The Angel of Death (The Soul Summoner Book 3) (18 page)

Nathan sandwiched a piece of sausage between two halves of his biscuit. “What’s on the agenda for today?”

I sighed. “I’ve got to figure out our living situation. I’m running out of space in this house.”

Azrael nodded. “I need to gather my things from the hotel, and at some point, I’d like to find the woman who was in the road last night.”

“I’d like that too,” I said.

“Something tells me, she’ll be back all on her own,” Nathan said.

I looked at Azrael. “You said all three of them gave birth to daughters. Who is the third?”

He put his fork down. “When Warren was very young, Phenex arrived in Chicago. She was pregnant with a daughter. It was then I first suspected their plan because angels don’t often decide to procreate.”

“Why?” Nathan asked.

“Our gift is passed on to the child, creating a bond between us and our offspring that cannot be willingly severed,” he explained. “As long as the child lives, the angel is confined to this earth. That’s not an easy sacrifice to make for any angel, good or evil.”

I was confused. “But I thought you said none of the angels who were cast out can cross the spirit line, regardless?”

He shook his head. “They can’t cross back into Heaven; that is true. But they can move through time and space here unhindered as long as they aren’t tied here. The bond with the child is a lot like gravity in a sense.”

“What happened to Phenex?” I asked.

“I dispatched her from her human form,” he said.

My eyes doubled in size. “You killed a pregnant woman?”

“No. I told you, I don’t have the ability to destroy an angel.” Azrael looked frustrated by that fact.
 

Truthfully, I was frustrated by it as well. If he couldn’t destroy my demon mom, no one could. “That’s why Samael couldn’t kill Kasyade in Texas,” I said. “He said she’ll come back.”

“That’s correct,” Azrael said. “It will take a full moon cycle, then Kasyade will be able to take human form again.”

“How is that done?” Nathan asked.

Azrael held up two fingers. “Two different ways. We can either be born into a body or a body can be taken. I suspect it will be the latter because it doesn’t take as long.”

I shuddered. “So that exorcist stuff is real?”

“Quite real, but she won’t be able to do it alone. She’ll need an angel to help her. Therefore it is imperative we find Ysha and Phenex.”

“How?” I asked.

Azrael smiled. “I have my resources.”

“We are getting way off topic here. What about Phenex’s baby? Did it die?” Nathan asked.

Azrael shook his head. “The child was full term, and she was born perfectly healthy and completely human.”

I thought for a moment. “She wasn’t part angel?”

“Only human,” he said. “If the angelic spirit is severed while the child is in utero, no part of the spirit is passed on at birth.”

Suddenly, I was no longer hungry. “What if something happens to me while I’m pregnant?”

Azrael hesitated.

“I want to know,” I said despite every one of my feelings to the contrary.

He folded his arms on top of the table. “If something happens to you before the child can survive outside your womb, then you’ll both pass into the spirit world.”

He was quiet again.

Nathan and I exchanged a worried glance. “And if something happens once the child
can
survive?” Nathan asked.

Azrael took a deep breath. “If Sloan dies, then Kasyade will no longer be tied to this world. She’ll be able to move across time and space freely, and she will get to the child before any of us can stop her.”

Nathan said a bad word.

“Even you can’t stop her?” I asked.

He shook his head. “Not if she’s in spirit form and I am not. This is why Phenex is particularly dangerous. She has no bond here. She can come and go at will.”

Resting my elbows on the table by my plate, I cradled my face in my hands and stared down at my eggs.
 

A surge of energy flowed into me when Azrael’s hand stretched across the table to grasp my forearm. “Look at me,” he said.

Numb and completely overwhelmed, I looked up at him.

“I won’t let anything happen to you or the child. I am a formidable adversary, even as I am.” He smiled and pointed at me. “And you are not easy to kill.”

I wasn’t so sure I believed the last part.

He nudged my plate toward me. “Eat. You need your strength.”

Frowning, I dropped my head. “What strength?”

“Eat,” he insisted.

Nathan offered me his coffee cup. “Here, have another sip. I know juice is your thing now, but this will make you feel better.”

“Thank you.”

As I drank it, he winked at me.

