Chapter Twelve
We hurried away from the property as quickly as we could, eager to leave the carnage behind us, but not before searching for identification for each human, so we could send it to the authorities who would come claim the bodies and notify the families. What the vampires had done to the humans was beyond repulsive. Yes, vampires were ghastly creatures, known to suck the lifeblood from humans, but to cage them as nothing more than animals used for constant feedings was beyond evil.
We had to stop them.
“How do we know where to go?” Jonah asked. The sun had nearly sunk below the fields, leaving only the hint of liquid rays of gold shining out over the rows of wheat and corn.
Oriel’s face was grim as he flew over the treetops, rising higher in the air. “I’ll need to speak with Michael about this.”
We flew for a bit. Once the sun was down and the stars had come out to light our way, Oriel guided us to a clearing in the foothills. A shallow, blackened pit in the center of the clearing designated this as a camping spot. Fortunately, there were no humans anywhere in the vicinity. Jonah piled several pieces of wood into a fire pit and cast a glowing ball of light at the kindling, igniting them immediately.
“We should be safe here, but keep your weapons close at hand,” Oriel said quietly as he scanned the area. “I don’t believe we’re anywhere close to a coven, yet. We’ll wait until daylight before we find them and attack. They need to be at their weakest.”
The firelight was cheerful, but we certainly weren’t. The five of us collapsed around it, each saddened by the situation, but unsure of what to do next.
Oriel sat cross-legged, his palms-up on his knees. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he summoned Michael within his mind. Telepathy between Angels was easy enough, second nature even, if we were within a short radius of each other. Reaching someone at High Command was a different affair, and not something that could be achieved by just anyone.
A few months ago, I would have been envious that it was Oriel who reported the incident to Michael and asked for guidance on finding the vampires. The old me would have wanted to be a part of that, especially if it meant speaking to the Prince of Angels, but now I understood that we had our ranks for a reason. They were not solid, concrete categorizations that the human armies had. It was simply clear to us that Oriel was our leader, and Michael was his. Besides, I didn’t want to know how thunderous Michael’s voice might sound inside my own head.
Oriel remained in this meditative state while Trinity sharpened her blade. The small stone she carried in her pocket for the task made a whisking noise against the sound of Oriel’s deep breathing, and it grated against my bones. It didn’t matter that she was preparing for the next battle, I didn’t want to hear it, or even think about it.
Hannah, meanwhile, plucked long blades of grass and carefully braided them into ropes. She tied these to her belt, and I watched her closely. She caught me staring, her golden-fringed eyes lifting to meet mine as she twisted the plant material together. “It’s good for tying things to your belt,” she explained shyly. “For carrying more.”
“Seems very…practical.” It was the best compliment I could muster. It wasn’t a bad idea, and I knew the pleasure of working with my hands. Just because Angels could cast spells that accomplished remarkable feats didn’t mean we didn’t enjoy crafting as well.
I realized that even though Hannah and I had been in the same training group, I had never taken the time to get to know her. It wasn’t fair of me, but I wasn’t in the mood to fix it at the moment. Instead, I stood up and walked away from the campfire toward the woods, wanting to be alone with my thoughts.
The trees in the area were still a nice mix of hardwoods and evergreens since we weren’t very high into the mountains. I walked without a light, soaking up the darkness and the silence that surrounded me. Crickets chirped in the distance, calling to their mates, but there were no demons screaming for vengeance or dying humans wondering why someone would do such a thing to them.
I turned my face toward the stars, musing over the fact that humans used the gesture when they wanted to speak to someone in Heaven. It wasn’t quite accurate, but it was as close as they could get. I didn’t have anyone that I wanted to talk to, but I allowed myself to marvel at the starlight and how far it had come to reach me.
I felt the pressure of a hand on my arm and I pulled way, spinning around to see who had followed me out here. I summoned white light in one hand while drawing my sword with the other. I had taken Oriel’s words to heart, never abandoning my weapons or letting my guard down. Especially not out here in the darkness.
“Easy, now!” The light in my hand illuminated Jonah’s face and I saw the look of concern etched into his features. He was holding up his hands in surrender.
“Jonah? What are you doing?”
“I came to see what you were doing, stomping off into the woods by yourself.”
I turned my back to him and continued down the path in the direction I had been going before he found me, continuing to use Luminescence to guide my way. “I just needed to get away.” I heard the sound of his footsteps as he followed me.
“From me?”
“Just away. What happened back there, what we saw…it was heartbreaking.” The trees looked completely different now that my way was lit by the light in my hand. Their trunks and lower branches came to life as I passed them and then quickly turned back into shadows.
“We knew the missions wouldn’t be easy.” Jonah had no problem keeping up with me, his long strides more than matching mine. He was soon next to me, and I kept my face forward even though I knew he was looking at me. “I know it’s not easy, but we are here to stop it…and we will.”
I shook my head. “I wish we could have gotten there sooner…saved those people. Gregory, his family, and everyone else held captive… they never should have been there. High Command should’ve had some way of knowing about the Elders of Alabaster before they took the lives of so many.”
He was silent for a moment as we walked. “I know, but it doesn’t work that way. High Command couldn’t have known about this, until it was reported.”
“Are you trying to tell me they couldn’t have done something sooner?” I challenged. I knew I was taking his words out of context, pulling his sentences apart and using them to suit my mood.
“They did what they could as soon as they were made aware, Rumor. They sent us to defeat them.” He grabbed my arm once again and spun me around to face him. “We did what we could, and yes, it was too late. But it’s not too late to save others.”
