Soul Corrupted (5 page)

Josh

The alleyway’s shady and cold,
so I stuff my hands deeper in my pockets and watch the steam issue from my
mouth. I stopped pacing because of the ice patches and potholes, but I might
have to start moving again soon just to keep warm.

She sure as Hell better show up. I texted the same number
from last year and she answered with this place and time. So, where is she? I
need to get back to Grace.

I’m about to give up and leave when Lucifer appears at
the mouth of the alley, nonchalantly adjusting his cufflinks. My heart races in
response to the sight of him. There’s no forgetting the last time I saw him
outside of Cam’s house, or the Hellfire he put in my way.

You’re an Angel now, Josh, I tell myself and puff up
my chest as he slides toward me in an unearthly way. It’s as if he’s using a moving
walkway that propels him farther even as he strides forward.

“Expecting someone else?” Lucifer asks with his usual
grin. He offers me a lemonade, just like he did the day I died. This time, I
ignore it.

So Keira sold me out. Surprise, surprise.

“You’ll do,” I say. “Why are you fucking with Grace’s
brother?”

Lucifer’s eyebrows rise as he sips at the lemonade.
“Tell me, Josh, does Heaven know you’re using that kind of language?”

I continue to glare.

“Not on friendly terms any longer? And I thought we
really had something. All right, then. It seems Mr. Howard had some business he
wanted to discuss with me. And you know me—always open to a good
bargain.” The lemonade disappears and Lucifer rubs his hands together. “Chilly
out here, isn’t it?”

“Where’s Keira?” I ask, trying to decipher his words.
Good
bargain
?

“Pretending to care? How nice of you. She’s busy right
now, unfortunately. She failed to carry out her last assignment.” He
tsk
s.

That probably means she’s suffering for it. But it
isn’t my fault he sent her to try and seduce me. He should have known it
wouldn’t work. I love Grace. It was my love for her that saved me from him in
the first place.

“I’m not going to let Noah make a deal with you,” I
say. I don’t know what I can do about it without revealing myself to him, but
maybe Lucifer doesn’t know my limitations.

“Too late.” He lights a cigarette and holds one out to
me.

I ignore the offer again. “What do you mean, ‘too late’?”
The cold air prickles down the back of my neck, giving me a chill.

“Just what I said. You’re too late to stop me. The
deal’s made. He’s agreed to work for me. Feel free to let Grace know that I’m
happy to take you both back if she wants to be with him.” He grins.

I hate that grin. “We’re never coming back. And you
can’t have Noah.” This will kill Grace. I knew that kid was fucking trouble.

“I already have him.” Lucifer flicks his lit cigarette
into a half-melted puddle between us and turns to go.

“Did you just come to gloat, then?” I ask.

He stops, but doesn’t turn around. “I suppose I was
hoping you wanted to make a counter deal.”

“A counter deal?” I ask. My insides drop through my
feet and I’m anchored to the ground.

Lucifer turns his head so I can see his profile,
shadowed except for his red eyes. “You can do something for me.”

“I’m an Angel now,” I say a bit too loud, and my voice
echoes around the alley. I’m trying to remind myself, too. “Neither Grace nor I
are going to switch sides. Forget it.”

“There is something else,” Lucifer says, coming closer
to face me and giving me his full attention.

“Angels don’t deal with the Devil.” I’m pretty sure
that’s true.

“There’s a first time for everything,” he says. “It’s
a simple task. And it will negate any contract I’ve made with Grace’s brother.”

“Doesn’t making a deal with you put me right back
downstairs?” I ask. “Yes or no?” He can’t lie, but he’ll deceive me if I’m not
careful.

“Not if you aren’t sinning,” he says with a shrug. “It
might actually be a
good
deed. But what you should be most worried about
is the condition. See, if you agree, you have to fulfill your side of the
bargain, or our deal is off and I get Noah.”

I shudder and huddle smaller inside my leather jacket.
The temperature just dropped about twenty more degrees. “What is it you want
from me?”

“I want you to break up with Grace,” he says. “Tell
her Keira’s other face is your new love and stay away from her until you’re
told otherwise. No giving hints, or telling the truth.”

Sweat pours down my back, hitting the air and making
me shake even harder. He wants me to give up Grace? I might as well give up my
limbs. I’m nothing without her.

“Well?” he asks.

I shake my head. “I can’t do it.”

“I understand.” Satan shrugs. “After all, you really
belong in Hell. Why would you put her needs before your own? I wonder if Grace
would be open to a bargain of her own—”

He’s right, damn him! Grace would give up everything
in a heartbeat if it meant saving her brother. But if I make this deal…

“I can get back together with her?” I ask.

He pauses in the middle of brushing off the sleeves of
his suit. “When Hell’s given the okay. Sure.”

“You have to promise to give that okay as soon as you
can.” I can’t believe I’m saying this. Mr. Griffith would kill me. But he also
won’t let me get involved when it comes to Grace’s family, and this way I don’t
have to. At least not directly. Hopefully he won’t find out. In any case, Grace
is my priority.

