remembered since leaving work. She had been attacked by a monster—not a rabid bear, as she had tried to persuade herself. She had seen Rail and the other man, Boomer, transform into something frighteningly inhuman. And she could no longer deny the connection she felt when Rail was near. It was as though they’d known each other for years. There was a buzz of electricity between them that grew when he touched her.

With a resigned sigh, she gave in—more out of fatigue than true understanding. "Okay. Say I believe you, what does this mean for me?"

"To start, it means giving up the life you have." Rail sat and took her hand in his. "But I’ll try to make the transition easy for you."

Reality hit home. "Tempe. Oh, my God. I was on the phone with her when that thing attacked. She must be worried sick. My family…the police would have called them."

"I’m sorry, but they can’t know you survived."

"What! No. I can’t let my parents go on not knowing what happened to me."

"It’s best if you just disappear."

"Hell no." Her eyes lit with an inner fire focused fully on Rail. "I am not leaving my family and friends wondering what happened," she said forcefully. "No. If I’m even going to consider that this is the truth and leave with you, you are going to let me call my parents."

"You can’t tell them about us," Rail's voice took on a dangerous rumble.

Cassidy pulled her hands free of his tightening grasp. "Why not? Aren’t you going to protect them too?"

"They’re not in any danger from the
skratars."

"No, no, no. You said those things hunt your soul-keepers. What’s to keep them from going to my family’s home looking for me?"

Rail's eyes glazed over.

"Hello! Are you listening? What’s to keep them from killing everyone in my apartment building who are looking for me?"

Again, nothing. His brow creased with concentration.

"Rail!" She gave him a slap on the arm. "Answer me."

"They should be safe now that you’re gone."

"Should be. Should be?" Cassidy shook her head and turned away. Tears burned the back of her eyes. Never in her wildest dreams had she considered her life taking such a dramatic and strange turn. "How did this thing know who or what I was?"

"I don’t know, but they are good at what they do. As far as we know, there are very few Knights left."

"Well, why don’t you round up all the soul-keepers and move them some place safe?"

Rail shrugged. "Because we don’t know who they are until we meet them. We have to be close enough to feel their energy, their resonance. The four in residence with us were discovered during
skratar
attacks just as you were. One belongs to Kaz and another to Boomer. We haven’t found out who the other two belong to yet."

"Wait a minute." Cassidy stood and looked down at him. "Are you telling me that your enemy can find your soul-keepers, but you can’t? And you don’t even know how they are doing it?"

Rail stared at her, confusion and pain rippling across his face.

Cassidy moved directly in front of him. "How the hell am I supposed to feel safe and protected with you if you don’t even know how those things found me in the first place?" A thought struck her, turning her blood to ice. "There were some animal attacks recently. Were those people, uh, what did you call us?
Acuras.
"

"
Aktura
," he corrected her, holding up a finger. "The plural is the same as the singular. And as to your question, no. I don’t think so. Nothing about them resonated with us when we examined the bodies."

"Then why were they killed? And don’t tell me those monsters didn’t do it. You just admitted you investigated the killings."

"The
skratars
are demons, predators. Just because their prey isn’t available doesn’t mean they won’t hunt. They killed those humans because they felt like it."

"But they were here in Nevada looking for me?" A shudder ran through her body.

He nodded.

"Then what’s to keep them from killing more people?"

Rail stood and moved closer. "It’s not your fault."

"No. It’s yours." Cassidy took a step back. "You’re supposed to protect us!"

"Now just wait a fuckin’ minute!" Rail growled.

Cassidy took another quick step back, gasping in shock.

"I’m sorry,” Rail lowered his voice and gently placed his big hands lightly on her shoulders. “I shouldn’t keep yelling at you like that. You don’t completely understand what we’re up against." He let out a long breath. "I’ll try to control myself better."

Recovering her composure, Cassidy pulled away, wincing at the pain in her arm. "Whatever."

"If I could have prevented those deaths, I would have."

She believed him. God help her, but she believed him. The guilt and pain was written on his face. "I know, but I still don’t understand why you couldn’t find me before the attack. Why you can’t find the others like me." Her eyes narrowed. "Unless…" Ideas fell into place like blocks in a computer game.

"What?" Rail moved closer.

"What if that was part of whatever was done to you when you were tossed out of Heaven? I mean, if you had a way to find your soul-keepers, what would stop you from gathering them and running off with them? You would have no reason to stick around and protect the rest of humanity, right?" Anger colored her cheeks. "Those bastards."

Rail took another step forward. He buckled and dropped to the floor, groaning in pain.

"Rail! Rail! What’s wrong?" Cassidy knelt next to him and placed her hand on his back. Not only was every muscle tense, but he shook like a paint mixer. "Rail. Answer me."

He cried—a man being torn apart.

Cassidy wrapped her arms around his shoulders and gave him a gentle squeeze. "Hold on. I’ll get help."

Not knowing what else to do, Cassidy clambered to her feet, raced to the corridor outside the room, and screamed.