The action startled me into straightening my fingers and letting go of the ball of light. We were plunged into darkness, but it only took a couple of seconds for my eyes to adjust, and I could still make out his features from the moonlight above.
He let go of my arm and smoothed his hand over my skin. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to give up on the Legion. You’re a strong, skilled warrior, and we need you.”
I shook my head, but it hurt slightly. “I’m not giving up. I’m just frustrated. It’s hard to sit around and wait for the next thing to happen.”
“What Oriel said made sense. The vampires are already stronger than we imagined. It’s best to find them after the sun comes up.”
“I know that. I just want to feel like I’m doing something.” If I had been back in Los Angeles, I could have patrolled the streets for demons until we were ready for the next phase of our mission. At least then I would feel like I was doing my part.
A gentle breeze hit my cheek as he unfurled his wings. “You need to take your mind off things for a bit. Come with me.”
I barely had a chance to spread my wings before he took off, making me chase him up out of the forest and toward the mountains. We flew off into the night, leaving the campfire and the other Angels further and further behind. For a moment, I almost called out to him to tell him that we should go back to camp, but instead, I pressed harder to catch up with him.
The air was much cooler over the mountains, and I spread my arms to let it wash over me, imagining that it was taking away all the horror I had seen back at the farmhouse. It was fresh and clean, and just what I needed to clear my mind.
Finally, Jonah descended. He spread his arms out alongside his wings and plunged to the ground with one foot extended and the other slightly bent. It was a beautiful landing technique.
“You’ll have to teach me that someday,” I said as I landed with a soft thump next to him.
“I’d love to,” he replied with a smile.
We were standing on the very top of a mountain, nothing else up here with us but the cool darkness of night. To either side, we could see the mountain range extending along through the countryside, as it dipped back down to level earth with foothills and sparkling small towns. The only thing above us was the twinkling stars, a milky stream of pinpoints so thick that they were barely distinguishable from each other.
“Remember that first night we met?” he asked softly as he sat down on a smooth rock and pulled my arm gently to bring me down next to him. “Remember when we sat on that rooftop together?”
“How could I forget?” He was doing just what he said he would, keeping my mind off the horrific scene from earlier in the day, and for the moment, I pushed it to the furthest corners of my mind. “It seems like a lifetime ago.”
His arm brushed against mine as he nodded. “It does. So many things have changed for us since then, even though it’s only been a few months.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Only a few months since I was perfectly content just slaying minor demons and thinking I was making a difference in the world.”
“You did make a difference,” he assured me. “We all did. And it prepared us for the work we do now.” His arm came around me, his body resting against mine, and his hand wrapping around my waist. “But we aren’t supposed to be talking about any of that right now.”
I tipped my head back, letting the weight of it rest against his shoulder, and closed my eyes. It was easy to forget that there were terrible things going on in the world when I had a handsome man at my side, breathtaking scenery around me, and fresh air in my lungs.
I leaned back to find him looking at me, his eyes shimmering in the starlight. There was no resisting him now, no matter how much I wanted to keep my focus on the task ahead.
He leaned over and kissed me, his lips warm and firm. The kiss was far from tentative, but was somehow still reserved. Like there was much more to the kiss, but he needed to hold something back. The kiss wasn’t rough, but it held the promise of fire. After a minute, he broke away, taking that kiss with him, before I’d had nearly enough. He looked at me with smoldering eyes.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever told you how beautiful you are.” He suddenly pushed up from the rock and took my hands into his, pulling me to my feet. His arms banded around me possessively, gradually tightening as he brought me to his chest. “The most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”
His words were lost against my lips, as I kissed him again. His hand moved over my back, resting briefly at my waist. I breathed a sigh against his mouth as he pulled my hips toward him, against the space between his hips. It was impossible not to wiggle against him, to feel the hardness beneath his jeans.
His kiss was all-consuming, a promise of what was to come once the madness of this mission was over. I felt giddy with desire, with the heady sensation of being in the arms of this gorgeous man, this magnificent Angel.
As hard as it was, I stepped away from him, from the strength of his arms, from the promise of another kiss. Something had changed between us, a knowing of what was to come once our battle was over, and we were back at High Command. For now, that knowledge was good enough.
A smile played on his lips, and he extended his hand. “Ready to head back?”
“Not really,” I replied. “But we probably should.”
Within seconds, he spread his wings, and rose off the ground. He leveled off, circling the mountainside, the moon at his back as he waited for me to join him in flight. I released my wings, and we flew side-by-side down the mountain, as the campsite came into view. Then with grace and ease he landed on the soft grass just outside of camp.
As we approached our team, I saw the serious look on Oriel’s face. I was prepared for him to growl at me, to tell me how dangerous it was to leave the group when we were on such a serious mission and that a soldier of my caliber should know better. But he waited for us to sit down, and when he spoke, his words held promise.
“I’ve spoken with Michael,” he said slowly, “and we’ve confirmed the location of the vampire coven. The Elders of Alabaster and their followers operate in cells, each one independent, but all under the same creed.”
“We can take them down at first light.” The words came out of my mouth without thought, eager to forge on.
Oriel shook his head. “This cell is much bigger than the one we found at the farmhouse. Michael is sending reinforcements. We are to attack, but this is not going to be easy. Now, let’s get a few hours of rest before we head out. We’ll sleep in shifts.”
We nodded in understanding. The farmhouse had been a challenge, but that was nothing compared to what we would face tomorrow. Jonah’s hand found mine, and squeezed.