Milayna (7 page)

“You were safe. The other demi-angels were following you. Keeping watch—”

I slapped both hands on the table and stood. “You had me followed!”

“It was for your own protection. Once the visions started, we knew you were vulnerable, but we hadn’t prepared you yet. Plus, you weren’t in the best mood for us to tell you all this.” My dad rubbed the back of his neck. “You were having enough trouble just finding out you were a demi-angel. I was afraid if I dumped this on you too, you’d really lose it.”

The tension leaked from my shoulders, and I slipped back in my seat and nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess that’s fair. I wasn’t listening to you.”

My mom set a cup of coffee in front of my dad, and he took a sip before answering. “Before your visions, you were in a safety period. Azazel only has two opportunities to get to a demi-angel: before you reach the age of accountability and then again in the months leading up to your eighteenth birthday.”

“Age of accountability?”

“Yes, the age a person is able to understand the difference between right and wrong, good and evil. Once they understand the difference, they choose which to embrace. Azazel can try to influence their choice, but when they reach the age of accountability—regardless of the choice they’ve made—they enter a safety period. This is the time during their childhood when they are too young to protect themselves from Azazel’s evil. But when their demi-angel powers emerge in the months or weeks leading up to their eighteenth birthday, they lose that safety. Azazel has one more opportunity to convert or take the demi-angel’s powers before they fully mature.”

I stared at my hands and twisted my fingers one after the other, thinking about everything my dad had told me. So far, he’d made the visions seem like fun in comparison to this Azazel.
Azazel
. Even his name sent shivers through me. I couldn’t stop shaking, and I couldn’t get my mind to stop spinning. I could die. Muriel could die. Geez, this was way too much. My body felt brittle. Put the least bit of pressure on me, and I’d snap.

As I glanced to my right, the pink sticky notes counting down the days to my birthday caught my eye. I tilted my head, stared at them, and had the oddest sensation.
It was funny.
I wasn’t sure why. Maybe laughing about it was a way to release the stress building inside me like steam in a teakettle.

I laughed and pointed at the refrigerator. “That’s why you made the little countdown calendar on the refrigerator, right? I thought it was because you were excited about my big birthday: turning eighteen, becoming an adult, and all that. But you’re really counting down the days I have to either fight off Azazel or die.” I laughed harder.

I’m losing it. This is so not funny. Why am I laughing? It’s not funny, but it totally is funny, too

My mother sighed. She wrapped her arms around her middle and sat down. Her lips clamped together in a straight line as she glanced at my dad. Her eyes were soft and swimming with emotion. I could almost see her irises swirling like waves in a storm. “Sort of,” she answered finally.

I laughed so hard that I snorted. “Wow, when people say turning eighteen is a milestone, they really have no idea!”

My dad chuckled. “Look, Milayna, the bottom line is that you have to be aware at all times. He’ll use anything or anyone to get to you. If he is able to convert you and pull you to his side, he’ll control your powers, making him even stronger than he already is.”

“Wait, he’ll use anyone? What keeps Mom safe?” I looked between the two of them.

My mom pulled the collar of her shirt down her back and showed me a patch of raised skin. I’d seen it before when she’d worn a tank top or swimsuit, but I’d never examined it before. Now I saw it was an intricate design, the layers of skin weaving above and under each other. “It’s a rune for protection. All human family members get them. It doesn’t keep us completely untouchable, but it gives some protection.”

I ran my fingers over the patch of skin. “Good. That makes me feel better.” I smiled at my mom and she pinched my side, tickling me. When I stopped laughing, I looked at my dad and asked, “So, what is he waiting for? I mean, I’m not in the safety period anymore.”

“The closer it gets to your birthday, the stronger you’ll become. That means there’ll be more power for him to absorb. He’s greedy. He’ll wait until the last possible second so he can absorb the most power from you.”

“So what do I do now?”

“Your powers are weakest when you’re having a vision. Azazel will exploit that. He’ll force visions on you by creating situations that will require your involvement. Knowing that, I want you to make sure you’re always with another demi. They can protect you, and you can protect them.”

Taking a drink of his coffee, he wrinkled his nose. He dumped some creamer into it and tasted it again. With a nod, he turned his focus back to me. “Because you are the highest-ranking demi and the leader of the group, the others in the group are also vulnerable until you turn eighteen. You must, you
must,
work as a team, Milayna. I can’t stress that enough. You’re strongest when you are a united front. Alone, you are at your weakest, and Azazel has a better chance of defeating you. It’s very important you understand that.”

