We run.
There’s no sign of Daisy so we race back the way we came, boots pounding on the pavers.
Shit, shit shit. What are they doing in the library? Is Dani with them? Who else is there? Panic drives my arms and knees. My lungs burn. There’s the door…crap, that’s the library, isn’t it?
‘Gabe!’ It’s Daisy, somewhere behind us. We keep running.
Jude and I hit the door together, sprint across the portico and burst into the library.
Oh fuck.
Jason has his back to us, facing down Nathaniel, Daniel and Calista, his shoulder-length curls still wild from the shift. Calista is barely a metre from him, focused on the woman and child pressed against the bookshelves behind him. The girl is thin-boned, her skin alabaster. Blonde curls hang past her shoulders, damp like they’re freshly washed. Her mother is shorter than everyone else in the room. Dark hair cropped to a pixie cut, practical, her face clear of make-up. She’s wearing an oversized knitted jumper, leggings and boots.
And Maggie.
She’s pale—she always is after shifting. I’ve told her about Nathaniel, but she’s still not prepared for him. She sees me, closes her eyes in relief. My heart gives a painful thump.
‘What the hell is going on?’ I demand and drag everyone’s attention to me. The air in here is colder now, the mustiness heavier.
‘Your friend brought uninvited guests,’ Calista says. ‘And the child tells us she can see Rephaim.’
‘Gabe!’
Dani breaks free from her mother and runs to me. Maria makes a grab for her but Dani’s too quick. She flings her arm around my waist, buries her head against my chest. I freeze. Maria falters. The library is blanketed in silence. The small stranger pressed against me is all elbows, and smells of pears and honey. I put my arms around her, squeeze tight. Her pink parka rustles.
The door opens and Daisy rushes in. ‘What’s going on—’ She falters when she sees Dani wrapped around me.
‘Daisy,’ Daniel says. ‘Guard the doors. Nobody else is to set foot in here. Daisy.’
She’s watching me with a strange expression. Not accusing…confused. She registers Daniel is speaking and finally nods, heads for the door. The door clicks shut behind her.
‘You know this child?’ It’s Daniel who asks.
I ignore him, bend my head closer to Dani. ‘Are you okay?’
She peers up at me through curls even fairer than Jason’s. Eyes startlingly blue. Nods. ‘Mom didn’t want to come but I said we had to.’ Her accent is American—the faintest hint of uptown New York. She gives Jude a nervous smile.
‘Gabe, answer Daniel,’ Calista says.
What the hell am I supposed to say? ‘Give me a minute.’
But Calista’s not in the mood for waiting. She looks from Jude to me, narrows her eyes as if she’s measuring the distance. She lunges. I push Dani to Jude and block Calista with my hip. She recovers, swings her fist. I duck, punch her in the stomach, and then slam my elbow into the side of her head. She staggers sideways and I kick her hard in the hip. She grabs a chair on the way down; it’s on castors, so it only speeds her fall. Calista’s leg twists as she lands and her trackpants hitch up. I catch a flash of something—dull grey, metallic; all wrong—and then Daniel shoves me aside. By the time I get my balance, Jude has slammed Daniel into the bookshelf, a hand tight around his throat.
‘I warned you about touching my sister again,’ Jude says.
Daniel swings an elbow at Jude. Jude blocks it, keeps his grip on Daniel’s throat. They eyeball each other.
‘Stand down!’ Calista is on her feet, eyes blazing. I get between her and Jude and Daniel. Dani’s back with her mother now. Maria’s eyes are wide, her breathing shallow, arms clamped around her daughter. Jason is in front of them and Maggie, arms out, protective.
‘You first.’ Jude leans into Daniel. Daniel could shift but doesn’t. Pride?
‘Judah,’ Nathaniel says. ‘If you expect this child to stay here, she must first be tested. She may be under the influence of the demon realm.’