“As soon as I’m satisfied my business has been
accomplished and I don’t need her distracted anymore.” He crosses his heart.

“Why do you need her distracted?” I ask, picking up on
the danger signs. I take a step toward Lucifer.

“Does it matter, Josh? Isn’t Grace more important than
anything? Isn’t that why you’re here instead of wherever it is you’re supposed
to be?” He gets close enough that we could touch—but he doesn’t try it.

I fight the urge to back away from the overwhelming
scent of cologne and stand my ground.

“You crossed me, Joshua. You thought you could put me
in check by defying me, but I enjoy a good game. Now your queen’s in danger.
Are you going to protect her?” He re-buttons his sport coat. “Maybe I’ll
arrange for Noah to meet an undesirable end right in front of her.” He
chuckles. “Picture Grace’s face when her brother dies and goes to Hell. Suicide
by cop, perhaps? Your move.”

I curl my hands into fists in my pockets, wishing I
could strike Lucifer. But I don’t know what would happen. Probably nothing
good. I’m pretty sure nothing good can come of making a deal with him either, but
it’s better than the deal Noah made. At least mine is finite.

“Fine, I’ll do it. I’ll do it for Grace.”

Grace

Today is all about work. I
have a job to do. A very important job. A job Mr. Griffith trusted me with, and
I’m not about to let him down.

So I spend the day in Heaven, trying not to think
about my family. Once I get into researching, it isn’t so bad. Every time my
mind wanders, I take a sip of my forever-steaming latte and a bite of scone and
force myself forward.

Turns out the little boy we watched yesterday is Kobe
King. He lives in Detroit, which I’m not eager to visit, but if I can help this
boy, I will. He’s nine, but small for his age, and has a history of truancy at
his school. His brother, Jon, is in a gang, like I feared, and his mom is
single with a bunch of kids.

I followed him via the screen for hours as he wandered
some pretty scary areas of the city, making his way down by the river and back
up again. He wears a heavy look most of the time, like an older person who’s
been through some rough times. And he slips in and out of public view like a
mouse, barely visible to any passerby unless he wants to be.

It’s easy to get lost with Kobe as he trails around,
observing his surroundings. I don’t even realize how long I’ve been watching
until it’s dark. Josh and I have set up the lights to fade and rise along with
the sun in Washington, to keep us connected in some way to the people below.

“I should probably take a look at the next person,” I
say to no one. I wonder where Josh is. He’s been gone all day. I bury the image
of him with that girl in the coffee shop when it enters my thoughts yet again. I
have no reason not to trust him. Focus on the work, Grace.

“Show me the young girl you showed us yesterday,
please,” I say, and take a sip of coffee while the swirling colors settle.

She sits on a porch swing that creaks as it sways. The
white wood around her shows signs of peeling and warping from weather and age.
A breeze blows through her hair, which swings in her face to obscure her
strange eye, and I find myself breathing a sigh of relief.

She’s reading again. “Show me her book,” I say. The
image zooms in on the cover for a moment and I see it’s a weathered copy of
The
Secret Garden
, but the image morphs and the cover turns transparent,
revealing a second cover beneath. It has a pentagram etched on the worn gray
material. Above the pentagram is a knife with a jeweled handle, slashing
downward toward the center, where blood spurts out.

I gasp, remembering the knife in Cam’s hands as he
threatened me and tied me up. My coffee nearly spills when I stand suddenly and
step away from the screen.

“Hey,” Josh says from the doorway. His voice is flat,
like it was when he was under Lucifer’s control. Here I am thinking of the
torture I endured with Cam for less than an hour, while Josh suffered with
Satan for months.

I run to his arms. He remains stiff and still while I
embrace him, resting my head against his chest. “You’re cold,” I say.

“It’s pretty cold in the middle of March,” he says,
detaching himself and peeling off his jacket.

I laugh, but it sounds awkward. Why is he acting like
this? “Where’ve you been? I’ve been researching the souls we looked at last
night. I just got started on the girl. Haven’t even gotten her name yet.”

“Grace, stop.”

I do. “What happened?” I ask, slipping a piece of hair
into my mouth.

“I need to tell you something. And you aren’t going to
like it.” He bristles a little, then finally peels off his jacket.

“Is it about Noah?” I ask around my hair. It must be.

“No. It’s not about Noah. Not everything is, you know.
I’m here, too. I have needs.” His voice rises, making me flinch.

“Of course. I just didn’t know you were having any
problems,” I say, sitting in a chair so I can’t look at the screen. I pat the
spot next to me, but he ignores it in favor of pacing.

“Look, Grace, you’re amazing. You really are. But the
thing is, it sort of hit me lately that this is forever.” He stops and gestures
around the room.