Okay, then, this Azazel guy was really serious. Taking in a deep breath, I glanced at my mom. She’d been silent while my dad talked. She stared into her coffee mug with glassy eyes, and I could see a slight tremor in her hands. My dad was also acting strange, downing coffee like it was water, and he was in the middle of Death Valley in July. They seemed as worried and scared as I was, and my heart rate kicked up another beat. I thought this was all about my demi-angel status and me, but looking at my parents, I could see it was also affecting them.

I forced a smile. “How do we fight him, Dad? This Azazel guy? Do I have laser beams for eyes or spider webs that shoot from my hands?” I asked, only half joking. If Azazel was as evil as they said, what could a group of teenagers do to stop him?

My dad laughed. “No, you don’t have spider webs or laser beams. You’ll have to rely on good, old-fashioned, hand-to-hand combat against his demis.”

“The Tae Kwon Do and every other type of self-defense class you could find—is this why you made me take them?”

“Yes.” My mom set down her coffee mug and moved to pull me into a hug. I squeezed her to me, breathing in her comforting scent.

“As your powers increase, you’ll have telekinetic energy, but it will be weak. You won’t be able to rely on it until your powers fully mature.”

“Wow.” My brain was slogged down with information. It was so full that I had trouble focusing on one thing to process. But telekinesis? Really? I was really starting to believe my dad was embellishing the story a little. Everything I’d heard so far seemed mega far-fetched, but the telekinesis tipped it over the mountain into bizarro world.

“It’s a lot to take in, I know. Think about things for a while. When you have questions, and I’m sure you will, I’ll be here to answer them,” my dad said with a sad smile.

Nodding at him, I grabbed my music player from the counter and started to clear the kitchen table, rinsing the plates for the dishwasher. I hummed along to the song playing through my earbuds while my parents still sat at the table, drinking the last of their coffee. I could hear them talk about getting the oil changed in the cars and other boring stuff that parents had to do.

I tried to clear my mind of everything we’d talked about and just let the music distract me for a little while. I needed some downtime away from demons, visions, and evil people named Azazel who wanted to kill me for powers I wasn’t sure I had.

Hey! My powers…

I pulled out my earbuds and leaned over the kitchen island. “Dad, I have a question now.”

He turned so he was facing me. “Okay.”

“You said I’d have telekinetic powers, right? What about mind reading?” I tapped my temple with my finger. “Will I have that, too? Because it would really be killer this Friday when I have my calculus exam.”

“You can’t read minds, but you will develop the ability to read people’s emotions and perhaps even know what they might do just before they do it. This will help you with your visions,” he paused and narrowed his eyes, “but when it comes to calculus? You’re on your own.”

“Bummer.” I drummed my fingers on the counter. Putting my fingers to my temples, I glared at my dad’s coffee cup.

“What are you doing?” my mom asked. One side of her mouth curled up.

“I’m trying to move that cup.”

My parents laughed. I concentrated on the coffee cup, but it didn’t budge.

“I guess I’ll have to work on this telekinesis thing. It’ll come in handy when Ben is hogging the TV remote and forcing me to watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the fifty-millionth time.”

That night, I sat in my room and tried to move everything. I wasn’t sure how the whole telekinesis thing worked, so I just stared at stuff and chanted, “Move, move, move.”

Everything ignored me and stayed where it was.

Telekinesis, my ass.

Six weeks, four days until my birthday.

I was doodling across the front of my notebook when Muriel came into class. Interestingly enough, it was a picture of angel wings.

Muriel slid into her seat beside me and brushed a lock of hair from her cheek. “I think you need to come over tonight. Have some pizza?” She bounced her pen off her notebook. “There are some people you need to meet.”

“Yeah. My parents told me.”

The instructor began speaking, and I snuck a smile at Muriel before turning forward in my seat. But I wasn’t interested in looking at the stodgy, old professor. My eyes searched out another. When my gaze fell on him, he was staring back at me, his blue-green eyes thoughtful. Chay. Tall, lean, and gorgeous with his dark hair, odd eyes, and a body that looked sculpted in all the right places under his perfectly fitted clothes. I could definitely see why all the girls were crushing on him. But my heart was saved for another. Jake.

And that was why I was floored when I walked into Muriel’s house later that evening and saw Jake sitting on her couch in all his perfect glory. My heart did a little nosedive right to my toes before bouncing back and lodging in my throat. I couldn’t believe it. I’d always thought he looked like an angel with his golden blond hair and denim-blue eyes, but I didn’t know he actually
was
an angel—well, half angel, anyway.

Oh, holy hotness, Batman! He’s amazing.

Tearing my gaze away from Jake, I looked around the room. Nine sets of eyes stared back at me. Most I knew from school: Muriel and Shayla, who were both on the softball team with me; Jen from my history class; Steven and Jake, who played on the school’s football team together; and I didn’t know Drew, Lily, or Jeff very well, but they seemed nice enough. The ninth person, Chay, was a surprise.