Azrael must have noticed the exchange. He split a glance between the two of us. “What is your relationship? I’ve been watching the two of you for weeks, and I rarely find one of you without the other.”

Nathan blew out a sigh. “It’s complicated.”

Azrael sat back in his chair. “I was able to work that much out for myself.”

“We’re friends,” Nathan said. “Warren asked me to take care of Sloan while he’s gone.”

“And does he know you’re in love with her?” Azrael asked.

His blatant candor startled both of us.

Nathan tapped his fingers on the table. “I told him.”

My head snapped up with surprise. “You did?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“When?” I asked.

“When he moved in with you before we all went to Texas,” he answered.

“Before Texas?” My voice rose. “That was months ago!”

Nathan shrugged. “He asked. I answered. It’s not like it’s some big secret. Everybody knows.”

Azrael shook his head. “My son did not get his patience from me. I would have killed you.”

I cringed.
Yikes.

Nathan’s head tilted. “I’m sure he’s thought about it.”

“Speaking of relationship drama,” I said, looking at Azrael. “Who is Warren’s mother?”

Azrael stared at me for a moment, then looked at his plate without answering. He devoured a piece of sausage like I hadn’t even spoken.

“Kasyade all but admitted she raped the man who fathered me,” I said, conjuring up a surprising amount of bravery. “Is that what happened with Warren?”

Anger flashed through Azrael’s dark eyes, and I shrank back in my seat. Even from across the table, I could hear his teeth grinding. Warren did that too in the rare moments he was mad.
 

After a moment of steely silence, he spoke. His voice was tight and even. “I knew Warren’s mother. I loved her very much.”

My mouth fell open. Azrael didn’t strike me as having the ability to love anyone. “You loved her?”

He slowly nodded his head. “She’s the reason I tied myself here.”

It was obvious Azrael didn’t want to elaborate, but I didn’t care. If he could inquire about my love life, then I entitled myself to knowing about his. “How did you meet her? What was she like?”

There was more teeth-grinding.

Nathan nudged my leg with his socked foot under the table. He was warning me with his eyes.

I didn’t care. “Where is she?”

Azrael picked up his half-eaten breakfast and carried it to the sink.

“Where is she?” I asked again.

His head whipped toward me, his eyes fiery and his jaw set like stone.
 

We stared at each other. I could feel my blood pressure rising as we engaged in a silent battle of wills.
 

Finally, his shoulders dropped. “She’s dead.”

His words echoed around the room, and his anger melted into raw pain.

I’d won, but I was infinitely sorry I’d asked.

13.

Azrael walked out of the house and didn’t return for an hour. When he came back, he carried in a large black duffle bag, a rolling suitcase, and a backpack. He deposited them in the foyer. I didn’t remember an official agreement of him moving in, but I’d been so tired the night before, anything was possible. No matter, we all knew he wasn’t going anywhere and as much as he made me nervous, I was glad.

None of us brought up Warren’s mother again.

Despite the falling snow outside, Nathan had to go into work that afternoon. The city had extracted his SUV from the river early that morning, and he was called in to prepare a written report of the accident and list the contents of the vehicle that would have to be replaced. He also needed to go pick up a new cell phone since his sank to the bottom of the river with everything else. It was obvious when he left the house he was hesitant to leave me alone with Azrael, but I assured him I would be safe until he got back.
 

After we said our goodbyes at the door, I surveyed the stuff Azrael had brought in. With my hands on my hips, I sighed. “I need a bigger house.” He walked up beside me, and I looked up at him. “I have no idea where you’re going to sleep.”

He shook his head. “I don’t usually sleep.”

I frowned. “That’s creepy.”

“My body doesn’t require sleep in the same way yours does. I can sleep, but usually I prefer not to. The couch is fine,” he said.

I groaned. “But what will we do with all your stuff?” I pointed toward the ceiling. “I’m going to see how much space is left in the guest room-slash-Nathan’s room-slash-the armory upstairs.”

When I got to the room, the sight was a little overwhelming. There was a dresser already filled with most of Warren’s clothes sandwiched between the wall and two oversized, fireproof gun cases. Blocking the only window in the room, was a cabinet filled with ammunition. Nathan had two stacks of clothes on the floor beside the bed, along with two pairs of tactical boots and a spare belt. Surprisingly, the bed was made, but his toiletries bag and a laundry bag were deposited on top of the comforter. In the small closet were more of Warren’s clothes and most of my summer wardrobe.
 

