She slammed her hand into mine, and the world shifted around us even as I pulled her tightly against me wrapping my wings around both of us.
The particulars of how one moved between realms was still unknown to me. It was simply something that I was able to do if I thought about it, and it didn’t seem right to question it.
“Where do you think Klein is?” Paige’s question ran through my mind. It was odd, being able to communicate as we traveled through time and space.
“Hopefully, somewhere safe,” I replied. I had to trust that the kid’s survival instinct would continue to serve him well.
I felt my feet touch down on something solid beneath them, and I unfurled my wings to let the view in front of us take shape. I was confused. We stood in a cemetery.
“Why did you bring us to Calamata Island? I thought we were going back to the church,” Paige said.
“You recognize this place?” I had no idea where we were.
Paige pointed at a small gravel path a few feet in front us. “I got bit by that Typhon demon right there.”
It appeared we had been transported back to where our story had begun. I felt a heaviness inside of me, and I knew then my subconscious wanted something else before we could continue on our journey.
I took Paige’s hand to draw her eyes back to mine. “Paige, I want to be sure you understand everything about me. Before we go back, I have to tell someone what I’ve done.”
She shrugged. “I’m not a priest, Riley. It’s not as if I can absolve you of your sins. We all have the black marks. At least you don’t have to worry about the curse influencing you anymore.”
I struggled with the words that bubbled inside my throat. I sat down heavily on the gravestone nearest to me. Many people might view that as sacrilege, but the dead had been my confidantes for so long that I knew they didn’t care. For them, they were focused on the future and rarely on the present.
“I have to say the words out loud to someone,” I said. “I don’t feel like I can make what I’ve done right until I say everything I’ve done wrong.”
Paige knelt down beside me and put her hand on my cheek. It felt cool and soothing against my skin. “Why do you insist on torturing yourself like this? You are a good man, Riley Stone. I’ve believed that with all my heart since the day I met you. You’ve done bad things. You’ve done good things. If you can stop the angels and demons from attacking each other in Kansas City, in what will surely be the first of a long line of battles that cause bloodshed, you will have done something infinitely good. You will save lives. The rest of it doesn’t matter.”
I took her hand and brought it into my lap. I kneaded the skin of her palm. “You don’t understand. It’s because of those things inside me that the darkness was able to take me to begin with. You heard Viho. The darkness is still there. There’s always a chance that I could go dark again. It might be better if I let the archangels do their worst.”
The words hung in the air between us. I saw the flash of anger in Paige’s eyes. She stood up and stared at me with her hands on her hips. Then she kicked me in the shin. Hard.
“Ow! What the fuck?” I said.
“Big bad dark angel feeling sorry for himself?” She was angry. “Geez, Riley. You don’t have the corner market on darkness. Remember that guy named Lucifer? He’s the real deal. Evil incarnate, darkness through and through. There is no redemption for a demon like that. Ever. But you are so lucky! You get a second chance to make it all right, to undo some of the nasty deeds that you’ve done in the past. Has it ever occurred to you that once this angel demon business is done, you could go back to all those places you’ve been in the last week and set about doing good for those you’ve wronged?”
I hadn’t thought about that. But Paige was on a tirade, and I had a feeling she wasn’t going to stop until she was good and ready. As mad
The particulars of how one moved between realms was still unknown to me. It was simply something that I was able to do if I thought about it, and it didn’t seem right to question it.
“Where do you think Klein is?” Paige’s question ran through my mind. It was odd, being able to communicate as we traveled through time and space.
“Hopefully, somewhere safe,” I replied. I had to trust that the kid’s survival instinct would continue to serve him well.
I felt my feet touch down on something solid beneath them, and I unfurled my wings to let the view in front of us take shape. I was confused. We stood in a cemetery.
“Why did you bring us to Calamata Island? I thought we were going back to the church,” Paige said.
“You recognize this place?” I had no idea where we were.
Paige pointed at a small gravel path a few feet in front us. “I got bit by that Typhon demon right there.”
It appeared we had been transported back to where our story had begun. I felt a heaviness inside of me, and I knew then my subconscious wanted something else before we could continue on our journey.
I took Paige’s hand to draw her eyes back to mine. “Paige, I want to be sure you understand everything about me. Before we go back, I have to tell someone what I’ve done.”
She shrugged. “I’m not a priest, Riley. It’s not as if I can absolve you of your sins. We all have the black marks. At least you don’t have to worry about the curse influencing you anymore.”
I struggled with the words that bubbled inside my throat. I sat down heavily on the gravestone nearest to me. Many people might view that as sacrilege, but the dead had been my confidantes for so long that I knew they didn’t care. For them, they were focused on the future and rarely on the present.
“I have to say the words out loud to someone,” I said. “I don’t feel like I can make what I’ve done right until I say everything I’ve done wrong.”
Paige knelt down beside me and put her hand on my cheek. It felt cool and soothing against my skin. “Why do you insist on torturing yourself like this? You are a good man, Riley Stone. I’ve believed that with all my heart since the day I met you. You’ve done bad things. You’ve done good things. If you can stop the angels and demons from attacking each other in Kansas City, in what will surely be the first of a long line of battles that cause bloodshed, you will have done something infinitely good. You will save lives. The rest of it doesn’t matter.”
I took her hand and brought it into my lap. I kneaded the skin of her palm. “You don’t understand. It’s because of those things inside me that the darkness was able to take me to begin with. You heard Viho. The darkness is still there. There’s always a chance that I could go dark again. It might be better if I let the archangels do their worst.”
The words hung in the air between us. I saw the flash of anger in Paige’s eyes. She stood up and stared at me with her hands on her hips. Then she kicked me in the shin. Hard.
“Ow! What the fuck?” I said.
“Big bad dark angel feeling sorry for himself?” She was angry. “Geez, Riley. You don’t have the corner market on darkness. Remember that guy named Lucifer? He’s the real deal. Evil incarnate, darkness through and through. There is no redemption for a demon like that. Ever. But you are so lucky! You get a second chance to make it all right, to undo some of the nasty deeds that you’ve done in the past. Has it ever occurred to you that once this angel demon business is done, you could go back to all those places you’ve been in the last week and set about doing good for those you’ve wronged?”
I hadn’t thought about that. But Paige was on a tirade, and I had a feeling she wasn’t going to stop until she was good and ready. As mad
Similar Books