“Hey.” I gave a small wave and then rubbed my sweaty palms up and down my thighs. They stared silently back at me, unmoving. I wondered if there was a secret word or handshake I was supposed to know that Muriel forgot to tell me.

Why am I so nervous? We’re all on the same side, and we’re all going through the same thing. Why do I feel like they’re sizing me up? Because they are, genius. I don’t particularly like it.

“So, what now? Is there some kind of initiation or rite of passage or something?” I scanned the faces looking at me.

“Nope. Now’s pizza!” Jake lunged off the couch, and I flinched. He made it to the kitchen in three large strides.

“Pizz-uh,” Steven called out in a deep baritone that made me jump. Getting up, he pushed Jake out of the way and made it to the pizzas first.

“Oh. Okay.” Standing at the door, I watched them swarm to the steaming pizzas, confused. I thought we were going to discuss things, not have a party.

“They’re not much for small talk,” Chay said as he walked by me and into the kitchen.

Neither was he, apparently.

The ten of us gathered around Muriel’s small kitchen table, ate pizza, and talked about our secret. It was the only place we could interact freely and be ourselves.

“Ever dress up like an angel on Halloween or play one in a Christmas pageant?” Drew asked, smiling.

“Yeah.” Picking a mushroom off my pizza, I flicked it on my plate. I missed, and it plopped on Muriel’s arm. She shrugged a shoulder and ate it. I giggled.

Drew laughed and grabbed another piece of pizza. “Betcha didn’t think you really were one, huh?” He scarfed down a bite without even chewing it.

I popped a piece of pepperoni in my mouth and shook my head. “Nope.”

“My mom collects angel figurines and only decorates our Christmas tree with angel ornaments.” Jen shook her head. “I should’ve figured something was up. Talk about angel overload.”

We all laughed.

Shayla looked at me. “What about you, Milayna? What weird things do your parents do?”

I nibbled at the crust of my pizza. “Um, hmm, nothing. They’re just boring, angel-human parents.”

“I guess that’s why you freaked out when you found out about being a demi, huh?” Lily asked, her tone cutting.

“Yeah. I guess.” I glanced at my plate and tore apart my pizza crust.

She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. “And now you’ve had some great epiphany and everything is A-okay.” Sarcasm dripped from her words, and a frown darkened her face.

Looking at her, I tilted my head. “I wouldn’t say that. I do have a few demons after me.” I smiled at her.

“Don’t we all.” Lily stared at me, not returning my smile. “But now we have our fearless leader in the group.” She threw her hand toward me like I was a vowel on the Wheel of Fortune.

“I don’t look at myself that way.”

Whoa, down girl. I’m not here to step on anyone’s toes. You want to be the leader? You got it. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing anyway.

“Yeah, but everyone else does. That’s the problem.” She pushed away from the table and stood. “I gotta go. See you guys at school.” Grabbing her bag from the floor, she tossed it over her shoulder and walked out.

Dumbfounded, I watched Lily leave. Her attitude surprised me. She seemed hostile, which was odd since we didn’t really know each other. Scrolling through the times I’d talked to her in the past, which were minimal, I tried to find something I may have said that offended her.

“Milayna, whoo-hooo!” When I focused on him, Jake smirked. “There you are. What planet were you visiting? Anyway, don’t bother with Lily.” He waved his hand in the air, as if brushing her aside. “She has ego issues.”

“Yeah, when she found out she was a demi-angel, she was disappointed. She thought she was a demi-god.” Jeff rolled his eyes. “Apparently, being an angel is beneath her, especially when she’s not in charge

I spun my empty can of Coke on the tabletop. “Why? Would she have been the leader if I hadn’t stepped up?”

“Her? Nah. Like I said, ego issues,” Jake said.

“Well, I hate to break up a good thing, but the pizza’s gone and it’s getting late. I’m outta here.” Drew stood and smiled. “Thanks for the pizza, Muriel.”

Everyone echoed their thanks. “You know I’d do anything for pizza. Even have you freaks around.” She giggled when Drew tickled her side.

I was slipping into my sneakers when Chay walked over to me. I looked up at him through my lashes. “Hi,” I said for lack of anything earth shattering to say.

“Dad, right?”

“Huh?”

“It’s your dad, right?” Chay asked slowly, like he needed to break out the crayons and draw me a diagram. I could feel my cheeks heat with a blush.

“Oh, my dad. Yeah, he’s the angel.”

Profound. Really.

He nodded once and flipped his car keys around his finger. They jangled when they hit his palm. “See ya,” he said and walked out of the door. His car roared to life a minute or two later.