There was no place for Azrael’s belongings, and even worse…no place for a baby.
 

“I need a bigger house,” I said again.

“You seem stressed.” Azrael’s voice behind me almost caused me to pee my pants.

I gasped and spun around to see him leaning against the doorframe of the bedroom. “You scared the crap out of me.”

He nodded. “I can tell. What are you doing?”

I scratched my head. “Trying to figure out our living situation. I really don’t want the Angel of Death setting up residence in my living room.”

“Why don’t you ask Detective McNamara to return to his apartment? There is no need for him while I am here,” he said.

In the closet, I gathered all my sundresses in my arms. “While I’m sure you see it that way, Nathan won’t agree. He won’t ever completely trust you. It’s not in his nature, so I suggest you start getting used to it.” As I walked past him, I motioned to the closet. “Can you grab all the men’s clothes hanging up in there and put them on my bed?”

From his annoyed expression I could tell he thought the task was beneath him.

“And then can you grab all the shoes?” I added.

I heard him groan as I walked to my room.

After arranging all of mine and Warren’s clothes in my closet, I returned to the guest room. Both of Warren’s gun cases were standing open, and Azrael was holding a huge rifle. I froze in the doorway. “How did you get those open? I don’t even know the combination.”

He grinned over his shoulder at me. “Magic.”

I shuddered.

The closet was empty except for the extra sheets for the guest bed. “I think there’s room for your stuff in here now,” I said.

He nodded. “I’ll bring it up in a moment. You should get dressed.”

“For what?”

“It’s time to go to work,” he said.

I looked at the clock on the nightstand. “It’s time to go to dinner.”

He looked down the barrel of the rifle as it was pointed at the floor. “You have training to do.”

“Not today,” I whined. “I want dinner and an early bedtime.”

He snapped the barrel closed, and put the gun back in the case. “We won’t do much today, but I want to get started. You exercising your gift will not only protect you, but it will protect others
from
you. Right now you’re a liability.”

I frowned. “You don’t even know me.”

“Maybe not, but I know what you can do. You need to master it.” He looked at his watch. “You do this, and I’ll treat you to dinner after. Deal?”

I sighed. “Deal. What should I wear?”

“Something warm.”

I returned to my room and dressed in jeans and a turtleneck sweater. I pulled on my brown, fuzzy boots and picked up my cell phone off the bed. I tapped out a text message on my phone to Nathan.
Going out to practice my superpowers with Azrael and then to dinner. Be back later.

As soon I pressed the send button, the phone buzzed in my hand.
Message Undeliverable.

He obviously hadn’t picked up his new phone yet.

When Azrael and I walked outside, he opened up the passenger side door of the truck parked on my curb. I narrowed my eyes and cocked my head to the side.

“What is it?” he asked.

I pointed to the bland black pickup. “I expected something cooler from you, Mr. Archangel. Like a Hummer…or the Batmobile.”

He didn’t laugh. “I’m sorry to disappoint. Get in.”

Once we were inside, he put an address into a GPS device. I couldn’t help but snicker. He cut his eyes at me. “Is something funny?”

I folded my hands in my lap. “The Angel of Death needs Garmin?”

“Navigating was much easier and faster when I could cross in and out of this world,” he said.

“Like teleporting or apparating?”

He put the truck into gear. “Something like that.”

I looked out at the clumps of dirty white snow lining the streets. “That’s so cool. Do you miss it?”

“Every single day,” he said.
 

“What’s so great about it?” I asked.

He rubbed his hand over his mouth. “Do you remember what it was like the first time you met my son?”

I laughed. “How could I forget? He showed up at my doorstep and scared the hell out of me.”

He looked over his shoulder at me. “I’m talking about the first time he ever touched you.”

The first time Warren’s hand brushed mine, we were sitting on the curb in front of my house. It was like a bolt of electricity pulsing from his body through mine. The memory alone was enough to make me squirm in the passenger’s seat of the truck.