I glance at Dani, heart in my mouth. ‘She made it through the wards, so you know she’s not—’
I don’t finish because I’m blinded by white-blue light. It’s so fierce I have to shield my closed eyes, and even then it forces its way under my lids. I step back, involuntarily. There’s an odd sound, like a crisp linen sheet being snapped out. Is he…? Has he…?
Next to me, Jude sucks in his breath. ‘Fuck. Me.’
The light eases enough for me to peer through my fingers. Nathaniel’s wings are unfurled, radiating light. They are breathtaking. Luminous. Massive. Every feather perfect. The tip of each wing touches the bookshelves either side of the library. Almost like the symbol in the iron room, except those wings weren’t attached to a fallen angel. I can’t take my eyes from Nathaniel, not even to check on Dani and Maria. I’ve seen his wings before—for a blinding moment on the mountain when he drove back the Gatekeepers—but not up close like this.
The light fades but the wings stay outstretched. Jude is so distracted he lets go of Daniel’s throat. Daniel pushes past him, straightens his shirt and walks over to Nathaniel. It’s only then I see Jason has Maggie in the corner, shielding her with his body.
‘It is remarkable,’ Nathaniel says. ‘This child is worthy to be in my presence. As is her mother.’
It takes me a second to grasp the significance of his words and when it does, it’s like a kick in the chest. ‘You arsehole.’
‘Gabe,’ Daniel snaps. ‘Watch your mouth.’
‘That could’ve killed them, couldn’t it?’
Nathaniel doesn’t blink. ‘You brought unsanctified humans into our Sanctuary. Did you not think I would test their worthiness?’
It never occurred to me Nathaniel might show his true form to Dani and Maria. They’re probably only still alive because of their fallen angel heritage. Does he now suspect that connection? And what would’ve happened to Maggie if Jason hadn’t been so quick on his feet? He’s still covering her protectively, whispering reassurances. ‘Is my friend safe?’ I ask. It’s a struggle to keep my voice steady.
Nathaniel glances over at Maggie, almost as if he’d forgotten there was another human in the room. ‘Of course.’
Jason glares at him and then helps Maggie to her feet. She’s shaking and a little wobbly, but she stands on her own. ‘I’m okay.’
Dani is still staring at Nathaniel. ‘Your wings are beautiful,’ she whispers. ‘Would you flap them?’
‘Baby, no.’ Maria holds her daughter tight, every muscle rigid.
‘Please?’ Dani asks, tentative.
Nathaniel’s eyebrows lift a fraction. And then he beats his wings, slowly. Once, twice. Cool air rushes over me, the smell of dry leather and old paper. The gust lifts my hair from my forehead, stirs dust and cobwebs along the bookshelves. And then Nathaniel folds his wings behind him until they disappear completely. His irises flicker, slower now.
Dani’s eyes widen. ‘Where do they go?’
‘They are still with me. They exist on a lower plane until I manifest in glory in this one.’ Vaguely, I wonder if that plane is like the one we’re dragged through when we shift.
The tension in the room eases a fraction. Calista touches her head where I hit her. My eyes drop to the cuff of her trackpants. The fabric is back in place but I know what I saw: a titanium prosthesis where her shin and ankle should’ve been.
‘Lose the pity. It’s been gone a long time.’
‘How?’ The question’s out before I realise I have no right to ask.
‘Zarael.’ Calista makes a chopping motion in the middle of her right thigh. ‘He put his sword clean through the bone. He took what he cut as a trophy.’
‘But…’ I frown. ‘What about shifting?’
‘It doesn’t regrow limbs.’
Oh.
‘Does Mya know about this girl?’ Daniel asks.
‘No,’ I say. ‘Nobody else does.’
‘What about Rafa?’
‘Yeah, okay. But only because he throttled it out of Jason.’
A short, unimpressed noise escapes Daniel. ‘And you are critical of our methods.’
‘We shall return to the child in a moment.’ Nathaniel walks over to Jason.
Jason stiffens, positions Maggie so she’s behind him.
‘For the moment, let us talk about you, and why you have hidden from me all these years.’