I looked at Muriel, and she shrugged a shoulder.

I wondered what Chay’s story was. He seemed so closed off. Standoffish. Not shy, though. There was nothing about him that made me think he was shy. In fact, it was the opposite. He almost commanded a room, even without speaking. But what did I care? I wanted Jake and, for once, things were on my side. We were both demi-angels. We’d probably see a lot of each other. Heidi could put that in her pom-poms and shake it!

By the time I left Muriel’s, I felt better than I had in days. I wasn’t the only freak. I smiled. We were a group of demi-freaks.

But the Azazel thing wasn’t the greatest—it was downright scary. I felt like I was standing on a precipice. If I made one wrong move, I’d fall down, down, down into the abyss, and meet my tormentor face-to-face. But now I knew I had people watching my back. Things didn’t seem quite so off-balance. It felt as though maybe, just maybe, I’d be all right with this whole half-angel thing.

***

Five weeks, five days until my birthday.

Muriel and I were at swim practice a week later when it happened again. I had almost forgotten about them.
Almost
.

My hands started sweating. That should have been my first clue, since I was cold from the pool water. Then my stomach tied itself in a bow so tight I doubled over gasping from the pain, and I knew. The visions always started out the same—pain. My dad, who also had occasional visions, taught me some breathing exercises to help me relax. It didn’t work, but I wouldn’t tell him that. He wanted to help.

The blue water of the pool splashing against the tiled sides. The water getting foggy, hard to see through. It’s not blue anymore. Red.

I sucked in a breath through my teeth, making a hissing sound.

Muriel put a hand on my arm. “What’s up?”

“I don’t know yet,” I answered, distracted. For once, I was trying to focus on the vision rather than fight it.

Running. Splashing water. Chlorine.

“Someone is going to run through water and slip, I think. I see them running. I see the blood in the water and taste chlorine.”

Kids! Kids. I can’t fail this time. I can’t fail again.

I pressed my fists to my eyes, sucked in a deep breath, and tried to empty my head of anything but the vision. This was my duty as a demi-angel—to protect humans. I was created for this.

Blowing out a breath, I swung toward Muriel and grabbed her arms. “Is the youth organization using the pool today?”

“It’s Thursday. I guess so.”

I tightened my grasp on her arms and shook her. “You’ve got to listen to me. One of the kids is going to get hurt.” My head started to pound, and then the room grayed out around me, replaced by a clearer picture of the vision.

“Okay, okay. Just tell me what you see.” Muriel tried to keep her voice calm, but I could sense the tremor and feel how tense she was. “Dark curls bounce in front of me. I can only see her back. She’s wearing a red and white polka-dot bathing suit.”

Please, please, find her.

“Here they come, Milayna!” She grabbed my hand and squeezed. “It’s fine. It’ll be fine. Just keep telling me what you see,” Muriel said all in one breath. Her fingers gripped mine tighter, and I started to lose feeling in my fingertips.

“They’re singing. There are at least two of them. Maybe three. Red and white bathing suit!”

“I don’t see her.”

“Hurry.” I gasped for air. The clenching in my stomach rose up my throat, squeezing the oxygen from my lungs and closing off my throat. I couldn’t get a breath. I tasted chlorine; it burned my nose. “She’s gonna drown.”

“How do you know?” I could hear the panic in Muriel’s voice.

I felt dizzy. The pounding in my head was unbearable, and the room started to tilt to the side. My body felt light, like I was floating in the pool. I could hear the water whooshing in my ears.

“I feel it.”

“Oh, damn.”

“Hurry,” I whispered.

Can I die from a vision? It feels like I’m drowning with the girl. Will I die if I can’t save her?

“I see her! There she is, Milayna.” I felt Muriel leave my side.

Moments later, the feeling started to fade. The chlorine burning my nose and throat disappeared, and my lungs filled with air. The pounding in my head lessened. It subsided gradually, but after what seemed like minutes, the vision faded away completely.

Muriel rejoined me, and I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you. What’d ya say to them?”

“I told them if I caught them running, I was going to tell their counselor, and they wouldn’t be able to swim for the rest of the year.”

“What’d they say?”

“
Yes, ma’am
. Which, by the way, I take great offense to. I am not a
ma’am
!”

A giggled bubbled from my lips. With the vision over, I almost felt normal again. I always felt drained after one. My energy was zapped, tapped out. But otherwise, I felt fine.

Muriel and I hurried and dressed to go home. Walking out of the pool room, I stopped short. Chay stood outside the girls’ locker room door. One shoulder leaned against the wall, and a thumb hooked through a belt loop on jeans that rode low enough to make every girl pant.

“Uh, hi,” I said.