I don’t move. He’s can’t be saying what I think he’s
saying. It’s preposterous. We’re in love. He just told me yesterday…

“I’m not ready for forever,” he says. “I’m only
seventeen. Or I would be if I were still alive. Hell, you’re a few months
younger than me. That’s way too young for forever.”

“Josh. We don’t have to get married. Things are
different for us. We’re dead.”

“Exactly,” he says, slightly relieved that I seem to understand.
But I don’t. “So I think it makes sense that we should see other people.”

“What?” I jump up, dropping the hair from my mouth.

“You sure as Hell haven’t had time for me lately. I
get it. You have to come to terms with your death. Say good-bye, or whatever.
But me? I don’t have anyone to say good-bye to. And I found someone. Someone
who’s willing to give me all the attention I need with no strings attached.”

Josh crosses the room and stops short of reaching out
for me. “I think it’ll be good for you, too. Maybe it’ll help you move on.”

“I don’t want to move on.” Tears well in my eyes, and
I try to blink them away. “How did this happen?” I ask, trying to stay calm,
but getting more agitated with each syllable. This makes no sense. It has to be
the girl in the coffee shop, but I hadn’t realized I’d left him on his own that
much. Have I really been so preoccupied with my family that I ignored Josh?
Ignored him when he needed me? Ignored what was happening?

“You know that girl you saw me with?” he says, unable
to meet my eyes while he confirms my worst nightmare. “Her name is Hope. And
she isn’t a potential Antichrist. She’s someone I’ve developed feelings for.”

My heart stops. The world spins. “When could you have possibly
fallen for her?”

“When I was in Washington, waiting for you to get over
Noah’s rebellious phase. She works at the coffeehouse. That’s where we met. At
first she was just someone to talk to, but lately… I have feelings for her,
Grace, and it wouldn’t be fair to you not to be honest about it.” His face
scrunches up like the words taste sour. Well, good, because my world’s just
been ripped apart.

 “I thought we were good. I thought…I thought you
loved me. Why didn’t you tell me you felt this way?” I ask through the tears.
It’s becoming increasingly harder to stay standing with my knees feeling like
jelly.

“I just did,” he says, backing up a little. Are his
eyes glassy, too? Or is it just my own blurred vision? “I know it’ll be
awkward. If you want me to find another mentor, I’ll ask Mr. Griffith.”

“No. No, I-I mean, it’s my job. You’re an Angel now
and I’m your mentor.” My throat is so thick I can barely get the words through.
“You’re not going to have a whole lot of time with Hope, though, while you’re
working. Are you even sure Mr. Griffith is okay—”

“I’m her new Guardian Angel. She asked for one and he’s
already approved. And I’ll find enough time.” He turns away. He probably can’t
bring himself to see what he’s doing to me. At least some part of him still
cares.

“We can get through this, Josh,” I say, reaching for
his arm. “It isn’t about another girl. It’s about us. Please look at me.”

He rips his arm away and won’t turn around. “Maybe
sometime. But I need a break for awhile. At least until you’ve finished wasting
your time being mad at your brother for making his own choices.”

There’s physical pain in my chest. If I make a sound,
it’ll be a sob. I won’t let him see me like this; see how much he’s hurt me. I
have to go.

So I run. I leave the room and Josh and everything I
thought I had and I head for the gates, morphing into jeans and a T-shirt so I
look like a distraught soul who’s just died. Hopefully Shona’s not working here
today and no one will recognize me. And no one will try to stop me or befriend
me since no one’s been assigned to me.

I sit in the cloud by the corner of the gates. Mist
flows up and over my lap, obscuring my lower half as I finally let it all out.
I cry for what must be hours, until I’m empty. There’s nothing left to fill me
up, so I sit, watching the souls meet their greeters, and review what Josh
said.

I can’t even be mad at Hope. She probably doesn’t know
Josh has a girlfriend—
had
a girlfriend.

A girl about my age has just come up, screaming and
crying and tearing at the collar of her shirt. Shona said that means she
probably died in a way that had to do with her neck. By choking, strangulation,
or having her throat slit. It’s amazing how many people are murdered in a given
day. The unforgiveable sin. Maybe humanity isn’t worth saving. Maybe I was too
ready to believe Josh didn’t have a choice when he was working for Lucifer when
all the time he did, just like how he keeps telling me Noah has a choice. Maybe
people like Josh, people who make the wrong choices, the easy choices, don’t
want to change when it comes down to it.

Picturing Josh makes me start to cry again. What am I
thinking? He’s worth saving. He did the hard thing and told me the truth. How
can I fault him for that?

If I can’t fault him and I can’t fault her, who’s left
but myself?

A young man in Angel robes soothes the girl, and she
lets her hands fall away from her neck. Whatever happened to her, the physical
signs are gone now. Just the memories remain. Or maybe she blocked it all out,
like I did when I came here. Blocked out the image of Josh driving the car into
me.

And just like the car that killed me, I never saw this
coming.